Writing a Book Proposal

There are two steps on the path to publishing. First you have to begin to write your book, then you have to write a book proposal. No easy task--either writing your book or creating a powerful book proposal that editors and agents will be interested in.

A book proposal is composed of several elements. Here's a bird's-eye view of what a nonfiction book proposal should include:

Query Letter. Introduces you and your book.

Title Page. Shows the title of your book, copyright year, your name, address, phone number, fax, email, and website.

Proposal Contents. Shows the structure and order of your proposal. It allows editors to find appropriate sections of your proposal easily.

Author Bio. An author bio is essential; it shows who you are, what you’ve done, and why you’re qualified to write your book. Editors want to know about your experience and exper­tise. If your book is based, in whole or in part, on research, they want to see a statement of your reference sources or other qualifying information.

Overview. This is a brief summary or synopsis; it shows editors at a glance what your book is about. Think in terms of a back cover blurb.

Book Table of Contents with Chapter Summaries. This is your chapter titles with a short summary of each one. It shows the editor how you’re developing your book, what direction it takes, and what your book will include.

Comparing the Competition. This is where you evaluate and assess competing books. Editors want to see a comparison to other books that are similar to yours, the ones your book will be competing with. They want to know why your book is better or different, or how it is unique and what it offers that other books on the same topic don’t.

Marketing/Promotion. This is your list of potential read­ers and the places they will buy your book. Editors want to know who the book will appeal to and why these people will buy it. They want to see a comprehensive list of your book’s inherent selling strengths and potential markets outside of bookstores and li­braries. Show personal promotion plans and selling strate­gies you can do yourself. List connections or business affiliations that will be interested in helping to sell your book. Show your marketing plans. Editors want to know your intended promotional efforts and ideas, to know that you’re ready, willing, and able to promote and sell your book. Aside from your book idea and how you plan to write it, this is perhaps the most important part of your proposal. Most publishing houses won’t even consider a book, even if it’s a great idea for a book and they like it, if the author isn’t promotable and doesn’t have a strong platform.

Book Specs. Editors want to know your estimated word count and manuscript information, such as if you plan to in­clude sidebars, charts, or illustrations, and if there are appendi­ces, a bibliography, or an index. Show your computer software and your projected delivery date.

Sample Chapters. Choose the best; the ones that are most descriptive and show your best writing. Editors want to read several sample chapters to see your style of writing and to determine whether you really can write the book you propose.

SASE. Last, but not least, always include a self-ad­dressed, stamped envelope to receive a reply.

A fiction proposal will follow a somewhat different format than a nonfiction proposal. A brief introduction to the book is given instead of an overview, and an in-depth synopsis is given instead of chapter summaries. If your novel has chapter titles, include them as a table of contents. Otherwise, the pro­posal includes all the other neces­sary elements.