Chip MacGregor .com

Online Writing and Publishing

Susan wrote to ask, "What is your opinion of e-publishing as a means to break into traditional publishing?"

I've yet to see this work much. I keep hearing about authors who plan to e-publish their novel one chapter at a time, which is an interesting concept and might be a nice alternative to those writers with a niche readership, but I'm not seeing it translate into regular royalty-paying deals. Stephen King tried selling his novel chapter-by-chapter and it went nowhere. And now publishers are becoming wary of allowing an author to include material in a book that has already been available on a blog or website or e-zine. I still believe the web is a great training ground for authors, but I'm not sure the practice of e-publishing is actually going to get you a traditional publishing deal.

Laura wants to know, "When an author sends an electronic proposal to an editor at a publishing house through a referral or because of a meeting at a writers' conference, how long should the author expect to wait for a reply?"

It varies on the editor, the house, and the season (some seasons are busier than others), but it's generally fair to say that an author will probably hear within 12 weeks or so. If you've been waiting longer than 3 months, it's fine to check back with the editor, just to see if they're still considering it. Be patient -- publishing is a slow process.

Lynn writes to say, "I have an article that has been showcased on an online writers' forum and has proven popular. Now I'd like to find a publication where I could submit my article. Since most magazines have an online edition, would they consider my article already published?"

You're asking the question many writers are wondering. The fact is, this topic is still being debated, so I don't have a definitive answer for you, Lynn. Check the magazine's guidelines -- they may state clearly that an article previously appearing on a website or e-zine is considered "published." However, if they don't clearly preclude this practice, then you can probably assume they'll consider it "unpublished." Everyone is still trying to decide if blogs and e-zines constitute publication or not.

Janet wrote, "Some authors I know have created promotional videos for their unpublished novels. There are 2-minute videos, combining photos, text, and music -- sort of a music trailer for their book, made available online. Do you think there's any value to doing this and putting it on your website?"

I've seen a couple of these videos that were really well done, and I've seen some that were hilariously bad (over the top romantic; shoddy camera work; authors taking themselves too seriously). My response? If it's well done and helps promote your work, it certainly seems like a good idea. I don't think it will necessarily help you get a deal -- let's face it, even an award-winning video won't help you find a publisher if your writing is bad. But I don't see how this could possibly harm your chances, and it might make a nice sales tool.

Rita wrote and noted, "I attend local RWA meetings, and read a number of writing websites. There are quite a few members writing paranormal romances. Is that growing in popularity? And could it survive in CBA?"

It certainly seems to be a growth category, Rita. There are already a number of CBA writers crafting paranormal stories, so its popularity in CBA is already a fact. Whether it has legs is another question -- some publishers seem to be moving slowly into the category.

Ashley wrote and asked,  "What sort of encouragement can you give an aspiring writer who over-analyzes everything? I can sometimes have a tough time believing in myself and my writing. I read books on writing, then think too much, get too critical, and start to criticize everything. I end up thinking my writing is just BAD. Help!"

Hey, I understand how you can feel that way, Ashley. But remember something: you do NOT have to get published. I mean, the value of your life is based on something other than getting your words printed somewhere. There is value in writing, not just in being published. So ask yourself, "Why do I want to write?" Is it to make money? To become famous? To change people? I think, for most of us, we simply have stories we want to tell. So tell them. If you're at a place where you're over-analyzing things, decide to write more simply. Don't write for publication -- write letters. Write a prayer. Write in a journal. Write a story to a child. Look for a way to write something enjoyable, without the need to be self-critical or to judge it against someone else's proposed guidelines. If you're not stuck having to meet a book contract deadline, any pressure you're feeling is self-imposed, so write something that is freeing, and come back to that Great American Novel some other day.

AND if you're in the need for some actual laughter today, I urge you to check out the video at www.makemylogobiggercream.com. For everyone who writes or advertises on the web, this is essential gear. Trust me -- big smiles or your money back!

Resources for Writers

I've got a bunch of notes and questions regarding writer resources, so let me try to get to several of them today...

On MONEY: Patricia wrote to say, "Thanks for your recent blog post about earning money. So if a book doesn't 'earn out' its advance, is the balance applied against the next book?"

It is if your contract is cross-collateralized -- that is, if all your various book advances are "basketed" into one deal. If not -- if each book is on a separate contract -- then no, your advance cannot be applied to your next book. 

On REMAINDERS: DeeAnn wrote me to ask, "What does it mean to 'remainder' a book?"

That's when the publisher sells the remaining copies of your book to a book wholesaler for less than the cost of printing. It commonly happens when your book is going out of print, or when they're down to the last 1000 copies or so, and the publisher wants to be rid of them. The books might have cost $2 to print, but they'll sell them for $1 apiece to somebody who will buy the entire remaining stock, just to get them out of the warehouse.   

On SELF-PUBLISHING: Gene wants to note, "The latest issue of Writers Digest is filled with ads for self-publishing. I'm on my second agent, still trying to get  published, but it takes SOOOO long. How can you convince me not to go to lulu.com and have my book for sale on Amazon tomorrow morning? When will the traditionalists speed up the process?"

You're right -- there are a ton of self-publishing companies. Some are good, some are not. Be careful. The problem with self-publishing is not the speed, it's the sales. If you write a book, you have to make sure the book is good (and if publishers are all turning you down, there could be a message there, Gene). You also want to ensure the cover is good, the editing is good, the title is good, and that you know how to sell it. The biggest problem with self-pubbing is that usually the author doesn't know how to market and sell his own book. Listing it on Amazon isn't really a marketing strategy -- there are two million books on Amazon. If you can't market and sell your self-pubbed book, don't go that route -- you'll lose a lot of money. As for the speed of traditional publishing, it's not the production side that is slow -- it's the retail side. It's March as I write this, and right now book sales people are walking into bookstores to show everyone the coming Christmas titles. The catalogs they're using were put together a couple months ago, so they could be used as sales tools, so that stores could order the books and get them in time for Christmas, AND the marketing people can begin their push before the book actually arrive. All that takes time. Publishing is a slow business.

On PROPOSALS: Martha wrote, "I've been told it's customary for a nonfiction proposal to include two sample chapters. So why has a publisher asked me to send all the material I have finished? I've sent 9 of the 12 chapters and have still not heard a decision."

It's true that a standard nonfiction proposal generally included a thorough description of the project, table of contents, author bio, and two sample chapters. But standards can change. In these competitive times, we're often seeing publishers ask for more of the writing. They want to see if you have enough to say, if your message can carry a manuscript, and if you're close to being done. The fact that a publisher has asked to see more of your work is a good sign, Martha. There's certainly a risk that you could complete the work and the publisher still says no -- but that's true with any book. In fact, if you're so close to being done, I'd probably encourage you to finish the book so that you have the added selling point of being able to tell publishers, "The manuscript is complete."

On CONFERENCES: Lee Ann wrote and asked, "What are the best Christian writers' conferences?"

Christian writers these days have a plethora of great conferences they can attend, and I'm a big fan of them. I think conferences are a great place to network with other writers, hear from experts, and get face-to-face with editors and agents. My favorite conference is probably the one put on by the American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW). It floats, but this September will be in Minneapolis. The Write-to-Publish conference at Wheaton College is a good choice -- it takes place the first week of June (and though the ads say I'll be there, I had to cancel due to my daughter's college graduation). Other good options include the Blue Ridge Writers' Conference in Asheville, NC, and the Colorado Christian Writers Conference up in scenic Estes Park -- both of these take place in May, and both offer excellent speakers in beautiful settings. There are a bunch of other big ones with good opportunities to learn and network -- Florida, Philadelphia, Oregon, Glorieta (NM). Jerry Jenkins' Christian Writers Guild puts on a conference that I'm told is very strong (though pricey), but I've never attended. The Mount Hermon conference in California is coming up in a week, and, though expensive, is one of the good ones. Reg Forder's American Christian Writers organization puts on smaller one-day conferences in cities around the nation, and many colleges will have excellent writing conferences in the summer (I'm speaking at the Harriette Austin Writer's Conference at the University of Georgia this summer, for example).  There are also many excellent general conferences not focused on CBA, and a couple of speciality conferences to consider. Next month Calvin College will be hosting their bi-annual Festival of Faith and Writing, and ACT ONE out in Hollywood offers a special conference for Christian screenwriters. Finally, there are retreats and smaller gatherings going on all the time. There's really no reason for a writer to not find a conference where he or she can learn, network, and get inspired.

On NON-CONFERENCE RESOURCES: Bev wrote to ask, "Aside from a writing conference, what sort of other resources can you recommend to those of us who want to learn more about writing and marketing?'

I encourage you to check out Randy Ingermanson's material at www.AdvancedFictionWriting.com. He has some great things to say about writing articles to promote your books, and offers a teleseminar on how to promote your writing through speaking. And a newer site to visit is www.wannabepublished.blogspot.com, created by my friend Mary DeMuth. Some good stuff for those looking to break into the business. If you're looking to network with other writers, novelists should connect with the afore-mentioned ACFW, and many writers would appreciate a yahoo group called "The Writers View." You'll probably want to be reading Publisher's Weekly to find out about the industry, and the web-based Publisher's Lunch and Publisher's Marketplace are two sources I cannot live without. If you really want to stay on top of the CBA market, you should be looking at Christian Retailing magazine and buying a copy of Sally Stuart's excellent book with Random House, Christian Writers Market Guide. Finally, consider Writer's Digest Magazine, and especially their annual Writers Market, which tells you everything you probably need to know about book publishers. Hope this helps.

An Editor Drops By

Becky Germany is a Senior Editor at Barbour Publishing, and a familiar face at writing conferences. I recently asked her a couple questions about the industry...

In many ways, Barbour has become a leader in Christian fiction -- doing novellas, establishing a book club, focusing on mass market. Where does all the creative thinking come from?

Becky: We're the leading CBA publisher of fiction categorized as romance. We rank fourth in the number of units produced in fiction in CBA. We started publishing fiction as romance flip books way back in 1983 with authors like Colleen Reece, Irene Brand, and Elaine Schultze. I wasn't at Barbour then, so I"m not sure how it was decided to settle upon romance, but it's been our strength ever since. The Heartsong Presents book club began in 1992, the year before I joined the company, and out of that has come a number of stars -- Tracie Peterson, Wanda Brunstetter, Lauraine Snelling, Colleen Coble, Cathy Marie Hake, and more (forgive me for not trying to name them all, Chip). Our fiction series have helped us remain open to working with unpublished authors and developing them into strong writers.

Another Barbour strength has been doing series and repackaging previously published material (including Grace Livingston Hill) to extend the breadth and life of the product. Our novella collections were born when we decided we could create new short stories specifically for collections under topics of our choice. So the creative thinking seems to extend from Barbour's roots, and builds on what we do best. Our team members are, for the most part, people who have been with Barbour many years and who know the company's success model. We've learned to work within our strengths and to keep our product subjects broad, in order to appeal to the widest audience.

What are some of the things that have worked (and not worked) in fiction for you?

When we decided to start doing full-length fiction for the trade, we looked at an area which, at the time, didn't seem to be well tapped -- suspense with broad appeal to include male readers. We left our core readership of women hooked on romance and tried to reach a niche market -- and failed. Even with strong authors like Alton Gansky, Nancy Moser, Hannah Alexander, etc., the market didn't respond to this fiction approach from Barbour. When we swung back to romance, the sales placements and numbers went up significantly. We learned our lesson: For Barbour, having the plot focus on romance is key. Wanda Brunstetter's Amish settings blended with romance have struck a chord with our readers and generated great sales. We also find that traditional American history settings appeal to our readers. Romance has many sub-categories, and we've found that things like chick-lit and suspense really aren't working for us.

What does the future hold? Are there some new things brewing at Barbour you can tell me about?

Well, we just launched our newest book club, containing cozy romantic mysteries. We sort of created a genre combining our romance strength with cozy mysteries. Light, humorous mysteries fit well with our readership, and the added romance is icing on the cake.

We've also increased our focus on building author names. In the early days of Barbour, the majority of our authors were either dead or writing for a set series where the author's name wasn't key to sales. Now Barbour recognizes the need to focus on author names when selling full-length fiction. We've recently signed six authors to multi-book, exclusive contracts, and we're putting a lot of effort into marketing them.

It sounds like there's a lot of interesting stuff happening with your company. So...now that you've got all these readers excited about working with you, what advice would you like to offer them? When they see you at a conference, what should they be thinking?

Just today I was reminded of my frustration involving acquisitions at conferences. I received a book proposal that claims I requested it at a writers' conference 6 months ago. It's been so long that I have no idea what sparked my interest in it to begin with. I would really encourage authors who attend conferences to have, at the very least, the full summary and three chapters polished and ready to hand over at the conference. If the editor requests your proposal, send that as soon as you get home. Then have your full manuscript ready for the editor's review no farther out than one month from the conference. Editors work with a heap of authors, and you have to do all in your power to keep yourself at the top of the review pile if you're going to get noticed.

Thanks for coming and joining us, Becky. I appreciate you taking the time. And now that you have your guard down... what's the dumbest thing you've ever seen at a conference?

My most embarrassing moment came at a writers' conference. I went to this small gathering up in Pennsylvania. I got there just as it was starting, and we were all gathered for dinner. I got sick. I guess I'd been under a lot of stress, and a migraine hit me hard. I left the table, but only got as far as the cafeteria waste can before losing my dinner. What a way to introduce myself to the group! (An agent, Joyce Hart, took care of me like a mom all weekend. I'll always be grateful to her for that.) I've never been back to that conference.

I'd like everyone to notice that it was an AGENT taking care of Becky. Another helpful, selfless literary agent, putting herself in harm's way, thinking only of the needs of others, as usual. What an inspiration.

Oh, brother.

Earning My Money

Charice wrote in to ask, "Can you explain how money is paid on a book publishing contract? I've got a contract in front of me, and I don't understand it."

Happy to, Charice. First, most authors are paid an advance against royalties when signing a book contract. There's a long tradition of publishers paying advances to authors, since it allows the author to survive while he or she is working on a book. This isn't free money -- it's sort of a no-interest loan that will be earned back after your book releases. Let's say the contract calls for a total advance of $20,000. Typically you'd get one-third of this on signing, another third upon turning in the completed work, and the last third upon publication. (That said, there are a million ways to divide the advance. Some pay half on signing, some pay a percentage when the author completes the bio and marketing forms, etc.) So when your book releases, you're now in the red $20,000 to the publisher. You've been paid that amount, but you haven't earned anything back yet. 

Second, as your book sells you are credited with  money for each sale. That's your royalty money, and with each sale it slowly reduces that $20,000 debt. Most trade publishers in ABA (that would include Random House, HarperCollins, Penguin, Simon & Schuster, HBGUSA, etc.) pay a standard royalty on hardcover books: 10% of the book's retail price on the first 5000 copies sold, 12.5% on the next 5000 copies sold, and 15% thereafter. Royalties for most trade-paper books are 7.5% of the retail price, and mass market books pay a bit less than that. (Be aware: Most CBA publishers don't pay on the retail price of the book -- they pay on the net price, which is the amount of money the publisher actually receives from the bookstore. So though CBA royalties may seen higher, you'll have to do some math to determine which method will pay you more money.)

If your book is a $25 hardcover, you'd be making $2.50 for each of the first 5000 books sold. (Did you see how I got that figure? $25 x 10%.) What happens is that the publishing house keeps track of that figure, and applies that as a credit to your account. So if you sell one book, you no longer are in the red $20,000 -- you're now in the red $19,997.50. After the first 5000 copies have sold, your earnings jump to $3.12; and after 10,000 copies have sold, you are earning $3.75 per book. With every book sold, they credit your account  the appropriate amount. Eventually you erase the $20,000 debt, and you begin making money that will be sent to you a couple times per year. Once you've passed the $20,000 mark (or whatever your advance was), it's said that your book has "earned out." Now you're in the best possible situation -- a company is going to send you checks on a book you finished a year or two ago. There's no better feeling than getting a healthy royalty check and remembering that you're making on a project you're no longer working on.

Some publishers pay once a year, some twice a year, and some four times per year. Whether or not your book has earned out, you should be receiving a royalty statement from the publisher with each pay period, stating exactly how many copies of your book sold, what your earnings are, and either (A) the amount of money you are being paid or (B) the amount of money you're still in the red. And by the way, I've used the terms "debt" and "in the red," but an advance is really not a loan, in that you're not generally required to pay back an unearned advance. 

On a related matter, Brynn asked, "Does a publisher lose money if a book doesn't earn out?"

Every business can lose money. I mean, if you own a shoe store, you order in shoes you can't sell, and have to drastically reduce prices, you could lose money. That said, the argument that an unearned advance equals a loss for a publisher just isn't true. All you have to do is look at some math...

Let's take some big book the publisher is doing with a celebrity. She's created a $25 hardcover, and the publisher has paid her a $100,000 advance. The average discount a bookstore gets when ordering a book is 50% -- so they're paying the publisher $12.50 for that book. From that amount, you have to subtract the author royalty on the first 5000 copies ($2.50), the next 5000 copies ($3.125), and thereafter ($3.75). Of course, the publisher has to pay for the actual hard costs of the book (ink-paper-binding). That $25 book probably cost about $3 to produce. (The more copies they printed, the cheaper each copy becomes.) Some of the publishers state right in their contracts that anything sold at an 85% discount is considered "at cost," so they're assuming a hard cost of $3.75 for a $25 book. That seems a bit steep to me, but let's assume it's correct. In fact, let's round it up a bit. Most business economists will tell you that about one-third of a product's cost can be attributed to overhead, so let's say the $12.50 the publisher received for the book is down to $6 after paying the author, the printer, and the overhead (including the editor, the publicist, the light bill, etc.)

Six bucks. That's more than twice what the author was paid per book. (I'm not complaining, nor am I criticizing the publisher. Just pointing out the facts.) Still with me? Okay, since this is a big book, let's say the publisher printed fifty thousand copies and sold half of them. They spent $200,000 on printing and overhead ($4 x 50,000). They received $312,500 from bookstores ($12.50 x 25,000 copies sold). They would pay the author her royalty of $84,375 ($2.50 x 5000; $3.125 x 5000; $3.75 x 15,000).  The author hasn't earned out -- she's still in the red $15,625. The publisher is left with $228,125. Out of that they pay their overhead, and they've got $28,125. Even if they write off the rest of advance, they're sitting on $12,500.  Maybe they remainder the rest of the books for a dollar each , so they just got in another $25,000 (and royalties aren't paid on remaindered books), so now the publisher has $37,500. Did you follow that? The book did NOT earn out, but the publisher still made money.

A couple years ago, a publisher paid huge money to the Clintons for a book. The advance was in the millions, and never earned out. The publisher still made money. Don't accept the  myth that a book must earn out or the publisher is losing money -- it's just not true.

In fairness, I should add that publishers DO lose money on some projects. If they paid a huge advance and the book tanked, they'd lose money. If they spent a fortune on full-page ads in USA Today and nobody bought copies, they'd lose money. But the majority of books do not earn out their advance, yet publishers stay in business... that alone should help you realize that "earning out" does not equal "the publisher making money."

And now that I've said that, let me clarify something: I think it's great that publishers are making money. I don't begrudge anybody making money. In fact, I hope they all do very well and make lots of money, since I work with publishers on a daily basis. I just want to answer your question clearly, Brynn.

Kathy wrote and asked, "I'm in negotiations on my book contract. What's a fair advance?"

Um...that question is impossible to answer. It depends on how many copies the publisher can sell. Agents will sometimes create a formula of trying to establish a book's worth based on past sales, your history of advances, size of audience, and the proposed marketing for the book. It may also depend on what you think the book is worth to you based on your time and energy. It's funny, but authors often approach a negotiation as an emotional thing -- i.e., "I feel this advance isn't big enough." That's a trap. Your feelings may not be correct. And you can't always compare your contract to someone else's contract and be sure you're comparing apples to apples. Try not to think of the advance as the only important part of a contract. Some of the romance publishers pay fairly small advances -- but they sell a lot of copies, and the authors don't complain when those big royalty checks come in.

If you need a formula for determining the value of a book, you might find it helpful to think like a work-for-hire writer. If he needs to make $1000 per week in order to meet his budget, he'll try to determine how long a project will take him to complete. The creation of an article that will pay $600 is measured by time -- he needs to be able to write it in three days in order to stick to his budget. If he's afraid it'll take him two weeks to complete the article, it doesn't make financial sense to say "yes" to the project.

Still, that's a tough method for a novelist to follow. You might spend a year creating your book, and the publisher is only willing to offer you a $10,000 advance -- pretty skinny money for a year of your life. (Perhaps this is why so many novelists are women married to men with careers.) But most novelists aren't in the business for the money -- they're in the business because they have stories in their heads, and they have to write them down. That's the life of an artist -- any artist. There aren't a lot of poets, musicians, scupltors, and dancers who are making a fortune off their art. We do it for art's sake, I guess, and to be able to use this great gift God has granted us.

So...you may not be happy with my answer, Kathy. A "fair" advance is the one you and your publisher can agree to. Let me know how negotiations go.

If you've got a publishing question, send it in and I'll be happy to try and respond.