Interview with Susan Bischoff, Author of the Talent Chronicles

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Susan Bischoff is the author of the popular YA fiction series the Talent Chronicles. Her first book in the series, Hush Money, had over ten thousand sales in the first six months of it being released, and her second book, Heroes 'Til Curfew, just recently came out and is proving to be just as (if not more) successful.

But Susan Bischoff is not only a prolific author, she also stands as a very bold example of success, despite not being apart of the Big Six. Several weeks ago, Susan and I had quite an interesting and lengthy discussion over her success and her thoughts on the independent author movement.

 

TW: Let's start this off by you telling the readers a little bit about yourself. What have you written?

SB: I'm writing a series called the Talent Chronicles which follows teen characters with super powers coming of age in a world where possession of those abilities is illegal. The first two novels are available: Hush Money, and its sequel, Heroes 'Til Curfew. A short story, Impulse Control, is also out which introduces a different set of characters who have been imprisoned for having powers. That story can be read before or after starting the series.

TW: Your books are quite prolific among indie authors and readers. When you first began writing the Talent Chronicles, had you already decided to go independent, or was this a decision that came later?

SB: Previous to starting Talent Chronicles, I had been writing primarily adult romantic suspense. But the negative climate in the writing community regarding anyone's manuscript ever seeing the light of day made me feel like I was probably wasting my creative energies. So I put my own writing aside for a time to explore other things, while keeping my hand in with editing, lots of reading, and other kinds of writing.

It was learning about the "new" self-publishing that brought me back to writing. It was like, right away, I could see that it wasn't vanity press. It was something different, like Etsy for writers. I was so excited I could hardly wait to get back into writing and get something out there. It was the Talent Chronicles that were speaking to me at that time, so I started the series with the intention of publishing independently.

It was an idea that completely made sense to me, not only because I had a chance of finding readers based on my fiction work rather than query letter skill, but also because I wouldn't have the fear of seeing the series prematurely cancelled by a publisher and having to alter where I wanted to go with it.

TW: Who are some authors that have inspired you? 

SB: Ayn Rand, Nora Roberts, Anne McCaffrey, Shannon McKenna, Elizabeth Haydon, Kate Forsyth, Maggie Shayne, Terry Goodkind, L. Neil Smith, Linda Howard, Debra Webb, Kait Nolan, Claire Legrand, Stacey Wallace Benefiel…

TW: A current issue in the reading community has been raised about quality of books from independent authors. Some say that 'independent authors are independent only because their work wouldn't be accepted by traditional publishers', and is therefore lower in quality. What are your thoughts on this?

SB: I've pretty much gotta call bullshit on that. And I'm NOT saying that those people are purposely spreading lies. I just think they lack information both about who is self-publishing these days and why, and also about what the climate is like in New York publishing right now.

In NY, their world is such that they need to find things that have the best chance of going big. Really big. (Hence the whole realm of celebrity books, where it's the celebrity brand that sells the product, not necessarily the content of the work itself.) Their overhead is high and they publish so much that doesn't pay back what it costs that they really need some big hits that will make up those deficits. In that climate, a lot of high-quality books that readers would enjoy will be failed by that system.

Any reader who thinks about how a favorite series they really enjoyed was ended before its time will realize that. (Anyone who gnashes their teeth about Firefly only lasting one season!?! will realize that this is the way the big guys work. When they don't make money big and fast enough, good stuff gets kicked to the curb, even though it's good.)

So what should authors do when they have quality work (what I call "NY-quality work) that isn't going to make it to the shelves for reasons other than the quality of the manuscript? Just stick it in a drawer when there's another means of getting it to readers now?

But Susan, it's not just those books that are out there.

Tell me about it. Every indie sample I've checked out this week has made me want to cry for one reason or another. But the fact that most of what gets put out isn't NY-quality doesn't take NY-quality away from what is. And that's only part of why I call bullshit to the blanket statement that people only self-pub because they're not good enough for a real publisher.

The other part of it is that, when you look at the pros and cons, indie is absolutely a viable alternative and reasonable place to start without learning how to write a query letter and spend the next few years playing that lottery.

TW: You recently wrote a blog post about your decision to go independent again, despite a chance at representation for the Talent Chronicles. Though some may not realize it, this was a very serious act that reflects the current stature of traditional publishing in eyes of prospective authors. For most authors, getting representation is a dream come true. You turned it down. What qualities does independent publishing hold versus traditional publishing, in your opinion? What made you decide this?

SB: To be really clear what we're talking about, for those who don't know me, what I did was remove my series from the submission process after it was passed on by a handful of first round of editors on the basis of it not being original enough. A few close calls, but it hadn't reached the point where I had an actual contract offer to turn down. I haven't broken up or severed ties with my agent. But I have taken this series back as mine, to run with as an indie, rather than hold it hostage to the NY process.

There was so much that went into the decision that I wrote a 4,000 word blog post about it and still didn't cover everything. But I think maybe the biggest part of it was that I had known what it was to be indie, embraced it, and I was never fully comfortable with the decision I made to take another path. I want the things traditional publishing has to offer. I have tremendous respect for what they do and I desperately want a peek into that world and the opportunity to learn from those people. But I wasn't willing to give up the things I have with independent publishing. I tried to be willing.

I had constant guilt over holding the sequel back from the people who were asking for it, knowing that if I accepted a contract that they would wait 2-3 years for the sequel. But at the end of it, I think that this series, and, probably more importantly, the readership I've started to build for it, are intensely personal for me. I think I'm uncomfortable giving them up the same way I'd be uncomfortable sending my child to boarding school. They're mine, and if I gave them over to someone else, it wouldn't be the same as raising them up myself.

I finally came to an understanding that I might be able to have a foot in both worlds some day, that I might get a taste of what traditional publishing has to offer, but it might not be with this series. Nor does it have to be. Right now, for too many reasons to talk about here, I feel like I need to stay indie with this.

Meanwhile, I do want to embark on a separate project, guided by my agent, which would be written specifically to offer to traditional publishers. By the time that's completed, hopefully I will have a following of loyal readers to bring to that traditionally published book, and the wider distribution of that book could bring new readers to my independently published series. Everyone would win. I would also love to talk selling print-only rights, but I'm far from being big enough to see that happen yet.

TW: Finally, in your opinion, twenty years from now, what do you think the statuses of independent publishing and small presses will be, as opposed to now? Will they still be in the shadows of large publishing houses? What about print books vs. eBooks?

SB: I'm not a business or publishing expert and I don't know much about small presses at all. I think there's an exciting place for small, boutique press, though. Not only can a business bring reputable editorial, technical, design, and marketing skills to an author in need who just wants to write the books(!), but there are excellent opportunities for branding and cross-promotion available to a small press that are difficult for a large distributor (like Amazon) or an individual author to achieve.

Joe Konrath and Blake Crouch chatted recently about the idea of authors having their own stores where they would get all the royalties on their sales, and also perhaps carry a few titles from each of a carefully selected handful of authors that suited their brand. Great! Except that if no one knows you, no one's coming to your store and you have the problem of building web traffic to deal with on top of every other indie thing. Being established would help. Secondly, accounting scares the bejeezus out of me. I do not want to handle anyone else's royalties.

But that's the kind of thing boutique press can do and is already doing. When last I looked, I wanted them to do it a lot more cheaply and lower ebook prices to be competitive with straight-up self-pubbers so their authors would have a better shot at hitting the Amazon bestseller charts and taking advantage of the visibility that brings. I don't know if that's changed. If they could strike that balance between providing those valuable services, at a cover price and royalty rate that would make it worthwhile for an author to stay with them, I see a tremendous opportunity there for both small presses and authors.

As far as indie/trad, I think we're going to see a lot of crossover. One thing I think is important to note is that I didn't get a single rejection that snubbed me for having published independently. If anything, the editors who responded were impressed by the sales of my first book, and impressed with me because of it. I never got the impression they felt I was tainted or that the series was "used goods." I think we may see fewer virgin authors being published, and instead see more of publishers snapping up up-and-coming indies who have already started to build a following. The "Amazon as slush pile" model, if you will.

I think we'll be seeing more of authors trying to be part of both worlds, both as established authors take advantage of backlist rights which have reverted to them, and as some newer authors furiously crank out new titles to release in between their once a year traditional title releases, to keep fresh in the minds of their readers.

Because of what has happened and what's been said about self-publishing in the last year or two, I think it's going to be important for agents to be clear about their positions on the issue. I knew I needed an agent, but was afraid to query because I had the impression that agents looked down on indies just as some of those readers do, and I didn't want to be snubbed. So I sat around and waited for someone to come to me. Either too many agents came out against independent publishing, or too many people yammering said they did, and either way, it can't just be me who thinks that some of them don't want to hear from us. Those who do will need to state that they are willing to speak with self-published authors to avoid confusion, at least until some self-publishing for most authors become the norm.

And self-published authors who want representation will have to understand that they may have to make some sacrifices to work with an agent, because an agent's time and skills are valuable and they can't and shouldn't work for free.

* * *

Even in Nora Robert's/JD Robb's future-world –in Death series, there was a place for printed books to be revered. I don't see us giving those up in my—or even my daughter's—lifetime. But already we're seeing some changes in buying habits. Many people I know read digital, but still maintain a keeper shelf in print, even if it's just to see the spines. I think that may be a trend, for people to purchase only their favorite books or authors in print, only after they've tried them out in ebook first. For that reason, we may see traditionally published books as e-only releases until they reach a certain level of popularity. In that case, I'd like to see traditional publishers offer a POD version until such time as they can justify a print run.

(This morning I got excited about a book someone talked about on a blog. I ran [virtually speaking] to go get a copy. It was in hardcover and audiobook only and had been published in 2008. The hardcover wasn't too expensive. Amazon had it under $10. But I don't read paper books anymore. They're just not what I stick in my purse to read and when I buy them they don't get read. My shelf space is for reference books and things that I love and I'm just not buying this book I was, just this morning, excited enough to spend money on. Publishers MUST fix this because it hurts their authors too.)

OMG bookstores! Yes, we all love bookstores. While I complain about the speed at which Barnes and Noble moves at some things, they've done some things intensely right with the NOOK program, including wi-fi in their stores and the ability to go in and read ebooks on your NOOK for free while in the store. Other bookstores may someday install kiosks or something where one could download books after being swayed by whatever is used to market books in the store. Bookstores may evolve more into meeting places with more closed off areas that welcome patrons to come and socialize about books. They may draw people in by providing an atmosphere for book lovers to meet up as well as shop. It wouldn't be enough business for a book shop on every corner, but we don't have that now, and that's due to the limits of brick and mortar selection vs. the limitless nature of online shopping much more than it's due to ebooks, in my opinion.

The things that keep an independent bookstore open now should be the same things that keep it open in the future: knowledgeable staff, atmosphere, customer service… What they actually stock in the store may change as the customer changes, and I hope they have the customer loyalty to survive during the transition. It's definitely a storm that will be hard to weather for many and I hope they do because they're an incredibly valuable resource in the book community.