It’s Time to Get Published…Here’s How!

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BONUS FREEBIE: I have a resource for you that will help you prepare to talk with media and audiences. It’s the 10 Questions Every Author Needs to Answer. You can grab the fiction and nonfiction lists here.
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What does every author want? To be published.

I know this myself as an author of two books about productivity, Listful Thinking, and Listful Living. But if you aren’t familiar with the industry, it can be a bit of a mystery to figure out how a book goes from a draft to sitting on the shelf at your local bookstore.

Since publishing a book is a bucket list item for so many, I invited my friend Lucinda Halpern, president and founder of Lucinda Literary, to share her knowledge. She represents authors writing in all areas, including health, business, lifestyle, narrative fiction, memoir, and more. She even wrote a book on the topic, Get Signed, with tons of insider info to help you find an agent and get your message out there.

Here are three points from our conversation that will help you think about getting published in a new way.

1) An agent is there to help you.

First things first…if you’re looking to be traditionally published, you need an agent.

“An agent is someone who you trust to be your deal maker. Fundamentally, agents are dealmakers, but we’re more than that. We advocate for your interest to the publisher. They need to stay true to your vision. They need to protect all of your creative rights and your IP,” Lucinda says.

But being your advocate doesn’t mean that your agent is going to be your yes-man (or woman.)

“You might submit a manuscript that you think is completely done, you’ve spent years writing it. We will probably tell you this needs some editing. For example, you might need to make the promise to the reader more clear if you’re writing a self-help book. So there’s a lot on the editorial side that agents help with,” she explains.

If you’re not sure where to start, Lucinda’s book, Get Signed, is a fabulous resource full of actionable strategies.

But a good place to start is your manuscript!

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2) Your manuscript or proposal is imperative.

You need an agent to get published, but to get an agent, you need a manuscript for a novel.

“A manuscript is the outline for your book and some sample of your writing. And editors are going to fall in love with what they see on the page or they won’t,” Lucinda said.

It can be scary to send your work to someone when the responses vary from making your dreams come true to passing entirely. But you have to get your work out there to get published!

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So what are agents looking for?

“What makes fiction picked up by an agent is something that seems sort of what we call popular and new. Something that has been proven to be popular by other bestselling books for that genre, but also lends something new that’s a new contribution in some way like a new twist or just pages that keep us reading,” Lucinda explains.

But manuscripts are a little different for nonfiction authors.

“What’s nice about the book proposal for non-fiction authors is you’re supplying the vision, you’re supplying the roadmap. It’s more like a marketing document with some content attached,” she added.

Getting published is an accomplishment whether you’re writing fiction or nonfiction, but there’s an added bonus for nonfiction authors.

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3) Getting published boosts your business.

I know that from personal experience. My coaching and speaking business definitely accelerated after publishing my books Listful Living and Listful Thinking. And that’s the usual trend for nonfiction authors.

And Lucinda has a case study that’s the perfect example of this: Buy Back Your Time by Dan Martell.

“He said to me I had no idea that the power of a book would increase my business ten times. I was really missing the chance until now to meet my goals and make an impact and be of service,” Lucinda said.

Increasing your business and getting your message out to help people should always be your goals. But the first won’t happen, if you’re not motivated by the latter. One of the things I find working with so many authors as a media trainer and coach is that people don’t want to give away too much about the book. If you’re interested in working together one-on-one for media training apply here.

But… you need to say what things are in the book! That’s what will increase your book sales and your business.

Lucinda and I covered so much in our conversation, check out the entire episode of Inside Scoop here! And for even more information about agents and getting your book published, grab your copy of Lucinda’s new book Get Signed.

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BONUS FREEBIE: I have a resource for you that will help you prepare to talk with media and audiences. It’s the 10 Questions Every Author Needs to Answer. You can grab the fiction and nonfiction lists here.

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