Storytellersunplugged

Are we there yet?

One of the more interesting questions that I’ve run across from readers and fans is: “So, when is it coming out?” The “it” in question being whatever book of mine happens to be the topic of subject—I’m not picky, I’ll discuss any of my books. It’s a good and fair question, but one for which the answer seems to change almost constantly.

There is a lot that goes on behind the scenes when it comes to writing a novel. This, like almost every process, has a good number of variables. First, there’s the actually writing process, which, as I suspect most of you have figured out, varies from writer to writer. Some people need to have a detailed outline, and others prefer to shoot from the proverbial hip and see what they come up with.

I just start writing and see where things go from there. Mostly it works for me. I’ve traded off a few times and actually worked from an outline, but I’ve never once enjoyed the process as much as I would have if I’d been winging it. What can I say? Some thing in my nature prefers the spontaneity of just sitting down and writing.

Now, I need to clarify something about the last couple of paragraphs. I’ve never started a novel without at least a good idea of where I wanted it to go. Oh, I might not have more than a beginning, an ending and a couple of markers on the path, but at least inside my head, I know where I’m going. The problem with outlines is that I find them limiting. They don’t let the story evolve as it wants to—at least if I’m sticking with the outline—and they make me feel obligated to follow whatever notes I’ve already jotted down about characters.

So, after I’ve gone through the first draft and, oh, I dunno, maybe sold the book, there are still a lot of things left.

Like edits. Oh, my, the edits! I am a very fast typist. I am also, frankly, sloppy. A good friend of mine confesses that if she were not fluent in “typonese” we would never be able to converse through IMs. (I tend to refer to the problem as Big Fat Finger Syndrome. Now and then it gets the best of me.)

There are different levels of complexity and each of them depends on a dozen different factors. To simplify things, I’ll give you an average of what I’ve gone through in the past. First, there’s my own editing, which normally involves a spell check with the computer and a grammar check with the computer. Neither of these is overly effective, but they help me see a few of the more abysmal mistakes I make. Then there’s the editor or proofreader’s going over the manuscript. That normally involves getting a copy of the entire book delivered to me in double-spaced 12 point Times New Roman, and me grinding my teeth as I look over every suggestion and weigh whether to not I agree with the changes they want me to make. Yes, changes, alterations to my baby, as if, somehow, it might have come into this world with a few easily corrected birth defects. Normally I agree with what they suggest. There are exceptions, but by and large I can see where they are coming from. So, after I’ve looked over their suggestions and made the necessary corrections, it’s back to the publisher for layout. After THAT is done, I get the proof pages to look over. That means that I get to read the entire book and make any “minor” changes one last time. Oddly, though it took months to write the damned thing, I’ve noticed that most publishers seem to want it back in 10 days. I have suspicions that this particular number is set up because the publishers KNOW there’s no way in Hell that a writer can get the entire thing done in that short a period and therefore will leave it in their capable hands to make any necessary corrections. I do know that even at this point (at least this is what the publishers say) another proof reader or two is going over a copy and doing the exact same thing. From there, it’s often time to put the book into print. In a perfect world, there is a delay around this time, and the publishers are printing Advance Reader Copies for review purposes.

Folks, I’m here to tell you it ain’t always a perfect world. Somewhere along the way, a lot of novels go out there without ARCs going to reviewers. I’ve been very, very lucky along those lines and most of my novels have gone out to at least 50 and sometimes upwards of 200 review locations. Want to know what else fails in the perfection department? If I’m lucky twice, there might be a dozen reviews generated from all of those copies. On several occasions review copies of my books have sold on E-Bay for a few pennies well before the book became available. How did the books fare when they got to the review stage? Look at my essay from last month for the answer to that particular burning question.

Most publishers seem to like between 3 and 6 months for a book to get reviewed before the final product comes out.

There are other considerations, too, like cover art. Artists tend to need at least a few days to create masterpieces. Not all of them, of course, there are always a few exceptions, but most of them.

So, as I said before, there are a lot of variables.

Here’s one of the biggest: How long does it take to write a novel? For me the longest time I ever spent on a first draft was the year it took me to write SERENITY FALLS. Yes, a year. In my defense, I was also writing stuff for a few role playing game companies back then, and I had to set the beast aside a few times. Also in my defense, the first draft was 349,000 words, give or take. On the second draft I trimmed it down to a more reasonable 308,000 words (insert sarcastic tone here). And then, just to kick things up a bit, I added 40,000 words when Jove bought the book and it was broken into a trilogy. Just going over the line edits took me two months, because I still had other projects to work on at the same time and because I work a full time job besides.

The shortest time it ever took me was three weeks for the first draft, second draft and multiple edits. That would have been BLOOD RED, and all I can say is that the stars must have been right. That, and I had one helluva fine editor helping me along and keeping me on track. Hard to believe, I know, but editors really are your friends in most cases.

Most of my novels lean closer to around three months. Like I said; it varies.

So now that the novel has gone through the process of being written, sold, edited and re-edited, how long before it comes out? I haven’t the vaguest clue until the publisher tells me. I wrote a novel two years ago called HARVEST MOON. I signed the contract a year later and now at the second anniversary (roughly) I am waiting for the publisher to tell me when it will come out. Contractually, said publisher still has two years to work out the details.

I wrote BLOOD RED in March of this year. It’s due to hit shelves in about one month. So from the start of the writing to the publication date, we’re talking seven months. In those seven months there have been no less that four line edits and two full scale “You need to fix this scene” edits, as well as ARCs sent out and reviews printed in multiple magazines and on websites.

There’s a lot more to a novel than just writing it. If you get lucky, very lucky, you run across a few truly professional people in the industry who help make your dream a reality and who take the time to do it right. There is little as rewarding as having your words and thoughts turned into something solid that others can hold in their hands and maybe even savor as they read it. There is little as devastating as when it all goes wrong and the book just seems to fold in on itself in a slush of bad edits, bad subplots and negative reviews. I’ve had both happen. Any screw ups I put firmly where they belong, on my own shoulders. Most of the stuff that goes right in the final production I blame on the editors and typesetters, etc. I’m feeling generous toward myself and will allow that maybe the story inside the pages, that part I wrote, is part of the good portion of the novel in a lot of cases.

I would rather it take a little longer if that is necessary. I can wait and I can be very, very patient. Hell, you learn the patience part of the equation when you’re waiting for the editors to decide if they even want to buy what you’re selling (and if you’ve never had to wait, I would dearly love to meet your agent.).

By the way, my usual answer to the question “so, when is it coming out,” is either “Soon, I hope,” “I have no earthly idea,” or “As soon as the publisher tells me, I’ll let you know.”

James A. Moore