Write2Ignite

“Remember that ‘author’ is always a temporary job description . . . Your permanent job description is ‘writer’ and that’s what you are even when no one else is looking.” —Author Kristoper Jansma (quoted in Before and After the Book Deal, pp. 333)

Today’s publishing world offers a plethora of writing resources. A simple search for ‘writing’ on Amazon alone yields over 300,000 results, and that number doesn’t even begin to cover the host of blogs and magazines addressing the subject. However, even with the abundance of information that exists to help you land that first book deal, the question remains, what do you do when you get there? What is it really like publishing your first book? Courtney Maum’s Before and After the Book Deal gives writers an idea of what to expect during their first dive into the publishing world.

About the Book:

Before and After the Book Deal covers the publishing track almost step-by-step. As implied by the title, Courtney Maum walks her readers through concerns for prepublication all the way to life after their debuts. She gives a wide-range of both technical and personal advice.

For example, in the first section, you’ll find tips on the usual categories: developing voice, revision, and submissions. But you’ll also come across less-familiar topics. Tips for financial planning and questions about advances make an appearance, as well as a discussion of when it’s okay to call yourself a writer. Maum blends the nitty-gritty details about publishing with colorful advice from personal experience. She acknowledges the insecurities, jealousies, and bouts of ego that many authors face and gives tips to weather them.

Aside from Maum’s broad range of topics, her unique style makes the book special. Courtney Maum incorporates throughout interviews with editors, publishers, agents, and fellow authors. The balance of advice from experts in the field makes this book a treasure trove of helpful insight.

Unique in scope and style, Before and After the Book Deal is a gem in the world of writing resources.

My Three Main Take-Aways:

While this book provides a multitude of valuable insights, these are three general take-aways I found.

1: You’re not alone.

Writing, let alone publishing, can be isolating. It involves a lot of work, fears, and discouragement. There are days we feel insecure and fall victim to the comparison game. And sometimes, those struggles can make us doubt whether we’re cut out for this calling. But reading Maum’s book reminded me that many writers go through the same excitement and disappointments I face, and that’s encouraging. It’s encouraging to know that other people understand the doubts and stress that comes with writing, as well as the joys. As writers, we’re part of a community, even if we don’t always feel like it.

2: There’s a lot more to publishing than meets the eye.

Even though I’ve attended writing conferences, read books about publishing, and even helped produce a literary journal during college, this book was incredibly eye-opening for me. Maum talks about so many things I’ve never considered. How do audio-book rights work? How many copies do you have to sell for a publisher to consider it a success? What exactly is the criteria of a bestseller? Etc. Etc. I finished Before and After the Book Deal with a much greater appreciation for how much goes into publishing–and selling–a book.

3: At the end of the day, it’s the writing that matters.

Publishing involves so much non-writing activity. Interviews, social media platforms, book reviews, events–in all those extras, your identity as an author is incredibly public. But at the end of the day, that public face couldn’t exist without the quiet background writer. And that creative identity, that work that few people see, that place where we let our voice speak loudest, matters most. While others may have a million expectations for us as authors, we need to put our work as writers first. Before we ever consider publishing, we have to put the words on the page. And those words, the stories we have to tell, are where our core message resides.

Before the Book Deal by Courtney Maum is now one of my favorite writing resources. It’s informative, it’s relatable, and most of all, it helps me feel prepared to keep moving forward.

What are some of your favorite writing resources currently?

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Karley Conklin is a part-time librarian, part-time writer, and full-time bookworm. On her blog http://litwyrm.com/, she discusses all sorts of literature, from poetry to picture books. Her goal is to use the power of stories to remind others of hope and joy in a world that all too often forgets both. (You can connect with her on Instagram @karleyconklin )