A successfully self-published book can propel you down the road to a book contract at a commercial publishing house.
That’s the truth of the matter, despite the worries I hear from writers that self-publishing could doom their hopes of ever landing a real book deal. Don’t listen to those persistent rumors and urban myths that […]

Psst!  Wanna write a scorcher for the booming YA market?
OK, here’s the secret: The first thing you need to do is create an authentic, quirky, true-to-life voice.
The story and characterizations in Young Adult fiction are crucial too, of course, but the most important element is that distinctive narrative personality.
The strongest and most powerful voice is […]

I can’t help smiling when I read a good hook.  When it happens, it’s a rush, a little like falling in love.
The hook — those critical initial sentences of a query letter from an author, or the opening of the book proposal itself — are the first and most important words that agents and acquiring […]

“Writing a memoir is an act of courage. Be brave. It means exposing who you really are, which is hard to do, even to yourself.”
That advice comes from a conversation I had recently with Linda Joy Myers, Ph.D., President of the National Association of Memoir Writers. She’s the author of a new book, The Power […]

“Everybody’s looking for the next big thing — a work of great literary fiction from an unknown writer who’s never been published.”
That’s according to Jay Schaefer, an editor-at-large at Workman Publishers in New York City and its subsidiary, Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
Schaefer, a publishing veteran best known […]

Q: I haven’t had any luck finding a publisher for my book. What’s the secret to getting in the door?
A: Here’s my advice on how you can beat the odds and overcome the biggest reasons most books get rejected.
But first, I’d like to give you an idea of what it’s like behind the scenes at […]

Short story collections are big business. Thousands of anthologies are in print with many more published each year. A quick look at Amazon shows 29,000 story collections listed. Of those, more than 3,500 are anthologies of stories by a single author.
That may surprise some short story writers, including those who’ve asked me if they have […]

Q : Everyone says I need to wrap up my manuscript and stop writing already. But I’m really stuck.  Any advice?
A : This isn’t unusual. You may have taken a wrong turn early in the story as a result of poor planning. Or you may have painted yourself into a corner. […]

Welcome to the final round in our series of book proposal critiques. It’s an audiocast, so to get started, just click the play button below.
The six book proposals
•The first proposal we’ll be looking at today is for a sci-fi/fantasy novel that takes place in a South American jungle.  The hero is a hack novelist, whose […]

In the increasingly difficult competition to get published, writers know they must put their best foot forward by sending out only a professional, polished, and persuasive new proposal or manuscript to any prospective literary agent or publisher.
Many authors have come to understand the value of objective help before taking the plunge, and I don’t mean […]

If you want to succeed as a writer you have to realize you’re in the book business, with all its strange ways of doing things.
Publishing is still a relationship business and you need to know the players, the powers that be, who’s making what things happen.
Publishers Marketplace draws back the curtains and reveals the nuts […]

Q:  I’ve heard that New York publishers will only accept books written from a third-person limited POV and no head hopping allowed.
Does this mean I have to rewrite my manuscript to conform to these rules?
A:  No! Stop. Don’t succumb to this kind of advice.
These rumors can start as the result of an editor or agent […]

An author friend of mine couldn’t figure out why he was having so much trouble selling his new book.  He had a respectable list of published books to his name, a regular schedule of speeches and workshops, and a solid platform in print and broadcast media.
So on a hunch, I looked him up on Nielsen […]

Welcome to round two in our series of book proposal critiques. It’s an audiocast, so to get started, just click the play button below.
Three submissions: A novel, a biography and an inspirational self-help book
The first proposal we’ll be looking at today is for an adventure novel with an environmental mission.  The story is set in […]

Agents, editors, and publishers receive queries every day from professors and other academics who say they have a great idea for a trade book based on their research, thesis, journal article or latest discoveries from the lab or clinic.
Sharp editors also scour the daily press for the latest breaking news about scientific discoveries and newly […]

Click on the audio play tab below to listen to the first in our series for writers called My Proposal Critiques.  For those who are visiting here for the first time, we recently put out a call for book proposal submissions with an offer to critique them here on The Book Deal.
Behind-the-scenes snapshot
We wanted to […]

Every writer needs to know how to write a good book proposal that will stand out and capture the attention of potential agents and publishers.
Consequently, when I appear at writers conferences and seminars, book proposals are often on the agenda.  I frequently offer my critiques of selected book proposals submitted in advance — in remarks […]

Every day legions of writers and wannabes trek over to literary agent Nathan Bransford’s blog for a dose of some of the smartest, most honest, entertaining and generous advice on the book business I’ve seen online.
Leading the charge
Bransford, 28, an agent since 2005 with the venerable Curtis Brown Ltd with offices in San Francisco and […]

Self-confidence is the single most essential ingredient an author needs to succeed, since good writing is never that quick or easy.
To keep at it requires energy, discipline, and a sense of humor.
The most accomplished and productive writers I work with are able to sustain a level of assurance and optimism. And that’s even when they’re  […]

Q : I submitted my manuscript to an agent and she said the plot was confusing and needed a lot of work. I was crushed!  What should I do?
A : Telling a good story is the writer’s most important task. But constructing a great plot with so many ideas, characters and actions careening […]