How to become an Author, Write Books, and get Published

Basics every aspiring author should know
How do people become authors?
What, or how should I write?
How do I get myself published?
How do I get paid as an author?
Who owns the copyright to the book?

How to write a book?
How to write a fiction novel?
How to write non-fiction?
How to write a children’s book?
How to write an auto-biography?
How to write science fiction?
How to write a romance novel?
How to write a short novel?

How to get published?
What is the difference between a Publisher & Literary Agent?
How to find a Publisher/Literary agent?
How to publish a poem?

How to self-publish & sell your books?
How to decide whether to self-publish?
How to self publish a book?
How to self-publish without spending a cent!
How to market a book?
How to get an ISBN and barcode?

Useful Resources and Links
Warning on scams for aspiring authors
List of Literary Agents' Websites
Facebook Poets & Writers Registry
Literary magazines directory

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How do I get paid as an author?

Royalty based contracts
Publishers finance the entire cost of producing and marketing a book. Authors typically get a royalty of about 10-15% of the retail price as royalty, although the amount can be lower for academic books (textbooks, reference books etc.). Authors may also get an advance payment equal to royalty due to an author for the first print i.e. if a publisher expects to sell 10,000 copies of a title in the first year at $10 per book, then at 10% royalty the publisher may suggest an advance of $10,000 to the author when he signs the publishing contract. Literary agents typically get about 15% of whatever the author earns as commission for their services. These days, many literary agents also make money for themselves and the authors through helping authors sell film, translation, merchandise and other related rights to their books. These rights may be sold for a fixed fee or royalty.

Don’t expect to make a good living on royalties even after your book is published and sold on book shelves. Most authors only collect royalties once a year because that’s how often the bookstores pay the publishers. So if you are lucky enough to get an advance, the next check is still a long way off. If you study the careers of successful authors, you’ll also realise that new books that become bestsellers took at least a year or two before they climbed up the lists. (unless you are already a well known bestselling author). Unless you are already an established author, it is probably a good idea to keep that day job!

(Note that in Singapore author royalty is usually around 10%, and there are seldom advance payments. )

Fixed fee contracts
Some book projects may be a one-time payment of a fixed fee instead of ongoing royalties. A lot of educational books, reference materials, technical manuals, academic textbooks are written by authors commissioned to write on a fixed fee basis. This fee is always pre-agreed and you are hired as a consultant or freelancer. In these arrangements however, the author still possess the "moral rights" (a concept distinct from copyright) to be identified as the author.

Sometimes celebrities or famous personalities, or established "gurus" who no longer have the time to write, may hire ghostwriters to write on their behalf. They may do it through extensive interviews or taking dictations. This is different from co-authoring a book for someone because they have the fame or credibility to sell the book but lack the talent nor patience to write. Ghostwriters take a fixed fee and are contractually bound to keep their identity to themselves. As far as the rest of the world is concerned, they may never know who actually wrote the books.

Freelance writing, translation, or editing work are also paid in this manner, although the way the fee is calculated may be on an "amount per word" basis.