How to Get Published by Magazine and Book Publishers e-book I'm very pleased to announce the first title in my new "Getting Pub...

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. Arra...

Chapter Summaries This section is also sometimes called “Chapter by chapter outline.” Write a few sentences or a short paragraph on each one...

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 ...

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 s...

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 s...

Status Tell them where you are with your manuscript right now. Are you about halfway through writing it? Are you submitting this proposal el...

Manuscript Delivery When can you deliver the manuscript? How many months will you need to complete it? Give them your best estimate. And be ...

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 ar...

About the Author / Credentials This is where you list your writing credentials. This is not where you list the credentials you have for writ...

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 i...

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 on...

Promotion and Marketing Opportunities Make a list of things you will actually DO to promote and market your book. Refrain from saying you’d ...

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

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...

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...

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 ...

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. ...

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...

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 publi...