What Goes Into a Book Proposal?
This was THE moment I got the email from my agent telling me the proposal was final and going to be sent out on submission.
Looking to sell a book through traditional publishing? You will need a strong book proposal outlining your plan for selling the book.
The first step in selling a book in traditional publishing is creating the book proposal.
This is what is used to pitch publishing houses. It’s also the business plan for your book.
Publishing isn’t just about bringing ideas into the world.
It’s about giving a platform to books that can drive revenue.
Publishers weigh the unique take on an idea, the target market and comparable book sales when deciding if they want to buy a book.
The book proposal is the outline for both the idea, your platform and plan to sell the book.
What goes in a proposal?
Once I signed with Roger, I sent him an outline for my vision of the book.
It included the chapters, titles and a brief description of what would come in each.
We went through a few different rounds of honing in on the points that would be covered in each chapter – taking care to differentiate them from other books in the market.
Somewhere in the midst of these revisions, I started writing the book.
I wanted to make sure I could land on the voice I wanted for the book.
Typically book proposals submit one sample chapter. I submitted three: the introduction, chapter one and one of the later chapters.
The first two were necessary to understand what was unique about the book.
Once the outline and chapters were in good shape, the rest of the proposal was finalized.
It included information about me, my social media, my speaking and clients.
I had letters of support from clients.
There was an outline of my business plan for selling the book through workshops, speaking and a book tour.
Comparable books were included to give an idea for how this book could perform – while also differentiating myself from them.
Writing a proposal is like writing a book. They end up being 80 - 100 pages and take a good bit of time to get right.
How much has your book changed?
I often get the question: how much has your book changed from the beginning?
Very little.
Roger made an important suggestion to include a story throughout the book to demonstrate the storytelling steps.
The rest has been pretty consistent – with an occasional swapping of order of chapters.
