SO YOU WANNA BE AN AUTHOR?

I am a grandmother raising a grandchild. As if that wasn't enough to do at 61. Now, I've added author to my list of of accomplishments. Although completing a book is only the beginning of the long journey.

As I was writing and re-writing, I realized I knew nothing about getting it published. I thought, by magic, someone would read my intro, fall in love with it and want to publish it. Yeah, right!

Let me share some realities, which I sought by way of Google.
1. After writing your book, you must write a Proposal, which is almost harder than writing the book. This is where you promote your story, yourself and how you're going to sell it. Something you need more than anything is a platform. It must be HUGE for a publishing house to want you. That means a new writer needs to be Oprah. If this doesn't stop you, you plug on.

2. Write a Query letter to get an agent to get your book to the publisher (most publishers do not accept unsolicited manuscripts). The letter must follow exact guidelines and be creative enough to grab the agent's attention and also show that you can write. No typo's here. Many are e-mailed and many are snail-mailed. If the latter, don't forget you must include a SASE (stamped, self-addressed envelope). Also, it's a business letter so DO spell the agent's name correctly.

3. So, how do find what agents to mail to? There are different websites, but a very reliable one is called AGENT QUERY. You plug in your book's genre and lists of agents appear. Then you have to open up each agent's page to see if their specialty matches your book.

I've got to run to pick up my grandson and take him to tutoring. I'll continue later and also tell you about my story.