Self publish on Amazon https://kdp.amazon.com/

Hi Andrew,

First, congratulations on accomplishing your task. I know that it was a difficult journey, and I wish you the best of luck in your future endeavors. Second, these are just a few thoughts of guidance for your finished product from one of my Creative Writing courses at Southern New Hampshire University (the university is mentioned just so you know that I am not giving you advice from a purely personal perspective). That said, below is my advice.

1. Polish your work and ensure that you are within a respectable word count for your genre.

2. Share your work with individuals from your audience before passing a sample to a literary agent. Understanding your specific audience helps you to identify the kind of literary agents that you will need to pitch your story to.

3. Ensure that you are giving an excerpt (or more for those gracious enough to give their time to reading what you have written) to someone who is committed to reading what you wrote, then advising as needed on what they like, dislike, are confused about, and anything else they are willing to comment on.

4. Be prepared to be offended. It will not be the first or last time you receive possibly harsh critiques.

5. Take each of these criticisms as another opportunity to improve on your writing skills and be thankful for those who have given you an honest overview of what you have created, since feedback is absolutely critical for even the slightest possibility of success.

6. Make corrections as YOU see fit, while keeping an open mind of the critiques of your work.

7.After producing your polished project, create a short list of appropriate literary agencies or agents for your genre.

8. It has been said that it is bad form to send out your work to every literary agent in the genre you are writing in, so stick to a short list, then create another if you feel your work is deserving of a second look.

9. Ensure that you are adhering to the submission guidelines that are unique to each agency.

10. Prepare your query letters to literary agents. You will find an example below.

11. Create a short, one to two paragraph summary for your work that includes a hook at the start of each letter. Be succinct but as descriptive as you can be in this summary.

12. Create a brief biography of your professional, educaitonal, and personal experiences in the field of writing (even if you have none, summarize how long you have been writing, what interests you about writing, and why).

13. Be certain to add both the summary of your individual work that you are submitting (per the guidelines of each agency) as well as your biography, to the query letter.

14. Be professional.

15. After sending out your query letters, make a plan of alternative methods of getting published, including self-publishing.

16. While waiting for responses (which can take anywhere from months to a year) work on your next projects and wait.

17. If you have not done this already, create a list of social media platforms that you feel comfortable engaging in, which will represent you and your work in the future.

18. Be professional on all platforms and stay away from hot topic issues such as politics. Also, try to build an audience for the genre of writing that you are interested in. Publishers look for this. These platforms include Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat, and so on.

19. You can also start blogging about your work or focus on your genre of writing. The point is so start building and interacting with an audience.

20. If you receive any kind of electronic response, be professional at all times when responding back.

SAMPLE QUERY LETTER:

Dear (name of literary agent),

I am seeking representation for my short story, Name of Story, a realistic fiction novella that follows a veteran of the Middle East wars. After reading your biography on the ***** ********* Literary Agency website, then learning of your interest in a spectrum of fiction that questions social norms, I believe and hope that my work represents the unique stories that you act on behalf of.

**Point 10 – Short synopsis of your work that includes the title, word count, and overall themes that connects your story with what the Literary Agent represents (1-2 paragraphs).

** Point 11 – This is followed by a short summary of professional, educational, and personal experiences in the genre of writing your story represents. For example; "…Due to my experiences as a “military brat,” I have a distinct interest in researching, learning, and writing about military affairs, as well as the effects of war and combat on veterans who too often have no voice while in service to their respective nations. I hope this is reflected in the piece I have submitted, where the main character’s freedom and life are at stake, while the context of the plot further explores the definitions of mental illness through the lenses of those who have sworn to uphold the law of this country."

Thank you for your time and consideration in this matter. I look forward to your response and feedback.

Sincerely,

First and Last Name

Again, these are suggestions based on my training at SNHU. I hope you have some use for them.

Cheryl

Wow, thank you for taking the time to write all that out. I saved it for a closer reading later today, but from what I saw, that all looks like sound advice. Again, thank you very much!