Meeting With Rick Frishman, Part II

By Amy Day on Oct, 18 2011

Last week I began an interview with Rick Frishman, book publisher and publicist extraordinaire. After one long week of testing your patience, we finally get to the really good stuff—what Rick says any hopeful author needs to do to get noticed by a potential publisher.

Here is the continuation of our conversation:

So, given that the potential author has a great idea, how does he or she go about getting the idea submitted?

What you need first and foremost is a book proposal. Not a query letter. As a publisher, what I need to see is as much information as you can possibly provide me about your proposed book.

I need at least a few chapters if not the entire manuscript. If you know you’re not a writer, like me, then you’ll need to get a ghostwriter.

These days you can find a reliable writer through Internet searches or on sites such as Guru.com or Odesk.com.

You can post the requirements, set a budget and filter through resumes of qualified writers. You usually can find ghostwriters that have helped other authors produce manuscripts and proposals, so make sure to include this as a requirement if desired.

If not, you can always find a generic outline or list of components to be included by doing a Google search.

Besides the proposal, is there anything else a hopeful author should do to prepare for submission to a publisher?

Yes. They should visit my website at www.author101.com. They should buy the book for only $8, which will give them a wealth of information on the basics of getting published.

As a sneak peak on the tips they’ll find inside, I will tell you that if I were on the receiving end of a proposal, I am going to do several things.

First, I am going to check for a website. Does the writer have a book title and a URL to match that book title? Does he or she have a website with his or her name for the URL (e.g. yourname.com)?

If that name isn’t available, then the hopeful author should have his or her information posted under another name, such as his or her children’s names or something like that.

I am going to be looking for video, audio, television, or radio programming that features that individual. I want to see their bio and want to be able to thoroughly check him or her out. It’s necessary for me to easily be able to find pertinent information about this individual that I’m contemplating a business relationship with.

For individuals who have an idea, but need a site, they can begin by going to www.RicksCheapDomains.com where they can get a customized URL for only about $9/year.

What can you tell our readers about Author101U?

Author 101 University is for authors who want to know even more than what we’ve already discussed here. It’s for those serious wanna-be authors who are curious about what the industry giants like Harper Collins and Adams Media are looking for.

If they want to know how to get noticed without an agent, they need to come hear what we have to say. If they want to know about the mistakes that should always be avoided, this is the seminar for them. They’ll hear it all from some of the most experienced and talented professionals in the publishing industry.

We will be in Las Vegas at the Green Valley Ranch October 27^th through the 30^th. Registration is open and we’re selling out fast, so I would advise readers to register now at www.author101university.com.

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Meeting With Rick Frishman, Part II

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