By Amelia Berry
I’ve been thinking a lot about writing careers recently. Cooking Up A Christmas Storm, which is out now, is my twelfth book in twelve years. And when I tell people that they tend to assume that means I’ve written and published a book a year for twelve years.
And lots of writing careers are that neat, but honestly I don’t think it’s the norm. My career so far has had as many stops as starts and as many dead ends as glorious open roads. When we think about our writing path there’s a huge amount of focus on getting published as an end goal, but, of course, getting published is just a beginning, and the path after first publication is rarely a straight one.
So here’s my path post-first publication…
My first novel – a romcom – was published in the last week of November 2013, and my second was published a week later at the start of December. That was the result of a conversation with my publisher when she first offered me a deal where she asked the inevitable question of ‘what else do you have?’ And the only other thing I had was a Christmas novella that was almost finished. That conversation was in July and with the ebook market hotting up the publisher was keen to bring that novella out the same year. We just made it, and that book remains my bestselling title to date. I went from unpublished to twice published in just seven days.
And after that things didn’t get any neater. Rather than a book a year my publishing life has actually looked like this…
2013 – two romcoms published
2014 – one romcom
2015 – two romcoms
2016… nothing
2017… nothing
2018 – three bookclub titles
2019 – nothing
2020 – nothing
2021 – nothing
2022 – two romcoms
2023 – nothing
2024 – two romcoms
Which brings us to twelve. Of course when books are actually released tells us nothing at all about when they were written. The first of the three books that were contracted for publication in 2018, All That Was Lost, was first thought of in 2010, mostly written in 2015, signed with an agent and then a publisher in 2016, but not released until autumn 2018.
During 2018 and 2019 I wrote two full manuscripts that my then agent didn’t love and couldn’t place, and in amongst that I’ve written under 4 different names, including two novels written in collaboration. The path has not been straight and it has frequently been so covered in brambles that it’s been hard to feel confident that I was on a path at all. So why am I telling you this?
I think it’s by way of an introduction to one really big piece of wisdom that I’ve picked up along the way and spent ten years internalising. And that wisdom is simply this: You have to act like the boss of your own writing career. Even – no, especially – when it feels like you are the last person who is actually in control.
In publishing, especially traditional publishing, there is a huge amount you can’t control. There are years when the stars don’t align and the ms you’ve written doesn’t find a home and it looks to readers like you’ve done nothing at all. There are years when two different publishers sign you at the same time and you feel as though your head is spinning so fast it might fly right off. Even when you’re under contract and on paper everything is flowing smoothly it can feel like a rollercoaster with seriously faulty brakes.
Editors who acquire a book, and are full of passion for it, sometimes leave before publication and your precious manuscript is inherited by an editor who is much less engaged. Sometimes you have a publicist who is full of enthusiasm and ideas for your novel, but more often you are one book on an overfull list of titles requiring the publicity team’s attention and it can feel like you’re never quite the priority. Sometimes the cover for your book is beautiful and you might love it but it doesn’t quite hit with bookstore buyers or readers. And sometimes all those things come together perfectly and the book flies off the shelves. And a lot of the time it feels as though you’re not in control of either outcome.
For me it matters enormously – for my self-esteem, for my motivation and for my mental health – that I manage the things I can control as assertively as possible, and get involved and informed about the things my publisher is doing as well. As authors who’ve worked through those years of desperately trying to get a foot in the publishing door, it’s easy to feel that we’re supposed to be grateful to our publishers. That, like the runners-up on a 1980s TV game show, the only polite way to behave is as though we’ve had a lovely day and are delighted to be there at all.
And, of course, it’s good to be polite, but we are not lucky competition winners who need to be grateful for our seat at the table. Writers are the people publishing cannot work without. We create the product that everyone else is paid to hone, package and sell. Sometimes I see the phrase ‘writers and publishing industry professionals’ and I roll my eyes. Writers are publishing industry professionals. We are the professionals at the absolute heart of the publishing industry.
As a publishing industry professional I’ve spent the last twelve years training myself not to be starry-eyed and grateful, but simply to treat the publishing and business side of writing professionally. And that means I give myself permission not to worry about being seen as an ‘awkward’ author for asking questions about marketing plans, editing schedules or sales figures. I give myself permission to expect professionalism and competence from the people I work with. I give myself permission to always remember that I do not work for my publisher. I work for myself and I make contracts with publishers to allow them the right to bring my books to market. It is in both our interests for that to be done to the highest possible standard and in the way that maximises sales.
Knowledge about what’s being done on our behalf gives us insight and power over our decisions for our future career. It means we’re aware of gaps and issues before they arise. It means that we can be our own bosses, even when the tides of publishing feel like they’re pushing against us beyond all control.
Amelia Berry is a novelist, short story writer, editor and writing tutor, based in Worcester, where she lives with her husband. No kids. No pets. There were goldfish once. That ended badly.
She writes romantic comedies as Amelia, Ally Sinclair and Alison May. Her heartwarming Highland Cookery School series is out now. https://www.herabooks.com/series/the-highland-cookery-school/
In her non-writing time Amelia is a tour guide for the National Trust. You can find out more about her at www.alison-may.co.uk, on Instagram @MsAlisonMay or on youtube – www.youtube.com/@alallyalison
Amelia’s latest novel is Cooking Up A Christmas Storm https://www.herabooks.com/books/cooking-up-a-christmas-storm-amelia-berry/
Can you find love if you can’t be yourself?
Jodie Simpson’s life is falling apart.
She’s been dumped by her girlfriend, Gemma, lost her job and is about to be kicked out of her flat. When she mistakenly opens a letter addressed to Gemma and finds a job offer to work at the Highland Cookery School, she makes a momentary decision that will change her life forever.
Jodie heads to the Scottish Highlands to begin her new job – as Gemma. But it all starts to work a little too well, and she finds herself loving her new life at the cookery school. As the snow starts to settle and the festive magic cast its spell, she finds herself falling for Pavel, the estate caretaker.
But Jodie cannot keep up her fake identity forever and a storm is brewing.
If she tells the truth, will she lose the new life she has built for herself, and the man who might just be The One?
An uplifting romcom that fans of Sarah Morgan, Heidi Swain and Katie Ginger will adore
Something romantic is cooking… The Highland Cookery School is here
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