If you wish to try to market your writing, the bookstore has a shelf of books to tell you how to write and sell everything from erotica to children's books, from young adult to science fiction. They usually make it sound easy and fun. It isn't. Often it takes months just to get a manuscript read by a publisher before he rejects it and then you've got to start all over again. Often this same manuscript has been edited and rewritten and restructured 12 or 13 times before you even began to send it out. Frustration lurks behind every comer when you try to become a professional writer, rejection dogs you like a spaniel. If you're concentrating on wellness, rethink whether you want to see yourself in print.

Even though the publishing guides tend to minimize the down side of the process, these books can be helpful for the novice writer. The following give you the names and addresses of editors and publishers, plus useful guidelines for submitting your work:

FICTION WRITER'S MARKET. Writer's Digest Books, Cincinnati, Ohio.
POET'S MARKET: Where and How To Publish Your Poetry, Writer's Digest Books, Cincinnati, Ohio.
THE WRITER'S HANDBOOK. Edited by Sylvia Burack. The Writer, Inc. Boston, MA.
WRITER'S MARKET: Where to Sell What You Write, Writer's Digest Books, Cincinnati, Ohio.

In addition, your reference librarian can help you find other writer's guides which are also published yearly. If you are trying to market a novel, you will want to look at the guides to literary agents that are available. Virtually no major publishing house will take an unagented manuscript these days and getting an agent is almost as hard as getting a publisher. I've heard that the odds of getting a good agent are roughly equal to being struck by lightening although this may be a slight exaggeration.

If you are primarily interested in publishing short fiction or poetry, however, it is still possible to proceed without an agent. Addresses of magazines and journals that publish poetry or short stories may be found in the journals themselves. But when first starting out, it is best to use the writer's guides mentioned above for they give such information as what type of story a magazine prefers, how many poems a journal publishes in an issue, and whether or not the magazine pays anything. Usually for poetry, they do not, but some journals will give you several copies of the issue in which you appear. With short stories, it depends on the publication-but don't expect to get rich.

SENDING OUT A SHORT STORY OR A SET OF POEMS

The general procedure is to send out one short story or a set of poems: three or four short ones, one or two long ones. Editors don't want to be inundated with a closetful of work (and you don't want to have to pay the postage back and forth on huge piles of manuscript pages). Each submission should be neatly typed of course, with your name and address in the upper left hand comer. Always keep a copy of what you send out, or submit a good, clean copy and keep the original. Always enclose a self addressed stamped envelope (SASE). If you don't do this, you won't got anything back.
A short note should accompany your submission. It should be addressed to the current appropriate editor. (The above guides will give you their names or call the main office number and ask if Joe Poem is still the poetry editor--but do not request to actually speak to him. If you manage to get through you'll be on the outs forever for bothering him.) Keep your letter simple and to the point. Always avoid wordiness, apology, cuteness, flattery, and vagueness. Just something such as: "I am submitting the enclosed poems for your consideration." If you've been published elsewhere, be sure to include that.

HOW LONG TO WAIT

Allow six weeks to a year for a reply. Resist the impulse to call and find out what's happening to your work. Editors hate to be called by eager would-be authors. Harsh as it may seem, one editors told me that if anyone bugs her, she instantly throws their work in the trash work. It is true that the Post Office does lose mail so if you're the nervous type, send it return receipt requested and resist the impulse to phone.
Often a journal will keep your work for eight months (or longer), then return it with a printed rejection slip-or without a single comment. Do not take this personally or as a reflection on the quality of your work. Editors are overworked, underpaid, and sometimes have very eccentric taste.

KEEP RECORDS

Keep a record of where you have submitted what. An easy method is simply to write the name of the journal and the date in the upper right hand comer of your duplicate copy, then cross it off when the poem or story comes back, and write the next date and place of submission underneath it, With this method you can tell at a glance who you have sent it to and when. Most poems and stories that find their way into print have been submitted several times. A widely published poet in Santa Barbara claims that his record for sending a single poem out is 52 times.

RETURNS

When your work comes back from an editor, look it over, rewrite it if it seems to need it, then send it out again. Some journals will tell you not to multiple submit your work (send out the same piece to several different editors), but many people do this anyway. "They don't care about me, so why should I care about them?" a poet friend once explained. The problem, of course, is that if the same story is accepted in two different places, you have to withdraw it from one of them: they, get mad, and never publish you again. But we should all have such problems.

At first, after nothing but rejection slips, a hand scrawled note on the printed slip begins to seem like a success. Such words as "try us again" or "nice poem, but not for us" or-and this one is a killer-"we almost took this one" come to mean a great deal. An editor who will take the time to actually criticize your work is a blessing.

Then (hopefully) comes the happy day when your SASE is returned but seems a little light. A note from the editor tells you that your work has been accepted! The rejection slips and the endless waiting are forgotten, you are going to be a published writer! But keep that day job.

The following was given to me by an agent:

BOOK PROPOSAL GUIDE

To aid in the presentation of a book project to publishers, you need to submit a carefully detailed publishing proposal. This proposal will maximize our ability to place your work for the best possible terms, as it will enable the publishers to evaluate your project and determine their ability to successfully market your finished book. Here is what we need:
Proposal: You should provide at least 4 to 5 typed pages, explaining: (a) what your book is about; the problems, reasons, or situations which prompted you to write your book; why your book is needed; (b) what are the unique features; anything that makes your book stand out from all the other books in the same area; any fresh approach you offer; any special features you will include.
Market: Describe the audience at which your book will be aimed. What are the benefits your book will bring to this audience? Why should they buy, use, keep and talk about your book?
Publishing details: (a) proposed book length (an average book contains 70,000 words—this size manuscript makes a 250-page book); (b) if there are photographs and/or illustrations, how many there are; (c) special considerations or ideas about book size, style or format; (d) amount of time you will need to complete the finished manuscript.—
Biographical Sketch: This sketch should stress your background, training, and experience in your field, and point to your authority to write your book. Include the following information, if pertinent: (a) list and description of books you have published (title, publisher, year, sales figures, reprint and book club deals); (b) details of your activities to promote your books, including author tours; (c) a selection of book reviews; (d) a selection of articles either written by you or about you and your work; (e) details of your lecture activities and media appearances.
Working Outline: This should be similar to a Table of Contents with a paragraph of about 100 words under each chapter, presenting a brief capsule version of the contents of that particular chapter.
Sample Chapters: Please submit one or two sample chapters, preferably not the first chapter, which will provide an example of your writing style and the actual content of the book.