(A Writer's) Life Is A Carousel
If you're lucky enough to have a book contract, there's a likelihood that your publisher has signed you up for more than one book. Even if there is no firm contract for a second novel, they may ask for first refusal on whatever you turn your hand to next. You're grateful, nay, emboldened by the fact that your publisher seemingly wants more. (Important word, that. Seemingly.) 'I've made it!'
If you want my advice, you'll take a sober moment to consider exactly what that contractual obligation means. Break out the champagne, yes. Celebrate your book deal - for sure! But remember.'More' is a two-way street. Your publisher has shown faith in you. Now, you will have to prove that their faith isn't misplaced.
And this is where things can get tricky...
Deadlines
First of all, you'll have a deadline. The langorous writing schedule of an uncontracted debut novel is a luxury you'll never have again - or not yet, at least. Work on your first book may have taken years, as you placed the manuscript into a drawer, got on with life, and then pulled the sheafs of paper back out again. It didn't matter. With no deadline in sight, you could take as long as you liked. You had the days and the energy to hone and refine, finally presenting your manuscript as polished as a pearl (hopefully). That's a lot of time spent getting things right. Time you will never have again. An aspiring writer can kick back for a weekend, with no one breathing down their neck. A commissioned writer can kick back for a weekend, sure. But too many lazy weekends and a roomy schedule becomes a tight one. A deadline is still a deadline, and you'd better take it seriously. After all, you want to show your new publisher that you are reliable. Reliable and inspired...
Ideas
You've been solidly busy on your debut novel. At the back of your head, you've often thought, 'I must get some ideas down for my second novel.' Ideas come, they go. Some work, some don't. As those ideas rise to the surface or sink, you're busy juggling lots of the other balls that have been thrown into the air with publication - revising manuscripts, checking copyedits, remembering to blog, getting yourself on the author circuit, checking in with your agent and probably still holding down a day job. Which doesn't leave a lot of time for new ideas. Make time. Because when your publisher asks, 'What next?' you want to have a good answer. You want to see that person smile.
Expectations
For the first time in your writing career, professionals are watching you. They have expectations - that you can write, will continue to write and flourish, have a talent that will sell them books. But writers are not performing monkeys. If we could pull bestselling novels out of a hat, we'd all be rich. This is the real toughie. Every new book is a learning curve, with lots of wrong paths and stumbling blocks. Easy to admit when you're officially still learning. Much harder to acknowledge when you're a contracted writer. Who do you turn to when your confidence wobbles? This is where a good agent and a good writing group pay dividends. Don't think you need an agent? When you're in tears at your desk because you don't think you can do this, you need an agent. You don't want your editor to know about your crisis of confidence and your editor probably doesn't want to believe you're capable of a crisis of confidence. Agents do not exist simply to cream off the top percentage of your earnings. They are there as an essential negotiator - not just with your publisher, but with your sanity.
Sales record
By the time you deliver your second manuscript, your publisher may have an idea of how your debut is subbing in with booksellers. Well? Bad? If your sales are modest, you will have to work hard to convince the publisher to stick with book two. You'd better make it a good'un. After all, you'll soon be hoping for another contract.
Look out! There's someone behind you.
Enjoy your launch party, because tomorrow it's someone else's. If there's one piece of advice I could give debut novelists, it's this: remember to carry your pinch of salt around with you. Enjoy the moment, smile and shake hands, pop the corks, thank all the people you need to thank (always thank the people you need to thank). Then remind yourself that there are over 200,000 books published each year in the UK alone. That's a lot of launch parties and many debut novelists. Not all of those books will sell well. Is there someone around to keep your feet on the ground? Good - hold on to them.
What's your USP?
Last time it was the novelty of being a 'debut'. You can't call yourself that any more. So what are you now? This is when a writer's confidence can take a nosedive. You've lost your identity. Or your identity has moved on. You decide.
Enough pressure?
Read all of the above, and you can see why some authors find their knees knocking at their desk. That's a lot of pressure, isn't it? Still having fun? The key to all of this is a professional attitude. Acknowledge the industry you work in. Network, read, research, talk to people. Then approach your second novel with the same industry and discipline that you apply to other areas of your life. Don't take three months off from writing, take three weeks. If you're anything like me, you'll soon be hungry to be back at the keyboard. Draw up a schedule. Even if you haven't been given a deadline yet - give yourself one. Put two very important elements into that schedule - thinking time and rewriting time. The biggest challenge authors face with their follow-up novel is the harsh reality that none of us know what we're going to write until it's been written. It's easy to tell a publisher, 'Oh yes, it will be a humorous psychological thriller set in a boarding school with sharks.' Less easy to pull off when your creative imagination begins to wander down an entirely different avenue. But if you plan enough, give your creativity room to breath, you will get to where you need to be. By this stage in your career (and in an ideal world), you will have a close working relationship with your agent, your editor is championing you and you have a readership. Jewels in any author's crown. Have faith in yourself. Work hard. Let your imagination take flight. Did I mention 'Work hard'?
It's not just rock stars who have difficult second albums. Follow-up novels can be agonising. But never forget, you're always learning - on your second novel, and beyond. This world of ours divides neatly into two: those with the humility to learn, and those who refuse to admit they have anything left to learn. If you have the humility and the talent and the work ethic, you have every chance of writing a fantastic second novel. But be prepared. It won't be easy.
Let's not be too dour. At least you won't see your work slated by a teenage NME journalist, you'll never have enough money to buy silly cars and no one will ask you to sing on a charity single. It could be a lot worse. You could be locked in a recording studio with a group of friends you've learned to hate, experimenting with some ironic country and western. You could be wearing flares...
Do you have experience of the difficult second novel? Any survival tips to share?