Library Hosts Publishing Program

To the Editor: 
I sat in the Cape May library meeting room Saturday afternoon, May 14, with 12 people listening to a literary agent, Jan L. Kardys. She can be contacted through Unicorn for Writers.
Jan encouraged writers with either the traditional or self-publishing avenues of book publishing. She passed around an interesting book with the title of “Get Known Before The Book Deal” by Christina Katz. Jan recommended thinking of an author platform of helping in some way. Research the competition; analyze what your competition is doing.
Ms. Kardys emphasized the importance of writing good query letters to agents if a writer wants to publish without having a sales force of his or her own.
One book Ms. Kardys passed around was called “My Mother’s Secret” by J.L. Witterick. The subtitle is “The International Bestselling Novel Based on a True Holocaust Story.” The woman author started her book with self-publishing, and it was picked up by Putnam.
Jan also recommends Poets and Writers magazine for poets. She recommends connecting with other poets. Since I write poetry, I volunteered that poetry is a labor of love. I enjoyed reading the Poetic Aside in the Writer’s Digest magazine that Ms. Kardys passed out in a Unicorn tote bag. Currently, she is chairman/creator of Unicorn Writers Conference in Portland, Conn.
The library in Cape May County is well-visited and well-lit. I am thankful that Cape May County government continues to fund the programs.