Good luck to you. The whimsy of the publishing industry is such that there is no telling who will get published and who won't. Pick up a copy of any number of bestsellers and you'll see that writing talent is an elusive talent to define.

It's said that there are about 25 million people trying to write commercial fiction at this time, worldwide. It is further said that less than 2,500 authors are currently making a living as a writer of commercial fiction. These numbers point to an immense amount of frustration as authors run into brick walls. Unfortunately, there are numerous scoundrels who will try to take advantage of that frustration. The moment you send query letters or e-mails you've established yourself as a person who wants very badly to be published. Soon your e-mail account and mailbox will be jammed with GREAT offers. If you're tremendously lucky, one of those offers might be legitimate. Most will not.

You will be sent contracts from "literary agents" who have never placed a book with a publisher, but who will try to convince you that all you have to do is send them $3,500 for editing and photocopying expense and they will have your book in print within months. As a rule you should know that NO legitimate literary agent would ever ask for money up front. It would be a violation of their professional code.

Use this site to help separate the wheat from the chaff. It's called "Preditors & Editors" and it lists the known entities and will tell you which are legit. Note how many literary agents are marked as "Not Recommended". That distinction is earned by being a bad apple and should not be ignored.

http://pred-ed.com/

You mentioned Lulu. Lulu is wonderful in many ways. I have three novels on Lulu. I did it so that I could give people printed copies. I had no marketing plan and subsequently no one but me has purchased my books even though one of the novels has been on Lulu for years. Self-publishing can be successful. Just ask John Grisham. I'm a talented salesperson who has won many national awards for my marketing. I have a pretty good idea what it would take to become a successful author, and it would be arduous and risky. I'm guessing an investment of $50 - $100,000 would be needed to fund a campaign that would allow you to sell enough books through self-publishing to draw interest from a traditional publisher. The game is changing with Kindle-like readers, but you still need to fight your way through the market. I don't believe Lulu can do it for you. They're a tool, not a means to an end.

You will be invited to seminars, camps, symposiums, etc. All are designed to separate you from your money. They will use literary agents as an attraction to get you to attend. Most are bogus . . . some well-intended, but still bogus.

You will get offers from many professionals to "edit" your work. Those edits will probably make your work better, but are far from a guarantee that you will get published.

The odds are long and the rewards out of reach for all but a precious few. I've sent out hundreds of query letters and e-mails, probably close to a thousand. Most went unanswered. A large share sent back a form letter telling me to buzz off. A very few actually ask for a complete manuscript, but in the end I had no takers for any of the four novels I tried. I'm known in my industry for my persistence, but the publishing game is stacked against the unknown person.

Take a look at who is getting published. More than likely they're well-known for something else. Or, they've spent time working in the publishing industry, Many have Ivy League degrees and are slated for good things before they graduate. Most have been published before. Most literary agents will not even accept submissions from new authors, unless they're referred by one of their current authors.

As I said at the top -- good luck! Please go into your adventure with your eyes wide open. I believe everyone should follow their bliss. Just don't get screwed in the process.

Angela Rasch (Jill M I)