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We publish
nonfiction books only and if you have one that has a large, identifiable
and reachable audience, we’d like to hear from you. We do not publish
poetry, children’s books, or fiction.
We prefer to
receive a query letter along with a book proposal. Please submit to us by
snail mail. We consider simultaneous submissions. Naturally, if we are
interested, we will contact you; however, if you wish to hear from us in
the event we are not interested, please enclose an SASE. Keep in mind that
every publisher turns down projects for reasons that have nothing to do
with the merit or publishability of the book. Even if we aren’t interested,
we encourage you to keep trying with other publishers.
We suggest you
read the book The Fast Track Course on How to Write a Nonfiction Book
Proposal by Stephen Blake Mettee, available at bookstores and
libraries, and follow Mettee’s instructions in preparing your book
proposal. While this isn’t absolutely necessary, a properly prepared book
proposal will increase your chances with us as well as with other publishers.
It will also help you think your project through completely.
Recent titles
we have published include Perilous Trails, Dangerous Men: Early
California Stagecoach Robbers and Their Desperate Careers 1856–1900 by
William Secrest and Remembering Cesar: The Legacy of Cesar Chavez, compiled
by Ann McGregor and edited by Cindy Wathen, the first book to be endorsed
by the Cesar E. Chavez Foundation.
We are
particularly interested in seeing proposals that fit the following four
areas:
The
Best Half of Life TM series
The Best Half of
Life books are practical, upbeat, encouraging works that enhance the lives
of people in their 50s and over. These titles help the reader to improve
and to better enjoy his or her life. We want sound, well-thought-out,
positive, focused writing. No personal How-I-Survived (-Cancer,
-Caring for a Spouse Afflicted with Alzheimer’s, etc.) essays. The book
must offer something distinctly helpful to the reader. Books with the
greatest chance of being published as a part of The Best Half of Life series
will have life-changing potential.
Text should be
for the popular market rather than the academic market. The inclusion of
checklists, sidebars, real-life anecdotes, exercises and similar elements
is encouraged.
Subjects may
include the whole gamut of human experience, from cooking to creativity,
sex to careers, recreation to finances. A recent
Best Half of Life book is The Memory Manual: 10 Simple Things You Can Do
to Improve Your Memory After 50 by Betty Fielding.
Writing and Getting Published
We are always
interested in seeing proposals on books for writers. Here the credentials
of the author are very important. If you have never published a novel, it
is doubtful that we would be interested in a book from you on how to write
a novel.
There are
quite a number of everything-an-author-needs-to-know-about-writing books
out there. Try to focus your project to a specific aspect of writing or
getting published. This focus is shown in our titles Damn! Why Didn’t I
Write That? How Ordinary People are Raking in $100,000 or More Writing
Nonfiction Books & How You Can Too! by
Marc McCutcheon (Both a Book-of-the-Month Club selection and a Writer's
Digest Book Club selection.) and The Portable Writer’s Conference
edited by Stephen Blake Mettee.
California
We publish one
or two regional California titles each year. Titles with a narrow focus,
yet a broad appeal have the best chance of catching our interest. Examples
are our Black Bart Boulevardier Bandit by George Hoeper, about the
1880s stagecoach robber; California’s Geographic Names by David
Durham, California’s definitive gazetteer, and From Mud-Flat Cove to
Gold to Statehood: California 1840-1850 by Irving Stone. Titles may be
on the history or the recreation of California, or on any other subject distinctive to the
state. The availability of illustrations is often a necessity.
The Fast-Track Course TM Series
The Fast Track
Course series features short (25,000–50,000 words), concise, clear,
interestingly written how-to books on virtually any subject.
Thanks for the
interest, we look forward to hearing from you.
Stephen
Blake Mettee, Publisher
1254 Commerce Ave.
Sanger, CA 93657
info@quilldriverbooks.coms
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