Publishing Tip: Submitting a memoir: Book proposal? Chapters?
Fats Waller sang: “Give them what the want.”
A reader sez:
Many agents’ Query Manager submission pages for ask for, “The first 3 chapters, or full book proposal if non-fiction.” I know memoir is sold more like fiction than nonfiction. Does that mean a memoirists can choose what to submit? Or is it required to share the book proposal instead of chapters?”
Alle sez:
From Fats Waller’s fabulous tune, “Find Out What They Like”:
Find out what they like, and how they like it, and let him have it just that way.
Nonfiction is sold to publishers based on three chapters and a proposal for the remainder of the manuscript. Fiction is sold on the full book. Memoir is sold on kind-of both.
Agents for memoirs need the sample chapters because memoir reads more like fiction that in does like nonfiction. They need a full proposal in order to see the scope of the book and a clear picture of the author’s promotional plans and current sales reach.
That said, a variety of agents want to see or one of one and not the other. Or one of the other and not the one. Or something else. You can find the answer to “What, exactly?” on a agency’s website. There will be a tag reading “Submissions” or “Guidelines.”
Read their submissions information and then offer the agents precisely what they ask for. It doesn’t hurt to be prepared to send anything else they want in a heartbeat: book group questions, perhaps a resource list if the book ties to an issue.
Go get ‘em!
