Think Small, Go Big!

I've seen countless authors who have a wonderful book, but don't get published. Why is that? Assuming their characters are vibrant, their story original, and their sentence structure is flawless, just why is that book not being picked up?

The fact of the matter is that books are expensive to produce. Any given publisher could take a chance on a shiny new hopeful, but will they? Sadly, unless your book is absolutely spectacular, the answer is probably no.

However, don't let that deter you, folks, because I have the secret. The surefire way to see that book in print is to build yourself a credit sheet. While most publishers won't take a chance on that one book from that previously unpublished brimming hopeful, what they will take a chance on is a short story.

Take another peek at those publishers you were eyeing for your book. Do any of them have anthology calls coming up? Or, if you're peering into the realm of ebook publishing, many if not all ebook publishers publish short stories. Create a mini-series, build around your existing book by giving side characters short romances, or even write a few stand-alone tales to send to many different epublishers. Not only will these tales be more likely to be snapped up, but you'll be building that credit sheet I talked about. And if the publisher you've had your eye on all along takes that short story (or two, or three) of yours, you'll be that much more likely to have your novel accepted as well.

Or you different strategy: start at the sure thing. Give smaller stories to lesser-known publishers, and work your way up to the "big guns," so to speak. By the time you've got that story in eprint by the publisher you've really had your eye on, you'll already have a fanbase in place to buy that book you've been holding onto!

So with that strategy in place (or maybe one of your own), I wish you all the best of luck with your writing, as I push to gain the best of luck in mine, as well!

Clara.