Writers in the Storm

Heather Webb

As a novice writer, especially one in search of an agent, we swallow every writing and industry rule hook, line, and sinker. It’s understandable when we’re dying to get our foot in the door. And sure, most of those standards exist for a reason, but those books that break out, usually SHATTER the laws of fiction.

I’ve stomped all over plenty of rules myself. For example--

MY FIRST NOVEL WAS NOT A TRUNK NOVEL: I’ve heard this about a million times from so many sources: teachers, writers, agents. The advice out there says to write a novel, (or 500,000 words worth of manuscripts), and stash those books in a drawer because those words are sub-par. Your craft is sure to be riddled with newbie mistakes and a total p.o.s. in the plot and structure department. But that may or may not be true. The very first novel I ever wrote was agented and published. In my case, I refused to put that book away until I GOT IT RIGHT. Granted, I rewrote that bad boy about a million times, but it can be done. It HAS been done. Don’t let that rule scare you. Do the work and be tenacious!

I WROTE A HISTORICAL IN FIRST PERSON: Gasp! There’s a lot of shuddering when that happens among the literarti and historical fiction crowd. “Serious fiction”, after all, is written in third person, or so I’ve been told over coffee from a “friend” with an elegant sneer on his face (and plenty of “experts” in literature). Also not true. I could list a dozen wonderful historicals off the top of my head that were written in first person, or a dozen wonderful novels in other categories including GONE GIRL, among many others. This rule is a ridiculous assertion. All POVs have their limitations and issues. If it suits your story, press on!

I SKIPPED TIME PERIODS: My first novel took place during the French Revolution and for my second novel, I fast-forwarded in time an entire century to the Belle Époque era. This is another thing frowned upon, as many historical novelists conquer an era and become the expert of that time. I, on the other hand, relish the challenge and excitement of discovering new eras, people, events. (Or maybe I’m a glutton for punishment and need to STEP AWAY from the research books.) The other issue with jumping ahead is that publishers like to group your books by theme and dates. In any case, I blew the lid off that one.

I TOSSED ASIDE BIOGRAPHICALS, GOING ALL-FICTION: My first two novels are biographical fiction and not because it was a trend or because they were someone’s wife or lover. I just happened to love the two women I wrote about for a million reasons. Now, I find myself in uncharted territory. I’m going all fiction in a historical setting. Am I nervous? Sure. Is it a risk? Definitely. But I refuse to be pigeonholed into a narrow category if it doesn’t jive with my vision. If a publisher doesn’t buy my next book, then what, you ask? The answer is simple. I’m a writer. I write another book because I MUST. My need to write is a sickness and a cure all in one. I’ll carry on, quill in hand.

Are we seeing a theme here?

Publishers need to take a risk themselves—go out on a limb and invest in a book—and beautiful writing will tempt them to do so. Write your books. Make them beautiful. Follow your vision and your instincts. At the end of the day, we’re individuals and what’s so dadgum amazing about books in the first place is how they are all so different, and more importantly, how they bring up questions of human nature which challenge us to change, evolve, and revolt if necessary. So buck the system.

MAKE YOUR OWN RULES.

What rules have you broken, for better or worse?

About Heather

Heather Webb writes historical novels for Penguin and HarperCollins,which have been translated to three languages and have been featured in the Wall Street Journal, Cosmopolitan magazine, France magazine, and Reuters News Book Talk. BECOMING JOSEPHINE follows the life and times of Josephine Bonaparte set to the backdrop of the French Revolution, and RODIN’S LOVER released Jan 27th, chronicles the passionate and tragic story of Camille Claudel, sculptor, collaborator, and lover to the famed Auguste Rodin. A FALL OF POPPIES releases in 2016.

Heather is also a freelance editor and contributor to award-winning writing sites WriterUnboxed.com and RomanceUniversity.org. She is a member of the Historical Novel Society and the Women’s Fiction Writers Association.

Twitter: @msheatherwebb

 

Susan Spann

Welcome back to the #PubLaw negotiation mini-series here at Writers in the Storm!

My last guest post took a look at the difference between Zero-Sum and Mutual Benefit negotiation strategies, and explained why it’s better to approach contract negotiations from a mutual-benefit point of view.

Today we move on to the nuts and bolts—specifically, how to prepare for a successful negotiation.

SUCCESSFUL NEGOTIATIONS REQUIRE PLANNING

Negotiation requires more than simply preparing a random (or even numerical) list of the contract provisions you want (or want to change). Approaching the negotiation with a plan increases the likelihood of a successful outcome.

STEP 1: Read the contract and make a list the points you want to negotiate or change.

This might sound simple, but reading the contract (or, if appropriate, the offer) is vital. It’s not enough to read a summary of terms or skim the document for the royalty rates and advance amount (if any). You need to read—and understand—the document as a whole in order to decide which parts you can live with and which will require negotiation.

STEP 2: Prioritize your list of requested changes.

All contract terms are not created equal. Some deal points are more important than others—for authors as well as for publishers. Review the contract terms you’d like to change, and rank them in one of three categories: “Deal Breaker,” “Important (but not mission critical),” and “Things to Ask For.” Here’s how you rank them:

• “Deal breakers” are terms that an author must have to make a deal. If the publisher refuses to reach appropriate contract terms on these issues, the author is prepared to walk away from the contract.

For example: copyright ownership. If the contract attempts to transfer copyright ownership to the publisher, or doesn’t contain a clear, unambiguous statement that copyright in the work belongs to the author alone, the author should walk away from the contract.

• “Important” terms are just what they sound like: things the author truly wants changed, but which (at least individually) won’t cause the author to take her ball (or book) and go home if the publisher refuses to make the change.

Examples include: ownership of Film and TV rights (typically, the author should retain them), escalating royalties (increases in the percentages when book sales hit stated thresholds), and the number of royalty-bearing sales required to trigger the “out of print” termination rights.

• “Things to Ask for” are wish-list items, worth a quick request but also worth letting go if the publisher says no. For example: the right for the author to audition to narrate the audiobook version of the work. Nice, if you can get it, but not something that makes much difference in the long run.

STEP 3: Try to determine how the publisher will view your action items (and why).

Some contract terms are more important to publishers than others. Attempting to rank the list of changes from the publisher’s point of view will help you determine which items have the best (and worst) chances of getting changed. This, in turn, can help you prepare a strategy for the negotiation.

Items that require a change to the publisher’s business practices—for example, changes to royalty dates and sales statement contents—have a very low (read: nonexistent) chance of getting changed. Also, publishers rarely change the standard grant of rights—so be prepared for pushback if the rights are on the negotiation list.

STEP 4: Adjust your list, and your strategy, to accommodate the publisher’s potential concerns.

Whenever possible smart authors tailor the negotiation list in a way that makes the items as easy as possible for the publisher to accept.

As an example, let’s look at narration of audiobooks.

Sometimes, authors want the right to narrate the audio version of their books. However, publishers want high-quality, professional narration. The publisher may not know if the author has the skills to do the job, or if the licensee creating the audiobook will allow the author to narrate. Because of this, the publisher may hesitate to guarantee narration rights in the contract.

Instead, the author should ask for the right to audition to narrate the audiobook. This gives the author at least an opportunity to narrate the work, but lets the publisher “off the hook” if someone else does a better job at auditions (and getting the best possible narrator serves the author’s professional interests anyway).

Not all deal points are this easy to alter, but it’s worth the time to try and find a “meet in the middle solution,” either to offer at the outset or to use as a fallback position if the publisher refuses your initial request.

After you’ve read the contract, prepared your list, and considered the publisher’s perspective, it’s time for negotiations! I hope you’ll join me in August as we take a look at tactics for carrying out the negotiation itself, including helpful strategies for responding to acceptance—or denial—of your requests.

Did you prepare for your last negotiation (contract or otherwise)? How do you think preparation (or different preparation) would impact the result?

About Susan

Susan Spann writes the Shinobi Mysteries, featuring ninja detective Hiro Hattori and his Portuguese Jesuit sidekick, Father Mateo. Her debut novel, CLAWS OF THE CAT (Minotaur Books, 2013), was a Library Journal Mystery Debut of the Month and a finalist for the Silver Falchion Award for Best First Novel. BLADE OF THE SAMURAI released in 2014, and her third novel, FLASK OF THE DRUNKEN MASTER, releases on July 14, 2015. Susan is also a transactional attorney whose practice focuses on publishing law and business. When not writing or practicing law, she raises seahorses and rare corals in her marine aquarium. You can find her online at http://www.SusanSpann.com, on Twitter (@SusanSpann), and on Facebook (SusanSpannAuthor).

I wish I had a fix to give you that svelte summer look, but this blog has nothing to do with your body.

 The Backstory:

Last week I was talking with a friend who’s housesitting. Her vacationing friend called the first night and said, “You have to overnight my underwear tomorrow morning.”

My friend suggested just shopping for underwear, rather than pay to send lingerie to Maui. Her friend had checked out that option, but could not find a store that carried her brand of underwear. She wanted her own panties enough to pay $85 to have them arrive in two days.

Last year I flew to Laura Drake’s for some quality time before we drove to San Antonio for the RWA conference. When unpacking at Laura’s, I found I’d forgotten my newly-purchased fancy dress slacks. After Laura took the whip out of my hand (I’m very good at beating myself up) she took me shopping. I settled for reasonable substitutes.

A month later, on the way to Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands. I had a two-day layover with the friend I was going to travel with. We’d done this “layover” thing on other international trips to cross-pack and pick up last minute items, and it works well for us. The first morning I discovered I’d forgotten my morning protein powder. You can only buy this powder online.

She took me to Whole Foods, but I couldn’t find anything I’d used before. I called a friend at home and asked her to go to my house and overnight the bag I’d left on the counter.

An hour later I received a call from my friend. “Just buy another kind. It’s going to be almost two hundred dollars to send this.”

I didn’t care. I wasn’t going to chance a nasty-tasting breakfast, or worse, one that made me sick in the high Andes or on a little boat. I was willing to pay whatever it took for what I needed.

In your story, how far will your characters go to get what they need? 

By the middle of your WIP, you’ve established goals, motivation and conflict for your characters, but the brilliant plot may be stretched thin and your reader may have forgotten those goals and the motivation if you haven’t steadily ramped up the stakes. How do you fix those lackluster scenes?

Is there something that your hero needs before he can continue his quest? It could be something physical, like a new barbecue, or something visceral, like a chance to confront someone. What is he willing to pay, either in money, sweat or emotion, like pride? What a perfect place for conflict and decision-making to push your story forward or to get to the turning-point!

Maybe your heroine wants something badly enough to act in a way that takes your story in a whole new direction. That your reader didn’t see coming. Fantastic! In my last book, the heroine wanted to win an athletic competition. She wanted to win enough to accept the help of a person whom she looked down on, didn’t respect, and didn’t trust. That decision took the book in a whole different direction. Changed her life, too.

Can you introduce something into your story, even if it’s a just need for a latte, that becomes so important to your character that she is willing to do almost anything, spend much more than she rationally should, to get it?

The panties, or protein powder, you add don’t have to change your story, particularly if you’re just looking to fix that saggy middle. You could use a“quest” for satisfaction to inject a little humor into your story. You could even create conflict between characters. I’m sure you’ve been with a friend or a loved one who did not recognize your need for something and words became swords. Maybe now that episode is a source of laughter and funny stories, but at the time, you were fully engaged in the battle.

Finally, showing your character’s willingness to “go the distance” with something that others may consider inconsequential will make the actions of that character more believable when she fights for what she must have at the end of the book.

Do you have a story about something you had to have that you’re willing to share? Do you laugh about it now, or is it still a source of irritation (and teasing)? Can you think of a place in your WIP that could use panties or protein powder?  

ABOUT FAE

Fae Rowen discovered the romance genre after years as a science fiction freak.   Writing futuristics and medieval paranormals, she jokes  that she can live anywhere but the present.  As a mathematician, she knows life’s a lot more fun when you get to define your world and its rules.

Punished, oh-no, that’s published as a co-author of a math textbook, she yearns to hear personal stories about finding love from those who read her books, rather than the horrors of calculus lessons gone wrong.  She is grateful for good friends who remind her to do the practical things in life like grocery shop, show up at the airport for a flight and pay bills.

A “hard” scientist who avoided writing classes like the plague, she now shares her brain with characters who demand that their stories be told.  Amazing, gifted critique partners keep her on the straight and narrow. Feedback from readers keeps her fingers on the keyboard.

When she’s not hanging out at Writers in the Storm, you can visit Fae at http://faerowen.com  or www.facebook.com/fae.rowen.