I have a bit of an issue. Putting it simply, everyone who has read what I have written has been enthusiastic at the very least, and in more than a few cases threatened me with dire bodily harm if I DIDN'T publish. However, I am not a classically-trained author, don't attend writing workshops, have never taken a literature or writing class since High School, etc. Career-wise I am about as far from a conventional writer's background as one can get, short of being an illiterate hermit (though, ironically enough, my career field DOES play into my writing quite a bit, if through a sci-fi filter). I have written for a role-playing game company, and have published articles and such, but nothing like a novel. So, the target audience seem to like what I am writing quite a bit, however to get to them via the bookshelf I have to overcome the dual hurdles of agents and publishers. Considering that they usually come from a much more conventional background, two key questions pop into my head- 1) How important is it to agents/publishers for a first-time author to have writing credentials in their background? And 2) How important is audience interest, and is it even possible to convey such during submission?

Thoughts? :-)