How Many Book Covers Have You Designed?

The first question you have to ask your book cover designer is how many covers they’ve actually designed you want someone has experience with the cover designs because they are different than other graphic designs. Someone may be very good at designing business logos, but that does not mean that they are good at designing the perfect book cover. If you want to be able to sell your book, then you’re going to have to have a great cover design.

Have You Read My Book?

You also want to know whether or not they have read your book. If they have not read your book or lease know what it is about, then they are not going to have very good success at design e-book cover design that fits your book. You want readers to be able to look at your cover and choose to buy, but when they are finished reading it they should also understand how the book cover design fits in with the book.

What Are Your Ideas for My Book Cover Design?

Ask your designer what sort of ideas they have for your book cover design. If you can get some of the ideas from them, then you will know what sort of designs they are planning and can veto any ideas that do not fit your own idea of what your cover should be. While you should give your cover designers some leeway, they should still be designing something you want.

Where Do You Get Your Stock Photos?

Something else that you should be asking them is where they get their stock photos. A good book cover designer will get their stock photos from a legitimate stock photo site and have permission to use them. If they are getting their stock photos from somewhere that they do not have permission to use, then your book cover design is useless because someone could easily sue you for your cover design and take all of the money you’ve made from your book.

Do You Offer Any Guarantees?

Finally, you should ask your cover designer if they offer any guarantees. Your book cover designer should be able to offer some sort of guarantee you will like the design that they choose or they will fix it for you. If not, then you may want to move on to a different designer.

If you’re ever looking to hire a book cover designer, check out Reedsy

The Book Proposal Outline

When it comes to writing a book proposal, there is a certain outline that you should follow. Not every successful book proposal follows this exact outline, but a pretty big percentage of them do. More importantly, most of the rejected book proposals have outlines that are very different from this one. If you want your book proposal to be successful, then you may want to look at this outline and consider using it for your own proposal. Your goal is to get published, and this proposal outline can definitely help you get there.

The Overview

The first thing you need is an overview of your book. In a small paragraph, let a publisher or agent know why they should consider your book for publication. An overview usually consists of 3-4 sentences and includes only the most important information.

Target Audience

Next, you need to think about who your target audience is. Make sure that you know who your book is most likely to be read by and that you are familiar with the demographics of that target audience. If you can show your publisher that you know who to target, they will have a much easier time approving your book for publication.

About the Author

You also want to make sure that you include information about yourself – especially if you have already published books in the same genre or if you have expertise that specifically lends itself to book marketing. For example, if you are a doctor with expertise in health care, then that would be relevant information to include if you have written a book on health care. However, it would not be relevant if you have written a mystery novel (unless it is a medical mystery).

Marketing Plan

You should also come up with a marketing plan that demonstrates what ideas you have for marketing the book and shows publishers just how far you are willing to go to make your book sell. Remember, they are looking to make a profit, so if your book is good, and you are willing to promote it, they will be more willing to publish it.

Competitive Titles

You will also need to include other books that you think could compete with yours – but even more importantly, you should include reasons why your book totally blows them out of the water. Make sure that your publishers know that even if your book has competition; that you are able to present the ideas better than other books.

Chapter Outline

A chapter outline will give your publisher a chance to see the finished book (even if it isn’t fully complete yet). You simply list your chapters, and then you list a short summary of each one. This allows your publishers to see exactly what your book is about in an easy-to-read overview.

Sample Chapter(s)

Finally, make sure that you are including at least one sample chapter. Some agents and publishers may actually let you know how many sample chapters to send.

For more information on how to do a book proposal, check out Reedsy

Is Writer’s Block a Myth?

No one really knows what causes writers block, which is led some writers to conclude that it doesn’t really exist. Of course, for the millions of writers who have gotten stuck for days or weeks due to writers block, this argument doesn’t hold much water. But you definitely should consider the possibility the writer’s block may not be an actual thing, but simply a symptom of another problem entirely. That starts with understanding exactly what causes writers block in the first place, and knowing what sort of steps you should be taking to fix the problem. Fire up your BBQ Grill and make yourself a delicious meal, and let’s look at writers block in more detail.

One of the things that cause writers block is self-doubt. Many writers experience this problem when they first start writing. They don’t believe that they can actually finish a story or novel or whatever they are working on. Even when they finish something, they do not believe that they will actually get anything published. Having the self-doubts is simply part of being a writer. But all too often, this doubt causes you to get stuck in a cycle that makes you think it’s not even worth it to write. The only cure for this doubt in the writers block the comes with it is to continue writing and prove to yourself that you do have what it takes.

Something else that can cause writers block is a problem in the story. In this case, writers block is not so much a myth as it is a symptom of the problem. For example, you may have written something previously that doesn’t make sense with what you are currently writing. You may not even remember what that is, but your subconscious mind does. Sometimes you have to go back and figure out where that problem is and corrected before you can move on. However, pro writers will tell you to let the scene go where ever it is that it wants to go, and then worry about fixing the mistakes such as continuity later on.

People sometimes get stuck because they are trying to force characters to do things that they do not want to do. In other words, your subconscious mind knows the kind of character that you have created. In fact, your subconscious mind knows a lot more about your character than your conscious one does. When you try to force the character to do something that is against his or her nature, or does not make sense in the story, then you get stuck and you feel like you are forcing it. This can bring your story to a grinding halt as well.

The bottom line is that although writers block is not necessarily a myth, it is not as big of a problem as people think it is. In fact, you are the one that gives it all of its power. If you refuse to acknowledge the power of writers block and continue writing no matter what, you will find it has very little effect on you.

For more information about writer’s block and other self-publishing/writing help, check out Maureen Crisp’s blog

What’s the Recommended Length for a Novel’s Chapters?

Have you ever pick up a book with a super compelling title and a description that you were so captivated by that you couldn’t wait to sit down and start reading? But, once you dove in, did you find that the chapters were just too darn long?

If so, you are not alone. A lot of readers complain that they don’t like to engage with books that have chapters that are super long and drawn out. Why? – Because they want to be able to finish a chapter in a single sitting, and for most readers, a single sitting is about 10 to 15 minutes. If the chapters in a novel are too long, chances are that they are going to struggle with finishing a chapter in one sitting.

So, with that said, the question: “How long should the chapters in my novel be?” is begged.

The answer to that can be really tricky. However, here’s a look at what famed authors, publishers, and literary agents have to say on the topic…

What’s the Perfect Length for a Novel’s Chapters?

On average, most authors, agents, and publishers recommend keeping the chapters of a novel to about 2,000 words. That seems to be the perfect number because the average reader can get through that amount in a single sitting. It’s not too much that it seems to be long and drawn out, it’s easily digestible, and enough drama can be built or questions can be answered in a 2,000 word chapter.

Now, that is not to say that a chapter can’t be longer. It certainly can be. In fact, there are plenty of acclaimed novels that feature chapters that are significantly longer – up to 6,000 words! But, the key here is that they are usually books that are written for older audiences or are genres that are expected to have long-winded chapters, such as science fiction or fantasy.

You can also have chapters that are fewer than 2,000 words. Just like there are plenty of famed books that have longer chapters, there are dozens that feature chapters that are shorter than 2,000 word. Some chapters may not even reach the 1,000 word mark! But, if you’re going to do that, you really have to make sure that the chapter is truly thrilling and captivating. Additionally, you should consider following up with a longer chapter. Doing so will help to keep the reader’s momentum going and make them want to dive right into a longer chapter that can answer more questions.

The Bottom Line

In short, there isn’t a specific rule that applies when determining the appropriate length for a chapter. While 2,000 words is recommended, you certainly don’t have to stick to it. You can have a very successful book with chapters that are shorter or longer than 2,000 words; however, just make sure that you are filling them appropriately. Remember: your goal is to entertain your audience and keep their attention. In other words, write what you think works best for your story.

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