My novel just sold to Random House.
I'd love to be all cool and take-it-in-stride about this, but I'm sorry (I'm not sorry), this would be impossible, because the only natural reaction I can have to being able to say "Random House just bought my book" is:
YeaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!
Metaphors fail me in describing my current state of mind, but I will say that for Hannukah tonight I'm tempted to light the candles and stick one in each ear, one out my butt and dance the herky-jerky singing The Monkey Time on my rooftop till the cows come home.
Meanwhile you may have questions.
Here's all I have of deal-specific answers, because my editor (what a sweet phrase) went on vacation right after talking to me of revisions and then making the offer to my agent (and bless said editor's heart for getting this together before the holidays, thank you very much):
The revisions they want are not major; the notes I got were canny and insightful and will improve the story, and this bears out my agent's opinion that the Random House imprint which will publish the book (Shaye Areheart, a division of Crown) is very good at handling literary and commercial fiction.
The book will appear in hardcover first (yay!) and it looks like it will be a Spring 2008 release, though I'm lobbying to slip it into their Fall 2007 list if such a thing can happen.
The advance I'm getting is not six-figure potential-bestseller-huge, but considered "good for a first novel" by December 2006 industry standards.
The novel is a romantic comedy (really?!) entitled Making Up. Here's a one-sentence "what it's about": Desperate to win back his estranged wife, a man invents an imaginary lover to make her jealous -- and gets into unforeseen trouble when this imaginary woman becomes real to him.
If you'd like a sneak peek at the opening pages of Making Up you can find them on my website.
The book took about three and a half years to write, and write again and again -- if we count this upcoming revision there'll be a rough total of some seven-eight drafts involved. I'll be glad to speak to any and all issues involved in the process of such an undertaking, after I stop running into walls and screaming (happily) for a few days.
I will note that crucial in making this sale happen were the efforts of my producing partner Brian Brightly, who's working on getting the project set up as a movie.
That's right -- Making Up: The Movie -- tune in next year.
Meantime, in the immortal words of Jimi Hendrix:
'Scuse me, while I kiss the sky.
That is ruddy marvellous - well done!
I've just had my first short story accepted - head-hunted, really - for publication by an almost-real publisher in San Francisco (I'm in London) so I have the tiniest inkling of how you feel right now.
But only the tiniest.
Posted by: Andy | December 20, 2006 at 06:22 PM
Congratulations, Billy! I can't wait to read it.
Posted by: HuckleCat | December 20, 2006 at 06:44 PM
Billy, Billy, BILLY!! What WONDERFUL news! I'm leaping out of my chair for you! There's nothing quite like that first sale, is there, for a novel, that is. Something that's purely YOUR creation. No one else could've done it.
Fantastic! I'll be first in line at B&N and then Fandango. Hey, can we all get tickets to the big premier, just for knowin' you back then? Huh? Can we?
~Ann, going to bed tonight knowing a bell has rung in the wonderful world of fiction.
Posted by: Ann Wesley Hardin | December 20, 2006 at 07:07 PM
Congratulations!!! That's such fantastic news! CELEBRATE! I think we'll all celebrate on your behalf!
Posted by: Maggie Burns | December 20, 2006 at 07:30 PM
Wahoo! Excellent, excellent news. What a great year-end gift.
Posted by: kristen | December 20, 2006 at 08:28 PM
Well, I'm not surprised at all! I'm so glad they didn't make you wait through the holidays. Now the question is: who is designing the book cover?
Posted by: christina | December 20, 2006 at 09:07 PM
Bravo, bravo, bravo. Love every single minute of this success.
Posted by: Barbara | December 20, 2006 at 09:27 PM
And in the spirit of Chanukah, let me ephatically add....
MAZEL TOV!!!!
So happy for you, Billy -- really, congrats....we're all out here whooping and hollering along with you and eagerly awaiting standing in line for "Making Up"-- the movie!
Happy Chanukah, indeed!
love,
abby
Posted by: Abby | December 20, 2006 at 10:18 PM
Billy, baby, bubby, I TOLD YOU it would happen!!!! And I got to read it (trust me, Billy Blog readers, it's a good book).
To quote one of my favorite writers,
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!"
Let me buy you a drink when I'm in LA. I am so, so happy for you.
Posted by: binnie | December 20, 2006 at 11:20 PM
Oooh! Marvelous! Many congratulations!
Posted by: marrije | December 21, 2006 at 12:17 AM
Excellent news! Well done!
Posted by: Optimistic_Reader | December 21, 2006 at 12:38 AM
How exciting! Congratulations! I can't wait to read it.
Posted by: jamy | December 21, 2006 at 05:31 AM
Well done Billy. Great news.
Posted by: Tom Green | December 21, 2006 at 06:57 AM
Oh, BTW Billy, I don't think you're in Periphery anymore :)
Posted by: Ann Wesley Hardin | December 21, 2006 at 08:28 AM
That's awesome!!! Congrats! Make sure you get the herky-jerky dance on video. That could be worth money to someone someday. :)
Glenn
Posted by: glenn | December 21, 2006 at 08:33 AM
I hate using this word, but it's one of those times when it seems appropriate...
AWESOME!!!!
Posted by: Denise | December 21, 2006 at 08:49 AM
Mazel tov, Billy, and tell us. . . what do we have to do to get our hands on an advance copy?
Posted by: Daniel W. | December 21, 2006 at 09:08 AM
Yay!!!! Congratulations! I can't wait to read it when it comes out. :)
Posted by: jenny | December 21, 2006 at 10:25 AM
Fantastico! I will be most pleased to have it on my bookshelf.
Again, GREAAAAT!!
Posted by: adam | December 21, 2006 at 10:30 AM
CONGRATULATIONS, Billy!
Will get a copy as soon as it comes out. Keeping my fingers crossed for Fall 2007.
And, of course, I'm going to want you to sign it ;-)
Posted by: Annie Dennison | December 21, 2006 at 11:17 AM
Shaye Areheart is a tony subimprint of a top imprint, indeed. The German owners of RH know how to make lederhosens full of Euros. Bravo.
Now get your agent to post the deal on Publishers Marketplace.
http://www.publishersmarketplace.com/deals/
And your producing partner's name is Brian Brightly. That's possibly as silly-sounding as my own.
Posted by: HH | December 21, 2006 at 11:56 AM
Nice work, and well-deserved. Kudos.
Posted by: Scott the Reader | December 21, 2006 at 12:33 PM
That's SO great! I couldn't have happened to a nicer guy! Congrats and I'll be looking for you to autograph my hardcover copy of your book!
Congrats!
Posted by: writergurl | December 21, 2006 at 12:36 PM
Damn typos!
"It" couldn't have happened to a nicer guy!
"I" haven't happen to a guy in a looong time! ;)
Congrats again!
Posted by: writergurl | December 21, 2006 at 12:39 PM
FABULOUS!!!!!!!
CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!
CELEBRATE CELEBRATE CELEBRATE!!!!!
Posted by: Ruth Yunker | December 21, 2006 at 12:49 PM