A creative writing professor at California University of Pennsylvania, Carole Waterhouse is the author of two novels, The Tapestry Baby and Without Wings, and a collection of short stories, The Paradise Ranch.
Her fiction has appeared in Arnazella, Artful Dodge, Baybury Review, Ceilidh, Eureka Literary Magazine, Forum, Half Tones to Jubilee, Massachusetts Review, Minnetonka Review, Oracle: The Brewton-Parker College Review, Parting Gifts, Pointed Circle, Potpourri, Seems, Spout, The Armchair Aesthete, The Griffin, The Styles, Tucumari Literary Review, Turnrow, and X-Connect.
A previous newspaper reporter, she has published essays in an anthology, Horse Crazy: Women and the Horses They Love, and Equus Spirit Magazine. Her book reviews have appeared in The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, The Pittsburgh Press, and The New York Times Book Review.
Her latest novel is The Tapestry Baby, a novel depicting a mother who believes her child is born to fulfill some special destiny and discovers her life is intertwined with six other people, raising the question of whether any of us really control our own decisions, and through the process learns that greatness can be defined in the simplest of gestures.
You can visit Carole’s website at www.Carolewaterhouse.com.
Q: Welcome to Beyond the Books, Carole. Can we start out by telling us whether you are published for the first time or are you multi-published?
The Tapestry Baby is my third published book. I wrote a previous novel called Without Wings and a collection of short stories called The Paradise Ranch. I’ve also had quite a few short stories published in literary magazines and have written for newspapers as a reporter, feature writer and book reviewer.
Q: When you were published for the first time, which route did you go – mainstream, small press, vanity published or self-published and why or how did you choose this route?
I tried mainstream, initially. I think every writer imagines seeing their name on the best-seller list. I had a very well-known agent representing my work, but while comments from the large publishers were encouraging, the general consensus seemed to be that my writing was a little too unconventional to assure a market. That’s when I started looking for small presses, and haven’t regretted that route. Smaller presses have different expectations and are simply more willing to take chances.
Q: How long did it take you to get published once you signed the contract?
It took about nine months, which was a nice amount of time. I knew when I became involved with a small press that I would have to actively promote my book and the lead time gave me a chance to develop a plan.
Q: How did it make you feel to become published for the first time and how did you celebrate?
I had many publications in literary magazines before my first book and had a fairly extensive background writing for newspapers, so I was used to seeing my work in print. There is absolutely nothing, however, like your first book. I think every writer dreams of the day they can hold their own book in their hands. What made the experience especially moving for me was that one of my creative writing students, who was also an art major, submitted a cover design to the publisher and they were able to use it. The cover was made from a water color she had painted. Because she knew me so well and was familiar with the colors I prefer from seeing the way I dress everyday, she absolutely nailed the cover. When she first showed me the design, I was so overwhelmed by seeing this world I had created in my imagination actually appear before my eyes, I was completely speechless.
Q: What was the first thing you did as for as promotion when you were published for the first time?
Since I teach creative writing at a university, I had some help with promotion. The university’s public relations office sent out press releases and I was surprised how many newspapers contacted me for interviews. I also contacted local book stories to let them know I was available for signings. By chance, I ended up meeting several other authors in the area who also had books that were being released. One of them was very outgoing and had us get together to form our own two-day book festival where we did readings, signings, and conducted workshops. It was the beginning of some author friendships that developed for several years. This time I’m lucky to have one of my former students, Cindy Speer, who also works at California University of Pennsylvania, have a book released by Zumaya at the same time. I’m looking forward to doing events together with her.
Q: Since you’ve been published, how have you grown as a writer and now a published author?
When I worked for newspapers, I was always very aware that I was writing for an audience. You have to be. Any mistake or appearance of favoring one side of an issue over the other immediately brings in a barrage of phone calls and letters. When my short stories were published in literary magazines, I realized I still had an audience, but I didn’t have any contact with them, and didn’t really think about my readers when I wrote. Other than occasional comments from an editor when submitting, I essentially wrote in a vacuum. Having books published has made me much more aware again of my audience. Between reviews and comments posted on-line or offered directly to me, I know what people think and I’ve become more aware again that my work is something that others read, not just a form of personal expression.
Q: What has surprised or amazed you about the publishing industry as a whole?
Just how actively involved authors have to be in promoting their work. All these years, I guess I was naïve enough to believe that once something was published, readers would just magically appear and that any form of promotion would be the responsibility of the publisher. I very quickly learned that wasn’t true! It took me awhile, however, to understand that this isn’t just the case with small presses. While going to book festivals and other events, I was surprised to see how many authors published by major houses were still taking marketing into their own hands.
Q: What is the most rewarding thing about being a published author?
As I mentioned before, every writer dreams of holding their own book in their own hands. That’s simply a special moment. One of the biggest rewards, however, is using my own publishing experience to make opportunities for my own students and to help them along in their careers. I’ll never forget the day I walked up to my office and found a pay stub taped to the door. One of my students had left it there, so excited about getting his first check for something he wrote that he couldn’t wait to show it to me. All that was left was the pay stub. The check had already been spent.
Q: Any final words for writers who dream of being published one day?
When most people think the word “published,” they think books, and that’s where they want to start. I work hard to get my students to think small, focusing on short stories or poems in literary magazines or feature stories in local newspapers. It takes time to develop as a writer and I think that’s more effectively done on a smaller scale. And being a published author doesn’t have to mean a book. I’m every bit as proud of the stories I published in literary magazines as I am my novels. There’s a lot of rejection involved in writing, and that can be very defeating. I like people to realize that there can be many interesting ways of sharing their ideas. One of the sweetest writing projects I ever saw was a small book one of my students made as a class assignment. Her sister was expecting her first child and she wrote a bedtime story for the baby, writing it out in a handmade book with illustrations she made herself. It was a private book, just for the three of them, but just as priceless as if it had been a bestseller.
