Do the Write Thing: 7 Steps to Publishing Success - Hardcover

Alexander, Kwame; Foxx, Nina

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0967895960 ISBN 13: 9780967895963

Publisher: Manisy Willows Books, 2001

Synopsis

"Do The Write Thing: Seven Steps to Publishing Success" provides a definitive point-by-point instruction manual for getting into print whether you want to publish a family memoir, the next great American novel, or simply learn the ins-and-outs of the self-publishing world. Detailed worksheets provide a guide through the process so thorough, it is almost as if the authors are holding your hand.

About this title

About the Author

E.C. Kwame Alexander is a publishing consultant and the founder of a well known independant publishing house based in the Washington, D.C. Area. He has also written two screenplays and five stageplays and is the author/editor of four books. Through his publishing and consulting, he has led many authors to success. He lives in Alexandria, Virginia

Reviews

For writers determined to publish their own work, Kwame Alexander, with the help of Nina Foxx, offers Do the Write Thing: 7 Steps to Publishing Success. Alexander, a writer, publishing consultant and founder of the independent press BlackWords, advises readers in a friendly and practical manner on everything from writing and editing your manuscript, starting a publishing company and printing your book to marketing, sales and author tours. Besides furnishing a lexicon of publishing terms, a list of helpful reading materials, inspirational and cautionary anecdotes and savvy regarding hiring editors of all sorts, Alexander endows writers with the confidence they need to self-publish.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

STEP 1
CONJURING THE MUSE: DEVELOPING THE BOOK CONCEPT

It s been said that almost anyone can write a book. What this chapter aims to do is help you polish and publish a good one. The first easy step in this arduous and exciting process you are beginning is to develop your concept. Have you decided what your book will be about? What type of preparation, research and development is necessary, if any? What is your motivation for writing the book?, and how does that effect what you re writing and why? Are you writing to publish for a mass audience, a niche-market, or specific group (e.g. Church, Family, etc.)? All these decisions and more will help you solidify your ideas into a finished manuscript.

The Why Question

I remember working with a retired-teacher-turned-writer who wanted to publish a history of her family. She told me that there were to be over five hundred of her relatives from over 25 states at the Family Reunion. It was her dream to publish a collection of family photos, remembrances, recipes, legends and biographies and sell one copy to every member of her family. With such a large and dispersed family, she felt it was important to preserve their legacy and history for present and future generations, no matter where they resided. This writer clearly had her motivation from the start: To Preserve her Family s Legacy. Of course, this motivation provided a solid foundation for her writing and eventual publishing.

Do you know your answer to the Why question? Your motivation may be to quit your job and make lots of money. You may want to share your poetic expressions of love with others, and help make the world a better place. Even still, you may need to publish to maintain your teaching job, in which case the motivation is a tenured position. Writing for some is strictly motivated by a yearning to WRITE. Some just have it in their blood, so to speak. Then there are writers who go to school, study literature, and spend day and night writing the next great American novel.

The Why question will help you determine what your subject matter is, what genre your book will be, and who your audience is. For instance, if your primary goal is to make lots of money then you may decide to write the type of book that the industry recognizes as a hot-seller. We can call this the book ala dot com phenomenon. In the late 90 s, many college graduates and corporate technology employees with a desire to strike it rich, were exchanging their job security for the exciting new Internet Gold Mine. For years, the mantra was if you want to be a millionaire in 1-3 years, start a dot com, go public, and retire before you re thirty. In the same vein, if money is your motivator in this writing game, then it makes sense to find your dot com. What type of book will be a commercial success for you? Is it Spiritual/Self-Help? Is it Children s Literature or How-To? Maybe it s Romance Fiction. Recognize your purpose, as it will dictate your agenda. Every book, like a business meeting, starts with an agenda.

Edition details

• Publisher: Manisy Willows Books
• Publication date: 2001
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0967895960
• ISBN 13: 9780967895963
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 144