Majken Selinder Nilsson Books

Today, I got an exciting email from my publisher.  The cover of my book has been finalized and I now have been assigned an editor.  I have done everything I can on my end until the editor is finished, then I will make the suggested changes and so it shall go back and forth between me and the editor up to three times before it gets sent to proofreading.

The editor-in-chief wrote that now, depending on how fast the editing goes and how many changes need to be made, we are looking at between 3-6 months before launch.  I have 30 days to make the first round of edits per the contract, and then I guess we will see how it goes.

One of the most exciting parts of the news is that it has already been changed to book format.  I am so excited to see what that looks like!  I played around with it while I was writing and editing it myself and I was shocked to see how much longer it was when it was not just on regular 8.5 x 11 paper.

I am a bit nervous to see what edits will need to be made.  I have re-read my story over and over, tweaking it and making changes, so I am obviously very attached to my manuscript and like it the way it is.  I love my characters and feel like they are friends; however, I also realize that I am looking at it through my eyes and I know what I was trying to convey, but there may be things that need to be cleaned up or reworded to make it flow differently to be better understood.

There is something surreal to see a proof of the cover of my own book.  It still hasn’t sunk in all the way that it really is all me who did this.  It is crazy that something I did for fun; stress relief that allowed me to escape my reality, something to do to while I sit hooked up to machines to help me breathe better and to keep my fingers nimble and moving when they are stiff and swollen.  I did this!  I wrote for fun, sent my queries in to publishers just to see if anyone liked it.  It is bizarre that it has translated to this:  IT IS MY NAME ON THE COVER OF A BOOK!  (You can’t see it, but rest assured, I am doing a little happy dance!)

I don’t think that I am supposed to show anyone what the cover looks like until the launch, so everyone will have to wait.  But, I will say I think the cover accurately conveys the storyline.  It had to be 400+ pages condensed in one image.  That’s a lot of pressure to pick the right one.

I had to choose 5 potential covers.  The publisher then had final pick and they added the title and my name.  I am relieved that they agreed the picture represented the story as much as I did, as they are the experts.

For some reason, seeing the cover made it feel so much more real! This is really happening!