Post-Release, Book-Baby Blues

The traditionally-published writer’s journey starts in a whirl of excitement that often feels like Alice stepping through the looking glass into Wonderland. First, an agent offers representation, and the author wonders if the world will ever be the same. Then, a publisher makes an offer, and the beloved manuscript sets off on its journey to become a “real, live book.” The excitement waxes and wanes as release day approaches, and the release itself often passes in a whirl of blog appearances, signings, and good wishes from family and friends. But then, a few days (or, in some cases, weeks) later, the

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Debunking Some Popular Release Day Myths

Today’s post suffered a minor “delay of game” due to travel (and my brother’s birthday) but I’m finally in front of the computer and ready to debunk some popular release day myths. Myth #1: By the end of release day, I will be a NYT-Bestsellling author.  The reality: Not most of us. Many, if not most, debut authors approach release day with the anticipation that accompanies overinflated expectations. Expectations, and dreams, aren’t bad, and it’s perfectly fine to dream of hitting the New York Times Bestseller list (or any other dream you can imagine). However, it’s also important to keep your expectations

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Publishing 101: A Look at Story ARCs

Welcome back to our continuing series on Publishing 101 – the author’s journey. Today we’re continuing tour of the publishing process with a look at ARCs and their place in a manuscript’s journey to publication. “ARC” stands for “Advance Reading Copy” (or sometimes, “Advance Review Copy”). As the name implies, ARCs are advance copies of a book produced for, and distributed to, reviewers. Until a few years ago, ARCs were mostly produced in physical, paperback format. Now, many publishers use digitial ARCs (in various ebook and e-reader formats) as well as–or instead of–physical ARCs. In addition to ease of distribution and

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Copy Editors Are Cool (Copy) Cats

After the author and acquiring editor reach a consensus about the content-based edits on the author’s manuscript, the manuscript enters the copy editing phase. In some cases, the acquiring editor also handles copy edits, but most publishers have separate copy editors. That’s the case we’re looking at today. The copy editor reads an author’s manuscript for spelling, grammar, and house-specific formatting and stylistic issues. In addition to correcting errors, the copy editor ensures the manuscript complies with the publishing house’s style sheets. A style sheet is a standardized set of grammar and punctuating conventions, used to ensure that a house’s publications

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Indiana Writer and the Contract of DOOM … Or Not

Today, the Publishing 101 series takes a look at what happens when the publishing contract arrives. We won’t be dissecting contract language today – though contract issues will show up in other posts during 2014. Instead, we’re looking at what the author, and agent, will do when the contract comes. A note: as the publishing industry changes, a larger number of unrepresented authors are getting publishing contracts. If this happens to you, and you choose not to work with a literary agent, be sure to find a publishing attorney to review your contracts before you sign. Do not sign in

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After the Offer: Publishing 101

This week, we’re continuing the series on Publishing 101 with a look at what happens after the author (and agent, if any) accept the publisher’s offer to publish a work. Most authors think the step after “accepting the offer” is “sign the contract.” In one sense, that’s true, but other things often happen first. We’ll look at those intervening events this week, and take a look at the contract itself when this series returns two weeks from now. The publisher’s offer doesn’t usually involve a finalized contract. The offer usually looks more like a set of “deal points” which include things like

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Surviving the Offer – and Letting the Agent Deal

After your agent sends your work on submission, you’ll spend several weeks – or, more likely, months- learning to “manage your expectations.” “Managing expectations” while on submission means learning to wait patiently AND working on your next book. For most authors, the submission process contains at least one rejection (and often more) before an offer comes in. Some agents share the rejections with the author, some do not. (File this under “things to ask before you sign with the agent.”) Some editors’ rejections look a lot like the form rejections agents send to authors: “Thanks, but not for me.” Other editors,

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After the “Yes” …. Working With an Agent to Prepare a Work for Submission

Many pre-published authors think that once an author signs with an agent, publication follows immediately (or so close as to be immediately) thereafter. Today, we’ll look at what really happens after an author signs with an agent but before the work goes on submission to publishers. “On Submission” is the usual term for a manuscript that an agent has sent to publishers for review (and consideration for possible publication). Some authors shorten this to “on sub” – so if you see that terminology used, it doesn’t mean we’re sitting on sandwiches. After the author signs the agent’s contract (you should

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Rocking THE CALL

Today, the Publishing 101 series takes a look at what happens when that query leads to a full read and the reading leads to … THE CALL. For those of you unfamiliar with publishing-ese, “THE CALL” (usually all-caps) refers to an agent’s suggestion that (s)he and an author talk by telephone. The call usually — but not always — means the agent has decided to offer representation. Sometimes The Call serves another purpose: the agent does not offer representation, but wants to give the author advice on what the manuscript needs to reach the mark. I’ve had this version of

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Rejections and Partials and Fulls … Oh, My!

Today’s post continues our ongoing Publishing 101 series with a look at what happens “after the query.” (For a look at writing the query letter itself, click here or check the archives for Publishing 101.) Most writers agree that the query process isn’t the most fun you’ll have on the way to publication. Essentially, the query is a new car design … and the author, the crash-test dummy. If you’re like most of us who query, you’re going to hit a few walls before you reach THE CALL that leads to representation. However, the querying process is neither a license to gloat

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