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Once you have invested time (and maybe resources) in writing the nonfiction book you’ve always wanted to write, it’s time to take steps toward publishing your book. First step in catching the interest of a book agent and the book publishing company is to make them want to publish your book.
You can accomplish this with your book proposal. You want to make it easy for your book editor to identify, in a glance, what your book is about, how long it is, its target audience, who you are (credibility), etc. Your successful book proposal should contain the following elements:
Title Page
This is your cover sheet. The book’s title and the name of the author are centered in the middle of the page. In the upper left corner, type Book Proposal. In the bottom right, type your name, address and phone number (or, if you have one, your book agent’s).
Overview
Summarize what your nonfiction book is about: the topic, who will read it, why it’s important or interesting to your intended audience, and what makes your book different from others in the field.
Specifications
Specify approximate word length, number of chapters, types of illustrations or graphics to be included and any unique organizational schemes or formats (for example, is your book divided into major sections or do you use sidebars?)
Market
Tell the editor who will buy your book, how many of these people exist, and why they need it or will want to read it. Use statistics to dramatize the size of the market. For example, if your book is about infertility, mention that one in six couples in the US is infertile.
Book Promotion
Is your nonfiction book a natural for talk radio or Oprah (be realistic)? Can it be promoted through seminars or speeches to associations and clubs? Give the publishing agent some of your ideas on how the book can be marketed. (Note: Phrase these as suggestions, not demands. The publisher will be interested in your ideas but probably won’t use most of them.)
Competition
Here you list books that compare with yours. Include the title, author, publishing agent, year of publication, number of pages, price, and format (hardcover, trade paperback edition or mass market paperback). Describe each book briefly, pointing out weaknesses and areas in which your book is different and superior.
Author’s Bio
A brief biography listing your writing credentials (books and articles published), qualifications to write about the book’s topic (for instance, for a book on popular psychology, it helps if you’re a therapist), and your media experience (previous appearances on TV and radio).
Table of Contents/Outlines
A chapter-by-chapter outlines showing the contents of your proposed nonfiction book. Many editors tell me that a detailed, well thought-out table of contents in a proposal helps sway them in favor of a book.
Although a solid idea and an excellent book proposal which include all 8 essential element do not assure the success of the book or even that the book publishing company will accept it, they no doubt increases the probability of getting a book published. If either the idea or the book proposal is weak, the chances of the book sale are slim to none.
For additional information about book publishing and other ideas of survival in a down economy please visit www.bly.com/reports.
Bob Bly is a freelance copywriter and a marketing consultant with 3 decades of experience in business-to-business, high-tech, and direct marketing services. He is the author of more than 70 books including The Complete Idiot’s Guide To Direct Marketing (Alpha Books) and The Copywriter’s Handbook (Henry Holt & Co.). His articles have appeared in numerous publications such as DM News, Writer’s Digest, mtrak Express, Cosmopolitan, Inside Direct Mail,and Bits & Pieces for Salespeople.
Are you finished writing your book? Congratulations! But wait, does your book title still need work? Most working titles should never make it through the final edit. Titles are one of the most important aspects of your book’s selling power. Getting this wrong could mean your book never receives the attention your message deserves.
Researchers say a disappointing title versus a grab-you-by-the-collar title can cause your book to plummet or soar in sales. Therefore, you owe it to yourself and book’s success to write your best title.
After all, the better your title the more people will reach out and grab your book to read. Craft your title to rise to a top seller status. To make sure your book captures all the attention it deserves, start with two top tips to sizzle your title to sell:
1. Write a Book Title to Quantify Change and Add Time Limits
Another characteristic to include in writing your best book title is to promise change. In your title spell out the change that readers can expect if they follow your book’s concepts. Let them know what to expect. Use secrets, steps, tips, ways and time limits to promise change.
You can add focus and credibility to your title by adding a time frame or quantifying change. C.J. Hayden’s book “Get Clients Now: A 28-Day Marketing Program for Professionals and Consultants” The first part of the title tells what the book is about. Adding now brings immediacy. The 28-Day parts emphasize that the reader will get day-by-day instruction and probably enjoy results in less than a month.
A good friend of mine includes in her “Write Your Best Book Now: An Easy 7 step Writing Program for Entrepreneurs and Writers” uses the same principle of adding immediacy with the word now. She also quantified change with steps that communicate to the reader; read this book and they will get their best book written in 7 easy steps.
Other good examples of quantifying change are “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” by Stephen R. Covey and “7 Steps to Fearless Speaking” by Lilyan Wilder.
Another change oriented title is “Weigh Down: An Inspirational Way to Lose Weight, Stay Slim and Find a New You” or “How to Be a Great Communicator In Person, On Paper, and on the Podium: The Complete System for communication Effectively in Business and In Life.
Change motivating titles often begin by identifying their target market including the problem, event or characteristics the book address. In doing so, they promise an easy structure leading to the promised change. List instantly communicate easier success by changing big task into a series of smaller tasks.
2. Write a Book Title that Use Concept and Memes to Connect Instantly.
Another top tip for developing a sizzling book title is to aim for a concept, a memes, a word, or phrases that tell a story. Using a story, your readers can immediately connect with and want to associate with your book. Names that tell a story, or express a benefit, are memes. They are words or visual images that tell a story at a glance.
As a primer to developing your own book title, visit Sears and look at the brand names of their proprietary products. The short names of these products are concepts; that tell a story in an instant. At a glance you get it.
You understand the message. Examples, include Diehard batteries, Weather-Beater paints and Craftsman tools. Each products name is a concept. Think about it, which product would you be attracted to “Diehard” or “Stop Slow”. Or would you choose tools with the name “Apprentice” or “Craftsman?”
Many successful books are based on concepts or memes. For example, “A Happy Pocket Full of Money” by David Cameron tells a story of happiness and money. From the title you know this book is going to be about getting more money in your pocket.
The Chicken Soup series instantly brings images of comfort and being cared for. It resonated with a whole generation of Americans that have bought the book into the hundreds of thousands.
The Dummies series communicate anyone can read one of these books because you don’t have to know anything to get it. People automatically know the book will somehow make the complex simple to understand.
When writing your book title, think of a concept, a meme, or phrase, to tell a story that your readers will instantly understand and want to be a part of. You may ask where are the customer benefits you’re always telling me to include. The benefits are still a part of the meme title but a suggestive part. Your mind will fill in the benefit because it’s an understood part of the story.
For example: Chicken Soup book promise and deliver the comfort and care of good stories. Pocket Full of Money readers know how to get a pocket full of money and gain happiness. Dummies communicates you don’t have to be an expert to understand the book.
Don’t forget when creating your top selling book title, your possibilities are limitless. Choose a title that is flexible enough to be expanded into more than one book. Think series, including other information products that can be developed and sold from your website.
Earma Brown, 12 year author and business owner
helps small business owners and writers who want to write their best book now! Earma mentors other writers and business professionals through her monthly ezine “iScribe.” Send any email to iscribe@bookwritinghelp.com for free mini-course “Jumpstart Writing Your Book” or visit her at http://www.bookwritinghelp.com
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