Welcome Nina Amir with a post worth checking out whether you are seeking to be traditionally published or self-published. And speaking of worth checking out, if you are serious about finding success, The Author Training Manual is a must read!
How to Create a Business Plan for Your Book
For many years, traditional publishers have required majority of authors to produce business plans for their books. These plans are most often referred to as book proposals. While self-published authors don’t need proposals, every book should start with a business plan.
If you plan to self-publish, as the publishers of your own book, you alone must determine if your books are viable business propositions. If you traditionally publish, you rely on agents, and, ultimately, acquisitions editors, to make this determination, and these publishing professionals do so, at least initially, using the book proposal you prepare. More and more often, writers in all genres, even fiction, who seek traditional publishing deals are asked to turn in a proposal akin to a nonfiction book proposal.
No matter how you want to publish, and whether you write fiction or nonfiction, you should produce a business plan for each and every book you write and publish—before writing a word of your manuscript.
How do you do this? Here are nine questions to help you accumulate the necessary information for the basic sections of a proposal or business plan. Treat each one of these questions as a section of a proposal or business plan.
- What’s Your Book About and Why Would Someone Want to Read (Buy) It?
Overview—a compelling summary of the book and its benefits
Publishing professionals must be able to tell from reading just one or two pages if your proposed book interests them and has sales potential. If you self-publish, you need to convince yourself that your book is viable and worth investing time and money in. Think of this as your marketing copy.
- Who Will Read (Buy) Your Book?
Market Analysis—an argument for the potential audience size
Prove that the market for your book is large, or, if small, has a true need for what you have to offer and is willing to spend money on it. Your book must have an audience to earn back the investment made in it—by your or by a publisher.
- Is Your Book Unique and Necessary?
Competing Books—an evaluation of how your book differs and improves upon published titles and is necessary in the chosen category
Complete an analysis of bestselling books that represent competition to prove your book has the potential to sell well and stand out from top-selling titles in the category. Do this also to feel certain you are writing a book that doesn’t duplicate 100 others already published.
Complete an analysis of bestselling books that represent competition to prove your book has the potential to sell well and stand out from top-selling titles in the category. Do this also to feel certain you are writing a book that doesn’t duplicate 100 others already published.
- Do You Have Enough Content to Fill a Book?
Table of Contents—the structure of your book
Create a snapshot of your whole book that is compelling, makes sense, appears comprehensive, and reassures you, and possibly an acquisitions editor, that you know how you will put the material together.
Create a snapshot of your whole book that is compelling, makes sense, appears comprehensive, and reassures you, and possibly an acquisitions editor, that you know how you will put the material together.
- How Will You Describe Your Book’s Content?
Chapter Summaries or Synopsis—a chapter-by-chapter synopsis of your entire book or a synopsis
Elaborate on your nonfiction book’s content by summarizing every chapter. Even if you write fiction, this is a great planning addition to a plan; however, most business plans for novels just have a synopsis.
Elaborate on your nonfiction book’s content by summarizing every chapter. Even if you write fiction, this is a great planning addition to a plan; however, most business plans for novels just have a synopsis.
- How Will You Ensure You and Your Book Succeed?
Promotion Plan—a mini-plan that details how you will help sell your book upon release to your target market
Create a concrete and believable promotion plan for your book based upon your pre-promotion efforts and your market analysis.
- Why You Are the Best Person to Write This Book?
Author Bio—your credentials
Write a biography that makes an acquisitions editor or reader feel confident in you as a writer and/or an authority.
Write a biography that makes an acquisitions editor or reader feel confident in you as a writer and/or an authority.
Author Platform Description—an illustration of the built-in audience you have created in your books’ target market
Indicate the size or engagement level of your author platform to show that you have pre-promoted yourself and your book and can help sell it.
Indicate the size or engagement level of your author platform to show that you have pre-promoted yourself and your book and can help sell it.
- Is This the Only Book You Will Write on This Topic?
Spin-offs—a demonstration that you are a multiple-book author
Publishers prefer to work with writers who have many book ideas. Writers with more than one book make sell more books (make more money). Explains that you plan to write a series, sequels or a follow-up book.
Publishers prefer to work with writers who have many book ideas. Writers with more than one book make sell more books (make more money). Explains that you plan to write a series, sequels or a follow-up book.
Additional Questions for Indie Authors
If you self-publish, answer these final questions to create some additional sections in your business plan:
- What are My Definition and Vision of Success?
- What are My Long Term Goals?
- What Resources are Necessary to Complete the Book?
- At What Point Will I Break-Even Financially?
- How Do I Determine Profit and Loss?
- What are My Deadlines and Timelines?
- Who are My Contractors?
- What Licenses or Legal Documents Do I Need?
- How Will I Brand Myself?
Once you have answered all these questions and placed the information into a document, you have created a business plan for your book.
Thank you, Nina, for stopping by All Things Audry. I have purchased a copy of The Author Training Manual and have learned valuable information that I can not wait to put into practice. Also, thank you to Jodi Webb for including All Things Audry on this blog tour (and for your patience!). To learn more about Nina Amir's blog tour, go to WOW! Women on Writing.
About the Author
Nina Amir, author of How to Blog a Book: Write, Publish, and Promote Your Work One Post at a Time and The Author Training Manual: Develop Marketable Ideas, Craft Books That Sell, Become the Author Publishers Want, and Self-Publish Effectively, transforms writers into inspired, successful authors, authorpreneurs and blogpreneurs. Known as the Inspiration to Creation Coach, she moves her clients from ideas to finished books as well as to careers as authors by helping them combine their passion and purpose so they create products that positively and meaningfully impact the world. A sought-after author, book, blog-to-book, and results coach, some of Nina’s clients have sold 300,000+ copies of their books, landed deals with major publishing houses and created thriving businesses around their books. She writes four blogs, self-published 12 books and founded National Nonfiction Writing Month, aka the Write Nonfiction in November Challenge. 
To learn more about Nina, visit www.ninaamir.com. Get a FREE 5-Day Become a Published Author Series from her when you click here.
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