I want to publish a book, how do I go about it?

Answer 1

first, write the book

Answer 2

First of all, read and heed the answer you received from persiphone. She is very experienced and knows of what she speaks.
If, as one answerer mentioned, her advice seems harsh and not encouraging - tough!!!
Publishing is a cruel, heartless business and you need to be aware that it's extremely difficult to get published if you aren't a celebrity or an established author.

Having said that, here's what I did to finally get published after two years of trying.
Write your synopsis and manuscript first. Or at the very least you need to write a couple of polished sample chapters to send to the agents or publishers as a sample of your work while you're writing your book.

Then you need to do the basic steps:
1) Go through Writer's Market (your library has a copy) and list all agents and publishers who handle your genre.
2) Send a query letter to each listing following their submission guidelines to the letter.
***go online to their site to get their up-to-date guidelines and the current person's name to address your query.***
Most, if not all, mainstream publishers won't accept submitted material without an agent.
3) Prepare to receive reams of rejection letters and don't take them personally. They're not.
4) Don't give up.
I read an article on Steven King that mentioned he was rejected so many times that he resorted to writing magazine articles to get published.

Wishing you the best of luck with your writing,
Gary Anderson
author GAMEPLAYER: The Genesis Portal

Answer 3

I answer this question about 30 times a day. It amazes me how people answer without knowing what they are saying. NO - do not go to a company like Scholastic. Scholastic is a top ten publisher. They do not deal with authors directly. They deal with AGENTS only. As do all major publishers.

It can take two years to get through to an agent. Often longer. Yes, it is often about who you know. The top ten publishers simply will not deal with authors anymore. Anything that doesn't come in through an agent is slush roomed and eventually destroyed.

The thing is they just get way too much material. Sadly, eventually publishers and agents are going to have to hire more personnel to handle the mail and that is going to end up being added on to their agent fee of 15%. What choice do they have? That irks authors because eventually published authors are going to be footing the bill for all the junk publishers and agents get. Sad, but true.

Being a teen has a difference in that your parents have to become active in negotiations and contract signings. They also have to hire some kind of a literary attorney to set up a trust for your royalties.

You must understand that even traditional publishing can be expensive. SMART authors hire editors before they show their book to agents and publishers. Editors do more than just dot your I's and cross your T's. They give you margin notes. They tell you where to change the pacing of the book, where more detail is needed, where to cut parts out that are superfluous. Most of today's editors have worked for publishers and agents. They KNOW the business. They know what publishers are looking for. They know how to change a so-so written book with a good story line into a great book. Trust them. They can triple your chances of getting published - at least. However they cost money. Expect to pay between 3 and 5 dollars a page based on 250 words per page.

What I hear from novice authors is "I don't need one. I write great. I can edit it on my own". You can't. In all of the history of publishing, there has only been one author who required no editing. His name was O Henry. He was in debtors prison writing stories and sending them to magazines under his pen name and they were printed verbatim. Every author from Fitzgerald to Hemingway to Hawthorne to Poe to Faulkner et al has been edited.

So start saving your pennies. When you have done at least 3 drafts of your book, send it to an editor. Let that editor work editorial magic. They will change nothing. They will simply send it back to you with suggestions. Then do your 4th draft using their suggestions and it is ready to send in.

You should know you are going to be edited anyway if you happen to sell the book. However once you sign a standard author's contract, the publisher takes over. All editing - as well as the choosing of a title - is put into their hands and you as the author have absolutely zero say in it. I would prefer to do the bulk of my editing while I still maintained control. After a while, you start learning from your editor. When they make corrections, you remember them. You remember the way they teach you to do things. And in the subsequent books, it becomes easier because you and your editor know how to work together better. There are grammatical things I used to do that have been drilled into my head now. It saves me a lot of time because I don't make those mistakes anymore.

Especially as a teen, an editor is the best way to go. Because you lack the life experience of older authors and you probably haven't gotten through a full education yet, so you will make mistakes. Of the teenage authors who make it, I would venture to say most have editors. Why take that chance? Hire an editor and send out a manuscript you can be proud of.

As for self publishing, I recommend you not do it. You will find you sell about 2/3 as many books as you have family and friends or roughly 100 copies. Follow "Uncle Jim's Law" = in publishing the money is supposed to flow toward the author not away from him. Self publishing will just eat up your money and leave you with nothing but a box of books to sell on your own.
----
They're, Their, There - Three Different Words.

Careful or you may wind up in my next novel.

Pax - C

Answer 4

I could do what the above person did and write a long-winded and generally disheartening response, or I could say simply this:

If you want to be a writer, learn this yourself, don't ask others. If you can't do this simple task, you will never be published. It isn't an easy ticket to money, your Stephen Kings and your JK Rowlings make up about .5 percent of the writer population, most of us make almost nothing.

If it's not about money, then research this yourself, the information is all readily available.

Answer 5

go to a publisher like scholastic

Answer 6

search for blurb booksmart on the net...