Amazing. At some point you think you’re done, and you find the little things that are left. Almost done. I might even have my copy in a month or so. It doesn’t feel real.
I got the cover and I love it! It’s done well and very colorful. Sometime this week I’ll post it on site with a new page for the book. I know everyone’s been waiting patiently, but it’s finally here!
I must keep reminding myself this is really fast for a book. It’s only been a year coming.
As a writer, bringing in money can be a concern – especially when starting out. There are hundreds of opportunities to be found; each has pros and cons. The best case scenario is to be supported by the craft, but in the beginning it takes time.
Most of us have supportive spouses who try to understand our crazy tendencies to write in spite of what else could be done. Watch TV? No, thanks, I can get another chapter out instead. Weed the garden? I can still see the things I planted, give it another week until I get this drafted. Those examples aren’t always realistic, but we do have to steal time in our schedule to finish our projects wherever we can. We juggle jobs and families and chores in the hope that we can share our creative talents.
Jobs are difficult. They provide security, but also take most of our energy. Few can push on after a full day, and a part-time option doesn’t pay the bills. The indulgent spouse may offer an opportunity to stay at home for awhile, especially to save on child-care.
Even when we do manage some success, publish that novel or several short stories (or both), it can still be a long time between paychecks. Some of us cover it with freelancing, or using other talents to fill the gaps. I’ve been looking at several options lately, and while it surprises me to figure out how many options there are, I struggle to decide what the best option is.
For now, I’m attempting Helium, but that doesn’t mean I won’t keep other things in mind.
Consumer Product Safety Act of 2008
Oh, the joys of reading government lingo early in the morning. I found a link to the act after my publisher spread the word about some of the changes called for by this legislation.
Concerns are about testing and how the publishers are held accountable for books that may or may not have lead in them, when the printers are the ones who have control over that aspect.
This reminds me of working in the automotive industry! I worked with quality for over five years, and I learned quite a bit from the stringent regulations.
1. The highest order corporation leans on everyone who supplies them. (In automotive, that meant Ford, GM, Toyota, etc.)
2. Tier 1 suppliers lean on their suppliers. (Names get less recognizable, but Visteon and Delphi are among them.)
3. Down the line, the people who actually make the individual pieces implement all kinds of quality measures to show they’re doing what they’re supposed to be doing.
This is how QS-9000 and TS-16949 became the quality intiatives (at different times) in the industry. We needed a way to show we’d followed everything we needed to, and though it isn’t always the most efficient way, it did make everyone follow a procedure.
Our publishers need to lean on the printers to certify that they’ve tested for lead in the paper, ink, and other materials. They’d need to do this for all books that might come in contact with children, and their batches could be by paper batch or ink batch rather than by book title. Book title, especially in the smaller presses, seems cost prohibitive. If it is distributed over paper (or other material) batches, which you’d think would contain entirely the same amount of lead throughout, would make it possible to follow.
What happens if someone screws up? That’s where you keep the proof. Printer certifies it, and the publisher keeps the documentation. Printer keeps the documentation they have, as well as copies of their batch tests. They’d also need to keep records which batches did which titles.
Definitely something to watch.
My husband and I watch a lot of movies. He doesn’t read, but if it’s a speculative fiction novel I generally try to read it before we see the movie.
Of course we have our favorites, and each has quirks. I find little things annoy me when they change them for no reason in movies.
Like Eragon, did they have to make Arya into a human, rather than an elf?
I remember being very upset that they combined characters in Jurassic Park.
Harry Potter seems to one of the few who escaped major edits in the movie business, but that doesn’t mean they put everything from the story in there. Now and then Hermione gets one of those know-it-all lines that someone else actually said in the book and I shake my head still. Especially if it’s a character who could have been in the scene like Seamus.
As a writer, I’d like to think I’d have the ability to stick up for my story when (okay, IF) it transferred to the silver screen. Novels are difficult because we say so much, but they have a limited time for screenplay.
Is it only writers who are so picky about these things?
Following up is always a good thing. I first heard this stressed as I interviewed for engineering positions. It wasn’t just about the interview – a potential employee must also think about sending thank-you notes for the interviews as a follow up. It was something polite to keep your name in front of the people who might be offering you a salary.
It is different with publishers, partly because I’m always thinking they’re busy people and I shouldn’t be bugging them about whether or not I got accepted. There does come a time when it becomes allowable to ask, rather than simply waiting forever.
I submitted another short story to Hadley Rille Books for an anthology called Footprints. The piece is called “Burning Bright” and I am pretty proud of it. It’s longer than most of my short stories; I have not yet learned to vary lengths. I either seem to write short shorts or novels. It’s something to work on.
I contacted the editor – he said it should be about a month, but I hated to ask around the holidays – and I got an update! My story made it through the slush pile and into the final group. He also warned (not sure if that’s the proper term, but I’m going to run with it) that about 1 in 3 pieces in the final group would make the anthology. That’s a lot of submissions! He also said to keep my fingers crossed, but, I tell ya, it makes it really hard to type.
(And, yes, that does mean I’ve tried it once.)
I wonder what it takes to go to graduate school for an MFA. I hear about people doing it, but while I looked into it, it’s difficult to know if I have what it takes.
I check out the question on the application. I did my undergrad in engineering, which means I haven’t studied much literature or writing in a college setting. Does that mean others have an edge? Possibly. I do know the program has admitted engineers and doctors before.
Friends who know others in the program say the most important part is the manuscript. I suppose that’s for the best, since it’s also the part that I feel most comfortable with. I know how to write. I know I have a lot to learn, which is why I’d like to try grad school.
A friend of mine once said his trouble submitting things wasn’t whether he was good or not. He knew he was good. He just wasn’t sure if he was good enough. Good enough meaning to not be ridiculed with his submission to editors who read far too many pieces to be kind when someone can’t follow rules. I prefer to think of it that way, rather than that some of the writings from others are so awful as to be only fodder for jokes. (But in my head I know both are probably the case.)
Sometimes I wonder what exactly to say to someone who decides to self-publish. There are a hundred different reasons to choose any given publisher and there are benefits and drawbacks to each decision.
For self-publishing, the onus of the work rests solely with the author. This includes writing, editing, marketing, selling, and probably a few other things I can’t think of off the top of my head. It sometimes gets a bad rap, too, because anyone can do it.
They dont actually have to do editing, of course. A person could choose to pen fifteen pages of an endless litany of “I will not smash cars” and self-publish it. Not that anyone would buy it or be extremely happy about receiving a copy, but it could be done.
I’d like to meet someone who could market that, though. I bet I could learn a lot! In the meantime, I’m in search of a word that isn’t congratulations (from dictionary.com “an expression of joy in the success or good fortune of another”) and means more of a “good luck on your endeavor.” I’ll reserve the congratulations until it’s a successful venture.
All of us need the luck, no matter what publishing route we take. We work to achieve any published status and we earn our laurels based on factors not always under our control.
I’m always both excited and nervous when it comes time to submit to a new market. I have a short story geared toward children I’m sending to a magazine that’s a bigger market than I’ve tried before. Usually I’ve been submitting adult articles to science fiction magazines, so it’s different that way, too.
I like the e-submit options that a lot of those magazines have. However, there’s something about actually printing the story that makes me keep reading it over. How good is good enough? When do you stop and just mail it? Where did I leave all my envelopes? (I moved a few months ago and I haven’t necessarily figured out where I put everything yet, though most things I ‘lose’ can be found within a few minutes searching.)
I promised myself it’d be ready to mail this week and Wednesday turned into Friday. I wasn’t planning to go to the post office today, but I’d better if I’m going to meet my goal!
The ‘good’ versus ‘good enough’ question gets a lot of writers, I think. I know several who don’t send things out, always tweaking just a little bit more. As we learn, yes, our stories improve, but if we never send anything out, what progress are we making? Isn’t the purpose to share?
Sept 19 stops:
Beverly Stowe McClure
Beverly’s Other Blog
I think I like blogspot better since you don’t have to be a member of their network to post a comment, but the squirrel-monster comment line on the other one is more amusing.
Joyce Anthony has today and two more days left at her blog to explore Trockle, and on Sept 21 the last stop is Karen Syed.
How many ways are there to look at a picture book? Seems like there are as many as people to start looking at it. I find it easier to write for children a little older so far, or for adults. The more I’m looking at picture books by my publisher, the more I want to write one on my own. It’s a challenge in my head to put the right pictures with the words; an illustrator makes the pictures, but there needs to be enough information for her to manage that. Maybe one day, but probably not today.
The tour is still going strong! There are a few more days and here are the stops (and you’ll see me there, too).
Today:
Susan Smith Thompson
She’s got an amazing interview of Trockle here, conducted by her son, Noah!
Joyce Anthony
This one is more of a teaser of things to come, because there are going to be interviews with Stephen and Trockle over the next four days. Stay tuned!
Ransom Noble 