Five Steps to Getting Published by a Traditional Publisher
Yesterday, I posted my journey of moving from a non-writer to becoming a writer, to becoming a published author which eventually led me back to just being a writer with the focus not being so much on publishing, but on writing great stories.
But I mentioned in that story that my husband enrolled me in three great courses on the business of writing, and that I learned that there are steps that a writer must follow to become published.
What did that mean? Where are these amazing steps and how does one find them?
Today, I’d like to expand on this because as I mentioned yesterday, I was clueless when I first started out. I didn’t know how a book found its way out of an author’s mind and into a bookstore. I didn’t know anything about the publishing industry, and this put me at a huge disadvantage.
I’ve learned through the years that if someone doesn’t know the rules of the game, there is no way to win. This goes for everything. I watched my father, for example, struggle his entire life because as an immigrant there was so much he didn’t know. He created his own business once and was doing fantastic until one day, he was smacked down by the IRS for not following their rules. And no one wants to be smacked down by the IRS. They are serious about paying taxes the right way.
Thankfully, the publishing industry is not that intense, but if an author does not know what the rules are, then they will not be rewarded with a publishing contract. When I started on my journey, the rules were different. I leaned that I had to research publishers by buying these humongous books like the Literary Market Place or going to the library and sitting there for hours finding the perfect publisher for my genre. Then I had to learn how to write a query letter which is an artform in itself. The query letter had to be sent first, followed by sample chapters if they were requested. Some publishers accepted unsolicited materials, some did not.
Today, things are different in some ways, though perhaps not easier. If I were going to look for a traditional publisher (instead of self-publishing) as a new writer or non-published writer, these are the steps I would follow:
Step One: Have a finished and polished manuscript. You don’t want to approach an agent or editor if your book is not finished. Multi-published authors can sometimes sell a book that is not finished, but they have a record of finishing books. As a newbie, you do not. So, finish the book, then find someone (another writer maybe) to edit it. The better and cleaner your book is when you submit it, the better your chances will be that the agent or editor will continue to read past the first page.
Step Two: Study the market and understand your genre. The beauty of being a writer in 2020 is that it is ridiculously easy to find information online! You no longer have to spend hours at the library or buy a $400 book on the literary marketplace. Though you can purchase a book if you’d like. For example, you can buy Guide to Literary Agents 2020: The Most Trusted Guide to Getting Published and that might be a good place to start your search. But you don’t have to, you can search online and find agents who represent your genre and find out if they are accepting new clients.
You can also learn about what types of books publishing houses are buying. Fewer large publishers exist these days, but many smaller publishers which should not be discounted are buying books. Smaller publishers are hungrier and willing to take changes with new authors. But that is another topic — which I may write about later. The point here is that you want to, you need to, target your agent or editor carefully. You do not want to waste your time sending your manuscript to a house that does not publish your genre.
Step Three: Search for an agent. It’s best to find an agent before looking for an editor at a publishing house, but you can do both at the same time. Many publishing houses do not accept unagented manuscripts because it means more work for them. When an agent recommends an author, the agent has done some of the weeding out of poorly written stories and has edited the work already. Finding an agent is not easy so I recommend doing step four simultaneously.
Step Four: Network. Join writer’s groups, either in person or online. Meet agents at conferences and listen to what they are looking for. Do not stalk or harass the agents, but it’s okay to ask them questions if you happen to be in the same online group. Agents want to find great stories and wonderful new writer with unique voices. I went to conferences continuously when I was starting out — usually about five per year. I also took courses presented by writers and agents. I read books about writing and publishing. I joined writer’s organizations. I immersed myself in the world of writing. The more you network and “hang out” with publishing people, the better your chances will be to eventually find the right agent or editor. It’s like dating, you have to put yourself out there.
Step Five: Finally, begin to build your author platform. Traditional publishers like to publish writers who are will sell books. You have a higher chance of selling books if you have a platform or a following.
· Have a website — start to build a website that you can direct readers, agents and editors to. Don’t wait until you have sold a book.
· Have a social media presence with many followers. This takes time to grow, of course, but this shows publishers that you are willing to connect with readers and market yourself.
· Write! Write blogs, write articles, write newsletters and showcase these on your website.
· Speak — get out there and talk about your topic. It doesn’t matter if your book is a novel instead of non-fiction. Whatever the topic is, you can find places to speak. Maybe in your book, your character is adopted, so why not speak about the joys of adoption? The topic doesn’t matter, what matters is that you are getting exposure and building a following.
· Get an email list so that when your book is published, you will be able to contact people who have been following your journey with the good news.
These five steps will help prepare you to become a published author. I remember how excited and relieved I was when I finished those early courses on publishing. I appreciated knowing what to do and having a roadmap or steps to follow. I still had a lot of work to do, but I finally felt like I had a fighting chance to succeed. I know that if you follow these steps, you will be well informed, you’ll feel confident, and you’ll be a stronger writer when you do sell that first book!
