Should I Self-Publish? In 2013, I self-published The Gospel According to Breaking Bad. At the time, I was thoroughly onboard with self-publishing as the only “smart” way to publish. The inevitable publishing path of the future seemed the wisest choice. Why would I want to give away so much control of my final product, along with…
Category: Traditional Publishing
The Problem with Memoir
In “Why Your Memoir Won’t Sell,” Jane Friedman offers seven reasons why a memoir won’t move copies. To paraphrase: It’s the first “legit” writing you’ve ever attempted. It’s an act of catharsis (a. k. a. emotional vomit). It’s a glorified diary. It’s a chronological autobiography. It’s a series of unrelated anecdotes from your life. It’s…
How Long Should My Book Be?
“My memoir is 270,000 words long.” I heard these words during a breakout session I led at a local writers conference. An editor friend of mine, Shayla Eaton with Curiouser Editing, was sitting in on the breakout. We gave each other knowing glances, and because I didn’t want to break this poor memoirist’s literary heart,…
The New Author's Conundrum: My Woeful Platform
“Start with the actual and build a bridge to the potential.” That’s lit agent Sharon Pelletier during her session, “The 10 Best Secrets for a Winning Nonfiction Book Proposal,” at DFWCon 2017. But before we get to what she’s talking about, let’s discuss the elephant in the publishing house: PLATFORM. Michael Hyatt didn’t coin the…
The Tone of Your Book Proposal
“Match the tone of your proposal to the tone of your book.” That’s lit agent Sharon Pelletier during her session, “The 10 Best Secrets for a Winning Nonfiction Book Proposal,” at DFWCon 2017. This piece of advice fell under her fourth point, that everything an author writes should display their ability to write. What did she…