I still can’t believe it’s true – but last week, I think I sold two books within three days of each other!
As my regular readers will know, this year has been my year of a thousand projects. Instead of working on a lot of new things, other than the odd short story here and there, I’ve been going through my backlog of projects that were in different state of completion, and either revised, edited or polished them. The point was to get them all – everything that I deemed more important than a short story – up to a certain standard, with the purpose of either submitting them to editors and publishers I already know and have a working relationship with, or to query them to new people.
So far this year, I’ve finished three of my four major projects. The fourth is the biggest one, and the one I’m currently stuck wrestling with, but the three first ones were all close to being done and I managed to get them all up to scratch!
So I queried. I submitted. I contacted my contacts, and I sent them all to be read by various people.
The first one, a horror novella, I queried to a very particular publisher. I had them in my sights, and I knew I wanted them to have this particular project. They happily accepted and read the first chapter, while I waited. Eventually, I got a reply: “Please, send us the rest.“
I was ecstatic. Of course I sent it immediately. I was super happy that I’d been right that it might be something for them. Unfortunately, they passed on it. I was rejected. They liked it, and complimented my work, but at the time, they didn’t have an opportunity to pick it up and publish it. Fair enough. I’ll still count it as a win, and who knows, maybe I’ll find somewhere else to send it.
The two other projects were a bit different. One, a science fiction thriller, I sent off to a publisher I’ve worked with before. They said they were interested, based on what I told them, and I really thought it would be for them. The other, a young adult fantasy adventure that I’ve written in Norwegian(! )(because yes, I am Norwegian), I began querying to traditional publishers here in Norway.
What followed was a long couple of months with no reply from my previous publisher, and a bunch of rejections from Norwegian publishers. It was a weird time, that’s for sure.
Then, last Monday, I got an email. An offer for a contract on that Norwegian book. I was through the roof! I haven’t seen the full contract yet, only an outline, so I haven’t accepted anything, and I haven’t technically sold the book yet, but I’m pretty sure I’m going to say yes! This is the opportunity I’ve been waiting for for ages. A chance to get onto the Norwegian market, to have the backing of a traditional publisher and maybe make the whole series come to life. It sounds more unbelievable the more I think about it.
Then, not three days later, on the Thursday, I got an email from that indie press I’ve published with before. They loved the science fiction thriller. They want it! I couldn’t believe it. Two books, in one week? Someone pinch my arm (and twist!).
I’m still a bit dumbfounded. It kind of hasn’t sunk in yet, but I guess… The year of a thousand projects has paid off? Dreams do come through? Keep at it? I don’t know. I’ll try to find time to celebrate when I’m down on Earth again. For now, just know that… Stuff like this happens. If I can do it, so can you.
As always, I’d love it if you checked out my books! I love writing this blog and seeing the number of readers tick slightly higher with every post, and I love it when you check out my work and leave me comments. If you’re into crime thrillers and psychological horror novels, or science fiction and fantasy short stories, then I’ve got you covered.
You can find all my work right here!
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