I am in the process of writing my first book. I am just looking for any advice that may help me.?

I am a lesbian and I am in a 12 year relationship and we have a 5 year old son. My book is a fictional version of my personal story and battles.I am in the process of writing my first book. I am just looking for any advice that may help me.?
Well, goodness, you're going to get a host of advice, probably - all differently, likely.





Writing a book can be fun (I've been published multiple times) but you have to first figure out if you're just doing it for the experience or writing because you'd like it to provide income.





If you'd like some income, keep in mind that publishing a book rarely brings a decent money. Obviously some authors make a lot, but most make none at all, and are lucky to get an advance to pay the rent for a few months.





I think you are better served (and this may not apply in your described situation) if you use the book as a springboard to something else - contracting jobs, speaking engagements, and so forth.





Nevertheless, if you want to write, have fun. You should find a publisher in your genre (I think, given your subject matter, there's a handful of well-known publishers) and approach them.





You can also self-publish. In the ';old days'; this was subsidy publishing - you paid someone to print 1000 copies or whatever and then it was up to you to sell them. Invariably this was harder than it seemed.





Nowadays, however, I'd suggest you check out iUniverse.com. They set you up for self-publishing, but it's on-demand, meaning - no orders, no printing. The only advance money is for setup, and that was about $600 last I looked. You also get - depending on what arrangements you make - an ISBN number, and your book can be ordered through Amazon or Barnes %26amp; Noble. Someone orders it, they print it, otherwise no printing, and it can be as little as one copy per print run.





I've mainly written industry-specific books so I've worked with regular publishers, but if I was doing a novel (which I've considered) I'd give real consideration to going the iUniverse route. You get exposure and royalties, but not a lot of the hassle. However, you have to do a bit more work yourself (like layout, although I think for a fee they'll do that too).





Other than that, as for writing, think about where you want to go with it. Write naturally, for you - don't be pretensious. Some people intricately map out their stories, others just start typing with no idea of where it'll go. You, of course, can write whatever you want, but I'd suggest taking an aspect of your life and chronicling it - you won't run out of material. For instance, you are in a lesbian relationship and you are raising a 5 year old child. How about some background on how that situation evolved (mainly the child, plus how you met your partner) and then do a day to day or week to week chronicling of the challenges faced? He must be close to entering 1st grade if he's not there already. What's your reaction when you show up for Parent/Teacher Conferences? Do his friends (or more likely his friend's parents) find themselves uncomfortable? Perhaps plan on taking 9 months to write it, and go with his first nine months in school, and the challenges you face.





Good luck!





(on edit: I think the responder above was referring to the responder above him, since my response posted far later). And yes, I'm published, and a former editor and publisher myself.I am in the process of writing my first book. I am just looking for any advice that may help me.?
To be honest, unless you are a celebrity, or have connections in the literary world, your story is not going to be of major interest. Fiction is VERY difficult to sell (I am talking legitimate publishing here, not the on line garbage, vanity publishing that proliferates here on the Web and is NOT REAL publishing in any sense). Publishers have far more material than they can ever use and the markets are getting tighter all the time. Again, unless you are a terrific writer, know an agent or someone else within the publishing field, and can tell a totally fascinating story (or you're a celebrity), then I would think twice about this venture, i.e., spending all the time writing a book only to find there is no market for it. Your personal battles are really not as unique as you might believe, and weaving them into fiction takes an adept writer who really knows how to grab an audience. Can you do this? Also, most publishers no longer accept unsolicited material. Again, I am talking LEGITIMATE publishers that actually pay you for your work. First books rarely make money anyway. I hate to be a downer on this one, but the realities of the legitimate publishing world are quite harsh. The responder above obviously has NO IDEA! I am here to tell you that the chances of your story ever seeing legitimate print are almost nil, again, unless you have something extraordinarily unique to say (and can say it in a way that is enthralling to the average reader). Connections in the industry are almost imperative!
The main thing to think about is not dwelling on the negative. Many of these stories are such downers. Yes it is a struggle to be in a situation like yours, but try to think of where you are now. You sound happy, so focus on the happiness you partner and your son have brought you. It is important to bring in the topics of struggles and such, but you want a reader to walk away from your story feeling positive about their own situation.


Good Luck
I'm no literary genius or anything and I'm not sure what kind of advise you are looking for, but I am a lesbian who loves to read. The best advise I can think of is to write with your heart and find a good editor. I commend you for keeping your family together for so long, so many of us don't - and I wish you all the luck in the world. PS - don't listen to all of the people who tell you you can't do it - just keep at it...