Our Top 6 Reasons Non Fiction is Rejected

[@piedathemokona]

What great timing just got my first rejection letter

[@wolfbenson]

Catch 22. If I had such a big platform, what would I need you for?

[@BookEndsLiterary]

Hi! Agents will act as the author's advocate during the process of submitting the manuscript to editors/publishing houses, will represent and fight for the author when the publisher is working against their interests, will negotiate the contract to get industry standard or better terms for the author, and will work with the author to help determine their career trajectory as they write more books. They will also handle negotiating subsidiary rights (film, foreign translations, audiobook, etc.) if the publisher doesn't. Needing a big platform is critical for nonfiction authors to show that they have expertise and authority in the field they are writing in, but beyond the platform, the agent will take care of making sure that the author is treated fairly as their book moves through the publishing process!

[@ashleycongdon3567]

I'm glad I checked out this video. I'm new to nonfiction and often wondered how do you determine an idea would be better served as a book or magazine article.

[@thechrisburcher]

Aspiring authors need customers to sell their book to prior to landing a deal. Got it

[@lilysofiani]

Really helpful thank you!

[@JohannesJunkJournalLife]

I’m thinking I need to have the book in print in order for me to do speeches. You are saying speak first then published?

[@marquismittelstet9170]

How would agents react to a nonfiction proposal from a nonfiction writer who is an undergraduate (no degree yet)? How should a writer in this situation address this?

[@patrickmoan4086]

Hello BookEnds - Do you typically reject writers presenting a work of narrative non-fiction who don't have much of a platform? (But are actively attempting to develop one now that 6 years of research/writing is behind him.) Thx in advance for any clarity you can provide. Patrick

[@BookEndsLiterary]

Hi! With nonfiction, platform is always going to be the big draw, whether it's narrative nonfiction or otherwise

[@cjk2922]

What’s a “big” platform?

[@marionruybalid9380]

I am wondering how similar it is to sell a memoir? Does the author need a large platform? If the writer is not famous, what it the best way to approach publishing the book? Small press without an agent or will agent take on these projects?

[@TheAmandabarrett]

Yes please! More about memoir.

[@BookEndsLiterary]

@@TheAmandabarrett We're adding memoir to our list. We'll be doing a video on them answering all these!

[@bwjuachon81]

I have a memoir, a coming of age story set in the late nineties, that I know will succeed if I self-publish. But I wanted to try sending it out there to an agent/publisher. However I fear it will be rejected not because it is poor quality but because who is the author? In all the memoirs I have read in recent years the author is the star not the book. Even if the book is the author, or at least a part of the author. I guess what I’m trying to say is what would you do if you had a great book written by an unknown person? Would you pass on the book because of the person and their anonymity or pass on the person because who is such a person to write a book? Are the days gone when words had meaning and sold themselves or did those days just never exist? We deal with words, right? And what they mean and their power over us. I just can’t understand what the point is if a book exists solely to attain likes or to get the author more followers of which they’re supposed to already possess many of. Yes, sell books, but books that move people, that grab them ruthlessly, and don’t let go. I wrote my book to liberate not to enshrine myself on an alter of ad copy. Well, either way I’m sure my memoir will be published. What I want to know is do houses take the time to see what is there or are they too enamored with their sales pitches? And should I bother with them? Or would they ever want to bother with an unknown? Thanks for your channel. I have found it most inspirational.

[@darlachristie7780]

Lol! Have The Pill Book on my shelf. Guess it’s time to donate that sucker to make room for something else. Thanks for the great videos! Always informative.

[@BookEndsLiterary]

LOL

[@rainsmom]

Do you query memoir with a proposal or a query letter?

[@BookEndsLiterary]

Memoir would be a query letter, and full manuscript

[@danikaehollis]

I wonder if you aren't hearing back too because they're ghosting you.... which I find to be a thing more and more.

[@BookEndsLiterary]

Some agents have a "No response means no" policy. Check their submission page on their website to confirm!

[@lynndowless5152]

I've been trying to get an agent for 15 years. I've been published by hundreds of traditional publishers, but no agent yet. Too many "new authors" today are only ghost-written faces sponsored by some humanitarian agency trying to fulfill a political agenda. I see these dead head faces smiling and grinning all the time, and the publishers go as far as to literally hand them a contract hard won like this by everybody else, on a silver platter. Don't believe me? Take a look at who they are always directly recruiting when you pull up their websites.

[@AMBK]

So if you haven't got a million followers - forget it. Got it 😢