The Writer Will Take Your Questions Now (#222) -- Where to Publish

Where do you go to get your stories published? How do you even begin the process? 

Network.

Network. 

Network.

Network with people you know. Network with people you meet online. Network through Facebook groups. Network through Yahoo mail groups. You never know when someone you help or know will be in a position to help you later on with publishing project. Also, network online through blogs or other options. I regularly check for open submissions and post the details here on the blog just as a reference and resource for you, O' Hallowed Reader of This Blog.

Case in point. While I was editor-in-chief at the indie comic book publisher Shooting Star Comics, I (along with the rest of the management team) greenlit a military-horror project by Tom Waltz called Children of the Grave. I had known Tom through my work at iHero Entertainment, and knew he had the goods, and was able to convince the rest of the team to that fact (truth be told, it didn't really take any convincing at all -- it was pretty evident all in itself).

Fast forward a few years to Tom working at IDW as an associate editor looking for a writer for a then unknown project called Gene Simmons Dominatrix (no apostrophe, and no, I don't know why, so don't ask). He called me. Why? Lots of reasons, but it never would have happened without networking.

Another story.

Bobby Nash and I are regular convention travelling companions to cut costs on rooms and gas. So when I started getting back into prose work a few years ago, he was more than happy to introduce me to Ron Fortier and Airship 27 Productions (who have now published several of my stories). In turn, while in a Yahoo group run by Ron, I met Tommy Hancock, who runs Pro Se Productions, and has also published a few of my stories now. And in return, because good networking goes both ways, when IDW was looking for writers for a Zombies vs. Robots prose collection, I recommended Bobby wholeheartedly.

Bottom line, be good at what you do, but never forget that networking is 90 percent of the battle.