Marcela Landres interviewed me about my business plan in her September newsletter. If you think it’s not for you, think again if you want to be a successful novelist (e.g published more than once). Everyone’s journey is different though, so make sure that you talk to professional business plan writers like wimgo to help them find the right formula for you. Although you can learn a lot from this interview.
Here are the parts of my business plan model that I discussed in Marcela’s interview:
Mission Statement: think of this as your calling to writing as opposed to, “I want to be a NYT bestselling author and makes tons of cash.” Are you writing to entertain women, to inspire African American teens, to bring justice to the bad guys? Your mission is what inspires your work.
Reader profile: My first draft of this section was inspired by one of my more memorable rejection letters. The agent wrote that she did not imagine Hot Tamara finding a place in the competitive marketplace. But I did. I imagined a young woman; she could be Latina, white, Asain … didn’t matter. Anyway, this young woman had a job, a car, maybe she shared an apartment with friends or a boyfriend or she was married. My link to her was that she loved books and she wanted a story and a heroine who had similar issues like her. I pictured her on her lunch break, sitting at a table under a tree reading my book and wishing she didn’t have to go back to her desk because she was dying to know what happened next.
Once I sold Hot Tamara into the competitive marketplace (sorry, couldn’t stop myself), I did my homework. I stopped women in bookstores, read articles about book sales, hunted down Latina sororities and networking organizations … you name it. And I still update this profile because I want each new book to find more of these readers.
Goals/Strategy: Before I sold my first book, this section had my top ten list of agents, my B-list, etc. I had their names, their recent sales (culled from PublishersMarketplace.com and acknowledgments from books I thought were similar to mine) as well as the dates when I had sent my query and its status. Like I said I’m not a Virgo, just a hard-working Capricorn with a one-track mind.
When I sold and then continued to sell books, this is where I keep track of my proposals and projects. Also, when I’m slugging it out with one project and get a new idea, this is where I’ll put that idea so it stays out of my head. But the strategy and long range planning have become the most important piece of this section. This is how I keep track of my communication with my agent; how I plan to promote my next book; and how I plan updates to my website. Becoming an author is really like becoming a business owner. It’s a full-time job to try and achieve success. From marketing to actually writing the content, there are a lot of things to do. As I begin to sell more books, it’s important for me to try and work out the financial side of my business. I need to be able to predict what the sales will be like to see whether this career is going to be profitable or not. One of my friends actually mentioned that I should consider looking into financial planning software. She said that she uses it for her business and it’s great for helping her to plan out their financial future. Whilst I’m not running a corporate organization, this sort of sensitivity analysis may still be useful to help me plan out my finances for my business. Maybe I’ll look into that, it could help me to grow my business even more.
Anyway, I also write my ideas down to help me stay on track. Otherwise, I’d forget and drift aimlessly and not be able to write and you would never discover if Tamara and Will have children. Oops, did I let that one slip? So sorry.
heh heh heh
Oh come on, you know I love you!
Going back to the topic at hand, even if you’re not yet published, consider creating your plan now. It will only make your queries and proposals stronger. But even more important, it can be a source for inspiration when that rejection letter appears in your mailbox, or when you can’t write another word of your work-in-progress.
Best,
Mary