 |
- Column - The Road to Publishing - |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
September 3 / 2000 Choosing A Genre:  Interview with bestselling romance author Patti BergBy Nancy Duncan The old adage write what you love bares repeating. However, that said, for many talented writers with a zest for the written word, finding a suitable genre to settle into can be as difficult as choosing between a Mercedes and a Porsche. The romance genre often gets a bad rap. How many times have you heard a fellow writer in reference to romantic fiction exclaim, "This looks easy. I could write one of these." Most romance writers will tell you, the romance genre isn’t an easy nut to crack when it comes to writing and publishing. Romantic titles such as The Notebook, Like Water For Chocolate, and The Bridges of Madison County received national attention and garnered the authors a sizeable following, not to mention hefty incomes. Yet beyond the bestseller list lies a slew of romance authors forging a path to success. Romance author Patti Berg says she always loved the romance genre. She feels writing a romance is fun but hard. Not as easy as it looks. Consider the following statistics from Romance Writers of America. It’s enough to make you want to take pen in hand considering the popularity of romance novels. Industry Statistics - These statistics were compiled by RWA from Book Industry Study Group and American Bookseller Association reports, and from tallies in Ingram’s catalogue of all book releases. - Romance fiction comprises 18% of all books sold (not including children’s books); - Romance fiction comprises 54.1% of all popular paperback fiction sold; - Romance fiction comprises 38.4% of all popular fiction sold. (Different from above, this figure includes not just paperbacks, but hardcovers as well.). To compare: - Mystery/Detective/Suspense is 25.9.9% of popular fiction sales; - General Fiction is 12.3% of popular fiction sales; - Science-fiction/Fantasy is 7.9% of popular fiction sales. - There were 2,218 romances released in 1999; - 60.5 % of romance titles released in 1999 were contemporary romances (with a setting after WWI); - 29.4% of romance titles released in 1999 were historical romances (pre-WWI settings); - 3.6% of the 1999 romance titles were paranormal romances (romances with a magical element, like fairies, time-travel, a futuristic setting or characters with special powers); - 6% of the 1999 romance titles were Inspirationals (romances with a strong Judeo-Christian theme and love scenes not graphically described). Source: RWA - compiled from Book Industry Study Group and American Bookseller Association reports, and from tallies in Ingram’s catalogue. Whether you’ve considered writing romance or mystery, the following advice shared by USA Today bestselling romance author Patti Berg during a recent interview provides an insightful glimpse into the world of publishing from a successful romance writer. NANCY DUNCAN - What can writers expect from working in the romance genre? PATTI BERG - One of the best parts about writing romance is the readership. Romance readers are the greatest bunch of people in the world. They're loyal to authors whose books they love. They know exactly when their favorite authors' next books are coming out and rush to buy them the second they hit the stores. They also send fan letters that can brighten your day when you've struggled to write a scene and you're ready to give up. The romance writing community is terrific, too. I don't know all that much about other genre writers, but romance writers stick together. They support each other in good and bad times. You can't ask for a better friend than a fellow romance writer. You can also expect a lot of competition because there are a ton of writers wanting to sell their first romance, and publishers do buy a lot of books from new writers. To keep getting published, you've got to work darn hard, day in and day out, to write a better book each time, to make the buying public happy, to increase your fan base, to build your name recognition. Publishers don't do all of this for you. You don't just write the book then sit back and assume it will sell. You have to market yourself - and that's not always an easy task for a writer. Romance writers create happily-ever-after stories. They may have elements of mystery in them, or ghosts, or intrigue. They might be full of angst or fun-filled romps. But if you're writing romance, you know you'll always have a happy ending - and what could be better than that. Should genre writers have an agent? If so, what does the agent provide - from your personal experience? I don't write series romance, so it's hard for me to comment much on this, but I've heard it said again and again that if you're writing series (category) romance, such as books for Harlequin and Silhouette, you don't need an agent. Contracts are quite often fairly set in stone, as are advances and royalties, so negotiation can be done directly by the author . Personally, I strongly recommend having an agent for any writer trying to get published in single title romance or in any other genre. A good agent knows the market, knows who's buying what, and can often get your book looked at sooner than you as an individual can. Good agents go to lunch with editors and other publishing professionals and make sure that your name is mentioned. As an author your job is to write. Yes you should know the ins and outs of contracts and you should know about the business, but you should have an agent to help market you. When it comes to negotiating, a good agent should know who's making what kind of money and should know what kind of deal she/he can get for you. What is the process for publishing a novel? How long does it take, from start to finish? I imagine the process is basically the same for all popular fiction but time frames might be different. As far as I know, the following is fairly typical for single-title romance. For a book that's already contracted for, once the completed manuscript is turned in, the editor reads the book and may or may not suggest revisions. If the editor wants revisions, the author is given a certain period of time to do rewrites - typically a few weeks to a couple of months. Once the rewrites are returned to the editor, she/he line edits the manuscript, making minor changes here and there. Then the manuscript goes to a copy editor who checks for spelling, consistency, things that don't make sense, etc. The copy editor also puts in the notes to the typesetter. Then the copy-edited manuscript goes back to the author for review and corrections. The manuscript then goes back to production and on to the typesetter. After that the page proofs (or galleys) go back to the author for another read-through. This is the last chance the author has to make corrections, and the author is usually allowed very few changes. From there the book goes to print. During this time the editorial, art and sales departments discuss titles, covers, marketing strategies, etc. The cover art is designed, which takes many months; the back cover copy is written; and sales materials are put together. Believe it or not, publishers start selling books to chain stores and wholesalers five or six months before the book is released. I honestly don't know all the ins and outs of the production end, but it's usually nine months to a year from the time a completed manuscript is turned in until the book hits the bookstores. If you're a brand new author and you've just sold your first book, a lot of times you're looking at eighteen months to two years before your book is released. Who gets what kind of advances and why? Should most writers keep their day job? Advances for romance books can run from $500 on up, to possibly a million - this is a guess on my part - depending on the publisher, the author's track record, the publisher's perception of how much they can make on the book, and the power of the author's agent to negotiate. In most cases, a writer isn't going to get rich on their first book. In most cases, writers will never get rich. A few do. Some are able to make a good living from advances and royalties. Others struggle. Some fail or just give up. Naturally, the authors making the most money are those who consistently sell well. Take a look at the New York Times list. Nora Roberts is always there. She has worked extremely hard at her craft. She has name recognition. She consistently writes good books - and a lot of them. She's also been in the business quite a while and has worked her way to the top. Go to any large chain book store and take a look at the bookshelves. If you see a whole lot of titles by the same author, chances are that author's doing fairly well. These authors are writing what people want to read. And that, in a nutshell, is how writers succeed - they're writing what people want. As for your last question, my recommendation is, "Don't quit your day job" - especially if you're writing romance. Sure, some authors might pop right off the bat and be offered a lot of money, but you don't hear those success stories too often. Publishing is a roller coaster business. An author could be popular one year and disappear from the bookshelves the next. You may write five good books, get great reviews - but if the books aren't selling well, your publisher might not offer another contract. Then you're back on the streets looking for someone else to publish your books. So, keep your day job. I read an article the other day where an author recommended that you should make twice your "real job" salary before you quit and become a self-employed novelist. Remember that you're going to be paying an agent approximately 15%. Self- employment taxes add up, too. If you have to pay your own medical insurance, that takes a big chunk out of what you earn. And don't forget - you're not getting a check every week or every month. What insider advice do you have for writers just starting out? Should a writer consider a genre? I think the best advice for anyone wanting to write with the hopes of selling is to read, read, read. Read new authors to see what publishers are buying. Read best-selling authors to see why they're successful. And definitely read a lot of books that are similar to what you want to write. Then, write, write, write - and make sure you polish what you've written. Don't pick a genre just because you think it will be easy to sell. Selling a book - whether mainstream or genre fiction - is not easy. What is the biggest mistake writers make? I don't know if this is the biggest, but if you're talking about unpublished writers, they often submit their manuscript before it's ready. New writers should take their time. They shouldn't dash off a manuscript and rush it off to a publisher. It's important for new writers - and those who've been around a while, too - to revise again and again if necessary. The manuscript should be polished and as good as it can be before it's sent off. What inside information has an editor revealed to you that would be helpful to other writers? Don't get hung up on rules. Rules all too often stifle a writer's creativity. If you spend all your time worrying about your writing being too passive, the fact that you're telling and not showing, or dozens of other similar rules - you'll never get your story written and if you do, your voice might sound cramped. Let the writing flow. Don't let your internal editor be too critical. Any final comments? The one thing that's really important for all writers to remember is that you should write because you love to write. When you sell your first book and start selling consistently, writing becomes a job. It's a hard job, too - stressful, full of hidden pressures, and it can take all your energy. Sometimes the only thing that keeps you going is your love of writing, of creating worlds, people, and stories that make you happy and provide others with hours of enjoyment. If you want to write because you think you're going to make a lot of money - think again. Write because you love to write. If the money comes to you later - that's just an added bonus. -- USA Today bestselling romance author Patti Berg released her first book Enchanted in 1994, and five subsequent novels published by Avon Books, a division of HarperCollins. Berg has been called "one of the best spinners of tales the genre has to offer," by Affaire de Coeur magazine and "an exceptional voice in the field of romantic fiction today," by Romantic Times. Her novels have received rave reviews, have been nominated for numerous Best Book of the Year Awards, and are consistently named Top Picks by Romantic Times. BRIDE FOR A NIGHT, released in May 2000, has been called "Charming, sexy and fun". She is currently working on two additional novels to be released in 2001. In addition to her writing career, Patti works part time as an energy analyst for the California Energy Commission in Sacramento. Patti lives in Folsom, California, with her husband Bob. Born to Be Wild - Avon Books - Coming in February 2001 Bride for a Night - Avon Books, May 2000 Wife for a Day - Avon Books, August 1999 Looking for a Hero - Avon Books, December 1998 For more on Patti Berg, visit her web site at: http://www.pattiberg.com |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||