We don’t intend to make a habit of this sort of thing: there’s enough on the editorial collective’s plural plates without us taking on additional chores. But we are as susceptible as the next collective to a bit of subtle flattery, so when the mail brought a note from “a new author and a t&p fan” — a fan! — we were intrigued.

Adam Fawer has just had his first novel, Improbable, published by William Morrow, and as any new author should be, he’s on the self-promotion trail. Writers tend to be solitary individuals when in their natural surroundings, but at some point they’re all in search of publication — the validation that is print — and the publishing business devours new manuscripts and authors; some statistics I’ve seen state that 50,000 titles are published every year in the US alone. It’s a constant uproar, all those voices trying to express themselves; how can one lone speaker be heard above the din?

As proprietors of a literary web-log we have more than a passing interest in such matters, as we do in the paths that take any writer from thought to print, so we have agreed to Adam’s suggestion that he be interviewed for this entry. We confess that we haven’t read his novel yet, but apparently HarperCollins has a review copy in the mail.

The writing…

t&p: I see that Improbable is your first published novel; when did you start writing it?

AF: I started in May 2002 at a Starbucks in Brooklyn Heights.

t&p: How many hours a day could you commit to writing and revising the manuscript? (I note that you’re a new father living in NYC, which implies more than a few other distractions…)

AF: True, but back in the summer of ‘02, I hadn’t even met my fiancée (nor my son) so there were a lot less distractions back then. Initially I committed a minimum of two hours a day of solid writing. During those two hours I never did any editing, I just wrote new material. My rule was never look back, because I knew if I did I’d never move forward. Usually I didn’t write for much longer than two hours, but because I write fairly quickly I was still producing about 1,800 words a day. By the end of three months I had completed my first draft. It was in terrible shape and in desperate need of editing, but it was done. It took me another three months of editing before it was ready for me to send out to agents. After Ann Rittenberg took me on as a client, it took me another five months of rewriting & revising before it was ready to show to publishers.

t&p: When did you first start writing “seriously”? (i.e with an eye to possible publication)

AF: From the very beginning, I was committed toward writing a novel that would be published. I had always wanted to become an author but I wasn’t motivated to fulfill my dream (or even try) until my good friend Stephanie was diagnosed with terminal breast cancer. She was an award-winning magazine writer and had always wanted to write a novel. So together, we made a pact to write together every day. Now, three years later I’m proud to say that we’re both published authors. I was lucky enough to be at Stephanie’s book party, which she described as the happiest day of her life. Unfortunately, Steph passed away before my book was released, but I know she would be happy for me. (See related article: http://www.nypost.com/entertainment/39422.htm)

t&p: Have you had any other appearances in print? (journal or newspaper submissions?) Online? (literary blogs, online magazines?) Other media?

AF: My only other appearance in print was an angry letter to the editor that I wrote to BusinessWeek about b-school rankings in 1998 (I went to Stanford and they were particularly hard on us that year).

t&p: Are you working on another novel at the moment? Can you tell us anything about it?

AF: Yes, I’ve finished a draft of my second novel and I’m currently revising it. I’m still not sure how to describe it other than to say it’s a thriller about emotions, synesthesia and Gnosticism.

t&p: Do you consider yourself to be a “full time” writer now, or is writing more of a spare-time activity at this stage?

AF: I’m trying to be a full time writer, but the jury’s still out. It really depends on how well Improbable does and if I’m able to sell my second book. So please help me out and buy it :)

t&p: Are you part of any literary “community” in NYC? (by which I mean: fellow writers with whom you might share work-in-progress; attending book-launches, readings etc).

AF: With the exception of Stephanie, during my writing phase the only community I was part of was the group of strangers that used to congregate at Starbucks and steal electricity. However, recently I’ve attended a a few readings and become friendly with a couple other first-time authors. It’s fun to compare notes but writing’s still pretty much a solitary activity.

The publication process…

t&p: Have you written and submitted any earlier novels before Improbable?

AF: No, Improbable was my first time at bat. Beginners luck, I guess.

t&p: Do you have an agent, or was the submission “over the transom”?

AF: I have an incredible agent by the name of Ann Rittenberg. She’s absolutely amazing and has sold translation rights to my book in six other languages besides English. There is zero chance I would be a published author without her.

t&p: How hard is it for a first-time novelist to find an agent?

AF: I think it’s very hard. I got rejected by at least 15 other agents on my way to Ann. However, it’s important not to get discouraged because it’s all about personal taste. One agent might hate you and the next might love you. It doesn’t mean that you’re not (or that you are) a good writer, it just means that different agents have different tastes. Also, just because an agent rejects you doesn’t mean they don’t think you’re a good writer. Several agents along the way told me that they liked my book but they already had a thriller they were selling or they didn’t have a lot of contacts in the thriller genre. Basically, you have to find the right fit — an agent who likes your work AND thinks they can sell it.

t&p: How many other publishers did you submit Improbable to before HarperCollins accepted it?

AF: I think my agent submitted it to two other publishers. Both were interested but HarperCollins put in a pre-emptive bid that I was very happy with, so I didn’t wait to hear back from the others. Also, I wanted to go with a publisher who was very excited about my book, not someone who bid out of fear of losing out.

t&p: How do you deal with the inevitable rejection messages? (I’m assuming there must have been at least one… :-)

AF: There were LOTS from agents along the way. Look, there are no two ways about it: rejection HURTS. A lot. If you have a thin skin then you’ll never survive. Basically you just have to remind yourself that one rejection is meaningless. The odds are that most agents will reject you. However, you only need one agent, so it doesn’t matter if you get 99 rejections as long as you get one acceptance.

t&p: I’m assuming that, as a first-novelist HarperCollins offered you an industry-standard contract: without getting into specific numbers, can you give us an idea of how this typically breaks down as far as advance and royalties go? For example: is it reasonable for a beginning writer to expect to live (and raise a family) in NYC for a year? two? on the proceeds from a first novel such as Improbable?

AF: It really varies tremendously. I’m told I got paid on the high end for a first-time novelist. It’s enough money to live for a year or two, but not much more than that. The bonus was that I made a lot selling foreign rights, in part because I have a fantastic agent who got a couple of auctions going and also because of the weak dollar (most of my foreign sales were in Euros, so in dollar terms I ended up with more than usual).

t&p: What’s the editing process like for a first novel: were there substantial changes to the MSS between the time you submitted your first draft, up to the published form?

AF: Again, the editing process really varies. I was lucky in that a senior editor bought my book and truly edited it. This is not always the case: I have a friend whose editor made ONE comment on the entire manuscript. However, this was far from my experience. My editor didn’t mark up every page, but I’d say every 5 or 10 pages he made a really good suggestion or caught an inconsistency. Also, initially I opened up my book by introducing ten new characters in quick succession, each with his/her own section. My editor (rightly) suggested that I change the order around a bit and let the reader catch their breath before introducing more new characters. Now, I only introduce four characters up front, which works out much better.

t&p: How did you handle the editor’s suggestions for changes, or were you just happy for Improbable to see the light of day?

AF: For the most part, I agreed with my editor’s suggestions, so I just went with them. Although I like to think my book is well-written, I wasn’t going for great literature. I wanted to create a mainstream commercial thriller, so I was more than happy to accept his advice. There was one change he wanted me to make to the end that I disagreed with, however, so I did not make the change and he was cool with that.

The marketing…

t&p: I note that you’ve got some very positive endorsements (“a creative masterpiece of intrigue and adventure” from Clive Cussler for example; “A skillful, fascinating debut” from Caleb Carr) — these must be like gold for a beginning writer. How did you manage to get busy authors such as these to read and comment on your novel?

AF: I wrote a LOT of fan letters (probably about 30) to my favorite authors and these were the ones that came through. I’m very grateful they took the time to read my book and I think I got really lucky.

t&p: I see that HarperCollins has put together a nifty website to help promote the book: is this standard for a first-novelist with HarperCollins, or is Improbable getting a larger than average push?

AF: It’s getting a larger than average push because they think Improbable has “break-out potential” so they were willing to spend a little bit more than usual.

t&p: What other marketing efforts has HarperCollins planned?

AF: I’ve done two book signings — one in New York City where I live and one in Dartmouth, Massachusetts (my hometown). In addition, I believe they are planning radio ads in 25 markets as well as a New York Times Book Review print ad. I’m hoping to do a couple more readings, but right now it’s not definite.

t&p: I note that you’ve made some individual contributions of the marketing of the book as well (contacting literary blogs such as t&p for example…) — just how much time does the publisher expect a first-time novelist to devote to this kind of personal marketing?

AF: HarperCollins hasn’t asked me to do much from a marketing perspective, but I’m doing a lot because I want my book to succeed. I worked almost two years on my book — I’m crazy if I don’t spend a few weeks doing any marketing that I can. Books rely heavily on word-of-mouth, so I think it’s very important to get out there in front of the bloggers and blog-readers as they’re opinion leaders.

With that said, allow me a few sentences to hype my book. It’s a scientific thriller, with a little something for everyone: action, suspense, history and philosophy. Publisher’s Weekly and Booklist both liked it and I hope you will, too. Check out my site, play the Flash game and most importantly, buy the book!