Earlier this week I was listening to a conversation between Michael Hyatt (@MichaelHyatt), author of Platform, and Stu McLaren (@StuMcLaren), a startup entrepreneur. At one point in the discussion Stu emphasized the importance of knowing your audience’s pain. What is your audience’s need? What is the problem your audience has that you can solve? And […]
When I heard that readers of this blog wanted me to interview literary agents, one of the first people to come to mind was Christopher Ferebee (@caferebee). Chris is an experienced agent with a strong reputation. I think you’ll enjoy hearing from him. This interview kicks off what I’m calling the Living Legend series because […]
Macguyver was the all-time master of double use. Watch what he does with this paperclip, for example: I can’t promise writing a book proposal will save you from certain death, but doing so definitely has more uses than pitching an idea to traditional publishers. Writing a book proposal will help you: Clarify your vision for […]
A while back two commenters asked how big a platform was big enough. “How many Twitter followers, Facebook fans, email subscriptions should I be shooting for? What’s the goal I should have in mind?” In a guest post over at that Books and Such blog, I address these questions. The post is called 5 Questions […]
Recently I participated in a Q & A session for writers at Baker Book House—a very fine Christian book store in Grand Rapids, Michigan. (By the way, if you don’t already subscribe to Louis McBride’s “Baker Book House Connection,” it’s worth your time. While you’re at it, check out the blog of Josh Mosey, the […]
For those who have been following along as Gary Neal Hansen and I work through a book proposal together, I wanted to give you an update. For those who don’t know what I’m talking about, here’s a brief setup: In December 2012 I started a series of posts on how to create a book proposal. I […]
Guest Blogger: Natasha Crain (www.christianmomthoughts.com) We all know Facebook is the largest social media network in the world. Our intuition tells us it can be a powerful tool for book marketing, but how do you use it effectively? In a word, it all starts with fans. The more fans you have, the more effective Facebook […]
Lack of platform (which here can be defined as your ability to help a publisher promote your book) is the number 1 reason we turn books down at Baker, and I’m sure we’re not alone. It’s simply easier to come across solid concepts and great writing than it is to find an influential platform. While […]
Let me start with three reasons working on a book with a lousy concept is a bad idea: Beautiful, compelling writing is terribly important to publishers, but if your beautiful writing is in the service of a concept that no one will buy, publishers will have a hard time getting excited. A far-reaching platform is […]
Several weeks back I attended the International Christian Retail Show, which is the main annual event for Christian booksellers and related vendors. I’ve attended this show the past several years because it’s a good place to meet with industry friends, authors, and literary agents. One afternoon my editorial colleagues and I sat around a table […]
