[Transcend Time 04.0] Transcendence

by Michelle Madow

  There weren’t enough paranormal elements in the story to classify Remembrance as paranormal or fantasy, but the pinch of magic didn’t allow Remembrance to fall into the contemporary genre either.

  Basically, since Remembrance didn’t fit into an established sub-category of YA and I was an unknown author, I was out of luck.

  A year and a half passed, and I wrote two more YA books, both starts of new series. One was an urban fantasy adventure involving witches and Greek mythology, and the other a fun, edgy contemporary that takes place in Las Vegas. Unfortunately, my agent didn’t love either of them like she loved Remembrance, so those books got pushed to the backburner. A tough fact about publishing is that just because you sign with an agent on one book, it doesn’t guarantee that they’re going to love the next books you write, especially if you decide to explore a new sub-genre.

  Flash forward a few months: Now it was Summer 2011. My agent couldn’t sell Remembrance and she didn’t love my other two books enough to push editors at publishing houses to read them. Then one day in June she called me and said, “I want you to publish Remembrance yourself.”

  At first I was appalled by that suggestion. But I didn’t want to react irrationally, so I told her I would look into it before coming to a decision.

  My instinct to reject her idea was because I still believed the stigma that an independently published book wasn’t as good as a book published by a New York house. But I promised my agent that I would look into the option of publishing Remembrance myself, so I started to research.

  I discovered that there are many reasons why authors choose to publish books independently. They might want more control over every creative step in the publishing process, they might want freedom to write without worrying about fitting into an established genre, they might not want to sign away their rights to the story, and many other reasons. I also read about success stories like Amanda Hocking’s, and saw that many successful titles on Amazon are independently published. I realized that from when I started writing in 2008 to that moment in 2011, I had been so focused on becoming traditionally published that I had been oblivious to the dynamic growth of independent publishing happening around me.

  While browsing books on Amazon as an author and a blogger (I reviewed books at the time), I paid attention to who published a book. Then I contemplated my browsing process BEFORE I started writing and blogging. I never paid attention to who published a book. If a cover grabbed me enough to make me read the description, and if the description sounded interesting, I bought the book. To the mainstream reader who isn’t involved with the industry, the publisher of a book doesn’t matter. They just want to find a story they’ll enjoy.

  After researching independent publishing, I came to a few conclusions:

  1) Remembrance would probably never get picked up by a traditional publishing house because the story didn’t fit into an established sub-genre of the YA market and I was an unknown author.

  2) It would benefit my career to publish Remembrance independently and develop a fan base.

  3) With the rising popularity of e-readers and self-publishing platforms like Kindle Direct Publishing and Barnes & Noble PubIt, it was easier than ever for independent authors to get their books into the hands of readers.

  4) At the rate things were going, Remembrance was going to sit on my computer as a manuscript forever and never be seen by anyone.

  5) Remembrance was a great story and deserved to be shared with the world.

  So on July 25, 2011, I published Remembrance via CreateSpace, Kindle Direct Publishing, Barnes & Noble PubIt, and Smashwords.

  I was SO EXCITED! I created a Facebook Fan Page and emailed book bloggers to see if they would review the book. Hopefully word would spread and Remembrance would fly off the (digital) shelves!

  Unbeknownst to me at the time, it doesn’t work like that.

  Luckily, one of my best friends from college is a YA book blogger, has a Masters in Business Administration with a focus in marketing, and has interned at a publishing house. When she saw that I put Remembrance online and then announced it was available for purchase with no pre-publication, publication week, and post-publication plans other than to get reviews and write blog posts about the book, she took action. Within a week she wrote and emailed me a ten-page marketing plan full of different ways to get my book seen by readers.

  Marketing Remembrance was a full time job. There was always something else I could be doing to get the book seen by more readers. I learned SO MUCH about marketing in the months following the publication of Remembrance that I could write a book explaining everything I know now. The friend who helped me with marketing Remembrance and I have discussed writing that book so we can help independent authors who are as clueless as I was when I first published Remembrance.

  Now that Timeless, the final part of the Transcend Time Saga, came out on November 20, 2012, I look back on what I’ve accomplished in the past year and a half with great pride. I completed the Transcend Time series, edited it, designed the covers, formatted the paperback and e-versions, went on a nation-wide book tour where I spoke to over 20,000 students, gained fans through social media, learned marketing techniques, and sold over 7,000 books. I had no idea that by publishing independently I would be starting my own business, and I have come a long way from the girl who put Remembrance online one summer day and hoped it would sell on its own.

  So what’s next?

  As rewarding as the experience of independently publishing Remembrance has been, it’s still my goal to be published by a traditional publishing house. You’re probably wondering why, and here are my reasons:

  1) I want the opportunity to work with a top-notch YA editor who will push me to make my books the absolute best they can be.

  2) I want my main focus to be writing. Marketing and publicizing Remembrance was an enriching experience, but in the future I would be happy to have the help of professionals so I can spend more time working on my books.

  3) Publishing houses have resources that are nearly impossible for me to access as an independent author. They can get books into public libraries, schools, magazines, physical bookstores, etc., and those are all places where I would love to see my books someday.

  Here’s what’s going on with me now:

  In March 2012, while I was touring high schools across the country to promote Remembrance, my old agent and I parted ways on friendly terms. Since I had independently published Remembrance there was nothing else she could do for the book, and she wasn’t the right agent for the other two YA books I had written.

  Less than a month later, I signed with literary agent Molly Ker Hawn from the Bent Agency for the third novel I had written—the edgy, fun contemporary YA that takes place in Las Vegas. Molly is an incredible agent—she’s enthusiastic about my writing, professional, has years of experience in publishing, and is excellent at navigating the business. She is also passionate about YA (young adult) and MG (middle grade) books. Those are the only genres she represents, which is perfect for me. We spent months editing my contemporary YA book to get it in the best shape to show to editors, and she taught me SO much during the editing process. She recently sent it to editors at traditional publishing houses, and I’m hoping for good news every day.

  The most amazing part of publishing the Transcend Time Saga has been connecting with the fans. It was hard for me when Remembrance kept getting rejected by editors, and I went through a long period of time when I believed the book would never be seen by anyone except me, my family, and friends. Now I have fans all over the world. Writing and publishing is a hard career, and it’s easy to feel defeated and wonder why you’re working for hours on end without a guaranteed payoff. But every time a fan emails me, tweets at me, writes on my Facebook wall, or leaves a positive review for one of my books, I’m reminded WHY I’m doing this—because it’s my purpose and passion in life to share the stories I create with the world. Writing has become so important to my identity that I wouldn’t know
who I was without it. From the bottom of my heart—thank you for your support. It means everything to me.

  AUTHOR INTERVIEW

  Dorine from The Write Path interviews Michelle Madow about writing

  http://www.dorinewhite.blogspot.com

  Dorine: How did writing Timeless compare to Remembrance?

  Michelle: Timeless was much more challenging to write than Remembrance, because there are more paranormal elements in the story, along with time travel. I had to make sure the paranormal elements were explained to the reader in a way that made sense, and I had to do a lot of research to make the scenes in Regency Era, England accurate. There were so many facts I had to learn about the time period—the clothes they wore, the hygiene products they had available, etiquette rules, how people addressed each other, and even the times they ate their meals (and how the meals were served) are so different from modern times! The research was the most challenging, but I’m happy with how the scenes in the past ended up.

  Dorine: You have an amazing online presence- Can you tell me what it is like to promote your own work and do so well? What were the biggest things that helped you?

  Michelle: Thank you! The biggest trick to “social media” is just to have FUN with it! I love talking with people through Twitter and Facebook, and I think it comes across in my tweets and status updates. If an author is only using social media to promote their work, it can be obvious to fans. I like sharing random things about what’s going on in my life, and I always reply back to people when they tweet at me or write on my Facebook. As for promoting my books, book bloggers have been so helpful by reviewing Remembrance and helping to spread the word. It’s been great meeting so many bloggers, because we all have one major thing in common—a love for books!

  Dorine: Did you always want to be a writer?

  Michelle: I’ve always created stories in my mind and have enjoyed writing, but I didn’t consider writing as a possible profession until mid-way through college because I wasn’t sure if I could complete a novel, or if anyone would be interested in my ideas. Then I took an Intro to Creative Writing class when I was a junior in college. I turned in the first chapter of Remembrance for a homework assignment, and my teacher and classmates loved it and encouraged me to write more. The positive feedback meant so much to me, and I decided that I would never know if I could complete a novel if I didn’t try. By the end of my junior year of college, I had finished the first draft of Remembrance!

  Dorine: What books influenced you the most as a child?

  Michelle: My favorite book series’ when I was younger were the Narnia series and Harry Potter. As for a book influencing me, Twilight by Stephenie Meyer had a huge impact on my life. I read Twilight when I was 18 years old, and Bella’s character inspired me to make positive changes in my life. Many books I was reading at that age involved teens who were partying, drinking, etc. Reading about a girl like Bella, who was happy being who she was without craving popularity, encouraged me to be more comfortable embracing that side of my personality. Twilight changed my life, and led me on a path to become a better person.

  Dorine: What are your future writing plans?

  Michelle: I’ve written two other books aside from the books in the Transcend Time Saga. Both of them are starts of different series’—one is a fun, contemporary YA, and the other is a YA urban fantasy involving witchcraft and Greek mythology. I’m pursuing the traditional publishing route for the contemporary YA, and my agent has that book out on submission to publishing houses. I’m crossing my fingers every day for good news!

  Dorine: Any advice for aspiring writers?

  Michelle: The biggest piece of advice I have if you’re writing a novel is to make sure you have a solid writing schedule before you start drafting. While writing Remembrance, I wrote 1,000 words every weekday, in between my afternoon classes. If you don’t have a routine and daily word count goal, completing a draft will be difficult. Writing is not a sprint—it’s a marathon. Slow and steady will get you to the end. It’s amazing how much progress you will make if you discipline yourself to write a little bit every day!

  TEN THINGS YOU DIDN’T KNOW ABOUT MICHELLE MADOW

  1) I love singing—especially Broadway showtunes! I have a mediocre voice though, so I was always in the chorus in school plays. (The high point of my theatre career was when I got the part of Pinocchio at a local theatre group when I was ten. It was downhill from there.) If you want to hear me sing, I have an old video on YouTube (www.youtube.com/michellemadow) of me singing "On My Own" from Les Miserables. But as I warned you, my voice was never “the best,” or good enough to get me a lead part in high school.

  2) I was in a pre-professional dance program for ten years. Dance was a HUGE part of my life until my senior year of high school. I did ballet, jazz, modern, hip-hop, and some tap. When I was in seventh grade I performed with the Russian Ballet in “The Nutcracker”—I had the part of one of the little mice! (When the Russian Ballet tours the country, they cast the children’s roles separately in each city.) I eventually stopped dance in my senior year, because my program wanted me to rehearse until 10:30 PM on Friday nights. I realized I wasn’t going to be a professional dancer, and that I preferred to have a social life.

  3) I was in a sorority for my first three years of college. I didn’t plan on doing recruitment, but one of my close friends talked me into attending a “sorority open house,” where I ended up receiving a bid to join the sorority. I didn’t have many friends in the beginning of college, so I decided to join because it would help me branch out. I’m glad I did, because I met my three closest friends in that sorority, and they are still my best friends today. I’m not good at following arbitrary rules though (I question every rule and need to understand WHY it’s in place if I’m going to follow it) so I got in “trouble” with the sorority a lot. I wrote Remembrance when I was a junior, and after signing with an agent in the summer between my junior and senior year of college, I decided to drop out of the sorority in my senior year so I could focus more on my writing.

  4) I’ve broken both my ankles—luckily at separate times! The first time was in fourth grade. I was playing a make-believe game with a friend that involved fake-flying. I decided to jump out of a tree. Bad decision. The second time was in sixth grade. I was excited for the end of the school day, and ran to my mom’s car when she arrived to pick me up. I randomly decided to do a ballet leap on the way there, but the ground was icy, and I didn’t land right. Another bad decision.

  5) I cannot draw. Seriously … my drawing/painting skills are pathetic. I can barely make a stick figure. Something doesn’t compute right when I try to draw an image. I’m so bad that I can’t even play the game “Draw Something” because I get so frustrated! Part of the reason I made Lizzie an artist in Remembrance is because it’s a skill I highly admire, since I have no concept of how to do it myself.

  6) I wish I’d taken writing seriously at a younger age. I never considered writing novels as a serious possibility until I was a junior in college. I wish I could go back in time and tell my fifteen year old self to stop caring about dance so much (since dance was always a short term goal of mine), and to think more long-term and start writing novels in high school. To those of you who are in high school and are already taking writing seriously, I give you major props. I wish I had been more like you when I was your age.

  7) I tried to play guitar for years, but was never any good. It’s sad, but true. You see, my dad and brother both play guitar. They’re not experts, but they’re good enough so they can play songs and entertain people. I wanted to be able to do that so badly, so I got a guitar and started playing when I was in tenth grade. I had trouble with strumming at first, but I figured I would improve with practice. After two years of practice, my strumming was still terrible, so I set aside guitar. Then I picked it back up when I was a junior in college. I practiced almost every day when I was a junior and senior, but remained awful at strumming. I could only manage to strum a song right if I focuse
d very hard on it, but then I couldn’t sing along. Even then, the strumming wasn’t that great. Eventually, I realized I just wasn’t naturally talented at guitar, and set it aside again.

  8) I was obsessed with Star Wars in fourth grade. I watched the movies multiple times, and started a Star Wars action figure collection (that I still have today). I have a Millennium Falcon for them and everything! In fourth grade I brought my action figures to school, and insisted my friends do the same, so we could create make believe stories set in the Star Wars universe and have our action figures act them out. (Luckily, I went to a very small school then—I had 12 kids in my grade—and I somehow managed to make Star Wars cool, so no one thought I was a total loser.) I can’t imagine what people would have thought of me if I were in public school!