Chip MacGregor .com

NEWSDAY TUESDAY ...

With a lot of general market editors at the  Library Convention and CBA editors (and Chip) off at ICRS, it's been quiet around here. Or as quiet as it can be when you work from home, have decided to finally prepare your office for re-flooring, and kids are around begging for food, rides, friends, screen time, food, chores (yes, they beg for chores - when the word "bored" leaves their lips that's what I hear) and food. 

We're pulling together a kids book swap in the neighborhood next week - it's encouraging that though we're in a neighborhood rich with pre-teen boys, they are all avid readers. I'm looking forward to hearing the discussions these guys have about their favorite authors -- they get SO passionate about everything at this age. Personally, I've just started reading LITTLE BEE by Chris Cleave. Just into it, but I think it's going to be a gripper. 

I'm also working hard to get through submissions - some I've held on for way too long, admittedly. It's hard for me to admit I simply can't take on everything, but I'm coming around. It is nice that we now have Amanda on board to take a look at projects as well, though she's received over 500 submissions since we announced adding her to our staff. Obviously she's going to be slow in getting back to folks, so y'all be patient, k?

At this point I'm reading submissions from about three months back. If you've not heard from me and I'd offered to take a look (spare me, please, if you sent me a query beginning "Dear Agent," or some other randomness and are wondering why I haven't bothered to answer you ) please feel free to write me and check in. It could be that I've decided to decline your work but didn't have the common decency to let you know about my decision (sorry, it happens though I do try to make sure it doesn't) or that I'm still thinking about it (that happens too).

Aside from the relative quiet, carpepping, great submission catch-up, and summer reading frenzy going on around here, there is a bit of other news.

CHRISTY AWARDS

Congratulations to ALL the winners (and to the nominees, for that matter). And a big WOO-HOO to MacGregor Literary author Lisa Samson for her inspiring keynote address at the award event AND for winning in the Contemporary Standalone category for her book THE PASSION OF MARY-MARGARET (Thomas Nelson). 

CONFERENCES

Chip represented us at ICRS this year where he found virtually no candidates for his annual Jesus Junk awards. Told me today that the selection of Christian Kitsch was rather abysmal, actually. Once he recovers from the crushing disappointment he'll be sharing more about ICRS. Keep an eye out (what an odd expression that is...) for his post.

ACFW registration is in full swing. If you're a Christian fiction author (or a fiction author who is a Christian) and haven't registered, don't delay. It's a very well organized and effective conference. Chip, I, and Amanda will all be there this year. Being organized and effective, no doubt.

Chip, Sandra, and Amanda are also looking forward to representing the agency in full force at the Oregon Christian Writer's Conference directed by our very own Pat Rushford and keynoted by Bill Myers and Jeff Gerke. 

Sandra has recently agreed to join faculty at the Wesleyan Conference in Indianapolis in November 2010, and the Florida Christian Writers Conference in March, 2011.

EVENTS

July 23rd - 24th, Lisa Samson and Susan Meissner will be presenting the next Master Seminar: Adding Depth to Fiction 2 at Lisa's Lexington, Kentucky tea cafe, Cuppa. Don't miss out on your opportunity to learn from these skilled and talented writers.

HOT BOOKS

Irene Hannon's IN HARMS WAY (Revell) remains on the top twenty list of CBA best selling fiction titles.

Jay Payleitner (52 THINGS KIDS NEED FROM A DAD, Harvest House) and Carla Stewart (CHASING LILACS, FaithWords) were both popular stops at ICRS - their books ran out before their signatures did. Way to go, you two.

So fun to see Carla's book displayed front and center at Barnes & Noble. A great summer read, for sure.

So, tell me, what are you reading this summer?

Advice from a Successful Self-Publisher

Steve Henry, a successful businessman with a book idea, came to one of our marketing seminars recently. He left the seminar, completed his book, then began marketing it to his audience. The book has been so successful that I wanted him to be able to share his story with others...

When a skilled professional preaches a consistent message, you’d better pay close attention. On four separate occasions, I heard Chip MacGregor pose this question to his audience of writers: “What are you, the author, going to do to market your book? If you rely on your publisher or their sales team to produce an outrageously sure-fire, best-selling marketing plan when your book hits the street, then you’d better think again.

If you’ve ever attended one of Chip’s teachings, or if you read his blog, you’ve heard him say, “It’s imperative that you, the author, know exactly who your audience is and then go stand in front of them.”

This is when the light flashed for me. I was in the process of writing a business book based on my successful used-car dealership, the $5,000 Car Store, where we use Christian principles as our operating manual. The book’s successful launch and continued success was going to be up to me.

I gave in to this reality, and developed and marketed the roll-out of The Playbook for Small Businesses, my book, which tells the story of how I run my business. Here’s how I did it:   

1.   I designed a website that generates high traffic. It’s crucial to offer your potential readers an incentive to visit the site and then to complete a purchase. This is a numbers game. I knew that my potential customers were short on capital and could be in need of some great start-up advice, so I hired a company to provide me with contact information for new business owners who filed for business licenses. I sent postcards to the new business owners, congratulating them on legally putting their businesses on record, then I offered them a chance to win $2,000.

2.   Every month, I mail over 6000 postcards to newly registered businesses in my Zone One market: Arizona, New Mexico, Texas and Colorado. After three months, 9 percent of these reply and sign up for our $2000 giveaway. That means each month I get almost six hundred potential book buyers and long-term fans. If I advertised in this market, I’d have to spend twice as much money to receive this number of highly probable purchasers every month.

3.   If you plan to sell your new book electronically instead of in bookstores, your providers’ delivery schedules, wholesale fees, and restrictive service may handicap you. (The up-to-three-week wait for the Playbook is my number one customer complaint.) We’re all aware of what’s taking place with the independent booksellers, but church bookstores are alive and well. In fact, they are selling books in record numbers.

4.   Consignment sales can provide big opportunities. We recently approached a large Phoenix church, and their bookstore eagerly took eight books. They also agreed to become the epicenter for our referral program as we roll out a national program using this model. They have referred us to six other churches in the Phoenix area.

5.   Giving away content is a must. I give each new bookstore eight free copies to fuel the “new release momentum.” When you do this, plan also to give a speech and schedule a book signing. They almost always ask for it.  

These are some of the marketing points I use daily to promote a book that’s within the top ten in its category on Amazon.com.

 

Steve Henry is the author of The Playbook for Small Businesses and co-owner of the $5,000 Car Store.

15 Trends Shaping CBA Today

I'm about ready to get on a plane and fly to the International Christian Retail Show (the big religious book show) in St Louis. Since I've had several folks ask me what sort of trends we're seeing in CBA, I thought I'd bang out a handful of things that I see going on...

1. More readers (Remember when we were worried about "why Johnny can't read"? No more. We read all the time. You might read books on your iPhone. You're probably wondering who's on Facebook right now. Wait -- is that your Blackberry going off?)

2. More varieties of fiction (Bonnets! Pirates! Prairie dogs! Cowboys! Patriots! Immigrants! Soldiers! Shopkeepers! And some, such as Amish books, have created their own sub-genres.)

3. More historical fiction (People enduring hard economic times long for the good ol' days when life was simpler.)

4. More graphic scenes (There's a good and a bad side to this. I'm all for realism... but what IS it with people -- must every fiction proposal I see these days have a rape scene? Be different. Let your character survive something else, like a nuclear disaster, or a car wreck, or waxy build-up.)

5. More creative packaging and inclusions (We're quickly moving toward the place where each editorial team will have a specialist whose job will be to create images, games, widgets, and other stuff to enhance the text.) 

6. More reformed and ecumenical books (CBA has become less the protected domain of evangelicals as we've seen the inclusion of a broader group of believers, including Anglicans, Roman Catholics, and Orthodox Christians. That means I'm now, finally, a Christian. It's about time.)

7. More book choices (Obviously we're seeing the rise of the digital book, but the real fight to be won is over the significance of the content in them, and how all those titles present choices to consumers. A great book requires time and effort and thoughtfulness and skill -- and it trumps somebody who decides to barf some words onto a page and make it available online.) 

8. More new people in CBA (Who was reading a Summerside book three years ago? Now they're doing wonderful stuff that people are buying. AND we're seeing a renewed interest in small, privately-owned Christian bookstores.)

9. More memoirs and creative nonfiction (No, we're not there yet... but it's coming. A renewed interest in memoirs and journalistic writing among Christian readers -- see books like SAME KIND OF DIFFERENT AS ME.)

10. More of an emphasis on platform (Like it or not, platform is king these days.)

11. More targeted relationships for authors (60% of the books we've sold at MacGregor Literary this year were designed with ONE publisher in mind.) 

12. More micro-publishers (We're seeing an explosion of little mom-and-pop operations, with companies only producing e-books or print-on-demand titles.) 

13. Fewer people at the show (Like it or not, ICRS is in a world of hurt. There were so few editors attending that many agents simply chose not to come this year. I used to fill up a week. This year I had to struggle to fill up two days.)

14. Fewer books on the shelves (Borders, Barnes & Noble, Family Christian, and Lifeway are all simply ordering fewer books and putting fewer books on store shelves. And the major publishers are producing fewer books.) 

15 Fewer agents (It's tough making a living as an agent, and after watching the huge growth of my industry over the past seven or eight years, it's clear that the vast majority of CBA books are being represented by about 20 people. So while it may seem everybody is calling themselves an agent these days, there are fewer of us than ever who actually make a living at it. Which brings to mind the words of P.J. O'Rourke: "My advice on dealing with publishers: Let your agent do it. Agents are more important than publishers. Agents are more important than anyone. Which brings me to my advice about dealing with agents. You can't. They won't speak to you. They're too important.")

 

NEWSDAY TUESDAY ...

The sun came out today! (Exclamation point intended.) Seriously. Around here, lately, that's very big news.

But I know YOU didn't come here to talk about the weather. You're wondering if we have any news. 

WHY YES, WE DO ...

-Irene Hannon is again on the CBA bestseller list.

-Susan Meissner's SHAPE OF MERCY is on the top ten list of Kindle bestsellers. 

- Carla Stewart's CHASING LILACS (just out from FaithWords on June 17th) is enjoying front table exposure at Barnes and Noble bookstores across the country this month. Also, Kathy Patrick, the creator of the Pulpwood Queens Book Club has invited Stewart to participate in the Books Alive weekend held in Jefferson, TX in November as an inspirational author. And, CHASING LILACS is a November selection for Pulpwood's Splinters Book Club – books Kathy recommends for readers from Young Adult and up. We are as excited about the exposure for Carla's book as she is humbled by the opportunities it is opening up for her. Way to go, Carla.

DEAL NEWS

Melanie Dobson will be doing another book with the Love Finds You line of Summerside Press.

Jeremy Kingsley is doing a non-fiction title with Bethany House, GETTING BACK UP WHEN LIFE KNOCKS YOU DOWN.

Harvest House is releasing Poppy Smith's new non-fiction title, tentatively titled WHY CAN'T HE BE MORE LIKE ME.

EVENTS

The Christy Awards are this Saturday, and we have three authors up for awards:

- Kaye Dacus in Contemporary Romance for STAND IN GROOM
- Lisa Samson in Contemporary Stand-Alone Novels for THE PASSION OF MARY MARGARET
- Mark Mynheir in Suspense for THE NIGHT WATCHMAN

Also, the International Christian Retailer's Show (ICRS) takes place next week in St. Louis. MacGregor Literary authors Arloa Sutter, Jay Payleitner, Carla Stewart, will be signing books.

Speaking of ICRS, something we can all be looking forward to next week is Chip's choice of the most notable Jesus Junk he can find on the ICRS floor.


OTHER ITEMS OF NOTE
Jeff Gerke, our creative publishing friend over at Marcher Lord Press is offering a cool book giveaway. When someone purchases a Marcher Lord Press novel from the Marcher Lord Press store  (link:http://www.marcherlordpress.com/New_Store/Fiction.htm)
on the Fourth of July, his or her name will be entered in
a drawing from which they will randomly select three winners and whose names will appear in the new MLP novels releasing in October. 
Janice Thompson, MacGregor Literary author and the Vice President of
CAN (www.christianauthorsnetwork.com)
let us know that they've just kicked off their 2010 membership drive
and asked us to spread the word. It's a great organization which
typically caters to published authors who are CBA focused. And this
year, for the first time, they are opening membership up to industry
pros. To learn more, click on the link above, or get there via Janice's
blog at http://janiceathompson.com/blog/?cat=1
Got News? Send it along, rain or shine.

Ten Notes for Today's Writer

1. Lots of big news this week, including something nobody seemed to have sniffed... THOMAS NELSON WAS BOUGHT OUT by an equity company, Kohlberg and Company. Remember, Thomas Nelson is one of the largest Christian publishers in the world, and they were sold just a few years ago to the guys at InterMedia (one of the pioneers in cable TV, InterMedia made the interesting step of pulling the company out of being publicly traded, and went back to being a private company). Anyway, the previous owners had financed a big chunk of the purchase, and Kohlberg must have seen Thomas Nelson was going to make them money, since they paid off the $219 million loan (go ahead and read that figure again) and took control of the company. 

2. Wow. And it didn't stop there -- they had the good sense to keep Michael Hyatt, perhaps the brightest mind in CBA, and the man who has restructured the company and made it both leaner and more focused, AND they brought on Jane Friedman as a board member. Some CBA people may not recognize the importance of that, but Jane used to be the boss at HarperCollins, the owner of Zondervan, before that was the Executive VP of Random House, and before that Publisher at Vintage . I'll tell you there isn't a publishing professional who doesn't respect Jane -- she's one of the best, most experienced minds in contemporary publishing. An incredible addition, frankly.

3. Novelist (and longtime friend) Joyce Magnin, best known for her wonderful "Bright's Pond" novels with Abingdon, has started a company to help new novelists get their manuscripts ready. This isn't just another editorial service -- take a look at her website. You'll come away totally impressed:  www.joycemagnin.com/Site/Narrative_Destiny.html

4. If you're a married woman (or you have any married women in your life), they can be part of a research project on intimacy being done by respected CBA speaker/writer Sheila Gregoire of Canada. If you’re willing to participate, it’s right here:  http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/VBGHVGV... I think it's an important study that is going to turn into a book, but I want you to be aware it is a little, shall we say, intimate.

5. Mark wrote in to ask, “In 100 words or less, what is the best writing advice you ever received?”

For me, that's easy... On page 71 of Strunk & White's "Elements of Style" (3rd Edition), they give this advice: "Write with nouns and verbs, not adjectives and adverbs." In the words of E.B. White, it is nouns and verbs that "give to good writing its toughness and color." In his insightful work "On Writing," novelist Stephen King goes into great detail on this advice, pointing out that any reader can understand a combination of a noun and a verb: "Mary sighs." "Computers crash." "Books illuminate."

In my experience, authors (particularly novelists, but ALL authors) tend to use adjectives and adverbs to dress things up when they can't find the right word. But that's nothing more than lipstick on a pig. The right word is what good writing is all about. If you want punch and strength in your writing, write with nouns and verbs.

6. In light of my blog yesterday on collaborative writing, Danny wants to know, “What should a collaborative writer be paid on a project?”

 It depends on the project. In the annual WRITERS MARKET book produced by Writers Digest Books, they have an annual report on what collaborative writers, editors, copyeditors, and all those other freelance publishing jobs should be paid. It’s usually near the front of the book. Do yourself a favor and check the most recent edition so you’re up to date.

7. And Dale asked, “As a collaborative writers, should I ask for a 50/50 split on the income from the book?”

Again, that depends on the project. In terms of splits, I've seen everything from a straight work-for-hire (in which I'm paid a flat fee to do the work, with no percentage of advance and royalties) to a 60/40 split (I got the 60% because the "author" didn't have any actual facts or stories or material or message... he was, on the other hand, cuter than all get out, so I wrote the book and he talked about it). I keep seeing people say "fifty-fifty is the norm," but collaborative authors should be aware that there is a huge range of alternatives. (And, let's face it, I love getting questions from someone named "Dale," since it allows me to make "Chip and Dale" jokes.)

8. One other thought: On some high-end projects, the collaborator might be asked to have a cap on his or her money. For example, I once did a deal where I was paid 33% of advance and royalties, but my earnings would cap at $100,000. (It fell just short of that, unfortunately. Another $90,000 and I would have hit the cap.) My advice: Don't agree to a cap unless it's high.

9. And Toni asked, “As an agent, how do you deal with the idea of hearing ‘no, this isn't what we want’ all the time?”

A thought to keep in mind: EVERYBODY experiences rejection. And all of us feel a bit deflated when we hear someone say "no thanks," even if it turns out to be a project we didn't really want to do anyway! As an agent, I face rejection nearly every day. I'll send out a bunch of proposals for authors I represent, and it could be that the majority of publishers who look at those proposals will say "nope." That doesn't matter...I'm just looking for ONE publisher who will say "yes!" What I've found is that the more time I take making sure the proposal is strong, that there's a market for the project, and that it's a fit for the people I'm sending it to, my percentage of "yes's" goes up dramatically. 

The thing about rejection is that a writer has to divorce the emotion from the decision. A publisher didn't reject your idea because they disliked you, they rejected it because they don't like your idea, or they don't see the need, or they don't think the writing is quite ready, or they already have a similar item in the works, or... or maybe because they're all too stupid to see the obvious timeless quality of your work. (But probably not.) So divorce yourself from the notion that "the publisher doesn't like me" and start thinking about "how can I make this work?"

10. And a word of encouragement in this busy writing week: I think writers often give up too easy. The fact is, writing is hard work, and it generally doesn't come easy, and I find far too many writers who, upon discovering the work involved, simply give up. You know what? If you don't want to work hard, get a job at Wendy's. And if you can't take any rejection, you should probably stay out of publishing. Just write in your journal and occasionally turn something in to your church newsletter. That way your feelings will be protected and you'll never get hurt. (You'll also never get published, but that's the choice you're making.)

Chip

More on the industry

Mark sent me this: “It seems that slowly the CBA is selling out. Is this true? Is it the ABA getting greedy? What does this signal for the future?”

It signals that the general market has recognized the value of Christian books, Christian writers, and Christian readers. And, yes, it probably means that more CBA houses will be sold (or come under the influence of) large ABA houses. As to the question "are they greedy?" -- good grief, they're running a for-profit enterprise. If "greedy" means "are they focused on making a profit," of course they're greedy. But I'd argue that CBA houses, for all the carefully-couched terms about having "ministry" and "doing the Lord's work," are also focused on profit. So maybe we should view this as a greater partnership, rather than a sell-out. Sure, there are some questions to face down the road – who will do commentaries and reference tools that aren't necessarily commercial but still have value to believers? What happens when a company faces a decision to publish a book at odds with believers? How will Christians respond when a company publishes some heretical tome? But, for those not in the know, those very questions are faced by some of us every day. Time Warner Book Group was a marvelous company that did many wonderful books when I was there (as well as before I came and after I left). We probably also published some books Christians would find offensive. But you know what? I was not responsible for every decision in the company. I was responsible to do good books with solid Christian content that will sell in the marketplace. I was comfortable with that role, and I believed in the company. So no, I don't find the blending of Christian and general markets a "sell out."

Suzy asked, “How do you handle it when you have a change of editors (and editor styles) in mid-contract?”

This business is all about relationships. Editors move around quite a bit in the publishing world -- even more than in most industries (the reasons can be discussed in another post). So authors can expect this to happen to them occasionally. How to respond? Be polite, be positive, try to establish a new relationship with the new editor. Say hello. Send Starbucks. Show him or her that you're easy-going. Keep a positive attitude. Don't give the editor any reason to lose enthusiasm for your book, because every new person in a role is looking for projects that will succeed and make them look good.

Tim wrote and said, “What can we do as writers to stay current on industry news?”

For CBA, read Christian Retailing, Outreach magazine, World, CT, maybe the CBA retailer's magazine if you can locate it. For ABA, read Publisher's Weekly, subscribe to Publisher's Lunch, keep tabs on book news. There are a bunch of blogs that stay current with things -- Rachelle Gardner's CBA Ramblings are Michael Hyatt's excellent blog are two I find important and helpful. Also check out the Writers Digest list of 101 Best Blogs for Writers -- a great overview of where to find good information. Have conversations with other authors and editors. Rarely do things come as a surprise to the industry. Generally, any big changes are talked about for months. By keeping up with some of these sources, you’ll be more prepared for the industry shifts.

Carl said, “Why is it important to be aware of this news?”

To impress girls at author signings and cocktail parties, of course. And, I suppose, to make wise decisions in your writing career (should you find that important).

CBA Trends

A little bit ago, Shawn wrote and asked about the Christian industry. Here’s his question: “Is the biggest trend in religious publishing the fact that none of the Christian publishers are owned or run by ministries anymore?”

I've been saying for quite some time that the biggest trend in Christian publishing is the distribution -- AWAY from independent Christian bookstore/gift centers and TOWARD general market bookstores. That has both an up and a down side, of course, but it's not something a cabal has been planning -- it's simply the marketplace at work. Christian readers would prefer to spend $12 for a book at Wal-Mart (and don't underestimate Wal-Mart in the Christian retailing market) than $20 for a book at Betty's Angel Book Shoppe. That has caused Christian independents to go under by the dozens, and it is rapidly forcing a reshaping of CBA as we know it.

Along with that has been the sale of three CBA publishers. Time Warner (my former employer) had its stock price stuck at $17 for three years, so in an effort to get some things moving (and to hold off Carl Icahn), the board decided to get out of the book business. They sold the Time Warner Book Group to Hachette Livre, a French publishing conglomerate that owns Hodder in England, Car & Driver  and Elle magazines in this country, and numerous publishing ventures around the world. So I lost the cache of saying I work for Time Warner, the largest entertainment company in the world...but, of course, I was able to say I'm a publisher with Hachette Livre, the third-largest publisher in the world. On the heels of that came the sale of Thomas Nelson -- interestingly enough, moving from a publicly held company to a private one. Then Simon and Schuster, who was already for sale by Viacom, and who has not had a Christian imprint, decided they needed CBA exposure. So they purchased Howard Publishing, lock, stock, and barrel. It was an interesting move, since S&S has been going after "name" CBA authors but with no place for them to call home. Wiley offers some great religious books through Josse-Bass, and Pengin doesn't have a CBA imprint, but they do have sort of a Christian ombudsman that coordinates the occasional religious book. And I should note that Harper Collins is already in the business, since they own Zondervan, as well as HarperOne (formerly HarperSan Francisco), which offers some great books, as well as off-the beaten path Christian books (and, to tell the truth the occasional religious wierdology, like the occasional Wiccan Guide to Lesbian Astrology).

My point is just to say that Christians have firmly established themselves as a market, that every major publisher is going after that market, and that the market itself has grown and changed in recent years, most notably in the areas of distribution and sales.

One more thing: The fastest growing segment of Christianity is charismatic, and we have probably neglected to mention that some small charismatic houses (Strang, Destiny Image, Harrison House, etc) have recently sold a ton of books -- so certainly somebody is buying their materials, whether they are in big ponds or small, and whether they are in general markets or not.

Confused? Yeah, well, join the club. If this were easy to figure out, we'd all be millionaires.

Two last notes:

1. Don't believe the people who say "big publishers are jerks who don't care about the little guy." I worked for a big publisher, and while I may be a world class jerk, there are still plenty of not-so-giant authors who would say I cared about them and worked hard to help them succeed. The stereotype of big business isn't always true, so don't accept that criticism as gospel -- particularly from people who may not know what they're talking about.

2. I don't see anything in Scripture that calls us to a ministry of "size." We're in love with size in America because we believe bigger is better, but God calls one guy to pastor ten thousand and another to pastor a church of ten. There's nothing I can find in his Word that says "the guy who pastors ten thousand is therefore better, more spiritual, and higher in the kingdom." If you're called to write, then write your best. For some it will mean big dollars and a huge audience. For others not-so-big dollars and a smaller readership. Some of the best books of all time haven't ever made a bestseller list or even been read by that many people. We're called to obedience, not notoriety. We're called to significance, not success.

In this discussion about the writing life, I think there are a number of factors for an author consider. One is the notion of CONCEPT -- for all their talent, is the book idea big enough? Is it salable? Is there a market for it? Is it significant?

Another is the notion of CRAFT -- even if an author has a million-dollar concept, does he or she have the talent to turn it into a good book? Can they learn to do so? Do they have the voice and tone and ability to make it work?

A third is the notion of CREATION, or "art," if you will -- that quality that sets apart the good from the great. Even if they take classes and attend conferences and practice, will they ever really be good enough? The best authors have a spark, a unique creative voice that rises above other writers. Some people are just born with that, perhaps others learn it, but there are definitely authors who stand out.

Look at it this way: I love baseball, and when I practice I'm better than when I don't practice, but no matter how many years I played and practiced, I was never going to be good enough to really be a professional baseball player. I'd love to be great ballplayer -- I have the passion and the desire, and some basic skills, but I'm never going to reach that level because, in the end, I don't have the talent. That's a hard truth, and one some writers may have to face.

Writing Basics: Write What You Know

Ever read a bestselling novel in which the hero was a construction worker?

Me neither.

It's a story-telling basic that writers – even published authors – tend to forget. It's the reason Stephen King's characters tend to be novelists. It's the reason we haven't seen Khaled Hosseini stray too far from the Middle East. Or Jeffrey Eugenides from Detroit. And it's the reason bestselling authors rarely deviate from their chosen genre.

Write what you know.

It's almost silly how often I see a proposal come through from a published author who suddenly wants to take a stab at writing for teens. Or African Americans. Or the thriller/adventure crowd. And yet that author has done nothing to understand the basics (let alone the complexities) that surround their new target market.

And if we're seeing this from published authors, imagine the type of stuff we see from unpublished ones.

The goal of a novel, however off-the-wall or hokey the plot may be, is to get the reader's buy-in. With it, the reader is able to fully immerse themselves in the story and, to some extent, believe in what's happening. Without it, the reader spends his time picking it apart, analyzing the details and scoffing at its overall ridiculousness.

This is because when authors write outside of their expertise, the sense of reality that should surround their story starts to deteriorate. Readers begin to notice inconsistencies and begin to question whether the author has ever even seen the Eiffel Tower or heard an M-16 fire or ridden on Chicago's 'L'.

A story can only be as good as the reality behind it, you see, and readers tend to be extremely educated in their genre-of-choice.

So, if you're a homemaker, living in a suburb of Cleveland with field experience in Nursing and a few Horse Jumping trophies in your closet, it's probably not a good idea to come to us with your idea for a nuclear warfare novel that takes an ex-Marine and a young Mediterranean fisherman and turns them into Israeli diplomats (not to mention best friends, of course).

Unless you've done a lot of research.

- Amanda

We have big news ...

Amanda Luedeke is joining MacGregor Literary as an agent. This is a big step for us, and we're very excited.

Amanda is a 2006 graduate of Taylor University’s Professional Writing program, headed by Dennis E. Hensley. She's got a long background in books and words, and this is a step she's been moving toward for the past year.

Since her college graduation, Amanda has made her living as a full-time writer, freelancing for newspapers and marketing agencies as well as operating her own writing business. Her current full-time job is with a marketing group in Fort Wayne, Indiana, where she writes and assists in the marketing strategy for clients such as Vera Bradley, Peg Perego and Baekgaard. Like both Chip and Sandra, Amanda understands what it takes to make a living as a writer.

Amanda came on board with us a year ago as Chip’s assistant, and she's been going through the slush pile, helping out with research, and taking care of other odds and ends. We’ve really enjoyed her help here, but now that she’s gotten the hang of things, we’re excited to move her on to the next step – so she's becoming a literary agent.

Amanda will be working with childrens, YA, speculative, and post-college-aged fiction and nonfiction. This is great for us, because we currently don’t have "specialists" in these areas. Bringing Amanda on will help expand our knowledge of the industry and allow us to take on more authors with differing interests. She's just getting started, and will focus her time on a handful of clients as she gets her feet wet. Amanda will also be helping us with our foreign deals -- an area we've been wanting to expand in order to help authors maximize their income potential.

She's going to be attending the ACFW conference with us in Indianapolis this summer, so if you write children's books (for either CBA or the general market), YA books (ditto), speculative fiction, or books aimed specifically at the twenty-something market, we're going to be open to seeing proposals. Amanda may be contacted at amanda (at) MacGregor Literary (dot) com. Please join me in welcoming Amanda to our team!