Andrea Semple - Published Novelist
1. How does the publishing process work?
Amy Hunter, York
It can differ immensely but this is how it generally goes:
You write a novel, which is probably going be a much harder process than you could ever imagine and will take you much longer than anticipated. After spending months if not years on finalising your novel you will then need to find it a home, and the best way to do this is via a literary agent. For a list of good quality literary agents take a look at The Writers' and Artists' Yearbook. Another good idea is to check the acknowledgement pages of published books that are similar to yours. Authors often thank their agents in this section.
In the first instance you will need to send an agent a cover letter introducing yourself and your work along with a two-page synopsis and the first three chapters of your novel. If the agent likes what they see they'll ask to see the whole manuscript. Very occasionally an agent will offer representation after only seeing a partial manuscript but this rarely happens. Finding a good agent is very difficult and you should expect to receive rejection letters but do persevere. A lot of very successful writers receive knock-backs, even J. K. Rowling did.
After you've found that elusive agent, they will start pitching your manuscript to publishers. This is nail-biting stuff but don't expect to hear from your agent every day. The process may take a week to six months so my advice would be to start working on another novel at this stage.
You will then hear the good or bad news from your agent. For the purposes of this, I'm assuming some kind of offer has been made and you'll probably spend that night celebrating down the pub. If you're in a very lucky position you may have a few publishers wanting to take you on and then your agent might set up an auction to sell your book. Your agent will keep you informed throughout this process but more than likely your book will go to the highest bidder.
Once the publishers' offer has been finalised you'll then meet the publishing team that will be working on your novel. They'll let you know all their ideas for your book and when they anticipate the publishing date will be. This is normally about a year later. They'll also work through your manuscript and list anything that they don't think is quite working. This might come as a shock to some authors but it's just part of the editing process and remember that your publisher will have had a lot more experience of editing and publishing books than you.
The editing process will then commence which may take weeks or months depending on how heavy an edit is required. After that, there will probably be even more criticism to come from your proof-reader who will notice lots of mistakes that you completely missed.
Six months before your publishing date you should receive the jacket cover design. This is always a wonderful time and you'll actually start visualising your book on the shelves. You'll soon be hearing from the PR people at your publishing house and they'll more than likely ask you if you've got any promotional ideas.
Before you know it your launch date will arrive and your novel will finally hit the shelves. Hurrah! It's a very long process but it is worthwhile in the end.
2. What is self-publishing? How would I go about it?
Carl Stewart, Bradford
If you can't find a publishing house to publish your book, you can consider doing it all yourself. I've never self-published anything myself but I should imagine it's a very difficult and costly process. Not only do you have to write the novel but you have to edit and proof-read it yourself, design the jacket-cover, lay-out the pages, sort out the printing and promote it when it actually hits the shops. A publishing house pays experts to handle all of this for you and if you were doing it all yourself it might not be as professional and could run into thousands of pounds.
I also imagine one of the main stumbling blocks would be distribution. Go and have a look in your local bookshop - I bet most of the heavily promoted books are published by one of the main publishing houses. That's because publishing houses pay for these kinds of promotions. Even when you see a book in a shop window it's normally paid for by the publisher. My advice would be to target your local stores and although this might not prove fruitful with the chains (as a lot of their buying is done from a central office and they don't really care about local stuff) it could work wonders with the independent stores. Go and speak to the manager and ask if they'd be able to help promote your new book.
The main aim is to have a brilliant book which people know about and is available to buy. It's no mean feat but it has been done. Just look at John Grisham. His first book, A Time to Kill, was self-published and he sold it out of the boot of his car.
3. How do I find a publisher of children's books?
David Kensington, Cawthorne
Your best bet would be to try and find a literary agent that deals with children's fiction. There's a wonderful book called the Children's Writers' & Artists' Yearbook that lists them.
4. What is a literary agent? Should I get one?
Philip McGowan, Huddersfield
A lot of UK publishing houses now don't read unsolicited manuscripts so you should find a literary agent to represent you. A literary agent will be invaluable in your career and they will submit your manuscript to relevant publishing houses and negotiate your deals. A good literary agent will know the publishing industry inside out and will pitch your book to the correct publisher. The publishing industry is small and it's good to have someone working for you who knows a lot of relevant people. Some agents also represent authors in translation deals and TV/movies which can be an extra source of revenue.
5. How do I get started writing my first book?
Emma Wright, Halifax
There's no magic ingredient to getting started with your first novel. There's certainly no magical inspiration cupboard you can open for help. If you've never written any fiction before, my advice would be to try and write a short story before tackling something as huge as a novel.
6. Should I read a lot of how-to books on writing?
Jessica Cooper, Shepley
I highly recommend any aspiring novelist to read Stephen King's On Writing. But don't bog yourself down reading too many how-to books. I think it would be much more valuable to actually read fiction instead.
7. Do you have any advice for aspiring writers?
Jo Cochrane, Rotherham
Yes, keep writing and keep reading and don't give up. And don't let rejections get you down!
8. How do advances and royalties work?
Helen Turner, Slaithwaite
It's quite complicated but here goes:
When you get a deal for a book, you will normally be paid an advance. This advance normally corresponds with how much the publishing house thinks your book is going to sell and it can range from £500 to £1 million . It is very unlikely that you'll see all this money in one go. Normally, you'll receive one third on signature of your contract, one third on handing in your final manuscript and then the final third when your book is actually published. These three payments will probably be over a period of one year so don't go spending it all at once. Also, remember that you must account for your agents fee (anything between 10-20%).
For each book that is sold you will receive a royalty. Royalty rates can differ but you should be earning 7.5% of your books retail price. So, if a book sells at £5.99 and your royalty rate was at 7.5% you would be earning 45 pence on each book (but remember your agent fee also has to come off that and books are heavily discounted these days so in reality it's more like 30 pence).
Naturally, you will not receive any royalty money until you have out earned your advance. This might happen in the first couple of weeks of your book hitting the shelves but it might also never happen, especially if you've had a large advance.
Publishing houses calculate royalty statements for six months periods between Jan and June and then July and December. So you will only be paid your royalties twice a year normally in March and September.
9. What do I do if and when I am offered a contract?
Anna Scragg, Wibsey
After you've stopped jumping up and down and screaming with excitement, you should listen to what your agent has to say. He or she will be invaluable at this stage. They will negotiate your advance and your royalty rates and everything else in the contract. Even if you don't have an agent, I'd advise you to get one at this stage, unless of course you're a lawyer. It is a very exciting time for any writer but don't sign anything until someone who knows what they're talking about has checked it out.
10. How can I protect my writing?
Lucy Thompson, Sheffield
Only send your writing to reputable agents and publishers. They will not steal your ideas or writing style. Please don't put a copyright notice on your work when you send it to agents; it can be quite insulting and it doesn't look very professional. hen your novel is published you will be protected by copyright law, which should stop other writers pinching your good ideas.
Ask the Expert: How to get published