My debut novel, Shock and Awe, came out two weeks ago. My friends had warned me that not much really happens on pub date (unless you are JK Rowling) except that your books get moved from the back of the shop out onto the shelves…if the bookstore employees get around to it. (Pub date isn’t nearly as much fun as holding your advance author’s copies in your hand for the first time.)
There were even less fireworks for me than usual, as I live in California, but my book is being published in the UK. (If you really care how this odd situation came about, there’s an interview that explains it.)
Nonetheless, friends in the UK have been reporting sightings and sending photos. The book seems to be doing well. It’s on the shelves in the Waterstones and Borders chains, as well as being sold by indies like Goldsboro and Foyles. A first-edition dealer has sent me boxes of copies to sign. And Pan has decided to publish a mass-market paperback version a year hence.
So, it’s been fun, even long-distance. And I’d like to thank the folks at this forum for all the support and advice and encouragement.
But, you know what? Those old hands around here who tell you it’s all about the writing, not about the business end? Turns out they’re right. Getting published is satisfying. But it’s not half as satisfying as writing the book in the first place.
So maybe I should shut up and get back to work now.
There were even less fireworks for me than usual, as I live in California, but my book is being published in the UK. (If you really care how this odd situation came about, there’s an interview that explains it.)
Nonetheless, friends in the UK have been reporting sightings and sending photos. The book seems to be doing well. It’s on the shelves in the Waterstones and Borders chains, as well as being sold by indies like Goldsboro and Foyles. A first-edition dealer has sent me boxes of copies to sign. And Pan has decided to publish a mass-market paperback version a year hence.
So, it’s been fun, even long-distance. And I’d like to thank the folks at this forum for all the support and advice and encouragement.
But, you know what? Those old hands around here who tell you it’s all about the writing, not about the business end? Turns out they’re right. Getting published is satisfying. But it’s not half as satisfying as writing the book in the first place.
So maybe I should shut up and get back to work now.
Congratulations on getting published. I hope your book sells millions of copies.
Best of luck in the future!! Fireworks or not, it's a brilliant thing. I know it's your first published book, but is it your first novel as well?
