Deal Announcement

One, Two, Three, Go!

I’m one-day late to the Substack this week because yesterday my husband and I drove four eleven-year-olds to a waterpark an hour and fifteen minutes from our home. (Don’t worry: we didn’t leave them there.) It was a full day of sun and splashes, and I have to spend today recovering. (Who knew that a wave pool feels like it’s slapping you around when you’re 42 years old???)

I mentioned an announcement last week, and I’m so excited to share it today.

The award for longest titles in Publisher’s Marketplace goes to this announcement, but that’s because they mentioned all three novels in the series! I was ecstatic that they want three books because A) this will be my first-ever series that I’ve written and B) it’s guaranteed* publication, which is why I usually prefer multi-book deals rather than a one-book deal—unless I don’t want to be committed to write another in the same genre right away.

*Nothing is ever really guaranteed in publishing, and a contract is as close as we get.

Here are some details about the writing of this novel that I thought might contain helpful insights for other writers:

The timeline: I wrote BEAUTY QUEEN in the Fall of 2022 while waiting to see if my third novel, WATCH IT BURN, would be picked up by the same publisher of my first two novels. By the time WIB sold in Feb of 2023, I’d already significantly revised BEAUTY QUEEN, but I took the wisdom to heart NOT to start writing the second book in a series until the first sells. I advise book coaching clients of the same (if they are trying to write efficiently, rather than just by the heart—either is fine): write that first novel, make sure it can work as a standalone, write down ideas for future books in the series, and then go work on something else entirely different until a publisher says they want more than one book.

The Rewriting/Revisions: After writing in Fall 2022 and revising in early 2023, it took more significant revisions for BEAUTY QUEEN to be ready for editors to see it. This surprised me because it’s a fun book, pretty light-hearted (though there are some darker themes, which keep it from being cozy—see more below), and it’s a mystery, which I thought I knew how to write. Apparently not. This book felt much different to write than my darker novels: the pacing was different, the beats were different, the tone was different. It was like learning to play the guitar after knowing how to play the piano. It’s still music notes and time signatures, but it’s not the same instrument.

The genre: I had a really hard time deciding where BEAUTY QUEEN fit in the market, and I’m so glad a publisher is not deciding. I like to think of this book as Miss Congeniality meets Gilmore Girls meets murder. At first I thought I was writing a cozy, but themes of misogyny, #MeToo, and dark family secrets were rising to the surface, so that wasn’t exactly it. My mom looked up how Elle Cosimano refers to her awesome Finlay Donovan series (which is also a comp) and found that it’s simply called ‘contemporary mystery.’ So we’re going with that. My publisher thinks there’s some overlap with women’s fiction as well, so maybe we’ll make a VENN diagram.

You may have noticed that all three books publish next year (I know), which means I need to write fast as I edit the previous book. I have a summer accountability group where I’m keeping track of word count, and I have a plan in place for basic timing. I’m also scared thrilled [insert adjective here] out of my mind because I’ve never done anything like this before.

I’m also concerned about spending too much time on the computer, so I’m trying to find creative ways to approach revisions—iPad, Kindle apps with notes, handwriting. I’ve already ordered a lumbar support pillow and I’ve been reading up on ways to protect myself while writing. We aren’t athletes, but sitting at the computer does an intense number on our bodies over time.

I met with my editor this morning, and she’s lovely. We have a lot in common even though she’s across the pond. She had great notes for book 1 and great ideas for book 2, so I know I’m in good hands for this process. Now, I gotta go write. :)

Because of the amount of drafting, I may not be able to keep up with weekly posts here, but I’ll definitely do what I can. Thanks for your patience in the meantime.

Happy writing—or not!