Getting Published

I've been getting so many emails from my website from fellow authors who want to know how to get published so I'm going to attempt to answer some of their questions. First and foremost, getting published by a traditional publishing house is very very...and I cannot stress this enough...very hard. Traditional houses aren't buying what they used to and aren't taking major chances on first time authors. What is mainly coming out of the traditional houses are books by established authors. Of course, if you're writing a self-help book, and that's currently the trend these days, you may have a better chance. Of course, you will need to be an expert (which can be proven) in whatever you're writing about.
So, in order to get published by a traditonal, and by traditional, I'm talking Random House, Simon & Schuester...etc, you will need to have a killer agent. 99% of publishing companies DO NOT ACCEPT MANUSCRIPTS FROM AUTHORS (unsolicited manuscripts). If you find one that does, lucky you. Get a copy of the 2009 Writer's Market, the 2009 Guide to Literary Agents, subscribe to any website that will give you agent listings, grab a highlighter (the clickable sharpies are the best) and go to town.
After you've compiled a list of agents that you feel would be a good fit for you (remember you're going to be paying this person at least 15%) then you have to write a helluva query letter. And that's hard to do. But a query letter is the first thing an agent sees and it has to pull them in and get their attention. It's the first impression that this agent will have of you and most times, it's the only impression you'll get to make. There are no second chances with query letters.
Once an agent has responded to your letter, they will ask you to provide samples of your work. You should have this ready to send at a moments notice. I personally have the first 100 pages of my book, the first 3 chapters, the first 10 pages, and the entire manuscript saved in a word document, and as a pdf, just in case. I have hard copies and bound review copies ready.
After that, it's a waiting game. If the agent feels like you're work is profitable and that they can sell it, they will offer you a contract. When you sign with an agent, you can breathe and let him/her do their job and sell your book. You can almost relax until the book is sold because after that, there's editing and rewrites, and promotion that goes along with being a published author.
Or you can do what I did and self-publish. I'll save that story for a later post....STANDBY

Follow Your Dreams?

I was watching something on TV tonight and some famous actor said that in order to "make it out" you have to follow your dreams. And while I do agree with that, what do you do when life, plain and simple, gets in the way of your dreams. When you have bills and kids and illness to deal with, how do you stay on the path of your dream, no matter what it is. How do you devote all of your time and energy into your passion when you don't have the resources to live?
I get so tired of hearing the rich and famous who want for nothing, who's every financial woe is just not a problem talk about how they were able to just devote all their time to their craft and hard work pays off. I've been working hard every day of my life since I was 13 years old and I'm not living my dream. So what am I doing wrong? I wish someone could give me an answer to that question.