Top Tips for Before and After Receiving A New Book Contract

Hi! Mary Vee here. 

Spring is on our doorstep! A Season for New!

This month on the Writer's Alley we're introducing, discussing, and giving tips for some of those "new" chapters writers encounter. We have a lot to share! Julia, Sherrinda, and Laurie will also host weeks this month.

Alley Cats Celebrating a Contract 

In this first week of March, I am discussing the "New Book Contract." The differences between what we expect and what happens. 

The season before we receive a book contract is not easy. I know. We write manuscript after manuscript, pitching our stories to agents and/or editors, study the craft, hone our skills, then write another manuscript. Time passes.

Before Receiving Book Contract Tips:
1. Read more.
2. Choose to set aside time to learn something new about writing. Attend conferences. Read books on writing. Participate in online writing groups.
3. Be open to the critique of others. Join a critique group. I belong to two groups. One is designed for writing, reading our work aloud, and receiving encouragement. The other is submitting a chapter online and receiving content, grammar, and other forms of helpful advice. The key to benefiting from feedback is: listen to your heart, your story, and your characters as you make changes. 
4. Take the time to present only the very best edited copy when sending a query, proposal, or pitching to an agent or editor.
5. Read the Publishing House's Guidelines and follow them completely. A great book can be rejected even at this point.

Thanks to friends and family, our encouragers who hold us up when we become discouraged, we march on, submit, write, and wait. Oh, how we wait for the golden email: an offer for a book contract. When the news arrives at last -- CELEBRATE!! Tell everyone. Laugh. We are about to become an author. 

Like high school or college commencement, this is not the end of our work, but the beginning of chapter two in a writer's career.

Chapter two- After Receiving the New Book Contract Offer

1. The greatest favor you can do for yourself at this point is to have an agent. The wording in contracts is power-packed with legaleese so specific to book publishing that a family lawyer would struggle to accurately decipher the wording. Never pay an agent for this service. Agents are paid when you are paid.

2. Edits. Before and after the contract there will be layers of editing. Content. Line. Fact check. And more. Publishing houses vary in how much they will edit the manuscript. This will be discussed in deeper detail this Thursday night when I interview Ashley Clark. Details below.

3. Cover survey. This is a fun step. The publishing house will send a detailed questionnaire about the manuscript. This information will be used to design your book's cover. This survey is worth every minute you spend filling in the blanks. Years ago, a writer wrote down the wrong hair color for the main character. Fortunately, she saw the problem in the first cover draft, and the artist changed the hair color for the final cover. We'll discuss this more in the Thursday interview. Ashley really enjoyed this step. 

4. Edits. At some point, the publisher will send galleys to you. The galleys have your manuscript formatted for publication. Limited changes will be allowed, however, if you catch one of those crazy errors that always slip through...a homophone problem, a missing letter, etc, these can still be fixed. Be sure to read through the galley carefully. It's the last chance to correct errors.

5. Promotion. Marketing. Who could promote this amazing story about to be published better than the author? We know the story best! This is the time to put on a creative hat. There are marketing classes at writer's conferences, books, and online groups to learn from. Try not to waste time inventing wheels. Why invest in promoting? Isn't this bragging? No. Not really. Think of it this way. Say you went on a trip. At some point, you get hungry. A billboard catches your eye. A restaurant you like is at the next exit. Had the sign, or the ad on the GPS not been there, you wouldn't have known. Marketing simply lets readers who like this genre know the book is available for purchase. 

It's the steps before and after 
that truly bring lasting fulfillment.

*Tackle the steps one at a time. Don't rush. Each one is worth every minute spent.

*Read/follow directions carefully.

*Ask for help from those who have walked the journey before you.

*Share your experiences. There are those who want to walk with you. AND these treasured souls are the ones who will be there to listen, congratulate, and offer advice.  

JOIN US THURSDAY!

This Thursday at 8 PM Eastern 

on The Writer's Alley Facebook Page 

I am interviewing Ashley Clark, one of the writers here on the Alley. Ashley received her first book contract this year! Congrats, Ashley! She is going to walk us through the steps from that golden book contract email to publication. You are invited to toss out comments, ask questions, and give answers/advice to other commenters during the interview. 

In the meantime, what questions do you have? 

Post them in the comments below.

_________________________________________________________________________________

Mary Vee has been a finalist in several writing contests. She writes suspense and mystery stories featuring characters like us. Her stories have gained recognition in the Selah and Phoenix Writing Contests. Daring To Live showcases a woman slipping into the depths of homelessness then discovers the only way to escape is to turn from the lies. Mary's years as a counselor, missionary, and caseworker to the inner city, Crow Indians, and peoples of Central America have strengthen the characters who live in her stories. She currently resides in the north with her hubby and two of her three children. Mary loves traveling, hiking, mocha, movie scores, and The Creator--the giver of our worth.

Mary would love to connect with you! Click the links below!

Mary Vee's Website
Mary's Blending Sites and Stories Blog
Facebook
Twitter: @MaryVeeWriter
Instagram: @MaryVeeWriter

Preparing for Publication Part 3: The Valuable Ladder

My first ever rejection letter was from the fabulous Steve Laube. The year after I'd finished my first book... I decided that the worst that could happen was that he would say, "Your writing is crappy. Your story stinks. Don't quit your day job."

Well... obviously, I got a rejection letter. It didn't say those things in those exact words, but it should have.

Because my writing was crappy.

And... well, I hope my story didn't stink, but it needed a TON of work.

I was nowhere near ready to quit my day job.

I remember the moment I received that rejection though. I seriously smiled. I had done it. Put myself out there, taken a leap of faith, as stupid as it was. Yes, I contributed to poor Steve's slush pile. Yes, I probably got an eye roll from the poor sap who had to read my junk. But I'd taken another bold step toward publication.

The first step being, of course, actually writing my book.

After I received his rejection, I rolled up my sleeves, joined ACFW as Steve's letter suggested, and started to work on my craft. I edited that book until I despised every single letter in it.

My next ladder rung?

ACFW conference. And what did super bold Krista do?

She booked an agent appointment with... you guessed it... Steve Laube.

Yeah, I rocked.

I remember walking into that room... my first inperson appointment EVER with an agent or editor.

And I wanted to puke. What had I been thinking? I am NOT bold. I am STUPID. Idiotic. I seriously must have inhaled some type of toxic chemical fume the day I signed up for this appointment because... yeah. This was just plain dumb.

But in I went anyway. I sat down at that table, shook Steve's hand as boldly as I could, and gave him my one sheet.

Yup, just like that. I was so nervous, I could barely eek out a word. Not really sure what I actually said... I think I went for the honesty-card and said something like, "I, uh, have never done this before. Here is my onesheet. You rejected it but I revised it." Then shoved said onesheet into his hands.

He looked at it, then asked for my first chapter. I rejoiced that I'd printed it and handed that over.

Then the most blessed thing happened.

Steve Laube... THE Steve Laube... laughed. Not like as in "This is the stupidest thing I've ever seen" kind of laugh. But in a "Hey, that's actually funny" kinda laugh.

My heart soared higher than the cliff I had been wanting to jump off moments before.

He read a few pages, then gave me some good pointers. I nodded and soaked in the information.

Then time was up, and I left.

Yeah, he didn't ask for anything. But I'd been bold. I'd gotten feedback. And my writing had made an agent laugh.

The "Bold" Alleycats...
doing Low Rider at 2012 ACFW...
I still vote that Ang wins as best lowrider!

For my first conference and a year into the whole writing thing, I was pretty thrilled.

And unbeknownst to me at the time, my rejection and boldy putting myself out there at a conference were not only steps on my ladder TO publication... but it was also preparing me for when I BECAME published.

Once your book is "out," you'll need to boldly (but smartly) market your book. You'll need to continue learning and getting better, you'll need to put yourself out there and not be so afraid of people that you can't put two sentences together in their presence. And rejection... you'll be having to deal with READER rejection, not just agent/editor rejection. And once a reader rejects you... your book is beyond the editing point!

Even though I'm now agented by the wonderful Rachelle Gardner and approaching the one-year anniversary of my debut novel releasing, I still struggle with being bold with my books and dealing with rejection, although not nearly as much as I would have if my prepublication journey hadn't given me much needed boldness training.

So those pains you feel when pre-published? The sting of yet another rejection? Those nervous rocks in your stomach that threaten to kill you when you approach that agent or editor at a conference? Start looking at them through different lenses. Not only are they necessary to GET published... they are good training for when you ARE published.

Discussion: What things on the ladder to publication are the hardest? Can you think of ways that your hardship can really be seen as training for later?

Publication Prep Part 1 - BELIEVING

Don't think dreaming big is wise?
Well... it worked for me...
as shown above!

I'm a big believer in dreaming big.

When my daughter is "on deck" at softball, I always ask her, "Lacy, are you going to hit the ball?"

At the beginning of the season, it never fails. She ALWAYS responds with a shrug of her shoulder and says, "I might."

And Mommy responds with a classic hands-on-hips lecture.

You aren't going to "might" hit the ball! You go out there and hit that dad gum ball. I wanna hear you yell, "YES, I WILL HIT THAT BALL!!!!!" Be CONFIDENT. You CAN do this.

Because my sweetie CAN hit that ball. She's actually REALLY good at it.

And then, after she smiles and says, "Yeah, I'm gonna hit the ball, Momma" she stands in the "on deck" spot (not sure what that is really called) and practices hitting the ball while the player in front of her does so.

She swings to warm up her arm. She psychs herself up, determined to hit that ball.

And about 50% of the time, she does.

Publication is the same way. We can't go into this expecting to fail. We can't get up to bat with our manuscripts and be like, "No one is going to like it. No one will publish this."

Because if we don't believe in our writing... why should a publisher? And even more, why should a reader?

We use our heart when we're writing. Writing can be very emotional. So if your heart isn't convinced that you can write a sellable book...then there's a good possibility that your heart won't be 100% in it. You do NOT want your heart giving a half-hearted effort:-)

Now for you pessimists out there...

I know there is a lot of importance in managing expectations and making sure we don't get too cocky in our writing. Sometimes that can bring forth a bit of disillusionment and things like people sending agents crazy queries like, "God told me you'd be my agent and that my book will be published" or "This is the BEST manuscript you will read this year."

Yeah, don't be uppity. It doesn't look good on you. Kinda like bell-bottoms or super poofy bangs.

But there is also a lot of value in believing in our dream, in shooting for the stars, in trusting that God has GOOD things in store for us.

The worse thing that can happen is that you fail.

And honestly, whether you believe or not, that is always in the cards as a possibility.

If you don't try... you've failed before you start.

Discuss: Are you a half-full or half-empty writer? How much do YOU believe in your writing? When you start thinking negative thoughts, what do you do to combat them?

Mentored: Water to Wine

Our mentor today is Jesus:

Sit back a spell and enjoy this telling of a real event by John.




On the third day there was a wedding at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus also was invited to the wedding with his disciples.


When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to him, "They have no wine." And Jesus said to her, "Woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come."


His mother said to the servants, "Do whatever he tells you."


Now there were six stone water jars there for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. Jesus said to the servants, "Fill the jars with water." And they filled them up to the brim.


And he said to them, "Now draw some out and take it to the master of the feast." So they took it.


When the master of the feast tasted the water now become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom and said to him, "Everyone serves the good wine first, and when people have drunk freely, then the poor wine. But you have kept the good wine until now." 


This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory. And his disciples believed in him.


John 2:1-11 ESV

**The Best--Even For the Last**

The road to publication is like an expressway with many rest areas. Rest areas afford opportunity for edits, conference/training, contests, critiquing, networking, marketing, proposals, queries, and a myriad of other needs prior to publication. 


Generally speaking, time at these rest areas is spent on the first chapters of our work. Writers toil over each page, paragraph, line, sentence, and word of those golden first chapters hoping to push their manuscript to the publisher's desk. 


The focus on the beginning is good. But the last chapters hold the same importance. (Of course the middle is important but that would be another post)


**Satisfying Endings: 
The master of the banquet expressed his pleasure and satisfaction of the wine served at the end of the banquet.


Endings need to not be abrupt. Following the climax of a story, readers like a satisfying ride to the end. They want to savor the closing pages of a well written story. Sometimes stories have one to two pages following the climax. This jerks the reader to a screeching-slam-on-the-brakes ending. Despite how wonderful the rest of the book may be, the reader is not likely to read the book a second time, pass the book along, or recommend the book.


**Quality Endings:  
The master of the banquet honored the bridegroom by expressing his satisfaction to all who attended.


Readers notice the grammar problems and other editing faux pas in the ending chapters. While he/she enjoys the content, their satisfaction wanes because of errors. These errors reflect on the quality of future stories by the writer.


**Respectful Endings:
Sufficient portions of the excellent wine was available for all.


Every word, sentence, line, paragraph, page of the book's ending needs to respect the reader and God. Pack these pages with power. Take the time to entice the reader to buy another copy of this and your book.

Our focus needs to not only 

be on the first chapters of our book, 

but also on the last chapters.

What tips do you have for writing endings?

****************

Image by: Freedigitalphotos.net

This blog post by Mary Vee

Mary lives in Montana with her husband and loves to hear from her three college kids. She writes Christian young adult fiction (pirate tales, missionary and Bible adventure stories).

She thinks of writing as: Stepping into Someone Else's World.

To learn more about Mary, visit her blog http://www.mimaryvee.blogspot.com/

Getting Published: An Interview with Mary DeMuth with Book Review

I have listened to audio recordings of Mary DeMuth speaking at Mount Hermon and I have noticed she stuffs a plethora of information in a single session. After reading 11 Secrets to Getting Published, I can tell you every paragraph is worthy of notetaking. DeMuth's ebook will join my "resource" file so I can reread and continue to glean from it. For instance, here's some advice from Mary I intend to follow:

Be nekkid.

OK, pick your jaw off the floor.  This is still a family friendly blog.

This is some of the most authentic advice DeMuth has to offer and she strives to live it out through her fiction. The philosophy of writing true, reflecting our own journey in our fiction has transformed my writing life. DeMuth shows the reader how she develops a mission statement for her own writing. 

The wealth of practical tips DeMuth provides are invaluable. I am still fighting the old single space after a period rule after learning to type on an electric typewriter. It was worth the price of the book alone to know there is an easy way to fix this error in Microsoft Word.

Here are a few of the questions Mary DeMuth answers:

*How do you use independent clauses?

*Are you guilty of cliche abuse?

*How do you reduce your interruptions? (Mary DeMuth's words on self-discipline need to be posted on THIS homeschooling mama's refrigerator to keep them in memory).

*What do I need to massacre in order to make my fiction better (Or perhaps who in the case of mysteries)....

*What can I learn about writing from U2?

*Why is finding an agent like dating? (OK, this brings back nightmares about high school prom, bad hairdos, and dates who wouldn't pay their own way)...

In the appendixes, DeMuth provides feedback on reader questions, tackling some of the biggest fears head-on.  Eleven Secrets to Getting Published is a great resource I can highly recommend for writers from beginner to novice.

I enjoyed interviewing Mary to share some of her insights about the publishing world.  Leave a comment including your email address if you are interested in Mary DeMuth's latest fiction release, The Muir House.  Casey would like to offer a copy to an interested reader.

What are your thoughts on epublishing in general?  Do you think this is the way the market is moving?

I used to think of it negatively until my hubby bought me a Kindle. Now I love ebooks. I do think that ebooks and epublishing are becoming very common. I’ve even heard that folks with reading devices read more, so this is good news for the writer.

How did you make the decision to epublish your writing books?

I knew the niche was very small, so a publisher wouldn’t be likely to pick up the book.

Would you recommend epublishing for those who aren't yet published?

Yes, but with a caveat. Don’t just put any old words out there. Be sure it’s your very best. Have the book edited by a professional. I know it’s cliché, but you only have one chance to make a first impression. You don’t want to live with regret or be embarrassed about what you’ve written.

Did you hire a publicist for marketing?

It depends on the book I’m promoting. I am mostly traditionally published, so the publishing houses often assign my book to an in-house publicist. Sometimes they hire out. With The Muir House (novel, Zondervan), I hired a publicist to help me advertise the book in my hometown, since it is set there.

What is your marketing plan for selling your ebooks?  Does it differ greatly from your marketing plan for your print books?

I have given away several hundred, which is also the same for print books. Books sell by buzz, so it’s good to have people read them, and let them decide how they’ll buzz about your book.

How do you balance marketing time with writing time?

Not an easy thing at all. I had no idea marketing would take so much time.

Many writers here have recently dealt with rejection.  Do you have any words of encouragement?

Rejoice! Rejection means you’re brave and gutsy, that you’re trying. If you don’t risk, you don’t get rejected. I’ve been rejected a lot. So much. A ton. And here’s the sad truth: rejection gets HARDER the longer you’re in this writing career, so you need to settle the issue of your identity now. You are not worthy because you write. You are worthy because you are loved.

How did you choose your tagline?  Do you have any tips for writers on choosing a tagline?

I asked my email distribution list, my facebook page, and my twitter friends what they thought of when they thought of me. After gathering that feedback, Live Uncaged just happened. It’s perfect, but it took about a month of processing to get there.

Is there anything else you would like to share about your recent release, The 11 Secrets of Getting Published?

It’s everything I know about writing and publishing downloaded into a 60,000+ word book. Over 300 pages. I’m raising the cost to $4.99 on August 15th so if you’d like it for $2.99, order now. Here’s a link that tells you more: http://www.marydemuth.com/store/the-11-secrets-of-getting-published-2-99-ebook/

We would love to hear your thoughts.  And don't forget to add your email address if you are interested in entering for a copy of The Muir House.

Simple Steps to Start Succeeding as a Writer

When striving to become an author, we all have to start somewhere. For most of us, that's with the love of books or of being creative--or even with a childhood penchant to live in fantasy and create worlds to surround us with that creation. But at some point we begin to take real and steady steps toward publication.

There are several steps we can take, though simple, that will help put us closer to that dream of publication and in a good place once we're ready for that step.

Read

Books on Craft - There are loads of books out there that work to teach us more about craft. You can find many at your library for free, or some on Amazon at a discounted price. Also, don't be afraid to ask around for the books people have found most helpful. They might even be able to let you borrow one.

Fiction - Read a lot in your genre so you're familiar with the guidelines, the style, what's popular, etc. But also read out of your genre to get new ideas or see fresh styles, characters, and settings.

Critique Groups

There are many kinds of critique groups, so you'll have to decide which works best for you. You can find them on loops through an organization like ACFW, through blogs, or in a local chapter if you belong to one of those organizations. Either way, this in an overwhelmingly helpful step toward improving your work and maybe even learning more about the industry.

Contests

Another way to improve your work and get used to putting your writing out there is to enter contests. Some cost money and some don't, but it's easy to find out and simple to discover which ones are going to be the most beneficial. If you're just starting out, a contest that will give you feedback from a more established writer or author is a great way to examine your work and take it to the next level. And if you're further along, the same thing will help polish your work and potentially make it possible to get it in front of industry professionals.

Network and Connect

Whether you're big into social media or not, it's a great idea to visit writer/author blogs, and agent, editor, or publishing blogs. There's a wealth of information and you'll be able to keep up on trends in publishing as well as guidelines for specific agents and publishers. Also, you can learn a lot by connecting with other writers or authors through Twitter, Facebook, and blogs--and even e-mail. Most of us are happy to make new writer friends and either pass along some advice or experience or receive some in return.

Conferences

If you can afford it, going to conferences is a great idea--even one day conferences close by, if there's a certain speaker you want to hear or a class you think will benefit you. You'll be able to meet with agents and editors, meet other writers and take classes that are specifically geared toward where you are in your writing journey. And if you can't afford conferences or can't travel at that time, there are on-line classes (some of them free) where you can learn much of the same thing, as well as recorded tapes from conferences that you can purchase.

Practice, Practice, Practice

No matter how much writing you do, there's always more to learn. So once you finish a manuscript, work on another, even as you're doing the rest of the steps. Pushing yourself to learn and grow as a writer will get you that much closer to your goal of publication.

There are so many ways to start out your writing journey, especially if you're a beginner, but these are some of the ways that have proven most beneficial to me and other writers I know. What steps are you taking to get to your goal of publication, or what beneficial steps have you taken that you can share with other writers?