As I reported last April, one of Amazon's imprints, Lake
Union, bought my novel, Daughters.
On the brink of a re-launch, here are the details of what's been going
on in the last seven months. Daughters
was originally published by Delacorte Press and had professional editing and
proofreading but there
were still many glitches in the 720-page manuscript.
1. The first
step was the long process of re-editing.. The re-editing was not for narrative content
but for inconsistencies within the narrative of historical references, dates,
inconsistencies in the story lines of each character, etc.
2. The second
step was proofreading. This step
included English usage, grammar, awkward phrasing, etc. I had mis-used or omitted about a
gazillion commas. (By the way, the
rules of comma use are so long, complicated and open to interpretation they are
useless for normal writing.
No. Really. They. Are.) I had
paid particular attention to the use of which/that but the proofreader shut
down all my "thats" and changed them to "whichs."
3. The third
step was selecting and approving a cover.
I have to applaud Lake Union for including the writer in this
process. In traditional publishing
they can put Hitler's Baby on the cover and you have nothing to say about
it. You see the cover when it's
done. Lake Union allowed me to
reject designs, images and typeface during several rounds.
4. The fourth
step was jacket copy. Again Lake
Union allowed me to approve, re-write and suggest material for the jacket
copy. We also decided on a
title change because the publisher didn't feel that the original title conveyed
the depth and reach of the novel.
"Three Daughters" is the new title.
5. One day in
September I heard from a man in Michigan who was going to direct the audio
version of the novel. (Amazon has its audio book studios, Brilliance, in
Michigan.) The novel is set in
Palestine and there are many foreign phrases and accents in the book. This dedicated man had researched every
non-English phrase and wanted me to confirm the pronunciation.
The actress selected to read all 19 discs (23 hours of listening) was
excellent.
6. One evening
two weeks ago, the UPS man left several big packages in my vestibule. My son, who was visiting, opened
one box and found copies of the first printing of "Three
Daughters." It was nice to
have him there to show all the proper emotion because I'm a dud at showing
proper emotion. Besides the paper
edition, there is a digital edition, MP3 edition and an audio book.
7. After a
conference call with the head of marketing and my author coordinator, I am
awaiting the official publication day next Tuesday, November 25.
Anticipation abounds.
Hi Consuelo! Sounds like a v different--in a good way--experience from "the old days" of TradPub. I just revised/re-edited DECADES and was amazed at the amount of typos etc in the original S&S edition. You know, when there were editors/copyeditors/proofreaders galore…lol
ReplyDeleteThe cover looks great. Here's wishing you many sales and the best of luck!
Ruth
I'll let you know if it is a very diff experience. So far, I would say yes. I, too, was amazed at the typos, etc. I like the cover, too, however, giving up control was hard. I'm finding it is much tougher to sell books than it used to be. I appreciate your good wishes, Ruth. Hope you are doing well.
DeleteOH CONGRATULATIONS!!!! dead jealous....! but hugely pleased for a complete stranger who has published a novel....i will look out for it here in East Africa. Or get someone to send me a copy one day. WISH i could write a book...instead i sit here teaching literature, yellin' at students and secretly smoking behind the bougainvillea. The Life Of A Wannabe Writer..x janelle
ReplyDeleteJanelle, you are one of the best. Send me your e-mail.
DeleteThis is fantastic! Funny how things have sort of come full circle, isn't it? The cover looks great.
ReplyDeleteCarlarey, Yes, I caved. It's the Sally Fields' syndrome - "you like me, you really like me." We'll see how it all works out.
DeleteHappy to hear from you.
Congratulations! Looking forward to reading it.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Jennifer. I appreciate your interest and thanks for reading my blog.
Delete