Anatomy of a first book
by Tim Bete
I began writing a humor column in 2000, before I was involved in the Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop. My boss, Teri Rizvi, who founded the writers' workshop, encouraged me to write a regular column after reading one or two of my pieces. She's a wonderful mentor.
I created a Web site for my column and began to pitch it to other Web sites. At first, I gave away my column but slowly began selling it. After a few years, I broke into print.
One day in late 2002, I received an e-mail from an editor at a Catholic publisher. She asked if I had considered writing a book based on my column. (A former co-worker of mine had shown my Web site to the editor.) The editor asked me to create a book concept and send it to her along with some marketing information.
I didn't want to create a compilation of columns because I don't believe they sell well unless you already have a huge reader base. Here's why: A compilation of columns doesn't have a hook -- a theme that ties the columns together. If someone asks you what your book is about and you say, "It's a bunch of columns," it begs the question, "Well, who are you?" If you're not already famous, why should I care?
On the other hand, if you write a book called 101 ways to keep your children from playing in the toilet, the first response isn't "Who are you?" it's "What are some of the ways to keep my kids from playing in the toilet?"
The hook is critical for getting the media to cover your book. Your book needs a theme that begs reporters to ask questions. A compilation of columns rarely does that.
But I wanted to use material from previous columns, knowing that I would have to rewrite and reformat them. I came up with the theme of "minor miracles in the life of a parent." Things like the day your child wears his or her last diaper and when you finally get your son to eat his peas.
Unfortunately, I didn't have the foresight to create a formal book proposal for the editor. I sent a rough outline and some other information but didn't do my homework. Since she came to me, I didn't have a complete book proposal with sample chapters at my fingertips.
The editor liked the concept but wasn't totally sold. Her company hadn't published a humor book before. She didn't say "yes" or "no," but simply "We're still considering it." So, after a while, I decided to pitch the concept to some agents while I waited for the editor's response.
I contacted Steve O'Keefe, a book marketing guru, and asked his advice. Steve helped me put together a query letter to find an agent. I mailed quite a few query letters but didn't find an agent. I did receive some useful feedback through the rejections. I learned how to create a better proposal and book concept.
Because several agents wanted to see a complete proposal and sample chapters, I was forced to create the proposal I should have done in the first place. After
Questions from readers
How long does it take from agent submission to the book actually hitting the stores?
Most traditional publishers take 12 to 24 months to publish a book. That process doesn’t begin until your agent sells your manuscript, so the total time varies. The publisher to whom I sold my manuscript was bought by another publishing company. So my total time to publication was more than 24 months, without using an agent.
How do you know if your publishing contract is fair?
Great question! I read a lot of books and articles about typical royalty rates and contact terms. Two books I read were:
by Jonathan Kirsch
by Mark L. Levine
My advance was $1,500 and my royalty rate ranges from 10% to 15% of net sales, depending on the number of copies sold. Based on my research, the advance was low but the royalty rates were pretty good for a small Catholic publisher.
I asked other authors what types of deals they received. While most authors focus on royalty rates, there are dozens of items that are up for negotiation. For example, my original contract offer said that no royalties would be paid on copies purchased by the author. That’s standard. So I asked for a larger author discount (45% instead of 40%) and they agreed. You can ask for more free copies up front. If you sell them, you can make some extra money.
Should you have a lawyer look over your contract?
Yes, if you can afford one. I’ve done some publishing contract work in the past (although I’m not a lawyer) and decided to negotiate my contract without a lawyer. There are many things that would be in any ideal book publishing project – a publishing lawyer, a great publicist, a large advertising budget. But most authors can’t afford to pay for these things and most publishers won’t. Sometimes you just have to make due.
Do authors who use agents get better contracts?
I sure hope so. If they don’t, there’s no reason to pay the 15% most agents charge. That’s their job – sell the book and negotiate a good contract. Agents have connections that authors usually don’t, so they’re often a necessity. Many publishers won’t accept submissions that aren’t sent by an agent.
Do agents ask for revisions or just editors?
I’ve heard that both ask for changes. The agent’s focus may be on changes to the book proposal. I know some authors who spent as much time writing the book proposal as they did writing the book.
Were you required to do a lot of editing on your manuscript before they purchased it?
I signed a contract before I wrote the manuscript. That’s typical for non-fiction.
I was asked to make some changes but nothing that I would consider significant. I removed stories that would date the book. I also worked on transitions between chapters.
I had a great editor (Dan Driscoll) . He made suggestions that significantly improved the quality of the book. Dan edited the manuscript and then gave me a clean copy to read, so I couldn’t see his changes. He asked me to read it without thinking about what was changed or missing. Dan had cut out entire sections but I didn’t notice they were gone. The flow of my book was much smoother after the editing.
Who else was involved in the writing and editing process ?
I had my boss (Teri Rizvi) and my wife (Lynn) read the manuscript. I didn’t hire an editor.
Did you end up with the book you envisioned? Were you pleased with the book once it came out?
The book was almost exactly as I had envisioned. I was very pleased with the end product, especially with the cover design. Typically, publishers don’t involve the author in title or cover design discussions. That’s spelled out in the contract. Sorin Books allowed me to be part of both. While they had the final say, they listened to my input. The title changed from Five Loaves, Two Fish – What, No Tartar Sauce! to In The Beginning…There Were No Diapers.
The bottom line is that publishers know more than authors about selling books. You need to rely on their judgment. If you don’t trust them, don’t publish with them. But the author may have a better feel for his or her readers. On the original cover design of my book, the dad’s arms were very hairy. I showed the cover to about a dozen of my typical readers and they didn’t like the hairy arms. My publisher listened to the comments and digitally “shaved” the arms.
Were you expected to do a lot of marketing once the book was out?
I was never told that I was expected to do a lot of marketing but it goes without saying. I spent more time marketing my book than writing it. I lined up more than 100 book review requests before the book was published. The more effort I put into the book, the more effort my publisher put into marketing it. Most authors complain they don’t get enough publicity. My publicist (Christina Monroe) and I worked as a team and got about as much publicity as I could have hoped for. We got news stories on four wire services and dozens of Web site and magazines. You can see all my media clips here.
Would you do it all the same way now that you look back on the whole publishing experience? What might you do differently?
My expectations would be different. When I write my next book, I’m going to enjoy the process more. The biggest thing I learned was that when you look back at all the time you spent sending query letters, writing the book proposal, writing the book and doing publicity, it’s a ridiculous financial proposition. You’d be better off getting a second job a McDonalds than writing a book.
But the feeling of accomplishment and hearing from readers is great. I think writers need to think long and hard about WHY they want to write a book. If the answer is fame or money, they’ll be disappointed. If they want to write a book because they love to write, they’ll enjoy the process.
The only I plan to do differently with my next book is that I’ll write the entire manuscript before trying to sell it.
pondering the feedback from agents -- and
their rejections -- I decided to change the title
of the book to Five loaves, two fish -- what, no tartar sauce! (Minor miracles in the life of a faith-filled father) and pitch it directly to Christian publishers. My book concept already had a large "faith element," and I thought that making it more explicit would help. My book concept would stand out better in a smaller niche. I also realized that, if my book sold well, it would be much easier to approach agents in the future.
I pitched six or seven Christian publishers. Three publishers requested a proposal and sample chapters. Two offered contracts. Once I found the right niche I went from no interest to lots of interest.
One of the publishers that offered a contract was SunCreek Books. They were the publisher that originally contacted me. I had asked the editor if she would like to see a complete proposal and sample chapters, now that I had one to offer. She said they would, and the proposal pushed them over the edge from "we're not sure" to "yes." I decided to publish the them.
While it sounds like the book contract fell into my lap because the publisher solicited me, nothing could be further from the truth. It took years for me to create the foundation to sell the book -- writing clips, media clips, my Web site, online subscribers, etc. It also took about a year from the time SunCreek Books first contacted me until I signed the contract.
Within a few months of signing the contract, I got a call from my editor. She said SunCreek Books had been purchased by Ave Maria Press. Ave Maria Press was excited about my book but had to push off the publication date by 12 months because their publishing schedule was already packed. My book was finally published in Jan. 2005.
Along the way, the book's title changed from:
Five loaves, two fish -- what, no tartar sauce! (Minor miracles in the life of a faith-filled father)
to
In The Beginning...There Were No Diapers: Laughing and Learning in the First Years of Fatherhood.
(c) 2005, Timothy P. Bete
