Guest Blogger: KELLEY HECKART

Working With Your Publisher by Kelley Heckart

Beltaine's Song by Kelley Heckart

Congratulations, a publisher has decided to contract your book. Now you can kick back and savor the moment, right? Think again. Once your book is contracted, the hard work has just begun. There is editing, more editing, filling out forms for the cover design, writing blurbs and telling everyone you know that you have a book coming out. An author has to work with representatives from the publishing company—the Senior Editor, the editor working on the book, the graphic artist designing the book cover, promotions people and accounting personnel that pay royalties. All of these people are there to help the author with the publishing process and one thing needs to be understood—they do not work for the author. They are your partners, working with the author to make the process as smooth as possible.

With e-publishing, this means corresponding with all of these people via email. Communicating via email can be tricky at times. Something meant to be funny might come across as rude. Here are a couple of points to remember:

• Emails should always be professional. Leave out the emoticons and other unprofessional garbage. Remember that publishing is a business.
• Always use 'please' and 'thank-you' when writing an email to anyone at the publishing house. These two simple words can go a long way in making publishing life easier even if you, the author, are upset about something.

The one huge mistake that newbie authors make with their publisher is to go in and start ordering people around, thinking that since they are a published author, they are so awesome that everyone must do their bidding. This kind of behavior will likely backfire and the author could end up getting blacklisted. No one wants to work with a difficult author. The publisher's employees are not the author's minions. The relationship between the author and publisher is a partnership. I cannot stress this point enough. If a new author thinks that publishing houses don't get together and talk about problem authors, think again. The publishing world really is a small world.

Another point to remember is to refrain from posting negative things about a publisher online. The first thing a publisher will do before accepting a submission is to Google the author. If they see an author trashing a publisher (it doesn't matter why), they will think that author is unprofessional and difficult to work with. The submission, no matter how great it is, will likely land in the circular file cabinet or the recycle bin on the computer.

Now, I know some people are reading this and saying, "Duh. This is common sense stuff." That's so true, but it still baffles me how many times I have seen an author bury themselves by trash talking a publisher or by being rude to the Senior Editor and making her/him mad. Just remember—an author is not irreplaceable. There are many talented writers out there and guess which ones will have a nice, long writing career and which ones won't?

About the Author:


Kelley Heckart writes Celtic historical romances with fantasy elements. Her stories reflect her passion for history, storytelling and the supernatural. Inspired by the ancient Celts, her tales are filled with fierce warriors, bold women, magic, conflict and romance. Kelley and her books can be found online at www.kelleyheckart.com


Kelley’s Links:
http://www.kelleyheckart.com
http://kelleysrealm.blogspot.com/ Check out my long hair hotties!
http://twitter.com/CelticChick
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kelley-Heckart/111838455604