I might write more on this later on, but in general I think Bill is right on the money with this one.
I might add a few other practical tips and guidelines, though. Some of these are easier than others.
1. Study successful writers. If you want to write books about games, get the ones that exist and figure out what is good and bad about them. Figure out their intended audience and whether they sold well (and think about why). Try to envision what the proposal for this book must have looked like, and you might even consider getting in touch with the author. Ask him or her for advice and a copy of the original proposal (if they're willing). You might also ask them about your own idea, but don't be disappointed if they don't have time. Above all, imitate what worked (don't plagiarize or copy directly, of course!), change what didn't.
2. Find an appropriate publisher. As with #1, look at who published the books in the field and look at their other books. Try to find a "theme" or "niche" that they are publishing and you can contribute to. The publishers we worked with are very specific about their audience and its needs (game developers). Don't try to argue that your book will be enjoyed by everyone; publishers often want you to cater to their chosen market(s). This is something that Bill and I have had trouble with (between us and potential publishers). If a market isn't already proven to exist, expect a hard time from wary publishers.
3. Think it through and plan carefully. This seems obvious but is actually quite hard. It is hard, for instance, coming up with a reasonable time frame and how many pages, images, and so on you will need. My experience is that you should take Scotty's approach from Star Trek--double or treble your initial calculations. If you think it will take you six months, ask for a year. Pages are a bit trickier--make sure you understand their template and how much text or image will actually fit on a page. If you say something like, "200-300 pages," it sounds like you have no idea what you're doing because the range is too wide.
I might write more on this later on, but in general I think Bill is right on the money with this one.
I might add a few other practical tips and guidelines, though. Some of these are easier than others.
1. Study successful writers. If you want to write books about games, get the ones that exist and figure out what is good and bad about them. Figure out their intended audience and whether they sold well (and think about why). Try to envision what the proposal for this book must have looked like, and you might even consider getting in touch with the author. Ask him or her for advice and a copy of the original proposal (if they're willing). You might also ask them about your own idea, but don't be disappointed if they don't have time. Above all, imitate what worked (don't plagiarize or copy directly, of course!), change what didn't.
2. Find an appropriate publisher. As with #1, look at who published the books in the field and look at their other books. Try to find a "theme" or "niche" that they are publishing and you can contribute to. The publishers we worked with are very specific about their audience and its needs (game developers). Don't try to argue that your book will be enjoyed by everyone; publishers often want you to cater to their chosen market(s). This is something that Bill and I have had trouble with (between us and potential publishers). If a market isn't already proven to exist, expect a hard time from wary publishers.
3. Think it through and plan carefully. This seems obvious but is actually quite hard. It is hard, for instance, coming up with a reasonable time frame and how many pages, images, and so on you will need. My experience is that you should take Scotty's approach from Star Trek--double or treble your initial calculations. If you think it will take you six months, ask for a year. Pages are a bit trickier--make sure you understand their template and how much text or image will actually fit on a page. If you say something like, "200-300 pages," it sounds like you have no idea what you're doing because the range is too wide.
Matt Barton, Managing Editor
Location: St. Cloud, Minnesota, USA
Email: matt@armchairarcade.com