Customer Reviews

You Can Make It Big Writing Books: A Top Agent Shows How to Develop a Million-Dollar Bestseller

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This book is super! The best of it's kind if you ask me and as an aspiring author I've read plenty of these "how to publish your book" manuals. This is the first book I have ever seen that takes you inside an author's head to discern how he or she really thinks. The book also includes terrific information on book promotion. John Gray, Mark Victor Hansen (of Chicken Soup for the Soul), Ralph Roberts (the World's Greatest Salesman), and noted psychotherapy author Dr. Howard Rosenthal provide some the most interesting and inspiring ideas I've heard to date. I'm confident after reading this book that I can apply the ideas and eventually will see my book in print.

"You can make it big writing books" is an expert combination of superb artistic advice and practical direction. The interviews have a warmly accessible, direct quality that makes the reader feel that these fine writers are talking directly to them and offering invaluable nuggets of information. There's something else that makes "You can make it big" special -- it's uplifting and inspiring. Without avoiding the realities all writers must know, it makes the reader feel confident that he or she can achieve their dreams of achieving a bestseller. It accomplishes this in a hugely entertaining way, and deserves to be read by all creative people. Authors Jeff Herman (one of the world's top literary agents), Deborah Levine Herman and Julia Devillers should be congratulated for their outstanding and indispensably helpful book.

This book is wonderful. It combines the professional know-how of 60 celebrated American authors. The topselling American authors all seem to have been asked the same questions, and there is a lot to learn from this group of successful self-promoters in the first 220 pages of the book. And in the final third of the book is devoted to promotional tips from top literary agent Jeff Herman and his colleagues.

Every page of "You Can Make It Big Writing Books" has inspiration. But this book is not about writing fine literature. This is about taking a pretty good idea and positioning it for success. This book for those who wants to make big money writing books -- from the basics of drafting a great idea into a marketable book to the specifics of book publishing.

I recommend: don't even think about writing a book until you read "You Can Make It Big Writing Books". This is one of the best reference books on this subject, maybe the next after "How to Be Your Own Literary Agent: The Business of Getting a Book Published" by Richard Curtis. It is a must-have for anyone trying to break into the world of authorship.

I bought this book after reading the great review from Midwest Book Review and I have to agree, this book is well worth the read. Whether you are an aspiring writer or someone who has already been published, this book seems to have something for everyone. I enjoyed reading about successful authors' experiences and about the inside secrets to geting a book published and then how to make it sell. INSPIRING, INSIGHTFUL, AND A FUN READ!

Literary agents and published authors Jeff Herman, Deborah Herman, and Julia DeVillers collaborate on You Can Make It Big Writing Books to relate the success stories (in their own words) of sixty writers who made it big. The aspiring writer will learn how to create a product people will buy; the insider story behind publishing's greatest success; how to promote a book to the big time; how to avoid sabotaging chances of publishing success; and the "Seven Secret Ingredients" to making it big as an author of books. You Can Make It Big Writing Books is highly recommended, informative, and inspiring reading for anyone seeking to write marketable fiction or non-fiction.

This book has a misleading title. It will not tell you how to write a best selling novel or even tell you what the editors are looking for. Jeff Herman [if that who is writing; throughout the book there are personal comments, but which of the three authors is making them is anyone's guess] disses fiction which he refers to as "high art" [sort of like "high episcopalian"?]because his agency doesn't sell fiction and never has. If you write non-fiction, then you will enjoy this book, and it will tell you what you have to do to publicize your book. There are any number of essays from various writers, many of them famous, but they are mostly "this is how I did it" stories and while some of them are inspirational, none will help you fashion a high-concept novel. You'll have to go to Albert Zuckerman's book, "Writing the Blockbuster Novel" to learn all about that [and that is one of the best three, the other two being Dwight Swain's "Techniques of the Selling Writer," and Chris Vogler's "The Writers Journey." This book, however, is parading under false pretenses.

I read Jeff Herman, Deborah Herman, and Julia DeViller's book voraciously, and following their advice allowed me to finish a proposal I had been stuck on for a long time. I now feel I have an excellent grasp of what I need to do to develop my nonfiction idea and make it as marketable as possible. All of Herman's books are essential for the aspiring writer, and "You Can Make It Big Writing Books" is no exception. I am confident that it will pay for itself a million times over in future book sales! Thanks Hermans and DeVillers!

This book is a series of questionnaires filled out by successful authors. Many, if not most, have published 10, 20, or 30 bestsellers in the past 10, 20, or 30 years. Over and over the writers say that 30 years ago they did this or they had this bit of luck, which started their career. The Internet, self-publishing, print-on-demand, e-books, etc. are mentioned maybe once in passing, or not at all. What's repeatedly discussed is enduring reams of rejection letters from agents and publishers. I don't know any aspiring writers who worry about that. We're too busy finding ways to sell directly to readers to worry about agents and publishers. This book will give you great insights into what it took to "make it big" in publishing 30 years ago. Don't expect to learn much of use in the 21st century.
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Review by Thomas David Kehoe, author of "Hearts and Minds: How Our Brains Are Hardwired for Relationships"

This book combines the professional know-how of celebrated authors with the warm approachability of a hot apple pie in the winter. It provides a general overview of what constitutes a bestselling book with humorous and sometimes sad anecdotes about the trials and tribulations of the publishing industry. From the basics of sculpting a great idea into a marketable book to the specifics of book publishing, it is a must-have for anyone trying to break into the world of authorship. A perfect holiday or birthday present.

Jeff Herman's book is an excellent read for those who aspire to be a published author. There is much wisdom included in the stories of published authors who had to struggle on their way to the top. Mr. Herman's chapters on how to market yourself are extroadinary. It gives the reader an accurate picture of what is required in becoming a succesful author. It is a must read. I am re-reading the book for the third time!