PART 5YOUR WORKBOOK

Hooking, Pitching + Mobilizing Your Allies

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“There is no such thing as public opinion. There is only published opinion.”

—Winston Churchill

You’re at a cocktail party.

Everyone you want to impress is there. Some dapper mademoiselle / fellow leans in and asks,“So... what’s your book about?”

You’ve got 15 seconds to captivate the entire room.And... GO.

“My book? It’s about...

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It’s like ______________________________ meets ______________________________,

with a dash of ____________________________________.

And it’s going to ______________________________ the world, so you might want to jump on my

pre-sale mailing list, at _______________________________________.com.”

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List 10 life-changing people.

People (agents, publishers, celebrities) you’d LOVE to pitch your book to, if you had unlimited courage and chutzpah (turns out, you do)—and then in the adjacent column, list one brilliant / zany / provoca-tive thing you could feasibly do, to capture their attention.

Literary life-changers to pitch Why they’ll stop and take notice

e.g.: Ellen DeGeneres e.g.: I’ll send her and Portia a vegan birthday cake with a copy of my Raw Gluten-free Cookbook, and a query letter (with an endorsement from her TV show’s assistant producer) that underscores my commitment to donate 10% of my book profits to animal rescue centers. Bam.

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List 10 people in your immediate orbit.

People who could potentially connect or introduce you to your first agent, publishing rep or power endorser. Think: respected niche superstars of your industry. And then in the adjacent column, jot down how you’ll reach out to them.

Low-hanging fruit, connectors, influencers, and untapped advocates

How you’ll reach out

My former boss, with public radio contacts

I’ll make a coffee date and tell her about my latest book project, and my ambitions to share my story on NPR. And I’ll leave her with an uncorrected proof and my media kit. And her favorite chili-flake chocolate bar.

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Investigate your own worldor website, or blog, or database, or email archives, or love letters in a shoe box, and find 10 pieces of praise from readers, clients, friends, customers & fans—about you, your writing, or anything related to your work in the world.

Paste them here. Anything you could weave into a query letter or hook page?

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Uh-oh. It’s the apocalypse.

The earth is about to swallow you whole. You’ve got 15 (maybe 20) seconds to live.Before you’re engulfed by lava and flames, shout out to the heavens—

The reason your book NEEDS to be born...

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THE AERIAL VIEW“People don’t buy what you do; they buy what you stand for.”

—Simon Sinek, author of Start With Why

1. Again, louder, and this time with feeling: what is your book is about?

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2. Once more, for real this time: why should your book be written?

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3. How are you going to get the book written? What’s your completion date? And how much is already done?

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4. Why are you The Writer for the job? (Brag like your book depends on it.)

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ALL ABOUT YOU“You are a symphony waiting to express itself in the world.”

—Michael Ellsberg, author of The Education of Millionaires

Qualifications + Street Cred.

List 5 things that are utterly extraordinary about YOU: your academic training (or wild success, despite lack thereof), obstacles overcome, diseases battled & thwarted, global travels, philanthropic miracles, previously published work, teaching + public speaking experience, media coverage + buzz, built-in audience + online presence...

I’m ahh-mazing because:

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Your epic hotness, as relayed by a friend.

Now, ask a friend (someone who adores you, believes in you, and remembers key life pivots and accolades you’ve long since forgotten) to list 5 things that are utterly extraordinary about YOU.

See if they match up with your list. Or throw you in a whole new spotlight.

(My friend thinks) I’m ahh-mazing because:

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YOUR BOOK, AT A SPRINT: CHAPTER RUN-DOWNS

“Vigorous writing is concise.”

—William Strunk, Jr.

Paste (or jot down) the skeletal structure of your book — otherwise known as your Table of Contents — right here.

Write a mini-description for each chapter or section. Aim for 4–5 sentences, max.

Think: compelling & memorable movie trailer, not cramming-for-an-exam CliffsNotes.

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WHO’S BUYING, BABE?: DEFINING YOUR MARKET

“What if you could only do one thing to market your book? Write as if this is your last book. Ever. Your legacy.”

—Jonathan Fields, author of Uncertainty

Spill the demographic details on your target (or primary) market.

Made up of the most people who are the most obvious, natural fit to buy your book.

Gender: __________________________________ Age: ______________________________________

Occupation: __________________________________________________________________________

Education: ___________________________________________________________________________

Core values: _________________________________________________________________________

Political slant: _________________________________________________________________________

Married / single / it’s complicated: ______________________________________________________

Straight / queer / it’s complicated: _______________________________________________________

Favorite stores: ________________________________________________________________________

Favorite brands: _______________________________________________________________________

Reads + subscribes to: _________________________________________________________________

Watches + listens to: ___________________________________________________________________

Aspires to be like: _____________________________________________________________________

Totally repulsed by: ____________________________________________________________________

Reads your book, and feels: _____________________________________________________________

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Describe your secondary market.

Made up of the smaller group of people who will have some interest in your book.

Gender: __________________________________ Age: ______________________________________

Occupation: __________________________________________________________________________

Education: ___________________________________________________________________________

Core values: _________________________________________________________________________

Political slant: _________________________________________________________________________

Married / single / it’s complicated: ______________________________________________________

Straight / queer / it’s complicated: _______________________________________________________

Favorite stores: ________________________________________________________________________

Favorite brands: _______________________________________________________________________

Reads + subscribes to: _________________________________________________________________

Watches + listens to: ___________________________________________________________________

Aspires to be like: _____________________________________________________________________

Totally repulsed by: ____________________________________________________________________

Reads your book, and feels: _____________________________________________________________

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Is your book aimed at a specific niche?

People with IQs over 150? Pregnant women interested in natural childbirth? Young activists with envi-ronmental ambitions?

Describe your niche, with borderline-insane specificity:

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Who will declare your book a “must-read?”

List 5 organizations / schools / societies / target demographics who will flip their lid as they flip your pages.

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SPREADING THE GOSPEL: PR + MEDIA

“Make it simple. Make it memorable. Make it inviting to look at. Make it fun to read.”—Leo Burnett, advertising exec + creator of the Jolly Green Giant, Toucan Sam, the Pillsbury Doughboy and Tony the Tiger

List 5 things YOU can doto spread the good word about your great book.

e.g.: pitch radio producers for interview appearances, offer a sample chapter to everyone on my mailing list, launch a blog contest to give away free copies + ignite my readers...

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List 5 things YOU can delegate to prosto spread the good word even further. farther. whatever.

e.g.: hire a social media strategist to get my Facebook fan page rockin’, work with a graphic designer to create promotional blog badges for my blog readers to grab, hire a copywriter to crank out the World’s Greatest Press Release...

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RULING (OUT) YOUR COMPETITORS

“I have no friends and no enemies — only competitors.”

—Aristotle Onassis

Justify the need for your book.

List 5 books that are very-very-similar to yours, and then describe why your book is different / better / more spectacular / more relevant, in the adjacent column.

Very-very-similar books Why mine is 1,000% better

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INSPIRATION, PERSPIRATION + ADVANCED CREATIVE HERMITUDE

“Show up, pay attention, tell the truth, and don’t be attached to results.”

—Rosellen Brown, author of Half A Heart, and nine other books

Your Best Case Scenario, with a cherry on top.

How will you FEEL when your book is finished, printed, and being cradled by adoring readers?

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What will speed up or sky-rocket, for your life / career / affluence level / fame?

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How will the world be a happier, more informed, charmed or evolved place to live, with your book on the shelves?

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What will your mom / auntie / Oprah / someone whose opinion you value say about you, and your literary achievement?

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How will you leverage your newfound cash / social currency / influence / prestige?Which rainforest will you purchase, to save from devastation? How many Emperor Penguins will you adopt? How many aspiring artists will you serve + inspire?

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Your Worst Case Scenario, with a side of perspective.

Who will you (still) be, if your manuscript never gets accepted for publication?A great mom? A stellar professor? An ambitious ‘preneur? A crusader for justice?

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How many rejection letters are you willing to tolerate, till you switch to Plan B?10? 25? 50? 200?

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What is Plan B, anyway?Self-publishing? Breaking your best chapters into a digital workshop? Parading nude in front of Random House, till someone offers you a trench coat, or a book deal?

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On your deathbed, what will matter to you far more than getting this book published?

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(Good answer.)

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Your Creative Hermit Stop-doing List

What are you going to STOP DOING immediately, to clear space for extreme creativity?What can you cancel, postpone, delegate, or straight-up slash from your obligation-load? Dropping off dry-cleaning? Checking email more than thrice a day? Cooking a roast chicken dinner every Sunday night?

List three things, minimum. Ten, if you’re serious.

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Your Creative Hermit “Vacation” Auto-responder

You don’t necessarily have to use this, but once you fill it out, we guarantee you’ll be itching to notify the universe that you’re blissfully unavailable. Thank you + goodnight.

Hey there,

True fact: I’m writing a book. It’s called ____________________________________________ [ TITLE ], and it’s going to change the way people think about __________________________ [ TOPIC ] forever.

In the spirit of epic creativity, deadline-hitting and finish line cheers, I’m checking my email very spar-ingly — and replying even less.

My manuscript is due on ____________________ [ DATE ], and I’ll be back in the virtual world semi-shortly after that.

If you’ve got something urgent to convey, please hit up my assistant at __________________ [ EMAIL ], send me a tropical postcard, or holler on Twitter.

With love, gratitude, and deep respect for your missive...

___________________________________ [ YOUR NAME ]Aspiring (+ Perspiring) Author-in-the-making

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Your Creative Hermit Reward Bucket

List ten mini-treats you’ll give yourself, every time you cross 2,000 words (or some other milestone of your own devising).

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And the ULTIMATE, finish line reward(to be experienced right after you type “The End”) is:

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“Love is the outreach of self toward completion.”

—Ralph W. Sockman