This week has all been about learning. To explain, P-Wave Press is in the process of climbing a huge learning curve, as we transform ourselves from a tiny imprint dedicated to one author to a professional publishing house with a front list, back list, and everything in between.
To aid that process, we joined the
Independent Publishers Guild a few months ago, and it has been an intense ride ever since, with so much incredibly useful information coming our way that it was enough to make your head spin. I would sincerely recommend any independent publisher, no matter their size or how far they are along their own particular journey, to join, not least to take advantage of the Skills Hub. That resource, free to members, offers a crash course in all that is publishing in the modern age, and as such is worth the joining fee alone, leaving aside all the other benefits of IPG membership.
The reason, however, that the IPG has been uppermost in my mind this week is because I attended (virtually) their Autumn Conference. From the vantage point of the online feed, it seemed as if I was standing at the back of the hall, craning my neck to get a closer view and ensure I didn't miss a single tidbit. Which pretty much sums up my approach to the meeting—as a chance to glean as much information so I could help P-Wave Press on its voyage into the (slightly less) unknown.
A long and winding road
On another note, we have been hard at work at a book that has taken (so far) four months longer than planned to get ready for publication. I am referring to
Pushing the Wave 2017–2022, the best of the first years of short stories, articles, recipes and much more from the website
Pushing the Wave, by L.A. Davenport.
While in the past that degree of tardiness might have left me alternately biting my nails down to the quick and tearing my hair out, I have experienced something akin to serenity over the whole thing and learned to take a step back. As things stand, we have made no commitments to anyone apart from the wonderful designer and editor, who have helped nurture the project from its initial concept, and not set any hard and fast deadlines. Therefore, a decision was made quite a while ago that we would not become fixated on dates but rather let the book come to its fruition of its own accord, and be the best it can be.
After all, it's already late, as it would ideally have been published in 2023. Although it wasn't proposed as an idea before the end of that year, so we were always going to miss that particular timeframe. The additional issue is that it is now also going to push the 2023 installment into next year, which is regrettable. But again, I would rather both books reached their potential rather than met an imposed deadline that is beholden to no one and serves only add another layer of pressure.
Booktokers
Finally, a word about clocks. No, sorry, not clocks but TikTok, and another kind of learning.
To start this particular observation, I should take a step back in time. The remarkable Sam Missingham launched relatively recently
The Empowered Author, a resource that offers book advice, practical tips and insight from experts for authors looking to improve their book marketing skills and knowledge, and as such is a boon to anyone contemplating launching their book.
Not content with that, she announced today a new initiative:
Meet The Booktokers, a response to the huge impact BookTok is having on the book industry, especially on how books are being shared and talked about, but also in driving millions of book sales.
The idea is that the site will match great books with great booktokers to put books into passionate book-lovers' hands, all without authors and publishers needing to be on TikTok themselves.
To me, it seems like a brilliant idea that is so obvious that it is a surprise that no one thought of it before—surely the mark of a success in the making.
I wish her luck, and I am sure we will trying it out in the near future.