My Publishing Journey--Part 5

Read Part 4 Here.

My Publishing Journey

Part 5

For the first nine months of 2004, it was pretty exciting to know my first book would be out in September. At times it seemed surreal to think about. The editing process began, and I had my first experience working with an editor. One of the first things he told me was to change my epigraphs at the beginning of each chapter. He wanted them to be all from the Old Testament. Then I had to write chapter notes, a bibliography, a preface, and acknowledgments. All of which I’d eventually become well versed at, but for the first book, it was a lot of work that I wasn’t expecting.

I also had to “tone down” a few things, something I expected because my publisher is very strict on content. For my first book it wasn’t too much, but in future books, it would become more of a trial to find that balance.

The publisher also decided to switch my series title with the volume title. My original series title was “Of Goodly Parents” because of Nephi’s famous line, and the reader would know right away that it was a series on Nephi. Then the volume title was “Out of Jerusalem” (with subsequent volumes as “Into the Wilderness,” etc.). I wasn’t sure about the switch. I asked a few friends, and they liked my publisher’s decision. So I decided I could live with it after all.

Everything would be wrapped up in May, which was good timing since my baby was due the beginning of June. The final project was to have an author picture taken. I was nine months pregnant, but it was only of shoulders, up, right? The photo session went well and I had high hopes until I received the proofs back. The woman in the photo wasn’t me—or at least she wasn’t who I saw in the mirror. I asked my editor, “Can I NOT have an author picture in my book?” Thankfully he said I didn’t need to have one.

Just before the cover was designed I had a strange phone call from my editor. “We were wondering if we could change your name. We’d like to use your initials: H.B. Moore.” I thought of the years I’d spent writing, the rejections, and finally having a book published . . . and now no one would know it. My editor explained that it would broaden my target audience and men would be more willing to buy my book if they didn’t automatically think it was a romance. And if I decided to write in another genre, then they could use Heather Moore (it would take me 8 books to get to that point, and not having an author picture in my first book further perpetuated my secret identity as HB).

My top 5 best moments in publishing:

1. Acceptance of book
2. Seeing cover for the first time (and loving it)
3. Holding actual book in hand
4. Having someone you don’t know at all tell you they liked your book
5. Finding out your book went into a second printing

More good moments would come, and they are all tempered with challenges (which you’ll all get to hear about eventually).

Back in the day, my publisher scheduled book signings like crazy—weeks of Saturdays filled with multiple signings. Eager and ready to be an author, I jumped on board. Problem was, I had four little kids at home, and my son was playing flag football on Saturdays (which would turn out being NOTHING when my daughters started soccer).

Also, I was nursing a 3 month old baby.

If the book signing was a fair distance (everything is far away when you are nursing), my husband and kids would drop me off, then pick me up two hours later. I’d nurse the baby, then go to the next book signing.

One of the first things people would ask me is “If this is a series, when does the next book come out?” I’d say, “Next fall.” But then I decided to ask my publisher about it. I emailed the managing editor: “If I want my next book to come out next September, when do I have to turn in my next manuscript?” Her response: “December 1.” I looked at the calendar. It was the middle of September.

To write, to research, to edit, took me about 6 months on my first book. I had 2.5 on my second book. Yes, I had about 50 pages drafted, but a long way to go. I couldn’t imagine how I’d meet the deadline with four little kids, and one of them 3 months old. But I had made a commitment when I first got my acceptance that I’d turn in a book a year. I set my alarm for 4:00 a.m. for the next 6 weeks and worked from 4:00-8:00 a.m. and then a few snatches throughout the day. Sleep had become a thing of the past.

My Publishing Journey--Part 4

Had a great time at Bouchercon (Writers Conference) in San Francisco this past week. It was hard to be in a hotel, so my husband and I escaped quite often to go sight seeing.

Now, onto continuing my Publishing Journey series:

Read Part 3 Here

My Publishing Journey

Part 4

In Feb 2003, I started submitting my third manuscript, a historical novel set in 600 BC Arabia, main character Nephi. My first manuscript—WWII historical—had received plenty of rejections. My second manuscript—kidnapping mystery—had received three rejections, but my heart wasn’t in the story enough to go through revisions. First publisher submitted to: Deseret Book. Two weeks later I received a rejection letter. It was nicely written, but really a form letter. Upon first glance it looked pretty customized, but I’d received rejections from DB on my other books so I recognized the wording. One thing that was different was: “We don’t publish any Book of Mormon fiction.”

I felt my options were really quite limited as far as publishers went for this book. There were three more publishers that were possibilities: Covenant, Cedar Fort, and Granite (who were still publishing fiction at the time). I submitted to Covenant next. This was the end of February and the next response I heard from them was in August. I received an email that it had gone through the evaluation process and the consensus was that they wanted to see more of Lehi in the book (Nephi’s father). I went through the manuscript and changed some more scenes into Lehi’s point of view, then resubmitted.

A small break in my writing career happened in the fall. I was published in the Rose & Thorn literary magazine with a fiction excerpt from my WWII novel. I forwarded the publication to the managing editor at Covenant to show, hopefully, that my writing was viable and competitive.

To stay sane, I was also working on another book: a paranormal set in Puritan New England, 1840’s.

The week before Christmas, the managing editor, Shauna Humphreys, called me. The news wasn’t good.

Covenant was worried that my series would compete with another series they were publishing. Both series were set in the same time period, but they had different main characters. So of course I didn’t agree. There had been other Book of Mormon novels published, and I was certain there would be many more, all by different authors.

I had waited ten months on one publisher only to be rejected. We discussed my WWII novel and Shauna asked if I’d considered making any of the characters LDS. No, I told her. That would have completely changed the main character’s journey. We talked about my paranormal book, but it wasn’t a genre Covenant was seeking. So the phone call ended on the note that Covenant really enjoyed my writing, but the project wasn’t for them.

Well, as you can imagine, I was devastated. 2003 was a year to forget. I had lost a baby that summer and my book I had fully believed would be my debut novel had just received a rejection from possibly the only publisher who could properly publish my series.

So I asked my husband what I should do. He wasn’t nearly as bummed out as I was (probably since he hadn’t written the dang thing). But he’s a sales guy and his response was “When a deal goes south, that means it’s a real deal, and it’s your job to get back in there and close it.” He told me to set up a meeting with Shauna and present a marketing plan that explained all the reasons my book would sell and all the reasons readers would be buying it.

But this wasn’t software, this was a novel! Plus it terrified me to think of pitching my book like a sales person. I had been fired from a clothing store because they told me I wasn’t outgoing enough with the customers (another story—in my stubbornness, I ended up working in retail for several years and becoming a store manager). Then I realized I did have my stubbornness on my side. So I decided to take another shot and set up a meeting with Shauna after Christmas. It would give me a week to put together a marketing plan. Worst case, I would still be rejected, best case, they might reconsider or they’d be open to another book from me down the road.

I met with Shauna, feeling pretty nervous, and I was surprised at how absolutely nice she was. Not that I didn’t think an editor could be nice, but Shauna was a genuinely sweet person. I wondered if she was like this with everyone or if, perhaps, she really did like me. We went over my list of how my series was different from what they were already publishing and how I felt there was a place for it in the market. She seemed impressed with my ideas. Again, I wondered if she was just being nice. But she did promise to take my ideas back to the committee.

When the phone rang on January 7th and I saw Covenant Communications on the caller ID, I barely had time to think of what it might mean before I answered it. I had a house full of little kids since I was babysitting the neighbor’s kids, so I stepped into the freezing cold garage to take the call and have some privacy.

Shauna told me the committee had reconsidered and decided my series would complement their line-up instead of compete. They were worried that I wouldn’t be able to deliver a book a year, but I assured her I would (of course!). She said the release date was set for September 2004 and would come out in hardcover.

After hanging up with her, I was elated. I didn’t know what to do first. But my feet were freezing. I called my husband and then called my parents. Nine months seemed forever to wait for my book to come out, but I had crossed a major threshold. I was also pregnant again. 2004 was definitely looking up.

My Publishing Journey--Part 3

Good news! I've finished the first draft of Daughters of Jared. A copy of my pitch letter to my publisher is HERE. I'll take a week off and then start on the second draft process, then off to alpha readers. I hope to turn it in by December.

Read Part 2 Here

My Publishing Journey

Part 3

As a teen I read everything that Mary Higgins Clark wrote. But her most inspirational book was called Kitchen Privileges: A Memoir. In the book she details the writing schedule she carved out for herself as a widow and working mother of several children. 5:00 a.m.-7:00 a.m. At the time, I didn’t realize how useful this sound advice would eventually become.

Around the time that I finished writing my mystery, which changed several times, and finally landed on the title 72 Hours (because, of course, it all took place in 72 hours), a young woman in Utah was kidnapped. The story of Elizabeth Smart made national news and became the focal point of media attention for many months, when finally, and miraculously, she was found alive. This took a bit of steam out of my kidnapping mystery. But the manuscript was finished so I decided to submit anyway.

1. Rejection
2. Rejection, but a long editorial letter detailing what I’d need to do to get the manuscript into shape

I had moved up in the rejection ladder. Writers understand that being completely ignored is the bottom rung , getting a form rejection is the next rung up, and getting a customized rejection with editorial notes is even higher. I was excited. I was devastated. I read through the two page letter and my heart sank further and further. I now couldn’t say—oh it just wasn’t for them—I now had everything that was wrong with my story and plot written out in black and white.

Without pulling it out and reading over the painful comments again, I do remember the basics. “I was really excited when I started reading this manuscript. Until about page 35 when things began to fall apart. It was obvious you hadn’t done your police procedure research. . .”

So, I was expected to interview a police officer? Sounded a bit out of my comfort zone. As I read the letter several times, I realized that my heart was no longer in the story. I didn’t want my novel to be seen as a copycat to the events surrounding the now infamous Utah kidnapping, and I didn’t know if I had the stamina to write in the mystery genre, and research all that needed to be researched.

I decided that since I’d written two full novels, only to receive rejections, I’d use another approach. I studied the smaller presses and read some of the books they were publishing. I looked for a niche that I might be able to fill for one of them—both to target their readers and to write something that I truly enjoyed.

Historical fiction has always been a great love of mine. Reading historical novels, or watching movies based on historical facts have always kept me enthralled. But one of the publishers I researched published religious books for the LDS market. I’m LDS, but I hadn’t considered writing and LDS book. The LDS novels I had read seemed too much like a Sunday School lesson. But two of my critique partners were writing for the LDS market. Jeff Savage had a suspense novel out and Annette Lyon a contemporary romance. And I really enjoyed them. So I thought there might be hope for me in that market. But what to write? I didn’t want to work more on the mystery. I didn’t want to turn the WWII novel into an LDS novel. What historical aspect did I have a true interest in that also connected with LDS readers?

There were a couple of big name LDS historical novelists, Dean Hughes and Gerald Lund. Neither had written anything on the Book of Mormon—a historical record of people who lived in b.c. Mesoamerica. Perhaps I could try it. The more I thought about it, the more the idea appealed to me. I had lived in Jerusalem as a teenager so I felt I had a bit of a connection to the culture that Lehi and his family grew up in (their story takes place in the first “book” of the Book of Mormon). But I was not a scripturian, in fact, far from it. I’d hardly been to Sunday School myself as an adult since I was always teaching in Primary.

But I had connections. My father, S. Kent Brown, was a scholar—specializing in the New Testament, but also very well versed in the Book of Mormon since he was a professor at BYU. I asked if he might be interested in co-writing a series on Nephi’s journey. After hemming and hawing a bit, he finally said no. He wasn’t interested in writing fiction. But I had my source in place. With my dad’s brilliant mind, I could ask him a question, and he could direct me to the most relevant source without me spending thousands of hours reading every bit of research. I only had to spend hundreds of hours.

I wrote the first five pages and brought them to critique group, feeling like I was finally going somewhere with a story idea.

The first thing they said to me after I explained my project was: Haven’t you read any of the Book of Mormon fiction that’s already been published?

To my dismay, I hadn’t realized there was any out there, which shows how “new” I was to the LDS market. But after reading my first chapter, my group assured me that my manuscript was unique in its own way and could stand on its own.

The journey writing “Out of Jerusalem: Of Goodly Parents” had just begun in 2002, and would take over 2 years to hit the shelves because of the many roadblocks were about to stand in my way.

My Publishing Journey--Part 2

Good news! AMMON has been officially accepted and slated for release in June 2011!

Read Part 1 Here.

My Publishing Journey

Part 2

(Year 2001)
With my husband moving out of our home office, things quickly came together. I had an office, a computer, and an imagination. My grandmother had finally consented for “someone in the family” to write her personal history. That someone turned out to be me. I spent time with her each week going over questions and various aspects of her life. She was a young woman during the WWII era, and some of the things she shared catapulted me into my first story.

I wrote during naptime and in the evenings when the kids were in bed. My husband was currently traveling a lot, and my usual evening hobbies slowly disintegrated as I became more and more involved in writing.

Summer came and I signed up for a couple of creative writing extension courses through a local college. I had my degree, but not in creative writing, or English for that matter. The only thing that was holding my story together was my love for reading and general understanding of what made a decent book.

The first creative writing course was a let-down. The instructor began by telling the group of adults that we had little chance of getting published. He also told us that he was tired of the stay-at-home mother who thought she could make an extra dollar or two by publishing a novel.

Moving on. The next creative writing course was better. The instructor, Rachel Nunes, had actually published several novels (unlike the previous instructor) and was a mother as well. Part of her advice was how to balance family and writing time. My eyes were opened, and I came out of the workshop feeling very motivated.

I had no idea how to find a publisher. Through some internet searches, I discovered a book called The Writers Market. I spent time in the library writing down names and addresses and submission guidelines. Impatient, I finally purchased my own copy and proceeded to highlight all of the publishers I wanted to submit to.

I bought paper, envelopes, stamps, labels and started submitting. The rejections started coming in. Well, that wasn’t working so well. Another plan maybe. I decided to start smaller. I wrote a couple of short stories and sent them to magazines. One reply was, “This story is too sad.” Another reply was, “There is a glaring error in your work, and we don’t publish sub-standard submissions.”

Mostly the replies were form letters. Maybe I didn’t have what it took after all. I searched the internet again, looking for more workshops when I found the League of Utah Writers. It was November, and the next meeting wouldn’t be until January. I eagerly went to the Wednesday night meeting in January at the Provo Library. Jeff Savage was the speaker. Annette Lyon was the Chapter President who ran the meeting. Jeff shared how he got published. Little did I know but within a few months’ time, I would replace Annette as Chapter President and I would join Jeff and Annette’s critique group.

The one message I came away from Jeff’s presentation was that it was possible to get published if only I persevered. Jeff was published with a local publisher, Covenant, something I hadn’t considered before. So I decided that since I loved reading mysteries, I’d consider writing a mystery for the Utah market. I’d continue submitting my WWII novel, but I was willing to try other avenues as well.

So I began what I now call the great mystery-novel failure.