Linda Huber’s Publication Journey
Welcome to Linda Huber’s Publication Journey, another in the occasional series of guest posts by authors who reveal their journey to getting published. Linda’s latest thriller, a family-based drama, is out this month. The Un-Family is published by Hobeck Books.
Over to Linda:
How I Got Published by Linda Huber
I was seven years old when I started writing. My first short story was for my Writer’s Badge in the Brownie Guides, and writing it ignited in me a passion which I still have, all these years later. I went on scribbling little stories about children all through primary school, then as a teenager I moved on to write terrible poetry like everyone else. The ‘being published’ part of my life came several years after that when I had a few dozen stories and articles accepted in women’s magazines, but while seeing my pen name in print was fun, I knew I wanted more.
Around that time, I discovered the American writer Mary Higgins Clark, who wrote such wonderful psychological suspense novels. I devoured her books as soon as they came out, and one day, I sat down to have a go at writing my own Mary Higgins Clark. Long story short, three years later I had two novels written. (I started to write the second when I got stuck with the first, and switching between books is something I do to this day.) I tweaked and rewrote and rewrote and tweaked those books, then with the optimism of inexperience, I decided to try to find an agent. Back then, however, my Swiss location was against me, and eventually I gave up on the agent and started trying small publishers with The Paradise Trees. At the same time, I sent the other book, The Cold Cold Sea, off for a critique to what was then The Writers’ Workshop and is now Jericho Writers. It was the best thing I ever did, because the editor I met there has taught me much of what I know about writing/publishing – we’ve worked together on ten of the twelve books I have published now.
Back to The Paradise Trees and its submission journey. I was still working through the critique on The Cold Cold Sea when an email arrived from Legend Press, a small publisher in London. Was The Paradise Trees still available? If so, was I prepared to change the four POV characters into two? Yes, and yes, I replied, and set to work. (There is nothing I enjoy more than pulling a book to pieces and putting it together again. I’m a serial tweaker, and it has its disadvantages. You have to learn when to stop.)
The revised ms was accepted, and shortly afterwards, so was The Cold Cold Sea, and they were published just under a year apart. I’ll never forget the feeling of holding the first copies of my book for the first time. We had a Waterstone’s launch party in Glasgow which was enormous fun, plus lots of bookshop and library events. I really felt like a proper writer, and it was the best year of my writing life as far as being on an emotional high was concerned.
By that time, self-publishing was becoming a thing and I chose that route for the next three books before signing short contracts with a digital publisher for the following three. Now, my newest book The Un-Family and its two predecessors are with Hobeck Books, while The Paradise Trees and The Cold Cold Sea are beyond their contracts and part of my self-publishing venture. Nowadays, I think it’s important to work out exactly what you want when you think about getting published. There are so many options, each with its own set of pros and cons. It’s a funny old book world we live and write in…
About Linda
Linda Huber grew up in Glasgow, Scotland, but went to work in Switzerland for a year aged twenty-two, and has lived there ever since. Her day jobs have included working as a physiotherapist in hospitals and schools for handicapped children, and teaching English in a medieval castle.
Linda’s writing career began in the noughties, when she wrote short stories for women’s magazines. Today, she has twelve psychological suspense novels published, the latest three by crime fiction publisher Hobeck Books.
Her current project is a series of feel-good novels set in her home area on the banks of Lake Constance in N.E. Switzerland. She really appreciates having the views admired by her characters right on her own doorstep!
Amazon Author Page: viewAuthor.at/LindaHuber
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/authorlindahuber
Twitter: https://twitter.com/LindaHuber19
website: http://lindahuber.net/
About The Un-Family (publication date November 15th):
For better, for worse
Wildlife vet Holly’s life seems blissful: husband Dylan is the man of her dreams, she has a rewarding career and a lovely home. And yet, a tiny niggle is growing daily. Dylan is becoming increasingly remote – but why? Holly is determined to mend the fissure in their relationship. But a shocking discovery changes everything…
Family ties
Then there’s Dylan’s family: his wayward twin Seth and their widowed mother Elaine, who is rather fond of a glass or two of sherry. Nothing in Elaine’s life is easy, bringing up teenage granddaughter Megan while the family grieves the loss of Megan’s mother.
Family lies
A tragic event rocks the foundations of the family, and Holly’s life starts to unravel. Dylan drifts ever further away. Megan is left uncertain and alone, while Seth falls deeper into himself.
The bonds that once bound the family together are breaking. Can they ever be repaired?
I hope you enjoyed this Publication Journey. Here are links to all the authors who have written their Publication Journey stories for the blog: