Good news, bad news

It's been a week since I received the good news/bad news email from David Magee, publisher at Jefferson Press. First, the bad news: I didn't win the Jefferson Prize for a novel or short story collection. Big surprise, right? After 30 or 40 "not right for me" form letters from agents and many dozens of magazine rejections slips, I know the odds. I edited two literary magazines and for several years ran a small literary press, reading hundreds of good manuscripts that didn't get published. I never expected to win the prize, but we all take our shots.

Then lightning struck. David wrote that he and his editor liked my short story collection and had selected it for a 2008 release, after it made "the top 15" from the outside panel of readers.

I can't pretend it was just another day. I was certainly distracted at the office, spending too much time staring out my downtown eighth floor window at nothing in particular. That night I got up at 1:30 and sat in the dark thinking of titles. For now, I'm using To Love and Die in Dixie as the working title. Originally the title proposed was Charisma after one of the stories I like best, but a review of Library of Congress titles shows several books with that title.

So why the blog? During years of writers conferences, I learned I wasn't alone in wondering how it would feel to get a book published. Not a chapbook. Not a story in a magazine or anthology, but a hardbound book. My book. With bookstore distribution. Reviews. Appearances. Signings and readings.

Then the endless questions started piling up in my head. How does it all work? Who edits the ms? How do you get the cover designed? What about the contract--how does that work? I'd told myself that when the day arrived that one of my manuscripts found a home with a publisher, I'd record and share the entire experience. So here goes.

Just in case you're wondering: Yes, I immediately emailed back the next morning to seek confirmation (three or four times!) that I didn't misunderstand the offer. This was for real? A done deal? You really want the manuscript? And the answer came back yes, we'd definitely see a book in Spring 2008 and would sit down in April to discuss the deal and the schedule. I'll use this blog to record the journey of publication, from notification through launch. Come along if you like.