I’ve been blessed to work with some amazing clients who have had great success with their books. They have signed deals with leading...

One of the most rewarding projects I worked on last year was Mickey Rowe’s book, Fearlessly Different. When Mickey approached me, he had...

Every author needs an elevator pitch. A brief but irresistible description that condenses the spirit of your book into a few sentences. ...

Hybrid publishing: AKA author-assisted publishing, indie publishing, partnership publishing, and co-publishing. It’s an umbrella term for...

Dreaming of a book deal with Penguin Random House, Macmillan, or HarperCollins? You’re not alone. SO not alone. Before you join that long...

Podcasts have become the latest hunting ground for agents and editors to find new voices. Just as long-form journalism has been a place...

Every author needs to weigh up whether they seriously want a traditional publisher. It may seem like the holy grail, providing...

Earlier this week, I started work with a new client. She asked me to review and edit her book proposal, which is for a coffee-table book...

Getting the balance between humility and hubris in your nonfiction book proposal is hard. Many authors are naturally self-effacing...

It’s easy to think of a book proposal as entirely separate from your book manuscript. Truth is, your book proposal must include a solid...

In the past year, I’ve collaborated on three nonfiction book proposals. All three have been picked up by leading literary agents within a...

When a reader picks up a nonfiction book, they expect to get something out of it—a solution to a problem, a way to improve their life, or...

You might be wondering why you need to be so specific about your target readers. Narrowing down your focus to a specific group will allow...

Nine times out of ten, I see authors making one catastrophic error in their book proposals. After your cover page and list of contents,...

Just imagine it. You get to step away from your day-to-day grind—the tedious meetings, the ache in your lower back, your cousin's...

The talk soon leads to doom and gloom when authors discuss how hard it is to land a deal with a major publisher. Much of the doom talk is...

The word on the street is that in these pandemic times, literary agents have more time to consider new projects, so now is a great time...

“It does not do to leave a live dragon out of your calculations, if you live near him.” —JRR Tolkien, The Hobbit Honestly? I’m not even...

As a rule, if there’s one thing most publishers and literary agents really hate to see, it’s a manuscript. You’re probably surprised by...