What you need to know to cut through the "hype" of becoming a published author

At 18 I got this idea while waiting for my son to be born that if I wasn’t going to college right away. I needed a skill, so I went to the local book store in my community.

I had learned the basics of typing but I didn’t have the speed. As I was walking through the business section, my eyes fell upon a book “How to increase your typing speed in 60 Days or Less,” so I bought it.

I had some knowledge but if I was going to expand what I knew already I had to take the next step. For me it was to read that book and apply the information. Herein lays the key to how to avoid making the biggest mistakes first time authors make.

The first step is to acknowledge you don’t know something. Then you have to assess what you do know. Once you do that, then you work on where you want to go and what you want to accomplish? In my case I knew how to place my hands on the keys and type but I did not have the speed. I had come to realize that if I was going to get a job with promise for promotion after the birth of my son, I needed to at least be able to type with speed.

As a first time author, what is your goal, either you desire to have someone publish your book, or you plan to do it yourself? If you are planning to have it done, who can get done what you need? You have heard about publishers. You know that is what you need. What you don’t know is that there are different types that can be used to accomplish your goal. If you go on the internet and type in publisher, or publishing, you’re talking thousands to millions, which adds to the confusion.

Where do you start? You need information that can help you to understand what each type does and how you can effectively use them to get where you want to go. Your research quickly reveals that one process is faster than the other, which has led to the rise of more and more publishing options.

Publishers are classified as traditional and non-traditional. The traditional publisher buys the rights to your book, arranges for the printing and distribution, through marketing to the reading public. There are upfront costs prior to the traditional publisher buying the rights to your book. The non-traditional publisher, sometimes called vanity presses, or self-publish, or print on demand provides all of the services of a traditional publisher to prepare a book for the market, with one exception, the author pays for all the services from idea to finish product, plus marketing.

What will work for you depends on how impatient you are and how much you are willing to invest. The traditional publishing method can take years. It will never be over night. You will spend time sending query letters, attempting to sell editors on why your manuscript is the next best thing since slice bread. Yes, and rejection is a part of that.

There is no doubt the non-traditional methods are faster. Having access to a great editor will make a world of difference using this method. Find an editor that would be willing to let you sample their expertise for a small fee so that you can get a feel for that person’s capabilities.

The non-traditional publishers will be most visible online. How will you know you are dealing with a non-traditional publisher? If they charge a fee to produce your book, then you have a non-traditional publisher. The traditional publishers will not be that visible online. You can access them through books like the latest Writer’s Market, or get the online version. This book also contains some non-traditional publishers as well as tips and samples of query letters you can use to work the traditional publishers’ market.

With the non-traditional publishers you are shopping for the best price, for the most services. What you want done depends on your manuscript need. If you need editing, or proofreading, then you look for those who can provide that service. Some also provide a marketing package. Don’t be fooled by this by any means. Those marketing packages help you to position yourself to make book sales, but will not be an all out launch to sell your books. You will still have to actively work at marketing.

Once you have assessed the package, examine how easy it will be to upload it to their site. Some are more complicated. Work with non-traditional publishers you can talk with periodically as your book is being produced. If they have no patience with you, this might not be the best choice. Spend your money with people who will take the time to help you to understand what they are doing for you.

Go over everything before you submit. Make sure you personally proof your final prior to submission. If you hire a proofreader and editor clarify what exactly they are going to do; get it in writing, either by you sending an email reiterating what has been discussed, or asking them to send you something. You may want to find out if they will make the corrections. There maybe an additional charge but it will be worth it. That way you can focus on the re-reading and not doing both functions.

If you negotiate a flat rate, ask if they would include a final read as part of that service. Use the services of proofreaders and editors before you submit your manuscript to traditional publishers.

The best part of becoming a published author, if you decide you can’t wait to be picked up by a traditional publisher and you want to self-publish, you can continue querying the traditional publisher. The door to the traditional publisher is not closed because you self-publish.

Though traditional publishers have cornered the market in the past, leaving many writers to give up in despair, the self-published markets have made splashes that have caused traditional publishers to race to the acquisition of some of these self-published works. There has never been a better time to publish a book. Get it done and enjoy the journey. It will be the best decision you ever made.

Blondie L. Clayton is the co-founder of the Online School of Publishing (E-Course for dummies) at http://www.blondie2book.com and Book Publishing and Marketing Coach. She has written several books (see book store http://www.print2publish.com); works as a freelance writer; hosts the “Author’s Spotlight at http://www.positivechangeradio.com.