A room without books is like a body without a soul. Cicero

Books are written everyday. There is no magic formula just hard work and perseverance.

I can't speak for every author, and publishing one book hardly qualifies me as an expert, but I can give you a few words of wisdom should anyone out there wish to unlock the publishing door for themselves.

Tip #1: Find a topic you are passionate about.
When I was in grad school, the thought of writing 200+ pages in less than 4 months was incredibly frightening. I knew if there was any chance of finishing, the subject matter would have to be something I loved. My passion was sports, and I was blessed to find a historically relevant topic in that area. It was still lots of work, but at least the hours were spent on something I found worthwhile.

Tip #2: Be quick about it
Devote as much time as possible to your work. Remember, someone else out there can be working on the same subject, or the same style story if working in fiction, and you have to beat them to the finish line. With school and work and the distractions of life, it's not always easy to find the time but be as expedient as possible.

Tip #3: Don't listen to naysayers
I was not initially blessed with tremendous support for my work. Professors and colleagues discounted the validity of a work based on UH sports, which lack the strong following of other schools, and encouraged me to look for another idea. But I intuitively knew that it was a good idea that could be published if done well and refused to be dissuaded. The same should go for you. Think of an idea, stringently plan out its course, and get to work. A word of caution though. Striking out on your own requires you to be your own worst critic. If your work is anything less than perfect and fails, all your detractors will be lined up to say "I told you so!" Relying on yourself means being ruthlessly honest about the quality of your product.

Last but not least Tip #4: Research your publishers
Once enough of the work is finished (When you send out query letters depends on the publisher. Most want a definite completion date), start shopping around for the right publisher. Research what each company specializes in and approach those that seem to be the best fit. I wouldn't send my manuscript on UH sports to a publisher that dealt with British history, for example, because regardless of how great it was, they wouldn't be interested. This is just as, if not more important than anything else you do. If you can't find those publishers that specialize in your area, publication could be difficult.

Writing a book is a great deal of work; don't convince yourself otherwise. Between the word minimums (mine was 75,000), the quest for a publisher, the contracts, the seemingly endless proofreading, the release forms, photographs, and of course deadlines, it is an intense process. But somehow that all seems worth it in the end. So if your an artist or author or anything in between, go get to work!