Need Help In My Attempts to Get Published
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How many words is this thing, according to Yahoo answers, the average novel is "80,000-120,000" words.
Edit: Urgh, if MattZero's estimates are true, and you're at 700 pages, its not all that likely that a publisher will agree to print the whole thing. Unless its made of raw wonder, you're likely gonna have to cut that back considerably.
I don't know what books other folks read, but most contempary work I encounter is around the 300 mark.
Edit: Urgh, if MattZero's estimates are true, and you're at 700 pages, its not all that likely that a publisher will agree to print the whole thing. Unless its made of raw wonder, you're likely gonna have to cut that back considerably.
I don't know what books other folks read, but most contempary work I encounter is around the 300 mark.
Yo, if that's supposed to say "word count," that is ridiculously long for a first-time author with no previously published work. If it's correctly saying "character count," that's roughly 37,000 words, which is not novel length; it's just a longer novella.soren7550 said:
I'm trying to get published too, actually. I'm going to remain widely anonymous though, and only my editor and publisher will really know who I am. I don't look for fame, plus I take elements from my real life and exaggerate them and I don't want my friends to read my book and go "holy crap that's So-And-So! It looks like Caydan hates them!" Yeah, that would be bad. So I'm remaining under the obvious pseudonym Anderson Anderson Bentley.
Advice on how to get published: Send in a chapter and a summery of your goals to as many publishers as you can, and ask if they could call you back and arrange a meeting time to really talk. That's what I'm going to do. If you don't get a response back, then I guess you've got to try to reach someone directly.
Advice on how to get published: Send in a chapter and a summery of your goals to as many publishers as you can, and ask if they could call you back and arrange a meeting time to really talk. That's what I'm going to do. If you don't get a response back, then I guess you've got to try to reach someone directly.
That's not short for a novel. A standard paperback novel is typically between 80,000 and 100,000 words. Some authors go for length, which is ok for some I guess, but my favorite novels ever were the short ones, like Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, which probably topped out at 40,000 words max.MattZero said:
A few places may accept manuscripts into their slush pile unsolicited. A large number, however, will want you to send a query letter. Here's a good guide to writing one: http://www.sfwa.org/2005/01/the-complete-nobodys-guide-to-query-letters/
You also want to make sure you are trying to sell your book to the right publisher and market. This is a really good site for finding those: http://www.duotrope.com/index.aspx
Of course, it'll be even easier trying to get published if you can find an agent. Agents are all different, however. Some want just a query letter, some a cover letter and the first chapter, some a cover letter and the first three chapters, etc. If you want to find an agent, you'll have to search for them and seek out their specific requirements before submitting.
Good luck getting published, soren7550. Let us know how it turns out.
You also want to make sure you are trying to sell your book to the right publisher and market. This is a really good site for finding those: http://www.duotrope.com/index.aspx
Of course, it'll be even easier trying to get published if you can find an agent. Agents are all different, however. Some want just a query letter, some a cover letter and the first chapter, some a cover letter and the first three chapters, etc. If you want to find an agent, you'll have to search for them and seek out their specific requirements before submitting.
Good luck getting published, soren7550. Let us know how it turns out.
Ok, checking the document again, there's an estimated 41,210 or so words so far. Now, this might not be taking into account words that it doesn't recognize as words (such as certain names/places/objects) or any abbreviations (like ones that uses periods after each letter like S.A.S. or even ones that don't have a period after each letter such as SFOD-D.)
And I'm not extremely worried about length. Now, I'm not sure if this is a sort of series or it's the publishing company, but I've seen & read several of these Orca Soundings books and many of them only clock in at 100 pages. Add in larger than usual print & spacing in between the lines and you have a series of books you can finish in an hour.
@darkless
It took several tries, but I was able to load the vid up fully and it was very helpful. Now, since it didn't work for me until late last night I was unable to check the links in the sidebar. Annnnnnnnd I sort of forgot to check them today so I might be able to check 'em tomorrow granting that I remember and/or I don't spend too much/no time fixing my brother's car.
And I'm not extremely worried about length. Now, I'm not sure if this is a sort of series or it's the publishing company, but I've seen & read several of these Orca Soundings books and many of them only clock in at 100 pages. Add in larger than usual print & spacing in between the lines and you have a series of books you can finish in an hour.
@darkless
It took several tries, but I was able to load the vid up fully and it was very helpful. Now, since it didn't work for me until late last night I was unable to check the links in the sidebar. Annnnnnnnd I sort of forgot to check them today so I might be able to check 'em tomorrow granting that I remember and/or I don't spend too much/no time fixing my brother's car.