sharing some good news

[Jason LaPier]

Hey everyone -

Several months back I mentioned I had a potential book deal in the works. I didn't have an agent, and I was asking for help from fellow NIWAs about what to do. I got some great advice from a few different angles and it was very helpful. In the end, I chose not to pursue an agent, but instead to hire an attorney to help me negotiate the contract.

I couldn't say much about it back then, but a press release finally went out on Friday:

http://www.thebookseller.com/news/harpervoyager-signs-15-open-submission-fortnight.html

Basically: almost 2 years ago, Harper Voyager (a HarperCollins imprint) decided to open the floodgates and invite unagented submissions for a period of two weeks. It took them a year and a half to comb through the 5,000+ manuscripts they received, and in the end they picked 15 lucky authors (me being one of them).

They put us all on a release schedule that spans about a year, so my book isn't going to be released until July 7th, 2015. Also, it will expanded on to make a trilogy (releasing book 2 in mid-2016 and book 3 in mid-2017).

I have to admit, it feels a little odd to announce this to a group specifically formed for independent writers. I had self-published this book originally at the end of 2010, and had typical, abysmal sales, because I had no idea what I was doing as a self-publisher back then. I'm very excited to get a mulligan with something that flopped the first time around. 

I also feel like I'm going to use almost all the same self-publishing strategies I've been learning over the past year or so for this traditionally-published release. I think HV is paying attention to the changes in publishing and their Voyager Impulse line is an experiment to see if they can be as agile as self-publishing: focusing on ebooks, pricing them in the sweet spot (~$4, sometimes on sale for $2 or $3), and embracing multi-book series. Even with that, as we all know authors are expected to do most of their own promotion work these days.

I just want to say thanks again for all the advice I've received from this group since I joined at the start of this year. You help me feel like I'm not alone, and that's huge. I'm looking forward to mining your brain gems for a long time as I move into this next leg of my writing career. :)

- Jason

[Adam Copeland]

Freaking awesome man! Good job!

Sent on the new Sprint Network from my Samsung Galaxy S®4.

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[Adam Copeland]

Also, was this the same book you submitted to Amazon s breakout competition? 

[Courtney Pierce]

Congratulations, Jason! That's so fantastic! When I sat in a workshop with you a year ago, you were asking about how to get an ISBN, and now look at you! An inspiration to all.

Thank you so much for sharing your progress! In the end, though, it's all about a good book finding an audience. 

Bravo!

Courtney Pierce

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Courtney

www.courtney-pierce.com

Check out my books at Windtree Press or buy them in print at Amazon.com!

[Jason LaPier]

No, this was the first book I completed. Crossfade, my second book (unrelated to the first), was what made the quarterfinal round in ABNA. Harper has said they want to take a look at that as well. I'm holding off a little to see how things go. I like having the option of self-publishing Crossfade if I want to go that route. We'll see. In the meantime, I've got writing to do.

Yep, I'm always gonna remember 2014. :)

[Amber Cook]

Wish you all the best with it!

[Angela Korra'ti]

Congratulations. :)

Anna

[Ron Hepner]

Congratulations, Jason. What counts is that you stayed with it. Look forward to your series.

[Tonya Macalino]

Congratulations, Jason! I hope it proves to be a wonderful journey!

--Tonya 

[Ron Hepner]

An author's journey can be rough, scary, speed bumps along the way, but oh so rewarding--not just financially but the author becomes richer in the spirt of his words.

On Fri, Sep 12, 2014 at 10:48 AM, Tonya Macalino <to...@tonyamacalino.com> wrote:

Congratulations, Jason! I hope it proves to be a wonderful journey!

--Tonya 

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[Roslyn McFarland]

Huge congrats, Jason!
A long road, but very worth it for you I hope! 

[Caitlin Diehl]

That is so awesome, Jason!  Congratulations.

Caitlin

[Courtney Pierce]

Jason, I think you're journey is inspiring. You should attend the 2015 Symposium to share your story with others. Save the date: March 7, 2015. We'll be having a full day of workshops at the PCC Sylvania Campus. More info to come.

Many authors will be intrigued by your experience. One of our workshops will be balancing the relationship between Indie and Traditional Publishing. It's a growing trend.

Keep us posted.

Courtney Pierce

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[Ron Hepner]

jason, keep us posted, okay, on your writing career, events, publications.

[Jason LaPier]

Thanks all for the kind words!

Courtney: Wow, thank you so much for the invitation to the symposium. Unfortunately, I'm going to be out of the country for the first two weeks of March, otherwise I would be honored to speak.

I'm so sorry I will miss it!

On Tue, Sep 16, 2014 at 9:00 PM, Courtney Pierce <cp12...@gmail.com> wrote:

[Pam]

Super news Jason. You're now a hybrid, and as all gardeners  know, hybrids are the prettiest. 

Congratulations!!!

Pam