So, you've finished your first novel. The characters are developed, there is an entertaining plot and maybe even a little twist meant to keep your readers excited until the very end. Now you think to yourself, 'Self, I must start getting this book into the world so I can become a successful author.'
WRONG!
That large stack of paper is nowhere close to being ready for potential agents. First, you must edit. Go back to the very beginning of your manuscript and start reading. But you can't read it as if trying to enjoying the story, you must look at the book as though already expecting it to be a dog pile. Not just any pile, your pile. So you must work hard to take that stinking mound and transform it into the closest image of a masterpiece you can manage.
Doing this will take more than one read-through, so be prepared to go over your work again, and again, and again, and again...until you feel you have as few mistakes as possible. Don't expect your manuscript to be perfect, because it never will. You can always find something to change every time you re-read your book.
Knowing when your book is ready to be sent off to hopeful agents can be one of the most important (and most difficult) decisions on the road to becoming an author. No one can tell you when your manuscript is ready; sometimes you just have to jump in and hope for the best.
Once you are ready to send off your manuscript, there is one (maybe two) more step you must take...writing the query letter.
Next Post: The query letter
