Getting Published

Hannacroix Creek Books, Inc. does not accept unsolicited material at this time.

We are growing our company by selectively adding more authors and new titles to our forthcoming publications. Our business model, however, does not enable us to consider unsolicited submissions at this time.

But we do want to help talented fiction and nonfiction authors, children's authors, poets, and playwrights to get published. With that aim, we provide the information in this part of our website, written by the founder and CEO of Hannacroix Creek Books, Inc., Jan Yager, Ph.D. Jan began her publishing career working at Macmillan Publishing Company, in the school division, followed by working for one intensive year at a trade book (general interest) publisher, Grove Press, Inc. where she learned everything from foreign rights, publicity, and acquisitions to permissions, sales, and distribution. A sociologist, speaker, and expert on relationships and work, Jan has been published over the years by such major houses as Doubleday, Wiley, Simon & Schuster, Inc., Facts on File, Inc., Atheneum, Prentice-Hall, and others. In 1996, she founded Hannacroix Creek Books, Inc., although she continues to be published by other houses as well. Her books have been translated into 14 languages. As head of an independent publishing company her duties include publicity, foreign rights, film and subsidiary rights, acquisitions, sales, interior design, cover design, and marketing and publicity. Proofreading is always outsourced; some cover design and publicity work may also be outsourced on an as-needed basis.

My "Road to Getting My First Book Published and Beyond" Story, in a Nutshell, in Case It's Useful to you

The Earliest Years

I've been writing from my earliest years. My poetry was published in the class magazine elementary school, I have been keeping a diary off and on since I was ten, I wrote my first novel at age 10 and my first full-length play at age thirteen. I was on the school newspapers as a reporter and then featured editor and reporter in junior high school and high school.

Nonfiction Book #1 Begins to Take Shape

I started on my first nonfiction book as a senior in college. It began as a speech for my public speaking class and I just kept researching after that, for years, my curiosity taking me around the world, at my own expense, to India, Germany, England, Canada, and France. Unable to find either a literary agent or a publisher, I asked The New School if I could teach a course on the topic I had been researching. At that point, I had one entire 4-drawer filing cabinet filled with primary and secondary research. My course, "The Roots of Vegetarianism," appeared in the upcoming bulletin. Before I even taught my first class, I received a letter from an editor at Scribner's. She had seen my course written up and she wondered if I'd ever thought of writing a book on the subject.

Looking back, that might have been the time when I should have reapproached potential literary agents, since I now had an editor at a major house actively interested in my research and writing, but I was worried about introducing a new person into the situation. So I trusted my gut instinct, and I wrote the proposal that she requested. At this point I knew my subject so well I was able to write a 100 page proposal in one night and submit it to her. She accepted the book immediately and showed up for lunch with the contract and half of the advance check $1,000 at an Italian restaurant near Grove Press in the West Village, the publishing company where I was working at the time.

Amazing as it seems now, within a short period of time, another book that I had submitted to my boss was also made an offer for publication, which I accepted. Fortunately I was able to get two different deadlines so I was able to pace myself and submit both projects by the agreed-upon deadlines.

So I went from a no-book author to a two-book author by the age of twenty-six. Publication date was two years later and it was a magical day. It began with an interview on The Today Show, followed by a radio interview, topped off with a publication party at a restaurant in the West Village, Sweet Basil, which was attended by several celebrities (the second book was a celebrity vegetarian cookbook, Meatless Cooking: Celebrity Style) and subsequently written up as a full-page article in The New Yorker. (The Scribner's book was called The Vegetable Passion: A History of the Vegetarian State of Mind and it was published under my maiden name of Barkas.)

By now, I had left fulltime publishing and was a fulltime freelance writer. I had sold the British rights of The Vegetable Passion to Routledge & Kegan Paul, who brought me over for an author media and speaking tour throughout the United Kingdom. Since I was self-employed, I spent the next six months in Europe, researching my next book after the promotion of the first book was done.

The Genesis of Book #3

I did not want to be typecast as a writer about vegetarianism, and I also wanted to get to understand the criminal justice system because my brother had a street mugging, so I set about researching and writing my next nonfiction book on crime. It took 5 years to research, write, and publish Victims, my third nonfiction book, but when it was finally published, it was well-received and even made a difference. For example, it inspired a New Mexico woman whose daughter had been a homicide victim to get crime victim compensation funds and advocacy groups established in her state. (With a book contract in hand from Scribner's, based on the outline that I had provided as well as my proven track record from the first book, they were completely confident that I could write an excellent book on crime victims. But I decided that I needed to enroll in a masters in criminal justice program so I could get a more comprehensive grounding in criminology that I felt was crucial to the new book. I wrote the thesis for my degree from Goddard College graduate program, and then I wrote the book. It was my judgment call. I knew what I needed to do the job that needed to be done for that book and often it is the author who needs to educate the editor and publisher about what a particular project really needs. Remember whose name and reputation will sink or swim on the basis of that new book.)

After Victims was published, and because I was tired of being asked the question, "Are you a Ph.D. or a lawyer," I decided that it would be beneficial to my book and academic career to get a Ph.D. in sociology. I enrolled in a program, fulltime, and four years later was awarded a Ph.D. from The Graduate Center of City University of New York. Over the years, I tried to sell a popular book based on my dissertation research. But after fifteen years, after receiving 110 rejections by agents, editors, or publishers, I spent six months exclusively working on expanding my dissertation research and it became Friendshifts®: The Power of Friendship and How It Shapes our Lives, the first book published by my new publishing company, Hannacroix Creek Books, Inc. The Oprah Winfrey Show, The Today Show, The View, The O'Reilly Factor, National Public Radio, The Wall Street Journal, the Chicago Tribune, and countless other TV, cable, radio, print and online publications have interviewed me about that book and continue to interview me, 9 years later. With eight e-mails from readers thanking me for writing that book, not to mention the impressive domestic and foreign sales, I am so glad I did not abandon the project just because of 110 rejection letters but pursued researching, writing, and publishing Friendshifts®

Books 4 through 25 and Beyond

Behind every one of my 25 books, there is a story, there is a history of how the book came about. Some books, such as my first book on time management, Creative Time Management, published in 1984 by Prentice-Hall, and Effective Business and Nonfiction Writing, 2^nd edition, originally entitled How to Write Like a Professional and published by Arco in 1985, were assignments: an agent or editor wanted to know if I wanted to write a book on a particular topic and I decided if that was something I wanted to do. But most books were my suggestion, such as the two career books that my husband Fred and I co-authored for Facts on File, Inc., Career Opportunities in the Film Industry (2003) and Career Opportunities in the Publishing Industry (2005), my second popular book on friendship, When Friendship Hurts: How to Deal With Friends Who Betray, Abandon, or Wound You (Simon & Schuster, Inc., Fireside Books, 2002) www.whenfriendshiphurts.com, the book on singles I wrote that was published by Atheneum (Single in America) and my second book on singles (125 Ways to Meet the Love of Your Life, Hannacroix Creek Books, Inc., 2004), among others.

Publishing Fiction

As difficult as it is to research and write a nonfiction book, I have personally and professionally found writing and then publishing fiction to be even more challenging. But I returned to my dream of having my fiction published after I turned forty realizing that a successful nonfiction career was not enough. (For more on this, read my article that was published in Newsday, “Taking My Hits, Following My Dream.”)

My first two novels were co-authored with my husband Fred, two very-well received suspense thrillers entitled Untimely Death and Just Your Everyday People. My first solo novel, The Binge, about a psychologist who finally confronts the roots of her compulsive overeating, is due out from Hannacroix Creek Books, Inc. in hardcover in early 2006.

To improve your writing on the road to publishing, and beyond, read all kinds of books and write and rewrite your own work as much as possible. Novelist and nonfiction author Anne Lamott’s gem of a book on writing, Bird by Bird, is a recommended resource on the magical craft of writing. All the advice in the world, however, does not diminish the reality that your fiction, whether a novel, novella, short story, poem, or play, is the sum total of what you create out of that blank page that you started off with. It is the story you decide to tell, whether the story comes to you in a dream at night, during a daydream as you stare out the window, or as you sit and outline your literary work in detail. It is the characters you create and share with the world, the language you use, the pacing to your writing, the settings, your style or “voice,” as Lamott and others call it.

Whatever fiction format you explore and seek to publish in, keep writing till you find what best suits you or your themes and be flexible about changing if necessary. For example, playwright George Bernard Shaw wrote drama and music reviews and novels long before he turned to plays in his forties, such as Major Barbara and Pygmalion, his 1914 play that was the inspiration behind the musical My Fair Lady, the dramatic works that are still associated with his name .

The Importance of Book Promotion

I might have written and published even more books if I did not spend as much time promoting the current or past books. But I've always made a strong commitment to promoting my books. It is time consuming and hard work, although very gratifying and exciting. It is definitely an important part of the publishing process, more so now than ever before with the plethora of books available. (And I've even found I've learned a great deal from the people I have met, or the places I've traveled to, in pursuit of local, national, or international promotion opportunities.) You have to put lots of time into researching and writing, and rewriting, your book; consider the time you spend promoting it a necessary part of the writing and publishing process.

Specializing in One Area or Type of Writing Versus the Renaissance Approach

I've observed that specializing is what the media wants from writers today and it makes sense on several levels. It's been hard for the media (and some editors) to understand how I can have these two distinct threads to my work: business topics (9 books in the work area) and relationship topics (6 on relationships including 4 books on friendship and 2 books on singles). In my book, Who's That Sitting at My Desk? , on work relationships especially friendship at work, I tried to bridge the two areas: a business book about friendship at work. But there still seems to be this need to ask me to define myself as a business writer or a relationship expert rather than both. I'm still working on a better answer to the question about what I write about. (Did I mention that I've also published novels and poetry?)

But I don't want to be pigeonholed, so I continue to pursue what interests me, especially topics that have not been explored, in the same way I would investigate it. Then I decide by instinct or through a more conscious decision-making process whether or not a particular topic or issue will be best handled through nonfiction, fiction, or even poetry.

A Commitment to Excellence

Probably what I have learned most over the years I've been fortunate enough to be published is that having a commitment to excellence – in the research I conduct and in the writing that I write and rewrite until I am satisfied – is key. If I am satisfied, as long as my standards are even higher than anyone else's, whether that is an agent, publisher, or member of the media – I will be able to take the ups and downs in book publishing because there will be ups and downs. Critics can write wonderful reviews and you feel great about yourself and your writing. But they can also write negative reviews and whether or not you agree with that review, it's out there for all to read and it hurts, especially if you disagree. But if you have fulfilled the promise to yourself for excellence in your work, you can take those opinions, positive or negative, with a grain of salt or sand or whatever cliche you want to apply. Be true to yourself in your writing career and all else will follow.

Whether you are reading this part of our website and you have never published one book but you would like to, or you have published several books but you are looking for something more in your book career, keep up those high standards and keep writing.

Everyone keeps saying that there are too many books being published today. I say, "No," there can never be "too many books." Of course with so many more choices it takes that much more effort to get any particular book noticed, whether by potential readers, the media, book reviewers, educators, or librarians. But there is still a need for new books and more books. You are unique. As long as you make sure whatever you want to write is fresh and novel, there will be a need for your particular point of view, voice, vision, as reflected in your nonfiction, fiction, poetry, dramatic literature, essays, or children's books.

Writing and publishing a book offers you an opportunity to leave a legacy that is open to everyone. Believe in yourself and the worthiness of your message, your creativity, your vision and focus on these rather than whether or not your book will "sell."

A Few Random Pieces of Advice You Might Find Useful to Your Career as a Published Author

Probably the other pieces of advice I have that you might find useful in your own book career include these nuggets which I invite you to take or leave:

Read more.
Write more.
When you're interviewed by the media, you're only responsible for your answer, not the question so don't get hung up on whether or not that was a "good" "bad" or even a "stupid" question that you were asked.
Be careful who you share your work with especially when you're hearing and listening to "the muse."
Keep a diary or journal.
Travel (but of course make sure you are careful about where you travel and with whom).
Listen with your heart and your mind.
Continue learning and to be a lifelong learner beyond your formal school years

Getting your book published will most depend on you, whether or not you have an agent, an editor, friends, family members, or other writers cheering you on. You have to keep cheering yourself on, and believing in yourself, even when it seems like no one else cares about you or your book-in-progress but your readers need your book even if they do not know that yet. The first step is and always will be writing the book. Publishing it is the next step whether the book is based on a proposal or you write it first and then try to sell the whole thing (or even self-publish it).

Good luck and write on, my friend!

Links

Compiled by Jan Yager, Ph.D. All rights reserved.
Disclaimer: The accuracy of any link cannot be assured since addresses, even the existence of a URL, or its ownership and emphasis, may change, nor does inclusion or exclusion of a link on this list represent an endorsement of a particular site.

http://www.bloomsbury.com
Publishing company Bloomsbury, based in the United Kingdom and United States, has created an extensive resource section of their website devoted to authors. Called the "Writer's area" it includes the follow materials:

Submitting material
Dos and don'ts on approaching a publisher
Submitting a typescript
Editor's advice
Letters form an unpublished author
Literary agents – UK and Ireland
Literary agents – US
Role of agent
Advice from a literary agent
The law

http://writernetwork.com
Sharyn Skeeter, a magazine and book writer and editor, who is also a poet and English and mass communication professor, is the owner and manager of this comprehensive site which was started in 2000. Writernetwork.com is an interactive web community of writers and other creative artists providing writing resources, free websites, and other writing/arts related information.

http://www.publishinggame.com
Site with lots of useful information on getting published. It is maintained by Fern Reiss, author of a series of three books entitled The Publishing Game with one book on finding an agent, another on turning your book into a bestseller, and another on self- publishing.

http://www.janyager.com/writing
Site developed and maintained by Jan Yager, founder of Hannacroix Creek Books, Inc., author of 25 books and freelance articles in magazines, newspapers, and online publications. At this website, in addition to information about Jan's diverse nonfiction and fiction writings, there is information on how to write, sell, and promote your book, upcoming seminars, available consulting services, plus Jan's free related articles:
"How to Find a Literary Agent"
"16 Ways to Help Yourself to Write a Book (So You May Then Get It Published)"
Yager offers Book Promotion Boot Camps, workshops, and keynote addresses, as well as coaching by phone, e-mail, or in-person, on getting published, book promotion, overcoming writer's book, and more. Contact her directly at: yagerinquiries2@aol.com

http://www.bookmarket.com
Book marketing guru John Kremer offers free lists of editors and publishers in a variety of genres, such as business, health, cookbooks, new fiction, and reference. Also offers lots of free reports, such as the top 25 independent booksellers as well as 101 top marketing sistes.

Resources

Applebaum, Judith. How to Get Happily Published. 5^th edition. New York: Harper Perennial, 1998. This classic was first published two decades ago but it's still considered a top guide to finding a publisher. This 5th edition includes a part entitled, "The Self-Publishing Option," with three chapters on key aspects of self-publishing including design, production, and managing sales.

Bly, Robert W. Getting Your Book Published. White Plains, NY: Roblin Press, 1997. Bly, who's had more than 35 nonfiction books published by mainstream publishers, shares his experiences including his 8 step method to getting published, writing an outline, finding an agent or a publisher, and finishing the manuscript.

Feierman, Joanne. Action Grammar. New York: Simon & Schuster, Inc., Fireside Books, 1995. A useful review for those who want to update the grammar "rules" they learned in school.

Hayden, G. Miki. Writing the Mystery. Philadelphia, PA: Intrigue Press, 2001. Mystery author Hayden, whose novels include Pacific Empire and By Reason of Insanity, includes advice on plot and character development, effective dialogue, and maintaining the pace. There is also a chapter, "On the Witness Stand," with author interviews including Elmore Leonard, Laura Lippman, S.J. Rozan, and Linda Fairstein, among others.

Herman, Jeff. Jeff Herman's Guide to Publishers, Editors and Literary Agents. Brookfield, WI: The Writer, distributed by Watson-Guptill. Updated annually. Annotated guide to 400+ publishers, editors, and 100+ literary agents that might be useful in targeting who might be the right person to initially contact for your particular fiction or nonfiction proposal or finished work.

Larsen, Michael. How to Write a Book Proposal. Revised edition. Cincinnati, OH: Writer's Digest Books, 1997. Larsen, who is co-owner of a San Francisco-based literary agency, provides advice on "selling the sizzle" in your book proposal. The Appendix contains three sample book proposals with examples of extensive marketing information that has become a pivotal part of selling a book proposal to a popular/general audience

Yager,Jan. Effective Business and Nonfiction Writing 2^nd edition. Stamford, CT: Hannacroix Creek Books, Inc., 2001. The basics of writing nonfiction. Includes a chapter on getting published in magazines, newspapers, and books as well as a sample nonfiction proposal that sold to Atheneum.