Learn the craft of writing

Join a workshop! The most important thing you can do. A local one if available. Otherwise one devoted to your genre' on the web.

Don't start slow! New authors can't afford a slow start.  Assume that your first 3 paragraphs can get you thrown into the reject pile if they show that you can't write, so polish them until they shine.  Your first 1000 words should be enough to sell your book to a tired editor who's seen 'em all.  Only established writers can afford a slow, fill in the background, start.  For non-fiction, start with a "lead" that intrigues the reader and makes him want to see what you have to say.

Join a workshop!

Haunt web sites for good advice.   Learn from as many sources as you can; books on writing, Internet blogs and forums, and writing or creative writing classes.

Master the English language (unless you're writing in a foreign language).

Join a workshop.

If you use a word processor that has them, make use of the spelling and grammar options.

Avoid weak sentence structure (passive voice and so on).  Instead use solid action oriented verbs to move things along.  John doesn't "move" to the other side of the room; he charges, launches himself, saunters, minces, or slinks to the other side.

Avoid "head hopping", also known as changes in POV (point of view), unless you can make it clear to the reader what is happening.  A break consisting of an extra blank line between paragraphs or a short, centered, line of dashes (-----) or asterisks (*****) can help, but go the extra mile to make sure your audience knows you've moved your POV to a new character.   For non-fiction, substitute "subject" for "POV".   Chapter breaks are a great place to change POV if you feel the need.  If you want to learn to avoid head hopping, try writing your story from the first person ("I") viewpoint.  Now your readers have to see everything through your character's eyes and can know only what he knows.  No cheating by stepping back into your "author persona" and delivering an info dump.  The most you can do is something like having the POV muse to himself, "My old pappy used to warn me that section of the woods was haunted."

Join a workshop.

Stay away from "info dumps"in fiction or true stories.  It's okay to make the reader "run to keep up" as long as you don't "outrun" him.  You can dribble the information out in bits and pieces without interrupting the story line and the action.  And for everyone's sake, don't "dump" information with the tired old, "As you know, Jim, blah blah blah."

If you need to describe your POV character, don't have him/her look into a mirror just so you can describe what s/he sees.  That's hackneyed.  You can only get away with it if the character has total amnesia or is inhabiting a new body.  Be creative instead.

Keep your sentences reasonably short and as simple as possible.  Steinbeck sold millions of books by using short, declarative, sentences.  Here's an example: "Join a workshop."

Use a limited vocabulary.  Don't make the reader drop out of the story to look up a word that only a PhD in English would be expected to understand ("Eschew Obfuscation").  All bets are off for non-fiction aimed at a select group that understands the words and jargon you use.

Did we remember to tell you to join a workshop?

Nurse your muse

Ideas are all around you.  All you have to do is pay attention.

Did a TV show incident suggest a different plot or project to you?  How about the antics of an acquaintance or someone at work?  Does something in the news excite your muse?  Do you have an "ax to grind"?  Do you spend a lot of time explaining the same things over and over to people who come to you for your expertise on a subject?  Did a cloud suggest something?

How about your own experiences? Did you get involved (even peripherally) in something interesting?  Is your own life too boring as is, but with a twist might become interesting?  You don't have to write an autobiography.  You can take your life experiences as a launching pad for fiction or to flesh out a story.

Some workshops feature writing "exercises" where someone writes the first sentence or two and the members are invited to create a short story from that start.  Your version may lead you into another book idea.  It happened to one of our editors.

The world is full of ideas; it just takes your interpretation of them to become a project or a story.

Do your research

If you have friends or acquaintances who are experts in one or more fields, by all means, ask them for help with plot points.  Members of your writing workshop may have the expertise you need.

The Internet is loaded with expert (and false) information.  This is the first time in history that you don't have to have a huge research library in your home or spend a lot of time at the public library.  Learn to use search engines and how to do advanced searches.  But, do check more than one source unless you recognize a particular source as a trusted expert on a subject, especially if you are writing non-fiction.

If you're story is set sometime in the past, you need to make yourself a hands-down expert on that time and place.  If you mess up, one of your readers will take great delight in ribbing you about your gaff.  Also, your research may come up with a true story that is more interesting than the fiction you're writing that you can plug into your yarn.  Harry Turtledove is a master at this sort of thing, but this history major still gets "caught" by his readers when he misses something.

Learn the rules

Every publishing house has its own rules for submissions.  They fall into several options:

Getting their attention:

• Some houses insist on using an agent and will not even look at "un-agented" submissions.
• Almost all houses want a query letter often with a synopsis and a sample of the work.  For proposed projects, the letter may have to include a description of the project and something to convince the editors that you have the expertise and experience to pull it off and produce a saleable work.
• If they accept un-agented submissions, follow their procedures exactly.  Get the name of the CURRENT editor that handles submissions in your genre and address your submission to that editor.  Don't trust old listings.  Publishing houses often have a high turnover.

Submission format:

• Finished format has been rare, but is becoming more acceptable.  AKW Books requires finished format. Most book publishers start with the Chicago Manual of Style and may vary from that. AKW doesn't push a particular style. We want books with great plots written using correct English grammar, punctuation and spelling.
• Traditional format includes such things as double spaced, fixed spaced fonts (such as courier), 10 or 12 point type (use 12 point to make it easier on the tired eyes of the publisher's submission editor), underline italics, two spaces between sentences, and so forth.  There are numerous books on the traditional submission format.
• In all cases, obtain the publisher's format requirements and follow them exactly. Only a good "read" will get you published, but wandering too far from publisher requirements can get your manuscript rejected.
• If you want your manuscript returned, you'll be expected to send sufficient postage and an address label.  Check the publisher's instructions.  Some don't return manuscripts at all.
• Include a stamped, self-addressed envelope.  The publisher can use that to send you the good (or bad) news.  If it's bad news, and you're a fairly good writer, the editor might include a personal note to encourage you and suggest some changes.  S/he might even ask you to change something and re-submit.  For bad news, you can add the rejection slip to your collection.

Don't give up

If you're convinced that you have a good manuscript (and you're not self-deluded), keep trying.  Your book is just searching for the right editor.

"This manuscript of yours that has just come back from another editor is a precious package. Don’t consider it rejected. Consider that you’ve addressed it 'to the editor who can appreciate my work' and it has simply come back stamped 'not at this address.' Just keep looking for the right address." -Barbara Kingsolver

And of course, if your book is good enough and you can convince us, send a query email to AKW Books.  See our publishing requirements for our procedures.

Be part of the marketing effort

So, you've found a publisher and the idea you've nursed from inception to finished product is now available to the buying public.  You can sit back, relax, and wait for the royalties to roll in.  Right?

No way.  Unless you're an ex-president, rock star, newsworthy, or someone else with an already high profile, your publisher isn't going to spend much, if anything, promoting your book.  They expect you to help the process along.  Even the well-known folks hit the interview circuit to promote their latest book and boost sales.  It's just easier for them to get spots on Letterman or Oprah because the host can leverage their popularity into an interview that interests their audience with or without any mention of the book.  The host "pays" the person by allowing them to plug their work as part of the interview.

So, instead of patting yourself on the back, taking that trip to Hawaii, or starting your next book, you'll find yourself busy promoting your new wunderkind.  For some ideas and what to expect, have a look at what we expect of our authors.  Our program isn't much different from the rest of the publishing world.

Do spend some time on your next book in between marketing efforts.  But don't quit your day job, you're not rich yet and may never be.  Only a select few authors become popular and prolific enough to live off their writing.  If that happens to you, we hope we will be part of your journey.

Pearls of Wisdom

If you’re a writer, or want to call yourself a writer, you have to write every single day. There’s no excuse not to write a book a year. You just break it down into manageable chunks. 300 words a day. Just a half hour a day! If you can’t write a measly 300 words a day, then how can you call yourself a writer? “Ready, Fire, Aim” took me less than a year to write using this exact approach.

-Michael Masterson, author of Ready, Fire, Aim

If you are prolific in your writing and have multiple books in print, you need to consider adding a chapter of your previous book, or books, in the back of your new book. You need to promote your previous titles on the back cover of your new title. Include a cover image, ISBN (if it's a physical book), and price. If you’re not promoting your backlist then you’re losing a great opportunity. It doesn't’t matter if they are written for a different category, as long as they are all written by the same author. Don’t miss out!

Jerry D. Simmons

One warning, though. Lots of readers can tell you what doesn't’t work. They don’t necessarily have a clue about the right way to fix it.

I use the 80-20 rule here. 80% of the time, the reader is right about what’s not working. But only 20% of the time (at most) is their proposed solution any good.

Unless you’re working with a professional editor (or long-time critique partner) who genuinely gets your stuff, take all suggestions for fixes with a grain of salt. And even if you’re working with the greatest editor who ever lived, in the end, you make the call.

It’s your work and your voice. If you want to be any good, you have to own it.

Sonia Simone