New "How to Get Published by Magazines & Book Publishers" E-Book Released

How to Get Published by
Magazine and Book Publishers e-book

I'm very pleased to announce the first title in my new "Getting Published" E-Book series has released and is now available!

How to Get Published by Magazines and Book Publishers

Find Markets, Submit Your Manuscripts, and More

You will find it exclusively for Kindle at Amazon.com.

Don't have a Kindle? No problem. Your computer, tablet, or phone can become a Kindle reader if you download the free app from Amazon. You can find links to do that here: No Kindle? No problem!

If you've been to a writer's conference where I attended or was on faculty, you may have seen my "Help for Writers" series of printed pamphlets. I created that series of five pamphlets back in 2003 and they have proved quite popular at writer's conferences. They sell for $3.95 each.

But while they've been available by ordering from me, getting the word out about them as well as taking and filling orders has been cumbersome. Now I'm re-releasing them as e-books to make them far more easily available to a much wider audience. So if you haven't seen the pamphlets, now is your chance to easily get the same material -- only revised and updated, with bonus content added -- as an e-book.

This first e-book is a revised and updated version of my pamphlet, "The Basics for Beginners: How to Find Markets, Submit your Manuscripts, and Keep Track of it All." I've also added more content from my one-day seminar, "Writing for Publication: How to Find Markets and Submit Your Work." 

This new e-book includes three Bonus Articles not included in the original pamphlet:

• How to Study the Market
• Book Manuscript Submissions with the basics for both Fiction and nonfiction book proposals
• Which Rights Do I Sell When?

Besides creating e-books from each of the five "Help for Writers" pamphlets, I'm also developing additional e-books from workshops I've taught, articles I've written, columns from my former newsletter for writers, and blog posts from my "Butts About Writing" blog at www.ButtsAboutWriting.blogspot.com.

Topics from the "Help for Writers" pamphlets include how to write query letters and how to re-sell your magazine articles as reprints.

Topics from workshops will include my popular "10 Tools for Marketing Your Book," getting more articles out the door as a freelance writer, beginning screenwriting, how to shape your story to make a great screenplay, and more.

I hope these topics interest you! Whenever I have a new e-book ready to go, I'll announce it here. So please stop back by often. Or follow me on Twitter to catch announcements. Find me at @DianneEButts and @BAboutWriting.

If you or someone you know has always wanted to write to get published in magazines or wanted to write a book and get it published, this first e-book will tell you what you need to know to get started. Please let your wanna-be writer friends know! And be one of the first to get it by getting your own copy now!

How to Get Published by Magazines and Book Publishers

Find Markets, Submit Your Manuscripts, and More

If you find this e-book valuable, please leave a comment below to let us know. And if possible, please leave a review or rating on Amazon so others will know you found it worthwhile and helpful. Thank you so very much.

Please tweet this Tweetable:

New e-book: How to Get #Published by Magazines and Book Publishers!   Tweet this

Side Trip: How to Write a Non-Fiction Book Proposal – Part 19

Format your book proposal

Can you believe it? You’re almost done!

Now is the time to put all the pieces of your book proposal together.

• Arrange each part of your proposal in a logical order that flows. (I find each proposal I’ve written works in a different order. The order of the items doesn’t matter that much. Just make sure all the needed information is there.)
• Insert Headings for each part. Neatness counts. This is a professional proposal, so make it look nice. (But don’t go overboard! No fancy fonts, colored text, or cute pictures. Keep it professional.)
• Insert page numbers.
• Insert a Header or Footer with your last name and the title or partial title of your book.

Side Trip: How to Write a Non-Fiction Book Proposal – Part 18

Chapter Summaries

This section is also sometimes called “Chapter by chapter outline.”

Write a few sentences or a short paragraph on each one of your chapters. Give the editor or agent a good, solid idea of what you will cover and include in each chapter.

Of course this also means you are giving chapter titles, will know how many chapters will be in your book, and what will be in each one of them.

By the time you’re able to write your sample chapters and chapter summaries, you’ll need to have a really good handle on your book. You’ve already done a good portion of your research. You’ve organized your material. You’ve mapped out how you’re going to move through your information. You not only know where you’ll start your book and end it, you also know where you’ll start and end each chapter.

In other words, by the time you get here you’re probably more than half-way through writing your book! Isn’t that cool?

Still, you have wiggle room. While you’re asked to map out your whole book, the map you create isn’t set in stone. You are creating a book proposal. You’re giving them a solid idea of what you plan to do, however if you get a better idea or if they want to adjust something, you can still do that. So don’t get too antsy about making decisions and planning your book. Editors and agents understand that this is just a proposal and (probably minor) things can change when you write it.

FICTION WRITERS: You don’t need to divide your story into chapters at this point. Instead of a chapter by chapter summary, just write a synopsis of your story straight through with no chapter breaks. (And yes, you are supposed to tell the ending. I know. It’s a spoiler. But your prospective agent and/or editor needs to know you can finish the story.)

Side Trip: How to Write a Non-Fiction Book Proposal – Part 17

Sample Chapters

This step and the next one are probably going to take you the most time. But when done, you’ll be in great shape to produce this book. Here you are going to write some chapters for your book. You may have already done this, or you may do this first and then write the rest of your proposal. The order in which you do these things doesn’t matter. You just need them all to put together a complete package for your proposal.

Check the writer’s guidelines for each publisher and agent you are submitting to and send each one just what they want.

Some publishers want three sample chapters, others want two, some only want one.

I recommend you go ahead and write the first three chapters. Then you’re in good shape to provide whatever they want.

FICTION WRITERS: Send the number of chapters the writer’s guidelines state, but don’t send the whole manuscript until they request it.

Side Trip: How to Write a Non-Fiction Book Proposal – Part 16

Series Potential

Do you have an idea for a sequel?

Or several (which would make a series)?

If yes, tell them here and give them an idea (a sentence or two) about what each following book would be like.

Side Trip: How to Write a Non-Fiction Book Proposal – Part 15

Alternate Titles and Subtitles

If you have ideas for alternative titles for your book, you can list them here.

If you have ideas for other subtitles from what you put on this proposal, you can list them.

You may not get to keep your title. Publishers have marketing committees that brainstorm titles that will catch attention and sell the book. So your title may change before publication and it's possible you won't have anything to say about it. However, you should put the best, catchiest, most wonderful title on your book that you can possibly think of in order to sell it to the editor. So if you come up with more than one and don't know which to use, put your favorite on your proposal and list the others here. Your publisher will appreciate the ideas and thought you've put into it.

Side Trip: How to Write a Non-Fiction Book Proposal – Part 14

Status

Tell them where you are with your manuscript right now.

• Are you about halfway through writing it?
  
• Are you submitting this proposal elsewhere simultaneously?

This statement might look something like this:

“I currently have three sample chapters written and am circulating queries and proposals simultaneously to agents and publishers.”

Or for fiction:

“I have my story synopsis complete and am currently writing this novel. I’m about half way through my first draft.”

Side Trip: How to Write a Non-Fiction Book Proposal – Part 13

Manuscript Delivery

When can you deliver the manuscript? How many months will you need to complete it?

Give them your best estimate. And be sure to include time for when your life blows up and everything in the universe keeps you from writing.

In other words, make a schedule you can live with. Then tell them when you could have your manuscript done if they asked for it.

A good amount of time is usually six months, so you could say:

Manuscript Delivery: I could deliver the manuscript within six months of a signed contract.

Side Trip: How to Write a Non-Fiction Book Proposal – Part 12

Manuscript Length

Give an idea of how long your finished manuscript will be. Book length can be stated in number of words or pages. Pages are double-spaced, of course.

If you don’t yet have your manuscript written (and you shouldn’t; you should be writing your nonfiction* proposal first), you will have to make an estimate. For heaven’s sake, make sure your projected length is within the lengths the publisher publishes. That information should be on their writer’s guidelines.

If you’ve already written your three sample chapters, that should help you be able to estimate how long the rest of the chapters will be.

If you haven’t gotten that far yet, you might want to wait until you’ve created your chapter summaries, or at least mapped out how many chapters you will have.

If you’ll have 12 chapters and your prospective publisher wants 60,000 words, can you write an average of 5,000 words for each chapter? Do you have enough material? Do you have too much material?

This is a good average length for a nonfiction book:
12 chapters x 5,000 words = 60,000 words

When estimating number of pages, there are about 250 words on a manuscript (double-spaced) page.

* FICTION WRITERS: If you’re writing fiction, then publishers will want you to finish your manuscript before they make a decision. This is for first-time authors. Established authors may not have to, but you’re not there yet. If you are, why are you reading about how to write a proposal?! I’m sure you already know this stuff. ;-)

If you’ve written your novel, give them the length in number of words and/or pages. If you haven’t completed your manuscript, give them your best estimate.

Side Trip: How to Write a Non-Fiction Book Proposal – Part 11

About the Author / Credentials

This is where you list your writing credentials.

This is not where you list the credentials you have for writing the book—your education, experience, or expertise on the topic. We did that in Part 9: “Why should you write this book?”

Instead, this part of your book proposal tells your writing experience. Mention:

• Your periodical publications. State how many you have. List a few of your best publications or the ones directly related to the topic of your book.
• Your book contributions, if any.
• Your own published books.
• Any awards you’ve won.
• Special mentions of your work.

This is where you “show off” your writing experience (but, of course, don’t look like you’re showing off). Don’t be shy. Just help the editor or agent know how experienced you are as a writer.

If you don’t yet have any writing credentials, you don’t have to say that or call attention to it. Just leave this part out of your book proposal and don’t mention it. (In the mean time, you might want to try getting some publishing credits. Print magazines count for a lot. Online magazines will do. Your own blog probably doesn’t count, unless you have an extraordinary readership.)

Consider this your resume. You’re looking for a job, and you’re hoping this agent or publisher will “hire” you to write your book. In order to make that decision, they need to know what writing experience you have.

Side Trip: How to Write a Non-Fiction Book Proposal – Part 10

Why this book now?

Like the last post, this is another question not all the books and material on writing book proposals will include, but it’s a good one to include to make your proposal stand out.

Of all the seasons or years in the world, why should publshers be interested in publishing this book now?

• Is there something going on that makes your book particularly timely right now?
• Have you experienced something recently and are others experiencing the same thing that they need your book now?
• Are politics or society in a place that makes your book particularly needed now?

Don’t forget that your book won’t be out for 18 to 24 months after you sign a contract with a publisher. Will your topic still be needed, hot, and relevant in two years?

One example is the current interest in the Mayan calendar saying the world will end in 2012. There are already books and movies coming out on the topic, but those books were written a few years ago and were published months ago.

Tell me (um, er, actually your potential agent or editor, in your proposal), why is now a great time to publish this book?

Side Trip: How to Write a Non-Fiction Book Proposal – Part 9

Why should I write this book?

This is one question not all the books and material on writing book proposals will include, but it’s a good one to include to make your proposal stand out.

Of all the people in the world, why should you write this book?

• Do you have particular educational credentials?


• Do you have life experience that you’re speaking from?


• Are you an expert in the area?


• Have you studied this area in depth?


• Do you have a combination of skills and experience that make you unique to write on this topic?

Tell me (um, er, actually your potential agent or editor, in your proposal) why should you be the one to write this book?

Side Trip: How to Write a Non-Fiction Book Proposal – Part 8

Promotion and Marketing Opportunities

Make a list of things you will actually DO to promote and market your book.

Refrain from saying you’d be happy to go on Oprah or Good Morning America unless you have the connections and experience to actually get on those shows.

Instead, do some brainstorming and figure out practical ways you can promote and market your book.

• If you are a speaker, share how often you speak, the types of groups you speak to, and the number usually present.
• If you have a plan to reach potential reader/book-buyers online, share what you have in mind.
• If you have a mailing list you send to monthly or quarterly, share that.
• If you have connections to groups that will like your book, name them. For example, you can bet I will contact every pro-life group, and there are a lot of them, when my Deliver Me book is available. I plan to send them an e-mail. I could call them. If you were writing a gardening book, would a national gardener’s association want to know about it? Could you contact them? Then put it in your proposal!
• Are you willing to contact radio stations, starting locally and working out to ever-widening circles, and try to book yourself on their shows?
• Do you have a blog? How many readers do you have?
• Will you organize your own virtual book tour/blog book tour?

In other words, make a plan of how you will let people know about your book. Make it a plan you can actually work. Then tell the editor and agent you’re submitting your proposal to what you have in mind.

Side Trip: How to Write a Non-Fiction Book Proposal – Part 7

Competitive Titles

Every book proposal needs to have a section that lists and describes the books that are similar to the book you’re writing.

There are several ways to gather this list. We used to be told to peruse Books in Print, which your library might have.

Today, it’s easier to find this information online. Here are some ways to do that:

• I use Amazon.com a lot. Use their search function to search for your topic and category and key words.
• Don’t stop with Amazon.com. Also check BarnesAndNoble.com and any other online bookstores. They often have titles you didn’t find on Amazon.
• Finally, Google your topic and key words. You’ll find even more titles that you didn’t find earlier.

When you find books that will compete with yours, I like to print off the information and keep it in my files (which, yes, can make for a lot of printing, but I think it’s worth it).

When you’ve gathered your information, type it into your book proposal. Include:

• The title.
• The author.
• The publisher.
• Number of pages.
• Price.

Then make a statement that shows how your book is similar to these books and how yours differs. Here’s an example:

“Ms. Smith’s book My Unexpected Pregnancy is the author’s true story of how she dealt with her surprise pregnancy. My book, Deliver Me, is similar in that it is about unplanned pregnancy, however while Ms. Smith only tells her own story, my book tells the true stories of more than seventy women and men. My book also includes helpful resources, including online web sites and books, at the end of every chapter.”

See what I mean?

If you have a boatload of titles, too many to really put in your proposal without making it way long, you don’t have to list them all. Pick samples to list that are the best titles, the ones that rank highest in sales, and the most recently published.

Sometimes I also group titles together that have similar statements about how they are similar and different to my book.

Find all the titles you can that are similar to your book.

Don’t leave off your list the best selling titles that will be your biggest competition. Your editor or agent will notice you didn’t do a good job of researching your competition.

Don’t say anything like, “There really aren’t any books like mine out there.” This throws up two red flags to your prospective editor or agent:

1. There really is nothing new under the sun. So there probably are books on this topic out there and you just didn’t find them.
2. If there’s truly no other book on this topic then there must be a reason for that. Could be there’s no interest in this topic. Could be there’s no market for this book.

And never badmouth a competitor’s book. Don’t say anything like, “Famous Author’s book is really poorly written and his conclusions about the Bible are all wrong. I write much better and I’ll get it all right.” Don’t say theirs is bad and yours is better; just say theirs is like this and mine is similar in this way and different in that way.

The purpose of this whole section of your book proposal is to give your prospective editor or agent a solid idea of what you have in mind for your book by comparing it to others, what the potential for selling your book is like, and of course its competition.

Side Trip: How to Write a Non-Fiction Book Proposal – Part 6

Category

The “category” of your book is where your book will be placed in the bookstore: which section, which shelf, and which books will be around it that may compete with it.

Go grab a book off your bookshelf. Turn it over and look at the back cover near the bar code. There you should see what category the book is in. This tells the bookstore owner where to shelve the book.

For example, the category will say something like:

• “writing/reference”
• “Business & Economics/General”
• “Christian Living”

Find a book that is similar to the one you are writing, that will be next to your book on the shelf, and tell the editor or agent in your book proposal what that category is.

If you’re writing a Christian book, you can find the list of categories used in the BISAC codes. BISAC stands for “Book Industry Standards and Communications” codes. These codes help booksellers determine the primary subject or focus of a book.

Find the BISAC list here: http://www.cbaonline.org/csc_site/bisac_definitions_090906_INCOMPLETE.xls

Or go to http://www.cbaonline.org/csc_site/cpc_bisac_code.htm and click on “Category Definitions for Christian Product Sublist (a work in progress).”

I suggest you print this list out and slide it into a page protector for future reference.

Find where your book best fits, and enter that information under “Category” in your book proposal.

Side Trip: How to Write a Non-Fiction Book Proposal – Part 5

Market

In this section of your book proposal you need to give the editor or agent a solid idea of how big the market is for your book.

Don’t ever say, “This book is for everyone” or “Everyone will want or like this book.” That’s a sure sign you don’t know what you’re doing. There is no such thing as a book that is for everyone or that everyone will like or want.

So get specific. Who is it that will want your book? Who will actually want it enough to buy it?

• Tell about the segment of the population that will be interested in your book.
• Gather statistics that show how big a slice of the general population that is. Support your claims.

In Part 8, when we talk about how you will promote and market your book, you can tell how you will reach this audience who will want your book.

The information on your market will link in to the second and third of the “3 Big Questions” we discussed earlier: Who is going to buy your book? How are you going to reach them?

Side Trip: How to Write a Non-Fiction Book Proposal – Part 4

List 5 Benefits your book has.

Again, like Features, you may have more than five, but you should have at least five.

Benefits are what your reader/book-buyer will gain by buying and reading your book. Benefits differ from Features, but they are linked together.

In Writing Copy for Dummies (Wiley, 2005, pg. 21), author Jonathan Kranz describes Benefits this way:

Benefits are what the product or service does for the owner or user. They are, therefore, much more important than features because they include a what’s-in-it-for-me motivation. They’re active qualities and are almost always verbs, adverbs, or verbal phrases. They save people time and money, protect them from foul weather, alert them to danger, make them look younger and sexier, and so on. You can say that the pencil gives you the following benefits:

• Its bold color makes it easy to find on a cluttered desktop.
• Its ridged shape prevents it from rolling off your desk.
• Its built-in eraser helps you correct mistakes in a flash.

You may notice that…the pencil’s benefits are intimately related to its features. In fact, I took each feature and uncovered its value—what the pencil does for people that makes it worth buying…

…transforming features into benefits is easy. For any given feature, ask, ‘What does this do for my customer?’ The answer is the benefit. For example, consider the call-waiting feature on your phone. What does it do for you? It alerts you to incoming calls, even when you’re on the line with someone else. The benefit: You never miss a phone call.”

In her book, The Mom Inventors Handbook (McGrawhill, 2005, $16.95, pg. 15), Tamara Monosoff give this information about a product’s benefits:

“List your product’s benefits. According to the American Heritage Dictionary, a “benefit” is “something that promotes or enhances well-being; an advantage.” In other words, what does this product solve? How can it help someone in his or her daily life? The TP [toilet paper] Saver™ packaging states the following benefits:

• Prevents your child or pet from unrolling toilet paper
• Reduces the risk of paper ingestion
• Saves paper, money, and the environment

I took the five Features I listed for my book, Dear America, and came up with these five Benefits:

1. Get ten helpful tips to help you or a friend through the loss of a loved one.
2. Understand or explain the story of the Bible from Genesis to Revelation in five easy steps.
3. When you’re ready to accept Christ, here are words you can follow as an example.
4. Discover answers to some of your questions about Muslims, their faith, and how it is different from Christianity.
5. Learn ten tips to help you start reading and understanding the Bible.

Your Benefits will link in to the first of the “3 Big Questions” we discussed earlier: What need does your book fill, what problem does it solve, or what desirable thing does it help your reader obtain?

What Benefits does your book or proposed book have? List them.

Side Trip: How to Write a Non-Fiction Book Proposal – Part 3

List 5 Features your book has.

You may have more than five, but you should have at least five.

Features are “tangible” items your book has. For example, your book might have lists of resources, sidebars of helpful information, timelines, charts, or application questions to help readers apply what they’ve learned.

In Writing Copy for Dummies (Wiley, 2005, pg. 20), author Jonathan Kranz describes Features this way:

Features are qualities or things that an item or service has, such as anti-lock
disc brakes or a water-repelling exterior shell. Features are static characteristics, and they’re almost always nouns or adjectives. The pencil, for example, has the following features:

• It’s yellow.
• It’s a hexagon.
• It has an eraser.
  

In her book, The Mom Inventors Handbook (McGrawhill, 2005, $16.95, pg. 15), Tamara Monosoff says this about a product’s features. (And your book is a “product.”):

Describe your product’s features. According to the American Heritage Dictionary, a “feature” is “a prominent or distinctive aspect, quality, or characteristic.” If you were describing a home’s features, for instance, you might say three bedrooms, a master bath, an updated kitchen, and hard-wood floors. Use this as a guide when determining your own product’s proposed features. The TP [toilet paper] Saver has the following product features:

• No assembly required
• Simple to use
• No need to remove toilet paper for insertion
• Fits most standard toilet paper holders

I didn’t know any of this stuff when I published my first book, Dear America: A Letter of Comfort and Hope to a Grieving Nation. Now, however, I’m going back and applying what I’m learning to that book. As an example, here are five Features I listed that are in Dear America:

1. Ten things I’ve learned about grief (Which, by the way, I’ve sold as an article.)
2. A presentation of the Gospel like a five-act story.
3. A sample prayer to accept Christ.
4. Questions and Answers section: such as “How can we know Christianity is true?,” “Who are the Muslims?,” “Where did the religion of Islam come from?,” and “Do Muslims and Christians worship the same God?”
5. Ten Tips to help beginners start reading and understanding the Bible.

What Features does your book or proposed book have? List them.

Side Trip: How to Write a Non-Fiction Book Proposal – Part 2

Write the “Overview.” And, write a description of your book in 1 to 3 sentences.

In your overview, tell what your book is about, what you’re going to include, and what the flavor of it is like. If you’re going to include statistics or resources or cartoons or illustrations or footnotes or appendices, do tell. In other words, give a good solid overview of what you’re going to do with your book.

(If you’re writing fiction, this would probably be a brief synopsis of your storyline.)

Make the Overview no more than one page, single spaced.

At the same time, state what your book is about in one to three sentences. We’re not going to use this until the very end, but you might as well do it now. If you have trouble with this, just imagine you’re sitting on a bus, someone asks you what your book is about, and they’re getting off at the next stop less than a block away. Boil it down. Get it said. Fast. This is your 30-second elevator pitch.

If you’re still having trouble, it could be your book isn’t focused enough yet. Maybe you need to work with it more. Maybe you need to think it through more or organize it more.

If your book is focused, if you really know what it’s about, you should be able to state it in one sentence.

So if you really can’t write the Overview or the description in 1 to 3 sentences, what should you do? Don’t despair! Instead, move on to another part of the proposal. I would suggest you write an outline of the book and/or write a synopsis of each chapter (which will be a part towards the end of this procedure called “Chapter Summaries”). Doing this should help you better nail down your book.

Or, write a rough draft of your Overview now, writing what you know about your book at this point. Then move on and come back to it later to revise and polish it.

By the way, as you write all of these parts of your book proposal, put them all in one document in your computer. Put a heading at each part. You’re building a proposal one brick at a time. Don’t worry at this point about what order the parts are in. Just do it for now. We can rearrange it later if we need to.

Side Trip: How to Write a Non-Fiction Book Proposal – Part 1

If you’re new to the world of publishing, you need to know not only what a book proposal is but what it is for. Most books are sold to publishers via a book proposal. Also, you usually submit a book proposal to an agent when you’re seeking representation, and then your agent submits it to a publisher. Therefore, the proposal needs to have all the information an acquisitions editor and/or an agent needs to make a good decision about whether to publish your book.

In case you didn’t notice, take note that books are almost always sold by a proposal. Books most often are not sold by submitting the entire manuscript.

With fiction, a first-time author will probably have to submit the entire manuscript before a contract is offered, but the thing that opens that door is the book proposal.

In other words, don’t write the book first! Especially if it’s a non-fiction book.

(One exception: Children’s books, where the manuscript is only a couple thousand words max, is often submitted as a completed manuscript.)

Many authors new to publishing set out and write their book and, once they have the manuscript completed, ask, “Okay, how do I get it published?” Stop!

Professional authors normally write the book proposal first…for more than one reason:

• Allowing a publisher to have input into your book may increase your chances of landing a publishing contract.
• If a publisher is interested, but would like your book to be a little different (different focus or organization or whatever), then you can make those adjustments (if you choose) and you haven’t wasted valuable time and work in writing the whole manuscript.
• If you never find a publisher interested in offering you a contract, you haven’t wasted a lot of time writing the manuscript.

So just what needs to go into a book proposal? We’re going to talk about the different parts of a proposal one part at a time. I believe if you walk through each part I describe and write that part for your book (in any order), then by the time you’re finished you will have a fine book proposal ready to be submitted.

How do I know that? Well, one book proposal I wrote landed me an agent. When I sent her a second book proposal I asked her how I did with it and her response was, “The proposal is excellent.” So, I feel I figured this out pretty well.

Now, let me say that there are probably a lot of different ways to write a book proposal—and there is probably not one right way. But the information I am going to give you here will get you where you want to go. Feel free, of course, to tweak this information to fit your book.

There are some differences for fiction proposals and we’ll cover those after we cover all the elements in a non-fiction proposal (with fiction-related notes along the way).

Here we go. See you next time.