Do you have a book in you?

Do you have a book in you?

Maybe you want to write down the story of your life or maybe you’re thinking about the insights you learned through your work and feel it’s time to share them with others. Or maybe you woke up in the middle of the night with a great idea for a children’s book!

Over the last two decades, big changes in the publishing industry have made it easier than ever to usher an idea into print. While the large New York publishing houses are still churning out books, a growing number of self-publishing businesses have evolved to help writers put their work directly into the market.

In the past several years, more than two million new titles have been self-published each year, according to Bowker, the company that issues every published book with a unique identification number.

MPR News host Angela Davis talks with a book agent and a publisher about what it takes to publish and sell a book.  

Guests:

• Dara Beevas is the co-founder and chief strategic officer of Wise Ink Media, a hybrid publishing company in Minneapolis. She is the author of The Indie Author Revolution: An Insider’s Guide to Self-Publishing and the children’s book Amina of Zaria. She was previously vice president at Beaver's Pond Press and has ushered more than 300 books through the publishing process.  

• Laura Zats is a book agent and co-founder of Headwater Literary Management based in the Twin Cities. She represents authors writing fiction in several genres, including young adult novels, romance and fantasy. Since 2016, Laura has hosted “Print Run”, a publishing podcast, with Erik Hane. She was previously vice president at Wise Ink Media and worked as an agent for another Midwest literary agency.

Subscribe to the MPR News with Angela Davis podcast on: Apple Podcasts, Spotify or RSS.  

Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.