How not to get published
Jenny England lives on the Northern Beaches of Sydney, enjoying a very relaxed lifestyle in retirement with her long-time partner and spoilt cat. Over the years she has worked as a community worker, part-time journalist for a local paper, as well as publishing countless articles in a variety of magazines and a number of sci-fi children’s stories.
I often wake up with a great idea. One great idea that was to change the course of my life for many years occurred to me one morning in 1986. I was, at the time, a predominantly stay-at-home mum with two young children. Nurturing a passion for woodwork I had been designing and making wooden toys, at first for my own children and then to sell, as a means of making a little extra household cash and to subsidise my hobby.
During the preceding few years there had been a substantial resurgence of interest in all things handmade. I was not having much difficulty selling my wooden toys but what I noticed while I was getting it all together, was a general lack of information on marketing and selling handmade products.
So, on this particular morning in 1986, my great idea was to write a series of articles, based on my experience, on craft marketing for a new craft magazine. I eagerly contacted the editor and to my surprise he didn’t want the articles – he wanted a book!
“A book,” I exclaimed, “you want a book?”
I had never written a book before but he reassured me it would not be difficult. It was no more than writing the articles and putting them all together – in around 40,000 words.
I duly signed a contract and set about writing the book. Not too difficult, the editor had said. Well, it was difficult, particularly with two young children and I wrote, edited and re-edited until I was starting to go a little crazy. However, about six months later, with some illustrations from my aunt, it was done.
The day it was published, I was presented with one copy of Craft for Cash and the sobering news that the publishers had gone into liquidation. Heavens above, I thought, what does that mean? I soon found out that all 3,000 copies were at the printers, their bill unpaid. To make matters worse, the craft magazine was sold, along will all the copies of my book to another publisher. The only saving grace was that the copyright immediately reverted back to me but there was to be no royalties. Bummer!
Chapter Two of this sad saga began about a year later when I was contacted another publisher interested in re-publishing the book.
“No”, I said emphatically, during the first phone call, “Never again!”
After a number of phone calls, I was convinced to have a meeting with them, against my better judgement. The meeting must have been successful because, I left, not just with a contract to re-write my first book, but also with a contract to compile a book of wooden toy plans.
So, once again, the work began and in six months or so, the craft marketing book, now called The Art of Selling Craft in Australia, now adorned with my own illustrations, was complete.
Everything went smoothly for a year or so and I watched The Art of Selling Craft selling like crazy while I put together my wooden toy book. The photography was planned for the following day, when I got a phone call from the editor telling me that it had been cancelled and that they had gone into liquidation. Not again! I couldn’t believe it: royalties were owed and my wooden toy book, cancelled. I sat for a moment and reflected on all the work I had put in. Never again!
Eventually the publishing company was sold and The Art of Selling Craft was back on bookshelves all around the country. I started receiving royalties and PLR and ELR payments which continued for another 20 years. And, in spite of all these setbacks I went on to have a few more great ideas and write for a number of magazines with lots of success.
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