How to Put Together a Book Proposal
- In This Quick Guide:
- Why Have a Book Proposal?
- Developing Your Proposal
- The Parts of a Proposal
A powerful book proposal is the critical foundation to your success in publishing, and preparing and writing it is a complex endeavor. Before you put pen to paper, you need to know the basics of a winning proposal—what a book proposal is, its components, and how it is structured before you can build it. Here is your blueprint for success.
Why Have a Book Proposal?
A book proposal is not just a longer query letter. It must contain information on the book’s content, its relevancy, its competition, and details on your platform and marketing strategies. A book proposal is also the essential presentation of your book idea: you must put your best foot forward in writing style and capability. It must show that your idea can sustain a book-length work and that you have the ability to pull it off.
A proposal is often harder to craft than the actual book. You have to conceive of the entire scope of the book—its structure, content, and flow—and state the selling material to support your presentation. Unlike a query letter, which is one page, in a book proposal you will use as many pages as needed to best showcase your project. But remember, this is a book proposal, not a book, and you need to choose every word carefully. Have you answered the following questions:
- What is the concept of the book?
- Why are you qualified to write it?
- Who will buy it?
Picture an editor and agent reading your proposal. The project must come alive on the page; be persuasive. You cannot meet with the editor or agent face to face to explain your proposal or hope to get on the phone to embellish its content. The proposal itself must do the selling.
Developing Your Proposal
A book proposal should not only showcase your writing, it should also make your credentials come alive. It will explain the unique qualities of your work, give a look at the competition, help an agent or editor visualize the look and feel of your book, and show your marketing ideas. Ask yourself the following questions:
- Will this proposal idea maintain interest throughout? Will it reflect what was presented in the query letter?
- Will this proposal have a unique slant on new material on the subject, one that separates it from other books in the market?
- Can I demonstrate that this book will have a wide enough audience to warrant its being published? Are books in this category selling?
- Do I as the author have the talent to pull the book off? And does the writing sample reflect my talent?
- Is there enough content or does this read more like a magazine article than a book?
- Do I have a powerful marketing plan that will help convince a publisher that the book will appeal to the public?
- Do I as the author have a strong enough platform so that I can appeal to a wide audience, which will translate to sales for the publisher?
The Parts of a Proposal
Proposals are as different as the people who write them. Sometimes a person’s platform is so strong that an in-depth marketing section belongs up front. Sometimes the content is so provocative the book’s Table of Contents should be one of the first things an agent or editor sees. In short, you have to be flexible and determine what the most saleable items in a proposal are, and arrange the organization of the proposal accordingly.
But no matter how unique the idea is, there are 10 elements that must always be in a proposal, usually in this order:
- Cover letter (1 page). This is not a repeat of your query. Rather, it’s a reminder that the agent or editor wanted to see your proposal.
- Title page (1 page). One clean, concise page that contains your book title (and subtitle if applicable), your name, and your contact information. Think of it as the first page of a presentation—which it is.
- Proposal Table of Contents (1 page). A listing of all of the parts and page listings in your proposal. It shows that you have put time into the structure and organization of your proposal. It will also help an agent quickly find key elements, such as your About the Author or Competitive Review sections.
- Overview (2-5 pages). An “executive summary” of the content and the subsequent sections in your proposal and your book. This section is the most critical: it’s the first impression you will give an editor or agent.
- Expanded Table of Contents (4-6 pages). Detailed content material of each chapter in the book. It helps her understand how you envision the organization and development of material and, more importantly, that you have enough material to make a book.
- About the Market (1-3 pages). Discuss the audience for the book. This is where you convince an agent or editor that you know your book’s market.
- Competitive Review (1-2 pages). This element is a part of your About the Market section, but so critical that it should be clearly defined within it. This section includes exactly what it sounds like: information on any competing books—and how your book is different.
- About the Author (1-2 pages). This is your chance to “blow your horn”—but selectively. Focus on pertinent facts about your life experience and career that can enhance your expertise in your subject.
- Platform marketing section (1-2 pages). The all-important platform should not get short shrift. It has a strong influence on an agent or editor’s decision to accept or reject the proposal. This section highlights your position in the pertinent marketplace and how you can promote yourself and your book in that specific market. It contains all your marketing ideas and connections.
- The writing sample (1-3 chapters). You not only need to show why your book is vital and how it is set up, but you also need to show an agent or editor how well you can write it. This section can be a selection, or one or two full chapters from your book, whichever you feel best represents your writing skill.
With a book proposal containing all of these pieces, your chances of landing your book with a publisher skyrocket! Good luck, and happy writing!
From The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Book Proposals and Query Letters by Marilyn Allen and Coleen O'Shea
