The Rebirth of the Traditional Novelist

An agented and decorated thriller writer was underwhelmed with his experiences as a midlist author at traditional houses. He approached Girl Friday wanting something different and better for his fourth novel. The biggest challenge? He did not have a meaningful audience of readers or followers he could remarket to. Oh, and then COVID-19 hit . . .

The Client

Charlie Newton, an agented and decorated thriller writer with three titles published by traditional houses (Simon & Schuster, Doubleday, and Thomas&Mercer), wanted something different for the release of his fourth book, Privateers. Having been a writer for decades, Newton, like many authors, was frustrated and underwhelmed with his declining experiences as a midlist author at traditional houses. Facing dwindling advances and an increasing lack of marketing support, he set out to find a better way to get his work into readers’ hands. He connected with renowned publishing consultant Jane Friedman, who recommended Girl Friday as a reputable full-service self-publishing firm.

Newton has an unpublished catalog of eleven finished manuscripts, all of which he intended to release independently if the model should prove successful for him. Prior to contracting, we consulted with him in depth. He expressed his career intention to earn a positive return on his up-front investment, and we discussed our expectations for Privateers as well as for subsequent titles. By the time Newton signed with Girl Friday, we had a clear agreement of what success would look like—both for this book and for the subsequent arc of his releases.