An Introduction

I am part of a reality television show in which six contestants compete for a publishing contract, agent representation and marketing of their first book. I'm not a person for whom reality television holds a great deal of allure, but I see this show as a fantastic opportunity to learn about how to move from writing to publication. I've been working on my first novel for about two years. It's a book about story-telling set in New York in 1908. I love writing and my ability to craft words and characters has increased immeasurably over the past two years: the more you do something, the better you get. But I know very little about book publishing. I see my involvement in the show to be that of an apprentice: I'm listening to the judges, reflecting upon and researching around the advice that they give me, and stepping up to each new challenge.

This blog is my way of 'giving back': the lessons that I'm learning and the issues that I'm facing are not unique to me. In many ways, I'm a typical first time author. I've got a pretty good book on my hands, and I'm trying to understand and manage what comes next. Hopefully, my experiences can help people map out their own paths towards publication.