Literary Agent: Forget About Highlighting 'Low-Carb' In Your Future Books

Ever since I wrote my self-published debut book Livin' La Vida Low-Carb: My Journey From Flabby Fat To Sensationally Skinny In One Year in October 2005, that "itch" to write another book has been growing and growing. I've bounced around ideas in my head these past few years for books with low-carb success stories, user-friendly low-carb research studies, a best-of-the-blog compilation (which I'm currently working on), and the most requested one from readers has been a low-carb cookbook (which I would LOVE to write!).

I have talked with quite a few publishers since 2005 to let me write books for them. Of course, my biggest obstacle is the fact that the theme of my books is "low-carb" and that's become taboo among editors lately. Dana Carpender, the most famous low-carb cookbook author out there, was forced to remove "low-carb" from the title of her column (which she no longer writes for as of January 2008 because of the editor's deemphasis on "low-carb") and prevented from putting "low-carb" in the title of her latest low-carb cookbook (Every Calorie Counts) for the first time in her writing career.

Dana told me in this blog interview as well as my upcoming podcast interview on Monday that she is moving away from using "low-carb" in favor of low-glycemic load (which she'll be releasing this Fall in conjunction with Rob Thompson) or controlled carbohydrate, but it's all basically low-carb. I can certainly understand her reasoning to get the low-carb message out there in a stealth manner because at least the message gets out there.

But I am not in that camp. I still think "low-carb" is viable considering my various sites and online projects garner nearly a million visitors a month. Not too shabby for an idea whose time has supposedly passed already. This is why I refuse to sidestep the term "low-carb" and proudly name it and claim it in the name of just about everything I touch--"Livin' La Vida LOW-CARB!" Wouldn't my blog be dead as a doorknob if nobody was interested in hearing about "low-carb" anymore? One would think.

So, with that knowledge in hand, I approached a literary agent recently about finding a publisher for a "Livin' La Vida Low-Carb Cookbook" to gauge their interest. Most publishers just want to know if you have the marketing mojo behind the books on their label and I've told them all about how enthusiastic all of you guys are about the healthy low-carb lifestyle. But, as you will see from these candid remarks I received back from this literary agent, they just don't care because somebody out there has fooled these editors into thinking low-carb is dead.

Dear Jimmy,

Thank you for your kind words about our agency. Your cookbook query came my way and I'm afraid we would not be interested at this time in representing a low-carb cookbook. We have an extremely full list of projects currently, and we are taking on few new clients, regrettably. It's also a volatile time in the publishing industry, and I can't say with conviction that a low-carb book would be appealing to publishers at this time.

I will say that I do know the term "low carb" itself has lost favor with editors, so you might consider other ways to title your book that focus on healthful eating rather than highlighting the low-carb focus (but that's just a thought and you may disagree!).

Kind regards and we appreciate your interest in our agency.

So there you have it! They're not interested in "low-carb" and it's the same thing I've seen over and over again as I've approached publishers. That's too bad because I REALLY believe in my heart of hearts that a publisher brave enough to give me or another low-carb author a chance to show them what we can do with a "low-carb" book using that exact term in the title would not only sell well, but exceed their flimsy expectations. I wouldn't need any marketing help from the publisher either. Who's gonna take that chance on my future low-carb books?

In the meantime, I will go back to self-publishing my books and proudly put "low-carb" in the title of every one of them. The best way to show these publishers how wrong they are is to prove they can sell despite that term. I'm looking forward to releasing my "best-of-the-blog" trilogy later this year and that low-carb cookbook in early 2009. THANKS for all of your amazing support of "Livin' La Vida Low-Carb."

Former Atkins VP Of Marketing Joins Rodale

Rodale has established itself as the industry leader in health books

Rodale, Inc. announced today in a press release that Nancy Hancock, former Vice-President of Marketing, Publicity and Publications for the line of books written by the late Dr. Robert C. Atkins, has joined their team to immediately begin marketing and developing new health and weight loss writers to continue their respectable reputation for producing very desirable, bestselling diet books.

Liz Perl, who serves as the Vice-President and Publisher of Rodale Trade Books, says she is excited to see what Hancock will bring to the table for Rodale with her wealth of knowledge not only with the Atkins publishing line, but also from her most recent stint with Simon and Schuster's Touchstone/Fireside imprint where she has served as Senior Editor since 2004.

"Nancy's expertise in the field of health and wellness, coupled with her marketing and brand-building savvy, make her the perfect addition to the Rodale team," Perl exclaimed. "I look forward to seeing Nancy's authors and books flourish at Rodale, where we support our health and wellness books across a broad range of media platforms, reaching nearly 40 million people monthly."

The Rodale name has quickly become synonymous with high-quality health and weight loss books in the past few years with such bestsellers as The South Beach Diet, The Abs Diet, and The Biggest Loser books. It will be interesting to see if Hancock can recognize and find any of the new and upcoming health writers that are already out there making a difference in their spheres of influence and needing a means for attracting a larger audience for what they are already doing. With her impressive pedigree in this business, I have no doubt she will find those diamonds in the rough in very short order.

I'm sure if Dr. Atkins were still around today that he would be one of the first people to give credit to Hancock where credit is due for making him a household name. Her work not only included five bestselling books, but also a subscription newsletter, multimedia presence and various subsidiary products to complement his books. What a privilege it must have been for Hancock to be such an integral part of something that has changed the lives of millions of people worldwide!

My life will never be the same again because of my decision in late 2003 to read Dr. Atkins New Diet Revolution. That little book that has sold tens of millions helped me shed 180 pounds off of my body for good in 2004 and now I'm livin' la vida low-carb. I suppose I owe my weight loss success in part to Hancock for her foresight and ability to effectively market the Atkins name as a brand that virtually everyone has heard of by now.

For that, I must say THANK YOU to you, Ms. Hancock, on behalf of ALL of the people who have been on the Atkins diet and succeeded. We appreciate what YOU did to help us find our way to permanent weight loss success and pay homage to you for your role in offering the Atkins diet to the public.

You can e-mail your congratulations to Nancy Hancock for her new position at Rodale by writing to her new boss, Liz Perl or you can e-mail Hancock directly by clicking here.

8-1-06 UPDATE: Nancy Hancock read my blog post about her new hiring at Rodale and sent me this kind and considerate e-mail.

Dear Jimmy,

Thank you for your enthusiastic welcome! I am thrilled to hear of your weight loss success and applaud you for living a healthy lifestyle. I do often meet people with similar stories and I will say that it is very gratifying to be part of something that makes such a huge difference in someone's life.

I appreciate your support and look forward to hearing more from you in the future.

All the best,
Nancy