Oct 6, 2020 | On Writing
Sooner or later, you may face the challenge of how to write a book proposal. If you’re writing nonfiction, it’s obligatory—book proposals are the documents used to sell nonfiction, whether you’ve finished the book or not. (This includes memoir; at a...
Sep 7, 2020 | On Writing
The Elevator Pitch is that fabled 1-minute pitch you can rattle off whenever you find yourself in the company of someone who can help you publish your book: an editor, an agent, a published writer, etc. Whether you’re at a pitch slam or a hotel bar or in an actual...
Jul 6, 2020 | On Writing
Publishing is rife with conventional wisdom but some of it is actually useful. Here are some of the best. The first page sells the book, the last page sells the next book. I repeated this recently at a Zoom event and like an old dog full of old tricks I was surprised...
Aug 5, 2019 | On Writing
If you want to catch a fish, you have to think like a fish. If you want to get an agent, you have to think like an agent. That is, think like moi. (Even better, think like Janet Reid.) Move me. Like editors and publishers and readers, I’m looking for wonderful stories...
Dec 1, 2017 | On Writing
Are you rich? Are you famous? How much do authors make, really? It’s complicated. Which of course is not what people who are always asking me this want to hear. But as James Michener once said, you can make a killing in this business, but you can’t make a living. Or...
