What steps should I take in getting a book published?

Question

First, my book isn’t finished yet. I’m plugging along at it steadily and have been doing so for over a year, except that lately I’ve been too busy to really sit down and work on it. I’m not sure when it will be finished, but I hope to try for publication once I’ve completed it.

Second, it’s a fantasy novel. I’m not sure how competitive the market for fantasy novels is, though it seems (to me, anyway) that fantasy has become a more popular genre as of late. I think my plot idea is pretty original and I’ve been told by many people- including family, friends, teachers, and some complete strangers that my creative writing skills exceed those of most people my age (I’m 19). I’ve also had some poems and a short story published in a literary magazine as the result of a state-wide contest for young writers. I’m serious about being an author- I know writing novels isn’t something that can be an actual ‘career’, but its one of my life-long dreams to have a novel published.

The main problem is, I have no idea where to start once my book is finished. Do I look for a literary agent? Should I try to find one with an interest in the fantasy genre? What about potential publishers? Should I let several different people read the story before I attempt publication? Will I have problems getting people to take me seriously as a writer because of my age? Advice from published authors would be very much appreciated!

Answer 1

Step one: finish. This is the most critical point for any first novel. You have to have a completed manuscript first.

Step two: publishing creds. It's sometimes hard for genre writers (fantasy, science fiction, mystery) to get an agent to look at their work without some previous publications. Short stories are probably going to help most.

Step three: find an agent. This requires a lot of research; the Writer's Guide to the fiction market will help a lot. Second, check out books similar to yours, and do some searches online to see who the agent was who represented them. (You should not have to pay an agent to read your work, nor should you be paying anything to get it published!)

Typically, the agent will shop the piece around to publishers for you; that's why the agent gets his or her cut, because he or she knows who to talk to, has direct access, and is doing the work of meeting people, selling the book, etc., for you.

It's sometimes possible to go straight from step 1 to step 3, but you need a very high-quality product to convince an agent to go to bat for you.

As far as "I know writing novels isn’t something that can be an actual ‘career’": sure it can. There are a LOT of folks who make a decent living from writing. Not everyone's a NYT best-seller author, but, especially in genre fiction, it's VERY possible to develop a following. Folks like Diane Duane, John Ringo, David Drake, and many many others, make a solid if not high-flying living from their books.

Science fiction and fantasy novels, if they're good, are very often "long tail" - they don't sell a huge number and then vanish, but keep bringing in income over a long period. Your age shouldn't be a problem; not having previous pubs might make it tougher.

You may want to try your hand at a couple of fantasy shorts; you might even be able to set them in your universe to get some buzz going. If you can get fans interested in the universe, they'll keep wanting more about it. Any number of authors have leveraged their universe into long careers. Shorts can be sent directly to magazines - you don't need an agent for that. They're probably the easiest way to get going. Look for a magazine that seems to like the kind of stuff that you do, and send it there.

Best of luck! I've put some links to fantasy markets below.

Answer 2

I'm a writer - and my advice to you is to purchase Novel and Short Story Writer's Market 2007. This book has many great articles and advice on what to do when your book is finished, and listings of places that you can get it published (if it's good enough).

Also, I'd HIGHLY recommend reading Stephen King's On Writing. The second half of the book is a really candid and straightforward discussion of writing and he asks you some tough questions about how much you really want to write - it's a difficult way to make a living.

One more - Holly Lisle, who is a published fantasy novelist has a website:

http://hollylisle.com/

Go to the Writer's section and you will find a ton of really helpful articles on aspects of writing including world building, characters, and a bunch of other stuff.

Good luck

FP

Answer 3

You got some other good answers, so I'll just say that Christopher Paolini, the author of the Eragon series, was only 15 when he wrote the first book. The series has been wildly successful and the first book is now a major motion picture. It's definitely possible to do it young and do it well. Do some research into what worked for Paolini!