Who Will Be My Valentine? Want To Get Published? Try These Tips

Wonder what it would be like to have your own novel published?

Local members of Romance Writers of America know the feeling - and they love it.

Getting accepted by a publisher is “like finding out you’re pregnant,” says first-time Spokane author Susan Christina. “Emotions flood your whole body.”

Local writers Joan Overfield and Mary Pat Kanaley offer these tips for breaking into the romance business:

Start with a good story, but don’t set your standards unreasonably high. “Someone once told me there are only 15 plots,” says Overfield, “and Shakespeare has already done them.”

Learn basic grammar and punctuation, and keep writing reference books handy.

The hardest part is getting past page one, says Overfield, “so just sit yourself down and do it.”

As you write, entice all the senses with sounds, odors, textures. “Show, don’t tell,” reminds Kanaley.

Read your finished story aloud. Listen for redundancies, run-on sentences and anything else that might confuse, distract or bore readers.

When approaching publishers, present yourself and your work as professionally as possible.

Follow all instructions recommended by the book “Writer’s Market.” Contact the right person, and spell his or her name correctly. One more thing, recommends Kanaley: “Don’t quit your day job.”<