You need to meet published writers and people who work in the book business. Be charming, be persistent and ask for help. The speakers at seminars expect you to do this, but please also be sensitive. I have heard would-be writers advised to ask lecturers to read their manuscripts, something which most successful authors are genuinely too busy to do even for friends, but almost everyone is happy to give advice on a manageable scale. A great many crazy people think they would be bestselling authors if there were not a world conspiracy to gag them.
All unknown writers are in serious danger of being confused with the crazies.
Celia Brayfield and must not be reproduced elsewhere without permission. You can order a copy of this book from the Pure Fiction bookshop - and have it delivered to your door anywhere in the world. She has also written two non-fiction books on dance, as a journalist with a special interest in the media, she has written for a wide range of publications, including The Times, the Sunday Telegraph and the Evening Standard. Click here to a see a list of her books in print, available from the Pure Fiction Bookshop.