When you do your market research (see Chapter 5 for more information on researching the market), you'll probably find other books in print that cover the same topic or a similar topic. It's usually in your best interest to find titles on the same or similar topics that are doing well in publication. If a similar book is in its tenth print run, that's a pretty good sign that there's a market out there for this topic. Check bestseller lists and book reviews for this kind of information. In fact, it's a good idea to start a folder of these kinds of clips when you first get your idea; they can help you fine-tune your proposal to fill a void not covered by already-published books, as well as help you build your case that there's a market for your topic.

Focus your market research on books only; don't talk about nonbook rights in your proposal. Publishers are primarily concerned with book rights. They don't care about movie rights, for instance, unless a studio has already taken an option on those rights, in which case that might be a selling point for you.

The “competition” section of the book proposal is the place where you point out the weaknesses in those other books and the strengths in your book. Highlight differences in point of view, research, approach — anything that makes your book stand out from the crowd. If your book deals with financial independence, you can point out that other books on that subject tend to target the upper-middle class, while yours focuses on the things individuals making $20,000 a year can do to improve their financial health.

Do not be snide or overly disparaging in your discussion of the competition. In the first place, it's unprofessional. In the second place, the agent or editor you are dealing with might have worked on the competing book you're criticizing. Be detached and as objective as possible in your analysis of the competition; a matter-of-fact explanation of what these other books lack will carry much more weight than an angry or belligerent tone.

No Competition

What if your idea never has been covered in book form? What if the books that have been done on your topic are no longer in print? Do you still need a discussion of the competition in your proposal? The answer is yes, definitely. This is a splendid opportunity to reinforce the newness and innovation of your proposal, so take advantage of it.

Agents and editors are always on the lookout for something that hasn't been done before, or something that hasn't been done for quite a while and therefore is due for an update, if not a complete overhaul. If your book deals with genealogy, for example, and the most recent book on the topic was published before the home computer and the Internet came into common use, you've got a great opening — as long as your proposal includes information on using the Internet to trace family histories.

You don't have to mention out-of-print books when talking about the competition, but make sure you check the latest book lists for soon-to-be-published titles. If you're writing for a mass market, you don't have to talk about technical books on your topic or those that are aimed specifically at professionals.

Too Much Competition

Sometimes you'll find lots of books, still in print, that cover some, or even most, of what you intend to cover in your book. When that happens, sometimes the thing that makes your book proposal unique is the packaging — that is, how the information is organized and presented.

Let's use this book as an example again. There are dozens of books for writers. Some of them deal with writing query letters; some cover formatting manuscripts; some offer tips on the craft of writing itself; some supply information about markets and research; and some talk about the writer's relationship with editors and publishers. How do you sell an agent or editor on yet another book about trying to get published?

In this case, the selling point — and what differentiates this book from all those others — is the entire package. An agent or editor would be able to tell from the outline that this book covers all the essential topics that those dozens of other books cover, in one convenient volume. In the discussion about the competition, then, the proposal for this book would talk about pulling all of these elements together under the Everything® umbrella to create an all-in-one, useful reference for a writer at any stage of his career.