How to Write & Sell Your First Novel

by Oscar Collier

Improve your chances of getting your first novel published with Strategies that have helped other first novelists succeed and Do's and don'ts of writing and presenting your novel to an editor.

Genres: Writing, Nonfiction, Reference, Business, How To

234 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1986

Reviews

[Mira Domsky]

Outdated; minimal reference to computers. But the writing craft advice is still valid.

[Aimee]

Good information on writing, though nothing I haven't seen elsewhere and in more engaging language. The publishing part I am loathe to speculate on, not having been published. But my recommendation is for anyone to do outside research as this book was updated, at least the copy I read, in 1997 and I have no idea if this information is still relevant. I wish the author had added more on self publishing than saying it was hard to do.

[Karlie Majure]

This is not something I would normally read but as someone who wants to write their own novel this book was perfect. There was so much information from having the idea for a novel to what happens after it’s published. There were so many details about the writing and publishing world that I didn’t know about until reading this book. I will be referring back to this a lot. I recommend that anyone who wants to write a novel should read this.

[Gearóid O'Connor]

Excellent book on the craft and structure of writing a novel.
However the last quarter of the book is dated and this book would work best when used in conjunction with an up to date book that details marketing/I.T./Social media tips for your writing.

[Confused Hamburger]

Very good writing advice but outdated and also the authors section is too long.

[Elizabeth Rausch]

Of the writing books I love to read this one ranks first. Collier has an excellent forward-way of speaking and you can tell from reading it that he knows, and I mean really knows, what good writing sounds like. He frankly asserts what to do in face of writing questions, and he gives the reader hope at rising to author by giving many incredible examples of successes before they became big. If you are interested in writing, I assert this as a must-read. Don't worry, it will keep your attention- you won't be sorry you read it.

[Sara]

The first half is pretty much stuff I knew from NaNoWriMo. The second half got a little boring. It wasn't overwhelming though, and made me feel as if rewriting and publishing were something that I could do.

(my copy was a little out of date too...citing books that are old movies by this point. ALSO: some crude words/references!)

[Erin Nudi]

Although well meaning and does contain some helpful advice, I'm afraid much of this book is outdated at this point. If you're looking to write a novel, I would go with Alan Watt's The 90 Day Novel. But, this book does go into how to go about getting an agent and additional steps after you've finished your novel, while Watt's book is specifically about writing the novel and nothing else.

[Rian Nejar]

A well-written book, full of anecdotes and publishing stories, that inspired me to get started on my first mainstream book. I returned to it many times for motivation and wisdom from the publishing world. A mite dated, given that it was first published a quarter century ago, but nevertheless helpful.

[Lauren Perotto]

I'm not sure why I picked up this book at the library sale for 10 cents. Probably because I have a secret desire to write a book of my own someday and it caught my attention. Despite the fact that it's extremely out of date and I'm not sure how practical some of the "advice" was, it did in some small way give me an "I can do this" feeling. Perhaps I'll write a book after all.

[Kaylee]

I would definitely get this book out from the library again so I may refer to it in the future when I am closer to finishing my book. I believe it had some very good advice in it, and also provided me with lots of good tips in order to write my novel!

[Debra]

This is a lovely book, it has sound advise and at the end of each chapter it gives tips and covers the topics that were included.
This book doesn't try to sell itself.

[Kristen]

This is a great book for all aspiring writers to use as a reference guide. It's a good think to have as a refresher course.

[Stewart]

Bought and read in past 6 months

[Tasneem]

This is an okay book. It is helpful and the information is presented clearly, but it somehow lacks that special something. I wasn't completely satisfied with it.

[Jack Hansen]

Great advice for preparing to write and presenting one's work, who to see, and how to behave. The Do's and Don'ts at the end of the book are especially helpful.

[Summeralism]

All in one book on how to get started writing and publishing your novel :)

[Kimberly]

Some excellent advise, but rather dated since it was published in 1997. Still, some things never change and the principles are just as sound today as they were 15-20 years ago.

[Christina]

It had some good points however it did not really give me the information I was looking for to understand the world of editing and publishing.