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The Steve Laube Agency

Helping to Change the World…Word by Word

The Steve Laube Agency

The Steve Laube Agency

Helping to Change the World Word by Word

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Home » Publishing A-Z

Publishing A-Z

G Is for Great

By Steve Laubeon August 8, 2022
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“There are a lot of good manuscripts out there. What we want are those which are great.” I’ve said this many times but thought I should elaborate. Please note the following information applies mostly to nonfiction projects.

When it comes to the nonfiction books that attract major publishers, I believe the author must have at least two of three “great” things:

Great Concept
Great Writing
Great Platform

Let’s look at the various combinations to see how this plays out.

Platform + Writing

These books are well written by a highly visible author. They get published but have modest sales. It may be that the concept or idea doesn’t resonate with readers. It may be the author’s constituents are the only ones who buy a copy. It may be the topic is too academic for a commercial audience. But if you are a great writer with a great platform, there is no question you will find a publisher who will partner with you.

Platform + Concept

These books are often celebrity driven. The publisher and the author brainstorm for the right package. Or the author’s material is based on a great title from a sermon series or a particularly popular talk. Unfortunately, the writing is weak for whatever reason. They converted a sermon series without much editing. Or they hired a ghostwriter who did their best under severe time constraints. You get the idea. You may have bought a book like this. Famous author with a great book title; but when you tried to read it, it felt forced or manufactured. (Disclaimer: That is not to say that all Platform + Concept books are poorly written. My attempt here is to highlight great writing versus good writing.)

Concept + Writing

This is where most writers land. They aren’t famous–yet. They have a great concept and are an amazing writer. The combination can overcome a lack of platform in the right circumstances. It’s not a given, but it can happen. We’ve frequently sold unpublished authors to a major publisher because the book idea is tremendous and the writing is stunning. That should be an encouragement to anyone who is working on their first book. It is not easy; but it can, and still does, happen.

Platform + Concept + Writing

There are those magical books where all three elements come together and create a bestseller that outsells even the wildest projections.

Is platform important? Oh my, yes. Increasingly so. But it isn’t the only thing.

Your Turn

Can you name recent (in the last five years) releases that, in your estimation, fit all three criteria?
Is there a broad-stroke area that is missing in this overview?
Is this a helpful way to think about platform vs. no platform?

Leave a Comment
Category: Book Business, Craft, Creativity, Platform, Publishing A-Z, Writing CraftTag: Concept, Platform, Writing Craft

Hints for a Great Cover Letter

By Steve Laubeon June 13, 2022
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Here are a few suggestions for you to consider when approaching an agent. Remember to use these as hints…do not follow them slavishly as if a literary agent is going to spend their time critiquing your cover letter.

By the way, we make a distinction between a cover letter and a query letter. A cover letter is what goes on top of a longer proposal and sample chapters. The query letter is a …

Read moreHints for a Great Cover Letter
Category: Book Proposals, Get Published, Publishing A-Z, Writing CraftTag: book proposals, Cover Letter, Pitching

L Is for Libel

By Steve Laubeon May 9, 2022
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by Steve Laube

 To libel someone is to injure a person’s reputation via the written word (slander is for the spoken word). I wrote recently about Indemnification but only touched on this topic. Let’s try to unpack it a little further today.

First, be aware that the laws that define defamation vary from state to state, however there are some commonly accepted guidelines. Anyone can claim …

Read moreL Is for Libel
Category: Book Business, Contracts, Publishing A-ZTag: Libel, Publishing A-Z

I Is for Indemnification

By Steve Laubeon April 25, 2022
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by Steve Laube

Publishing is not without risks. Plagiarism, fraud, and libel by an author are real possibilities. Thus within a book contract is a legal clause called indemnification inserted to protect the publisher from your antics.

The indemnification clause, in essence, says that if someone sues your publisher because of your book, claiming something like libel (defamation) or …

Read moreI Is for Indemnification
Category: Book Business, Contracts, Copyright, Legal Issues, Publishing A-ZTag: Contracts, indemnification, lawsuit, warranty

F Is for Foreign Rights

By Steve Laubeon March 21, 2022
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by Steve Laube

Publishing is a global concern. The new Penguin Random House (co-owned by Bertlesmann from Germany and Pearson from the UK) is the largest publisher in the world. The fourth largest publisher is based in the Netherlands. (See this link for a list of the top 50 largest publishers worldwide.) There are thousands of publishers outside the U.S. most of which publish in their …

Read moreF Is for Foreign Rights
Category: Book Business, Publishing A-ZTag: Book Business, Foreign rights

A Is for Agent

By Steve Laubeon March 14, 2022
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by Steve Laube

I thought it might be fun to write a series that addresses some of the basic terms that define our industry. The perfect place to start, of course, is the letter "A." And even better to start with the word "Agent."

If you are a writer, you've got it easy. When you say you are a writer your audience lights up because they know what that means. (Their perception is that you …

Read moreA Is for Agent
Category: Agents, Book Business, Book Business, Career, Creativity, E-Books, Legal Issues, Publishing A-Z, Writing CraftTag: Agent, Book Business, publishing

B Is for Buy Back

By Steve Laubeon February 28, 2022
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by Steve Laube

Many authors are also speakers and as such usually have a book table in the back of the room where the audience can purchase a copy of their book during an event. This can be a very valuable source of income for the author if they have negotiated a “buy back” price (also known as the author’s discount) at the time of signing their book contract.

Check Your Contract …

Read moreB Is for Buy Back
Category: Book Business, Publishing A-ZTag: Author Buy Back, Author Purchases, Author Sales Tax, Book Business, Publishing A-Z

D Is for Dispute Resolution

By Steve Laubeon February 21, 2022
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by Steve Laube

Pray that it never happens to you. But if there is a situation where you find yourself in a legal battle with your publisher regarding your book contract there are terms that will dictate how that disagreement is handled.

Here is one version from an old contract:
Any claim or dispute arising from or related to this Agreement shall be settled by mediation and, if …

Read moreD Is for Dispute Resolution
Category: Book Business, Contracts, Publishing A-ZTag: Book Business, Contracts, Disputes

C Is for Noncompete

By Steve Laubeon February 7, 2022
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by Steve Laube

Both Tamela and Karen wanted “C” to stand for coffee or chocolate since both seen to be must-haves for any writer. Instead I’m going to fudge a little (pun intended) and write about the “non-Compete” clause in your contract. This clause has become the latest playground for negotiations.

Here is a simple version of a non-compete clause:

The Author will not publish or …

Read moreC Is for Noncompete
Category: Contracts, Publishing A-ZTag: book contracts, non-compete, Publishing A-Z

B is for Binding

By Steve Laubeon November 29, 2021
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When a book is physically printed, there are two, among many, decisions that must be made. One is trim size. This means the size of the book itself (5.5” x 8.5”? or something else?). The other is our topic for today. The binding. Binding is the process of gathering the printed pages and assembling them together into a book with a cover. The two most common choices are perfect binding and …

Read moreB is for Binding
Category: Publishing A-Z
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