As I have found out over the years, trying to get your book published is damn hard, and it isn’t getting any easier. There’s too many wannabe writers that want to know how to publish a book, and not enough editors to read all the submissions, which means that there is a real risk that the next JK Rowling is slipping through the cracks.

However, a lot of people get rejected simply because they are not following established rules, which guarantees that your manuscript is heading on a one way journey to the “slush pile”. Here are 3 ways to stop that :

1. Don’t write the whole book – This one is a real source of contention among both established authors and wannabe authors about how to publish a book. Some say to never approach a publisher until you have a completed manuscript while others advocate writing only a few chapters first to “test the waters”.

As someone who is friends with a successful author, and as someone who has been doing the whole manuscript submission routine myself, I would say the best approach is to write the first five chapters and then also provide a synopsis of where the book will be heading after that. A lot of publishers will be happy with that, and will make a decision based on the first five chapters and the synopsis.

2. Presentation counts – before submitting to a publisher, just think for a moment about how many submissions they receive on a daily basis. Now think about how yours could stand out and make the editor take notice. So, double spacing and numbering on all your pages, good quality paper, your name, address and phone number at the bottom of each page (in case a page gets mislaid). Don’t go over the top and give them “concept artwork”. If they decide to accept your manuscript, you can discuss designs later.

3. Get an agent – Again, this is a big source of discussion with equal numbers of people agreeing and disagreeing. But a lot of people, including myself, think that the best way to get through to a publisher is to get an agent. OK, you lose 10% but think of the advantages. They get you into a publisher, they negotiate your contracts for you and they represent you if movie studios come calling. In fact, they deal with everything while you get on with the business of writing. Sounds like a great deal to me, but others want to be their own representative. Just bear in mind though that when you strike out alone, the going gets tougher.

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Mark O’Neill is a freelance writer of 20 years experience, and also the managing editor of MakeUseOf.com, since August 2007. You can see his personal website at markoneill.org Mark has 21 post(s) at Free Writing Center