It happened nearly two years ago, to the day.
It was our first full day home with Rho from the hospital. I was resting on the couch (per my mother’s orders) as she zoomed around the apartment helping with a 5 day old and my recovery from a C-section.
Naturally, I was on my phone. I was going through e-mail when one caught my eye…
Greetings from New York! I’m a lifestyle editor at Clarkson Potter, an illustrated publisher owned by Random House that focuses on books for living well and staying inspired. I’m also a terrible packer, so I was delighted when I came across your site chockfull of tips! I’m so impressed by the quality of content you’ve created and was intrigued when I saw you’d self-published a few guides.
“Whoa. Is this for real?”
Have you ever considered publishing a physical book with a publisher? If you were interested, I’d love to start a conversation about potentially working together.
Thank you for your lovely site – it’s been so helpful to me! I look forward to connecting soon.
“Mom? Can you come here and read this?”
My mother brought Rho over to me and took my phone while I snuggled and fed him. Her expression was deadpan (I swear, that woman could play poker). She handed the phone back.
“Excellent, pappu. Don’t hold the phone so close to the baby.”
“But what does it mean, mom??”
“E-mail her back. You won’t know unless you do.”
Moms. Such good advice.
I took the meeting with the editor. And was presented with an offer letter less than a month later.
This is NOT how most books happen. The typical process involves working on a proposal for 6-9 months, pitching them to several publishers, and then getting an offer letter.
I had seen (and presented) my fair share of term sheets in the past, so I understood the basic terms offered.
I should really talk to someone…
And so began my “talk to anyone who’s ever published a book and get their take” process. I spoke with Divya first, and then Rebecca (whose book was also being published by Potter). Both mentioned their agents several times.
“Could you introduce me to your agent?”
Kim was the first (and only) agent I spoke to. Not only was one of the few agents who specialized in illustrated lifestyle books, she immediately put me at ease and made me feel comfortable about the entire process.
I signed with her. She negotiated and presented a new offer letter from Potter.
Contract signed. And it was time to write…
The first draft of my manuscript was due on my birthday, July 2nd. I spent most of June holed up in my parents’ house to have an extra (two!) sets of hands with Rho, who had grown from teeny newborn to a chubby, squealing baby.
I wrote, and wrote, and wrote. But I didn’t really love any of the words that appeared on my page. In hindsight, I should’ve immediately called Kim or Lisa, my editor. But I didn’t, and labored away at words I didn’t really love.
Thankfully, other parts of the book were going better. Potter believed that illustrations would be a timeless way to bring the book to life, and had an illustrator in mind. Kelly Lasserre and I met, clicked, and signed a contract. She began painting while I continued writing.
Every painting she uploaded into Dropbox kept me motivated to keep writing. I e-mailed the Word file on the afternoon of 31st birthday, and clinked glasses and feasted on sushi with my husband.
20 days letter, I received two e-mails from my editor – one with edits and a full editorial letter, and another introducing me to my new editor, Amanda.
Lisa was kind in her feedback, which was basically to rewrite the entire manuscript. Amanda was even more direct.
“This reads like one really long blog post.”
I continued to labor over the new version of the manuscript in summer and early fall, and had been conscious to ask for help in every other aspect of my life. My husband rearranged his morning schedule to give me a couple of hours to work first thing. My parents and in-laws continued to spend a lot of time in the city to give me a hand, and we found our incredible nanny Naleeni. Sandra, our cleaning lady, began coming twice a week to keep our home sparkling (also, baby Rho was starting to roll around and lick everything in front of him).
I had a book to write, a company to launch, and sanity to maintain. I don’t take for granted my incredible privilege to have such a strong network to help me out, and the resources we have to afford them.
So I continued to write, and work, and write some more. But I still struggled. The words didn’t feel right. It wasn’t me.
I began talking to Kim more, who assured me that this was all perfectly normal and that this process of how-the-hell-do-I-actually-write-a-book happens during the proposal process. But it was frustrating to us all.
The actual content was strong, but I couldn’t find the right words to bring them to life.
In late fall, Kim and Amanda came together with an offer I couldn’t refuse. Kim and I would buckle down and rewrite the entire book together, from after Thanksgiving to right before Christmas, together.
All I had to do was clear my schedule. Which is difficult, considering I had just launched a company.
If you decide to start a company, I hope you’re as lucky as me to find a co-founder like Samira. Without blinking, she carried the load of managing our new business baby as I spent every day with Kim, writing and talking about packing.
If you decide you want to write a book, I hope you’re lucky enough to find an agent like Kim. She took the sorry state of my manuscript and whipped up a new outline that reflected my ideas perfectly. She and I talked as we wrote, taking care to preserve my voice and eliminate the stuffy, authoritative tone I had adopted in the earlier drafts.
We laughed a lot – both from funny moments and moments of delirium.
Every day blurred together. I’d spent an hour or two with Rho every morning, dash to Neuehouse for a marathon writing session, and come home to snuggle him and put him down to sleep and zone out to some bad television with my husband. It felt like Groundhog Day, except for the progress we kept making.
On December 18th, 2015, we were finished. We celebrated the best way how – over spinach dip and glasses of wine at Hillstone’s, which was the constant carrot Kim dangled in front of me to keep me focused.
Hillstone, by the way, is in my book acknowledgements. Now you know why. I ate a lot of spinach dip and baked potatoes that month. A LOT.
In 2016, the ball was in Amanda’s hands as Potter finished editing the manuscript and started designing the book. Kelly quickly painted the additional illustrations that Ian (the book’s designer) requested. We tweaked the copy after seeing the book laid out in its would-be printed form.
And we turned in the final mockup in May – right before my big move.
I continued to see and talk to Kim a lot, with our friendship firmly established after our month in the writing trenches. I heard from Amanda intermittently, usually on book updates and international deals.
And on December 1,, 2016, I received a package from Potter.
It was one of the first copies of How To Pack, in its hardcover glory.
It was real. It really happened.
Now I just need people to buy it.
Acknowledgements in a book feel so insignificant when compared to the actual contributions of everyone I named. I will spend the rest of my life thanking everyone who helped make How To Pack a reality, but I hope this post and my undying gratitude is a start. I hope you enjoyed reading all about how How To Pack came to be, and I hope you enjoy the book!
*shameless plug alert*
If you did get a copy, I’d love to see it! Please tag me (@HithaPalepu #HowToPack) in your social posts and be sure to leave reviews (Goodreads, Amazon, B&N). There would be no book without this blog, and there would be no blog without you. I’m so grateful to call you my friend, and so grateful for your support over the years.
