GETTING PUBLISHED

Chriss McCallum
How To Books
paperback, £4:99
ISBN 1 85703 714 6

Review by Jean Currie

Chriss McCallum has followed 'The Magazine Writer's Handbook' (co-author Gordon Wells) with this new guide.

In the Handbook Chriss told us which magazines would consider our short stories, articles, poems and letters. 'Getting Published' teaches us what we have to do to ensure our work is saleable. It is published by How To Books in their Essentials imprint and that is just what it is, the essentials we need to know if we aim to get our writing into print.

As Chriss says in the Preface: 'You don't have to know *someone*' but you do need to know what to do to give editors what they want.

Whatever branch of writing you favour you will find help in this book. During a lifetime on both sides of the editorial desk - she has worked at Collins, Penguin and others, as a magazine editor and as a
published author - Chriss has acquired unrivalled knowledge and she passes on this expertise with clear, no-nonsense, authoritative advice in easy to follow language.

'What does it take to be published?' she asks and she answers her own question: 'You have to be able to put your thoughts and ideas into words that others will understand. You write to communicate,' and this she certainly does.

The book is divided into six sections:

PREPARING TO BE A PUBLISHED WRITER
GETTING YOUR SHORT STORY PUBLISHED
GETTING YOUR NOVEL PUBLISHED
GETTING YOUR POETRY PUBLISHED
WRITING AND SELLING SHORT NON-FICTION
WRITING AND PUBLISHING A NON-FICTION BOOK

At the beginning of each is a list of 'things that really matter' that will be covered in that section. For example, in GETTING YOUR POETRY PUBLISHED she discusses:

KEEPING UP TO DATE
GETTING STARTED WITH THE SMALL PRESS
ENTERING POETRY COMPETITIONS
BUILDING A COLLECTION
PUBLISHING YOUR OWN POETRY

The book is in easy to read print on well laid out pages, has summary points at the end of each chapter and examples of manuscript layout. (There may, of course, be some differences in other countries. This is aimed at the UK but most of the advice is applicable elsewhere.)

Nothing of any importance is omitted and yet this book is small enough (less than 100 pages) for pocket or handbag and small enough in price not to cause too much damage to the purse.

If you are serious about your writing and are not getting published as much as you'd like, buy 'Getting Published' and find out why.

It is available from Chriss McCallum, 2 Bishops Mews, Church Lane, Ashton-on-Mersey, Sale, Cheshire M33 5QG (UKP4:99 POST FREE) and from http://www.amazon.co.uk