Book Contract
I took one small step and one giant leap toward my writing dream becoming reality today. In case you're a new blog reader, I feel as called to write as I do to pastor. I can't imagine not writing a book a year for the rest of my life. But that writing dream gathered dust for about a decade after seminary :)
The first part of this year I took a step of faith and wrote a manuscript, In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day. Then I hired an agent to shop it for me. Then I prayed for God's favor. God answered that prayer big-time!
We sent the manuscript to seven publishers that we thought would be a good match. Out of those seven I had an internal wish list. One of my wish list publishers, Multnomah, just offered me a multi-book contract.
I've been jumping up and down inside all day :)
We haven't read the fine print or signed the formal contract, but we verbally agreed to terms today. I'll write four books over the next 30-36 months. What I love is that one of them will be a book targeting twenty-somethings which is one of my core passions. And another one will be a book targeting pastors and leaders which is another core passion.
I love several things about Multnomah.
First and foremost, I'm learning that publishing is all about relationship. I had a five-hour meeting with them two weeks ago and there was a great vibe. I feel like we're on the same wavelength.
One of the other things I love about Multnomah is their team of authors. Two of their authors, Andy Stanley and Louie Giglio, are role models for me. They're also doing a book with Craiq Groeshel, Senior Pastor of Lifechurch.tv. The bottom line is that I love their team and I love their books. They put out great stuff.
I feel a debt of gratitude to them for betting on a new author with no name.
For what it's worth, we'll tentatively targeting September 2006 as the release date for In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day.
The first part of this year I took a step of faith and wrote a manuscript, In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day. Then I hired an agent to shop it for me. Then I prayed for God's favor. God answered that prayer big-time!
We sent the manuscript to seven publishers that we thought would be a good match. Out of those seven I had an internal wish list. One of my wish list publishers, Multnomah, just offered me a multi-book contract.
I've been jumping up and down inside all day :)
We haven't read the fine print or signed the formal contract, but we verbally agreed to terms today. I'll write four books over the next 30-36 months. What I love is that one of them will be a book targeting twenty-somethings which is one of my core passions. And another one will be a book targeting pastors and leaders which is another core passion.
I love several things about Multnomah.
First and foremost, I'm learning that publishing is all about relationship. I had a five-hour meeting with them two weeks ago and there was a great vibe. I feel like we're on the same wavelength.
One of the other things I love about Multnomah is their team of authors. Two of their authors, Andy Stanley and Louie Giglio, are role models for me. They're also doing a book with Craiq Groeshel, Senior Pastor of Lifechurch.tv. The bottom line is that I love their team and I love their books. They put out great stuff.
I feel a debt of gratitude to them for betting on a new author with no name.
For what it's worth, we'll tentatively targeting September 2006 as the release date for In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day.
10 Comments:
That is awesome! Within no time you are going to be right up there with Tom Clancy and Edgar Allen Poe. You may even have to hire a body guard to go around with you and a helicopter to take you from Union to Ballston... if you can get Mr. Bush to authorize that...
Is the book "In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day" about Benaiah in 2 Samuel 23? If so, I wanna find out more.
Let me know please.
You got it :)
The premise is pretty simple: if you find yourself in a pit with a lion on a snowy day it sure seems like "bad luck." Unless, of course, you're applying for a job as bodyguard to the King of Israel. In which case, it looks great on your resume :) I killed a lion in a pit on a snowy day!
Long story short, Beneniah ends up Commander of David's Army. But it all traces back to a pit with a lion on a snowy day.
The book is about the way God uses past experiences (pits, lions, and snowy days) to prepare us for future opportunities.
Congratulations Mark! That's so cool to hear. You da man!!
Congratulations, Pastor Mark! We are really excited for you. Thanks for being our pastor! One day, we will be able to say we knew you when you did your chaos dance. And that we knew you when your worship team used a drum machine! :)
That is too cool man!
I studied that the other day Mark. It sure seemed odd, you know, talking about how he struck down two of Moab's best fighters. Then it's like oh yeah he killed a lion in a pit on a snowy day. I knew it had to have huge significance, but I couldn't quite pin it down. Besides the obvious one, I can't wait to hear your full take on it.
I will be first in line to buy this book.
I'll stop by if you're at the booth at Catalyst.
Yeah God!!!!! PM this is so exciting! We are so proud of you and so proud of God for making this happen! I am so excited for what this means for our church and the opportunities for NCC that will come out of having our pastor be a best selling author. Yeah God! Heidi
God's so cool. iPods. Book deals. There was that whole chaos dance thing, but, hey, He has to keep us humble, right? :) And it could be worse (open mouth, insert foot). We are challenged by the sermons and look forward to the books.
Best,
K
Dude, that is awesome! Can't wait to read the book. Love your blog and podcasts by the way!
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