Say it with passion

I was re-reading my Writers' and Artists' Yearbook guide to getting published yesterday.  My copy was written in 2009, and the attitudes of the authors to self-publishing are very out of date in 2013.  Reading it, I was struck by how far independent publishing has come in those few short years.

Back then, indie publishing was seen as something serious authors didn't do.  Now it's different.  There are several authors who have been offered multi-book deals with traditional publishers after self-publishing first.

But how do you get your work picked up by them?  By writing what you care about, with passion.  If you know your market, have written something that you know will fit it, and you love your story, then  resist suggestions to change your characters or story to make your book a bestseller lookalike.  

In the end it is the writers's passion that matters; passion for the story, the characters, and the way the story is told.  This is what gets writers a loyal fan base of readers.  Have faith and belief in what you have created, and follow your passion.