Dianne Jacob, Will Write For Food

Useful Tips, Interviews, and Stories to Inspire Food Writers and Bloggers

writing a book proposal

A Book Proposal You’ll be Proud to Present

by 13 Comments

Proposal-Stack

Looks boring, right? But this is what you might see on the desk of an agent or book editor: a stack of book proposals.

Most people don’t think much about the appearance of a book proposal. They think that what’s important is the content.

Well yes, but believe it or not, agents and editors want your non-fiction book proposal to look a certain way. If you present something else, you run the risk of appearing unprofessional. Folders, binders, ribbons, and [Read more…] about A Book Proposal You’ll be Proud to Present

9 Questions For When a Book Publisher Calls

by 85 Comments

In the last few weeks, I’ve heard from lots of food bloggers who are getting calls from publishers, asking them to write books.

It’s thrilling to get one of these calls, but they didn’t necessarily know what questions to ask the publisher.

And of course, there’s no reason why they should know, since they have never been in this position before. So I compiled a list of questions, in case a call like this comes your way.

The most important thing is to not make commitments during the initial call. Get the answers to these questions, and then think it over.

1. What is the advance? The advance is the amount of money you are paid up front to write the book. If the publisher offers you $10,000, and your royalty rate is $1 per book (that’s high, so see No. 2. I’m just making the math easier), then you earn $1 per book after you sell 10,000 books.

Beginning advances for first-time book authors range from $3500 – $25,000, unless you’re a star or you have a big audience. Most of the time, they’re offering you [Read more…] about 9 Questions For When a Book Publisher Calls