Lee is Head of Growth at Publishizer, a NYC-based startup and crowdfunding platform uses proprietary software to query your proposal to a targeted list of acquiring editors from traditional and independent publishers. Only for Writers Boon members, Publishizer agreed to drop their 30% fee of total pre-order to 15%.
In part one of this article, we talked about the first major thing acquiring editors at major publishing companies look at.
Today we continue with the other 4 things authors should pay attention to when writing a book proposal.
2. Outline
(about 150 words)
Lay out the chapters or sections of the book. All of them. Describe each one without giving away the good stuff.
You need to show how this book is structured. It should be very clear and organized. Never use all caps. For non-fiction, a couple sentences per chapter is a good idea. Tip: describe what the chapter is about, not what the topic is about.
Now go ask a friend if they understand it.
For fiction, describe the plot and then list the chapters with relevance to the story.
3. Audience
(about 250 words)
Most acquiring editors will jump to this section next after deciding your Synopsis is good. This is where you make a compelling argument to back up your synopsis.
Explain to the publisher or acquiring editor that you know exactly who this book is for. If you don’t know who this book is for then who do you honestly expect is going to read it? This is your job to figure out.
Start by answering these questions:
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Who is the target reader?
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Why is the solution relevant to them?
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Where are they at in life?
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What are their habits, lifestyle and beliefs?
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Why would they read it?
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What statistics on the industry or market prove this?
That last question on statistic is HUGE.
Describe your reader in detail. If your book has a primary and secondary audience, answer these questions for each one. Back the statistics up by describing how they are relevant to your reader and the book topic.
Fiction authors skip this section.
4. Promotion
(about 250 words)
Every proposal has to explain how an author can and will market their book. This is where you show off your platform.
Publishers take into account your previous success, earned influence and overall potential you give your book once acquired. This section is very much about the author.
This section should have a combination of the following:
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Email list size
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Social media following
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Video marketing views or subscribers
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Professional website
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Speaking engagements scheduled
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Endorsers and corporate sponsors
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Previous book reviews
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Links to regular publication or media contributions
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Community events you’re attending
Publishers want to see a path to long term sales. You don’t need a long and strategic marketing plan. You just need to show them how you are going to bring traction and awareness to your book idea.
List these points above and anything else you bring to the table.
Here is another useful checklist.
5. Competition
(about 250 words)
Your book has competition. If you say anything about it being the first of it’s kind publishers will know you haven’t done your homework.
List at least 5 competing or complementary books and how your book is different. Ideally, you’ve read these books and can act as research for your own.
Search Google or Amazon for similar topics if you can’t think of any. They are out there. Grab the summary and then compare it your book.
6. Sample Chapters
(about 2,000 words)
It’s always good to have a couple sample chapters written. Many acquiring editors and agents want assurance that an unknown or debut writer has sufficient writing chops to pull off their project.
If you don’t have these yet don’t worry.
Use your proposal to start conversation with publishers and if they‘re considering acquiring your title, they’ll give you time to write a few sample chapters or set a deadline to submit the full manuscript.
Here is a good fiction book proposal.