This is a perennial question asked of writers — well of me — second only to the famous “if I give you fifty percent of the proceeds, will you write my novel for me?”

While I’ve never had any qualms in telling the second to take a hike, I always feel guilty I don’t have the time to take every single one who asks the first by the hand and show them this business’s in and outs.

Of course, part of the reason I can’t do that is that the field is changing so fast that my experience not only isn’t everyone’s experience but what I would teach them, to come up as I did would be at this point suicidal. Which is why I’m not going to tell you to do what I did.

I’m going to lay down your options, and let you explore or create your own road. Note all of this is as I see it right now, and I’m not some kind of guru or all knowing entity. I could be wrong, and have often been wrong.

However, I have been working at this for 25 years and have other people’s stories, not just my own, so we’ll lean into that.

Once you’ve finished your book, passed it around to friends who say they’ll read it (they never do) and maybe paid a profession copy editor, what are you supposed to do with this pile of pixels you produced.

Obviously you want someone to read it. Because writing is an art that only lives when other people see it and enjoy it. (or at least experience it.)

Now, if this were twenty years ago, you’d have only one option: find an agent who will sell your stuff to a publisher (hopefully.)

If you still want to do that, you should be aware there are a lot of scams out there, including “Pay us to read your book”. Don’t do that. People who charge a fee to read books make their money that way, not by submitting it to publishers. At the same time be wary of the agents who will tell you they will just publish your book themselves. Because again, this means they won’t be submitting it to publishers.

If you go the road of trying to get traditionally published (that means by a publisher who sells printed paper bricks and might, with luck, get you on a bookstore’s shelves.) be aware it could be a long road, the monetary reward might not be great and you’ll need talent, luck and probably a deal with the devil to make it to the top and stay there. But it does happen, and hey, you could be the next big blockbuster. it’s not impossible.

However, if you miss one of those — likely the deal with the devil. You know how it goes. They are so busy they have an AI answering the author soul sale number — and are getting tired of submitting, do not be side tracked from your quest by one of a myriad small presses offering to buy your book right now.

Most small presses can’t get you anything you can’t get on your own publishing indie.

Now, there are exceptions to everything. Raconteur press after all won not one but two Prometheus awards this year, and they seem to do well for their writers. But they are very much an exception. Three-dogs-and-a-hamster press isn’t going to do that — or much of anything — for you.

Here’s a thing, though, there are a limited number of publishers, and most of them publish very specific stuff. When they send you that brush off rejection, you know “this doesn’t suit our needs” yes, it’s a brushoff, but it’s also the truth. In the sense that your story could be spun gold and they’re not going to buy it if it isn’t what they’re looking for right then.

Take Witch’s Daughter (please? it’s starting to pick up a big on sales, but I swear most people haven’t even seen it). It’s a very decent story. But if I got it in my head to sell it to Rac Press, it would be rejected. Why? Well, while it’s at least if you squint hard, YA, it has a female and a male protagonist, and it’s not — really not — science fiction nor a boy’s adventure. So it wouldn’t suit their needs.

Sometimes it’s more subtle. For instance, you might not realize this, but ideas seem to run in cycles, even when there is no reason for it whatsoever. So if yours is the tenth novel of robotic cats they got this month, and they already bought two, they’re going to reject yours sight unseen.

Not your fault at all. it’s just…. what is. Again, it doesn’t matter if it’s a masterpiece, if no agent or editor actually has time/interest in reading it.

Now let’s suppose you already know that, and also about the shrinking advances and the demands you spend it all on promotion, etc. etc. etc, that are typical of MOST houses these days.

And you don’t even want to try that route. What now?

What are you going to do with that pile of pixels you have?

…. You could go indie.

But that’s a path with many bifurcating choices. So I’ll tell you all about it next week, shall I?

(Come to the indie side. We got cookies.)