Although getting a novel published has been a goal of mine for years, I have gotten so stuck in the writing process that I haven't really thought about it in a while. Novel writing is more of a lifestyle choice than an activity. Writing a novel take some people six months, but it takes many people six years. A first novel can make or break you. Some people come out with a feeling of success and accomplishment, while others come out feeling crushed in their spirits.

Fortunately, I was one of the former. When I finally did finish writing a novel, I felt like I could take on the entire world. Unfortunately, I realized that I had no idea how to get my novel published. I hadn't really researched it, and was surprised when I found out I had gone about it all wrong.

Apparently, the traditional method for getting a novel published is to write a few chapters of the synopsis and start sending them around. This has several advantages over the approach I took. The first one is that you can start to find publishers before you have finished writing a novel. Just through three chapters and a synopsis, a publisher can tell whether he wants to accept the novel you have written. In addition to this, you can have multiple proposals going around at the same time. If you can write three chapters of several different novels, you have a much better chance of being picked up. Then, when one of your ideas is selected for publication, you can drop your other projects for the time being.

In reality, most people intent on getting a novel published do it the way I did it the first time. The reason is, it seems very important to prove to yourself that you can finish writing a novel. There are some good things about this approach. You have some options that you would not have if you opted for the three chapters and a synopsis way of doing it. First of all, you can self publish a novel. You can handle printing, marketing, and distribution yourself instead of looking for a publisher to pick you up. Although this costs quite a bit of money, if you are a savvy publicist, it can really work out for you. As another option, you can hire a vanity press. These presses specialize in getting a novel published for a small audience of people. You'll have enough books to give to your friends and family to show what you've done, so this is a great option if you aren't out for worldwide fame.