Ive written a novel, it is 81,000 words so far ive been writing it for 11 months now, how can i publish it???

Question

Im not sure but i want to get it published around march next year, and oh does it help to get into journallism? im 14 right now and i have to pick my subjects for year 10 in the next week, im really confused:S

Answer 1

Impressive; however, it appears that you are not yet ready for sending your manuscript out to be published. You've written your novel over the last 11 months but have you RE-written it yet? I'd recommend setting it aside for a while (at least a week, but a month would be better), then start working on it again.

Rewriting is a key ability of a successful author. Look over each scene in your book and ask yourself what you are trying to accomplish with it (how does it advance the plot, how does it develop the characters, etc). After you know what you are trying to accomplish in a scene, ask yourself if it is truly necessary (personally, in my own writing I often find, during a rewrite, that I can take out entire scenes just because the "job" that it was supposed to do was either unnecessary or done elsewhere). You might also want to take a look over the "Turkey City Lexicon" (link in the sources section), which is a compendium of terminology developed over the years in writing workshops that refer to things you might want to look out for. Have you "Call(ed) a Rabbit a Smeerp" (the act of renaming mundane things something else in order to appear exotic. A spoon should always be a spoon, not a widgle-shovel, for example)? Does your dialogue suffer from "Said" Bookism (the act of replacing "said" with a plethora of other words for the sole purpose of avoiding using the word "said"), or might your story be suffering from a case of "Tom Swiftly" (the act of propping up dialogue with an overabundance of adverbs).

Mind, not all the faults expressed in the Lexicon are things you should avoid (J.K. Rowling, for example, sometimes suffered from "Said" Bookism but to no hindrance). Rather, these are things you should, at the very least, be aware of and be aware of when you are doing them.

Once you have rewritten your novel (tempering it like fine Damascus steel), you may need to rewrite it again. At the very least, however, you will need to edit it for spelling and grammar. And when I say "you" I really mean "everyone you know." You need to edit the book yourself, but get your parents to look over it, your friends, your dog, etc. A spelling or grammar mistake can turn a publisher off to your work before they give you half a chance. Remember, however, your friends and family aren't paid professionals, they can make mistakes. You might also want to pick up a grammar book or see if you can track down a list of common grammar mistakes (like using "chose" instead of "choose," poor instead of pour, etc).

After your manuscript is as spotless as you can get it (and please be aware, it will never be 100% perfect, even published works still have a lot of spelling and grammar mistakes), you'll need to format it correctly (this might seem silly, but a poorly formatted manuscript can be tossed by a publisher without a second glance). Courier New, 12pt, 1 inch margins, double space; the first page should start half way down (to have room for title, other necessary information, and etc), so the first 13 lines (all that should appear on the first page) are terribly important (a good number of submissions will only have those 13 lines read before being tossed).

You will also want to write a cover letter (also terribly important, so do a lot of research for it).

You can obtain an agent, but it isn't necessary (it does help, however). Agents should generally be free; they make their money off of the profits you make. Publishers are also free (if they are charging you, then there is something wrong).

Get ready for rejection letters. It would be more miraculous than the virgin birth (well, I may be exaggerating) if you were to get accepted by the first publisher you send your work to. Keep sending it out, however. You also might want to send the same story to a single publisher more than once (with a significant amount of time between the two, however). Publishers usually have several readers and you might just have the bad luck of getting a reader who doesn't like your writing style.

It doesn't matter if you are 14, 4, or 41; you have just as much of a chance of getting published (but don't tell the publisher your age, they don't need to know just yet).

As for Journalism, it is a fine subject to study, but if you want to be a fiction writer History is actually a better subject to look into. All stories find their origin in history, history tells you how people react in various situations, it helps you understand cause and effect of events, and the better teachers will teach you about the historical methods (how to judge the merit of different sources), which will in turn help you construct more complex stories. Orson Scott Card (a Nebula Award winning author) recommends it over English.

Answer 2

Go onto Google and type in the keywords "literary agent"

Make sure you check up Predators and Editors as well...

But here is the link to one that i am thinking of applying to once i finish my novel...

http://www.wlwritersagency.com/

And Kudos on the word count!

But make sure that before you send it out, get someone to proofread it for you... Multiple someones...

At least three...

But get people who don't feel obligated to just praise everything that you have written, and will be able to point out any loopholes or mistakes...

A teacher, a friend who you trust to be honest... If you want, i can also help... I am willing to sign contracts to assure you that i will not steal your ideas...

But once it has been proofread and fixed up, then send a query letter, and if the request it; the first three or so chapters...

Then they will approach the publishers for you... And you know they will do their best, because they don't get paid until you are published!

Most publishing companies will not accept unsolicited manuscripts, so unless you want to self publish, an agent is the best was to go!

Good Luck!

And if you are interested in my proofreading it for you, just send me a message.

I hope it all works out well for you!

What genre is it/what's it about by the way?

**EDIT**

Oh, and Leon, Paolini started writing it when he was 15, and was published at 18 i think... But he wasn't published at 15...

But that doesn't mean you can't be published at 14!

Answer 3

Once you finish it, you have to send it to publishing houses to see if they'll take it. But be aware that it's *very* hard to get published, and even harder to make lots of money off of it. You will most likely be rejected a lot. I'm not saying this to be mean, but that's the harsh reality of trying to be published. Besides, if your book does get picked up, it'll take about a year for it to get published since they're have a proof reader go through, etc.

Answer 4

because of the fact Stephenie Meyer did it! Why won't be able to they? reality be stated, i does no longer be all that shocked if one in each of those childrens incredibly *did* get their crap revealed. (*ahem* i understand this all sounds slightly ironic, on the grounds that i actually am an adolescent....) in basic terms the different day, i became into in Barns & Noble and observed a e book that became into *completely* written in chat talk. no longer a single be conscious in it became into spelled wisely, and there have been no suited punctuation marks. Grammatical blunders crawling via and around this ingredient like cockroaches. i became into disgusted. the belief the something like that must be revealed, and human beings would incredibly purchase it and *study* it! i do no longer endure in techniques the identify of the e book, inspite of the incontrovertible fact that it became into all pink and had one in each of those :) faces on it. Urgh. I in basic terms could ask your self whether a number of those publishers also have a satisfaction. How can everyone sell books like that for the time of user-friendly terms for the sake of money? it is like all of them bought their souls to the devil. besides, i actually as a rule in basic terms write for relaxing. of direction it is my dream to a minimum of sooner or later be on the manhattan Time's best merchandising record, yet i'm additionally a tad bit real looking. interior the imply time, I in basic terms want to *end* writing one in each of my books, then edit till i'm satisfied. I won't dare think of approximately sending something in to a writer till i'm effective that i will nonetheless have a satisfaction as quickly because it is accomplished. @Sky- i'm afriad i don't understand your good judgment. A author is in basic terms a author/reliable author in the event that they have written between 500 and 1500+ pages? What does that make Truman Capote? Jane Austen? Natalie Babbitt? Are they only desire-to-be-writers? there is not any magic age or web page variety that impulsively makes you a "actual author." Even people who suck at writing are nonetheless writers because of the fact a author is somebody who does in basic terms that: writes.

Answer 5

Hey dude, Paolini published his book when he was 15 years old. If you are self confident and believe in yourself I'm sure you will succeed!!!

Answer 6

http://www.lulu.com/

Self-Publishers.