I’ve been privileged to work with some wonderful editors in the CBA.

For the past four years, I’ve been under the tutelage of Thomas Nelson’s Senior Acquisitions Editor, Ami McConnell. She’s such a gift to me as a writer and story teller, helping me hone my skill and art, but by being my champion.

When I sold my first 2 books to TNI, the ACFW Conference was in Nashville that year, home of country music and Thomas Nelson. The conference hotel was right across from the fiction (then West Bow) offices!

Ami had just given birth to her third child, a beautiful girl. Even though she was on maternity leave, she took time to meet with me, picking me up from the hotel, driving me to coffee, and spending a portion of the afternoon talking fiction and writing goals. I so appreciated her reaching out to a new author. I was excited, scared, full of hope, full of doubts! But getting to know one another face to face opened the door for a smooth editing process. She knew where I was coming from, I knew her position and expectations.

Over the years, we’ve formed a friendship. Ami’s my muse, my friend, my editor, the one who saw the beauty among the ashes. Her words of encouragement linger in my heart and shine on the really hard days.

She graciously took the time to answer some interview questions for My Book Therapy readers! As I read through her answers, I was so moved and encouraged. She possess such insight, depth and heart. I believe you will also be encouraged on your writing journey by her answers.

Besides being a fab editor, Ami is married and the mother of five lively, active and beautiful children — one boy and four girls. She’s been at Thomas Nelson many years, over a dozen I think, and was recently nominated for ACFW’s Editor of the Year!

Please welcome the lovely and gracious Ami McConnell! {cheering, applause, cheering, applause!}

RH: It’s an honor to have you on the My Book Therapy blog. Ami. Can you lead off with your back ground in publishing? How long have you been an editor? How long have you been at Thomas Nelson?

AM: Seems like I’ve been editing all my life! As a kid I was a big reader—devouring books as soon as I got my hands on them. I think I scared the poor librarians! I would skip recess to go to the library. Sounds sad, but it was like heaven to be surrounded by so many books! My friends and I would pile in there and we’d hush each other and be all studious. I was editor of my high school newspaper and then, in college, worked for my lit professors and in our college writing lab. I loved helping students perfect their papers.

I’ve been paid to edit in the publishing field since 1993. Thomas Nelson hired me to be a project manager that year. I left Nelson to have my first child and began freelance editing for academic, religious, and secular houses. I gravitated toward fiction even then. When Word publishing hired me as an in-house editor in 1997, my publisher encouraged me to acquire books. My first acquisition was Robert Whitlow’s The List. I’ve been in my sweet spot ever since!

RH: You were one of the pioneers of WestBow, Thomas Nelson’s fiction imprint, now incorporated into the whole company brand. Can you tell our readers some of your vision when it was launched?

AM: Allen Arnold was the brains behind the launch of a division dedicated to publishing Fiction. We call him Fearless Leader! Previous to that time, Thomas Nelson published fiction alongside nonfiction, but Allen recognized that editors, publicists, and marketing folks need to focus on fiction 24/7 to really do it well. We decided that our mission would be to partner with the best Christian novelists to bring their stories to the widest possible market. There’s a lot of latitude in terms of what genres you can publish under that umbrella. It’s allowed us to create a really diverse author roster. I think we have something in our list for every literary taste. We’ve become the #1 Christian fiction publisher since then—in just 5 years. It’s incredible to me. We have some fantastic, dedicated authors and a creative, passionate marketing and editorial team. It’s truly a pleasure to come to work each day.

RH: One of the many wonderful things about you, as an editor, is you’re a fiction lover. What is it about fiction that you love? What is a favorite genre or kind of book Ami McConnell the reader loves?

AM: Thanks, Rachel! I am a fiction lover. For me, fiction illuminates meaning in the world when, frankly, sometimes “meaning” is hard to find. We rarely know why things are happening the way they are—conflict, unpleasantness, etc.—until we get to the other side of them. If then! As Christians we have faith that there IS meaning; that God is working all things together for our good. Novels from a Christian perspective help illuminate meaning and inspire us to persevere.

What kind of book do I love? I read pretty broadly, but I’m most attracted to novels that explore the love between a woman and man. Honestly, I’ve been married 15 years and everyday I think, Wow. What in the world is this thing?! It’s the thing we build our lives around and yet it’s the most mysterious thing—outside of faith—that one can fathom. Stories that make sense out of love–in one way or another–fascinate me.

RH: So, as a reader, how does that impact your job as editor? Are there books you’d love to read, but might not acquire?

AM: I read poetry, but I don’t acquire it. That would be too self-indulgent, even for me!

RH: Because you’re more of a reading editor than a writing editor, you have such a unique way of looking at a writer’s work. I love how you call it art. Explain to the blog readers your views on a novel as art.

AM: I have a friend who is a fine artist. I don’t mean fine as in mediocre, I mean “fine” as in, the bomb. He’s a painter you will see in museums if you haven’t already. The deal is, when he creates a painting, he does it in the privacy of his studio. But it doesn’t really communicate, doesn’t come to life, until he’s shown it—to his wife, to his students, to somebody. Then, when that happens, it begins to breathe. To have life. A novel is like that. It’s a labor, a craft, to sit your butt in a chair and laugh and cry and hold your breath…but it isn’t complete until somebody interacts with it. My role as editor is to come into your studio, and look at your painting and say, I see this or I see that. Is that what you wanted me to see? Is that the emotion you were going for? You may say, Yes! Exactly! Or you may say, Wow. I didn’t mean that. I wanted that yellow to represent a banana. And I say, well I don’t see it. Maybe some shadow, some dark coloring here or there?

RH: Recently we were talking over coffee, telling childhood experiences, and you related a story of playing make believe with a friend. Even then, you were an editor. Can you relay that story to us?

AM: Oh my! Well, I was always attracted to the most dramatic children in my circles. And yet I’m a very steady, non-dramatic person. When we’d play make-believe, my friends would create elaborate schemes. I’d sometimes draw up cast-of-character lists, complete with descriptions, so that we’d all stay on the same page. What a nerd, right?! Can you imagine?

RH: We’ve joked about “the rock stars.” I say publishers and editors are the rock stars, but you and your team of editors call authors the rock stars. Talk about life inside the Nelson fiction team and their love of fiction.

AM: The girls (Nelson fiction editors are women and the relationship between them is solid, edifying and cohesive.) and I say we’re like the roadies on a rock stars tour; we’ll do the sweaty, grunt work, just so long as we get to hear the music from backstage!

Each of us on the team truly do feel like we got the golden ticket; we’ve been admirers of authors and lovers of books all our lives and it just seems crazy that we have the opportunity to come alongside people we admire and help them do their work. Sometimes an author I don’t work with will be in for a visit and, since I don’t work with him or her, I’m not scheduled in the meeting. So I’ll sidle over and say, “Amanda, can I come by and meet him, just for a minute? I’m such a fan!” And she does the same. It’s new every single day. It never gets old. When a manuscript shows up in my inbox, I holler “Yay! It’s here!” And the other editors just laugh—they know what I mean, it’s exciting. Even though I’ve edited hundreds before that one, it just never gets old.

RH: New writers often feel editors are the steel door, the inhibitor to their dreams. If only they could crash through, but how? What advice do you have for authors who are looking for publication?

AM: Be careful not to make “publication” itself your dream. Writers can mistakenly see that as the target when the target ought to be writing as best book you possibly can in the moment you’re in. And when that’s done, you should make the next piece the best you possibly can in that moment. If you love to write, you won’t be distracted by the trappings of “success,” you’ll write for the right reasons. And the best writing will be published.

RH: What in particular do you look for in a manuscript from a new author?

AM: Love. If the author has a love for the characters, a love for the craft, a love for the ultimate reader, that comes thru. It’s the difference between a cake you bought at Walmart and a cake your grandmother made you for your birthday. It’s that special something one can intuit but can’t replicate.

RH: One of the things that makes you such a fabulous editor is your love of fiction and reading, but I also know you study the craft. What are some of the tools you use to keep a fresh eye on editing your authors?

AM: We do. The editors at TN fiction and I choose a new craft book to read each quarter. (RH: These are very inspiring, insightful sessions!) We share the title of the book with all our authors and then we get together by phone (conference call) to talk about our experience and discoveries in reading the book. It’s a great discipline and a wonderful time of sharing for all of us. I’m always on the lookout for books to recommend to this particular group and to writers in general. Some of my favorites are the super practical ones for published authors—not touchy feely, inspirational craft books, and not for the faint of heart! They are: The Hero’s Two Journeys; Story; The First Five Pages; and How to Write the Breakout Novel.

RH: At writers conferences, I usually hear dismal news from struggling authors like: “my old sales numbers are too low,” or “the publisher rejected me once so they won’t want to hear from me again,” or “the publisher liked my book, but didn’t find it a fit for them.” Clearly, some of these aspects are true. After all, publishing is a business. Can you answer these questions from your chair and experience?

AM: What you’re looking for in a publishing house isn’t just a sales channel, it’s a partnership. A partner with whom you can build a career. If you have a good, productive relationship, there are ways to turn around a struggling career. But only if you have a meeting of the minds, mutual goals, and an agreeable relationship. Usually when a contract is not renewed, it’s not just about sales numbers, it’s about the relationship not being the best fit.

RH: Once an author has submitted a manuscript, what is your process of editing. What’s a “Day in the Life” of Ami McConnell?

AM: It’s different every day, which I love! What I do is this: I take 2 days a week for the most creative parts of my job: the reading of the manuscripts and the writing of editorial response letters. The other 3 days I dedicate to correspondence with agents and authors; internal meetings with the publisher, the editorial team, sales teams and marketing teams, packaging, legal/contracts, and accounting, etc. It takes an incredible array of people to successfully publish a book!

RH: We’ve talked in the past about fiction writing not being taught, but a knowing or gift residing in the author, no matter how raw and unpolished. I know for me, I can learn math, but I’m not gifted. I can sing, but I’m not really musical. Explain your views on writing and writers, and how your experience formed your understanding.

AM: There are some manuscripts that come in that need a whole lot of work—the author doesn’t even seem to know what she/he is dealing with. But the author has a voice, a certain quality that makes her work captivating. The charisma may be buried under layers of poor narrative choices, but the charisma will not be denied. And I find I can work with that. Craft can be taught. But that certain charisma? It’s a gift.

RH: If you weren’t a fiction editor, what would you want to be?

AM: A nun. But my family would loudly object to that career path.

RH: Besides being a great editor, you’re a wife and mom of five. Give us a peek into your lovely family.

AM: It’s craziness. Incredible, joy-filled, sometimes wearying, loud craziness. I live in a constant state of wonder.

RH: Pet peeve?

AM: I don’t ruffle easily; don’t have many peeves, much less a pet. But there are some words I find unacceptable for utterance or printing—does that count?

RH: One thing I admire about you is your honestly and openness, as well as your devotion to knowing God. I’m sure not every day is stellar, but I see a faithfulness in you. What is one thing you’ve felt the Lord has shown you about Himself in the last year or so that was impacting?

AM: I believe in the God of Job. He lets things happen to me sometimes that seem to me to be the worst possible thing. But I have faith that He is there, the ground of my being. And He’s with me in a powerful, abiding way in Christ and the Holy Spirit.

RH: Any final words of advice or encouragement?

AM: Novelists need quiet. Turn off the radio and the tv. Something better is inside you, waiting to be heard. (RH: This last line really impacted me. I realized I’d starting letting a lot of noise creep into my soul. I don’t have television, but other things — email, blogs, music, radio. Time to go to silence!)

Thank you so much Ami! What a blessing to hear from you.