Newbie at a loss...

By 'New Age book', do you mean nonfiction?

What do you mean by 'New Age'? Since you've put the question on the novels board, I'll go with that. The recommendation from most is that you research agents (and/or publishing houses that accept unagented material) carefully and selectly query the ones that match your work. This can be done through Jeff Hermann's guide, our own Dave Kuzminski's Preditor & Editors, The Writer's Market guides, Google searches and scanning books in your local bookstores for similarities. It's best to contact representatives who are loking for your type of product, rather than wasting time and generating ill-will by random query bombings.

The shotgun approach is rarely endorsed and hard to do in compliance with the varied guidelines requested by the agents and houses.

Welcome to AW and good luck!

You may get some hits from a question like that, but it probably cannot substitute for diving in and learning the process. There is no way around hours of research into how to get your foot in the door. If someone gave you a name, you still wouldn't know the step-by-step and it's a bit more intensive than a couple of sentences on a message board can do for you.

Writing is your dessert. Research, querying and navigating the thresholds are the eating your veggies part.


And I'm still unclear as to whether your book is fiction or non. Clearing that up will probably get you more specific advice. Don't leave us hanging! What did you write?

First thing, a little house keeping - I'll have someone move this thread to non-fiction for you. It'll get more accurate attention there.

Self-publishing is more suitable for some non-fiction, but because I only write lies, I'll have to refer you to a truth-teller.

Good luck!

I recommend, before you submit or query anybody about it, that you remove that apostrophe from the first word of the title of your book.

Rule number 1 of writing non-fiction is: do not write the book until you have a publisher for it. If people kept to that rule there would be many more happy non-fiction writers out there.

If you have written it already then put together a proposal based on the book that you have written using the best chapter as a sample chapter and than write and overview together with an introduction. After that add the marketing part etc., I recommend a book called Thinking Like Your Editor to help you with the proposal.

After all that is done write a killer query letter and query agents that represent the type of book you have written. Once an agent asks for the proposal send it to them. Only once they have offered representation should you tell them that you have already written the book.

The reason for this is because publishers want to have input into the book and if the author has already written it they are less likely to be open to requests of change in the book. An intransigent non-fiction writer is a nightmare to both agents and publishers.

Best of luck,

I'll admit, Levi, that I decided to write a whole nonfiction book, and a how-to no less, without a publisher for it. The reason was that I'd never written anything book-length before, and wanted to prove to myself that I could.

Spend some time (days, if need be) reading past threads in this forum. Make notes. By all means check bookstores to see which publishers publish books similar to yours. Check their online sites for guidelines. If not posted, write to them (either email or snail mail) and ask for them.

Whether you decide to approach an agent or publisher first, follow their guidelines to the letter.

Quadruple-check your work for typos and grammatical errors. If you're weak in those areas, beg or bribe someone who isn't to proof your work first.

POD vanity/subsidy pubs should be a last resort and even then, only if your field of interest is too narrow to tweak the interest of a mainstream publisher and you have a forum (speaking engagements etc.) for hawking your own wares.

Good luck.

Levi said:

Rule number 1 of writing non-fiction is: do not write the book until you have a publisher for it. If people kept to that rule there would be many more happy non-fiction writers out there.

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Levi, I have to disagree with your "rule number 1." I have bought completed nonfiction manuscripts and been very happy with how they've done in the trade. I also am unlikely to take a chance on signing a new author with little or no experience writing a full-length nf manuscript without having seen a significant portion of it to assess whether or not it will work for us. When I have done what you recommend, I'm almost always disappointed and the number of rounds of revisions skyrocket. I think your advice is solid for an established writer who can provide solid book sales and writing experience, but not for the inexperienced.

A lot of good advice

For HB:

You've obviously come to the right place with your questions and concerns. I hope you will heed most of the advice you've been given. It really is wise to have some idea about publishers and the whole publishing process before you actually write a book. This is only one reason why it is always a good idea to write a book proposal before writing the book. By following the steps to writing a complete book proposal, you will be forced to learn more about the publishing process, the publishing industry and how your book will fit into the scheme of things. You'll also learn something about your responsibility as a published author. You may write from the heart, but once your writing becomes a book--once you desire to enter into the realm of publishing--your book becomes a product. A book proposal is your business plan for your book.

But here you are confused and bewildered with a completed manuscript in your hands. I, too, urge you to write that book proposal. You can still learn much from the process and most of the publishers or agents you contact will want to see one.

As for locating appropriate publishers/agents, I also agree with the advice to find books similar to yours at bookstores and see who published them. Locate these publishers on the Internet and study their Submission Guidelines. Not every publisher requires the same information, so study the guidelines of each publisher. You will also find appropriate publishers by looking at books on Amazon, doing a Google search, look at the books in your own library on the subject of your manuscript, tap into writersmarket.com. Look at Writer's Market and some of the many other author's reference books.

To find an appropriate agent, read the "acknowledgements page" in books similar to yours. Sometimes the author mentions his/her agent there.

And I would suggest that before you even start this research or seriously consider publishing this book, make sure that you understand your responsibility in promoting it once it is published. Whether you go with a traditional royalty publisher, get involved with a fee-based publishing service or self-publish (establish your own publishing company), you will be expected to promote your book.

If you would like to discuss any of these issues with me, please feel free to contact me:

Patricia
[email protected]
www.matilijapress.com
Author of "The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book."

Obviously, as it has been said, write that proposal.


If you are looking for a good sample of one, our gracious Ms. Glatzer has one posted on the AW homepage. I'll see if I can't dig it up for you.

Nomad said:

Levi, I have to disagree with your "rule number 1." I have bought completed nonfiction manuscripts and been very happy with how they've done in the trade. I also am unlikely to take a chance on signing a new author with little or no experience writing a full-length nf manuscript without having seen a significant portion of it to assess whether or not it will work for us. When I have done what you recommend, I'm almost always disappointed and the number of rounds of revisions skyrocket. I think your advice is solid for an established writer who can provide solid book sales and writing experience, but not for the inexperienced.

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This is not the way most publishers work. In fact because they do not put together a proper proposal many writers forget about the audience and write the book for themselves as it were. Then it is almost impossible for them to find a publisher or an agent and they end up self publishing and selling few copies. If, however, they were forced to write a proper proposal, with a marketing plan etc., their book would be much more focused to a particular audience.

So the truth is, although it is not strictly necessary, (and a few sample chapters are enough for most publishers), a person may, if they wish, write most of the book first. However, they must make sure that before they begin they educate themselves about the publishing industry -- realizing that, in order for it to get published, it is a business and that there must be a specific and substantial audience for the book they are writing.