Literary Business Off to a Great Start
It has been too long since you last heard from me but that’s only because my writing and agenting business has been going so well. I have been working like a dog in my one-year-old-plus company, and I am delighted to report that things could not be much better. That’s because I have had the good fortune to work with some of the greatest people I have ever worked with—including the great authors I have worked with in my 27 years in corporate America.
I take great pride in the work I have done with co-host of the new hit CNBC show Strategy Session—Gary Kaminsky. Gary has emerged as one of CNBC’ s brightest new stars, a sagacious and singular figure that knows more about the financial markets than most anyone I know. He is a rare client that has become a good friend, and my agency owes him a huge debt of gratitude. That’s because my business is a referral business, and Gary has sent other CNBC colleagues my way and I have benefited greatly from these important relationships.
In fact, I am now working with one of the other ingenious market experts and CNBC personalities—the Chief Market Strategist of Virtus Investment Partners—Joe Terranova. If the name sounds familiar it should—Joe is one of the stars of the highly successful CNBC show, Fast Money. It took me almost two years of prodding to convince Joe to write a book; he is simply too modest and didn’t think the time was right for a book until now. His book has garnered great interest from the publishing world and will be published by one of the great business publishers next year.
That’s about it for now. I must get back to work if I am going to make my deadlines!! I will be checking in far more often so please be sure to check my blog every so often.
A New Business Model and a New Bestseller?
Every so often a literary agent gets the chance to represent a book that is so unique in every way that it is a privilege to represent. Last week I was given the opportunity to handle such a property. However, I must confess, that I did not immediately “get” the book, largely because it breaks most every rule of business book publishing. First a bit of history.
Two European authors—Alexander Osterwalder and Yves Pigneur—spent years putting together a stunning book on business models entitled BUSINESS MODEL GENERATION. The two authors had a great deal of help with the design and content of the book, as it was co-authored by 470 Business Model Canvas practitioners from 45 countries, which in itself is highly unusual for any book, business or otherwise. The authors self-published two versions of the book, starting with a gorgeous 4-color hardbound version that lays flat when you set it down on a desk or table.
Some weeks ago I was contacted by author Alex Osterwalder asking if I would represent him and the book (I was referred to him by one of my other authors). My first reaction was to refuse taking on the book. After all, even though the author self-published 5,000 copies of the book and sold them all through his website (businessmodelgeneration.com) , there was no “official” record of those sales so I knew that publishers would be quite skeptical of the book. And that was only one roadblock. There were also several other obstacles the book faced that would make selling it to a top notch publisher an uphill battle:
* The authors were not based in the U.S., which often complicates matters
* The book has a “clunky,” awkward title (Business Model Generation does not roll smoothly off the tongue)
* The book has a very high price tag of $46.99, more than double the average price of a bestselling business book—and in an impossible economy to boot
So I did not take on the book. Then, some weeks after the authors sold out their 5,000 copies, they reprinted 10,000 copies of the book. Now here is where things get really interesting. On February 3rd, 2010 the authors managed to get a third party seller to sell the book on Amazon. Finally, the authors would get some help in selling the book beyond their own websites (the other site is businessmodelalchemist.com). But once again, there were obstacles that made it very difficult to sell the book on Amazon:
* It’s not even Amazon selling the book on Amazon, but a third party vendor
* It is very difficult to even figure out the price of the book on (see the Amazon page for the book)
* There is absolutely no discount offered for the book (usually Amazon discounts books by 40 percent)
* The Amazon page is so bleak, it makes the book appear as if it is out of stock
One would think that all of those obstacles would derail the book, but a funny thing happened to the book on the way to the bestseller list. The minute the book became available on Amazon, buyers came out of the woodwork to purchase the book. Within 48 hours the book ranked as high as #74 on Amazon, an amazing feat for most any business book and especially this one. Since then, the two versions of the book have occupied two of the top 25 slots on Amazon’s list of bestselling management books every single day. This kind of success is so rare that I would classify this book as a “phenomenon” book, one that beats huge odds to become a bestseller (and this is before any publisher has entered the picture). This time I did not repeat my mistake and happily agreed to take on the project.
Last week I contacted a handful of my favorite editors/publishers and this time I was not surprised when every publisher I notified expressed interest in the book. Given the success of the self-published versions it was hardly surprising that interest among publishers would run high. By this time next week we should have found a great home for the book, with a publisher that sees the book for what it is: an exceptional product that is helping to build a community of people who appreciate all of the blood, sweat and tears that make this a one-in-a-million book and opportunity.
Business Book Editors at the Top of their Game
Last week I had the chance to meet with many editors from the most prestigious publishing companies in the industry. All of these smart people publish business books, although many of them publish in other non-fiction categories as well (e.g. history). I am writing this post to tell you how completely blown away I was by the collective intellect of these publishing professionals.
I visited these publishers in my capacity as a writer (a ghost writer) and/or as a literary agent, but my purpose for meeting with them did not alter the fact that some of the smartest people in the industry publish business books. That makes perfect sense, given the fact that business publishing continues to outperform many other publishing categories. Put another way, people buy business books even when the overall economy is limping along (although they buy fewer when things are really tough—but the drop-off is worse in other disciplines). Given that reality, it is no wonder that publishing companies assign some of their most talented editors to the business category.
You may be asking, didn’t you expect these editors to be bright? Yes, but their level of thoughtfulness, their vision and their intellect surprised me. For the most part, these people were not only gifted, but they were both interested and interesting as well.
So if one of your book proposals gets turned away by a business book editor or group of business book editors, do not take it personally. Business is still one of the most competitive of all business categories, and the collective intellect of business book editors does not change the fact that every successful business book must be fresh and innovative, and every winning business book author still must possess a mighty impressive platform—the kind that will help the publisher sell thousands of copies of the book.
My Publishing Outlook for 2010
I must forewarn you that I am an optimist at heart and always will be. However, I am also a pragmatist and have learned that “facing reality” is one of the most important business philosophies if one is to succeed. That said, I believe 2010 is going to be a very good year for business books.
2009 was anything but.
Many publishers were forced to scale back their programs, lay off scores of good editors, marketing people, and other professionals—all while combining and reorganizing various imprints. They did all of this against an ugly backdrop of an awful economy and a liquidity and housing crisis that sunk the Dow to multi-year lows in March of 2009. If you are wondering what the Dow has to do with business book publishing, the answer is “everything.”
Sales of business books—all business books, not just investing and finance titles—are very much dependent upon a strong stock market. Now that the Dow is over 10,000 once again and consumer confidence is up for the second month in a row, sales of business books will likely improve in the first quarter of 2010. However, we are not out of the woods yet. We are still seeing publishers continuing to cut positions and reorganize publishing divisions. But I believe that we are in the seventh inning on that—much nearer to the end than the beginning. Those publishers that do not cut back so sharply will fare the best when things turn around. Some publishers are positioning themselves to come out on top by continuing to aggressively acquire new titles to be published in 2010 and 2011. Of course, a great deal depends on the books and publishing programs of various houses. Unfortunately, several topics have already been over-published—think Bernie Madoff and the Liquidity crisis— and that trend will continue (publishers always follow trends and tend to saturate markets very quickly).
However, there are many great business editors out there who are acquiring and publishing original and compelling books. These innovators will be the ones most amply rewarded when the economy comes back. And the economy and the financial markets always come back…eventually. I happen to be one of those who believe that it will be sooner rather than later.
The Killer Book Proposal
The most common question I get from first time (0r even second time) authors focuses on how the publishing process works: How do I get started? How do we make sure that publishers will be interested in my book ideas? How do I set my work apart from the pack? These are good questions, and the answer to them are all the same.
It all starts with a killer book proposal.
Much to many authors’ surprise, it is a rare event that a publisher gets an entire manuscript in the mail. Instead, publishers get book proposals to review. And while no two proposals are constructed exactly the same way, the best of them contain the same elements—those key segments that all editors look for. The purpose of this posting is to give you an idea of exactly what needs to be included in every business book proposal. For those “big” books—one that you feel could break out and make a bestseller list—your proposal should run about 50 pages in length. That’s what is required to give editors and publishers a complete, three-dimensional picture of your book. As to what should be included, consider the following:
* A synopsis of the book, describing the book as vividly as possible. Make it sound compelling. Draw a picture of what the final book—the finish line—will look like. This overview of the book should not only paint a vivid picture of your book, it should also be written to draw readers in. This first critical section of the proposal should run about four to six pages but could be longer or shorter depending on the book topic, what you intend to write in other parts of the proposal, etc.
* The primary benefit of the book: also known as the USP, or unique selling proposition; what will readers get out of your book that they can’t get elsewhere? This could be part of the synopsis of the book or could be written as a separate—albeit brief—section of the proposal. The key here is to make your book sound like a “must have,” rather than a “nice to have.”
* A quick description of the target audience: this is important, since it will tell us who you are trying to reach. Is it a general Wall Street Journal audience, or higher level, such as financial professionals? If it is a leadership book, is it for “C suite” executives? Or is it for most anyone who sits in a cubicle? This section can be written in a couple of paragraphs, but is nonetheless important.
* Competing books:tell us what books are closest in content to your book. However, this is a bit tricky. The key is to include books that are not only similar to yours, but have also sold well. You may not know which books are successful, so this is one key area for your literary agent to step in and help. Most agents subscribe to a service which includes the sales records of all books published in the U.S. One additional note of caution: you should not include books that have sold hundreds of thousands of books, especially if you are a first time author or someone with anything less than a spectacular track record. Including blockbusters as competitors will make editors think you have unrealistic expectations or even a bit delusional.
* Books specifications: all relevant specs—the length of the book, number of tables, graphs or other pieces of art, and how long it will take you to write the book should be included. Is this a 150-page book or a 350-page book? This is the section that gives editors real insight into the length and level of the book you intend to write.
* A chapter-by-chapter summary: These are crucial, and should run one-to-two pages in length. This is where you put the meat on the bone and give editors real detail on the content of the book. Make sure you include a table of contents first, and then list every chapter title followed by a detailed description of all of the key topics to be included in the book. This is the longest part of the proposal. If you have, say, a fifteen chapter book, then this section should run about 20-30 pages.
* One complete chapter: This is particularly important, especially if you are a first-time author. This shows publishers how talented you are as a writer, while also providing the most amount of detail on one particular topic in the book. Make sure you select a chapter that really is pivotal to the book, and one that you know very well. It should also be one of the most interesting chapters in the book.
* Your bio and platform: This is yet another critical—and usually the final—part of the book proposal. However, your platform—those things that you do that will help sell copies of the book, re: seminars, speeches, TV appearances, social networking presence, etc.—is so important that I usually ask authors to include aspects of the author platform throughout the proposal. For example, if you are an author that appears three times a week on a cable news channel, then you might even lead with that way back in beginning, in the synopsis of the book. The key here is to use your judgment, and remember that the author platform is one of the most important determinants of whether or not a publisher (or multiple publishers) will make an offer on your book.
Find a Writer that Speaks Your Language
Many of the best books that I have worked on over the years have had a ghost writer. There is absolutely nothing wrong with bringing on a professional writer to help you to repair or write your book from scratch. I have always believed that if you’re not a “natural” scribe, then bringing someone on board to help transform your idea into a reality makes perfect sense.
I am also of the school of thought that it is best to hire a writer at the beginning of the process—not in the middle or the end. I learned this lesson the hard way. Once a project goes off the wheels, it is a difficult task to get it back on track. Starting out with the correct writer gives you the best chance of success—and will help you to complete the job much faster than if you have to find a “book doctor” months down the road (I have worked on scores of books at all points of completion and have produced the best books when facing blank pages at the project’s birth).
Once you establish the point that you need a ghost writer, it is best to find someone who speaks in your tongue. An example: when I worked at Portfolio (Penguin), I signed an author who told me he decided to publish with us because I spoke the language of finance/investing. That worked out very well, as it allowed us to collaborate much more closely than would have been possible with the publisher he eschewed in favor of us. That book ultimately garnered incredible reviews and sold close to 100,000 copies.
History and experience are the keys to finding the right author. I have been investing in the stock market since I was 13, and held the title of Publisher of Investing and Finance unit when at McGraw-Hill. It was at McGraw that I worked with investment titans Jack Bogle, Jeremy Siegel and Charlie Ellis.
So if you are writing a management book, make sure that the writer speaks management, a finance book needs someone who knows investing, and so on. You may have to pay more for the right author, but this is not the place to be stingy. Good business authors are in very short supply; that is why they are expensive, and exceptional authors even more so. But remember, this is a book that has your good name on it—one that you will have to live with for many years to come.
When No Track Record is Better than Some Track Record
I talk to dozens of authors who have written one book without the benefit of an agent who realize the error of their ways, and search out an agent for book number two. That makes perfect sense. They tried doing everything themselves first time around, so they look for professional help for their next outing. However, in the majority of these cases, Book 1 did not sell well, and might have even been an outright bomb. That usually makes the next conversation with that author a difficult one.
But isn’t the mere experience of writing a book and getting it published something that editors like?
The answer is an unequivocal no—if that first book bombed.
In this difficult sales environment—or any sales environment—you are only as good as your last book. That’s why it is better to have zero track record, a clean slate, than to have a poor track record. And it does not matter why the first book failed. Publishers and booksellers don’t care why a book failed, just that it did. That’s why it is so important to make sure that you put your best foot forward in Book 1, and not “experiment” with a marginal idea. Here is where a good literary agent can really help. An experienced business book editor has a pretty good idea of what kind of business book has a reasonable chance of success. So the moral of the story: get a literary agent as early in your book writing career as possible. If a book writing career is important to you, securing an agent may save you years of heartache down the line.
Thanksgiving and Publishing
It used to be that nothing ever happened in the publishing business Thanksgiving week. For all the years I can remember this was a “dead” week. It was so quiet that we were lucky if half the editors showed up at their desks.
Well, times have changed.
Thanks to a continuing lackluster economy, editors and other publishing professionals simply cannot afford to take the week off. Most publishers are having a really tough year, and they need to show the brass that they understand the severity of the situation, and are doing everything in their power to make 2010 a much better year. But that is no simple task either, because the vast majority of books publishers acquire now will not make it in 2010—instead they will spill over into 2011. Also, there are fewer people left to do all the work at most publishing houses.
That is why editors are at their desks this week in record numbers. I know because I am doing a lot of business this week with a number of editors and publishers. And something tells me that next year will be no different. Now we have to wait and see if people show up between Christmas and New Year’s. That has always been the ”deadest” week of the year in all of publishing.
Here is wishing you and your families a very happy and healthy Thanksgiving. I know I have a great deal to be thankful for this year—and will be sure to take nothing for granted.
The 4E’s of Leadership: Still the Best Management Model
Long before The Unforced Error, there was one of the best management models I have ever learned. In fact, it was the subject of an entire book entitled JACK WELCH AND THE 4E’S OF LEADERSHIP and it turned out to be one of those quiet classics that still sells today—five years after its original publication.
That’s because this management model is timeless and works in any kind of organization, of any size. It’s also a simple model that anyone could grasp quickly (although the detail in my book helps to make this model operational in no time). First let’s define the 4E’s:
Energy: People with energy go 75-miles-per-hour in a 55-mile-per-hour world. People rich in this “E” jump out of bed in the morning ready to take on all challengers. They need no caffeine to operate at peak performance.
Energize: Energizers articulate a vision and then get others to turn that vision into a reality. They spark others to perform. They take the blame when things go wrong but give others the credit when things go well.
Edge: People with Edge know how to make tough decisions. They know when to say yes and when to say no. They avoid the maybes. These solid decision-makers are more valuable than ever due to the turbulent times in which we do business.
Execute: At first there were only the three “Es” above. But GE discovered that some managers who were rich in the E’s above still did not make their financial targets. That’s when the fourth “E” was added. Managers who possess this “E” get things done. They make all of their commitments and make their numbers.
Those are the E’s. If you are an employee or a manager, you should work toward improving your “E” quotient. If you are a hiring manager, look for people who have these traits. If you want to learn how to put them to work in your organization—and you will forgive the self-promotion—get your hands on the only book that explains how to implement this model step-by-step—Jack Welch and the 4E’s of Leadership.
Identify those Who Control Your Destiny
Who really controls your future? If you work in a large organization, can you really be sure that it is your boss? Maybe it isn’t. Maybe it’s your boss’s boss, or your boss’s boss’s boss? I have worked in large companies and learned only after several years that it was my boss’s boss that called all the shots. My boss would take every key decision to his boss, and she would make the final call. But because all of this was happening behind-the-scenes, I was in the dark for a very long time about what was really happening.
And sometimes the answer to “who controls my future?” cannot be found by searching straight up the corporate hierarchy. Perhaps your boss seeks out the opinions of your peers to learn about you and and “dirt” related to your performance. This is definitely unprofessional at best, and a bit sick at worst. As I describe in The Unforced Error, the most effective managers search out and build on his people’s strengths. The manager that does the opposite, by trying to sniff out anything negative about you, is insecure and immature and does not deserve the position that he has been entrusted with. If you learn that your boss is engaging in that type of activity, discreetly update your resume and try to find another job (perhape when the job market is stronger). Otherwise, you may get sucked up into a dysfunctional situation that leaves you hating your job.
- Literary Business Off to a Great Start
- A New Business Model and a New Bestseller?
- Business Book Editors at the Top of their Game
- My Publishing Outlook for 2010
- The Killer Book Proposal
- Find a Writer that Speaks Your Language
- When No Track Record is Better than Some Track Record
- M&A, The “Mad Men” Way
- Thanksgiving and Publishing
- Dow 10,000: A Sign of Things to Come?
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About Jeffrey
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As former Vice President and Publisher of McGraw-Hill's trade business books division, Jeffrey Krames has personally edited and published more than 275 business books, including many award-winning, best-selling titles on business luminaries that include Jack Welch, Michael Ovitz, Ross Perot, William Paley, Michael Dell, Bill Gates, Herb Kelleher and Lou Gerstner among others. Read more...
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The Unforced Error
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