Monday, August 4, 2014

5 Common Myths About Getting Published, Part Four








***This is PART FOUR of a five part series to uncover some myths about becoming a published author.  If you missed part three from last week you can find a link to it hereMake sure to come back next week and find out more insider secrets about the writing industry!***

So far we've looked at whether a new writer needs to have a degree, an agent, and a huge platform in order to become a published author. The constantly evolving publishing world of today allows a wide range of publishing paths which otherwise helps some writers, like myself, to become published authors when it might not have been possible years ago.

That being said, what ARE some of those publishing paths available to us today? Let's look at another myth...

MYTH #4...LARGE TRADITIONAL PUBLISHERS ARE THE ONLY PUBLICATION PATHS A SERIOUS AUTHOR CAN TAKE

Don't get me wrong. I would LOVE to get a phone call saying one of my stories was picked up by one of the BIG FIVE, but that does not dim the awesomeness of finding out a smaller publisher is interested in my stories as well. I guess it all depends on what drives a writer to become published. 

The chances of my getting a six figure advance is slimmer than my winning the lottery so it's good I'm driven by the sheer joy of sharing the worlds of my imagination with others. Small presses and independent publishers can help me achieve this goal as long as I do my due diligence and adequately research before submitting which is what I did after receiving my book offer from Anaiah Press.

Ebooks, book apps, and self-publishing are other options beyond traditional publishing available to new writers as well. Whichever path you take, make sure to check out a potential publisher against sites like Editors & Predators (http://pred-ed.com/peba.html), Writers Beware (http://accrispin.blogspot.com) and Publisher's Marketplace (http://www.publishersmarketplace.com) to make sure they are legit before submitting or signing on the dotted line.

Below are a few sites listing small presses, independent publishers, and ebook publishers which might be of interest to you. 

Poets & Writers...http://www.pw.org/small_presses

Flavorwire...http://flavorwire.com/417838/25-independent-presses-that-prove-this-is-the-golden-age-of-indie-publishing/view-all

New Pages...http://www.newpages.com/book-publishers/

Bookmarket...http://www.bookmarket.com/101publishers.html

Publishers Group West...http://www.pgw.com/home/publist.aspx

Complete Review...http://www.complete-review.com/links/publinks.html

Publishers Global...http://www.publishersglobal.com/directory/media/e-book-publishers/

Every Writers Resource...http://www.everywritersresource.com/ebookpublishers.html

Whichever path to publication you take, remember that it all starts with a strong story. Focus on becoming the strongest story teller you can and the publishing avenues are sure to eventually follow.

Have you had any experiences with small presses, ebook publishers, or self-publishing? Let's us know what worked for you in the comments...




4 comments:

  1. I published my first book with a vanity press (iUniverse) and with what I knew about self-publishing, it was an okay choice at the time. I wanted paper copies of my books to be available as well as ebooks, and I managed to get a package that was reduced from the normal price. There's so much more information online now and so many more options, that I wouldn't recommend anyone taking that route now. I've self-published since, and been happy with the results. The resources you recommend are excellent ones. I'd also suggest Jane Friedman's blog: Helping Authors and Publishers Flourish in the Digital Age. She offers great resources and current information about publishing today. http://janefriedman.com/

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    1. Hi Heather and welcome to my blog! I had some poems published by a vanity press back in the day and for me it wasn't the best experience. I'm glad authors today have many more options to choose from...but they still need to do their research! I don't know how I over looked Jane's website. I'm a huge fan and follow her blog...;~)

      Thanks for stopping by and come back any time!

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  2. Donna, I thought you said somewhere in the post you wanted to hear about other plans* to get published, I tell you about mine and you delete it?

    * Have you had any experiences with small presses, ebook publishers, or self-publishing? Let's us know what worked for you in the comments...

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    1. Hans, I need to apologize to you for accidently deleting your previous comment. I DO want to know about other's publishing experiences. For some reason I was given a prompt telling me your original comment was potentially spam so for general blog safety reasons I deleted it. This incorrect prompting has never happened before so I'm not sure what went wrong.

      Thank you for bringing this to my attention.

      Delete