Current mood:	chipper
Entry tags:	teaching, writing

Ten Tips For a New Writer
Taken from an e-mail to someone:

1) Some writers have gotten published by putting stuff up online - more have gone the traditional route. John Scalzi sold his second book after putting the first one up online. He blogs at http://www.scalzi.com/whatever/ and often has useful stuff to say about writing and publishing. I would suggest not putting up complete book-length work. I do have a number of short stories that have been published once, and which are available free online. I consider maintaining an online presence very useful for a writer, and many others seem to agree.

2) The most important thing is to write often, and daily if you can manage it. Go go go.

3) Remember that what you say online is available to a wide range of people across the world. I am the editor of Fantasy Magazine, for example, and got forwarded a copy of your post.

4) The important thing about building a career is writing and getting stuff circulating. If you are sending your novel off to a publisher, that's great, and you're on the right track. Be aware that it often takes a LONG time for agents and publishers to reply. This is why it's good to have several projects, so you can shift to something new while waiting to hear back.

5) Some people will tell you writing short stories is how to build a career. Others will tell you novels are how to do it. The truth is, people have done it both ways, and people have failed to do it both ways. I have had reasonably good luck with short stories, and they certainly are less of a time sink than a novel.

6) Don't try to write in a vacuum. Join an online writing group like Online Writers Workshop or Critters, and start looking at other people's work and getting yours looked at.

7) It may be you are full of genius. If so, there are some ways to jump-start your career. Win one of the Writers of the Future competitions, or the Asimov's award for College Students (depending on your age). Get published in the Magazine of F&SF, Asimov's or Analog. Getting that novel is right up there with that as well.

8) If you have stuff to send out, send it out. Go look at the guidelines for manuscript formatting on the SFWA.org site and follow them religiously. "Here is a story I hope you will consider for publication" is a fine and upstanding cover letter.

9. Read voraciously, in and out of the field.

10) All of this is just my opinion. Different things work for different people. The only thing I can say with confidence is that if you run into someone who says that their way is the only way to write, you should ignore them. Try lots of things, find out what works for you, and do it lots.