Depressing Writer
Dear Readers,
On the best days, I think there are a whole three of you, so if I happen to break out in Spanish, I plan to use the familiar "tu" form with you. (OK. I admit it. I stole that joke from Larry David.)
Well, If you read this blog over the summer, then you know that I went surfing for 116 days in a row. You also know that I wrote a whole lot about it, and about whatever else was on my mind at the time. You may also know that I ripped most of the old blog down to edit it, organize it, and pull it all together into a manuscript (hereafter referred to as "the book") that I could then go out and - with only the finest intentions, min you - sell out this beautiful pure sport for the biggest fucking glob of cash I can get my greedy fat hands on.
So, I went to the library, and looked at a couple of reference books for writers hoping to sell their handiwork. These books are very discouraging. While they are full of helpful advice for aspiring writers, they are also full of warnings. Aparently, the entire publishing industry is full of assholes and hustlers. This book, that the writer has put so much effort into, will, at best, be opened, looked at for a moment, and then trashed. If it has sentences with as many comas as that last one, the editor will spit on it, wipe his ass with it, then call the writer.
"Hey. I loved your manuscript. Why don't you send it to this copy editor that I know and get a referral kick back from? Then, we'll do business, babe. You're gonna be a star."
To avoid getting shafted by editors, writers can hire agents, many of whom are paid to shaft the writer harder than any editor could, but some of whom are invaluable. In either case, for non fiction, the writer starts with a "proposal". (For fiction, the writer simply sleeps with somebody, as it seems fiction writers get shafted far more frequently and much harder..)
The standard package that aspiring non fiction writers send to publishers or agents in the hopes of getting their non-fiction books on the shelves is called a "proposal". The "proposal's" cover letter is a "query". I did a google search on "nonfiction proposal" and clicked on the first reasonable looking link.
So here are the guidelines that I found. I stole them from some guy's website and am not giving him credit. Go ahead, pal. Find me. Come and get me.
THE QUERY
*Keep it to one page.
*Mention any connection you may have with the addressee.
*Give the work's approximate length, the target market, and the estimated completion date (if you're not done with it, yet).
*Toot your own horn... (i.e., The award winning author of so many short stories) Publication is publication. Mention it.
THE PROPOSAL
1. Title page. Consists of: Title of proposal, Name, Address, Agent name, Phone number, e-mail address. (That's ALL!)
2. Resume. If you have an impressive resume, put it after title page. If not, put it in as the last page of the proposal package.
3. Table of Contents. This is for the proposal and _not_ for the proposed book. For example, Overview--- page 1, Market and Competition---page 2, etc. Make sure your name and the title of the book show up on this page.
4. Overview. Very important since it sells or rejects the book. Usually the overview should start with a three-line, high concept description of the book. In our proposal for
5. Market and competition: Tell what other books of this type are out there and why this one is different. Do research. Tell them exactly what's out there, including author names, pages, years of publication. They may very well know, and they'll be impressed with your knowledge of the market.
6. Specifications: Your vision of the length, format, layout, number of chapters, pages, illustrations, and special organizational schemes. Guestimate! Make it sound like you know.
7. Promotions and author bio: ways to market it. Associations, newsletters, conferences. Where and how YOU can help. Be an active resource. Also, list your expertise on the topic. Professional, vocational credits.
8. Outline:explanation of each chapter, with a breakdown of how many pages per chapter. The rule of thumb: for every page in the chapter there should be one sentence of description in each chapter section. (We believe you can get away with less, however.).
- - - - - - - - - - -
So, dear reader, tu y yo are going to go through this together. Starting now, I'll just blog the whole damn process of putting this together. Why, you ask?
Hey. Why not?
Draft Overview and Market Analysis Verbage 03-08-2005
People love surfing. It is an amazing phenominon that Middle America and northern Canada consume beach culture with nearly the same passion as the California coastal metropolis that generates it. Since the Gadget and Beach Boys era gold rush to beach culture, the imagery of surfers riding waves has become a
The beach fashion industry leader, quiksilver, recently surpassed $1 billion in annual revenues. CEO Bob McKnight, speaking at an industry conference, described the appeal of surfing. "Nearly everyone can relate to moving water."
Surfer magazine, the sport's longest running monthly, distributes 102,000 copies every month. They also claim a high "pass along" rate, wherein seven people browse the average issue.
According to the magazine's media kit, industry research estimates 2.5 million active surfers worldwide, having grown 43% in the last 16 years, and 11% in the last year.
Surfing has never been more popular than right now. The recent summer blockbuster "Blue Crush (2003)" grossed XX in domestic box office. The genre of the surf movies is revitalized, with films such as Dana Brown's "Step Into Liquid" and Stacy Peralta's "Riding Giants" reaching mainstream audiences.
Most of surfing's appeal is to youth. Surfing Magazine, the industry's second most popular magazine, claims that 79% of its readers are full time students.
The vast majority of surfing literature falls into three categories: (1) memoirs of professional or "legendary" surfers (2) Glossy "how-to" books and surf guides (3) coffee table books on surfing culture. However, works outside of these categories, such as Duane Daniel's "Caught Inside", "Captain Zero" and Ken Nunn's surf-themed crime fiction, are some of the surfing bookshelf's most treasured pieces.
sources: Surfer Magazine Media Kit 2005, Surfing Magazine Media Kit 2005
On the best days, I think there are a whole three of you, so if I happen to break out in Spanish, I plan to use the familiar "tu" form with you. (OK. I admit it. I stole that joke from Larry David.)
Well, If you read this blog over the summer, then you know that I went surfing for 116 days in a row. You also know that I wrote a whole lot about it, and about whatever else was on my mind at the time. You may also know that I ripped most of the old blog down to edit it, organize it, and pull it all together into a manuscript (hereafter referred to as "the book") that I could then go out and - with only the finest intentions, min you - sell out this beautiful pure sport for the biggest fucking glob of cash I can get my greedy fat hands on.
So, I went to the library, and looked at a couple of reference books for writers hoping to sell their handiwork. These books are very discouraging. While they are full of helpful advice for aspiring writers, they are also full of warnings. Aparently, the entire publishing industry is full of assholes and hustlers. This book, that the writer has put so much effort into, will, at best, be opened, looked at for a moment, and then trashed. If it has sentences with as many comas as that last one, the editor will spit on it, wipe his ass with it, then call the writer.
"Hey. I loved your manuscript. Why don't you send it to this copy editor that I know and get a referral kick back from? Then, we'll do business, babe. You're gonna be a star."
To avoid getting shafted by editors, writers can hire agents, many of whom are paid to shaft the writer harder than any editor could, but some of whom are invaluable. In either case, for non fiction, the writer starts with a "proposal". (For fiction, the writer simply sleeps with somebody, as it seems fiction writers get shafted far more frequently and much harder..)
The standard package that aspiring non fiction writers send to publishers or agents in the hopes of getting their non-fiction books on the shelves is called a "proposal". The "proposal's" cover letter is a "query". I did a google search on "nonfiction proposal" and clicked on the first reasonable looking link.
So here are the guidelines that I found. I stole them from some guy's website and am not giving him credit. Go ahead, pal. Find me. Come and get me.
THE QUERY
*Keep it to one page.
*Mention any connection you may have with the addressee.
*Give the work's approximate length, the target market, and the estimated completion date (if you're not done with it, yet).
*Toot your own horn... (i.e., The award winning author of so many short stories) Publication is publication. Mention it.
THE PROPOSAL
1. Title page. Consists of: Title of proposal, Name, Address, Agent name, Phone number, e-mail address. (That's ALL!)
2. Resume. If you have an impressive resume, put it after title page. If not, put it in as the last page of the proposal package.
3. Table of Contents. This is for the proposal and _not_ for the proposed book. For example, Overview--- page 1, Market and Competition---page 2, etc. Make sure your name and the title of the book show up on this page.
4. Overview. Very important since it sells or rejects the book. Usually the overview should start with a three-line, high concept description of the book. In our proposal for
5. Market and competition: Tell what other books of this type are out there and why this one is different. Do research. Tell them exactly what's out there, including author names, pages, years of publication. They may very well know, and they'll be impressed with your knowledge of the market.
6. Specifications: Your vision of the length, format, layout, number of chapters, pages, illustrations, and special organizational schemes. Guestimate! Make it sound like you know.
7. Promotions and author bio: ways to market it. Associations, newsletters, conferences. Where and how YOU can help. Be an active resource. Also, list your expertise on the topic. Professional, vocational credits.
8. Outline:explanation of each chapter, with a breakdown of how many pages per chapter. The rule of thumb: for every page in the chapter there should be one sentence of description in each chapter section. (We believe you can get away with less, however.).
- - - - - - - - - - -
So, dear reader, tu y yo are going to go through this together. Starting now, I'll just blog the whole damn process of putting this together. Why, you ask?
Hey. Why not?
Draft Overview and Market Analysis Verbage 03-08-2005
People love surfing. It is an amazing phenominon that Middle America and northern Canada consume beach culture with nearly the same passion as the California coastal metropolis that generates it. Since the Gadget and Beach Boys era gold rush to beach culture, the imagery of surfers riding waves has become a
The beach fashion industry leader, quiksilver, recently surpassed $1 billion in annual revenues. CEO Bob McKnight, speaking at an industry conference, described the appeal of surfing. "Nearly everyone can relate to moving water."
Surfer magazine, the sport's longest running monthly, distributes 102,000 copies every month. They also claim a high "pass along" rate, wherein seven people browse the average issue.
According to the magazine's media kit, industry research estimates 2.5 million active surfers worldwide, having grown 43% in the last 16 years, and 11% in the last year.
Surfing has never been more popular than right now. The recent summer blockbuster "Blue Crush (2003)" grossed XX in domestic box office. The genre of the surf movies is revitalized, with films such as Dana Brown's "Step Into Liquid" and Stacy Peralta's "Riding Giants" reaching mainstream audiences.
Most of surfing's appeal is to youth. Surfing Magazine, the industry's second most popular magazine, claims that 79% of its readers are full time students.
The vast majority of surfing literature falls into three categories: (1) memoirs of professional or "legendary" surfers (2) Glossy "how-to" books and surf guides (3) coffee table books on surfing culture. However, works outside of these categories, such as Duane Daniel's "Caught Inside", "Captain Zero" and Ken Nunn's surf-themed crime fiction, are some of the surfing bookshelf's most treasured pieces.
sources: Surfer Magazine Media Kit 2005, Surfing Magazine Media Kit 2005
posted by travinator @ 5:34 PM
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