Behind the Book inaugural post
And also... the COVER OF THE BOOK!
Most of you know me, but for those who don’t, I’m a writer and former lawyer. My debut novel PENITENCE will be published on February 18, 2025 by Celadon Books and I am SO. DAMN. EXCITED. When my amazing agent Gail Hochman sold the novel to my equally amazing editor Deb Futter at Celadon, it sold overnight and was a Deal of the Week in Publishers Weekly—this might not sound very articulate but… YAY! YAHOO!! YEEHAW!!! (Have I missed any “Y” derivations of that idea?) This is the thrill of a lifetime for me, and ever since the novel sold, I’ve felt like I won some sort of lottery (the good kind, not the Shirley Jackson kind).
Last week was the cover reveal for Penitence, which means the publication process is ramping up and this is becoming real. I love this cover — it’s beautiful and it brilliantly captures the heart and soul of the novel — and I couldn’t have asked for more. (Thank you to Anne Twomey and Erin Cahill at Celadon, designer Cat Casalino, and artist Nisha Ghela!)
I wanted to be a writer way back in fourth grade, when I wrote a story using a prompt from a kids’ magazine, but kept getting distracted by life. A few years ago, I realized life was moving fast. Too fast. I couldn’t afford any more distractions from doing the thing I really wanted to do (there’s a lesson in there for me about social media). Although writing was a crazy thing to attempt as a second career and my odds of being published were slim, I knew I didn’t want to wake up when I was ninety and think: I wish I would have tried.
So, I started trying. And now here I am, on that second career, writing a second book, counting down the days until the first one is published. As I’ve talked to people about Penitence, many have asked: How did you do that? It’s a multi-faceted question. Some people are asking about the process of finding an agent or selling a debut novel to a publisher, others how I managed to write the novel in the first place, and still others how I broke away from one life path (being a lawyer) and scrambled onto another (being a writer).
The answer to a multi-faceted question is… a newsletter. I’ll share my perspective (usually monthly, sometimes more) on querying agents, going on submission to publishers, the editing process, the publishing process for a debut author, and writing the novel. Along the way, I’ll digress to discuss second acts; rejection and the importance of failure; change (per my father and Heraclitus, the only constant) and of course, books. The middle will be an important connector in these posts: the middle of life, the middle of books, the middle of any process or journey—even the middle of training for a marathon. The middle of anything and everything can be haaaard. It deserves attention.
Whether you’re a writer-in-progress, an avid reader, or someone who is interested in second acts or how to navigate middles, I hope you’ll enjoy reading this and find it helpful. Initially, I plan to alternate posts with book-specific thoughts (first up: querying agents) and second act thoughts (first up: why are second acts so important?). If you know of anyone who might be interested in any of these topics—forward this link! Subscribing is free.
Cheers, Kris
P.S. You can keep track of the novel publication process at kristinkoval.com (the site is still under construction but should be up soon), and you can also find me on Instagram and Threads here, or on Facebook here. And if you’re interested in reading Penitence, you can pre-order it here!
P.P.S. Since I’m sending this out on Mother’s Day, Happy Mother’s Day to my mother Bea and all the other mothers out there!