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 a … [Read more...]
The blog for writers
The Book Deal
Why book publishers love short stories
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, … [Read more...]
Ask the editor: Help! I can’t seem to finish my book
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. Or you could be suffering from … [Read more...]
Proposal critiques: 3 novels, a biography, a children’s book and an academic treatise
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 … [Read more...]
Why a video will help sell your book
A shopper who watches a video about a product is more likely to buy it. That's why publishers and video producers are rushing to collaborate on low-cost video book trailers. Publicists and marketing professionals believe these videos are the best new way to create the kind of buzz that attracts … [Read more...]
Choosing a freelance editor: What you need to know
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 … [Read more...]
Writers: Why you need to join Publishers Marketplace
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 … [Read more...]
Ask the editor: Do publishers have rules about POV?
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 … [Read more...]
Author alert! What you don’t know about BookScan can hurt you
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 … [Read more...]
Let’s hear it for neighborhood bookstores: Here’s mine
We all know it's cheaper to buy books online or at the big box national discount chains. I could have saved $12.10 the other day if I had gone on Amazon or over to Barnes & Noble. But if we're lucky enough to have a local bookstore nearby we ought to do what we can to help keep it alive, right? … [Read more...]
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