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Why Your Agent May Slow You Down

March 14, 2013 in Book Proposals, Career, Tamela with 30 Comments

by Tamela Hancock Murray

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Your agent may slow you down.

And this is good!

And, why is that?

I’ve been a writer myself, so I understand the frustration you must be feeling as you read my words. Who wants to slow down? Believe me, when I was waiting for my first book to be published, I only half-joked that it would be released posthumously. So I understand that writers don’t want to wait another ten minutes to see their books published. But those ten minutes — or more — are worth the wait.

Craft takes time. That’s why I tell my clients, “Take the time you need. Submit when, and only when, you are ready.”

Sometimes writers feel a sense of an artificial deadline. Perhaps an editor has put out a call for a certain type of book. Or a key editor will be judging a contest. Or a promising conference meeting has just occurred. So let’s hurry!

No, let’s not hurry.

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A Great Hook!

February 28, 2013 in Book Proposals, Creativity, Marketing, Tamela with 22 Comments

by Tamela Hancock Murray

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I’m at the Florida Christian Writers Conference today, so while I’m away, you can have fun!

When reviewing proposals, I have noticed one particular element can present a challenge. That element is the hook.

What does the hook do?

Just as its name suggests, the hook lures the editor to keep reading. Challenge is, the hook must be succinct. One sentence is ideal. For example:

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When Your Proposal Doesn’t Sell

February 11, 2013 in Agency, Book Proposals, Business, Publishing, Steve with 15 Comments

by Steve Laube

Unhappy young business man looking away

It happens. Despite all efforts and good intentions not every proposal we shop will end up being contracted by a major publisher. Of course our agency tries our best to keep that from happening. We carefully choose which projects and authors we represent. And our success rate is extremely high.

But that success rate is not 100%.

Here are a few examples of projects that I represented in past years that did not sell to a major publisher.

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Proper Care and Feeding of …You!

December 12, 2012 in Book Proposals, Craft, Karen, Writing with 25 Comments

by Karen Ball

Thanks so much for all your thoughtful responses last week. I gained a great deal from reading and pondering them. This week, I’d like to take a look from the other side of the desk. As an author myself, I know how hard the writing gig is. And I know a LOT of authors, published and not, who have hit speed-bumps -or even felt like the Editor/Publisher/Agent semi just flattened them in the middle of the publishing highway. As hard as agents’/editors’ jobs may be, the author’s job is pretty tough too. You spend months and years working on your craft, only to have everyone tell you how to do it better. And then there are the lovely people who keep asking when you’re going to get a real job, or would you mind baby-sitting today since you don’t have a job, or any of a multitude of other ignorant comments that nibble at us like rabid ducks as we struggle to be creative.

Sadly, the criticism and ignorance doesn’t end when you get published. Just read some of the reviews on Amazon, Christianbook.com, or Barnes&Noble. Or ask an author to share his or her reader letters with you. I know one group of writers that gets together once a year and gives out a prize for the worst review/reader letter. Some of them are, to say the least, brutal. Let’s face it, when your words are on the printed page, you can pretty much know someone isn’t going to like what you said or how you said it. And the ol’ Internet has made it waaaay too easy for folks to share their blistering thoughts.

No, writing isn’t easy. Not by a long shot.

So here’s what I’d like to do.

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Agents and Proposals: What to Expect

November 28, 2012 in Agency, Book Proposals, Business, Karen, Writing with 12 Comments

by Karen Ball

Last week I left you with a question: How do editors/agents get through all the proposals they receive. For me, as an editor and now as an agent, the answer was to hire someone to be my first-pass reader. In my case, this person is someone I’ve worked with now for over fifteen years. She knows me and my tastes well, and, as an avid reader and a skilled writer herself, she knows quality writing. She reviews my proposals and, based on a list of criteria I’ve given her, determines if said proposals are at a level that I should review them.

Here’s a hard truth about proposals: roughly 95% of the proposals my first-pass reader reviews, she rejects. And that percentage is fairly common for many editors and agents. When my reader determines the manuscript isn’t ready for me to review, she sends the writers something very similar to the noncommittal response most writers dislike. Honestly, I’m not that crazy about it when I receive it from editors! But I understand and accept it, because I know it isn’t the editors’ jobs to to critique the proposals I—or others, be they agents or writers–send them. Just as it isn’t my reader’s job to do so. What she’s supposed to do is determine whether or not the proposals meet my clear criteria.

So what, you ask, are my criteria?

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Why Don’t Agents/Editors Give You More Guidance?

November 21, 2012 in Book Proposals, Business, Karen with 12 Comments

Proposals are hard work. C’mon, be honest. All the research and writing and preparation that goes into them? Admit it, that sometimes feels like you’re being punished for wanting to write a book. And then, when you’ve poured your heart and time and effort into making that dreaded proposal as perfect as you can, what happens? You send it to the agent or editor, and wait.

And wait. And wait. And wait.

And…well, you get the idea.

Then, FINALLY, a reply wings its way to you:

“Thank you for your submission, but it’s been determined your project, Field Dressing a Beaver in 30 Seconds, doesn’t meet our needs. Best wishes as you seek to serve God in your writing.”

What? That’s it? That’s all you get? No, “here’s why it doesn’t meet our needs,” or “this is what you need to fix to make this proposal stronger”? C’mon! Why can’t these people just give writers a little help?

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Five Reasons Why You May Never Get Published

November 5, 2012 in Agency, Book Proposals, Business, Craft, Steve, Writing with 23 Comments

by Steve Laube

 

There are many factors that go into the acquisition, development, and sale of a new book. But the majority of ideas never get to that point. I thought it might be helpful to review some of the most common issues we’ve run into.

1. You Won’t Do the Work
Writing a novel, a non-fiction work, or even a short article isn’t a casual enterprise. It takes hard work to do it well. Malcolm Gladwell, in his book Outliers, has made popular the notion that it takes 10,000 hours of work before finding success. While it isn’t an exact formula there is truth to this assertion. Do the math.

If you work at your writing craft for 2o hours a week for 50 weeks it will equal one thousand (1,000) hours x 10 and the calculation reveals nearly ten years of hard work to feel like you have a chance.

Unfortunately we run into writers who have dashed off something during a lunch break and think it is worth millions.

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Choosing and Courting Your First Choice Agent

November 1, 2012 in Agency, Book Proposals, Business, Tamela with 34 Comments

by Tamela Hancock Murray

You’ve done your homework, including:

  • visiting agency web sites
  • talking to author friends about their agents
  • interacting casually with agents on social media
  • reading agents’ blogs
  • attending writers conferences as your time and budget allow

This is part of the process in helping you choose the agent you most feel you want to work with.

When deciding, think about:

  • agency’s reputation
  • agent’s reputation
  • authors the agent represents (demonstrated success with work similar to yours)
  • personality (this is where social media helps)

Reputable agents welcome being researched because we stand on our record. Of course, every agent and agency who has been in business more than a day and a half has a few detractors. Most of the time, detractors are made either because the client and agent were a mismatch from the start and/or because of an unhappy situation complicated by misunderstanding. Good agents conduct themselves in an ethical manner and your research should reveal that the overarching agreement in the writing community is that their clients are well served.

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This Offer Does Not Expire

October 4, 2012 in Book Proposals, Conferences, Publishing, Tamela with 30 Comments

by Tamela Hancock Murray

 

During a conference many authors ask , “How long do I have to submit my manuscript to you?” In other words, “Is there a time limit?”

The simple answer is, “The offer to submit to me does not expire.”

Why? Because I like to find new authors and develop, nurture, and encourage their work. My goal is to create a career for that writer. This philosophy is one of the reasons we are so choosey as an agency. We invest in an author to land that first deal, with an eye to winning future contracts.

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Covering the Cover Letter

August 30, 2012 in Book Proposals, Business, Tamela with 15 Comments

by Tamela Hancock Murray

This is the last installment of my proposal series. You may think it strange to write about the cover letter last, but usually, it’s the last part of the proposal an author writes. Our own Steve Laube has already written about the cover letter here.

His tips are so wonderful that I asked him if I should even attempt this post, but he encouraged me to write from my perspective. So here are key points I like to see in a cover letter:

Fiction:

1.) Title and genre of book: I can immediately discount horror and erotica. Saves everyone time.

2.) Target market and word count: While part of an agent’s job is to identify markets for your work, you still should do enough research to understand where your book might fit. A 250,000 word novel aimed at Love Inspired Historical shows you have no idea about today’s CBA marketplace.

3.) Story summary highlighting primary conflict. For example: “Set in Chicago in 1905, Party Time is the story of a political party boss who must fight his attraction to a suffragette.”

This is enough to tell me that I’d have to hesitate since the title is questionable for CBA and for the Christian market, a Chicago party boss is not a sympathetic hero.

4.) Past Sales: But, if you mention that your last CBA romance novel sold over 100,000 copies, I’d ask to see Party Time anyway. Those sales tell me you may possess enough talent to make the party boss the most dashing romantic hero ever.

On the other hand, if you are a new author, it’s fine not to belabor the point. I will figure this out since you didn’t mention sales history. (And this early in your career, I recommend writing about the type of heroine and hero everyone agrees deserve true romance).

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