I know I can...I know I can... by Cathy Ace

Rejection is part of the publishing process. Tell us your most memorable rejections—whether it be from queries, agents, editors, or reviewers. Anything from your funniest to your most devastating (and how you recovered), and anything in between.

When I began to write short stories I didn’t plan on taking things further. Then I decided to try my hand at a novel, and wrote the first few chapters, plus a detailed outline. At least I THINK that’s what I sent to an agent (who really should remain nameless). Whatever it was I sent, it must have been pretty shoddy, but I received the polite reply below on April 14^th 2009.

“Dear Cathy: Thank you for sending me your manuscript.  I enjoyed reading it.

While your pages are interesting and well-written, after careful consideration, I feel that your project is not right for my list at the current time. 

I wish you the best in finding the right agent who can successfully champion your project.”

It’s the only rejection email/letter I have (other than one which says, basically, “Thanks, but no thanks, I’m retiring”…I have always chosen to believe that receipt of my manuscript was not a factor that contributed to that decision).

I then received the following email on April 23^rd 2009, from a local writer who had organized an event which I attended:

“Thank you very much for participating in last night’s event. I think we gave the audience a good combination of hearing our words, and learning a bit of what we do as writers.  

I heard great comments from many of the audience members (too bad there weren’t more) I know that you will be getting positive word of mouth about your books, which I hope will result in a bump in sales for you.”

My first novel, published in 2012

At the event I met a traditionally published author who put me in touch with his publisher, who read my self-published collections of short stories and novellas, and then – in May 2010, they asked me to submit a manuscript for a novel. I did so in December 2010, and in May 2011 they said YES! The book came out in March 2012.

The moral? I have no idea – but I got one “NO” and a whole lot of “YES”, so I’m happy about that. 

Advice? Keep writing. Keep believing – but also keep learning and striving to improve. 

That’s today’s PSA done! 

I'd be honoured if you'd consider reading my work - you can find out about it and me here: cathyace.com 

Perfect reading choices for...by Cathy Ace

With Thanksgiving coming up in the USA – please take the chance to give us five titles or criminally good books you think would make great gifts…and tell us for whom they’d be suitable.

For lovers of cozy mysteries: THE MARSH MADNESS by Victoria Abbott. This book is the fourth in the book collector series by mother and daughter writing team Mary Jane Maffini and Victoria Maffini. The book won the 2017 Bony Blithe Award for best Canadian Light Mystery, and I’ve had it since then…but have only just got around to reading it. Light, bright and using the Ngaio Marsh canon as frequent reference points (I love Ngaio Marsh!) it’s a fast, fun read. 

 

For those who enjoy police procedurals: THE SEAGULL by Ann Cleeves. The not inconsiderable figure of DI Vera Stanhope has inhabited the world of crime fiction since Ann’s first book in this series (THE CROW TRAP, 1999) and she’s far from done (thank goodness). Ann’s writing style makes me a) want to try harder and b) give up writing altogether…pretty much in equal measure. A joy to read (you experience the book, rather than read it) and an excellent story, well told. I enjoy all the Stanhope books, this is the most recent…but you might want to treat yourself by starting with the first book and reading from there (this is the 8^th in the series). 

 

For those who enjoy anthologies: MOTIVES FOR MURDER edited by Martin Edwards. This anthology was put together to celebrate the 80^th birthday of one of my favourite authors, Peter Lovesey. From the blurb: Members of London's famed Detection Club have joined together to honor Peter Lovesey, winner multiple times of the Crime Writers Association Gold Dagger and Silver Dagger, and Cartier Diamond Dagger for Lifetime Achievement. He has also won the Mystery Writers of America Edgar for Best Novel, as well as Grand Prix de Littérature Policière. He is the creator of Victorian sleuths Sergeant Cribb and Constable Thackeray, Inspector Peter Diamond, and the almost true-to-life Bertie Prince of Wales. Honestly, there isn’t a bad story in the entire collection, and that’s saying something!

For those who like a bit of international terrorism: DEATH BY DESIGN by Barbara Nadel. This was published in 2010 and is the 12^th in what is now a 19 book series featuring Çetin İkmen, a member of the Istanbul police force whose chain smoking and heavy drinking don’t seem to impact (usually!) his ability to grapple with complex cases. Always an interesting read, this particular title takes İkmen to London – a trip I probably enjoy more than he does. Excellent plots, well-drawn characters, and never a dull moment. 

 

For those who want a change from crime: MASTERING THE ART OF FRENCH COOKING (2 volumes) by Julia Child. I love to eat, thus I love to cook. This boxed set was a Christmas present years ago, but it doesn’t matter how you get your hands on these two volumes, just get them, and read them. There’s so much inspiration, so many useful tips, and such wonderful recipes you and all those for whom you might ever cook will be grateful you did! 

Cathy Ace is the Bony Blithe Award-winning author of The Cait Morgan Mysteries and The WISE Enquiries Agency Mysteries.  You can find out more about Cathy, her work and her characters at her website, where you can also sign up for her newsletter with news, updates and special offers: http://cathyace.com/

Tag - you're it...by Cathy Ace

Do you have a literary executor named in your will? What would you like (or loathe) to have happen to your work when you've shuffled off this mortal coil?

This is a surprisingly easy question to answer, because it’s something I’ve been thinking about recently. The answer to the first part of the question is “yes” – at least, I will have one when my new will is drawn up. 

I realise the announcement that I am drawing up a new will has probably shortened my life expectancy to a few days (because it always does, right?) but I’ll dare to share the information here, with you, in the hope you’re not suddenly wondering where you can get your hands on some arsenic or strychnine to drop into my next cuppa. 

By way of further disclosure, I have told the two persons in question that they’ll be “It” (depending on which one of them is left when I drop from my perch), and they seem fine with the idea. As for what they will/won’t/can/cannot do with my work when I’ve gone – I have told them I don’t give two hoots; I’ll be gone, and if they can pry more money out of it after I’m dead than I could while I was alive, then good luck to them. 

Who knows, maybe I’ll be worth more dead than alive – and no, thanks, I don’t want that cuppa now! 

Cathy Ace is the Bony Blithe Award-winning author of The Cait Morgan Mysteries and The WISE Enquiries Agency Mysteries (#4, The Case of the Unsuitable Suitor will be released in hardcover in the UK in September 2017 and in the USA & Canada on January 1st 2018).  You can find out more about Cathy, her work and her characters at her website, where you can also sign up for her newsletter with news, updates and special offers: http://cathyace.com/ 

 

And the best value for promotional investment is....by Cathy Ace

Do the costs to promote a book sometimes equal the advance you got for it, and does that make you question A) writing it or B) doing all that expensive promotion?

Welshcakes for the launch of a book set in Wales

This is a tough one to answer, because it needs to be answered in a couple of different ways. The question implies that an author promotes one book at a time. For me, that’s not the case. I write two series of books, with eight in one series, and the fourth in the other will be published in September in the UK, and January in the USA/Canada. 

If I take my next-to-be-published book as an example, then the only money I’ll spend, that’s specifically tied to that title, would be purchasing copies (I get five free, but they go to family) and mailing them to people. This costs me about $40 CDN each time, for each book; a hardcover book is expensive, even with an author discount, and then postage either within, or more usually beyond, Canadian borders is also a pretty penny for  a heavy book! Oh, and I usually pop in a little gift, something relevant to the book. On top of that are mileage costs as I drive to events for signings etc. There’ll also be one heck of a lot of what would be called “sweat equity”, if I were, say, improving my home. I’ll be organizing blog tours, trying to generate blog reviews etc. so it doesn’t cost me anything but time and effort. Per book, that’s about it…unless I choose to offer treats when I do a signing, which, being me, I usually do! That can add up, too. 

At Left Coast Crime with fellow members of CWC

So there are costs for each book launched, but the main promotional costs I bear each year are the costs which are spread across all my books. That would be maintaining and updating my website, providing books for competitions and draws, and attending conventions. The cost of my presence at conventions is so alarmingly high it has to be set against the promoting of all my books – past titles, new titles and even future titles. I need a website upgrade soon, too, and that’ll take loads of lolly. UGH! Oh, and new bookmarks – artwork and printing costs, oh my! Yes, it adds up, and there’s no question promotion can become expensive – but I believe if I’m going to write, I need to promote. So, even if the promotional costs eat up quite a lot of the income I get from writing, it has to be done. It more than ate up all the income from my books for years, and required a heavy top-up investment, too. Now it’s manageable.

That being said, I’ll tell you a secret. The best money I spend each year? My CWC membership fee! I joined Crime Writers of Canada (CWC) when I was first published (fair disclosure – I am now Chair) because I wanted a way to, for a relatively small annual fee, use their online presence to allow me to reach a massive number of people who visit their website – a group of people I wouldn’t be able to afford to reach without CWC. More than 5000 people visit their website each month, and I know folks found out about my work through that website, and then they met me because I organised events on behalf of CWC, and participated in them. Being a member of CWC costs me $130 per year. That’s just about the same as mailing three copies of a book. I think my CWC membership fee gives me the best value for money I can, or probably ever will, get. I will admit that the more I volunteer and do – on behalf of other members – the better the money seems to work for me; in other words, I have found that by promoting the CWC brand, and the work of other members, my own work has garnered more attention…as I said, best $130 a year I spend! 

(PS: did you know CWC has a free monthly newsletter that everyone can sign up for…full of news about new releases, events, and always with the most up to date version of Cool Canadian Crime…a catalogue of all books published by CWC authors through the year? No? Well, if you’re interested, you can sign up – did I mention it’s free? – here: https://gem.godaddy.com/signups/190284/join  And check out the whole website here: http://www.crimewriterscanada.com/

Cathy Ace is the Bony Blithe Award-winning author of The Cait Morgan Mysteries and The WISE Enquiries Agency Mysteries (#4, The Case of the Unsuitable Suitor will be released in hardcover in the UK in September 2017 and in the USA & Canada on January 1st 2018).  You can find out more about Cathy, her work and her characters at her website, where you can also sign up for her newsletter with news, updates and special offers: http://cathyace.com/

Ahoy mateys...by Cathy Ace

You’ve won a month-long, all-expenses-paid writing retreat. Where would you go and why?

My last cruise - yes, it was great!

You’d think this would be easy, wouldn’t you? No money worries. Anywhere in the world. But where to go? Somewhere I’ve been before, know well and would love to revisit? But would I then really use that time as a writing retreat, or would I be “distracted”? So maybe somewhere I haven’t been before? Same problem – plus the need to explore. 

There are so many fabulous places in the world, but the point of a retreat is to be inward looking, thinking about the writing, inspired to write and ACTUALLY WRITING! I can’t cope with any distractions when I’m writing. Dark, silent rooms (yeah, yeah, with the lights on!) work best for me. 

I’d have to have Internet access, to allow for research. I’d like all my food brought to me, and not have to think at all about keeping my digs clean and tidy – I’d like that done for me, please. And I’d like to be able to join in writing-unrelated society when I want to.

I love the library on a ship

Okay, I’ve got it. A suite on a cruise ship, with all the facilities I could possibly need to not have to interact with people at all when I choose (so my own little plunge pool at least on a sunny deck, please) and a butler to fetch and carry whatever refreshments I desire. And a good library. And fast Internet. And a gym. And lots of places where I can sit and watch the wake in the moonlight, and gaze at the stars.

I’d like lots of days at sea when I can stare at the horizon (almost as good as a writing room at night) and some interesting ports of call with historical interest, galleries, a bit of shopping, you know the sort of thing. Oh, and good weather, please. Yes, that’ll do me, thanks. So maybe a couple of trips from Vancouver to the Hawaiian Islands? That takes about two weeks with lots of sea days (I did it for my honeymoon), so I’d just stay on board and do it twice! I won't even need to change butler. Thanks for the offer…I’ll take it!

My favorite view from a ship!

Cathy Ace is the Bony Blithe Award-winning author of The Cait Morgan Mysteries (#8 The Corpse with the Ruby Lips was released on November 1st) and The WISE Enquiries Agency Mysteries (#3, The Case of the Curious Cook, was released in hardcover in the UK on November 30th and in the USA & Canada on March 1st).  You can find out more about Cathy, her work and her characters at her website, where you can also sign up for her newsletter with news, updates and special offers: http://cathyace.com/