Writer Insider: Overview

Welcome to Writer Insider, my new multimedia blog for readers, writers, independent “indie” publishers, self-publishers and anyone else who wants to understand today’s publishing world, w \hat’s involved in mastering one’s craft as a writer  or an find audience for their writing. I have a big idea to vet to you, and I’m seeking your reactions, both positive and negative, and anywhere in between. I propose to explore the universe of publishing, which like our own starry cosmos, is expanding and growing at light warp speed toward an immense extent and population.

I plan to do this in great detail, based on my own journey, that of my fellow writers, collaborators and other experts who have something to contribute to this complex story. Here’s an  outline of what I plan to cover in this free course on what’s involved today in pursuing s writing career.

The Writer Insider

The Expanding Universe of Publishing

Until the turn of the twenty-first century, books were published primarily by publishing companies in the principal cities of the world. An author would contact the publisher, who would consider a submitted manuscript, suggest changes and either reject the submission or accept it for publication. Then at some time over the past century, as publishers were besieged by ever-more would-be authors, the literary agent came upon the scene to screen, select and help authors prepare their manuscripts for submission to the publishers.

As an architect who did lots of writing and promotion for my design firms over the years, I felt that a basic, introductory course, distilling what I have learned over a lifetime about writing and a dozen years since undertaking second career, might be of benefit both to readers and  to aspiring writers, Perhaps I can spare you a few futile exercises, help you avoid  a couple of missteps and set you on your way to covering the basics in getting started on the rocky and constantly changing path to achievement as a writer.To accomplish this I’ve outlined several topics which I hope you’ll find worth of a little bit of you time to read and absorb, which will cover what I see as the main steps in writing and getting your material published.

Pub 1.0 Mastering the Writer’s Craft

Having something to say and expressing it well is the entry ticket to the world of the writer world.  To merit publication by someone else, it must be said clearly, correctly and expertly and often artfully. To attract readership, it must at least  be informative, appealing, topical, accessible and interesting.  To become profitable and make a career of writing, one must develop an audience, a following or, what is called in the publishing game, a platform. In fact it helps to be a celebrity, like a presidential candidate, a news anchor or the survivor of a death-defying climb up Mount Everest. Short of these qualifications, most of us will have to achieve writing success the hard way, mastering the writing craft.The articles in this section will give you a sampling, from my own experience in a long architectural, engineering and marketing career, where wring was a big part of my output, and  visiting with experts in the writing game, to my second career, over the last dozen years as a fiction and nonfiction writer.

Pub 1.1: The Expanding Universe of Publishing

Until the turn of the twenty-first century, books were published primarily by publishing companies in the principal cities of the world. An author would contact the publisher, who would consider a submitted manuscript, suggest changes and either reject the submission or accept it for publication. Then at some time over the past century, as publishers were besieged by ever-more would-be authors, the literary agent came upon the scene to screen, select and help authors prepare their manuscripts for submission to the publishers. This article explores that evolution

Pub 2.0  Getting published: What’s involved ?

There are a number of factors influencing how you can publish and what type of publisher you can choose. Or become: the following and professional standing –that is, the “platform”—of the author. the type or genre of the book, the number of books you have to offer in the excitement you can generate over the appearance of your new book, whether it be a novel, biography, cookbook or self-improvement strategy.

Pub 3.0: Role of the Peer network: Literary societies, online groups

About the best thing I did for my writing career was to join local writing groups: St. Louis Writers Guild, Sisters in Crime and St. Louis Publishers Association. Each literary society, in its own way filled in my ignorance of a huge and growing publishing industry, which is located, not only in the great publishing houses of New York, London, Toronto and Sydney, but in newspaper offices. homes, internet companies and tiny home studios worldwide, like my own cave in the basement of our house. In addition, online groups on social networks have led me to friendships across the sea and throughout the U. S., affording me new publicity and publication opportunities to an ever widening audience.

Future topics in this free online course will include the following topics.

Pub 4.0: Hooray, you’ve got a book! Now what?

Pub 5.0: Getting noticed: Discoverability

Pub 6.0: Publicity: Traditional, with the big bucks, or new age on the internet

Pub 7.0: Social networking: the new wave

Pub 8.0  Media types: Print, e-books, Kindle, audiobooks

Pub 9.0:  Sales and distribution channels: exclusive vs. Omnium Gatherum approach

Pub 10.0: Repeat with the next book.