Idiot vs. Dummy?

[black winged fighter]

It was my birthday today, and I got an unexpected gift; I get to choose between "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Getting Published" and "Getting Your Book Published for Dummies."

Any ideas/suggestions? Do any of you have either of these books? Have they been helpful/unhelpful? I'm spending some time going through both, but I am eager for outside opinions.

Any suggestions for other books? I can return both if I decide on another title.

Thanks.

[azbikergirl]

Happy Birthday! Sorry, I don't have either book.

Aries people RULE!

[Zolah]

Happy Birthday!

I haven't read either of those books, I'm afraid - and I have a somewhat suspicious feeling about any book aimed directly at 'dummies'.

Two books which gave me some insight into publishing (and which I still read now to help me understand what my agent is going on about) are 'From Pitch to Publication' by Carole Blake and 'An Author's Guide to Publishing' by Robert Legat. They give absolutely loads of advice that is helpful for beginning and established writers and clarify a lot of that publishing double-speak for those of us who aren't qualified contract lawyers.

I don't know if they are available outside the UK, but I highly recommend them.

[Liam Jackson]

http://http://www.pmalitfilm.com/getpublished.html

Just a suggestion. He's good.

[zornhau]

It was my birthday today, and I got an unexpected gift; I get to choose between "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Getting Published" and "Getting Your Book Published for Dummies."

Any ideas/suggestions? Do any of you have either of these books? Have they been helpful/unhelpful? I'm spending some time going through both, but I am eager for outside opinions.

Any suggestions for other books? I can return both if I decide on another title.

Thanks.

What are the credentials of the authors?

[Steve 211]

I've found the Dummies books good for other subjects, such as Word, but haven't tried the publishing one.

You could always get one for your birthday and the other from the library - not only a good way to review, but to cross-check what they say.

The Writer's Market Companion 2nd edition is a good overview.

What market are you looking at?

[DeadlyAccurate]

I'm more fond of the Dummies series overall, but I haven't read that particular book.

[black winged fighter]

What market are you looking at?

Fantasy/fiction, probably for young adults.


Thanks for the book suggestions, all!

[Writing Again]

Which group gets published more often, idoits or dummies?

[HConn]

I'm pretty sure it's the idiots.

[TemlynWriting]

Which group gets published more often, idoits or dummies?

Hee hee hee! :)

[HConn]

By the way, you can't judge the individual books by the lines. Some of the books in each line are terrific, and some are crap. You have to look at the individual book to know if it was useful or not.