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Home > The Off Farm Income Podcast > OFI 525: How To Get An Agricultural Book Deal And Create Your Off-Farm Income Through Writing | Deb Burns | Storey Publishing
Podcast: The Off Farm Income Podcast
Episode:

OFI 525: How To Get An Agricultural Book Deal And Create Your Off-Farm Income Through Writing | Deb Burns | Storey Publishing
Category: Business
Duration: 00:00:00
Publish Date: 2018-11-09 01:30:29
Description:    SHOW NOTES KEY IDEAS:  Way back in 2015 I interviewed a soft-spoken rancher named Heather Smith Thomas in episode #009.  Heather was producing all of she and her husband's off-farm income through her abilities as a writer.  She had embraced the ranching and broader agricultural lifestyle wholeheartedly and had a lot to say about it in order to help others.  She was able to communicate her message through her writing.  She was doing what I was talking about, long before I ever discovered the concept. In addition to magazine articles Heather had written several books.  One of those was Storey's Guide to Raising Beef Cattle, 3rd Edition.  Heather had taken what she and her husband did every day in Salmon, Idaho and put it all into a book to help others do the same.  I had read several Storey's Guides, including Heather's, prior to this interview, and I was so impressed by the quality of the information in the books and the ease with which I could absorb the information I wanted to re-visit this topic again because it is such a great and underutilized form of off-farm income.  I reached out to Deb Burns, an acquiring editor with Storey Publishing, to see if she would be willing to come on the show and discuss how all of you can get this done.  She graciously agreed, and that is what we have for you today. My hope for you after this episode is that you see that it is completely possible for you to create your off-farm income in this manner.  And, it is not just about how well you write, but what you know.  Enjoy, and I look forward to reading your book! ADVICE FROM DEB: PLATFORM: To enhance your chances of getting a deal with a publisher it really helps to have already built a platform for yourself.  It is not a requirement, but it certainly helps if you have an audience of people already engaged with your message and actively following you.  This can be done either through social media, speaking engagements or something entirely different.  But if people are resonating with what you have to say, you have a leg up. *My podcast is my platform, and the blog posts or "show notes" that I publish with each episode are a secondary platform.  The same is true for my Facebook Page and Twitter account.  The best book I have read on creating your own platform is simply called: Platform: Get Noticed in a Noisy World.  This book was written by Michael Hyatt, and it really explains the importance of creating a platform for yourself.  Social media is constantly changing, so some of what Michael talks about might be a bit dated even though the book is only 6 years old.  But the point he makes is priceless. Another great book to inspire you to do this is called The Millionaire Messenger: Make a Difference and a Fortune Sharing Your Advice.  This is a book that I try to read or listen to at least once per year.  It really inspires me to keep going with my crazy idea of being the biggest voice on small business in agriculture.  I highly suggest this book for you as well if you want to follow Deb's advice and go for it.   THREE "U'S": Deb also talks about the three "U's" when discussing how to produce a good agricultural book.  The book needs to be: Useful User Friendly Unique Storey Publishing really wants to serve its readers with the books that they publish.  Deb says to make sure that your book offers something that others do not, and not to write just a "cookie cutter" version of a hot topic.  And, don't be afraid to tell people what they need to do.  It is alright to be that clear about what you are saying. There is a ton of great advice in this interview.  If you have ever wanted to write a book, have a unique set of knowledge or have people asking you to share your message in one way or another this might be the episode that sets you free. BOOKS RECOMMENDED BY DEB: CONTACT INFORMATION: Telephone: 413-346-2100 Facebook: LINK Website: LINK Email: deb.burns@storey.
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