Becoming an Author – UPDATES – Writing Groups & The Query Letter

As part of my series of Becoming an Author, I am here to say that I have finally taken two very important steps in the process. I have expanded my writing groups and submitted query letters! The past few months, I have been researching different publishing companies with the audience that I’m looking for, submission requirements, how to write query letters, how to create writing groups and weighing the pros and cons of traditional vs self-publishing that I have finally decided to just send my work out there!

During these past two months, I have focused on broadening my writing group by using the test audience that my book is geared for – my former students! I chose a handful of students that I taught previously to review my work and provide any feedback, comments, insights, and what-have-you in the hopes that my target audience actually liked what I produced. So far, I have been getting some good feedback as to my supporting characters and have shared my work with friends and family whose opinion I value as well. However, like all feedback, it should be taken with a grain of salt and while I await more feedback from my writing group, I look forward to conducting more research with my very select few.

In terms of querying letters, I have taken the next step and contacted 5 publishing companies on my own. While my husband and some others have suggested self-publishing, the author within me had to go the traditional publishing route, at least for my first debut novel. Of course, the journey to becoming an author is still in the beginning stages but there’s even further relief in being proactive with getting my work out there. I look forward to the next few months and hope someone is interested. Here’s to hoping the new year brings even more exciting news!