Tag Archives: book proposals
Advice for How to Write a Book Proposal: An Interview with Literary Agent Miriam Altshuler
Ever since Dr. Craig Malkin signed on with his literary agent, Miriam Altshuler, he’s been singing her praises to me, as well as sharing some of her specific takes on book proposals. So when I decided to interview several literary agents for my “how to write a book proposal” series, I immediately thought of Miriam. While many agents suggest that book proposals are getting shorter, Miriam is not a big believer in trends. “How long should a book proposal be? Whatever will best sell it. That could be five pages and it could be fifty.” Lisa: You recently sold a[...]
Ask the Writing Coach: In a Book Proposal, Do You List Unrelated Books & Articles?
Kathleen Burns Kingsbury asked how much information about previous publications to include in a book proposal. Specifically, she traditionally published a book called Weight Wisdom. Should she include information on this book in her book proposal? How about articles? She asks, “When you are writing a book proposal is it best to just list the publications and articles that relate to the topic or is it more effective to list all the books and articles you have had published regardless of the topic area?” In terms of articles, you generally want to mention the publications, not necessarily the specific articles[...]
Bulk Book Sales: Can it Strengthen Your Book Proposal?
It was great to see several blog readers at the Harvard Medical School Publishing Course, including Connor Moore, Jeannette Samanen and Dan Peterson. For those of you who couldn’t make the course, and I know a few of you expressed regret that it didn’t work for you, I’ll be sharing a few pearls of wisdom and some insider takes on the state of the publishing industry over the next few days. I enjoyed meeting a new faculty member at the course, Albert LaFarge from Albert LaFarge Literary Agency, which handles general nonfiction, from documentary history to narrative journalism. I asked[...]
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