How to start the publishing process...

[MY_NAME]

So, I have a bit of a book written so far.. how do I go about getting an advance? Like who do I send it to and how.. Do i Send an email? Do I call them?? how does this process work and can I get a list of emails to the publishers?

[MY_NAME]

How can i get an agent for the book im writing?? Note you can see what i'm writing in the fiction area call (Based on true events).. I might even want to publish as a non-fiction book as its based on true events.

[MY_NAME]

Im looking for an agent can anyone help?

[Beesauce]

Please, go face to face into a library and ask them where the writers reference section is on how professional authors are published.

Step #2
If your library does not have books, cry yourself to sleep. Wake up and in the morning move to a town where there is a library with books and people who love to read them --

I can't advise further

Writers Market will be what the librarian says to look at first.

Everyone else on WB has a clownish answer
Clowns in America --

Take it from me, library has the answer on how to avoid self publishing.
Avoid agents, they will take a percent and you could do it on your own, finding the publishers & printers -- Get it printed. E-books are easy to erase, print lasts --

http://www.writersmarket.com/

[flyingtart]

Originally Posted by MY_NAME

So, I have a bit of a book written so far.. how do I go about getting an advance? Like who do I send it to and how.. Do i Send an email? Do I call them?? how does this process work and can I get a list of emails to the publishers?

This is a bit like the engenue actress getting off the bus in LA and asking someone where she should go to be a star.

Do some research. Who publishes your genre? Make a shortlist of your favourites and check out their submission guidelines. Google is your friend.

[flyingtart]

Originally Posted by MY_NAME

Im looking for an agent can anyone help?

Yes, I’m an agent and so is my wife.

Seriously, anyone can call himself an agent. The only qualification needed is a brass neck and a lust for someone else’s money. You don’t need one and they aren’t interested in you until your earning potential makes their percentage look attractive. So save yourself a lot of heartache and wait to for them to start bothering you.

[Beesauce]

Originally Posted by flyingtart

This is a bit like the engenue actress getting off the bus in LA and asking someone where she should go to be a star.

Do some research. Who publishes your genre? Make a shortlist of your favourites and check out their submission guidelines. Google is your friend.

Google is your friend. Google is your friend

I have been trying to get away from that google

It's actually not really anybody but a bunch of warlords friends this Google.

I use DuckDuckGo.com

That's my friend, at least for now..

[jimr]

Actually flyingtart, I think the big publishing houses generally require agent representation now, at least that's what I've come to understand. I may be wrong.

[spshane]

--What you will find at the library or online is a reference called The Writer's Market Place. It has a list of publishers and agents, what type of materials they are looking for, and how to submit. You will want to follow each agent's/publisher's query specifications to T
--You're better off finding a smaller publisher that accepts unsolicited queries from unpublished authors. You'll find that 90% of the literary market is controlled by 5 big publishers
--Once you identify a list of agents/publishers who are a good fit, draft together a query letter. Spend time researching effective query letters. The average literary agent receives 5,000 query letters per week. That means that your query letters needs to be wonderful; it needs to make them really really really really really want to read it
--You WILL get more than a few rejections; they may all reject you. If they're kind enough to send you a rejection letter, it is usuall cookie-cutter vanilla piece of crap. "Thank you.... blah, blah, blah... but unfortunately.... blah, blah, blah." Few agents or editors will ever give specific feedback on why they don't like your submission. It's becoming more common now for publishers and agents to not even send a rejection letter. Instead, their web sites will say "if you haven't heard from us in X amount of time, consider your submission rejected".
--If you're going to try to get your book in at one of the 5 big publishers, you need to make sure that your story is riddled with social justice warrior-ing. I know that's a controversial term, but I'm just being real with you. If your protagonist has a penis and he's not at all confused about what to do with, then consider your book rejected. If the term privileged can be added to any of your character's modifiers just forget about it. However, if your protagonist is an FTM Asian midget with no arms who self-identifies as a unicorn and rejects all forms of patriarchal pronouns, you don't even need to have a plot. They'll publish it on the spot and hold a three-day parade for you in New York City and give you a shiny gold plaque stating how wonderful you are.

[flyingtart]

Originally Posted by jimr

Actually flyingtart, I think the big publishing houses generally require agent representation now, at least that's what I've come to understand. I may be wrong.

Indeed they do. Which tells you they are not interested in small fry. Your best bet is to approach a small publisher who would be be more likely to take a punt on an unknown talent. If your work sells well it might then interest a large publisher.

Alternatively, gain notoriety by committing a gross act of murder/indecency or land a stint on Big Brother (arguably the same thing). Once you're a hot media property they'll be flinging publishing contracts at you.

[jimr]

By the way, John Grisham had to self publish his first, A Time to Kill, and the first printing sold 1500 copies.
I thought of another way that may make it easier to get the attention of agents and/or publishers: get stories pubbed in well known mags, win an award, etc.