Boot Camp
Write Your Nonfiction Book Proposal: 6-Week Publishing Bootcamp
with Tawny Lara
Live Seminar Via Zoom Saturday, March 4th, 2025
Class Starts on Wednesday, March 4th, 2026
The class will meet weekly via Zoom on Wednesdays, 6:00PM - 8:00PM Eastern.
Instructor Tawny Lara is a journalist with a business degree who understands both sides of the creative life: we want to create cool shit, and we also want to make a living. She's the author of Dry Humping: A Guide to Dating, Relating, and Hooking Up Without the Booze and The Sobriety Deck: Practical Practices for a Booze-Free Lifestyle, and co-founder of the vinegar-based botanical beverage (parentheses). She's also an exhausted Capricorn who's obsessed with her dog, Stevie Nicks.
Tawny designed this generative course as the creativity boot camp she needed in the early stages of her publishing career. She approaches writing the same way she approaches business. She sees book proposals as business plans for your book and literary agents as the investors who believe in your vision.
WHAT WRITERS CAN EXPECT:
In a virtual group setting, students meet with Tawny for two hours a week to finally dust off that old Google Doc and get to work.
Students will write weekly assignments, read each other's work, and give feedback in class.
Each week is structured so students can focus on one aspect of the publishing process at a time rather than feeling overwhelmed by the whole thing at once.
Each session ends with a 20-minute Q&A where students can ask about publishing, proposals, finding an agent, preorder campaigns, and book marketing.
COURSE OUTLINE (GUEST SPEAKERS FORTHCOMING):
Week 1: Why Me? and Why Now? - Each book proposal needs to answer two questions: Why Me? and Why Now? You'll define why you're the person to write your book and why the world needs your book right now. Homework: write and submit your author bio to the group, then get feedback the following week
Week 2: Target Audience and Comp Titles - Identifying your target audiences can help you visualize your readers, which then helps publishers (and you!) know how to market your book. In addition to identifying your target audiences, you'll also identify your comp titles (existing books that are similar to yours), then discern how your book is different. Homework: write and submit your target audience list and comps list to the group, then get feedback the following week
Week 3: Chapter Summaries - Chapter titles and summaries help future agents and publishers understand your book idea. You'll learn what to include in those summaries to be as efficient as possible. Homework: write and submit your two chapter summaries to the group, then get feedback the following week
Week 4: Sample Chapters - Choose two chapters to include in your proposal. This class time will be spent outlining those sample chapters both digitally and using sticky notes. Homework: write and submit your the outline for your chapter to the group then get feedback the following week
Week 5: Literary Agents + Query Letters - This week is all about finding the right agent to help you bring your project to life. Learn what exactly a literary agent does, what they look for, and how to convey your expertise to them. We’ll also cover the basics of how the publishing industry works from concept to publishing. Homework: write and submit your query letter to the group then get feedback the following week
Week 6: Final Critiques, Q+A, and Community - The critique energy continues into the final week of class. Here, you’ll have time to revisit the draft of your proposal written during the previous weeks. We’ll close with ample time for Q+A and community connection. Writing a book can feel lonely at times, so moments like these help writers stay on track with their publishing goals.
SPECIFIC COURSE TAKEAWAYS:
Structured Learning & Personal Guidance: Engage in a structured six-week program where each session focuses on a specific component of your publishing process, complemented by personal guidance and a weekly Q&A with Tawny Lara, an experienced author with Penguin Random House.
Professional Proposal Crafting: From articulating your unique perspective to detailing your marketing strategy, learn to craft a compelling book proposal that answers critical questions like "Why Me?" and "Why Now?", and effectively presents your author bio and book concept.
Understand Your Project Better: Through weekly writing assignments and peer feedback, you'll understand the idea that's bouncing around your head when you see it dance on the page.
Practical Writing Exercises: Progress from conceptual outlines to writing sample chapters, with practical exercises designed to refine your chapter titles and summaries, ensuring your proposal resonates with agents and publishers