The Making of a Novel Part 4: Publishing

By Charlie Donlea

Publishing The Damn Thing

A publication date is usually set for six to nine months after the manuscript is finalized. In addition to the print edition, the e-Book and audio version are also created. The e-Book is produced by my print publisher. The audio version is produced by an audiobook publisher (if audio rights are sold). Thanks to the dedicated and talented sub-rights team at Kensington Publishing, all my novels have been made into audio books.

Just because a book has been written, however, doesn’t mean it will magically appear on bookstore shelves, or Wal-mart kiosks, or that big table of books at Costco or Sam’s Club. Someone, somewhere, has to decide to purchase those books and carry those titles. It is the work of the sales department at the publishing house to get the book out to booksellers, convince them to buy the book, and ultimately display them on the shelves of retailers and libraries across the United States. With tens of thousands of books traditionally published each year, the competition for shelf space is fierce. I’m grateful for the dedicated team at Kensington who has managed to spread my books across the country.

The sub-rights department at my publisher also looks for publishing opportunities outside of the U.S. Much of these foreign dealings are done at international trade shows. A couple of the largest are the Frankfurt Book Fair and the London Book Fair. Thanks to the talented team at Kensington Publishing, my books have been translated into more than a dozen languages across nearly thirty countries—something that still shocks me.


In this gripping new thriller from #1 international bestselling author Charlie Donlea, a TV news host sets out to uncover the truth behind a brutal, decades-old murder…

Avery Mason, host of American Events, knows the subjects that grab a TV audience’s attention. Her latest story—a murder mystery laced with kinky sex, tragedy, and betrayal—is guaranteed to be ratings gold. New DNA technology has allowed the New York medical examiner’s office to make its first successful identification of a 9/11 victim in years. The twist: the victim, Victoria Ford, had been accused of the gruesome murder of her married lover. In a chilling last phone call to her sister, Victoria begged her to prove her innocence.

Emma Ford has waited twenty years to put her sister to rest, but closure won’t be complete until she can clear Victoria’s name. Alone she’s had no luck, but she’s convinced that Avery’s connections and fame will help. Avery, hoping to negotiate a more lucrative network contract, goes into investigative overdrive. Victoria had been having an affair with a successful novelist, found hanging from the balcony of his Catskills mansion. The rope, the bedroom, and the entire crime scene was covered in Victoria’s DNA.

But the twisted puzzle of Victoria’s private life belies a much darker mystery. And what Avery doesn’t realize is that there are other players in the game who are interested in Avery’s own secret past—one she has kept hidden from both the network executives and her television audience. A secret she thought was dead and buried . . .