Booky Milestones: First Proofs

I've used this blog to track all the big steps in the life of my debut novel, Eren. There was the day I got an agent, the day I got a book deal, and the day I saw the first teaser art. It's wonderful to share these things, in part to demystify the publishing process, and in part just to shout out about something I love.

Well, today's another Big Moment. Earlier this morning I saw Eren's first proofs (and let me tell you, they are beautiful.) It was a strange moment for me - part relief, part nervousness, part calm detachment. Now more than ever, the story Eren is beginning to look like the book Eren.

First proofs, in short, are the first mocked up and designed pages. It's not the final-final version, and the point of it all is to catch any last minute mistakes that have crept in between editing and typesetting. My job now is to read through the whole book again (I have done this many times) and approve the pages. It's my last, last chance to make sure all the wrong words are got rid of and all the right words are in place. It's going to require some close reading and quite a few tea / coffee / whisky combo days.


Author Mindy McGinnis wrote a great blog post a couple of weeks ago called Breaking Up With Your Book. In it she explained that proofs feel a lot like breaking up with the thing you love:

After this it's out of your life, and you both move on. [...] When we see each other again it'll be in a bookstore somewhere. DUST [Mindy's second novel, about which more here] will be seeing other people.

It's an interesting point. Is this the end of Eren being mine, and the start of it being something bigger - or at least, more diluted?

I can't wait to find out.
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Photo: Harry Mitchell