2 Types of Flawed Thinking That Are Getting in the Way of Landing a Book Deal

how to get a book deal
thought patterns that hold you back

I was thinking about the last batch of queries I caught up on last week, and I was trying to pinpoint why I passed on so many of the nonfiction projects.

On the surface, it’s easy to quantify the most common reason for passing—around 350 of the approximately 500 rejection letters I sent were because the author’s platform wasn’t strong enough yet.

The “yet” is the crucial part of this. I was so happy to see so many well-written queries and proposals with sound market research, unique concepts, and strong sample material. But when I looked at the marketing and publicity section, there were too many instances of “I will do this…” rather than “I have already done this.”

Which leads me to believe that the deeper issue is more about timing and perspective than hard numbers. I think two things are happening:

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What is an author platform?

do writers need an author platform to get published

This is the #1 question I get from people who are just starting to test the waters of nonfiction publishing. What is a platform, and why the heck does it matter? Shouldn’t writers just focus on honing their craft and revising their manuscripts, and worry about actually selling copies of the book once (and if) it’s actually published?

Well, that’s how it used to work. Writers used to be able to hole up in dark offices for years as they perfected their book, and once published, they could just sit back as the critical acclaim and sales came rolling in. And to a degree, some extremely well-established writers can still do that. But 99.9% of authors need to take the promotion of their book into their own hands, or that book will never make it into a reader’s hands. And the best way to get eyeballs reading the words you toiled over? Build a platform that attracts those eyeballs, even before you have a book to share with them.

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