I have scoured this forum...

What do you mean by all the other Bumph?

If they asked for the whole ms. usually they want the ms.
A one page Bio cannot hurt.
A full blown proposal...mmmm...probably depends on the agent. But it may show that you not only wrote the book, but did your research as well.
My feeling is the more professional you can appear the better it is.

BUT...I am not the last word on this stuff. Wait for other replies as well.

Normally, proposals are reserved for sending directly to the publisher, but a few agencies want to see one too. If I were in your position, I would probably ask the agent, missuswumman. Just drop the agent a quick email and tell them the truth--that you were just getting ready to drop the manuscript in an envelope and suddenly wondered if you should be sending a proposal as well. If the agent answers with a "Yes, I would like one," you can simply say that you don't have one completed yet and ask if you should wait to mail the whole package. The agent will either say yes or no.

Or, in the alternative, you can send in the manuscript with a letter stating that if a proposal is desired, to please state what elements s/he would like to see included. That makes you sound both reasonable and professional about the process, and you'll get a list of what to include, which makes it that much simpler.

Good luck!

I would recommend sending ONLY what they ask for. If they like the manuscript, they will ask for a proposal. In the cover letter you include with the manuscript you may mention that you have a proposal ready for their review when they are interested. They might even provide you with a proposal template and save you some headache.

As you wait for their response while they review the manuscript, you could work on the proposal. Then when they do ask for it, you'll have it ready to go.

allen

If you wander over to the McGraw-Hill submission guidelines, they have a pretty clear-cut proposal, with the elements that should be included in each section. Most of the other publishers want the same things, so if you just mix up the headings on the M-H one, or change the titles of the sections slightly, you should be fine.

If you read this thread (at the top of the non-fiction forum), there's lots of info on preparing a non-fiction proposal: http://www.absolutewrite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=22176

missuswumman said:

Many thanks for your replies.
I think I will amalgamate the advice by sending them only the manuscript with cover letter indicating that I can prepare a proposal and biog if they require it. Then, I will start on the proposal...
...I don't suppose anyone has posted previously on preparing proposals? Is there a thread I can look at does anyone know?
Thanks againx

Click to expand...

Since it's fairly easy to prepare, I would include the bio (half page at the most), especially if you have any expertise (or a platform) in the field you want to write about.