94 lines
5.0 KiB
Plaintext
94 lines
5.0 KiB
Plaintext
|
||
HOW DO I GET PUBLISHED? THEN WHAT DO I DO?
|
||
by Kathy Fieler
|
||
|
||
There are two elements to writing, says Charlie Patton, Book
|
||
Review Editor for the _Florida Times Union_; aptitude and diligence.
|
||
"There has to be some innate talent, or at least some level of talent.
|
||
There are great geniuses and there are competent, hard-working writers.
|
||
Your talent will carry you to different levels, but you learn by talking
|
||
to people who are good writers."
|
||
|
||
Writing for hire teaches skills necessary for consistently turning
|
||
out publishable material, according to Patton. A writers who is trying
|
||
to sell an article will research the market before investing time in
|
||
the writing process. When the goal is a paycheck, the writers must be
|
||
disciplined and realistic.
|
||
|
||
"Another nice thing is you have to write to deadlines," he says.
|
||
Patton works best against a deadline, because it forces him to concentrate.
|
||
He suspects most writers are like this. "I think most writers tend to
|
||
procrastinate," he says. "Certainly writers working in the newspaper
|
||
business do. No one ever turns things in six weeks ahead of deadline.
|
||
It's always more like six minutes before, of six minutes after."
|
||
|
||
Start by writing what interests you, because you'll have a passion
|
||
for the subject, he advises. Then write any time an opportunity
|
||
presents itself. "I began writing about sports, not because I wanted
|
||
to write, but because I liked sports," he said. "If you're in high
|
||
school or college, write for the school newspaper. You have to begin
|
||
the writing process to learn it."
|
||
|
||
Reference books, particularly a good thesaurus, a good dictionary,
|
||
and a manual of style, are important to both the beginning writer and
|
||
the seasoned pro. "I've got lots of reference books and have access to
|
||
lots of good ones at the newspaper," says Patton, "but I'm in the
|
||
unusual position as the editor of a newspaper. I get sent hundreds of
|
||
books a year." He advocates going to your public library if you're on
|
||
a budget.
|
||
|
||
Electronic reference books are becoming ever more available to
|
||
people with home computers and Patton believes writers should take
|
||
advantage of it. "We're on the leading edge of the electronic age," he
|
||
says. "In my house, we don't have encyclopedias on paper any more. We
|
||
have them on CD ROM and that's just the beginning of what's available.
|
||
A newspaper called the _San Jose Mercury_ has taken a leading role,
|
||
publishing by computer, and is available on one of the on-line
|
||
services."
|
||
|
||
Beware of short cuts, he warns. "Writers should seek publication,
|
||
but anybody that pays to get their stuff published is not a professional,"
|
||
he says. With all the scams out there, it's easy to succumb to impatience
|
||
and get caught up in vanity publishing. Likewise, it's easy to concede to
|
||
giving work away, just to see your name in print. And make sure your read
|
||
up on copyright laws. Know which rights you are selling or seek the
|
||
advice of a good copyright attorney before signing any contract.
|
||
|
||
That is not to say Patton thinks self-publishing is always bad. "I
|
||
encounter lots of people who want to be writers, who don't have the
|
||
talent or haven't put in the effort, but think they are deserving of
|
||
the attention because they aspire to be a writer," he said. Patton
|
||
doesn't have a problem with someone publishing his own book, if it's
|
||
for the right reason, such as it has a niche market and may not sell
|
||
in the mainstream.
|
||
|
||
If you intend to self-publish, you should seek qualified critiques
|
||
of your material in order to avoid embarrassing mistakes the pros
|
||
would never miss. Patton says writers' groups, lead by properly
|
||
qualified individuals, are good places to have work inexpensively
|
||
edited and learn the writing process.
|
||
|
||
Once you've been published, publicity is the next concern. Patton
|
||
says it's really up to the author to see that the book is aggressively
|
||
promoted. "It doesn't hurt to promote your own book," he says. "Authors
|
||
do that all the time. If someone calls me up and offers some aspect that
|
||
is germane to my column, I'll write about it." The trick, he says, is
|
||
to find a story angle for the publication you're contacting.
|
||
|
||
Patton likens the successful writer to a great athlete. First you
|
||
have to learn the game. Then you have to go to practice, then try-outs,
|
||
and finally you make the team. In the end, though, it's up to you to find
|
||
-- those photo opportunities.
|
||
|
||
# # #
|
||
|
||
Copyright 1994 Kathy Fieler
|
||
------------------------ # # # ----------------------------------
|
||
Kathy is a Jacksonville based freelance writer and publicist. Her works
|
||
appeared in FLORIDA TIMES UNION, SUWANNEE DEMOCRAT, CLAY TODAY, NASSAU
|
||
COUNTY RECORD, SEE magazines, and others. She is an editor of the THE
|
||
PENCHANT, Public Relations Director for the Florida First Coast Writer's
|
||
Festival, and production staff member at STATE STREET REVIEW (a biannual
|
||
literary magazine). She's married, has two children, and various pets.
|
||
========================================================================
|
||
|