Write a Book and Get Published

by angela booth
Want to write a successful book? It all starts with planning your route to publication. You can become a published author once you create a realistic plan, based on which books are selling.
Writing a book is a process which can take months or years, and unfortunately once your book's written, you have no guarantee of publication. However, with a little foresight and understanding of how book publishing works, you can shorten the odds.

Your Publisher Wants a Book Which Sells, So Write One
Your route to publication starts with research. You must know what sells.
A tip: if you're shocked at this crass focus on money, consider your prospective publishing house. They're totally focused on money - they need to be, or they'll go broke. If you understand the need to know what sells, you're already far ahead of most writers.

Write a 25-word summary of what your book's about, and visit a bookstore. Your aim is to discover not only who publishes books of a similar type, but also who the published authors are, and how well the books sell (this is shown by how much space is allocated to those books in the bookstore.)

Here's an example. Let's say you want to write a book on dog care. Dog books sell well, as you'll see in the store. This is an indication that you've got a viable idea which will interest publishers.
Here's an example if you're writing fiction. You're writing a mystery novel with a photographer as the detective. This is potentially a "cosy" mystery, and these also sell well, again it's a viable idea.

But what if your book idea is completely unique?

This is unlikely, but if that's the case, drop the idea. Your book needs to fit into a known type for publishers to be interested. Of course you can still write your book, and go the self-publication route, but traditional publishers want what sells.

Continue Your Research While You're Writing Your Book

Nonfiction books are sold via a proposal, so you don't need to complete your book before you try to sell it. On the other hand, even though your novel will attract publisher interest on the basis of a partial (three chapters and an outline) you must complete the novel to get a publishing contact.
While you're writing, keep researching. Your publisher will want to know how you intend marketing your book, so the more you know, the more effective a marketing plan you can create.
When you know what sells, you'll write a salable book, and you'll get published fast - enjoy the writing, and before you know it, the next time you visit a bookstore your own book will be on the shelves.

Want to become a successful and published author? Angela Booth's writing class, "Write More And Make More Money From Your Writing: Develop A Fast, Fun Productive Writing Process" at http://www.angelaswritingclasses.com/Class/writemore.html is based on lessons she developed for her private coaching students to help them to write more, improve their writing, and to sell their writing. The course trains you to become an expert writer and author.
Her ebook "Top 70 Writing Tips To Help You To Write More" at http://www.abmagic.com/Write-More/write-more.html shows you how to end procrastination for good.