Ghost Writing
Book Proposal Writing
Non-fiction authors don't submit a finished manuscript to agents and publishers — they submit a proposal. This service builds the overview, market case, and sample chapter that gets yours taken seriously.
Ghost Writing
Non-fiction authors don't submit a finished manuscript to agents and publishers — they submit a proposal. This service builds the overview, market case, and sample chapter that gets yours taken seriously.
A non-fiction book proposal has to do the work a novel's manuscript does on its own: prove there's a market, show the author has the platform and authority to write the book, and demonstrate the writing is good enough to carry a full-length title, all before a single full chapter is finished.
This service builds each section a proposal needs — overview, market and competitive analysis, marketing plan, chapter-by-chapter outline, and a polished sample chapter — matched to what agents and acquisitions editors in your category actually expect to see.
Full Proposal Structure
Overview, market analysis, comp titles, marketing plan, chapter outline, and sample chapter.
Category-Specific Comp Titles
Competitive titles chosen to prove market fit in your specific non-fiction category.
Platform-Focused Author Bio
An author section built to show the authority and audience publishers look for.
Polished Sample Chapter
A fully edited chapter that demonstrates the book can carry its premise at full length.
Often paired with Book Proposal Writing.
The query letter that typically accompanies a book proposal when reaching out to agents.
The fuller submission package this proposal can be built into for agent outreach.
Full ghostwriting support for the manuscript once a proposal has sold the book.
Common questions about book proposal writing.
No — that's the point of a proposal. Non-fiction is typically sold on a proposal and one polished sample chapter, not a finished manuscript, so the rest of the book can be written after a publisher or agent has signed on.
Standard sections include an overview, market and competitive analysis, an author platform section, a marketing plan, a chapter-by-chapter outline, and one sample chapter — though the exact mix varies by category and by agent.
Memoir proposals follow the non-fiction proposal format even though the book itself is narrative, so yes — the same structure applies, with more weight placed on the sample chapter to prove the voice and story carry a full book.
From the Pen & Laurel blog.
Tell us about your book idea and we'll walk you through what a full proposal for your category needs to include.