THE SECRETS OF GETTING NON-FICTION PUBLISHED

Pastor Watkins just completed a 10-part sermon series on marriage. At the tape duplicating table, it easily becomes the most requested series he’s ever done. Several couples came up to him to let him know that because of these messages, they’ve decided to give their marriage a second chance. About 30 people encouraged him to write a book on the subject. Is writing a marriage book the best idea at this stage of his life and ministry career?

Mary White has been writing a monthly column in the church newsletter for more than seven years. Over that period, she’s received a lot of kudos for not only the content but how well it was written. Over a weekend, she puts all of the columns on one file and discovers she’s got over 100,000 words. Certainly there’s enough for a book, she thinks. What should she do now?

Jocelyn Brandenburg has always been a voracious reader. Many of the books she’s bought and read she feels just aren’t that good. How did these guys get published? she wonders. There’s no doubt that she is a deeper well than most of the authors she’s read. Should she be writing?

Whether you're a pastoral leader in a big or small church, a woman's speaker or Bible study leader, or simply a deeper thinker with aspirations of getting published, you may be wondering if you should try to get your ideas on paper...and into a book. The biggest question that anyone contemplating taking weeks or months to put a book together is, “Is this a stewardship God has called me to?”

I’ve been in the Christian publishing industry for 15 years. I started as a magazine editor at Focus on the Family, continued as a freelance writer with nearly 200 magazine articles in print, and then graduated to an author or co-author of 22 books. Primarily, however, I’ve been a literary agent for the last 10 years. My ministry is to work for Christian communicators who write books, representing their interests to publishers, guiding their careers, handling all of the business details, and much, much more. I’ve shepherded more than 100 different authors (some of the biggest names in Christian publishing), represented over 1,300 books, and negotiated 875 literary contracts with 55 different publishers. I’ve seen thousands of book proposals from pastors, pastor’s wives, para-church leaders, housewives, career novelists, weekend novelists…even young bucks who’ve barely experienced ministry but are contemplating writing a book to share their wisdom.

Here’s what I’ve learned in a nutshell: Old or young, ministry veteran or ministry rookie, writing and publishing is ALL about stewardship.

Talent Stewardship

If you’ve been given a talent to write, as judged by impact on others and the comments about your writing, but mostly by industry professionals (editors and agents who daily deal with the changing publishing landscape), then you have a stewardship before God to use that talent to further the Kingdom.

Years ago I received a partial manuscript from a guy on the mission field. The manuscript was above average. I handed it to a colleague to review and possibly take on because at the time I had a full client load. She looked it over, but quickly determined she was also too busy. I got the proposal back and was about to kindly reject him, but read it again. I thought, This guy is a cross between Ken Gire and Max Lucado. Certainly he ought to get published! I asked her to give it one more look. As she took some more time with it, her eyes were opened. Within a few months the man had a three-book contract with a major publishing house.

Depth Stewardship

If you’ve been given a depth of content that has been affirmed by others--and especially by industry professionals--as extraordinary, then ditto. You must consider writing.

Not long ago, one of my novelist clients recommended a pastor he had recently heard speak. It just so happens that the pastor was working on a manuscript to men on the biblical character Samson. I do favors all of the time for clients (mainly looking at manuscripts that usually aren’t close to being publishable). But this pastor had hit the nail on the head! Deep stuff that was presented in a new and fresh way. Viola! Two-book contract.

Platform Stewardship

If you’ve been given a platform where through your church, denomination, a radio or TV ministry, or a traveling speaking ministry, you likely need to write. Books will be a natural extension of what you’re doing, if you’ve got the goods (yes, as judged by industry professionals).

A well known radio host I work with is not a born writer. He’s not bad, but he can only get a manuscript to second base, sometimes third. But he’s got a radio show that reaches millions every day. Further, he cares about people, has a skill at getting to the heart of the matter, speaks frequently across the country…he needs books. And not just to help defer the costs of his ministry. He needs to grow his influence to individuals through the written word where they can spend more time with his biblical and practical principles than radio sound bites and 30-minute talks can give. His solution was to find competent collaborators who would help him with the craft as long as he delivered the content. It’s much better stewardship of his talents for him to be on radio and speak, rather than sit in front of a computer screen for hours on end, wordsmithing sentences and paragraphs. God has gifted others to do this, not him.

Good Heart Stewardship

A wild card I’ve discovered is often the most telling. If you don’t really want to write, but significant people in your circle have been telling you for years you have a message (or messages) that are new, fresh, deep, then God is likely nudging you in the publishing direction.

A friend of mine pastors a church of more than 10,000 people. He’s worked hard, suffered much starting churches here and there, but has an anointing on his life that is obvious to all. He frankly didn’t want to write. He was too busy. Besides, he was more of a teacher/preacher than a writer. But after years of fighting it, he finally self-published a few books on his own. They sold well. A publisher read them and it wasn’t long before his books caught on and he began to see the power of the printed word for touching the Kingdom.

DON'T TRY TO GET PUBLISHED

Is writing a call? A gift? Well, sort of both, but kind of neither.

The truth is, if you don’t sense God calling you to write (or get published), then don’t try. You’ll be frustrated, agents will politely reject you, and publishers will ignore your scintillating insights that you spent from five a.m. to seven a.m. over several months perfecting.

For some people, writing is easy. They think quickly, possess typing skills, have been trained to write like they’re clothed and in their right mind, they understand how to put sentences and paragraphs together…so in this sense, they are gifted.

But writing is also HARD WORK! It’s time away from family, hours (minutes?) from the upkeep of your temple, and perhaps days taken away from doing what you’re truly gifted to do. While many don't see it as a way to earn extra cash, very few couldn't use more money to pay bills and/or provide for their family's future. There IS money to be made in writing books. And if you’re good and God decides to entrust you with it, LOTS of money. But this is absolutely the wrong reason to write. Yes, it’s logical that C.S. Lewis may never have picked up a pen if he had not been paid to write. Yes, money isn’t the root of all evil, only the love of money. But if you’re writing just for the money; because Pastor Jones on the other side of town (an inferior preacher than you) got a new car because his agent got him a huge book contract…um, check your motives.

I’m not saying write as a last resort. I’m not implying you can’t write if you need some dough, I’m just saying that writing will be a time-consuming process fraught with rejection. You won’t have the stamina to go through the process unless you are compelled to write.