William Leibowitz has been practicing entertainment/media law in New York City for a number of years.  He has represented numerous renowned creative people and many leading intellectual property companies.  William has a Bachelor of Science degree from New York University (magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa) and a law degree from Columbia University.  He lives in the village of Quogue, New York with his wife, Alexandria, and dog, George.

William wrote Miracle Man because of its humanistic and spiritual messages and because he feels that in our current times--when meritless celebrity has eclipsed accomplishment and the only heroes are those based on comic books, the world needs a real hero--and that, of course, is Robert James Austin, the protagonist in Miracle Man.

Can you tell us about your publishing experience?

My cross-genre thriller, Miracle Man, is self-published and it has worked out very well.  The book received a national Best Thriller Award, it was designated by Amazon as one of the Top 100 Novels of 2015, was an Amazon Top 10 Thriller, an Amazon Best Seller, and on the Amazon NY Times Best Seller list.  I have over 725 Amazon reviews with an overall 4.2 rating.  That said – I would have to say that if a book is published by a major publisher who puts its marketing and distribution muscle behind the book --- I don’t think that any self-published book can compete with that.  It’s very hard to get into a lot of retail stores with a self-published book, airport stores, etc – and many newspapers will simply not review self-published books.

After it was all said and done, what can you tell us that surprised you the most about getting your book published?

I didn’t solicit publishers as I opted for self-publishing from the start.  I was pleasantly surprised at how well Miracle Man did ---but that left me with the distinct feeling that if I did that well as a self-published book with virtually no marketing---- how well would the book do if I major publisher got behind it?

What’s the most helpful piece of advice others have given you regarding getting your book published?

Frankly – I haven’t received any helpful advice.  Professionals in the publishing business (e.g. lawyers representing writers and even some agents) have told me that publishers are extremely skeptical of new fiction writers---they prefer non-fiction and books by celebrities.  With fiction, they like to stick with the already established authors.  I have also been told that for new fiction writers, the level of advances that publishers give is now a fraction of what it once was --- and the royalty structure continues to be primitive --- i.e., 25% of the publisher’s receipts from Amazon (when a self-published author can get 70% from Amazon).  Additionally, I have been told that new fiction writers will be grilled by publishers with the question – “So how are YOU going to market this book?”

What can you tell aspiring authors on their quest to be published?  Any advice for them?

I would suggest that you start by self-publishing.  Otherwise you may spend the better part of your creative life soliciting agents and publishers who are the “gate-keepers”.

What’s next for you and where can we find you on the web?

Please check out my website:  miraclemanbook.com

The saga of Robert James Austin, the protagonist in Miracle Man, is a trilogy.  I’m writing the second book now.