Posts Tagged ‘publishing’

One of the best/most nervewracking things about publishing is the big cover gamble. 

I’ve been incredibly fortunate with Harper, who took the time to ask me my thoughts about the original cover and made sure to get it right. 

The paperback is in the capable hands of Harper Perennial, which is known for their paperback editions of new and young fiction and non-fiction authors and their nail-it-every-dang-time editions of classic novels (including some that are featured in The Heroine’s Bookshelf). 

When my editor told me the paperback division wanted to take a stab at a new cover, I sucked in a deep breath.  But I love the first cover!  Uncertainty!  Strife!  But when the cover you see here was presented to me, I was overcome by not just relief, but a giddy feeling.  The paperback cover feels fresh, thrilling, and plenty booky.  Bonus:  it has gorgeous fonts AND a blurb from the fascinating and wonderful Wendy McClure, whose The Wilder Life is a can’t-miss for Laura Ingalls Wilder fans and those who want to know more about the Little House books. 

So…here it is! I hope you like it.  And I hope you’ll be around on November 15 to celebrate the paperback release. 

Click to enlarge.

I’ve been thinking.  About publishing.

Actually, my love affair with the crazy publishing industry started long before I got my debut book deal.  I’ve spent years poring over Publishers Lunch, following the gossip on Galleycat, and getting to know the wild and wooly industry that is ever-changing, fickle, absorbing, intense, and lovable Publishing, capital P.  But as usual, book-learnin’ doesn’t always serve me well…real-life experience is a much better (and harsher) teacher.

Here are ten things that have really surprised me during this process:

The Rollercoaster.  Yes, I’ve read a billion debut authors talking about the emotional rollercoaster of the publication process.  Every one of them is telling the truth.  One day you get a review saying your book reads like a crappy book report.  The next day, your book is featured as the day’s obsession on Vogue Italia.  Prepare for high highs and LOW lows.

The Collaboration.  I can’t even begin to think or thank the people who collaborated on the book’s publication.  Seeing a book come into the world was all the more amazing because I was surrounded by capable and concerned midwives.

The Waiting.  Oh, the waiting.  Hurry up and wait is the name of this game.  I’m not sure I’ve developed patience (yet), but I have at least come to expect lots of lags, then times of intense activity.  Which reminds me that…

It’s Not Personal.  What?  It’s not all about me?! This book is my baby, my late-night confession, a true expression of me as a person.  And yet to others, it’s an item they buy at the store.  I’m always surprised at how the ups and downs of this industry aren’t personal at all…despite all of my crazy tendencies to anthropomorphize.

My Day Job Isn’t Going Anywhere.  That is a good thing, my friends.  But it also pokes at the illusion that a Writer, capital W, need not worry about things like where her next meal is coming from.  Yeah.

Gratitude Is Not Enough.  Am I grateful for every reader, every reviewer, and every person who’s been so fundamental to The Heroine’s Bookshelf?  Oh, yes.  Do I have to show up on my own and my book’s behalf every single day?  Yeah.  It’s not enough to be grateful…there’s a lot of hard work to do before and after promo.

Gratitude Is Everything.  I always thought that Real Authors (!) sent thank-you cards to everyone they ever came in touch with and were polite and grateful as much as possible.  But the reactions of the publishing pros I’ve come across have been surprising…and revealing.  Shockingly, very few authors actually take the time to thank and acknowledge others in their process, to the extent that it’s surprising when they actually do so.  I’ve learned that a bit of politeness goes a long way…and makes my life that much more pleasant.

Work Fills The Space I Give It.  Any illusion that writing the book was the end of this process for me was shattered when I realized that copyedits, media junkets, correspondence, appearances, advertisements, and all kinds of supplication of others to buy my book, please, were on the schedule for the forseeable future.  I have made my peace with this, but it can be kind of shocking to the writer in me who would like to disappear back behind her screen, please.

I’m Really Self-Critical.  Okay, maybe this isn’t super surprising, but wow.  Nothing brings out Erin’s Inner Critic like putting my writing out there for the world.  At the moment, I can only work to counter this tendency…and I’m surprising myself all the time.

You All Rock.  I was so scared of running afoul of fans of the books I tackle in The Heroine’s Bookshelf…so terrified of conflict with my fellow writers and the people in The Industry.  Know what?  You have consistently surprised me with your openness, your charm, your dedication, your collaboration, your love of reading, and your amazingness.  It goes beyond your beautiful gifts and the amazing letters you’ve sent me.  It goes all the way to the root of what true friendship and camaraderie can mean.  And that’s the most pleasant surprise of all.

Fellow writers…what has surprised you most about this journey?

Favorite book moment of the week: Helping Eleanor Brown ring in the birth of The Weird Sisters.  She read and spoke with aplomb, and the crowd went wild.  Bonus:  time to browse around The Tattered Cover in Highlands Ranch.  I talked to the staff a bit, signed a few books (faced-out in the literary criticism section and on a table of cozy winter lit!), picked up a prize for February’s Heroine Love event and bought a book for Top Secret Super Project.  Which leads me to…

Literary challenge of the week:  Fear.  Yup…same old same old.  The cursor on the blank screen.  A half-baked idea itching to be refined and expressed.  My mantra:  I’m the only one who can do the work in front of me, and I have much support and many opportunities on the horizon.  After all, the scarier a piece of work is, the more deserving it is of my attention…right?  Right?  Besides, what better practice for The Glamour of Writing (Not): Romance and Writing In Spite of It All at the Boulder Writers Meetup? 

Review/testament of the week:  Tiffany says “I love love pink puffy heart love this book.”  Cue loving expression on my face.*

Current favorite “customers who bought this item also bought” pairing on Amazon: Laura Ingalls Wilder: A Writer’s Life, by Pamela Smith Hill.  Amazing.

This time ten years ago: I was rocking out as the lead singer of an indie rock band in Hollywood.  I am serious.  Oh, how things have changed…

Current personal heroine: Carlina White, the young woman who just found her birth parents after being abducted in a hospital when she was 19 days old.  Not only did she have the guts to doubt the lies she had been told about her life, but she found the courage and perseverance to actually act on those doubts.  23 years later, she’s been reunited with her parents and, I hope, will begin to tackle the task of reconstructing her life and self with the fortitude she showed in questioning her own identity.

*Wonder what the heck she’s talking about? Go to your local indie bookstore or buy The Heroine’s Bookshelf online and let me know what you think!

Favorite book moment of the week: It’s a toss-up between being a fly on the wall for the many omgBorders conversations (what can I say, I’m fascinated by spectacular rises and falls) and, of course, witnessing the enormous outpouring of good cheer and support for February’s Heroine Love event, which will feature 12 of my favorite book bloggers, an ever-more-amazing prize pack, and lots of literary secret-telling and praise.  More and more I realize that community is the most incredible thing to come out of The Heroine’s Bookshelf…a community of writers and a community of readers who are so dear to me.

Review/testament of the week: I had the great pleasure of speaking to the first-ever Heroine’s Book Club at the Burke County Public Library in Morganton, NC on Saturday.  The topic was Louisa May Alcott, and one of the ladies had very nice things to say about how I addressed the author’s life along with that of her heroine.  Still beaming over here. *

Current favorite “customers who bought this item also bought” pairing on Amazon: Skippy Dies: A Novel, by Paul Murray.  I had the pleasure of hearing the Macmillan/Faber & Faber rep talk about this book at the Boulder Book Store’s book club event and it’s been inching its way up my crazy to-read list ever since.

This time two years ago: I was furiously working on the book proposal that would become The Heroine’s Bookshelf.  The more things change…

Current personal heroine: Tavia Gilbert!  You may know her as the incredible woman who voiced The Heroine’s Bookshelf in audio form for Blackstone (and what a job she did).  I had the privilege of meeting her on The Littlest Book Tour, and she is not only well-spoken, beautiful, and whip-smart, but she works on bettering herself and expressing herself every single day.  What more can you want in a real-life heroine, I ask?

*Wonder what the heck she’s talking about? Go to your local indie bookstore or buy The Heroine’s Bookshelf online and let me know what you think!

Favorite book moment of the week: Being asked to do another blurb. There’s nothing more flattering than being let in on the fun (or more nervewracking than asking for one, for that matter). I was so lucky to have amazing blurbs on my book’s cover. (Go congratulate one of my blurbers, the amazing Kelly O’Connor McNees, whose The Lost Summer of Louisa May Alcott was just voted into the top three in Goodreads’ Historical Fiction category!)

Review of the week: How could I not love this one? “PLEASE, if I ever decide to write a book—let me write like Erin Blakemore!!” writes Oregon Kimm at Fall In Love With Books. “[It's] no deep commitment to read [the book] cover to cover-—just gems of wisdom tucked away, begging for discovery as the need arises.” Thanks for your kind words, Kimm.  I’m honored that you liked the book and will be sharing it with friends.*

Current favorite “customers who bought this item also bought” pairing on Amazon: I Judge You When You Use Poor Grammar. Looks like someone knows me too well.

This time last year: I was revising the book on a tight deadline, surrounded by piles of paper, mounds of Post-Its, and an economy-sized load of insecurity.

Current personal heroine: My business partner Juli, who balances big commitments with a commitment to herself…and looks damn good doing it.

*Wonder what the heck she’s talking about? Go to your local indie bookstore or buy The Heroine’s Bookshelf online and let me know what you think!