Dec. 4: Authorship and Marketing

Today's reading deals with the fact that publishing a book is a business venture and a risky one. Mr. White also states that the best way for a new author to break through the competition is to find a reputable agent. He lists three sources to check and see if an agent is reputable. He further states that now days it is a literary agent that does what an editor used to do which is to screen through thousands of proposals in search of promising material.
FOR FURTHER REFLECTION:
Mr. White tells us that althought the competition is formidable to not let that discourage us. "There is always room at the top." We should see the competition as the reason do always do your very best work.
Today's TRY THIS assignment:
After you finish the draft of a book, select the best three chapters and send them, together with a proposal, toa reputable literary agent. The proposal should consist of the following:

• a detailed chapter-by-chapter outline or synopsis of the entire book.
• a market analysis: why your book should be published; existing books that are similar to it, how your book is different, and who the target readers will be
• an estimated time for completion of the book
• a resume listing your credentials and previous publications
• a cover letter summarizing your project and a description of the proposal package you're enclosing.
• a stamped, self-addressed envelope for the agent's reply.