How to get a book published

[louise5754]

Hi I'm
Dyslexic Autistic and have OCD.

My friend suggested it might be interesting to write a book living with the above and having a Royal Marine Husband. He's been in 23 years. Seen a lot.

I know there are lots of military wives about so doubt I'd get interest.

You’re coming at this from the wrong end, OP. Only ever write a book because you want to — friends frequently say we ‘should’ do all kinds of mad stuff. Once written (that is, if you genuinely want to write it), you can explore trad publication possibilities or self-publish.

I think you would need to find your own angle on your husband’s service, though —or co-write the book with him?

The first step to getting a book published is to write a book. There is no point thinking about publication until you have a solid idea, hook, pitch and draft. You sound very hazy on what you would be writing and why. Figure that out first - and if you actually want to write a book, rather than your friend wanting you to write it.

Hi Louise,
I applaud you for wanting to write a book as a dyslexic autistic with OCD if that's something you really want to do. I think it would make an interesting read from a human interest point of view.
I've independently published a couple of fiction books via Amazon KDP, so if you don't find a publishing house to take on your book, it's very easy to DIY.
My first suggestion would be to make a brief plot of the book, and also write the first few chapters. Then get your friends and/or family to read and appraise your work. But you must be open to suggestions, changes, editing, in order to make it more interesting for people to read. It's for your own good, to polish your writing skills.
I've got a good friend who reads each of my chapters when I've finished them, corrects spelling mistakes, tells me if she disagrees with something, or wants me to put things differently. She's invaluable! So if you can get someone to help you in that way, all the better.
It's definitely going to take a lot of hard work, pouring out your soul into the written word, but it's quite special when you finally hold your own book in your hands - and even better when people start buying it.
I wish you all the best if you decide to take up writing!

Fiction or non-fiction? Fiction you need a whole book written before approaching agents. Non-fiction you need the first few chapters, an outline, and ideally a platform or hook.

But you’re trying to run before you can walk: I hopped on the thread to give advice on “how to get a book published” but you don’t have a book yet!