Category Archives: Publication

Publishing: The Traditional Defense Part Four

Before even beginning his final post defending traditional publishing, Steve Laube calls part five boring. Personally, I disagree. For people not already involved in the industry, the information presented here is probably the most enlightening in his series.

The publisher’s involvement does not stop once the books hit bookstore (or online) shelves. In fact, the post production part of their jobs may just be what makes it worth giving up more than half of your royalties. Most aspiring authors know their publisher or agent will deal with things like selling and managing foreign rights, but they don’t think about things like IRS laws and multiple state income taxes. Selling your book across state lines apparently adds a lot of complications to your tax return, fyi. Publishers have teams of people dedicated to tracking and verifying sales, standardizing prices across multiple outlets, and accounting for every dollar made by a particular title. On a global scale. Can you imagine trying to do that on your own? I don’t even want to think about it.

Foreign rights are their own legal and logistical nightmare. Did you know you have to sell the English language rights to different countries before they’re allowed to sell the book in their territory? Add to that the translation rights, audio right, movie rights, etc., etc., etc. and you have a puzzle with teeny tiny pieces and no picture to guide you.

What else do these behind-the-scenes teams do? How about protect you from piracy? Steve explains:

I attended a presentation last year on “Digital Initiatives” made by very smart people from Hachette. They discussed their use of “Attributor Monitors” to scour the Internet for illegal versions of their book titles. I was shocked to hear that they discover and send out 1,500 take-down notices to illegal sites, every month (saying, in essence, take the illegal book down from your site, or else). Fifteen hundred! They get better than 99% compliance with the request, worldwide. (It is understandable that they would have that level of trouble since Hachette publishes the Twilight franchise.) I suspect that when a company like Hachette contacts the illegal site with their powerful legal team, the offending site owner is willing to comply. But if you tried to do it on your own, you would be ignored.

Having the power of an experienced legal team behind you can give you a peace of mind you wouldn’t otherwise have in an age where digital piracy is the norm.

However, speaking of digital, that side of the market isn’t all about piracy. It’s also about metadata. For those who don’t know, metadata is one of the ways search engines like Google find you on the web. It’s also how sites like Amazon employ their “you might also like” algorithms. Bad metadata will bury your book in an avalanche of fiction titles–both self and traditionally published–and leave you mired in obscurity. By itself, this isn’t a daunting thing to learn for yourself, but added to all the other tasks ultimately part of the infrastructure of traditional houses and I know it’s something I don’t want to have to do on my own.

After all this, do I still think the traditional model has some major adapting to do if it’s going to succeed in an increasingly digital world? Yes. Am I still going to try to find an agent? Yes. Am I still going to have that agent submit my work to both traditional and indie houses? Yes. If after several books and years of trying that still doesn’t work, will I self-publish? Most likely, yes. Will I ever succeed at any of these? Who knows? Only time will tell.

Publishing: The Traditional Defense Part Three

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Continuing my posts from last week (part one and part two), today I’m looking at Steve Laube’s Defense of Traditional Publishing Part Four: Design. While cover design is a crucial element of the overall design process, it is not the only one. Decisions must also be made on the weight of the paper (did you know it comes in a wide variety of thicknesses?), the size of the pages, the font, the author photo, the color of the cover (for hardcovers), and whether or not to use deckled edges (click for picture and definition). All of these points add up to the entire design package and one reason having a team of experts one your side, especially experts who will be footing the bill, is a very good thing.

Especially since I’ve taken to browsing the Kindle store online, I have seen a lot of really beautiful covers. I’ve seen even more hideously ugly ones. Realy, really ugly ones where I’m left hoping and praying the author didn’t pay anyone to create that for them. While you may not always like the cover the design team of a traditional publisher creates for you, that doesn’t mean it will be an ineffective attractor. Despite the adage “Don’t judge a book by it’s cover,” we often do just that. Working in a bookstore I found beautiful covers often correlated to how invested a publisher is in the book’s success. I also learned I was more likely to enjoy reading a book the publishers were standing behind. Not always, of course, but it was true more often than not.

Like with editing, proponents of self-publishing can argue, “Well, I can hire a designer myself.” This is true. But did you know that when publishers hire freelance designers they usually pay between $3,000-5,000? Do you have that much to invest? No? Neither do I. Are there amazing designers out there who will work a lot cheaper? Yes. But Steve warns you can’t let your personal preferences get in the way.

Those who want to forego the traditional publishing route need to remember one thing, don’t let your own personal taste be the final vote. What you think is gorgeous may make another person heave. (A simple walk down the mall observing fashion choices is a case in point.) This is not the place to bargain hunt or be shallow with a comment like “I just don’t like the color pink.”

The packaging (which if you’re publishing in ebook only is just the cover) can create just as much buzz as the content. Good content without a stunning cover won’t give your book it’s best shot. The reverse is obviously true as well and will probably make readers feel as though they’ve been tricked. But that’s where editing should have come into play.

Because I found this fascinating, I’m re-posting the video Steve used to illustrate his point. This time-lapsed look at the making of a cover gives you incredible insight into the kind of time and energy gets invested in good covers.

Publishing: The Traditional Defense Part Two

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Continuing my post from yesterday on Steve Laube’s Defense of Traditional Publishing, today I’ll talk about his third post. This one on the all-important topic of editing or, as Steve calls it, content development.

Access to an editorial team is one of the main dreams that has kept me doggedly trudging along the “traditional” path. Like Steve, I know the value of listening to the advice and critiques of knowledgeable, conscientious readers and editors and putting at least some of their suggestions into practice. Like William Faulkner and Sir Arthur Quiller-Couch have said, you have to be able to “kill your darlings” to really progress as a writer. A good editor will not only help you do this, but help you understand why. I know how a lot of people will respond to this, so I’m going to directly quote a large section from Steve’s post where he address that very retort:

A critic might say, “But I can just hire these freelance people myself. Why do I need a traditional publisher?” That is a good point. But it misses a critical part of the process. It is illustrated by the question, “Who pays the invoice?”

Think about it for a moment. In a traditional publishing house the publisher is basically in charge. If there is a major dispute over editorial changes or input, the publisher has final say and contractual clout. Rarely is this used as a hammer, but the writer always knows it is there. In almost every case there are long discussions and a compromise is achieved.

But when the author hires the editor, who is the boss? The writer is the boss. The writer will usually defer to an editor’s comments. But what if your novel is going down a terrible path, a path to commercial destruction? I know of a case where an author was bent on writing a particular storyline and would not take anyone’s advice. His agent was unsuccessful. His writing friends and critique partners could not sway him from the path. If he were self-publishing he would have failed miserably. Instead an editor at a traditional publishing house recognized the talent and came alongside with valuable suggestions. The author, realizing that the editor had the goal of creating a great book, acceded to the advice. The book was saved, is now in print, and being sold in stores everywhere.

I also know of another case where a freelance editor took an author’s manuscript (to be self-published) and rearranged the non-fiction content from a topical presentation to a chronological presentation. (The book was the history of a specialized type of job in our court system.) The editor felt that a history should be told chronologically instead of topically. The author disagreed and made the editor put it all back the way it was in the first draft. Because the author was “paying the invoice” the author’s wishes prevailed. The book did not sell and was not adopted as a textbook, which was the goal of the author.

Sometimes in some situations some people simply do not know what’s best. They’ve lost their objectivity and by not being able to see their work as a reader might (and probably will), they lose their chance of connecting with their ideal audience. Editors are trained to know how to do this. They know what most readers are looking for and can help you erase your weaknesses and show off your strengths, but listening to their advice isn’t always easy. In fact, it’s often very difficult. Who wants to hear that the scene you spent a month polishing doesn’t work, halts the flow of the action, and should probably be pulled entirely? No one! Does that mean it’s bad advice? Nope. However, without that “hammer” hanging over your head, the desire to ignore the advice and go back to the way you like it is mighty tempting.

Is this really a point in favor of traditional publishing? Only if you sign on with a dedicated, attentive editorial team. But you could also have bad luck with a freelancer and end up hiring someone who has no idea what they’re doing. In the end, you take your chances either way, but at least with an editorial team working directly for a publisher, they have some incentive to make your book the best it can be–they want to keep their jobs.

Tomorrow (or more likely Monday)? Part four of Steve’s series: Design.

Publishing: The Other Side Of The Coin

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In both my own interest and for those who stumble across my blog, I wanted to find someone talking about the other side of the industry. Obviously there is one, but it seems like the self-publishing advocates are a lot more vocal in defense of their trade; probably because they feel as though they have to be. Like I mentioned before, there’s still a stigma and an aura of unworthiness attached to the self-published, even if it is beginning to fade. Luckily, I struck gold.

Steve Laube of The Steve Laube Agency posted a five part series called In Defense of Traditional Publishing. Steve is an interesting perspective on the subject because years ago he founded his own company called ACW Press (which has since been sold) to help authors self-publish their books, but he also has years of experience in the traditional (or legacy) publishing world. Part one (the introduction to the series) explains Steve’s background in the industry and explains why he’s posting on the subject. Part two is where Steve starts digging into the usefulness of the traditional model. For reasons of time and space, I’m going to let you read the whole series on your own if you’re interested, but over the next few days I’m going to go through the sections one by one and talk about some of the points that seemed particularly pertinent.

Part two talks about curation (in the literary, not art-museum sense), and points out what I’ve heard a few others mention: the traditional publishing model is a valid way to thin the herd, to give readers the knowledge that some “expert” somewhere has judged this book ready for publication. Is that a guarantee you’ll like that book? No. But someone did. I can definitely agree with this. Even a lot of the good self-published books I’ve read could probably have been better if they went through the editorial gauntlet. In response to the argument that with budget cuts and consolidation a lot of mid-list authors are disappearing from print, Steve says that it’s true in some instances but:

Our book purchasing patterns have shifted from a browsing activity to a searching activity. When you are online you cannot scan dozens of titles in a second to see what jumps out. Online we usually type (or click) a specific word, genre, or author name and search from there. The bestselling authors are placed in our peripheral view by the algorithms created by the vendor. The unknown author remains in obscurity. But in a brick and mortar store we stand in front of 500 or more titles in a section and browse where there is a chance that a new author or title will catch our eye. This is not a defense of one way versus the other, merely how we have shifted in our patterns.

The implication is that it is that much harder to stand out among the crowded data online. There are always exceptions like Amanda Hocking or J.A. Konrath in the ebook world and The Shack in the paperback book world. But exceptions do not make the rule. Without curation books like Radical by David Platt or Crazy Love by Frances Chan would not have been placed front and center for your attention.

He also uses an extremely illuminating example:

Put it another way. What if all 10,000 applicants to American Idol were given recording contracts and their music uploaded on iTunes today? How would you know what is worth your time, not just your money? Watching the early auditions of Idol makes one thankful there is someone curating.

Granted YouTube is, in a lot of ways, self-publishing for musicians, but it’s free and therefore doesn’t cost you anything but your time. The same can’t be said for books. There are a lot of free books on Amazon Kindle, mostly in the hopes you’ll come back to buy others from the author, but most of the books are at least a dollar. And, on top of that, you won’t just be spending a few minutes on the investment, you’ll pour hours into reading this single story. Sure there are bloggers and reviews on Amazon, but one of the best and worst things about the internet is anonymity. You can’t ever truly know how many of those glowing reviews are legitimate, how many were written by the author (or his/her friends and family), or possibly paid for. The traditional publishing brands give you a credible source to look to and sometimes that’s a relief when all you want is to find something worth three to twelve hours of your time.

Tomorrow I’ll look at Part Three: Editorial. This part I definitely don’t need convincing on, but it will still be fantastic to see what Steve has to say on the subject.

Publishing: The Hits Keep Coming…

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It seems like I’m finding a lot of strange stories about the weird/horrible/dishonest things that can happen when working with traditional publishers. Kristen, a literary agent who blogs at Pub Rants, posted about some strange legal foreign rights issues she’s had with some authors recently. Basically, books were being sold in countries where the publisher didn’t have the right to sell books. I find it hard to believe this happens often, but it does seem to be a validation for employing an agent! And, at the same time, is one more hit to the dream of traditional publishing. Now people are painting it to look more like the picture from above. Oh no! You won! Game Over.[gone now, but I found it here.]

In happier news, my new blog design is progressing well! Tara over at PIP Designs has been so patient putting up with my vague descriptions and poor choice in inspiration imagery. I think we finally have an understanding and it’s getting closer to the grand unveiling! Yay! She really has been fantastic and I would recommend her services to anyone looking for a Blogger redesign.

Publishing: Since We’re Kind Of On The Subject…

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I jumped onto the subject of self-publishing yesterday and this morning found another related post. This one, written by author and blogger J.A. Konrath, specifically talks about how legacy houses (the big names people normally think of) treat non-blockbuster level authors. Konrath has experience on both sides of the fence and is a strident, vocal, and sometimes angry proponent of self-publishing. His love of DIY publishing has some pretty strong support, like the $500,000 he’s made off a book the publishing houses didn’t want to print.

His posts always send me straight into the whirlpool of doubt and indecision about whether or not self-publishing is for me. There’s no doubt about its viability or the possibility of creating a huge following, the doubt is whether or not it’s a good fit for me.

Like most fields, there’s no clear path to success with self-publishing. There are some ways to make things work for you, but it’s a trial and error process. There’s also no filter between what people are writing and what they’re selling. No editorial reviews, no slush pile. I’ve read some books off Amazon that had the promise of a good story, but the writing just didn’t deliver. They didn’t invest in an editor, or maybe hired one who isn’t worth their salt, and put out a final product that won’t carry them as far as it could have. I don’t want to be one of those authors. I’m not looking for perfection in my story because, really, there’s no such thing, but I want my debut novel to be the best I can make it before I release it to the world. For that I need editing. And editing services without an agent and publishing team to provide them are EXPENSIVE. At least, the good ones are and why would you spend less money on something this important?

So, yes, Konrath, I get your point. I agree and can even honestly say that I would like to have some of the creative control self-publishing offers, so I’m thinking of the middle ground. Anyone know of an indie house that publishes young adult paranormal novels and is taking submissions?

Self-Publishing: The New Dream Or Just A Stepping Stone?

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Once upon a time, self-publishing held a certain stigma. Self-published authors were looked down on by the world at large and laughed at behind fake smiles as people sneered “Guess they couldn’t hack it in the real publishing industry.” Those authors were usually doomed to low sales and obscurity unless they happened upon the right person at the right time or the right marketing tool at the right price. And, historically, self-publishing was expensive and entirely out of the author’s pocket. This all adds up to one big black cloud hanging over the definition of “self-published” even though the climate of the industry has changed completely.

With the technology boom and the rise of the all-powerful internet, self-publishing has become a possible platform from which to launch yourself on the world and a handful of authors have done this successfully. One of the privileged few? Debut author Darcie Chan and her book The Mill River Recluse.

I found this article online about Darcie’s rise to fame and fortune. While, today, her story isn’t exactly unique, what struck me was this section of the article:

While she would love to write full time, for now, she still sees writing as more of a hobby. When people ask her what she does for a living, she says she’s a lawyer. But she’s still holding out hope that a publisher will buy “The Mill River Recluse,” edit it and sell it in brick-and-mortar stores.

A little surprising, isn’t it? But maybe I shouldn’t be so shocked. After all, one of the main draws toward traditional publishing for me is the dream of finding a talented, devoted, invested editor who will help my writing grow and become better than I ever could have made it on my own. However, I have to say that if I’d made over $130,000 before taxes I’d probably hire an editor and invest in printing physical copies of the book. Or maybe find a smaller independent press to partner with on the physical printing and distribution. But that is beside the point.

Authors can obviously find major success with self-publishing, especially digital self-publishing, but is this the new dream or do most simply see it as a stepping stone to what they really want: the validation of publication by a recognizable brand like Little Brown, HarperCollins, et al.? According to the article,

A few major publishers made offers, but none matched the digital royalty rates of 35% to 40% that Ms. Chan makes on her own through Amazon and Barnes & Noble. Typically, most publishers offer print royalties of 10% to 15% and digital royalties of 25%. Simon & Schuster offered to act as a distributor, but Ms. Chan wants the book to be professionally edited and marketed…. Ms. Liss [Darcie’s agent] says that the offers from U.S. publishers so far don’t improve much on what Ms. Chan is making on her own…. “I told Darcie, at this point you’re printing money. They’re not. Go with God, we’ll sell the second book,” Ms. Liss says.

It’s an interesting issue and I don’t think anyone can see the big picture yet, not until the landscape stops shifting. By the time we emerge from this major transition period, my guess is that the publishing industry will be completely transformed. At least, I kind of hope it will be because otherwise it might be doomed to go down in flames as the next generation of blockbuster authors gives up on the NY houses entirely and shoots straight for the digital market. However, I have been wrong in the past. What do you think might happen? Is self-publishing going to continue to be a stepping stone into the more traditional publishing world or will it become the new dream?

Covers: How Much Will They Matter In A Digital Age?

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One of the items in the endless list of things to keep a soon-to-be-published author up at night is the book cover. Will it convey the right tone? Will it appeal to the right audience? What if it’s in a color I hate? Will they let me change it at all if it’s horrible? Even for self-published authors (probably especially for self-published authors) these questions can be consuming. But how much does the cover even matter in a digital age?

Jody Hedlund, author and blogger, recently posted about her newest cover and the process that went into creating it. Her publisher posted several options a few weeks ago and asked readers to vote on their favorite. In the post, Jody not only unveils the winner, but explains why it won. One of the explanations that struck me the most was “2. The larger picture would be stronger compared to the others when viewed online, where thumbnail images are so pervasive.”

Honestly, it pleased me to see that publishers are taking digital marketing and display seriously. Brick and mortar bookstores are closing down all over the place (I live in a pretty major metropolitan area and there is ONE major bookstore left within half an hour of my house) and the convenience of digital readers are converting many people–myself included. The turning point for me was my move last year where, because of space, I was forced to give away/sell/donate about half of my precious book collection. If I had digital editions of those books, I would never have had to worry about that. There’s a lot more to this discussion, but I’ll save it for later before I get myself completely off track.

When browsing through sites like Amazon, the only things you see are the cover, the title, the author, and the price. If you don’t recognize the author’s name, that’s already one of four possible draws down the drain. If the title doesn’t grab you, there goes another. All you have left are the cover and the price point. If the price is average–not low enough to make the book a WTH-impulse buy but not high enough to immediately knock it out of the running–the cover is going to be the only thing that will draw in your audience.

If you’re publishing with a major house, you probably don’t have a lot of control over the cover–or anything post-final draft, really. However, if you’re self-publishing it is the greatest disservice in the world to not spend the money on a professional, eye-catching cover. There are so many artists out there with lost of talent who are available for free-lance design work. It probably won’t even be as much money as you think it might. It doesn’t hurt to look and you’ll only be shooting yourself in the foot if you don’t. The other thing to consider is editing (I’ve passed on buying a lot of books because more than half the reviews were something along the lines of “the story was great, but there were too many errors”), but that’s a whole post in and of itself.

Bottom line: will covers be important in the digital age? YES. Maybe even more so than they are now.

Writing: It’s Not Just About The Words You Put On The Page

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Writing is not the only profession affected by this in the current market, but if you’re trying to become a professional writer (fiction, non-fiction, freelance, etc) this is an important list to keep in mind. Many thanks to Robert Lee Brewer (whose name is NOT Bob) for posting this on his blog.

Here are the 8 jobs of modern writers:

Writer. Believe it or not, the writing should always come first. If the other seven jobs ever start to overwhelm you, remember to fall back on the writing. That’s your bread and butter as a writer.
Editor. Don’t fall into the trap of thinking that someone else can correct all your mistakes. Sure, an editor will help improve (or at least alter) your writing, but that’s only after your work has been accepted. Your job as a writer is not just to string words and sentences together; it’s to string the best words and sentences together–with a minimum of grammar and spelling mistakes.
Copywriter. Jane Friedman wrote a great post about why this is important over at Writer Unboxed. Copywriting skills are needed for everything from writing query letters to bio notes.
File clerk. Once your writing is great and your query skills pay the bills, you need the ability to keep accurate records. The WritersMarket.com site I edit offers a submission tracker tool, but writers need to also keep track of bills, payments, and expenses–for tax purposes. It’s not fun for most people (raising my hand), but it’s essential to freelance success.
Negotiator. Here are my negotiation tips for writers–from the perspective of an editor. Put them to good use. For tips from the writer’s perspective, check out this post by Carol Tice. You don’t have to be super pushy to be a good negotiator–sometimes all you need to do is ask.
Accountant. This is sort of related to number four, but money complicates everything and needs an extra level of care. If you’re trying to make a business out of your writing, you’ll need to keep receipts and accurate records of payments, expenses, bills, etc., that are related to your writing. If you go to a conference, that’s a business expense, including the hotel, mileage, etc. Learn more in the 2012 Writer’s Market, which has a great piece on this subject by full-time freelancer Sage Cohen.
Marketer. Most writers don’t want to think about this job. After all, many are introverts. Then, there are the extroverted writers who actually want to move this ahead of the writing on the list of jobs. However, I think the writing always comes first, but writers have to build a platform. It’s essential to building your brand as a freelance writer and making you visible to potential opportunities.
Speaker. Speaking of introverted writers, I’m sure most are spitting their coffee all over the computer screens in disbelief that I would include number eight as an essential job of modern writers. However, it’s true. Many of the best opportunities (both for platform building and making money) for writers moving forward will involve speaking. You don’t have to be the best speaker ever, but speaking is a skill that you work on and can improve over time. Trust me, I used to think it was impossible, and I still get nervous, but I am much better now than I used to be. Click here for a few of my tips on speaking.

Publication: Is The Grass Always Greener?

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Say you work very hard on your manuscript, you get a recommendation from a published friend that lands you an agent, and that agent happens to have lunch with an editor who then decides to buy your book. You did it! You’re a published author! Now what?

Some aspiring writers believe that as soon as they get that phone call from their agent saying someone has offered them a contract, their life is set and all they have to do from there on out is attend signings and conferences and write the next book. Sometimes, this isn’t the case. In fact, I’m willing to bet it’s never the case, even if you’re someone like Stephen King or Stephenie Meyer. Some days are going to be great! You read a fabulous review of your book, receive a royalty check, and get a call from your agent saying the movie option for your book is now under contract. Other days? Not so much. A 1 star review on top of a low (or non-existent) royalty check and dead silence from your agent and your editor can make you start wondering why in the world you work so hard if you’re not really getting anything in return.

Jody Hedlund, author of inspirational romance, posted on her blog about what happens after publication and the struggle many midlist authors go through on their bad days.

Before publication, most of us have dreams of what we think being a published author will be like. And the more we rub shoulders with other writers and fan the flame for publication, the larger our dreams become, until we’ve made being a published author into this HUGE, BIG deal—perhaps bigger than it really is.

Isn’t it that way with most things out of our reach? We long for something. But the more it’s denied us, the more intensely we want it. And we start to think it will be SO fabulous when we finally get it.

Our expectations grow with our longing, until eventually, our expectations are slightly (or maybe greatly) out of proportion with reality.

She makes some excellent points and although I’ve seen some of them made before, it’s always good to read these reminders from people on the other side of the fence that the grass isn’t always greener. I searched around Jody’s blog (which you might want to do as well) and also discovered a post on what to do with reviews. Using examples from user reviews on Amazon, she shows you how contradictory the feedback you get can be:

About the romance:

“The scenes where the husband and wife are falling in love with each other are a little intense. Nothing vulgar or across any lines, but enough to make me blush at times.”

“I soured on inspirational romance in part because I didn’t feel it dealt realistically with the physical attraction between men and women. The tension and desire between Priscilla and Eli in The Doctor’s Lady, however, is tangible. Jody handles it so tastefully that even people accustomed to the hand-holding-only atmosphere of other inspirational romances won’t be offended by it.”

About the hero:

“At first, I didn’t particularly care for Eli. I thought him crass and kind of a jerk.”

“It didn’t take me long to fall in love with Eli’s strong, but gentle ways. Wow, he sure sounded like a hunk.”

About the story development:

“I was bit disappointed. Not completely, because I was very impressed with Jody’s writing, and I will definitely pick up more from her. The Doctor’s Lady isn’t about the Whitman’s mission with the Nez Perce. It’s completely about their journey to the Nez Perce . . . I was just hoping there was more of the plot actually involving Native Americans.”

“I love every part of this book: the adventurous journey, the interaction with the natives, the beautiful description of nature, the struggle and courage of the characters, everything!”

About the ending:

“Although the end is predictable, the journey there is heart-wrenching and engaging – never flat.”

“By the end of this book you feel things coming together and I felt like I could just explode in emotions and tears of joy and I was sad that it had to come to an end. This is one of those books that although you are satisfied with the ending, you are disappointed that you are done reading about the characters that moved your life!”

Comparing my first two books:

“After disliking Jody’s first book, The Preacher’s Bride, I was pleasantly surprised by Jody’s second book, The Doctor’s Lady, and I enjoyed reading it very much.”

“This is a good traditional romance, and while it lacks the power of Hedlund’s first novel The Preacher’s Bride, it will keep readers hooked to finally see Eli and Priscilla admit their love for each other.”

What in the world are you supposed to do with such dichotomous comments? Jody reminds writers that “Everyone will view a book through his or her own worldview glasses. Our religious beliefs, values, expectations, personalities, likes/dislikes—all of that will come into play for how we experience a story.” You always have to keep this in mind or you’ll go crazy trying to get EVERYONE to like your story. It’s not going to happen. Ever. To anyone. Just look at the Twilight series if you want proof. Sure, it’s blasted its way to the top of the charts in both movie and book form, but for every thousand people who call themselves Twihards and fill their homes with Twilight memorabilia, there are a hundred others who spend their days writing articles that “prove” Edward is abusive, Bella is an idiot, and Stephenie Meyer is trying to tell everyone that girls are weak and need to be protected. And the more fervent her supporters got, the more furious her naysayers got. Trust me. I first read Twilight back in 2006 and I watched from inside the fandom as the negativity mounted along with the positive reinforcement. It would be enough to shake anybody’s confidence.

My point? Concentrate on the things you can control–your work and your outlook. The future and all the good and bad it will bring shall come eventually. Hope for the best, plan for the worst, and try to be happy even if you end up somewhere in between.