A coda to yesterday's post... I recently had an academic send me his novel proposal. It came completely cold (that is, we'd never met nor spoken), but on the first page he said in the "competitive works" section that the only thing he could really compare his novel to was THE LORD OF THE RINGS. He seemed like a sharp enough guy, so I wrote back and gave him some feedback. I mentioned that listing one of the ten bestselling fiction series of all time is probably not the best way to do comparable titles.

His response: "Well, THE LORD OF THE RINGS is really the ONLY fiction series that compares to mine. And actually mine is better, but I felt I HAD to include something as a comparison."

Uh-huh. There's certainly no lack of confidence in this guy. I turned it down, since he's not really interested in listening or learning. And because I'm not really taking on new novelists right now. And because, let's face it, he's a horse's ass. A statement like that will get him laughed out of an editor's office. They'll reject him based on hubris alone. (As one editor once said to me when rejecting a proposal, "We love the manuscript, Chip, but I'm afraid the author's ego won't fit into our warehouse.")

Comments

[James C. Wallace II]

I believe the word that best describes the academic author-wannabe is Chutzpa (I think that's how its spelled but its kinda like the leader of Libya, Kaddafy Duck; any number of spellings work). When I first started seeking out agents and the like, I learned very quickly that humility was key in the initial phases of publication. Even so, I write about Oz and I would never even begin to claim that my stories are anywhere near as good as L. Frank Baums' stories. The Chutzpa comes later when you have to market your book. As a self-publisher, I've had to really put it out there and promote shamelessly about my book, Magician of Oz. Still though, with Shadow Demon of Oz due to release in mid-March, my sales at least confirm that while my books are no Baum, they have done well enough to justify my confidence in them and I expect sales to do well this year.
There is a time and a place for overconfidence and the initial query is not the place for that.

Per Ardua Ad Alta!

[patriciazell]

I sure am glad you take questions, Chip. What if a book has unique content and really can't be compared to another published book? What I am writing comes from a 40-year quest (using a KJV Bible, a concordance, and a dictionary)to know and understand the Bible. Needless to say, my book has a different take on the Bible (don't laugh)--a more organic, individualized story of God and the human race. Going beyond the Bible's supporting details (what most denominations are based on), my book looks at the underlying main idea of God's absolute love which is perfect, complete, and real. So, what do I compare it with? By the way, I am writing my book online, so will that help?

[Chip MacGregor]

It's pretty rare for a book to not have comparables, Patricia. If there's no other book like it, how is anyone going to know how to sell it? Hunt around on Amazon, or in your local Borders. See if somebody has done an interesting book on "understanding the Bible." (Hint: somebody has. It's sort of a well-read book.) That'll help you figure out how to pitch it to publishers.

[patriciazell]

I am aware that many someones have already written books about understanding the Bible. You answered my question though--rather than compare the content, I should compare the type of book. So, even, though my understanding could be much different from others, I would still compare my book to those books based on understanding the Bible. I realize I am going up against some giants in the Christian world, but maybe my little book might meet some needs. I'm willing to try.

[Rachel Hauck]

LOL.

[Nicole]

Ha!

[Cindy Thomson]

Ditto what Rachel and Nicole said.

[Sharon A Lavy]

Oh my.

[Lea Schizas]

Chip, his reference to Lord of the Rings tells me, and as you mentioned, that it's fiction. I'm wondering however, if you took the opportunity to skim the first page of his novel, or if you even contemplated to play along and see whether or not this guy did, indeed, have a writing voice that might surpass the best seller that remains in a reader's mind.

In my opinion, and I totally agree with you that the one comparison yells 'egotistical writer', refusing a writer based on that comparison instead of having the opportunity to read a small portion might have caused you to miss a possible new best seller in the market.

Egotistical writers are hard to work with, understood, but my question to you is did you read some of his work?

[Susan at Stony River]

The editor's warehouse comment was my laugh of the day -- thank you for sharing that!

Every writer's group I've belonged to has had at least one of these folks: when any issues are raised with that person's work, the response is defensive and arrogant. I agree that the only sensible response to that is to promptly disengage, and wish them luck.
:-P

[Diana Sharples]

It sounds to me like the author never read anything but Lord of the Rings. That book itself has many comparables throughout a prolific genre.

[Dayle Shockley]

My deepest sympathies, Chip, for the--pardon me--crap that you have to wade through in your line of work. It's a good thing you have a terrific sense of humor.

[Leah Morgan]

I've always been interested in visiting one of those funny farms producing such an ego to see just what kind of manure it is that fertilizes a self evaluation comparable in size to Jack’s beanstalk. My brothers were ax enough for me with their big boots hovering over my small shoots threatening any fantasy growth.

[_*rachel*_]

I've heard it pointed out that classics, no matter how wonderful, probably wouldn't take off nowadays. Charles Dickens, for example, probably wouldn't sell if he was coming in now with no more background than any first-time novelist.

Another drawback of comparisons is that it can be a matter of opinion. The agent may hate the book. The agent may love it so much that 'nothing' can compare to it. Or it just might not compare.

It's better to aim for the audience. 'This book may not compare to LOTR, but it's something Tolkein fans will enjoy.' Much more likely to be true, and not nearly as proud.

[AimeeLS]

I too laughed out loud at the 'warehouse' comment, but I want to be careful not to engage my own pride at this writer's expense.

It's easy to look down on someone who either is so full of themselves, or so socially inept that they don't understand how they're being perceived...

On the other hand, the information that an editor will dismiss a writer they believe too hard to work with regardless of the writing is very valuable!

Another reason to keep my pride in check!

[Deborah J. Thompson]

The insight into what your job entails is frequently comical, sometimes a bit sad, but always enlightening. Thanks for sharing and providing us with valuable wisdom and direction.

Deborah J. Thompson
Contributing Writer for Crosswalk.com and "The Fish" family of radio stations
http://www.inspiredreflections.info
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Deborah-J-Thompson/50803393657?ref=ts

[Bonnie Gray]

This writer's lack of confidence revealed like a day-old coffee stain. His response obviously came from a heart that has been set in arrogance.

Appreciated your perspectives in your Competitive Analysis post, Chip.

[Ed Eubanks]

Patricia:

From a content perspective, I offer you this caution: if you develop an understanding of the Bible that is unique and truly unheard-of, be afraid. Throughout history, those who have believed they had finally unlocked the secrets of the Bible-- the secrets that tens of thousands of Bible scholars before them had missed-- ended up being heretics.

That isn't to say that innovation and advancement in biblical and theological understanding is impossible. Rather, such advances are always either a) an incremental "next step" from an existing current perspective, or b) a return to a previous point in historical development and advancing from there.

[patriciazell]

Ed, I appreciate your comments and you can see what I'm talking about for yourself. Just click on my name--it's linked to my blog (I'm writing my book online). I don't know how I can be a heretic by focusing on God's absolute love which is perfect, complete, and real. Isn't His love just that?

[Chip MacGregor]

Notes:
1. I couldn't read his work. He just sent me a query.
2. Don't ever feel sorry for me. I've got a great job and I love it.
3. Don't fool yourself on some of the classics... Twain and Austen would get published today. They're fabulous writers.
4. I don't see anything wrong with pointing out hubris. Sorry if you're offended.
5. And publishing is a relationship business...like every other business in America. So yes, arrogance and humility matter. (And this would be a good place to acknowledge I've had my own share of being arrogant.) -chip

[Ed Eubanks]

Patricia, I'm not saying that you're wrong, or that your perspective isn't true. I'm not claiming that God's absolute love isn't perfect, complete, or real (though I think you leave a lot of open-endedness in the terms "absolute love", "perfect", "complete", and "real").

All I'm saying is: you said that your book had "unique" content and was therefore incomparable to another book. If that is so-- if your book is so innovative, so new, so very different from ANY other book out there-- I think you should be concerned that you've strayed from the flock, so to speak. It just doesn't seem likely that you have been able to come up with something that is both orthodox AND unique, to the point where there are no books like it.

I certainly would be a skeptic from the start; if a book with any such claim came across my desk, as a pastor I would be highly suspicious. I would absolutely warn my congregation to be careful with it, and that if they didn't feel totally confident in their capacity for discernment about such things to avoid it.

What is much more likely (assuming that your perspective really is orthodox) is that there are in fact a number of other books very like yours. You may be onto something really helpful-- a new analogy that is instructive, some personal application that has broad appeal, or even an innovation on existing ideas. But if you're orthodox then there are probably several books that are, at very least, headed in the same direction as you are.

In that case, you would do well to point this out to potential publishers. "My work is an extension of ___ by So-and-so, and offers a new twist on some of the ideas presented by Thus-and-such in her book ____."

[patriciazell]

The beauty of writing a blog is that I can freely share my understanding. I'm putting what I've been wanting to write in a book on the blog and I am having fun. Of course, I'm going to knock at the door of the publishing world to see if it opens. If it doesn't, so be it. I am doing what I wanted to do and that is to share the wonder of what God has accomplished through Jesus Christ. And, the neatest part of all is that I can see (through my site analytics) the number of people who are reading what I write. And, they are reading. God's absolute love--perfect, complete, and real!

[Lauren Sylvan]

The guy does sound like a pain. There are always comparisons.

I don't think LOTR would sell much today. Mind you, I love the books, but my reading tastes were developed in a different era from the majority of consumers now. And Tolkien has writing flaws, just like everybody.

As for Austen or Dickens, it would be interesting to try publishing one or two of their lesser-known works under a different name. (They're public domain, after all.) Ten to one, they wouldn't sell very many copies.

I think I heard of somebody who did just that, a famous-name work published under no-name. And the thing went 'thud'.

[Courtney Walsh]

It's a sad day in Mudville when the next J.R.R. gets passed over!

Oy.

(At least it was good for a laugh!!)

[Brandt Dodson]

Determing comparables goes back to being well read. Reading widely and deeply (the late Robert B. Parker and Agatha Christie were mystery writers and yet, miles apart on their sub-genre)will help an author determine which writer they are comparable to and if they stack up. It sounds like this academic wasn't reading enough.

[Amy]

Wow. That actually made me laugh.

[Melody]

I think publishers could take this advice as well. As a reader nothing turns me off more when I see a book jacket declaring that the story is the next Harry Potter, LOTR or Twilight. We all know it isn't and then I feel like the publisher's haven't read more than the one book - or think that *I* haven't.

[Stevie Rey]

Chip, If there's one thing I've learned in this whole publishing/agent acquisition journey, it's "be nice" and "be humble" and "never come across as hard to work with". That agent you're trying to land probably has at least a hundred good manuscripts on his/her desk. Which do you think they will sign, the good manuscript by Stevie, the jerk, or the other good manuscript by Johnny, the nice guy. If I had learned this lesson early on, I might have an agent today...and a publishing contract for that matter! As it is, my agent's name is Jack...Jack Squat! :-) Having learned said lesson, though, I have high hopes!

Be Blessed,y'all!
Stevie

[Jason Wert]

I hope this doesn't seem like a stupid question but I'm new. Obviously comparing yourself to a book such as LOTR is very egotistical. However, what's the best approach for a new author? Forgive me if you've answered that in a previous posting.

[Chip MacGregor]

No, that's a very fair question, Jason. I think you'll find an answer in the previous blog post. You want to find some books that are similar to yours in terms of genre or topic or voice. Then you want to look for books that have had some success, but not something like LORD OF THE RINGS or HARRY POTTER or THE BIBLE... that's setting the bar a bit high.

[Daniel Smith]

On a related note, shouldn't we look to the greats as models of what works?

For example, my own WIP has a few similarities to the Harry Potter series, but they're basically skin-deep: YA hero versus adult villain, seven books in the series, and each book is a year in the life of the hero who grows up over the course of the story. But that's where the similarities end: Hero not named Harry (or Perry, etc.), he's not a wizard, and it's not primarily a fantasy/school story hybrid though schooling does come up.

I guess what I'm hearing from you Chip is that I have to go and find an inferior (to me, by comparison) book/series to compare my novel to and that doesn't entirely make sense to me. What you're saying makes sense too so I'm asking for clarity on how these two concepts balance out.

[Chip MacGregor]

This note was sent to me privately, and the author asked to have it posted in the "comments" section:

Writing and finding satisfaction in the effort is easy, but truth comes in the realization that reading is a very personal experience, one that is as prone to fashion and cultural influences as any other time consuming endeavor. The “academic” chose the easiest of all roads, he attacked his critics, but the easy road is rarely the best road.
For instance, I’m in Whistler, BC listening to a list of offer-and-bid ticket prices for next week’s Olympics. Tickets are ranging upwards to twenty times, but averaging ten times, the original $150 price for the Men's Super G Downhill while tickets for the opening ceremony are pricing downward – a veritable steal at five-times the original price. Yet, for the price of a lift ticket, an ordinary soul will be able to ski to one of several spots along the sloped course, and once settled in knee-deep snow, clang a cowbell, noisily encouraging multicolored blurs as they fly past, blurs, that at least three of whom, will become Olympic metal winners. Folks sitting in the bleachers – purchased for Olympic-sized sums – at the base of the run will see skiers tucked-deep with knees against their chest and hands clasped far in front of their face as they zip toward the finish line, hoping to cut fractions of a second from their time. Meanwhile, for the hearty souls lining the snowy hillside, the chill will vanish each time a passing skier momentarily catches air, flinging arms, poles, and skis outward, then lands on one ski and quickly retrieves his balance before disappearing from sight. Exhilarating. Priceless.
The likes of the academic mentioned above who purchase bleacher seats at $2500 a pop will count themselves blessed, never imagining that a few ski lessons and an understanding of Whistler Mountain could afford so much more.

Karen Humeniuk