Mark Malatesta Review by Alphonsus Obayuwana, MD, PhD | Mark Malatesta Reviews

Alphonsus Obayuwana, MD, PhD, author of The Happiness Formula, provided this review of former literary agent Mark Malatesta. Alphonsus worked with Mark to improve his query, manuscript, platform, and book proposal, resulting in him getting a top literary agent who sold his book to HCI Books, named the #1 self-help publisher by Publishers Weekly, with many national and New York Times bestsellers. Scroll below to learn more. Click here to see all Mark Malatesta reviews. And click here to learn more about Literary Agent Undercover and The Bestselling Author after you read the review about Mark Malatesta below by Alphonsus.

Mark Malatesta Review by Alphonsus Obayuwana, MD, PhD

HCI Books bought my book and they’re publishing it in March, the same month that the happiest country is declared every year! I got offers from two publishers, but HCI has a lot of bestsellers and they seemed like the best fit.

The rejections were very hard for me to take. I did very well in school, always scored high, and my papers were used as examples. So, after all the work you made me do, I wasn’t expecting to get so many rejections. There were bleak moments and it was devastating, but then I got a very good literary agent, Steven Harris with CSG Literary Partners.

I can’t tell you how happy I am.

Completing your program was like getting another diploma, an affirmation about working hard. I’m grateful though, because completing your assignments has made me a better writer and marketer. I feel better about my ability to promote my book when it comes out, and my next book will be even better written.

You’re unusual in that you do two things together that are not easily compatible: You encourage writers but simultaneously tell them there’s no guarantee. Usually, when you think about those two things, they’re opposites. Not complementary. As a result, I knew it might be a long walk with you, and if I hadn’t gotten an offer, I wouldn’t have had a complaint.

We did one step at a time, and there were always more steps. (laughter) You suggested I reorder the content and change my title, which was The Mathematics of Happiness. You said that sounded academic and boring, and you suggested I change it to The Happiness Formula. You also helped me with formatting my manuscript, which I had no idea how to do.

Your coaching is kind of an exposé that tells authors what agents don’t say or want authors to know. I put everything into my book, and I knew how different it was from other books on happiness, but I didn’t know how to help agents understand that. You helped me talk about my book and myself in a way that made sense to agents.

You helped me see that more things from my past were important for promotional purposes, things I was taking for granted. You helped me bring it all out, and you taught me how to write to people to tell them about the book, before querying agents, to get them to say they’d support my book when it’s published. That surprised me.

Working with you was a hefty financial investment, but I knew you’d show me exactly what to do, and that you’d help me do everything in the least amount of time. If I could have done it myself, I would have. So, anything you told me, even when I struggled with it, I did it the way you wanted. I’m glad I did.

When I called you, you were always on it. You’re very organized and always knew what we talked about the last time. It’s really amazing. And when you sent me the final query and book proposal, I read it back to myself and said, “Wow.” The query and proposal were very, very effective, as were your notes about the agents.

The self-help book market is very competitive. There were things I was planning to include in my query that I should not have included, things that would have hurt my chances with agents. I might have been one of your least polished clients, but you were able to help me get a great agent and publisher anyway.

I’ll always be grateful.

Alphonsus Obayuwana, MD, PhD

Author of The Happiness Formula, published by HCI Books, named the #1 self-help publisher by Publishers Weekly, with many national and New York Times bestsellers

* * *

Do You Want to Be Like Alphonsus Who Provided this Review of Mark Malatesta?

Do you want to be like Alphonsus and get an offer from a top literary agent who helps you get a traditional book publisher? Click here to get instant access to the Free Resources on our websites for authors and click here to find out how you can Schedule an Introductory Coaching Call. Mark Malatesta is founder of The Bestselling Author and Literary Agent Undercover, helping authors of all genres (fiction, nonfiction, and children’s books) get top literary agents, publishers, and book deals. The above review of Mark Malatesta, Author Coach was provided by author Alphonsus Obayuwana, MD, PhD.