How to Publish Your First Novel

Writing your first novel is a great accomplishment, but its only the beginning of the battle. Getting your first novel published is not an easy feat. Many people have tried to publish their first novel and failed miserably...but it really boils down to how well you research and how well you can put together your submission packet and maybe a little bit of luck. There are some tricks and tools to the trade that are really indispensable and will help increase your chances of getting published.

The first and probably greatest tool that will help you get your first novel published is the annual current "Writers Market Guide". It is the most comprehensive guide to the writer's market. This book contains information as detailed as how to submit query letters based on what type of genre, type of work- fiction and non fiction, a comprehensive list of publishers and what type of work they represent and are actively seeking. This list of publishers is coded, and the codes are explained in the table of contents-making it easier for you to skim through and determine which publishing house is the best fit for your novel. Some publishing houses only accept agent represented authors...so if you don't have an agent, these publishing houses aren't worth your effort. Some publishing houses do not accept any new authors. That is why it is so important to be well researched and educated when you attempt to publish your first novel. You can tie up a lot of unnecessary expense if you aren't paying attention and you blindly send out full manuscripts to publishing houses that don't even accept new authors. It is also important to use the "Writer's Market Guide" in combination with online research. Most of the publishing houses will have links listed to their home page. It is extremely important to check out each website for their requirements for submission and contact information-as their staff and requirements may change frequently.