After the Contract by Richard L. Mabry, M.D.

Richard L. Mabry, M.D.

You’re waiting for that first contract. You wait…and you wait… and you wait. Are there things you can do, other than writing, to make the time you spend more productive? You bet. Here are some lessons I’ve learned along the way.

Don’t be a one-trick pony. Agents and publishers don’t envision you as the author of just one book. They’re interested in your career as a writer. Even while you’re editing that first book, work on the second. Try to stay one book ahead. Editors will love you for it. And it doesn’t stop with a contract. My ninth novel of medical suspense has just been released, but the tenth is already written and edited, and I’m working on the eleventh.

Build a platform before you need it. A platform for a writer is a necessary marketing tool, and if you wait until you have a contract to build one, you’re already behind the curve. One agent defines “platform” this way: Non income-generating activity that fuels the income-generating activity. Interact with potential readers via blog, Twitter, Facebook, Goodreads—the options seem to grow daily—so that you’re building name recognition. That’s another name for “platform.”

Start marketing yourself. Marketing yourself, before people know about your book? Yes, because—face it—one way a debut author gets readers is because people recognize the name. If they like what they’ve seen of you, chances are you may get them to read your novel. And this is just something else in your favor when it comes to making agents and editors take notice of you.
Cultivate the guardians of the books. Make the acquaintance of librarians and bookstore managers. Let them know who you are. Leave a card. Offer to do a signing after your book is published. When your book does come out, give a signed copy to your local librarian. They are asked for recommendations all the time. Do the same for the bookstore managers you’ve already called on.

Spread your net. At my first writer’s conference, I was in awe of the published writers on the faculty. But as I got to know them, I discovered they were neat people, and I formed a number of lasting friendships. Later, many of those authors provided blurbs and endorsements for my books. I didn’t set out with that goal and neither should you, but it turned out to be a wonderful benefit of networking with other writers.

Keep going. Remember that one secret to publication is persistence. Hone your craft. Every sentence you write should be better than the last. I’ve been told that my current book, Miracle Drug, is my “best yet.” On one hand, I’m flattered. But part of me says, “Good, that’s what I want.” How about you?

So that’s my advice. Don’t sit back and wait for results. While you’re waiting, work on these things. It will pay dividends in the end.

About the Author

Richard Mabry is a retired physician, author of “medical suspense with heart.” His novels have been a semifinalist for International Thriller Writers’ debut novel, finalists for the ACFW Carol Award, Inspirational Reader’s Choice, and Romantic Times’ Reader’s Choice Award, as well as winner of the Selah Award. Miracle Drug is his ninth published novel.

You can follow Richard online at RMabry.com, as well as on Twitter (@RichardMabry), and Facebook at RMabryBooks.

Miracle Drug
by Richard L. Mabry, M.D.

Miracle Drug
Overcoming these odds would take more than a miracle drug—it would take a miracle.

The infection wasn’t supposed to happen, but it did. The treatment was supposed to take care of it, but it didn’t. Dr. Josh Pearson believes an experimental drug not yet approved by the FDA may be the antidote. But there’s only one dose available for two patients: the former president of the United States… and Josh’s fiancé.

With the nation’s eyes on him, Josh must pull off a miracle to save a man who holds a good deal of power and the woman who holds his heart.

“Mabry has the uncommon ability to take medical details and make them understandable, while still maintaining accuracy and intrigue. He will leave you asking whodunit until the end.”—RT BOOK Reviews

A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To Fame And Fortune by Dr. Richard Mabry

Dr. Richard Mabry

What are your hopes and dreams for your writing career? Is your goal to receive contracts offering substantial advances? Maybe you envision shelves at the local book store filled with your novels. Today, Dr. Richard Mabry shares what he’s learned about prosperity while on his personal journey. 

~ Dawn

A Funny Thing Happened On 

The Way To Fame And Fortune

I didn’t set out to be an author. From childhood, my career goals were airline pilot, then professional baseball player, and finally physician. As I matured, I realized the first one was a fantasy, the second one highly unlikely (although I did play a bit of semi-pro baseball), while the third was what God had in mind for me. I didn’t realize God also planned for me to write, but events after the death of my first wife made that path clear to me.

In none of these did I have an ultimate goal of fame and fortune—well, maybe the baseball thing, but nothing since then. But when I got my first writing contract, the dreams began. At my first writer’s conference, I was awestruck by the published writers there. These were people whose names were household words—maybe not in my household, but I was just getting started, so I could be excused for not knowing all of them. But surely they were celebrities in their hometowns. Most certainly they had to stop and give autographs in the grocery store or dry cleaners. And undoubtedly they lived in the lap of luxury. After all, they were published authors!

Heart Failure is my sixth published novel, and I’ve long since decided that fame and fortune may find some authors, but not me. True a row of books with my name on the cover are spread across the shelf over my writing desk, but with each book release there are no cheering crowds outside my window, no marching bands in the street. A few folks at church might ask, “When’s your next book coming out?” but otherwise it’s pretty quiet around here. And fortune? Afraid not.

Although I haven’t become rich and famous, my words have been read by many more people than the population of the town where I grew up. If I’ve succeeded in my mission, when those readers turn the last page of my novel they find they’ve been left with a message—not a hard-sell of Christianity, because that’s just not my style, but rather a message that no matter how far we drift from God, we can always turn back to Him. I’ve been allowed to use the printed page as my pulpit. And that’s rich and famous enough for me.

                                                                                               

                                                                         ~Richard L. Mabry, MD

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Heart Failure

Heart Failure

When her fiancé’s dangerous secrets turn her world upside-down, a beautiful doctor must choose between her own safety and the man she loves—and thought she knew.

Dr. Carrie Markham’s heart was broken by the death of her husband two years ago. Now, just as her medical practice is taking off, her fresh engagement to paralegal Adam Davidson seems almost too good to be true . . . until a drive-by shooting leaves Carrie on the floor of his car with glass falling around her.

When he confesses that Adam isn’t his real name and that he fled the witness protection program, Carrie is left with an impossible choice: should she abandon the fiancé she isn’t sure she really knows, or accept his claim of innocence and help him fight back against this faceless menace?

Dr. Richard Mabry is a retired physician, past Vice-President of the American Christian Fiction Writers, and the author of six published novels of medical suspense. His books have been finalists in competitions including ACFW’s Carol Award and Romantic Times’ Inspirational Book of the Year, and his novel, Lethal Remedy, won a 2012 Selah Award. Richard’s medical thriller, Stress Test (Thomas Nelson), garnered rave reviews from Library Journal and Publisher’s Weekly. His latest novel is Heart Failure.

Richard’s website is http://rmabry.com. He blogs regularly at http://rmabry.blogspot.com . He can also be found on Facebook, Twitter, and Goodreads.

The Call and “The Call” by Richard L. Mabry, MD

Dr. Richard Mabry is the author of four published novels of medical suspense. His novel, Medical Error, was a finalist for this year’s Carol Award of the American Christian Fiction Writers. His latest book is Lethal Remedy. I hope you enjoy this inspiring post of how Dr. Mabry received The Call.

~ Angie

Writers talk about getting “the call.” For some, that’s the phone call (or email or letter) from an agent offering representation. For others, the call is one that extends a contract for publication. I’ve received both these calls, and I can’t tell you how wonderful and exciting they were. But they wouldn’t have come about had I not responded to an earlier and much more important call.

My road to writing began with a tragedy. Maybe yours did, too. Perhaps you lost your job and decided to fill those empty hours between interviews and resumés by starting the novel you always thought you had inside you. Or you found yourself with an empty nest and a broken heart, so you decided to write to take your mind off the loneliness. In my case, it was the death of my wife of forty years that provided the impetus for me to write.

After Cynthia’s death in 1999, one of the coping mechanisms I employed to combat depression was to journal. I laid out my feelings, bared my soul. Then I looked back at what I’d written, and wondered if I could turn this stack of raw journaling into a book that would help others. There was a problem, though. I had no idea how one went about writing a book. So, in 2003, I attended a Christian Writers’ Conference. That’s where I came under the influence of writers Alton Gansky and James Scott Bell, who inspired and encouraged me. An editor challenged me to try my hand at fiction, as well as non-fiction. And at the end of the conference, I got “The Call.” I emphasize this one, because it came from God. I knew, with the same certainty that I know my name, that my retirement from medicine was just a transition to another endeavor. I was to write.

In 2006, my non-fiction book became a reality with the publication of The Tender Scar: Life After The Death Of A Spouse. Fiction, on the other hand, was a different story. During four years spent learning the craft I produced four novels that were rejected a total of over forty times. Then, finally, I got “the call”—twice. Both came from agent Rachelle Gardner, the first offering representation and the second telling me I’d sold my first novel. But neither of those calls would have come had I not listened to The Call, the one God handed down to me at that conference.

My fourth novel, Lethal Remedy, has just been released, and I recently signed with Thomas Nelson Company for three novels of medical suspense. Of course, I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to share my stories with others, but I don’t want to lose sight of the reason I’m writing in the first place. I guess it’s best summed up in the last line of the Acknowledgement I wrote for my first novel: “When I retired from medicine, God opened another door and pointed me in the direction of writing. I have no idea what comes next, but I can hardly wait to find out. To Him be the glory.”