Thursday tips are geared to the newly published/newly contracted writer.

Then What?

You’ve signed the contract, with or without an agent—whichever you decided was the best for your chosen career path.

What happens next?

Well, hopefully, you’re already working on the next book.  There is always the next book, you know.  Actually, when it comes to publishing, a writer tends to be working on three or more books at any one time—not writing them, exactly, but we are working on promo for whatever is coming out soon, we’re editing/writing what’s due out in the coming months, and we’re getting the ideas together for whatever we’re pitching next.  It’s never just one book.

At some point, you’ll hear from whoever your editor is going to be.  It may or may not be the editor who contacted you with an offer.

If you write for epubs, something you’ll probably get that’s different from traditional pubs?  Forms about things like cover art—cover art requests.

Huh? What’s that?  It’s just that.  You’ll get a standardized form asking what sort of artwork you have in mind for your cover.  Don’t freak if you don’t have anything in mind.  I rarely have any certain image in mind.  Just peruse the cover art of your publisher…and others…and get an idea for the ‘feel’ you want.   That can give an idea where to start.

With epubs, you actually get some say, or at least a lot of suggestion when it comes to cover art.  Although I will say I’ve been surprised with a number of my traditionally pubbed titles, I have been asked if I had anything in mind.  I think Chains was the first one, and I actually did have an idea of something I’d like—a woman, dark background…with chains.

This is what I received.

Simple, striking, and in my opinion, perfect.

There will be revisions, probably.  Revisions can be from something as simple as a few minor changes to fairly substantial.

Don’t panic.  It’s part of the process.

And remember that.  It is part of the process.  Not a one of us are so perfect that we can’t improve our writing.

However, also remember…sometimes there might be requested changes that we feel will change the voice of our story.

Know when something is actually improving the story, and when something might be making your story not your story.   If it’s mechanics, that’s an improvement thing, and chances are, you need to do it.

If it’s changing your voice, though, then you need to think about whether or not you want to do that.  Editors like writers who are flexible and easy to work with.  But writers create the story and we want our story to remain just that.

Just don’t be a diva about it.  The diva routine, it’s gets old, fast, and if you’re new, your editor isn’t going to put up with it.  Even if you’re not new, your editor isn’t likely to put up.