Pitch

What Makes You Click?

By Steve Laubeon April 29, 2019

Out of curiosity, I researched recent Internet usage statistics. The following were found at The Statistics Portal (I’m assuming these are statistics for North American usage only):

Internet Usage Statistics PER MINUTE in June 2018

Forecast requests received by The Weather Channel	18,055,555
Text messages sent	12,986,111
Videos watched by YouTube users	4,333,560
Google searches conducted	3,788,140
Gigabytes of internet traffic generated by Americans	3,138,420
Snaps shared by Snapchat users	2,083,333
Songs streamed on Spotify	750,000
Tweets sent by Twitter users	473,400
Calls made by Skype users	176,220

Twenty-one years ago I wrote a chapter for a writing book on how to use the Internet for research. I reread that article recently–and laughed. Back then, Google didn’t even exist (founded in September 1998, after the book was published), much less Wikipedia (where the jury is still out if it is a reliable source for verifiable facts).

We swim in a sea of data. So how do you discern what to read or view? In other words, what makes you click? Feel free to discuss in the comments below.

Take that same mindset and apply it to your next book idea or article. What would make the consumer buy or click it, especially when faced with a plethora of competing options? Can your idea, your novel, your insight withstand competitive scrutiny? Obscurity equals no audience. That is why publishers are pushing authors to make their platforms bigger before they will publish them.

Write for Narcissists

By Bob Hostetleron March 27, 2019

Every reader is a narcissist. Hold on, there. Don’t get all mad and sassy yet. Let me explain I often tell developing writers, “No one reads about other people; we read only about ourselves.” Go ahead and quote me, just be sure to give me credit and send me the royalties it produces. Seriously, I think it’s true. For example, I read several memoirs every year. And many of them are about writers …

Category: Book Proposals, Craft, Creativity, Get Published, Marketing, Pitch, Pitching, The Writing Life

3 Things Never to Say to Agents and Editors

By Bob Hostetleron February 20, 2019

Believe it or not, agents and editors are regular people. Some more regular than others, of course; but most of us are pretty easy to approach, whether via mail or email, at writers conferences, at church, or on the street—preferably without a visible weapon. But there are some things you should never say to an agent or an editor. Not in conversation. Not in a query or one-sheet. Not in a cover …

Category: Agents, Book Proposals, Conferences, Pitch, Pitching

Resist the Urge to Explain Your Title

By Steve Laubeon February 11, 2019

For fiction writers, there is an important self-editing technique called RUE (Resist the Urge to Explain). The problem occurs when an author overwrites a scene and explains every thought, movement, etc., or fails to allow the reader to fill in the details, thereby ruining the reading experience. The concept is described extremely well in Browne & King’s Self-Editing for Fiction Writers. …

Category: Book Proposals, Pitch, Pitching, The Writing Life

Lessons Learned As a Literary Agent

By Dan Balowon October 23, 2018

Dan is leaving the agency at the end of this month to focus his attention on the work of Gilead Publishing, the company he started in 2016. Here are some parting thoughts. _____ I’ve been a literary agent for about 2,000 of the 13,000 total days spent working with and for book publishers over the last thirty-five years. It’s been a great experience, for sure; but as I look back at the thousands of …

Category: Agents, Book Business, Branding, Career, Conferences, Craft, Creativity, Encouragement, Inspiration, Marketing, Personal, Pitch, Platform, Self-Publishing, Social Media, The Publishing Life, The Writing Life, Writing Craft

Don’t Write Your Bio, Write a “Why Me?”

By Bob Hostetleron August 8, 2018

Once upon a time, in a land not so far away, writers who were pitching their articles or books to editors and agents included in the query or proposal a “bio” paragraph. These writers would include such things as their education, previous publishing credits, and whatever other claims to fame they could cite. Some still do that, but for many years now my recommendation has been not to write a “bio” …

Category: Book Proposals, Branding, Marketing, Pitch, PitchingTag: Author Bio, book proposal, Pitching

The Ultimate Sound Bite

By Steve Laubeon July 16, 2018

Can you boil the essence of your novel or non-fiction book idea into twenty-five words or less?

This is one of the keys to creating a marketing hook that makes your idea sellable in today's crowded market.

You have less than a minute to make that hook work.

It is also called creating the "elevator pitch" or the "Hollywood pitch." The goal is get the marketing department to exclaim, "We …

Category: Book Proposals, Marketing, Pitch, Platform, Writing CraftTag: book proposal, Marketing, pitch, Pitching, Proposals, Rejection

Create Magic with Words

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon July 12, 2018

Years ago, I took my five-year-old daughter to Toys R Us to meet “Barbie.” “Barbie” turned out to be a cute and charming teenager who, yes, looked like the classic blonde image of the doll. She wore a pretty pink gown. I expected a lot more fanfare around this event. Like, maybe some cheap swag, a chance to win a Barbie doll or Barbie convertible, or at least a throne for Barbie. Maybe a stage …

Category: Book Business, Book Proposals, Creativity, Marketing, Pitch, The Writing Life, Writing CraftTag: Book Business, Creativity, Marketing, Writing Craft

Is It Okay for Me to Resubmit?

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon June 28, 2018

When approaching agents and editors, sometimes even veteran authors are unsure if there is some unwritten rule they may unwittingly violate. I assure you, all of us in the industry appreciate your thoughtfulness. But we don’t want fear to cause you to miss an opportunity! Over the past few conferences, one statement I heard often is: “I was already turned down by someone else at your agency. I …

Category: Book Proposals, Pitch, PitchingTag: Agents, book proposals, pitch

What Does Your Reader Need?

By Bob Hostetleron June 13, 2018

I attend many writers’ conferences, as an author, speaker, and agent. As a result, I meet and become friends with many fine people and outstanding writers. At a recent gathering, I enjoyed a spirited and stimulating conversation with an aspiring author who has a passion for reaching readers with the good news of Jesus Christ. I identify with that. But I’m not sure we ever got onto the same page, …

Category: Book Proposals, Conferences, Pitch, Pitching, The Writing LifeTag: Audience, book proposals, pitch, Pitching, readers