Not everything you see in the movies is real. And just another tidbit of information, some of the stories you hear about “real authors” are padded with hype. Hollywood paints authors as having glamorous lives, often secluded at some retreat, or seated signing books with a line of folks waiting to meet him/her.
The truth is that few authors actually live off of their royalties in nice cushy lifestyles. Actually the harder work begins once you've typed your final pages.
There are some authors where the words tend to flow easily and suddenly you have a finished story. Now starts the self-editing process. Set the manuscript down and WALK AWAY. Prepare to look at your manuscript with a fresh set of eyes forgetting that you are the one who wrote the words. Go through your manuscript checking spelling, punctuation and continuity. Eliminate any unnecessary words; if the subplot has no value to the whole story, cut it out. When YOU are finished, ask a friend or two whom you trust to read it through.
Depending on the route you are planning to take to publication, this is the point you will start looking for an agent, a publishing house, or a self-publishing process. You also should consider if you are interested in print publishing, multi-format e-book or audio. Of course your publisher or your budget may play a prominent part in this decision.
Jumping forward to acceptance and publication... most small press and independent publishers give little to no financial assistance towards promotional marketing; small press can't afford much and larger publishers usually only give that support to well-known and already proven writers. You are the one that will have to make an effort to promote it. Promotion efforts include virtual and in-person book tours, author events and book-signings, and maintaining a strong online presence. Retailers know that you have to put the product in front of the customer multiple times to get them to buy.
As already stated even the big NYC publishing houses do not guarantee that they will pay for or work and promotion, only the bigger named authors get the full effort of the publisher’s PR office working for them. Even if you are lucky enough to get some level of promotional backing, it still remains a TEAM EFFORT – you do not get to sit back. Even big name and successful authors like Danielle Steel, Carly Phillips, and Dean Koontz maintain active FaceBook accounts and interact with fans, send out emailed newsletters, and appear at in-person author events. Most publishers will even ask for an author’s marketing and promotion plan before they will consider offering a contract.
Get involved in writers’ groups, preferably with some already published authors, to learn firsthand from experience what you should expect . Whatever you do, just be prepared to work. Trust me, the euphoria you’ll experience is certainly worth it.
Writing exercise: Practice writing a query letter, particularly the part her you are trying to “sell” you book idea to an editor. Include a brief blurb. Tell why your target audience will want to read it. Can your story line be tied into a relevant current event ? Does your subject matter deal with something important to a region or town? Explain why your book is special.
Writing prompt: List the first ten books/movies/plays you can think of that you have read or seen. Write a tweet-able (no more than 140 characters) description of each.
Challenge Assignment: Lay out the beginnings of a marketing and promotion plan for your latest work, or WIP. Include a list of venues and contact info where you hope to make in-person appearances — include what you would do at each appearance such as a book discussion, lecture on the theme, or a talk about writing, etc. List the giveaways such as book marks, pens, candy, that you would hand out to folks who come to your table and the approximate cost for each item.
