Do you want to write a Best-seller? (Part 3)

Written by Arthur Zulu


By Arthur Zulu

“He who whose face gives no light shall never become a star.”—William Blake

Inrepparttar second part of this series, attention was drawn torepparttar 128522 importance of styling, promoting, and timing your work if it must become a best-seller. But other things are involved in this. Get a good publisher

Your success and stardom or your weal and woe, starts withrepparttar 128523 publisher. Note this: there are more Shylocks than Samaritans in that family. Or better still, more sharks thanrepparttar 128524 friendly whales.

You will know a good publisher fromrepparttar 128525 contract. Examine it critically. Some seemingly "good" contracts will not give yourepparttar 128526 full right of your book till you die! If you do not understandrepparttar 128527 document, get an attorney to examine and interpret it for you.

Or you could contact an author who has published withrepparttar 128528 potential publisher for advice. The author will tell yourepparttar 128529 truth because some of them are already going through Catholic hell with their publishers--legal suits over rights, royalties, and so forth. You could also check with other sites for information aboutrepparttar 128530 publisher. I have earlier provided yourepparttar 128531 most credible site to check up with. The site owner givesrepparttar 128532 most updated, fearless critique of allrepparttar 128533 publishers. He throws his darts without giving a heck whether it lands inrepparttar 128534 White House.

A good publisher should give yourepparttar 128535 right of your book, pay your royalties regularly, and--mark this--promote your book. There are few of such ones. The majority are hypocrites. Publish in different formats It is best to make your book available in many formats. The wisdom in this is that sales will be coming in from different sources—from just one book. What did they say about one man’s meat? The fact is that people have many choices. So publish your book in hardcover, paperback, e-book and as an audio book. Also have it put in movie, DVD, and video. The present technology can handle all of that. Look around and you will see that allrepparttar 128536 selling books today are produced in that way. And there are even readers who will buy your book in more than one format. Why don’t you make hay asrepparttar 128537 sun shines. Keep revising your book

The man that would write an error free manuscript has not been born. Or maybe he lives on second earth out there in outer space. Why is that so? Becauserepparttar 128538 writer is an imperfect creature. This means that your book can be revised even after publication. A review of Bill Clinton's My Life says thatrepparttar 128539 book is short on editing--an euphemism for badly written. Yet it is a great book. Many great works have been revised. Consider these.

James Joyce has been regarded as one ofrepparttar 128540 most important novelists if notrepparttar 128541 most influential ofrepparttar 128542 twentieth century. Yet, his Ulysses, a parody of Homer's Odyssey, has a corrected version. Miguel Cervantes Don Quixote, consideredrepparttar 128543 world's first modern novel, contains many slips. Just to mention two. Cervantes records three expeditions for Don Quixote, yet it was actually four. Andrepparttar 128544 author forgettingrepparttar 128545 names he has given to Sancho Panza's wife, Juana Panza or Juana Gutierrez (afterrepparttar 128546 custom in La Mancha for wives to takerepparttar 128547 surnames of their husbands), calls her Teres Cascajo (her father's name) in Part II. Even William Shakespeare reputed to haverepparttar 128548 widest vocabulary of any man born on earth (4,000 words) has ironically turned out o berepparttar 128549 writer whose works has hadrepparttar 128550 highest number of editions.

Most authors regardrepparttar 128551 revision of their work as a matter of life-and-death. A typical example is that ofrepparttar 128552 Greek poet Virgil. When he was about to die, he ordered that his Aeneid be burnt forrepparttar 128553 reason that he had not polished it to his satisfaction. Butrepparttar 128554 great Augustus Caesar got wind of it and counteredrepparttar 128555 poet's wish. So Aeneid lived and Virgil died. Or Virgil lived because Aeneid did not die.

Your work could therefore be revised after publication. So it would be a course of wisdom for you to revise your published book. You can reviserepparttar 128556 subject matter, structure, and grammar of your work. And you can also cross check it for facts. It makes you a better writer.

Do you want to write a Best-seller? (Part 1)

Written by Arthur Zulu


“Whatever you can do or believe you can, . . . begin it now.”—Goethe When beggars receive freshly minted coins fromrepparttar lords with a bow and a smile, it is not that they do not desire to ride horses asrepparttar 128519 masters do. But wishes don’t ride horses. I have oftentimes been contacted by many young writers for suggestions to develop a story. After they receiverepparttar 128520 ideas, they chicken out. One of them—a female American—wanted help to develop what I think is a great story. You probably know about it: Ted Kennedy watching on as his girlfriend drowned in a river. I pity such dreamers. They are amongrepparttar 128521 world’s eminent failures. It will therefore be a miracle if you yourself will ever write a book after reading this. If you do, then thumbs up, for you belong torepparttar 128522 few great minds on earth today. Anywhere you look today, 20 percent ofrepparttar 128523 people are getting 80 percent ofrepparttar 128524 best things in life. Or put another way, 80 percent of all good things belong to 20 percent ofrepparttar 128525 people. Or, one person succeeds out of five! So, 80 percent of all best-sellers today are written by 20 percent ofrepparttar 128526 writers. And, out of about five writers, only one has written a best-seller. Where isrepparttar 128527 other four?

Out of five writers that thought of writing, only one wrote. Out of five people that wrote, only one got published. And out ofrepparttar 128528 five that got published, only one became a best-seller. That isrepparttar 128529 principle of life: Only those who back their desire with action succeed. For nobody has “the power to curserepparttar 128530 darkness” someone says, “unless he hasrepparttar 128531 courage to light a candle.” You don’t write best-sellers by wishing that you did, and go to sit onrepparttar 128532 sandy beach ofrepparttar 128533 Pacific Ocean dreaming of your millions and far away islands with lollipop names. Don Quixoterepparttar 128534 great visioner didn’t even do that. At least he fought imaginary enemies. What did Hippocrates say? “Ars longa. Vita brevis.” Translation: “Arts is long but life is short.” The point then is this: Don’t dream it; WRITE IT! Best-selling books don’t just happen; just as good writers don’t grow on trees. You have to work hard—put your heart in your work, to write a mega-yield title. Today, everyone is falling heads over heels forrepparttar 128535 magic of Harry Potter. But if J.K. Rowling—the single mother—didn’t haverepparttar 128536 gumption to write herself offrepparttar 128537 dole,repparttar 128538 story of Harry Potter wouldn’t have been written or read. A number of factors help to make best-sellers. I have provided a number of those factors here to help you write that your echo-Bible. Write on a best-selling topic. I have listed 10 best-selling topics inrepparttar 128539 early chapter of this book. Why not think of working on one of them? But think carefully before you choose a subject. You don’t want to write on a topic because everyone is writing on it and winning prizes. I can tell you what is happening this moment zillions of light years up there inrepparttar 128540 world of stars and galaxies. But can you imagine that? If things like that are beyond your imagination, then don’t dream of writing science fiction. Come down to earth and spy on your neighbors who are marrying this moment and divorcing afterrepparttar 128541 wedding day.

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