Get Published Now!
I'll help you get what you want:
agent, book contract, and
shelf space at Barnes and Noble.
I'll help you get what you want:
agent, book contract, and
shelf space at Barnes and Noble.
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No doubt about it, you've probably heard more than one author wannabe boast about the fabulous story, sure to be a classic like "Harry Potter," they're going to write someday. Haven't started to work on it yet, but will, for sure, any day now. Really?
When this happens to me, I resist the temptation to whack my wand alongside the head of the clueless writer. and offer, instead, a reality check. "Dear one, an unwritten story never will be published if it only takes up parking space in your brain. It's illegal, in most states, for publishers to chain saw their way into your skull to extract the next best seller." Whew! Isn't that good news?" You, dear writer have written, or are writing your story, bringing it out and into the world. You practice the BIC (butt in chair) ritual that ultimately produces a completed manuscript. In the process you've also avoided the potential of a midnight lobotomy. WOOHOO for you!
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Are agents really, truly evil little trolls who thrive on breaking writers' hearts? Inquiring minds want to know! Click on the video below to learn the truth about the people who seem to hold your writing future in their hands. Resistance is futile. The publishing biz, along with the entire world (mostly) is going digital. Query submission packets, snail mailed using the old, old, old format, circa 2014, simply doesn't work anymore. Here's a quick video about the situation. Enjoy!
So, how's it going for you? Is your query gleaning dozens of requests for manuscript submissions? Or, is your query an embarrassment that results in zip, zero, nada responses from agents?
Who have you been asking for query assistance? Friends, family, critique group? Have any of these well-meaning folks suggested that you structure your query around the industry standard? Do they, or you, understand the need to write a query letter using the format of goal, obstacle, and the terrible "or else" resolution tease? CLICK HERE to read (top to bottom) my page that explains, in detail, exactly what is required to write an effective query letter. Give up wasting time struggling to write a query that doesn't work and never will. Learn how to craft an effective one that helps you get what you want: agent, contract, and shelf space at Barnes and Noble. I've worked in the publishing industry for 35 years as an acquisitions editor, publisher, and a traditionally published author by Workman, Simon and Schuster, and Beyond Words. I've also self-published three non-fiction books with Amazon's createspace. Self-publishing works well in certain situations: especially non-fiction where you have an established audience and can reach them easily.
A broad market that is thinly spread out across the country/world is a self-published author's nightmare. How to reach potential book buyers becomes your greatest challenge. True, there are many social media outlets where you can promote your book. Be aware, however, that 97% of self-published books sell less than 500 copies, unless you have a really, really LARGE family and/or enormous holiday gift list. Based on my experience as a publisher, I believe writers are not capable of shifting from telling their story to selling their story. Creating and marketing books is simply not in their genes. Writers write. Period. When clients tell me they want to self-publish their fiction book, first I check their foreheads for fever, then make the following suggestion: DON'T DO IT! Instead, I suggest they focus energy and efforts on the query quest, and locate a competent and compatible agent to guide them the rest of the way to that book-on-Barnes-and-Noble-shelf moment. |
If you’d like to re-post any of my blogs, help yourself. Please reference the source as: Molli Nickell. THE Publishing Wizard at www.getpublishednow.biz Archives
July 2016
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