Well hop on in but there are a few things you should know…

The world wide web is great but it doesn’t guarantee your success

Writing is a struggle and sometimes you get stuck.

But for many if you persevere…if you try hard enough… long enough you might just break free and get noticed.

But writer beware sometimes being noticed is not a good thing.

Seriously. So you want to be published? You want your soul and imagination written down for the world to see? That is awesome!

Then surely your exterior is tougher than the grasshopper you saw squashed. That means you have developed a very thick skin. Good, you will be able to take the criticism that comes with your new endeavor.

You write poetry? Well so do a billion other people and a very [VERY] small percentage are deemed worthy by any publisher. They are in the business of selling books and “Poetry doesn’t sell books.”

You have a great story to tell? Yeah, so do the other billion that aren’t busy writing poetry. But yours is special? I believe you.

If you’re still interested here are a few suggestions other than ‘don’t quit your day job’.

1. Join a writers group.
2. Read, read, read oh and don’t forget to read.
3. Look at successful writers. Note their overnight success took years to accomplish so quit looking for shortcuts. There aren’t any.

You have internet access or you wouldn’t be reading this so go in search of a group that fits your niche. Use search terms like writers group romance, writers group poetry, writers group fantasy… you get the picture.

So now you have finished your book, your editing is done and you are ready to present your heart and soul to a publisher don’t forget that the odds are against you. Do it anyway, rejection is part of the process.

If you decide to go the independent route be prepared to work harder and to pay your own expenses e.g. editing, proofreading and marketing.

And last but not least a quote from one of my favorites, A bad reputation is much harder to recover from than no reputation at all.

Caution: Janna Hill is not an adviser. She has strategically placed this post as a means to swindle readers into viewing photographs of insects.

Disclaimer: A young locust was mortally wounded in the preparation of this story.