publishing help

First, no one is going to steal your book. Legitimate publishers and agents aren't going to steal it, because they aren't just interested in the current book. They're interested in your next book, and the book after that. Crooked publishers and agents aren't going to steal it because they have no idea how to sell a book. They make their money by getting you to write checks to them. Next: How to actually get published. Finish your book, story, or poem. Make it the best it can be. Make it sparkle. Then, go to the bookstore and find books similar to yours, or find magazines that publish work similar to yours. Get their guidelines. Submit your work to them, following their guidelines to the letter. Then write a new, different, and better story. Finish it completely. Send it out (to paying markets only). Repeat.