Publishing Hub: What advice would you most appreciate, as a self-publishing writer?

Anna

Hi there – it’s Anna from CompletelyNovel here.
I have a question for you guys.
We want to offer writers as much advice as we can when it comes to self-publishing their books. The CompletelyNovel team has built up lots of contacts and a fairly extensive knowledge of the world of publishing, self-publishing, social networks and the online world.

So, are there any burning questions that you have about self-publishing, the publishing industry in general, writing or marketing you book for instance?

Let us know and we will focus on helping you out in these areas.

Howard

Hi Anna,

I appreciate the advice that’s been provided on CN especially in relation to the marketing of our written work.

I try to follow the most common advice to aspiring writers wishing to be published and pick up my copy of The Writers Handbook, head for the list of literary agents, follow the set instructions regarding submissions and…. then, more often than not, I get stuck. Stuck wondering why I am to submit my work in such a way that I know is not going to set it apart in such a manner that would allow it to receive serious consideration. Surely, I mutter to myself, there must be a better, more creative, way.

Being online would seem to be that ‘better’ way making written material accessible in a creative manner to all agents willing to look online. I would like to ask whether you find that literary agents do in fact trawl through online blogs and sites such as CN in their quest for new writers and books and if not, in what ways we the writer can entice them to do so?

Thanks,
Howard

Anna

We do know that a number of literary agents are interested in our website (we have talked to a number of them) and publishers too. There are also other websites out there which are getting more attention from agents. I have to admit that getting the more traditional literary agents to change their habits has not been easy, but we are definitely getting there!
But you are right – finding a way to stand out when you are one of many letters coming through the door that have to conform to rigid requirements is tough. And of course, there are lots of reasons why, even if you do stand out, you won’t get picked up anyway (the agent doesn’t currently have the time to take on someone new, they don’t know how they personally could sell you to literary agents etc etc) – this is a blog posted today about Why being rejected means nothing. However, there’s still all the time that you have to put into writing the query letters and I often think that time could be dedicated to doing something more imaginative and ultimately productive.
I’m noticing a lot more literary agents and publishers cropping up on Twitter now too. Although you have to be very careful not to make them feel harassed (and I’m sure you would be lovely!), I think building up those kinds of contacts and perhaps throwing a link their way or letting them know about any particular writing achievements could be a good start. If you can link to your page on CompletelyNovel, or write some good blog posts that could help to get their attention.
I’ll have a think and talk to a few people in the industry about ways that you can make your work (on CompletelyNovel) more likely to stand out to the right people and get back to you!

Howard

That’s great Anna, thanks. I’ll make a concerted effort to get more out of Twitter.

Tessa

Very helpful, Anna. Will have to try to twitter, though that doesn’t come naturally to me.

Anna

Hi Tessa. I have to admit that Twitter wasn’t something that I got to grips with immediately. In my experience it’s one of those things that gradually becomes more useful and easy to use over time. I think it’s good to try and make sure you give it a proper go. If it’s definitely not for you and you feel uncomfortable then that’s not a problem, but it is one of the easiest ways of expanding your network and communicating with people so I would really encourage it. It also makes real life networking much easier as you will find that over time that you end up meeting with people that you have already ‘chatted to’ on Twitter. Breaking the ice and finding common ground becomes a lot less effort. Maybe it’s a sign of my laziness, but I definitely think it helps me!

I have written an article today about Getting started on Twitter if you are an author which you might find useful. Let me know what you think!
(I’m @anna_cn if you want to say hi by the way!)