So you want to write a book?

Having worked in the publishing industry for over a decade, I’ve had a fair number of people tell me, “I want to write a book.”  I congratulate them on embarking on this exciting project and they inevitably ask me, “So…how do I do that?”

No question that writing a book is an extremely time-consuming, arduous task.  But getting it published can sometimes be just as difficult as writing it.  For those writing nonfiction books, the first task is to write a compelling proposal.  Then comes the hard part: finding a literary agent to represent your work.

My recommendation: find as reputable an agent as possible.  A literary agent that is widely respected by publishers and has excellent publishing contacts is well worth the 15% fee.  In my next blog post, I’ll give you some tips on creating an engaging proposal.

Posted by: Nicole Kalian Abbott, Senior Account Supervisor at JCPR. Nicole worked previously as an associate director of publicity at Simon & Schuster in New York.

Tags: Public Relations