Guidelines to Write and Publish Your Book or Novel by Dr. Michael M. Seepersaud
Write and Publish Your Book or Novel
Introduction
Writing a compelling and profitable fiction or nonfiction book can be
easier than you think. Long ago, you would have to sit for hours
putting your ideas together: jotting down your notes, arranging and
rearranging them, manually consult with thesauruses and dictionaries.
Then you compose the book, get a friend to proofread it and then you
send it to a publisher who may or may not accept it. With computer
technology and the Internet, writing resources are available at the
push of a key, largely "automating" and speeding up your writing. And
there is writing software to help you out along the way.
Publishing you book or novel is easier said than done, but you have
several options available
Write Your Book
Firstly, follow these steps:
1. To start to write a book or novel, begin with an idea or concept,
not necessarily original but unique.
2. Determine your target audience.
3. An author's mindset can be acquired. Acquire it!
4. Be prepared to put in the time and effort to put your thoughts
initially down on paper.
5. Develop these thoughts into a working title. Select a title that
will engender a desire to read the book.
6. Spend the time required to convert these thoughts into a coherently
structured body of material. Work the title into the book. Do not give
up!
7. Do a thorough proof-reading. Get a friend to help.
8. Now you have a manuscript. Review it. Give it to a friend or family
member to review it.
9. Format and reformat the chapters.
Here are some tips to ensure your writing success:
* Avoid being wordy, that is saying the same thing in several different
ways. This is painful to the reader and a guarantee that your book or
novel will not be a success.
* The story-line is key. It must be of interest to the reader, not to
you! Keep it flowing and I recommend that you keep paragraphs and
chapters short. (The short chapters is one of the things that made
reading "The Da Vinci Code" so enjoyable).
* Unless it is a real life story, do not clutter the book with too many
characters. This bores and confuses the reader.
* Primarily for the fiction writer, avoid giving characters similar
names. This confuses the reader.
* Your book will be attractive if it presents useful information,
answers readers questions, is humorous and tells an impacting story.
* Read blogs and articles on how to write and book or novel. Check my
sources below (Cut and paste into a new browser window)
Here are some traps to look for:
* Writing a book isn't fun. It is a serious venture and involves a lot
of work.
* Write to make money. If you want to write for pleasure, write a blog,
poetry or short stories.
* Most people who write lose money on their project.
* The people who make the money generally are not the authors,
certainly not in their lifetime.
* Getting published is easier said than done. This is perhaps the most
stressful part. But with these tips, you can start to write a book or
novel now!
Publish Your Book
Now that you have written your book, you need to get it published. You
will be faced with three (3) options:
1. Find an Agent
An agent will do all the leg work including finding, negotiating and
selecting a publisher. This would not cost you any money up-front but
the agent will require to be paid an percentage of the profits of the
sale of the book and/or a percentage of the royalties. Each agent will
have their own rules and regulations, so be prepared to look around,
evaluate and negotiate. You can start by using the search engines:
search the term "literary agent".
2. Find Your Own Publisher
You can do all the leg work yourself. This will be time consuming and
would require some knowledge of the publishing process. This step is
not advisable for the novice writer. However, there are many online
resources that could simplify the process. Simply search "publishing
houses" and you should get a sizable list, including listings that
indicate whether they are accepting new manuscripts.
Note, however, that most publishing houses like to deal with
professional agents. So while you will retain control of the process,
you will need to commit a lot of time as well as to seek legal advice
on the final publishing contract.
3. Self-Publish
The last, but by no means least, publishing option is to publish the
book or novel yourself. There are a number of new self-publishing
websites and companies that can help you put your words into print, and
even sell them on some online booksellers' websites. All you need to do
is to input your manuscript into their website or send your manuscript
directly to these publishers. This will allow you to create an
e-manuscript that can then be printed on demand or you can simply sell
your manuscript as an e-book.
Whichever publishing option you select, you will need an enormous
amount of patience since the process can be drawn out. However, once
you get that first book out you are on you way to a writing career. The
end really justifies the means.
Best of luck in your endeavour to write and publish you book or novel.
About the Author
Dr. Michael Seepersaud is a Management Consultant by Profession. He enjoys writing and reading and has some success in Internet Marketing. Read my writer's guide blog at http://thewritersguide.blogspot.com and my Squidoo lens at http://www.squidoo.com/write-your-book.