It is up to the author working with the agent to prove that a sizeable target audience for the book exists, to sharply define this target market, and to evaluate competitive books if any in the marketplace. What is the ideal length for a nonfiction book proposal. Last week, we discussed what a fiction book proposal is, and why you need one. In this comprehensive yet accessible guide, you will learn exactly what a proposal is, what it must contain, and how to pull yours together into an informative, persuasive selling package. A short list of books that helped me write my proposal. Many were great, but super lengthy and time consuming to read. Do you know how to prepare your manuscript for your editor, proofreader, and especially your book designer. A book proposal should include each of the following sections, in this order.
That was a twobook deal, admittedly, so you can divide the numbers by two to get a per book amount. How does it differ from a standard magazine article query. Michael larsens how to write a book proposal has been the respected standard in the field ever since it was first published. This is pretty much the authoritative book on writing a book proposal. The appropriate length for a nonfiction query is somewhere between 1 and 1. A book proposal samples will explain the purposes and objectives for creating a book. Memoirs can cover most any subject of human interest. Have you tips, techniques or other advice on how to craft a nonfiction book proposal for submission. How to write a nonfiction book proposal wolf literary services. This is an updated version of a story that was previously published. If you can send the book proposal along with the query, you should. Sample book proposal from a professional literary agency. This book by michael hyatt is exactly what the title says it is. The disadvantage is that a memoir book proposal may be up to 25 pages in length just to cover the business proposals and market research that youll need to present.
Add in those samples, and youll have a complete proposal ready to be considered by a literary agent. More to the point, since before i sold my second nonfiction book to a. Nonfiction book proposals can top out around 5075 pages, not including sample chapters. He even clearly tells the reader how to avoid the slush pile. Instead of writing the entire book and then try to find someone who wants to publish it, the design of a business plan can get you a contract for that book now so that you can have confidence in what will happen when it is finally completed. Writing a nonfiction book proposal by scott mendel. Most nonfiction is sold via a book proposal a structured outline of the book you. Andy warhol, saint apollonia suite 1984 for all of these reasons, quite a mouthful will make a perfect gift for any general interest nonfiction reader. The truth is the nonfiction book proposal is an entirely different beast. How to write a good nonfiction book proposal for submission 17 mar 2014 christian jennings, who is currently writing a book about the last year of wwii in northern italy, entitled if i live to see the dawn at war on the gothic line 194445. How to write a book proposal that sells fast company. It breaks down what we are looking for as agents with useful examples and tips from our side of the desk.
Nonfiction book proposal outline ted weinstein literary. I found this advice once offered by former writers digest publisher jane friedman who rejected and approved proposals over. Unlike a work of fiction, which must be completed before you send the query, a proposal is the correct way to approach a publisher for a nonfiction book. Michael clearly and concisely states what creates a nonfiction book proposal that will get noticed by agents. How to write a nonfiction book proposal mary mackey. Include any subhead or taglines that your books title may contain. How i wrote a book proposal and found a literary agent. Fiction book proposal for literary agents literary agencies. For most acquisition editors, this is a very important part of the proposal.
By jane friedman if you wrote a nonfiction book 20 years ago, your greatest competition. Many, if not most nonfiction books are sold to publishers as book proposals. Book proposal a business plan for your book and how you plan to ensure sales success keys to a great synopsis the steve laube agency july 27, 2016 i posted my ideas on some keys to a great book proposal, a few writers said they were challenged to write a. Jul 29, 2011 there are several books available on writing book proposals.
I also sold a book off the back of a nonfiction book proposal that had multiple publishers bidding for the rights, and ended up being sold to harpercollins for. For information on writing a book proposal, click on the nonfiction book proposal. I found the book incredibly helpful and followed it closely. How to write a book proposal is the resource for aspiring nonfiction authors. How to write a nonfiction book proposal wolf literary. In this blog post, youll find a description of the overview and introduction sections of my christian nonfiction book proposal, for blossom. In this post, ill cover the critical elements of an average but thorough proposal. We update our posts as often as possible to ensure theyre useful for our readers. Book proposal template nonfiction authors association. Madeleine morel, literary agent, 2m communications ltd. A marketing plan is a vital element of every nonfiction book proposal. I offer a selfstudy course on nonfiction book proposals. Every proposal has to have a standard set of sections, and then there are some that are optional. In an email the attached file name should be descriptive author name fiction or nonfiction proposal logli.
Instead, you write the proposal that describes what the book is about, why its interesting, and why it has an audience. What is the accepted way of preparing and submitting a proposal for a nonfiction picture book, say for the middle grade market. Most book agents call this section of a nonfiction book proposal the competition section, but i prefer to call is the competitive advantages section. A book proposal is created by a person who loves to read books, composing books, do research proposals or engaged into business of selling books. Fiction editors focus on plot, writing, and mass market appeal, which means they will want to see sample chapters and a synopsis. Writing a nonfiction book proposal writers and artists. How to write a nonfiction book proposal nathan bransford. A book proposal argues why your book idea is a salable, marketable product. Think of your book proposal as a business plan that must make a. In addition to your core target audience, who might be the next most interested targets. Also note that agents and publishers each have their own submission criteria so the format of your proposal may need to change slightly. Ive seen many authors confuse the two and create extra work for themselves.
How to write a book proposal that agents will love jericho writers. Christian jennings is the author of five nonfiction books and is currently at work on a book about the last year of wwii in northern italy entitled if i live to see the dawn at war on the gothic line 1944. This part of a fiction book proposal should outline your ability to promote your novel, and a plan to do so. Since we recently discussed the role of a synopsis in a fiction proposal i thought it important that we address what the nonfiction author needs to provide. The proposal was for my nonfiction pop culture book about the history of black women on tv.
Within those 1015 pages, you must convince an agent, editor and publishing team that you and your book deserve a place on the shelf based on several key factors. Writing a winning nonfiction book proposal 32 30 from my experience, a great book proposal needs to include five distinct elements see fig. A nonfiction book proposal is the key document that allows an agent or publisher to determine the viability of a project. How to format a nonfiction manuscript book editing services. How to write a nonfiction book proposal with examples. May 17, 2012 book proposal a business plan for your book and how you plan to ensure sales success keys to a great synopsis the steve laube agency july 27, 2016 i posted my ideas on some keys to a great book proposal, a few writers said they were challenged to write a synopsis.
This week, well look at the form and function of a standard fiction book proposal in more detail. My book, book title will be a genre work which will center around the topic of book topic. That reinforces the idea in your mind and in the mind of publishing agents that your book is different and in some ways better than similar titles in your genre. Mar 06, 2018 the proposal was for my nonfiction pop culture book about the history of black women on tv. You need to follow the nonfiction book proposal rules, so submitting any of the above may cause your proposal to be automatically rejected.
This is intended for the readers to understand the essence of what they are reading. Ill start with the must haves and then explain the optionals. You all know that the book proposal is the cornerstone to a successful tenure track career in most areas of the humanities and social sciences. And if youve already finished your memoir, youre still going to need to write a full proposal to accompany your submission in almost every instance. How to write a nonfiction book proposal writers block party. Submitting an already written nonfiction book as a proposal is a great way to.
Writing a nonfiction book proposal by scott mendel updated. Instead of writing the entire book, then trying to interest an editor or agent which is how it works with novels, you write the proposal first. It is by david sanford, a published author, editor, and literary agent for more than 300 books who now serves on the leadership team at corban university. Nonfiction editors require a full proposal, which means you will have to submit detailed chapter descriptions, explain how your book will fit into. Its a perk of nonfiction that you can sell a book on proposal before sitting down to the write the whole shebang, and often receiving an advance will help fund research andor travel, making the book possible. How to write a nonfiction book proposal writers digest. Are you working on a nonfiction book proposal or thinking about it. At its root, this is the purpose of each section in a book proposal, so be clear and persuasive. Nonfiction submissions bear little similarity to fiction submissions. Its usually at least 20 pages long, often much longer. Addressed to the appropriate agent with titlegenreword count and appropriate contact information in the letter, this letter should interest us in reading your proposal. If youve had experience submitting novels to literary agents and publishersquery letter, synopsis, sample pagesyou may think you know all you need to know about submitting your selfhelp book or other nonfiction project.
Hi shamrock838, when i submitted the proposal for my middle grade nonfic cryptic canada, i sent a cover letter explaining the focusslant of my book, the projected word count and my writing credentials. Centre the chapter title, even if its only chapter one or chapter 1, about onethird of the way down the page. Over the past decade ive written seven fulllength proposals and sold. Michael larsen cofounded larsenpomada literary agents in san francisco in 1972 with his partner elizabeth pomada. How to write a good nonfiction book proposal for submission. May 28, 2017 a book proposal argues why your book idea is a salable, marketable product. Advice that i find myself giving out again and again as an agent is guidance on how to write a nonfiction book proposal. Now in its fifth edition, it continues to be the best resource. If you understand these two things, the book proposal format makes perfect. Jul 20, 2017 today, were going to talk about how to prepare a marketing and publicity plan for your fiction book proposal.
How to write a nonfiction book proposal writers write. I read a book about how to put together a proposal. If publishing a memoir is your goal, its a good idea to write a proposal to sell your work. Nonfiction writing is unique because the actual business of the book tends to be more important than the actual writing of it. However, if you create a proposal thats divided into the following four sections, in the following order, every agent or publisher that you submit fiction book proposal to will be happy. It acts as a business case or business plan for your book that persuades a publisher to make an investment. I also had a onepage overview which included other similar books already in the marketplace and how mine was different. Finding hope and healing for your heart after loss. In an email the attached file name should be descriptive author name fiction or nonfiction proposal logline. Book proposals are used to sell nonfiction books to publishers. This is one of the main differences between the fiction and the nonfiction book proposal.
Not counting your two to three sample chapters, your nonfiction book proposal should be no longer than 1015 pages. Jan 05, 2016 the appropriate length for a nonfiction query is somewhere between 1 and 1. There are several books available on writing book proposals. Five basics of nonfiction book proposals fresh ink book editing. Jun 04, 2018 since we recently discussed the role of a synopsis in a fiction proposal i thought it important that we address what the nonfiction author needs to provide. Slightly different from the title page section of the book proposal, this is where alternative titles and subtitles can be proposed in a list format.
Platform is a crucial part of nonfiction book proposals. You are also welcome to listen to free audio recordings of teds book proposal bootcamp and other workshops and media appearances. Instead of writing the entire book, then trying to interest an editor or agent which. Members of aar the association of authors representatives, inc. Writing a nonfiction book is quite different from a novel and so is the process of getting it published. This is because of the enormous amount of research that must go into this type of book. That was a two book deal, admittedly, so you can divide the numbers by two to get a per book amount. As a book designer, i strongly urge selfpublishers to hire a professional editor and proofreader prior to delivering a manuscript to our designer for layout. The good news is that almost every nonfiction book published is sold by a proposal. Sure, some parts of psychology and economics and other fields are not bookbased, but basically, the law of the land is. Nonfiction book proposal outline here is a basic template for a book proposal, which many of our clients have used successfully. Nonfiction book proposals in the digital age to sell an agent or publisher on your nonfiction idea, its more important.
Skip a couple of lines before beginning the text of the chapter. Writing quality counts in nonfiction book proposals. A great nonfiction book proposal will show that you have thought through your idea, and more importantly, it will show that you know how to turn this idea into a book. Jul 02, 2015 you dont yet need a book to get a job in most cases although yes, its true, assistant professors with books under their belt will have an advantage over new ph. In such cases, the query really ends up being a cover letter and doesnt have to be labored over that much. In the process of writing my own nonfiction book proposal earlier this year thanks to my year of amazing pledge, i searched everywhere i could for tips and advice on how to write a nonfiction book proposal.
The literary agents guide to writing a nonfiction book proposal by andy ross. Five basics of nonfiction book proposals fresh ink book. How to write a nonfiction book proposal with template. Aug 11, 2017 instead, you write the proposal that describes what the book is about, why its interesting, and why it has an audience. A memoir is a personal story that provides a snapshot of a particular time and place in your life. The fourth part of your fiction book proposal is your marketing plan.
To recap, a great fiction book proposal essentially breaks down into five elements about your book and the target market what can you do for us. Unlike fiction, where an author must have a completed manuscript ready before they approach a publisher or agent, a nonfiction author only needs to develop a proposal to submit to publishers andor agents. Klems june 28, 2012 in the process of writing my own nonfiction book proposal earlier this year thanks to my year of amazing pledge, i searched everywhere i could for tips and advice on how to write a nonfiction book proposal. The first thing to realize is that you dont have to actually write the book until you secure a contract with a publisher. Nonfiction book proposals in the digital age writers digest. Mar 17, 2014 how to write a good nonfiction book proposal for submission 17 mar 2014 christian jennings, who is currently writing a book about the last year of wwii in northern italy, entitled if i live to see the dawn at war on the gothic line 194445. What you do need to do is form a comprehensive plan of the.
I like this one because it contains ten reallife proposals that sold. The fifth edition of how to write a book proposal sets a new gold standard for aspiring authors. Speakup15 5 secondary audiences who, in addition to the target audience, might read or purchase this book. Nonfiction book proposals in the digital age to sell an agent or publisher on your nonfiction idea, its more important than ever to show where your book will fit inand what will make it stand outboth in print and online. The sample chapter ought to be the crown jewel of the nonfiction book proposal. This is the meat and potatoes of your fiction book proposal, so buckle up, buttercup. Give a fairly brief summary of your book here, using a few paragraphs. Thats top secret information until the book actually gets. This ones short and tothepoint, and the last time i. How to write a nonfiction book proposal that will sell your book. This is the section where you lay out the basic idea of the book and discuss. Jun 22, 2017 last week, we discussed what a fiction book proposal is, and why you need one. Writing a nonfiction book proposal a primer for the firsttime nonfiction book writer by scott mendel updated february 2018 it will probably seem obvious to you that the nonfiction book proposal is a tool your agent will use to sell your work at the best possible terms, and to secure the strongest possible.