The Journey of my First Publishing Contract (A Guest Blog by Jill Lynn)

I’m a newbie to the publishing world. In early 2014, I received my first publishing offer from Harlequin Love Inspired. I accepted it with excitement, ready for the words hidden on my computer to be seen by all the world.

Then I received my first edits.

After hyperventilating, I read them again. I could tell my editor was right… she was brilliant, seeing things I hadn’t seen. But the changes… I didn’t have a clue where to begin. The task felt insurmountable. I wrote and wrote, and my family didn’t see me for a period of time.

When we reached the end of edits, then came an entirely new problem. They wanted me to hand the book over to them. What? When did we agree to this? Oh, yeah. When I signed the contract. But still, they actually wanted me to fork over my words. They were going to let people read them. But… but… but I’m not done yet!

I quickly realized I would never feel ready.

Part of being creative is that there’s always something more that can be changed or tweaked or deleted. That’s what deadlines are for. Someone has to pry the book from your hands. I naively thought I would have a book done before the deadline. I’m not a procrastinator and I don’t do things last minute. But I never realized that I wouldn’t feel ready to give it up. I did send it in on time, and then I wandered around my house for a week wondering what to do with myself. Laundry would have been a good option.

Next came the request for titles. I went round and round on those, bugging my friends, my poor agent Amanda, and my husband until people were texting me random title ideas at all hours of the day.

Once a title was picked, we moved on to line edits.

Oh, wait. You thought the edits were done? Those were content edits. These are line edits. Much smaller (not as much to freak out about, though I’m sure I still put up a fair effort.)

Handing the book in this time was even harder because it was the last time I would be able to make any changes. THE LAST TIME.

No problem. I was cool as could be. Pretty sure I cried, prayed, and then hit send on the email. This all sounds very dramatic, and I might be exaggerating just a titch, but there’s truth to it also. Handing over your first book baby isn’t easy.

In December, a box of books arrived on my front step.

There’s my newborn right there. Isn’t she cute?

The journey of writing might not be easy, but if you asked me if it’s worth it, I would say…

When can we do it again? 🙂

Jill Lynn lives near the beautiful Rocky Mountains with her husband and two children who make her laugh on a daily basis. Her first novel, Falling for Texas, is available in stores and online. A member of American Christian Fiction Writers, Jill won the ACFW Genesis award in 2013. She has a penchant for great books, boots, and thrift stores. Find her online at www.Jill-Lynn.com.