DEBUT AUTHOR SERIES
In my last blog post, I shared how the book deal went down.
Missed it? Start here.
Up to date? Then it’s time to share what happens next.
This phase is often glossed over in author interviews. Which I get. It's not the most exciting part, but I’m going to share it anyway. Y’know, in case an emerging author is scouring the internet asking what’s next? and is this normal?
Okay, so I get the offer from HarperCollins. Do I accept it immediately? No. I have an agent and I've got to hang tight while she does what agents do best—negotiate. I can’t go into specifics; it’s all legal schmegal stuff.
While that’s all being worked out, not only do I need to keep this quiet, I want to. I have a chest-tightening fear the publisher will change her mind. I’m not telling a soul until this is locked in.
Obviously, I tell my annoyingly smug husband he was right about me having nothing to worry about. It did not matter how many times I told him that publishers only acquire 1% of the submissions they receive, he was adamant mine would get through. On this occasion, I’ll happily let him be right. Don’t get used to it, babe.
Once the deal is finalised, I accept the offer.
Now can I shout it from a rooftop? Errr no.
The legal team enters the chat and prepares the official contract. They tell me it’ll take a month. Yep, a whole month!
Even though I can’t announce it publicly, I can tell some people hush-hush style. Do I want to? Uh-uh. I’ll jinx myself.
However, keeping this secret is making the experience anticlimactic. I have a brilliant idea! I’ll announce I have an agent. Yes, that’ll be fun and will help me accept this is really happening. Happy claps.
I spend hours creating my newsletter and social media assets to go out simultaneously. Ten minutes before it's scheduled to post, I type a panicked email to my agent asking if the publisher can renege on their offer before the contract is signed. She sends me a reassuring reply. Do I believe her? No way. My head is full of noisy what if? questions:
What if the publisher has received a better rom-com?
What if they’ve reread the manuscript and don’t think it’s as good anymore?
What if (insert a hundred negative scenarios here)?
I pull the plug on my agent announcement.
While I continue waiting for the contract, I get antsy again. This leads to my next genius plan: I’ll tell people who are not in the writing world, such as Rose, our lovely school crossing guard. I mean, I see her every weekday; we’re practically besties. Except we’re not close enough that I’ve ever told her I’ve written a book. It comes as quite a shock I’m not the lady of leisure she assumed I was.
At this stage, you might be wondering why I haven’t told my mum. I’ll let the meme below explain:
If you read my previous posts, you might recall I was shortlisted for the Queensland Writers Centre Adaptable Award. That means this lucky ducky gets to pitch her manuscript to screen professionals in Brisbane. Well, I’m from regional Victoria. That’s quite a hike, not to mention a huge expense to gather in a short amount of time.
I apply for an Arts Grant to pay for the trip and am successful. Honestly, I would’ve sold photos of my feet on the internet to cover the costs. Thankfully, I don't have to. Who has time for a pedicure?
I arrive in Brissy with my suffocating linen dresses and garment steamer. There are 25 writers selected and meeting authors whom I adore is wild. My contract still hasn’t been finalised, but screw it, I’m telling everybody here I got a book deal.
It feels good to say it out loud. Really good. Especially to people who’ve been through this process. Also, now that I’m part of the gang, they pull back the curtain and spill industry secrets you’ll never hear on a podcast or social media. I get the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. And I’m okay with that. Being kept in the dark is what messes with my mind.
I return home and the contract lands in my inbox. It’s so long I need a power nap to get through it. I don’t understand half of it, so I send off a bunch of questions to my agent to translate.
After everything is sorted, I sign it on a computer, which is weird because it’s not the holding-a-pretty-pen-and-crying moment I’d envisioned. It feels no different to ticking a box on Xuno to permit my kids to attend a reptile incursion.
Anywho, it’s done. Surely, I can announce it, right? Nope.
It turns out I need permission from my publisher.
Fuc7WT!84hsjksEnfnfcn%G#dndnd.
That's not a typo. It's the wounded-animal sound that leaves my mouth.
I’m too scared to annoy my publisher, so I wait, and wait, and wait.
Sidenote: Now that I’m further along in the process and have spoken with other newbies (hey, #DebutCrew2025), I know it’s common to have long periods of silence from your publisher. They’re busy doing their job and will contact you when necessary.
The stretch of silence manifests into an additional worry. I'm aware of something I’ve never heard anyone talk about: Authors are given a date to submit their edited manuscripts and the publisher can accept or reject it. Holy hell! Just when I thought I was safe.
I slip on my big girl pants and contact my agent to ask when I should expect the structural edits. As you can imagine, I’m eager to start.
This communication gets the ball rolling. I attend my first editorial meeting with my publisher, editor and agent. At the end of it, I ask my publisher when I can announce the book deal. She green lights it.
Do I rush and announce it that night? Of course not. I torture myself and wait a few more days. I also give my mother a 30-minute heads-up before I do.
After two excruciating months, I finally share the news. Check out my Book Deal post on Instagram.
Best day ever!
What’s next?
Next month, you can expect a deep dive into structural edits.
I'll answer things like:
What does the feedback look like?
What is it like to work with an editor for the first time?
Do you have to do everything your publisher and editor ask?
Tips about how to fit it in with an already busy and full life.
Want to know anything else about structural edits? Send me your questions.
Subscribe to The Wrap-Up for the next instalment of the Debut Author Series.
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