And so it begins…

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By Holly Tucker

As editor of Wonders & Marvels over these past two years, I’ve been pretty quiet about my writing life.  But now it’s time to come clean…and I need your advice.

My own book, Blood Work: A Tale of Murder and Medicine in the Scientific Revolution, is coming out early next spring.  To quote the catalogue copy: Blood Work is a “a sharp-eyed exposé of the deadly politics, murderous plots, and cutthroat rivalries behind the first blood transfusions in seventeenth-century Europe.“  I didn’t write that, my publisher did–but sounds pretty good to me!

The first blood transfusions were animal-to-human: cows and lambs to humans (yes, you read that right).  They were also deadly (no surprise there).  Who knew physicians during the 17th century would resort to murder to stop frightening advances in science?

I spent about 5 years researching this book, and about 2 years writing it.  I finished the draft last fall, on Halloween night to be exact.  Between January and March, my editor and her assistant at W.W. Norton (who are both simply brilliant) helped me navigate revisions.  I rewrote, reordered, and ripped apart nearly every word of the book.  It was hard to do, but I’m really happy with how it all turned out.

The manuscript is now in copyediting. In fact, I’m anxiously hoping the marked manuscript will arrive before I leave for France, where I’ll be teaching this summer.  Departure: in 2 weeks.

Even though we’re still 10 months away from the release date, things are speeding up on the publishing side of things.  I was in New York City last week to meet with my editors and publicist to talk about pre-release nuts-and-bolts.  And then, just this morning, I discovered that Norton already has beautiful webpage up for the book.  Take a peek here!  Then there’s also the author page…wow.  Wow.

All very exciting, and truthfully, a little overwhelming. I’ve published books before, but this is my first experience working with a top-notch trade publisher and an editor who has worked with some of my heroes.  (e.g., Roy Porter, gulp!)  But so far, so very good.

Here, now, is where I need your help:

Wonders & Marvels has been a sandbox where all of us who are history geeks can play.  It’s not about me, it never has been, it never will be.  It’s a place where great authors can share fascinating stories about the past.  As W&M Editor, I’ve kept myself in the background as a choreographer of sorts to this fabulous enterprise. So now I’m trying to figure out whether and how much to come out and play.

Please take a minute to answer a couple of questions:

*To what degree do you want to know more about: me as a professor, a bibliophile, a parent, a geek?  What about the upcoming book?  The publishing journey?  Or is all of that better on my author website?

*How can I be helpful to you as avid book readers and/or writers?  What questions do you have about research, history, writing, publishing?  Maybe a once-a-week column on W&M where I take questions?  If so, we need to come up with a pithy name for it!

I’ve also been thinking about trying my hand with video.  This summer would be perfect for it.

*Would you be interested in some videoblogs on French history and historical sites? Little Geek and I will be traveling ’round Europe a bit too…so lots of potential there as well. Perhaps even videos of some of the places where my research for Blood Work has taken me?

*Other ideas? Thoughts? Advice?

Ok, tons of questions for you.  GUIDANCE please!  :)

Yours in geekitude, Holly

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13 Comments - Leave a comment!
  • http://www.sandragulland.com Sandra Gulland

    Love the cover and title!

    I’d love to see videoblogs and, as well, a once-a-week column.

    Bon voyage!

  • http://bookblogtourguide.com Diane

    I would LOVE to live vicariously through you on your European trip with video blogs!

    BLOOD WORK looks fantastic and I am looking forward to its publication.

  • http://www.artandwords.com/blog kris waldherr

    Congrats, Holly! BLOOD WORK looks amazing — can’t wait to read it! As a parent, I have a squishy relationship with mommy bloggers. But you would be different. I’d love to know how you do it all with Little Geek in hand (just as I try to do it with the Diva Child here). Also any sort of travel commentary is appealing too. Once a week columns give us something to anticipate. :)

  • http://www.wondersandmarvels.com Editor

    What kind of topics would you guys imagine for a weekly column?

  • http://blog.catherinedelors.com/napoleon-and-pauline-bonaparte-seen-by-fouche/ Catherine Delors

    Beautiful, evocative cover, Holly! Scholarly too. And what a fasinating subject! About your questions:
    1. Personally I prefer the more personal info on the author website.
    2. Not sure about making it too rigid. A Q&A session once in a while would be nice.
    3. Oh, yes, those videoblogs are a superb idea!

    See you soon in Paris!

  • Pamela Toler

    Hey Holly: I think keeping the personal stuff in the author website will work best. (Love both the visual and written style BTW). I’d love to see an occasional Q & A column here and the video blogs sound fun.

    Congratulations. And enjoy the rest of the journey.

  • http://www.planetpeschel.com Bill Peschel

    Oh, my, the cover is a nice combination of a print with the red overlay (especially the blood-shaped drop that highlights the author’s name). Real eye-catching.

    So, now to your questions:

    *To what degree do you want to know more about: me as a professor, a bibliophile, a parent, a geek? What about the upcoming book? The publishing journey? Or is all of that better on my author website?

    Maybe not so much about yourself, except as it might related to the book: the research questions you uncovered, dealing with the contradictions that you had to resolve, unusual facts that you couldn’t get into the book. Give the book a chance to speak for itself; unless you have an unusual life, full of chance encounters that are interesting, that might best be used in your author blog.

    *How can I be helpful to you as avid book readers and/or writers? What questions do you have about research, history, writing, publishing? Maybe a once-a-week column on W&M where I take questions? If so, we need to come up with a pithy name for it!

    Personally, I don’t think I have any questions. I’ve read so many agent blogs, writer blogs, advice blogs, that I’ve decided I could either read those blogs or work on my book (which is at the same stage as yours — I just got back the editing notes from the publisher).

    Perhaps the once-a-week column could focus on different aspects of the book. Not an excerpt, per se, but an anecdote rewritten from your research. This would give a sense of the book’s scope, without actually using material from it (although an excerpt, if permissible within your contract, seems to be a good idea).

    *Would you be interested in some videoblogs on French history and historical sites? Little Geek and I will be traveling ’round Europe a bit too…so lots of potential there as well. Perhaps even videos of some of the places where my research for Blood Work has taken me?

    YES YES YES! It doesn’t even have to be connected with the book! This seems to be a great way to reveal a bit about yourself (in your video choices and your commentary) without having to open up too much. And we get to follow along, looking over your shoulder, as it were.

    So to sum up, the idea is to give value without feeling like you’re hard-selling us. When looking at a possible post, look at it and ask, “If this wasn’t meant to promote my book, would this post stand on its own as an interesting piece of writing?” If it is, you’re on safe ground. At least, that’s what I’m telling myself as I’m setting up my little ad campaign.

  • http://thetruebookaddict.blogspot.com/ Michelle @ The True Book Addict

    Congrats on your book! I will look forward to reading it when it comes out.

    I enjoy this site, especially the posts with interesting bits on history so anything more you can do in that avenue would be great! And yes, I would love the video blogs on French history, etc.

    Thanks. =O)

  • http://readingadventures.blogspot.com Marg

    Woo-hoo! Well done Holly.

    I think that you have a strong blog here, so maybe the occasional piece, interesting titbits that you found out about that didn’t make it into the book to whet our appetites, vlogs, etc.

    And would love to see posts about things you find while travelling through Europe so that I can live vicariously through you!

  • Sheri

    As someone embarking on their first book project, I would love to hear about your publishing journeys. I am fascinated by the book, so anything you want to post–vlogs, etc.–would be fantastic.

  • http://lifeandtimesofanewnewyorker.blogspot.com Amanda

    First off, I want to say Congratulations! Your book sounds so fascinating. I love reading about snippets of history like this which is full of intrigue and all that stuff. Wow.

    I’d love to to have an interactive site. Videologs are great but please include tons of pictures, fun facts, etc. Whenever I read a book like this I want to know more about the time period, the place/city past and present, and in depth on the characters. I always go to an encyclopedia or something for more information but if you have a site that includes all that, it would be great. Also include interesting things that weren’t included in the book for added extras. And contest. I love contests.

    Good luck with your upcoming book. I can’t wait to read it!

  • librarypat

    I like the web page for the book. Looks great.
    Videos would be great. They help give a better idea of what you are discussing.
    The author site will be a good place for most of that information, but give us a peak into the path to publishing.
    I have enjoyed finding sites like this one to get an inside look at unknown bits of history. I also enjoy hearing about research authors are doing.
    A weekly column would be a good place for updates and news.

    Best of luck with the book. It sounds great.

  • Chris Woodyard

    No time to be shy. Keep several copies of the book with you wherever you go. Show them to everyone you think might be interested. If you see a bookstore, go pitch it to them so they can order it from the publisher/their distributor. You are your own book rep so come up with a 15-second reason why they should stock it! If you find a bookstore with copies in it, go introduce yourself and offer to sign however many copies they’d like. Carry your own stickers, marked “AUTOGRAPHED COPY” and see if they will allow you to put them on the signed books. Signed copies sell better. If the publisher is not sending out enough press releases to suit you, send your own out to scientific and historical societies. Include information on where to purchase the book. Carry little cards or bookmarks with information about your blog/website on them and pass them out at book signings or ask if you can leave a stack at the register of a bookstore. Don’t get discouraged if you don’t sell a lot of books at a book-signing. Books sell before and after, but not necessarily during a book-signing. Offer to speak at some big medical conferences and sell your books there. Get a mailing list of hematologist societies/journals and give it to your publisher.
    There are some very good books out there on publicity for books and authors–I’m fond of 1001 Ways to Market your Books by John Kremer (full disclosure–no connection with author or publisher but found it very helpful) Try to do one new thing daily to promote your book. Put as much research into marketing your book as you did in writing it. Notify your local newspapers, TV stations, libraries. They may be happy to spotlight a local author. This is a very specialized subject, so target your marketing. Make sure your publisher sends review copies/galleys to scientific journals, popular science magazines, or historical magazines. Good luck!