Tag: book proposals that sell

Categories
Book Proposals

Why to Never Submit Your First Draft

Your first draft is only the beginning, not polished enough to send to a publisher. When your proposal is completed, lay it aside for several days before you send it. You will then be able to read it with fresh insight and make valuable improvements. Remember the old adage “Haste makes waste.” This is particularly true when it comes to writing book proposals. You want to make sure that every single word and sentence of your proposal and sample chapter are excellent. Never rush the process, because it will result in less than your best work.

From years of working in magazine production, I’ve learned one of the most difficult things to find in any publication is something that is completely missing. Yet if something is missing, it will clearly stick out to the reader (in this case, the editor and publishing executives).

Before you send the proposal is the time to catch any errors.

I’ve had fearful authors call me and request that I discard their first submission because of some missing element or incorrect element or poor format. You can only imagine the sloppy impression these calls make on your editor. It’s not the type of glowing impression an author wants to leave.

I’d encourage you never to forget the relational side of publishing. Often your relationship will be more significant than your printed work with a publisher—especially when it comes to what the editor will remember. Editors will move from publisher to publisher, and when this happens, they remember the authors they enjoyed working with on a project at their former publisher. You want to be an author in this particular category. Occasionally editors will brainstorm a particular book they would like to publish and approach an author. When these editors are tossing out names, they will include only those authors who made a professional impression. While this list will not be written anywhere, your editor will recognize excellence and want to take that excellence to a new publisher.

Here are some last-minute questions to ask yourself about your proposal and sample chapter:

  • Have you hooked the editor with your opening sentence?
  • Have you included a solid overview or the big-picture concept of the book?
  • Have you created a catchy title and subtitle, along with some alternatives?
  • Is your chapter outline logical, and do your chapter summaries address the various points of your book in clear and concise language?
  • Have you clearly outlined your vision for the book in terms of length or word count, overall appearance, and any special features? Also, have you included the estimated time to deliver the entire manuscript?
  • Have you listed names of well-known experts that you can secure through your personal relationships who will supply endorsements or a foreword?
  • Have you detailed your credentials for writing this book in the “about the author” section and shown without a doubt that you are the best person for this task?
  • Have you provided a detailed analysis of the competition for your proposed book and shown how your project is distinct from this competition?
  • Have you written a thorough marketing section about the projected audience and how you will join the publisher in a partnership to reach this market?
  • Have you highlighted any special marketing and sales opportunities you can bring to the project when it is published? For example, is there a special sale with thousands of books that you can create for the project?
  • Have you created a dynamic sample chapter that is compelling and clearly shows your writing style?

There is no right or wrong way to create a book proposal. The proposals that sell, however, are the ones in which the author thoroughly presents the concept and includes all of the necessary information.

Terry Whalin

W. Terry Whalin, a writer and acquisitions editor lives in California. A former magazine editor and former literary agent, Terry is an acquisitions editor at Morgan James Publishing. He has written more than 60 nonfiction books including Jumpstart Your Publishing Dreams and Billy Graham. To help writers catch the attention of editors and agents, Terry wrote his bestselling Book Proposals That $ell, 21 Secrets To Speed Your Success. Get a free copy of his proposal book (follow the link). Check out his free Ebook, Platform Building Ideas for Every Author. His website is located at: www.terrywhalin.com. Connect with Terry on Twitter, Facebook, his blog and LinkedIn.

Book Proposals That $ell, 21 Secrets To Speed Your Success
Categories
Book Proposals

Don’t Trust Your Spellchecker

            As writers, many people choose the course of least resistance. It’s easy to leave the spelling and grammar in your manuscript to your computer. Then the machine can mark any of these errors, you can go through each one, save it and be finished with that process. In this article, I want to give you some additional actions to make sure you submit the best version of your material before hitting the send button to that editor or literary agent.

            Book proposals require a lot of work, and anything you send to a publisher should be completely error- and typo-free. Here’s some additional steps every professional writer will take to make sure your submission is in the best possible shape. First, set it aside for a period of time—a day or even a few hours before returning to it and then read every line carefully and aloud to yourself. Why take this step to read it aloud? Because the ear is less forgiving than the eye.

            I will print my manuscript, grab a pencil or pen and read through it aloud. As I see something that needs to be changed, correct the paper version of my manuscript. Take the time to read every page of your proposal aloud. I encourage you to review it multiple times, rewrite and make sure every area is complete and your proposal is error free of typos. Also don’t completely trust the spelling checker and grammar features of your word processor. Yes, these feature help but you should not completely trust them.

Recently an author sent a manuscript that I read. When I informed her that it had numerous typographical or spelling errors, she instantly became defensive and said she had spellchecked it numerous times. The English language has many similar words, which your word processor program will not catch. You will have to read and reread your proposal aloud, in order to catch these types of errors.

Here is an example of two sentences that only a person can fix:

The red book was read.

The read book was red.

Each sentence is technically correct, but which one did the author intend to use? Only a person can make this decision and not a machine.

Throughout the publishing industry, there is all this talk about artificial intelligence. In my view you can use it for some things like research and possibly some initial drafts but at the end of the day, the words have to be done in your writing voice. I encourage you to drastically revise and rewrite anything generated from artificial intelligence to avoid any potential conflict.

Consider also taking your proposal to a critique group of other writers. (If you want to learn more about this topic, read my detailed article at terrylinks.com/critique.

Be careful who you let read your proposal, and always take the feedback of family members with a grain of salt.

Ultimately, you are the only person whose opinion on the proposal counts before you send it to a publisher and get their feedback. Some people tend to absorb every positive and negative word from other people. They need to evaluate the comments, take the good ones, and discard the poor ones (purely a subjective call on your part).

After receiving this feedback, make sure you’ve corrected and rewritten every sentence of your proposal and sample chapter to the best of your ability. This type of detailed approach to your proposal will aid in the reception of your materials at the publishing house. Too many proposals and cover letters arrive with missing and misspelled words. Your proposal will rise above the others if you have handled this concern with care and professionalism.

Terry Whalin

W. Terry Whalin, a writer and acquisitions editor lives in California. A former magazine editor and former literary agent, Terry is an acquisitions editor at Morgan James Publishing. He has written more than 60 nonfiction books including Jumpstart Your Publishing Dreams and Billy Graham. To help writers catch the attention of editors and agents, Terry wrote his bestselling Book Proposals That $ell, 21 Secrets To Speed Your Success. Get a free copy of his proposal book (follow the link). Check out his free Ebook, Platform Building Ideas for Every Author. His website is located at: www.terrywhalin.com. Connect with Terry on Twitter, Facebook, his blog and LinkedIn.

Book Proposals That $ell, 21 Secrets To Speed Your Success

Categories
Book Proposals

The Hardest Element to Find on Your Proposal

The most difficult element to find in your book proposal is something that is missing or not there. I encourage you to read this article to the end because in my conclusion, I’m going to give you a free tool to make sure your book proposal isn’t missing any elements.  

Currently most submissions to editors and agents are electronic.

One of the consistent failures of authors is to include their physical address and phone number. At Morgan James Publishing, we receive over 5,000 submissions a year and each one are sent a letter of acknowledgement in the US mail. Countless times I have to ask authors for their address and phone number because it is missing from their proposal submission. If you are missing this information, you could be asking for rejection.

Some submissions are still sent through the mail.

It is presumptuous to assume because you invested in an overnight package that the publisher is going to put postage on your manuscript and return it to you. A publisher who receives thousands of unsolicited proposals and manuscripts each year will not invest in the expense of returning such documents. Instead they will be discarded. Only if you include return postage for a letter response or an email address will you be able to receive the rejection or personal feedback from the editor.

Because of the volumes of proposals, publishers are not going to devote their financial resources to returning those without a SASE. The cost is too prohibitive and unnecessary. It is the author’s responsibility to provide the publisher with an email address or return postage for their submission. Neglecting this detail is a dead giveaway that you are unpublished.

Also don’t expect a personal response—even if you met an editor at a writer’s conference and used that information in the introductory paragraph of your cover letter. I have taught at many writers’ conferences, sometimes almost one a month. I have met literally thousands of new people. It’s hard to keep all of those details straight. My schedule was fairly typical for an acquisitions editor in the publishing industry.

No editor likes to write rejection letters, yet it comes with the job description.

Remember also that the editor isn’t running a critique service for your proposal or manuscript when it is rejected. They would like to give a personal response with each rejection, but with the volume of submissions, it simply isn’t possible. If you do get a handwritten note or any sort of personal feedback, realize the encouragement and positive nature of this small sign from the editor—and do take it to heart. If they write, “This one isn’t right for us, but you should keep trying,” then keep trying with a different book proposal.

It is ironic to me that year after year at writers’ conferences I see the same writer trying to sell the same book proposal to the same editors. I admire persistence, but in some cases persistence is taken to ridiculous lengths. If a publishing house turns down your proposal, move on to another publishing house. Some writers work hard on marketing a single nonfiction or fiction book proposal or manuscript and repeatedly walk with great anxiety each day to their mailbox to see if it is accepted. Instead of this single focus, I suggest you turn your attention to another book proposal or a magazine article (something shorter where you can be successful and published). As you take this type of action it will make waiting much easier.

During my years in publishing, I sent proposals to a variety of publishing houses, either personally or through an agent, and some of these proposals have not been sold or contracted. Instead of continuing to push them into the market, I’ve tucked them into a folder and pressed on to another proposal or idea. From my perspective, the world is not limited to a single idea or a single project. You will have far greater success as a writer with multiple projects in the works, instead of continually focusing on a single proposal. When you mail a stack of proposals to publishers or agents, give yourself a few days of rest, then begin writing another book proposal to send out into the market.

During my years of running my own freelance business, I commonly had five different books contracted at any given time. This idea made some writers’ heads swim. They wondered how I kept track of the various projects. I simply staggered the deadlines for the various books and worked on a new proposal and a current manuscript all the time. It gave me a steady stream of work and income. It also meant that when I completed a manuscript or a proposal, I started on another one. You may work differently, but I encourage you to have multiple ideas and multiple proposals in various stages of completion so you will increase your chances of success and publication.

Understand the importance of including a self-addressed, stamped envelope or an email address for a response.

And if you don’t want your proposal or manuscript returned, then be sure your cover letter clearly states this information. It’s a key secret to your success.

In the opening to this article, I promised to give you a free tool to send a complete proposal and not miss a critical aspect. I’ve created a free book proposal checklist. Just follow this link, get it but most importantly read it and use the information for your submissions. I wish every author the greatest success.

Terry Whalin

W. Terry Whalin, a writer and acquisitions editor lives in California. A former magazine editor and former literary agent, Terry is an acquisitions editor at Morgan James Publishing. He has written more than 60 nonfiction books including Jumpstart Your Publishing Dreams and Billy Graham. To help writers catch the attention of editors and agents, Terry wrote his bestselling Book Proposals That $ell, 21 Secrets To Speed Your Success. Get a free copy of his proposal book (follow the link). Check out his free Ebook, Platform Building Ideas for Every Author. His website is located at: www.terrywhalin.com. Connect with Terry on Twitter, Facebook, his blog and LinkedIn.

Book Proposals
Categories
Book Proposals

A Practical Example at Getting Endorsements

Last month I told you about how you can gather high profile endorsements for your book proposal. Check this link if you haven’t read it. In this article I want to give you a detailed example of how to get a high-profile endorsement.  

A while ago, I was honored to work as the writer with Vonetta Flowers on her first-person story, Running on Ice. Vonetta was the first African American to win a gold medal in the Winter Olympics (2002 women’s bobsled). In an interview with her coach, he gave me a terrific quotation from Bob Costas at NBC Sports in his wrap-up of the 2002 Winter Games in Salt Lake. I wondered if I could get a printed endorsement from Costas. From experience, I knew how to give this endorsement its best possible chance.

To my surprise, a few hours later I received a brief email from the manager saying, “Terry Whalin, I know that name. We’ll get back to you.” I thought, Know my name. Who knows my name? Within the next day, the manager fulfilled her promise and came back with the revised wording on the endorsement, plus permission to use it. My publisher was thrilled to have such an endorsement to use in the publicity for Running on Ice. Here’s the endorsement from Bob Costas at NBC Sports:

First, I drafted a possible quote or endorsement and made it tied in a general way to my book manuscript. My real challenge was to reach Bob Costas. I searched the Internet, but my search was futile. Then I called the newsroom of NBC in New York City and explained my request and my credentials (I touted my journalism credentials). Whoever answered the phone gave me the email address for Costas’ manager. I drafted an email of introduction explaining my request for an endorsement—including the possible wording, hit send and waited.

“One of the best stories of the 2002 Winter Olympic Games in Salt Lake came in women’s bobsled. Vonetta Flowers and her partner, Jill Bakken, won the Gold Medal. Vonetta thus became the first African American to win a Gold Medal in the Winter Games. In Running on Ice, Vonetta tells the story behind her achievement. To finish first and be the first, that’s Vonetta’s singular distinction.”

Everyone has to determine at what point to put their energy into endorsements.

It might be at the end of the project right before publication—or before you even get a contract.

Why? One reason is the sheer work involved in gathering them. Few people want to expend this sort of effort for their books, wondering if the effort is worth it. I’ve been publishing long enough to know that some books sell better with endorsements. Book buyers will look at a book in a bookstore or on a conference table and make an instant buying decision. Sometimes they purchase the book because of the endorsement. The endorsements or foreword for the book can also influence the store buyers (the people who make decisions whether to carry your title in their stores or chain of stores).

A longer endorsement is called a foreword. Note the spelling of foreword, which is one of the most misspelled words in publishing—not forward. In general, a foreword is like a short magazine article or about 1,000 to 1,500 words. I’ve drafted forewords for a number of well-known people. Why? Because it is easier for the personality to adjust or edit what you have written than to create it themselves. If you put in the work to send a “draft” foreword and it sounds like the person, then you are more likely to get a “yes” or acceptance from this person.

Consider the audience who will influence the purchase of this book—which names saying positive things about the book will draw the reader to your book. I understand why some authors don’t bother with endorsements—because they do take more work and effort. I know from working in the publishing business, however, that endorsements can make the difference as to whether a publisher takes your nonfiction or fiction book proposal and offers you a book contract. I recommend that you consider how you can get endorsements for your proposal.

I encourage you to put the effort into gathering endorsements.

The first step is to create a list of potential endorsers. As you write this list, dream big and list celebrities, bestselling authors, sports figures, businesspeople and pop culture. Select people who will be connected to the topic or subject of your book. Then begin your research process to pitch them. Create a short paragraph pitch and offer or even include a draft endorsement. Finally, be persistent in taking action and working on these endorsements.

Every day books are sold and purchased because of an endorsement on the cover or back cover of a book. As an author who takes action, you can get these endorsements for your book. It will take a measure of persistence to get them, but they will help you in many different ways.

Terry Whalin

W. Terry Whalin, a writer and acquisitions editor lives in California. A former magazine editor and former literary agent, Terry is an acquisitions editor at Morgan James Publishing. He has written more than 60 nonfiction books including Jumpstart Your Publishing Dreams and Billy Graham. To help writers catch the attention of editors and agents, Terry wrote his bestselling Book Proposals That $ell, 21 Secrets To Speed Your Success. Get a free copy of his proposal book (follow the link). Check out his free Ebook, Platform Building Ideas for Every Author. His website is located at: www.terrywhalin.com. Connect with Terry on Twitter, Facebook, his blog and LinkedIn.

https://dl.bookfunnel.com/aq5j0acu9o
Categories
Book Proposals

Email Your Pitch Before Sending Your Proposal

Before you fire off your proposal to a literary agent or an editor, get permission to send them your book proposal. You will probably email the proposal as a Word document or PDF as an attachment. Publishing professionals are often reluctant to open unknown attachments because they can have computer viruses. Every writer needs to craft a one- page email, you pitch to the agent or editor about your proposal.

Don’t send a book proposal via email unless you first secure permission from the editor.

Send a short regular email first asking about submission before sending any attachment.

First, create an interesting subject for your email. Then begin your email with a compelling question or a statistic or an intriguing statement. Your first paragraph can be the opening paragraph to the overview of your proposal—but your first use is in the pitch to get permission to send the proposal. Editors receive a great deal of email from their authors and publishing colleagues and other people inside and outside of their company. One publishing executive told me that he receives over 300 emails a day. Because this executive occasionally travels and doesn’t check his email for several days, you can imagine the backlog of information he must wade through upon his return. The same situation is true for editors and agents. Many publishers have stopped accepting unsolicited proposals and manuscripts due to the overwhelming flood of poor proposals.

If you do mail your submission, here’s another no-no: do not use colored paper or fancy fonts. No one wants to read material in Bookman Old Style or Lucinda Sans Typewriter—even if your computer has these fonts. You would be surprised at the lengths some people go to get attention with their mailed manuscript. These writers get attention but it’s the negative type. Stick to something standard such as 12 point New Times Roman font.

Also, there is no need to put your proposal in a three-ring binder or use any extra folders or presentation materials. I once received a large manuscript in a notebook binder. The author had punched three holes into every single page of the manuscript, then placed it into the binder and shipped it overnight to my address.

There is no need to include your graduation certificates or your PowerPoint presentations (yes, people send these items to publishers. I’ve seen it firsthand). Also you don’t have to send your proposal by priority mail, Federal Express or overnight delivery. Some people send proposals using this method so they can track it and know that it has arrived on the editor’s desk. This is an unnecessary expense.

While it is completely obvious to me, I need to tell you that your manuscript must be typed.

I had always heard about handwritten manuscripts but despite the hundreds I have reviewed, I had never seen one—until recently. I received an entirely handwritten manuscript (fiction). I found it almost frightening to be holding the single copy of another person’s work—especially in this electronic world. I read it and returned it promptly to the author, so it did not stay long in my possession. Most of my recent book contracts will say that the manuscript is to be delivered to the publisher in an electronic format to save keyboard time. The overall key point is for your submission to be professional and normal—not to stand out because of something unusual. It is your concept, your writing and your storytelling that will make the greatest difference to the editor.

The editor has many other tasks and will not read your material any faster if it is sent overnight. This may gain you a negative reaction instead of a positive one. Only send something rapidly if you have been in touch with the editor in advance and they request it. Frequently email is the best way to submit to editors. If you use the regular mail, print your proposal on plain white paper. It is critical the writing be the focus and not some strange, attention-gathering method which could easily backfire and lead to rejection.

Before you hit send for your one-page pitch, pause and re-read it.

Make sure every word and story is targeted to the right editor or agent. You only get one chance to make a good first impression and it will happen with this pitch letter. I wish you great success to find the right agent or editor.

Terry Whalin

W. Terry Whalin, a writer and acquisitions editor lives in California. A former magazine editor and former literary agent, Terry is an acquisitions editor at Morgan James Publishing. He has written more than 60 nonfiction books including Jumpstart Your Publishing Dreams and Billy Graham. To help writers catch the attention of editors and agents, Terry wrote his bestselling Book Proposals That $ell, 21 Secrets To Speed Your Success. Get a free copy of his proposal book (follow the link). Check out his free Ebook, Platform Building Ideas for Every Author. His website is located at: www.terrywhalin.com. Connect with Terry on Twitter, Facebook, his blog and LinkedIn.

Book Proposals That $ell, 21 Secrets To Speed Your Success