Bean Counters and Brutality

by Janis Susan May/Janis Patterson

Not long ago on one of my eloops there was a discussion on the recent Harlequin line closings. One of the group asked if we didn’t think the business was getting more brutal these days.

I'm a cynic, but I believe the industry started getting brutal in the 80s, when the 'acquisition mania' began and the bean counters took over. Before the 80s publishing was still a kind of gentlemen's game - a strict game, with rules about agents and royalties and the superiority of publishers over mere authors - but although sometimes harsh still a place more friendly to authors than it is now. You could submit a book over the transom (does anyone still use that phrase any more?) and actually have it looked at. Publishers would take a chance on something new. They would work to build an author's career. It was a working symbiosis - a somewhat lopsided one, but not too bad for the authors.

Then in the 80s the financial world went mad in every field. Big publishers gobbled up small houses and were in turn gobbled up by bigger publishers. Books were no longer regarded as books and keepers of the culture, but as items to be marketed, just in the same way as shoes and handbags and other retail objects. ("Hey, design 617 is selling well, so let's do it in green and purple and puce too.") As time went on the publishers began to tighten the niches and if a niche didn't pay off enough to suit them, it was marginalized if not eradicated altogether. Everyone wanted something exactly the same as the current bestseller... but different. Writers who did not write (and re-write) exactly what the publisher wanted eventually disappeared from the company's rolls. The bean counters had taken over. People were expected to read what they made available and the market began to slide, which made the bean counters tighten things up to a stranglehold.

Then came the digital revolution and the phenomenon of self-publishing. This is a mixed blessing, as there is so much dreck out there it's startling, but there is also a lot of good stuff, stuff that had been marginalized by the traditional publishers. Readers could once again find whatever kind of genre and sub-genre they wanted. Self-publishing authors were getting - finally! - a fair share of the money and not being treated as if they were nothing but a supporting cog who would be replaced if they didn't behave.

The big publishers still don't understand this phenomenon. Yes, they utilize it by putting out ebooks and clinging ferociously to ebook rights, but I honestly believe they don't understand the basic standards at work here. Writers write what they want to write, and readers read what they want to read - all without the dictatorial hand of big publishers controlling what is available. It is the free market in microcosm. And the big publishers don't get it, so they still act as they always have. A sub-genre doesn't pay off the way they expect, so axe it. We as readers shouldn't worry - self-publishers will soon fill the gap. 

I know there are writers who are well treated by their publishers, whether big or small, and will probably read this post with astonishment or anger. I rejoice that you are happy, but there are lots, lots more of us who have seen the other side and understand. 

Has the industry turned brutal lately? Lately? It always has been.

Be It Resolved...

by Janis Susan May/Janis Patterson

Sometimes I think if I hear/see/read one more thing about New Year’s Resolutions I will scream. Every January 1 we’re supposed to completely change our lives, remake ourselves and institute completely new thought patterns. Then, being human, when we slip, backslide or otherwise fail, we are depressed and return to our old ways or worse. Small wonder New Year’s Resolutions have in many ways become a bad joke.

This year I’ve beat the system. I’ve made only one resolution, and that one I am sure to keep. I resolved to make no resolutions! Which is an insoluble conundrum, I know, but logic has never been my strong point.

Resolutions have always unnerved me somehow. I am a very stubborn person and once I say something I will move Heaven and earth to keep my word. Two years ago I vowed to put my publishing career into high gear after far too many years of futzing around. I did it, and it bloody near killed me. Since May of 2014 I have been working non-stop, publishing I-don’t-know-how-many-books (including one release every two weeks for five months!) with never any less than three writing projects going on at a time. I traveled to Egypt to research a book, then to Boston, Alabama and Las Vegas to research other projects. I did mountains of publicity (which I loathe) and blogged a lot – pretty much any time anyone would let me in addition to my standing days. I spoke at several prestigious conferences and attended even more conferences, some for me and some for The Husband. I kept our house and made a home for The Husband, did some teaching and dealt with several family crises. And that’s just what I can remember now.

I’m tired.

So did it work? Was it worth it? I dunno. My sales have been fairly good, but not anywhere near what I want them to be. My name is known in the industry, and I think I have a pretty good reputation. I haven’t had the lightning strike of luck yet, but no resolution, New Year’s or not, is going to change that.

All of which has brought me to a decision. I’m going to slow down. I’m going to enjoy life more. I’m going to pay more attention to my home and my family and my animals. I may even clean out my kitchen cabinets. (On the other hand, I may not – don’t need to get TOO carried away!) I’ll still write, and publish, and speak, and pretty much do everything I’ve been doing, but just not so much of it.

I need to remember to put more emphasis on making a life instead of making a living.

(PS - for those of you who were interested in my newsletter, there is now a sign-up form available on my website!) 

Attack of the Typo Gremlins

by Janis Susan May/Janis Patterson

The Husband says I’m weird. I prefer fanciful. That does not, however, change the fact there are some things out there that we cannot explain and which we definitely cannot control. In other words, my friends, the Typo Gremlin is real. He’s out there and he’s both malign and sneaky. I give it the masculine pronoun, as it is changeable, sometimes irrational and very dictatorial. It doesn’t matter what you do – edit, re-edit, get multiple professional editors galore and still that sneaky little devil will get around everything and embarrass you.

When I was still a child I started working in my parents’ advertising agency. Even then I was the picky sort, and one of my jobs was to proof-read the ads we put out. Being commercially oriented instead of consumer, our ads were both word-dense and generally boring, so that was a time-consuming job. Of course I wasn’t the only proof-reader – before an ad went out just about everyone in the office had looked it over – but in spite of that the Typo Gremlin would still have his way. We’d see the mistake – usually in 30 point type – right after the bazillion copy print run was completed.

When I was most definitely not a child I was editor in chief of first one multi-magazine publishing group and then later another; wherever I was, though, didn’t make a difference. The Typo Gremlin always managed to find me. The first group I worked for had been plagued with a slipshod editor who apparently didn’t care what the magazines looked like. I had been brought on board to bring the group up to snuff. Needless to say, it was not always a pleasant process, but after an issue or two I had pretty much everything looking better and under control. Except the Typo Gremlin.

The first issue of my editorship was a disaster; the second one was much better and by the third we were putting out a product I could be proud of. From the first day I instituted a law that even after our proofreaders had looked over everything no board went to the printer unless it had my initials on it.

And in spite of that the sneaky little Typo Gremlin still made his presence known, dancing through every issue, sometimes leaving one, or maybe two mistakes – though by the second issue they were usually little ones. Being a firm believer in turning a weakness into a strength I finally gave in and made a partner of the wee beastie, running a permanent contest that whoever found a typo in any one of our magazines (that group published three) would win a prize. The prizes were little – a yearly subscription, one of the little booklets we produced on everything from gardening to fortunetelling – but our readership soared and our ad revenue went through the roof. It was so successful that I carried the idea to my next publishing group, where we had the same results.

So, as odd as it sounds, your enemy can become your friend if you play things right. Even a Typo Gremlin. 

Just To Be Sure...

by Janis Susan May/Janis Patterson

At long last it’s here. The release day of your new book. The cover is gorgeous, the print PDF and the electronic versions are pristine. All the editing passes and revisions are finally over with and each sentence has been polished until all of them shine like diamonds. You’ve got your excerpts ready for publicity, the various sizes of your cover are waiting to be posted, you’ve done your keywords and metadata for release… all that awaits is for you to push the ‘Publish’ button.

And your finger hovers hesitantly over your mouse as you frantically search your mind and your manuscript for anything you might have forgotten. Stress brings a sheen of perspiration to your forehead as your clicking finger starts to tremble. Remember the old saw “Horses sweat, men perspire and ladies glow”? Well, just about now I always start to glow like a horse.

This is it. This is what you’ve been working for for so long. But is your precious book ready? Really ready? Maybe just one more check… just to be sure?

Believe me, you can ‘just one more check’ yourself into total stasis. I know. I’ve done it. Especially when the book is a very important one.

You see, that’s where I am right now. One year ago this month The Husband and I started out for Egypt, where we had been invited to stay at an archaeological dig house. The excavation director is a very dear friend and had suggested I might want to set a murder mystery in this lovely old house built in 1906 by an English Egyptologist named Somers Clarke that is now the excavation headquarters. Of course we went and though we have been to Egypt several times it was just about the most magical trip of my life.

The resultant book is A KILLING AT EL KAB, and it’s going to be released in the middle of this month – almost to the day we arrived at El Kab. As I am an avowed Egyptomane, this is one of the most important books of my entire life.

And I want it perfect. I have driven both my cover artist and formatter almost to madness with my pickiness and these last few weeks The Husband has been positively grateful to escape to his job every morning. I have been through the manuscript and the various formatted copies so many times that I can recount great chunks of copy from memory. Yet still I hesitate to hit the ‘publish’ button. I tell myself it’s because I haven’t yet received the paperback proofs.

Yeah.

More likely it’s because I know that somewhere deep in the manuscript there lingers a malign typo, waiting in hiding until the book is available to the world before it makes itself known…

Maybe I should go through the book again… Just to be sure.

Ménage à trois for Writers

by Victoria M. Johnson

I know what you're thinking and this isn't that kind of post.  But writers are sometimes known for waking up one night and realizing they've been caught with their pants down.  This post will help ensure that you keep your pants on and your head straight.  I'm talking about a healthy three-way relationship with the writer and two important people in her career.  Some writers have more than two others who are guiding, developing, and championing her work.  But I'm focusing on the writer-editor-agent triangle.  It can get tricky at times and writers may need to crack the whip once in awhile--an imaginary whip--just a figure of speech, folks.  Here are seven reminders to help you stay on coarse:

In a threesome everyone has a role.

Your role is to write.  Your editor's role lies mainly in editing.  Sadly most editors have taken on multiple tasks in areas such as scheduling, production, and sales.  Your agent's role is to sell your work and give you guidance on contracts, negotiations, and staying up-to-date with editors and publishing houses wants and opportunities.  Focus on your role but stay in touch with your editor and agent.  Keep the lines of communication open.  And remember your agent works for you.

All three of you want the same thing.

That thing is for you and your books to be a success.  Sometimes it might feel like one or the other partner has a different priority and the discussion (and decision) needs to come back to this common goal. 

Sometimes not everyone is satisfied.

All three of you are professionals and should always be treated with respect.  It's okay to disagree.  It's okay to not get your way every time.  It's okay to speak up on things that really matter to you.  It's not okay to be a pain in the butt to work with.  It's never okay to be disrespectful.

You have more control than you think you do.

You have a say in many aspects of the publishing process, including contracts, book covers, titles, scheduling, and revisions.  Some houses give authors less input than others; and some give authors no choice in these matters.  In cases where you have less control than you'd like: stay calm, think things through, and make the best decisions for your career.

The time to run a google search on someone is before you hop into bed with them--this applies to agents and publishing houses, too.

Your agent selection can help make or break your career.  Choose wisely.  Pick one with a good reputation, with clients whose books they've sold, and who doesn't have complaints against them.  While you may not have a choice what editor you're assigned to, or the one you love may move on, you have a choice what publisher you submit your work to. 

Sometimes you have to do unpleasant things.

Among the worst chores a writer has to do is fire an agent.  But it's hardly ever good to stay in a bad relationship.  Check your contract for the legal way to sever the bond.  Be aware of the ties that still bind you to that agent.  Likewise, you may decide it's best to leave your publishing house.  Again your contract (and your agent) will guide you.

Delight in the bliss.

Everything going great in your ménage à trois?  Congratulations.  Relationships take time, trust, and mutual respect to work long-term.  It's especially rewarding when you all take pleasure in and benefit from the three-way liaison.

Victoria M. Johnson knew by the time she was ten that she wanted to be a writer.  She loves telling stories and she's happiest when creating new characters and new plots.  Avalon Books and Montlake Romance published Victoria's fiction debut, The Doctor’s Dilemma, (A 2012 Bookseller’s Best double finalist).  Her other fiction book is a collection of romance short stories titled, The Substitute Bride. She is also the writer and director of four short films and two micro documentaries.   Visit Victoria's website at http://VictoriaMJohnson.com for inspiration and tips and find her Amazon author page or connect with her on Pinterest and Twitter.