How To Write What You Want and Sell What You Write

How to Write What You Want & Sell What You Write is one of two books Skip Press has written for writers. He has recently completed the Writers Guide to Hollywood Producers, Directors and Screenwriting Agents. His class in the UCLA Extension Writers Program has given his students a high success rate in selling their own works.

Books about writing. Bah! There's tons of 'em! Somebody get me a shovel! You can't teach anybody to write! Writers are born, not paid. Too many writers are born, matter of fact. Or should we say, imbeciles who want to be writers. Just ask any editor with red ink in her veins! Now that we've gotten that baloney out of the way, let's get to the real meat of the matter. Forget every assumption or generality about writing you've ever heard or read. You can teach someone to write. You can learn to write. In fact, you can keep getting better at writing for as long as you're able to think and act coherently. One of the best things I learned early on was this: no matter how good your writing is, if it isn't presented in the proper length, format and "look", you're immediately branded an amateur. This book will tell you what sort of submission is expected for a newspaper "op ed" (opinion editorial) piece, an audio-visual script, a year end report, a screenplay, or even a non-fiction book proposal. Although I've sold darn near every type of writing that exists, my own advice is mixed with that of established professionals in specialized topics. I try to cover all the bases. Over the years, I learned to write economically. In this book, I don't spend too much time on any one subject, but I do give you the basics. After reading and applying the principles and formats given here, every single want-to-be writer out there (and those interested in switching fields of writing) should know what basic first steps to take. You'll discover exactly how to get started and rapidly achieve quick, no-nonsense results. People buy "everything you need to know" books about medicines, cars, gardening, home electronic repair and taking care of babies. Why not one about writing? HOW TO WRITE WHAT YOU WANT AND SELL WHAT YOU WRITE was a finalist in the non-fiction category for the EPPIE 2000 awards,