What to Expect when You're Expecting Part 2

Being Out in the World with Your Book

I’m not a WGA member because I don’t write for television or film, but I have lots of friends who do and I stand behind them. Their fight is important for all of us. Here’s a great explainer on why the guild members are striking from my funny and smart friend Josh Gondelman, who also has a great substack.

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Hi friends,

Hello, and welcome to part 2 of the by-no-means-exhaustive look at what to expect when you’re putting out a book for the first time. There are much more thorough resources available, but my dream is that these letters can help you generate some thinking on the matter.

Since I wrote part one of this series, Jaya and Mattie came through town, and I had brunch with them and Brandy at Elizabeth’s, and we talked excitedly about Mattie’s forthcoming book, Boys Weekend, which just got a starred review in PW. We were all really excited about it, not to mention this absolutely perfect appetizer order of waffles and fried oysters.

It’s Mattie’s first time with a big publisher, which can feel different and new. I had a chapbook called Deli Life (good luck finding a copy of it) come out a few years before my first book with Crown and I can testify this is true. Just to potentially get access to way more review or press coverage feels significant, not to mention national bookstore distribution. Mattie’s book feels like it has so much possibility, and they were excited to support it, to get out on the road with it, whatever that might look like for them.

I think of this topic as being out in the world with your book.