UK PUBLISHER MONTH 2012: Lee Harris (Angry Robot) – An Editor’s Life & Upcoming Titles (+ Int’l Giveaway – ends 31/05/12)
Throughout May we will be celebrating UK publishers and their books. There will be posts from editors and publicists revealing some of their upcoming titles for 2012 as well as giving us a glimpse into their working lives. Of course there will also be lots of fabulous giveaways! Check out the amazing line up below! Enjoy!
Angry Robot is a science fiction/fantasy publisher based in the UK, but publishing worldwide.
So, when Carolyn asked me to write about my daily life with Angry Robot, I thought, “That won’t be difficult. I can knock that off in ten minutes or so.” Then I sat back and thought about what I actually do. It’s difficult to come up with a standard “day in the life” piece, as each day can be very different.
I work from home two days a week, as my office is two hours away by train. I usually go to the actual office Monday to Wednesday, but this can vary depending on who else is in. When I’m in the office, I get up at 5.15am, and I’m out of the house by 5.45, ready to get the 6.00am train. Two 45 minute train journeys later, and I’m at work by about 8.00, having had time to read a submission or two, and perhaps update my Twitter stream with the weather, train times, and other fascinating snippets of trivia. Honestly – they’re riveting!
When I get to the office, I’m usually the first one in, so I have a good hour or so to collect my thoughts, and prepare my work for the week. Or (just as likely) finish off the previous week’s work.
Urgent emails are answered, less urgent emails are left for a while (they become urgent eventually, so don’t feel sorry for them), and I check the status of the various manuscripts that are out with copyeditors, proofreaders and typesetters. Are they in? Due? Late? I then do any chasing that’s needed. It’s usually by email, but I think anything that can be described as “chasing” counts as exercise, right? Same way cherry Haribo count as one of my five a day.
Next up, I check my To-Do list and make a start on it. I would never begin with the items that are the most fun to do, because my boss might be reading this. No, I start with the most important, and work my way down from there. Truth.
Tasks include: updating the website with blog posts, or various news items; writing press releases that announce new authors and books; preparing manuscripts for the typesetter; working through a copyedit and approving or rejecting the editor’s changes; working through a proofread and doing the same; talking with our marketing team (UK and US) and devising plans for authors and their books; talking with the authors about the same; talking with the whole of the Angry Robot team about manuscripts I’ve read and want to buy, and trying to convince them that they want to do the same; emailing or calling authors with the news that we want to publish their books (best part of the week); negotiating advances and royalty rates with agents; the occasional speaking gig or interview request; working on various secret projects; updating the internal database with book info (this feeds automatically to various retailers’ and distributors’ websites and other systems); discussing cover briefs; viewing cover art; attending conventions and meeting authors, agents and other publishers.
So – that’s Monday. You should see how busy it gets on Tuesday!
GIVEAWAY
Now, if you’ve read all that, you deserve something for your trouble, so this is the bit where we give away some books. We have 10 books available to readers anywhere in the world. Or off-planet (but you have to arrange your own interplanetary courier). The winners can choose which of these titles they want. These are the finished on-sale versions, but if you’d prefer an electronic copy, that can be arranged, too. To enter fill out the rafflecopter widget below.
Giveaway ends 31st May 2012.
The books available are:
The Nekropolis Archives by Tim Waggoner (a 3-novel omnibus), Blackbirds by Chuck Wendig and The Alchemist of Souls by Anne Lyle.
BLACKBIRDS
Miriam Black knows when you will die. She’s foreseen hundreds of car crashes, heart attacks, strokes, and suicides. But when Miriam hitches a ride with Louis Darling and shakes his hand, she sees that in thirty days Louis will be murdered while he calls her name. Louis will die because he met her, and she will be the next victim. No matter what she does she can’t save Louis. But if she wants to stay alive, she’ll have to try. File Under: Urban Fantasy [ Touch Of Death | The Future Is Written | Free Way | Surviving ]
THE ALCHEMIST OF SOULS
When Tudor explorers returned from the New World, they brought back a name out of half-forgotten Viking legend: skraylings. Red-sailed ships followed in the explorers’ wake, bringing Native American goods – and a skrayling ambassador – to London. But what do these seemingly magical beings really want in Elizabeth I’s capital? Mal Catlyn, a down-at-heel swordsman, is seconded to the ambassador’s bodyguard, but assassination attempts are the least of his problems. What he learns about the skraylings and their unholy powers could cost England her new ally – and Mal Catlyn his soul. File Under: Fantasy [ Midsummer Magic | Skraylings | Double Trouble | Comedy of Terrors ]
THE NEKROPOLIS ARCHIVES
Meet Matt Richter. Private Eye. Zombie. His mean streets are the city of the dead, the shadowy realm known as Nekropolis. You’ve got to keep your head in Nekropolis. But when you’re a zombie attempting to battle the vampire lords, that’s not as easy as it seems… This massive omnibus editions collects all three Matt Richter novels – Nekropolis, Dead Streets and Dark War – plus a swathe of short stories too. File Under: Urban Fantasy [ Tooth And Claw | Flirting With Danger | Underworld | A Head For Business ]
5 Comments
Hello, have retweeted, thanks a lot!
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ooooohhh Alchemists Soul looks so good!
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tweeted ..great competition loving it,,
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Cool books, love the giveaway
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Thank you for the great giveaway!
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