Customer Reviews

Publish Your Nonfiction Book: Strategies for Learning the Industry, Selling Your Book, and Building a Successful Career

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The path to publishing is a miserable hike.

Writing the first draft, attending literary conferences, creating the dreaded proposal, attempting to build a "platform" and sending the crackerjack query letter. Each step seems more formidable than the last. Scratch the surface of a " yet to be published" author and you will uncover an assorted bundle of resentment and jealousy for authors whose published books they deem less worthy and a modicum of encouragement from tales of those who were finally published after receiving hundreds of rejections.

There are many, many good "how to get published" books on the market including Judith Applebaum's, "How to Get Happily Published," Jason Shinder's, "Get Your First Book Published," Paul Brown's "Publishing Confidential," and of course Michael Larsen's, "How To Write a Book Proposal."

However "Publish Your Nonfiction Book," by Sharlene Martin and Anthony Flacco gives the best advice about landing a mainstream publisher. They also cover the essential basics but offer an additional element about the realities of sending out a query letter or book proposal. The reader gets to be inside the head and behind the desk of a literary agent. It's quite the ride.

While other guides to publication only offer advice on the basics, Martin and Flacco entertain its readers with genuine examples of truly wacky queries and real life examples of effective letters and proposals that sold both the agent and the publisher.

Where this book takes a major turn in differentiating from the others is in Chapter 1 under "Psychological Preparation." Martin and Flacco extract and examine the crucial element of rejection.

In the highly competitive world of getting published, rejection is the chief annihilator of first time authors. If one can learn to deal with rejection that comes from agents as well as publishers, they may feel less victimized. As well, by heeding the advice in this book, the would-be author may well survive emotionally as well as achieve success. The self inflicted damage from real or imagined disrespect will affect not only how a writer perceives his or her work, but quite possibly result in a damaging response to potential agents or publishers.

Another incandescent piece of advice is a dose of reality and the power of patience. Understanding what goes on in the agent's world and putting that professional advice to work will take a prospective author a long way towards dealing with rejection as well as a much better relationship with a literary agency.

The book also does a good job of delineating the legal literary issues of rights, the many different forms of nonfiction, preparing the book proposal and creating the crucial platform or the credentials by which the author is known in the market for which the book is written.

I highly recommend this book to any writer of nonfiction. There is much more information here that is useful than others.

Writing a book is only the beginning of the process of getting published. When the manuscript is a work of nonfiction, the author should give a careful reading to "Publish Your Nonfiction Book: Strategies for Learning the Industry, Selling Your Book, and Building a Successful Career", a 296-page compendium of practical commentary, advice, tips, tricks and techniques on getting published. From recruiting an agent, to dealing with editors, to preparing proposals and delivering pitches, to contract negotiations, to the option of self-publishing, "Publish Your Nonfiction Book" is comprehensive, detailed, superbly well organized, and thoroughly 'user friendly'. Enhanced with an appendices of relevant resources, "Publish Your Nonfiction Book" is highly recommended for academic and community library Writing/Publishing reference collections, and critically important reading for anyone non-fiction author with a manuscript in need of publication.

I first bought this book to get a clear picture of how to write a book proposal. The thought of trying to write one without a guideline was completely overwhelming. This book addressed so many different areas of the publishing process, and most of all gave me a step-by-step overview on how to create a thorough, and professional query and book proposal. It offered insight from other agents and publishing companies, on what they are looking for regarding queries and submissions. It covers the entire publishing process. I found it to be very interactive and easy to understand, as well as informative. Sharlene Martin owns her own Literary Agency/Management firm and Anthony Flacco, is a well established Author. Together they share a diverse amount of information from both sides of the spectrum. I would suggest this book to anyone starting out, that may have any questions or doubts about how to present the best introduction to your work to an agent, or anyone who may just want to have a better understanding of the business, from start to finish. Building your platform is a crucial step in moving your work forward. This book allows you the skills and suggestions to launch your non-fiction book, into a challenging market. Excellent presentation of your work is vital. That first impression may be the one and only chance you have to land that perfect agent and/or book deal of a lifetime. This is a very smart investment.

I bought and read five books on nonfiction publishing, proposal writing and querying. And, without a doubt, nor any disclaimer, Martin and Flacco's "Publish Your Nonfiction Book" is unequivocally the best of the bunch.

I'm knee deep in writing a solid proposal for my next book, and after reading "Publish Your Nonfiction Book," I've improved my proposal by making it more relevant and sellable. After all, isn't that why we're looking at books in this category?

"Publish Your Nonfiction Book" is not only the best written book of the five I read, it is clear, concise and offers practical tips and advice that aspiring writers can put to use immediately.

I know, because I did.

Best of all, "Publish Your Nonfiction Book" is current. Many of the other books on the subject were published before the boom in self-publishing, e-book readers and social media. While "Publish Your Nonfiction Book" offers the essential information for crafting a solid proposal and understanding the nature of publishing, it goes further than all the others. Martin and Flacco are up-to-date and provide valuable insight into the imminent changes in publishing and what they mean to writers -- published and unpublished.

If you're looking for the most relevant and current advice and insight on getting your nonfiction book published, buy this book.

The authors provide a terrific guide to getting published with enough details and examples to help writers overcome their anxieties and confusion about the process of going from writing to publishing. Martin's and Flacco's approach is direct - they don't pull any punches about the challenges to becoming a published author - but they also lay out the steps in simple to follow instructions that turn the odds in favor of the writer. I'm sure they save all of their readers years of work and rejections through their advice.

The text is sprinkled with hot tips that reinforce the messages contained in the pages and that can be easily referred to later. The chapter on creating a writer's platform - what it is, when to begin crafting it, and ideas to sustain it - and the mention of other resources to assist you in this makes this book invaluable to anyone starting out.

The chapter on obtaining the proper rights is useful for anyone writing a biography or true crime stories as the internet has everyone thinking that everything is now public domain. The examples of correspondence that didn't work are hilarious simply because it's hard to believe anyone would present such documents for serious consideration.

All in all, a very helpful book that I'm adding to my personal library of recommended books for writers. It is truly an investment all serious writers of non-fiction should make.

I found Publish Your Nonfiction Book to be the perfect guide for prospective authors. The material is very informative and will help authors avoid many pitfalls and heartbreak on the path to becoming published. I loved the chapters on the importance of platform and the all important query letter. And, while this book is written for those authors who are pursuing traditional publishing avenues, I especially appreciated the authors of this book discussing several options in self-publishing. It is great to know that authors have a choice, and after reading this book every author will be able to make an informed choice. The authors write in a friendly, easy-to-read style, and even though one is a top literary agent and the other an award winning author, they seem very approachable and encouraging. That, combined with the excellent tips that help authors navigate the maze of the publishing world, gives every prospective author hope that one day they, too, will see their name on the front cover of a book. I have highly recommended this book to all my author and writer friends.

I'm a fan of author Anthony Flacco (The Road Out Of Hell; A Checklist For Murder) and when I discovered he had co-written a book on publishing nonfiction, I grabbed a copy eager to learn what "insider's" knowledge he would share.

Publish Your Nonfiction Book is designed specifically for writers pursuing traditional publishing. Flacco and Martin cover the twelve main types of commercial nonfiction, outline why it's essential to become an expert in your field (however, the overview they provide of the necessary steps to build an author platform is very basic - a whole book could be written on this topic), give tips on presenting yourself to a literary agent, explain how the publishing industry works and how to decipher a book contract, and lay out a marketing campaign to promote your book once it's released - including producing a book trailer, handling interviews and hiring a publicist. The authors even include a schedule for completing the writing of your manuscript.

The six chapters devoted to developing and submitting the book proposal and query letter are thorough, providing extensive tips, strategic advice, samples and insights into how to craft and present a winning pitch. The only low point in the book is the chapter on self-publishing options. The authors incorrectly portray publishing via subsidiary publishers and vanity presses as a form of self-publishing; a mistake many mainstream publications make but I am surprised to find it printed in a book released by an established publisher (Writer's Digest) and authored by an experienced writer and a successful literary agent. In a book focused on helping commercial nonfiction writers navigate the path to traditional publication, I wonder why a chapter on self-publishing was even included. This one small imperfection aside, Publish Your Nonfiction Book is a valuable, enlightening and informative resource, providing clear and concise strategies any nonfiction writer can follow to achieve publication.

If I could write only one word to describe this book it would be: WOW!

For the neophyte author this book pretty much lays out in digestible pieces what you have to do to get published. The book is both realistic and encouraging at the same time. Examples of what to do as well as what not to do for each step are very instructive as the steps are laid out. Helpful resources for more in-depth information are referenced in the book as well as in the appendix.

By writing this book, the authors are not only agents revealing the process to publication, they also have some skin in the game (of getting a book to publication).

The book points out what is needed to successfully reach publication. It was helpful to me, and I believe it will be very helpful to others too!

Ms. Sharlene Martin, Founder of Martin Literary Management, LLC and co-author with Mr. Anthony Flacco, of the book, "Publish Your Nonfiction Book," has deeply honored me with requesting this review. She is indeed a "Very Considerate Literary Manager," who has taken the time with me, as a new author, to reveal a clear path to career success within the "World Of Publishing," with this book as an exceptional guide.

"Publish Your Nonfiction Book" is a concise yet comprehensive publishing success tool box for the new and/or seasoned author. It begins with a chapter on "How To Surf The Tidal Wave In Today's Nonfiction Market" and concludes with a chapter entitled: "The Nonfiction Writer's Life And You: What's Next?"

The book reads as if Ms. Martin and Mr. Flacco are having a personal conversation with you and only you, as your writing/publishing coaches, which enhances both its readability and effectiveness. I particularly like the "Hop Tip" notations dispersed liberally throughout the book. A "Hot Tip" Example: "Attention to detail in everything you do is the surest way to prove your professionalism and set yourself ahead of the pack."

While consuming this book, I would also encourage the reader to take to heart the section on pages 9-10 entitled: "Protecting Yourself With Patience." I particularly resonated with this information, since my dearest friends call me "The Last Man Standing" in beginning and achieving my "Heart's Desires," no matter the time it takes. Being a successful published author whose writing immeasurably touches and changes people's lives for the better is one of my "Heart's Desires."

I passionately recommend this book to any author who wants to be coached by the best to bring his and her "A" Game to every aspect of their writing and publishing career.

Michael C. Tibbetts

Author Of The Future Published Nonfiction Book,

"The 7 Divine Lessons Of Family Healing"

Sharlene Martin and Anthony Flacco have written an amazing book that manages to both guide and inspire. I see the two of them as helpful, knowledable sherpas as I attempt to climb Mt. Everest and become a published author. Their book is friendly to first-time authors, and very encouraging. They believe that if you follow solid guidelines, stay humble, and refuse to give up, you will succeed. I especially relate to the fact that Sharlene has come from a background outside the literary world. Before starting her agency, she owned another business, and interacted with people in a variety of situations. I am new to the whole book publishing world but have 15 years experience as a journalist for various trade publications. I've interviewed hundreds of entrepreneurs and I recognize an endearing entrepreneurial spirit in Sharlene and Anthony. Publishing a book is more about entrepreneurship and self-promotion than you might imagine.

In fact, the most important takeaway from this book, in my view, is the need to see your book as part of a larger platform. I was under the impression, being a beginner, that writing the book was the most important aspect of getting published. Sharlene and Anthony explain that in the world of publishing, the book proposal is where you need to devote a great deal of time and thought. Publishers want to know why this story needs to be told, and why you as the author are uniquely qualified to tell this particular story. So, both the story of your book, and your personal story are critical. Publishers want to see that you have a plan and a path to sell the book. Your author's platform becomes paramount to success. That is something explained very well in this book.