On Friday, John provided a great blog post responding to specific questions regarding the agent/publication process. One of these questions considered the issue of deadlines - something I want to expand upon today. Deadlines, both those imposed by editors/publishers and those self-imposed, are (I think) one of the defining elements of being a professional (as opposed to hobby) writer.
Deadlines make you both accountable and responsible. But what does that really mean when you aren't as yet published? It means you know that in order to achieve your larger goal (writing the novel, getting it published etc.) you need to divide the task into manageable chunks and (here is where it gets tricky) you need to meet the deadlines you impose upon yourself. Otherwise you're just like the billions of amateur writers whining about how 'one day' they will write a book but (insert excuse here...) they never seem to get around to it. In today's post I want to deal with both publisher as well as personal deadlines.
Publisher Imposed Deadlines:
As John said in his blog post on Friday, these deadlines are pretty much inviolable. If, as the author, you miss these then there is a cascading effect on the whole publication cycle. Worse case scenario the publisher views it as a breach of contract and pulls out of the deal. Best case scenario you inconvenience a whole lot of other people. So if you do need to extend, you'd better have a pretty good excuse.
My rather strict view of deadlines also extends to how you fulfil them. I've heard of an author who views the submission date with her publisher with a bit of a shrug - sure, she gets them the manuscript, but she's not too concerned about making it perfect as she knows the editor will get back to her with comments, so she views the deadline as a necessary evil and continues to work through the book even while waiting for the editor to peruse and comment upon it. I differ on this in that I go into each deal with the belief that, whatever I submit has to be as damn-near-perfect as it possible. To me this is how professionals fulfil their obligations - not with a half-hearted shrug but with a commitment to demonstrating their craft to the highest degree possible.
Of course when it comes to an authors first book, the initial draft manuscript is what was acquired but any amendments to this (based on editorial feedback) should be treated with the same level of professionalism and adherence to deadlines. If an editor doesn't provide a deadline (which would be highly unusual) then I would request or set one - that way the author remains on track and accountable to a timetable.
So what do you do if you have to seek a deadline extension?
This is where a good agent can act on an author's behalf to mitigate against this - but the author must still have a genuine excuse for seeking an extension given the potential impact it has on the publisher. When it comes to agents, I would also recommend setting deadlines (for the agent as well as yourself) to ensure there remains a level of responsiveness and accountability that demonstrates an author's professionalism.
Self-Imposed Deadlines
As a professional writer I like to set myself specific goals for my WIP to keep me on track. Typically I lay out a timetable to complete certain chapters or parts of the books to ensure I don't face the overwhelming panic of producing a novel. When the tasks ahead are in manageable chunks the path seems far less onerous (or scary). The first thing I do is also set the date I want to get the draft manuscript to my agent and then work backwards from there.
Sometimes I give my agent an initial deadline for the first 5-10 chapters and the proposed plot outline so I can get his read/feedback on the project ahead. Then I always tell him the date I propose getting the complete manuscript to him - it helps establish my own timetable as well as alerting him to my goal (and, I hope, demonstrate I am tackling it in a serious, professional manner).
As a terrible procrastinator, self-imposed deadlines are vital to keeping me on track as a professional writer.
So what about you?
Do you set your own deadlines? Do you meet them?
Have you ever had to negotiate for a deadline extension from your publisher and if so, how did it go?
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