For years, Reg Forder, at his ACW writers conferences, liked to ask his faculty panel, “What is one thing you wish you had known before you became a writer?” Since I joined the publishing side of things after being a bookseller and later became a literary agent, I have given the question some thought.
Coming from retail, the hardest thing to grasp was how long it takes to get from a book idea to seeing it in print from a major publisher. Two years or more is not unusual.
As a retailer, we saw our customers’ instantaneous gratification when they bought the book. Depending on our inventory, within minutes a customer’s needs were met or not met.
As an editorial director, it was a challenge juggling the 50 new books a year for which my department was responsible. Coordinating acquisition, editorial, production, marketing, and sales can get complicated, especially when overseeing multiple projects simultaneously. I might have acquired and contracted a book, but then it had to be written. Then there were marketing meetings to discuss plans; editorial meetings to discuss workflow; and production meetings to make sure design, editorial, typesetting, etc., were all on track. (The “ease” of indie publishing for the writer seems to circumvent much of that, but shortcuts are not always the best routes to take.)
As an agent, the preparation time with the author to get the proposal right can take a lot of time. (I will occasionally push back on clients, challenging them to raise the stakes in the book they are writing. The input is appreciated, but it takes time to fix things.) Then we send out the proposal to the publishers and wait. Some respond rather quickly (I’ve received rejections within minutes); and other times, it can take forever (the record is 22 months before a publisher said yes). The norm is 3-5 months before knowing whether or not there is interest in a project. Then after securing the right publishing partner, there are contract negotiations, a review of contractual paperwork (sometimes taking 2-3 months to complete the discussions), and any number of things that can make the process seem endless.
I guess you could say my answer to today’s question is, “Knowing how long the publishing process takes.”
And the lesson learned from it? Patience.
What about you? What is the one thing you wish you had known before you entered this adventure of writing and publishing?
