How to Submit a Book Proposal

HelloThank you for considering Pearson as a potential home for your book. Here are some guidelines on how to submit a proposal, which are designed to help us to understand your idea fully and see whether it’s a good fit for our publishing programme.

Once you’ve sent us your proposal we will get in touch with feedback as soon as we can, although please do understand that it may take a little time. Let us know if you need an urgent response or if it is under consideration by another publisher.

First, A Bit about UsOver the years we have developed the expertise in our markets to know what they want and how to deliver it. That’s what has made us a world leading publisher for business books. We have two publishing imprints: Pearson Business and Financial Times Publishing.

Pearson Business: Designed for everyone, and covering business and personal development, our books are designed to deliver the brightest ideas and help our readers make the most of their business lives.

Financial Times Publishing: Designed for leaders, and covering leadership, strategy and finance, we publish practical content that fulfils the learning needs of an ambitious and successful professional readership.

How to Structure Your Proposal

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A proposal should have the following structure, and in the rest of these guidelines you’ll find hints and questions to help you complete each section:

1. Title & Subtitle2. Pitch 3. Contents4. Author 5. Author Objectives6. Target Market7. Marketing Features8. Competition 9. Delivery Details 10.Personal Details

1. Title & SubtitleYour book’s title is the most important piece of marketing you have. In a crowded and competitive retail world, it needs to be understood instantly and get across to the reader exactly what it will do for them.

The best starting point is to think about your reader wants, what sort of keywords they would be searching for, and why they will want the book.

2. PitchWhat This Book Will Do For YouList 3-5 one-line bullet points on what your reader will learn from your book. What will success look like for them, and how does it manifest itself? e.g. “You will be able to…”

The 10 Second SellImagine you need to convey what your book is about to a complete stranger in less than 10 seconds. What would you say to sum it up in less than 100 words? The Long PitchTell us about your idea: What important problem will you solve for your reader, and how do you know it works? In what practical ways will this book will help readers? What will make your book stand apart from the other books already out there? If you’re including case studies, exercises or examples, what are they like? Is there any additional content that adds value – audio, video, web, etc?

FeaturesWe’re not looking for prose-heavy text, so what kinds of tips, definitions, case studies, exercises, examples or web links would you include to make the content more practical and actionable for readers?

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3. ContentsA list of contents is essential. To help us really understand what you envisage for each chapter, write a brief description

of what will be included under each chapter heading. We’d also like a few lines from you on how you arrived at this organisation. Is it

chronological, thematic, or based on a system? Why is it the best table of contents for your book?

If you haven’t written for us before we’d also like to see a sample chapter or section so we can get a feel for your writing style and approach.

4. Target Market Who will buy the book? (Statistics on the market size can be really useful here.) What do these people do, read and think? Does your book have local or global appeal? (If global, it will need international

examples.) What search terms would customers be most likely to use when looking for this subject

online?

5. About you: The AuthorBiographyWe don’t need your CV. Instead write a short but informative biography, as you might see on the book cover of the book. Try to keep it to fewer than 200 words: Why are you the right person to write this book? What are your areas of expertise, and how long have you been working in this area? Have you any previous writing experience? Do you train any corporate staff or have any direct relationships with major companies? Can you supply any testimonials from individuals or companies to evidence how you’re

the right author for this book?

Your Objectives What are your professional goals in writing this book? What you are looking for in a potential publisher? What sort of working relationship are you looking for?

6. CompetitionChoose three comparable books on the same subject. List their title, author, publisher and price and tell us: What do you admire about them? What are their strengths? What are their weaknesses? What is it about your book that will be better or more successful?

7. Delivery Details How many words you will deliver (A 200 page book is usually around 45,000 words.)

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How many illustrations and visuals do you want to include? If you think the book needs supplementary material (e.g. a audio downloads or website)

and if so, describe the contents and how they add value to your book. How much third party content will you be using? When will you realistically be able to deliver your manuscript?

8. Reviewing and DevelopmentWe want to ensure our products are built for learning and often get content reviewed. Can you suggest 3-5 contacts or clients who might be willing to review sample content during the development and writing stage?

9. MarketingWe expect our authors to proactively promote and market their book through their contacts and networks in order to drive sales. As a minimum, you must:

Deliver 3 pieces of marketing material before publication Recommend 1 chapter/section from your book that would work well for marketing

material Secure 5 Amazon reviews within 1 week from publication Join Amazon Author Central and add a photo, biography, and details of any previous

books

To give us a better idea of your marketing capabilities, please answer the questions below.

YOUR NETWORK

Can you give details on your social media accounts – what’s your handle/username/page and how many connections do you have?

1. LinkedIn?2. Twitter?3. Facebook?4. Instagram?

How will you use your social medial accounts to promote the book?

List (at least) 5 leading businesspeople or prominent names (with Twitter handle) from recognisable companies who would realistically provide a short endorsement for the book cover and/or marketing material. (We will not approach these until the manuscript is delivered, but this list should represent your intentions at that time.)

1. …2. …3. …4. …5. …

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What is your plan for encouraging your network to post at least 5 reviews of the book on Amazon and other sites within 1 week from publication?

Are you planning to host a launch event? (If yes, please provide details)

What is your international reach? Please list any countries along with any specific activity that you will carry out in those locations.

ONLINE

Do you have a website? 1. If so, what is the website address?2. Would you be willing to create a bespoke landing page to promote the book?3. How do you plan to use the website to promote the book?

Do you have a blog or podcast?1. If yes, what is the website address?2. How will you use your blog/podcast to promote the book?3. How many posts/podcasts do you intend to create specifically to promote the

book?

Will you create any extra content to promote the book?1. Infographics?2. Videos?3. SlideShare presentations?4. Other?

How will you create, host and use the extra content to promote the book?

BOOK SALES and EVENTS

Will you buy any copies upon publication? (If yes, how many? Will this be ongoing?)

Do you have any opportunities to promote and sell copies of your book through your day to day work, e.g. training, courses, workshops, events, conferences and exhibitions (if so, please give details)?

List any companies or business schools who might be interested in buying copies of the book or adding it to their recommended reading lists. (If yes, please provide details)

Are there are websites, publications, magazines or forums popular with your target audience, and what activity would you carry out to reach them?

PR

Do you plan to create your own PR campaign?1. If yes, please provide details of the plan and the coverage you hope to gain.

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Is there anything else you can suggest to help promote the book through your contacts and networks?

10. Personal DetailsPlease include full contact details, including e-mail address and telephone number.

And finally...The most common reasons why we turn down a new book proposal are:

1. It doesn’t fit - Sometimes books don’t fit with our publishing strategy or our channels to market. If they’re not right for us we’ll be quick to say that we’re not the best home for them.

2. Clash in the Plan - We already have a book on our publication schedule which is too similar to the proposed title.

3. Flash in the Pan - Some books that so topical that they only have a short shelf life. We are looking for books that would make bestsellers for many years, and with many editions.

4. The book represents content in search of an audience - Our books have a clear and purposeful focus on improving the reader’s life. If your book doesn’t serve an actual and practical purpose then it’s not for us.

For further information or to talk any ideas through please contact:Eloise CookSenior Commissioning EditorTrade, Consumer and Professional Business Publishing PearsonEdinburgh GateHarlowEssex CM20 2JEUK

E: eloise.cook@pearson.com T: 01279 621259 M: 07702 762476

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