Liking Grammar

There is a misconception abroad that white folk have no ethnic culture. We are, well, plain vanilla folk who lack the distinctive zest and pizazz of other groups. Not so. Here is a fun eye-opener squashing that myth which folks in publishing will no doubt especially enjoy.

Publishing Is Like . . .

The key personnel gathered. “Listen,” said the publisher. “A publisher went out to publish. And as he published, some books fell on deaf ears. And the remaindering houses came and snatched up the excess stock at a fraction of its cost. Other books fell on hard-headed readers where the ideas were not able to root deeply in their minds. So as soon as the readers’ preconceived notions arose, the ideas from the book withered away. Other books fell among a huge glut of other new books and choked out the shelf-space, so the books were not seen. Other books fell into fertile minds and grew there, making a difference in the readers who in turn touched the lives of thirty, sixty or even a hundred other people.”
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Great Production

“Design, production, and manufacturing, in many publishing houses, are not considered as glamorous as editorial or sales, and may be looked upon a secondary. They should be viewed as quite the reverse,” says publishing guru Tom Woll (p. 161). Why? Well, how many times have design and production saved editorial’s and marketing’s behind when an author was late or a book needed to come out early? How many times has great jacket design made customers give a second look at something new? And how much money has been saved by shrewd print buyers?

Woll rightly points out, however, that it is unwise and unfair for others always to rely on production to bear the burden of fixing problems. When it comes to scheduling, one guideline we’ve implemented with some success is this: Do not schedule a book for publication until the revised manuscript is in hand.

That could sound draconian, but it works. Why? Authors may not always meet their deadlines because they are not employees of the publisher. So editors, as peers, have a limited set of tools they can use in working with authors to stay on schedule. But authors always want to know, “When will my book come out?” (Not so subtle subtext: “the sooner the better.”)

Typically the answer would be, “In nine to twelve months.” By saying it can be scheduled only when the final draft is in hand puts responsibility (and motivation) properly in the author’s hands.

Exceptions? Certainly. A big upcoming event for which the book must be available. A big-name author whose bestseller is wanted by marketing (and probably finance) for this fiscal year. But those should be exceptions, not the rule.

That’s just one idea for trying to deal with the scheduling dragon. Any other good ideas out there?

The Joys of Coauthoring

One colleague said I seemed to be pretty negative about coauthoring when I wrote about that here recently. Since I have coauthored five books myself, I suppose one could suppose a certain autobiographical slant to my comments. That has not been the case. I coauthored three Bible study guides with my wife, another with my wife and a friend, and Heart. Soul. Mind. Strength. with my former coworker at IVP, Linda Doll. Each was a very enjoyable experience with minimal problems.
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Unedited at 100

Just over a year ago I posted my first blog on Andy Unedited, stating that “to write a blog, you need to have an interesting personality or provocative opinions. I have neither.” I’m still not sure I have either, but in this, my one hundredth posting, I do know I’m having fun.

Here are some highlights from the first 100:

Mistiest Watercolored Memory: Vice President of Looking Out of the Window. It brought back lots of found recollections about my dad.

Most Controversial: The Serial Comma and the Plagues of Egypt. Who would have thought the lowly comma could arouse such passions?

Most Whimsical: Dear Santa. Old St. Nick brings out the wish list in us all.

Title with the Cleverest Rhyme: Do You Itch for a Niche or Are You on the Leash of Your Niche? Actually, it was the only title with a rhyme.

Truest Confession: Trashing a Book. Guilt still hangs over me for this.

Most Opinionated: Grammar Was Made for People, Not People for Grammar. I guess I do have some opinions after all.

Biggest Grammatical Error: Publishing that Lasts. I’m afraid that first sentence was not a case of breaking the rules on purpose, as my loving wife gleefully pointed out.

Post That Made My Staff the Most Nervous: “I Love to Fire People.” There was really no need to worry. I haven’t fired anyone . . . yet!

Whither Christian Bookstores?

I suspect that many readers of this blog have already run into the excellent article in the latest issue of Christianity Today on the state of Christian bookstores. (Full disclosure: The article is written by Cindy Crosby, wife of IVP Associate Publisher for Sales and Marketing, Jeff Crosby.)

Obviously there have been big changes in the world of Christian retailing in the last ten years. As Crosby writes, “The CBA (formerly the Christian Booksellers Association), a Colorado Springs-based trade association for retailers, says that as recently as the mid-’80s it had 3,000 members of an estimated 4,000 Christian retail stores. Today CBA has 1,813 members of an estimated 2,800 stores.”

Competition from big box stores and the Internet have forced many out of business. But not all is doom and gloom. Many are thriving with creative strategies and programs. Check it out.