As a first time "Published" author, I am happy, proud and truly blessed to have been afforded the opportunity to break into a publishing industry that has been for many years simply dominated by our white sisters and brothers. Finally, the African American Writer has come full circle. In fact, our contribution to mainstream literature is not only contributing best sellers, but also we are producing, directing and adapting our own novels into scripts and screenplays. We are creating a legacy of black literature that will surpass other ethnic groups’ greatest expectation of us, and in doing so, we are expanding our knowledge and creating lifestyle changes for our children. The best is yet to come. However, like everything preceding us, there are some challenges for the first time author…

Unlike a singer/artist whose sultry voice or fluent rapping skills can land you a quick million dollar record deal just by their ability to sing acupella in four part harmony, or free-style a poetic rhyme so fast it not only has you questioning the rapper’s content, but have you begging for more, as a writer we have to work twice as hard! 

Not only work twice as hard, but become twice as aggressive and pray that ultimately your book land in the hands of those creative geniuses that hold the key to that million-dollar book deal. That’s where the education process comes in. A fellow writer and friend of mine recently told me that educating yourself on the publishing business is by far, the best advice you can give to a writer. But what do you do when the education process didn’t happen and you signed on the dotted line without the knowledge? Do you throw in the towel and start from scratch? Well, he told me, despite the knowledge that you lacked when you signed your contract, you are still twenty steps farther along in the game than you were before. Now its time to acquire the knowledge so that the same mistakes never happen again. My favorite author and poet Maya Angelou once said, when you know better, you do better. The following are a few of my challenges and how I tried to do better…

The No Return Policy:The “No Return Policy” is more brutal than NYPD (New York Police Department.) First time Author’s beware of this policy. Most bookstores frown on this policy, which basically states to the bookstores that “if the author’s book doesn’t sell you cannot return it to us.” This reason alone leaves the bookstore unwilling to take a risk on an unknown author and even more unwilling to purchase/stock your book in their store. The “No Return Policy” is like kryptonite to most authors but there is a solution. Forced to right my wrong, I asked a close girlfriend of mine to purchase fifty books from my publishing company and have them delivered to her. (I gave her the money to make the purchase.) Once the books came in, I shopped around to local bookstores and asked the manager to stock my book at no charge to him. The bookstore and I came to a legitimate agreement and bam; my book was on the shelf. I still collect the royalties off each book and my family/friends can walk into our local bookstore and find my book on the shelf. It’s costly, but it’s worth it.

Publish on Demand: This policy, which basically prints your book only when it’s requested, is in my opinion, like waiting to run out of tissue paper. Absolutely crazy!!!!! Not only is it a much longer process, but also it keeps the reader waiting in a world where there are plenty more titles to choose from. For me, the only way to handle this situation and compete with other veteran authors was to purchase and maintain a stock of books for myself and ensure the local bookstores are fully stocked as well. Now it doesn’t guarantee a sale, but it does guarantee that your book is available.

Lastly, breaking into the publishing industry without the proper contacts: This is an ongoing challenge for not only authors, but also singers/entertainers as well. I believe that time, patients, participating in workshops, online chat groups and meeting/communicating with other authors are some immediate ways of building up your industry contacts.

In closing, this is a great time to be a writer and an even better time to be a published author. Write, write and rewrite... Better days are coming for us and this I know is true .