Carol Cooper: Making your self-published book as good as it can be

Who wouldn’t like to make their book as good as it can be? We welcome Carol Cooper to the blog to tell us how it can be done.

I’m delighted to brag that my second novel, Hampstead Fever, finds itself in bookstores alongside the

best in the business - right next to David Nicholls on a table in Waterstones, and in a front-of-store promotion in WH Smith travel shops.

People often ask me how that can happen to a self-published book. My answer? Produce a book that won’t disgrace itself in such company.

Compared with my current novel, my fiction debut One Night at the Jacaranda should have hung its head in shame and quietly slunk out of the back door when I first published it in late 2013. Its cover alone exposed it as a gate-crasher into the publishing party. I’d imagined that a photo of red suede heels, accompanied by a lipstick tossed nonchalantly onto a carpet, would scream, “Sexy story about relationships”. In reality it screamed, “Amateur!” As did a lot of the contents, because I had also made poor editing choices.

I can distil much of what I’ve learned since then into half a dozen tips.

Tip 1. Self-publishing doesn’t mean doing it all yourself.

It can be a solo operation, but just because something’s possible doesn’t make it a good idea. To look professional, a book needs professional editing and proof-reading.Yes, beta readers can help shape a manuscript, but it’s almost impossible to edit your own work. Shop around before you commit to an editor or proof-reader. Many of them will gladly mark up a short sample of MS to give you an idea of their work.

Tip 2. Whether you’re indie or not, always check the page proofs yourself.

I see no end of trade-published books with elementary mistakes, but publishing is not what it was, and a lot more work is farmed out, with fewer people around to take the time to check its quality. The reality is that anyone can miss things. After no fewer than three proof-reads, my Hampstead Fever still had four typos. But I had the luxury of another print run for the WH Smith promotion, so went back and got rid of them.

Tip 3. Be realistic about your abilities.

A great cover is possible using Createspace or other templates, but it’s a lot harder, especially if, like me, you have no discernible artistic talent. That’s why I commissioned a professional designer for the cover of Hampstead Fever, as well as for the reissue of my first novel. I’m thrilled with what Jessica Bell came up with. Even then, however, it took a few goes to get right. Apparently I’m fussy (who knew?). The final cover is a little different from most contemporary fiction or romance, but it’s eye-catching, suggests a summer read, and is a good indicator of what’s inside.

Tip 4. The book must look and feel like a quality product.

Print-on-demand can be excellent, but, if you want your book to be up to publishing industry standards, then think about paying a bit more. I used Clays, who’ve been printing in Bungay, Suffolk, since long before I was born. Established over 200 years ago, Clays print some 170 million books a year, including those for leading publishers, and luckily they now offer short-run printing that doesn’t break the bank. Spend a little time deciding on the format of the book, the type of paper, and the finish of the cover. Maybe you even want to add a little bit of embossing or foil to the front? They’re far from essential, but many popular fiction covers now have these embellishments.

Tip 5. Be obsessional about how it’s shaping up along the way.

This book is your baby so of course you love it and think it’s wonderful, but try to be objective about its flaws. If you’re trade-published, work closely with your editor as much as you possibly can, and be open. One of my recent non-fiction books had several style inconsistencies and other annoyances, plus I didn’t think the doctor pictured on the cover should be shown wearing nail varnish. There’s always a way of expressing honest opinions in a pleasant manner. Or so I’m told. I just haven’t found it yet.

Tip 6. Keep learning.

A commitment to improvement is essential in making any book as good as it can be. That’s ultimately what helped me create something that could earn its place on a shelf of the best offerings from the Big Five.

And you can do that too.

About Carol:

Hybrid author Carol Cooper is best known as a doctor, journalist, and president of the Guild of Health Writers. She contributes to The Sun newspaper, broadcasts on TV and radio, and has a string of trade-published non-fiction books to her name. Now she writes and publishes novels, the latest being Hampstead Fever, a contemporary tale of urban life.

Blurb for Hampstead Fever:

IN A LONDON HEATWAVE, EMOTIONS REACH BOILING POINT…

Ex-con Dan has it all. The perfect job and a new baby with his dream woman. So why is he still an outsider?

Laure had baby Jack late in life. It’s only natural she’s a little over-protective. Motherhood is terrifying.

After surviving serious illness, Sanjay’s got his life back. Now he wants adventure. Where does that leave girlfriend Harriet?

Karen’s love life is reduced to casual sex with the football coach. As a divorcee with four kids, romance is on her to-do list, just below the laundry.

Doctor Geoff’s relationship with actress Daisy is bound to be a bit dramatic. But why all the mystery?

A slice of contemporary multi-cultural London life to make you laugh, cry, and nod in recognition.

Links:

Facebook page: Carol Cooper’s London Novels

Blog: Pills & Pillow-Talk

Twitter: DrCarolCooper

Amazon author page: Carol Cooper

Hampstead Fever on Amazon: Hampstead Fever

Thank you for a most informative article, Carol. You’ve certainly given us some interesting tips. Good luck with your next publications. We will be watching with interest.

Would you like to write for the RNA blog? Contact us on elaineeverest@aol.com

Ask the Industry Expert: Literary Agent, Eve White

Welcome back to Helena Fairfax with another of her popular agent interviews.

I’m delighted to introduce literary agent Eve White, who has very kindly agreed to give up precious time to answer my soul-searching questions. Eve’s answers are thoughtful and in some cases surprising – as you will see!

Thanks for joining us today, Eve.

Please tell us a little about the Eve White Literary Agency, how long it’s been established, and how you came to set it up.

I was a drama director and actor for 25 years and during that time I wrote many plays. I had always

thought that running my own business was something I’d be good at and one day I decided to give it a go. I didn’t tell anyone, I just said to myself, ‘I want a business that I can run from home that has a strong creative element.’ A few weeks later, a friend gave me a manuscript to read. I gave him some editorial suggestions and he asked me to be his agent. Just like that - out of the blue. So that was it! I got started and never looked back. At the time, he was self-publishing the first of a series and I realised that what he really needed was someone to do his sales, marketing and PR. I took the book to the head of sales at Waterstones and got it into the nationwide 3 for 2 promotion. We sold so many copies in the first three months that it wasn’t difficult to get interest from mainstream publishers. My first deal was done after a three-way auction.

 I found living off my own wits enormously satisfying. If a bill dropped through the letterbox and I had no means to pay it, I would just say to myself, ‘something will turn up.’ I worked very hard and something did always turn up. After being pushed and pulled around Britain and Europe at the whim of directors and producers, it was wonderful to be in charge of my own life again. And knowing what it was like to have an agent was very useful – I knew what it was like from the other side.

 Being a literary agent gets me up every morning. I am still extremely motivated by it 13 years later and have negotiated contracts for 330 books, many of which have been published abroad – some into over 30 territories. Many of these books have been or will be adapted for TV and film.

What do enjoy most about your job? And least?

I really love a bidding war but I think what gives me most joy is calling a debut author and telling them I have had an offer from a publisher.

 I have been struggling to come up with something I don’t like. I’ve even consulted my assistant and we still can’t come up with anything.

What is it you are looking for when a manuscript lands on your desk? Are there any specific plots or themes you’d like to see?

I would never ask for specific plots or themes or I’d be seeing them all the time and what I really want is something unique. I say to clients that they should never try to write for the market. I say, ‘Write what you are burning to write, what you cannot resist writing and write it from the heart.’

 When reading submissions I try to imagine that I have picked this book off the shelf in Waterstones. As a customer I’d be saying to myself, ‘Is this a story I can get lost in and am intrigued by? Will I find it hard to put down? And, if so, would I push it into the hands of a friend?’ If it makes me laugh or cry, all the better.

Do you ever find authors outside the slush pile? If so, how?

We make a point of keeping in touch with as many writing organisations as we can. We get the anthologies from all the creative writing courses and we go to their launch parties.

 This is how we found Jane Shemilt, whose debut, Daughter, became the bestselling debut published in the UK in 2014.

 Paul Cooper (River of Ink, Bloomsbury Jan 2016) did an MA in creative writing at the University of East Anglia. This is a stunning novel about a poet who is in love with his servant, whom he is teaching to write.

 It takes a lot of hard work to develop the skill of novel writing and the more help a writer can get, the better.

What advice would you give someone submitting to you?

We receive 10,000 submissions a year from hopeful writers and invite a small percentage of these to submit full manuscripts. It isn’t worth burning your bridges with agents by sending a very early draft.

Write, rewrite, polish, get editorial feedback from a college or writing group and submit your work to me when it’s the best it can be.

We will then work editorially to help you improve it, so that by the time we submit it to publishers it has the best possible chance of being accepted.

Do you think romance writing has a negative image? If so, why? And what can romance authors do to counteract it?

A new generation of readers is coming along and how they conceive of what is romantic could be quite different.  Most female readers now see themselves as stronger and more in control of their lives than the protagonists of traditional romance novels. Readers often need more than the satisfaction of the lead character winning her man; I like to have an element of mystery or some kind of suspense to keep me turning the pages. There is a huge trend for psychological thrillers at the moment and they tend to have very interesting female leads. There seems to be an edginess to what’s popular at the moment.

What benefits do you feel an agent can offer an author?

This is endless but to summarise, I give my clients more time to write by looking after the business side of their careers. I can do better deals than they might be able to do for themselves. More time. More money. And time is money!

What’s your favourite romance novel of all time?

Pride and Prejudice

Apart from your own authors, which book have you enjoyed the most in the past twelve months, and why?

Fish Bowl by Bradley Somer – Ebury Press. A brilliant story about the isolation of modern living. One episode had me laughing and crying at the same time.

A Spool of Blue Thread by Anne Tyler – Vintage

The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy – Harper, Perennial. Each page is exquisite; there are sentences you have to read two or three times.

Five Star Billionaire by Tash Aw – Fourth Estate. Five fascinating and wildly different characters come together in contemporary China.

What do you like to do in your spare time?

My job involves a lot of sitting so I squeeze in a cycle ride most days and I try to do yoga once a week. Living in central London allows me to go to a lot of theatre and concerts. I love staying in a place by the cliffs in Norfolk and cooking for friends and family from whatever grows in the garden.

If you could describe your working day in just three words, what would they be?

NEVER

THE

SAME

It was great getting to know you through the RNA blog, Eve. I enjoyed your answers very much. And how lovely to dislike nothing at all in your job! Thank you very much for taking the time to join us.

About Helena:

Helena Fairfax writes contemporary romance novels, and sometimes branches out into romantic suspense when she’s in the mood for danger. Her latest release is The Scottish Diamond, a contemporary romantic suspense novella set in the wonderfully mysterious and romantic city of Edinburgh. The Scottish Diamond is now available for pre-order on Amazon.

Thank you, Helena and Eve for a most interesting interview.

The RNA blog is brought to you by,

Elaine Everest & Natalie Kleinman

If you would like to write for the blog please contact us on elaineeverest@aol.com

Mandy Baggot Loves Digital!

Mandy Baggot doesn’t just love writing romance. She loves the digital age that facilitates spreading the word. This is what she has to say:

As a reader I enjoy lapping up new books in any medium I can get my sticky hands on them in! Kindle, Kobo, Sainsbury’s e-books – I have accounts with them all. The Works, Waterstones, WH Smith – I’m a browser and a sucker for a cover I can fondle.

But, as a writer, I’m currently riding much higher with my latest romantic comedy, Truly Madly Greekly in the digital arena.

So what’s so great about digital publishing?

1)      Fast

It doesn’t take as long to prepare and publish an e-book. This doesn’t mean the novel doesn’t go through a rigorous editing process (I’m going through one of those right now!) but digital done right can cut down the process by months.

2)      Flexible

You can make amendments quickly and easily – change the cover, add bonus content at a later date etc. You can also jump on trends as they occur. This might be getting something into the marketplace quickly to hit on a special event – a tennis romance in time for Wimbledon, a gardening tale for the Chelsea Flower Show, athlete heroine for the next Olympics etc.

3)      Price

Digital publishing doesn’t have a lot of the costs involved with traditional paperback publishing. You can offer books at a more competitive rate to readers and still make money.

4)      Ride the electronic wave

More people that ever own tablets for entertainment and recreation. You don’t have to have a specific e-reader to read digital books – any tablet, smartphone or P.C. has the capability to download a free app to read books on. Some people are becoming readers for the first time because it’s cheap, convenient and accessible.

5)      New writer opportunities

Since Kindle Direct Publishing was born, more and more storytellers are taking the plunge and getting their work into the marketplace. Self-publishing and digital publishing have let authors take much more control over their work and I’m embracing that!

Writing and reading have never been hotter and I say, long may it continue.

About Mandy:

Mandy Baggot is an award-winning romantic fiction author, writing hot heroes and emotional reads. She is represented by Kate Nash of The Kate Nash Literary Agency.

In 2012 she won the Innovation in Romantic Fiction award at the UK's Festival of Romance and has since scooped Top Ten Reads/Book of the Year places from a number of UK book bloggers.

Traditionally published by US publisher Sapphire Star, Harper Collins' digital first romance imprint, Harper Impulse, and most recently, digital fiction specialists, Bookouture, a great story is never far from her fingertips!

A contributor to writing blogs and short story anthologies, Mandy is also a regular speaker at literary festivals, events and women’s networking groups.

Mandy loves mashed potato, white wine, country music, World's Strongest Man, travel and handbags. She has appeared on ITV1's Who Dares Sings and auditioned for The X-Factor.

Mandy is a member of the Romantic Novelists' Association and the Society of Authors and lives near Salisbury, Wiltshire, UK with her husband, two daughters and cats, Kravitz and Springsteen.

Links:

Website

Amazon UK

Amazon US

Twitter

Facebook

Thank you, Mandy, for joining us today and giving us such a comprehensive explanation.

The RNA blog is brought to you by  

Elaine Everest & Natalie Kleinman 

If you would like to write for the RNA blog please contact us on elaineeverest@aol.com

Two Upcoming Events - London and Norwich - Saturday 10th Ocotber

If you're in the London area this Saturday, 10th October, four romantic novelists: Juliet Archer, Jean Fullerton, Janet Gover and Victoria Connelly will be talking about heroes, heroines and writing those love scenes at Waterstones in The Chimes, Uxbridge (Piccadilly and Metropolitan lines) between 2 - 4pm.Victoria and Janet have stories in the LOVES ME, LOVES ME NOT anthology and will be signing this alongside their own books on the day.

Also on October 10th Fenella-Jane Miller will be in The Forum at Norwich selling books, along with four other East Anglian authors. She will also be informally launching her ninth Regency for Robert Hale, TWO GENTLEMEN FROM LONDON, which is released on 30th October. If you are in Norwich that Saturday please come stop by and say hello.