Start with building clips in newspapers and magazines, both in print and online. Editors seek experts in a field, from engineers to stay-at-home moms. Write on a topic that would interest the publication's audience. Research submission guidelines and query the editor of the department you wish to submit to. Payment is either by the word or by the article. Providing quality photographs will increase your pay.
There are a handful of major publishers and hundreds of smaller presses. A literary agent is required for all the major companies and sometimes for a mid-size publisher. Query agents registered with the Association of Author's Representatives and who work with your genre. For smaller presses, query the editor directly. If accepted, there is no cost to the author to have the book published, and payment is in the form of royalties with deductions for the agent. Advances on royalties are sometimes given and are based on what the publisher feels the book will generate in sales.
For memoirs, children's books and niche market books, consider self-publishing with a local printing company. Unlike a traditional press, you will be responsible for the layout and cover design, acquiring an ISBN, distribution and copyrighting. You also shoulder all the risk. Costs can run into thousands of dollars for set-up and copies, and you will need space to store the inventory. You set the cost per book based on your investment plus your mark up fee, which can be greater than a royalty.
The POD companies are fairly new as of 2011 and work with the authors by producing their books digitally at a lower cost than a printer. The books can be available in print or as an e-book. The author has control over all content, including artwork. Most companies offer services for editing, marketing and distribution. Because the books are printed one at a time, a large inventory upfront is not needed. The author pays a set up fee and cost per book. Some companies offer online catalogs and the author receives a royalty when books are sold.
With the increase in electronic reading devices, your book can be released digitally and never have to be printed on paper. Adobe can convert a Word document into a pdf format for free, allowing any computer to read it and giving you the ability to e-mail it or save it on a CD. Smashwords is a free e-book publishing and distribution platform that takes your manuscripts and converts them into multiple e-book formats that can be read on any e-reading device such as the popular Amazon Kindle.