publishing

Innovative Technology Leading Us Into Our 2nd Year

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Hershman Rights Management (HRM) officially launched in July 2015, so you know what that means? Yes, you’re doing your math correct- it’s been over a year! We couldn’t do it without all our amazing authors and publishing partners. We have so many people to thank for making our first year such a success. At HRM we pride ourselves on our customer service. It is always our primary goal to keep our clients happy. In order to continue to reach that goal, HRM needs to focus on growth and adapt to every fluid market.

That’s why we are rolling out a couple new things this month. First, and most importantly, we have created a new way in which authors can submit their already published work to us for consideration of representation. Check it out on our new ‘Submission’ Page. The best part? Your answer is instant! If we think you will be a good fit for HRM based on the information you provide on the form, you will know about it right away. If you aren’t… well, you will know that too. We are so excited about this new addition to our agency because the concept of instant results/answers in the literary agency industry is innovative and a first of its kind. Every author knows the harrowing pain of waiting for months just to hear that your work has been rejected. At HRM, we want to eliminate that wait time as much as possible and we have the newest technology that will allows us to do just that.

Second, we are looking to expand our social media reach and visibility. We just launched HRM’s Facebook Page, so we definitely think you should all head over and check it out. Give us a ‘like’ if you dare. Even if you aren’t a part of the HRM family it will be a great place to stay up to date with everything we are doing and everything our fabulous authors accomplish.

There were five reasons HRM decided to amp things up in this way:

  1. We need to be accessible. It’s easy to have a standard contact form on our website that just filters to an e-mail address with an ever growing pile of mail waiting to be answered. Anyone can do that. It’s great to get that mail and see that your business is getting recognition enough for people to reach out to you, but the ability to follow through on those contacts in a timely manner is what really matters. We need to be able to give our potential clients answers- quickly. We want to be an open channel of communication, not a dead end. We hope that with instant conditional offers for representation, we will be better able to serve our authors and give them a brand new tool to help them reach their career goals that they won’t be able to find anywhere else.
  2. We want to be visible. We want authors and publishing professionals to know our name. We want to automatically be seen as a trusted service because well, we are! We have helped many authors advance their career over the last year and we want other authors who are looking for help to know that.
  3. Our client’s (and potential client’s) time is important. The one thing I hate the most is wasting people’s time. It’s a priceless commodity that we can never get back. If we aren’t going to be able to help you, I want you to know that right away so you aren’t sitting around waiting for a hopeful answer. If we think we can help you, I want you to know that right away as well. I want to start working with you as soon as possible so we can start accomplishing your goals together. Your book sitting in a submission pile isn’t doing anyone any good.
  4. We always need to be growing. We can’t get comfortable. Sometimes, we need to push ourselves outside our normalcy and comfort zone to truly succeed. We will never know how successful we can be if we just do the same thing day in and day out. We need to push our limits in order to see just how big we can grow.
  5. We need to have the ability to adapt. Being in the publishing industry, it’s no news to us how important the digital world has become. Therefore, we need to use the digital industry to our advantage to both grow our business and reach our desired clientele. There isn’t a person (let alone author) who doesn’t spend part of their day on some form of digital outlet. The prime way to market a business or product has become digital. You need to go where your clients are going, you need to reach the markets in which they visit every day. By making our submission process and business name more digitally friendly, we hope to reach our masses in the most appropriate way possible.

Buckle in for another innovative year and please, write on!

The Listening Explosion

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Seeking out audiobook deals seems to be a popular request from many of my authors/clients, if not all of them. I worked in the audiobook industry myself before starting my own literary agency, so I always knew and understood the importance of the audio format and it always warms my heart when I see authors possessing that same understanding. But, there are many authors out there that I speak with that don’t see the value in putting their work into audio and see it more as a waste of time or just too complicated to deal with at the moment. They rather focus on writing new content to be released in e-book and print because that’s where the biggest pay-off tends to be. I totally get that too, but it really pains me to see these authors leave a great opportunity on the table. I often can’t iterate enough why audio is a market that shouldn’t be left untapped. If you don’t listen to audiobooks yourself, of course it’s going to be a lot harder to understand why you should pursue this format for your work. If we don’t understand something, we tend to shy away from it until a ‘better day.’ Well, thanks to The Wall Street Journal, hopefully that ‘better day’ is sooner rather than later.

In a recent article, The Wall Street Journal talks about how audiobooks are the fastest growing format in publishing. In 2015, sales jumped 21% from the previous year in the United States and Canada. In today’s world, it really shouldn’t be a mystery about why audiobooks are becoming so appealing. People are getting busier and busier. With jobs, children, hobbies, and other commitments we rarely have or take the time to sit down with a good book. I know for myself I have a huge list of books I would love to read and I have no idea how I will ever be able to tackle it. I just don’t have the time. Well, that is exactly what is making audiobooks so successful. They are portable and can be listened to while multi-tasking, voilà!

audiobooks

A big part of the listening explosion is due to the availability of digital downloads, rather than bulky physical CD’s. According to The Association of American Publishers, revenue from digital downloads grew 38% in 2015 from 2014. Revenue from hardcover books grew 8%, paperbacks grew 3%, and revenue from e-books actually declined by 11%.

The predictions for 2016 don’t seem be slowing down either. In January/February, researchers found that digital download audio sales were up 37% already compared with the same time period in 2015. Audible is also projecting that their listeners will listen to 2 billion hours of audio, doubling that number from 2014. Looking at these numbers, it really doesn’t make sense for any authors to be missing out on this upsurge.

Smartphones and new technology have been a godsend for the audiobook industry. 64% of adults in the United States have a smartphone, making it very easy to access digital download audiobooks right from the very device they carry with them 24/7. This year, 63% of all cars are being sold with some sort of smartphone hook-up. Listening to an audiobook while commuting literally can’t be any easier.

Both consumers and authors are catching onto the audio trend. In 2015, 35,574 books were published in audio format- an astounding number compared to the 7,237 audio titles published in 2011. Audible’s membership has also grown by 40% last year compared to 2014.

This doesn’t mean people are starting to prefer listening to reading. The reading trend will never disappear. There’s nothing better than holding a great book in your hands and getting lost in it for a few hours. And audio sales aren’t about to make any author the next Daddy Warbucks alone. In 2015, audiobooks sold 81 million units only making up 3% of the 2.5 billion trade books that were sold the same year. Audio isn’t just a convenient medium for busy folks, it’s also been proved to encourage book lovers to actually buy more books. Listeners who use Audible are reported to buy 40% more books in all formats after becoming members. Amazon’s Whispersync sales were also up by 60% in 2015 compared to 2014. The audio bug lights a fire under consumers for more content, increasing the likelihood that they will reach out to other formats as well.

It doesn’t matter whether you listen to audiobooks yourself or not, the truth of the matter is that other people do. More and more listeners are tuning in each year. In the age of multi-tasking, audio is just one small way to give  consumers what they want. Audio also introduces your work to a whole new audience and puts a little extra money in your pocket at the same time. Maybe we shouldn’t be so hesitant after all.

Write on.

Things We Wish We Knew When We Were ‘Writing Virgins’

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With each word, sentence, and paragraph we write we often learn something new- whether we are writing a book, article, essay, or blog post. We learn something new about ourselves, our writing style, the world around us, and the best part- how to write better. But what if we could go back in time and keep all our current knowledge? If we would write our first words knowing everything we know right now? Although impossible, it sounds enticing, right? Maybe we would all be best selling authors and award winning journalists by now. As it turns out, we shouldn’t relish on things we can’t change. Instead we should be thankful for those lessons we have learned along the way that helped us grow into the writer we are today. Hey, at least we aren’t that clueless ‘writing virgin’ anymore.

We don’t only have our own lessons to learn from, but we also have our fellow writers experiences to lean on as well. Recently, Marie Claire sat with author Kate Mosse and talked with her about things she wish she knew before writing her first book. She really seemed to nail down some crucial points and if we can’t take writing advice from a successful author herself, then who can we really trust? Whether you are a veteran writer or a ‘writing virgin’ (go ahead thank me now before you become famous… well, maybe you should really thank Kate), everyone will find something they can relate to or learn from on her list:

  1. You must tackle the blank screen.

As Kate puts it, the blank screen is your enemy. You can’t say you are writing anything until you actually have words on the page. Research, outlines, doodles, and excuses are all part of the writing process but don’t let them keep you from doing the one thing you really need to do- write.

writinglessons

2. Editing is where success happens. 

Sometimes we get so caught up in the actual writing process because we think that if we have a crappy first draft that we are doomed from ever succeeding. But, editing is really where all the magic happens so let yourself get to that point as quickly as possible. We need time to digest our own stories and often our best ideas come when aren’t really looking for them.

3. Everyone has bad days. 

Every writer has a day (or maybe countless days) when they feel like everything they are doing is wrong and that maybe they never should of started this project in the first place. These feelings aren’t just for you ‘virgins’ out there, everyone has them. Some days you feel awesome and others you may feel completely discouraged. Just know that this is completely normal.

4. Make a plan and stick to it.

You know that feeling when you think you have the best story idea ever and then you get half way through and start to question everything about it? Yes, I know you do. Well, guess what? Don’t do that. Stick it through and keep writing. This is where the editing magic really takes place.

5. Write every day. 

Make sure you are writing something every day. Even if you only have 5 spare minutes one day, write a few sentences. You need to stay in the writing groove to make sure you stay on track.

6. No writer is the same. 

In order to be successful you need to find out what works for you. Every writer has a different time of day in which they write their best or a different writing spot that really gets their creative juices flowing. Just because it worked for one writer, doesn’t mean it will work for you. Stay true to yourself and give yourself what you need.

7. Write on inspiration, not sequence.  

You  don’t need to write your story in order- that’s the beauty of ‘copy and paste.’ If you are itching to write a particular scene, go for it. Writing is supposed to be enjoyable and the more fun you have with it, the happier you will be with the end result. Don’t force yourself into writing something you aren’t into at the moment. There’s always tomorrow for that.

8. Don’t be afraid to fail. 

Every failure leads to another success, so don’t let that get in your way of trying. If your first, sixth, or tenth story completely fails- brush it off (after you treat yourself to a nice big pity ice cream sundae). Something you learned from that experience will help you succeed in the future, I promise (and Kate does too).

Write on.

Why We Should Always Be Writing

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I guess it’s easy enough for anyone to tell that I have been having a hard time keeping up with regular blog posts this summer. My last post was about two months ago- yikes! Life can easily get in the way of some of our simplest and most mundane tasks. Getting back to blogging has been on the back of mind since well… my last blog post. I just never had the right inspiration to lure me away from the pile of work on my desk and into blog writing abyss. There was always tomorrow, or next week, or next month (haven’t I talked about NOT doing this at some point on this blog? Thought so). It didn’t hit me until today that I am missing something vital in my daily/weekly life- writing.

My job is full of reading, but rarely do I get the chance to write. Writing is a beneficial exercise for everyone, whether you are actually a writer or not. It’s one of the only outlets of expression that is truly our own. It’s easier to express your true feelings and track our personal experiences or thoughts on paper, whether or not we ever intend to share it with others. An article published this morning on LifeHacker really helped to drive this point home for me and there was no way I was going to be able to get away without another day of blogging (I know exactly what you are thinking- yes, it does appear to your lucky day). The article talks about the psychological benefits to writing and let’s just say we should all be writing as much as we can.

brainwriting

-The first thing the article talks about is that regular writing often leads to an improved mood/well-being and reduced stress levels. I know for myself that I feel a whole lot better after each post I write because of that satisfactory feeling that I have created something that wasn’t there before. Writing helps us to express things that we might find a hard time communicating verbally. It gives us a moment to stop and think about how we feel and what we have to say before committing to it, which leads us to their next point.

-Writing helps get us through pain. Many people have a hard time verbally sharing how they feel or talking about tough times they are currently going through. It’s very easy to pretend that everything’s alright, even when it’s not. With writing, it’s very hard to escape our true feelings. No matter how hard we try to hide them, they will eventually come pouring out. Writing is truly a safe haven.

-Writing also makes us feel more positive and gracious when about good things going on in our lives. Just as hard as it is to face the bad things in our lives, we often feel embarrassed to share the good news too for fear of ‘bragging’ or being ‘self-centered.’ But, recognizing our achievements and the positive events taking place in our lives will make us happier people for it. Especially in today’s world, we should never be ashamed to spread some good news.

-Writing clears your mind. We all have a ton of ideas floating around in our heads on a daily basis. Some days it feels as if not a single tiny bit of information more can fit in there. If we continually write about what’s on our mind it relieves our brains from thinking about it any longer, giving our brains/minds more time to think about other things. We are constantly surrounded by sensory overload and we shouldn’t torture ourselves with it any more than we need to.

-When we write, we learn. Not only do we learn many new things about ourselves every time we write, but we also learn new things about the outside world. Every new piece of research you find teaches us something that we didn’t know before and you are most likely teaching someone else something new too, which might just be the best part.

-Writing forms the leader inside of you. There’s no better feeling than knowing that something you wrote about has positively affected someone else. We all have at least a few writers we look up to dearly and can really relate to. Believe it or not, you are likely that writer for someone else too- leading them into a better life one word at a time.

After reading this article it’s safe to say, “I’M BACK!”

Or at least I hope so.

Write on.

Making Writing A Priority

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If you are someone who is lucky enough to call themselves a full-time writer, its very likely that you have already discovered that it’s not as glorious as it sounds. Is it awesome? Yes! But, every job comes with it downsides. Many people envision writers with amble amount of time on their hands, spending their days “writing” in cute coffee shops, connecting with nature on a picnic blanket in the park, or doing “research” on fun vacations or in fascinating museums. Many people assume that writers have a plethora of time available to them to do other things like errands, house cleaning, babysitting, or fun days/nights out with friends because your schedule is so flexible, right?

These writing fantasies couldn’t be further from the truth. When writing is your full-time job that’s exactly what it is- a full-time job. One of the biggest challenges of having such a free-form job is scheduling.  It’s very easy to let other things get in the way of your writing because we all have other commitments: children, spouses, hobbies, chores, errands, and friends. When you don’t punch the clock for a 9-5 job, it’s incredibly easy to keep pushing off the one thing you really should be doing because you have the whole day ahead of you and there’s always tomorrow. But, if you want to keep writing full-time you need to find a way to make writing your priority. It’s way easier said than done, I know that. But then again, there’s nothing glamorous about not getting your work done.

coffee

A few days ago, on Huffington Post’s I NEED COFFEE blog they talked about three really helpful tips for scheduling your writing life:

  1. Find your scheduling method.

You need to find a way of scheduling that works for you. Do you want your schedule to be electronic so you can easily access it from whenever you are? If so, you need to think about what type of tools you want in your scheduling software. There are so many choices out there that if you don’t pick the right one for you, it isn’t going to help. Maybe you prefer to hand write your schedule? Then you need to get an agenda pad that’s easy to use and easy to carry around. You need to find a way to keep it neat and organized or else you will end up missing the very things you started that agenda pad for.

2. Schedule everything, but schedule small. 

If you are getting a scheduling software or agenda to just put down to “Write novel” in it, you are wasting your time. You need to go deeper than that. Maybe give yourself a particular word count to reach, a certain scene to write, or a chapter to complete. Maybe a character or a past event needs more developing, schedule that too. You need to think small when scheduling your day, week, or even month. Anything you do pertaining to your writing needs to be scheduled. It forces you to stay on track and focus on the task at hand. You can worry about everything else you need to do when it comes up on your schedule.

3. Learn to buffer. 

The problem with scheduling is that we can easily get carried away with it. We can become so obsessed with it that we find ourselves scheduling every minute of our lives. That’s why we need to buffer. Leave 15-30 minutes between tasks to breathe. Take a break, get some fresh air, check on your kids, do a few quick house chores, stretch- anything. Going from one task, to the other, to the other will make anyone crazy. You will be much more successful if you buffer your time and take those well deserved breaks.

Write on.

A Case of The ‘Friday Giggles’

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It’s Friday, the sun is shining, and it’s finally 70 degrees outside! Spring has officially arrived and did I mention, it’s FRIDAY?! Friday always calls for a little fun. We work hard all week and we deserve to let loose a little. Well, Bustle came to the rescue again and gave me just the right amount of silliness I was looking for. Today they talked about some strange habits from famous writers and although it’s mostly entertaining and perfect for my “let loose” Friday attitude, we might actually learn something from it as well.

friday

  1. Get your cardio on. Many famous authors (like J.A. Jacobs, Kurt Vonnegut, and Haruki Murakami) swear by their workout routine and I couldn’t agree more. I know that when I don’t get at least a little exercise in each day, I feel sluggish and tired. It even effects how I feel the next day, until I get around to working out again. Keeping some sort of physical activity built into your day will only help you to keep on top of that ‘to-do’ list.
  2. Keep busy. Franz Kafka swore by exhaustion. I do like my beauty sleep, but I can definitely see the benefit of keeping a busy and regimented schedule. If you give yourself too much freedom, you will become lazy. There will always be the, “I’ll do it later or tomorrow” excuse. Keep yourself busy with work, hobbies, friends/family so that when you do have time to finally sit down and write- you actually sit down to write.
  3.  Pick up a dictionary.  Anthony Burgess turned to the dictionary to help him write some of his scenes. All writers have at least that one scene that they are really dreading to write. Most of the time because they know it’s going to be a daunting task to get it right. Burgess suggests picking up a dictionary and using the words on a random page to write your scene. Not only is it a fun challenge, but you will end up with a unique scene that you never would have written otherwise.
  4. Stand. Thomas Wolfe, along with many other famous writers, liked to write standing up. Sitting down all day is detrimental to our health, so we should all be trying to stand a little bit more anyways. Plus, standing prevents us from getting too comfortable and forces us to focus on the task at hand.
  5. I’m just going to skip #5 and leave you to our own devices on this one. It’s certainly entertaining nonetheless.
  6.  Find your own space. Maya Angelou rented a hotel room in her hometown on a monthly basis and used it for writing. Sometimes we need to separate ourselves from everything else going on in our lives in order to be completely present and focused on our task at hand.
  7. Get off your feet. Authors such as Edith Wharton and Mark Twain preferred to write while lying down. I can’t think of a better excuse to curl in bed with your writing supplies in tow.
  8. Keep your own traditions. Capote held many superstitions when it came to writing and I don’t think he’s completely crazy for it. Sometimes doing something over and over again a particular way (for whatever the reason may be, or perhaps there’s no reason at all) brings comfort and consistency. If you feel good about your actions (or lack thereof) you will most likely feel more confident about the writing you just produced.
  9. Loose the layers. John Cheever and Victor Hugo did their writing in different stages of undress. Not sure if I would practice this method myself, but there surely is a freeing sensation  about being close to your natural state that could very well carry over into your writing as well.
  10. Travel more. Gertrude Stein and Joseph Heller did their best writing on the move. Seeing new places, people, and things will help ignite new inspiration.  I know that I could definitely do better writing on a beach in the Caribbean…

Write on.

How To Query

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One my favorite things about launching my own literary agency has been the flow of query letters I have received from authors. I love hearing from authors about their creative and bold stories (literature nerd, much?) and I love listening to people describe work that they are passionate about. Their energy is inspiring and their optimism contagious. Unfortunately, I haven’t had as much time as I would like in the past several months to tend to the rapidly growing submission pile in my office (insert immense apologies to those still waiting here). One of my main goals going into this spring/summer is to tackle that entire pile head on- let’s not hold our breath here but rather pray some mighty prayers to whatever higher power exists out there.

I started to dig through the pile again after a rather lengthy hiatus from it and it really hit me just how important a query letter is. This might come off as a stupid realization because well, duh query letters are super important. But, it’s not until you put yourself in the shoes of those people reading these letters that the importance really strikes you. Think about it for a second, you are faced with a pile of 100 book submissions- what’s going to make you stop and ask for more rather than tossing it directly into the ‘reject pile’? What sets one letter apart from another? What key information are you looking for?

See the dilemma of the query letter now? Yes, yes you do.

query

Catching an agent’s or publisher’s eye can be at times pure luck. Maybe the agent/editor has a special affinity towards your genre or writing style. Maybe they had good luck with a similar book recently. Or maybe it just sounds so different enough that it’s worth a shot. Whatever the case may be, you are one step closer to getting published and you couldn’t be happier about the opportunity.

Unfortunately, we all can’t depend on luck. Authors and writers need to take their querying seriously if they want to have even the slightest chance of getting noticed. You might feel like you are spending the same amount of time drafting a one page letter as it took you to write your entire novel. It might not feel like it at the time, but that’s a good thing. If your query doesn’t catch, your novel or book isn’t going to either. This morning I came across some helpful tips on GalleyCat that all writers should keep in mind as they are drafting their next query letter:

  1. Nail the “hook.” What’s the main point of your story? What makes your story so interesting? What makes it so different from other novels already out there? Why should the reader care about what you have to say? What does every word you put down on paper lead up to? Once you figure that out, nail it home in the query letter. Agents and editors don’t have time to read every manuscript in full, so you need to tell us what makes your story so special so maybe, just maybe we will take the time to read it. Don’t try to hide things in an effort to build suspense.
  2. Offer comparative titles. Since the agent/editor has never read your book before and is just reading a short summary of it, it’s helpful to include some comparative titles in your letter that maybe that agent/editor has already read or has at least heard about. It gives us some sort of base line to compare to and conveys the overall feeling of your story perhaps better than you ever could in your own words. Pick the right titles that actually compare to your book- you aren’t tricking anyone if you just rattle off a few bestsellers.
  3. Share your own story. The biographical section of your query letter is just as important as the summary of your book. We want to get to know the person behind the writing because that’s what helps to sells a book as well. Make sure to highlight the most interesting facts about yourself and what makes you, well… you.
  4. Acknowledge what you are looking for. Let the agent/editor know what type of relationship you are looking for with them. Are you solely just looking for a channel in which your work will get noticed? Do you want to work with them in order to improve your writing? Are you an experienced writer or are you looking for someone who will really be able to explain every step of the process to you? Neither of these options are ‘bad,’ you just need to be upfront about what you are looking for so that we can better access if we will be able to fulfill your desires.
  5. Talk about future plans. If you have other projects in the works or have ideas for future projects, include that information as well. It’s helpful to know where you want to go as an author and if we can see ourselves taking that ride with you. It’s always refreshing to hear from a writer with a vision for themselves, so don’t be afraid to share.

Write (or query) on!