Sapling interview

Feature Article

Sapling's Five Questions for Emerging Writers

This week Sapling speaks with Robert Perron.

Sapling: Tell us about the process of getting your book published. Did you enter contests? Open reading periods? What transpired between sending the manuscript out initially and its acceptance by your publisher?

Robert Perron: I sent queries to agents and small presses. It’s a dreary business trying to get a response for a first literary novel, even with help from colleagues. As the process dragged on, a friend who I proofread for offered me the use of his imprint if I wanted to self-publish; but in the nick of time, I received a favorable response from The Ardent Writer Press. Doyle, the editor who responded, said he did so because he “flat out” enjoyed reading the story. I wonder how many agents and small presses ever get to the reading phase. I’ve found the situation similar with submitting short stories to journals—many summary rejections after months in the slush pile.

Sapling: What was your experience with the editing of the manuscript? Did you have an opportunity to make revisions either at your own suggestion or at the suggestion of your editor? How involved were you in the design aspects of the book's production (cover image, design, etc.)?

RP: Doyle worked my manuscript over like I’ve never had a manuscript worked over before. Much more thorough than editing I’ve received from journals. He insisted on some drastic reorganizations and deletions, his eye catching a lot that I had missed in overall structure. I typically deferred to his judgment, although I was sad to see so many of my words left on the floor. Steve, the president of Ardent Writer, designed the cover. I reviewed his design, with some moments of contention; at one point, Steve had to remind me that when I signed the contract, I granted him artistic control over the book.

Sapling: Did you publish any excerpts in literary journals or other periodicals before the publication of your book? If so, did this seem like a necessary part of the process for this particular project?

RP: I did not attempt to publish sections of the novel ahead of time, as I wanted to present it as “unpublished” to agents and presses. I did print some excerpts on my website, but these were short. On that tangent, I must mention that I’ve found it very helpful to have an author’s website. In the case of The Ardent Writer Press, the website proved crucial in demonstrating my legitimacy as a writer.

Sapling: In what ways have you been involved in the publicity and promotion of your book thus far? In what ways is your publisher helping you with marketing your book?

RP: With a small press, the writer is the publicity team, difficult for me because promotion is not my forte. I suspect this is the case for most writers. How nice it would be to produce the work and let its existence take care of itself. I ran an email campaign using mailing lists from several friends and myself, and did a Zoom launch—a reading and Q&A. Since the novel has a military orientation, I am reaching out to veterans’ organizations, and have published two articles in veterans’ journals. Since the novel has a Korean orientation, I am reaching out to Korean organizations; on 12/25, the Korea Times (NY edition) did a nice write-up on the novel. (Of special note, the novel has been translated into Korean.) And it really helps to have journals like Sapling that provide exposure for new authors.

Sapling: What are some things that surprised you about the process of getting your book published? Is there anything you wished you'd known beforehand about putting a book out into the world?

RP: I’m pleased that my publisher has done all the design work on the book—cover, dust cover, copyright page, ISBNs, layout—and generates the necessary pdf and mobi files and deals with Ingram and Amazon and other vendors. However, I have no control over pricing, which is high for a first novel by an unknown author. For readers who like Kindle, the cost is a somewhat reasonable $3.99. But hard copies are $19.95 for paperback and $29.95 for hardcover. Through the publisher, I have bought books at wholesale plus 20% and offer them on my website at $12.00 and $20.00, still high. I never thought of this before, but pricing is a barrier for new authors.

Robert Perron lives and writes in New York City and New Hampshire.
He is the author of The Blue House Raid (The Ardent Writer Press, 2020).
His short stories have appeared in Adelaide Literary Magazine, Lowestoft Chronicle,
The Bombay Review, and other journals.

Sapling is a curated weekly e-newsletter highlighting the best of the small press world for writers looking for new venues for their work. This article appeared in Sapling #582. You can reach them at sapling@blacklawrencepress.com.