Writing and Publishing News

If the book you are writing is for publication&#8212if you plan to approach a publisher with your marvelous manuscript or self-publish it&#8212then you must shift into publishing mode from the get-go.

I coined the phrase, “Publishing is not an extension of your writing.” I tell hopeful authors that you can’t just shift from the process of writing over to publishing without changing your mindset. After all, writing is a creative endeavor and publishing is a business.

But it occurred to me this morning, when I was preparing for an internet interview with the Independent Publishers of New England, that authors should go into publishing mode&#8212develop a publishing mindset&#8212even before they begin the process of writing a book for publication.

What is the book proposal, after all, but your business plan for your book. And I always recommend that hopeful authors write a book proposal BEFORE writing the book.

Sure, you want some freedom to allow your creative juices to flow into your fiction book. You want to write your nonfiction book without feeling too encumbered. On the other hand, if you don’t think about your audience with every new thought and creative idea on every page of your manuscript, you may find yourself going down the wrong path. If you don’t consider your readers and how you’re going to reach them while writing the book, you may end up with a book that you can’t sell. If you don’t study the market&#8212do a comparative study of your competition&#8212before writing the book, you may be writing a book that will fail in the marketplace.

Authors, write a book proposal before you start writing that book. If you’ve already started your book, stop and write a book proposal now. Use Chapters 4 through 7 in my book, The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book to guide you through the book proposal process.
http://www.matilijapress.com/rightway.html

Use The Author’s Workbook to further assist you in writing your book proposal. Order both books together for only $28.00 plus shipping and tax (for California residents only).

Or order my book, How to Write a Successful Book Proposal in 8 Days or Less. http://www.matilijapress.com

For personal assistance in writing your book proposal, contact me at PLFry620@yahoo.com. Or sign up for my book proposal course at http://www.matilijapress.com/course_bookproposal.htm

This entry was posted on Tuesday, July 1st, 2008 at 8:23 am and is filed under Publishing. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.