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| Publishing Questions and answers about the publishing industry, featuring answers from literary agents, publisher writers, and editors. |
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| Author and Editor Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Cambridgeshire
Posts: 551
| Chat to John Jarrold in person We're delighted to announce that John has kindly agreed to run a kaffeeklatsche on the Sunday morning of NewCon 4. www.newcon4.com For anyone unfamiliar with the term, this basically means that a few lucky people (6 to 8 individuals) will have the chance to sit around for an hour or so with John, nattering about any subject they might wish to talk about, not to mention picking however few of his brain cells have survived the Saturday night (please be gentle). As indicated, spaces are strictly limited and will be allocated on a first-come first-serve basis. Bookings will open on the Saturday morning of the convention. We will also be running one further kaffeeklatsche that same morning, this one featuring a little-known emerging author by the name of... ehm... Iain M. Banks. ![]() Can't wait! |
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| | #2 (permalink) |
| weaver of the unseen Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Greater London
Posts: 599
| Re: Chat to John Jarrold in person Have fun to anyone who gets a chance to talk to either one of them, but please be careful with the old fellows, some people might still need their advices. :P |
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| | #3 (permalink) |
| Pantechnicon.net Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Hertfordshire
Posts: 230
| Re: Chat to John Jarrold in person Ha ha, I think that warning's going to the wrong people, ctg. Naive writers beware: John is honest. Don't expect him to flatter your ego or coddle you in any way ![]() |
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| Unconsidered Trifler Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Cambridgeshire
Posts: 81
| Re: Chat to John Jarrold in person Thanks, John, from one of your attendees (Klatschtanten?) - it was very useful to get the inside skinny on the UK market. At last I have a solid reply for all those misinformed folk who've been telling me that ~125k is too long for a first (fantasy) novel ![]() Quote:
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| | #7 (permalink) |
| Registered User Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Lincolnshire
Posts: 1,117
| Re: Chat to John Jarrold in person Thanks, Anne! There is no difference in length requirements for a first novel - why would there be? Long books sell, short books don't! As I recall, Maggie Furey's first fantasy novel, AURIAN, was about 150,000 words long. And the debut fantasy novels I have sold as an agent, over the past three years, have ranged from 130,000 words to 180,000...possibly longer. |
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| | #8 (permalink) | |
| Unconsidered Trifler Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Cambridgeshire
Posts: 81
| Re: Chat to John Jarrold in person Quote:
Anyway, back to wrestling with the manuscript (I have the week off work - yay!) ![]() | |
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| | #10 (permalink) |
| Registered User Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Lincolnshire
Posts: 1,117
| Re: Chat to John Jarrold in person But publishers are fussed, because they know - certainly in the UK - that a 70000-word SF or Fantasy novel is unlikely to be taken by the bookselling chains... |
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| | #11 (permalink) | |
| Registered User Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Lincolnshire
Posts: 1,117
| Re: Chat to John Jarrold in person Quote:
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| | #12 (permalink) |
| Registered User Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Greater London
Posts: 102
| Re: Chat to John Jarrold in person I was about to cite The Reality Dysfunction as a prime example of a long debut novel, but I think it's actually his second trilogy and therefore 4th book. Still... that's a hefty tome. And tome doesn't really even begin to describe it. |
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| | #13 (permalink) |
| Registered User Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Lincolnshire
Posts: 1,117
| Re: Chat to John Jarrold in person Quite right, Peter Hamilton's first three books are much shorter. But look at Joe Abercrombie or Scott Lynch in fantasy, or Charlie Stross and Philip Palmer in SF. Debuts published relatively recently (that's where comparisons have to come for a new writer, not with debuts going back fifteen or more years). All well over 100,000 words... |
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| | #15 (permalink) |
| Registered User Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Lincolnshire
Posts: 1,117
| Re: Chat to John Jarrold in person You're welcome to say I said so, if it helps! Look at it this way: long books sell, short books don't (in SFF terms, in the UK - and I think largely in the US). So when a publisher takes on a new writer, who will not be easy to sell to the book trade, do they make things MORE difficult for themselves by insisting they write at a length that is uncommercial? Not unless they are deeply stupid... |
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