Wednesday’s book promoting tip for authors

Is the ability to plan and write a book more important, or less important, the ability to write a 1-page letter? Ever since my recent Published & Profitable interview with Jonathan Fields, author of Career Renegade, I’ve been thinking about the differences between writing a book (in terms of organizing and presenting a long and complex message) and writing a sales letter (in terms of “classic” direct response copywriting with the emphasis on persuading the recipient to take a desired action).

At first glance, it would appear that book publishing success depends primarily on the ability to write a book. Yet, as Jonathan Fields described during his interview, he would not have had the opportunity to write a book if he had not been able to attract a literary agent’s attention and convince them that his book idea was destined for success.

Everything followed from Jonathan’s ability to write a query letter that “sold” his project to an experienced literary agent who wanted to represent him!

Jonathan’s story is sobering. It’s especially sobering when you consider the of “literary” or “creative writing” courses being offered at colleges and  universities around the world, compared to the relative paucity of information available about direct marketing copywriting techniques.

Given the realities of getting published in today’s economic environment, perhaps more attention should be placed on the “economics” of writing, rather than the mechanics of “expression” topics like grammar and plotting.

In the meantime, authors who have not yet been exposed to direct marketing letter-writing techniques might want to explore the numerous copywriting books available, starting with the classic pairing of Claude Hopkins My Life in Advertising and Scientific Advertising, now available for about $10 at Amazon.

Also highly recommended: the perennially-popular Tested Advertising Methods by John Caples, another $10 investment.