Happy October. The month that for some is the ‘official’
start of fall. Welcome back to a new IWSG blog post. Last month I talked about
the woes involved in self-publishing. I also have posted about my time in
queryland.
Welp, it’s not been a wasted trip. In April I participated
in the #CarinaPitch event which got me a like from Kerri Buckley. I submitted
up my story and began the waiting process. As of Sept. 17th, that
wait paid off. I had my first offer! Yay! Exciting times. Floating on cloud 9,
the whole list of cliché happy sayings. In that same phone call, I was also
rejected for a second manuscript I sent them. It was a crazy day.
A week later, that rejected manuscript got an offer from a
different publisher. It’s been a whirlwind. Then came the contracts. Boy, pages
and pages of legal talk. Makes your head spin. Then the overthinking starts.
The weighing of the pros and cons from going the traditional route or sticking
with all indie. All those hats I talked about last month, I can actually take
off one or two. But…the idea of giving up some of the control like over edits,
covers, titles, it’s a little scary. Though the idea of not having to pay up
front for the edits, and the covers is like a financial windfall.
After joining the Authors Guild and taking advantage of
their legal support so they can review the contracts for me, I have decided to
go hybrid. After some minor negotiations, which I’m still ironing out.
I’m still finding my footing as an indie author and now I’m
embarking on a new journey. It’s scary and exciting all at the same time. I’ve
never been a person that hardcore tracked their sales, but I am wondering if
having a publisher behind me will give me an increase and if that will have any
boost to my self-published titles. The winds of change are upon me and my
career, but I’m looking forward to seeing how things go in 2019.
Anyone that has worked with publishers before, feel free to
offer up some advice on getting the most out of this experience.
The Insecure Writer’s Support Group is a home for writers in all stages; from unpublished to bestsellers. Our goal is to offer assistance and guidance. We want to help writers overcome their insecurities, and by offering encouragement we are creating a community of support.
Thank you to this month’s co-hosts: Dolorah @ Book Lover, Christopher D. Votey, Tanya Miranda, and Chemist Ken!
Thanks for stopping by
Until next time
~Meka
Congratulations! Two offers - wow.
ReplyDeleteIf you are with good publishers, they will work with you on most things. Plus having them help with marketing will be a big plus.
Thanks! I'm still a little in shock. I queried as an experiment never expecting anything to come of it, but now it has and I'm giddy with the prospect.
DeleteI am looking forward to the help with marketing! I suck so hard at it. LOL One is a bigger press than the other (Carina and Limitless) but it'll be interesting to see how the two are handled.
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Congrats! When I first got back into writing I wanted to go the traditional way all the way. Somewhere along the way I changed my mind. I wanted to go hybrid. I wanted the control of covers, titles etc. but still wanted the backing of a publisher who supported and believed in me.
ReplyDeleteThank you! I came out the gate with indie publishing in mind. I never thought I'd write something others deemed 'marketable'. Branching out into hybrid is going to be exciting. LOL yes the covers!!! I think giving up total control over the final product there is going to be the hardest.
DeleteSending you good luck vibes that you'll find the right fit for you. OH and a thank you. If you'd not posted the info on the Dirty Bits line, I probably would have never written Being Neighborly (one of the sold projects) so it's been a snowball effect for sure.
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I've wondered if Being Neighborly was inspired by sharing about Carina Press' new submission line but forgot to ask. Congrats again.
DeleteCongratulations! That is fantastic news. Nice that you have the guild to help out. Goodness knows I go cross-eyed when I look at contracts!
ReplyDeleteThank you! Yes, I got the first contract and my eyes went cross. LOL One of my CPs told me about the guild and I felt much better after having them review it for me.
Deletethanks for stopping by
Congratulations, Meka! I believe hybrid is the way to go--the best of both worlds. The traditionally published books should definitely help your indie sales.
ReplyDeleteAs for how to make the experience a success, build relationships with everyone you can at both presses. Get to know the marketing team, the editors, the designers. When those people inevitably move on, you will have connections at other houses. And you'll also be able to make their lives easier in the meantime. Work with the marketing people to strengthen your own efforts as well as theirs.
Thank you! Never pictured myself as a hybrid author, but I'm excited about this new venture in my career! Hoping to see a slight uptake in my indie titles.
DeleteOh thank you for the advice!!! One of the editors I met at RWA this July, she's the one working on my book at Carina! It was nice to meet her in person and talk on a people-to-people level and not all business related. The marketing support is what I'm really looking forward to! I need to increase my own efforts so I can't wait to start learning new options.
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Congrats! So excited for you. :-)
ReplyDeleteAnna from elements of emaginette
:) Thank you! Should be a fun time learning the ins-and-outs in the publishing world.
Deletethanks for stopping by
Yahoo!! That's such exciting news!!! :)
ReplyDelete:) Thanks! I'm still a little shocked, but very excited.
Deletethanks for stopping by
It's logical to me that any sales you have in the future will help push sales of your older titles. Just make sure you have a profile on the big ebook sites so that readers who love your new books can easily find your older books. Congratulations on both of your offers! So exciting! http:/www.raimeygallant.com
ReplyDeleteThat's my hope. I have profiles on the 'major' retailer sites. Amazon is the only one with an 'author' page because I upload through Smashwords. And I've recently updated my website also so they are easier to find. Thank you! I'm excited to see how this all works out.
Deletethanks for stopping by
Congratulations! I'm wishing you the best of luck. I started with a publisher and eventually got my rights back because I never knew what was going on with my books. I'm too much of a control freak I guess. The good news is I actually saw an upsweep in sales because I could tell what worked and what didn't when I put time and money into marketing.
ReplyDeleteThank you! I'm locked in for five years with both publishing houses. I'm not a tracker, but I'll see how it goes and if I'm not happy, I won't renew for additional time. Yay for getting your rights back and getting improved sales. I'm not so good at marketing on my own, so hoping to learn a few tricks that I can apply to my indie titles as well. It's all a wait and see deal right now.
Deletethanks for stopping by
Yippee! Huge congrats to you! However this shakes down, I'm wishing you epic success and prolific sales.
ReplyDeleteThanks Crystal! I have 5 years with both houses, so it'll be a long-ish ride, but hopefully a fun one. With some success thrown in. LOL
Deletethanks for stopping by
Congratulations!! I've loved my hybrid experiences but did have 2 negative experiences as well, so definitely take advantage of the legal look over.
ReplyDeleteWhichever route you choose, best wishes for you and your book babies.
Yay and boo for your good and negative experiences. Having legal look over the contract and give me talking points helped. I didn't get everything, but got some things so that was good. I've talked to authors who are with both houses to get an idea of how they liked it, and I only heard good things, so that also helped put my mind at ease. Next year should be full of new experiences that I'm looking forward to.
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Congratulations!!! All of your hard work is paying off. Change can be good, and it sounds like you caught an excellent wind. Keep riding it!
ReplyDeleteThank you! It's been a struggle. I was ready to throw away one of the projects. But I'm glad I listened to my CPs and didn't delete it all. Learning new things is a good thing, so looking forward to seeing how life is with backing.
Deletethanks for stopping by
Wow, congratulations! That's amazing!
ReplyDelete:) Thank you! I'm very excited and thankful for these opportunities.
Deletethanks for stopping by