Sorry to say we stopped offering the free critique service more than a year ago. But regarding your problem, if you are writing either fiction or non-fiction about real people who are not celebrities, you either need to disguise them completely beyond any chance of recognition, or get a formal release that can be provided to you by any publishing attorney to portray them in your book. This goes for people who are no longer living, too, if there is an estate or descendants who might be concerned about the subject’s reputation or privacy, or involved on any level. Also, I wouldn’t assume that anyone would love to be in your book since what you write may displease them in some way down the road, or they may see a book succeed and wonder why they never had a share of its earnings.

Good luck and keep writing.

I’m ready to stand up for my work…I’m just terrified simultaneously of posting it out there for everyone to just hack at…but naturally, I understand that art is always up for slaughter…

Thank you for your ideas about agents, and the additional info on “platform-building”, all great information. I have been listening to your podcast critiques as well, and realized I need to better define my proposal. So I am going to be working on that. Once I get that completed I’ll probably send off a proposal for evaluation consideration

Thanks again,

Ritama

I recommend to authors that they approach publishers only through a literary agent, who can best represent and protect their interests. How do you get an agent? The first step is to write an original and compelling book proposal.

The next step is to take that proposal and seek representation. A solid platform will help your case. Check this link for some helpful suggestions: http://www.alanrinzler.com/blog/2008/06/07/build-your-author-platform-10-tips-from-a-pro/

The bigger your platform, the more likely you are to attract an agent and publisher — as well as to achieve your broader goals. In general, book publishers don’t get involved with merchandising (except as licensers,) or creating websites and affiliate networks.

If you’d like to submit an abbreviated 15-page book proposal here, we’ll consider it for a free evaluation under “My Proposal Critiques.” Be sure to look at the guidelines as laid out in this post.

-Alan

Wow! Jackpot offer! Would love to submit, but want to mention some things to you first.

I have a proposal ready for a non-fiction book and my idea is to create a multi-merchandising/community platform – let’s call it an “omniverse” – around the book and to launch other aspects of this omniverse in tandem with the publishing of the book.

I am envisioning:
• The book
• A branded product line based on the subject matter of the book.
• A website to sell the products and also to offer free resources, videos, forums, etc. It will be a “go-to” destination site where people can get everything they need in one place to create the experiences the book talks about.
• A community base of affiliates with people having parties at their homes to sell products and share their experiences with the concepts offered in the book.

I am a having trouble figuring out whom to target to review the proposal and omniverse concepts. A couple of weeks ago I send out a proposal to a large publishing house – to their General Submissions department. After I sent it I got the feeling I might as well have stuck a message in a bottle and tossed it in the ocean – really having no idea if this approach is a constructive use of my time when I should perhaps be looking into other options to make this happen.

Basically, I am looking for (hoping for) ONE entity to work with that will be able to guide me in this process and work with me to get everything accomplished. Is this possible? Should I be looking at publishing houses? Do they do this kind of thing, or just strictly books? Or do I need an agent / agency skilled in multiple-merchandising-platforms?

I’ve perused your site, and it’s obvious you know an incredible amount about this business. So, I am hoping you can offer some guidance about where to direct my energy in this process.

I know I haven’t mentioned what the book is about. Let me know if you’d like to know more, I would be happy to tell you about it. I would also be thrilled to send the proposal to you for a critique.

Thank you for this generous offer of your time and expertise,

Ritama

You have license to embellish and restructure and do whatever else is necessary to write a fictional story, but you should not use the real names, since it’s no longer a memoir but a novel. People have been known to get upset about being placed in a situation which is fictionalized and therefore not completely true in their eyes.

Take care,

Alan

Sincerley,

Nancy Rodrigues

A fascinating and pleasurable blog, especially for a veteran editor and still largely unpublished writer like me, and I plan to submit a proposal for critique. Thank you!

I’m also looking forward to the third installment of your experience with Hunter Thompson. Aside from the insight you provide into his personality as a writer, it delighted me to know that editors who work at the top of the publishing world have the same experiences as those of us who work down below. I came to know an excellent writer, a historian, who loved me because I justifiably took such a light pencil to his copy. But my real work lay elsewhere. Once I had to sit down with him for twelve solid hours on the eve of a deadline, editing each page as it came out of the typewriter. He completed the last page at 2:30 in the morning, and I handed his manuscript to the typesetter five hours later.

I did, however, have the opportunity once to work with a well-known author–if “work” even applies to the situation. He was Louis L’Amour, and before I could even suggest a few small changes to his generally wandering essay, word came from his big-time agent that “no one is to touch Mr. L’Amour’s copy” if we wanted to use it at all. I didn’t work for a big-time publisher, so I obeyed. For all its aimlessness, though, his essay was notable in being one of the very few pieces of nonfiction he ever wrote, and it appeared years later in an anthology of western writing. It was not as taut as his fiction, but, hey, it was Louis L’Amour!

David

For this exercise, please follow the directions laid out in the post — no more than 15 pages total, with all elements included.

- Alan

If your plot point is a clear sequence of events and not a summary or synthesis it would be in fact a chapter outline, so that’s ok. What’s essential is a linear progression of each scene in the book.

- Alan

-bb

Agents or publishers will want to evaluate your ability to plan the book with some kind of coherent structure. If you don’t have formal chapters, perhaps you have some other way indicating the parts and pauses between sections of the book. This is essential and shouldn’t be omitted if you want professionals to consider your work.

- Alan

Question:
What if you don’t have formal chapters?
Would you suggest a three page synopsis in that case?

-bb

M.D. Fields