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Home » Archives for Bob Hostetler » Page 25

Bob Hostetler

It’s Not What You Know; It’s Who You Know

By Bob Hostetleron March 7, 2018
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It is usually said by someone who is not progressing as quickly as they would like in their career. It applies to writing for publication as much—or more so—as in other endeavors. You’ve heard it often: “It’s not what you know, it’s who you know.”

It may sound cynical. It may be discouraging. You may not want to believe it. But it’s true.

To some, of course, that means everyone else gets the breaks. Chelsea Clinton’s books (yes, she has published more than one) may be works of genius, but everyone knows she wouldn’t have stood a chance if her name were Chelsea Gunderschmutz. The same goes for Jenna Bush Hager and Barbara Pierce Bush, the daughters and granddaughters of former presidents who wrote a book about, well, being sisters.

So those of us who aspire to and work at being writers and authors but don’t know anyone powerful or famous should just give up, right?

Wrong.

The cynic can feel perfectly justified in saying, “It’s not what you know, it’s who you know.”

But so can the optimist. Because the same general sentiment can be expressed like this: “Christian publishing, like the rest of life, is all about relationships.”

That is one of the many reasons I attend as many writers’ conferences as I can, and why I encourage writers, both aspiring and accomplished, to do so. There, an aspiring writer will meet other aspiring writers, as well as authors, agents, and editors—and many of those will become friends. Some will become close friends, and lifelong friends. And some of those people may someday teach, inspire, and even open doors that you never would have imagined opening to you.

Back when the dinosaurs were still dying out, I was assigned a roommate at a writers’ conference. Dennis and I hit it off immediately, and stayed up talking words, books, and movies (well, him mostly) until 3 a.m. We’ve been fast friends ever since, and he still does most of the talking. But over the years he has also introduced me to many other friends and invited me repeatedly to teach courses in his professional writing program.

Many years ago, I met an editor named Steve at a writers’ conference. We became friends (I was willing to overlook his flaws). He later became an agent, and still later became my agent. And still later, I became an agent in his literary agency.

A few years ago, I was renewing fellowship with my friends Michelle and Edie at a writer’s conference when one or both of them told me of an online job opening for a blogger. They recommended me to the editor (I think), and I got the job. A paying job. For actual money.

So go ahead. Tut-tut and say, “It’s not what you know, it’s who you know,” if you like. But writers, agents, editors, and publishers happen to like working with people they know, trust, and like—which is why “Christian publishing, like the rest of life, is all about relationships.”

 

 

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Category: Book Business, Career, ConferencesTag: Book Business, Career, The Writing Life

Should I Blog My Book?

By Bob Hostetleron February 28, 2018
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Everyone has heard of bloggers who made it big with a book deal, right? Why shouldn’t the next one be you? I can think of a few reasons. A blog is not a book I know, it seems obvious (but I miss the Obvious Station often enough that I try to at least check there before boarding the Train of Thought). To choose just one example of the difference: blog posts are written for online reading, and tend …

Read moreShould I Blog My Book?
Category: Book Proposals, Career, Get Published, The Writing LifeTag: Blog, blog posts, Get Published, publishing

7 Good Reasons to Self-Publish

By Bob Hostetleron February 21, 2018
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I have mentioned before on this site (here and, most recently, here) that aspiring writers often shoot their publishing futures in the foot, so to speak, by self-publishing a book (or books). I won’t repeat myself again (see what I did there?). Instead, I will talk briefly about the good reasons to self-publish. There are many bad reasons to do so, of course (because no agents or editors seem to …

Read more7 Good Reasons to Self-Publish
Category: Indie, Self-Publishing, The Publishing Life, The Writing LifeTag: Indie, Self-Publishing, The Publishing Life

How NOT to Get an Agent

By Bob Hostetleron February 14, 2018
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It’s a classic writer’s conference anecdote—even funnier because it is true. It didn’t happen to me, but to a friend of mine, who was not only followed into the restroom at a writer’s conference by an avid aspiring writer but was also slipped a book proposal. While in a stall. Free reading material, don’t you know. That’s no way to pitch a book or get an agent. And, though I don’t have nearly the …

Read moreHow NOT to Get an Agent
Category: Agents, Book Proposals, Get PublishedTag: Agents, book proposals, Get Published

The Writer’s Attitude

By Bob Hostetleron February 7, 2018
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Winston Churchill has been credited with the saying, “Attitude is a little thing that makes a big difference.” That may be nowhere truer than in publishing, and certainly in Christian publishing. The right attitude can make or break a writer. And the right attitude can take a fair writer to places that a gifted writer with a bad attitude can never go. What kinds of attitudes should a writer have? …

Read moreThe Writer’s Attitude
Category: The Writing LifeTag: Attitude, The Writing Life

A Writer’s Best Friend

By Bob Hostetleron January 31, 2018
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If I asked you what you considered to be a writer’s best friend, what would you say? Please don’t say “Wikipedia.” My clients would probably reply, “Bob Hostetler.” But that can’t be everyone’s answer. You might consider “a fine fountain pen” or “a blank page in a brand new journal” to be your best friend as a writer. Maybe the thesaurus is your best friend (ally, associate, buddy, companion, …

Read moreA Writer’s Best Friend
Category: Craft, Grammar, The Writing Life, Writing CraftTag: Editing, Grammar, Writing Craft

Seven Tips for Your Next Writers’ Conference

By Bob Hostetleron January 24, 2018
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I attended my first writers’ conference in 1989. Yes, I am that old. I was a magazine editor at the time, and knew absolutely nothing about writers’ conferences. Since then, however, I have served on faculty more than a hundred times, and have learned a thing or two about writers’ conferences, knowledge that I am happy to impart—for the right price. Today, since we are approaching the height of …

Read moreSeven Tips for Your Next Writers’ Conference
Category: Conferences, Get PublishedTag: Get Published, writers conferences

Fix These 16 Potholes on Grammar Street

By Bob Hostetleron January 17, 2018
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Don’t worry. I hated grade school grammar as much as the next guy. Still, as a magazine editor and, later, as a freelance book editor and (now) literary agent, I have come across far too many grammatical and usage mistakes in writing submitted to me. Not all of us can be Strunk or White (though every writer should own their valuable book, The Elements of Style). But we can profit from a little …

Read moreFix These 16 Potholes on Grammar Street
Category: Book Proposals, Craft, Writing CraftTag: Grammar, Writing Craft

Three Things I’ve Learned as an Agent

By Bob Hostetleron January 10, 2018
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Just over six months ago, I became a literary agent with the Steve Laube Agency. Hoo boy. It has been some ride.  Lots o’ fun, lots o’ work, and lots o’ learning. So I thought I’d take a few minutes (it’s all I have before the boss calls and starts yelling at me again) to reflect on what I’ve learned in that short period of time. It’s not an easy task, considering I already knew pretty much …

Read moreThree Things I’ve Learned as an Agent
Category: Agency, Agents, Book Business, Indie, Self-Publishing, The Publishing Life, The Writing LifeTag: Agency, Agents

A Writer’s Magnificat

By Bob Hostetleron December 20, 2017
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How often do you thank God for the words you write? The ideas you’ve had? The things you’ve published? There is no better time to do so than the Christmas season, and the end of a year and beginning of a new year. And there may be no better way to do so than adapting the Magnificat as your prayer. The what? The Magnificat is a name given to the song of Mary after her cousin Elizabeth greeted her …

Read moreA Writer’s Magnificat
Category: The Writing Life, TheologyTag: Gratitude, The Writing Life, Theology
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