Time to Write

Getting back to my writing roots I’ve decided to update Hollywood and Catholic Women for a 2nd edition. But instead of relying on self-publishing this time out, I’m taking the plunge and applying to academic publishers. That means developing a non-fiction book proposal which I’ve never done before, but it’s proving to be a learning experience.

A non-fiction book proposal is divided into several sections and since this would be a 2nd edition some parts have been easy to write, while others have me stymied. The easiest sections have been those that already exist, and the most difficult those that need to be written from scratch. A typical book proposal generally has the following sections:
Overview – just like it sounds an overview of your book in 3-5 pages
Market – who will purchase your book in 1-2 pages
Competition – how your book compares to similar books in 1-3 pages
Promotion – how you’ll access potential buyers 1 page
Author – who you are and why you’re qualified to write this book 1 page
Details – time required; special features, legal obstacles, etc. 1 page
Chapter Outline – a chapter by chapter summary Sample Material – one or more chapters

The Overview contains several sub-sections and is the piece that’s most difficult and the one that I’ll keep revising and refining right up until the proposal is about to be mailed to a potential publisher. If you’re curious about what’s involved in writing a non-fiction book proposal, a good place for classes on the topic is Gotham Writing Classes (they also have classes on fiction, memoirs, romance, basically any kind of writing you can think of). I’m adding three new films and two cable television programs that prominently feature Catholic women which necessitates watching and researching lots of DVD’s. In this edition I plan to include something that was too costly in 2003 – photographs of each film/television series discussed.

I currently have a number of academic publishers lined up to contact. In this economy it’s hard to know if I’ll get any nibble but it’s worth a try. Making this book publishing endeavor more public this time out, I’ll post blogs on the Women Write blog.

There has been great interest in the book. The University of South Carolina used it for the class “Religious Women and Film” in 2007 and it's all over the Internet used in blog postings or for sale. I have the time to update it so I thought why not take the opportunity to do so. Like most writers I’m excited about writing an updated book but scared of all the rejection that comes with it.

Kathryn Schleich

© 2010