As we are fast approaching a new year author of her debut novel The Naughty Girls Book Club Sophie Hart joins me at the Novel Cafe to look back over her year 2013 and what an exciting year it was too! Thank you to Sophie for taking the time to write this piece, I hope 2014 is just as special for you!
2013 has been an exciting year for me as it was the year that my
novel – The Naughty Girls Book Club – was published! Naughty Girls tells the
story of a group of very different people who join a Bristol book club, where
the main genre of reading is... erotica! They explore a variety of novels –
from the Marquis de Sade to Jilly Cooper – and along the way form friendships,
gain the confidence to change their lives, and even get a little inspiration
for spicing things up in the bedroom!
Looking back over the last year, I thought I'd share some of the
highlights of seeing my book go from an idea on a piece of paper to an actual
novel on my bookshelf!
·
Meeting
your editor – This is a bit like a first date, as you're meeting the person
who’s going to help shape your book with you, and it’s important that you get
along. Sammia Rafique from Avon took me out for a lovely lunch, and we had a
girly chat about life, books and everything!
·
Seeing
your book listed on Amazon for the first time – This is incredibly
exciting and a little bit scary. Your book probably doesn’doesn't have a cover at
this point, but it’s up there with your name and the title and people can
actually BUY it if they want to!
·
The
cover – I'd been given a rough brief of what the cover would look
like, but the details are largely left to the publisher as they know what they're doing. The day the email pops into your inbox with the final cover for
your book is amazing – and fortunately, I absolutely loved it.
·
A real
book – You're sent a proof copy of your novel, and suddenly you're holding a REAL copy of your book in your hands, just like you’ve always dreamt
about. Probably the best moment of all!
·
The
first review – Copies of the book are sent out in advance to reviewers and
it’s terrifying. Will anyone like it? What if they hate it? I was very lucky to
get a great first review, and it was such a relief!
·
Publication
day – This is obviously a very exciting day, but for me it was
quite low key. I didn’didn't have a launch party, and just went for a meal in the
local pub with my boyfriend, where we drank a couple of glasses of prosecco to
celebrate my book being out there in the big wide world!
·
Seeing
your book in the shops – Before I'd had chance to see it for
myself, lots of lovely people on Twitter sent me pictures of Naughty Girls in
their local book shops and supermarkets, which was wonderful. When I finally
did see it, in WHSmiths Windsor, I spent far too much time stroking the cover,
moving it around the shop to a better position, then watching to see if anyone
bought it!
·
Chart position – A
few weeks after publication, The Naughty Girls Book Club went to number one in the
Bookseller Heatseekers chart, which was incredible. I was so happy, and it was
a great indicator that sales were strong.
·
Foreign
sales – My UK publishers were able to sell the rights to Naughty Girls
to publishers in Italy, Spain and Germany. Feltrinelli, in Italy, were the
first to publish. It was fascinating to see the changes they made to the cover,
and it’s so strange to see what you’you've written translated into Italian!
·
Social
media – The support I've’ve received on Twitter and Facebook has been
amazing. I've made some great friends on Twitter (you can follow me
@Cafe_Crumb) and I also run an online ‘naughty’ book club on Facebook. Anyone’s
welcome to join in, and you can find me here: https://www.facebook.com/ngbclub
As you can see, I’ve had some incredible experiences in 2013,
and I hope to have many more in 2014!
Buy Sophie's Novel now on Amazon!
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