Goal Setting, Query Writing, and Picking Your Publisher

Last week, we discussed the three things you need in order to write an effective book. To recap, they are:

1. Your book and/or topic must be UNIQUE to your platform and genre
2. Your book--and definitely your topic--must be INTERESTING
3. Your book must be WELL WRITTEN

In this installment of our "Get Published" series, we'll discuss how to approach the next step of the publishing process: finding an agent or publisher, or both.

So, you think you're ready to write a book? (and other writing tips)

Being in the business of publishing, we get a lot of questions from authors and would-be authors about the publishing process, the time it takes from acquisition to publication, ebooks, distribution channels, marketing, and everything in between. These questions are valid and important, but sometimes in the midst of all the excitement of getting a book published and learning about the ins and outs of the publishing business, authors forget about the importance of focusing on their book.

This will be the first in a series of posts offering tips to authors who are curious about the publishing business. I'll not only address all of the usual concerns mentioned above, but also things like query letters, agents, submitting unsolicited manuscripts, finding the right publisher for you, what to expect (and not to expect) from your publisher, and how to focus on the goal for your book. To begin, we'll talk about whether you're even ready to write a book, let alone publish it.