My Book Status Update: September 17, 2009

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Almost finished. I stayed up past 3:00am working on my book last night. It’s been a while since I’ve given you guys an update and a few of you have emailed me to ask about it. Instead of writing everyone back individually (I suck at email!), here’s the status update … As many of you know, I’m finishing a memoir. I completed the first full draft earlier this year and I’ve been editing it over the past several months. At present, it’s 283 pages long and divided into 13 chapters, though it’s likely to get shorter or longer in these final months of revisions. I’ve been approached by agents and a publishing house, but I’ve decided to not sign with anyone until I have a finished product. This is my first book. So, in these early stages, it’s nice to take as long as I need to learn, grow, figure things out and finish it — without the added stress of looming deadlines from editors. That will come later :) In the meantime, when my schedule permits, I attend writing groups to vet my title ideas, have a second pair of eyes look at my pages and simply commiserate with other writers who truly “get” what publishing is all about. I feel really fortunate mentors, friends and others I respect have written successful books of their own; I’m grateful for their guidance. Many have offered to read my book, give feedback and/or let me what to expect throughout this whole process.

As I mentioned earlier, my next step is to finish editing my book. I’m in the final stretch, and I don’t think it will take longer than the end of the year. After that, I’ll talk to colleagues as well as conduct my own research to find out which agent would be a good fit for this particular project. I’ve been given a few names. And, when the appropriate time comes, I’ll make contact. Once I’ve linked up with a good agent, they’ll likely suggest additional edits before approach publishing housing with my book. When/if the publisher buys it, they’ll likely request more revisions before they print it. Once that and a few other items are completed, the book will be printed and readily available for purchase on shelves and online at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Powell’s and elsewhere. I’ll keep you posted. If you have any particular question, comments or specific questions, feel free to leave it in the comments section.

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Image by: Ivan Prole

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