literary agents | The Creative Penn

Agents and Self-Publishing: Q&A With Literary Agent Mark Gottlieb

June 30, 2017 by Joanna Penn 24 Comments

It's possible these days for an author to write, publish, and sell their books internationally without an agent, with some authors making a multi-six-figure income without going anywhere near a traditional agent or publisher.

We can do ebooks, print books and audiobooks, we can license foreign rights, and some indie authors are getting movie deals. Remember, both 50 Shades of Grey and The Martian started out as self-published books.

So what is the role of an agent in a world where authors can get on well enough without them?

In today's article, literary agent Mark Gottlieb answers some questions and I'd like to commend Mark for approaching me about this Q&A since he's clearly open to the idea of working with indies 🙂 I don't agree with everything he has said, but many authors do still want an agent to work with, so I'm happy to have his point of view on the blog. You're welcome to leave comments and questions at the bottom of the post.

Mark Gottlieb attended Emerson College and was President of its Publishing Club, establishing the Wilde Press. After graduating with a degree in writing, literature & publishing, he began his career with Penguin’s VP. Mark’s first position at Publishers Marketplace’s #1-ranked literary agency, Trident Media Group, was in foreign rights. Mark was EA to Trident’s Chairman and ran the Audio Department.

Mark is currently working with his own client list, helping to manage and grow author careers with the unique resources available to Trident. He has ranked #1 among Literary Agents on PublishersMarketplace.com in Overall Deals and other categories.

How has the role of an agent changed in the last 10 years since the Kindle first launched and digital publishing started to change the environment?

It has become all too easy for an author to feel discouraged and turn to self-publishing or small indie publishing. However, many successful self-published authors eventually go into traditional publishing to take advantage of having a team of professionals who help them take their work to the next level.

A literary agency with industry knowledge and expertise can bring a huge value add to the table for an author, evidenced by many of the success stories we’ve created for our clients, the bulk of which are award-winning and bestselling authors. We’ve actually built a lot of self-published success stories into mega-bestsellers, giving authors a Godzilla-like footprint in the industry.

Trident Media Group is a full-service literary agency for authors, handling accounting, legal review, management, foreign rights (books in translation), book-to-film/TV, audio books, etc. We’re also a literary agency with tremendous clout in the industry, so we can get many things for authors from publishers and film / TV buyers that an author otherwise would not be able to get on their own.

I’d like to think that a literary agency would save an author a lot of headaches to help the author focus in on their own writing, thereby allowing the author to become more prolific.

Meanwhile, the literary agent would work in concert with their subsidiary rights people and departments within the literary agency. In looking at a literary agent and considering paying them a commission on a deal, an author should be asking what they stand to gain in having a literary agent.

What do agents think of authors who self-publish?

The self-publishing/indie sphere has become something of what the farm league is to major league baseball, but the odds of that success can be lower than were an author to try and approach a literary agent as an author attempting to make their major debut in trade publishing.

What level of success would an indie have to have to attract an agent? How should an indie author pitch in the most effective way?

The bar is quite high in terms of self-publishing to attract an agent or publisher. An author usually needs to have sold at least 50,000 copies at a decent price.

Are agents interested in working with indie authors on subsidiary rights only?

It is difficult to be in business with an indie author who only wants their agent handling their subsidiary rights. Such authors are missing out on the world of print and the distribution channels a major trade publisher could afford them. Selling subsidiary rights and film/TV is also made easier once there's a tradition publication in place.

Agents and publishers are increasingly using self-publishing as a way to expand revenue streams from authors.

This includes the agent-assisted publishing model through Amazon White Glove, as well as publishers starting services like Type & Tell (Bonnier) and Macmillan buying Pronoun as well as Thomas Nelson's Westbow Press and others.

Do you see this as a conflict of interest or a way for agents and publishers to expand their business?

I view all of this as complimentary when conducted in the right way.

For instance, most publishers aren't open to novellas and story collections from authors, so sometimes the eBook space is a good place for projects outside the box to take place.

Other times, what a hybrid author is doing in the eBook space can benefit what's going on for them in the traditional publishing space and vice versa. With a hybrid author, though, timing is key as it's not advisable to release two novels in the same month or so since that can result in the cannibalization of book sales.

I don't view this as a conflict of interest if a literary agency helping and author in that space remain in their role as a literary agent, taking their usual commission, rather than becoming a rights holder.

How do you think publishing will change in the next 10 years? What will the role of agents and authors be?

For example, IPR License just launched a Buy Rights button so rights sales can be done online instead of through relationships.

Don’t believe the hype. You can’t believe everything you see and read. I remain a firm believer in that no matter how far technology takes us, there’s always a need for the human element, and I’m not talking about a “ghost in the machine.”

It is no lie that an author receives a larger share of royalties in the digital space in self-publishing, but there’s still a common misconception. In self-publishing, authors sell in smaller numbers than a literary agent and publisher could do for an author.

Authors that self-publish are primarily in the digital format, rather than being in the other revenue tributaries of major trade publishing. Overall, it’s better to diversify one’s publishing portfolio with a major trade publisher, offering various publishing formats, online and physical retailers, etc.

One day I see traditional publishers having an even bigger presence in the digital sphere for books in terms of placement among online retailers in buying co-op deals, key site placement, and more, exactly the way music and movie companies originated subscription services and digital access.

Print won’t become a thing of the past but perhaps a nostalgia, much like the way in which music aficionados appreciate vinyl records. Like the LP, the hardcover book is a technology that has been perfected and is ideal for the experience of reading. Regardless, readers will always opt for their preferred format, whether that be print, audio or ebook.

If an indie author has a number of titles that they have self-published successfully in a specific genre e.g. romance or fantasy, and wanted to pitch a new book/series to an agent in a different genre e.g. thriller, would it be better to pitch with a different name and attempt to be a debut? Or would an agent prefer to see an existing platform?

I’m of the opinion that an author who can write successfully in one genre might be able to do so in another. I wouldn’t recommend a pen name unless there was worry that the new genre writing might harm the success of the current genre in terms of sales track record.

The only other reason to encourage a pen name would be to protect the authors brand in not confusing fans. Usually I think it is better to replicate success wherever possible, writing within a successful genre again in major trade publishing, before turning one’s attention to a new or different genre with a traditional publisher.

What would the average advance be right now in publishing? We hear of the outliers, the multi-six-figure deals, but what is the reality for a new author?

There really is no average book advance since there are so many types of authors, books, literary agencies and book publishers, but not every book deal is in the six-figures. It’s probably easier to garner a six-figure+ advance for an author with a proven track record of success or with an author who is vied for in a hotly-contested bidding war among publishers.

Do you think that contract terms like ‘non-compete' clauses will evolve to allow authors to self-publish at the same time as traditionally publish? Or have limited term licenses for English as well as foreign rights?

These types of contract changes would be much more attractive to business-minded authors.

As book publishing’s leading literary agency, we get the very best contract terms for clients, so most of our non-compete clauses afford hybrid self-publishing opportunities for our clients. The same cannot be said of every literary agent or literary agency.

How can people pitch you?

I can be contacted via tridentmediagroup.com where we have a submissions/contact us page

Have you ever considered trying to work with a literary agent? Do you have any questions for Mark? Please leave your thoughts below and join the conversation.

Publishing: 7 Things Lessons Learned From My First Book Deal

July 10, 2013 by Joanna Penn

OLD POST ALERT! This is an older post and although you might find some useful tips, any technical or publishing information is likely to be out of date. Please click on Start Here on the menu bar above to find links to my most useful articles, videos and podcast. Thanks and happy writing! – Joanna Penn

One of the things I really love about this writing life is that we meet other writers along the way, and we never know where they will end up.

Four years ago I started out on Twitter as a newbie, with no author friends at all, and one of the first people I connected with was Graham Storrs. I hadn't even started writing fiction at the time, but Graham's first book Timesplash was well on the way.

He wrote a fantastic post on what that first experience taught him, and now he's back, with a traditional book deal and a new book, True Path. I'm delighted to see how far Graham has come in these few years, and I hope you're also encouraged. Seeing how much we can all achieve over the years is one of the precious things about blogging!

Signing with a publisher is a big deal for a writer.

For most of us it is the achievement of a lifetime ambition, something we've dreamed about since childhood. It certainly was for me when I signed up with a small NY press to publish my novel, Timesplash. It wasn't the first book I'd written – more like the tenth – but it was the one that has always got publishers most excited.

That was three years ago and that first deal went on to break my heart. Sales were dismal and the book looked like a complete flop. But the experience taught me a few things about publishing in today's chaotic marketplace that might be of interest.

(1) You Get More Than One Chance

Even as recently as 2010, people were telling me that if you got a book published and it flopped, you might never get another go. The publishers, they said, would check your Nielsen data to see what your sales were and a flop would mark you as a bad risk. It filled me with dread at the time when I saw the meagre royalty cheques and decided I was a marked man.

And yet the reality was quite different. Publishers didn't seem to care and agents never asked. This was true even for Timesplash, which had already been published and failed, and then self-published with, at first, very little success. Self-publishing was something else people had told me would kill a book's chances of ever being commercially published.

Yet three different Big 6 publishers and three small press publishers talked seriously about publishing it. Three of them negotiated contracts and one of them, eventually, signed.

The moral seems to be, never give up on yourself and never give up on your book. The old rules don't apply. Things have changed and they're still changing.

(2) Rights Matter

However, you really have to be sure you have the rights to your work, or you will never be able to re-sell it. After my first failure, I asked the publisher if I could have my rights back (because I intended to self-publish the book). They agreed readily. Publishing in my genre had been an experiment for them and they were as disappointed as I was. I was lucky. Although I had a termination clause in my contract, they let me off. I could still have been waiting for the contract to end so that I could do something else with my book.

It has made me very wary about what rights I sign over to publishers and to make sure those termination clauses are in place. Even when I sell a short story these days, I let the publisher know I will probably want to self-publish it soon and we negotiate on how long any exclusivity period might last.

(3) Publishers are Human Too

Not only through Timesplash, but also with other books, I have had a lot of dealings with publishers, large and small in the three years since Timesplash was first published. And this is what I've learned about them: they're just people trying to run a business.

Like you and me, they find themselves in a world of rapidly changing opportunities and shifting markets. They're not sure how best to proceed and they're often open to experimentation and off-the-wall business propositions. Sometimes, the crazy ideas come from them. Sometimes you can see they're thrashing about trying new things in the desperate hope that they can find a business model that beats the competition.

I tend to get caught up in enthusiasms and I'm far too willing to give new ideas a go. These days, many publishers are the same – to everybody's detriment. It really is a good idea to step back and ask yourself just how you're going to make money from the deal you're so excited about. How many books you can reasonably sell through each channel. What your return will be. What your personal outlay will be (usually measured in hundreds of hours of ineffectual marketing time in my case!) and how quickly you can back out of it if it isn't going well. You need to ask publishers hard questions but accept that they might not know the answers. We're all learning all the time now.

(4) Self-Publishing is About Selling

This is something you will have heard from self-publishing gurus all over the Web, so I hardly need repeat it. I knew it before I started self-publishing, yet it still came as a big revelation to me. It's not about having a blog, or a Twitter account, or a large group of Facebook friends. It's about publicity, marketing, and ultimately, selling: segmenting your customer base, making the right proposition, and closing the deal.

Many years ago, I asked my wife (who is so much wiser than me) if I should quit my job and run my own business. She said I shouldn't – not because my ideas were no good, or my business plan wouldn't work, or I didn't have the skills needed, but because I wouldn't enjoy running a business. She was right and that's why I don't enjoy self-publishing. It's a business. You make things, you package them, and you sell them. I can do it. I've made a fair bit of money at it (lots more than any publisher has ever earned me) but I don't enjoy it. Some do. Some don't.

(5) Editors Should be Certified

As well as working with many publishers over the past few years, I've also worked with a lot of editors, including independent ones. And I've come to the conclusion that editors should be qualified. They should do a three years degree in editing (not an MFA or an Eng. Lit. degree!) and then take post-grad courses in particular genres. Only then will they be fit to be let loose on the world.

I have encountered many degrees of incompetence in editors – from small presses especially, but not exclusively – and I have worked with just a couple who can do it right, who “get” what you're trying to do and use their skill to help you achieve it the best way you can. Some editors I've worked with have been barely literate. Some were rule-following robots. Some were just not very bright. The one I have now is extremely good and, I have to say, even if I never make a cent from my contracts with Momentum, I'd be tempted to stick with them just so I don't have to work with poor editors ever again.

(6) An Agent is Only Good for One Thing

Because I don't enjoy the business side of self-publishing, and because I am generally disillusioned with small publishers, I have decided I only want to be published through big publishers – preferably the Big 6 (or however many there are left now). Small publishers will let you send them manuscripts “unsolicited” but the majority of the big ones still insist on receiving submissions through an agent. It is this function, interfacing with publishers who otherwise refuse to speak to me, for which an agent is invaluable. I simply can't do business without one.

(7) Friends Matter Too

I think it's because I'm a chronically shy, introverted type, that I have never really seen it before but people will help you. Other writers will help you. You don't have to do it alone. In fact, I was never able to do it alone and any success I've had is traceable the kindness of other people. Asking for help might seem like the hardest thing in your life (even worse than asking for sales) but I'm discovering that you don't always even need to ask. People are just that darned nice!

So let me sign off with a special thank you to Joanna for hosting this post.

Do you have any questions about moving to a traditional publisher? Or any experiences of your own to share? Please leave your comments below.

Graham Storrs is a science fiction writer living in rural Queensland. A former research scientist, IT consultant and award-winning software designer, his published non-fiction includes three children's science books, over a hundred magazine articles, and more than thirty academic papers and book chapters, in the fields of artificial intelligence, psychology, and human-computer interaction. In recent years he has turned his attention to writing science fiction and has published over twenty short stories in magazines and anthologies.

Graham recently signed a two-book deal with Momentum, an imprint of Pan Macmillan, to publish his time travel thriller, Timesplash, and its sequel, True Path.

Find Graham's books through Amazon, Kobo, or iTunes, and feel free to chat to him on Twitter (@graywave) or on his blog.

How I Got A Literary Agent

September 13, 2012 by Joanna Penn 36 Comments

Back in July, I signed with a New York agent, Rachel Ekstrom and then I explained the reasons why I want to pursue a hybrid career with my writing, with some books in traditional publishing and some self-published.

Many people asked in the comments of those posts and in subsequent emails how I actually got an agent, especially an American one since I live in London, so in today's post, I share the details.

In terms of an update, I have just finished a round of edits on Pentecost, the first book in the series and Rachel will be submitting it to a number of publishers in the coming weeks.

The traditional way to get an agent

For many years, there has been a well-trodden path to getting a literary agent. Here's the short version:

* Find agents to target
* Write a query letter
* Get rejected, hear nothing or get asked for a partial or full manuscript
* Send submission package, including partial or full manuscript
* Get rejected (go back to the top of the list) or sign with the agent

This process took many authors years and the number of rejection slips seems to have become almost a matter of pride for some.

How I got an agent

I never even considered querying my fiction the traditional way. I don't like the energy of rejection or the amount of time I could see being spent in the querying process.

By the time I wrote Pentecost I already had an online audience through this blog and knew a lot about self-publishing from my first non-fiction book. I was already devouring fiction on the Kindle and could see the opportunities with ebooks.

I'm also a business-woman and saw self-publishing as a better, faster way to get my books out there and earning. So I decided to spend my limited time on writing and marketing my own books.

But when the sales of Pentecost and Prophecy reached over 40,000 in the first year, I began to get some commercial interest. Both books still rank as Amazon bestsellers in the UK store, so they are quite clearly in the commercial fiction arena, and with ideas for a series of at least 7 books, there is potential for growth.

Then in the first half of 2012, I created the ProWriter courses with New York Times bestselling author CJ Lyons.

CJ & I collaborated on multimedia courses, one of which was How to get published, the traditional way, based on CJ's extensive experience. I learned so much from her about agents and the possible opportunities through traditional publishing that I began to be more interested in getting an agent. [Click here to find out more about the course, available now, if this is a route you are interested in too]

J.F.Penn with Lee Child Thriller authors

J.F.Penn with Lee Child at Thrillerfest

In July 2012, I attended Thrillerfest in New York and so I had the opportunity to meet some agents, as well as to pitch in person at Agentfest, which was part of the program.

A few weeks before that, I was introduced to Rachel Ekstrom at Irene Goodman Literary Agency through a personal connection based on my indie success and my existing platform which enabled me to jump the slush pile and submit the full manuscripts directly without querying. I met Rachel in person at Thrillerfest.

At Agentfest I pitched three more agents, and two of them asked for full manuscripts, and the other for the first 30 pages. Within a week, I had an offer of representation from two agents and decided, after much deliberation, to sign with Rachel because of the rapport we had but also because of the fantastic agency she is with, and how happy the Irene Goodman Agency authors are. More about why in my post on the subject here.

You can also listen to me talking about going from self-publishing to getting an agent on the Self-Publishing Podcast [language warning for this, not a clean podcast. I come in at about 17 mins]

If you want an agent, it's important to look at what you want to achieve as an author as the agency contract may have terms you can't agree with. I specifically chose Rachel and the Irene Goodman Agency because they have a demonstrated commitment to their author's success, incorporating self-publishing as a possible option for a hybrid career.

The indie author's guide to getting an agent (or, the new way)

Some would say this is not the “normal” route to getting an agent, but to be honest, I think it is becoming more usual in a crowded market. Indie authors who hit high on the charts get offers of representation very quickly and I've had a number of them on the podcast: check out the interviews with Mark Edwards and Rachel Abbott.

For me, it came down to:

Writing a good, commercial book that had already been edited. Pentecost continues to sell well and rank on Amazon and I always intended to write commercial fiction that would be applicable to the mass market. Traditional publishers are a business and so they want to buy books that will sell and make money. This is probably why there will be more experimental fiction in the self-publishing arena as time goes on (and that is no comment on what is “better” writing).

Establishing a platform that enables you to meet other authors and prove your professional approach, as well as demonstrating to the agent that you know what you're doing marketing-wise. This can lead to personal introductions and also makes your ‘package' look better. I gave the agents a glossy, color 1-sheet that included my platform figures including blog subscribers, podcast downloads, social media contacts and more. It proves my ability to sell and market myself as an author as well as the books.

Successfully self-publishing. When I pitched to the agents, none of them were worried about the fact I had self-published. They were only interested in the numbers and 40,000 in a year was enough to be considered interesting. I don't believe it's worth mentioning it if you aren't selling a decent amount, and in fact, “failing” at self-publishing can be a distinct turn-off for an agent/publisher.

Investing in conventions where you can meet agents in person and stand out from the crowd. Yes, Thrillerfest is one of the more expensive cons, but it is full of professionals in the writing and publishing world. Meeting agents in person meant I jumped the slush pile as they were able to catch the passion about my books (and being a Brit in America also helps as I was memorable!)

Some people have said how this route could be seen as a shortcut but it's absolutely not in terms of time or effort.

I could have queried Pentecost back in Feb 2011, so that's 18 months that could have been spent querying. I've spent a lot of effort on writing, marketing and everything that goes into self-publishing. So there are pros and cons for either way.

However, I definitely prefer this indie approach as it means I have had 18 months of income as well as over 40,000 people reading the books and I have build up an email list of fans who will be ready to buy the next book when it is released – whether self

Do you have an agent, or do you want one? Do you have any tips or stories to share? Please do add a comment below.

Images: checklist by BigStock , and my own, envelope purchased from iStockphoto

Why I Signed With A New York Literary Agent

July 30, 2012 by Joanna Penn 105 Comments

Last week I announced on my author blog that I have signed with literary agent Rachel Ekstrom from the Irene Goodman Literary Agency in New York. Thank you for all the congratulations I have received!

Many of you have been incredibly supportive of my independent publishing career so far and I know you will have some questions. Since I have always been transparent with my journey, I'm happy to share what I can.

I am a fan of publishing in all its myriad guises, and none of us know where the industry is going. It's also quite ironic that I feel like I have to defend my decision, since in the past, self-publishing has needed the defense more!

Why do I even want an agent?

I am an author and an entrepreneur, so my goals center around:

Creating great books and quality products that will delight, entertain, educate and inspire my readers
Building a long term career as an author and widening my reader base
Growing a sustainable income that enables me to travel and spend my time on (1) above!

In working towards these goals as an independent author over the last 3.5 years, I have used business partnerships with professional editors, book cover designers and formatters. I also depend on distributors like Amazon, Kobo and BookBaby to get my books into the hands of readers. I use tools like blogging and social networking to market and I pay for internet hosting to enable this. I sell from my site so I use Paypal as a merchant service.

I could not run my business without these business partners.

I look at signing with an agent, and possibly a traditional publisher, in the same way. They are business partners who I will work with to achieve a mutually beneficial goal. I am not a newbie in this business anymore. I have been learning about publishing for nearly four years, so this is certainly done with forethought. I have also done a lot of research on contracts and legalities, attending the Rights workshop at the London Book Fair as well as poring over books on contract clauses. I'm not going to sign anything that doesn't fit with my goals.

Being an indie author is not only about self-publishing anymore. It's more about taking control of your career as an author and becoming a creative director for each book. The Alliance of Independent Authors has a fantastic definition here if you want to read more.

So signing with an agent and pursuing traditional publishing reflects on my overall goals above as follows:

(1) Traditional publishing is excellent at creating quality products.

I'm an ebook only author right now and although I have dabbled in print, I don't enjoy the process. I know a lot of indies do it successfully but I am a huge fan of doing things I enjoy 🙂

I currently employ several different editors during my writing process, and I absolutely believe this is critical for any author to invest in. Traditional publishing will hopefully take me to a new level with my writing and push me further. I will certainly be looking for a great editorial team as part of any deal.

(2) Traditional publishing will enable me to build a wider audience.

There are still many readers who will only buy print books in bookstores, or who hear about books through more traditional venues e.g. book clubs. I can reach an online audience myself but there are possibilities with traditional publishing that I also want to pursue.

(3) On the income question.

I am the kind of indie who wants a hybrid approach combining traditional publishing with self-publishing. After all, traditional and independent publishing are not mutually exclusive.

This approach can bring in spikes with advances, and then a monthly rolling income with self-publishing. I specifically went with the Irene Goodman Agency because they understand self-publishing can be an option for some of their authors at certain times, depending on the specifics of the author's career and goals. I know some of their authors who are already following this hybrid approach successfully.

Nothing changes right now in terms of my books being available for sale. You can still buy Pentecost and Prophecy at the moment (better snap them up though!).

Here are some of the other reasons for pursuing this opportunity.

Authority, experience, social proof and let's face it, ego.

I want to be waiting in the writer's green room at literary festivals.

You guys know I am proud of self-publishing and absolutely intend to continue doing it in some form. Indeed, I recently re-released my first book on career change. But originally, this blog was sub-titled ‘Adventures in Publishing' and it was always my goal to have a traditional book deal one day.

In the UK, there are still bookstores on the high street and my parents read books in print that they buy from Waterstones. I do want to be on those shelves among the bestsellers. There is definitely still some authority and social proof with traditional publishing that I want to benefit from, so long as I can integrate it with my self-publishing goals.

I would also like to say I have ‘done it' so I can justifiably join in the discussions on traditional publishing that I can only report on second-hand at the moment.

Film rights and other subsidiary rights.

As well as my lovely agent, Rachel Ekstrom, the Irene Goodman agency has a couple of great rights agents who focus on specific areas of subsidiary rights. I am interested to see what they can do with my books.

Lee Child talked at Thrillerfest about the upcoming movie Jack Reacher, starring Tom Cruise. Very exciting. I want Morgan Sierra to be the next Lara Croft, so I need people with the right contacts to make that happen. I know the film deal is a lightning strike type of luck, but some authors make it, and I have always had stretch goals and dreams!

Peer respect, blurbs and networking.

At Thrillerfest, I was excited to meet some of the big name authors who I call my writing heroes. Much as I love self-publishing, even in the current market, I think I am more likely to be able to get blurbs from big name authors if I get a traditional book deal. I have to build my author brand over time and peer networking is critical for this.

Entry into prizes.

This is an arena that is slowly opening up to indies, but most prizes are still currently based on traditional publishing. I think nominations and awards can help marketing and enable the expansion of readership.

Speaking opportunities at festivals.

I already have a professional speaking career but it doesn't currently include talking specifically about my fiction 🙂 The festivals in the UK especially are only about traditionally published authors, and this is an area I want to break into. (btw, I'm speaking at Zurich WriteCon in October if anyone fancies some Swiss chocolate with their scribbling!)

Why a New York agent when I live in London?

I am British but I moved back to London last year after 11 years in Australia and New Zealand. In the last four years, I have learned about online marketing from mainly US blogs so I am enmeshed in their business models. My Mum also lived in the US for many years so I have visited a lot. I love my homeland but in terms of publishing, I believe the Americans are still ahead of us in terms of the new paradigms in publishing. I wanted a forward thinking agent at an innovative agency.

It's also a bigger book market in the US and my current sales are about 4:1 US:UK split. I wrote for the US market and even use an American spell-check. My traffic for this site and my podcast is over 50% US so most of my existing audience is there. In publishing terms, books that make it big in the US are more likely to be picked up in the UK and in other countries. So it is a business move that hopefully will put me in a better position for achieving my goals.

I have years of writing ahead of me.

The books I have out right now are not the end of what I can create. They are not precious snowflakes (much as I love them!). I have stacks of ideas and I am writing more books. At the moment, I am mostly in the library working on edits for Exodus, ARKANE book #3 and researching my next book, Hunterian, which is possibly a stand-alone or the beginning of a new series.

This is a serious career for me. I want to sell some books to the right trade publisher and self-publish others.

I am 37 with (hopefully) 50+ years of writing ahead. The decision to sign with an agent and pursue traditional publishing for some of those books opens possibilities but it certainly doesn't stop me from doing all kinds of exciting things in the future.

This is just the beginning. I hope you will join me for the ride!

I'd love to hear what you think as I know it's an emotional topic. Please do leave your comments below.

Images: Flickr CC: Wall of books by sbisson, my own and iStockphoto.

Podcast: Julia McCutchen on Brilliant Book Proposals and the Traditional Publishing Process

September 19, 2009 by Joanna Penn 3 Comments

Podcast: Download (Duration: 32:50 — 7.5MB)

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On reading this blog, you might think I am against traditional publishing. I'm not, it's just not my experience (yet!) so I don't really talk about it. This blog is about my experiences and tips but luckily I can interview people with different expertise so you can get perspectives on all things publishing related! This is one such interview!

Julia McCutchen has years of experience in the publishing industry, having helped hundreds of authors to achieve publishing success. She is an intuitive writers coach and mentor, an author and publishing consultant based in the UK. Her own book is “The Writer's Journey: From Inspiration to Publication”.

In this podcast you will learn:

About Julia's publishing background, including working with Penguin and Random House, as well as independent publishing houses
Why life is too short! Find the truth of who you are, and take action on your dreams. Seth Godin says “The book you write will change your life”
Writing a book can be a rewarding journey of self-discovery as well as self-expression
Julia gives an outline of the major steps you need to take in order to get a traditional publishing deal
Be professional and confident in yourself as a writer and convey that to publishers and agents
Find out about publishing as a business so you know how to go about it, get some support and prepare in advance before you start pitching

The foundation of 4 are so important before you start sending out your manuscript: Find your true writers voice, nurture your creative spirit, develop writing practice and be clear on your outcome. These will put you in a position of strength as the basis for being a writer.
Prepare a strong book proposal for a non-fiction book, or the synopsis. 2-3 sample chapters. The whole book is usually written once the contract is signed (but you still can write the whole thing prior e.g. for developing ideas).
For fiction writers, you need a first draft of the whole manuscript, not just chapters.
Definitely recommends a literary agent for fiction writers
Research the best agents and publishers to approach and be professional
Follow up the approaches you make. After a month, contact the agent/publisher (but not too soon!)

Julia gives us 3 Top Tips for Book Proposals – and find out about her Book Proposal Master Class here
Understand what you need to include in your book proposal, and leave out parts per agent/publisher. Meet the exact requirements at every single level. Pay attention to the detail as it is easy to reject you on the basics.
Create a blueprint proposal package, and select parts of it per agent/publisher
Write your compelling key sentence. Publishers and agents have no time and a short attention span. You need to be catchy, original and attention grabbing.
Know your reader, your market and build your author platform. Whether you want a traditional publisher, or self-publish, you need to do these things.
Publishers want a ready-made platform or at least a commitment to building one. Publishing is a business! The earlier you start building your platform, the better.

Getting an overseas agent/publisher – is it recommended? Get a local agent with international contacts.
Does self-publishing harm your future potential for getting a traditional book deal? In the right circumstances, it can be a valuable experience that prepares you for future success. If you can demonstrate sales in the thousands, publishers will certainly be interested! They will also be interested in the platform you have built for yourself and future books.