You’ve written a book or have a great idea for one – so what do you do next? Here are our hints, tips and advice on how to get your book noticed and into print.

Getting published We know that many people aspire to be published. Like any industry, it can be confusing for someone trying to find out how things work, so here are some tips to starting your writing career.

HarperCollins will never ask prospective authors for payment for any services, and if individuals are contacted by people claiming to be from HarperCollins asking for money to publish a book they should not respond, but report them to: https://www.actionfraud.police.uk/.

Literary agents Literary agents will help get your work into the best shape possible before it goes to prospective publishers. They know the best places for every type of book and author, and they’ll help you throughout your career. As most writers are signed by publishers via literary agents, it’s well worth investigating them. You’ll find their details online, and in the annual Writers’ and Artists’ Yearbook. Find out more about what a literary agent does

HarperCollins Author Academy Our free six-week training programme for aspiring unagented writers from underrepresented ethnic backgrounds runs a twice a year. You’ll learn creative writing from industry professionals and published authors, and get expert coaching from our mentors. Find out more about our academy

Direct submissions Some of our imprints run ongoing open submissions, so you can send them your work without needing a literary agent. Other imprints run occasional open submissions periods, or even competitions to find new writers. These are advertised on social media so follow the imprints you think might make a good home for your work. Follow @HarperCollinsUK on Twitter too – we share news from across our whole company. Please do not send unsolicited print or digital manuscripts to any office of HarperCollins, as we cannot guarantee receipt or their return.

Avon Avon publishes hugely popular commercial fiction across genres including crime, thriller, romance, romantic comedy, time-slip fiction, historical fiction, saga and women’s fiction. If you see your novel as very commercial and you could find it in a supermarket, it may well be a good fit for Avon.

HarperNorth The Manchester-based HarperNorth is looking for amazing stories from northern writers, sharp thinkers and stunning locations to inspire, fascinating folklore to haunt you, warm storytelling voices to captivate, and frank writing to cut to the chase.

HQ CIL Created with a mission to increase representation and inclusivity, and led by June Sarpong OBE, HQ Creative Inclusion Lab’s purpose is to discover and nurture debut authors from underrepresented communities. This new publishing imprint aims to break down barriers for writers and make our industry more accessible. Seeking new talent across fiction and non-fiction, HQ Creative Inclusion Lab will provide a platform for voices often ignored, overlooked, or unheard and is proud to publish writing with a universal appeal from a wide range of new voices, and welcomes writing on a broad range of subjects. Writers will need to belong to an underrepresented community to be considered for publication.

Mills & Boon Publishing a wide range of content and welcoming writers from all backgrounds, cultures and communities, Mills & Boon is looking for those to submit to the romance series best suited to their unique voice and story. Get to know its various series to find out where you might fit into Mills & Boon’s extensive publishing program.

One More Chapter One More Chapter is all about the books you can’t put down, the books you carry around with you and the books you return to after a long day. OMC publish all unputdownable fiction from swoonworthy romance, heartstopping crime to gripping historical fiction.