Bowerboy. I'm probably a little bit out of my depth commenting...

Bowerboy.

I'm probably a little bit out of my depth commenting here since I only been trading in this market for 2 years as I'm sure many posters here have far more experience than I.
However, I do so since I faced the same situation as you...ie $200k to INVEST from profits I made from real estate.

These are my tips based on MY experiences in the market.

Read MANY books from VARIOUS authors.
Start with conservative stocks that you are comfortable holding long term, choosing the sectors carefully.
Learn how the market works and what drives it..ie that won't happen unless you got some money in.
Forget the tip sheets.. they are useless and will only confuse you and are a waste of money. HC is free and much better once you work out who the reputable posters are.
DONT do speccies and DONT trade with more than you are happy to lose at the casino until you are experienced .
NEVER get blinded by all good news without acknowledging the risks.

The key is.... You probably wont know how much you are prepared to lose until your actually losing it! And THATS when you learn what its all about!

Having said that, I do believe 20% pa is achievable if you are experienced !
2 years in for me and I live and breathe the market but the more I learn, the more I realise how little I know!
I feel lucky I still have $260k after hitting $420 in my first 6 months. Could have been worse! Great lessons learnt!

Best of luck to all!