Here is a list of things I would recommend to writers starting out:
1) Read books about writing! Some of my favorite books are Save the Cat , Writing the Breakout Novel , Plot & Structure , Structuring Your Novel, and Creating Character Arcs. Alternately, read every single post on Helping Writers Become Authors.
2) Follow writers and literary agents on social media. Many of them tweet or blog about writing and publishing tips.
3) Get real about writing and critiquing. Search for blogs where people post beta readers match-ups (like Reddit). And, if you have the money, employ some professional readers/editors.
4) If you can afford it, go to conferences (real or virtual).
5) Ask for help. Seriously. Don’t be afraid to contact other writers on social media and ask them for advice or feedback. We were all beginners once. We have the query scars. We feel the revision pains. And if we can’t help you, we probably know someone who can.
6) Keep Calm. Carry on. Seriously, this is a long road and I’m talking LONG LONG LONG. It may take years to write a novel, years to get an agent and years to get published and those years are hard. I wish I could tell you they aren’t. I wish I could tell you that you won’t spend copious amounts of time staring at your computer screen/phone/empty packages of cookies, but the truth is that you probably will and so will many other writers. But if you want to take this journey, you’re stuck on the boat. Might as well do a little merengue while you’re there, right?
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