So You Want to Be a Writer Published by Sherri Fulmer Moorer at Smashwords Copyright 2011 Sherri Fulmer Moorer Cover Photo

by ohdra Smashwords !dition" #i ense $otes %han& you 'or downloading this 'ree eboo&( )lthough this is a 'ree boo&" it remains the opyrighted property o' the author" and may not be reprodu ed" opied and distributed 'or ommer ial or non* ommer ial purposes( +' you en,oyed this boo&" please en ourage your 'riends to download their own opy at Smashwords( om( %han& you 'or your support( So you want to be a writer? There are a few things you will need in order to prepare for this journey. I hope this guide will help you prepare for the wonderful journey of being a writer. Ill cover the basics in three sections: What You eed! "ow to #repare! and What to $%pect. Chapter 1 * What You $eed &.' co(puter. #ublishers only accept (anuscripts typed in a co((on word processing progra( )li*e +icrosoft Word, and prepared in a digital for(at according to strict guidelines. -aptop co(puters have co(e down in price with the advent of (obile devices! e.readers! and tablets! so getting a co(puter isnt as e%pensive as you thin*. You can even get the( secondhand for cheap. I sold (y old laptop through a local paper for /01.22 last su((er. 3a(ily! friends! churches! and local businesses are all good sources for finding co(puters.

4.' bac* up drive. 5o(puters are great! but you cant depend on a hard drive as the only source for storing your files. The eventual brea*! crash! or virus can wipe out everything! and I can say fro( e%perience that bac* up files have saved (e nu(erous ti(es at ho(e and wor*. 56s and flash drives are relatively cheap and can be found anywhere! fro( discount stores to office supply warehouses. 7r if you want to spend a little (ore to bac* up (ore files! you can buy an e%ternal hard drive.

8.$.(ail access. 's I (entioned above! everything is done digitally. Its easier! faster! and (ore efficient to correspond by $.(ail! and it saves you ti(e and postage. It doesnt cost a thing if you use popular places li*e Yahoo! '7-! "ot(ail! or 9(ail.

:.' website. This is i(perative if you plan to pursue publication. It helps you to connect with readers and writers to establish an audience! and it shows that youre serious about getting your wor* into print. You dont have to be a guru to set up a website. In fact! there are places where you can set up a website for free or cheap! and design is as si(ple as dragging and dropping the ele(ents you want to appropriate places on the page. I used Weebly to design a free website and upgraded to (y own do(ain na(e when I got (y publication contracts. Ive also heard that Yahoo and 9o 6addy offer great website service for reasonable prices. You can also chec* with

your $.(ail provider to see if they offer an option to set up a website through the( with your account.

1.' blog. Youre a writer! so this should be easy and fun. There are (any places that offer free blog services! or you can chec* with your $.(ail or Website provider to see if they offer a blog option. This is a great way to start building your readership and to (ar*et your wor* to publishers and potential readers.

Chapter 2 * -ow to Prepare &.9ive yourself a refresher on gra((ar. I *now its unpleasant! but its the foundation of writing and you (ust have a proper grasp on the $nglish language if you hope to get published. I *now fro( e%perience. +y wor* was consistently rejected for a period of three years. I didnt understand why! until one of the publishers was *ind enough to tell (e that (y wor* was good! but it needed e%tensive editing and that frightened (any publishers fro( accepting a (anuscript. I got the picture! refreshed (y gra((ar s*ills! and was offered two contracts within a three (onth period of ti(e.

4.6ecide what you want to write and research how to do it best. Writing isnt si(ply a (atter of pounding the *eys until whats in your head is on your hard drive. Stories (ust have structure and several inter(ingling ele(ents in order to wor* effectively! and every *ind of writing follows its own structure. Theres one for poetry! one for short stories! one for novels! and an entirely different for(ula for non.fiction. 3or now! pic* one thing you want to do and study up on it. There are (any ways to do this! fro( wor*shops and classes to Internet research and reference (anuals. -earning is a lifelong process! so co((it yourself to the craft of writing and learning all you can about the type you li*e best.

8.;esearch the sub(ission and publication process. Sub(ission guidelines vary a(ongst publishers! but so(e things are universal! li*e <uery letters! boo* sub(issions! and the publication process. The writing world is a big one! so ta*e so(e ti(e to study how the process wor*s and where the best places are to sub(it your wor*. "ere are a few resources I found particularly helpful:

=Writers +ar*et by ;obert -ee >rewer. They also brea* this down into s(aller volu(es that speciali?e in (ar*ets such as ovels and Short Stories! 5hildrens >oo*s! and #oetry! so you can buy a shorter version that focuses on your particular type of writing. =The $ssential 9uide to 9etting Your >oo* #ublished by 'rielle $c*stut and 6avid "enry. This is hands down the best boo* Ive read that gives you infor(ation on everything fro( writing to publishing and publicity in all available avenues! all in one boo*@

=$>oo* 5rossroads has a great list of e.publishers. $.boo*s are growing in popularity and I highly reco((end considering this as an avenue to publication. You go through the sa(e sub(ission process with e.publishers as you do for traditional publishers! so youll still need to *now how to draft a good <uery letter and boo* proposal to sub(it to these publishers.

:.Aoin a writers group. You need feedbac* fro( readers to (a*e your wor* as strong and effective as possible. 3a(ily and friends are good! but they cant give you an unbiased opinion of your wor* because! well! they *now you. You can join a local writers group or! if there isnt one! chec* out online groups. These are great because you can target your audience and get feedbac* fro( a wide variety of people fro( different places and cultures. Two websites that Ive found e%tre(ely helpful are Writing.co( at www.writing.co( and 'uthono(y at www.authono(y.co( .

1.If you arent for(ally trained to type or if you arent co(fortable using co(puters! ta*e a short course at a local technical school. I (entioned before that everything is going digital and this isnt going away. The days of slipping beautifully handwritten (anuscripts over the transo( are over. #ublishers only accept typewritten sub(issions and (ore are re<uesting e.(ail sub(issions. So snuggle up to your laptop and (a*e it your best friend.

Chapter . * What to !/pe t &.Writing is a solitary endeavor. You (ust have an incredible a(ount of self (otivation and truly love writing in order to stic* it out through the wor* of brainstor(ing! outlining! researching! developing! and writing draft after draft of your wor*. This is why writers groups and social (edia are helpful to writers. They allow you to connect with others that have si(ilar interests and face the sa(e adventures and challenges as you do! and it *eeps that (otivation going.

4.Writing is a slow business. Ive often said what ta*es a year in the rest of the world ta*es ten years in the writing world. Writing new wor* ta*es ti(e! researching ta*es ti(e! building your s*ill as a writer ta*es ti(e! sub(itting ta*es ti(e! reviews ta*e ti(e B the whole process crawls at a snails pace. It ta*es a long ti(e to build yourself and your wor* up to a publishable level. I once read that it ta*es an average of ten years to get that first hit! and it was certainly true for (e. "ec*! I( still building (yself up as an independent author! and Ive been writing since I got (y first personal co(puter in 4222.

8.Writing is a subjective business and therefore is a rejection.heavy business. $verybody has different tastes! and its unfortunate that getting published is largely an issue of i(pressing the right person at the right ti(e. Its an art that ta*es ti(e to (aster. Its tough too! because rejection chips away at even the (ost confident a(ongst us. You have to re(e(ber two things:

3irst! its not personal. ;e(e(ber theyre rejecting your wor*! not you! and its only their opinion. Second! it only ta*es one acceptance to (a*e you a published writer! and fortune favors the persistent in this way. If you give up! youll never be a published writer. If you *eep trying! youll i(prove and will eventually connect with the right publisher for your wor*.

:.Writing is a business that re<uires a tre(endous invest(ent of ti(e and energy. You (ust wor* at writing to beco(e good at it! just li*e anything else. 3inding ti(e to invest in writing can be a challenge! especially when you have a ho(e! fa(ily! job and other obligations in your life! but its absolutely essential to schedule regular ti(e to wor* at it if you want to (a*e progress. 6o what you can! when you can! and learn how to schedule so you can fit writing into your life. That great novel in your head wont get any further than your brain until you (a*e ti(e to write it.

Chapter 0 * +n Closing ' lot of people fantasi?e about the life of a writer: "ow its a wonderful! leisurely life of wor*ing fro( ho(e in your paja(as while sipping a stea(ing cup of coffee over a co(puter as the ne%t great novel flows fro( your brilliant (ind. I assure you! this is a fantasy. I recently read that the 42&2 census only reported 422 people in the Cnited States that listed writing as their livelihood! with no other source of inco(e. That (eans (ost writers are wor*ing at this around ho(es! fa(ilies! and careers. 'bove and beyond all else! I encourage you to enjoy writing. Yes! it is wor* and there will be so(e things that you dont li*e! but the enjoy(ent and fulfill(ent that you get fro( every other part of the process should (a*e the occasional thing that you find unpleasant worth it. You should beco(e a writer because you love to write and share your stories with the world. If its drudgery and you dread it! then its not worth it. Yes! writing is wor* and it ta*es a lot (ore than an idea! a co(puter! and so(e spare ti(e. These are the basic ele(ents you need! but theres so (uch (ore to being a writer. I hope this guide gives you the basics you need to get started on this great adventure. 9ood luc* and 9odspeed@ Chapter 1 2 )bout the )uthor Sherri 3ul(er +oorer is a freelance writer and is also the author of two other boo*s: an inspirational boo* titled >attleground $arth B -iving by 3aith in a #agan World )#ublish'(erica 422:, and a young adult (ystery novel titled >lurry )Wings e#ress 42&&,. "er ne%t novel! a supernatural (ystery titled 'nywhere >ut "ere )Whis*ey 5ree* #ress,! will be released in 'pril 42&4. Sherri has also self published a suspense novella titled Duarantine )S(ashwords 42&&, and a long story titled ;esonance )S(ashwords 42&&,. She has a >achelor of Science in #sychology fro( the Cniversity of South 5arolina and wor*s as a #rogra( 'ssistant for the State of South 5arolina. Sherri is a lifelong (e(ber of +t. Tabor -utheran 5hurch in West 5olu(bia! S5! where she serves on the $vangelis( 5o((ittee and is a greeter. She lives in 5olu(bia! S5 with

her husband! ;ic*E and their birds! Fac*! 5hloe! and 7liver. 3or (ore on Sherri! please visit her website at http:GGwww.sherrithewriter.co( .