Saturday, June 26, 2010

Writing and Publishing Advice from Greg Tobin



Greg Tobin spoke at the Tallgrass Writing Workshop at Emporia State today. Tobin has been a writer, editor and publishing executive for more than two decades.

I thought I'd share just a few of the things he said - in no particular order.

*the rights today that are really big are electronic and audio
*print is a great medium, not only for reading, but also for preservation
*he wants to hear an author say that they're working on their second book and learned a lot from their first book
*more and more scouting for new talent is being done on social media sites
*publishing parts of your novel online is more acceptable now - editors for non-fiction, in particular, are scouting that way
*having a "platform" and some name recognition is more and more important - especially in non-fiction writing
*before you search for an agent, have your manuscript ready to send immediately if they ask for it
*don't be afraid to start at the top when you start looking for an agent
*agents and editors are looking for first of all great writing but beyond that personal stories that are appealing and a willingness to participate in marketing the book and an understanding of the process