How do I talk to an editor who wants to buy my book?

sparCKL

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TL;DR: How do I prepare for a phone call with an editor who wants to acquire my novel for publication?

See below for excruciating details. This is the first time I've done anything like this, so any advice from others who've been through the process would be appreciated!

Long story follows.

I have an agented manuscript on which two editors from reputable publishing houses have made competing acquisition offers. My agent has scheduled phone calls with both of the editors this coming Tuesday (20 Jan 2015) for me to "get a feel of what they're thinking with the books, and see who you jive[sic] with." This will be the first time I've communicated directly with either editor.

NOTE: my agent says "books" above because I also pitched a second book in the series, which is now part of the deal. This is what happened:

1. Publisher A made an offer.
2. Publisher B made a higher offer, for two books.
3. Publisher A increased their offer, also for two books.
4. Agent set up phone calls.
5. I'm freaking out a little bit over here.

I'm new to all this business, so I have no idea what to expect. What are these editors likely to want to know? What kinds of things should I ask them? Are there any red flags to watch out for in this initial conversation?

Thanks in advance!
~Curtis
 

Cathy C

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Okay, basically this means that an auction has started. The agent will contact both editors and let them make offers. They will try to outbid each other. Sometimes that means more money, but not always. Sometimes, the winning bid can be because of higher visibility promotion, a quicker release date or simultaneous foreign editions. Ask your agent for advice on the terms. It's really up to you on which one you want to work with. Look at some of the books the publisher puts out now. Do you like the covers? Do you like how the back covers are worded? Look at the Inside The Book feature on a few of them on Amazon and see if the editor's style is compatible with how you write. And I mean specifics like use of serial commas, narrator tone, etc.

If one of the editors is really hot to publish, they might offer a "pre-empt" which is usually a ridiculously high advance or very fast release. Very important at that stage is not to lose your rational mind. Really think about what they want. Is your life set up to drop everything and focus on nothing but the book for weeks or months? If not, then decide what will work for your schedule. Also, it's not so much the dollars being offered but whether the publisher has the ability to live up to the promotion level of a high advance by giving the book the frontlist treatment. Your agent will know all this. Let her do her job and advise you. But remember that the choice is yours.

Oh, and congratulations! :)

ETA: I forgot to mention--in the phone call with the editors, remember that they just read the book and LIKE IT enough to pay you money. They want to talk about the reality, so let them. Ask them if they have any concerns with the plot, subplots or characters. See if they want to make changes. If so, what? In some cases, an editor can spot flaws very quickly and will make some recommendations. Understand that you will have to make changes. It's part of the game, but which changes is up to you. See if you like their ideas and what things most attracted them. Just talk about the book and see what happens.
 
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Osulagh

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I too would leave the agent to handle contact with the editors at this stage--it is part of their job. Let them deal the editors and figure out what each one has to offer and their thoughts, and present their thoughts to you for you to decide. When a deal has been made, then work directly with the editors.

As to which one you should go with, speak to your agent about it and weight each publisher to your personal preference.
 

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First of all, congrats! This is pretty awesome!

The phone call is meant to give you an idea of what they want for your book/series. Listen to that conversation and ask for details when you need them. Don't commit to anything, but keep open-minded and sound open-minded while you talk to them. All decisions will be made off the phone and you and your agent can discuss the conversations afterwards. This is actually pretty cool of her to set up because it will give you a good idea of who will work best with you and this series before the decisions are made. Hopefully both seem like great editors to work with, and you can go after the best deal for you with the ease of mind that they're both great choices.

Your agent is going to handle the business aspect. What you want to know is how their vision of these books match up with yours. This could mean revision-wise or it could mean marketing-wise. So ask them about that. Or they may ask you to make sure they're on the same page.

Red flags: Vagueness. Not seeming to listen to you. Wanting to take your books in a direction that you're not comfortable with.
 

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I agree with all the advice upthread, and want to emphasise two points: agree to nothing; and ask the editor how she sees your book. Ask if there are any significant changes she'd like made to it, what her vision for the book is, what she thinks is significant about it. When you get to editing the book you want to be sure that you'll be working in the same direction, and not pulling against one another.
 

Jamesaritchie

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Take the most money you can possibly get. There are no guarantees that your future as a writer is going to work out because you sell a book or three to a big publisher. The more money a publisher invests in you, the harder that publisher will work to make you happy, and to make sure your books get the maximum amount of exposure.

And no matter what else happens, you'll still have the money.

Let your agent handle ALL the business aspects, with the understanding that who offers the most, gets the most. Your job is to say yes or no to the final offer. Everything else is in the hands of the agent.
 

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Take the most money you can possibly get. There are no guarantees that your future as a writer is going to work out because you sell a book or three to a big publisher. The more money a publisher invests in you, the harder that publisher will work to make you happy, and to make sure your books get the maximum amount of exposure.

And no matter what else happens, you'll still have the money.

Let your agent handle ALL the business aspects, with the understanding that who offers the most, gets the most. Your job is to say yes or no to the final offer. Everything else is in the hands of the agent.

I agree that a writer's agent should handle all negotiations, etc.: but I disagree very strongly that one should take the most money one can get if one does so without considering any other contract terms.

Sometimes a writer would be far better off taking a lower advance which is tied to a stronger marketing push, or a better set of escalator clauses, for example; sometimes signing with an editor who is offering a smaller advance but who absolutely understands the writer's vision for the book is better than signing with an editor who is offering more money, but who wants to make a significant change to the book which the author doesn't agree with.

Money isn't everything. And in publishing, you might end up doing better if you don't go for the contract which offers more money upfront.
 

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Congratulations! Hopefully you will enjoy the conversations. Keep an ear out for what the editors have to say about the book, see how well their response to your work matches up to your intent of the work. Does that make sense?

Weight heavily comments that resonate with your intent.

This is one of those things that's like driving up on a new traffic pattern in a construction zone - from a distance, it looks like a daunting, jumbled mess, but once you get right up on it, the path through makes much more sense.
 

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This may be a dumb or obvious piece of advice, but I suggest you take notes during the calls. I myself would need to do that in order to be quite clear in what I needed to ask and discuss with my agent later. I would tend to forget details that could be important.

Good luck and congratulations!
 

sparCKL

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Thanks for all the great information and well-wishes, everyone! The phone calls went very well, and I hope to have more good news to share soon. :)