All change?

Or, how books get orphaned

Welcome to the free newsletter of David (D. V.) Bishop, author of the Cesare Aldo historical thrillers set in Renaissance Italy. This time: what happens when an editor leaves?

Expect the unexpected

Rare is the writer who has the same editor and publisher throughout a career. Why? Authors move on for many reasons. They might feel dissatisfied or taken for granted. They may believe their books aren’t being marketed well (or at all). Maybe the terms in a new contract don’t reflect what the author and/or their agent believes is deserved.

There’s a great post about this on Phoebe Morgan’s, The Honest Editor Substack (link below). In fact, I’d say every post on The Honest Editor is worth a read…

To recontract or not to recontract...

Authors also switch publisher for benign reasons, such as when their new book is in a different genre or aimed at a very different readership. If you write gritty grimdark fantasy, for example, your publisher might not be best placed to take on a cosy crime caper about a wedding cake decorator solving murder mysteries in Maidenhead.

Sometime publishers precipitate the change. They may not to offer a new contract, perhaps due to declining sales. (Again, see The Honest Editor Substack for more on this.) Whatever the reason, nobody enjoys a ‘Welcome to Dumpsville, population: you’ conversation, regardless of whether that ending is editorial or romantic

Photo by Nick Fewings on Unsplash

(I’ve a friend who got dumped by their first publisher two books into a trilogy. Ouch! They overcame that by switching genres and readerships for a new project. Another publisher picked up the incomplete trilogy, bringing out all three books. A decade on, a third publisher is releasing the trilogy once again. Success truly is the best revenge!)

But there’s another reason why the author/publisher relationship can run aground: the editor leaves. Books are a tough industry for editors, full of long hours without great pay. Sometimes they shift publisher to achieve career progression; others leave the industry altogether or become a freelancer – all understandable choices.

Getting orphaned

Levels of staff turnover vary across publishers. I had the same editor for the first five Cesare Aldo historical thrillers, whereas another friend (a different one from the previous example) had seven different editors while writing five novels for the same publisher! (Honestly, that imprint should have a turnstile on its front door.)

Photo by Kat on Unsplash

When an editor leaves, it creates all sorts of uncertainties. Great editors know your writing inside out, asking questions that push you to make a manuscript even better. But their job goes far beyond words on the page. An editor is also your champion within a publishing house, lobbying for you and your books. That’s invaluable.

Losing such a close ally is unsettling. There is no guarantee whoever replaces them will be as sympathetic or enthusiastic. It hits very differently from getting a new boss at work. In my teaching job I’ve had so many line managers (15 in 16 years) I honestly can’t recall all their names. The author/editor relationship is far more personal.

The loss hits hardest if the editor who acquired your novel goes before it is published. This scenario even has a name: your book is orphaned. The person who bought the manuscript is gone and someone else has to see it through the editorial journey, no matter how much enthusiasm (or little) they have for it - not an ideal situation.

Losing the editor who originally commissioned you is less problematic once you are established as an author at a particular publisher. Hopefully your previous novels have proven their worth and those in charge want to keep publishing you. Nonetheless, it is a wait and see situation. Who is coming next, and how much of an ally will they be?

Grazie mille, Alex Saunders

The prompt for writing all this was my editor Alex Saunders leaving Pan Macmillan. He went freelance, a decision I completely respect having done the same twenty-five years ago when I resigned from editing 2000AD comic. Everyone has to find their own path and I wish Alex every success in what he does next.

My new book CARNIVAL OF LIES is dedicated to Alex (see above), although I made that back in 2024, long before I knew it would be the last book we worked on together.

I wanted to mark Alex’s departure by reflecting on the journey we took together. Back in 2019 Alex was one of three editors at different publishers wanting to publish my first Cesare Aldo historical thriller City of Vengeance, plus at least one more novel. Alex’s enthusiasm for my writing and the lure of Pan Macmillan won the day.

I think I was the first author Alex contracted, and we were a great match. His ability to pinpoint what a manuscript needed was almost surgical, while his empathy for my idiosyncrasies as a writer was also much appreciated. He made the Aldo novels so much more than they could have been and I will always be grateful to him for that.

Our peak was probably the 2023 Crime Writers’ Association Dagger Awards where I won the Historical Dagger for my second Aldo novel, The Darkest Sin. Five minutes later another Alex author, Hayley Scrivenor, won the New Blood Dagger for Dirt Town and Alex accepted the award on Hayley’s behalf. That was a real pinch-me moment.

In July I’m due to submit the sixth Aldo book. I don’t know who my editor for it will be and, after that, I am out of contract. Pan Macmillan has a first-look option on my next crime novel, but for now the future remains uncertain and unseen. Onwards!

Photo by Tolu Akinyemi 🇳🇬 on Unsplash

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