We wanted to get to know Laura Pennington Briggs (NAIWE’s Business of Writing Expert) better, so last month we sat down with her. Here are some thoughts she shared with us.

Do publishers favor freelancers who have agents for their nonfiction books?

Although some publishers may accept proposals for books from writers directly, this is actually quite uncommon. Agents essentially serve as gatekeepers to traditional publishers, which means that in order to get the most possible exposure for your book to publishers, it is critical to find an agent who has experience in your book’s niche. An agent shows that someone has already pre-vetted your work and believes it is appropriate for a traditional publisher.

 

Are there different types of agents or levels of agents for nonfiction books?

Some agents will have extensive experience at a high level and may be harder to access as a beginning author. This includes anyone who has placed New York Times bestsellers or works consistently with high-profile nonfiction authors.

However, almost all agents perform the same tasks for their clients, including evaluating book proposals and helping shape them into a compelling narrative, preparing the author for the submission process, submitting the book, and negotiating deals on behalf of their clients. It is important to find someone who believes in your work and someone who will advocate for you and handle communication. Since you are giving up a portion of your advance and book royalties to an agent, you want someone who is going to take some of the pressure off of you and get you the best possible deal at the best publisher.

 

Is it a best practice to have a backup agent?

It’s important to realize that when you sign a contract with an agent to place a particular book, you are obligated to work with that agent. This is why it is so important to thoroughly vet and query agents who you believe to be a good fit for your work and to communicate with them before signing any contract.

You cannot have multiple contracts with numerous agents trying to place the same book. And this would reflect very poorly on you if someone discovered it. It is far better to query your book to all prospective agents at the same time and then have conversations with the interested agents to decide on the right fit for you.

That being said, it is a good idea to have a short list of agents as some agents will never get back to you, some will decline the opportunity to work with you, and you may have multiple agents interested in your work at which point you could narrow down your list more closely. Bear in mind that many nonfiction agents only take on between one and three authors per year. So the effort you put into your book proposal and your query submission are critical for success.

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Interested in traditional publishing for nonfiction? Getting an agent to represent you may help you get the best offers and consideration from top publishers. Discover the most important tips for writing a book proposal, how to create an agent shortlist how to note and keep track of agent requests, what to ask when meeting with agents, and more. You’ll be prepared to start your query prep process!

You can join in this conversation on March 20 at 2:00 pm eastern, when NAIWE will host a discussion on working with agents. The cost for NAIWE members is only $10! Nonmembers can join for $30. Register today!

 

Laura Pennington Briggs is the founder and CEO of the Freelance Coach. A two-time TEDx speaker on how freelancing is changing the economy and the host of the weekly Advanced Freelancing podcast, Laura has helped over 15,000 freelancers start and scale their businesses. She’s an expert on systems, project and client management, marketing a solopreneur business, delegating to team members, retainers, and developing multiple income streams for writers of all stripes. Laura is the author of five books, including the Six Figure Freelancer, How to Start Your Own Freelance Writing Business, and award-winning Remote Work for Military Spouses. She’s also the founder of Operation Freelance, a national nonprofit providing free entrepreneurship training to military spouses worldwide.

We wanted to get to know Jennia D’Lima (NAIWE’s Creative Nonfiction Expert) better, so last month we sat down with her. Here are some thoughts she shared with us.

How do writers find out if their journey has an audience?

No matter what you’re writing, it never hurts to browse the bookshelves (at a bookstore, either an online or physical location, or the local library) and see both what’s already out there and what isn’t.

But first, ask yourself why the size of the audience matters; what do you hope to achieve by writing this piece? To share your unique adventures with close friends and family, to show others why this location shouldn’t be missed, or to make the bestseller lists? Doing further audience research after this question has been answered will guide you toward determining whether or not the chosen topic and/or format will need to be adjusted to reach your publication goals. For instance, if you dream of your book reaching bestseller status and a quick online search shows that the market is already flooded with books about hiking the Appalachian Trail, that might be a sign that your book would be lost amongst all the others—unless you have such a one-of-a-kind approach or experience that it’s bound to stand out.

The above question will also lead to the next question that will help determine whether your book has an audience: who is my ideal reader? If the answer is “everyone,” it’s time to niche down since there isn’t a single book that appeals to everyone (and it would be impossible to market, because how do you find out where “everyone” hangs out/what “everyone” is interested in and what appeals to them?). Once you’ve pinned down your reader, go to the places they go (hiking clubs, wine tastings, online forums) and see what the participation level is like. This could be an indicator as to the expected audience size of your published piece.

 

What style guide is the most conducive for travel writing?

That will largely depend upon the chosen structure of the writing. For example, a blog post doesn’t need to worry about style guides so much as basic grammar and spelling, while a travel memoir will likely want to refer to the Chicago Manual of Style.

 

Can authors of all genres expand their stream of income through travel writing?

Absolutely! The key is to be passionate about your chosen topic. After that, finding the right “home” for your work will ensure it reaches its intended audience. Maybe that’s on YouTube, where the text (which could be converted into a spoken component) is accompanied by photos and videos. Or perhaps you’ve created a series of shorter pieces that could be used on a pay-to-read platform. There are multiple opportunities out there, and we’ll be exploring how to find some of those in the webinar (including options for posting your work for free if turning it into a money-making endeavor isn’t your priority).

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Writers interested in recounting their journeys have various options available to them, including travelogues and multimedia accounts of globe-spanning adventures. But which form is the best fit for what they’d like to share? Does an account of cheese tasting across France need the same amount of depth and detail as a story about a six-month long retelling of a hike through each of Canada’s provinces? In this webinar, we’ll learn about some of the most popular forms of travel writing and look at how narrowing down your topic will help you choose a form and identify your audience.

You can join in this conversation on February 24 at 7:00 pm eastern, when NAIWE will host a discussion on travel writing. The cost for NAIWE members is only $10! Nonmembers can join for $30. Register today!

 

Jennia Herold D’Lima is a full-blown logophile. She joined her high school’s newspaper in ninth grade, winning statewide awards for her writing, and expanded her journalism skills by continuing to write and edit throughout her high school years and as a college freshman. While earning her BA in psychology (and minoring in cultural anthropology with a focus on precolonial Mesoamerica) and her MA in applied developmental psychology, her writing and editing naturally skewed toward all things academic. Writing for and publishing in peer-reviewed journals, editing papers for classmates, and writing parenting resource guides honed her research skills. Jennia joined multiple professor-led research groups and completed four internships throughout her academic career. After graduating with a master’s, she worked at a national nonprofit in Washington, DC, and as an assistant researcher at the University of Washington in Seattle. Jennia gradually transitioned to full-time editing. As the host of the Writing & Editing podcast, she loves connecting with others in the community. Jennia enjoys traveling, volunteering, and taking creative photos of books and book-related items in those rare moments when she is not reading or editing.

We wanted to get to know Karin Beery (NAIWE’s Fiction Expert) better, so last month we sat down with her. Here are some thoughts she shared with us.

Why do writers get caught in a telling cycle?

It depends on which type of telling you’re referring to, as there are two types, which I refer to as “big” telling and “little” telling. Big telling refers to info dumps — any time an author stops the story to explain something, usually back story. In most of those cases, I don’t think the authors trust themselves or their readers: they don’t trust themselves to weave the details into the story and they don’t trust their readers to notice and remember those details. Little telling is often a case of rushing. It’s faster (and easier) to write she was beautiful than to describe her through the point-of-view of the character’s eyes.

 

Do you recommend that writers develop characters before writing the scenes?

It depends on the writer. If the writer is okay making revisions to the story, then it’s okay to draft scenes before knowing all the details about a character (I’m a better editor than writer, so I rewrite a lot). If the writer doesn’t want to make a lot of revisions to the story, it’s crucial to understand as much as possible about a character before beginning to write the story. In either case, having a basic knowledge of characters is a must.

 

Would you suggest writers work with developmental editors to help fix mistakes?

Again, it depends on the writer and their goals. If writers are in a rush to finish a story and submit it, developmental editors can speed up the process, as it takes years to develop fiction-writing skills. I do recommend developmental editors to new writers who aren’t getting any responses to their query letters–a good editor can help them spot any plot/character issues that might be turning away agents and publishers.

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Take your self-editing skills to the next level.

• Have you eliminated all the telling?
• Are the characters complex?
• Is every scene necessary?

Most authors will answer “yes!” to these questions. But then editors and readers tell them the descriptions don’t engage them, the characters are stereotypical, and the story dragged.

How do you fix it? By training your writer’s brain to read with an editor’s eye and by recruiting some outside help. In this workshop, we’ll look at common mistakes novelists make, then learn how to identify and fix them.

You can join in this conversation on January 13 at 7:00 pm eastern, when NAIWE will host a discussion on improving your self-editing skills. The cost for NAIWE members is only $10! Nonmembers can join for $30. Register today!

 

Karin Beery is an award-winning author and editor with experience in traditional and self-publishing, freelance editing, and editing for publishers. She is an active member of Advanced Writers and Speakers Association, Christian Authors Network, and the Christian Proofreaders and Editors Network. Karin’s specialty is substantive fiction editing with an emphasis in romance and women’s fiction.

We wanted to get to know Rachel Bradley (NAIWE’s Copyediting Expert) better, so last month we sat down with her. Here are some thoughts she shared with us.

What does working efficiently entail for you?

Working efficiently means being able to produce the highest quality work in the shortest amount of time. Not only does this require an understanding of how to use software tools, but it also requires knowing how to take care of your most valuable assets—your brain and body. So not only do we need to be familiar with MS Word and CMOS Online, but we also need to know how to prioritize the things in life that will promote brain health and mental health.

 

Would you turn down a project that has the same deadline as another project that you have already accepted?

Sure, and no. It depends on the situation. I include in all of my contracts that deadlines are dependent upon Kingdom of God priorities per James 4:13–17. My whole life belongs to Jesus Christ, and I have an active and vibrant relationship with him. So I literally ask him which jobs he wants me to take and which jobs he wants me to pass on. I attribute the success of my business entirely to this relationship. If a second job came along with the same deadline as the first, I would check my schedule and let the Holy Spirit speak to me about whether I’ll be able to fulfill the commitment or not. I often have multiple projects going at the same time, as I plan and schedule my days to allow for more than one project.

 

How do you respond to daily stress and turn it into a motivator in your freelance business?

Interesting question. I’ve been very intentional to not allow stress to motivate me in any way, although sometimes I fail at that. I live my life counter culture. When stress manifests as a form of pressure, fear, or worry, I check my heart to see what I’m afraid or worried about or where the pressure is coming from, and I talk with my Heavenly Father about the truth of his love until we drive that fear or pressure out. You see, creativity doesn’t flourish in an environment of stress and worry. Writing and editing are creative endeavors and require us to be relaxed and feel safe in order to produce our very best. So finding a way to produce our best, while also doing it as fast as possible is the secret to efficiency.

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In this webinar, Rachel Bradley will teach you how to use online tools like Microsoft Word 365 and The Chicago Manual of Style Online to streamline your copyediting process. In addition to being a professional editor, Rachel is a follower of Jesus Christ. In this webinar she will also share how her relationship with Father God through his Holy Spirit plays a vital role in working efficiently, meeting proposed deadlines, and running a business with minimal stress. Rachel’s spiritual beliefs do not reflect the position of NAIWE as an organization. Instead, they are inherent to her personal identity and success as an expert in her field.

You can join in this conversation on December 18 at 2:00 pm eastern, when NAIWE will host a discussion on maximizing your marketing efforts. The cost for NAIWE members is only $10! Nonmembers can join for $30. Register today!

 

Rachel E. Bradley holds a BS degree in paralegal studies from Northeastern State University in Oklahoma and graduated summa cum laude in 2006. She is a gold member of the Christian PEN: Proofreaders and Editors Network, is an established freelance editor with the Christian Editor Connection, is an instructor with the PEN Institute, is a judge for the Editors’ Choice Award, and has served as faculty for PENCON, the only conference for editors in the Christian market. After serving nine years in the legal field and becoming an advanced certified paralegal, Rachel started her business as a freelance editor and indexer. She now owns Revisions by Rachel Inc. In 2018, she lost her first husband, Matthew, after an intense battle with brain cancer. She now edits with a new understanding and a fierce compassion for people who feel broken and hurt. In celebration of continued life and hope, she became a licensed skydiver and takes to the skies with her rainbow canopy, “Promises,” any chance she gets. In early 2021, she asked God to choose her next husband. In an incredible tale of trusting God and giving him her yes without exception, she is now joyfully married to Alexander Bradley. They have been assigned the awe-inspiring and continually humbling task of raising two incredible children. Beyond reading, Rachel enjoys Bible studies, dancing during church worship, skydiving, swing dancing, rock climbing, reading, teaching, discussing important issues, watching Star Trek, sewing, cooking, Pilates, horseback riding, water sports, playing guitar, and snow skiing.