Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Savoring the Good Times

Many of our fellow bloggers landed agents and book deals in 2009. Congrats to all! On Monday, we talked about the inevitable rough times, but today, we're going to celebrate the good ones.

When an author gets an agent, she often finds herself with a new set of responsibilities. There are contracts to be signed, possible revisions to be made, and the nail-biting waiting period of shopping the book to various publishers. Then, when her book sells, the responsibilities mount. Now she must make necessary revisions on a deadline. She may be contracted for another book, and yep, that means she'll need to write it. Oh, don't forget about creating a website, dealing with line edits, and the myriad of other new tasks. With all these amazing developments, it can be hard to find the time to savor what's happening.

Why not document this exciting period? This is the only time you'll be a debut author. It's the only time the process will be completely new. Don't let the days slip by in a blur. You're going to want to remember this time, and, if you're like me, your memory won't always come through for you.

You could create a scrapbook and label it "My First Book Deal." Take pictures of you holding your contract, your advance check, you name it! Take a photo of your current writing space--every author should have a "before" picture to look back on. Consider taking a few minutes each week to write in a personal journal about your feelings. Maybe you're terrified no publisher will contract your book, or if you have a contract, that you'll miss your deadline. Write this down. Don't forget to write about how thrilling it is to have a deadline, to send out your revisions, to hold the cover of your book in your hands.

Savoring your first foray into publishing isn't self-indulgent, it's what you've dreamed about for a long time. Make it fun!

Join me on Friday for our goal updates.

27 comments:

  1. Nice post, Jill! I am one of those lucky writers who landed both an agent and a nice deal in 2009, and I agree with you totally, that if we don't take the time to properly celebrate and savor our good fortune then we are missing out.
    I have a tendency to get caught up in life--although I always seem to be able to wallow around in misery, so this has been a conscious decision on my part to enjoy the moment. I think your idea of a scrapbook , or journal, blog entry(?) is excellent.

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  2. I actually won a scrapbook from Keli Gywn in which she already assembled various pages for each step of the publication journey! It's awesome!! I just have to remember to take the pictures to put it in!

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  3. What a clever idea. Because after all, our stories are our babies too!
    ~ Wendy

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  4. I have a friend who has the neatest scrapbook pages of her writing journey. Great idea!

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  5. Love the scrapbook idea ... We work so hard to get to that milestone, it's def worthy of a fun way to recollect. And I second your Congratulations to the authors who signed with agents and book deals recently ... Raising my coffee cup in a celebratory toast :)

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  6. I am so happy for all those that have an agent and/or book deal. Many more success stories for 2010! :O)

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  7. Yes, congrats to all those who got book deals or found agents in 2009. I love your idea of doing a scrapbook. I'll keep that in mind for when my big break comes. :)

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  8. That's a great idea, Jill! Hopefully I'll get a chance to do that!

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  9. Good afternoon!

    It's exciting hearing success stories from fellow bloggers. I feel as if I know most of you, although we've never met. Too often, we get caught up in the negatives of moments and bypass the awesome parts. I don't want that!

    Thanks so much for stopping by!

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  10. Wow! LOVE this idea. Sigh. But I am just not a scrapbooking mama. Could I dump it all in a big box and do it when it's just me and hubby huddled by the fire?

    You are just too much fun.

    Patti

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  11. That's a great idea and I can't wait to fill my book!!!! I should probably get the kids scrapbooks going first.

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  12. Excellent idea, Jill. I'll have to keep this in mind when I get an agent. :)

    Blessings,
    Susan

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  13. What a neat idea! It is so easy to forgot special moments when you are caught up the craziness. I've always been thankful for my pregnancy journals and photos so I could remember those times of my life. I'll remember this for when I get published:)

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  14. Excellent idea! I long for the day. A debut author, hmm yes. That sounds splendid.

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  15. Confession: I'm not a scrapbooker either! I'll probably throw everything into a memory box. But I do keep a mean journal!

    Thanks for stopping by!

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  16. Jill, super awesomely cool post. I am not a journal keeper. I figure, I write enough as it is. But I do want to document this exciting time in my life.

    I mean! Not everyone WRITES A DANG BOOK, FOR CRYING OUT LOUD! =) So you are right. As usual. Yes, Jill, I will verify to the hubby that I said that. *grin* I will start a feeling journal. Sounds like fun. =)

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  17. I called it a feeling journal. I meant scrapbook. Or whatever. You know I'm a bit kooky. =)

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  18. I know it isn't a book deal, but I did something similar with my first child. I knew I would never be "pregnant for the first time" again, so I figured it would be fun.

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  19. What a great idea, Jill! We should all start now.

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  20. Yes! We all need to celebrate those times that only happen once!

    Thanks so much for stopping by!

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  21. You know Keli Gwyn, right? I won an absolutely amazing scrapbook off her blog a long time ago. I can't wait to use it someday!
    You're right about 2009 being awesome for blogger buddies. Makes me wonder what this year will bring!

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  22. Congrats to all who landed agents and book deals! A scrapbook to document the journey sounds fun.

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  23. Jill--Great post...Stop and smell the roses as you walk through the rose garden. :)

    I have an award for you.

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  24. Thanks, all, for coming and sharing!

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  25. I congratulate everyone!! What an accomplishment:) Any reason to celebrate is good with me!! But...getting an agent or book deal...very exciting:)

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  26. you could do one of those neato coffee table books via snapfish.com where all your pics are glossy and sweet looking! :) A coffee table book of all your BOOK COVERS!!! That's what I'm going to do!! YES!! ... wait ... I don't have a book cover yet let alone enough to fill a coffee table book ... ok ... back to work! :)

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  27. Great info! Thanks for sharing. Love the scrapbook idea.
    Blessings,
    Karen

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