Book Publishing Secrets with Joan Schweighardt, Author of 'River Aria'

Name: Joan Schweighardt

Title: River Aria

Genre: Historical Fiction

Publisher: Five Directions Press

Buy now from Amazon

Website: www.joanschweighardt.com

Thank you for your time in answering our questions about getting published, Joan!  Let’s begin by having you explain to us why you decided to become an author and pen this book.

Author: I decided to become an author a long time ago now, so it’s hard to remember all the relevant factors. But I can say this: I was really shy as a kid, and I had no confidence in myself at all. If an adult asked me a question, I froze and could not answer. But I realized early on that I was skilled at writing, and when I saw that writing enabled me to have a voice without actually having to open my mouth, I latched onto it and I stayed there.

Is this your first book?

Author: No, this is my ninth if you don’t count a couple of children’s books and some books I’ve ghostwritten for clients.

With this particular book, how did you publish – traditional, small press, indie, etc. – and why did you choose this method?

Author: Five Directions Press is a “by invitation only” publishing co-op. I feel very fortunate to be with them. As you might guess, the idea of a co-op is that everyone pitches in to ensure that each author’s book is as good as it can be. Decisions about what books to publish are based not on what the founders feel is likely to be a big commercial success but on their collective idea of what makes a great read. All the authors at Five Directions are talented storytellers. I’m pleased to be in their company.

Can you tell us a little about your publishing journey?  The pros and cons?

Author: Over the years I’ve had books published by a array of small to mid-size presses. I was with my first publisher for three contemporary novels, but they didn’t publish historical fiction, so when I wrote my first historical I had to find another publisher. My second publisher was great, but they didn’t publish memoir, so I found a third publisher. That’s pretty much the way it has gone throughout my writing career. I’m happy to have had multiple publishing experiences.

What lessons do you feel you learned about your particular publishing journey and about the publishing industry as a whole?

Author: Back when my first few novels were published, in the late nineties, there were only two publishing options. Either you were published by a  traditional press or by a vanity press. This was before the digital age and before the technologies that support books on demand. If you couldn’t find a publishing team that thought your book was really worthy and you didn’t have the money (and back then you would have needed a lot of it) to pay a vanity company, you just didn’t get published. I was very fortunate to have a traditional publisher. Now the industry has changed and there are many small publisher options that sit in the gray area between traditional and vanity. And because it’s possible to market your book yourself online, there is even the option of self publishing. Anyone who wants to get published can, but of course driving traffic to your book is about 400 times more challenging that it was back in the old days.

Would you recommend this method of publishing to other authors?

Author: I would tell emerging authors to explore their options. Ask questions. Will the publisher you’re talking to provide sufficient editing and proofreading? Will they do marketing? If so, what exactly and for how long? What percentage of retail sales will you receive? Will they pay to enter your books in appropriate contests, or will you have to do that yourself? And don’t be afraid to make deals. If you have six thousand friends on social media, maybe you can suggest they up your profit percentage. If that’s contrary to their business plan, maybe they can think of another way to compensate you, such as overseeing contest entries.

What’s the best advice you can give to aspiring authors?

Author: This is probably a very common answer, but it’s the best advice I can offer: polish your work. Read it over and over again for content; if you find there is a particular chapter that you don’t feel like rereading, ask yourself why. Get others to read your work too, people who are writers, or at least good readers who will give you honest opinions. If you don’t like their suggestions for changes immediately, wait some. Some suggestions may be wrong for your book, but others may be spot-on—once you’ve taken the time to think about them for a while. I almost always chafe when someone tells me something I’ve written isn’t working. But then I sleep on it—for weeks sometimes—and I often begin to see that they are right. And proofread, and when you are done, have others proofread. Or, if you can afford it, pay a professional proofreader to give it a sweep.  

ABOUT 'RIVER ARIA'

River Aria is narrated by Estela Hopper, who, as a ten-year-old girl living in the impoverished fishing village of Manaus, Brazil in the early 20th century, is offered a twist-of-fate opportunity to study opera with an esteemed voice instructor. During her years of instruction, Estela, who is talented, passionate and dramatic by nature, dreams of leaving Brazil to perform in New York. But as her beloved instructor is not able to convince the managers of the great Metropolitan Opera that they should bring on a mixed-race immigrant who grew up on the banks of the Amazon River to become an elite performer, Estela accepts what they do offer, a position in the sewing room, and leaves Brazil on a ship with her cousin JoJo in the year 1928.

The challenges that befall Estela and JoJo in New York are plentiful. Estela’s father, an Irish American who came to her village nearly twenty years earlier (at which time she was conceived), has a plan for what her life should look like once she is settled. Her relationship with JoJo changes drastically when he learns he was lied to about his own parentage, and again when he takes a dangerous job working for the owner of a speakeasy. And of course her personal challenges of finding some modicum of success in a place like New York are not only enormous but crushing to her once robust sense of self.

Check out the complete series at www.joanschweighardt.com

Book Publishing Secrets with Historical Novelist Joan Schweighardt

Name: Joan Schweighardt

Book Title: The Last Wife of Attila the Hun

Genre: Historical fiction (with a legendary component)

Publisher: Five Directions Press

Thank you for your time in answering our questions about getting published.  Let’s begin by having you explain how you became a devotee of the “Third Time’s a Charm” adage.

Joan: The Last Wife of Attila the Hun came out (albeit with a different title) in hardcover in 2003 with Beagle Bay Books, a small traditional publishing company. It had a lovely run with Beagle Bay, garnering lots of good reviews and winning ForeWord and Independent Publisher magazine awards and even being translated into Italian and Russian. But when Beagle Bay decided to stop publishing and become a book packaging company about three years ago, the rights to the book reverted back to me.

I had no plan to try to get the book published again. I’d had three books published before The Last Wife of Attila the Hun and two afterwards, and I was working on two more. But I’d always had a special place in my heart for Last Wife, and when I happened to read a blog by a woman who had published with a company called Booktrope, and then learned not only that Booktrope published some reprints but also that they had won prizes and venture capitalist money for their unique business model, I decided to contact them. And sure enough, they liked Last Wife and offered to publish it.

Booktrope could be called a “hybrid” press, but unlike most hybrids, they did not ask authors for production money. Their model was based on a team system wherein the authors they accepted reviewed the bios of the editors, proofreaders, cover designers and book managers who had signed up to work with them. Then each author would invite the people she wanted on her team to join her in her publishing journey. Booktrope staff members did layout, final approvals, admin and production. As books sold, profits were divided between the author, team members and Booktrope, with the author getting the lion’s share.

This is a publishing model for our times; you can see why the venture capitalists liked it. But the model failed, in my opinion because the principles at Booktrope tried to grow it too fast and didn’t do enough to support their front-liners. I was traveling through Ireland in mid May when I got the fateful email saying that the company would be closing its doors by the end of the month.

One thousands authors were orphaned in one fell swoop that day, and many were very upset. Some had only had their books come out days before the announcement. Many had spent their own money advertising, all for naught. Since this was the second journey for my book, I was probably less upset than some of the others. The Last Wife of Attila the Hun had had two lives, one long, the other shorter. In these times a book is lucky to have one life. I didn’t intend to try to push for a third.

As it happens, however, about a month before Booktrope closed its doors, I did an hour-long podcast interview with C.P. Lesley, an author and one of the founders of a book co-op called Five Directions Press. C.P. had really liked The Last Wife of Attila the Hun, and as she writes historical fiction herself, after our interview we stayed on the phone and had a long chat about writing and publishing generally. Later, when C.P. heard about Booktrope closing down, she invited me to reprint with Five Directions.

I accepted this invitation enthusiastically. The Five Directions model is even more enticing than the Booktrope model that won so many awards. Basically, in order to be invited to publish with Five Directions, you must have written a book all the members really like, and you must have additional talents that you can share. For instance, in addition to being a fabulous writer, C.P. does great layouts. Another writer there does great covers. Everyone does editing and proofing. A few of us are doing PR, and so on. And, best of all, when the book sells, the author keeps one hundred percent of the profits. So bottom line, you get the benefit of working with professionals and you get to keep what you make. As I said above, Booktrope got too big too fast. The Five Directions model works because the members are determined to keep it really small and highly selective.

What lessons do you feel you learned about your particular publishing journey and about the publishing industry as a whole?

Joan: Things have changed drastically in the publishing world since my first three books were published by the Permanent Press back in the 90s. It used to be that it was enough to be a good writer. Now you have to be good at social media and good at begging the few reviewers left in the world to review your book. Or you have to lower yourself to “buy” reviews. Or you have to have the money to advertise the heck out of your book. Being a good writer alone will not cut it for most of us. Except for the fortunate few who get published by one of the handful of huge publishers that still have lots of clout and money to get a book moving, writers have to adapt. It’s very common to hear artists of all stripes say, “Oh, I only do my art. I’m not into the marketing thing.” I know how they feel, but most have to kowtow to the marketing thing to some extent if they want to make it in today’s world.

Would you recommend the co-op method of publishing to other authors?

Joan: Yes, if you can’t find a really good co-op to publish you, perhaps you can start one. The impressive thing about Five Directions is their commitment to excellence.  

What’s the best advice you can give to aspiring authors?

Joan: Not only must you think outside the box with your writing, but you must think outside the box when it comes to publishing and marketing your work too. This makes writing more time-consuming than ever. It’s good to know that going in.

Book Publishing Secrets with Historical Novelist Joan Schweighardt

Name: JoanSchweighardt

Book Title: The Last Wife of Attila the Hun

Genre: Historical fiction (with a legendary component)

Publisher: Booktrope Editions

Purchase on Amazon

Thank you for your time in answering our questions about getting published.  Let’s begin by having you explain to us why you decided to become an author and pen this book?

Joan: I’ve been writing for many years, both professionally for other people, and on my own projects. I was very shy as a child and a teen and even as a young adult. Writing offered me a great means for expressing myself. And I realized early on that I was pretty good at it. Once in grade school I got an A+ on an essay about Stalin, based on a chapter in a history book that I’d never bothered to read. That sealed the deal for me.

Is this your first book?

Joan: I’ve written several other novels, and I’ve ghostwritten books for clients.

With this particular book, how did you publish – traditional, small press, Indie, etc. – and why did you choose this method?

Joan: The Last Wife of Attila the Hun is published by Booktrope Editions. Booktrope has only been around for a short time, so it’s too soon to say how they will fare in today’s crazy upside down publishing world. But I was impressed with how they got started, presenting their vision at an angel conference and winning the top prize and garnering all kinds of investment money. And I’m impressed with their publishing model.

Unlike many so called “hybrid” presses, Booktrope does not ask you to buy a large number of your own books or pay them any money for production or anything like that. Once they accept your manuscript for publication, you go on their website and review the bios of the editors, proofreaders, cover designers and book managers who are signed up with them. Then you invite the people you’d like to be on your team to join you on your publishing journey, and you get going. Of course Booktrope has final approval on everything. When your book is ready, a Booktrope staff member does the layout and then your book manager takes over promoting the book to readers. Having been a writer most of my life, not only working on my own projects but also writing for clients to make a living, I can tell you that it is great fun to work with a team. Now, as the book sells, profits are divided between me, my team members and Booktrope, and me getting the lion’s share. So everyone has something invested and everyone gains if things work out. No wonder Booktrope won the gold ring at the angel conference! To me this sounds like the perfect model for these times.

Can you tell us a little about your publishing journey?  The pros and cons?

Joan: My publishing journey has now included four publishers. Everyone has a different way of doing things. My first three novels were published with the Permanent Press, which is a traditional publisher, which was the only kind of publisher there was back in the 90s before the advent of ebooks and print on demand. Since then I’ve worked with three other publishers, two traditional and now Booktrope. My publishing journey has had its ups and downs, but it’s been a long journey with lots of surprises, and it ain’t over yet.

What lessons do you feel you learned about your particular publishing journey and about the publishing industry as a whole?

Joan: Things have changed drastically in the publishing world since my first books were published. It used to be that it was enough to be a good writer. Now you have to be good at social media and good at begging the few reviewers left in the world to review your book. Or you have to lower yourself to “buy” reviews. Or you have to have the money to advertise the heck out of your book. Being a good writer alone will not do it for most of us. I guess it’s a case of survival of the fittest. Except for the fortunate few who get published by one of the handful of huge publishers that still have lots of clout and money to get a book on its way, writers will have to adapt. It’s very common to hear artists of all stripes say, “Oh, I only do my art. I’m not into the marketing thing.” I know how they feel, but most will have to kowtow to the marketing thing if they want to make it in today’s world.

Would you recommend this method of publishing to other authors?

Joan: I am at the beginning of my journey with Booktrope. As I said, I think they have a great publishing model that suits the times.

What’s the best advice you can give to aspiring authors?

Joan: Keep writing, of course. If you love to write, why would you let things like fame and money (or lack thereof) stop you?

Book Publishing Secrets with Donald Joiner, Author of 'The Antioch Testament'

Name: Donald Joiner

Book Title: The Antioch Testament

Genre: Historical Fiction/Christian

Publisher: Seraphina Press

Thank you for your time in answering our questions about getting published, Donald  Let’s begin by having you explain to us why you decided to become an author and pen this book?

Donald: I had always been intrigued by the remarkable transformation of Jesus’ apostles after his resurrection. Earlier they had been a motley collection of fishermen, laborers and revolutionaries seeking the restoration of David’s Jewish kingdom. The gospels tell us a lot about them before the resurrection, but very little afterward.

What happened to them? Where did they go? What did they accomplish? How did they die? The gospels are silent. The Antioch Testament is a historical novel that attempts to complete the story based on early church traditions. I thought it was a story well worth the telling.

Is this your first book?

Donald: No, but it is my first novel.

With this particular book, how did you publish – traditional, small press, Indie, etc. – and why did you choose this method?

Donald: Indie. I wasted considerable time seeking agent representation. Found that authors’ agents were literally swamped with manuscripts so I elected to investigate and identify the very best self-publishing companies. As a result, I selected Hillcrest Media which owns Seraphina Press based on the quality of their work and their unique distribution system which closely  approximates the distribution system of traditional publishers.

Can you tell us a little about your publishing journey?  The pros and cons?

Donald: My first published book was entitled Antebellum Churches in Georgia. This was a pictorial history of churches in Georgia constructed before the end of the Civil War. At the time color photography in books was prohibitively expensive so I elected to publish in black & white through Lulu Publishing. Later, when color photography sharply declined in price, I expanded my collection of churches and selected VirtualBookWorm Publishing to publish a color pictorial history entitled Faith of Our Fathers. I did not solicit representation for either of these books.

What lessons do you feel you learned about your particular publishing journey and about the publishing industry as a whole?

Donald: When I began work on this historical novel, I had no idea how difficult the task of being accepted by a reputable author’s agent would be. I must have approached a dozen recommended agents, but none were in a position to help me. Those who responded to my query cited a backlog of manuscripts awaiting their attention or they were not at the moment accepting religious historical fiction. Being a senior citizen, I knew I had a limited time frame to work in so I eventually elected to go with the best self-publisher I could identify. It has been a costly enterprise, but thus far I have been pleased with this choice.

Would you recommend this method of publishing to other authors?

Donald: Yes, if the author has adequate financial resources. There are many self-publishing companies out there, but an author must be careful because some are not as reputable as are others. My advice is to do diligent research on self-publishers, looking closely at each service they offer. If possible, try to communicate with a fellow author who has used this particular publisher and get his/her take on the company. If the author is aware that going this route means by and large he must manage his own marketing effort, self-publishing may be an answer.

What’s the best advice you can give to aspiring authors?

Donald: Persistence counts! Don’t be intimidated if you do not meet immediate success in approaching agents or publishers. Keep at it. By all means don’t rely solely on your work being edited by your wife, girlfriend or mother. Your work might look wonderful to you and to them, but you should always have it professionally edited before you submit it to prospective agents or publishers.

Book Publishing Secrets with Author Florence Byham Weinberg

Name: Florence Byham Weinberg

Book Title: Dolet

Genre: nonfiction novel; historical fiction

Publisher: Twilight Times Books

Read Chapter One

Amazon / B&N  / OmniLit

Thank you for your time in answering our questions about getting published.  Let’s begin by having you explain to us why you decided to become an author and pen this book?

Florence: I wanted to be an author from the time I learned to read at age four. I published a poem (four lines) in a children’s magazine before I was five, and wrote a novel about a kingdom of cats (Ywain, King of All Cats—[the name came from the sounds cats make, not from medieval French literature]) when I was, probably, seven. I also illustrated the “book.” My writerly ambitions were frustrated during my years of schooling, but after I because a college/university professor, I wrote four scholarly books. I retired at 65, not because I had to, but because I could at last begin my career of writing fiction. The first book I wrote was a history of the 18^th-century Franciscan missions in San Antonio, how they were founded and why there are five of them in one small area. The book is not only historical fiction with a well-researched background, but is also a fictional romance between a Franciscan friar and an Apache woman warrior. The present work, Dolet, carries on my preference for historical fiction. In it, I use the erudition I accumulated during my professional career, since, as a university professor, I was a specialist in the Spanish and French Renaissance periods—especially in France, when the Reformation and Counter-Reformation took place.

Is this your first book?

Florence: No, it is the ninth, although it was written in rough draft already in 2002 as the third book. It lay in a drawer for these past thirteen years, and I finally pulled it out and reworked it. There is still a tenth book, set in the French Renaissance, lying in a drawer waiting for me to edit and rework it. It was written in 2003.

With this particular book, how did you publish – traditional, small press, Indie, etc. – and why did you choose this method?

Florence: I publish with Twilight Times Books, a small, independent press that has been written up twice in Publishers Weekly for its excellence. Getting accepted was more by accident than by design. I had been rejected by agents over 200 times by the time I decided to seek out an editor. By that time, I had written four novels and had joined a literary critique group. The president of the group suggested that I contact Gerald W. Mills, a professional editor and college teacher of creative writing.* She had done so, and her book had subsequently won a literary prize. I contacted Mr. Mills, who took me on and began to teach me how to transform my academically-tinged prose into truly novelistic writing. He took my book with him when he presented his own to the publisher of Twilight Times Books and voilà! Both books were accepted. I have remained with TTB ever since. The press works very well with the author on every aspect of the book, including the cover illustration, and the resulting products are often beautiful, and always professional.

*Gerald tragically died of a stroke earlier this year.

Can you tell us a little about your publishing journey?  The pros and cons?

Florence: Most of my journey has already been described in answer to the previous question. But along the way, I learned—from my perspective at least—something about publishing in the USA in general. When I began in 1999, big corporations, oil companies and the like, had bought up most of the top names in publishing, most of them the “Madison Avenue” crowd in NYC. Big corporations are interested in one thing. The bottom line. Suddenly, NYC publishers were no longer interested in furthering bright new talents, discovering innovative new authors, but in peddling guaranteed money makers like Stephen King or Nora Roberts.

A Diane Rehm show, probably in 2002, mentioned publish-on-demand as a possibility for authors like me. After my 200+ turn-downs by agents, one “agent” took me on. I was thrilled. This fellow steered me to P… A…. a foreign owned POD publisher. Ignorant as I was, I thought he and the publisher were legit. I published two books with PA and my name was forever tarnished because this agent, who was as duped by that publisher as I was, steered me in that direction—and PA is known to publish unedited works as cheaply as possible, just to make what money they could off sales to friends and family. Then I joined a critique group and hired Gerald W. Mills, and my fortunes changed. That is not to say I have become a best-seller—far from that, but hope springs eternal.

Twilight Times Books requires the author to do his/her own marketing (and I’m not great at that). I have tried since then a couple of times to interest someone in NYC in one book or another with absolutely no result. The situation, however, has evolved. The e-book revolution began as early as 2000 and has now boomed. TTB recognized that potential from the beginning, and all their books are both e-published and in trade paperback. 

Then there’s the self-publishing route. There are many avenues nowadays for self-published books that are professionally produced, if not professionally edited. That is a hang-up. Writers: if you want to be taken seriously, have your book edited by a professional. The advantage to self-publishing is that you have total control over the number of copies in your inventory and the number of copies sold and exactly what are your debits and profits. You may end up with a garage full of expensive unsold copies, however, so beware. Of course, there is now the amazon.com phenomenon, in which they do advertise their own authors and perhaps even make a little profit not only for themselves but also for the authors…. The situation is in flux, people, as is always the case. As a famous newscaster often says, “Watch this space.”

What lessons do you feel you learned about your particular publishing journey and about the publishing industry as a whole?

Florence: See the above rant.

Would you recommend this method of publishing to other authors?

Florence: Yes and no. If you want to make it big, try the NYC route. Probably 1% of you will be taken seriously. If you have a good product, try a small publisher like TTB. Or self-publish. There is little stigma attached these days to self-publishing. But think before you choose that route. I prefer a small publisher that will do most of the “leg-work” for you, and TTB is one of the best.

What’s the best advice you can give to aspiring authors?

Florence: Read the text above. Think about your options. Write your heart out. Self-edit. Join a critique group. Let others who know the field you write in read your work. Pay attention to what they say and edit. Be thick-skinned, don’t let hurt ego get in your way. But most of all, stick to it, create your own writing space and schedule. And don’t give up!

Virtual Book Tour: Publishing Secrets of Historical Fiction Author J.A. Hunsinger

This is the worst time in publishing history for a new author to get published. I spent a solid year sending submission packets to literary agents because you cannot approach publishers directly, only through an agent. Agents have their very own criteria for submissions, so do your homework, otherwise forget it. The effort was futile, heart-wrenching, and a waste of my time. Unless you have a controversial topic that is certain to cause a flap, or are already famous, you can forget the agent/publisher route.

I formed a publishing company and I work with BookMasters, Inc. and copy editors to publish, print, warehouse, and distribute my works. At this point, it is virtually the only avenue to publication. Be warned, it is expensive and that is why the road to publication is fraught with obstacles.

J. A. Hunsinger lives in Colorado, USA, with his wife Phyllis. The first novel of his character-driven, historical fiction series, Axe of Iron: The Settlers, represents his first serious effort to craft the story of a lifelong interest in the Viking Age—especially as it pertains to Norse exploration west of Iceland—and extensive research and archaeological site visitations as an amateur historian. He has tied the discovery of many of the Norse artifacts found on this continent to places and events portrayed in his novels. Much of his adult life has been associated with commercial aviation, both in and out of the cockpit. As an Engineering Technical Writer for Honeywell Commercial Flight Systems Group, Phoenix, AZ, he authored two comprehensive pilots’ manuals on aircraft computer guidance systems and several supplemental aircraft radar manuals. His manuals were published and distributed worldwide to airline operators by Honeywell Engineering, Phoenix, AZ. He also published an article, Flight Into Danger, in Flying Magazine, (August 2002). Historical Novel Society, American Institute of Archaeology, Canadian Archaeology Association, and IBPA-Independent Book Publishers Association, are among the fraternal and trade organizations in which he holds membership. You can visit his website at www.vinlandpublishing.com.









J.A. Hunsinger will be on virtual book tour in March and April '09. Please visit his official tour page here to find out more about his new book, Axe of Iron: The Settlers!