So you want to write a book?

Having worked in the publishing industry for over a decade, I’ve had a fair number of people tell me, “I want to write a book.”  I congratulate them on embarking on this exciting project and they inevitably ask me, “So…how do I do that?”

No question that writing a book is an extremely time-consuming, arduous task.  But getting it published can sometimes be just as difficult as writing it.  For those writing nonfiction books, the first task is to write a compelling proposal.  Then comes the hard part: finding a literary agent to represent your work.

My recommendation: find as reputable an agent as possible.  A literary agent that is widely respected by publishers and has excellent publishing contacts is well worth the 15% fee.  In my next blog post, I’ll give you some tips on creating an engaging proposal.

Nicole Kalian Abbott, Senior Account Supervisor at JCPR. Nicole worked previously as an associate director of publicity at Simon & Schuster in New York.