OUT NOW: UK Paperbacks!

plus some vulnerable rambling

Check them out HERE, or pick up a copy wherever books are sold! If you have a favorite local bookstore, check to see if they have my books in stock; and if not, then they’ll be able to order them for you!

My books will remain indie published in North America, Mexico, or one of the many territories that doesn’t fall under the UK publishing umbrella.

I want to give a huge shout out to my UK editor, Jorgie Bain, who opened her arms and gave my books a home at Michael Joseph. Her belief in me and my work has been motivating, validating, and on a tangible level, a catalyst for so many more things to come.

Also thank you to Carolyn Forde, my incredible agent. Without her ongoing support and work behind the scenes, my career wouldn’t be where it is today.

And now I’m going to get a little bit long-winded and vulnerable, so grab a Coke Zero and join me in this little journal entry, if you will:

When I accepted the offer to publish my entire backlist with Michael Joseph in the UK, it felt like the logical next step in my burgeoning new life as a full-time author. I had just quit my day job, and was interested in dipping a toe into the “trad pub” scene. As luck would have it, the experience turned out to be incredibly positive, validating, and fun.

It was this positive experience that led me to seek a traditional publisher with Deathsworn, the full-length gothic fantasy novel I wrote over the summer. It felt like the right next step in my career. I love indie publishing, the control it allows me to have over my art, and the fact that all the royalties go to me. But there are some things you just can’t achieve as an indie author, things I want. I’ve always been a little ambitious when it came to my writing, and more than a little delusional. This feels embarrassing to write, but: I want to be a New York Times bestselling author. I want an exclusive excerpt from my book to be featured in a magazine like Cosmopolitan, or Entertainment Weekly. I want to go on a book tour. I want to see my book displayed in every bookstore I walk into. I want to receive glowing blurbs from my favorite authors. There are just so many things I want, and I couldn’t get any of them as a self-published author.

So when I sent Deathsworn to my agent to pitch to traditional publishers, I quietly set standards that I would not budge on, standards I voiced to no one but my husband (and maybe Logan Karlie, who is forced to listen to me rambling about literally everything all the time). I believed so strongly in the book that I refused to sell it unless I thought I had a chance to achieve at least some of the things I listed above. So I told myself that I would only accept an offer if it was a “dream offer.”

My idea of a dream offer: At least six figures, lead title treatment, a robust marketing plan, editor(s) who genuinely loved the work and would work hard to make it succeed, an imprint I trusted could get the book in front of thousands (upon thousands) of readers.

See? When I said I was ambitious and delusional, I meant it. But I was also very serious. If we couldn’t get an offer that ticked all those boxes, I would not sell Deathsworn.

Well… as you already know, I sold Deathsworn. Lol.

What’s funny is, now that I’ve gotten the dream deal, I also can’t believe it happened. So there’s this thing called imposter syndrome, I’m sure you are all deeply familiar (and if you’re not, I’m jealous), and I am one of its favorite victims. Hilariously, despite the high standards I’d set for Deathsworn, I was also completely convinced that it was a terrible book and everyone would hate it. While it was on sub (being read by editors), I oscillated between loving it and despising it, seemingly by the hour. Even now I’m like, what? I got a dream book deal? With Deathsworn. REALLY?

This, I guess, is the inevitable dichotomy of being a creative. You have to believe in yourself to a delusional degree, because if you don’t, you’ll give up at the first stumbling block (and there are many, many, MANY stumbling blocks in publishing). But you also have to hate your work just enough to constantly strive for improvement, otherwise you’ll never get good enough to succeed.

Day by day I’m coming to accept that this is real. Deathsworn is coming out with an amazing collection of publishers (even in Germany!) in 2027. The huge steps I wanted to take in my career are already in progress.

And it’s not just real, but it’s fun. I am loving every second of the experience. Receiving my first edit letter in a trad pub context? Fun. Being under a deadline I didn’t set myself? Even more fun. Getting an email with massive news that I can’t reveal for another year? SO FUN. Working with a team? Fun! Putting together a mood board for the Deathsworn cover? FUN!! Knowing my editors love and understand the book just as much as I do? REALLY REALLY FUN. (Vanessa and Jorgie, looking at you!)

It is extremely trite to say this, and yet it is so deeply true: I am living my dream. And it’s just as great as I always hoped it would be. It may not last forever, and nothing is ever guaranteed, but so many good things are on the way for Deathsworn. And I can’t wait to share all of them with you.

And though it goes without saying, I do think it’s important to say:

I would not be here without you, lovely reader.

Thank you.

Meg x