| |
| |
|
Book Marketing Information |
|
|
|
The High Cost of a Six-Figure Book Advance
The six-figure book advance, like the New York Times bestseller, is the object of many a writer's fantasy. Whether it's also a realistic goal is something else again. Can you really get a six-figure book advance? When Susan Page wrote The Shortest Distance Between You and a Published Book in 1997, she included the following list of the qualities that you and your book have to have if you're going to get a six-figure advance. Page's aim was to deflate unrealistic expectations. Her book aims to get you into print, not necessarily to get you rich. Most authors do not get rich from their books. Most publishers don't get rich either. Book publishing is an industry in which there is very little profit. If authors get rich, it's usually because having a book lets them sell expensive services and book high-paying speaking gigs. You can get a six-figure advance, but it will cost you. And I don't mean the $197 price tag on Susan Harrow's new e-book, Get a Six-Figure Book Advance. A $200 investment is nothing if it gets you a $200,000 return. Using the proposal template/software included with her $197 e-book, you'll be able to produce the kind of proposal that will have publishers in hot pursuit-but getting the advance requires a whole lot more than just buying the book or even having all the right elements in your proposal. If you want a six-figure book advance, you're going to have to work for it. Susan Harrow, jokingly known as a "de-motivational coach," doesn't try to pretend otherwise. In her August 4th teleclass, co-hosted by ghostwriter Mahesh Grossman of the Authors Team, she made it clear just how much work goes into getting a six-figure advance, and how long and hard you have to keep working after you get the money. How advances work In order to persuade publishers to pay you $100,000 or more before your book is published, you have to convince them that your book will sell at least 100,000 copies. (Your royalty will be about $1/book for a trade paperback, possibly as much as $3/book for a hardcover, so you do the math.) And since books don't sell themselves, what you're really saying to the publisher is that you can sell those 100,000 copies. Yes, a publisher that invests that much money in you will also invest more in the production and marketing of your book than in someone who gets a smaller advance, but when you get right down to it, no one really buys a book because of its publisher. And your book won't sell just because it's a good book. People rarely buy non-fiction books for the quality of the writing. They buy for the quality of the information-and in the mind of the public, that depends on the expertise and reputation of the author. It all comes back to you. How do you get readers to think of you as an expert? First, they have to know you exist. If you're not already a celebrity, you're going to have to become one, or at least put up a convincing show. If you don't have legions of fans, you should at least have thousands of subscribers to your e-zine or blog, or a syndicated column in a newspaper. If you haven't been on Oprah or The Today Show yet, radio interviews and local TV news programs are a good start. Getting into the public eye To get visible enough fast enough, you probably need a publicist, which means shelling out several thousand dollars. In order for media attention to do you any good, you have to look good and sound good every time you appear. That means getting professional media coaching before you start lining up interviews to make up for not being a celebrity. You need to arm yourself with a repertoire of sound bites for all occasions and rehearse until you can spout them in your sleep. That doesn't just take money, it takes time. It takes work. And no one can do it for you, either, because you, as the author, have to be the one in the limelight. Editing is essential for a killer proposal. Media coaches and publicists aren't the only team members you'll have to enlist if you want a six-figure advance and a book that justifies it. The services of a professional editor are essential for both your proposal and your finished book. In fact, you might just want to hire a ghostwriter and get it over with, because you're probably going to be too busy marketing to write. That's more money spent in advance of getting your advance. Post-publication publicity You're not through yet, either. Now that you've gotten enough media attention for yourself to impress a publisher, you have to do it over again for your book. You're going to have to shell out a good-sized chunk of that advance on your own publicity efforts. More and more publishing houses assume that your advance is the marketing budget for the book, so they expect you to spend your own money on getting the book sold. (Tip: when mentioning this in your proposal, always make the offer contingent on the publisher matching the amount.) This expectation actually holds true regardless of the size of your advance, but the more money you want to get, the more money you have to spend. Six-figure advances are not for the faint of heart Writing a good book is the least of the challenges facing you when you set out to get a six-figure advance. Moreover, if you don't earn out your advance by actually selling 100,000+ books, your chance of getting such a large advance again are nil. To succeed when the stakes are this high, you need to become an Olympic athlete of a book marketer. That can be hard to do if you have either a day job or a family, never mind both. And it's almost impossible if you don't have a substantial chunk of starting capital. Do you really need a six-figure book advance? For many authors, five figures is plenty, especially for a first book. Even if it loses money, that book will create the leverage the author needs to succeed in other aspects of her business. (That's one reason self-publishing can be such a good option for business book authors.) Getting a smaller advance still takes work and costs money, but it's a much more manageable goal for a first time author without fifty grand to invest in getting into the bookstores. (c) 2005 Sallie Goetsch. You have permission to reprint and distribute these articles online, in whole or in part, free of charge, as long as you include complete attribution. Author-izer and Collabowriter Sallie Goetsch started writing at the age four. She specializes in turning busy professionals into authors. Get free articles for your e-zine, newsletter, or website from her article blog or e-mail authorizer@fileslinger.com to ask about custom web content.
MORE RESOURCES:
Book-Marketing - Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Online Book Promotion Beats Traditional Seven to One - Part 1 While traditional marketing can work for the book author or publisher, the return is dim for the huge effort it takes. You must promote 90% of the time to even get a milligram of attention. Writers: The Truth About Advertising, Publicity, and PR Many of us are trying to do business and don't know how to define these words. We read articles and think, this could have just as easily been about me! We wonder why the reporter picked that person instead. Speaking for a Publication Why write a book and get attention and loads of contacts?Expertise can sometimes be defined by the articles, columns, responses and books you write. It does not take a lot of effort to write the articles and columns but it does take effort to write a book. The Perfect Book and Where to Find It! If I was asked to describe the perfect book, one that's in high demand, moves off the shelves quickly, costs little or nothing to produce, involves the least amount of work possible, and offers multi-income streams, I'd say it included one, preferably more of the following features:It Must Be Quick To ProduceTime is money and the sooner your book is ready to sell, the sooner you'll make money from it.So let us consider just a handful of many ways to create a book in a day, or less than a day, perhaps in just a few minutes!1) Profit From Resell RightsResell rights - a confusing term with conflicting definitions, but a great way to acquire best selling books quickly, at little cost, complete with marketing materials, web sites, representing the easiest and fastest way to start your publishing business. Sell More Books on Amazon.com Why Should Your Book Be on Amazon.com? Credibility. Promotion - Credibility Extras For many of us, marketing our titles is one of the most tedious tasks of being an author. Even authors who published with large New York houses are expected to take part in marketing and promotion. Marketing Virus - Every Writer Needs to Catch It For you writers aspiring to greatness, you might need a virus, before you can be great! You need a Marketing Virus. Every unknown writer needs a virus that will spread like the deadliest bug known to man. Book Club Sales -- Increasing the Odds What is a book club sale? It is actually a rights sale or a licensing agreement: you are granting permission to a book club the right to "borrow" your work. You have written a book, and now you are allowing a book club to print and distribute your book to its members. Media Events for Book Promotion "How do I set up a media event?" -- As a publisher, that's a good question to have an answer for.Media events and public appearances can fall into any number of categories and include any number of venues (book stores, radio interviews, television interviews, writing group speeches, presentations, chat room interviews, online book tours, public forums, and more). Self Publishing Success Starts With Marketing Self-publishing is not for the faint of heart. The publication process is lengthy, involves a considerable number of detailed, administrative tasks and can be expensive. Top Six Lies About Book Marketing: (And the Truths to Set Your Book Free!) If you're like me, you have a book and the passion to spend the rest of your life making it a success. But, with all the ways to market your book, the costs and the inevitable sinking feeling of utter helplessness, what can you do?You COULD run around in circles trying to get your book in every bookstore in town. Successful Book Marketing The Natural Way - Part 1 Is your mind muddy on book marketing? Do you wake up each day and say, "I'm not a social person and I hate to beat the drum for my book" or "I just wish someone else could market my book for me"?If you could market your book a pleasurable way, you may not think it a chore. Natural marketing refers to the action you take to get the word out about your service and product that rings true to your heart. Publishing Your Book-What Way is Best For You? - Part 2 Your print or ebook is nearly finished. You wonder if you should try to get an agent to represent you to the publisher. FAQs about Book Signings Since I self-published my first book, "101 Ways to Improve Your Communication Skills Instantly," in 1998 and began doing book signings shortly afterward, many people have asked:1. What do you get paid to do a book signing?It depends on where the book signing occurs. Comments From A Book Reviewer For the past several years I have been reviewing books for my own site, Bookpleasures.com, as well as many other sites. Marketing for Writers When Writing Just Isnt Enough Many writers write for the experience. Others dream of having a number one best seller. Top Ten Ways To Prepare for Your Online Book Marketing Success Still marketing your book through press releases, networking groups, and talks to groups? If these methods have taken a great deal of effort and time and brought you only a few clients or product sales, you may now be ready for your virtual marketing machine, the Internet! To get ready to market your book Online use these ten tips: 1. Buy an up-to-date computer with a 56k modem or more and Internet capability. Book Talks: What to Say and How to Say It Great! The Chamber of Commerce, or a similar group, has asked you to talk about your latest book. Though words are your business, you may terrified of public speaking. Creating a Book Poster Posters can be a great and inexpensive way to promote your book. But don't rush right out until you know the key items to include on your poster. Why Should I Buy your Book? How would you like to have countless people clamoring for your books and willing to visit your Web site to buy them? Most entrepreneurs wait until their Web site is designed before they think about marketing their products on it. What a shame! When someone asks you about your book, maybe you've said, "My book is about?.
|
| home | site map |
| © 2006 |
