Oops! Important publications are moving at a cautious sloth’s pace, but I can finally announce that I have a publisher for my mystery novel. I’m so happy about it kensington book publishingNew York, New York picked up my book. It feels like a perfect fit. Although Kensington is not an “indie” or one of the “big five” publishers such as Simon Schuster or Random House, it has an excellent reputation and publishes many mysteries and thrillers. They said they liked the script and theme, and as expected, I’ll be working with editor Wendy McCurdy to polish it before publication. We won’t know how far-reaching the proposed revisions will be until the end of the month or early November, but the process should go smoothly. I’m already working on novel #2 (yes, it’s a series with the same characters) and hope to get that going this fall.
That’s good news. The bad news is that it won’t be released until February or March of 2026. I know, but forever, right? That’s undoubtedly the fault of the New York publishers. Did I say something earlier about things moving slowly? But a late winter/early spring pub date in 2026 is actually more likely than the alternative, where two years after being accepted is common in the industry. Excellent. Even though I kept repeating, “Do they know how old I am?” (I’m almost 76 years old) multiple times, it’s the earliest it’s announced.
I accept the process. It felt very long. I completed the “final” draft in mid-January and sent it to my list of editors from my agent in late spring. “We just love X, but we have a problem with Y,” “We just love Y, but we just can’t get over X,” and many other (expected) I received some rejections, but ended up getting two offers. ” I’ve been told this by friends in the industry, given how many manuscripts flood the offices of national publishers, and how difficult it is to get fiction published.
I’m getting closer to the autograph session “Hybrid” publisher and little creek presslocated in Mineral Point, Wisconsin. In addition to loving the team led by Kristin Mitchell, this type of printing company is much more nimble than traditional publishing. It’s a “hybrid” because it’s similar to self-publishing (you have to pay for it), but it’s not vanity print. They carefully scrutinize all submissions and select only those of the highest quality. After many people’s advice, I ultimately chose Kensington (due to its ability to get attention for books), but if you are a Wisconsin-based author or theme author, you can read more about them. I highly recommend consulting Little Creek to learn.
Writing a fiction book is a very strange thing. solitude and community. I started writing this novel in 2019, collaborating with Susannah Daniels. Madison Writers Studio In the early stages. (She was amazing!) During the first year of the pandemic, when I felt like all of my energy was going into staying alive, I just let it go. (Have I already forgotten to wipe down all the groceries in my garage with bleach?) Picked it up over a year later, worked on it sporadically until 2023, and finished by the end of the year. I promised to do it. As with any good novel, that meant days spent writing alone in my study, but it also meant a feast of advice and feedback from friends, other writers, and agents. No matter how much you read, it’s not clear how long you’ll be writing, rewriting, and rewriting (which feels endless). And how much you rely on feedback from your friends. I’m especially grateful for my agent, who is a great writer herself, my group of friends entitled “Driftless Mystery Advisory Covey,” and my monthly collaboration with NYT bestselling author and genius author Cat Warren. It’s a meeting. What dogs know.
It’s not clear how much time and thought went into it. Enter each sentence. Like any other field, the art of writing involves far more effort and thought than is obvious from the outside. For example, consider the first sentence of this blog. I wrote:
“nevertheless important publication move at the speed of cautious sloth . . . “
Hmm, maybe you like the phrase “”? . .Major publisher?’ But what does that mean? Is a “New York-based” publisher better? I’m not sure it adds much. What about “?” . . Traditional publisher? ” But what does that mean for someone who isn’t in this industry? I think I’ll stick with “big time.” At least for today. If this was in the novel, I would think about it and watch it again tomorrow.
What do you think? “…cautious sloth?” Hmm, can I make it better? I like “sloth”, but is there a better word than “cautious”? A sedated sloth? Well, I think I like the alliteration. Now, the editing is complete. Great writers do this for every word in the book, as well as adjusting plot, voice, tone, character development, and more. A good book goes through multiple drafts, endless attempts to weed out unnecessary words (adjectives are the enemy), and sometimes significant changes in voice, plot, or characters. As I said, “The great thing about fiction is that anything can happen, but the scary thing about writing fiction is that anything can happen.” Having endless options doesn’t necessarily mean it’s easy. Not.
What I learned from writing novels It’s difficult and a lot of fun. It feels like a long way off before my first attempt comes true, but I’m incredibly excited. But there’s a lot to do in the meantime, including fixing line edits, proofreading the final version, working with the publisher’s art department on the cover, and helping create a marketing strategy. (We are given an “author survey” that says something like, “Please provide contact information for everyone on God’s green earth who can help us promote this book.”)
So. this is than that (See what I did there?) Long-winded. My first novel has a publisher!;” Please excuse my excitement.
Meanwhile back at the farm: The month-long black mold garage redo extravaganza has finally come to an end. Jim and I spent the morning working together on ‘a testament to joy and creativity. Farm/Art DT Tour Located west of Sauk City, Wisconsin, it is subtitled “Where Artists Explore the Timeless Connections between Land and People.”
My favorite is something called “preserved.”The Preserve, whose walls are made of 1,000 canning jars, each containing a photo of a creature that lives in the Driftless region, and the Preserve, a tribute to Aldo Leopod and his conservation ethic. It has a double meaning. wonderful.
Next on the amazing list “There Be Dragons” is built on the irrigation “pivot pipe” system that operates in fields around here.
Jim provides a scale here.
I went again a week later, When we first arrived, the Witwen food fair wasn’t open yet, so it was last Saturday. Hmm. These are the hot guys from the taco tent who did magic with pork tacos.
We then set off for a one-day trial Hosted by Shannon Wolf and the Good People in Genoa City legacy of magic outside the city of Genoa as part of the American Cattle Breeders Association. It was so much fun. The course was completely different from the usual border collie trials. There were no long outruns or cross drives, but there were plenty of Maltese cross-like obstacles to load into trailers and standard-type pens and move around on your own. “bridge. “Skip and I had a ball and he got high on the trial. (Note: Trials are small and have a lot of beginners. Skip is instructed to keep his head at normal size.) What I was most happy about was the fact that he gave me a push, something he hadn’t shown before. I’ve been working hard and he looked good in that regard. yay!
I showed him the ribbon, He tried to eat them but looked at me as if I had pimped him. The best part was that the organizers let me work at Maggie’s “exhibition only”. She will be 12 in January and we just found out she has stage 2 kidney failure (see how I buried the lead). Our running was pretty sloppy (for me), but she had the ball and did really, really well. I was so happy to have her try it out. Here they are completely confused as to why I called them to sit and stay for no reason.
There will be another trial in two weeks. In the same place. I think it will be a lot of fun. Below are some of the decorations already prepared for “Stocktoberfest”.
In the meantime, Good luck from your new editor. Let’s hope the weather continues for the final test of the season. And most importantly, without a doubt, we continue to send our love and whatever support we can to those whose lives have been disrupted following the hurricane. Give your dog a sloppy kiss and hold him close to your chest.
