Authors' Thread (New! Improved! Now With 10% More Questions!)

Mr Shuffle,

Proposal. Definitely. You have some command of your subject. Perhaps (hopefully) you have an outline, perhaps (hopefully) a chapter outline. A chapter outline is (or at least can be) an important component of a book proposal but also a useful blueprint to work from after the sale. And a proposal forces you to think about a lot of important issues (what am I trying to say and who should care being just two). Figuring out the big stuff makes the day-to-day a helluva lot easier.

YHS, etc

 

Mahalo, Friend.

Are there any web sites you recommend that could help me write a proposal? As you might expect, I still have my book proposal V-card.

Muchas Gracias.

 

Terrific new website, keepyourcopyrights.org, has tremendous resources for contract questions re: books, articles, electronic, etc. As self described: "This site is devoted to all authors and creators of works in the United States. It aims to make clear why you might want to keep your copyrights, and to provide information both to help you hold on to your rights and to grant on reasonable terms the rights you do license."

Worth a long look for all.

 

- Great get, IE. Thanks.

- Ickey, any luck finding information on proposal writing? I know there's a ton of "How-to..." down at the bookstore. Maybe take an hour at your local B and N to flip through the proposals section of a current copy of "Writers' Market."

 

Thanks, JG. I'll check that out.

Anyone know how a page in Microsoft Word converts to a book page? I'm nearing 80 computer pages and figure that might be a little more in book form.

 

Doesn't really translate....what's a book page? Page size, fonts, margins, they all vary. Publishers usually care about word count, rather than page count, anyway.

 

Thanks 21.

Does anyone with book experience remember their word counts? I'm pushing 40,000 and was wondering where that would put me.

Perhaps I'll post a few pages in the future and let everyone take a look.

 

A standard-sized 6x9 hardcover, 80-90,000 words would put you at around 275-300 pages, 60,000 words would barely put you at 250 pages.(with a wide plus/minus for variable page designs, indexes, forewords, photos, etc).

 

Sorry to use the board as my own personal advice service, but I've gotten a lot of good help here. I'm nearing what would be close to 250 pages in a hardcover book and was wondering how I should go about submitting the book to publishers. I've heard you should target companies that have published works in a similar genre and go from there.

Is this right? Do I just flood the publishers with my manuscript? Is there anything I need to do to copyright it? Do I need an agent yet?

Mahalo for all your help,
Ickey

 

Ladies. Gentlemen. Hamsters.

I am starting work on my very first book proposal. And as such, I have talked to colleagues who are far more experienced and intelligent than little ol' I. All gave me invaluable advice about topic selection, agencies, writing the pitch letter and proposal. Many of them suggested that I read and re-read this thread.

I'd like to take this moment to tell them they are right. In the middle of attempting to write a sample chapter, and much like Patrick Roy after hearing Jeremy Roenick's 1996 playoff grousing, I'm being laughed at. Unlike Roenick, who was being mocked by a Hall-of-Fame goaltender, I have the damning combination of a blank screen and writer's block.

 

Stick with it, HB. Write anything. Free associate. Walk around the block. You'll be fine.

And Ickey, I'm sorry we haven't cobbled together an answer for you. I think the Council of Elders are tied up on their own projects. I've been up to my neck in my own very late book, and haven't been much around.

But some thoughts this weekend, promise.

 

I'll try to get some of the other oldsters in here for their comments on this, but it's a tricky chicken/egg call. My only personal experience lies in having the deal in place first, then writing the book.

That said, I'm inclined to direct you to an agent first. For a couple of reasons.

- A good agent will know which publisher is most likely to be interested in your book.

- A good agent will get you a better deal than you might negotiate for yourself.

- A good agent will also be a good reader, and offer you an honest critique of your draft and how to improve it before publishers see it. Don't expect an agent to function as an editor (although many these days do), but count on your agent to be a reliable reader of your work and to help you present yourself well to publishers.

All that said, however, it's just as hard to find a really good agent as it is to find a really good publisher. Do some research by finding out which agents represent writers in your field, especially the writers you admire most. Then query them with a pitch letter that broadly outlines the book. And there are ways to copyright your book on your own, but you may not need to do that just yet.

I'll sound the conch for the other booksters hereabouts and get you better opinions, but there's one to start you thinking.