Login or Register for free to create your own customized page of blog posts from your favorite blogs. You can also add blogs by clicking the "Add to MyJacketFlap" links next to the blog name in each post.
Blog Posts by Tag
In the past 7 days
Blog Posts by Date
Click days in this calendar to see posts by day or month
Viewing: Blog Posts Tagged with: Platform, Most Recent at Top [Help]
Results 26 - 50 of 52
How to use this Page
You are viewing the most recent posts tagged with the words: Platform in the JacketFlap blog reader. What is a tag? Think of a tag as a keyword or category label. Tags can both help you find posts on JacketFlap.com as well as provide an easy way for you to "remember" and classify posts for later recall. Try adding a tag yourself by clicking "Add a tag" below a post's header. Scroll down through the list of Recent Posts in the left column and click on a post title that sounds interesting. You can view all posts from a specific blog by clicking the Blog name in the right column, or you can click a 'More Posts from this Blog' link in any individual post.
Frequently agents will tell writers, nonfiction writers most specifically, that they need a platform. But what is a platform?
A platform is needed for non-narrative nonfiction. This is nonfiction in which your readers expect you, as the author, to have a certain level of expertise. If you're providing advice on anything—how to achieve happiness, credit repair, parenting, wart removal, movie suggestions, cooking, sleeping, eating, shopping, business start-up—you will need a platform. Heck, sometimes you will even need a platform for memoirs and humor, but not always.
So what is this elusive platform? Let me first tell you want it's not. A platform is not your credentials. It has nothing to do with your degree or degrees, or the level of respect your colleagues have for you. A platform is your name recognition on a national or international level. It's how well you can sell books simply because you have a following.
A platform is your national newspaper column, your television show on NBC, your regular appearance as an expert on radio, TV, or a major website, like theknot.com. A platform means you have thousands of Twitter followers, a blog with thousands of readers, and you get major attention for those things or have received major attention for those things through other outlets.
In other words, a platform means that thousands of people you don't know know you and would buy your book because they know you.
Jessica
9 Comments on What Is Platform, last added: 10/21/2011
I think this is a bit grand--even for non-fiction writers. To dial the scale back to the average writer, I point to Kristen Lamb, whom I've found to be one of the shrewdest and savviest gurus on forging networks and building one's author platform.
Thanks for addressing this buzzword! I have been reading a lot about it, and as someone hoping to publish fiction, I have been stressing out (probably a little too much) over my "platform" and what exactly that means for fiction writers.
This can also assist those who wish to build their platform in a certain area. Start writing articles, joining online/offline groups, attend workshops, and read, read, read. Your expertise and by extension, your platform will emerge and grow the more you take part and contribute.
I am following your blog regularly and got great information. I really like the tips you have given. Thanks a lot for sharing. Will be referring a lot of friends about this.
I don't know columnist Joel Stein personally. But I know of him. I see him around social media and I read his column in Time religiously. And I'd definitely buy a book if he had one published.
I tend to agree with Evangeline Holland's comment. And further to what a platform is...it may not mean knowing thousands who will buy your book, but being connected in a real way to others - pivotal people who will help you reach those thousands who will, in turn, buy your book.
Good post.
Anonymous said, on 10/20/2011 12:20:00 PM
What about an interview book? Does the author still have to have an established platform?
I totally agree. And the way you presented it Jessica is blatant terms offering first what it's not and then what it is is brilliant and unconfused. Though there will be majority who don't get it.
What I don't understand is how some authors can build a platform of 2+ pseudonyms and others can't even do one.
Very frustrating for agents indeed.
Anonymous said, on 10/21/2011 2:59:00 PM
Under those terms, it's amazing anyone besides a celebrity stands a chance--kind of sad, actually...
By Lenny Allen
The title of the classic Philip K. Dick story asks whether androids dream of electric sheep. I don’t know the answer to that particular question, but I do know that we’re all–at this very moment, asleep or awake–dreaming of a digital monograph platform that is financially viable, intuitive, sustainable from the perspective of a rapidly shifting market environment, and adaptable enough to be able to meet both the short and long-term needs of scholarly research at all levels as well as the development of new business and acquisition models.
I am probably the last person you expected to say what I'm going to say: the internet has all got too much and I am going to take control. It's become like one of those eat-all-you-can buffets and it's making me feel somewhat sick.
After I spoke about "building your online platform" at the Society of Authors conference, people said they were terrified by my apparent energy. How did I find the time? Vanessa Gebbie asked on my blog for advice about how to use the internet without wasting time. Blithely, I replied, a) define wasting time b) when it feels too much, stop - don't let it take over. Discipline, my child!
Well, I was OK at that point. After all, I only had a few blogs and three FB pages and Twitter and a new website in progress and three existing websites and Audioboo. And this collaborative blog. And the Authors Electric blog, which I'd just joined as a newbie ebook publisher. (And immediately volunteered to manage their Twitter account...)
But then, my behaviour tipped over some kind of precipice: I investigated (purely for research, you understand) LinkedIn, where I found groups and threads and discussions, and where I spent a lot of time deleting randomly-generated emails. And Google+, which everyone said was "better" than Facebook, and where I found circles and groups and threads and discussions and hangouts to hang out in with people I already knew from Twitter and Facebook. Then (purely for research, you understand), I thought I should join the Kindle Boards (because I am interested in ebook publishing) and the Kindle UK forum (ditto and because it exists) and the Absolute Write Water Cooler (ditto and ditto and because people asked me to) and in all of those places I found forums and groups and threads and discussions and spent a great deal of time in a great many similar conversations.
And in those places, I kept seeing the same people. Often lovely people. "Fancy meeting you here!" I was often tempted to ask, "Do you come here often?" So I was communicating with existing friends in umpteen places. They were everywhere, all at the same time, and so was I.
As well as that, within 24 hours of arriving on one particular site, I had THREE private messages warning me to be careful what I said because the conversation could sometimes be vicious. The word "vicious" was actually used in each case. Why would anyone want to hang out anywhere where people were going to be vicious? I didn't see any viciousness but I know people who have experienced it. And I don't want to.
After a couple of weeks of all this gorging on the buffet, and working longer and longer hours to get any actual work done, it all became too much and I thought, "Blimey, this is the definition of wasting time." And I reminded myself of what I'd told Vanessa Gebbie: Discipline, my child!
Also, I was getting more and more frustrated with Facebook - I seemed to be force-fed information and photos and quiz results and Farmville pink rabbits from people I literally didn't know. At. All. I am sure many of them were lovely people, but I didn't know them and they didn't know me and there are actually only so many hours in the day.
So I began slipping away from some of the afore-mentioned places, without wanting to offend the perfectly decent and sensible people there. Today, I began to try to untie the strings of Facebook. And what long FB conversations that caused! Facebook has this horrible word, "Unfriending". In order only to interact with people you actually know, you have to unfriend the others. It's horrible. You have to do it one name at a time and a little - well, OK: big - message comes up asking if you're really sure you want to unfriend so-and-so. Meh.
17 Comments on In which I control my addiction - Nicola Morgan, last added: 10/3/2011
I have resisted Facebook, and will continue to do so. After vowing not to tweet, I opened a Twitter account, but only to promote our daily offering at Poetry24.
I signed up for Google+ but I never have the time to go there. You're right, Nicola, it's all about balance.
I put a paw onto FB occasionally. I write a blog post each day and I comment on here, your Help I need a Publisher blog and, occasionally, on others. I keep one eye on Twitter (where I have two accounts - one of which is strictly work. Yes, you can work on Twitter - it is amazing how much you can get done if you limit what you are able to say!) That's it - my e-mail boxes are quite enough to deal with apart from that. If you want to write then you have to be disciplined about these things.
At the moment I've got a wall round it all. A blog I write twice a week. FB - I dip into. Twitter (that can eat hours if I'm not careful). Plenty of blogs to read and comment on (though I do find I'm repeating myself). Litopia - I don't give than enough time to be useful to anyone.
And still the suggestions I should join another forum, read more blogs. LinkedIn. KIndle forums. Google+.
I know I need an online platform. But I also need a life - and there comes a point where the online chitchat isn't fun! And that, for me, is my limit. If I'm not enjoying it, then there's no point. I'll do what I can. And then go read a book, or write a story, or go for a walk, or even - dare I say it - talk to a real person!
Think this sense of "too much media" is a common one just at the moment, with people starting to want their real lives back. Well said, Nicola.
Though I do hope you'll all keep reading Awfully Big Blog Adventure as we're starting our new "Bookseller Sunday" series tomorrow! What's that real world like, then?
I've kicked and screamed about each new internet thing I've had to grapple with - but now I've grown to love my website, my (once a week) blog, my first e-book publication (with the support of Authors Electric), my Kindle. Back to the food analogy, I'm that kid who insists they don't like mushrooms and has never tried them. So, though I feel my plate is full, perhaps there really is room for one little, thin, chocolate wafer ...
Yikes, I didn't mean to suggest that anyone should not read any of the high quality material out there - including, of course, ABBA and Authors Electric! I just mean the time spent on a) too many discussion forums and b) duplicating networking opportunities that end up saying the same things to the same people, needs to be controlled and that many of us feel obliged to be doing everything.
And Susan - Twitter is a joy and a benefit to me so I'm delighted to do electric tweeting, too!
Fascinating post, Nicola. You truly are a world-wide-webbed creature! Thank you for sharing where you've been and what you've done.
What did writers do for distraction and displacement activity before the internet? I can't even remember. Was there something about getting dressed and going ... outside the house, even??? I know it seems weird and radical.
SO true, Nicola. Well done for taking control of it so bravely.
It is very enticing and like sweeties in a shop window, (or perhaps since this is you, Nicola, it should be a shoe shop window!) because there is always something new to try or another blog or post or tweet to write.
Love your comment, Michelle!
Yes, there is a lovely world out there which has nothing to do with being on social networks, and real people to speak to IN PERSON - WOW how radical is that!
It is too easy to spend far too much time here and not enough actually writing.
It should perhaps be the treat to spend a little time on this now and then. It can so easily become an addiction and as destructive as any other.
To be honest, Linda, it wasn't bravery but desperation. It all felt just too much and I felt pushed by the "you need to do this if you're to sell books" message - but you know, I'd rather sell fewer books but actually have a life. And I can have a life while doing a LOT of online stuff but I needed to find what was enough and what was too much.
'I'd rather sell fewer books but actually have a life' - I have said that for years. Or actually a variant of it - I'd rather sell fewer copies and write more books. Hence no school visits. Ever.
Yes, I've cut down over the last few months. Actually, over the last year. But I've been on all these things since before anyone arrived, except the geeks (and built my first website in 1997) so for a while it was like being at a really rather quiet party and then lots of people turned up. So I put a bit more energy into it all for a while, but then cut back again.
Incidentally, you don't need to see any Farmville updates. You can block Facebook from showing you any updates by silly applications and games. And you can group all the friends you should not have accepted into a single a group (in a single operation) and give them minimal access to anything you say or do. Much quicker than deleting them.
It's worth having an account on anything in which you want to own your own name. As children's writers, it would not be good for us if our names on Facebook were owned by porn stars, for example. And it's worth keeping up enough online presence to stay at the top of the Google search for your name. Unless you are called John Smith, in which case you will have to become a serial killer to stand any chance.
Actually, most of my online time now is spent on Skype - talking to the people I would in the real world go round and see if only they lived closer.
All very fascinating! Can't wait to hear you speak this time next week and see you in the flesh, as it were. But I have never facebooked...didn't like that at all. Now I Tweet but not very much. I blog here on ABBA and on History Girls and that's about all I'm prepared to do. Go through my Twitter twice a day or so to catch up on other people's gossip....different strokes etc.
Linda Newbery said, on 10/1/2011 11:55:00 PM
Excellent points, Nicola. I've never been as involved as you, but still feel the need to back off, especially when writing - all this flitting about is the enemy of writing. I have taken the simple measure of "unbookmarking" Facebook, which means that I can't just flick there in an idle moment. It's a simple thing, but makes quite a difference.
But it's great that you have joined Authors Electric, and will be Tweeting on our behalf.
In an example of 'communicating with existing friends in umpteen places', we've talked about this on FB, and I agree entirely with what you say, Nicola, as you know. I'm on many many forums, all of which I joined in a spirit of 'should', but to be honest, after an initial flurry, I never go to any of them now. Linked In is a 'wait and see', as is Google +. As Stroppy Author says, it's best to claim your own name on these things, even if you don't use them very much. I wrote a post on this very blog earlier in the summer about 'going dark'. I think it's very necessary to have that balance - and that choice. However, it did feel very odd to shuck off that cloak of internet presence at the start. Afterwards it was hugely freeing. It's good to remember that!
Yes, Nicola, I have. I'm close to quitting FB as well, but what keeps me there is that I have loads of friends in foreign countries who I would never hear from otherwise. And who are a nostalgic part of my life. But there are certainly some other groups I'll try and leave. Real life calls! :)
Leila - that;s why I'm not going to leave FB entirely, but I've gradually been "unfriending" (gah!) the people who I don't personally properly connect with, especially if I can also be in touch with them on Twitter, which is a different environment, more like a crowded room where it doesn't matter of you don't speak to everyone.
Lucy - yes, Stroppy's point about claiming your name is a good one. And your point about it being freeing to say no is true, too.
Bookwitch - books? Talking of which, must go and work :)
On September 1, 2011 Tyler R. Tichelaar and Victor R. Volkman spoke with author and marketing guru Irene Watsonon how authors can generate their marketing platform with a minimum of effort. Irene Watson is the Managing Editor of Reader Views, where avid readers can find reviews of recently published books as well as read interviews with authors. Her team also provides author publicity and a variety of other services specific to writing and publishing books. She spoke with us and addressed the following points:
What is an author platform?
Why does an author need a platform?
What’s the first thing to do to create a platform? (Define Audience)
What is the next step after I define my audience?
Basics of the platform (Brand, Reputation, Connections)
Two friends with a book idea attended a “How to Get Published”
workshop three years ago. After 30 minutes, one leaned over and whispered, “What the
hell is a platform?”
“I dunno. Maybe a portable stage for book signings?”
“He said we have to build it, and I don’t get along with power tools.”
This was us. If we ever wanted our project to have a shot in the field of dreams that
is today’s publishing industry, we’d have to navigate new waters. Platform: “If you
build it, they will come.”
Guest column by S. Jane Gari and Heidi R. Willis, co-authors of two projects for which they are submitting: Flush This Book: True Tales of Bodily
Malfunctions and I Am Woman, Hear Me Fart:
Stories Only Best Girlfriends Know. If you saw the movie Bridesmaids and laughed, then you’re their kind of people. Heidi has been published in
Newsweek and Country Discoveries. Two of S. Jane's works were published in The Petigru Review, one of which was nominated for a Pushcart Prize. She also performs stand-up based on material from Flush This Book. See their website and blog.
But how do you create a following and public visibility without even having a book
out yet? It’s counterintuitive, but agents and editors are more eager to take on writers
who have proven their self-promoting hustle pre-contract. After shifting our perspective,
we realized it wasn’t just about the book. It was about us and our writing in general.
Doing our homework meant figuring out what kinds of people would be interested in
what we had to offer, which was, and is, Chicken Soup for the Soul meets potty humor.
DEFINE YOUR TARGET AUDIENCE
Define your target audience and design every platform outlet with them in mind. We
defined our audience in terms of what other books they would buy, what websites they
would visit, what television shows they would watch. Then we made sure that we appealed
to them. The first pieces of the platform puzzle were the website and blog. The colors,
the layout, the font, our blog post topics, everything revolved around the promise
we were making to readers: an irreverent laugh without apology.
WHAT'S IN IT FOR OUR READERS?
Building the website forced us to brand ourselves and constantly answer the question:
What’s in it for our readers? Our logo, our slogans, our blog topics, a forum where
readers could share their own stories with us, these all evolved from thinking like
marketers. Anyone in advertising will tell you, never underestimate the power of free
stuff. We used our website to launch contests that awarded readers with free copies
of our promotional mini-book and offered a free story to anyone who signed up for
our mailing list. Our website enjoyed more traffic, we built a mailing list and people
who participated in the contest became contributors on our forum.
On Book Touring: Nobody goes there anymore ... it's too crowded.
If you're a New Yorker, you grow up with Yogi Berra-isms. They're delivered in utero
like collective memories, and this one has been coming back to me lately as I hear
over and over again that authors "aren't touring" because "it never pays for itself"
and the publishers are only touring "bestselling authors who don't need it." I say
hogwash. People are touring, they're just defining it differently.
Rosemary is excited to give away a free copy of her
novel to a random commenter. Comment within one week; winners must live in Canada/US
to receive the book by mail. You can win a blog contest even if you've won before.
Guest column by Rosemary Harris,
Anthony and Agatha-Award nominated author of Pushing
Up Daisies, The
Big Dirt Nap, Dead Head and Slugfest featuring amateur sleuth Paula Holliday. Her books have been called "Hilarious" (Kirkus), "a nifty puzzle" (Publishers Weekly)
and "a perfect summer read" (NPR). Check out her tour schedule at her website.
It's become fashionable to say that blog tours make so much more sense "and I can
do it in my jammies!" You won't hear me say I don't engage in social media—I
blog with a group of very talented writers,
I've got two pages on Facebook, a fan and a personal, and I've recently crossed the
Rubicon into Twitterland where I have an embarrassingly low number of followers—please
follow me. Still, I guess I'm old school. I want
to meet booksellers, librarians and readers in the flesh, particularly if I've met
them already online. Few things match a face-to-face meeting for generating that all-important
word-of-mouth.
A recent survey conducted for Sisters in Crime revealed that word-of-mouth and personal
recommendations were still the biggest motivations to purchase books and although
I can Meet, Friend and Like as many people as I want to online, it's the ones I've
met in person who have been the strongest advocates for my work.
And where do I meet most of them? At shows and conferences. If the book to
Add a Comment
"Agent Advice" is a series of quick interviews
with literary and script agents who talk with Guide to Literary Agents about
their thoughts on writing, publishing, and just about anything else.
This installment features Russell Galen of Scovil
Galen Ghosh Literary Agency. Russell is a graduate of Brandeis University. He
started within days as an apprentice to “the most colorful and successful agent of
his era,” Scott Meredith, and he made his first sale within a month. When Scott died
in 1993, he joined with the two other top agents there, Ted Chichak and Jack Scovil,
to found Scovil Galen Ghosh Literary Agency.
He is seeking: In fiction, his passion lies within novels that stretch the
bounds of reality. A novel needs to take him some place you can’t get to in a car,
whether it be the past, the future, a fantasy world, an alternate historical track,
a world in which our world touches another that is hidden or rarely seen, or one which
has been changed by some new technology, event, or idea. In nonfiction, he seeks strong,
serious books on almost any subject—as long as they teach him something. He’s interested
in science, history, journalism, biography, business, memoir, nature, politics, sports,
contemporary culture, literary nonfiction, etc.
GLA: In your agency bio, you say you’re the only literary agent you
know of who grew up wanting to be one. What drew you to the job? And how did you become
an agent?
RG: Studying F. Scott
Fitzgerald in high school freshman English, I became obsessed and read everything
I could get my hands on about the man, not just the books. This included a collection
of his letters, which was organized by recipient. One section had letters to Zelda,
one to his daughter (which contain some great writing advice, by the way), one to
his renowned editor Max Perkins, and one to his agent, Harold Ober. I had never heard
of Ober but I was immediately attracted to the writer/agent relationship depicted
there: a long-term relationship of emotional support and editorial encouragement.
It seemed to me that the editor was focused on the book—the
writing—and the agent was
focused on the man—the writer.
The latter seemed more like the kind of thing I would find satisfying. As I nursed
my literary dreams over the next eight years, I thought about becoming a literary
agent. When I got out of college, I just started calling up literary agencies until
I found one that need a new slave.
I have never regretted it in the subsequent 32 years despite
forming a great deal of admiration for certain editors, and even being envious of
some of some of the things they get to do in their jobs. Being an editor would not
have been for me and I don't think I would have survived this long, or long at all,
in that job.
GLA: What's
something you've sold that comes out now/soon that you're excited about?
RG: Nonfiction: The
Secrets of Life by Sean B. Carroll (forthcoming from Crown). When I sold this
book I said, "I can die now, my work is done. The ultimate Russell Galen book, it
sums up e
Add a Comment
One of the problems with modern life is too much choice. Choice is offered as a good thing and, on the face of it, it is. Certainly, lack of choice is lack of power and the ultimate lack of power is slavery. But too much choice can be horribly paralysing and lead to great dissatisfaction.
There's an area of choice in which I think writers are becoming panicky and paralysed. It's the P-Words: Publicity, Promotion, Profile, Platform. Oh, and pro-active.
Time was when a writer wrote a book, waited for Publication Day, was wheeled out for a few signings and tottered back to a hotel for a claret-laden dinner with editor. (Actually, I have no memory of such days, but allow me some imagination.) Now, we have to be pro-active, partly because often our publishers don't do enough or we have better ideas, or simply because there are so many opportunities and our publishers rightly encourage us to use them. We see other authors Doing Stuff and want to Do Stuff too. For a pro-active, interfering, control freak such as me, this is, in theory, great.
In theory.
In practice, it's a flipping nightmare, a feast of choices, incitement to wake in the night with Yet Another Stupid Wheeze Which I Usually Actually Carry Through. And then there's the panic when we hear what someone else is doing - why didn't we think of that? The blog tour, the sponsored marathon, the one-woman festival, the colour-coded Tweet-up, the mail-shotting of the fan database. What?? You don't have a fan database, in a spreadsheet, with the ability to identify each category of reader, by postcode? You mean you haven't set up a Twitter persona for each of the characters in your book? You don't have a special blog, posting every day for six months? You haven't organised a book giveaway throughout all continents of the world? Bad, lazy author.
NO! No more, I say, no more. I reject paralysing choice. I will not be panicked into doing stupid things that sound good but wreck me. Never again will I set a world record of school visits in one day, as I did for Deathwatch. Or organise a blog tour AND set up a new blog, as I did for Wasted. Nor will I ever lie awake wondering what mad things to do for the next book. I will reject panic. I will calm down, be sensible and moderate. We do too much, worry too much, glance in too much fear at other people, fret about what we're not doing instead of focusing on what we can do well.
So, here, for what it's worth, is my advice on approaching publication in a state of zen:
Play to your strengths: do what suits you. If the idea curdles your stomach juices, spit it out.
Focus not on the excitement of the Bright Idea but the feeling you will actually have when you have to put the idea into practice. Will you regret it? If so, stop it in its tracks.
Choose a couple of things to do and forget the other possibilities. You have another book to write and a life to live.
Ignore everyone else: no one is doing everything and most people are not selling as many books as you fear.
If you wake in the night with a crazy idea, go back to sleep.
Be strategic and time-focused. Six months before publication, make a plan (in conjunction with your publisher); then do virtually nothing till two months before P-day.Then, look at your plan and follow it. This planning eliminates the need to wake in the night in a panic. Besides, you're not panicking, remember?
Remember that what happens to your book will depend mostly on luck and the book, more than how many hours you spent promoting it.
You do not have to have a launch party - it's fun (for some people) but it usually doesn't sell books so only do it if it will make you happy, not if it will stress you.
Do as I say, not as I do. But I'm trying - I really am.
ARGHHHHH.
By the way, in case my publicist is reading this, the book is called Write to be Published. But it's not published till June, so I'm doing nothing yet.
C
8 Comments on The Dreaded P-Words - Nicola Morgan, last added: 3/25/2011
When I first heard about this I very nearly gave up all idea of even trying to get something published. It still may not happen because the idea of having to effectively say, "Hey I have written a book, please buy it" makes me cringe. I am fine with selling ideas to people but not with asking them to part with money. (Probably because I have never had any myself.) The idea of having a blog (like you did) devoted to a book or even going on a blog tour (let alone a real one) is positively terrifying. But...
You make an excellent point, NIcola, it is easy to get carried away with the idea that everyone else (like that Nicola Morgan woman particularly- did I say that out loud? :)) is doing such a lot of promotion for their book(s).
One of the most difficult things can be that life/ work balance when you work from home. As a writer it can be even more difficult to balance the amount of time you spend writing vs promoting vs doing school or other author visits not to mention finding time for the rest of your life with family and friends.
It can be all consuming this writing life and this post is a timely reminder that you have choices and don't let anything railroad you into making them without thinking about how you really want to be spending your time.
This is rather too timely. My proof copy for my new book -'Wolf Blood', since you ask, has just arrived. I am already paralysed and fatalistic - it will either sell or it won't.
Nicola, there must be something in the air. I too have decided to go zen this week. (And I'm not talking Aurelio here, although...) I was trying to make decisions about running writing courses - too complicated to go into, and not interesting for anyone else, and could feel myself getting into a state of prickly panic - then the sun came out and I decided to go zen. I will stop making decisions, said I to my newly wise self, unmaking them and then remaking them: I will be calm and smiley and just see what happens. It's working very nicely so far. Hurray for zen (and Zen).
The truth of the matter is: MOST BOOKS SELL VERY FEW COPIES INDEED. This is something I reckon the publishers ought to recognize and deal with somehow. Become Zen about it, perhaps? Your advice is all good, Nicola but frankly, there are folk in publishing houses the length and breadth of this country who are paid money to think of stuff like how to sell your book. The truth of the matter is: only certain books get a publicity budget from the publisher and the ones which don't tend to disappear. Any noise you can make without driving yourself mad in the process can't be a bad thing, but I remain to be convinced that it makes much difference to the famous bottom line in the end. Only do what's fun for you to do, is my advice.
You are a wise, wise woman, Nicola Morgan and a generous one, letting others benefit from your experiences. Your advice is probably too late for me, embarking on a Blog Tour, starting a new blog, selling myself next week in Bologna and generally promoting and profiling like a mad thing, while I am trying to write another novel and help plan a wedding!
But in future, yes, let's all be Zen - and if it means a certain Aurelio drops by in his latest incarnation, I for one shall not complain.
Thank you for raising this, Nicola. It's always difficult working out what publishers may be doing - often very little - and what one should be doing, and can actually do with any success.
I am beginning to feel that the more I read about Building A Presence the less I'm sure I have one. Scuttles into a spidery corner. :-)
Recently my blogging chum Shannon O'donnell posted about how important certain virtues are for people on the writing path. We must have the courage to write and put ourselves out there, we must find the fortitude needed to persevere. The one virtue she mentioned struggling with is having enough patience to stave off discouragement, depression, frustration and doubt.
Patience. Boy, that is a tough one some days, isn't it? I bet you can all relate to Shannon. I know I can.
Writing is a long journey. Most of you are probably involved in writing sites, forums, critique groups and the like, connecting with others on the writing path. You read blogs, encourage others, keep tabs on those striving just as you are. This is what it means to be a community. But there can be a dark side to belonging to this community, something that can cause us to have a crisis of faith: staying patient and upbeat when other succeed where we have not (yet).
Don't get me wrong, we cheer for every sale and piece of good news that comes to our writer friends! But, sometimes a sliver inside us feels something else: Frustration. Envy. Worry. Doubt. These emotions lead to a plague of questions: Why haven't I succeeded? Why isn't it my turn for good news? Why can't this be me? Am I kidding myself for even trying?
It's very easy to let these negative questions send us on a downward spiral, sucking away our energy, our creativity and our strength to continue. Like Shannon mentioned in her post, it isimpatience that leads us down this dark road.
So how do we fight it? How do we build up our resistance and stay upbeat?
I find for me, the best way to conquer impatience is to take it out of the equation. Once my book is in an editor's hands, is there anything I can do writing-wise to make them say yes? No, there isn't. Can I make them read faster, get back to me faster? No. So, why stress and get all impatient about it? These are things I have no control over.
Instead, I put my energy into what I CAN do:
--I can make myself attractive to an editor who may look me up online. So, I put time and energy into my online presence and platform.
--I can continue to write & polish in case they want to see something else from me. I let go of the book that's on submission and turn to the next project.
--I can continue to learn, which will help me make sure a cleaner product reaches their desk. None of us know everything--we can always improve. Learning is growing.
These are the things within my control, so I do them. :)
Here's one solid fact, no matter where you're at on the publishing trail: if you keep moving forward, you'll get there. I believe this. I live it. So, the next time impatience & negativity clouds your head space, TAKE CONTROL. Fight by putting your energy into things that will lead to your success!
42 Comments on The Fine Art of Conquering Impatience, last added: 2/17/2011
This is so true, Angela. It's really hard to ignore those impatient feelings, but I think your three strategies are great ones. Just keep writing, just keep writing...
I don't know any writer that hasn't been down that road! And we have to fight giving into the discouragement. I watch a movie, read books and get motivated. I think it's also important to realize that the ups and down are part of the creative process but we don't have to give in to them. Great post, Angela!
Thank you for this encouraging post. I think it's a great reminder to remember there is always something we can do:) I'm speaking at a conference in March and plan to talk about your blog and the great way you have broken down details.
What a great, encouraging post. Thank you. I needed this, I think. In fact, my husband and I were just talking about this - I related it to writing while he related it to his passion and craft - woodworking. It definitely does us no good to focus on things overwhich we have no control. It's so easy to do, that I can use a daily reminder. Thanks again!
Looks like this post really struck a cord. We all feel that negativity at some point, no matter where we are or what we've accomplished. I think it's a part of writing, so the trick is breaking out of the cycle as quickly as possible and turn it into fuel to succeed.
Thanks everyone for the comments. You are not alone--remember that!
Too true. As much as you want your friends to succeed, you just can't help secretly wishing it was you, when they do achieve something... But the only certain way to never achieve anything is to give up.
Thanks Angela! I really liked the little (yet). That is just as important as patience and focusing on what we can do, that little chunk of hope. Hope is all I am sometimes, small and quiet, clinging to the idea that someday I will publish my words. It keeps me going. Funny Stuff I Write And Draw
Anonymous said, on 2/14/2011 8:00:00 AM
Good advice Angela! We definetly need to remember that every day.
I'm just now seeing others I know getting published, getting the perks of fan mail. It helps me to know that they worked hard to get where they're at and I keep reminding myself someday I'll be there. I may not enjoy the same success but then, I started writing with the hope of having one person touched in some small way by my writing. I've done that through my critique group. Now, I want more. It's the little steps that count. Great post!!
I try to look at it this way: it's a double-edged sword. On one hand, I drive myself crazy (bad) but on the other hand, impatience is a great mover and shaker in my life. DO IT NOW is not always such a bad approach to writing. After all, writing is eminently put-off-able.
Great Post Ange! Everyone is on their own path, from birth to death. Its just that old river journey that takes you here and there before you reach your own destiny in the process. Sometimes strange thoughts pop in to test us all, especially through so so so many years, and spirits may even try to trip one up. Don't listen to them - only listen to the good postive stuff. Who needs that. Sometimes it comes in so easily and we get sucked in, especially writers. Yeah, there's one on your left shoulder and another on your right from time to time. Now who are you going to listen to? Make sure you hear: Dont listen to them.
and I quote your words:Fight by putting your energy into things that will lead to your success!
I love the idea of conquering impatience by focusing on the things you can control. We all definitely get impatient, but this is a very helpful cure for it!
I totally relate to those feelings of joy mixed with a little bit of envy and frustration. Patience is the hardest thing to maintain on this journey for me.
Wow. Thanks, Angela. You are 100% right about focusing on the things we CAN do. It really did help me when I was finally able to turn my thoughts to a new project. And diving into writing books (I bought Save the Cat! and The Fire Within) motivated me as well. Great post. Thanks for always being here.
I love the list of Can-do things! I'm taking a webinar this month and also might take a poetry class to keep learning. Like GnR says, "All we need is just a little patience Said, sugar, make it slow And we come together fine All we need is just a little patience" :)
This is such great advice for so many areas of life. There are always situations where we seem to be not doing as well as someone else, or not progressing as fast as we want. Focusing on the negative is never good and is always a choice. Thanks for the reminder!
Excellent post! I love your advice. It's so easy to get caught up in what we can't control. We have to focus on what we can do. I think I'm going to have to bookmark this so I can reread it the next time I'm stressing out about something that's out of my hands. Thanks!
This post is so true! I gave up acting years ago because I wasn't patient and didn't deal well with the endless auditions and rejections. Luckily those days helped me start to grow the thick skin you need to hang in there with writing. Never give up if you love it!
Personally, I'm a planner. I lay out a plan to goal, follow it and expect to get where I set out to go. For me, the key to overcoming impatience (as much as I have :D ) has been accepting that it's not something I have any control over. I can't lay out a neat little plan that will absolutely end with me being published. And it was all those years of intensive planning that led to more and more frustration on my part.
All I can do is write, crit, edit and submit. The rest isn't in my hands.
I haven't had those 'why not me?' feelings yet. I'm still excited about my friends' successes, no matter where they are on the writing pathway. Even when one of my friends has the best title, cover, author blurb, ever, I still get excited. If I'm green, then it's a beautiful shade of green. But that's because I know how hard she worked to get there. You can't be jealous of that. You can only admire them and hope to do the same, which includes all the points you mentioned, Angela.
Lizzie, Janet and Charlie, you guys have the right attitude!
Shauna, absolutely this can be applied to all aspects and goals. Hugs!
Traci, that's absolutely an excellent point--everyone who succeeds works very hard to do so. I know very few people in this likfe that have things handed to them with no effort.
KLM, yes, procrastination can be a mortal enemy can't it?
Jac, this is so true. As writers we do feel pulled in different direction, and this is when doubt can set in. It helps to remember why we started this journey in the first place--each and every one of us started because we believed we could do it. We should never lose sight of that. :)
Shallee, exactly!
Susan, I think it's something so many struggle with, but few want to talk about because it makes us feel bad, like we're not nice people. This isn't true at all! Doubt and envy are powerful, and it helps to talk about it as we all feel them at some point.
Shannon, I am trying to get my hands on Save The Cat! I so want to read it!
Kelly, that's great! Improving on what we know about writing is one of the smartest things we can do. Always learn, always improve.
Thanks Kathryn!
Becca, how many times have you been there for me to pump me up when I'm down? LOL, guess where I learned this from?
Me, absolutely you keep going. Don't give up. I know so many great writers who gave up, and it steals a piece of me every time, because I know good writing, and they had the talent to succeed. You believed in yourself enough to start, now keep believing it! You can do it!
Kelly, I think it's because there is so much about this industry we can't control--so many things that keep the glass ceiling in place. It's easy to fixate on it, but what we really need to do is let go of it all and concentrate on breaking through the glass using the tools we have.
Leslie, I'm glad the past made you stronger. Everyone should chase their dreams and only change focus when they themselves feel it's time and they can do it without regret.
Marion, you got it!
Carrie, thanks for commenting!
Stina, you are one of the most put together and focused writers I know. You have drive and determination, and when you know there's an area you need to work on, you don't hesitate to act. You are the embodiment of hard work and taking control!
Again everyone, thanks for the great comments. I really do believe this is something that we should be able to discuss without judgment. We're all in the same boat, all headed for the same desitnation, and there will be storms on the way. Sharing your experiences is such a help to me and my journey.
This is such an important point. It can't be said enough. And we all have moments of weakness when we start to slip... but then when we remind ourselves of WHY we're doing it in the first place and how we can continue to work we recover and stay on track.
I really needed to read this today. i was feeling exactly the way you mentioned. And it is impatience. I have to remind myself, no matter how hard I work, It's just not my time.
My impatience monster gets a hold of me all the time. It's a constant battle, but I tell myself to back off and slow down. You have to do the work before you can get the results. The journey is half the adventure... so I'm to believe.
Good post. I have trouble mostly with the patience neede to get work done. I don't have ADD, but sometimes I feel like I do, given how often I switch from one project to the other. But I've also heard it said that sometime's it's good to have more than one project going, so if you get bored on the one, go to something better, and come back when you feel ready to keep working on the first one. Make of that what you will.
What a great resource you've created. I feel like I finally began my journey as a writer this year after feeling impatient about it literally for years. I'm taking steps I should have taken a long time ago. Your post here describes exactly what I'm going through. Thanks for your list of "I cans." It Just Got Interesting
Love this honest and uplifting post! So true! I don't think the impatience every goes away. It just takes on different forms at different times. Wonderful words of wisdom here. Thank you!!!
LOVE this post! We're so into writing that we want to get it out there, now, all very frustrating when it's not, even worse, rejected. Writing is not for the faint of heart.
One of my clients is mentioned in this recent LA Times article that I thought was worth sharing. It's interesting to see how the Internet continues to find new talent and how some of that talent translates to books, and other types of media, like film and television. The article notes that most bloggers become book authors before Hollywood takes interest. There are always going to be hits and misses: even bloggers with a big following don't always translate on the book side to big sales. Heather Armstrong of Dooce has lots of traffic, but her first book didn't make as big a splash as I'm guessing her publisher hoped. And Ree Drummond, aka The Pioneer Woman, had a huge hit with her first book, which her publisher didn't pay a huge advance for.
Enjoy the piece, and if there are any blogs you're reading that you love and haven't yet found a home as a book or film or tv show, let us know!
7 Comments on Blogs to books to film, last added: 8/19/2010
I have a friend with an amazing blog. She has Cystic Fibrosis and writes about her illness and the struggles she's going through... Even though it's a serious topic and the things going on in her life are often gut-wrenching, her writing is hilarious--she is amazingly upbeat. How would you go about taking a blog and making into a book...?
Anonymous said, on 8/18/2010 1:39:00 PM
http://adamandjennylivingston.blogspot.com/
I forgot to put the link :) Thanks for the insight,
"There are always going to be hits and misses: even bloggers with a big following don't always translate on the book side to big sales."
Our website gets a lot of traffic, and how it translates into magazine sales is less clear; but, those who browse online may not be the type of people who will read hard copy. It may be the reason why bloggers who author books do not have sales which correlate to their website's popularity.
Similarly, I receive fiction submissions from bloggers who seem to have popular sites, and yet their writing is poor. That leaves me wondering who is visiting their blog and why.
One of the keys to blogging, especially for newbies and those not affiliated with large sites with their own, independent traffic sources, is to form relationships with other bloggers which becomes a symbiotic "I'll visit your blog if you visit mine" mentality. If a blogger is absent for a period of time with few posts and no visits to fellow bloggers, then visits to their blog fall sharply.
That is another reason why I place very little stock in an author with a popular blog (for the fiction side of our publication). I seek talent, a unique voice, and a story that is entertaining.
Blog fans, in my opinion tend to be fickle. Seeking work from bloggers because they are popular and hoping that they will bring along their fan base for sales is less reliable than merely seeking the best work which is submitted to me.
Thanks for the opportunity to respond to your post.
I'm starting a blog of mine. It's nothing yet, just a couple of posts, still working in the layout, and such and such. But I can see the need of it if you want to be something out there in the wild wild west... I agree in some parts with the comment from Michael J. Kannengieser. Yes, the perspective of "if you read mine I read yours" is not reliable. But many people just write a blog because they can "vent" some of their life, feelings and else. I am one of them. I don't expect to get a book deal from my blog. I don't expect that an agent to take a look at it randomly when surfing in the web and bows before me in ecstasy. I know it wont happen. I use it because I can test the waters. I can see if I have what it takes - discipline to write on a schedule, to gather interesting subjects to write about, among other things. I just worry that people sometimes forget that when you put something out in the web, you put yourself in a position that may harm you later, if you are not conscious of what you're doing. It's really important to keep in mind that a blog can be an portfolio of your work - for the good and for the bad.
**Is your writing journey out of whack because you have unrealistic expections? See literary agent Rachelle Gardner’s post “Managing Expections.”
**Critique groups are great, but you–the writer–must be your own best–and toughest–editor. See Victoria Strauss on “The Importance of Self-Editing.”
**We’re told to set goals and be specific about what success means to us. Do you have trouble with that? You might find clarity with motivational speaker Craig Harper’s “Goals and Anti-Goals.”
**And finish with Joe Konrath’s pithy statements in “A Writer’s Serenity Prayer.” You may want to print them out and tape them to your computer!
Share a Gem!
What have you read lately–online or off–that you felt was particularly insightful or helpful or thought-provoking? I’d love to have you share a link of your own!
My father, who worked in the newspaper business, was especially fond of quoting the New Yorker writer A.J. Liebling, who remarked that “freedom of the press belongs to the man who owns one.” Book publishing may not suffer from quite the same issues (not least because most publishing companies are now owned not by individuals, but conglomerates) but it’s a still a business in which it does not hurt to arrive equipped with your own funding.
As we all know, in the present market, publishing houses are looking for authors with well-established, and ideally national, platforms. For non-fiction writers especially, this translates into having the resources to spearhead their own publicity and promotion. Such resources may not necessarily be monetary—authors may possess celebrity, the backing of a large and well-known organization, media connections, or all of the above. These, mind you, are in addition to credentials and the ability to write well (or hire someone who can). Being an expert in your field is rarely enough. You need to be able to demonstrate that you can drive sales. Sometimes you need the wherewithal to actually deliver sales. Nothing sweetens a deal like a letter of commitment for the purchase of 10,000 books.
The business of building platforms, including putting together websites, blogging, networking, doing p.r. (on your own or with the help of a freelancer) is costly, whether in terms of cash or time. It’s true that on-line media may mean that publishing, unlike politics, is not solely a rich man’s game, for it offers to the intrepid and web-savvy a relatively cost-effective means of building a following. But it’s also real and time-consuming work, work that comes in addition to your professional and personal obligations, not to mention the actual writing. I can understand why many writers find the demands of the publishing industry onerous, a bit like the to-do list Cinderella's stepmother commands her to complete before heading to the ball. In addition to being talented and credentialed, writers must be marketing whizzes, masters of social media, twitter adepts with legions of followers. If it sounds a little crazy, it is. The demands are many and the rewards few. For many published authors, writing is less a revenue stream than a long term investment. And sometimes it’s solely a labor of love.
Publishing a book is perhaps the worst get-rich-quick-scheme imaginable, but it seems that few of us—writers, booksellers, agents, editors, designers, sales reps, etc.—are in it for the money. Although there are always a few exceptions who prove the rule (and it’s true that publishers must make enough money to publish another day, and satisfy the media conglomerate of which they are a part) the book business still tends to draw people who are passionate about books, those for whom writing, or working with writers, is something of a calling. What keeps you in the publishing orbit? For me, it’s the constant opportunity to learn. Plus the ability to lose myself in a terrific novel and call it “work.”
15 Comments on A poor get-rich-quick scheme, last added: 5/30/2010
The publishing industry is not quite dead yet but it was nice to read its obituary in advance of its impending demise here.
Anonymous said, on 5/27/2010 8:31:00 AM
I have no idea what the first comment is about. This is not an obituary. This is just a fact of life. And, yes, it is the thrill of writing that keeps writers, editors and other people in the business. There is nothing like the written word to make something come to life. Not a movie, not speaking it...just writing something down makes it real. Just keep writing and believing.
Isn't it becoming a bit like vanity publishing? Hard to see how the author is going to recover his costs of travel, video, promotion by any and all means from his meagre advance and even more meagre royalty system, unless he can see Russia from his bedroom window or declare war to save nuclear missiles from falling on his city in the next fifteen minutes.
I agree wholeheartedly with this post. Perhaps I am speaking from youthful naivety, but I believe if there is a will, there is a way. If an author chooses to write for the pure joy of writing, and not out of desire for monetary gain, then I am willing to bet that theirs will be the book publishers choose to print. Why? Because those are the writers that, in the end, simply work the hardest: honing their skills, researching the market, going to conferences, reading, traveling, blogging, networking, persevering─ just because they love it. A book deal does not begin with a publicity team; it begins with passion, and a damn good book.
There are times when I wonder whether I stick with it out of pure, pointless stubbornness, but those times don't last. My love of writing fiction always comes back.
bitter and twisted said, on 5/27/2010 8:47:00 PM
hey anon, so you need the obvious explained; o-kay, but first I have to say anon is a bit too boring so lets give you a handle...I think 007 suits you (secret agent - get it)
For anyone who would like a good view of how the agent has evolved and their roll today can I direct you to the SFWA site and to their writer beware blog to find the excellent Why a Writer Needs a Literary Agent An Opinion by Victoria Strauss
Before making a proper start 007, let me first say my comments are in regard of fiction. I can see a little value (only a little mind) in the type of "platform" mentioned in this blog post with regard to non-fiction. And I also would like to say although I am expressing an opinion that may seem anti-agent it is not quite what it seems, I do in fact think Victoria Strauss hits the nail pretty much on the head, but I also hold an expanded view on what she says. Which is some of the demands on a new author are beyond reasonable. Also the guys here at D&G I think are very much better than the majority of agents in their outlook towards and their treatment of new authors.
O-kay 007 lets get started. if you have read the article I previously mentioned note the date periods of the rise of the modern agent. You will see it coincides with the fall in book sales, this despite the fact that there are more titles on offer each year. I must point, out as we have already debated 007, that more titles is not equitable with more choice.
I strongly believe that the fall in book sales is very much linked to the absents of choice provided to the book buyer and I believe that choice has been eroded by the method of picking which manuscripts to represent used by agents.
First there is the query letter that must pass the most rigorous test with the rule if the query letter isn't perfect then the author can't write. But the ability to write a query letter and the ability to write a story are about as different as making cheese or butter. You can use the milk from one cow to make both, but you end up with two different things. Also in a query letter there is an overplayed enthuses on the author's bio. I do understand publishing is a business and everyone in the process needs to make money, we all have family to feed and a mortgage to pay, but that doesn't mean that integrity has to be sold just to make an extra buck. What I'm saying here is there is absolutely nothing in a query letter that will guarantee the accompanying manuscript will be of worth. So why is it that a query letter that isn't absolutely pristine condemns a manuscript before the first page is read.
I know a lot of wanna be authors are nothing less than deluded about how the world is on tenterhooks waiting for their work to be published and most of these are very poor offerings. I suppose agents feel the query letter helps eliminate these an the earliest stage, but again these type of offerings get found out in the first couple of paragraphs so then why not just read the manuscript in the first place.
bitter and twisted said, on 5/27/2010 8:49:00 PM
Now synopsis. Most agents ask that a synopsis be presented in not more than two pages, some demand one page only. These two pages must cover the whole story and include the ending, this of course is only applicable to the first time author as a second book could just be presented to the agent by the author as they will already have a working relationship that allows this. Here I could list a thousand bestsellers that would never have gotten published due to the author not being able to condense to the format of synopsis. I will settle for giving you one and a challenge. Dune by Arthur C. Clark; if you can give a two page synopsis that fully covers that book then you can saw my legs off and call me Shorty. The truth is a story with a good plot will not condense into 2 pages, where weaker plots will be a much more comfy fit and this a reason why a lot of good stories don't get to see ink. Because agents don't even look at them because they don't pass the synopsis test. Another factor in my opinion, is a good plot will keep shifting its conclusion a little further from your mind's grasp as you read. I've only read 3 Agatha Christie’s but never managed to catch the bad guy until she gave him to me on the last page. That woman could plot a story. The point here is the agent, although having picked a plot that is not first rate is further
hampered by the fact that the conclusion of the story picked is known and so when reading the manuscript cannot properly gauge if the story is teasing and tantalising in a way that will satisfy the reader who has parted with his hard earned for exactly this experience.
Manuscript: All is revealed in the manuscript. A good story will speak for itself. No nonsense with sample, partial, full. Just read it. If after the first page you don't want to read the next page, reject it. If after any page your not compelled to read the next page, reject it. If you reach the last page, print it. That will fill the shelves with books worth reading. That would get me back in the bookstore buying.
Now 007, about the obituary. You make a good speech about the written word, so here's me. As a kid I had a lot of learning difficulties, It would probably be called dyslexia these days, then it was called you dumb ass. This didn't just affect reading and writing but speech also and I had a few years of speech therapy to distinguish pronunciations though there was no understanding then of how confusing written words could be. I would sometimes get my P's & Q's backwards and my Es & F's. and it was not uncommon to find I had written numbers instead of letters. I could be made to write a word 100 times and then the very first time I wrote it after that I would spell it wrong. Also I was left handed, so every time I held a pencil the nuns, who were the teachers at my school, would beat my hand with the edge of rulers and strips of electrical flex until I became a right hander. I developed a hard exterior and when I couldn't truant a class where I might have to read out loud I contrived cunning get-outs. Once I filled a glass with milk, mustard chopped carrot and a few other savoury ingredients, then just before it was my turn to read, behind a my desk-lid I took a big mouthful then spewed it on the floor. Anyway, long- short I got though my entire school life, which took me to the age of 14, without ever reading a book. I was 18 years old when I first read a book cover to cover and it took me the best part of 6 months to read it. I have to say I am so, so grateful it was a good book, because if it wasn't I would probably/maybe never read another one.
bitter and twisted said, on 5/27/2010 8:51:00 PM
But I was lucky it was a good book. And if it wasn't, I'm not even going to start to say what might have happened to me. The thing here is, I think every agent and every publisher has a burden of responsibility to ensure that every book that reaches the bookstore is a good book, because for somebody it will be their first book. Moving on, I devoured books, pretty soon I was reading one a month, then one a week, two a week sometimes. Then one day I said something really stupid, I said, in a conversation, anyone can write a book. Of course I was mocked for my comment, so I had no choice I had to write a book. And what a mess I made of it. But in that mess there was a story. So a rewrite. And another rewrite. 17 rewrites and I started sending it to agents None of them read it.... until one day it was rejected with some very kind comments (can you believe that an agent that made comments, but it's true I swear). More rewrites and sending off to agents. I used to turn the forth page upside-down so if it came back the right way up I knew the agent had read it. It never came back the right way up. 23 rewrites, the rules of the agent were send a synopsis send the first 10 pages - I sent the whole manuscript and a begging letter; read one page for me and as much as you care to for yourself. The phone rang. The agent said he read it in one sitting, couldn't put it down. He was very, very complementary and asked if he could have an exclusive for one month "to see what he could do with it." I told him to get F*@$ed; joking; I was jumping though hoops. A month later a nice rejection letter arrived (if a rejection letter can be nice this one was)He was also nice enough to accept a phone call from me and suggested I tidy it up a little and we could maybe try again. At this point I broke the 11th commandment, I stopped writing. I had personal things going on and not much time but also the disappointment of getting so close and yet getting nowhere took its toll. Anyway few years later and I'm writing again, got two on the boil now. One is o-kay, sort of thing that would squeeze down into a two page synopsis. The other one is a real story, so I reckon has no chance of getting published, but that's by the by. With my enthusiasm rekindled and new projects going well I just couldn't stop thoughts of my nearly manuscript from creeping into my mind, so out it came from the very back of the cupboard. And it was nowhere near the standard I had remembered it as when it went into the cupboard. The story itself is faultless, but my application of it had a bit more than wriggle room in terms of how it could be improved. So I have given it 3 more rewrites (through edits would be more honest) and oh so easy now I have a computer, yep all those 23 rewrites were on a typewriter with a dictionary permanently open. So with manuscript holding a great story and now "tidied" plus anther one not too far from complete, time to get back in touch with the agent who was receptive to it previously. But sadly for me and much sadder for him, he died in the intervening years. So its back to pitching to agents who will never read it because it is not to formulae, because it doesn't fit the business model, because my bio in the query letter doesn't say grad with lit masters, because it has a real plot and can't be squashed into 2 pages. But I'll keep on pitching because it's going to change, because it has to change, because people are starting to not buy books because there are not enough good books making it to the shelf. Stacy, agent and blog author here had lunch with a publisher who had just signed a self-published author without the involvement of an agent, for the reason "that her work was good" so maybe that change is a’ coming.
bitter and twisted said, on 5/27/2010 8:53:00 PM
Well 007. that's me. So about your lecture regarding the written word, best you go tell to someone else because I know the value and the joy of reading and writing. I would even go as far as to say there are very few people in the world who treasure what lays within the covers of a book with the intensity that I do. And that is why the blog comment is an obituary. because it is not far short of ridiculous to expect an author to bring a readership with him as part of a publishing deal. The misconceived idea that blog and twitter comments will persuade people to buy a book is nothing short of dumb. If a twitter-er has a 10,000 following who just can't make though the month without an injection of the thoughts of their great guru get to read a posting that the oracle now has a book published, discounting friends and family who would buy a copy anyway I very much doubt if sales would increase by more than ten. Is anyone serious in thinking droves of people are going to part with $20 and more on the strength of a twitter. Granted there may be the odd exception, for instance if the twitter-boy's soon to be published book had a title like - 100 ways to make a tinfoil hat. The fact is the need for a "platform" is just another obstacle between a good book and the reader who wants to buy it, but can't find it. Over the last ten years the "platform" has been more and more a requirement imposed by agents on authors, now it is demanded as necessity, over the last ten years have book sales gone up? Here's a fact, an author's platform is his/her book. The author writes a good book, people buy his/her next book. The author writes a bad book people don't buy his/her next book.
The comment is an obituary because it means even less good books will be published, and 007, if you can't read that between the lines, maybe it's because they're not double spaced, but it's more likely you are blind. It's all very well you giving your speech on the trill of writing that's an easy thrill to get, I sit in front of my keyboard and write. But what about the thrill of reading? To get that it needs an agent to promote a good books and good authors, not just a rehash of last week's fad. Don't get me wrong nothing wrong with making easy money off the fad but alongside and not at the expense of a good quality story.
Anyway 007, I was going to say more but I think the comment following yours covers a good lump of it. Lets talk again soon.
Anonymous said, on 5/28/2010 4:52:00 AM
Bitter and Twisted, this is at least the second time you've posted pretty much identical comments.
You've got a bee in your bonnet about the cover letter.
If you're looking for most jobs, you have to jump through at least three hoops that have little to do with your ability to do that specific job: you have to write a covering letter, have your resume in good order, you have to be good at interviews.
Writing a novel is a job. Someone pays you for your work. You don't need to send in your resume, you don't have to do an interview. All you have to do is send that covering letter, then show someone a little bit of your work.
What does the cover letter prove? Professionalism. Publishers want someone who understands the market, with the ability to finish a book. A cover letter also demonstrates clarity and attention to detail. They don't want someone who just rambles on or makes sloppy errors.
I don't know you, I think I see the problem.
Allow me:
"I will settle for giving you one and a challenge. Dune by Arthur C. Clark"
I'll take that challenge: 'Arthur C. Clarke didn't write Dune, or spell his name that way'.
I'm not trying to sneer, I'm trying to help: the problem is you sound like you don't know what you're talking about. Ten seconds of checking your own work would have fixed that. So the point isn't 'ha ha, you don't know Clarke spelled his name with an E at the end', it's 'messing up small details can seriously undermine your case'.
(The story of how Frank Herbert struggled to get Dune published is an interesting one, and there have been at least three books that have covered it in detail, including The Road to Dune, which reprints his cover letter)
Instead of railing about what a cover letter does and doesn't do, use the opportunity you have here to ask a bunch of agents what they're looking for in one.
You're aggrieved that you have to submit to the gatekeepers. It's worth noting that these gatekeepers, at every stage, can't ever make money by rejecting a manuscript, so have every incentive to accept as many as are even potentially viable.
But leave that aside, and try to see that a cover letter can really help a writer to have a clarity of purpose. 'What's my book about, at its core?' is a really useful question to have an answer for, purely artistically.
Commercially it's a crucial one, too - 'which other books is it like?' isn't a surrender of all originality and integrity, it's an acknowledgment that yours is not the only book out there for people to buy and read, and that when people buy a book, they buy it for a reason.
The 'you have to have a Twitter account' thing is banal, I agree there. If Snakes on a Plane was the biggest movie of the last few years and Ron Paul was President, I'd be convinced that 'internet hype' = 'actual cash sales'. But the broader point, that it's a crowded market, that a book needs to 'get out there' and that an author is the best motivated and suited to do some of that work, that's a good point.
bitter and twisted said, on 5/30/2010 7:40:00 PM
Hey 007, Knew that name was a good fit.
Well that was a marvellous cock-up I made. Thanks for putting me right on the authorship of Dune, your not the first person to do that, it’s part of the condition I was telling you about where something gums in my mind and refuses to straighten up. I actually know how this one sneaked into my brain, when I was reading Dune I had to take a long train journey and forgot my book. So I brought another to occupy my travel, which was Childhoods End by Clarke. Since then I can’t help myself from the association of Dune = Clarke. Funny thing though it doesn’t work out that Childhood’s End = Herbert. Mind you your absolutely right I should have checked it, because I know I am prone to these type of errors, but in my mind it was with absolute conviction that Clarke wrote Dune that I committed it to the comment. And in a couple of days time I will again be convinced Clarke wrote Dune and if it comes up in conversation, someone will again put me straight. One day it might fix in my head Dune = Herbert, but it took me about 10 years to stop putting an E on the end of the word work. This is just something I have to live with and though sometimes (like now) its embarrassing, it’s not a handicap, just an inconvenience. There are a lot of people who have to suffer things a lot worse. And there’s a flip side with me that is a bonus, the logic part of my mind works in overdrive. Which I guess is why an uneducated oik like me gets to be project manager on £50, mill. construction sites. As for leaving the E off Clarke, sloppy; yes, but I do so much checking and rechecking in letters and manuscripts that I’m not going to apply the same for blog comments, one check only and what I miss will stay missed.
Your right I have got a bee in my bonnet about the cover letter, but it’s nothing compared to the bug I got up my ass about synopsis. I pulled Dune out of the hat, as the synopsis challenge, because I know I couldn’t do that myself and my thought was suppose Clarke…oops Herbert, were submitting it today and could only present an inadequate 2 page synopsis or a decent 12 page synopsis; would it be cast aside because of the agent’s requirement that things be just so? By the by, thanks for info on Road to Dune, I didn’t know about that and its gone straight to the top of my must read list.
bitter and twisted said, on 5/30/2010 7:42:00 PM
Your also right the comment posted was near the same as previous, but if a things worth saying, it’s worth saying twice. (At least.) But you miss my motive in what I’m saying, it has really all been prompted by the question asked here; why don’t men read books? My answer is a question; why are there no books for men to read? And it is posed as a reader rather than a wanna-be writer. In the last three years I have gone into bookstores at least 6 times, spent at an hour or more there and walked out without buying a book. Yet I can walk into a charity store and I will find 3 books in 10 minutes. I go for genre mostly, horror, Si-Fi, sometimes fantasy. I do read other things as well, but not so much. When I shop for a book I always read the first 2 pages in-store and if the book doesn’t grab me in those 2 pages it stays in the store. I read somewhere online that book sales have dropped 40% in the last 10 years….hold on, that might have been the last 20 years. Is that right? It seems a very dramatic drop to me. Even if that figure is wrong, the consensus of all opinion on book sales seems to be the numbers are falling. So is that because younger people don’t pick up books and as the more mature readers die off they are not being replaced, or is it that people like me, not quite ready for the grave yet, are turning away from books because they are not getting full satisfaction from the books on offer. Could be a combination of both I suppose. Harry Potter and Twilight go some way to indicating that young people are interested in and will buy books, but what happens once the young market matures? If, like me, they start finding modern adult literature dull; will they stop buying books? And why is it I think modern books are dull when 30 & 20 years ago I thought the bookstore was Aladdin’s cave. Honestly I hardly know a dozen names of modern authors, while 25 years ago I would know hundreds, (sometimes I would even know which ones wrote which books.) So what has changed?
Not the economy, you’ve read already my thought on that. Not TV and film taking readers away, they were well established 30 years ago. Computer games? I could see that having an effect, but not to the extent that they cripple the book market and again Twilight and Potter show books can match up to game-boy. So to me it seems what has changed most, is that the quality of books has fallen. So to examine why, the question has to be asked what has changed in the last 30 years?
bitter and twisted said, on 5/30/2010 7:44:00 PM
007, you said “I don’t know what I’m talking about.” Well your absolutely right again, I’m on the outside looking in, with a few points of reference, trying to draw a line of logic to join the dots. Is the reason the quality of books is not what is was simply there was a wealth of good story tellers then and now that golden age is past and what we have now is the status quo? I don’t think so. for the last four years I have been involved with an online writers workshop and have critiqued 3 short stories or novel samples a week, which comes out about 600. When I have done this I sort of play at being an agent and on 6 occasions I have finished my comments with “Good luck with your soon to be published story.” About a dozen others were close to that comment and in my view with a bit more work or maybe with a little of the right help would get a gold star and a couple of those were actually deserving but just didn’t flick my switch. Overall the percentage of these stories I found to be good is far higher than I would have expected, which leads me to believe that there are good authors out there not getting picked up. Why not?
I don’t know if I’m right here, but I’m sure you’ll let me know if I’m not. I think of agents as a fairly small community, that is very well interconnected. And it seems to me when one has a really bad idea and announces it, rather than knocking it over and upsetting whoever put it forward (especially if the agent putting it forward is Charley Big-Potatoes.) the idea gets adopted. The twitter platform being a real daddy of a bad idea. Though I’m glad you agree 007, I’m a little aggrieved that you do, as I wanted to offer what I think is a proof how banal it is. Of course I’m going to offer it anyway. You guys had a opening sentence competition here not long ago (nice one. I think the first sentence in a book is very much the most important one.) Shot in the dark here, but I would guess with all the hype about twittering all the guys an’ gals who made the 10 entrants were twittering like they possessed in order to get votes and the winner got a bit more than two and a half hundred I believe; so what was the total vote? I’m guessing about !,500 -2,000. That includes people that will have supported them contacted though other means than twitter and your own D&G audience. The voting process was just sit at your computer and click, so if 10 guys can only get 2K voters how many sales; which involves putting on your coat, going to the bookstore and hardest of all parting with money, can twitter boost a book by? But now a good many agents will not get to the manuscript because the twitter numbers don’t look viable.
bitter and twisted said, on 5/30/2010 7:45:00 PM
Another one doing the rounds is “It’s o-kay to have a downbeat protagonist, but he must have at least one redeeming quality or the reader will not form an association with him,” I can just see that agent writing a rejection letter. Dear Mr Dickens I‘m sorry but I cannot accept your manuscript, A Christmas Carole. Although I found your writing of quite a high standard, I’m afraid your protagonist Ebenezer Scrooge was lacking in the human quality that readers need to affiliate with. Perhaps if you rewrite making him more cuddly Yours sincerely
So this agent and any others that jump on his bandwagon are now going to ignore any manuscripts that have a stalwart mechanism of salvation of a lost soul as a theme. I find these “rules” instructing authors how to write ridiculous. The worst of it is, these “rules” are only applicable to an author who is not published. If an author who had already had just one single book published that did no better than o-kay in sales, then presented a new manuscript to an agent employing this rigor…. Sign him up, or show him the door?
007 you said. What does the cover letter prove? Professionalism. Publishers want someone who understands the market, with the ability to finish a book. A cover letter also demonstrates clarity and attention to detail. They don't want someone who just rambles on or makes sloppy errors. I have to say the only thing that shows the ability to finish a manuscript, is a finished manuscript. Nothing else and certainly not a letter. With the exception of understanding the market everything else mentioned can be discovered in the first page of a manuscript. I know this from workshop manuscripts and I know this from the books that I put back on the shelf in the bookstore.
Which other book is it like? Your comments there are spot-on. But what about Dune, Dracula, The Stand, Animal Farm, I can see Peter Benchley could say - it’s a modern day Moby Dick, but what comparison could Herman Melville have made? So why I accept your comment, I have to ask; what about the true ground-breaker?
I don’t find your comparison of author to any other job not quite so on the mark. For an author hoping to be published it is a labour of love, with a distant and very slim chance of any payment. Steinbeck said gambling on a horserace was a sounder investment. In the industry I work in looking for a job would be. Application (= query letter). Interview (= synopsis). Start the job (= manuscript). I can tell you without fear of contradiction, that in the industry I work in at least half the people involved in management do not have a hint of a clue with regard to what they are doing. They may send a pristine application, interview with magnificence, but when it comes to the job they are as much use as a row-boat made of sponge. Tell me how many times do you receive a query letter that is immaculate and a synopsis that that is faultless that are accompanied by a manuscript that is not fit for butt-wipe? Writing a letter and telling a story that lifts off the page to become something real in the readers mind are as far apart as Mombasa is from the mountains on the Moon.
bitter and twisted said, on 5/30/2010 7:49:00 PM
Please, don’t take this as agent bashing, it’s not. I’m just asking where have the good writers gone? I said early I didn’t think TV affected book sales, but maybe it does. I have to say I think the standard of TV shows has risen over the last 20 years. Sopranos, The Wire, and even though I can’t stand it myself, Ugly Betty, Burn Notice, there’s loads of good stuff. So maybe TV isn’t so much taking the book reader away but more taking the book writer away. Maybe all the original writers are finding it easier to make an impact though scripts, rather than books.
As you say 007, I don’t know what I’m talking about. I’m just sort of thinking out loud. I know the importance of an agent, I have never heard of one published author saying anything other than how essential their agent is to them. But I do think agents in general have tied themselves into a bit of a knot with their criteria on selecting new authors. Twilight and Potter have something else in common besides being among the biggest sellers of the decade, rejection. A lot of rejection. An industry that rejected those two, time and time and time again shouldn’t really be too defensive of its selection process. It should be looking at how come it misses the goodies so many times and trying to make sure it doesn’t do it again. And lets not forget Harry Potter was selected for publishing by an 8 year old who didn’t read the cover letter or synopsis.
Anyway I must say how much your blog and comments are enjoyed and appreciated and I leave you with this ancient wisdom.
You should never judge a book by its cover -(letter).
Agent Advice is a series of quick interviews with literary and script agents
who talk with Guide to Literary Agents about their thoughts on writing, publishing,
and just about anything else.
This installment features Kelly Mortimer of Mortimer
Literary Agency. The founder and president of the
Christian Media Association, she has received the 2008 American Christian Fiction
Writers “Agent of the Year” award as well as a spot in 2008’s Top Five on the Publisher’s
Marketplace list of “Top 100 Dealmakers” in the romance category. She also has a Web
site for writers called Perils
of Publishing and a Yahoo
group that follows her agency.
She is seeking: contemporary romance, contemporary
inspirational romance, mainstream fiction, paranormal, comedy, thrillers/suspense,
young adult, and has eclectic tastes in nonfiction. She is not looking for:
chick lit, middle-grade, children’s books, picture books, cozy mysteries, erotica
or romantica, fantasy, novellas, poetry, sci-fi, or historical westerns.
GLA: How did you become an agent?
KM: I was a writer,
and my editing partner kept buggin’ me. She thought I’d make a great agent. Then I
got a nudge from The Big Dude Upstairs. Actually, He whomped on my head for nine months,
and I finally said, “If You insist…”
GLA: You have
described yourself as “the Extreme Agent” and “the un-agent,” and the tagline on your
agency website is: “Diabolically Diligent. Maniacally Moral. Defiantly Different.”
Can you tell us what you mean? What sets you apart from other agents—other than your
masterful use of alliteration?
KM: I’m
extreme because I’m fearless. Inside, I’m on fire. There’s no one I won’t walk up
and talk to, no risk I won’t take if the reward can be great, and nothing I see as
impossible. I’m the un-agent, as I haven’t forgotten the client hires me and I work
for the client; it isn’t the other way around.
My three-sentence tagline explains who I am. By diligent,
I mean I answer e-mails and calls right away. When a client sends me work, I edit
it and send it out right away. My clien
Add a Comment
Anne Lamott begins a chapter of her wonderful book Bird by
Bird like this: There’s an old New Yorker cartoon of two men sitting on
a couch at a busy cocktail party, having a quiet talk. One man has a beard and looks
like a writer. The other seems like a normal person. The writer type is saying to
the other: “We’re still pretty far apart. I’m looking for a six-figure advance, and
they’re refusing to read the manuscript.” If you find
yourself pretty far apart from publishers, perhaps you need to consider using the
following building blocks to construct your career as a successful author. (This is
Part II of this guest column. Part
I is here.)
Michael Larsen and his wife Elizabeth
Pomada founded Larsen-Pomada Literary Agents in San Francisco. They are AAR members and have sold books to more than 100 publishers. Michael is the author or co-author of How
to Write a Book Proposal and Guerrilla
Marketing for Writers. He runs a new agent
blog, as well. To see the nonfiction topics he seeks, click
here.
7. Build communities: You can’t get your books right
or make them succeed by yourself. Get the help you need by helping people and asking
them to help you.
8. Develop your craft as a marketer:
Build your platform: your continuing visibility, online and
off, with the readers for your books.
Build the communities you need to succeed.
Test-market your work: Maximize the value of your book by proving
it will sell before trying to get it published.
9. Promote your work: Whether Random House publishes
your books or you do, you will be the person most responsible for promoting them.
Regard promotion as an essential part of your mission to spread your message.
10. Be passionate about your books: You want all of the people you meet to
be as passionate about your work as you are. You are the well from which they will
draw.
11. Make Mistakes: Jame Joyce said that “Mistakes are the portals of discovery.”
As long as you learn from your mistakes, you will make fewer of them. Eliminate failure
as an option, and success is inevitable.
12. Staying committed to your writing and your career: No one will know or
care as much about your books as you do. So you must be relentless but professional
about writing and promoting them, and about building your presence in the industry
and in your field.
Platform is an industry term that means how readers already know about you. Not how readers will find you, or will hear about your book, but know about you now.
Platform is an essential part of a non-fiction book proposal. It's the first, and often the only, thing I look at when reading queries for non fiction. Only because if a writer doesn't have platform, the answer is no.
A lot of writers tell me they have blogs as part of their platform. I look at the blogs. If there are few or no followers, and no comments, the blog isn't platform. If no one is reading or following your blog, it's almost worse than not having a blog at all.
It takes a long time to build readership and encourage interaction with comments. You need to start doing it NOW, long before you query an agent.
9 Comments on More on platform, last added: 3/15/2010
It's interesting to me that I started a blog precisely to build a platform and then very quickly found out that I enjoyed the medium so much that I sometimes forgot about my original intention! I have to lasso myself back periodically, but the fact is that whether it has turned into a platform for me as an author or not, I'm having too much fun, and wouldn't think of giving it up.
I'm curious regarding others' opinions on the advantages/disadvantages of an individual versus a group blog (grog). Is a group blog a better bet because it's likely to draw more readers? Or is an individual blog better because the blogger can better target his or her audience? Do agents have a preference about which they'd like to see?
What sort of following would tip that "platform" scale in the right direction? I do lots of TV and radio, write for many online venues and high profile clients. But there's no good way to accurately provide #s of a measurable, consistent audience, and that doesn't necessarily translate to book sales--especially if the "audience" has been trained to expect this same info for free on the web or TV. Correct? Or am I looking at this wrong?
I think it would help if you could share some pointers on how to find readers and followers, since they don't usually just fall into your lap if you're an unknown who's only starting out in the writing world. JMO...
I started a blog for the need for one to interact with my (hopefully larger future) readership. Before that, I was at writing websites and had readers there. I'm also networked for multiple free marketing opportunities at popular websites and fandom conventions, but since I write fiction and not nonfiction, I've no idea how to address that in a query, so I guess it'll be like the toy surprise in a carmel popcorn box for the agent I find someday. :-) I've been told by a few agents not to mention it during the query phase. It's so hard to know the right thing to do in this industry sometimes. Thanks, Janet.
How important is platform for a fiction author? I've heard some agents describe it as a sort of added bonus, and I was wondering how much weight it's given (if any) in a decision about representation.
Thanks for this post, because I was never sure about mentioning my blog in a query. But, how many followers, subscribers, or comments is enough to make the difference?
Megalicious: here are a couple of sites that can tell you how to find readers/followers for your blog, how to start a blog, how to keep it going, all kinds of stuff like that. Enjoy!
Problogger: http://www.problogger.net/blog/ Daily Blog Tips: http://www.dailyblogtips.com/
Also, check out the "how to blog" categories at Brazen Careerist:: http://blog.penelopetrunk.com/
Agents have insisted on their blogs that the best way for an unpublished author to build a platform is by beginning a blog. Yet, no one seems to discuss what to do with a blog of say three hundred plus followers after you've accomplished this. Can you mention or link to it in a query letter to agents? Is it foolish or wise? Why?
A:
Thanks for your question. First let me clarify that there are many misconceptions out there about how to build a platform and authors are often instructed to blindly get cracking on a blog, as well as Facebook, MySpace and Twitter accounts. Keep in mind that not all online platforms will suit all writers. If you’re not frequently updating your content and dedicated to the task of blogging and networking, you’re not going to garner the following you need to attract attention from publishing folk. You wouldn’t necessarily want to link to your blog unless you have a substantial number of followers. This number would be in the thousands, though it’s hard to be too specific here, as what is considered significant depends on the book you’re writing, the topic, etc…
I think there are some lessons to be learned from the Bill Simmons school of publishing. This recent article from the New York Times talks about how his unconventional (and relatively rapid) rise to fame might just become the most conventional approach to successful platform-building out there. And it also zeros in on at least one reason why he is so popular: he's just a fan like the rest of us, so he's very relatable. I am a big baseball fan (I don't want to mention I root for the Mets, but as a season ticket holder, I'm bound to be found out sooner or later) and represent a number of great sports writers. When it comes to selling sports books and nonfiction books in general, platform becomes a big discussion point. How Simmons has grown his in a grassroots way by blogging and using the Internet, and moving away from print, is pretty telling. And his rabid fans can't seem to get enough. It's amazing that his new book about all things basketball is a #1 NY Times bestseller (when was the last time a book about basketball hit #1, and it's over 700 pages?!), and really illustrates the power of a successful platform. This article also offers some good easy-to-know, but hard-to-follow advice on how to build your platform by blogging and how to keep people coming back once you get there.
0 Comments on Platform Building 101 as of 1/1/1900
Christina, Thank you so much for joining us today. I know you have some great advice on marketing. First, can you tell us a little about yourself?
Christina Katz is the author of Get Known Before the Book Deal (Writer’s Digest Books). She started her platform “for fun” seven years ago and ended up on “Good Morning America.” Christina teaches e-courses on platform development and writing nonfiction for publication. Her students are published in national magazines and land agents and book deals. Christina has been encouraging reluctant platform builders via her e-zines for five years, has written hundreds of articles for national, regional, and online publications, and is a monthly columnist for the Willamette Writer. A popular speaker at writing conferences, writing programs, libraries, and bookstores, she hosts the Northwest Author Series in Wilsonville, Oregon. She is also the author of Writer Mama, How to Raise a Writing Career Alongside Your Kids (Writer’s Digest Books).
I know you talk about this in your book, but can you explain in simple terms, what exactly is a platform?
Sure. Long story short: Your platform communicates your expertise to others, and it works all the time so you don’t have to. Your platform includes your Web presence, any public speaking you do, the classes you teach, the media contacts you’ve established, the articles you’ve published, and any other means you currently have for making your name and your future books known to a viable readership. If others already recognize your expertise on a given topic or for a specific audience or both, then that is your platform.
A platform-strong writer is a writer with influence. Get Known explains in plain English, without buzzwords, how any writer can stand out from the crowd of other writers and get the book deal. The book clears an easy-to-follow path through a formerly confusing forest of ideas so any writer can do the necessary platform development they need to do.
Why do you think platform development is so important for writers today?
Learning about and working on a solid platform plan gives writers an edge. Agents and editors have known this for years and have been looking for platform-strong writers and getting them book deals. But from the writer’s point-of-view, there has not been enough information on platform development to help unprepared writers put their best platform forward.
Now suddenly, there is a flood of information on platform, not all necessarily comprehensive, useful or well organized for folks who don’t have a platform yet. Writers can promote themselves in a gradual, grounded manner without feeling like they are selling out. I do it, I teach other writers to do it, I write about it on an ongoing basis, and I encourage all writers to heed the trend. And hopefully, I communicate how in a practical, step-by-step manner that can serve any writer. Because ultimately, before you actively begin promoting yourself, platform development is an inside job requiring concentration, thoughtfulness and a consideration of personal values.
Why do you think a book on platform development is needed?
Writers often underestimate how important platform is and they often don’t leverage the platform they already have enough. At every conference I presented, I took polls and found that about 50 percent of attendees expressed a desire for a clearer understanding of platform. Some were completely in the dark about it, even though they were attending a conference in hopes of landing a book deal. Since book deals are granted based largely on the impressiveness of a writer’s platform, I noticed a communication gap that needed to be addressed.
My intention was that Get Known would be the book every writer would want to read before attending a writer’s conference, and that it would increase any writer’s chances of landing a book deal whether they pitched in-person or by query. As I wrote the book, I saw online how this type of information was being offered as “insider secrets” at outrageous prices. No one should have to pay thousands of dollars for the information they can find in my book for the price of a paperback! Seriously. You can even ask your library to order it and read it for free.
What is the key idea behind Get Known Before the Book Deal?
Getting known doesn’t take a lot of money, but it does take an in-depth understanding of platform, and then the investment of time, skills and consistent effort to build one. Marketing experience and technological expertise are also not necessary. I show how to avoid the biggest time and money-waster, which is not understanding who your platform is for and why – and hopefully save writers from the confusion and inertia that can result from either information overload or not taking the big picture into account before they jump into writing for traditional publication.
Often writers with weak platforms are over-confident that they can impress agents and editors, while others with decent platforms are under-confident or aren’t stressing their platform-strength enough. Writers have to wear so many hats these days, we can use all the help we can get. Platform development is a muscle, and the more you use it, the stronger it gets. Anyone can do it, but most don’t or won’t because they either don’t understand what is being asked for, or they haven’t overcome their own resistance to the idea. Get Known offers a concrete plan that can help any writer make gains in the rapidly changing and increasingly competitive publishing landscape.
Can you explain more about the structure of the book?
Writer Mama was written in small, easy-to-digest chunks so busy moms could stick it in a diaper bag and read it in the nooks and crannies of the day. To make platform evolution easy to comprehend, I had to dial the concepts back to the beginning and talk about what it’s like to try and find your place in the world as an author way before you’ve signed a contract, even before you’ve written a book proposal. No one had done that before in a book for writers. I felt writers needed a context in which to chart a course towards platform development that would not be completely overwhelming.
Introducing platform concepts to writers gives them the key information they need to succeed at pitching an agent either via query or in-person, making this a good book for a writer to read before writing a book proposal.
Get Known has three sections: section one is mostly stories and cautionary tales, section two has a lot of to-do lists any writer should be able to use, and section three is how to articulate your platform clearly and concisely so you won’t waste a single minute wondering if you are on the right track.
I have the book and it is definitely easy to read and really starts writers at the beginning of the process. At the front of Get Known, you discuss four phases of the authoring process. What are they?
First comes the platform development and building phase. Second comes the book proposal development phase (or if you are writing fiction, the book-writing phase). Third, comes the actual writing of the book (for fiction writers this is likely the re-writing of the book). And finally, once the book is published, comes the book marketing and promoting phase.
Many first-time authors scramble once they get a book deal if they haven’t done a thorough job on the platform development phase. Writers who already have a platform have influence with a fan base, and they can leverage that influence no matter what kind of book they write. Writing a book is a lot easier if you are not struggling to find readers for the book at the same time. Again, agents and editors have known this for a long time.
What are some common platform mistakes writers seem to make?
Here are a few:
They don’t spend time clarifying who they are to others.
They don’t zoom in specifically on what they offer.
They confuse socializing with platform development.
They think about themselves too much and their audience not enough.
They don’t precisely articulate all they offer so others get it immediately.
They don’t create a plan before they jump online.
They undervalue the platform they already have.
They are overconfident and think they have a solid platform when they have only made a beginning.
They become exhausted from trying to figure out platform as they go.
They pay for “insider secrets” instead of trusting their own instincts.
They blog like crazy for six months and then look at their bank accounts and abandon the process as going nowhere.
I’ll stop there. Suffice it to say that many writers promise publishers they have the ability to make readers seek out and purchase their book. But when it comes time to demonstrate this ability, they can’t deliver.
My mission is to empower writers to be 100 percent responsible for their writing career success and stop looking to others to do their promotional work for them. Get Known shows writers of every stripe how to become the writer who can not only land a book deal, but also influence future readers to plunk down ten or twenty bucks to purchase their book. It all starts with a little preparation and planning. The rest unfolds from there.
What three things can writers do today to stare building their platforms?
Don't start building your platform until you have clarity and focus. Otherwise you will likely just waste your precious time spinning your wheels. Or worse, fritter away your time with online distractions (and trust me, there are plenty!).
But once you know what your expertise is and what you are doing with it and for whom, then consider these three steps:
1. Start an e-mail list: Who are the people who like to hear about your writing success? Why not start a list in your address book with them and keep adding to it as time goes by. You can start by sending out simple regular announcements of good things that happen—just be sure to get permission. One way to get permission is to send an announcement about your work out to everyone you know and tell them that they can unsubscribe if they don’t want to be receive future messages from you on the topic. I strongly recommend that all writers read Permission Marketing by Seth Godin.
2. Create a simple website: Although social networking is fun, a proper writer’s website is not a Facebook or a Myspace page; it’s not even a blog. So save the detailed descriptions of your quirks and faves for the social networking you will do after you’ve built yourself a solid website to publicize your genuine writing credentials (creds) across the ethers while you are sleeping. And if you don’t have any genuine writing creds yet, getting some is an important first step. The step-by-step instructions are in Get Known.
3. Blog when it makes sense: Blogging can be great for writers assuming three things: 1) You have ample material to draw on and time to blog regularly. 2) You take the time to determine your appropriate audience, topic and your specific slant (or take) on your topic for your specific audience. 3) You don’t plan on starting a blog, blogging like mad for six weeks, and then disappearing from the face of the blogosphere without a trace. Preparation can prevent this common pitfall from happening to you.Don’t forget that platform development and building takes time. Once you are ready to get started, just do a little every day and you’ll be amazed what you can accomplish over time.
Thanks Christina for joining us!
Thanks Shelli!
12 Comments on Marvelous Marketer: Christina Katz, author of Get Known Before the Book Deal, last added: 10/8/2009
Thanks Shelli and Christina - there's lots of great advice in here. Having a plan makes a huuuuuge difference and gives you a way to focus your time on social media rather than just play around (which can be fun, of course... but not all the time!).
And since it didn't come up in the article, I'm gonna mention Platform Chat that Christina (@thewritermama) co-hosts on Twitter many Friday mornings - follow her and see the updates. I love "listening" to her and her guests and highly recommend it for anyone interested in platform building.
Read the book last month. It rocks! It also made me feel guilty (not really - it actually spurred me to kick things up a notch). If anything, having a platform is a great way to share with your peers and figure out this thing called writing.
I wanted to let you know about my blog address change. *sigh* If you're following me, my posts now won't show up in your feed, dashboard, sidebar, whatever. So please forgive me, but you'll have to change the address for my main writing blog, Where Romance Meets Therapy, to http://jeanniecampbell.blogspot.com. To do this, you have to "unfollow" me and follow me again. Sorry for the confusion!
Thanks, Greg. Yes, I am also the co-host of #platformchat on Twitter along with Meryl K. Evans. Upcoming chat will be with Seth Harwood and April Hamilton to discuss smart strategies for self-publishing and podcasting.
Thanks for all of your comments (and book orders)! I am glad the post was helpful.
I'm always on the lookout for good business oriented non-fiction. As you might imagine, given my job, I read a lot of "how to sell" and "how to network" and "how to be efficient with your time" kinds of books. (In case you do too, the best book so far is still Harvey Mackay's Swim with the Sharks Without Being Eaten Alive and all of Julie Morgenstern's books)
If you plan to query an agent with a book in this category, you need to mention if you've already had it printed and assigned an ISBN number by xlibris, AuthorHouse, or any of the printing companies in that category.
Why? Because one of the biggest markets for books like this is back of the room sales at the author's speaking engagements. If you've already tapped that market with the book you've had printed earlier, that makes a difference in expected sales.
And if you plan to query about this kind of book, one of the first things I look for is not only platform (ie those speaking engagements) but also your real world experience. That's one reason I listen to Harvey Mackay. He actually worked in a company for many years; he wasn't just a consultant or speaker. This is when you say: "I worked in telecommunications sales for 16 years before becoming a consultant."
There are a lot of people in this world who'll tell you they know a better way to do the job. The ones to whom I listen say "I know cause I worked in that field and this is what I learned."
6 Comments on You had me at hello...and then you kept talking, last added: 4/12/2009
Okay, I was just blog surfing when I read the title of this post, which by the way, should be the title of a book by an agent for writers (perhaps you?). Genius. Anyway, I agree with your post. When we sign an author who has a self-published book, we always ask how many they've sold...it's a big deal. : )
I enjoy reading non-fiction too, but the first thing that will make me put the book down is if I feel like the writer doesn't have the knowledge or experience to be teaching me about this topic.
It's interesting that sometimes strong sales on a self-published book (especially non-fiction) indicates that it could do even better. Other times, it leads to worry that the market has already been tapped out. What determines the difference?
I'm interested as well in the point that Tara Maya brought up. Not only self-published books but those published by a very small or foreign independent publisher. If there are some previous sales is that a plus or a minus when a large traditional publisher is concerned?
I’ve received a lot of questions about the importance of building a platform for fiction writers. Should you write platform-building pieces under your real name or the pseudonym you want to use? What if you wrote mystery short stories, but now want to write romance novels? Do those short stories even count toward your platform? Do you need to worry about blogging now to build a platform or should you just write?
Holy cow, folks! Just write and write and write and write. If you are someone who writes short stories very well and wants to submit them to literary magazines while working on your novel, go ahead. It’s a bonus to have a writing platform like that, but not every novelist can write short stories and not every short story writer can write a novel. It just isn’t that easy, so if you’re someone who doesn’t feel strongly that you can do both, why are you wasting your time focusing on your weakness instead of your strength or instead of on what you really want to do?
As for blogs, I’ve said it over and over and over again, but I’ll say it again. Go ahead and write a blog if you really want to, but don’t feel that it will necessary do anything for a future publishing career. The only thing that’s going to do that is the book you’re writing or the book after that or the one after that. And frankly, at this point, I don’t care what name you do it all under.
Let’s worry less about the peripherals of publishing—platform, credentials, etc.—and more about our writing. Because that’s really what’s important.
Jessica
36 Comments on Building a Platform for Fiction, last added: 4/12/2009
Absolutely, the writing must comes first, because if you don't write you'll have nothing to offer and you can't grow without the practice.
I don't know what kind of 'platform' having a book review blog has created for me. I still don't have an offer in hand. However, I have become acquinted with a lot of authors with most of the well-known publishers, agents, and editors, and I've enjoyed a lot of fabulous advice from them. So, yanno, there are other benefits.
One thing's for certain, if you don't enjoy blogging it will show and backfire on you. Only blog if love it. ;)
THANK YOU! I used to be one of the people who stressed about stuff like that, and then I came the realization that you stated: it's the WRITING. Nothing else matters near as much. I hope other people will listen to you. (Or do I...? Maybe more people should worry about blogging and platforms, so my writing can sail through, eh? ;P)
I agree the most important thing a writer can do is write. Tell the stories. Get into the habit of writing regularly. Writing to your strengths is good advice once your figure out where your strengths are. Some writers know their strengths some have to experiment. Get used to putting your work out there under public scrutiny—that’s scary the first few times you do it. The first time your critique partner or group reads your work. A lesson you learn quickly is writing and what constitutes good writing, and how to go about it, is very subjective and often conflicting. This holds true for most aspects of the publishing process.
I think name recognition is vital for authors. Some of us do it by joining RWA or similar groups, or joining writing forums and participating. Others add blogs. A good thing about blogs is you get used to writing to the public. If you have your blogs set up for certain days, this helps you practice writing to deadlines. If you are serious about getting published, I think any prep work you do to build name recognition is good, especially prior to publication. The balancing act is not to spend so much time doing the short stories, articles for publication in various magazines, or blogs, your forget the most important part of the process—writing regularly, perfecting your writing skills and writing your stories for publication.
I agree Jessica. We all get so worried about doing this, and doign that, trying to find that extra magical formula, the one thing that maybe will set us apart, or take us to the bestseller list, when what we forget is the ONLY thing we have under control is the writing.
I agree. It's first about the writing. A colleague of mine who has over 50 books to her name recently told me she was reading through the 17th draft of her novel.
Seventeenth!
I wonder how many writers who submit queries to agents have fine-tuned their manuscripts that thoroughly. Her writing is snappy and fast-paced and memorable (she works hard to make it read that way). It's definitely about the writing and revising.
Too many are getting caught up in marketing plans for stuff they haven't written yet -- and they don't have the track records to sell it without the writing -- and without the writing being darned good.
Blogging is fun. You meet some interesting people from all over the world.
I've used several pen names, but I've always had reasons for using them. Most of the time I stick with my real name and pray they spell it right.
Anonymous said, on 4/10/2009 10:01:00 AM
Thank you for addressing this!
I write and submit shorts because I love them, but most of the publications are tiny print pubs or online zines. Not exactly noteworthy in a query letter. ; )
I don't blog because it doesn't interest me. I'd rather spend my time on my novel. (And short stories.) Maybe if I publish, that will change, but for now . . . who the heck cares what I think? Really, I'm boring.
More than once, I've heard published fiction authors insist that you MUST HAVE a blog to set yourself apart and build your audience pre-publication. That you NEED a platform to get the attention of an editor. In my heart, I've suspected this wasn't really true, but it's good to hear it from an agent.
I'm in the process of writing a novel, and I fell for the advice that every novelist needs a blog. I use it to post my book reviews, interesting sites I've found, and tidbits of knowledge I find fascinating. So far, there's not one thing that has to do with my novel. I enjoy it, and it keeps me organized, but I can't see it working as a platform for my fiction.
Anonymous said, on 4/10/2009 10:15:00 AM
As an unpublished writer, I do understand the need to focus on writing above all. I do plan on using a pen name and have come up with one, but I have no idea if it will be "approved" by publishers if I ever get that far (I know...IF). The point is, when it comes to networking at meetings I don't know if I should stick with my long and ethnic real name only to make connections that will have no idea who I am if I get published under a pen name...or do I start using my pen name and risk having to change it in the future if it isn't "liked". I have already submitted to contests under my real name. As unimportant as pen names are at this point, I feel that this issue would affect the establishment of my platform. Any advice?
I think I'm too narcissistic to use a pen name ;-). Plus my real name is the same as multiple mayors of Chicago, so I hope that buys a second glance from some people.
I have two blogs, one I write to entertain my readers, and the other is a Public Query Slushpile, but the latter is more a maintenance job than writing- I post queries writers submit, and then anyone can critique them.
Most of the blogs I read are similar to this one: focused on the business and craft of writing, always informative and oftentimes entertaining.
The best thing that blogging has done for me is that it has put me in touch with other writers (networking). They are always very supportive, and many of them give great advice on mastering the craft.
I also read agent/publishing blogs, which are a wealth of information.
I think it's important to put all of that stuff in the back of your mind (it's useful), but keep your focus on what works for you. If you are passionate about what you are writing, it comes across to the reader.
Thanks for this post--I really appreciate it. I didn't use to worry about platform, until I sent to an agent who was interested in my writing somewhat, but asked me to fill out all this info on my background and platform. That really started me worrying because I don't have much of a platform. It's something I've kind of been stressing about lately. So I'm glad to hear it's not that big of a deal if I can write a decent book.
I recently cut back on blogging. On my own blog, I only post when I have something to say. I'm also a member of a group blog and I just cut back to every other week instead of every week. I was spending so much time trying to come up with blog topics I wasn't getting any real writing done.
And Judy Schneider, I know exactly who you're talking about!
I got really excited when I read the title of this entry ... and then not so excited when I read the content.
I've never heard someone mention such a thing as a fiction platform -- although I see now what one might constitute if it is successful and the writer can write all of those things.
Well, I'm blogging because I love it, I'm writing short stories because I'm in school and that's what they teach, and I'm writing novels because I simply adore novels. I guess you're right: follow your own inclinations! :)
It seems to me that the outskirts of getting a book published are what hold up authors and keep their dreams at bey. If we worried less about how many people read our blog and more about how our characters are developed, we would be on a better path.
I find it odd that writers think a blog is a writing credential, but I know many do.
I blog to connect with others, and to get thoughts out of my head that interfere with writing. I enjoy it, and I have blog pages that list my published writing, but it's not the focus. I've never included my blog in a query letter for a published article or essay and it's not in the draft of the query letter for my novel. I think those who use their blogs in that way (unless they have tens of thousands of readers) look amateurish to other writers and agents.
On the days when the words don't flow, it is tempting to piddle away the hours meeting people, exchanging ideas--interacting. However, it doesn't finish or polish a book.
It's nice to have someone smack me upside the head and say, "Get back to work!"
Thanks. I needed the nudge.
Confucius says, "Wheresoever you go, go with all your heart."
Worrying about blogs and platforms is a lot like my actor friends who would "Hold Court" with other unemployed actors discussing how unfair the "business is". One actor said, the greatest comment about the business is a payroll check after a weeks work..Makes sense to me.
My thoughts: Yes, the writing MUST come first. But, the platform needs to be built alongside the writing if the goal is to get published and to have a career. Publishers like to see a platform in place. So, if writers want to pursue platform-building techniques while they hone their craft, I think that's a good thing. That's just my opinion, though.
But, you're right, the writing has to be the primary focus.
I'd have to say that the writing is most important, but right behind it is building a fan base to jump-start the promotion. Otherwise, you run the risk that no one is going to see the next book you write. With publishers shifting to promoting only the big names, it's going to become more and more important for the other authors with a house to do so.
But that's just my opinion...and maybe I'm just mistaking what it means to "build a platform."
Anonymous said, on 4/11/2009 1:41:00 AM
But, the platform needs to be built alongside the writing if the goal is to get published and to have a career.
I'm sorry, but I don't agree. Most of the published authors I know didn't have ANY platform before they got a contract. No blog. No published short stories. Not even a website. What they did have was a dynamite manuscript.
Obviously, having a platform can help, but as Jessica just pointed out, it's not a prerequisite for getting published.
A couple of years ago when my agent was shopping my mystery novel, I had the opportunity to speak to an editor for Penguin, who was interested in my manuscript. She didn't ask if I had a blog or even what I did for a living. All she cared about was the work at hand.
I gotta second what anon 2:41 and a lot of others have said. It's the writing that matters most. A great book with a great hook, written in a voice that pulls the reader in. This is what's going to land you an agent and eventually a sale. Not your blog, or your website etc. These things come into play much later I believe, mainly the website which I feel is very important, but really, more so after you've established your name. It's for your readers and fans to visit. Visiting blogs and such was a great way for me to meet other writers who've helped me in many ways, but they certainly didn't sell my book for me. Sorry! :-) but that's all on me!
This is wonderful to hear from an agent. I feel like writing novels, writing short stories, and blogging take such different focuses and talents to do well. I've been upkeeping a blog, and it's not what I like to do. Sure, sometimes I feel like I've written an interesting blog post, but most of the time I struggle with even wanting to do it.
But I feel so pressured to build an audience and be accessible before I even get published, that it makes writing novels, which I love to do, frustrating and less fun.
I look at all the writers who were published before websites and blogs became popular, and each of them made it. Each of them gained fans and an audience based on their books. I don't like having to sell myself online. I just want to write and sell good books without feeling like I'm not popular enough or well known enough to make it.
Since when did being a writer become a game of who writes the best blogs and who markets themselves the best?
How do people even find time to writing between all the blogging and tweeting and social upkeep?
I don't really have the kind of personality that lends itself to blogging. I find that if I blog/twitter too much I feel exposed and nervous.
But if I never hear the word "platform" again, I'll die a happy woman. I'm working on an anthology for charity, and the other editor is a relatively well known performer to our target audience. Our publishing mentor has told us, at the 11th hour, that they think we need 'more of a platform'. After a year of work to date!
I understand that this is very different than suggesting that authors develop a platform, it's more like a non-fiction project. But, it's still rather frustrating.
Regular blog readers probably remember the queries I posted in January (and if you missed them, check them out). Since they were all for fiction, one of my readers made a special request to include a nonfiction query, so here it is, a query by Cynthia Shapiro. Cynthia submitted this book to me in 2003 and I put her through hell. She would be the one to know for sure, but I think we went through something like 12 rounds of revisions on the proposal before I felt it was ready to send out. Ultimately, I thought Cynthia had the platform and a great idea, but needed a lot of extra oomph before publishers would think the same thing. In the end, it worked out well. We had multiple offers and ended up selling not only to St. Martin’s Press, but to a number of publishers throughout the world. Corporate Confidential is, in fact, a bestseller in Korea, and Cynthia’s follow-up title, What Does Somebody Have to Do to Get a Job Around Here? is a timely and valuable resource for today’s tough job market. So, to give you insight on what catches an agent’s eye in nonfiction, here’s the letter that launched Cynthia’s career.
September 24, 2003
Ms. Jessica Faust Bookends, LLC 136 Long Hill Road Gillette, New Jersey 07933
Ms. Faust,
My name is Cynthia Shapiro. I am a Human Resources and Career Strategy Consultant on the West Coast. My insider approach to career advice has been published in 44 newspapers including the LA Times, Chicago Tribune, Miami Herald, and Newsday NY. My most recent interview for publication will be in an upcoming issue of Entrepreneur magazine.
Every day I field questions from frustrated and confused employees. I’ve seen too many with promising futures accidentally derail their hard-earned careers with easily avoidable mistakes. I know firsthand there is a better way to succeed and I feel passionately about sharing this information.
A few years ago, I realized the only way to help employees was to step out of the “corporate spin” and give them the truth companies can’t tell them. This insight forced me to make a difficult decision. I chose to leave my comfortable Vice President of Human Resources position, and “blow the whistle” on Corporate America.
I could no longer tolerate the duplicity of internal HR: appearing to be an employee advocate while protecting the company from the very same employees! Rather than helping people, I was required to withhold information from them that could have made a real difference in their career. I could not continue to practice a role I had begun to question. I chose to make a positive difference by giving working people the information they need.
I’ve put my future career and earnings on the line to deliver this powerful message. After almost five years of research, direct employee contact and executive level interviews, this message is now a 75,000-word manuscript titled: All the Right Moves.
A career advice book like no other, All the Right Moves reveals some of the most closely guarded corporate secrets affecting workers' careers today. For the first time, the questions employees ask over and over, without getting a straight answer, are revealed – openly and honestly.
This book raises the bar for career guides and simply leaps over the “skills approach” other books preach. It’s like having your own personal employee advocate, telling you exactly the right moves to make at the right time, to achieve the greatest possible results. This timely gem of a book will change the way people behave at work by providing a clear track to recognition, advancement, higher pay, and greater job security.
I have included the proposal for All the Right Moves, and will be happy to send sample chapters at your request.
Thank you for your time and consideration. I look forward to working with you on this exciting and provocative project.
Sincerely,
Cynthia Shapiro, PHR Phone number Email
Nonfiction is an interesting genre to critique since so much depends not on the blurb but on the author’s platform. In this case, Cynthia caught my attention immediately by using her platform right off the bat. I would caution her not to start the letter with “my name is,” but in the end those little things don’t matter if the bigger things are there. What I want to point out here is that platform and credentials are two very different things. Cynthia tells me what her credentials are, which is that she’s a human resources consultant, but her platform is that she’s been published in over 44 newspapers. That’s huge.
Cynthia’s second paragraph, which I know many of you will be happy to point out, is not the best written paragraph I’ve ever read. However, it has great energy and immediately sparks my interest. My thought is what are these mistakes and how scary it is that they are ruining entire careers. I also love in the paragraphs that follow that she identifies herself as a whistle-blower and, once again, it’s her voice and energy that really grab me. I think she could have made it easier on herself, and simpler to read, by combining paragraphs three and four. However, nonfiction writers are not necessarily “writers,” and editors and I know that. These are mistakes of finesse (and some grammar) that can be easily remedied. At this point, I’m not worried.
While I don’t mind the paragraph about putting her future career and earnings on hold, I would advise against including something like that. Agents hear all too frequently from authors with an overly inflated sense of what publishing one book can do for them (pay off a house or make them rich), and a sentence like this can scream overconfidence. Instead I think Cynthia would have been safe to simply delete that sentence and start with her years of research. She could then combine this with the paragraph that follows and give us insight into what the book is really about and how her previous paragraphs connect with the book.
I would also skip “a career book like no other,” because my response is that it better be. I don’t want to waste my time on any book that sounds like all the other books.
The rest is great.
Jessica
12 Comments on Nonfiction Query Sample, last added: 4/6/2009
No comment on the quality of the query, but I have to say that pinned down to a blurb on the back, I'd buy it. :)
Strongest point for me: "give them the truth companies can’t tell them."
Anyone who's worked in corporate America knows there's a book of unwritten rules. The promise of finding it right there in your hands is pretty tempting. :)
Well, it certainly caught my interest and I'm not employed in corporate America! Even the second paragraph, which you question, comes across with the kind of intensity that tells me the author is passionate about her message--when that kind of passion comes through in a query, you just know it's going to be there in the book.
Bravo for those who stand up for the little guy. Her platform and experience and career risk are added bonuses. I can see why you represented her.
Confucius says; marriage is like game of poker. You start with pair and end with full house.
Anonymous said, on 3/10/2009 4:03:00 PM
I agree with Kate Douglas. I'm not employed in corporate America either yet I want to read this book. In fact, I was so interested in the subject-matter that I failed to notice anything was wrong with the query. I'd buy it for my son, if nothing else.
Interesting. I thought it was catchy too, but I drifted off to sleep in the middle due to many promises of delivery. I would buy this if it was a shorter blurb on the back of the book, with perhaps an example, not just a lofty catch phrase.
Anonymous said, on 3/10/2009 11:40:00 PM
in fact I'm conceding,i didn't get anything to pick out. its professional query, no reason why a book deal wouldn't be struck.
But again we're waiting for a fiction query!
Anonymous said, on 3/11/2009 5:27:00 AM
A more recent example of a FICTION query letter would be preferable. Sorry, but a 2003 letter about corporate America seems a bit dated when so many are losing their jobs due to Bush's 8 years of failed polcies.
I'm not always a careful reader. I got the gist from your first sentence and jumped straight to the query letter. Good letter, I thought, but I wished she had explained how this book was different from/better than "Corporate Confidential". (She used a different title in the query.) Then I ended up rereading your intro and finally realized this was the query for "Corporate Confidential" -- which is a wonderful book that I recommend to everyone. How cool to read the original query for it! Her book has made a huge difference for my daughter's career. Thanks for sharing the query!
ms s. said, on 3/13/2009 5:16:00 PM
thanks for posting a NF query letter. yes, i'm still scratching my head and saying, "okay, and *why* don't I have an agent yet?"
What I would love to see is a character-driven query. You've shown us plot-driven fiction and non-fiction such as this corporate tell-all, but what about a query that sells the characters. I am struggling over this and if you or your friendly bloggers know where I can view one I would greatly appreciate it.
My question to you is regarding the safety of a nonfiction book proposal. I have heard of situations when a proposal is turned down because the platform is not as strong as one would like (perhaps no previous publication or degrees, but written by a writer with valid experience and a website with 50,000 hits/year) and then the publisher approaches an in-house writer or subject matter expert to write a book based on the idea because of its marketing potential.
There’s no doubt that since the beginning of publishing time authors have been fearful of publishers stealing their ideas, and certainly last year’s lawsuit between authors Jessica Seinfeld and Missy Chase Lapine only perpetuated this fear. But the question is, do publishers really do this?
And since I’ve always been as honest with you as possible I’m going to tell you that no, publishers do not steal ideas . . . sort of. Okay, before you freak out, let me explain.
I haven’t been following the case of Lapine v. Seinfeld lately, but my understanding is that Lapine is accusing Harper of basically taking the book proposal she submitted to them and turning it over to Seinfeld, whom they thought would be a better author. I just don’t buy that. Never once, in all my years of publishing, have I ever seen or heard of an editor stealing a proposal and passing it to another author to rip off. Does that mean it’s never happened? While certainly I can’t say it’s never happened in the history of publishing, frankly it doesn’t make sense. Lapine didn’t have outstanding credentials, but she did have credentials (although not a huge platform) and Seinfeld had no credentials at all, she’s just married to one of the most famous comedians of our time. If Harper was going to steal a book to pass to Seinfeld, why would they chose that one? It’s just ludicrous.
Most important, though, and outside of that particular case, if a book has that much merit, the idea is that brilliant, and the proposal is that well done, a publisher is going to try to make it work with that author. It’s in their best interest to do so. By the time they steal the idea, find an author to write it and publish it, someone else will have already snapped up the book and published it themselves. At this point Crook Publisher is already late to the dance, so to speak, and probably with an inferior project. If the publisher feels the author needs better or stronger credentials or a better platform, they certainly can suggest ways to make that happen. They could bring in a foreword writer with the credentials or even ask the original writer if she might be willing to work with someone with a platform or credentials. They can also help the author create a platform by setting up speaking events, and of course interviews with magazines, etc. The truth is that if the publisher likes the book that much they are going to offer to buy it. If the book is truly that great, the idea is that brilliant, and the execution is that perfect, and you have your platform, it’s not in the author, but in the book.
Now, is it possible that Seinfeld came to Harper with a cookbook idea and Harper didn’t see that as a possibility, but the editor instead suggested she write a book on sneaking vegetables into her child’s food? Absolutely. Is it possible the editor liked the idea Lapine submitted, but for whatever reason didn’t offer on the proposal and, remembering Lapine’s book suggested it to Seinfeld? Absolutely. Is that a punishable offense? Not at all. ***Please note that I have no information on how the book idea came about and personally I don't think the editor tried to rip of Lapine and give the story to Seinfeld. I'm just using this as a hypothesis and no one should think this is fact.*** Ideas are not copyrightable and publishers, like authors, have every right to develop their ideas in whatever way works for them. I know, I know that sounds horrible. But hold up a minute. How else do you explain the number of military fiction thrillers a la Tom Clancy? At one point in time there were none. Until Tom Clancy, this style of book didn’t sell. Or how do you explain the vast number of baby name books on the market? At one point there were no baby name books. Then someone wrote one, someone published it, it was successful and everyone else jumped on the bandwagon. The truth is that “imitation is the sincerest form of flattery,” and imitation happens in everything, it happens in publishing, it happens in TV, movies, art (look at the Impressionists), and it happens in business. Does that make it right? Yes and no.
We would certainly have a very limited number of books on the market if we couldn’t steal a little bit of idea here and a little bit there. Wouldn’t you be disappointed to learn that you no longer had a choice when looking for French cookbooks because Julia Child already had that idea and therefore Ina Garten’s Barefoot in Paris would be a rip-off and can’t be done? Or legal thrillers were assigned to John Grisham only and no one else could write that idea?
It takes a whole heck of a lot more than an idea to make a book and certainly more than just an idea to make a book successful. Fiction or nonfiction, the execution of the idea is far more important than the idea itself, and I’m reminded of that every single day when I’m reading through submissions. Daily, I receive nonfiction proposals for books with brilliant ideas and daily I reject them. Never have I rejected a fabulously executed project simply because of platform. In fact, this month I plan to go out with a new nonfiction submission where I have concerns about the author’s platform, but think the idea has such merit and is so well executed that I’m willing to take the chance. I also know that not just anyone can write this book. These authors have done their research and written a great proposal. They’ve executed something that not just anyone can do.
I have a feeling I’m going to get a lot of flack for this post and I’ve spent a lot more time than normal writing it in the hope that I explained myself properly. I don’t condone plagiarism in any way and I don’t condone thievery of proposals, outlines, or fully executed book plans. However, an idea is a very abstract thing and can be interpreted in many different ways, and it’s that interpretation that makes it unique. So don’t worry about the theft of an idea and don’t worry about the theft of your proposal. Instead concentrate on making your interpretation, your execution, uniquely you, and then there’s no way anyone can steal it (without plagiarizing, that is).
Jessica
41 Comments on Are Your Ideas Safe?, last added: 3/5/2009
I'm a fiction writer, so I'm not directly effected by this. However, I have been warned by folks not to include even a paragraph of what I've written (in a novel) on my blog for fear someone might "steal" it. Although anything's possible, this has always seemed like too much paranoia about nothing. No one could write my book but me, and - correct me if I'm misunderstanding - but I think this is the main point you're trying to get across.
I'm going to have to respectfully disagree, though I don't have a LEGAL leg to stand on. Yes, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. Yes, a lot of military fiction came out after Tom Clancy's books. BUT Tom Clancy was PUBLISHED. In this case, an idea that a woman proposed AND WAS REJECTED FOR was taken from her and published by someone else. She was left with nothing. At least when Nora Roberts was ripped off, she was still making bank on the books copied. How about this? If I have a critique partner who has a busy, busy life and doesn't write as fast as I do, but she has an AWESOME idea, is it right for me to "lift it" and publish it? Again, you're right. Ideas cannot be copyrighted, but there is a moral issue here. I'm not talking about weird coincidences, (Like when a query showed up on your query contest that could have been applied to a book I'd written and submitted). I'm talking about knowingly or unknowingly using the ideas of another person to make money, or further ones career. Believe me. I've heard the arguments about how there's only six themes and it's how you write an idea blah blah blah. The truth is that, as a writer, I want to publish my own ideas, not someone else's. Again, no legal leg to stand on, but sometimes I wonder if plagiarism develops from this exact grey area thinking. If I "copy" and idea? It's totally by accident. I don't read a story and think "I'll write one like this". In this specific case? I have to side on the unpublished author left to shift for herself. I think the law, however, will disappoint her.
I don't know about all that stuff, but if you get a proposel for a cookbook for good food kids love which is also CHEAP and EASY and FAST for the parents to make - Jump on it!
I'm in fiction, so as long as I don't give my manuscripts to unscrupulous strangers in dark alleys offering me fistfuls of bright colorful candy, I'm not concerned about "idea" theft.
Parker Haynes said, on 2/27/2009 8:04:00 AM
Jessica,
Yes, you'll probably get some flak over this post, but I think you did a fine job of explaining yourself. Your logic is sound and your years of experience in the field reinforce that. Thanks.
As to plagiarism, where so we draw the line? As writers, we all read the words others have written and from them draw, consciously or subconsciously, ideas. It's not that we're out shopping for (or intending to shoplift) these ideas, but that they become a part of the reservoir we drink from. It may be as simple as a particular combination of words that sticks in our mind and then finds its way into our own writing. I think of such a combination that I read recently in a friend's work. He spoke of an "uncertain horizon." Has those words appeared together before? Probably. Will I use them? Probably, but it may be an uncertain sky or uncertain terrain.
I think we all do this to some extent. What we write is a combination of drawing from our imagination and from our accumulation of the countless bits and pieces of this wonderful thing we call life.
Why would you get flack for this? You're spot on. It's ALWAYS the execution that matters. Everyone knows ideas are "a dime a dozen". It's the writer's angle, experience, and ability that makes it publishable, not the great premise. Your examples of John Grisham and Julia Child are perfect. Nobody can write my books for me, even if we have the same basic idea.
Re: Jennifer McKenzie. "I want to publish my own ideas not someone else's." Then stop writing. There's no such thing. And I think there's a distinction between knowingly and unknowingly writing the same idea. You hear all the time two writers who don't know each other writing essentially the same idea without knowing it (and winding up with vastly different books to boot) - but if you took your friend's idea, there WOULD be an ethical problem there, if you were stealing specific details. If she wants to write a book about dragon shapeshifters, and you hadn't thought of that and it really hooked you, write your own version of dragon shapeshifters. The better one will sell, or maybe both will because what resonates with you might not resonate with me. Legally and ethically there isn't a problem here. It would be ludicrous if the only person who could write dragon shapeshifters were the first person who thought of them (and how do you determine THAT? )- suppose that person can't write well? We've lost all books on dragon shapeshifters because we've ceded the right to write them, and for what? You'd have to stop reading altogether not to be influenced and shaped by others' ideas.
(If she has a really intricate mythology for her shapeshifters and you want to use that? Well then there's a problem. The idea "get kids to eat healthier by sneaking nutritious foods into otherwise 'junk' food?" Not original.)
Also, plagiarism is the lifting of actual TEXT. This isn't a gray area way of thinking; it's well-defined and appropriately so. If somebody says something, and somebody else can say it better, it's not plagiarism. I like the way Parker puts it.
There are people who will give you flack about the post. Fortunately, there are others who understand what you are saying. An author I have had the pleasure of talking to personally a few times has said that she could give the basic sketch of any of her books to a dozen writers and every one of them would end up with a different novel in the end.
My writing group has discussed this as well. There are blurry lines there. For an example we'll use "The Wizard of Oz". One can be inspired by that book (or movie) and write a novel about a young girl who travels to another world, goes on a quest, meets up with magical creatures, and has to destroy the bad guy in order to go home. That isn't plagiarism (and I'm pretty sure we've all seen versions of it at some time). Now, if they were to write a novel about "Dot" whose house gets caught up in a storm and transported to the magical land of Zo where she has to follow the golden brick road while wearing the diamond slippers to reach the sapphire city and talk to the sorcerer of Zo to get back home... In that case you MIGHT have satire, or you have a lazy, plagiarizing author. Of course, the thing is no publisher in their right mind would touch that book if it wasn't satire (and I don't know how many would touch it if it was).
As for posting online (in blogs or elsewhere), it is a personal choice. There is always the risk of someone snatching up the snippet you wrote and using it. However, in a blog, you have evidence of when you posted it. If they use your words, you probably have the upper hand with the law.
Jessica is right though, fiction or non-fiction, ideas don't have copyrights. And how can you prove that two people didn't come up with the same (or remarkably similar) idea anyway?
It might not be a fun prospect, but it's the way it is.
Also, about plagiarism - for every writer who has the same idea, there will be a different product based on it. How can one person own that idea, when the results won't be the same? You can't penalize the other people with the idea when there's nothing to support they would be COPYING, actually copying, the original. That's why it's the execution that's important. (if this is any clearer)
Legally, the line is freakin' huge. The Dan Brown/Da Vinci case is a perfect example of where an idea can't be copyrighted. Art Buchwald v. Paramount is the perfect example where the company "stole" Mr. Buchwald's executed screenplay.
Anonymous said, on 2/27/2009 8:59:00 AM
I completely agree with Jennifer McKenzie --
Her quote: "... Yes, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. Yes, a lot of military fiction came out after Tom Clancy's books. BUT Tom Clancy was PUBLISHED. In this case, an idea that a woman proposed AND WAS REJECTED FOR was taken from her and published by someone else. She was left with nothing..."
This cookbook thing troubled me when it first came out and it still does. The woman with the original idea was a nutritionist, was she not? Not, you know, the socialite wife of a famous comedian. Yeah, you gonna tell me Jerrry Seinfeld's wife slaves over a hot stove every night COOKING? Please. I lost respect for Jerry Seinfeld himself later on when he went on Letterman (I think, maybe Leno) and complained about the "crazy" woman who claimed his wife stole the idea. Crazy! Crazy is being a national celebrity and demeaning a woman who has no recourse against your defamation.
While ideas cannot be copywrited, the fact that Harper (after dismissing the woman's book proposal) THEN has an exact book coming out with a celebrity author seems morally wrong. No the IDEA of getting your kids to eat healthy is not new. But SNEAKING nutrition into kids' food IS. The SNEAKING was the hook that made the book sell. The hook Lupine proposed.
Then stop writing. There's no such thing. Oh, I can respectfully disagree. I think there are new ideas that come out all the time. Like colors, it's not the "primaries" that make it different but the combination. And I think there's a distinction between knowingly and unknowingly writing the same idea I agree with you on this. Would you really read your critique partner's dragon shapeshifters and decide to write one? Interesting. And I'm afraid I don't agree the "best one" gets published. Often the FIRST one gets published. Personally, I don't think another person can take my ideas, but I'm not going to read for others and then write a book with the same things. Where is the line? I stand by my statement. I want to write my own ideas. BAsed on my own life experience, not based on what I read in someone else's work. That's the point I'm making. We accept something like a publisher passing on an idea THAT NEVER OCCURRED to another author that was not "theirs". It came from someone they rejected. I still don't think it's right, but I know I'm in the minority here.
Jessica-- I think you are spot on and agree with everything you said. It toally sucks for Missy Chase Lapine, but the world isn't always fair (and I'm with commenter Jess--it's not like Lapine is the first person ever to think of sneaking veggies into kids' food).
And, to be honest, if you're writing something that in some form has been done before (and this would include ALL of us) you need to take your own spin on it. If that spin is truly good enough--and with a little bit of luck--you'll get it published.
We as writers ought to keep in mind that just because we think something we wrote is awesome and new doesn't make it so. Agents and editors know their stuff and they know what sells. If we concentrate on writing well, we don't have to worry about anyone "copying" us because our work will be better than anything else like it.
Being in the UK I haven't heard of this spat, but I would be extremely surprised if more than a handful publishers or agents would 'steal' an idea to give to someone else.
Why create work for yourself?
Broadly I agree with Jessica and I suspect that there is much more to the case of Lapine and Seinfeld that will ever come out in public.
I've seen in the world of publishing and film, stealing and its' cousin, "borrowing without return!"
Haste yee back ;-)
Kim Lionetti said, on 2/27/2009 9:46:00 AM
"No the IDEA of getting your kids to eat healthy is not new. But SNEAKING nutrition into kids' food IS. "
Do you really think so? Because as a publishing professional AND a mother, I think that idea may be as old as time itself.
Personally, I feel that if the idea was taken from Lupine and given to Seinfeld, that is ethically wrong. But the concept is not the most original idea ever. Come on. That said, both Lupine and Seinfeld did an incredible job of packaging a not-so-revolutionary idea.
Anonymous said, on 2/27/2009 9:50:00 AM
Unknowingly copying an idea is not a problem. Copying someone in your writing group IMO it is unethical and lacking morals. I'm on the fence about the publisher requesting someone else to write a book; to me it depends on the quality of the original, and maybe the solution would have been better to have a co-writer. IDK enough of the details on the cookbook deal.
I've seen articles on how to sneak vegetables into your kids food for over 20 years - in fact my mother did the same thing 40 years ago. The fact that the celebrity wife sold the idea of a book and the unknown didn't speaks more to my sense of cynicism than my sense of injustice. No - they probably didn't find another author for the book. It's not that new of an idea, and Seinfeld just had name power. Unfair, but probably not illegal.
Anonymous said, on 2/27/2009 9:57:00 AM
Oh and I do have to say if the publisher truly passed the idea on purposely I do lose respect for them. A little guy being ripped off by a big company is rotten and they deserve to be sued if that is the case, which is like smacking a horse on the butt compared to smacking a fly.
Why take the risk and knowingly steal the idea when Harper could have easily suggested a partnership between Mrs. Seinfeld and Ms. Lapine, which would have been a win/win situation for all parties------Harper publishes a book by a famous name and a recognized professional. Ms. Seinfeld receives fame not hitched to her famous hubby's coattails. Ms. Lapine strengthens her professional credentials and earns money. What more could they want?
Of course, one Harper employee talking shop-talk with another employee could have easily passed on the idea without knowing the idea's genesis.
Confucius say; man who cuts self while shaving, lose face
Eh. This may have been an issue before, but now? There's a technology trail for the modern writer that wasn't there 20 years ago. Your word processor date and time-stamps the creation of your file. Your email date and time-stamps the query to the agency. There's really not a point in the chain where the author can't prove exactly what information has gone where.
I have to agree that the work is in the doing, not in the idea. Just like patents and copyrights, you can't do either for the idea of the thing, you have to have an actual physical proof. (Which is why software patents are such a hot-button topic, as there's no physicality ... or is there?)
And the "moral" issue? Again: eh. If a company "lifts" an idea to give to another writer ... maybe the source author needs to own up to the fact that their work just wasn't very well done. I mean, how many times have you thought to yourself "man, that was a great idea but a really horrible follow-through"? (*cough*Benjamin Button*cough*)
Writers know how much work goes into writing, so I find it hard to believe that any could worry that another company would want to start that process from scratch. For a company to make that decision, there must have been a massive problem somewhere. Maybe it's with the writing, maybe the author's personality, whatever.
Speaking as a guy trying to sell a book right now, I'd be flattered if a company came along and stole my idea -- it's a really great idea. And, frankly, I'll have more ideas. I'd take that as a sign that my writing really needs work. I'd use the experience to get better. Whining about fairness just means that I can't handle the competition. That's free-market capitalism, baby.
atexasgirl said, on 2/27/2009 10:45:00 AM
Most agents, editors, and publishers are reputable because they don't do things like steal intellectual property, but the leak can happen anywhere in a big operation. The person who opens the mail or the assistant who screens the queries could knowingly or unknowingly pass on the idea. He or she could say to a friend, "Can you believe agent X rejected a book about sneaking veggies into your kids food?" And then that friend talks about it to someone else, and so on until it hits the right ears.
Anonymous said, on 2/27/2009 11:35:00 AM
How about a poll? How many of you unpublished writers are going to take a proposal to HarperCollins?
My understanding is, things have to be pretty specifically copied in order to be plagarism. Ideas get plagarized so to speak all the time. If this cookbook author had actually submitted material which then got passed over to said celebrity who slapped their name on it, then I'd think it's plagarism. But really? It's more sound business practice for a publisher to take an idea, even a submitted one, to someone they think can turn it into a more sellable product. I haven't read about that case, so I don't know any specifics, and it might be kind of a slap in the face to the author for Harper to pass an idea along to another author because they have more name recognition, but it's certainly not illegal for them to do so.
And since I'm here, more shameless plugging for my lovely wife's even lovelier new, debut romance title, A Taste of Magic. Check it out at:
www.TracyMadison.com
Sarah said, on 2/27/2009 12:19:00 PM
My agent submitted my non-F book proposal to Chronicle in 2005. The feedback we got was "the market for this idea is not big enough." My book was published by Crown in 2007, and then Chronicle published the SAME idea (the title differed by one word) in 2008.
I guess they reconsidered.
It happens all the time. But of course I have no recourse, because the legal fees would drown the advance I earned. Luckily I got my book published, and it sold well, and was even reprinted.
There really is no new thing under the sun, and at least I had a year on the bookstore shelves by myself.
Anonymous said, on 2/27/2009 12:32:00 PM
I was going to say something along the lines of what Kim said, but she said it better.
Anyway, I've been sneaking spinach and other healthy stuff into my kids' food for almost 18 years. And trust me, living below the poverty line for so long, it was cheap too. So the idea is nowhere new.
Someone should write a book on how to insure socks don't get eaten by the washing machine. Or on how to train teenage sons how to close the lid on the toilet. Or on how the Mystery Diagnosis television show has helped to change lives for the better. Or how to support a family of six on 25,000 a year. Or how to have a successful marriage with interfering in-laws in tow. Or, Dear God, Help! His mother is Catholic, I'm not.
I'm seriously not being sarcastic, those are books I'd probably buy. So if they are already out there, please say something.
I'm glad you posted this. I happen to agree with you. When I was younger I used to think ideas (especially mine) were so awesome that they just had to be protected. Now I realize that was a bunch of drivel. For instance: Bram Stoker wrote a vampire novel. Does that mean Anne Rice and Stephanie Meyer shouldn't have been able to write theirs, even though all of these authors approached the idea in different ways? Oh, and as Shakespeare borrowed the majority of ideas for his work, does that mean his plays should be shunned, the world deprived of his beautiful words? It's not the idea. It's the execution. An idea by itself is no good. Every person I know has an idea for a book. Not every person I know could actually write a book, and especially a decent one.
Oh, and with the vegetables thing: I don't think sneaking vegetables into a child's food is any more original an idea than sneaking in medicine the child needs but won't take, something parents have been doing since the beginning of time.
Anonymous said, on 2/27/2009 4:07:00 PM
I am a fiction writer, and I have been affected by this.
In 2006 my agent submitted a novel of mine to a large publisher in Australia.
The editor eventually turned it down, with a few suggestions as to how I could improve it. It was revised and sent back to them after the editor told my agent it had been 'haunting her'. We were excited, but still no sale.
In late 2007, a novel came out in Australia and subsequently in the US which had a dedication to this editor from the author.
It also had many of my concepts and ideas from my novel.
I will say that the writer took my ideas and she delivered them differently from how I had. There was no 'lifting of text', just key imagery and rather cool concepts. I can't really explain without naming the book, so I won't go there. But I write fantasy, so key concepts are a rather bigger and more obvious deal than in other genres.
Suffice to say, when I pointed all this out to my agent, he agreed that my concepts appeared to have been lifted by this editor during the period both novels were on her desk. He also said it wasn't the first time he'd seen this editor do such a thing.
We decided there was nothing we could do about it except leave her off our future submission list. (Which will make no difference to her... but satisfies me somewhat.)
Despite all the awards she has one in Australia for her editing (Possibly for her so-helpful ideas and suggestions...) I was devastated to learn that my original concepts weren't safe even at the highest level.
I have asked my agent to stop submitting and I'm working on a new work.
I think it is wonderful that you are drawing this issue to public attention.
However, it is a frustrating problem in circumstances like mine; I am powerless to effect change. Publishing is a small pool and to complain about one of the big sharks could forever damage my standing in the industry here.
Keep on keeping on...
Anonymous said, on 2/27/2009 6:14:00 PM
ANON 5:07
Your story is horrifying. It makes me want to self-publish if nothing else for proof to the world it was my idea first and easily expose the snakes in the grass. I hope you have a happy ending and do indeed get published.
In the effort to support this post and not "burn bridges" I am disgusted to see "it's not an original idea so what's the big deal?" regarding the Seinfeld case. After the scandals with the Harvard student back in 2005, James Frey, the faux-gangstress and faux-Holocaust survivor memoirs, I have no compunction in believing that Harper indeed took Lapine's idea and gave it to Seinfeld because of Seinfeld's stronger "platform."
This is a business and is, despite the closer relationship authors have with the industry, as cutthroat as Hollywood. It's all about names and the bottom line, and in non-fiction, you've got to be half-way famous to get your book accepted.
The situation with Lapine is horrible, but even more horrible is how easily writers can convince themselves that it's no biggie, thereby giving credence to the power the Seinfelds have had in blackening Lapine's name and credibility, because they don't want to be seen as slagging off on the industry they want to belong to.
You can add me to the list of writers who will not submit to HarperCollins.
Anonymous said, on 2/28/2009 8:27:00 AM
Luckily HarperCollins has shut down, but Harper's still exists. Anon 5:07: I'd wonder why my agent submitted to this editor if s/he knew how unscrupulous that editor was? Why risk it?
Personally, I'd revamp your same ms. w/ even cooler concepts and find a new agent and publisher. Change the title and rework the premise. After all, two can play that game--but do it ethically. Good luck!
Anonymous said, on 2/28/2009 10:45:00 AM
Of course we all know that stealing has been going on for years and years in the industry, and right in your face because they know they can get away with it. If a writer is lucky enough to get a deal it is because the publisher could not get a celebrity to do it better. The public needs to stop living the lie. They'll do it every time, if they think they can get away with it, the public be damned. Jessica is not being honest with her readers when she makes them think this type of thing is no big deal. It is a big deal. So stop lying to yourselves and letting yourselves be fooled all the time. If you are submitting work, you always run the risk of losing it. Who is to say if Jessica's agency has ever received a query from someone, thought it was a good idea, and passed it on to a client? They are not going to tell on themselves?
Kim Lionetti said, on 2/28/2009 11:44:00 AM
I think in any career -- any aspect of your life, really -- you have to be able to give people the benefit of the doubt in order to function and succeed. Obviously, there are those rare occasions when someone is going to get screwed, but you can't live your life thinking you're next. Your writing career is going to be dead in the water if you spend all of your energy worrying that anybody you send your query to (really, you think we rip off queries now? come on) is going to steal your idea, or if you take HarperCollins (which IS still in business by the way -- they just discontinued their Collins imprint) off of your submission list because of something that MIGHT have happened.
In the end, you'll get screwed alright...you'll have screwed yourself.
Anonymous said, on 2/28/2009 12:37:00 PM
My advice: Marry a lawyer. That way there won't be any legal fees.
Only problem is it's like marrying a plumber: the plumbing never gets fixed.
Just my goofy take on this subject.
Anonymous said, on 2/28/2009 2:16:00 PM
I have to respectfully disagree.
I have no idea what's going on with the legal case with Harper and Seinfeld, in truth, this is the first I've heard of it. But editors definitely do this sort of "idea pass off", ESPECIALLY in the comic book industry.
Many years ago I had a comic book idea stolen, and given to staff writers. That book made it to print, and those writers are still on staff. It can and does happen more often than you think. And for most of us without the money to hire a lawyer to battle someone like this, the big names in the industry get away with it.
Notice the TV cartoon Stripperella isn't around anymore? It's a poor example, but it still falls into this category. Same thing with the Taco bell dog. Stolen ideas do happen.
While it's true you can't copyright an idea, or "theme" as some might want to call it, there is a point where taking from this wellspring crosses the line.
Anonymous said, on 3/1/2009 1:18:00 AM
Jennifer McKenzie, maybe you can see now that you are not in the minority here. I agree with you and with many of the later anon posts.
The people who argue against the possibility of concept theft are those who have never had it happen to them.
Yes, some new writers tend to be overly afraid of theft. I was accused of this merely because I used a type of animal in a story once. This other person , dabbling in writing, had mentioned the same species in a conversation to me a few months prior. The same species. It wasn't even the same kind of animal. She wrote her complaint to me and I told her that was like saying I couldn't mention Toyotas in my writing because she'd mentioned that brand of car in some conversation.
So yes, some unpublished writers can be paranoid and irrational about theft. But -- that doesn't mean it doesn't happen.
Sometimes it is blatant plagiarism (Buchwald vs. Paramount) complete with a clear paper trail. That was a rare case where the writer not only had the resources so he could stick with the legal fight, but also had his own platform. He won and we all learned about it.
But the vast majority of other ones, like some of the stories in the comments here, do not involve famous columnists with deep pockets. We never hear about what happened to these writers. So, many people continue to believe that this kind of theft never happens.
But it does. And when it happens, it is just a blip to the agent. But it is years out of a writers' life.
For those who use the old "it's not the idea, it's the execution" argument -- that does not excuse theft. If ideas don't mean anything, why do so many people from movie producers to toy companies to fashion designers allocate so much money to security? Spielberg puts an invisible code on treatments and scripts to them from being leaked. He knows that another director would make the same film differently. But he doesn't want to have to fight that film at the box office.
What can writers do, particularly new or about to be published writers? Be as cautious as you can. Of course sometimes you will have to trust others because of the benefit. Just be aware.
Anonymous said, on 3/1/2009 10:26:00 AM
Kim says: "...But the concept is not the most original idea ever. Come on. That said, both Lupine and Seinfeld did an incredible job of packaging a not-so-revolutionary idea..."
Yes, but too bad only one of them was rewarded with a book deal and promotion. Also, too bad Ms. Lupine's book proposal was shot down by the publisher who then, after the fact, gave free range to Ms. Seinfeld.
Everyone can have such a carefree attitude when it isn't THEIR work. No, ideas aren't copywritable, but in this case the execution of how to get kids to eat healthy (by masquerading it into other foods) is a very specific type of execution for a cookbook.
I almost can't even believe that poeple are saying that this isn't a big deal.
In fiction yes, there are millions of vampire books or romance sagas and plot points may overlap, but a writer's execution of the idea is so different (the language they use, the characters they create) that no two books are alike. But this is non-fiction, the execution IS the HOOK!
A hook shot down for Ms. Lupine's book and yet, somehwo magically accepted for Ms. Seinfled, who had the celebrity to hawk it on Oprah and the like.
Kim Lionetti said, on 3/1/2009 2:04:00 PM
Wow.
Okay, my point was not that it's no big deal to rip off a not-so-revolutionary idea. I believe you may have forgotten to read the part where I said "Personally, I feel that if the idea was taken from Lupine and given to Seinfeld, that is ethically wrong."
My point was that it's not inconceivable that more than one person had that same idea. While the scenario looks incriminating to HarperCollins, there's still a chance that they're NOT guilty of stealing the idea. If you were a publishing company that had the same idea cross your desk and one of the authors was a close personal friend of Oprah Winfrey, I think you'd probably take that road too. Is that unfair? Maybe. But this is a business.
P.S. -- Lupine DID get a book deal and THE SNEAKY CHEF was a New York Times bestseller.
So I'm just now learning about this lawsuit - shame on me, since it's my profession (IP law, but not litigation) - but I have a REALLY hard time swallowing (pun totally intended) the argument that the idea for a cookbook about sneaking vegetables to kids was new, fresh or unique. Take it from a mom with too many cookbooks and two young kids.
A similar theme came up in the recent litigation over Dead Rising (a video game about zombies in a mall). The owners of the rights to George Romero's Dawn of the Dead sued for infringement of ... what??? Somehow they found lawyers willing to put forth the argument that they owned all rights to all zombies-in-a-mall stories. The court said no.
Before I get slammed here, I'm an author, too. Trying to get representation and published (Jessica, my query will be arriving shortly). But there's a reason IP protection doesn't extend to ideas except in the case of inventions: it's too chilling to everyone else who wants to make a living creating works for the rest of us to enjoy. In writing and other media, the idea is just the beginning. The very, very beginning. It takes so much more. 98% of that being talent. Frankly, Seinfeld's book took a lot of heat and criticism for lots of valid reasons. There's still ample opportunity for someone to write a BETTER book about getting picky kids to eat their vegetables (one word: KETCHUP).
There is one thing that Jessica forgot to mention--there are very few really original ideas. As for the Seinfeld example, hiding veggies in kids' food is not a new idea. I have a son in college and recall recipes in young mother magazines eighteen years ago that used the same technique. Years of being a reader and a writer have taught me that it's not the idea, but the execution that matters.
Evan’s post last week, Do I Believe in Ebooks?: Part One, stimulated some interesting conversation in the blogosphere and I hope that Part Two, his bold recommendation, will encourage all of us to reconsider the potential of ebooks. I will be at the Tools of Change conference today and I hope some of my fellow attendees will share their opinions with me both in person and in the comments section below.
In my last posting I promised to delve into my vision of the evolution of ebooks and in doing so offer a dramatic proposal to make them more mainstream and more widely used. I propose that an ebook license be granted as part of the purchase price to anyone who buys a new print book. Yes, you read correctly; the ebook is free with a new print book purchase. (more…)
There’s a new debate raging in publishing and one that I find more than just a little interesting. It concerns two books that give advice on getting kids to eat their vegetables (and other foods). The first book, The Sneaky Chef, was published in April and written by Missy Chase Lapine, the former publisher of Eating Well magazine. The second book, Deceptively Delicious, was written by Jessica Seinfeld, the wife of Jerry Seinfeld and published on October 5. The debate, according to the New York Times, concerns whether or not material was stolen from the Lapine book to publish the Seinfeld title. I’ll let you read the story yourself because that’s not really what I find interesting about this whole thing. What I find interesting is Oprah.
On October 8 Jessica Seinfeld appeared on Oprah to pitch her new book and of course sell millions of copies (which she seems to be doing, according to the Wall Street Journal). Why? Other than being the wife of Jerry Seinfeld, who is Jessica Seinfeld? What really makes her qualified to write a cookbook guiding us to feed our kids better? As far as I can tell, nothing. According to the bio on her Web site, Jessica Seinfeld has no cooking experience (beyond what I have anyway), no nutrition experience, and no expertise in the food industry. She’s a mom. That’s fabulous, but I see book proposals from moms all the time. I turn them down all the time. Why? Platform. Missy Chase Lapine (according to her bio), on the other hand, has years of experience as publisher of Eating Well magazine. So why is it that Seinfeld is getting all of the media attention and selling the books? Duh! She’s Jerry’s wife.
I’m flabbergasted! I’m astonished that this has happened on such a large scale, and of course I’m not surprised at all. Unlike speculation in the media and on message boards, I do not think Harper or Seinfeld stole anything from Lapine’s proposal. I don’t even think they stole the idea. Almost every day I get a proposal similar to something I received the day before. Remember, few ideas are original, it’s the execution (or the platform in this case) that makes the difference. What I’m flabbergasted by (but shouldn’t be) is the celebrity sucking-up that the media does so obviously and that the public follows along with. Let’s be honest. If you are looking for a better way to feed your child vegetables, would you go to a comedian’s wife or someone with a food background? I would go with the food background. However, it seems I’m not on par with most of America. Most of America is going to go with whomever Oprah suggests they go with.
Clearly I’m ranting now and probably making little sense. So what is my point besides that I’m disgusted with Oprah and the entire media world? This is why platform is so dang important and, when it comes to nonfiction, why platform is critical. Why it’s often the very first thing an editor looks at and asks for. Media is crucial. Media sells books. Platform equals media. If you have any sort of connections that are guaranteed to get you in Oprah’s door, a publisher is going to snag you, no matter how small your credentials may be. The truth of the matter is that it does make a difference. Before you start ranting on the stupidity of agents and editors, remember, you can only blame us so much. It’s our job to buy and sell books that sell and it’s the public who makes the final decision as to what book sells and what doesn’t.
Jessica
48 Comments on The Power of Platform, last added: 10/28/2007
Ms. Lapine is very fortunate to may have been plagiarized because now she’ll make so much more money from the media exposure….that’s the logic of many folks, who don’t even know Ms. Lapine. Yeh, she’ll even be more happy when her greedy lawyers start deposing the Seinfeld’s entire HarperCollins book prep team in 3-4 weeks to see who leaked Ms. Lapine’s manuscript (which was eventually auctioned successfully to another publishing house). HarperCollins even had to change the artwork on Seinfeld’s book cover (a winking lady with carrots nearby) because Ms. Lapine’s publisher complained when they noticed a flyer on the book. You see, Ms. Lapine didn’t use an agent when she first presented her manuscript to HarperCollins so the book staff could possibly have just said, ” Heh, look here, a free manuscript to steal. Nobody will ever know.”
Anonymous said, on 10/26/2007 1:05:00 AM
I agree with you, Jessica, that it is pretty sad how many people blindly follow the recommendations of a celebrity. There are too many people who simply can't think for themselves. They are the ones who buy into ridiculous claims based on no solid research merely because a person they perceive as having authority or fame said so.
If I was chosing a book to help me feed the kids better, I too would go with the one written by someone with the better credentials. Then again, I don't need a book to figure it out.
When I read non-fiction, I always want to know the credentials of the author(s), and what their information is based on.
It's too bad the media is so willing to promote anything done by a celebrity, and shame on the public for being so willing to lap it up.
Chris Redding said, on 10/26/2007 4:05:00 AM
We are a pathetic society.
Anonymous said, on 10/26/2007 4:05:00 AM
I think this whole thing is about exposure. How many women actually sat around thinking, Hmm, I wish I could get a cookbook that would have healthy, delicious meals for my kids. Probably not too many. They struggle every day putting the vegetables on the plate and pray their kids can be coaxed, threatened or manipulated into eating it. Fast forward, Oprah's show comes on and you have someone telling you how she does it. Gives the recipes and the audience gets to sample them. Regular people are saying, I don't taste the chick peas, or broccoli, or whatever. Wow, you think, never thought there was any other way to feed my kids and these ordinary people seem to think the food taste good, and gee look at the kids, they're gobbling the stuff up. Hmmm, might be something I might like to try as I have a 4 yr old who is as picky as hell.
Now who knew Ms. Lapine even had a book. Not many. Why? Of course, exposure. Why is it we can't get better candidates running for office? Cause it costs millions of dollars to campaign and get ads on television.
We are bombarded with marketing all day long. Is this different? Nope. Do we check to make sure the stuff coming from China for our kids isn't lead-based? Nope. We see the cute little toy and our child cries out for it and we buy it because the commercial plays a billion times a day on Disney Channel.
If all books had the kind of exposure an Oprah would give them, maybe more people would read a heck lot more than do now.
Anonymous said, on 10/26/2007 4:11:00 AM
Let's face it publishers are out there to make money. End of story. If people are willing to fork out the money to read about celebrity memoirs and autobiographies, they'll take it. If Oprah loved one of your client's books and wanted to have her on the show, what sane person wouldn't jump at the opportunity for that kind of media exposure.
beverley said, on 10/26/2007 4:14:00 AM
Hey, controversy is every. Before this debate I'd never even heard about Ms. Lapine. I have a child who doesn't like his vegetables too much, so I think I'll check out the book. Mothers sometimes just get desperate that way, and if someone else has found a way to get them to eat them...well more power to them!
Anonymous said, on 10/26/2007 4:38:00 AM
Why such surprise? This is the way it is.
Hopefully the public will recognize how the system works and not be so naive.
But probably not.
December/Stacia said, on 10/26/2007 4:42:00 AM
*applause*
I remember thinking when I saw Seinfeld's book, "Um...that's not a new idea." (In fact, after I read about it in Vicki Iovine's Girlfriend's Guide to Toddlers several years ago, I found out my own Mom used to do it.)
I find the whole thing sad and squick-making...not least of which because, I have to admit, I find it sad that we know so little about food these days that we need a cookbook to tell us how to best slip some vegetable puree into recipes. I love to cook, and I cook a lot. It isn't hard for me to make casual little substitutions here and there to get more healthy foods into my kids, because I know what I'm working with and how things should taste and what texture they should be. I cook dinner pretty much every night and have for years. (That was my little push for the Slow Food movement, there.)
I agree though, I doubt the idea was stolen. I think Seinfeld got it from another Mom (possibly her own) or a magazine, or a book, or thought of it herself, and rushed off to get it published by virtue of the fact that the child she's feeding these foods to is Jerry Seinfeld's. (And ten to one, the recipes belong to whatever chef she worked with and not herself anyway.)
Celebrity culture is so depressing.
Don Martin said, on 10/26/2007 4:45:00 AM
This is a great example to demonstrate why "platform" is so important and how the lack of platform is a non-starter for agents and publishers.
I'd still like to see you write a piece on how an unpublished author with expertise in a given field might go about developing their platform.
Zany Mom said, on 10/26/2007 5:31:00 AM
My kids prefer vegetables to sweets and snacks. Who'd a thunk it?
I'm not the world's best cook (read: I hate cooking!) so a cookbook might help me.
I'm not a huge fan of celebrity and I always wonder about those who take the advice of a celebrity on things like parenting and nutrition, etc. I mean, who are *they*? Famous? Big whoop.
Yes, a nutritionist would be more informational.
But what I don't get is why the credentials of the expert aren't enough. Why another great nutritionist who didn't happen to edit a magazine or have a chef tv show etc. can't get a book published.
I have credentials in a non-fiction area and would love to write a book on the topic that would be informational, practical, and humorous. But other than my credentials, I'm an introvert single mom with zero platform. Basically why bother because no one (agent/publisher) would look at me because I have zero platform.
I find that kind of sad (not for me personally but that lots of good books will never get written for that reason).
Kimber An said, on 10/26/2007 5:52:00 AM
One question - is Ms. Lapine a mother? If not, I'm all for Jerry's wife! I'm a mom and I know that it doesn't matter how much you know about nutrition or how delicious the food is that you make. If you can't get the kid to eat it, all that's irrelevent. Only a mom who actually feeds her own (as opposed to daycare, nanny, or McDonald's) children or a childcare provider will know how to get children to eat their vegetables.
Besides, do you know how hard it is to be a wife? My husband has a crazy schedule. Mrs. Seinfield's husband is also a celebrity.
Oh, no. I'm a mom with children who aren't crazy about vegetables and I'm a wife. I won't be discounting Jerry Seinfeld's wife. And I've never even seen any of his shows. I have zero interest in him as an entertainer. If Ms. Lapine is not a mother, I would buy Mrs. Seinfeld's book instead without even checking any of her other qualifications. ;)
Timmy Mac said, on 10/26/2007 5:54:00 AM
I am a comedian by trade, and I strongly urge everyone to avoid any cookbooks written by my wife.
Laura Kramarsky said, on 10/26/2007 5:54:00 AM
My sister-in-law (who has a book coming out on wedding etiquette, a book she could not have sold, no matter how well written, without platform) wrote a little blurb about Deceptively Delicious on her blog a while back which sent me over to Amazon to look at it.
Now, I find the whole idea of both of these books offensive; they basically tell you it's ok to lie to your children instead of getting them accustomed to veggies in their natural state, to underdevelop your children's palates, and to make it so kids will think brownies are *supposed* to taste the way they do when they have spinach in them. My nieces and nephews (all under 7 years old) eat vegetables quite happily and have since they got onto solid food. Some veggies they don't like, it's true, but then, some veggies I don't like, either!
Did Seinfeld steal the idea? Probably. Not so much the idea of mushing food beyond recognition (and, quite possibly, beyond health benefit) and stuffing it into food for children, but the idea of making a cookbook out of it. Did she steal the recipes? Probably not. (See the reveiw on Amazon written by mothers who tried both.)
But what I find so fascinating about all this uproar is not the question of platform--which, perhaps because I know quite a few non-fiction writers, I have always known was a necessity--but because it so clearly highlights the difference between platform and celebrity.
Clearly, Lapine has more ethos when it comes to food issues. Readers *should* trust her more. Her platform *should* be stronger. But it's not. Lapine's platform won't be enough to entice people who buy Seinfeld's book first and find their kids hate the recipes to try again with hers.
Celebrity trumps platform. Oprah's own celebrity status illustrated this for years with her "book club". At the height of the craze, people weren't even reading the cover copy to see whether they found the story remotely interesting. They just bought the book because she said to. (Someone did a survey years ago that said something over half the people who bought those books never read them.)
It's not just in the book world that celebrity trumps talent, but it is, perhaps, only in the book world that it trumps platform. Could Seinfeld have gotten a regular column on food and health in a magazine? Probably not; her name might be big enough to sell a book (with a big marketing campaign) but it wouldn't keep readers coming back month after month.
This bugs me just like the line of celebrities who write moral children's books.
But it's as they say - what sells.
Erik said, on 10/26/2007 6:17:00 AM
I don't mean to disagree with you entirely. Media does sell books. However, media sells books quickly. Where will Ms. Seinfeld's book be a few weeks from now?
The bestseller lists, Oprah, and other mechanisms of hype can definately spike book sales in the short run. I have two questions:
1) Books which take longer and have more staying power could also sell as many copies. It's a comparison between a sprinter and a marathon runner - both are great athletes, and both have their followings. Are we certain that books which spike on the NY Times Bestseller List for a few weeks ultimately sell more copies than books that build a following through their quality?
2) Even if any one book sells more when the hype machine is smokin', what are the costs of the hype machine and the net return on the book? I know, Oprah is free, but not all of it is. And there are a lot of staff handling Ms. Seinfeld's publicity at this point - people who aren't cheap. Even if the gross is bigger, is the net?
Beyond those two, I wonder about hype and the eternal search for the One Big Hit(tm) that seems to drive books. Publishers must run on a "feast or famine" kind of cycle. That's a recipe for disaster in the long run. Any good bartender knows that you want a tight group of regulars - people whose drinking habits pay the bills every month. Penguin has this with their classics, but Harper seems to be running from one big promo to the next. Bars like that eventually hit a dry period and die.
Anonymous said, on 10/26/2007 6:19:00 AM
I don't know if I should take umbrage to this or not. I watch Oprah, not regular, but enough. Have I ever bought anything she's recommended on her show? Nope. Why? Because most of the stuff I couldn't use or don't want, and I find her book selections absolutely depressing. I want to read romance and HEA. She does not. But when I saw the show with Jessica Seinfeld and people saying that the food tasted good I was ecstatic. I thought, perhaps this will help me to get my children to eat MORE vegetables. They like a number of them but not enough for me. And if they're going to eat a brownie or cake, wouldn't it better if it had even the smallest bit of nutrition in it than not. So I bought the book. Didn't even know about Ms. Lapino. If she'd been the one on Oprah, I would have bought it because it's a area I struggle with my kids, and if there is a better way to feed them, I'll take it. If I have to sneak some vegetables into their food they won't eat, I'm all for that. You know why, because guilt never stops when you're a mother!!!
Anonymous said, on 10/26/2007 6:33:00 AM
Why are we surprised?
2 things are at work here:
1. For years Oprah has been an author "star-maker" through her book of the month selection. Remember the "Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval"? It's the Oprah seal of approval.
2. Oprah reaches millions of people in 1 hour. What better form of advertising?
Kathryn Lilley said, on 10/26/2007 6:47:00 AM
I so agree with you, Jessica, when you said, "Remember, few ideas are original, it’s the execution (or the platform in this case) that makes the difference."
The idea of making vegetable appealing to tots is probably one that has occured to every Mom/would-be cookbook writer in the universe. The difference is in execution. One author had a strong "platform," the other did not. Quality of writing, quality of execution, may have taken a back seat to platform in this case (I don't know, because I hate to cook and haven't seen the books, lol!)
One time, a writer took offense when I said that there are few original ideas in the world; the difference lies in their unique execution and style. But I really think that's true. Think how many times the Cinderella story has been retold in wildly different ways, and also Romeo and Juliet.
As for "platform," I think it's a reality we simply have to account for in the celebrity-obsessed culture. We'll buy a cookbook faster from a celebrity (or even from a wife of a celebrity), the same way we may buy a lipstick or purse faster if we see it worn by a famous actress. Best, Kathryn
Erik said, on 10/26/2007 7:12:00 AM
Kathryn, Jessica, et al:
While it may be true that "few ideas are original", there are a lot of new ideas out there which are simply never going to make it into popular culture. What it comes down to is whether someone is writing because they have something to say or because they want to be a (famous) writer.
Ms. Seinfeld is probably in the latter camp. I have no problem getting my kids to eat broccoli or spinach because they always have (and I do all the cooking). Methods for making this happen are well known, and have been for a long time. A cookbook on the topic is not anything new, and anyone writing one must know this.
I never write anything that has been done before, and when I catch myself going for the trite, simple plot device I stop and erase it. This makes it very unlikely that I will ever be picked up by a publisher because such work is very hard to market. Popular media such as books are a business, after all. They don't really want something new because it is more difficult.
A celebrity doing something very well known is an easy sell. You can get on Oprah with it. Of course that gets picked up and amplified.
While there may be little that is new, it's not as though there is nothing new. You simply will never read about it in the New York Times or see it on Oprah. These media vehicles are largely one and the same thing in the end because they are both fed by PR machines. That is how the business is run.
You find the original stuff hanging out in bars in out of the way places in the Midwest, one story at a time. It takes a while, but when it works it's gold. Beats the crap out of Oprah any day.
Anonymous said, on 10/26/2007 7:16:00 AM
What should an author do to build strong platform? It feels like, How do you get a job without experience and how do you get experience without a job?
jlboduch said, on 10/26/2007 7:17:00 AM
Amen to that! I guess I'm not on par with the rest of America, either. I'd rather get my foodie know-how tips from someone in the industry--the cooking industry, that is. What's next, a picture book by Maddox Pitt-Jolie? (And somewhere in the publishing industry, a lightbulb goes off and a call is made to Brangelina's publicist . . .)
Adrienne said, on 10/26/2007 7:52:00 AM
It also helps that Oprah just recently voiced a character for Jerry's much much MUCH advertised BEE MOVIE (I don't think I've seen such buzz about a movie in ages - get it? Buzz?!). She did a whole show dedicated to the film and I couldn't for the life of me figure out why . . . and then they cut to her standing at a mic being a voice.
Probably bonded a bit with Jerry. Jerry mentions his wife has this book . . .
Ah ha! It all makes sense now.
Heather said, on 10/26/2007 8:22:00 AM
Thanks for this post, Jessica. It means a lot. It's refreshing to read an agent's thoughts on the unspoken rules of publishing (are there any more you can share?)
Sarah said, on 10/26/2007 8:50:00 AM
I appreciate your point of view...I never even knew about Lapine's book until now. But seriously, what's so wrong with someone writing a book about something they're passionate about, whether or not they have the "credentials"? Maybe she loves research (like myself)? I know she's got to be passionate about her kids. It's not a rocket science idea for a book, so why would it take a rocket scientist to write it? Or even nutritionist. We all know vegetables=good. I don't think she should be slammed down because she wrote a book without being an expert in her field. She had a good idea and she ran with it. Now the alleged stealing is another issue altogether, if it is even an issue.
I don't think most Americans (knew that they) had the opportunity to look at the two books side by side and compare them before making a purchasing decision. Regular folks do not know the minute a new book comes out. We hear about the books we read through word of mouth and advertising, and frankly, the other book just didn't get promoted enough. We didn't even know about it.
So Seinfeld has built-in publicity because she has a well-known husband. Does that mean she should ban herself from any type of endeavor so as to level the playing field for other folks? I don't think so.
Just stretching my brain on this issue! It's definitely not an easy one.
Josephine Damian said, on 10/26/2007 8:57:00 AM
Kimber An: I'm with you on this one, sort of. Being a mom is "platform" enough for me in terms of being qualified to write a get-your-kids-to-eat-healthy book like this, but does anyone believe Jerry Seinfeld's wife actually COOKS?
I read that her agent pitched her as "stunning." Imagine if Jerry had married his former girlfriend, the buxom Shoshana Lowenstein (a smart gal who wanted to pursue her own ambitions and not just be known as "the wife of..."). Would the agent have pitched her as "stunning with big knockers?"
Seems the message of being telegenic is a big part of platform as well.
What also bothered me is how Seinfeld got on the phone himself with his wife when she was first contacted about the possibility she stole someone's idea. He ranted that his Mrs. would never steal someone's idea SOLELY because she "didn't need the money," as if a writer, or someone looking to make a name for themself (and not just be known as "the wife of...") would have a motivation for personal validation, acclaim and being a household name besides money.
Jerry Seinfeld comes across as controlling. Maybe that's his wife's motivation for wanting to have opportunities of "her own."
Anonymous said, on 10/26/2007 9:53:00 AM
I had an interesting thought regarding Erik's comments considering this is an agent's blog. The hype machine costs money, yes. Didn't Trump just pay out something like $25K to about 1000 people standing in line waiting to buy his book and have it autographed? Who bears the cost of promotion? Authors and, sometimes, publishers.
Do agents pick up the promotion tab, or do they simply reap the benefit of author and publisher promo? If the latter, then those NYT Bestseller spikes don't cost agents anything, and, in the long run, it's the agents that net out better than either the author or the publisher.
Merry Jelinek said, on 10/26/2007 9:55:00 AM
Interesting topic - I'm not quite convinced there was any stealing involved (as many of you have commented, it's an old idea), so I'm going to lay that end of the debate to the side because it would, at this point, be conjecture.
Mrs. Seinfeld obviously has the better platform here. Regardless of credentials in nutrition, most moms will buy these things because the book strikes them in the isle or because they're having a particular problem getting their child to eat veggies... seeing that same topic discussed in a book on Oprah will stick with them, and will likely be an easier book to find because booksellers stock and market accordingly.
On a personal level, I'm more insulted that a nutritionist would push a book that essentially teaches children NOT to eat veggies, the recipes are geared to trick them into eating healthier food, but as a parent (and any pediatrician will tell you this) you build lifelong eating habits in childhood... if you're hiding the veggies in a brownie, junior will eventually feed himself and he's not going to order spinach brownies.
Mothers, however, have been pulling these tricks for years, same with hiding medicine in juice or food... well, that's my two cents on the worth of those type of recipe books, but I'm obviously not the key market here.
I have heard a lot of people, writers especially, snipe about Mrs. Seinfeld riding on her husband's name rather than her own merit - and I think it comes off as catty. She has a platform, she can use it. Inferring that she's not a real mother or probably doesn't even know how to cook because of her income or position, well, it still strikes me as catty. Having enough money to not have to raise your own children doesn't necessarily mean that she's leaving them in a nanny's care full time... and inferring it without basis in fact simply strikes me as jealousy.
If it were proven to be a stolen idea or out and out plagiarism that would be one thing. But I don't hold it against her that she's more marketable than someone else writing a similiar recipe book.
Wanda B. Ontheshelves said, on 10/26/2007 10:00:00 AM
People, Build Your Platform!
All Seinfeld's wife is doing is piggybacking on the platform her husband already established. That is the power of platforms - if it's big enough, a whole lot of other people can jump up on it too.
Now, how did Seinfeld build HIS platform? He was a big "nobody" when he started out. Answer: The same way we writers who are not married to "celebrities" build our platform - the "old fashioned" way - talent, cleverness, winning things, networking, etc.
Building a platform is, applying the creativity that usually goes into your writing, to promotion. Promotion is not a punishment for being creative! It is (in my opinion) just another avenue for creative expression.
Melanie Avila said, on 10/26/2007 10:04:00 AM
Your timing is excellent. I'm planning to start up my own blog today so I can baby-step my way to building a platform. As a new writer this is an understandable, yet daunting, part of the publishing process.
Oprah's book club drives me crazy because while I know she's getting people to read who might not otherwise pick up a book, I hate the fact that her stamp declares a book worthy. For years I've managed to buy books BEFORE she picks them and I love my clean, Oprah-free, covers.
Thanks for highlighting the need for a platform and how it helps if you're not a celebrity's wife.
Marina said, on 10/26/2007 1:49:00 PM
I'm flabbergasted too, but I'm also wondering why you're surprised? Agents and publishers constantly push celebrities for their "platforms," and this is the result. Yay for Jessica and her publisher, and I guess it's good for Missy too (a bonus), but since when does celeb and celeb-wife=author? Since that's what agents, editors and publishers have been pushing on to the public. I agree that we are pathetic for buying into it. Would Jenna Bush have snagged a book-deal if she was, say, Jenna Jones? Nope. You, as an agent, at least have some power, some influence, to help change this 21st century phenom of billionaire's wives getting book deals and publicity because of who they are; we do not. (I'm not sure if Oprah is to blame, either.) We just have to suck it up, and are. I know I am, but it still cheapens the publishing industry in this country. I guess that's just the way it is, but I do not have to like it; and I will not buy ANY celebrity's book based on name alone.
Anonymous said, on 10/26/2007 2:32:00 PM
If I took a potential Number 1 hit song, change some lyics around slightly, maybe change a few musical notes around, and call it my own, then is that plagiarism?
Ms. Lapine's problem was that she didn't have an author agent when she initially gave her manuscript to HarperCollins. Basically, somehow, Ms. Seinfeld's book prep team must have gotten the manuscript and said, "WTF, use it."
phammonds said, on 10/26/2007 2:38:00 PM
Possibly the only media news more preposterous is this: Britney's mom has a deal to write a parenting book. I'm assuming it's a how-not-to.
I agree, Jessica. The problem that I have isn't the dueling books (though as a writer, that would have to be frustrating). The biggest suck in this mess is that miss O-word, who started out with "hooray for spreading the word about books!" is now a snob and something of a bully and more importantly all the people who blindly follow, all the authors who are summarily ignored because they don't get the nod and all the publishers who leech onto anything with a hint of "it might be on Oprah" also ignoring writers and works that are just as good, but not as attention getting.
My husband asked me, "Do you really think that the publisher didn't just take the idea then pay off the celebrity to put her name on it?"
And I had to be honest and say "If I let myself think like that I couldn't keep sending my stories out. And I need to keep sending my stories out."
Anonymous said, on 10/26/2007 3:44:00 PM
Authors have managed to sell their books without Oprah (isn't the figure something like over 50% of books sold are romance novels--and we know she doesn't read those) and they'll continue to do so when she's gone.
Didn't Skinny Bitch hit the NYT list because it was seen in some celebrity's hand?
BookEnds, LLC said, on 10/26/2007 4:43:00 PM
Usually I like to sit quiet and let discussions happen on the comment boards and I've really enjoyed watching what all of you had to say, but today I have more to say so I will. Are you sick of me yet?
My thought on whether the material was sold: I just can't imagine it. I worked at two publishers and at no time did someone get a proposal, reject it, but hold on to it so that they could pass it on to someone else. However. There are plenty of times where a proposal might come in and someone likes the idea, but feels it needs a new take. They might start looking for something like that (especially if the book gets sold out from under them). Stealing ideas is very common in publishing. Why do you think there are so many Davinci Code rip-offs right now. Stealing actual material is not.
I do think Seinfeld came to them with the idea as hers. I just think they bought her book because of her name. Let's face it, as many of you have said, this is not a book that would normally hit a bestseller list. It's a small niche book. That's why Harper originally rejected it (I assume).
The cover argument. Cover ideas are also stolen everyday. When an editor conferences with the art department for a new cover often she'll bring in examples of other covers she likes. Why do you think so many book covers look alike?
The Oprah issue. I just think it's lame that when pitched two different books she chooses the one that is clearly from a buddy. If she didn't think Lapine's book was worth doing a show about why would Seinfeld's? We all know the answer to that.
Okay, I should stop now. I'm cooking a delicious tomoto soup (homemade) with grated carrots. Sneaky I know, but it gives great taste ;)
--jhf
BookEnds, LLC said, on 10/26/2007 4:45:00 PM
Spelling error, typos and grammar mistakes. All the product of a glass of delicious red wine and the fact that I'm typing from my kitchen counter. It's Friday folks!
--jhf
ethel moo cow said, on 10/26/2007 7:23:00 PM
I, for one, couldn't be happier to see the publishing community striving to get your young children to eat more vegetables. Large quantities of fruit, vegetables, and grains are key to instilling healthy, life-long eating habits with your children.
And fish. Seafood is a wonderful source of low-fat protein for your children.
Oh, and chicken, too. Plus pork, that's the other white meat, you know?
Yes, fruit, vegetables, grains, fish, chicken, and pork. There's really nothing else you'd want to serve your young children.
No, nothing at all.
Moo.
spyscribbler said, on 10/26/2007 9:56:00 PM
TGIF, Jessica!
I need to buy a bottle of wine. I always forget to do the small things, like enjoy a glass of wine at the end of the week.
Maude said, on 10/27/2007 5:09:00 AM
Remember the fake memoir that was first shopped around as a novel? Oprah got away with it. I despise "self-help" books. They are shallow bits of BS. I'd write about what not to do, I know about that. LLC, a writer should know if he or she "has a book". This goes for fiction as well. Some books that I read, I wonder who thought that the writer could write? I am happy when after I've written a lot on a ms, I go back and make nasty comments to myself about my own ineptitude and idiocy. We are in the narcissistic age. Anything for attention.
Anonymous said, on 10/27/2007 5:37:00 AM
Okay, after reading the NY Times article, HarperCollins is not looking very good. These are some serious coincidences in that small window of time, even the artwork issue.
Anonymous said, on 10/27/2007 7:01:00 AM
Basing this question strictly on your reaction to the situation, completely ignoring the NYT, because you don’t think Harper or Seinfeld stole anything from Lapine’s proposal, I don’t understand why you’re upset that Seinfeld’s platform is better than Lapine’s. I think you’re pointing out why platform is important, but you seem to be resentful that your money was on the wrong horse. Shouldn’t Lapine suck it up, just like the hundreds of other authors who either don’t have a platform, or have one that’s just not good enough? Should Seinfeld be chastised because she’s able to produce the equivalent of every agent’s wet dream? If Seinfeld were your client, would you still be flabbergasted?
Wanda B. Ontheshelves said, on 10/27/2007 10:12:00 AM
Re: "Should Seinfeld be chastised because she’s able to produce the equivalent of every agent’s wet dream?"
This is hardly the case - the situation with these two books is in the news, and creating negative publicity for the Seinfield book. This is hardly "every agent's wet dream."
Scenario: You're buying a holiday gift for a mother with small children. You've heard that the Seinfield book may have been a rip-off of some other book - at least, there is some controversy surrounding it. Are you going to want to give that to someone as a gift? Remember, this is a "niche" book - within that niche, there may be those who in general do not want to be associated with this kind of negative controversy - whatever the truth of the situation is. Either buying the book for themselves, or someone else.
I went and looked at the websites for the two books - the Lapine website is kind of cluttered looking, and the colors are a bit jarring - especially the yellow and red text box regarding the controversy - whereas the website for the Seinfield book has got a lighter retro look - it's got tabs like a recipe box at the top - which paradoxically looks more modern. Even though I myself don't particularly care for that kitschy retro.
And on a side note - celebrity "spousehood" does not guarantee success - think of K. Federline's CD that tanked - I am sure there are other examples.
Anonymous said, on 10/27/2007 2:06:00 PM
The entire argument aside,
Could someone please write a cookbook on how to get my husband to eat his veggies?
Chessie
Laura Kramarsky said, on 10/27/2007 2:55:00 PM
Chessie -
Two words: butter, garlic.
You don't even need a lot of butter.
Heather B. Moore said, on 10/27/2007 7:32:00 PM
Celebrity status sells, unfortunately for the rest of us "real" writers.
But as a mom, trying to get my kids to eat healthy is always a battle--like telling my kids that Cream of Mushroom soup is really Chocolate Chip soup.
Just because 2 women wrote a cookbook that's similiar shouldn't be made into such a big deal. I wonder how many such cookbooks were "submitted" and weren't published.
Anonymous said, on 10/27/2007 9:27:00 PM
This should not surprise anyone.
Celebrity sells and sells and sells. Why else are we bombarded with "news" stories about Brittany's hair/children/rehab or TomKat or Paris Hilton? Because the public wants entertainment, and the media want to sell it to us.
"Celebrity trumps platform."
And we now elect politician by how good they look on camera, not their platform. It started back in 1960 with the televised debate of Nixon and Kennedy.
And so we choose cookbooks by who wrote and endorsed the book, not by the quality of the content.
Erik said, on 10/28/2007 11:49:00 AM
Back to my original point:
We all understand that a celebrity cookbook will outsell a cookbook written by an expert in the first few weeks, regardless of quality.
Do we know for a fact that the celebrity cookbook outsells the expert's in the first year? The first two years? While the initial spike is large for the celeb, we don't know the staying power.
Even if the gross is larger overall for the celeb, is the net larger? The expenses of pushing the platform might well be higher when operating in the hollyweird stratosphere.
In short, I don't think we can support this statement:
"Celebrity sells and sells and sells. Why else are we bombarded with "news" stories about Brittany's hair/children/rehab or TomKat or Paris Hilton? Because the public wants entertainment, and the media want to sell it to us."
The people in the media may go for this stuff because they are judged by short-term hits, and judged by the gross and not the net. I know of no people - and I mean NO PEOPLE AT ALL - who care about celebrities. Fully 90% of Americans have said that they are tired of celeb scandal nooze: http://www.abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/wireStory?id=3445828
There is no doubt that there is a big industry paid by advertisers to hunt down "The Latest(tm)". These advertisers believe that this is essential in order to generate sales, but their goals are not necessarily the same as a publisher, an agent, or especially an author.
In short, following the lemmings does not necessarily make sense to other industries. No one has answered two very simple questions on the relevance of it. Poorly understood market dynamics may have led to horribly designed incentive systems and a play to the vanity of being one of the "cool kids".
Just because everyone does it doesn't mean it's remotely smart. This industry has shown itself to be incredibly stupid in some rather fundamental ways.
Christine Lee said, on 10/28/2007 2:12:00 PM
I truly love your blog Jessica, and when the weekend comes around I truly miss it. I am absolutely greedy for the inside information and advice you offer us all. And I can see that there are many of us. It must be good and bad to be so much in demand.
I can also see that your blog could give you access to good manuscripts, does it give you access to anything else that is valuable to you.
You turn it over to us for comment, and I wondered if any responses have struck a particular chord with you and altered how you think or do things?
I know for myself, that when it comes time to find an agent, yours would be the first I would turn to. Might as well start at the top. And by that I mean an agent that seems to have some integrity, as well as contacts.
I love your blog but see that you and other agents also write books. How does that happen and why?
I think that you have the right to also be authors but what happens when you have an author who is as qualified as you to write a book, a publisher is looking for an author, and you get the job? Is this an agent perk? I write this with all the most respect. Seems you are always saying you are busy, so why writing books and not agenting? I have never been published but trying to understand the business.
If you do a little research you’ll probably see that a lot of agents and editors are also or have been authors. And I was not at all offended by this question. In fact, I think it’s fabulous.
How does this happen? Well, in a variety of ways. Being entrenched in publishing allows agents to come up with new and fresh ideas every day. Sometimes they are ideas that we’ll pass on to our authors. We’re excited, we think it’s great, and we think we have the perfect client to write it. Therefore, we’ll pass it along. But every once in a while agents might feel the need or desire to stretch their own creative wings. When the idea comes in an agent might feel so passionate or so excited about it that she just needs to write it herself. In that case she would write a book in the same way most of you are writing a book—in her off hours. It’s very rare that any writer has the luxury of writing full-time. Most if not all of you have other jobs. Some of you are teachers, doctors, engineers, librarians, lawyers, priests, or stay-at-home moms. Whatever it is, few of you are spending all day in front of the computer. If an agent takes on a book project she would do it in the same way you do, in her personal time. Her writing would not be done in the office, but late at night, early in the morning, or even while on vacation.
The other way agents become authors is exactly as you suggest. There are definitely times when publishers go to agents they trust and ask for books on certain subjects. Usually they will ask if the agent has any clients that might be right, but there is the rare time when an editor is looking for just a writer (no platform necessary), and in that case, if the agent is also a writer, the editor might ask the agent if she’s available to do it. This is very, very rare though. An example of this are two books that Jacky and I wrote together. The Book of Thanksgiving and The Book of Christmas. Both were done very early in our careers as agents (in fact, at that time BookEnds was operating as a packager). I had a meeting with an editor/former colleague who suggested that they were looking to do a book on Thanksgiving and possibly other holidays and suggested that I could probably write it. Since Jacky and I were very new packagers, as was BookEnds, we decided that it might be a fun project for us to undertake ourselves rather than try to find an author to write it. It was fun to do at the time, but would I do it today? Probably not. As you well know writing a book is a time-consuming process, and at this point the only books I would willingly undertake would be those that speak to my passion. If approached, I might consider authoring a book on publishing, but most likely I would only author again if it’s an idea I truly felt passionate about or came up with on my own.
As you know, agents and editors preach platform, platform, platform. And rarely does an agent have the type of platform an editor is looking for when seeking an author. Therefore it benefits the agent best to talk to her clients rather than try to write the book on her own.
I guess your concern is whether or not you run the risk of losing out on work to an agent (your own) who would take projects for herself rather than pass them on to her clients. Unlikely. Unless I’m representing another agent it’s not very likely I am as qualified to write a book as any of my authors. Why? Publishing is truly the only thing I am qualified to write about. I am not a doctor so that rules out all books related to health; I’m not a professional speaker or well-known sales professional so that rules out sales titles. I don’t think I could write fiction to save my soul, and if I could I would want it to be an idea I came up with. I’m stubborn that way.
So don’t fear the agent who also writes, since many of us do in some capacity. If she’s a good, hardworking agent with a solid reputation, you’re in good hands. And if she has good connections it’s very likely she’ll be bringing projects or at least ideas your way.
Jessica
11 Comments on Agents as Authors, last added: 8/7/2007
I asked a debut author recently how he liked his agent, and he said he doesn't. The agent took a leave of absence to work on her own book right in the middle of the author's publishing process. Someone else at the agency had taken over, but didn't have the enthusiasm for the book that the original agent had. Since the original agent returned, author hasn't heard from her, and has no idea whether or not she still represents him.
Aimless Writer said, on 8/6/2007 4:47:00 AM
Hmmmm, I think I'd rather have an agent who was only an agent. I know how much work it takes to finish a book and how I think about it all the time (working out scenes, characters, etc) and thats only the first draft! I'd imagine its kind of hard to do the agent-shopping-selling-guiding thing while working on a book. Am I being selfish?
Anonymous said, on 8/6/2007 5:21:00 AM
I'm with you Southern Writer. After all the time it takes to write a novel, getting it to the point where it is finally publishable, heaven forbid you should hook up with someone who is, basically, a part-time agent.
I've done my homework on agencies, and there are some, even though they do have a track record, who are clearly part-timers.
Despite their years in the business, they still haven't qualified for AAR (which requires a minimum number of sold books in a given year to qualify.) These same agents are known for taking up to six months to respond to a query, and heaven only knows how long to read a requested partial or full.
How frustrating would it be to work with an agent like this? Sadly, we first timers may have no choice. I actually have material out with an agent like this, but I'm praying that I receive a positive response from one of the three others who are timely and professional. I guess the positive is that I will have plenty of time to explore my entire list before I hear back.
Dara said, on 8/6/2007 5:22:00 AM
I've often wondered about this - glad you tackled the question. I'd feel better now approaching an agent who is also a writer.
Anonymous said, on 8/6/2007 6:11:00 AM
There are some big AAR agents who are authors as well. It's not just the part timers. They write under their own names. I think it's an interesting way for agents to get an idea of what the author is going through.
Just to complicate things, there are more than a few editors who are also writers, as well, and I've never heard anyone complaining about them. That seems more like a conflict of interest.
Anyway, there are lots of agents with part-time jobs (to pay the rent) when they start out. 15% of nothing is a very small amount! It takes a while to get going.
If an agent can do both, why not?Non-fiction is totally different. As Jessica said, the books are sometimes written to order to fill a need. I only see a conflict in fiction if the agent is writing something they represent and sell. In that case, I'd rather be somewhere else.
Diana Peterfreund said, on 8/6/2007 7:05:00 AM
My agent's a writer. Soon after I signed with her (and she got me a two book deal at auction), I got a nasty email from another writer saying I was a fool to hook up with an agent who was a writer, conflict of interest, blah blah.
A year later, I saw that this writer had hooked up with another agent who was, secretly, a writer. I always wondered if the writer KNEW of her agent's side projects, or if she'd changed her mind sometime in between. (It's amazing what that offer of representation can do.)
I've been with my agent for two and a half years now. In that time, she's sold six of my books, four at auction, not to mention selling me in four foreign territories, and now I write full time. And I can't begin to count the sales she's made for her other clients.
Anonymous said, on 8/6/2007 7:08:00 AM
My only point was: you want an agent working for you full time, not someone who can take an eternity to submit your work to publishers.
Hustle and Hard Work = Income (assuming the stars align just so)
Sign Me,
Anonymous 8:21
Liz Wolfe said, on 8/6/2007 8:56:00 AM
I wouldn't have a problem with an agent because he or she is also an author. I'm sure some can handle it well while others would have a problem balancing the two careers.
Anya said, on 8/6/2007 9:52:00 AM
Doesn't it all boil down to whether your agent is working for his or her clients to full capacity, rather than whether they (like most of us) have dual careers? If they love being an agent then they'll be working like crazy for their clients and reluctant to endanger that aspect of their life for anything. My editor is also a writer, but I trust her to fulfill her responsibilities to me and her other authors. What I don't expect (although I suspect it happens all the time!) is that she is going to give that aspect of her life 24 hours, 7 days a week. She's entitled to her own time, and what she does with it is really none of my business.
In the agent hunt it really pays to look at back list and track record, I think. I remember reading somewhere that it's better to have no agent at all than an ineffective one. Makes sense, because if the agent has no credibility in the business, are you going to take the chance that your book will be that one in a million long-shot that is "easy" enough for them to sell?
When you get right down to it, the question isn't really whether your agent is also a writer (or a lawyer, or a mom, or anything else) but whether you trust them to do the very best for you and your career. If the answer is 'no', then it's time to look elsewhere. That issue of trust also has a lot to do with whether you feel comfortable sharing your ideas with them, or expecting them to funnel projects your way too.
Ciar Cullen said, on 8/6/2007 3:06:00 PM
Of course Deidre Knight comes to mind as well. I remember my first thought when her first novel came out was...huh, she's awfully busy. How does she prioritize? But seeing the great sales coming from that agency...that speaks for itself. I now think an agent who has been through the whole cycle themselves can be an excellent mentor to a writer--tremendous knowlege of promotion, politics, expectations, etc. To me it's moved from a negative to a plus.
Cab Sav said, on 8/7/2007 6:23:00 PM
Interesting. Until this article I would have said, no, never take an agent who writes because it's a conflict of interest. But thinking about it from the perspective of someone in any other job, doing it after hours or on holidays, like most writers, then it makes sense. After all, agents are mostly in the profession because they love stories, so why wouldn't they be natural writers as well? Food for thought.
.jpg?picon=418)
.jpg?picon=1806)
.jpeg?picon=2850)
Over the weekend, I hope you’ll have time to check out some very helpful and thought-provoking blogs I read this week.
.jpeg?picon=2058)
I think this is a bit grand--even for non-fiction writers. To dial the scale back to the average writer, I point to Kristen Lamb, whom I've found to be one of the shrewdest and savviest gurus on forging networks and building one's author platform.
Thanks for addressing this buzzword! I have been reading a lot about it, and as someone hoping to publish fiction, I have been stressing out (probably a little too much) over my "platform" and what exactly that means for fiction writers.
This can also assist those who wish to build their platform in a certain area. Start writing articles, joining online/offline groups, attend workshops, and read, read, read.
Your expertise and by extension, your platform will emerge and grow the more you take part and contribute.
I am following your blog regularly and got great information. I really like the tips you have given. Thanks a lot for sharing. Will be referring a lot of friends about this.
I don't know columnist Joel Stein personally. But I know of him. I see him around social media and I read his column in Time religiously. And I'd definitely buy a book if he had one published.
I tend to agree with Evangeline Holland's comment. And further to what a platform is...it may not mean knowing thousands who will buy your book, but being connected in a real way to others - pivotal people who will help you reach those thousands who will, in turn, buy your book.
Good post.
What about an interview book? Does the author still have to have an established platform?
I totally agree. And the way you presented it Jessica is blatant terms offering first what it's not and then what it is is brilliant and unconfused. Though there will be majority who don't get it.
What I don't understand is how some authors can build a platform of 2+ pseudonyms and others can't even do one.
Very frustrating for agents indeed.
Under those terms, it's amazing anyone besides a celebrity stands a chance--kind of sad, actually...