AboutBill Frank Expertise I help authors become publishers. I'm a self-publishing consultant with resources in editing, graphic design, printing, distribution and marketing. I can help you turn your manuscript into a published book. I identify the best distribution channels for your book. I also help you build a marketing plan to sell the book. I specialize in non-fiction books and I take fiction books on a selective basis.
Experience Book layout and design; book printing; channels of distribution and book marketing.
Organizations Publishers' Marketing Association. Book Publicists of Southern California.
Education/Credentials MBA in Marketing and Finance. BA in Economics.
I'm currently working on a unique non-fiction reference book. I plan on querying various publishers and/or agents with a letter outlining the idea and what the contents would include. My question to you is, how do I protect myself from having my idea stolen? What measures can I take? Thank you in advance for your time. I will appreciate any help you can offer me. Have a wonderful weekend!
Respectfully,
Susan
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Answer Hi, Susan. This non-fiction reference book sounds very special. Protecting your idea will not be as difficult as you think.
When you pitch your idea to publishers, you'll want to use an agent to be your intermediary. You can try to pitch the publishers yourself, but your odds of success are slim. Most pitch letters are unopened, let alone answered.
A good agent will not steal your idea. By committing your ideas to paper and dating the document, you establish your rights to the idea in the event you are forced to go to court to protect your idea. Believe it or not, however, there are very few people out there waiting to steal (plagiarize) your idea.
If you are really concerned, you can copyright your idea with the government. Follow the same process you'd follow to copyright your finished book.
In most cases, you'll want to flesh out your idea more fully before going to an agent or publisher. Most will want a pitch letter, an outline of your book idea (or a table of contents) and one or two sample chapters.
To get a better idea of what agents want, you may want to read Michael Larson's book on Book Proposals or Judith Applebaum's book, How to get Happily Published, or Patricia Fry's book about successful book proposals.
