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| C. Kevin Thompson |
After my incident with the unscrupulous agent (Part
1 of my story) and my aversion to Christian writers conferences and
fledgling, self-publishing houses (Part
2 of my story), I realized I still had to keep writing (Part
3 of my story). I also decided to give one of those “Christian Writers
Conferences” a try (Part
4), and that turned out not so bad (Part
5).
You get an idea. Feel the urge to put pen to paper (or
fingers to keyboard). You forge a story out of the block of marble that is your
imagination, and voilà, you have a
novel, short story, or whatever.
You methodically trod the steps given to you at those
writers conferences, and Wham!
You land a contract!
With a traditional publisher!!!!
Now, you’re on Cloud Eleven because Cloud Nine is too low. However,
there should be warning labels on contracts for first-time authors much like
what appears on cigarette cartons:
WARNING: When taking Contract,
patient may become unrealistically euphoric. Patient may not be able to live
with normal people due to excessive giddiness. Please consult your doctor
before taking Contract. Some patients
who took Contract experienced many
days of angst waiting for Contract to
deliver on its promise. XYZ Publishing
Company is not responsible for hair loss, increased cholesterol levels,
blood pressure spikes, wrinkles, sleepless nights, sudden changes in dietary
needs, changes in relationship statuses, deterioration in marital bliss,
eyesight strain due to monitoritis, back pain due to
extended
internet
surfing of analytics, bouts with mild depression, bouts with despair at various
depths, and feelings of general malaise associated with the use of literary
narcotics. Some patients have even experienced death while using Contract. Please use responsibly.
Had that warning been written on my contract, it may have
saved me some hair.
Now, before I make this whole ordeal sound like a real
downer, understand something. In multiple venues and from myriad angles, I was
already forewarned. In books on writing, I had read chapters on how the
industry works; especially on turnaround times from contract to publication.
One year and up to two can be the norm. Less than a year is doable, but more
unlikely the larger the publishing house is. I had also heard similar
instruction at writer’s conferences.
It’s a favorite question among newbie authors who have never
driven down the road to publication before. “Are we there yet?” I know. I was
one of the badgers, I’m afraid. I tried not to be pesky. I really did.
Obviously, just sitting and waiting, not hearing back for
months on end is not the way to go, either. Publishers will even admit that a
courtesy contact (preferably via email) asking for an update is not looked upon
as detrimental. Sometimes, things happen and communication gets garbled.
I remember sending my completed manuscript the first time. I
waited about two months for a response. After two months, I felt it was
sufficient time to “inquire” as to the status of my submission. The Christian
Writers Conference people told me, by industry standards, it was well-within my
right and privilege to do so. I was expecting to hear something like, “Yours is
next in the queue. We should have an answer within the week.”Instead, the reply
was, “We never received it.”
I was, uh, horrified! Two months of my writing life…lost in
cyberspace. And I’m not getting any younger. I checked.
So, I resubmitted the manuscript and checked back with a
“read receipt” email of sorts. Once I had confirmation the submission was not
sitting at the Siberian Cyberspace Depot again, I moved on with writing.
It was approximately three months before I heard back with a
glowing review and offer of a contract. So, this is how it went:
Time table from Conference meal (see Part
5) to glowing review and contract offer: 6 months.
Time table from contract offer to signing of contract: almost 1 month.
Time table from Contract to Release Date: 15 months.
Total time table: 22 months.
See how handy a warning label would have been?
In those last few months, things picked up. Interior proofs,
book cover designs, and back cover copy proofs all had to be edited for final
approval. I was told to “get ready.” This was the flurry. Soon, there would be
a squall.
But after the first flurry, there was a lull. No. Actually?
It was “crickets.”
I would later learn something profound. Publishers and
editors are real people, too. Real people have lives. Real people get sick.
Real people have family members who need care. The list goes on, as you well
know. It was one of these “real people” moments that postponed the squall. Like
meteorologists trying to supply us with an accurate 10-day forecast, so too,
the publisher/editor cannot always predict the weather of life.
Once “life” stepped aside, the process began again until the
final product sat on my kitchen table, in a box, revealing to me that dreams do
come true after all. Even on Contract.
Moral
of the story: Don’t fret. Just keep writing. My prayer has
always been for God to use my work for His glory and honor. That prayer has
never changed, although I had to go back to it often to steer myself back onto
the pavement of righteousness and keep myself from careening off the guardrail
or sailing over the cliff of self-absorption. We wish there was a step-by-step
guide handed out by the publisher so we could always look to it and see the
“You are here” arrow. However, there is no such guide because real people have
lives, the industry changes overnight, and what sold two years ago (vampires,
anyone?) morphs into the newest bobble in the window (dystopian, anyone?).
Little did I know my family would have a medical setback during
those 22 months. Had the book come out during that period, I would probably
have no hair by now, but God knew.
So, don’t fret. Write. Write some more. Check periodically,
if needed, with your editor, agent, whoever. Then, write some more. Because you
know, once the book is out, and if it does well enough, the next question to
arise will be, “Do you have another submission ready to look at?”
That’s when it’s time for another dose of Contract.
A
Clandestine Mission.
A
Cryptic Message.
A
Chaste Promise.
Blake
Meyer dreamed of a peaceful end to a dutiful career with the FBI. Married now,
his life was taking him in a new direction—a desk job. He would be an analyst.
Ride it out until retirement. Be safe so he could enjoy his grandchildren some
day.
But when
a notable member of the IRA is murdered in a London flat, Blake’s secretive
past propels him into the middle of a vindictive, international scheme so
hellish and horrific, it will take everything Blake possesses—all of it—to save
the United States from the most diabolical terrorist attack to date.
C.
KEVIN THOMPSON is an ordained minister with a B.A. In Bible
(Houghton College, Houghton, NY), an M.A. in Christian Studies (Wesley Biblical
Seminary, Jackson, MS), and a M.Ed. in Educational Leadership (National-Louis
University, Wheeling, IL). He presently works as an assistant principal in a
middle school. He also has several years experience as an administrator at the
high school level.
A former Language Arts teacher, Kevin decided to put his
money where his mouth was and write, fiction mostly. Now, years later, Kevin is
a member of the Christian Authors Network (CAN), American Christian Fictions
Writers (ACFW), and Word Weavers International. He is the Chapter President of
Word Weavers-Lake County (FL), and his published works include two
award-winning novels, The Serpent’s Grasp
(Winner of the 2013 Blue Ridge Mountain Christian Writers Conference Selah
Award for First Fiction) and 30 Days Hath
Revenge—A Blake Meyer Thriller: Book 1, as well as articles in The Wesleyan Advocate, The Preacher, Vista,
The Des Moines Register and The Ocala
Star-Banner.
Kevin is a huge fan of the TV series 24, The Blacklist, Blue Bloods, and Criminal Minds, loves anything to do with Star Trek, and is a Sherlock Holmes fanatic, too.
Facebook: C. Kevin Thompson – Author Fan Page
Twitter: @CKevinThompson
Goodreads: C. Kevin Thompson
