Pub Rants

Category: editors

Guest Blog: Janice’s Editor Donna Bray On The Pain Merchants Title Change

by Kristin Nelson

STATUS: TGIF! As you know, I’m off to London this Sunday. That means blogging might be sporadic for the next 2 weeks while I’m abroad but I’ll try and keep y’all in the loop on UK happenings and the London Book Fair.

What’s playing on the iPod right now? THE COURIER from Last of the Mohicans soundtrack

Our guest blogger for today is Donna Bray, co-Publisher at Balzer & Bray, an imprint of HarperCollins.

“I wonder if anybody at the publishing company is reading these (great) comments and wishing you guys were in on the brainstorming sessions!”

As a matter of fact… we are.

Many thanks for Kristin for letting me guest blog here in response to her posts, as well as the dozens of interesting, smart, and impassioned comments.

An important part of an editor’s job is balancing the creative vision of the author with the realities of the marketplace. And there are dozens of people involved in this balancing act with me –- sales, marketing, publicity, design, production — all of whom care deeply about book. And certainly in the case of Janice Hardy’s book, the folks at Harper were incredibly excited about her as a writer and about the potential for the trilogy. So, you can take the extra interest as a blessing or a curse. If these people didn’t love the book so much, they would not have invested so much time and money in getting the best possible title and jacket.

(Ah, the jacket –that’s a whole other post.)

I myself take it as a blessing.

But to answer another reader’s question — “Do they ever tell you why they change the title for a book?” The short answer is – yes! The long answer speaks more to my publishing philosophy — there was no “they,” only “we.” A book doesn’t suddenly become my book or Harper’s when I acquire it – it belongs to “us”, and we all want the same thing – to create a wonderful book with an arresting package that will get great reviews and sell, sell, sell.

So, back to THE SHIFTER: While I do still like the title THE PAIN MERCHANTS (as I see many of you do, too!), I can also see why our sales team were leery of it – is “pain” in the title a turn-off? Is it misleading, or not middle-grade enough? To their credit, despite their initial hesitation, sales came around to the appeal of the title and presented the book to the retail chains as THE PAIN MERCHANTS – only to receive a negative reaction there.

I shared the feedback with Kristin and Janice at every stage of this process, and together we decided to explore different options. We were at a bit of a loss, at first (see Kristin’s list of other, discarded titles -– was there anything we hadn’t already thought of?!). But ultimately we made the right decision — we all wanted to give this first novel its best shot at success. We came up with a title that reflects the story (it is about a shifter, after all) and that feels middle-grade and fantasy. This could lead into another discussion of the importance of strong and clear positioning of a title from the outset… but let me not digress, especially in another person’s blog.

I have in the past stood up for a title that sales was unsure of — some felt, for instance, that WE ARE THE SHIP by Kadir Nelson was not obvious enough, even with the subtitle “The Story of Negro League Baseball.” Every day, editors and publishers do support the vision and instincts of the creative people we work with –- and we bump up regularly against the demands of the marketplace, which presents more and greater challenges daily. We may struggle on the way to the final book, we may disagree, we may have difficulties or disappointments -– but if it all begins with the idea of “we,” there’s a much better shot of getting to happily ever after, with author, agent, and publisher counting our big piles of beans…

PW Survey Says

by Kristin Nelson

STATUS: HOTEL moved up to position #21 on the NYT extended hardcover bestseller list. Couldn’t be more thrilled for Jamie. Happy dance at the office this afternoon.

What’s playing on the iPod right now? SILK PYJAMAS by Thomas Dolby

Every year PW does an annual job survey. I actually did a search for the 2008 survey results but I’m thinking they haven’t been released yet because the article didn’t pop up.

So the most recent I could find was from 2007. The good majority of editors in New York are women. There are many different theories as to why that is true. Most likely the culprit is starting salary and women are more likely to put up with low salaries at a beginning of a career. There is also a theory that traditionally, men do more “supporting of the household” in our US world so can’t “afford” to enter the field.

I’m not going to touch that gender story but what I can tell you is this. Despite the fact that publishing tends to be, percentage-wise, more heavily slanted towards women employees than men, women editors are still paid less than their male counterparts for equivalent positions. This PW article simply touches the tip of the iceberg (discussing managers vs. editors). The full survey goes into more detail about salaries for equivalent positions.

Folks, gender bias is alive and well in the field of publishing.

However, I don’t think this statistic holds true for women agents…Hence why I’m on this side of the publishing fence.

Dad Wisdom & Publishing

by Kristin Nelson

STATUS: I really need to tackle the emails piling up in my inbox.

What’s playing on the iPod right now? WOODS by George Winston

When I was in high school, my dad told me two things. Finding that special someone is all about timing and HS boys are intimidated by bright women.

Funny enough, I thought that was a lot of hooey. Sheepish apology to my lovely dad because he pretty much was right. But as a teen, you pretty much assume that a parent couldn’t possibly be right.

Hindsight really is 20/20.

So what in the world does this have to do with publishing? Well, two things actually.

The first I’m actually a little hesitant to say but I’m inspired by a recent entry from Editorial Ass on a whole different topic but tangential in nature, so I think I’ll take a risk and put this comment out there as well.

From my personal experience (and I really can only speak from that perspective), I truly believe that for literary fiction, it’s much easier to sell boy writers than gals. I know. Who can possibly make such a general statement but I have to say that I’ve encountered several worthy manuscripts that I’m rather convinced that if the writer had been male, the novel would have sold.

Just empirical proof, of course; no scientific method employed.

And second, publishing is often about timing. For example, if you are currently a writer of young adult or middle grade fiction and you have a paranormal element (read: vampire, werewolf, witch or what have you), you might be stymied by the timing of putting said project on submission right now.

The market is crowded. Editors are weary in some respects. (Agents too!) Just last week I had an editor turn down even looking at a manuscript because she felt her list was too crowded with the supernatural.

That’s a sure sign that a trend is winding down. Now that doesn’t mean nothing in that realm will sell. It just means that any project that does will have to be X times better, X times more original, than similar projects sold 2 years ago.

The Art Of The Synop?

by Kristin Nelson

STATUS: I’m having a very interesting cover discussion tomorrow. And I’m sharing a fairly hilarious cover discussion in my February newsletter so be on the look out for it.

What’s playing on the iPod right now? CHANGE by Tears For Fears

I actually should not be tackling this subject because for the most part, I don’t read or use synopses.

I know. Shocking. It’s the complete opposite of what you hear. I’m just the maverick in that department.

When I go out on submission with a project, I have my cover letter (many of which I’ve shared with my blog readers) and the full manuscript. That’s it.

If I’m selling something that’s a first in a series or trilogy, I’ll also include a one-page (2 tops) teaser blurb regarding the subsequent possible books.

The reason why? For the most part, from what I can tell, I’ve got many a client who can write one hell of a novel but suck at writing a synopsis. Seriously, it’s almost physically painful to wade through them. I end up asking more questions than the synopsis answered!

But sometimes you can’t escape it and we have to do it. When that happens, here are the tips that I tell my clients so they can write a half-decent synopsis.

1. As you begin, pretend that the reader of the synopsis has not read any prior books in said series so your opening paragraph or paragraphs, sums up the previous novel and explains the world (if that’s pertinent). It creates a base in which to build the rest. Often, even the editor won’t remember every character or background tidbit in a novel that they edited! Not to mention, when selling on synop, the editor may be sharing your explanation with folks who have, indeed, not read your work yet.

It helps to orient the reader in this way and if done right (and succinctly).it can go a long way to making a synopsis strong.

2. Outline your character or characters’ internal conflict.

3. Briefly outline your external conflict and plot points.

4. Once that is clear in your head (and on paper), then you have to decide how is the best way to convey both plot and theme in the synop. My suggestion? Start with plot first. Get that down in a clear, concise manner. This is what will happen in the novel. Once the plot path is clear, then go back and interweave why the heck the events unfolding are important to the story (which is theme.)

5. Now hand this off to a person who knows nothing about your work and see if they can follow the synopsis. If that person can’t, you know you’ve missed and you have some real work in front of you.

The real problem with writing the synopsis is that the story is so clear in the author’s head, they mistakenly assume that it’s clear on the page as well. After all, it makes perfect sense to them.

And when even that fails, just start writing. As long as we have sample chapters on hand, I can squeak by with a very short, one-pager synop that’s more teaser than it is full outline.

And it goes without saying that if you are a new or a debut writer, you must have a full manuscript. Still, even with that in hand, lots of agents request the synop so you might as well get as good as possible at it. I know that at conferences, they often host hour long sessions on how to write a decent one. Time well spent most likely.

Editorial Anonymous Dictionary Of Publishing Terms

by Kristin Nelson

STATUS: I’ve got a crowd of things on my desk—two of which are important in terms of must get done today. So short, sweet, and to the point works for me.

What’s playing on the iPod right now? POETRY MAN by Phoebe Snow

Hey blog readers, if co-op was interesting, do you want to hear more info about P&L Statements, Bookscan, PPB, Earn-out etc.?

Then hightail it over to EA’s blog and make your interest known. I know That Anna Genoese (formerly an editor over there at Tor) used to blog about a lot of these topics when she was still working over there but I haven’t seen an editor tackle any of these subjects in a while.

Brilliant I say.

Morning Breakfast With Hyperion

by Kristin Nelson

STATUS: Finishing a few things here at the office before I head over to the convention center for the start of the ALA Midwinter conference.

What’s playing on the iPod right now? NIGHTS IN WHITE SATIN by The Moody Blues

Was up and at ‘em early this morning for a breakfast with Stephanie Lurie Owens, who is the new Editorial Director over there at Disney-Hyperion. Brave woman had us meet at 7:30 a.m. It’s a rare editor who is a morning person I have to add. I don’t think I’ve ever had an editor breakfast before 9 a.m.—that is until this morning!

Oddly enough, we didn’t talk about books too much. Our main discussion was about digital formats and technology actually. I’m happy to say the Stephanie is pretty hip and on-top of what is currently unfolding in the tech world despite the fact that the company of Disney-Hyperion has been a little slow (in my mind) to embrace electronic books. Disney legal tends to slow things down, but it’s nice to know that the availability of the D-H titles in the ebook format is just around the corner. [So you Gallagher Girl and Percy Jackson fans shouldn’t have to wait too much longer.]

We also talked about the prevalence now of Sony eReaders for editors. Finally! Publishing houses got the memo that they could save hundreds of thousands in paper and printing cost by equipping their editors with this little gadget.

Praise the lord and pass the peanut butter! (Wait, maybe not the pb with all the recent salmonella scare).

But don’t worry, we also talked about what Hyperion might be looking for as of late.
She’d love to see, gasp, more middle grade series for girls. Hey, it’s been a long time since I’ve heard that from an editor. A new MG Meg Cabot, she says, bring it on.

For Hyperion, they have such a strong MG list for boys (with Percy Jackson and Artemis Fowl etc.), they really would like to take on something new in MG girl stuff and make it big. Having watched them build Ally Carter, I have to say they can do it well.

Have a great weekend!

Editor Letter for Real Life & Liars

by Kristin Nelson

STATUS: Getting ready for ALA Midwinter Conference which is happening here in Denver. I have a packed weekend ahead of me but it should be fun.

What’s playing on the iPod right now? I’M YOURS by Jason Mraz

Because I think my blog readers find the agent-editor interaction fascinating, here’s the submission letter for this project.

Here are two interesting things to note about this letter. Kristina’s novel had a unique POV structure. One narrative is written from first person POV and the three children are written from a third person POV. I decided that I didn’t want an editor to be surprised by what is a complicated narrative structure so I actually highlighted it in my submit letter. I also highlighted that I thought the unique narrative was strength—thus (hopefully) setting the editors perception before they began reading.

By the way, this narrative structure is almost impossible to pull off. It takes a lot of talent—which is how I pitched it in the letter.

I also spent a bit more time talking about how this novel impacted me personally. I wanted to make it clear that this wasn’t “just another cancer” story. That what we had here was an insightful novel about family relationships and how complicated they can be.

I guess I succeeded as several editors agreed with me and Lucia Macro at HarperCollins won this novel at auction.

Hello Lucia,

I hate to be the agent who says this every time I send out a project but I do think that this time, I’ve found the perfect novel for you (and if I haven’t, you have permission to snub me). First off, the writing is just top-notch. This story, REAL LIFE & LIARS seamlessly shifts between the first person POV of Mira, the sixty-something hippie mother who has just been diagnosed with breast cancer and has decided not to fight it, and the three third person POVs of her three, very different children. This would be a mess in the hands of a writer with less talent.

But here’s the other reason why I’m so passionate about this story (besides the fact that I just couldn’t put it down). Even though the Zielinski family is nothing like my own, I just felt like Kristina had tapped into the essential truth of my own family’s dynamics, despite the fact that my mother never has had cancer and my brother is the oldest and not the middle child etc. She has tapped into the core truth of how all families interrelate. How siblings treat each other as adults (our worn and familiar view of each other) as well as all the possibilities that emerge when we realize our love and loyalty. It’s also a very piercing look at the relationship parents have with adult children. And even though the novel is unflinching in its exploration, the reader is left with nothing but optimism that despite our personal failings, our families really do form our core.

So here’s the story: As a wilted flower child, Mira Zielinski has never been one to follow orders. Not from her husband, not from her boss – not even from her oncologist. Mira has her own idea about handling her newly diagnosed breast cancer, and it does not involve hopping up on the operating table. Her grown children will no doubt object — when she gets around to telling them.

As they come home for the weekend of Mira and Max’s thirty-fifth wedding anniversary party, her kids harbor some secret trials. Middle child Ivan’s lifelong desire to be a songwriter is withering on the vine after years of futility and his dating haplessness is so familiar, it’s almost a family joke. The impulsive and very young youngest child Irina will walk in the door with a surprise groom, though she’s already looking for the escape hatch in her shiny new marriage. As for the oldest, Katya, let’s just say that it would be a relief if her husband’s big secret were just the affair she suspects he’s having. As these trials unfold, certain family truths come to light but will they shake Mira’s resolve?

The author, Kristina Riggle, is a freelance journalist and published short story writer. Her credits include Cimarron Review, Net Author’s E2K and Espresso Fiction. She is also the co-editor for fiction at the e-zine Literary Mama, named one of Forbes’ “Best of the Web.” Kristina was also a judge for the 2007 Carrie McCray Literary Awards in the short fiction category. Since she is connected to the writing community, she has already lined up blurbs from published authors such as Kristy Kiernan (CATCHING GENIUS) and Carrie Kabak (COVER THE BUTTER, A Book Sense pick June 2005).

May I send this novel your way?
All Best,
Kristin

What We Say When We Talk About Covers

by Kristin Nelson

STATUS: It’s been one of those days. It’s almost 4 o’clock and I haven’t even tackled my TO DO for today. Seriously, I think I only get my scheduled work done at the office between the hours of 3 and 7.

What’s playing on the iPod right now? SAY HEY (I LOVE YOU) by Michael Franti and Spearhead

What is said 1: “I’ve shown this cover to everyone here in the office and we all love it. I hope you love it as much as I do.”

What is said 2: “This has been approved by sales & marketing and they just love it. I hope you love it as much as I do”

What is said 3: “We believe our concept is very strong and will really signal that this is a big book. We are excited about the author and these covers.”

Possible Translation 1: Everyone in the office indeed loves it. Sales & Marketing also love it and has approved it. The cover really does rock. It’s new, original, fresh, and innovative.

Possible Translation 2: Editor is worried about the cover but is hoping for the best. That we’ll like it and won’t raise a fuss. There won’t be a cover issue.

Possible Translation 3: That this is really not the greatest cover but time and money have been spent on the concept and the art design/photo shoot and the publisher really doesn’t want to start over. Editor will have a tough road to try and change it.

Possible translation: Editor actually doesn’t care for it but must present it as is. Is hoping we’ll raise a fuss so she can go back to the Art Department and say “see, I thought this was a miss.” Editor then fights strongly for a cover change.

I’ve never had an editor come to me and say, “gee, I think this cover stinks. I think it needs a do-over but what do you think first?”

For the most part, I really do believe that publishing houses and their cover departments have a good handle on the creating of the cover art. That it is their expertise more so than it is mine.

But I don’t believe that publishing houses always know best. If they did, there would never be bad covers. There would never be two covers for two different authors with the same image or the same model on the cover. And released at the same time. There would never be covers that are nixed by the B&N buyer.

The Cover art wouldn’t ever miss.

But it does. Far too frequently.

Consultation

by Kristin Nelson

STATUS: Such is the joy of January that the processing of Client 1099s with my bookkeeper is fast upon us.

What’s playing on the iPod right now? SO WHAT by Pink
(and man has this title been stuck in my head all day!)

It’s been awhile since I did a real rant on my blog so what better way to kick off the new year then to treat my reading audience to one?

Agents fight the good fight to get a little clause into author contracts that states that the author will have consultation on the cover and the cover copy (be it flap copy, back copy, or what have you).

For the most part, this isn’t too hard to do and is usually established in the agency’s boilerplate with the publisher.

Great right? Cover consultation means that the author will be consulted on what the final cover will look like. One would assume that it would mean that the author might have some input into what the final cover will look like. And all parties understand that given a disagreement on the cover, the publisher will have final say. [Cover Approval stated in contracts being reserved for the Nora’s, Stephenie’s, Neil’s, Stephen’s, and JK’s of the world.]

Good. Everyone is agreed.

And here comes the rant. But what constitutes “consultation” varies widely from publisher to publisher.

Some publishers send the final cover that can no longer be changed, and say you’ve been consulted. Grrrr. If the cover stinks, I’ve got a big fight on my hands. All of which could have been avoided had we just been really consulted—as the contract states.

Some publishers make you work for the consultation. Grrrr. This means you have to call the editor, email the editor, and harass the editor until you get the cover. It’s frustrating and exhausting and let me tell you, if I have a choice between publishers, I’ll consider this aspect when looking at the two deals on the table.

I do want to state here, in general, most editors really do want their authors to be happy with the cover and so will work with you but the above happens enough to make me want to pull my hair out.

Last week I was chatting with an editor (a big and powerful editor whom I just adore) who has included the author and me on every step of the cover process. From the first conception draft to the “final” draft that went to sales (who then rejected it and then we had to start all over and tackle second draft concepts etc.). And when I was talking to this editor on the phone, I paused and took a moment to thank her for really consulting with us on every step of the process. Not just paying lip service to the clause in the contract but really consulting us. And this for a debut author to boot! [Agents expect this with established authors]. Talk about a sheer joy this has been!

She was startled and said, “Why wouldn’t I? You two have been great.” How I long for every editor to handle it this way. Now please keep in mind this: both the author and I were sane, objective, reasonable, and actually offered good suggestions and because of that, all input was taken seriously. Thus the editor trusted us to work on the cover with her—not against her. This plays a big part in this whole consultation game.

But what I wouldn’t give for the cover process to be just like this for every book I sold. I will make sure that during this process, my author and I are sane, reasonable, and offering good suggestions. Just simply give us the chance.

Editor Letter for Proof By Seduction

by Kristin Nelson

STATUS: It’s pretty early in the day so right now, everything is going quite smoothly.

What’s playing on the iPod right now? CLOCKS by Coldplay

I’m totally chuckling after reading Courtney’s blog from yesterday where she shares the query letter outtakes. The moral of the story is this: If you find yourself unable to write a decent query letter, hire Sherry!

Seriously though. Sometimes it is difficult for a writer to write his or her own query. The writer is very close to the material and can’t often see the forest for the trees. If you’ve struggled with the query writing process, I don’t think it’s playing unfair to have another person write the query on your behalf, or with you, or revise it for you. As long as you end up with a strong letter that you believe fully represents your work, I, as the agent, will not ask if you wrote your own query letter. It can be your own deep, dark secret.

The point of the query is to win an agent’s attention and get a request for sample pages. Now, your sample pages have to hold up. The greatest query letter in the world is not going to compensate for unready sample pages.

And if somebody else ends up writing your query, make sure they are good at it!

As promised from yesterday, here’s the letter I sent to Courtney’s editor at Harlequin. As you all may or may not know, agents pitch editors as well. Now Ann Leslie has known me for years so to be quite honest, she would read anything I wanted to submit to her (besides my grocery list that is!).

Still, call me old-fashioned. I never send an editor a project without formally asking if it is okay to do so and I think it’s helpful to have a pitch that orients the editor as he or she begins the read.

So, in this sense, I always pitch editors and as an agent, I have to nail that pitch paragraph just like you have to do in your query letter. Noticed that I lifted several elements from the query that Sherry (ahem, Courtney) had written.

Hello Ann Leslie,

I can hardly believe it myself but I haven’t taken on a romance author in over a year –until now. In fact, I haven’t taken on a historical romance author since Sherry Thomas and oddly enough, it was Sherry who discovered Courtney Milan and sent her my way.

Courtney had won a contest that Sherry was sponsoring on her website and the prize was the reading of her first 30 pages by Sherry. Being the great client she is, Sherry immediately emailed me and said, “You’ve got to look at this author.”

Within a day, I had read and signed Courtney for PROOF BY SEDUCTION and I’m just beyond excited to share this manuscript with you. And yes, I know you are going to kill me because I’m sending you this email right before RWA but hey, both Courtney and I will be there so let me know if you want to meet up.

Set in 1836 London, PROOF BY SEDUCTION is an emotionally complex and beautifully written story (very Sherry Thomas who, by the way, is happy to offer a blurb for the novel’s release). As the outcast bastard daughter of some unknown nobleman, Jenny Keeble earns her living by being one of London’s premier fortune tellers. In this role, she certainly knows all about lies. After all, the fastest way to make money is to tell people what they want to hear. It works–until Gareth Carhart, the Marquis of Blakely, vows to prove what he and Jenny both know: that Jenny is a fraud.

Gareth only wants to extricate Ned, his naïve young cousin and heir, from an unhealthy influence. The last thing the rigidly scientific marquis expects is his visceral reaction to the intelligent, tenacious, and–as revealed by a wardrobe malfunction–very desirable fortune teller. But she enrages him by her “prediction” of his own pending nuptials as a way to prove her ability. She tempts him to look beyond his coldly logical view of the world. She causes him to lose his head entirely and offer a prediction of his own: He’ll have her in his bed before the month is out. The battle lines are drawn. Jenny can’t lose her livelihood or her long-time friendship with young Ned; Gareth won’t abandon scientific logic.

Neither is prepared to accept love.

Courtney Milan is a … [Bio deliberately removed. It was a solid paragraph long.] She is a finalist in the 2008 Golden Heart competition (but not for this manuscript and I’m happy to explain if you are interested).

May I send this your way?

All Best,
Kristin Nelson