Fiction Proposal Lessons

Good morning and happy Monday! I'm so glad you made the trip over to my blog. Welcome to any new visitors today. Remember everyone, I NEED for you to subscribe to my blog AND email list, if you read last week's blog, you know why. 

Last week I told you, I hoped to get my proposal out by the end of March. That didn't happen. I went to the website of one of the Literary Agents, that I plan to submit my proposal to and found that there are still a couple things I need to get together. I don't think it will take long to do, but there is one thing that will slow me down most. I need a professional head shot to send in with my proposal. I hope to go get that taken this week, but I am not sure how soon I will be able to get the picture to submit it. So, I am disappointed about this delay, but it shouldn't be too bad. 

                                    

What is a Fiction Proposal? 

Good question... 

"A book proposal helps an agent or an editor learn more about an author than a two-sentence bio. It gives them insight into marketing opportunities. And it provides a snapshot of the project that saves hours of work when someone preparing to evaluate a project for potential representation or publication."-Jillian Bergsma Manning a contributing editor for Independent Publisher. 

The Hartline Agency website says:

"We evaluate a proposal almost as closely as we do the writing to see if it gives us all the information we need to effectively represent a project." 

You can probably see, why I am trying so hard to do this proposal right. I don't want my work to be rejected, because I sent in a sub par proposal. 





What should a Fiction Proposal include? 

According to some leading Christian Literary Agent sites, the following may or may not be required in your fiction proposal depending on the agency. So, if you are also preparing a proposal, make sure you check the relevant agency website to make sure you are sending what they want.

• Cover Letter                     
• First 3 Chapters
• Promo Sentence
• Sales Handles
• Back Cover Copy
• One Page Sell Sheet
• Biographical Sketch
• Story Synopsis
• Market Analysis
• Competitive Analysis
• Marketing Strategies 
• History of Manuscript

The Steve Laube Agency also suggests answering the following questions:

"In a single sentence, state your purpose for writing this novel. Why did you write (are you writing) this story? What are you trying to prove about life with this story?

Describe your protagonist’s quest. What does he want or need? What is his goal? For what does he yearn?

What is at stake in this story? If your protagonist doesn’t attain his goal, so what? Why does it matter and why should the reader care? What are the consequences?

What is the “takeaway value” of the story. How will the reader be changed for having read it?"

One thing I have realized, is that instead of making one proposal and sending it out to the three places, I will need to tailor each one according to the agency's particular requirements. 😰 When I get one done, though, I plan to send it out and then others can follow as they get done. 

Last Weekend:

I have to admit that this last weekend I didn't work at all. My husband and I needed some quality family time. We missed our kids and grandkids. So, we took the weekend off to have some fun with family. Here are a few snapshots from our weekend...

It was a great weekend and much needed time with my kids and grandkids. I am ready now to tackle this proposal challenge and the Camp NaNoWriMo challenge. Thanks again for stopping by! Don't forget, Subscribes, Shares, Likes, Comments, Joining my Email lists...will all help me to reach my dream of becoming a published author and I appreciate all of your help. May God bless you and your family as you try to live the life He created you for.

In Christ,
Sandy