Dead Odds Reaches End of Gestation, Beginning of Publication

What a long, strange trip it's been. After nearly a decade, the baby is born. Dead Odds is alive.

I barely believe it. Yet it's true. It's available now on Amazon via eBook and, soon, via paperback.

Hitting "publish" late yesterday was the culmination of about a decade of equal amounts learning and work. Writing and rewriting, then learning and learning more.

I've documented the big parts of that long journey here, along with other thoughts, but looking back there were some definite milestones.

Milestones along the Way

Finishing the way-too-long first draft. Making the hard decision about which characters (first) and scenes (second) to cut. Rewriting from start to finish. Getting feedback from professionals. More rewriting and editing. Committing to a decision about the right beginning to Dead Odds.

That was probably the hardest decision of all, because a novel can go nowhere if readers don't get past the first few chapters. I had to ignore advice from one editor I very much respect because, ultimately, I found myself unable to write a compelling beginning without a dead body at the end of Chapter 1.

There were two critical points separated by many, many months. First was feedback from developmental editor Julie Butcher. She loved an early manuscript and provided two pieces of insightful feedback: she was happy with the "voice" the book but not the first five chapters, which, she said, "stink on ice."

Her commentary came in 2016. I was concerned less about the opening scenes than her enthusiasm. Someone else believed.

Almost two years later to the day, another editor, Jim Thomsen, uncovered a small group of issues to fix but offered a second opinion: Dead Odds had something. (By that time, I'd made the hard call on the beginning to the book, and I was committed.)

Other Important Moments

Away from the keyboard, I attended mystery and other author conferences: the Florida Writers Association's annual conference (multiple times), Sleuthfest, the annual conference of the Florida Chapter of the Mystery Writers Association (multiple times), and ThrillerFest, the annual meeting of the International Thriller Writers (once).

Some wonderful lessons came from the annual summertime authors series put on by Murder on the Beach bookstore in Delray Beach, Fla., and from local MWA and Sisters in Crime Guppies chapter meetings.

I had to make some hard decisions about landing an agent to sell the book. I went through three time periods of querying, targeting specific agents, but they knew then what I didn't realize later. The book wasn't ready. Not for them and not for a publishing house.

By the time it was ready, I'd had another realization. I wasn't willing to query more agents and wait months for answers -- and many more months for publication. I am in my 50s, not my 30s.

A Twitter back and forth with the great Don Winslow.

As I got closer to a finished product, I engaged in a Twitter discussion with one of the country's hottest crime writers, Don Winslow, on the topic of making people pay for your hard work. This was a back and forth about getting paid an advance, which doesn't happen in the the world of self-publishing, and Don's belief that every writer should get a check with several zeros at the end as a sign of belief.

I tweeted back that I wanted to control the rights to my books, my characters, and to collect more royalties from it. Alas, Don is a known quantity and presumably makes a tidy some from his work. In fact, he is in the thick of seeing one of his crime novels being turned into a movie.

Lessons Learned

What do I know now that I didn't know then? I've discussed that here as well, but really that boils down to a short list:

Believe in your story and make decisions about it that you believe are right. You can listen to editors, but ultimately you have to believe that your story is exactly what you want it to be.

I took to heart the areas that agents, editors and publishers said to pay attention to. Invest in editing help. Use proofreaders. Secure a quality cover.

I'm not someone who carries regrets through life, but at some point I'll ponder if I should have queried agents or publishers like Down & Out Books down the road in Tampa.

Until then, I'll try to enjoy the moment. Dead Odds lives.