Just finished the final edit of the first book of the first series I ever acquired. Yay! Now it’s with the author for her final go-round, then it’s off to the copyeditor, and then it’s off to the proofreader, and then, typesetting!
And then sometime late in the fall, we’ll have ARCs to see (Advance Reader Copies). Though I’ve seen the process with other books in the department, I’ve never had one of my own books go through the ARC process, nor have I asked for blurbs, etc., so this is all very exciting for me. Of course, I have a feeling it’ll be exciting at the 5th, 10th, and 100th books, too, because it’s just fun to see the finished/nearly finished product. I felt much the same way when I got ‘s latest book, which had a cover redesign for the series beginning with his book. See his post about getting his own copy, too.
Which reminds me that I still haven’t gone and picked up a copy of my friend Brandon Sanderson’sMistborn. I read it in manuscript form nearly two years ago now, and loved it then. I’m sure things have changed in it since I read it (it was being edited as I read), so I should read it again, but in addition to that, it’s just fun to see the finished book. The cover, the paper, the endpapers, the overall design–those are just as important to me in a book I’ve seen through early stages as the contents were when I first read it. I’ve heard good things about Mistborn’s cover (apparently, there’s some foil on it that you can’t see in the sample shots of the cover), so I need to go check it out. And then, of course, buy the book!
For you who haven’t read Mistborn yet, though, let me just say that the insides are well worth the pretty outside. Brandon’s an up-and-coming new author who really shows his growth with this followup to his debut novel, Elantris (also a great read, which I highly recommend). I won’t summarize or do a full review right now, because I need to run out the door, but check out the books. If you’re looking for new, original high fantasy, they’ll be perfect for you.