Ask the Author: W. Terry Whalin
Answered Questions (9)
W. Terry Whalin
Beth,
Congratulations on the awards. It's not clear to me what you want to do with your book. I assume it was self-published and you want an agent to move it to a better publisher. This move is possible but one to do with caution.
Anyone can hang out an agent shingle so you need to make sure the agent is a well-respected and good agent. I have a free list of over 400 agents and a lot of advice and links about how to check them out at: http://terrylinks.com/agents
My answer depends on your goals as a writer for your book. Is it better distribution or what? You don't have to have an agent. Not every agent places every book that they represent--and it takes a lot of time--even if you have the right agent. Another possibility is to move to a publisher like Morgan James (where I acquire books). Check out this two page document and my work contact information is at the bottom of the second page: http://terrylinks.com/MJPOneSheet About 30% of our authors have agents but 70% do not.
A final recommendation is to make sure before you sign any agency agreement or new contract that you check it out with a literary attorney. Not just any attorney will work since many lawyers have no knowledge of publishing law. i recommend my friend Sallie Randolph and check out her website with her contact info: http://authorlaw.com I've known Sallie and worked with her for over 20 years.
Hope this answer sets you on the right path with your book. I know there are many choices and at times it is hard to know which way to turn. If I can help you, let me know.
Terry
__________________________
W. Terry Whalin
Highlands Ranch, Colorado
Straight Talk from the Editor (FREE Ebook):
http://straighttalkeditor.com
Follow Me On Twitter:
http://twitter.com/terrywhalin
My blog, The Writing Life (over 1,300 entries):
http://www.thewritinglife.ws
Congratulations on the awards. It's not clear to me what you want to do with your book. I assume it was self-published and you want an agent to move it to a better publisher. This move is possible but one to do with caution.
Anyone can hang out an agent shingle so you need to make sure the agent is a well-respected and good agent. I have a free list of over 400 agents and a lot of advice and links about how to check them out at: http://terrylinks.com/agents
My answer depends on your goals as a writer for your book. Is it better distribution or what? You don't have to have an agent. Not every agent places every book that they represent--and it takes a lot of time--even if you have the right agent. Another possibility is to move to a publisher like Morgan James (where I acquire books). Check out this two page document and my work contact information is at the bottom of the second page: http://terrylinks.com/MJPOneSheet About 30% of our authors have agents but 70% do not.
A final recommendation is to make sure before you sign any agency agreement or new contract that you check it out with a literary attorney. Not just any attorney will work since many lawyers have no knowledge of publishing law. i recommend my friend Sallie Randolph and check out her website with her contact info: http://authorlaw.com I've known Sallie and worked with her for over 20 years.
Hope this answer sets you on the right path with your book. I know there are many choices and at times it is hard to know which way to turn. If I can help you, let me know.
Terry
__________________________
W. Terry Whalin
Highlands Ranch, Colorado
Straight Talk from the Editor (FREE Ebook):
http://straighttalkeditor.com
Follow Me On Twitter:
http://twitter.com/terrywhalin
My blog, The Writing Life (over 1,300 entries):
http://www.thewritinglife.ws
W. Terry Whalin
Stephanie,
I hope you are aware of the challenges of being a self-published author. Some are and some aren't. These authors wrongly believe that being self-published is one of the easiest paths because you are in complete control of your work. Which is true but what they do not realize is that the majority of brick and mortar bookstores strongly dislike self-published books and refuse to carry them because of their past experience with them. Media people will not review self-published books because of that same stigma. Also while self-publishing platforms like Create Space may be inexpensive. What many authors do not realize or understand is their work is joining over 50,000 others who have used the same platform.
One of the best marketing tips I can give you is to produce an excellent book. Use an outside editor (pay). Use a top cover designer (pay). Make your book look exactly like a book from the big Five traditional publishers (Random House, etc). That means that you have a bar code with a price on the back cover. You have a publisher logo on the bottom of the spine and other details which those of us in the book business will notice.
Also you will need to set aside time each day to market your book (i.e. be telling people about your book focusing on the benefits of it--not saying things on social media like "buy my book."
Build your platform which means your personal connections to other people through social media (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc.) but also through having your own personal email list. You can get my free eBook on Platform Building Ideas for Every Author
Read book marketing books--there are many excellent ones available. Read book marketing blogs and take action on the suggestions from these blogs and books. It's terrific to have knowledge but knowledge without action is worthless.
What will work for your self-published book may or may not be what worked for someone else. There is no exacting formula. You may find your sales sweet spot on the radio. Alex Carroll has sold over 250,000 copies of his "crappy" little book (his words and his book was self-published) on how to beat speeding tickets. Alex sold those books on the radio. Try booking yourself on radio stations. If you work hard and produce a professional press kit and have a professional pitch, it does not matter that your book is self-published.
Persistence will carry you a long way in this business with your self-published book. Many people give up too early so if you continue to look for the right "opportunity": for your book, eventually you will find it. Hope I gave you some ideas and helped you.
Finally never hesitate to reach out to me personally. I have a great deal of free resources online to help authors and I'm happy to share with you or any other author.
Terry
I hope you are aware of the challenges of being a self-published author. Some are and some aren't. These authors wrongly believe that being self-published is one of the easiest paths because you are in complete control of your work. Which is true but what they do not realize is that the majority of brick and mortar bookstores strongly dislike self-published books and refuse to carry them because of their past experience with them. Media people will not review self-published books because of that same stigma. Also while self-publishing platforms like Create Space may be inexpensive. What many authors do not realize or understand is their work is joining over 50,000 others who have used the same platform.
One of the best marketing tips I can give you is to produce an excellent book. Use an outside editor (pay). Use a top cover designer (pay). Make your book look exactly like a book from the big Five traditional publishers (Random House, etc). That means that you have a bar code with a price on the back cover. You have a publisher logo on the bottom of the spine and other details which those of us in the book business will notice.
Also you will need to set aside time each day to market your book (i.e. be telling people about your book focusing on the benefits of it--not saying things on social media like "buy my book."
Build your platform which means your personal connections to other people through social media (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc.) but also through having your own personal email list. You can get my free eBook on Platform Building Ideas for Every Author
Read book marketing books--there are many excellent ones available. Read book marketing blogs and take action on the suggestions from these blogs and books. It's terrific to have knowledge but knowledge without action is worthless.
What will work for your self-published book may or may not be what worked for someone else. There is no exacting formula. You may find your sales sweet spot on the radio. Alex Carroll has sold over 250,000 copies of his "crappy" little book (his words and his book was self-published) on how to beat speeding tickets. Alex sold those books on the radio. Try booking yourself on radio stations. If you work hard and produce a professional press kit and have a professional pitch, it does not matter that your book is self-published.
Persistence will carry you a long way in this business with your self-published book. Many people give up too early so if you continue to look for the right "opportunity": for your book, eventually you will find it. Hope I gave you some ideas and helped you.
Finally never hesitate to reach out to me personally. I have a great deal of free resources online to help authors and I'm happy to share with you or any other author.
Terry
W. Terry Whalin
Dawn,
Good question about reviews. You are correct that I write book reviews--and have been doing it for many years. I've been a book review columnist for two different magazines (which are no longer in print but when they were had circulations of about 150,000 copies each month). These days one of the days I support good books is to write a brief review. I've written almost 500 customer reviews on Amazon for example.
Because I've been writing reviews for many years, I do have some guidelines for the books that I review:
1. I do not review Ebook only books (mostly self-published through CreateSpace). I do not have an Ebook reader and I'm a bit old fashion reading the books in paper copies. Most people who publish through this system have no idea that Amazon publishes over 50,000 titles each year. Just take a look at these self-publish numbers from 2011--the most recent that I've seen: http://terrylinks.com/bpn2011
2. I do not review self-published books. I've been in book publishing over 20 years and seen very poor self-published books. Yes there are some exceptions but they are rare exceptions from my experience.
3. I do not read many novels. I'm mostly a nonfiction reader with a few novels sprinkled into my reading. Yes I was a fiction acquisitions editor for three years for Howard Books (a Simon and Schuster imprint) so I've read a great deal of unpublished fiction.
I looked up your novel, Footprints Under the Pines. I see it was published through Pleasant Word (a company which is no longer in print from my information). It is probably not the best fit for the type of books that I read but I appreciate the offer. I'm going to pass on the opportunity.
If you want to get more reviews--which I recommend for every author since readers are making buying decisions every day as they read reviews, I recommend a free teleseminar that I have on this topic:
http://YourBookReviewed.com This event is on replay so you (and anyone else) will have immediate access to a lot of information on this important topic.
I hope I helped you and others with my detailed answer. I encourage you to continue looking for reviewers for your novel.
Warm Regards,
Terry
__________________________
W. Terry Whalin
Highlands Ranch, Colorado
Straight Talk from the Editor (FREE Ebook):
http://straighttalkeditor.com
Follow Me On Twitter:
http://twitter.com/terrywhalin
My blog, The Writing Life (over 1,200 entries):
http://www.thewritinglife.ws
Warm Regards,
Good question about reviews. You are correct that I write book reviews--and have been doing it for many years. I've been a book review columnist for two different magazines (which are no longer in print but when they were had circulations of about 150,000 copies each month). These days one of the days I support good books is to write a brief review. I've written almost 500 customer reviews on Amazon for example.
Because I've been writing reviews for many years, I do have some guidelines for the books that I review:
1. I do not review Ebook only books (mostly self-published through CreateSpace). I do not have an Ebook reader and I'm a bit old fashion reading the books in paper copies. Most people who publish through this system have no idea that Amazon publishes over 50,000 titles each year. Just take a look at these self-publish numbers from 2011--the most recent that I've seen: http://terrylinks.com/bpn2011
2. I do not review self-published books. I've been in book publishing over 20 years and seen very poor self-published books. Yes there are some exceptions but they are rare exceptions from my experience.
3. I do not read many novels. I'm mostly a nonfiction reader with a few novels sprinkled into my reading. Yes I was a fiction acquisitions editor for three years for Howard Books (a Simon and Schuster imprint) so I've read a great deal of unpublished fiction.
I looked up your novel, Footprints Under the Pines. I see it was published through Pleasant Word (a company which is no longer in print from my information). It is probably not the best fit for the type of books that I read but I appreciate the offer. I'm going to pass on the opportunity.
If you want to get more reviews--which I recommend for every author since readers are making buying decisions every day as they read reviews, I recommend a free teleseminar that I have on this topic:
http://YourBookReviewed.com This event is on replay so you (and anyone else) will have immediate access to a lot of information on this important topic.
I hope I helped you and others with my detailed answer. I encourage you to continue looking for reviewers for your novel.
Warm Regards,
Terry
__________________________
W. Terry Whalin
Highlands Ranch, Colorado
Straight Talk from the Editor (FREE Ebook):
http://straighttalkeditor.com
Follow Me On Twitter:
http://twitter.com/terrywhalin
My blog, The Writing Life (over 1,200 entries):
http://www.thewritinglife.ws
Warm Regards,
W. Terry Whalin
Kat,
Sounds like an idea with potential. Here's the challenge: ideas are everywhere. You have to determine if the idea is a book length idea (40,000 to 50,000 words) or if it is short magazine article (1,000 to 1500 words). You will reach more people with your magazine article than 99% of the books published and it is easier to accomplish.
Also what is your purpose writing this book? Is it simply to capture the information for your family or to help others who face this same experience? If it is the later then maybe you have a book project. You aren't writing for everyone but a specific target audience.
Finally how to you make your idea stand out from the other ideas? Not to discourage you but you have to understand that editors and agents receive hundreds of emails each week. Your pitch has to be worth pursuing. Editors and agents do not read manuscripts, they read book proposals. I have a number of free resources that I've created to help other writers:
http://AskAboutProposals.com (a free teleseminar)
http://terrylinks.com/bookcheck (a free book proposal checklist)
Hope this helps you determine the viability of this concept and whether it is a book length project or a magazine article.
Warm Regards,
Terry
__________________________
W. Terry Whalin
Highlands Ranch, Colorado
Straight Talk from the Editor (FREE Ebook):
http://straighttalkeditor.com
Follow Me On Twitter:
http://twitter.com/terrywhalin
My blog, The Writing Life (over 1,000 entries):
http://www.thewritinglife.ws
Sounds like an idea with potential. Here's the challenge: ideas are everywhere. You have to determine if the idea is a book length idea (40,000 to 50,000 words) or if it is short magazine article (1,000 to 1500 words). You will reach more people with your magazine article than 99% of the books published and it is easier to accomplish.
Also what is your purpose writing this book? Is it simply to capture the information for your family or to help others who face this same experience? If it is the later then maybe you have a book project. You aren't writing for everyone but a specific target audience.
Finally how to you make your idea stand out from the other ideas? Not to discourage you but you have to understand that editors and agents receive hundreds of emails each week. Your pitch has to be worth pursuing. Editors and agents do not read manuscripts, they read book proposals. I have a number of free resources that I've created to help other writers:
http://AskAboutProposals.com (a free teleseminar)
http://terrylinks.com/bookcheck (a free book proposal checklist)
Hope this helps you determine the viability of this concept and whether it is a book length project or a magazine article.
Warm Regards,
Terry
__________________________
W. Terry Whalin
Highlands Ranch, Colorado
Straight Talk from the Editor (FREE Ebook):
http://straighttalkeditor.com
Follow Me On Twitter:
http://twitter.com/terrywhalin
My blog, The Writing Life (over 1,000 entries):
http://www.thewritinglife.ws
W. Terry Whalin
Hello Kasia,
Good questions. I've been in publishing many years but never worked with translators or foreign rights. Like any aspect of publishing, it is a matter of forming a relationship with the right group of people who have this inside knowledge about how the deals are made for translation work.
For example at the New York publisher where I work, we have someone who works on securing foreign rights deals for our authors but that person probably doesn't know the answer to your translation question. I have several ideas for you to find this right group who has this insider information:
1. Look on Yahoo and Google for forums of translators. Hopefully these groups talk about how to get new work and will give you some insights. Often these groups have this insider information.
2. Look for a translators association or trade group that you can join. It may have membership dues but will help you learn the professional craft of translation and how to get these opportunities. For example, for many years, I've been active in the American Society of Journalists and Authors, which is the leading nonfiction writers group in the U.S. One of our internal sayings is that "we train our competition." It's true we work hard at helping each other to succeed. You need to find the right group for translators. It may take a financial investment to join such a group but this is where you can build the relationships to get you into this area of publishing.
3. Seek a mentor who is already working in translation. It may be someone in your local area that you can call or email and meet for coffee or lunch. When you get together, ply them with questions and listen carefully for the answers. If you take the initiative to reach out to these professionals, you will be surprised what you can learn.
One of the keys is to find the right group who has this knowledge for you--and not waste your time contacting publishers directly or people who can't help you. For example, many children's writers spend hours or years contacting literary agents--yet few children's writers have literary agents so those actions in my view are a complete waste of time.
You are looking for the right connection to people or groups who have this insider information about how to get these translation opportunities. I hope I've pointed you in several right directions.
Terry
__________________________
W. Terry Whalin
Highlands Ranch, Colorado
Straight Talk from the Editor (FREE Ebook):
http://straighttalkeditor.com
Follow Me On Twitter:
http://twitter.com/terrywhalin
My blog, The Writing Life (over 1,000 entries):
http://www.thewritinglife.ws
Good questions. I've been in publishing many years but never worked with translators or foreign rights. Like any aspect of publishing, it is a matter of forming a relationship with the right group of people who have this inside knowledge about how the deals are made for translation work.
For example at the New York publisher where I work, we have someone who works on securing foreign rights deals for our authors but that person probably doesn't know the answer to your translation question. I have several ideas for you to find this right group who has this insider information:
1. Look on Yahoo and Google for forums of translators. Hopefully these groups talk about how to get new work and will give you some insights. Often these groups have this insider information.
2. Look for a translators association or trade group that you can join. It may have membership dues but will help you learn the professional craft of translation and how to get these opportunities. For example, for many years, I've been active in the American Society of Journalists and Authors, which is the leading nonfiction writers group in the U.S. One of our internal sayings is that "we train our competition." It's true we work hard at helping each other to succeed. You need to find the right group for translators. It may take a financial investment to join such a group but this is where you can build the relationships to get you into this area of publishing.
3. Seek a mentor who is already working in translation. It may be someone in your local area that you can call or email and meet for coffee or lunch. When you get together, ply them with questions and listen carefully for the answers. If you take the initiative to reach out to these professionals, you will be surprised what you can learn.
One of the keys is to find the right group who has this knowledge for you--and not waste your time contacting publishers directly or people who can't help you. For example, many children's writers spend hours or years contacting literary agents--yet few children's writers have literary agents so those actions in my view are a complete waste of time.
You are looking for the right connection to people or groups who have this insider information about how to get these translation opportunities. I hope I've pointed you in several right directions.
Terry
__________________________
W. Terry Whalin
Highlands Ranch, Colorado
Straight Talk from the Editor (FREE Ebook):
http://straighttalkeditor.com
Follow Me On Twitter:
http://twitter.com/terrywhalin
My blog, The Writing Life (over 1,000 entries):
http://www.thewritinglife.ws
W. Terry Whalin
Brenda,
Good question. I've written many magazine articles--but I can't think of when I took a book from someone else (like you) and wrote a magazine article. I've got a lot of information about writing for magazines on my Right-Writing.com website. Here's an article where I write in detail about how to write a magazine article: http://www.right-writing.com/basics.html Maybe this piece would help you be able to write your own magazine article. It's the best answer that I can give you without being familiar with your work.
Good question. I've written many magazine articles--but I can't think of when I took a book from someone else (like you) and wrote a magazine article. I've got a lot of information about writing for magazines on my Right-Writing.com website. Here's an article where I write in detail about how to write a magazine article: http://www.right-writing.com/basics.html Maybe this piece would help you be able to write your own magazine article. It's the best answer that I can give you without being familiar with your work.
W. Terry Whalin
Hello Alexis,
Great question. I have both of my new books on a Giveaway at this location: http://bit.ly/10NaAiv on Good Reads. Best wishes,
Terry
Great question. I have both of my new books on a Giveaway at this location: http://bit.ly/10NaAiv on Good Reads. Best wishes,
Terry
W. Terry Whalin
Aspiring writers need to:
1. learn all they can about the details of how publishing works. You want to learn from experienced writers--not people who have published one or two books but people who have published many books. Read how-to books such as Jumpstart Your Publishing Dreams (http://JumpstartDreams.com). Also read blogs like The Writing Life (http://TheWritingLife.ws) and take free teleseminars like (http://AskAboutProposals.com).
2. Actively work at being published in print magazines. So many people want to publish books which is fine but thousands or even millions of people will read your magazine articles. Writing for magazines will establish your credibility with book editors and literary agents because you have a track record of being published. Magazine articles are shorter than books and you learn a great deal about how to reach a target audience, how to tell a good story, how to have a beginning, middle and end and much more. You can see my perspective on how to get started (based on the fact that I've written for more than 50 magazines) at: http://www.right-writing.com/basics.html
3. Get to a writers conference. The sooner you can attend one of these events, the better--whether local or national. You can learn more at: http://www.right-writing.com/conferen...
4. Keep growing and persist in following your publishing dreams. Too many authors try once or twice, get rejected and give up. It's a shame. You have to be persistent in this business.
5. If I can help you, don't hesitate to reach out to me. My email is in my twitter profile and many other places online.
1. learn all they can about the details of how publishing works. You want to learn from experienced writers--not people who have published one or two books but people who have published many books. Read how-to books such as Jumpstart Your Publishing Dreams (http://JumpstartDreams.com). Also read blogs like The Writing Life (http://TheWritingLife.ws) and take free teleseminars like (http://AskAboutProposals.com).
2. Actively work at being published in print magazines. So many people want to publish books which is fine but thousands or even millions of people will read your magazine articles. Writing for magazines will establish your credibility with book editors and literary agents because you have a track record of being published. Magazine articles are shorter than books and you learn a great deal about how to reach a target audience, how to tell a good story, how to have a beginning, middle and end and much more. You can see my perspective on how to get started (based on the fact that I've written for more than 50 magazines) at: http://www.right-writing.com/basics.html
3. Get to a writers conference. The sooner you can attend one of these events, the better--whether local or national. You can learn more at: http://www.right-writing.com/conferen...
4. Keep growing and persist in following your publishing dreams. Too many authors try once or twice, get rejected and give up. It's a shame. You have to be persistent in this business.
5. If I can help you, don't hesitate to reach out to me. My email is in my twitter profile and many other places online.
W. Terry Whalin
Stephen, thank you for the interesting question.
I doubt you will be able to find a publisher to want to do your hardcover edition. Why? All the books in the brick and mortar bookstores (one of the domains of traditional publishing) are 100% returnable.Bookstores buy books and carry them in their stores based on what the author is going to be doing to promote that book. In the last several years, there were 90% returns on hardcover books. I work for a New York publisher in acquisitions (finding the books that we publish). We release the paperback and hardcover at the same time. Libraries like hardcover books but in the bookstore we only sell paperbacks--because of the high percentage of returns.
When you see those hardcover books in your local bookstore and they are marked "Last Chance." It is really the last chance before those books are returned to the publisher--and destroyed. Yes most of the time they are destroyed--a sad end to a book.
For a strategy, you would be better offering a publisher your self-published book--provided it has been successful (rare because many self-published books sell poorly). At my publishing house, we sometimes will take a self-published book and move it into the bookstore channels. We sell our books into 98% of the bookstores in North America including the brick and mortar bookstores--broad distribution--which is what every author wants for their book (or should want). I hope this helps you.
Terry
I doubt you will be able to find a publisher to want to do your hardcover edition. Why? All the books in the brick and mortar bookstores (one of the domains of traditional publishing) are 100% returnable.Bookstores buy books and carry them in their stores based on what the author is going to be doing to promote that book. In the last several years, there were 90% returns on hardcover books. I work for a New York publisher in acquisitions (finding the books that we publish). We release the paperback and hardcover at the same time. Libraries like hardcover books but in the bookstore we only sell paperbacks--because of the high percentage of returns.
When you see those hardcover books in your local bookstore and they are marked "Last Chance." It is really the last chance before those books are returned to the publisher--and destroyed. Yes most of the time they are destroyed--a sad end to a book.
For a strategy, you would be better offering a publisher your self-published book--provided it has been successful (rare because many self-published books sell poorly). At my publishing house, we sometimes will take a self-published book and move it into the bookstore channels. We sell our books into 98% of the bookstores in North America including the brick and mortar bookstores--broad distribution--which is what every author wants for their book (or should want). I hope this helps you.
Terry
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