Welcome Celeste Connally

Author Series #8

This semester has been a whirl-wind, and yes, I think of my life in terms of semesters (and glorious summers) because like Ken, whose job is ‘beach’, my job is ‘teach.’ It’s certainly felt that way this fall as I’ve gone back full-time for the first time in three years.

My husband and I made this decision because our oldest is enrolled in a private school for the first time ever so she can pursue her love of theater. Though we might’ve been able to scrape together the tuition with my writing income, I didn’t love the uncertainty of waiting to see how much I would be able to earn in royalties, advances, and book coaching work. In the end, the decision came down to stability: with a full-time job I know what to expect each month.

On my last royalty statement from the end of October, I received $1200 in royalties from books 1-2 (I earned out on Book 2!), but I have a long way to go to earn out Book 3 (which ironically was the only one that landed on a bestseller list). With a small foreign rights sale on my next book coming in this week, this year in total, I’ll likely have brought home about $15-20K in book-related earnings (including book coaching), and I’ve noticed that this has been a pretty consistent average for me since 2020 when I sold The Night She Went Missing. In four years, I’ve earned close to $100K gross, which lessens considerably after agent fees and taxes.

As a midlist author I’m content with this amount if I think of the money in terms of a bonus, a side-gig, or a means to pay for tuition/allow me to be part-time. However, even that amount is an average. One year, it might be $25K and the next $10K (and, let’s remember, it could always be $0K). I’m not nearly as content with the unreliability of the income, and that’s where having a day job gives me peace of mind. It also gives me an outlet to do something that, after nineteen years, I know I’m good at, which is much-needed for those inevitable times whenI feel like my writing is total crap (let’s say, 45K words into a new novel).

It’s also wonderful having support from local authors whom I can meet in person to talk openly about this thing we do. Celeste Connally is one such person. She graciously came to a three-week class I taught to high schoolers on writing/publishing a few years ago to share her experiences, and I’ve enjoyed getting to know her ever since. Welcome fellow Houston author, Celeste Connally!

Can you tell us about your debut novel?

Celeste: My debut was a cozy mystery featuring a genealogist amateur sleuth titled Murder Once Removed. It published in 2019 and written under my pen name of S.C. Perkins, and I’m still so very proud of it. However, my entre into the publishing world, and thus,  my debut, came about in a slightly different way as I won the 2017 Malice Domestic Best First Traditional Novel Contest, and with it came a publishing contract with Minotaur Books. 

At that time, a $10K advance against future royalties came with my winning the contest. Minotaur was, and still is, lovely to work with and provided me with an editor and a marketing team that were all incredible at getting me trade reviews, giving me excellent graphics (including the most gorgeous cover), and helping me to get asked to do guest blog posts for various online crime-fiction magazines such as CrimeReads and Criminal Element. They were also there to support me in any questions I had, and I could not have asked for a better experience. 

Still, I already knew from attending panels at conferences such as Bouchercon and the Writers’ League of Texas Agents and Editors Conference that, like most authors who are not marquee names (which is 99.9% of us), I would only receive a certain level of marketing support once my debut published. I knew this would be because my publishing house had other authors to tend to, and because authors are expected to do most of their own marketing. 

Thus, I was neither surprised nor offended when things quieted down quickly, and it took longer for my marketing team to get back to me. I had a good knowledge of what to expect, and it helped me immensely. Thus, I really ramped up my personal marketing well before my publication date, and continued to keep it up as best I could. 

All of this helped Murder Once Removed to do well enough that I received another two-book contract. Though I adored writing my next two books and really wanted to write more of my series—and was slowly making a name for myself, too—books two and three came out during Covid, which proved to be a very hard time for new and debut authors to find their audiences. While book two did well, both books two and three took longer to find their footing, and very sadly did not earn enough to garner me another contract for that series. However, I was lucky enough to get picked up for a new historical mystery series by Minotaur fairly soon thereafter.

How many novels have you published since then? Have you ever changed publishers? What differences have you noticed in the publishing experience with these later novels? 

Celeste: I’m pinching myself with grateful disbelief to write it, but my fifth mystery, and second historical mystery, will publish in November 2024. I’ve continued to have a wonderful relationship with Minotaur Books, and gladly accepted when they wanted to pick up my historical mystery series, which is the Lady Petra Inquires series, set in Regency-era England. 

What I have noticed most about my publishing experience has more to do with marketing myself on social media. I’ve found that it gets harder and harder for a still-fairly-new author to get eyes on themselves and their books as social media continues to evolve. For example, the algorithm is constantly becoming more demanding, and somewhat creepily so. I can spend time making a beautiful reel with photos, but it will only garner me low numbers of likes/views. Yet if I do a video where I show my face, then I see ten times the engagement. I find it incredibly disconcerting, to say the least.

It boils down to this: If you can’t seem to make a dent in the hearts and minds of potential readers because you don’t get enough engagement, then it can hurt your book’s performance. If your book is too slow to see the numbers your publisher wants to see, then you don’t get another contract. For someone like me, who enjoys the interactions on social media, but does not enjoy the creation of posts as much—which then often leads to me posting less, and therefore my algorithm is constantly in flux—this is the most stressful part of publishing.  

What has been the best part of publishing? The worst part? Or, what has been your highest high and lowest low in publishing? 

Celeste: The best part is every aspect of the writing of books; it’s my long-held dream, fulfilled. From the first draft, to the revisions, to the copyedits, and all the stress and worry and everything else in between, I love it and my gratefulness level reaches to the moon and back. It’s not an easy career to have in any way, but if you love all aspects of writing, even the hard parts are completely worth it.

The worst part, for me, is the social media aspect—again, mainly the creation of posts and the time and effort it takes (as well as the mental-health toll). Because the interactions with readers and fellow authors are indeed wonderful! 

Would you consider other types of publishing (indie, hybrid, digital first, Kickstarter)? Why/why not?  

Celeste: I have great respect for those authors who try different types of publishing. It’s just as hard in its own way as traditional publishing. I, myself, self-published a romcom back in 2012 using Amazon’s CreateSpace. I had so much fun writing my first romcom, but I knew that I should try to get published in the genre in which I really wanted to keep writing, which was and still is mysteries (though I love writing romance in my mysteries!). Thus, I chose to self-publish it instead, but that was a decision that was more for me than for making a name for myself. While I enjoyed parts of the self-publishing process, I admit that I do prefer the traditional publishing route at present and hope to stay traditionally published. However, I would not say no to looking into it again in the future—for instance, if I had a book I really wanted to write but could not find a publishing house for it, or similar.

Do you think of yourself as a full time writer? Do you have other streams of income that help pay the bills?

Celeste: I do think of myself as a full-time writer, and feel very lucky to be so. However, I know how hard an author’s life can be, with ups and downs galore, and I remain fully aware that I may have to enter the work force again at some point. And if it is needed, then that is what I will do. 

What would you tell someone/what advice would you give to someone who wants to be traditionally published? 

Celeste: One, if you can at all, hire an independent editor to read and edit your book before you submit to an agent. Make certain the editor works with your book’s genre, and has good experience. Most offer various types of editing services—none of which are inexpensive, unfortunately—from full edits to developmental edits to basic copyediting. I suggest you get the best level of editing you can afford. If you truly intend to be an author, the cost of this can be eased a bit because you can write some or all of it off on your taxes (though be certain to check with a CPA before you do).

Two, learn how to be edited. Learn to accept constructive criticism. Of course, it’s like a stab to the heart when you’re told that something you wrote and agonized over is not working in your book for whatever reason, but a good editor will likely be correct if they flag it as needing to be revised or taken out. You must remember that a good editor will be seeing things that you don’t, and their job is to help you make your book better, not to bring you down. That doesn’t mean you have to take every suggestion your editor gives you, but you should consider their suggestions with an open mind. My own personal suggestion? Read their suggestions, and then give yourself 24 hours to a few days to let everything sink in. Only after you get over feeling stung (and we all do feel like that) should you start revising! 

Three, remember that nothing happens quickly. I wrote my first book in 2005 and then two more before I got published. And I didn’t find out I was going to be a published author until 2017. My debut—the third book I actually wrote—then hit shelves in 2019. Fun fact: it generally takes eighteen months to two years for a debut novel to be published, beginning from the time an editor makes an offer for your book to the time it lands in bookstores.

My own personal secret sauce? I had my debut professionally edited, and then rewrote it two more times before I submitted it to the Malice Domestic Best First Traditional Novel contest. I worked hard, I was willing to be edited and revise, and I was willing to wait, all while taking small steps forward all the way. Though it’s undeniable that a certain amount of luck is also part of the process! 

What does success in publishing look like to you at this point in your career? Has it changed over time?

Celeste: My vision of success has not changed, and I hope it never does. Everyone sees it differently, as it should be, but for me, success means slowly but surely gaining readers who like my books, and—hopefully—having my career as an author continue on an upward trajectory. Though I certainly hope to one day have a bestseller, as long as readers want to read my books and I get to keep writing and publishing, I will be a happy author who continues to pinch herself every day that this is what I am lucky enough to do.

Is there one thing you or your publisher did that you think may have helped sell books to readers? We love tips and advice!

Celeste: Honestly, I think it’s a lot of little things that slowly move the needle. Yes, my publisher’s marketing helps tremendously with things such a trade reviews and professional-looking marketing pieces. But along with all that, I think that going to writers’ conferences, doing giveaways, writing blog posts for writing magazines in your genre, speaking to book clubs, and making a good effort with social media are all things that work in your favor—though it’s a slow process, no doubt! 

Do you have any tips for protecting your mental health in such a tough business?

Celeste: I try to have patience with myself as much as the business. That even when another author who writes in my genre is getting a lot of praise for their latest book and it feels like they’re doing so much better than me, that I can be happy for them and send heartfelt congratulations, knowing that my book is just as worthy and that we do our best as authors when we support one another. Everyone has bad days, but remembering that writing is my passion and giving myself a break (which sometimes means allowing myself to feel just as frustrated, worried, sad, or overwhelmed as I do at points) always results in my usual positive mindset returning.

I also try to always be thinking of what I want to write next. That includes thinking about both books in my series, and dreaming up other books. I try new things, and try to become a better writer with each book. 

Then I make certain to take time away from social media whenever I can. There is very little about social media that’s good for anyone’s mental health, and I relish taking breaks. It makes it hard because of the algorithms, of course, but I value my mental health more. 

Celeste Connally’s second book in her Lady Petra Inquires mysteries, All’s Fair in Love and Treachery, publishes November 12, 2024. She’s recently signed another contract for two more books in the series! As for social media, she’s most active on Instagram and her handle is @celesteconnallyauthor. You can also find her at her website, celesteconnally.com.

Thanks to Celeste for sharing her insights!

As ever, you can find me here or at www.kristenbird.com. Happy writing—or not!

Kristen