Writing and Publishing News

Watch out for publishing rumors. They can sabotage your success.

Almost everyone who enters the publishing arena for the first time, has heard a rumor or two. They’ve listened to the publishing war stories of those in their writers’ groups. They’ve met disgruntled authors at conferences and book festivals with stories to tell. Or they talk to a neighbor who tried to get a book published in the ’80s. Some hopeful authors embrace the first or what seems to them the most logical/reasonable testimonial and consider it publishing gospel. Here are a few examples that hopeful authors have shared with me:

Rumor
A publisher will take your 500-page manuscript, throw away 450 pages and then tell you to rewrite the book.

Fact
Actually, this would be rare, indeed. Publishers get enough good manuscripts that they aren’t going to work from scratch with an unknown author. This is absurd.

Rumor
Publishers won’t even look at your manuscript if you don’t have an agent.

Fact
There are hundreds and hundreds of small to medium-size publishers who prefer to work without the involvement of an agent.

Rumor
All I have to do in order to get published is find an agent.

Fact
Sorry, an agent does not guarantee a publishing contract.

Rumor
It’s impossible for a first-time author to land a traditional royalty publishing contract, so I might as well pay to have this book published.

Fact
There are plenty of publishers who work with new authors—some of them claim that 75 or even 100 percent of their books are from first-time authors.

Rumor
I don’t have to have my manuscript edited. If the publisher is interested, he’ll edit it.

Fact
Yeah, right! But how are you going to get him interested in an inferior manuscript when there are so many others to choose from?

Rumor
I won’t need to promote my book because I’ve paid my POD publisher to do the promotion.

Fact
Don’t get me started. No matter what publishing option you choose, you WILL be responsible for promoting your book.

Rumor
Bookstores won’t carry self-published books.

Fact
Have you contacted independent bookstores?

Rumor
No one will review self-published and POD books.

Fact
This describes most pre-publication reviewers. But there are numerous book review opportunities throughout the Internet and among print publications.

Rumor
Writing the book is the hardest part.

Fact
No, successfully navigating the publishing industry is harder and marketing is even harder, yet.

Folks, don’t rely on rumors and the experiences of a few others when you are ready to enter into the world of publishing. Be proactive. Study the publishing industry so that you are completely informed and well-prepared to make the right decisions on behalf of your particular project.

I often say that one must put the puzzle pieces together in order to discover how to successfully manage the world of publishing. But now I think it is more like working with Tinker Toys. Everyone, who gets a set of these building pieces, will put them together in a different way—to suit their specific publishing needs.

As part of your study of the publishing industry, be sure to read the book I wrote for newby and struggling authors. The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book. http://www.matilijapress.com/rightway.html

I go around the country and all over the Internet telling hopeful authors that they MUST write a book proposal before they write their books. I’ve been adamant in my coaching on this subject; until recently.

A few weeks ago, it came to my attention that maybe this isn’t the right instruction for everyone. As I worked closely on the business of a book proposal with one writer, in particular, I noticed her confidence waning. Her creativity faltered as we worked together on writing a synopsis and putting together a marketing piece. I watched her, over several weeks, make numerous false starts and attempts. Subsequently, recognizing her high level of anxiety, I realized that she just wasn’t ready to handle the task of writing a book proposal. What to do?

Do I tell her that she’s not cut out for the business of publishing? She’s a professional woman, for goodness sake. Do I suggest she give up on her book? It’s an intimately personal memoir. No! Here’s what I did. I gave her permission to write her book without the stress of the book proposal hanging over her head.

In some ways, this was a difficult decision for me. Here are some of the reasons why I advise writing a book proposal first:

• The newby author will get a sense of the very necessary business end of publishing a book and be more well-prepared.
• He will have the opportunity to build promotion into his book.
• She will understand the importance of establishing a platform.
• They will more likely be writing the right book for the right audience.
• The book proposal is a guide to writing the book.

However, I now realize that some authors, especially when their projects are very personal, are better off to get the story down, first. Especially new writers need to, perhaps, avoid left brain activities right now and just stay in creativity mode&#8212live with the story. If it’s an emotional story&#8212one that’s painful to tell&#8212all the more reason why they must make it their focus, for now.

Yet, this isn’t true for all authors who are writing emotionally draining books&#8212not at all. I work with some authors who can leave an extremely sensitive manuscript in order to take care of business&#8212such as writing a book proposal. I guess it depends on one’s ability to shift from right brain to left brain and back again. And it depends on how raw the emotions are&#8212how much time has passed since the events about which they are writing.

So my lesson for ME this month is to more carefully evaluate a client or student who is in the process of writing a personal memoir. I need to determine whether or not this author is ready to concentrate on the business of writing a book proposal.

So what’s the harm if this author writes the book first? The proposal process probably would not change her way of writing the story. It’s her story and she’s going to tell it from her perspective. The information she collects for her book proposal probably would do nothing to alter the way she wants to tell her story. In fact, writing a book proposal might sour her story by distracting and frustrating her. For authors like this, it may be best to allow them the freedom to write the book, first.

When the book is completed, she may decide that she doesn’t want to share it with the public. She might simply tuck it into a drawer and go on with her life. She might produce it for family and friends. Or she might be extremely interested in having the book published. She’s of a mind now to write a book proposal and to look into her publishing options. She may even discover her business sense and make a few changes to her book in order to create a more salable product.

And so, my lesson this month is a reminder that there is more than one way to approach publishing. And my job is to guide the hopeful author in the direction that fits his or her needs.

New and seasoned authors will find the information they need in order to more successfully navigate the process of publishing in my book, The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book. http://www.matilijapress.com/rightway.html

I’ll be starting a new online Book Proposal course September 15. Sign up now at http://www.matilijapress.com/course_bookproposal.htm

Or sign up for the course of your choice. We present online courses on demand: http://www.matilijapress.com/courses.htm

One of my students asked me recently how I got to this place in my writing career. Interesting question. How does anyone work his or her way from point A to point B during a lifetime of pursuing a profession?

But, wait. Writing is different, isn’t it? Writing is an art, a hobby, an emotional outlet, therapy, something we do for fun. It isn’t often thought of as a career. And when a long-time writer begins to teach writing techniques/skills or some form of authorship (how to write a book proposal, self-publishing, article-writing, etc.), people do wonder whence came this teacher? What makes her an authority? Why does she teach?

I think the question, that night, had to do with my knowledge of promotion. When someone is starting out as a writer&#8212penning her first book&#8212she has a writer’s heart. She is focused on stringing words together, creating phrases, painting word pictures, putting her story down on paper. She is almost completely absorbed in the writing process. She is passionate about her story or topic and she is passionate about writing. Of course, this writer would wonder, “How does a sister writer develop this foreign marketing mindset?”

I have to admit that, for me, it was through necessity.

I decided, about 45 years ago, that I wanted to be a writer, but I put my dream on hold while my husband and I raised our 3 small daughters. When the girls were teenagers, I began dabbling as a magazine article writer. A few years later, a publisher accepted and produced my first book, Hints For the Backyard Rider. So by 1978, I had one book and dozens of published articles to my credit. I was also writing a business column for a local newspaper.

And then 2 things happened to seal my future as a writer: I decided to write the first (and so far, only) comprehensive history of the Ojai Valley, California. After 5 years of research and writing, I established my publishing company, Matilija Press, and produced the 360-page book myself. This was in 1983. And this is when I began to learn about the necessity of promotion and exposure. I quickly discovered that, when I made a public appearance (book signing, lecture, book festival&#8212I even had a booth at the huge county fair), I sold books. When I had a write-up in the newspaper or a regional magazine, book sales increased.

Of course, I already knew the concept of and the value of promotion and constantly putting yourself out there as a freelance article-writer. My articles were published only after I came up with the idea, focused that idea to fit a particular magazine, wrote a compelling query letter and then delivered the article I promised. It was no easy process. Getting published over and over again was my goal and it took constant self-promotion. It took a willingness to follow protocol, to continually create and present viable article ideas and follow through. It took a business head as well as a writer’s heart.

The second thing that happened to chart my course as a writer and an author was my divorce. It was then that I made a startling discovery and a serious decision. I wasn’t making enough money from article-writing and book sales to support myself. Since writing was my life&#8212my passion, I knew I had to find a way to make it pay. And I did two things, I lowered my standard of living and, while working at an 8-5 job, I worked hard to establish a more solid writing career.

In 1988, I quit the job and went to work full-time writing articles for magazines, producing books and doing whatever freelance work I could find within the community. And don’t you know that heavy duty promotion was a part of the program? So, for me, promotion was tied into my very survival. I had to combine the writer’s heart and the business head in order to create the perfect balance.

So promotion has always been a strong part of my writing program and, if you want to sell your work, you, too, must develop a business mindset to accompany your writer’s heart.

It is within the last 8 years that I’ve realized and that I began to apply another aspect to my repertoire. That’s when I discovered that I know stuff&#8212stuff that is of value to other writers and hopeful authors. That’s when I began to recognize my burning desire to teach, guide and support other writers and authors as they approach the path toward their successful publishing journey. And I do so for FREE through this blog, my website (check out the resources for writers and numerous articles), articles in over 75 writers/authors’ magazines and ezines (many of them FREE) and through my contributions to the SPAWN website, for example. I also conduct workshops at writers’ conferences nationwide.

As you know, I’ve written several books related to writing and publishing, I teach online courses and I offer editorial services and consultations. Learn more about me, Patricia Fry, my work, my background and my offerings at: http://www.matilijapress.com