BOOK WRITING AND PUBLISHING IN INDIA FOR NEW WRITERS
Q: How to start writing a book?
A: Every new writer is confused about how to start writing a book and whether he/she will be able to write a book or not. I would suggest that you just need to pick up your pen and write and take the first step, everything else will follow. When I started writing my first book, I tried to pour the thoughts as raw as they were coming to my mind because I think that the best way to write is pen down your thoughts as raw as they are.
Q: What are the hardships one faces during writing a book?
A: Writing a book is an amazing journey. Its not easy but you will enjoy it if you love writing. A few times you may feel stuck too and you may think that you would not be able to proceed further as writing a book is can be mentally draining at times where you feel short of thoughts and ideas. I think at that time what can help you a lot is reading. You can stop writing at those moments and read a book. I think reading opens up your mind if you are stuck with ideas. I am sharing the key to writing a book which I think helped me a lot. Reading can be the best way to open up your mind when it feels tired and short of ideas. It gives you other perspectives and other angles to see things around you. You can better perceive things, other’s emotions and perspectives. So, I think reading and writing go hand in hand. You can proceed slowly and write only when you actually feel like writing. You should never take it as a task to complete. I think writing is something which comes from the soul. If you do it as a task or job, I think it loses a bit of its flavor.
Q: Why is editing important?
A: A good editor gives your book a new look grammatically, formation of sentences and expression of words. I think it acts like garnishing a food item to make it look beautiful and presentable. Good editing can make a huge difference to your book’s performance. So, I would recommend a book to be edited before being sent to the publishers for final publishing.
Q: How to get book published?
A: I think getting published has become very easy these days. You can easily get your kindle version published. Self-publishing has also opened the way and made path easier for writers. Getting published used to be a big thing in the past but now a day many publishers offer self-publishing packages. All you need to do is to give money and script and your book will be published. But I do not believe in getting published this way. I think one should always try to get published traditionally. Getting published traditionally is still a very tough task. Traditional publishing means that the publisher finds your script worth being published for free from their publishing house. They do this because they see the potential in the book and expect the book to sale and do good business for their publishing house. I think one should compete and try to get their book published through traditional publishing if they really want to grow as a writer. I feel that before getting the book published, the book should have all the qualities to be read and be appreciated by the readers. Because in the end the quality of book matters a lot.
Q: What are the basic requirements of publishers when we contact to get published?
A: Most publishers usually accept the manuscripts through emails. You can send the 2-3 sample chapters to different publishers. Every publisher has their specific guidelines for manuscript submission which you can find on their websites. Some of the main publishers where new authors stand a chance to get published are:
HarperCollins
Rupa Publications
Penguin
Random House
Srishti Publishers
Leadstart
Fingerprints
Petals Publishers
Juggernaut
Mahaveer
Roli books
Westland
Getting published traditionally can be a tough job many times. So, I would advise not to lose patience and keep trying. The publishing houses usually take 2-3 months to respond and it can be quite tough to wait sometimes. But if the book is selected for publishing traditionally, you will be at a great advantage. But I would also say that the real struggle starts after getting the book published. So, the whole process of book writing and publishing will require a lot of patience and most importantly belief in oneself.
I hope this blog will help the new writers in India. I wish them all the best.
-Rooprashi (Author of “The Girl Who Saw It All”)
