On Wednesday, April 9, the
Orangeville Library hosted Adrienne Kerr who gave a free lecture to a large audience in
the library basement. Ms. Kerr is Commissioning
Editor of Commercial Fiction at Penguin Group (Canada) where she acquires
mystery, suspense, adventure, women’s and historical novels. She has worked
with Stuart McLean, Jack Whyte, Robert J. Sawyer, Pauline Gedge, R. Scott
Bakker, Keith Ross Leckie, Suzanne Desrochers, and DJ McIntosh. She is also
good friends with Nancy Frater at BookLore.
She spoke to us about how she became
Commissioning Editor. Before joining Penguin’s editorial team, she worked in
Penguin’s sales department and won the Canadian Booksellers’ Association Sales
Representative of the Year Award in 2009. She has also worked as a book buyer
for a large North American retailer, and as an independent bookseller in
Toronto.
While Ms. Kerr spoke a little about
working with Robert J. Sawyer about his writing process. He writes one book per
year spending 2-3 months on research, 2-3 months on a first draft, 3-4 months
doing revisions and rewrites, and the remainder of the year on promoting his
works. As he travels, he writes his novels focusing on ghettoized sci-fi novels
with ethical or philosophical dilemmas.
Ms. Kerr spoke at
length about publishing in Canada and stressed that "no one is in
publishing or book selling to get rich." There are small margins and no job
security. In her job, she has to be aware of what booksellers want to sell and
what readers want to read. The current market is turbulent with the flood of
self-published novels taking a large share of the market from regularly
published books. Although if a self-published book gains a large readership, it
can attract a traditional publisher.
She
went on to talk about how we as writers should pitch to agents and publishers.
Most importantly--read their websites and follow their guidelines! Learn who
they are, what they do, where they work, and what acquisitions they have
already made. If they seek romance novels and you write sci-fi, move on. One of
the best ways to create a short list of agents/publishers to research and
submit to is by looking at the covers and dedications in the books you love to
read. Writers always thank their editors and agents.
A
good place to research agents and publishers is on the Publisher's Marketplace
website. The site tracks all book deals since 2000 and offers a "Deal
Tracker" section.
How to pitch the agent/publisher: there
are a few things you need to know in drafting your query letter. One is what
type of pitch sentence or paragraph you want to use. You will likely need to
submit a pitch in your query letter, a few sample chapters (the first 3 is a
general number), and a summary of your book (or what will appear on the back
cover of your novel.
a)
a "what if"/"so what" type sentence - these are 25 words or
less and convey the major plot line, protagonist and emotional tone of the
book.
b)
Hollywood style - a mix of two other books, such as Hunger Games meets Jaws.
c)
blurb on the back of a book cover stating the hero, his goal, why, and what's
stopping him.
Craft your pitch before writing your
novel and keep in mind that as you write, your pitch will need to be revised
and edited. When you are done writing the novel, have your beta readers read
both the pitch and the novel to see if they line up.
Many writers think they simply have
to write the book and send it to an agent then they can move on to the next
project while everyone else markets and promotes your book. Nothing could be
farther from the truth! First of all, you have to promote yourself and know
your market in order to even get an agent/publisher. Your comparisons to other
books and authors should be realistic. Compare yourself to mid-list, solid
authors in your genre and understand your genre.
If your day job or hobbies relate to
your books, add that in your pitch letter. Sell yourself as well as your ideas.
In order to market your published book, you need an online presence. Social
media (Facebook, Twitter, Linked In, Pinterest, etc) are a huge asset. Have an
active blog and website. Join reading groups, writing groups, Good Reads, and
so on.
When you find an editor who likes
your info and your novel, they pitch it to the board at their company and use
your info to sell your book to be published and later for marketing and
publicity. If you've submitted to an agent, the agent uses your info to pitch
your book to publishers.
Should you use a pseudonym? Perhaps.
That is a personal choice. If you write more than one genre, you may want to
use a pseudonym for one of them. If you have a bad track record with published
books, using a pen name can give you a fresh start.
While going through and doing edits,
keep in mind the 80/20 rule. Give 80% of the information to your reader, but
leave 20% to the imagination.
Writers cannot copyright and idea,
just the expression of the idea.
Short story collections are hard to
sell unless they are extraordinary.
Happy writing!
