Trying to think of a catchy title for a book proposal workshop.

I’ll update as soon as I can think of one.

2024 Dates TBA

We’ll keep this simple: You need a book proposal, or know you’ll need one soon. Let’s do it together.

First, who am I to teach this workshop?

Well, I sold my memoir, I’m Just Happy to Be Here, on proposal to Hachette Books, and it was published in 2018. When I created that proposal, I had a 50k-word, very rough first draft of my book and that’s it. I worked with an incredible agent who gave me advice that helped me turn that rough draft into a book outline and proposal, including multiple full chapters. Two publishers bid on it and it sold in a six-figure deal. I know it’s tacky to talk about money but also fuck it.

Hopefully you know me better than to think I’m going to pretend I have some silver bullet to six-figure book deals. I’m not even sure how it happened for me, particularly considering the fact that mainstream corporate publishing is known to involve a mysterious blend of social media numbers, talent, skill, and interplanetary witchcraft.

I do know that the 6 years of work I put into my blog and social media played a big part in that in addition to the decades I put toward studying writing and becoming the best writer I can. That last part is, of course, a forever process.

I am working on a second proposal and I have ghost-written and developmentally edited multiple proposals for other writers, many of which sold to “Big 5” publishers (is that even the goal? Can’t we go with anarchist feminist publishers like Ursula K Le Guin? Why do we make art? What are we doing here? DOES ANYTHING

neither is the proposal

MATTER?).

Setting aside my existential dread, I’ll tell you what in my opinion is just as important as experience: the ability to understand books in a holistic, big-picture sense. This is my natural way of seeing stories (and the world), and it’s what I love the most as a teacher, mentor, and editor. Helping writers see the connections between elements of their plot, narrative, and characters IS THE FUCKING JOY OF MY LIFE. Why am I yelling.

Anyway, from that pulled-back perspective we can center our work rhetorically in a particular cultural context and audience, find and strengthen voice, and organize that shit. You know, like into chapters and a book proposal.

I sometimes use spreadsheets. Color-coded. Get into it. Writing, in my experience, is an interesting blend of wild, directionless creativity and the type of creativity that comes from careful, systematic analysis, logic, and critical consideration. We’ll talk about that.

In this workshop you will be given hands-on prompts and assistance to see your work from way up high, to find connections between elements of literary work. Yes you are writing literature, as am I; we are all Leo Fucking Tolstoy.

You’ll learn how to write a book proposal and end the workshop with a book overview and/or chapter outline, yes, but you’ll also see your work in more depth and complexity through the process of creating that overview and outline. Sometimes we write layers we aren’t even consciously aware of. It can take other people (say for example a writing group) to show us what our creative selves have created behind our backs.

A good proposal needs to set you book apart from the 9 million books an hour publishers receive, and it needs to really show who YOU are as a writer–your voice and perspective–and clarify why these publishers should give a shit about this particular piece of writing.

So let’s do this.

The overall objective of this workshop is to get you clarity on what your book is about, its intended audience/marketing potential (puke but let’s be real), and have you leave with a full chapter outline and/or book overview, and notes on all of the main sections.

It will focus on the construction of a book proposal as well as the content, so don’t be afraid if you don’t know which sections are even supposed to be there. Also, there isn’t a uniform way to do proposals; I later learned that mine didn’t have certain sections other writers have included. We’ll discuss this.

It is a 4-week, 8-hour workshop (2 hours/week) of only 8 people. Hands on, with direct feedback from me and others in the workshop, you will have a special 30-minute period focused entirely on YOU and your proposal. Everyone will have read your draft overview or chapter outline with summaries, and we will engage in a guided, chill, safe, kind, non-scary–okay you get the picture–feedback session.

Yes, that means I’m going to ask you to write the chapter outline and/or overview. Rude, I know. But I presume we’re here to get shit done.

Note: Before the workshop you will receive a copy of my book proposal, and we’ll use that as a shared document to reference. 

The workshop will focus on the following: 

Pre-workshop activities:

• You’ll be given my proposal to read in advance of the workshop.
• 1-2 prompts/”assignments” from me to create a book overview or chapter outline in advance of the workshop. This is a very rough draft just to give you something to work with. A stab at it. An attempt. A useless piece of bullshit to throw into a canal. SO CHILL OUT.
• From pre-workshop throughout workshop: Weekly optional Zoom writing sessions/accountability group where we get together and work for an hour, silently, together. Unbelievably effective.

Week 1
Hour 1, Discussion: Your particular book: This week we’ll figure out what your book is about and what sets it apart from other books on this theme. We will learn how this information guides the entire proposal, including voice and tone, audience, and which chapters to highlight. Focus this week is on chapter outline and overview.

Hour 2, feedback for two writers on their chapter outline/overview. Note: If you are sharing your overview/outline on week 1, you’l receive email support from me in advance of the workshop. We’ll make sure you have a decent draft for the group to workshop. 

Week 2
Discussion: Elements of a Proposal: The sections, and definitions of each. The length of the proposal. Perspective, tone, and voice questions/norms. Defining audience. Determining which chapters to include. Different genre expectations. (Hour 2 is feedback.)

Week 3
Actually making those sections: We’ll go into depth here on all the components of a proposal not already discussed. sections not already discussed. We’ll focus mainly this week on “about the author” sections, comp titles, finding blurbs, and marketing/platform sections. Discussion will be tailored to the group’s needs and interests, but we’ll look deeply how to find comp titles, writers to blurb your book, and address social media presence and platform. Essentially, if week two is “what,” week three is “how.” (Hour 2 is feedback.)

Week 4
Submission: Writing a query letter. Agent or no agent? Finding the right agent. The publishing process, advance/royalty questions, and detailed advice on how to repair your soul after your run-in with corporate publishing. Types of publishing and pros/cons of each: traditional, self, hybrid. Open Q&A. (Hour 2 is feedback.)

In more detail, we will address all of the following. I realize this is a bit redundant. And yet I feel the need to include. May edit later: 

1. Defining the story and plot of your book: timelines, main characters, major themes, key scenes that will ground the plot and narrative
2. Key elements of a proposal, technicalities/norms: length, sections, tense, perspective, etc.
3. If nonfiction: defining thematic through-lines, primary and secondary arguments of book and evolution of same, including counterarguments and support of claims
4. Exploring tone and voice to get an idea of what kind of book we’re making here (humorous, deep, self-help, academic, multi-genre, etc.)
5. Defining key audiences (primary and secondary audience), which allows us to make rhetorical choices surrounding previous three bullets, and create marketing/comp sections of proposal
6. Creation of chapter outline and summaries of chapters
7. Deciding which 1-3 chapters will be included in full for the proposal, and how to do that
8. Finding an agent and writing a query letter, and/or submitting without an agent (pros & cons)

Feedback sessions will focus on: 

• voice and tone

• organization & structure

• maximizing effectiveness with the articulated audience

• any conflicts/holes/underdeveloped themes or conceptual threads (or how to enhance themes & through-lines)

• suggestions for narrative arc/storytelling to keep readers engaged and explore your themes through storytelling as opposed to exposition

Dates: 

Enrollment: 8

All of the options below can be paid in installments. Please email me to set this up.

Option I: €385* (Please note refund policy below)

Includes:

• Four 2-hour workshops
• Weekly prompts for guiding your book proposal process
• Email guidance before the workshop on creating an outline or overview
• A copy of my book proposal (and others if my friends agree to share)
• My feedback and the group’s input on your chapter outline or overview (we are focusing on this because they’re the main sections, and once you have clarity on these, you’re good)
• Weekly online accountability sessions (optional)
• Invitation to private Facebook group/writing community

Option II: €495*

All of option I plus:

• 30-minute video conference before the workshop to discuss your project
• 1-hour video conference after the workshop to discuss your project, materials created during workshop, and how to move forward

Options III: €995*

All of options I & II plus:

• Developmental edit of your full proposal (max 15k words=around 60 pages) (can be used up to a year after the workshop). Note: I just made up the “up to a year” thing so you have a deadline to beat yourself up with so you actually do it. You could send it to me in 4 years and I’d be happy to read it. JUST KIDDING THERE IS A REAL DEADLINE AND I AM A REAL STICKLER FOR RULES SO DON’T FUCK THIS UP.

*Refund Policy: I offer a full refund as requested on or before September 3, 2023. From September 4, 2023, through September 18, 2023, I can offer a 50% refund. After September 18, 2023, I cannot provide a refund. By signing up for this workshop, you are agreeing to this refund policy.