Fall is busy in publishing! Manuscripts are due to publishers, books are launching, and agents are circulating proposals for next year’s hits. And this year, I’ve finished some big projects including a book we’ve been working on for three years!
Fall is also when authors get book deals. Proposals are circulating and publishers are making deals before the break in December. Are you on the verge of closing a deal for a new book? Fantastic! Take the time to celebrate, but know those deadlines in the spring will be here before you know it. Now is the time to hire your editors and writers. That six or nine months that you have to submit a manuscript is not very long when it comes to creating a manuscript and you’ll be in panic-mode before you know it. As an author with a Q2 deadline, Jan-March should be your busy time (and your editor’s.)
The fourth quarter is also an exciting time for solopreneurs. We’re looking at goals and end of year for 2025. We’re assessing shortfalls (or overages!), we’re paying taxes, and we’re most definitely looking at next year’s schedule. We’re working with clients to turn ideas into real projects that keep moving forward. Thinking you might have a book idea for next year? Now is the time to talk about it.
In the meantime, here’s what I’m thinking about these days:
The Output Business: How do you take on more work when you’re at capacity? How do you manage cash flow when projects are slipping and publishers don’t respond as quickly as you’d like? The old me thought a full schedule meant security. A blank schedule meant, sigh, it was time to prospect again. But a few months ago, I had a bit of a revelation: I’m in the output business. Money coming in relies on work going out. Instead of thinking of “project in process” and “prospecting,” I had to shift my thinking. I have to be talking to all sorts of potential clients and getting work out the door fast. That means shifting my thinking to output. Past-me has been thinking in terms of flow and capacity, breathing a sigh of relief when I was busy. Now-me thinks in terms of input and output, which means making connections all the time. So, while I used to have a dream that I’d have 2 or 3 big clients a year and I could sort of flow through life, the reality is that output is king, and it generates its own swirl of energy. Proposals, writing, books, and editing keep the machine flowing and so do relationship check-ins, coffees with colleagues, brainstorming sessions and reaching out to agents and publishers reminding people about what I do. Last year was the year I said I wanted to level up – and it’s happening! What revelations have you had in your business life this year?
Every Museum in NYC: As the economy contracts, people may be looking for entertainment a little closer to home. And for inspiration? NYC’s Jane August has been on a mission since 2021 to visit every museum in New York City. Of 136 museums, she still has 60 to go, but she’s sharing her journey online has a great listing of discounts, great programming, and hidden gems. What fun to explore the cities we live in! Indiana is home to 234 museums statewide with 47 in Indianapolis! Looking for 2026 goals? Maybe a visit to every museum in the city (or state) should be one of them. Looking for something more manageable? Maybe try a trip to each of the state’s 24 state parks and lakes.
Ease versus Easy: I’m a fan of business sustainability coach Jenni Gritters. In one of her recent Substack newsletters, she talks about the difference between “ease” at work and “easy.” As she notes, many of her clients ask her to help make their work lives “easy” when they really mean “easeful” or more full of ease.
“Easy is about a lack of effort. It’s an adjective. It’s full of care. It’s attached to something else, something solid (a noun), but it’s not in-and-of-itself a condition we can create every single time. Ease, on the other hand, is a noun. It’s solid. It’s about a lack of resistance. It’s gradual. It’s less severe. Ease is what most of us want.”
What a concept! The way of ease through life means smoothing difficult and time-consuming tasks. The key? Focus on learning new things and explore new ideas. So when days get tough, ask “Are you looking for ease? Or easy?”
Book Club and Review Scams: If you’re an author, you’ve probably noticed the significant uptick in book club and book review scams. Many are AI generated bots that don’t even get your gender, book title, or content right. The fine team at Writer Beware have been writing about these, but just a note to say that these offers are a scam. Legitimate book clubs or review sites don’t contact you this way and there are lots of caveats when it comes to paying for placement or reviews. The vast majority of legitimate reviewers or book clubs are not asking for money and are curating their own lists.
The Rise of the Smartfluencer: Alexa Phillips at Creatives Anonymous has an interesting take on the next phase of the online influencer. In this world of AI and cheap content, knowledge is going to matter. Her theory? That with the coming recession and collapse of consumer culture, influencers are looking for other ways to generate content. One of those? Knowledge sharing. Bloggers and other long-form writers have known how to create and share content for a long time, but the idea of knowledge as king is moving to shorter-form platforms. It’s especially appealing to micro-influencers working in small segments of interest. And as media distrust grows, we may find ourselves looking to strong voices we trust. It’s an interesting concept and one to watch.
Working Through Workslop: There’s a lot of discussion around AI these days, especially in the publishing world. Copy editors are lamenting the terrible job AI grammar checkers do (please, just don’t use them) and authors are shouting from the rooftops that their AI generated text is usable. (Confidential to authors: It’s really not.) And editors like me are so tired of wading through, rewriting, and correcting workslop. What’s workslop? As Wired magazine recently noted, workslop is the first phase of output from a new technology or trend. In this case, it’s that garbage (full of double spaces and em-dashes) that AI spits out that too many authors cut and paste thinking it’s fine. (Who’s gonna know, right? Trust me, your editor knows.) If any good has come from it, it’s breaking me of my lazy writing habit of using too many em-dashes in my own prose.
What Are Your Four Words? I had a great chat with a potential client a few weeks ago and he shared his business philosophy. His clients must be “honest, ethical, fun, and nice,” four words perfect for his business. His four words put what they stand for and how they want to work front and center. Ethics can be murky in some businesses and it’s good to be clear it’s a priority, but what about nice? Does it matter? Five years ago, I would have said “nice doesn’t matter, excellence matters” but today? I think I’ve changed my mind. With all the chaos in the world, it’s refreshing to see “nice” rise to the top. No one wants that profitable client who’s a soul-sucking energy draw (and we’ve all had them.) It made me wonder about my own four words. Would they be the same? Would I change one or two? Or would they be a series of statements declaring what I want to do and how I want to do it. I think it’s important to put what matters into words. I’m thinking about my four words or statements. What are yours?
I love referrals so feel free to share my information. I’d also love to hear from any of you are considering a book, a cookbook, a revision, textbooks, or even a book you’d like produced for your business. I work with authors who multiple books that fit together and those who have a new idea they’ve always wanted to tackle. Send me a message and let’s talk!
How to reach me:
Web: connectorcreator.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/reneewilmeth/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/feedmedrinkme/
What Am I Celebrating Right Now?
Book Launch! Join me in congratulating Stuart Kaplan and Marcus Riley on their book launch for Your Aging Advantage! It was such a pleasure to work with these two on this book to help you rethinking your aging journey
Television: I have fallen in love with Tulsa King. It’s got everything you want in a great show — light moments, mob crime, and class. With Oklahoma as a star of the show!
Mexico City: If you haven’t been to this world class city, you must go. Both the essence of Europe and Mexico, it’s perfect for a 3-4 jaunt like I took with friends in October. Incredible food (tacos!), architecture, history, and restaurants (Quintonil was incredible.) Plus, I learned the hard way when I almost missed a client call that they no longer observe daylight savings time, so they’re on Central Standard Time!
Connecting. Creating. 
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