Marchnewsletter

New Sales and Upcoming Releases

Sold: The Complete Gay Divorce,
and Gay Parenting, by Brette Sember
in a two-book deal to Editor Mike
Lewis at New Page Books

Fall by Ron Franscell to Joan Dunphy
at New Horizons Press

The Healing Parent by Wendy
Sunshine, Dr. Karyn Purvis, Dr. David
Cross, to Michele Mastriciani at
McGraw-Hill

Get the Point Across! by Dr.
Dawn-Michelle Baude, To Micheal
Pye at Career Press.

Also Multiple Job Offers in Ten
Days! by Aaron Clark writing as
Jonathan Price, again to Michael Pye
at Career Press

New Releases: Look for Erik
Lawrence's Tactical Pistol Shooting,
a lead title in the summer catalog for
Krause Publications.

Brette Sember's Your Plus-Size
Pregnancy, is recently-released
through Barricade Books and burning
up the charts!

Wayne Wilson's Soul Eyes (Genesis
Press) debuted this month to rave
reviews, and interest from several
movie production companies.

Special Notes: Kudos and hugs to
Charlotte Harris, whose debut title, A
Happy Life, is a finalist in the
Reviewers Choice Award for Best
First Multicultural Romance.

Wayne Wilson's Soul Eyes has been
nominated for the NAACP Image
Award for Best First Fiction.

Brette Sember's website,
www.yourplussizepregnancy.com,
has received the SizeWise Award for
being a positive role-model and
promoting positive self-image in the
plus-size community.

You're flying high. Your agent or editor just called to
tell you of an offer for your book. After getting the
basic business details (advance, royalties, revisions)
out of the way, the next question is usually "When will
my book be published?" The answer can sometimes
leave a new author confused and very disappointed. A
wait of a year and a half is very typical, and a lag of
two to even three years isn't unheard of. A moment or
two of stunned silence often lapses before the author
can frame the question; Why?
I often get query letters from people mentioning that a
pub date in six months would bring their book out 'just
in time for Christmas, the start of school, beach
holidays', fill in the blank, but the assumption that a
book can be turned around and on the stands in that
period of time is often extremely unrealistic.
There are a number of excellent reasons why your
book is not going to be on the stands quickly, and
many you should be very supportive of. Keep in mind
that publishers have a specific number of slots they can
usually fill for a month or quarter. Books by their
established authors must be timed and spaced for
maximum effect, while still providing space for some
new writers. Books purchased on a multiple-book
contract are often slotted (though tentatively) into the
schedule years ahead of their completion, and 'new
writer' slots may be few and far between, stretching
your pub date out. Additionally, if your book is slotted
for one of the prized A or B-lead positions, the wait
can be even longer, since they are carefully managed
and usually reserved for a publisher's top existing
authors. Publishers schedules are often filled two years
in advance, save for the rare book they feel compelled
to bring out quickly to take advantage of timeliness or
buzz.
Preparing your manuscript for publication takes time,
effort and careful attention. Most often, a writer is
requested to do revisions to their original manuscript,
and a period of several months is usually allowed to
complete the work. The revised manuscript must then
be submitted and approved, and then forwarded for
whatever editing/copyediting the publisher will do
themselves. Time is reserved at the printers and
bindery, and the books are usually shipped and sitting
in the warehouse for a couple of months prior to the
date they are due in the bookstores.
Publishers must plan their programs carefully to
maximize their opportunities to promote and advertise
books. Covers are planned long in advance. Quotes
are requested from recognized authors and experts.
Sales packages are prepared at least six months in
advance to use to solicit orders for books from the
booksellers. Print advertising has to be prepared for
those books they can provide it for, galleys need to be
sent to overworked reviewers.
As you can see, there's a flurry of behind-the-scenes
activity taking place while your book is in the pipeline.
Each one requires careful execution to ensure the
quality of the production. And as you move from
first-time author to one of their 'regulars', you'll begin
to really appreciate the work, and time, your publisher
puts into your work. Soon, you'll find yourself so busy
with constant deadlines (a new partial's due, you need
to check your galleys over, and the art fact sheet needs
filling out), that you barely notice the wait.




		Links and Useful Websites for Writers Subscribe on-line to Writer's Weekly and get free new markets updates by email. Go to www.writersweekly.com. Want to catch the latest publishing deals and all the hottest news? Try www.publishersmarketplace.com. There's a modest monthly fee for full membership that's well worth the cost. Catch lots of articles on the craft of writing, as well as contests and information. Best feature is a huge database of publishers' info. www.writersdigest.com.