Getting Published

For an author, getting published is quite often a lifelong goal. It is such a difficult task that some try and try with all of their might only to die poor, frustrated, and alone. The publishing world is truly a harsh place. That's why I have taken my writing future into my own hands. As I proceed, I'll go through all of the necessary steps it takes to get published, all while pointing out little tricks I would use to get my work noticed.

Right off the bat, when we talk about publication, we need to talk about having material to submit for publication. This is a step that a lot of people like me often forget. If I want to get my work in print, I have to have work. It's as simple as that. I can't even count the number of times I've written to a publisher asking why I'm not seeing any of my books on store shelves only to have them tell me I never submitted anything to them. Often times I'll try to give them a guilt trip by saying something like, "Here I thought you were this big, prestigious publishing house but you need me to write everything for you." That usually shuts them up and I never hear from them again.

Since publishers insist I give them something to publish before they'll publish it, what I'll do is try a little writing. As I'm doing this, however, I usually find that it's a lot of work. Writing is actually something that takes time, skill, and effort, all of which I don't have. Obviously this isn't fair. Why do other authors who have talent always get to be the ones getting their work published? It's a little one-sided I think. I mean, the rest of us have something to say too, and I don't see why some people get to say it while others do not. It's a form of prejudice and it should not be tolerated.

As it turns out, publishing houses don't usually agree with the logic I have just laid forth. In this case it's time to get good at writing. Believe it or not, becoming good at something when you're already bad is hard. You're body is so used to doing it one way that it's tough to break out of that mindset. You have to put in all of this practice, time, and effort.

I'll know this practice is paying off once I've completed at least three crossword puzzles all by myself. Not only did I look up another word for "space", but I wrote the letters into those square boxes. Eventually, when I can do it without the help of the boxes, I'll know I'm ready to write a novel.

For those of you trying to raise your own writing prowess, I would strongly recommend picking up a few crossword puzzle training guides yourself. The boxes act as training wheels and they really help guide your hand as you form each letter. I know it's a valuable tool that has really helped transform my abilities from terrible, to better.

Once I've become an excellent writer with the help of those training guides, it's time to dive into my first full length novel. And, even though I'm working very hard, I can't get discouraged if I'm unable to find anyone who wants to publish it right away; even when they say things like, "We don't accept submissions that are hand-written by babies." I know if I just keep using the box training guides and keep working at it, I'll start writing things that look like a baby didn't write it. In the publishing world it's all about perseverance, and I'll become a skilled writer even if I have to do a thousand crossword puzzles to accomplish it.