One of the thrills of writing a book is seeing a finished copy for the first time. A book lives only in the author’s mind for so long and to see it in a tangible form is truly special. Last week, I received my allotment of copies of “Soul Winners.” (The delivery guy asked if I had ordered a bowling ball.) I’m thrilled with the high level of production — the glossy cover, the heavy paper stock, quality binding, excellent photo reproduction. The moment an author submits the final manuscript, the author surrenders control of the book to the publisher. The author certainly has input on the book’s title, cover, and promotion/marketing plan, but the publisher has the final say. (In my case, they did keep my title and asked for my opinion about the cover options.) Problems inevitably crop up — for instance, printer delivery delays recently pushed back my publication date from Aug. 15 to Sept. 15 — so it’s vital you have a spirit of trust with your publisher. I’m fortunate to have people at Prometheus Books who believed in the book and were true partners in bringing it into the world.
Congratulations, David! Your books looks spectacular!!
Thank you!