WRIT 620 Print Publishing

Explores the print publication process from the perspective of the author, focusing on means of publishing and best practices for becoming a published author.

Publishing is a dynamic process whereby great authors consider more than just the story they want to tell but about how to get their story readers in the most effective ways.  

Textbook readings and lecture presentations

No details available.

Course Requirements Checklist

After reading the Course Syllabus and Student Expectations, the student will complete the related checklist found in Course Overview.

Discussions (6)

Discussions are collaborative learning experiences. Therefore, discussions will focus on relevant course topics such as being Christian writer versus being a writer that is a Christian. Neither is better or worse, but it is helpful for each author to consider how his/her faith will impact his/her writing and the opportunities for writing he/she will pursue in a career. Other questions will follow suit. The student must post a thread with a minimum of 400 words, aside from the Discussion: Query Letter Workshop for which there is no minimum word count. The student will then select three (3) threads from his/her peers and submit a reply of 150-200 words. All sources used must be cited according to in current MLA or APA format. (CLO: A, B, C) 

Best Practices Assignment

Utilizing course material and interviews as well as research, the student will put together a best practice plan of 500-1,000 words for publication within his/her chosen field. The plan will be submitted on Canvas as a Word document, and its page numbers and heading will be formatted in MLA style. (CLO: B, C)

Synopsis or Annotated Outline Assignment

Utilizing course materials and research, the student will write a Synopsis (fiction) or an Annotated Outline (nonfiction) for a book project. The Synopsis outline should not exceed one to two single-spaced pages—the shorter, the better (Aim for 500–750 words.). The Annotated outline word count will vary depending on how many chapters the student has, but each paragraph should be kept to four or five concise sentences. The shorter, the better. (CLO: D)

Query Letter Assignment

Utilizing course materials, research, and feedback collected from peers through the Discussion: Query Letter Workshop, the student will write a Query Letter for a fiction or nonfiction book project. This query should run no longer than one single-spaced page (250–450 words). (CLO: D)

Author Analysis Assignment

The student will research and compare five (5) Christian authors and how their publication track has evolved, exploring their available sales and the ways their opportunities evolved through successes of previous work. Here, the student should plan on spending time reading some of these authors works comparing their early works with their later works making note how the publisher changes (or consistency) played a role in the evolution of the author. Total word count for this assignment will be >1,500 words. (CLO: D)

Market Guide Analysis Assignment

The student will identify five (5) to seven (7) publications from Laube’s The Christian Writers Market Guide and identify/explain/create a personal project or proposal that could relatively fit each of these publishers. For each market selected, the student will write a 100-150-word summary of why he/she thinks the chosen market would be a good fit for the work. Total word count for this assignment is >500 words. (CLO: D)

Literary Agent Search Assignment

The student will perform a search of 10-12 literary agents and provide a 100-150 word synopsis for each agent of how this agent would be a good fit for his/her project. The total word count for this assignment is >1,000 words. (CLO: D)

Submission Package Assignment

The student will put together a package of materials that could be submitted to a literary agent/editor. This will include a query letter and book proposal among other items relevant to finding an agent. (CLO: D)