Customer Reviews

The Publishing Game: Find an Agent in 30 Days

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This is one of three books titled "The Publishing Game". Each of the books sets itself apart from the others by the subtitles "Finding an Agent in 30 Days", "Publish a Book in 30 Days", and "Bestseller in 30 Days". Taken together they are a comprehensive set of instructional resources for everything you might want to know to get your book published and marketed.

The areas covered in "Find an Agent in 30 Days" include why you might or might not want to use an agent, creating a title for your book, writing a pitch letter, finding a hook, wooing an agent, submitting a book proposal (and everything that should and should not be in that proposal), how to approach an agent, and agency agreements. What sets this book apart from similar ones is the tremendous amount of detailed, step-by-step information. This is a veritable cookbook of how to get an agent. As a result, you can feel confident that if you follow the directions you will get the same results every time.

Not only do you get extensive guidance on acquiring an agent but also several highly valuable appendices. For example, Appendix A includes additional books for additional study in specific areas of interest. Appendix B is an extensive list of reputable agents. Appendices C and D are detailed examples of a pitch letter and a proposal letter.

I have reviewed several books on publishing and this is one of the best on the subject of getting your book represented by an agent. "The Publishing Game: Find an Agent in 30 Days" is a highly recommended resource for anyone looking to sell their book through an agent.

Productivity experts know that the best way to accomplish a daunting task is to break it down into smaller pieces. Fern Reiss does this superbly in this book, taking the reader step by step through the task of figuring out how to present one's book to the literary world and successfully approach an agent. Since 1988, I have taught 150+ seminars on getting a book published and have published 11 myself, so that I can authoritatively state that Fern Reiss answers the top questions people have about this process and does so realistically and helpfully. Surprisingly (because of the 30-day format), the book is a good read, also. Highly recommended!

If there were a rating higher than 5 stars Reiss would be a candidate. Her two books, this one and "Bestseller in 30 Days" together make up one book that guides the self publisher through all the steps and in order. Reiss provides a sequencing of necessary actions that is unique in the genre. No one writing on the subject, and this reviewer has read many of them, has put together the needed information so crisply and lucidly without excess padding.

I bought this book to help me take my book from an idea to a bookstore. Its 30 day format is great. It gave me an outline for how to find an agent and all the background to understand what an agent does and what motivates them. It was a great help to me.

The Publishing Game: Find An Agent In 30 Days! by author and publishing expert Fern Reiss is a solidly written, reliable and informative guide to finding an agent to market any kind of book be it fiction or nonfiction, adult or juvenile. From coming up with an idea for a bestseller; to writing an attention-grabbing book proposal accompanied by a professional quality cover letter; to avoiding agents' reading fees; to negotiating with an agent or publisher for a profitable book deal; and much, much more, The Publishing Game: Find An Agent In 30 Days! is a truly first-rate resource which is especially recommended for aspiring authors with little or no previous experience at getting their work published. Enhanced with contact information for more than three hundred literary agents, The Publishing Game: Find An Agent In 30 Days! is an invaluable resource and an essential addition to any personal or professional writer's reference shelf.

In moderating 2 of the larger listservs on publishing, I deal with many writers who are deciding who to approach publication. Many would be best served by a traditional publisher, but can't interest agents and editors. This is the book I recommend to them. It covers everything so well, and makes the what, how and why so clear, that there is seldom any need for more.

This entire series (the other titles include Publish a Book in 30 Days, and Bestseller in 30 Days) is quickly becoming a standard reference because so many people agree with me. Each book organizes the necessary tasks into 30 approachable bundles, with clear, concise instructions and explanations. There are no important details missed, and nothing extraneous to distract you. Ms. Reiss is not only knowledgeable, but also inspiring as a writer and as a speaker.

If you are, or know, an aspiring author, this book is a must-have.