Hello Agents?

A few months ago, I drafted up a concise and cogent query letter and sent it off to my "pre-vetted" list of literary agents, this at the recommendation of all the "Book Proposal Doctors." My list came from standing in Barnes & Noble on the Upper West Side and reading through the "Acknowlegements" sections of books I felt were similar (e.g. "complementary") enough to entice the agent for that book to represent mine. I sent over 25 letters, mostly by e-mail, though others by snail mail as their protocol required. Many wrote back to say thanks but no thanks,. Some did say they were interested, and I sent off my proposal (revision #66) to each of them. No bites though. I understand that rejection is part of the process, but I just wonder if it is a sign that I need to go ahead and write the book and get it out into the market, rather than follow the "process" that is expected of authors that expect to follow the traditional route. Glad to take on suggestions here about the importance (or not) of using an agent and a publishing house to get a book to market.

Publisher or profit?

They told me the only good way to publish a book was to write a great proposal, get a savvy agent and approach the best publishers in the industry. Then the others said that publishers retain most of the revenue, don't do a thing to help you with the writing and leave you to do your own promotion.

So, after a couple years of straddling the fence about which way to go with the marketing of Why Healthcare Matters, it's clearly time to just get on with the writing of the book. I haven't seen Al Gore's movie http://www.climatecrisis.net or read his book, but I like that he's been able to use his knowledge and platform to speak his mind about global warming. I really see the power in that. Healthcare was supposed to be the issue in the 2004 presidential campaign until terrorism, Iraq and swift boats were seen by consultants as more relevant issues to the populace. Healthcare is difficult to champion as a politician. It's too complex. The Clintons tried to take it on early in their presidency and it nearly choked them. But for 2008, if we're past the immigration issue, healthcare should be domestic Topic A.

Why Healthcare Matters should be out by the end of 2007, and it can hopefully can fuel the political agenda during the next presidential campaign.