Writing Your Non-Fiction Book Proposal
Thursday evenings, Jan 19 – Feb 23, 2012, 6:30 to 8:30 PMHave an idea for a nonfiction book? Most nonfiction books are sold on the basis of a proposal. Eighty-five percent of books published each year are nonfiction, a category which includes travel, memoir, self-help and narrative nonfiction. And 75% of those books are written by first-time authors.
In this six-week class, you will create a complete proposal, while simultaneously clarifying the value of your concept, finding your book’s niche in the marketplace, identifying your strengths as a writer, creating an overview of the book and producing and polishing sample pages. We will also discuss submission strategies and publishing options including self-publishing. A successfully published author from a previous class will be our guest speaker on the final night of class.
For a list of students who have published the books they worked on during this class, see below.
Special alert: If you have taken this class from me in the past and are still working on the same book proposal, you can take this class for FREE. Just let me know. I’ve saved four spaces for previous students. I appreciate the experience and wisdom you have to offer writers who are just beginning to write proposals.
Email version: I have just added an email version of this class. It will meet in the same time frame as the in-person class; lectures will be delivered via email on Friday nights and homework reviewed and returned weekly. The cost is the same and you won’t have the advantage that comes from having a whole room full of people rooting for you and your book.
Good Shepherd Center 4649 Sunnyside Avenue North, Wallingford $197 Register via Paypal. Or you can send an email to Waverly at waverly@waverlyfitzgerald.com for other payment options.
Janna Cawrse Esarey, The Motion of the Ocean: 1 Small Boat, 2 Average Lovers and a Woman’s Search for the Meaning of Wife, Touchstone 2009 (Student, Winter 2007)
Candace Dempsey, Murder in Italy: The Shocking Slaying of a British Student, the Accused American Girl, and an International Scandal, Penguin/Berkley 2010 (Student, Winter 2007)
Corbin Lewars, Creating a Life: The Memoir of a Writer and a Mom in the Making, Catalyst Book Press 2010 (Student, Winter 2007)
Kathy Gehrt, Discover Cooking with Lavender, Florentia Press, 2010 (Student, Winter 2003)
Joan Stamm, Heaven and Earth are Flowers: Reflections on Ikebana and Buddhism, Wisdom Publications 2010 (Student, Summer 2006)
Randall Benson, The Quest Effect: Mastering Breakthrough in your Organization, New Grail 2010
Jonathan Henry Harrington, The Climate Diet: How You Can Cut Carbon, Cut Costs and Save the Planet, Routledge 2008 (Student, Summer 2006)
Sally Bjornsen, The Single Girl’s Guide to Marrying a Man, His Kids and Ex-Wife: Becoming a Stepmother with Humor and Grace, New American Library 2005 (Student, Spring 2001)
Joy Walker, Three Years and Thirteen Dumpsters: Cleaning House After Dementia, CreateSpace 2011 (Student, Winter 2009)
Sonya Elliott, Back on the Court: A Young Woman’s Triumphant Return to Life, Love and Basketball, Full Court Design, 2011 (Student, Winter 2003)
Caroline Feiss, Remaking American Places: The Vision of Carl Feiss, Architect, Planner, Preservationist, CreateSpace 2011 (Student, Winter 2007)
Whitney Keyes, Media Tips for Authors: How to Get Free Publicity for Your Book, Whitney Keyes Publications, 2008 AND Media Tips for Small Businesses: How to Get Publicity–for Free! Whitney Keyes Publications 2009
Maria Ross, Branding Basics for Small Businesses: How to Create an Irresistible Brand on any Budget, Norlightspress.com, 2010
Cathy Goodwin, 21 Day Extreme Career Makeover, e-book workbook, published 2008 (Student, Winter 2007)
“I wanted you to know that I consider your class on preparing a nonfiction book proposal as the best start my book could have had. You made me understand the process and how to order my thoughts to actually produce a product. Thank you!” Caroline Feiss, author of