The Cart Before the Horse by Jim Hart

After an author’s book is just released, literary agents are often asked “what can I do now to promote my book?” The honest (and cruel) answer is “you probably should have thought about that a year or two ago.”  

And yes, it may seem like a classic ‘cart-before-the-horse ‘scenario.

There are two great advantages about getting your marketing plan ramped up and in place before your book is even picked up by a publisher.

1) If your marketing plan in your proposal is strong, and you’ve listed not just what you’d like to do, but what you’ve actually done and know that you will be able to do, then the acquiring editor who is looking at your proposal will have a greater reason to continue reviewing your proposal. We have been told numerous times that an editor often goes straight to the marketing section of the proposal before even reading the samples. That’s how important this is. And to be honest, the strength of a proposal’s marketing section carries a lot of weight in my own decision process when considering a potential client.

2) When your book is finally published you don’t have to wake up in a cold sweat wondering how you’re going to promote your book. (You’ll have plenty of other reasons to wake up in the middle of the night!)

So though it sounds backwards, you should begin setting up your marketing campaign before your book and proposal are even finished. 

So where to start?

Be active, or more active, on social media. Which ones? There are many opinions on which are the best. I’ve found that as soon as Facebook is identified as the best social media platform to market your book, then it’s announced that now Pinterest is where you need to focus. Or Twitter, or Instagram. My current opinion is pick two and dominate them before moving on to other sites.

Setting up a professional looking web page is a great investment, in time, money or both. I favor good old fashioned blogging from a web page. Why? First, because it forces you write in a concise manner. 

Second, a great blog post will let your readers into your head and your life. It’s a direct link to where you are in the moment. The secret here is to connect and engage your readers. Your blog posts should elicit comments and begin a conversation. 

Third, a blog is where you can collect e-mail addresses from readers who will subscribe to your blog. Offer something in return for their e-mail address. Do you have a short story lying around that you don’t know what do to with? Format it into an e-book or a very nice PDF and offer it free. Or maybe write a week’s worth of solid devotions and offer that. 

Don’t forget that an audio-visual connection can be powerful and effective. YouTube channels are easy to set up. Podcasts are great as well. Periscope is a fun new app with Twitter that you should check out.

And then take it a step further, and start to make connections in person with local bookstores, coffeehouses, churches, libraries and book clubs. These are great places to hold an event like a book signing, a release party, or an author talk. Try to have as many opportunities in place as possible, and then list them, by name and location, in the marketing section of your proposal. 

Because there are so many options available, that’s why it’s time to start NOW to market your book.

So hitch up that horse right in front of your cart. You might get there faster.

Can You Say Yes to These Questions? by Andy Scheer

They’re what publishers will ask.

Would you like a large publisher to say yes to your book proposal?

To increase the likelihood, make sure you can say yes to most of these diagnostic questions, recently provided by an acquisitions editor for a larger Christian publishing house:

“I could love the writing, but if the author platform doesn’t look promising, I couldn’t take it to our publishing committee. We’re using this list with all agents and non-represented authors now.

• What is the author’s sales history? (If the author has been previously published, we need to know houses and numbers and years of publication, as well as the sales numbers being specifically broken out with hard goods to indicate whether trade or mass, and with e-books, is any of the total promotionally priced or free?)

• Does the author have a website?

• Does the author blog? How often?

• Does the author regularly guest blog? Where? How often?

• Does the author have a newsletter? How often does it come out?

• What are the author’s numbers for social media? (Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram)

• Is there anything else we should know about what the author does to raise his or her discoverability quotient?

• Are there any known names who would be willing to promote the author’s work through endorsements, recommendations, reviews, etc.?"

As you prepare your next proposal, or consider strengthening your platform, these are all questions you can’t afford to ignore. For your sake, and for all the audience you’d like to reach, I hope you can say yes to most--and cite specific numbers.

Ask the Agent by Jim Hart

A while back one of my clients sent me some interview questions for her blog. Here is a portion of that exchange. I thought they could be helpful if you’re either looking for a literary agent, or just wondering what your agent does all day! 

Q: You get lots of emails, not just queries but from current clients, editors, etc... What tips or advice do you have for writers regarding queries?

A: Keep it brief and be professional. Don’t try to be all mysterious and cute (unless you’re a humor writer).  I want to see the title, genre and word count of your book. And then a brief synopsis of two, or three, paragraphs. Quickly tell me about yourself. Is this your first published book? Why did you write this book? Tell me something about your author platform.

If the book you are pitching has been previously self-published PLEASE indicate that first. In most cases a publisher will not be interested in a previously self-published book. It’s frustrating to find out on my own that the book being pitched has already been self-published and has been available on Amazon.

Q: What catches your eye?

A: Quick details. Author credentials. A plot or subject that is either somewhat original, or is handled or presented in a unique way.

Q: Is longer or shorter better?

A: I like a shorter e-mail. Just hit me with the details: what’s the book? Who are you? Any publishing history?

Q:What are some things you DON'T want to see in a query?

A: Poor writing. Desperation. I would prefer that the author does not copy and paste chapters from their book into the e-mail.

Q: What are you looking for in a proposal?

A: Honesty. I look for some sort of indication that the writer has good knowledge of the publishing industry. I need a good bio with only pertinent information. I look for a marketing plan that spells out what the author will do and has done, not just what they plan to do. Don’t plan on making a website for your book. You should already have one in place before sending proposals. I look strongly at the comparable/competitive titles section, so take the time to do research.

Q: You've requested a full manuscript. On the author side of things, it's a lot of waiting and nail biting and checking emails every five minutes. But what happens on the agent side of things?

A: I’m trying to find extended periods of time where I can read relatively uninterrupted. I like to try to get six to ten chapters reviewed in one sitting. Usually by that time I’ll know if I need to, or want to, continue. If the manuscript is really compelling I read it in one sitting.

I’ve read a manuscript that I loved while on vacation. Most of the time I also take notes – what I liked or did not like, what I thought worked well and what did not.

Q: Why can it take weeks to get back to authors on partials/ fulls?

A: Every day is a new adventure and I never know what is going to demand my attention at the moment. We could get contract offers from publishers that need immediate attention. There may be phone calls from clients and editors. These are some of the things that I do in the time that I’m reviewing a proposal or a manuscript:

• ·         I’m also going through my contacts, doing some research on possible publishers and taking notes in order to get an idea if a particular manuscript has a decent chance at getting picked up by a publisher.

• ·         I’m looking at their web page / blog / Facebook / twitter pages

• ·         I’m looking them up on Amazon to see any publishing history

Q: When is appropriate for an author to follow up on a MS request?

A: Six weeks

Q:  So you love the MS, and the author and you really seem to click...how do you decide to make that final step and offer representation? And, in the end, what makes you decide on sending a rejection?

A: As soon as I am convinced that:

1) The writing is excellent and there is little or minimal work to be done on the manuscript.

2) I have identified a suitable number of editors to send the proposal to

3) I have a clear understanding of the author’s expectations and their writing goals for the future.

4) I get the sense that the author will be professional and pleasant to work with, and they understand that we will need to work as a team.

And that would be same criteria when I make the decision to not represent an author.

Q: What do agents do all day?

A: Drink coffee and use eye-drops! I try to send proposals to editors every day. Sometimes dozens will be sent in one day. We always have multiple e-mail conversations going not only with clients, but with editors. In addition to reviewing proposals and manuscripts I am reading industry newsletters, updating my contacts, researching publishers, trying to stay abreast of industry changes.

Q: Any other tips or advice or insider info?

A: Show the agent, through your query and proposal, that you are a hard worker. Do your research before sending a query or proposal to an agent. Don’t send a query until you have a great proposal complete and ready to send when it’s requested. I personally don’t mind when the proposal is attached to the query. That saves me time, and it’s one lest e-mail to keep track of.

And be patient!

Book Proposal Tip: Competing Titles, by Jim Hart

When reading through the competitive analysis, or comparable titles section of a proposal, it’s interesting to read something like "there is nothing else out there like my book".

What a statement like that communicates is:

1) The book may be so unique that there isn’t an audience for it, or enough of an audience. (The author is too weird.)

2)  The author was not motivated enough to do their homework. (The author is too lazy.)

But this is one part of your proposal that deserves to be as strong as the other sections. It’s important to remember that there is always competition for your book.

Here are some tips, for both fiction and non-fiction proposals, when assembling your comparable book list:

1) Find, and list, similar comparable books from the past five years. Although it’s possible that a classic title may be a good comparable, such as something by C.S. Lewis or Tolkien. Finding suitable titles may be as easy as looking at Amazon, or Good Reads. (Although it’s much more fun to actually go to a bookstore or library.) List the title, author, year of publication and the publisher.

2) Avoid books that have not sold well, or have been self-published (unless that self-published book sold exceptionally well).  You want to show that there is a large and vast audience for the type of book that you have written.

3) Give a one or two sentence synopsis on the competing work. Don’t assume that the person reviewing your proposal has deep, intimate knowledge of each book that you’re listing. As a reminder, you don’t necessarily want to list a book, or at the least, more than one book, that is somewhat obscure.

4) Briefly highlight how your book is similar. Don’t be afraid of doing this. Remember, if these books are popular, then it’s alright to show how yours aligns similarly.

4) Indicate how your book differs. This is where you can now state how, and in what ways, your book is different and superior. Do you cover new material? Have you approached the subject from a different point of view? How are your characters unique?

By the time the reviewer has finished reading this section of your proposal you want them to be thinking that there is a sizable potential audience. And if not a large audience, then at least a fiercely loyal audience to your particular genre. The goal here is to show that there is a market for your book.

Here is one other thing to think about when doing your research: One of my clients was finding it challenging to find a number of comparable titles for her proposal. I suggested a certain movie, yet to be released, as a comparable, and encouraged her to use it. My reasoning is that there are more than just books competing for a reader’s attention (and spending money). And this will also show that the subject matter of her book is current.

There is content everywhere, especially on-line. With that in mind, at the end of your competitive analysis, or possibly in your marketing section, you may want to list a popular blog, a pod-cast, or even a You Tube channel. But don't forget that it's still a book proposal, and other books will remain your largest competition.

Every section of your proposal is important and you don’t want there to be any noticeable weak links.

The Weakest Link by Jim Hart

I recently read this in a proposal’s marketing section: “Marketing any book, particularly an author’s first writing, is where I believe an agent should play the most important part in publishing and earning their fee. Therefore, I expect that this area will be heavily focused on by the agent. This area needs to analyzed and discussed in greater detail.”

What this particular writer failed to recognize is that their marketing strategy should have already been analyzed, prepared and included in the proposal that was in my hands.

While the entire proposal should be strong, this is one section that should not be the weakest link, and the responsibility to create a realistic marketing plan begins with the author. A literary agent will certainly jump in with thoughts that will strengthen any section of a proposal.

Last week I was looking at a message board and found this statement on a thread that someone had posted from a smaller publisher’s web page: This means that much of the promotion and marketing for your book will be on your shoulders. Therefore, we ask authors to present a marketing plan for each book we accept. We will support your efforts as much as we can, but it'll be a while before we can cover a world tour. In reply one person posted: “I don't like when publishers ask authors to create the marketing plans. That's the publisher's job.”

This is another example of not clearly understanding the author’s role in creating a credible marketing strategy. The industry continues to experience change and competition for a shrinking amount of publishing slots is extremely fierce. Publishers are keenly interested in the details of a writer’s marketing strategy.

A weak marketing section will contain phrases like “I plan to create a web page for my book” or “I plan on contacting organizations that will host book signings”.

A strong marketing plan will contain phrases like “I currently have a web page for this book” (and a link is supplied) or “I have contacted, and have commitments from, these books stores, book clubs, churches, etc. (and provide a list of actual places). If possible, also note the anticipated size of the audience at each event.

Overall, it’s important to communicate what you now have in place, and what you are certain that you will be able to accomplish, not just what you hope to do.

While it would be great to include a ridiculously large number of social media statistics in your proposal, the reality is that not everyone has thousands of Facebook friends, or thousands upon thousands of Twitter followers. What can get attention, however, would be statistics like:

·         54% of my posts are re-tweeted

·         82% of my blog posts are commented on

·         39% of my subscribers leave a comment

As you become better at engaging your current followers and subscribers, there’s a good chance that you’ll see your social media numbers grow. Engaged social media readers are also more apt to attend a book signing, or other speaking engagements.

In a recent interview Zondervan executive editor Carolyn McCready said “The platform issue is very important, but it doesn’t have to mean that you are the pastor of a large church or a speaker for major women’s conferences. You do have to show that you are working hard to gain a following and that you have made progress in that arena. Speaking, blogging, writing for magazines and newspapers, leading workshops on your topic—all can be really important to a publisher. Then give us a marketable topic, and the reasons that it is—do your research!”  (link-to-her-interview)

One thing I picked up when I was learning to write proposals for a non-profit organization is that people give money to other people, rather than to an organization.  It’s important to have potential donors connect with you on a personal level if you wanted them to support your organization. You can’t discount the power of connecting with others.

But you have you to give people a reason to connect, and that’s through the strength of the content that you offer. Next Friday we’ll discuss some ideas on how to connect and engage on social media.

How have you been successful with connecting with, and engaging your readers?