Establishing Your Author Platform In Order To Get Published

 

 

I was talking to a good friend the other day about his book publishing options. He wrote a collection of short stories and he wants to explore, other than Amazon KDP and Ingram Spark, or using a hybrid or self-publishing company, how he would go about securing a literary agent or directly winning over a book publisher. Like millions of other writers, he was clueless as to what to do or where to start.

The first thing I told him was that the book, if even great, is not enough to win over most agents or publishers. They want to know why he is perfectly positioned or qualified to write his book. More importantly, they want to know what his brand is and evidence of a platform.
They also want to see proof of concept.

Publishers and literary agents also want to see if there could be potential markets beyond US bookstores and libraries. 

For instance, can it sell:

* Overseas to other English-speaking countries?
* Foreign language rights to other nations?
* Movie or television (streaming, premium channel, cable, networks) rights?
* Theatre rights?
* As an audiobook?
* Content in other forms, like an online course?

Can there be sequels or spin-off books?

Could there be any kind of product tie-ins?

The publishers and literary agents don’t operate in a closed-off vacuum. They know what sells and what doesn’t. They know what books are being shopped around and have a sense of what they are looking for. It is an increasingly high bar to get representation and published even though more books than ever are being published today. And tomorrow. And the day after.

So, what should my friend-turned-writer do to put himself in a better position to get published?

Step One: Educate Yourself On The Process

Attend writer conferences, read blogs or listen to podcasts about the book industry, subscribe to writer magazines, and join writer associations.

Step Two: Get An Editor or Book Shepherd 

Polish your writing. Hire an editor or a book shepherd to make you creation better.

Step Three: Beta Test What You Write 

Friends and family are okay to test-drive your stuff but you may need strangers to give you honest feedback and constructive criticism.

Step Four: Build Your Brand & Network

* Get endorsements 
* Submit to writing contests
* Publish articles
* Increase your social media follower totals
* Run your own blog or podcast on your subject proficiency

* Develop a web site to showcase your writings
* Build a subscriber list 
* Show that you have a built-in market by listing your connections

Step Five: Research Agents & Publishers

Look for reputable agents who say they represent authors of the same genre that you write in. 

Look for small presses and university presses if you want to go direct to a publisher. Literary agents are necessary should you want to pursue bigger traditional publishers. 

Establishing your author platform can play a vital role in your long-term success, both to help you land a publishing deal and to eventually sell more books. Get to it! 

 

Need PR Help?

Brian Feinblum, the founder of this award-winning blog, with 3.6 million page views, can be reached at brianfeinblum@gmail.com  He is available to help authors promote their story, sell their book, and grow their brand. He has over 30 years of experience in successfully helping thousands of authors in all genres. Let him be your advocate, teacher, and motivator!

 

About Brian Feinblum

Brian Feinblum should be followed on www.linkedin.com/in/brianfeinblum. This is copyrighted by BookMarketingBuzzBlog ©2024. Born and raised in Brooklyn, he now resides in Westchester with his wife, two kids, and Ferris, a black lab rescue dog, and El Chapo, a pug rescue dog. His writings are often featured in The Writer and IBPA’s The Independent.  This award-winning blog has generated over 3.8 million pageviews. With 4,900+ posts over the past dozen years, it was named one of the best book marketing blogs by BookBaby  http://blog.bookbaby.com/2013/09/the-best-book-marketing-blogs  and recognized by Feedspot in 2021 and 2018 as one of the top book marketing blogs. It was also named by www.WinningWriters.com as a "best resource.” For the past three decades, including 21 years as the head of marketing for the nation’s largest book publicity firm, and director of publicity positions at two independent presses, Brian has worked with many first-time, self-published, authors of all genres, right along with best-selling authors and celebrities such as: Dr. Ruth, Mark Victor Hansen, Joseph Finder, Katherine Spurway, Neil Rackham, Harvey Mackay, Ken Blanchard, Stephen Covey, Warren Adler, Cindy Adams, Todd Duncan, Susan RoAne, John C. Maxwell, Jeff Foxworthy, Seth Godin, and Henry Winkler. He hosted a panel on book publicity for Book Expo America several years ago, and has spoken at ASJA, Independent Book Publishers Association Sarah Lawrence College, Nonfiction Writers Association, Cape Cod Writers Association, Willamette (Portland) Writers Association, APEX, Morgan James Publishing, and Connecticut Authors and Publishers Association. His letters-to-the-editor have been published in The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, New York Post, NY Daily News, Newsday, The Journal News (Westchester) and The Washington Post. His first published book was The Florida homeowner, Condo, & Co-Op Association Handbook.  It was featured in The Sun Sentinel and Miami Herald.