Blog by Sean McManus

Michelle Harrison: How she got published

14 July 2009

I recently attended a talk by Michelle Harrison, author of The Thirteen Treasures, which won the Waterstone's Children's Book Prize 2009. Michelle was wearing a red top, because wearing something red is one of the ways you can protect yourself against fairies.

In The Thirteen Treasures, a 13-year-old girl can see fairies, but they're nasty and punish her for talking (or even writing) about them. The girl (Tanya) gets the blame for the mess the fairies make, and is always in trouble with her mum. When Tanya is sent to her grandmother's house to give her mother a break from all the chaos and destruction, she comes across a girl in the woods. That girl, it transpires, was the same one who disappeared 50 years ago. How is that possible? The book unravels the mystery, and the part that the fairies play in it.

It was inspiring to hear about Michelle's journey to publication. We occasionally see stories in the press about authors who get a lucky break, but don't so often hear about those who persevere through countless rejections.

This is what Michelle's journey to publication looked like:

Spent a year drafting
Sent draft to publisher
Three months later, received a rejection
Sent book to six agents
Five said no
One said they liked it, but didn't want to represent it yet
Michelle edited the book using their feedback, and sent it back
They sent a longer reply, outlining bits they still didn't like
Michelle edited it, and sent new versions back to the agent three or four times, incorporating new feedback, over a period of 18 months
The agent turned it down
Michelle took another look at the book herself, decided she didn't like one of the characters and rewrote to make the character stronger
She spent "the longest time" on a cover letter to go with this submission, and then approached the top agent on her list, a name she had been too intimidated to approach before
They asked to meet up and then quickly signed up to represent the book. It had taken four years to get to that point.
The agent shopped the book around publishers
A number of publishers rejected the book, with some requesting that the book be edited for a younger audience
Simon and Schuster signed the book

Following the book contract, Michelle worked with the publisher on edits. In her talk, she stressed the importance of trusting the publisher, whose team will be highly experienced in creating books that sell. The reason there's no fairy on the cover of the book is that the publisher said it would put boys off from reading it.

During Michelle's journey to publication, there were many points at which she could have given up. Winning the Waterstone's prize is as much a testament to her perseverance as her imagination and talent for writing.

Labels: book review, books, publishing, writing