Is Your Book Commercially Viable?
Today’s blog post comes to us from Author Accelerator CEO Jennie Nash. If you enjoy today’s content, you can sign up for Jennie's weekly newsletter here.
A few weeks ago, I wrote a post entitled How Can You Get Agents and Publishers To Take Your Work Seriously? It was about the logistical and strategic steps a writer needs to take to find and attract an agent or publisher. The assumption I made in that piece is that you have something to pitch that is commercially viable. This is as true for fiction and memoir as it is for nonfiction, but for today I am specifically speaking about nonfiction. We still have a few seats left in our Nonfiction Book Incubator and helping turn good ideas into commercially viable ones is what this program is all about. (And yes, an Incubator for memoir and fiction is coming in the fall… stay tuned for more information.)
What exactly does a commercially viable nonfiction book look like?
Your idea needs to solve a particular need for a particular reader. Readers have to know what the point or purpose of the book is. You have to have something to say.
Your idea needs to be well positioned, which means you have to know where it sits on the shelf. Not just generally, but specifically. What is the context this book will be born into? What other books will it be in conversation with?
Your idea needs to be aligned with you, the writer – with the experiences and expertise you bring to the project.
You have to have some clear path for reaching your ideal reader, which some might call “platform.” There are many different forms a platform can take and many ways to reach ideal readers, but the way needs to be defined.
You have to have a structure that supports your idea or amplifies it or serves it in some way. The best books are shaped and formed to better make their point.
You have to write in a compelling way that draws your reader in, builds trust, and convinces them to spend time with you and your idea. The best books have that ineffable something that makes them stand out, and it needs to be present in a proposal.
Book coaches are in the business of supporting writers as they transform their ideas from vague and fuzzy to commercially viable.
Agents and publishers are in the business of selecting the most commercially viable ideas, making them even better, and bringing them to the reading public.
How do they do that selection? They have antennae that are very highly tuned to the above criteria. They know how to whip through a pile of submissions and pluck out the commercially viable ones. I saw a post on Twitter this week where an agent shared that in one week in January, she had 790 submissions. Her average month was in the 400s. How much time do you think she’s going to spend on an idea that doesn’t instantly grab her? Maybe a few seconds, at best.
There is a better way.
Writers line up for the speed-dating opportunities at conferences because it is a good opportunity to cut through all that noise, get face-to-face with an agent, and make their best pitch. The same is true of online pitch competitions.
Both of these pitch situations come with downsides. They put the writer in a nerve-wracking situation where they have to perform. They pit writers against each other in a way that feels artificially hard. There is a general sense of stress and anxiety around them. And for the agents, there is no filter. Just because someone has come to a conference or participated in an online event doesn’t mean their work is commercially viable.
I have long had the dream of bringing a small group of writers together, giving them all the support they need to develop commercially viable book proposals (or in the case of fiction, full manuscripts), and then inviting a small group of agents and publishers to interact with these writers to learn about the proposal and pitch process, and review their work.
I believe this is a win-win scenario for both writers and agents.
The agents and publishers who will be working with us in the Incubator are as follows:
Regina Brooks, Lead Agent and President, Serendipity Literary Agency
Specializes in: Current Affairs, Food & Lifestyle, Gift Books, Health & Fitness, Medical, Memoir, Music, Nature/Ecology, Parenting, Politics, Science, Self-Help, Spirituality, Technology, Women's Concerns.
Joëlle Delbourgo, President and Founder, Joëlle Delbourgo Literary Agency
Specializes in: History and science (especially neuroscience) that tells a great story or is cutting edge, nonfiction with a strong voice or point of view, lifestyle books with an innovative twist, out of the box thinkers, diverse and own voices.
Jesse Finkelstein, Founder and Principal, Page Two
Page Two is an alternative and entrepreneurial publishing company that helps thought leaders, subject matter experts, and organizations publish leading nonfiction books.
Glenn Yeffeth, CEO and publisher, Ben Bella Books
BenBella is open to looking at any nonfiction proposal, but we’re particularly excited about the following types of books: nonfiction by expert authors with a unique perspective and strong point of view. Books that represent an expert’s life’s work are always of interest. They have a particularly strong in the vegan/plant-based living category.
Laura Mazer, Literary Agent, Wendy Sherman Associates, Literary Management
Specializes in: Adult nonfiction with a focus on women’s issues, intelligent pop culture, counterintuitive self-help, packaged gift or “concept” books, and books that take us on geeky deep dives into fascinating facets of everyday life. She adores history, biography, and celebrations of literary legacies, especially when they offer fresh stories about women.
Jennifer Chen Tran, Agent, Idea Architects
Jennifer believes in the art of collaboration and works closely with her authors from concept, to proposal, to publication, and beyond. As a person of color and daughter of Taiwanese immigrants, Jennifer is committed to championing voices from underrepresented and marginalized communities. Her ultimate goal is to work in concert with authors to shape books that will have a lasting positive social impact on the world.
Carly Watters, SVP and Senior Literary Agent, P.S. Literary
Specializes in: pop science, business, psychology, cookbooks, unique memoirs, lifestyle (health, wellness, relationships, parenting), narrative, and platform-based nonfiction (must have demonstrable expertise and a quantifiable market).
If you are considering joining the Nonfiction Book Incubator, we're closing in on the last chance to apply. There is pre-work to do before the February 28th start, which is due February 18. We'd love to have you join us.
