The Business of Writing: Professional Advice on Proposals, Publishers, Contracts, and More for the Aspiring Writer

(Paperback)

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Description

Whether youre unclear on what to expect from your first book deal or just a little puzzled by your editors whims, The Business of Writing is the book for you. In it, literary agent and publishing veteran Jennifer Lyons empowers aspiring and experienced writers with everything they need to know about the business of selling books, from publicity to legal and financial aspects of the trade. A senior agent for seventeen years before opening her own literary agency, Lyons has taught numerous courses on the business of writing at Sarah Lawrence College, and has visited both undergraduate and graduate writing programs to share her expert knowledge.

This enjoyable guide brings Jennifers in-depth tutorials to the broader public, balancing accessible, bulleted information for writers on the critical stages of acquiring and maintaining representation with interviews with professionals in the field. Interviewees include a Harpers magazine editor, a contracts manager, and other publishing professionals that you can expect to encounter as you advance in your career. Covering everything from how to write the perfect query letter to deconstructing the terminology of a publishing contract, this indispensable handbook to the writers trade will give you a thorough introduction to the nuts and bolts of publishing.

Reviews

You think you know what you are doing as a writer You don't until you read Jennifer Lyons's book The Business of Writing. It's all changed, kiddo, and the center ain't holding. Read this book or go into the used clothing business.

--Malachy McCourt, New York Times bestselling author of A Monk Swimming

Author Bio

Jennifer Lyons was a senior agent within Writers House for seventeen years, where she represented numerous award-winning authors and premier European publishers. The many awards her authors have received include the Nobel Prize, PEN awards, the National Jewish Book Award, the Koret Award, the Lambda, the Pulitzer Prize, and many others. Jennifer is a member of AAR and PEN and a contributing editor to Fiction. She lives in New York City, NY.