A query letter is what authors send out to literary agents in order to try and get their book picked up. This is the first peek of your book baby that anyone will see; it’s effectively your marketing pitch—not only of your book, but of yourself. The query is an outline of your book and of yourself, but you want it to be as short as possible while keeping it compelling.

In recent years, there’s been a lot of talk in the publishing world about the ‘death of print’ and the generally troubling times for booksellers and authors. One only needs to look at the thriving ‘indie’ scene for inspiration and confirmation that not all is lost in the publishing world… This article will briefly examine how independent or “indie” publications are thriving, despite the setbacks traditional publishers and their publications are currently facing.

When giving query advice, a lot of us take for granted that you’ll know what we mean when we tell you a query must have a short synopsis of your story. We also take for granted that you’ll figure out how to do this in 300 words or fewer. This article talks a bit more about what goes into creating a good, cohesive summary that will entice an agent to read more in just a few paragraphs.

Books, you know, they’re not just commodities. The profit motive often is in conflict with the aims of art. We live in capitalism. Its power seems inescapable. So did the divine right of kings. Any human power can be resisted and changed by human beings. Resistance and change often begin in art, and very often in our art — the art of words. - Ursula Le Guin

Maybe you’re an avid short-story writer. Or you write novels but are trying your hand at something briefer. Or a chapter from your novel-in-progress works as a self-contained story. Or you’re in a writing group or workshop that’s focusing on short fiction. However you did it, you did it—you wrote and revised (and further revised) a short story. Now’s the time to send it off into the real world. But where? When pursuing publication of short fiction, you have several options. Here are the most popular routes today, and the ins and outs of each.

Small and slow payout rates, far ahead publication dates and diminishing market size are some reasons authors are looking at the small pub model. Some authors are reluctant to take the plunge with indie publishing. First, there is the status that a traditional house still holds in the minds of many. Secondly, a few feel inadequate to handle the marketing involved in self-publishing. Covers and the visual aspect of novels also intimidate writers.

As self-publishing shrugs off its “vanity press” stigma and becomes recognized as a bona fide and lucrative option, more and more authors are finding that going indie just makes more sense.