When a Publisher Knocks on Your Door by Deborah Serani

When a Publisher Knocks on YOUR Door

By

 Deborah Serani

I was so thrilled to have my first nonfiction book Living with Depression  sought out by several publishing houses back in 2011. I did my homework, researched each publisher and decided very carefully which one I’d sign with. To say that was an

empowering moment as an author would be an understatement. In truth, it was much more than that. You see, I never imagined that I’d even have one publisher interested in my work because I didn’t have an agent. I also knew how tough it was to break into the publishing world. So it was beyond empowering. It was mind blowing.

After a year and a half of promoting Living with Depression and two Book of the Year Awards later, my publisher, Rowman & Littlefield, asked me to pen another book for them. This time, a parenting book on depression. Before my acquisitions editor finished asking her question to me, I happily agreed.                                                                                           

Writing Depression and Your Child: A Guide for Parents and Caregivers, though, was a very different experience for me. Knowing that I already had the support of my publisher enabled me to write more openly and honestly than ever before. I was unafraid to take chances, to reveal, to question, and to invite different kinds of thinking into my work. I know that being able to do this would ultimately take anyone who read my work into a uniquely textured experience. Without that knock on my door, I wondered if I would have ever found that voice.

         

Like having a supportive parent who gives you the confidence to stretch the boundaries of your comfort zone, having the support from my publishing house enabled me become a better writer. Of that, I have no doubt. I’m grateful to Rowman & Littlefield for believing in me and my work. They were the right publishing house for me. And the time I put it researching the pros and cons of each publishing house before I signed a contract really paid off. Be it a small or big house, independent or self-publishing, make sure you do your homework as an author to find where your work will be best served. It’s not just where your book is published, it’s where you make your home as a writer.

Dr. Deborah Serani is an expert in depression, specializing in its treatment and living successfully with the disorder since childhood. She is a licensed psychologist in practice over twenty years, a professor at Adelphi University, and author of the award-winning book  Living with Depression and Depression and Your  Child: A Guide for Parents and Caregivers by the Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group. Dr. Serani is a go-to media expert with interviews in Psychology Today, The Associated Press, Newsday, The Chicago Tribune, Women’s Health and Fitness Magazine, Veria Television, and affiliate radio programs at CBS and NPR, just to name a few. She has also worked as a technical advisor for the NBC television show Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.