In the sixties and seventies anyone who followed NFL football knew that Jim Marshall was a reliable player. In fact, when he retired from the Minnesota Vikings in 1979 no one in the league could match his record for consecutive starts and games played. But his otherwise spotless reputation for
The #1 question writers ask me is, “How do I get my book published?” Too often they can’t get a straight answer to that question. They get vague responses that aren’t really actionable or helpful. That’s about to change. I’m going to share six strategies that are all but fail-proof for getting
Reader David Qaoud recently asked, “I understand that email subscribers are an important part of both platform-building and selling books, but I never hear a specific number from anyone. Generally speaking, how many email subscribers do I need to get a publisher’s attention? 1,000? 10,000?” I’ll answer the question directly
How do I secure a literary agent?” This is an excellent question writers often ask me. Many publishers (including my employer, Baker Publishing Group) are explicit about not accepting submissions unless they come through an agent. So if you’re pursuing traditional publishing, getting an agent is essential. I asked this
He had done his art for over 35 years. Every morning he woke up and went to his studio. These days he was older so he limped more than walked there. He looked at his subject—some peaches on a table or apples or grapes. These simple beauties still dazzled him.
Meeting with an acquisitions editor or literary agent can feel like a mixed blessing. Getting to talk with a publishing pro about your work is obviously a great opportunity. But these meetings often come with severe time limitations, which can make the whole experience very stressful. In this article I’d
If you’re involved in creative work, whether it’s writing or leading or designing or coaching, you know what it feels like to get stuck. A question I receive regularly goes, “This project is important to me, but I’m stuck. How do I get started, and how do I finish?” We’ve
[guestpost]EDITOR’S NOTE: I’m delighted to bring you this guest post from Christa Hutchins. Christa is a writer and online marketer who specializes in coaching, project management, and administrative support for speakers, writers, and ministry leaders. She’s passionate about moving creative people from vision to action. Christa lives in South Louisiana
I confess: I love a great giveaway. One of the reasons I love them is because I’ve been the recipient of free gifts that have made a HUGE difference in my life. I also like the rebelliousness of overturning the typical money-for-service paradigm and just giving somebody a huge gift.
Not long ago my wife and I finished reading Roald Dahl’s classic Charlie and the Chocolate Factory to my son. A great feature of the particular edition we read him was an interview with the author in the back. One of the questions the interviewer posed to Dahl was, “How
Have you ever started writing a book but stalled? Do you have an unfinished manuscript or two on your hard drive? How about an unfinished book proposal? Here’s a question I heard recently: “How do I start my book project in a way that I’ll actually complete it?” That is
I’m so pleased to bring you this interview with my friend Daniel Harkavy. Daniel is the coauthor of the bestseller Living Forward: How to Stop Drifting and Get the Life You Want and the author of Becoming a Coaching Leader: The Proven System for Building Your Own Team of Champions. He’s