For our workshop, we conducted this survey of published authors regarding their advice for those writers who want to build their careers. We had wonderful responses--too many to use! This workshop tape is available through Bill Stephens Productions (1-800-322-4422) cassette # 8-105.
The "From Aspiring to Multi-Published in Twenve Steps" workshop from 2002, with Roxanne, Silhouette Desire author Kathie DeNosky, and Rob Cohen is tape #7-22, and will be available from Bill Stephens Production just until July, 2004. That handout is available here on Roxanne's website, also.
1. DID YOU HAVE A CAREER PLAN AS AN ASPIRING AUTHOR? WHAT TYPES OF THINGS DID YOU DO TO HELP LAUNCH YOUR CAREER? WHAT WERE THE MOST EFFECTIVE FOR HELPING YOU ALONG THE ROAD TO BEING PUBLISHED? LEAST?
"My career plan was the same as Victoria Holt's-write one book a year and die at eighty on a tropical cruise while researching my next book. As an aspiring author, getting a publishable and compelling manuscript on a receptive editor's desk is the only way to launch a career." Teresa Medeiros, Avon, www.teresamedeiros.com
"Most effective: persistence and discipline. I know so many people who write beautifully but they don't have the discipline to follow through with a project through the rejections and the revisions and the inherent tendencies to doubt their abilities. To be effective, to be successful, you must believe in yourself. And you MUST write the book. Not just the first three chapters, but the entire book. Least effective: Self-destructive thoughts. They will mire you in doubt and stall your creativity until you're as good as dead in the water." Cindy Gerard, Bantam/Loveswept, Silhouette Desire, St. Martins Press, www.cindygerard.com
"Yes! I stretched my voice range, sought feedback from writers whose opinions I respected, read tons of craft books along with books in the line I was targeting, and I entered lots of contests in an attempt to attract editor attention. I think entering contests was the most helpful element of my career plan at that time. I credit my first sale to a contest final. " Joanne Rock, Harlequin Temptation, Blaze, Historicals, http://joannerock.com
"The most effective thing I believe I did was to concentrate on finishing novels and beginning new ones rather than continually reworking something old. Additionally, my diligence in attending meetings and learning the craft was also very helpful." Anne-Marie Winston, Silhouette Desire, St. Martin's, www.annemariewinston.com
"At the age of 8, it was "I'm going to be Jo March when I grow up." Does that count as a plan? When I was an aspiring adult, writing was strictly a sideline. I didn't know there could actually BE a plan of an aspiring author. Looking back, I see there can be and that it can be helpful. But also intimidating. So I guess it's better that I worked in blissful ignorance. Nowadays, the most concrete thing I tell emerging writers is "Park your domain name" (via www.domaindirect.com) and all the pseudonyms you might use." Susan Wiggs, Kensington, Avon, PaperJacks (yes!) , Tor, HarperCollins, Harlequin, MIRA, www.susanwiggs.com
"RWA® and the generous authors I met through RWA® and its chapters helped me along the road. Also, Debra Dixon's Goals, Motivation and Conflict was important in my understanding of character." Jan Scarbrough, Kensington, ImaJinn Books, www.janscarbrough.com
"Having more than one book when I got my first offer meant a multi-book contract, so that was probably most effective." Jo Ann Ferguson w/w J.A. Ferguson/Joanna Hampton, Zebra Regency, ImaJinn, and Thorndike www.joannferguson.com
" Most effective: 1) market research, 2) honed my craft, 3) joined a critique group. Least effective: 1) got an agent (initially he was a help, but later on he turned out to be a bad agent)." Karen Alarie/ Karen Anders, Harlequin Blaze, Silhouette Intimate Moments, www.karenanders.com
"I just loved to write, and hoped I'd eventually sell a book. It took 13 years, but I finally did it. The credit goes to good old perseverance and believing in myself." Carole Bellacera, Forge/Tor, www.CaroleBellacera.com
"It's tough to pick out any one thing as being the most effective, but I'd have to say, joining RWA® is right at the top. There's no way I could've learned so much about the techniques of writing romance or had the opportunity to meet and network with agents, editors and other writers if I'd just studied on my own." Linda Style, Harlequin Superromance, http://LindaStyle.com
"Looking back on my pre-published days, one thing I did that I now feel was a waste of a significant amount of time, energy and hope was this: when I received a rejection of a manuscript, I would spend weeks or months trying to repackage it for another Harlequin line and send it out the door again. There are very rare occasions when you know you've got a true gem that deserves another shot. In most cases, however, rather than trying to turn your ‘short and sweet' into something else by adding a suspense plot, or inserting a few subplots, the best thing to do is simply start writing a new book!" C.J. Carmichael, Superromance; Intrigue, http://cjarmichael.com
" The thing that seemed to help the most was entering and winning contests. That led to my first sale." Lori Handeland, Leisure, Kensington, Harlequin, St. Martin's, www.lorihandeland.com
"As an aspiring author, my plan involved reading as many books as possible in the historical romance subgenre. I focused on new authors, so I could see what qualities were currently selling and which houses were most likely to acquire debut writers." Gwyneth Attlee/Colleen Easton, Zebra Historicals, www.gwynethatlee.com
"I definitely had a career plan. I started by identifying what I wanted to write. I loved romantic suspense, so I decided to target Harlequin Intrigue. I then bought and read every Harlequin Intrigue published to get a feel for what the editors were looking for. I wrote every morning before work, completing three manuscripts. As I was writing, I started entering contests. I paid special attention to those contests where the finals were judged by editors who acquired for Intrigue." Ann Voss Peterson, Harlequin Intrigue, www.annvosspeterson.com
"I read every Harlequin Romance and Presents that came out. (Fortunately for me I was working at the library at the time and cataloguing them was part of my job.) I'd take the author's idea as a departure point and figure out how I'd have written the story differently. That exercise helped me to construct my own stories." LeAnn Lemberger/Leigh Michaels, Harlequin Romance, www.leighmichaels.com
"I found workshops, classes, and conferences to be very helpful in building my career and getting me published." Mary Wilson/ Mary Winter, Ellora's Cave & Wings ePress, www.marywinter.com
For me, contests were the most effective tool to get an editor's attention. My first Blaze, RED SHOES & A DIARY, won the 2000 Summer Blaze Contest as well as the 2001 TARA First Impressions. My current editor was the final judge for both. But the very best way to launch your career is to be professional. Treat your writing seriously, protect the time you have to do it and always behave like a pro when meeting or dealing with others." Mika Boblitz/ Mia Zachary, Harlequin Blaze, www.miazachary.com
"The best thing I ever did was join a critique group. I liked it so much I joined 2, one online, one in-person. Second was to enter contests for feedback on my stories and having my mss put in front of editors and agents. Winning in a contest is a great excuse for contacting everyone out there who has your ms. Third was to judge contests. Nothing like reading other people's bad openings to teach you what not to do. Fourth was to go to as many workshops as I could at my local chapter and at RWA Nationals. Learning one's craft is essential." Nina Bruhns/Nikita Black, Silhouette and Hard Shell Word Factory, www.NinaBruhns.com and www.NikitaBlack.com.
"The most effective thing is to learn to write well. Everything pales into total insignificance besides that. The second most effective thing is to learn how the publishing industry functions and what sells. It's no use writing something that no one will want to buy, however ‘original'." Anna Jacobs, Hodder & Stoughton UK, Severn House UK, Pan Australia, Random House Australia, www.annajacobs.com.
"My plan was to write a book targeted specifically to a line, no matter how many times I had to rewrite it at the editor's request. I picked a line that had stories and a canvas I felt I could succeed in - Superromance - and stuck with it. I went to any conference the senior editor went to. I introduced myself in person, with proposals and eventually developed a working relationship (some might call this writing on spec). But it worked, because she eventually bought something." Melinda Wooten/Melinda Curtis, Harlequin Superromance, www.MelindaCurtis.com
"When I began, I did not even entertain the possibility of failure. I studied how to write a book and began writing and submitting my work. My first sale was in 1983, LOVE'S ELUSIVE FLAME to Zebra. My relentless attitude was my most effective strategy." Phoebe Conn/ Pseudonym: Cinnamon Burke for Leisure Futuristics only website: home.earthlink.net/~phoebeconn
2. AS A PUBLISHED AUTHOR, DO YOU HAVE A SPECIFIC CAREER PLAN? DO YOU ACTIVELY PROMOTE YOURSELF AND YOUR BOOKS? WHAT WOULD YOU RECOMMEND TO A BRAND-NEW AUTHOR?
"I always attempted to have a specific career plan, but I never have quite been able to follow any of it, so I gave it up and just kept writing books, always attempting to write a better book than the one before and discovering my own voice in the process. In order to do this, I have always read books that I felt were better than my own work, so I suppose my career plan has always been to keep looking up." Curtiss Ann Matlock, Mira Books, Silhouette Books, Harlequin Historicals, www.curtissannmatlock.com
"My backlist has definitely been the most important promotional tool in my arsenal. I've never been a big self-promotion queen because I still feel the most effective promotion comes from the publisher but I do maintain an active snail-mail list. I mail out postcards whenever a new release is due out. I also maintain a bookseller mailing list for postcards. I recommend getting as many extra covers from your publisher as you can so you can mail them to booksellers." Teresa Medeiros, Avon, www.teresamedeiros.com
"Promotion: I maintain a website, and I do whatever promotion my publisher asks of me. I'll occasionally do booksignings, and I love public speaking (and am good at it), so I use conferences and other speaking engagements (at colleges, women's clubs, etc.) as an opportunity to promote myself and romance fiction in general. Other than that, I don't do any promotion. I'd rather be writing, and frankly, when I've tried to set up promotions in the past, they haven't been that effective. I've found that promotion arranged by my publisher works much better. Media outlets respond more positively to a press release from Mira than one from ‘Judith Arnold'." Barbara Keiler/Judith Arnold, Mira, Harlequin Superromance and Temptation, Silhouette, Berkley's now defunct Second Chance at Love, www.juditharnold.com
"I'm pretty low-key with the type of promo I do and I only do things I like. I go to a lot of conferences and give workshops because I love to talk with other writers about craft. I hate booksignings and will only do them if I'm going to be with another author!" Katherine Garbera, Silhouette Desire, http://katherinegarbera.com
"Promotion-wise, I maintain a website and offer contests several times a year. I belong to several online writing threads/loops and participate in the Let's Talk Superromance thread at eHarlequin because that's where readers who want to write for the line visit. I like being able to help out with a bit of advice and a lot of encouragement." Debra Salonen, Harlequin Superromance, www.debrasalonen.com
"Yes, I do actively promote, largely on-line through my own website, joint websites (ditzy-chix, writers unlimited, desire authors, cataromance, eharlequin) and via chats and email loops and bulletin boards. I also have a budget for promo items (distributed via on-line romance communities and conferences) and contests (through my own and other websites.)" Bronwyn Jameson, Silhouette Desire, www.bronwynjameson.com.
"I would recommend that a brand-new author at the very least get a website. It's not that hard to construct your own site, and it does provide some exposure and a way for readers to contact you and find your backlist-or upcoming books, if you haven't got a backlist. As far as anything else, I strongly recommend that a new author set a budget for promotion and stick to it." Gail Dayton, Silhouette Desire, www.gaildayton.com
"My advice to a brand new author is to follow up that first sale with a whiz-bang wonderful second book. And then make sure each book that follows is a little better with a little more depth and emotion. Resolve to out-do yourself each time, thus building your career one book at a time. I believe the old saying that `the last page of your last book sells your next book.' The writing is the only thing that endures." Debrah Morris, Silhouette Romance, Avon, Berkley, Dell, www.debrahmorris.com
"Because I am in the early stages of my career I'm still learning, but I think a brand-new author would benefit from these same ideas. She might also want to write articles for newsletters and do chats on some of the Internet reader sites. If she enjoys speaking, she should consider creating a unique and useful workshop to present to writing groups. Using common sense, though, is important. She should budget the amount of money and time that parallels the size of her advance and the length of time her book will stay on the shelves." Linda Goodnight, Harlequin/Silhouette, Barbour, Tyndale, www.lindagoodnight.com
"To a brand new author (which I still consider myself) I would recommend taking time to enjoy every aspect of publication. That first art fact sheet (hey, you can enjoy that) & most especially holding that first book in your hand, then seeing it on the shelf in stores. As for promotion, write the best book you can and keep writing them - that's actually advice Gayle Wilson gave to me years ago and that I took to heart." Lisa Childs, Harlequin Intrigue, www.lisachilds.com
"I don't think writing lends itself to a career plan-it is too chancy, and writers have little control over whether editors will buy their books. I have always had a second career (I am currently a licensed psychologist in private practice), because I think it is important to have something that you DO have control over! I don't do promotion. I would recommend that new authors take Einstein's quote to heart: "Remember to keep the main thing the main thing." Mary Kennedy, Scholastic, NAL, Warner.
"I don't have a publicist, because I'm not sure it helps when you write category. I do keep a mailing list and send out postcards. I do autographings and speak when the opportunities come up." Roz Fox/Roz Denny Fox, Harlequin Romance & Superromance, www.Korynna.com/RozFox
"I have had publishers place ads in the Ingram catalog, in Publisher' Weekly, and RT which demonstrated their support. Those were all more effective than what I could have afforded to do on my own. I have even had a TV ad for one of my Warner books. When I asked how that affected sales, they shrugged and said they had no idea. I hand out bookmarks and reply to every fan letter and email with a newsletter to let fans know they are appreciated. Many have been my fans for years." Phoebe Conn, website: home.earthlink.net/~phoebeconn
"I am active on many email lists, as well as within local organizations (the Des Moines Science Fiction Society to name one). I always talk about my books, and I frequently leave autographed bookmarks with tips when I go to restaurants." Mary Wilson, Mary Winter, Ellora's Cave & Wings ePress, www.marywinter.com
"Self-promotion should begin ten minutes after you write the words, ‘the end'. Before I was ever published, I created a website. I determined what my style and voice was, decided what I had to offer other authors and posted a diary of my journey to publication, which I still update every two weeks. I wrote a tv guide-style blurb and had it printed on laminated business cards which I hand out whenever possible. (I've even slipped them into the envelopes when paying bills.) I've written articles about the craft and given workshops and held contests, all with the intent of building name recognition." Mika Boblitz/ Mia Zachary, Harlequin Blaze, www.miazachary.com
"Repeat after me. Never give up. Never give up. Never give up. Never give up. Never give up. Never give up. Never give up." Rickey R. Mallory/ Mallory Kane, Harlequin Intrigue, ImaJinn Books, DiskUs Publishing, Dreams Unlimited (now defunct), New Concepts Publishing, www. mallorykane.com.
"I do not recommend that a brand new author spend precious time on self-promotion. It won't make that much difference. The best thing to do is to spend the time on honing the craft of writing and to write, write, write." Randi DuFresne/ Elizabeth Ashtree, Harlequin Superromance, www. e-ashtree.com
"For brand-new authors, or those on the verge of selling, I recommend you learn about press kits, websites and the other business things that published authors do to promote themselves-and then start to develop them. Once you sell, you don't have as much time to devote to it, but that doesn't make it any less necessary. Get a publicity photo-Studio 16 does a fantastic job at the conference, for a reasonable price and you get both a CD AND the copyright. Start your press kit. Reserve your website domain name, at the very least. And for heaven's sake, start the next book! Do NOT wait for that first book to sell before moving on." Wendy Ferguson/ Wendy Douglas, Harlequin Historicals
"I send out postcards for each book and keep a mailing list of everyone who writes to me. I think websites are a great promotional tool and I'm hoping to get one up and running very soon. But for a brand new category author, I'm not convinced that a lot of heavy-duty advertising is necessary. I'm not convinced there's a great correlation between the amount of promotion and the number of books sold." Margaret Watson, Silhouette Intimate Moments
"Brand new authors should get out and press the flesh, meet book sellers, start making a personal mailing list. Book signings aren't essential, but signing stock can be very important." Evelyn Rogers, Dorchester Leisure/Lovespell, Zebra, Avon, Harpers, Harlequin, www. evelynrogers.com
"My goal now is to stay published. I had a dry spell lasting almost three years when I didn't sell a manuscript. I opted to stop writing historical romances and switched to contemporaries. I even switched genres altogether and wrote a mystery. This turned out to be a successful career move for me since I sold both of those manuscripts. And I found I enjoy writing contemporaries as much as I did historicals. My advice to a brand-new author would be to try new things if the old ones stop working for some reason. It can be a scary thing to do, and does not necessarily work for everyone but it can be a challenging and inspiring way to get a career back on track." Cynthia Thomason, Kensington, Harlequin, Five Star, www.cynthiathomason.com
"I've been on Discovery Channel promoting a book, done local TV, signings, hundreds of radio interviews. The next ‘love scene' I write will probably be done on a live, nationally-syndicated radio show. So yes, I'm a promotion junkie, but guess what? I used to be a publicist, and I know the value." Dianne Despain/Dianne Drake, Harlequin Duets/ Temptations /Blaze
"I'm the world's worst at marketing, and I'm convinced spending money to promote category books is wasted, to a great extent. A set amount of books get distributed to pre-determined venues, making distributors an ineffective target of promotion. The best thing you can do is get your name before the public as often as possible. The web is the cheapest, most effective way to do this. Establish a web presence, or two, or three! Get your books reviewed at online review sites and get reviews posted on Amazon and Barnes and Noble. When someone types your name in on google, you want as many hits as possible to show up. Join online writing loops for both the name recognition and the support. Writing can be an isolating business and networking helps. Start an author newsletter for your readers. It's a cheap way to communicate and highly efficient." Kim Bahnsen/ Kylie Brant, Silhouette Intimate Moments/ www.kyliebrant.com
3. WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU OFFER TO AN ASPIRING AUTHOR WHO DREAMS OF SELLING TO YOUR PUBLISHER/LINE?
"MIRA: read their list-read the whole list (frontlist). Get to know the editors and their tastes. Talk to your agent about submitting (they don't take unagented). Write something very commercial and wonderful. I hate to say it but do something "fresh." Perfect example: FRESH AIR by Charlotte Vale Allen. These days, almost anything goes, from vampires to serial killers to Regencies. Often, connected books can be a plus." Susan Wiggs, Kensington, Avon, PaperJacks (yes!) , Tor, HarperCollins, Harlequin, MIRA, www.susanwiggs.com
"If you're fairly adept at the craft of writing, enter contests where the finalists are judged by Silhouette editors. That's a great way to catch attention. Also, write, write, write. You can't hone the craft if you don't practice it. One final tip: Never give up." Ann Roth, Silhouette Special Edition, www.gsrwa.org/author_pages/ann_roth.htm
"Don't rewrite a book over and over after it has been rejected several times. Set it aside and write another, using what you learned from the first book." Barbara Phinney, Silhouette Intimate Moments, Hardshell Word Factory http://personal.nbnet.nb.ca/barbarap/index.htm
"Write what you love and love what you write." Judi McCoy, Kensington/Zebra and Avon/Harper Collins www.judimccoy.com
"Read the line. Analyze what they are buying, and be sure they're the kind of stories you want to write." K.N. Casper, Harlequin. Superromance, www.kncasper.com
"To reach the top as a Harlequin series fiction writer it's essential to be prolific. You need to be able to write four books - 220,000 words - a year for as long as you want to keep in the top slots." Anne Weale, Harlequin Mills & Boon, St Martin's Press, Century [UK], Arrow [UK]
"If you don't sell the first book, keep reading, keep writing, keep trying. I met the Senior Editor of my line several years before selling my first novel. The editor not only remembered me from that previous conference but told my current editor that I was a 'delightful' person. Positive professional persistence pays off in this business." Linda Goodnight, Harlequin/Silhouette, Barbour, Tyndale, www.lindagoodnight.com
"I've heard it said many times and it's true-read, read, read books from the line-know what an editor is looking for-mostly read the newly acquired books because they will give you a freshness and a uniqueness that editors want." Linda Warren, Harlequin Superromance, http://lindawarren.net
"Hone your craft. The historical market has never been tighter or more competitive. Study the market to know which settings will be a hard sell, which have been overdone and how a story can bring something fresh to a popular setting. Show your targeted editor that you have lots of story ideas and that you can work quickly, reliably and professionally." Deborah Hale, Harlequin Historical and LUNA Fantasy Imprint, www.deborahhale.com
"I'm always amazed when an aspiring writer emails to ask what Intrigue is looking for and then they admit they've never read an Intrigue. Writing an Intrigue without having read one is like driving with a blindfold." Delores Fossen, Dorchester, Harlequin Intrigue and Duets, www.dfossen.com
"Write the best quality fiction you can write. In my case selling short fiction led to a novel sale. That doesn't happen to everyone, but getting some publication credits for short fiction can't hurt. Editors do read short fiction looking for new writers." Pat Nagle/ P.G. Nagle, Forge, http://pgnagle.com
"Kissing up to editors, printing business cards, writing articles for RWR-there's nothing wrong with any of that, but it's not going to sell your book. The only way to sell a book is to write one, make it great, and hope editors see its artistic and commercial potential." Barbara Keiler/Judith Arnold, Mira, Harlequin Superromance and Temptation, Silhouette, Berkley's now defunct Second Chance at Love, www.juditharnold.com
"Read the books, and only try writing them if you really, honestly enjoy the stories. Too many people choose a line based on the line's sales or the perception that the books are easier to write than other kinds." LeAnn Lemberger/Leigh Michaels, Harlequin Romance, www.leighmichaels.com
"The things I found most effective (besides reading carefully in the line you're targeting) is to interact online with writers in that line. www.cata-romance.com is one of the most effective places I've seen to learn exactly what the various lines are looking for, what editors' tastes are, and what quirks they have. Talk to authors who write for that line. Come to their booksignings and ask questions about their editors while they wait for a customer. We all love to talk about writing-let that work for you." Shelley Bates/ Shannon Hollis, Harlequin Temptation, Steeple Hill, Red Sage, http://www.shannonhollis.com for the Temptation books and http://home.att.net/~sabates/ for the inspirational books
"Make sure that first book is as good as you can possibly make it. Often, a category romance writer is very much a victim of her first book's success or failure. If your first book does well, you're likely to get a contract on a second book that much faster, or get sold into more foreign markets, or get offered things like two-book contracts, mini-series, continuities, that much sooner." Melissa Benyon/ Lilian Darcy, www.silromanceauthors.com; www. specialauthors.com
"Keep banging at doors until you knock'em down. In the case of Harlequin, find a line that seems to suit your voice, then read it--a lot. Nail your conflicts. With Leisure, don't be afraid to take plot chances in order to make your work stand out." Laura Marie Altom, Kensington, Harlequin American, Leisure, lauramariealtom.com
"Study the line, read the stories they buy. For a first book, pile in the themes you see recurring time and again, give them a fresh twist. Play by their rules...for now." Sylvie Kurtz, Leisure LoveSpell, Silhouette Special Edition, Harlequin Intrigue
"Read the books, talk to authors published in the line, learn whether that particular line is truly suited to your voice. I started off thinking I would be a Special Editions author because that¹s what I loved to read. But the first editor to read my work said I was a Desire author. She was right! My voice is totally suited to the line, in tone, tightness of story, and sensuality level. Editors are brilliant!" Susan Crosby, Silhouette Desire
"If you want to sell to category, target the line for which you have a good, solid gut-feel. If you want to sell single title, get an agent with whom you feel a rapport. It isn't enough to have someone who is willing to take you on--you want someone who is excited about your work. Take all advice with a grain of salt. Even mine. <g>" Eileen Wilks, Silhouette, Berkley and St. Martin's Press, www.EileenWilks.com
Award-winning author Roxanne Rustand's eighth Harlequin Superromance, CHRISTMAS AT SHADOW CREEK will be out in November, 2003. OPERATION: SECOND CHANCE will be out in February, 2004, followed by the start of her Blackberyy Hill series in mid-2004. You can visit her at: www.roxannerustand.com, www.booksbyrustand.com or www.ditzychix.com
Best-selling author and 2001 RITA finalist, Kristi Gold, saw her first Silhouette Desire hit the shelves in July 2000 after a seven-year journey to publication. In March she celebrated the release of her 10th book and to date has seven more scheduled for publication. Her most recent Desire, MAROONED WITH A MILLIONAIRE, is a June 2003 release. Visit Kristi at www.kristigold.com and www.ditzychix.com.
The speakers extend their sincere thanks to Vicky Dreiling for her assistance with the survey handout. Vicky is a market research analyst for a global IT firm and holds a B.A. in English with a minor in marketing. She is also a graduate of the American Marketing Association's School of Advanced Market Research. She is hard at work on her second historical romance.