No, you’re not being annoying

(Navigating the Book Industry)

About a month before your book comes out, it’s quite normal for your publisher to ask you whether you know anyone who’s happy to review it. The aim is for a load of people to say (hopefully nice) things on Instagram or other social media.

But it’s such an excruciating process for us, the authors. (Well, for me, anyway). Last week, I messaged all my picture book pals and asked them whether they’d be up for doing me this favour. After a day of Whatsapping, I felt icky and anxious, mainly about whether I had annoyed a whole group of friends.*

Then I reminded myself that I do that favour, in turn, for them. We help each other. And that I do so much unpaid work for all authors and illustrators as part of my Society of Authors role …

and I felt a BIT better.

In honour of that, here is a post about when you are NOT being annoying in this industry...

1. You are not being annoying if you nudge your agent or editor

Many people have not yet perfected the art of the holding email (a beautiful art) so, if you haven’t heard back about your reasonable query, in a reasonable length of time, you ARE allowed to send a polite follow-up email. If you find this problem keeps occurring, and it bothers you, DO talk to your agent/editor about it. Do say ‘It would be really helpful for me if you could acknowledge receipt of my email/manuscript so I know it got there safely’.

You are allowed to ask ‘stupid questions’. Don’t be frightened of annoying your agent. This is a loooong game and you need a solid relationship that you trust; one where you feel comfortable being honest and being your messy self.

2. You are not being irritating if you ask for a reasonable fee from a lit fest

If a lit fest is charging customers to attend your talk, they should pay you fairly and cover your expenses (hotel, travel, food).

(At Society of Authors we have intervened on this issue MANY times so do contact them if you have trouble on this).

3. You are not a diva if you question your publicity/marketing plan

You are putting your free time into promo, so your publisher should back you. They should tell you what they are doing on their end, and you should be able to have a proper conversation with them about whether certain events/blog posts are worth your time.

And they should pay your expenses. (I’ll write more on promo soon).

4. You are not going to be disliked if you push for better contract terms

Publishers will still want to work with you even if you push for more. This is business.

If you cannot negotiate a higher advance/royalty, there are other things you can ask for. You could ask for bonus payments if your book hits a certain number of sales. You could keep hold of some rights (eg dramatisation). (I’ll write more on contracts another time)

Even if you are working flat fee (for advance only, not royalty) you ARE entitled to your PLR/ALCS, as long as you are credited on the cover or title page. Society of Authors recommends requesting this phrase:

The assignment of copyright is without prejudice to any rights the Contributor may have under CLA, PLR and any other similar collective licensing agreements.

(I’ve got a post on PLR here if you don’t know what I’m talking about)

Be upfront about what you need, and that includes time. Work out how long you require to write the book WITHOUT sacrificing everything else in your life. Do not agree to a killer deadline you know you’ll never meet. It’s better to be clear and stick to it than be overambitious then disappoint.

5. You are not ‘too much’ if you keep posting pics of your book/event

Although I often wish I could simply hide away and write, and NEVER put anything on social media, we all have to do a bit of promo. It’s fine to post pictures of your cover MULTIPLE times. The algorithms will not show everyone everything, so even if you feel like you’re spamming people with your stuff, you are not.

If you haven’t seen a pic of my new, upcoming picture book, count yourself lucky cos I’ve been putting it ALL OVER Instagram

6. (and this one is really for me) You probably ARE being annoying if you constantly ask your friend/life partner:

will my agent like my new book has she read it yet what if she doesn’t like it do you think she will like it what will I do if she doesn’t like it what do you think she’ll say when will she come back will she like it (repeat on loop).

*Only ask people you do actually know in real life.