Faith Bleasdale

Faith, 29 years old was born in Sussex, but spent most of her formative years in Devon. She was once a Saturday Assistant at Bideford Library. She lives in London and has had 3 novels published.

From Manuscript to Bookshelf by Faith Bleasdale

When I found out that my book was going to be published, the joy was overwhelming. But I knew nothing about it, so the process of manuscript to bookshelf was entirely new for me.

The first thing was to embark on the editing process, which actually I enjoyed. I liked my editor , bowed to her wisdom and enjoyed working with someone else, having their input. My editor told me that it took nine months to get from manuscript to bookshelf. She said it was like being pregnant. A thought that horrified me a little, but I did get some symptoms.

Firstly, I was tired (still working and writing), secondly I put on weight, (not sure how related that was, but I did), then I had to chose a name. I first called my book ‘Marigolds or Gucci Shoes’, but was told there was no way I could use that title. So six months of racking my brain, suggesting title after title every day, beginning to hate the process, they finally accepted the vastly different title, ‘Rubber Gloves and Jimmy Choos?’ Choosing titles or names has remained one of my most hated things ever since.

My second book, I called ‘Pinstripes’ from the start, and they wanted to change that too, so I thought, and came up with suggestion after suggestion. Finally they decided to call it ‘Pinstripes. Now, I just pretend to think when they ask me to change my titles. Then all that remained in my book pregnancy was to get a cover, and then sell it into shops. The first time I saw my baby on a shelf in a bookshop was truly amazing.

I handled it with all the dignity of a true professional; I went red and ran away. I have just had my third book published. It’s called ‘Peep Show’, and it is based on the concept of reality TV. It’s a funny but sad look at how far people go for ambition, and also shows how it backfires. It was born partly out of the growing obsession with watching other people’s lives in the name of entertainment, and also because of my research involving watching a lot of reality TV.

If you’re going to write a book, make sure you enjoy the research. My next book will be set on a Caribbean Island, I’ve just decided.