So, you’ve written a poem, a short story or a novel and now you don’t know where to go with it.

This guide will give you some tips on getting published, self-publishing and self-promoting. Ebay is an excellent arena to get; your writing supplies, inspiration, guides to publication (there is a myriad of books out there to help you publish your works, and to get your self-published work into the public eye and in your pocket book.

In my twenties, I was quite the little go-getter. I had started to write some poetry and thought it was pretty decent. I thought about looking into the publishing aspect of my writing, if it was good enough for me to read, it might be good enough for someone else to. But where to start. One day, I was reading the daily newspaper and found an ad that offered "prizes and publication of poetry no longer than 21 lines." Now I’m not shy about putting myself to the test, so I counted the lines of my poem, sent it in according to the rules of the contest, and waited with baited breath. About a month later – to my surprise and delight, I received a thick envelope, with information, pamphlets, possible writing cruises and letter stating that my poem was going to be published. I could purchase a copy of the tome it would appear in for $29.99. I could add a picture of my self for $14.99, a bibliography of myself for $19.99, and special dedications to my relatives for $9.99. Wow! I was going to be a published poet. I couldn’t believe it.

Six months later, a huge horrible book arrived. It did include my poem, on page 1006, it did include some poor poets that paid the extra price for their 1x2" picture to appear, and it did include the highly priced bibliographies and dedications. My very small 21-line poem was in a page that was written tri-column. The first part of my poem appeared at the bottom of column 2 and ended on column 3. Of course I was excited – but in the back of my ego I knew that more than likely everyone who entered their poetry was published, because they were paying to do so.

poetry books

Being published is the ultimate goal of every writer. We say we write it for ourselves – which is true, but we also write hoping to get our words out for others to enjoy, for recognition in the literary world and for bragging rights. This can be accomplished in many ways, but the key is patience and perseverance. Paying for the privilege of being published is a definite no-no, unless you pay for the publication itself and self promote.

I began a small press, publication in the early 80’s when cut and paste meant literally cut and paste. You would type out the article, poem or story; cut the pieces out and align them on a blank sheet – secure the articles to the blank sheet, arrange pages and take them to the local printers. The results were a "chapbook" style publication. The book would be about 5x7", stapled in the middle and covered with cardstock and a pen and ink illustration. I published a monthly poetry and short story magazine in an even cheaper rendition of the "cut and paste" chapbook. I published 36 monthly magazines and 6 books of poetry for my readers for a nominal fee. I recall the complete cost for me editing and compiling a book – the printing fee, and my time came to $.50 a book. Things have drastically changed, for the better. Better printing, better product and a professional look that would fit in any library.

You may be surprised at what constitutes publication; it can work to your advantage for bibliography and resume purposes, but can work against you if publication houses require non-published works.

Anything published in written form for public viewing; i.e. newspaper articles, letters to the editor, poems in a publication, etc.

Ebay Blogs

Anything written for an office - flyers, pamphlets, manuals

On line Blogs

ebay blogs

ebay guides

ebay reviews

What is the best way to go about getting your work traditionally published?

Pick up a copy of the Writers Market. The Writers Market is the bible (and can be found on Ebay, along with the Poets Market) for publication listings. There are thousands of publishing houses that are interested in manuscripts of all types

The Writers Market

The Poet's Market

Make sure you read all of the information in the listing

Make sure the publication is open to receiving manuscripts

Look for deadlines. Your work will be sent back if it is past the deadline.

Look for distinct rules for the publishing house.

Look for the right connection – do not send a horror story to a romance publication

Most publishing houses want an inquiry first. That is a cover letter and small biography of your published works. They will in turn request a portion of your work for consideration.

Do not send out the same article, poem, story etc. to more than one publishing house at a time.

Keep a diary of the date; publishing house and outcome in a ledger to better manage your work. Mine went something like

Poem 1, date sent to publisher, publishers name and denied or accepted.

Do not submit a previously published piece unless the publisher states that it is all right. Many small presses and anthologies will accept reprints and usually pronounce this in their notes for publication.

Keep trying – the average acceptance letter is 1 in 50 for poetry. Articles are a bit higher.

Get an agent if your goals are lofty, your piece is large (book manuscript) or you have exhausted your areas of publication – many agents are listed in the Writers Handbook – many of which will ask for a sampling of your writing and then approach you on their willingness to work on your behalf. I have not used an agent considering that most of my pieces are poems, but if you are determined and willing to split the fee, you may want to check this avenue.

When you have submitted your work to several publishing houses

After you have received countless rejection notices – a rejection notice is not personal, there are more reasons to reject an article, poem, story etc. than you can imagine – and none of them has to do with you:

The Editor has recieved more entries than they can sift through.

A cover letter was not submitted.

The guidlines were not followed.

The deadline has passed.

The piece was not right for the publication.

Your work was not double/single spaced. You didn't include a reading fee.

You didn't include a Self Addressed Stamped Envelope.

The publication has gone out of business.

These are just a few, as a former editor – 90 percent of the rejected pieces had nothing to do with the writers’ ability; it had to do with editing the project at hand.

The average to go by is 20 rejections for every acceptance, and that is being kind. The more your name and writing ability becomes known – the less you will receive those cute notes.

Educate yourself: Study books and articles on the subject to become very knowledgeable about the endeavor you are about to take on. Attend seminars where you can network with others in the field. Look up literary guilds in your area, on the internet, in the library and study their works. Learn how to obtain legal rights, documentation of publication, ISBN codes and copyrights to your work.

Study the Competition: If there is a subject that has already over-taken the market, avoid it. Try to find something that is of interest to the reader. A memoir, unless you have done something triumphant, death defying, or you are famous. Poetry is wonderful, and is my forte, but for the most part – it doesn’t sale. I do not want to discourage you from printing a book of poetry, I have done and am doing so myself, but be prepared for fewer sales. Get professional, or outside help with editing. You would be surprised how many typos, misspells, and coma overuse someone else will find, even after you have gone over your manuscript a dozen times. Get the proper tools such as copyright and ISBN symbols. Do the research to learn the legal ways of listing and titling. Use a book manufacturer for printing, not your local printer. You will need a professional bookbinder for a polished look, and the price will substantially lower too. The Internet has plenty of places to go for bookbinding, check it out.

Get out there and market your work Talk about your book Set up a Website to get your title out, and possibly arrange to sell your work Go to swap meets, street fairs, to sell your book locally. Go to your local bookstore and library; see if you can arrange a meet the local author/book signing night. Put your book on Ebay, what an excellent way to get worldwide recognition.

Many well know books on the market started out as Self Published

Writing is an incredible release. It is a cathartic carnival ride. It makes your blank page come to life. Writing for yourself, is wonderful, but writing for the eyes of someone you haven’t met, is on hell of an ego boost. Don’t be afraid, you already bore your soul on the paper; now get your hands dirty. Bear your heart and get your name out there. Many well known authors have started with self published works, only to find their selves picked up by standard publishers. You can do it. I have three projects in the works; I’ll see you on Ebay.