Which of these would you work on?

My advice would be that it's asking for trouble to ask others for their opinions of which project to choose. You need to choose the one that has the most meaning for you, and then pour your heart and soul into it.

Personally, I would delete this thread. Those are both great ideas and, though I like to think that most folks are pretty honest (especially on AW), this is a public forum. Anyone could take those ideas from you and you are not far enough along to beat them to it. Go with the one that interests you most right now. make it fun!

Any reason you need to choose only one? They both sound like short, manageable books. Why not work on both at the same time?

There is already a fascinating book on Mauve which sounds a lot like your Purple idea?

I think that would be kind of cool.

Your "purple" book would make a wonderful series, so I would work up a proposal and sell it that way.

What This World Needs Is More Red!
What This World Needs Is More Green!

And so forth.

As for the gay/lesbian heros book, that would be a tough target market for middle school. Not sure public schools would stock it without a little/lot "protest" from parents, etc.

That doesn't mean it shouldn't be done--maybe boost it to high school, which might be more tolerant?

But I agree with the post that you should really follow where your passion is--and you already know!

Good luck!

I second the suggestion to work on both at the same time - or at least send both proposals out. There's a chance one idea will get snapped up, and you can work on finishing it while pushing the other one until you find a publisher for it.

In my opinion there's no reason to limit your options if one of the books is small / won't take a huge amount of time for you to write.

Autodidact said:

Exactly my thinking. Like who's going to buy a gay book for young people? OTOH the proposal and book would be easy to write, and Alyson Books would be likely to publish it. It might get some mileage just out of the controversy!

Yes, I do envision a series of the color books, an empire, a fortune, fame and all that comes with it, Dummies, Chicken Soup...but first I'd have to write the damn proposal!

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You should look up Blue Mountain Arts. They're famous for their greeting cards, but they also have a book publishing division. The purple book sounds like something they would buy. I know because I sold them a book this year They pay advances in the mid four figures and you don't need to have the book finished to query.

What have you settled on, Autodidact? I actually really like the gay book for young people idea, but if they both seem saleable, I say write both proposals FWIW.

I think the purple book idea would have broader appeal and probably more sales potential. But both are original ideas with potential. I think you should do both.

Although I think the idea of a book on Gay and Lesbian Heroes has potential, I believe that in order for it to be successful you have to take many things into consideration, beyond excellent writing that's acceptable to the majority. The why is simple -- it's a red hot button subject and it appears that it will remain so for a while. That said, if I were you I'd be working on it right now and changing it as needed according to voices heard and laws passed on a local, state, and federal basis, as well as voices heard from parents, churches, schools, and a slew of other who are in this dogfight. You have to become an "expert" layman in the subject area. And you'll definitely need several prestigious people and organizations to endorse your work. I went down this road many years ago with a book I wrote to be used by parents, teachers, and other caregivers to teach basic sex education for children (4 to 8 year olds). This at a time when the needfor same was glaring, but those in need weren't ready for it. Three years after its completion the atmosphere was ripe, even though I had to fight all kinds of dissenters (The John Birch Society & a slew of other well known organizations and individuals). Ultimately, Time Life Books bought the book and it went on to become an international best seller.

So while what you write and how you write it is crucial, so is research, endorsements from well know, credentialed organizations, associations, and individuals, a fantastic query and proposal --- and choosing the right time to try and get the work published. My belief is that you're going to need all of this if you want to give yourself the best shot to be published.

While I don't think you have to write the work in a dark, sullen manner, I do think you have to be unique and not display any bias in any way, shape, or form. Ths probably sounds easy. Believe me, it's not. That unique twist is the key. Staying above the maddening crowds is another. Being able to take the wrath of dissenters is but another of many. I don't believe you can think of a book on gays and lesbians, especially for children, as you would any other book on a simpler subject. But, that's just my opinion.

You say it's for MG, do you mean upper middle grade and/or young adult? I don't know how you could effectively pull this off with early middle graders.

Have you run the concept by any people who are objective about the subject matter? Parents, teachers, librarians, book store owners, oranizations and/or associations etc. I would. Lots of them.

I'm not crazy about the purple book because I think the market you describe is very limited and difficult to reach.

Good luck

Autodidact said:

As you say, if you can get the thing published, it might get some sales in part from the controversy.

Of course publishers love books that sell in droves, controversial or not. What they don't want are books that present highly controversial views on a subject without the existence of endorsements from prominent people and well known, respected groups and associations. They are not looking to publish a book with the knowledge that doing so will do nothing more than besmirch them. Having all the proper eggs in order gives them a chance, not having same leaves them without a leg to stand on.

The question here is not how you may think of Gay and Lesbian activity, only that you seem to be taking the potential presentation of the subject, to publishers and potentially the public, far to lightly. In my mind we can't escape the fact that this is an extremely volatile subject and unless dealt very carefully and correctly I don't believe a book will ever see the light of day. And please don't forget that you want to deal with the YA audience. That means parents, teachers, schools, schools boards, PTA & other organizations, libraries, local - state - federal bureauacrisies will get involved, media, and others would in someway be involved if such a book is published.

As of now I've never written a book proposal, let alone a book.

You have a lot to do and learn. Once you've mastered the art of writing nonfiction, you MUST learn how to prepare a proposal. The impetus to purchase most all nonfiction books begins with an agent and/or an editor reading the proposal.

If e.g. Alyson Books (who published Heather Has Two Mommies) want to bring it out, great. [they just published Alix Dobkin's biography, I could include her in the book and she would probably be happy to give me a blurb ]If not, at least I'll learn some about writing a book proposal.

Frankly, I don't understand this.

I'm surprised on the Purple thing though--tell me more about that. I talked to a (friend who is a) book buyer, who thought there was a huge market for those front-of-store dumb gift items, no?

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While I don't see any appeal to this Purple book, I could be way off. Wit an exception here and there I can't see why any but a few would purchase such a book. But what do I know? I certainly don't see a large number of Hallmarks and other such types stores in the US, especially given the economy. But again, this isn't my area of expertise.