How to juggle books

Does not include an actual juggling how-to or demonstration

Sep 25, 2023

Before I was published, I’d start a book and work on it until it was finished, uninterrupted. I could take a break between drafts or jump right into revision, if I already knew what I needed to do. All my writing focus went toward that one project for as long as it took to reach the end.

And then . . . I got a contract.

And then I started having some years where I had two books.

Boy was that a change.

Publishing schedules often work something like this:1

You write the book and revise it until you feel comfortable giving it to your editor.

Your editor takes a month or two or seven, then delivers a developmental edit letter to you . . . either at the appointed time or when you least expect it.

You have a couple of months, sometimes more, to do the edits, then you give it back to your editor.

There may be another round of developmental edits here, especially if there were significant changes in the previous round.2

Line edits! I usually get a month on these, give or take a week.

A month or two later, copyedits arrive, and I usually have two weeks to work on these.

Two to three months later, pass pages arrive, and I usually have two weeks to four weeks to work on these.

Then the book is all the way out of my hands, but it’s time to start promoting it.

Okay, that doesn’t look too bad, right? It’s a long process, sure, but you just do it, have some breaks, and then . . . book!

Except no. If you have a sequel, you start writing that while you’re waiting for an edit letter. But then things are going to change in the first book after edits, so it doesn’t always feel wise to move very far into the next book unless you’re pretty sure the first one isn’t going to need a full rewrite. It’s definitely easier to start drafting something entirely new — so you won’t have to worry about rewriting something that only worked in an alternate timeline — but if you’re contracted for a series, you’ve got deadlines.

And just as you’re getting into the flow with the new book . . . edits arrive for the first one. So you pause, travel back in storytime to edit, then get back to your new (now being revised to fit with the previous book) draft. But then line edits arrive.

And so on.

If it sounds like new books typically get written in the holes of time between work on the previous book . . . that’s right. (Obviously this is not the case for everyone all the time. But if you’re on a book-a-year schedule, this probably feels very familiar.) And having to bounce in and out of a story (while getting deeply into something else) over such a long period of time can make it difficult to keep your momentum and motivation high.

For me, this was already (a huge surprise, for some reason, and) hard enough when I was publishing one book a year. When I started getting years with two books, it was even more of a challenge.

So here are some things that helped keep me on top of my work.

1. Ask about your schedules!

This is going to be key! You can’t make plans if you don’t know when to expect your line edits or copyedits. And I get that sometimes it can feel uncomfortable to ask, but this does actually affect your work, too, so you get to know these things. If you’re really uncomfortable asking directly, get your agent to do it for you.

I usually ask when I turn something in. For example, “Here’s the final draft! When should I expect copyedits, and how long do you think I’ll have to work through them?”

When you can plan for the different editorial and production steps, you can look at the time you have between them and decide how to best use it. Maybe you have time to write a big chunk of the next book. Or maybe you’d be better off devoting that to rereading what you have and planning the second half. (Or, gasp, just taking a break.)

2. Pavlov yourself

We all know about the dog, the bell, and the drool, right?

When I’m starting a new book, but I know I’m going to have to pause to go back to something else, I give myself a song and listen to it on loop while I’m working on worldbuilding, outlines, and whatever. That way, when I come back, I can hit play on The Song and be right back into the story.

It doesn’t have to be a song, though. It could be a certain kind of tea or a scented candle. Even a location.

There are some drawbacks to this, and you certainly shouldn’t rely on a song or tea or anything to work on your book. But it can help!

3. Take really good notes

Have an idea for your new thing? Write it down. Imagining an intense scene between the characters? Write it down. Do not trust your memory. Write down everything you know about it. Heck, write the scene if you’re okay writing out of order.

I know not everyone wants to outline, but if you think perhaps outlining (or writing a detailed synopsis) might work for you, give it a try. That way, there’s never a question of what will happen next; you’ve already figured it out.

And I’ve talked about this before, but take note of the thing/s that inspired you to write this story. Put it in a query letter style pitch. Use images. Write paragraphs about what drew you to this particular story. And later, when you’ve had to put it down for a few months after being eyeball deep in a different story, you can reread those notes and remember why this was the one you wanted to write next.

4. Make a schedule

This sounds like a no-brainer, but it really does help to make a plan. You can do it in your calendar app, on a regular calendar, a notebook, or however works best for you. Block off the time you plan to work on different things. Add breaks. Share the schedule with your agent so they know where you are and can help advocate for you if needed.

Writing a book a year is a lot of work. It takes planning to keep doing. And my gosh, if you’re going to try to write more books a year, blocking off time for every step will be key.

5. Communicate!

This sort of goes along with the point of asking about your schedule, but it’s so important that it deserves to stand on its own, too.

Make sure you communicate with your agent, your editor, and whoever else is directly involved with your book and schedule. Tell them what you need! Seriously, they won’t know unless you tell them.

If you need more time on something, say so. If you’re thisclose to finishing your new draft, but you’ve got a copyedited manuscript landing tomorrow and you don’t want to interrupt your flow . . . ask if you can have a few extra days on the CEM. If you’ve got a hole in your schedule and could be working on something sooner rather than later, let them know. (They may or may not be able to bump you up in line; remember, they’re keeping a packed schedule, too. But it generally doesn’t hurt to mention.)

And if you’re writing something brand new that you want your agent to submit for you, talk to them about their submission schedule. They probably have an idea of when they’d want to send something out for you — so it doesn’t conflict with other manuscripts they might have on sub, holidays editors observe, or slow/vacation periods in the industry.3 Knowing when your agent wants to submit the book might affect how quickly you actually need to finish it.

Now, the truth about publishing is that sometimes schedules are going to change.

Editors might be late delivering notes. Or early! A book might require more revisions than you expected. The publisher might decide your book needs to come out in a later season so it won’t compete against something else — or an earlier season.

There are all kinds of reasons your schedule might need to change, and sometimes there’s just not much you can do about it. So be flexible where possible, and if you sense your schedule collapsing in on you, talk to your agent. Ask for help.

I know I’ve talked about it before, but my schedule took a hit in 2020 when planned books changed and edit letters arrived at different-than-expected times. I managed to muscle through it until 2022, but that was when I ended up having to ask for extensions on two books. I didn’t want to do it, but I’d already (in 2017) had an experience of working 20-hour days (not an exaggeration) to make a deadline, which seriously affected my health. (I did not ask for an extension when I should have. But I should have.) After that experience, I didn’t want to risk my physical, mental, and emotional health for deadlines again.

It’s not always ideal to let your schedule change, but put your health first. Please.

That’s all from me today!

Do you have any tips for writers jumping between projects? Please share!

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