Blogger: Michelle Ule
Janet Grant is on vacation today, and I’m filling in with a perennial topic–how do you prepare the book comparisons section when writing a proposal?
Book proposals generally include an author bio, a list of publishing credits and sales, experience, a short synopsis, often a longer synopsis and the first three chapters of the manuscript. (Not necessarily in this order.)
Nonfiction proposals also need one-paragraph-long chapter descriptions.
And to get a feel for the manuscript’s position in the market, editors want a comparison with other books.
Why? Because an editor (and possibly a publishing committee) looks:
For Fiction:
- To see whom the author compares him or herself to. Sales reps like to present an author who isn’t well-known as someone “who writes like ___________.” Your list of comparisons shows which authors you think you write like.
- To determine if the author understands the readers for the project.
- To see how this project is unique.
For Nonfiction:
- To ensure a need exists for this project. If the list of comparisons goes on for pages, it’s unlikely this project is needed.
- To make sure the author has explored the subject well and understands the competition. Don’t fudge by leaving off comparisons; publishing professionals are pretty aware of what’s on the bookshelves. They want you to explain why your project is different from all comparative titles.
- To determine the niche market and how this project adds to it, particularly in a saturated field like parenting or marriage.
- To explain the reader-take-away that might be different from all other titles listed.
So how do you figure out which books to compare yours to?
Start at a searchable database of recent publications.
Ideally, you’ve already been on Amazon, CBD or Barnes and Noble to see what books are out there like yours before you launched into writing a proposal or chapters. Type in your subject and see what turns up–this is true for both fiction and non-fiction.
Let’s say you’ve written a novel about faith healers in the 1920s and 1930s. The Amazon search turns up only nonfiction, so try a type of faith healer from that time period: Aimee Semple McPherson.
Lots of choices come up. Since we’re looking at the current market, you can limit yourself to the last five years. You should examine the most recent novels that involve Aimee or other faith healers. Ideally, you’ve already read the most pertinent books and can make an intelligent comparison–detailing how your manuscript is different from recently published books.
Talk about differences in tone, setting, theme, angle. Tell us where your manuscript is like a given book and how it is different. You don’t have to go into lengthy detail, but provide enough information that an editor or agent can tell if you’ve written a modern Elmer Gantry but with some sort of a twist.
And what about Elmer Gantry, the most famous faith healing story around?
Tell us how your story is similar and how it is different. Since faith healing is not a popular topic (or is it? I don’t know) in current fiction, a nod toward Elmer Gantry could be beneficial to put your story into context for the editor.
Make sure you include full title, author’s name, year published and by whom. Include the 13- number ISBN, as well. Editors often will check on your comparisons.
Should you use blockbuster novels in your comparisons? We get lots of queries about stories featuring boy wizards who go to schools housed in castles–you’re going to have to make a really strong case to overcome comparisons to you-know-who. If a blockbuster does exist in your genre or categroy, remark on it, but make your case as to how your story is so different it will stand out in a crowded field. (Be honest with yourself! If you’ve written something too close to a best-seller or to many other books, abandon the manuscript and move on to something else.)
The comparison section is even more important for nonfiction because that’s where you demonstrate your mastery of your subject and your market. You should actually read the books you’re using as comparisons.
Let’s say you’ve written a memoir about life with your poodle. The most obvious comparison is Marley and Me, which sold lots of books. How is your story different from that one?
“Like Marley and Me, my book romps through the challenging aspects of bringing a dog into our family. While my book, Life with Puddles, touches on family life with a highly intelligent dog, my story differs from Marley in Me in that Puddles was a rescue dog who went on to save young women ensnared in our local sex trafficking ring. My story focuses on how Puddles’ past prepared him for his life on the streets. The tone is completely different. We loved our dog, but he focused our entire family on working with him to save other people. ”
Do you see how the comparison nodded toward the well-known book but defined the difference?
Another option off Amazon is To the Rescue: Found Dogs With a Mission. You would describe the book as photo-essays about rescue dogs who made a difference in the lives of the people they helped: nursing home denizens, amputees, blind children and so forth. “Life with Puddles differs in that it also describes how Puddles helped with our child and how he protected us when the sex traffickers came to the door. Puddles was a focused dog who took life as it came and dealt with it in an efficient manner. We became better disciplined and conscious of injustice because of this sixty-pound gray muff.”
You only need five or six comparisons.
Make your comparisons interesting, succinct and pertinent. You don’t need lengthy descriptions unless the subject matter requires them. But don’t simply cut and paste book information off websites. Really think through how your project is different and explain it cogently.
You might finish up this section by restating why your project is unique and why the market needs your manuscript. The agent or editor should come away nodding in agreement–and understanding where your manuscript fits into the book-buying world.
How do you choose the books you compare your WIP to? Anything I missed or that you think would help place your project better in the market?
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Thanks for this information, Michelle! Writing the comparison section can be hard, but it also helps to be able to identify what books/authors are similar. And great tip about focusing on more recent books; I didn’t know that! 🙂
Lindsay Harrel » A proposal is just that–a proposition as to why the publishing house should take a chance on my project. I’ve got to explain why my writing and my idea is worth their spending $40,000+ to produce. As a writer, you don’t want to invest years of your life in a book that will languish on the shelf because it’s not focused in a precise enough way to stand out from the crowd of recent books.
I definitely agree that you should have read (or at least be extremely familiar with) the books you compare your novel to. And it’s always great to highlight what sets your book apart from the crowd. So, in a way, you’re showing how your book has a NICHE, but it also has a DIFFERENT TAKE on that niche. Proposals are daunting! Hope you do more posts on this topic!
Heather Day Gilbert » Exactly, Heather. I, for example, am writing a Civil War novel proposal right now. I can’t exactly ignore Gone With the Wind, so I explain how my project is different from that blockbuster. It also means that while planning this new book, I deliberately chose a theme that stands out from the Civil War novels currently published.
Hey, this is really helpful! But for fiction, I question doing a book comparison by subject only. It seems to me a novelist should be comparing not the topic of their novel to another but the style of their writing. Ian McEwan and James Patterson could have the same plot, but would write it very differently. Shouldn’t a novelist mention writers they are similar to, not books with the same topic? Thoughts?
Hi Jessica, I’m sure Michelle will comment, but this just popped up on my email and I don’t think you’d want to compare styles.
This is because when the agent/pub house reads your sample chapters, they’re going to figure out for themselves who you write like (if anyone). They’re really looking for what NICHE in the market they can place you in. Of course I could be all wrong here, so I’ll see what Michelle says!
Jessica A. Kent » If it’s pertinent to you, I suppose you could. But you need to remember the way you respond to a writer may not be the same way I respond to or think about a writer. So, if you said something like “writing in the manner of JK Rowling with a twist of Stephen King,” what am I to make of that? You include fantastical word choices with detail descriptions of horror scenes? Or, you paint vivid word pictures suitable for children in a crisp, to-the-point style?
I have not read Atonement, so I’m not familiar with McEwan’s style, nor Patterson’s writing, so that comparison doesn’t mean anything to me.
Heather is correct, the editor is going to asses your writing style. In the cover letter your agent includes while submitting the proposal, s/he may discuss your personal writing style but I would leave that in the agent’s hands.
Michelle, thanks so much for sharing this post! I’m hoping to write my first proposal later this year, and the thought of doing a comparison of my story to other books overwhelmed me. (I hate comparing myself to anyone). What you shared about considering the different topics within my book, and using those to determine accurate comparisons was so helpful. Also, your suggestion of discussing the similarities but also mentioning how mine is different from what other people have written were a great help! Thanks so much for sharing your wisdom on this topic!
My genre is historical romantic fiction. My hero is Native American and my heroine is white. There a very very few Christian books with that plot twist floating around. Anything remotely close was published at least twenty years ago, so relevant comparisons are tricky. Saying “like nothing published in the last twenty years” would be ever so slightly career ending. I’m very nervous about writing a proposal and worry that my only 2 queries would be dead in the water because of the subject matter. The first 50 pages are brutal and dark and historically un-nerving. Yay. Woohoo.
Maybe I should have taken up professional snow boarding.
Jennifer, consider using ABA books, then, as your comparison and explain how your spiritual theme runs through your manuscript. CBA publishers are looking at things they might have passed on before and if you can make a good case for the redemption end, it might work.
My The Dogtrot Christmas novella featured a Mexican-American hero with an Anglo heroine which is not as “extreme” as a Native American and an Anglo, but still a bit of a stretch. I heard no comments at all because the story was believable and historically accurate for the time in which it was set. Best wishes.
Thank you very much. 🙂
Jennifer, do you know about Courting Morrow Little by Laura Frantz? White woman, Native American man, late 18th century Kentucky. Excellent, excellent book.
There’s also the newly released Walks Alone by Sandi Rog. It’s a small press book, but same thing. White heroine (Dutch in this case), Cheyenne man, 1880’s Colorado.
Thank you Rachel, I checked those out and they look somewhat similar to my WIP. Mine has Arizona and Boston as the settings and a deep redemptive/healing vein to it.
After spending some time doing online searches, I’ve realized the very abundant collection of ‘bodice ripping/buckskins but no shirts’ collections out there. Not books that I’d read. Nope. Or dare to bring into a comparative discussion with mine. The ones you’ve recommended may fill that role quite well.
Great topic Michelle. I’ve been wondering about comparisons for a while. I have three books I have to read to see how similar they are to mine.
On another note, I miss seeing you in the blogging rotation.
Lori » Thanks for noticing, Lori! With five agents, now, it works better if I’m just the “relief” blogger on days when someone is unavailable.
In addition to the databases Michelle mentioned, see if your public library provides access to Novelist Plus–a database of fiction titles. You can search by subject (topics), theme, etc. and limit by publication year(s). Each entry includes a wealth of info about the book and author.
One of the most helpful search features for comparisons is to use Novelist Plus’ “Author Read-alikes.” Enter the name of an author who’s written a comparable novel and you’ll bring up several additional comparable names.
ACFW’s Fiction Finder (www.fictionfinder.com)is another excellent tool for finding comparisons.
Judy Gann » Excellent information, Judy. I’d not heard of that resource before.
I didn’t know about Novelist Plus. Thanks for mentioning it, Judy.
This information is so helpful and specific! I like to ask my critique partners and other writers or readers who know about my book. They often have some input on which other books mine is similar to. Thanks for the information, I’ll definitely be referring to it again 🙂
Cindy R. Wilson » That’s a great idea to ask people familiar with your project to recommend suggested comparisons. It’s also helpful when putting together a nonfiction proposal, in order to discover titles you may not have known about (but need to know about) in writing your book. Thanks for sharing.
A very timely and helpful post, Michelle. Thank you! I revamped my comps section a couple weeks ago, but based on your suggestions I have some ideas on how to make it even stronger.
Hi Michelle!
Very helpful tips I must say, especially the part of using books at least 5 years in the market. I will admit, writing a proposal could be unnerving. I know I’m diverting from the comparison section with my question, but a major concern of mine is the pitch letter. What would you suggest should be the first few lines of the first paragraph of a pitch letter for fiction? Thanks a lot for the post! I learned a lot.
Miranda » A pitch is a business letter. Be succinct, to the point and clear. It’s really your audition and gives the editor/agent an idea if you can write well. Some people begin with a description of their project and that’s fine. Be yourself but don’t bog down the letter with extraneous information. Start with your hook, or you might want to explain why your project is worth considering:
“In a time when charlatan preachers spread their ideas around the globe via the Internet, we can look back with fondness to the first Christian preacher to use mass media, Aimee Semple McPherson, and from her life gain insight into the negative effects of publicity on a person’s soul.”
Or something like that.
Thanks so much Michelle! That was very helpful!
Thanks for this great post, Michelle. I’m in the midst of writing a proposal at the moment and gleaned some very helpful treasures from your comments.
Blessings,
MaryAnn
Excellent post, Michelle. I think I read through a few dozen children’s picture books when I was compiling comparisions for two agent meetings last year. I ended up not needing the information, but I found it helpful.
Great to see you blogging again.
The first time I was asked to do a comparison I had no idea what the agent was talking about! I wish I had this information then. I’ll be copying this post (if I may) so I can do a better job as I revamp this section of my proposal.
My problem is that I write historical fiction, but the historical fiction I read was contemporary when it was written (Austen, anyone?). Thanks for the advice on how to do a search. I have some reading to do.
Ann Bracken » I had to read that twice, Ann, I thought you were saying you read Austen as a contemporary . . . 🙂 If you’re writing a Regency, just choose several recent Regencies . . . as they’re popular at the moment, you shouldn’t have any trouble.
Ah, such a timely post! I’m putting the final touches on my proposal and am going back into my comparison section right now to make some changes. Thanks!
Great post, and relevant to me at this moment because I am working on my proposal- and it’s busting my chops on this very point. I’m have a novel that deals with the creation/evolution debate and how it effects people in realistic ways. There’s plenty of nonfiction- more than I could possibly have read- but I haven’t found a single piece of fiction that covers this, no matter how hard I look. Inherit The Wind is the closest, and it’s not even close. I think it’s an interesting, fresh but entertaining look at the issue. I’m hoping it’s not too fresh.
I read a good book dealing with this subject earlier this year. It was a novel called The Evolution of Thomas Hall by Keith Merrill. It might be a good comparison for you.
Hi Darby, you might want to check out my friend Julia Cave’s website. She writes mysteries, incorporating creation v/s evolution–I think they sell her books in Ken Hamm’s creation museum. Here’s the link:
http://juliecave.nlpgblogs.com
Hope this helps!
Nice. Just a quick look at her web page tells me we’re on the same page (so to speak). I definitely need to seek out these books. Thank you very much.
Thanks for the great information Michelle.
I’ve done three other things to identify books for the comparison section of my proposal by focusing on the needs of my niche target market (moms with sons or daughters serving in the military):
1) Buy and read books offered at local, regional, and national conventions where these moms gather.
2) In casual conversations with these moms ask what books they’ve read that have been helpful to them.
3) Include relevant questions in an survey I e-mailed to a group of these mothers: “What books or other resources have helped you the most as a home-front mom? What about each book or resource was most helpful to you?”
Like other commenters I’m going back to take a fresh look at the comparison section of my proposal. 🙂
Linda Jewell » As a retired Navy wife, I appreciate you went to the source of insightful information for your project. I cannot tell you how disgusted I get with people who write military stories and miss basic facts. Listing where you went for information also could appear in your proposal and would demonstrate you are thinking out of the box for both information and potential marketing arenas. Good job!
And thanks. 🙂
Writing a proposal is more daunting then writing the actual book!
Thank you, Michelle! Your insight is timely for me. I am currently brushing up that part of my proposal.
I just finished a first draft of my proposal and I don’t know if it’s too long or too short or…
Darby Kern » Check in with your agent–they’re the ones who can best judge if you’re the right length or not. Best wishes!
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