For nonfiction and memoir authors
Book Proposal Template and Example
Every section of a nonfiction book proposal, each with a length and a note on what it has to prove, plus a full worked example.
Book proposal · THE SHADY PLOT
- OverviewMost vegetable guides assume full sun. THE SHADY PLOT is for the gardener with a north-facing yard, a neighbor's oak, or a balcony between towers. It teaches readers to measure the light they actually have, pick crops that fit it, and plan beds that produce. About 60,000 words, with photographs and planting charts.
- AudienceUrban and suburban gardeners shaded by trees or buildings; community-garden members handed the plot nobody wants; new homeowners who just learned why the last owner grew hostas.
- Chapter summaries1. Map Your Light: measure direct sun per bed before buying a seed. 2. Leaves First: the crops that tolerate the least light. 3. Borrowed Sun: reflect, prune and move containers.
- About the authorMaster Gardener volunteer who coordinates a shaded community garden. 1,400 newsletter subscribers; six workshops a year, 25 seats each.
What you'll get
Every proposal section agents ask for, with a worked example
- Every section agents ask for, in order
- A worked example proposal to copy from
- Each section's length, and where agents differ
Before and after
Your idea in. Overview and chapters started.
A practical guide to growing vegetables in shady yards, for gardeners under trees or tall buildings.
Overview: Most vegetable guides assume a sunny yard. THE SHADY PLOT is for the gardener who has [hours of sun] and a tree they will not cut down. It shows how to measure the light you have, choose crops that fit it, and harvest from beds most books write off. [Why you: your credentials.] Chapter 1, Map Your Light: the reader measures direct sun per bed before buying a seed. Chapter 2, Leaves First: [crops for your light], and why greens forgive what tomatoes will not.
Slots in brackets are yours to fill. River never invents comps, credentials or numbers.
Why it works
What goes in a nonfiction book proposal?
A nonfiction book proposal is the business plan for a book you have not finished. It covers an overview, who will buy it, your bio and platform, comparable titles, a marketing plan, a chapter-by-chapter outline and sample chapters. Nonfiction is commonly sold this way, before the manuscript is done, and TW Literary lists the same seven sections. This template lays out every section with its job, a target length, and prompts that tell you what to write.
Each section comes with a worked example from one invented book, THE SHADY PLOT, a practical guide to growing food in shade. Its platform numbers are invented and kept modest, and its comps are described rather than named, so the example never misstates a real book. Agents disagree on total length, how many comps to list and how long chapter summaries should run. The template sets their numbers side by side, so you can follow the agent you are pitching.
Take it away as Word documents without signing up, or work on it in River. Describe your idea and its reader, or paste your notes and chapter list, and River drafts the overview, the audience and a first chapter outline. Credentials, platform numbers and comps stay as marked slots unless you supply them. For fuller walkthroughs, read Jane Friedman's proposal guide or Reedsy's guide, and plan chapters first with the nonfiction book outline template.
What lands in your doc
What's inside the book proposal template
- Every section, in order
Title page, overview, audience, comps, bio, marketing, chapter outline and sample chapter, each with its job. - Target lengths
A length for every section, from a short overview to a few sentences per chapter. - A worked example
THE SHADY PLOT proposal, filled in section by section, so you can see the finished shape. - Comps that say how yours differs
Title, author, publisher and year, then one line on what each does well and where yours goes further. - Platform as evidence
Prompts for counts you can show today, such as newsletter readers or workshop seats, not hopes. - Where agents differ
Total length, number of comps and chapter summary length, with each agent's or press's figure named.
How it works
From idea to proposal
Open the template
Click Edit with AI. Every proposal section opens in River with its job and target length.
Add your idea
Optional. Describe the book and its reader, or paste your notes, and River drafts the overview, audience and outline.
Fill what only you know
Add credentials, platform counts and comps you have read. The author bio template helps with the bio.
Add a sample chapter
Write your strongest chapter, or start one with the AI book writer, then check each agent's list.
Questions authors ask
Common questions
What is a book proposal?
A book proposal is the document that sells a nonfiction book to an agent or publisher before the book is written. It makes the case for the idea, the readers and you, and shows the plan: an overview, audience, comps, bio and platform, marketing, a chapter outline and sample chapters.
How long should a nonfiction book proposal be?
It depends on the book and the agent. Jane Friedman says most run 10 to 25 double-spaced pages before sample chapters, while Lucinda Literary puts typical proposals at 30 to 60 pages. Write what each section needs, then check the agent's guidelines.
What sections does a book proposal need?
Most agents want an overview, the target audience, comparable titles, your bio and platform, a marketing plan, a chapter-by-chapter outline, and one to three sample chapters. TW Literary lists seven sections along those lines, while Dystel, Goderich & Bourret folds audience and comps into the overview. Follow each agent's order.
How many comparable titles should I include?
Usually three to ten, depending on who you ask. The University of New Mexico Press asks for three to five, and Jane Friedman suggests five to ten, or just a few for a niche topic. For each, give the publisher and year and say how your book differs.
Do I need to finish the book before writing a proposal?
Not for most nonfiction. Agents usually want the proposal and sample chapters before the full manuscript. Memoir varies more, and Jane Friedman notes that some agents want a complete manuscript from unpublished memoirists; our memoir outline helps shape that story. Writing the proposal also gives you a plan for the rest of the book.
Do novels need a book proposal?
Usually not. Jane Friedman explains that a novel submission is a query letter, a synopsis, and a partial or complete manuscript, and debut novelists generally query with a finished book. Use the query letter template and the synopsis template instead.
What if I don't have a big platform?
Show what you have, honestly and with numbers: the workshop you teach, the newsletter you send, the groups that already know you. Jane Friedman's advice for the marketing plan: "Make it concrete, realistic, and attach numbers to everything." Lucinda Halpern's short list is clear writing, a big idea, and some audience to depend on.
Your next step
More for your book
Make the case for your book
Open every proposal section in a doc, or start the overview and chapter list from your notes, then keep going section by section.