Fiction Book Proposal - “Six-Figure Advance”
Bonnie Hearn Hill’s novel, Intern was published by MIRA Books in February, 2003. In February, 2004, Killer Body, a Cosmopolitan magazine “pick,” was published in hardcover. Double Exposure was published in 2005. In 2006, If It Bleeds, Cutline and Off the Record, a series of mass-market newspaper thrillers featuring hearing-impaired reporter Geri LaRue, debuted. Bonnie also had a short story appear in the 2006 Mystery Writers of America anthology, edited by Harlen Coben, and reviews books for Publishers Weekly. She is the co-author of a true crime book about the Scott Peterson murder trial, leads a private writers’ workshop in Fresno, California, serves on the faculty of the Yosemite Writers Conference, and teaches online classes for Writer’s Digest School. Her website is http://www.bonniehearnhill.com.
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Bonnie Hearn Hill had read lots of newspaper mysteries in her life, but no newspaper thrillers. She said, “When I say thriller, I mean a book of multiple points of view and larger scope and stakes. After working for a newspaper for 22 years, I was interested in ripped-from-the-headlines topics. A fictional series of newspaper thrillers with the same character seemed a natural for me. She is Geri LaRue, who is hearing impaired and does not fit in either the world of the deaf or the world of those who hear. She reads lips so that she won’t be treated differently, and was raised in foster homes.”
Bonnie found her agent on a referral from a small regional publisher for whom she’d written a nonfiction book. Bonnie sent the first 50 pages of her book to the agent. Bonnie said, “I’m not sure that she read all 50, but she read enough that she decided to sign me.”
The novel her agent agreed to represent, INTERN, was about the disappearance of the lover/intern of a prominent political figure. MIRA bought it in a three-book deal. Before INTERN was published, Mira offered Bonnie a second three-book contract for the newspaper thrillers.
Bonnie adds, “Although my agent read the proposals before I sent them, I was the one who sent them to the editor who had acquired INTERN. It was pretty informal. They’d already bought three books from me (INTERN and two unwritten ones). I think the best way for a writer to get the attention of an agent/editor is with a very short synopsis (single-spaced, present tense) and the first few pages of the manuscript. Even if they say query first, they’ll read one page. Just make sure that one page is the best thing you’ve ever written.
“What’s important about my proposal is that it is short. Contrary to what you may read, editors and agents will always reach for the short stack of paper first. And if it’s good, they will probably ask to see more. I’ve shared this approach with my students, who have used it with success.”
Bonnie’s advice for budding authors:
1. Write anything to get credits. Without the friendship of the nonfiction publisher, I wouldn’t have been able to get close to the agent I have.
2. Know that the right agent can make a difference. This is my third agent, and the only one who was able to sell a book for me.
3. If you can’t write an exciting synopsis of your book, take a second look at the book itself. Maybe it isn’t ready for publication. The first novel I sold was not the first novel I wrote.
4. Write the synopsis before you write the book. Although it will change as the story does, at least it will provide a map of sorts.
5. Write the synopsis in the style of cover blurbs. Don’t let it read like an outline for a nonfiction book.
6. Be sure your story fits a genre. I called mine Newspaper Thrillers.
7. Remember that synopses are about characters and their relationship to each other-and most important-what your protagonist wants.
Included herein are three of Bonnie’s book proposals. The three books are a series.
The first proposal, for If It Bleeds, is a simple synopsis, and is only one page long. This entire proposal was single-spaced and in Times New Roman, 12-pt. font.
The second, for Cutline, is a simple yet intriguing two-page synopsis of her novel. In this proposal, the title and author’s name were in Times New Roman, 12-pt. font, while the rest of the text was in Courier New, 12-pt. font. The entire proposal was single-spaced.
The third proposal, for Off the Record, was also in Times New Roman, 12-pt. font, but it was double-spaced.
Bonnie signed confidentiality agreements and is not permitted to disclose the exact amount of her advance for the first three-book contract. She can only say that it was a six-figure advance.
You can find Bonnie’s books on Amazon.com.
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Excerpted from: BOOK PROPOSALS THAT WORKED! Real Book Proposals That Landed $10K - $100K Publishing Contracts by Angela Hoy
The book contains Bonnie’s fiction book proposal to MIRA Books.
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