Today, while I was having coffee at my local Borders, I happened to noticed a book called The Abs Diet. Now, why Borders chose to place their diet books next to the coffee bar I’ll never know. Maybe they’re hoping that when you’ve finished off that extra large piece of carrot cake and washed it down with a 20 oz. caramel latte you’ll feel so guilty you will rush right over to the diet books and buy two or three or ten so you can learn that you shouldn’t be eating carrot cake or drinking caramel lattes.
But, here’s the thing. After I saw The Abs Diet (I was sipping my coffee without caramel and browsing the shelves from my table) I saw another title: The Abs Diet For Women. Yep. A spin-off!
If you’ve been reading this blog for any length of time you know I’m a huge fan of spin-offs. They’re great because after writing your original manuscript you’ve got material you can use for your spin-off. Sure, you’ll need to write SOME new stuff for the spin-off title, but you won’t have to start completely from scratch. You can use a great deal of the material you’ve already got, and tweak it to work for your spin-off.
If you are writing about something that is gender specific, one great way to spin off that title (and double your money!) is to write a second one for the other gender. So, something along the lines of “97 Ways To Find Mr. Right” could spin-off another title called “97 Ways To Find The Girl Next Door.” Ok, these aren’t the best title examples, but you get the idea. Now run with it!
To your riches!
Kim
