Do I really have to do research to write my story? The answer to that question is: It depends. Are you writing about a subject with which you have a lot of experience? Are you one of the leading experts on molecular biology and biochemistry writing a story about the uses of alien tissue in the search for a cure to a human disease? If you are, then you probably have all of the tools at your disposal to make your story believable. If you don't know anything about biochemistry and don't know a mitochondria from a cell wall, then you might need to look in a biology text book for the information that will bring your story to life and make it ring true to the people who know. While the majority of your audience might not know that a virus carries around pieces of DNA inside of them, you'll run into a biologist who reads your fiction and wonders why your viruses aren't behaving like viruses. So researching the topic you want to write about can't hurt and it could mean the difference between an okay story and a great one.

Another area of research that will impact your potential for getting published is market research. You need to read magazine guidelines. You need to read sample copies of magazines. You need to get a feel for the market you're considering as a place for your masterpiece. The last thing you want to give to the editor of a science fiction magazine is your slap-stick western. A literary magazine would very likely drop your heroic space opera like a hot potato. Research your markets, find out what sort of fiction they're looking for and when they accept submissions. Some markets will return unopened submissions sent between October and April. Watch out for magazines with themed issues. If you don't have a story that fits within one of their themes, find a different market for them.

I can hear the stammering from the audience now, "Awww, do I have to?" The answer is, "Yes." You must edit your fiction. No matter how good you think your story is, you have not turned out a perfect story free from grammatical flaws, misused words, overused words and scenes that likely need to be reworked.

Edit, revise and rewrite until you are confident that you cannot make the story any better. Then give your manuscript to a friend (or a dozen) who will give you honest criticism about it. Listen to that criticism. Sometimes one reader will have a problem that amounts to nothing more than a dislike of your narrative style. But if you receive the same response from several readers, the chances are that you need to change that part of the story. If one reader declares a motive unclear, that single reader may have missed your clues. If five make the same declaration, make your clues less subtle. You know the story, you're more likely than any other reader to miss problems because you see what is in your head rather than what is on paper.

Most magazines and publishers want to see manuscripts a very specific way. A manuscript is not your chance to display your abilities with page layout or graphical design. You want to send the manuscript in the format that is easiest for editors to read. This is, generally, on 8.5" x 11" paper with one-inch margins at each side, double-spaced between lines (not words). The font should be a fixed width font; that means each character takes up the same amount of space. A "1" takes up as much room as an "m". Generally, Courier 12-point font is the best. If you don't have Courier or Courier New, use Times New Roman or another fixed width font. Also, you have to make certain that the font is dark or that your photocopy is clear. If you find an error, you can fix that on the manuscript, but if you find many errors, print out a fresh copy.

Include, on the front page, your name, address and phone number count of the story in the top left corner of the manuscript. Your can include your email address here, as well. The word count of your story should be in the top right corner of the manuscript, across from your name. The title of your story and your name should appear halfway down the page and the story should start a line below your name. If you wish to write with a pseudonym, your real name appears in the top left and your pseudonym appears under the title of the story. In the top right of each following page, include your last name, the title of your story (or key words from the title) and the page number (for example, Wenkel/Story Name/Page 2). If you do not want your manuscript returned to you, you can include the word "Disposable" in the top left of the manuscript.

Some markets have particular formats in which they want to see manuscripts, for example, Marion Zimmer Bradley's Fantasy magazine asks for manuscripts with a minimum of 12 point Courier font and margins at the top and left that are an inch and a half. If a market has a specific format that deviates from the standard manuscript format used by most writers, then they will specify in their guidelines what that format is.

Guidelines will also tell you if the publication accepts electronic submissions and what formats they will take. Be careful, here. Electronic submissions don't always mean you can email the editor your story. They might prefer to see it on a floppy disk. Remember, never email a story to an editor who does not accept e-mail submissions. The unsolicited story will usually be deleted unread.

Never submit the only copy of your manuscript to a publisher. Always keep a copy in your files in case the manuscript should be lost.

A quick word about word counts; when in doubt, use the word count provided by your word processing program. This number will generally be smaller than the editor or publisher's count, but it will give an estimation of the amount of space your story will take in a publication.

For short manuscripts, you can use the following formula to determine a word count closer to the one the editor or publisher will use:

Average number of characters per line x Average number of lines per page
divide that number by 6 then multiply the resulting number by the number of pages in your manuscript.

For longer manuscripts, you can safely assume 250 words per page and multiply by the number of pages.

The two most important items to include in your submission packet are the story and a self-addressed stamped envelope (SASE). If you want your story returned, make certain that your SASE is large enough to hold the manuscript and contains enough postage to cover the weight.

In addition to the story and the SASE, you can include a cover letter. Again, you should make sure you read the guidelines of the publication to find out what information they want in their cover letter or whether they want a cover letter at all. Most often, you can include the title of your story, the word count, and any publishing credits or professional expertise that relate to the submission. Under no circumstances should you tell the editor what a fantastic story your submission is. Also avoid the impulse explain your story to the editor. The cover letter will not sell your story, your writing will sell the story.

Never send a manuscript certified or registered mail. Editors are busy people and they don't want to stand in line at the post office to sign for your manuscript. If you want to ensure that your manuscript has arrived, include a self-addressed stamped post card (SASP).

If you have not received a response in a reasonable amount of time (many market lists will provide information on publication response time), send a polite inquiry to the editor and include a SASE for the editor's response.

There are generally four categories of responses to a submission sent over the transom with any number of flavors in each category. Here are the basics of each:

The Form Reject - This is a photocopied form letter that thanks you for sending your submission and tells you the magazine is unable to accept it. Sometimes there are reasons given for why manuscripts are commonly rejected (improper manuscript format, a story that's been done so many times it is cliché, or a story that's just unbelievable).

The Rejection With Feedback - Sometimes this is a checklist with some common errors or suggestions checked off. While not as helpful as an editorial critique of your work, you may still get some idea why your story was rejected. Sometimes the rejection comes back with a note from the editor telling you where the story went wrong or why the story didn't work for him. Remember, however, that unless an editor specifically requests a rewrite, you should not send the rejected story back if you decide to make changes based on the editor's comments. Instead, send your next story, which will probably be closer to what the editor is looking for.

The Request for Rewrite - This response is almost a, "yes", but you shouldn't get your hopes up too high too soon. A request for a rewrite could be as simple as fleshing out a scene or adding another scene to make the story flow better, or it could be more complicated than that. When an editor requests a rewrite, you are still not guaranteed a sale. You might not want to make the changes the editor suggests, or if you do, they might not do enough to bring it to the level the editor wants to see.

The Resounding "Yes!" - Very rare and often a long time in coming, this is the happiest of moments for a writer. The editor agrees that the work submitted is indeed the masterpiece the writer believes it to be. What follows this joyful message (sometimes in the same package) is the contract. Once signed, and a copy returned to the publication, you'll receive a check and, in many cases, a contributor's copy of the publication.

While a number of writers search for some pattern, some scheme in the rejections from magazines in order to find themselves closer to an acceptance, remember that a rejection is still a rejection, even if it contained helpful or encouraging comments from the editor. The only cure for the rejection blues is to get the rejected manuscript back out the door and get to work on your next masterpiece.

The guidelines for a magazine or anthology should state the intended rate of payment and the rights the publication wishes to buy from you. If the guidelines do not tell you exactly what the publication wants and what they wish to offer for it, send a query to their address and include an SASE for reply.

Payment is generally broken down into three categories: professional, semi-professional, and other. These break downs are, in part, done to let the writer know if she is writing at a specific level. In addition to payment, there are other aspects that will define whether a magazine is actually considered, by the industry, to be a professional magazine. (For more information on industry standards, see the SFWA or HWA webpages.)

Professional markets pay a minimum of three cents a word for your fiction or article. Semiprofessional markets pay something under 3 cents a word, be it $5 for a story, a penny a word, or 1/4 cent a word. Other markets don't pay in cash, but may offer other forms of payment such as contributor's copies. If you want to be a professional writer, shoot for the top first, with your fiction, and work your way down from there. Don't assume that because you've never had a story published, that no one will be willing to pay you for your story.

Once you know what payment rate you get, you also need to know if you will be paid on acceptance or on publication. If you are paid on acceptance, you will receive a check after the editor receives a signed copy of the contract (sometimes within a specified time after that). If you are paid on publication, you will not receive payment for your story until it is printed in the magazine or anthology.

Don't assume that because someone has given you money for your story, that the editor or magazine owns your story and you cannot do anything with it again. The only time you give up the right to resell a story or article is when you sell All Rights. And if you sell All Rights to a publication, they should compensate you pretty heavily for doing so. Once you sell all rights, the company who owns the rights now can make action figures, posters, movies, a TV series, all based on that single story and you won't see any money for any of those items. Once you sell All Rights, you cannot resell that story or article, either. So be wary of a publication that asks for all rights.

Some more typical rights asked for by publications include the following:

FNASR - This is First North American Serial Rights and, unless you're selling to an e-zine or a magazine outside the United States, this is the most common right to sell to a magazine. Note that if you've sold a story once, you cannot sell FNASR. That's what first means.

First English Language (Serial) Rights - This is like selling FNASR, except you're not limiting your sale to publications in North America. Generally, First English Language (Serial) Rights are sold to magazines or anthologies in the UK, Australia or US magazines that have distributors in the UK or Australia. Once you have sold First English Language (Serial) Rights, you cannot sell FNASR.

One Time or Reprint Rights - If you have sold a story previously to a magazine or anthology or an e-zine, this is the right that you're selling. The right to use your reprinted story once in that publication.

World Wide Electronic Rights - While this doesn't have an accepted legal definition, this generally implies you are letting a publication print your story or article in an e-zine of one of the following formats: web-zines, email-based publications, or CD-ROM publications. Be very careful to read the contract before you sell World Wide Electronic Rights and determine when those rights will revert to the author.

The rights that you do not sell, you still own. You could sell a brand new story to the Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, and then, a year later, sell it to a web-zine, and at the end of the year, receive a request to publish it in The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror anthology. Once you've sold a story the first time, later sales are just icing on the cake.

The contract sets in stone the payment a publication is giving you, the rights the publication is buying and the exclusivity of the arrangement. Most publications want you to guarantee that your story will not appear in another magazine or anthology before it appears in their magazine/anthology. They also want some guarantee that the story will not appear in another publication the day after theirs appears on the stands.

The contract will also state if the publication buys a one-time option on certain rights. Many magazines buy a one-time option on anthology rights. This is often because they publication creates a Best Of anthology. Payment for your work appearing in that anthology will be determined by a future contract.

Additionally, a contract should have a reversion clause. If your story is not printed within a certain amount of time after the contract specifies it will be printed, all rights should revert back to you. If you have received payment on acceptance for that story, you might have to return the money, or you might be able to consider that a kill fee; this should also be stated in the contract.

What I'm going to tell you about agents will barely scratch the surface of what you need to know about finding an agent, when you should find an agent, and what you should do when you have him.

You don't need an agent if you are only selling short fiction. Because most agents work on a 10 to 15 percent commission, selling short fiction isn't going to earn them a living anymore than it will earn you one writing it.

You also don't need an agent before you've finished your first novel. Once you've finished your first novel and edited it until it is perfect, you can either begin sending it to publishers, or begin sending it to agents.

The number of resources for writers aspiring to be published is enormous. You can find sections of book stores dedicated to technique, classes offering to teach the basics, and websites with more articles about how to write, where to submit and what to do when you get rejections.

The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA) can be found online at http://www.sfwa.org/. They have a number of good articles about the basics of writing and more advanced issues such as world building and jump-starting a stalled writing career, as well. The website also includes information about qualifications to become a member of the SFWA.

Speculations is a resource for anyone who wants to write speculative fiction. While primarily a print magazine, they have a website with a few articles as well as the Rumormill, a place to ask questions about a number of different writing-related topics. They can be found online at http://www.speculations.com. The website also includes subscription information for the magazine.

Horror Writers Association (HWA) can be found online at http://www.horror.org. They have articles about horror-specific areas of writing as well as a FAQ about agents. The website also includes information about qualifications to become a member of the HWA.

The Gila Queen's Guide to Markets provides articles about writing and markets for many different types of writing, not just science fiction, fantasy or horror. The website includes a few sample articles as well as subscription information. You can find the Gila Queen at http://www.gilaqueen.us.

Now that you know more of what it takes to become a published writer, get out there and get cracking.