Addicted to YA discussion

I love writing too, and am currently in the process of publishing after writing a few novels! First of all, start with writing the book; as long as it's fictional, the publishing process comes later. You won't be able to do much until you have a full, edited draft.

Secondly, honest agents don't actually cost money! You send them query letters about your books, and if they like your book, they will likely help you edit it, and then pitch it to publishing companies for you. They tend to know the publishing people better, and can approach them in a more personal manor, getting quicker feedback. Basically, there job is to make sure all you have to do is write the books, and they handle the rest of the challenging business stuff. They get payed by taking a small amount of what you earn with book sales when the book gets published, so they really try hard to publish your book!

I've heard a lot about Amazon publishing too, which also offers paperbacks, and other "self publishing" companies, but I'm honestly got a huge fan. It falls to you to do most of the marketing, versus your agent and company doing most of that work. I've known authors who have a pretty good base, self publish their books on Amazon, and don't even sell fifty books in the first year they've been on the market. Because it is so easy to self publish, a lot of not great quality books are published, so self published books are somewhat shunned by the bigger companies and reviewing agencies, making it harder to get good feedback. So basically, it's doable, but I wouldn't recommend unless you have a very good fan base, such as a successful blog or Instagram, already.

I know it all sounds super daunting lol, neither way is easy by any means, but good luck in whatever route you choose to take!!

Ah ok. I love the agent rout as I am terrible at editing on my own, and this is the perfect way for me to get published while getting my books edited. I'm sure you'll find the best way for you!