How to Be an Author

Developing Your Writing Skills

Read everything you can. This may not be what you want to hear when you want to hear about the exciting life of being an author, but reading will be the key to your success. Reading everything you can will not only help you develop your writing skills, give you more ideas for how to craft your work, and help you develop the patience you need to write a book of your own, but it will also give you a better sense of what is selling in the market. Set aside a few hours a day to read as many books as you can, and try to read widely in as many genres as you can. If you already have an idea of what genre you want to write in, whether it's science fiction or non-fiction, you should focus on reading books in that genre. However, to become more well read in general, you should read widely when you can. The more you read, the more you'll become attuned to common clichés. You want your book to stand out, so if you find ten books that are too much like it, you may have to find a different angle. When you find a book you really like, ask yourself what it is that makes it so special to you. Is it the ridiculous main character? The beautiful prose? The sense of place? The more you can pinpoint why you like a book, the sharper you'll be when you try to make your own work appeal to a wide audience.

Start small. If you want to be an author, then you will most likely have to start off by publishing a full length work of non-fiction or a novel. It's very difficult to sell a collection of short stories or essays as your first work. Having said that, it's also difficult to jump right into a novel or a full-length work of non-fiction. So, if fiction is your thing, try your hand at writing some short stories first to help yourself get a feel of the craft. If you're more into non-fiction, try to write a short essay before you jump into an entire work of non-fiction. This is not to say that short stories are somehow inferior to novels. Alice Munro, the winner of the 2013 Nobel Prize in Literature, never published a novel during the entire course of her illustrious career. Still, it is a lot harder to gain a reputation in short stories these days. Challenging yourself with small writing projects. By writing continuously you can learn and improve your creative writing skills.

Consider receiving a degree in writing. If you want to publish a work of literary fiction or non-fiction, then getting an M.A. or M.F.A. in Fiction or Non-Fiction is the typical route to follow. If you want to write something more commercial, such as a science fiction or romance novel, then this route is less necessary, though it can still be helpful. Getting a degree in creative writing can initiate you into the life of a writer, get you in a community of other like-minded writers who give helpful feedback, and will also give you two or three years to focus on your craft. Many successful writers who publish their books find work as teachers at M.F.A. or undergraduate writing programs. You'll need a degree in creative writing to do this, so if this is your end game, consider getting the degree. Getting a degree in creative writing can also help you get your foot in the door in terms of connections. You'll meet faculty members that may be able to help you publish your work or develop as a writer in other ways. The writing degree it not a direct path to success as a writer. But it can help you improve your craft significantly.

Get some feedback. If you've chosen to enroll in a writing program, then you'll be spending plenty of time at writing workshops, where you will receive ample feedback from your peers. You will have also worked independently with faculty and received feedback from them individually. But if you have not gone this route, then you should join a writing group in your community, take a writing workshop offered by a local community college or adult school, or even just ask a few trusted friends to take a look at your work. Though feedback should always be taken with a grain of salt, getting feedback will give you a better sense of where you stand. Getting feedback will help you realize if your work is publication ready, or if you have more work to do. You have to make sure that you're asking the right readers -- people who really get your work and know what you're about.

Start submitting your work to small publications. If you have some short stories or essays that you think are ready to be sent out into the world, then you should try your hand at submitting them to literary journals or journals that publish work in your genre, such as journals that specialize in historical fiction or romance. Check out duotrope.com to get an idea of all of the journals out there. All you have to do is get your manuscript in order and send a brief cover letter to the editor of the journal; after that, you play the waiting game. This will be your first exposure to something common to the writer: lots of rejection. Try not to take it personally and consider it a way of thickening your skin. Some journals charge a $2-3 fee for submitting your work. This is a pain, but it doesn't mean the journals are trying to rob you; they are often run on a shoestring budget.

Writing a Book

Generate an original idea. The first thing you have to do is to come up with an idea that will intrigue and excite people. You may have to start writing before you find your idea -- you may even write three hundred pages before you realize what your book is really about. Still, start with a general premise -- the story of a girl growing up in Ukraine during the Bolshevik revolution, a work of non-fiction about the growing importance of charter schools in America -- and see where you can take it. You may want to complete the whole book before you start thinking about how marketable your idea is. Still, it can help you to research the market on your topic before you begin. You may find that there is a book on your exact topic already out there and that you may have to tweak your idea a bit.

Choose a genre. Though genre-bending books are getting more and more popular -- such as the novels of Margaret Atwood, which blend literary fiction with science fiction, it can help you to work within a genre that helps you communicate your ideas. Once you know what your genre really is, you should be aware of all of the conventions within that genre, and you can start thinking about ways you want to turn those conventions on their head, or if you want to stick to its rules. Here are some popular genres you should consider: Non-fiction Science fiction Flash fiction Action stories Horror Mystery Romance Adventure Fantasy Political fiction 55 fiction Young Adult Fiction Middle Grade Fiction

Figure out the basics. This may be something you do as you go along, or you can have some of the basics figured out before you write a word. Here are some of the points you will have to consider as you write your book: Who: The main and/or Supporting character(s), The antagonist. Point of view: Will your book be written in first, second, or third person? Where: The location and time-era of your work, where they will travel over the course of the piece. What: The main idea or plot. Why: What the character will/hopes to accomplish. How: The methods they use to accomplish it.

Write a rough draft. In her classic book about writing, Bird by Bird, Anne Lamott writes about the importance of the terrible first draft." And that's exactly what you'll have to write: a truly awful, embarrassing, messy piece of writing that will contain the kernels of the final draft that you will write one day. You don't have to show the very first rough draft to anyone, but the important part will be knowing that you will have achieved something. Write without censoring yourself or worry about people will think. This is your time to get your ideas down; you can refine them later. After your first rough draft, keep on going. If you get lucky, you may be able to have something presentable after the first or second draft, or you may have to write five drafts before you think you've really figured it out. This can take a few months, a year, or even years, depending on how much time you have and how long it takes to develop your project.

Get some feedback once you're ready. Getting feedback too early can stifle your creativity and make you think that you're not taking your work in the right direction. But once you've written enough drafts of your book and are thinking about taking it out into the world, it's important to get some feedback to see where you're headed. Ask trusted friends who are critical and helpful readers, turn it in to a writing workshop, or ask an expert on the topic to take a look at it if you're writing non-fiction. If you've written a novel, you can try submitting some chapters to literary publications to get some feedback. Once you get some feedback you trust, work to address it. You may have to write another draft or two before you get it right.

Proofread your work. You won't get very far if you have a typo on the first page of your book. Once you feel like your work is really ready, then you should print it out and look for any typos, grammatical mistakes, repetitive phrasing, or any other errors that you want to remove from the book before you move forward with it. You may even try reading your work aloud to see if you catch any funny phrasing or misplaced commas. Proofreading is the final step to getting your novel in shape for publication. Though proofreading can help along the way, too, there's no reason to proofread rough drafts too closely because you may end up changing many of the sentences anyway.

Publishing the Book

Consider the route you want to take. There are three main routes you should take once you feel that you have a book that is ready to go out into the world. Here they are: The traditional route. This involves submitting your book to an agent, and having the agent submit your work to publishing houses. Most people will tell you an agent is necessary for getting your work published through a publishing house. Submit your work directly to the publishing house. You can forgo the agent and go straight to the publishing house (the ones that are willing to look at unsolicited manuscripts, anyway). But without an agent, this is very, very difficult to do. Self-publish. Self-publishing your work will get your book out in the world, but it's unlikely that the book will give you the attention you may be looking for if you want to live the life of a true author. But if your goal is to just get your work out there, then this is a great option. You can self-publish through an online service, a vanity press, or even just completely DIY.

Prepare your manuscript for submission. Whether you want to submit your book to a publishing house or a literary agent, there are a few basic conventions you should follow. Your manuscript should be double-spaced, in a readable font such as Times New Roman, have an appropriate cover page, and have pages numbered with your last name and the title of the work. You can also look online for more information about how to format your manuscript. If you're submitting directly to a publishing house, each one may have slightly different instructions for how your manuscript should look.

Submit your work to an agent. Don't just blindly submit to any agent who is open to reading solicited submissions. Use the Poets & Writers guide to agents or check out AgentQuery.com to find agents that are actively accepting new clients, open to and excited about work in your genre, and who are reported to actually respond to submissions. Your best bet is to check out agents who accept simultaneous submissions, so you can send out your book to 5 or so agents at a time instead of waiting six months from a fancy agent who never responds to you. To submit your work to an agent, you'll need to write a query letter, which will be a succinct cover letter that briefly describes the plot of your book, situates your book within the framework of the writer's market, and offers a few words of biographical information. Check each agent's submission guidelines. Some may only want to see the query letter first or may ask to see just the first two chapters. Don't send your manuscript to 20 agents at once. You may find that you get the same feedback over and over, which can help you make your work more exciting to agents. If you get rejected by an agent, you can't approach him again with the same book unless he asks for a revision, so make your chance count. The key word in this game is patience. It may be months before you hear back from an agent, so you will have to learn the art of waiting and avoid checking your email every three seconds if you don't want to go insane.

Sign with an agent. Woohoo! An agent has written that he or she is in love with your book and wants you to sign with her. Do you sign a contract ASAP? Absolutely not. You talk to the agent, ask a lot of questions, discuss his or her vision of the book, and make sure that he or she is legitimate and committed to selling your work. A legitimate agent never asks for money up front and will only receive a cut of the profit if he or she can sell your book. If you get an offer from an agent, it is perfectly okay to let the other agents who have your manuscript know and to see if they have an offer to give you as well. You'll be surprised to hear how quickly they'll get back to you once they know someone really wants you. Talk to the agent on the phone, or even meet in person, if it's geographically possible. It will help to get a sense of his or her personality, and to know if you two click or not. You and your agent don't have to be best friends, but you do have to be able to share ideas. Your agent should be, well, at least a little aggressive. This is the trait that will help get your book sold. Your agent should also be well-connected and should have impressive records of sales so he or she will know where to send your book.

Make a deal with a publisher. Once you've signed with the right agent, you will work vigorously, sometimes for a year or two, to revise the novel until the agent thinks it is "saleable." Then you'll prepare a package and the agent will take the book to the editors at different publishing houses, and you will hopefully get an offer from at least one of them. Sit back and wait for this stressful process to be over, and you will hopefully hear about a sale soon! If you get multiple offers, you and your agent will decide which is the best fit.

Work with the editor at the publishing house. Awesome, you signed with an editor at a publishing house! Get ready to see your book hit the shelves next week...not. Guess what's in store for you? Even more editing. The editor will have a vision for how the book will look, and you will also work on the small copyediting stuff too. This process will take a while too, usually at least a year between the time your book is sold and when it comes out. There will be other details to figure out, such as what your cover will look like, what blurbs you can get on the back of the book, and the people you acknowledge at the beginning or the end of the book.

See your book out in the world. Once you have worked with the editor and your book is deemed ready, you will see your book out on sale and in the stores. You will have been given a release date, and it's likely that you've been counting down until the day when your book hits the stores and the virtual Amazon shelves. Grab a hold of the physical copy, twirl around, and celebrate yourself! But your work is just beginning.

Living the Life of an Author

Don't quit your day job. Unless you've written a best-seller, it's unlikely that the book sale will get you a mansion and a Ferrari. Maybe you'll get a little spending money, and the ability to take some time off from your "real" job. Still, you should be prepared to keep your day job, or find part-time work, or even find work as a creative writing teacher if you have the degree and your book is successful enough. If you're really all about the life of an author, the most common route is to teach creative writing. But those jobs are hard to come by, and your published book has to really stand out if you do. You can also teach different summer workshops. If you get these gigs, they'll give you some extra spending money and the ability to travel to a great location.

Maintain an online presence. Being a true author will require you to maintain an online presence these days. Even if you're not tech savvy, you'll have to get the hang of promoting yourself online and developing your author persona online. Make a Facebook fan page for yourself; make your Facebook profile about promoting your book. Get a Twitter account and tweet about events related to your book. Make sure you have a website that is well-maintained and that all of your other online profiles link to it. Start a blog about the writer's life that you update as often as you can. Keep things fresh so people keep on reading. Don't feel guilty about shamelessly promoting yourself. Even if you have a publicist, your job will now be 50% writing, and 50% promoting yourself as a writer. Get used to it.

Go on the reading circuit. If you have a publicist and a successful book, then you will likely have a reading schedule for your book. You will travel across the state, or even the country, to read from your book, sign your book, and promote your book to your audience. You may read in tiny bookstores or a big Barnes and Noble (for as long as they exist, anyway). This will be a great way to meet more people, make connections, and to get people to actually buy your book. Promote your reading schedule on social media so people know where they can find you.

Network in the writing community. A writer is not an island. Make sure you go to the reading events of other writers, go to panel discussions or be a part of a panel if you are invited to do so, stay in touch with writers in your area, and generally make yourself known wherever you are. Meet other writers at writer's retreats, writing workshops, or in your institution if you belong to one. Get to know writers in your field and genre. They can help you get ahead.

Start working on your second book...and then the next one. You've published a book and are going on tour -- awesome. But this doesn't mean you can rest on your laurels, consider yourself done for a while, and toast to your own success for months. In fact, when you sell that first book, you may often tell the editors about the second book you're working on, or you may have to pitch your second book to your agent ASAP if you haven't already. The writer's job is never done, and if you really want to be an author, then you always have to be thinking about the next book. Don't worry if you don't have the idea for a second book all lined up. Just make a goal to write every day and soon enough, an idea will present itself.