Traditional publishing is great
...but it's not for the impatient.
Hello friends!
Just dropping in to say a quick 'hello’ before March is at an end =)
The year started very well for me with an offer from the amazing folks at Beach Lane Books - Simon & Schuster, who fell in love with my debut author-illustrated dummy book, and in one happy email to my agent, made all my picture book dreams come true!
Final sketches have already started on this project and I am thoroughly enjoying working alongside my editor, Andrea Welch, and art director Sonia Chaghatzbanian - the collaboration of a picture book is always so inspiring, and I have been blessed with two of the best PB minds in the business!
I can’t wait to share more with you as it all starts to come together.
Today though, I wanted to talk about another book project.
Alongside my PB with Beach Lane (did I mention I have a debut author-illustrated project in the works? 😉) I am currently awaiting the final manuscript and art direction notes for WOWRUS - a lovely tale by talented author Monica Roe, in collaboration with Penguin Workshop.
A charming story of friendship and self discovery, set among the beautiful landscape of the Bering Sea.
Whilst I signed the contract for this picture book almost nine months ago, I still haven’t started final art for it.1
The reason? Traditional publishing can be very slow.
Wowrus is the perfect example of how lengthy a process traditional publishing can sometimes be. And I thought it might be interesting/helpful for some, if I provided a rough breakdown of the timeline so far.
Let me know in the comments if the following comes as a surprise, or if its what you expected, or perhaps what you have experienced too =)
Publishing Timeline:
Early March 2023: Email received from my literary agent asking if I would like to collaborate on a picture book about a walrus.
Mid-March 2023: Authors manuscript received.
April 2023: Rough character studies submitted (to see if the author liked my style and vision for the characters.) There were three character sheets submitted in total, along with some landscape/environment/world building examples - below is an example of one of the sheets for a character that didn’t make the final cut, which means its okay for me to share it with you =)
May-July 2023: Dummy Book creation.
August 2023: Dummy Book pitched to a selection of US publishing houses.
September 2023: Waiting.
October 2023: Waiting.
November 2023: More waiting.
Dec 2023: Expression of interest from publisher, followed by a zoom call with myself, the author, my agent, the authors agent, and an editor from PW.
Jan 2024: Official offer made.
May 2024: Contract signed.
June 2024: Official book announcement.
Upcoming Timeline:
March 2025: Final manuscript with art direction due.
April 2025: Illustration work starts.
Scheduled for publishing: Fall 2026
Although this project has taken a particularly long time to get going, it’s the perfect example of why, when working in traditional publishing, learning to navigate timelines is an important part of the process.
Traditional publishing is great, but it’s not for the impatient =)
I have never wavered in my wish to work directly with publishing houses,2 and if you’re like me, and accepting of the sometimes lengthy wait times, you will be rewarded with the invaluable support and guidance of an experienced publishing team, who will work with you to make your book, or book collaboration, the best it can possibly be =)
And that’s very exciting!
Personally, I try to utilise the in-between/waiting time to keep up with other projects - creating new idea’s for future work, new stories, new dummy books etc. It can sometimes feel like an exhausting treadmill of productivity, but it’s so important to continue getting your work out there and in front of the right people, to keep those projects rolling in.
I’m excited to say that I have another author-illustrated dummy going out on submission early next month, so I’ll be keeping my fingers crossed for that one!
Until next time =)
Caroline ✏️✨
Some fellow artist support and resource share for this month.
I recently purchased a Procreate brush-set from traditional and digital artist
Whilst I am yet to incorporate Milena’s brushes into a full illustration, I can tell you that they are all really lovely, and Milena is currently offering a 20% discount to newsletter subscribers, if you’d like to grab yourself a set too =)
*And a quick final note - if you’d like to try your hand at a reimagined book cover, there’s still one prompt remaining for this years #vintagebookweek - jump over to my good friend Elizabeth Leyk IG page to find out more!
Thank you to those eager PB readers who have messaged to ask how this book project is going - so many lovely people looking to get their pre-orders in and show their support =)
If you know me you’ll know just how many self-published projects I turned down in order to focus on my dream of working in traditional publishing.
Sorry again to any authors who submitted me a query and who may be reading this - your story briefs were all lovely!
At times I felt like a total, misguided idiot for turning down solid book work, in the blind hope that I might one day be able to make a living in traditional children’s publishing.
I can’t tell you how good it felt to sign that first official publishing contract =)
When you have a dream, you’ve got to grab it and never let go.
-Carol Burnett
I am BEYOND excited for your author/illustrator debut and just can't wait to get my hands on your books, Caroline! It will be neat to hear your perspective on the variance in process for projects where you are both author/illustrator vs illustrator only. This was such an interesting peek into the realities of picture book timelines. Your month-by-month breakdown of the process was so helpful! I had no idea that it was common for picture book projects to be stretched in that way. I'm excited to hear your updates as you dig into illustration soon. Thanks so much for the VBW shoutout. I've absolutely loved seeing your pieces! A Caroline creation in the mix is always a special treat!
How very exciting Caroline and thank you for sharing the ups and downs of the journey with us! Can't wait to see and have your new book!