While many businesses in the early 1990s were faltering, franchising steadily grew 6 to 8 percent every year and reaped an annual income of more than $760 billion.

"If franchising continues to grow at its current rate, franchises will account for one-half of all retail sales by the turn of the century," says Mike Powers, a Cornell University writer and author of the new book, How to Open a Franchise Business (Avon, $12.50).

The 278-page paperback is written in a clear and sometimes humorous style for consumers who know nothing about franchises. It explores why starting a franchise business may be a good option for potential business owners. Its chapters, all divided into numerous, short subsections, discuss the personal characteristics needed for a successful franchisee, franchise relationships, types of franchises, where to find a good franchise, how to evaluate potential franchises, how to investigate in-depth a particular franchisor, the franchise agreement, how to get financing, how to structure the business, preparing for opening the franchise, the working relationship with a franchisor and running the business.

Other pointers include how to secure the best deal with the parent company, take advantage of the back-up corporate structure, keep the franchise in the black, hire and manage quality workers; a wide range of resources available to franchise owners; and a chapter-by-chapter specific list of where to find more information.

The book also includes a detailed index, a national list of franchise attorneys, numerous checklists to help the reader through the process of evaluating and opening a franchise, and lists of lending institutions and small business associations.

"A franchise can be a great business but you can get burned so you need to conduct a great deal of research to choose one that will pan out," says Powers, who has been writing on consumer, human and social issues for Cornell's Media Services Department for eight years. Previously, he was a feature and consumer writer for the Utica Observer-Dispatch.

How to Open a Franchise Business is Powers' first book; he is writing Starting a Mail Order Business for Less Than $10,000 for the same series, The 21st Century Entrepreneur.