Any published authors here?

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I don’t mean things like Kindle self-publishing, but rather, proper book contracts, or short stories in magazines, that sort of thing.

It might be interesting to give it a try, and I was wondering how to get started. There’s loads of info online, of course, probably too much, in fact. I have some ideas for stories set in ancient times, centring around a famous stone circle called the Rollright Stones, which has various legends and folklore associated with it that would be interesting to explore.

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I’ve written three novels as of yet but have distributed the mostly amongst friends and relatives, and on Substack. I would also find it interesting if someone here had experience in this area.
My stories were very diverse, with one about an older man of my age who “rediscovers magic,” one of a “Remnant” whose longevity he himself cannot explain, and one of a young black girl’s rise to unexpected leadership (with a little scifi).

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Is Substack similar to Amazon self-publishing? A number of people have recommended the latter to me but without the backing of a proper publisher, I think the potential is limited.

I think mine would be in the young adult fantasy genre, involving magic, mystery and a love story spanning the millennia. I don’t have the exact details worked out yet, though.

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You can send you work directly to publishers. It is important to make it clear what category you work is in, even more specific than you did here, why you are sending it to them - knowledge of the publisher and what the publisher has published give them a tad more confidence you are sending it to the right place - explain why you are a good bet as a potential member of their team, describe the target audience specifically, and read everything they say about submissions carefully.

If you haven’t let others read your work and give you feedback do that. You can send you work to agents who, if they like it, will then market it for you. The process is similar to the above.

To increase your chances (and this can also be done in parallel) get shorter works published online published magazines. Get ready for rejections. It might 20-30 rejections to get something published. Start with sort of known outlets and outlets that really fit whatever you are submitting.

Any publications…put them in your submission letter with your book.

Ask editors for feedback and if they give you any feedback, thank them, even negative feedback - I mean, unless they are rude and mean. But constructive negative feedback can be a gift and it means they spent time on it, time they don’t really have so perhaps they liked something about your work.

Query letters to any of the above outlets can work. There are books that come out each year and go through all the major publishers, often including tips from the people that screen potential books and articles. I don’t know if there are braille versions and pardon my ignorance of current tech, but it seems to me there should be something that one can run over the pages of a non-braille book that puts it into words. If my fastasies are correct get help from a bookstore for what book would fit your genre(s) best.

Publishing essays, opinion pieces, blog entries, fiction or non-fiction on any topic will also give the screeners more confidence in your work and they will be more likely to read it and more likely to read it optimistically.

If you have a writer you love in your genre, you could write to her, say, and tell her you love her work and why and then ask if you could do a short interview or ask her a few questions about what you should do. Be concise and don’t assume anything until she greenlights it. She might even get curious and ask to read a bit of your writing. Unlikely, but this is a getting used to rejection or disinterest process. Thank everything, but of course no need to grovel.

Sometimes publisher will say don’t send us anything for a year. Send them something a year later.

That’s some off the top of my head thoughts. The books I mentioned will also have advice and usually sections written about all this from the perspective of editors.

Stiff upper lip, patience, relentlessness, getting feedback anywhere you can.

Good luck.

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Thank you, definitely some interesting advice there. Having just checked, the Writers and Artists Yearbook is available as an ebook and a pdf file, both of which are fine for me.

There is, indeed, one particular author I like, Jane Louise Curry, who writes similar stories to what I have in mind.

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So, you could contact her - she may not respond. You could also, at some point, contact her agents or editors, especially if you work fits in the same genre.

I realized one other thing about these books like the one you mentioned. They often give the exact editor to send it to. That can help.

You want them to think you know who they are, you know not only the genre but even the style of what they publish - young adult fantasy that is character driven without much violence, say, while another journal/magazine has young adult fantasy that is fairly avante garde with flowery, impressionist writing.

If your submission has the text formatted how they like, is addressed to a specific person (and the right one) your style and genre are a fit and so on, they feel special, but also they think you are a potential candidate. And even if they don’t think your work is up to snuff they may well give your some tips and suggest another submission some time later. They face a flood of submissions so if you are at least a decent write and fit them, their response will be much more open.

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Yes, I’ll try doing that. There doesn’t appear to be any contact details on her website, but she’s also on the Simon and Schuster website, and spends part of her time in the UK, according to that.

All I can do so far, though, is research, since I haven’t actually written it yet.

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Get in contact with Hodder and Stoughton - or any similar book-publisher- with your story outline, and they will guide you through the entire process and/or give you advice.

SUBMISSIONS

The Future Bookshelf is our open submissions platform for writers from underrepresented communities. We open submissions to everyone, but it’s also a community for writers to get advice and guidance from editors, agents and other authors.

Outside of this, we only accept submissions sent to us by an agent – we don’t accept any unsolicited material. If you’re seeking an agent, The Writers’ and Artists’ Yearbook (published by A & C Black) and The Writer’s Handbook (published by Macmillan) contain the addresses of all UK literary agents. You can also find UK agents’ contact details on the writersservices.com website, as provided by The Writer’s Handbook.

We accept no responsibility for proposals sent to us.

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I just found this as well… they also hold events, in bookstores around the country.

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Yes, that’s a big part of the process: writing it. You used to be able to write authors through their publishers. Sometimes you can manage to find an email address online. You can always try to find out if she’s going to do a reading tour or if she teaches writing somewhere.

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Excellent, thank you. Some very good resources there. I particularly like the Writers Services one as I’m sure I’ll need to have it reviewed by a professional before sending it off anywhere.

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I’ll try through her publisher first, I think.

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I used to work for them in the early 00s as a Production Controller, so logistics… terrible pay / great parties.

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Sounds like fun.

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I published one book and coauthored with my suicidal younger son who eventually took his life,?and it has not garnered much attention ,even though my prophetic warning by Fr.Cardinal Sheen to his confidant and felines, that they would never ever believe me, he was NY Cardinal ca. 1957-?

Never thought of suing the Holy See, for anything, though his permanent confessor at Saint John’s Seminary, could have proven to be some foreshadow of things to come when he, Fr. James committed suicide as well.

In spite I remain faithful in Jesus Christ my savior.

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I’m sorry to hear of your loss.

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You have my deepest sympathy, again, of course. What sort of book was it?

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It was a book written by my son about a year before he passed describing his short life, and after he was gone his sister told me he asked her to write around the themes which pressed against his heart, and she couldn’t do it because she just couldn’t do would I? I did and it was very difficult to write it,

I saw all the kaleidoscope of happenings along one’s own life as it unfolds, just the same as others do who face death and than somehow come back, but it was not my life, and at that time I wished that it was.

I would like to write a happy book for once, and the only way to get out some thing remotely resembling a ‘Hollywood’ ending is to deny death and affirm life.

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A very difficult book to write indeed, by the sound of it. But sometimes the act of writing allows us to crystallise our thoughts and emotions on whatever we’re writing about, and work through them.