Editor’s note: Trying to figure out how to revise a book? Mark Pendergrast just wrote the 3rd edition of his popular history of Coca-Cola, and explains how it’s done.– Michelle V. Rafter
[Updated on May 1 — Pendergrast wrote me a note the day after this was posted saying he’d just heard from his publisher that the third edition of his book has already gone back to press for a second printing, and it’s not even officially out until May 14 Looks like he’s onto something. MVR]
The third edition of my history of The Coca-Cola Company, For God, Country & Coca-Cola, is due out from Basic Books on May 14.
Getting a third edition of a nonfiction book published takes a good deal of work — research, interviews, and of course writing and revising. Even for a book that has a proven track record, it may require switching publishers or even self-publishing. Even if you secure a good publisher, you certainly have to promote it yourself. It’s worth it, though, especially if you are an established authority on the subject and the subject itself warrants an update.
It’s hard to believe that it’s been 20 years since the first edition of For God, Country & Coca-Cola was published in 1993. It was my first book, after years of writing freelance articles for fun (a lot) and profit (minuscule), and I put everything I had into it.
As an Atlanta native, I grew up in the shadow of Coca-Cola, but it hadn’t occurred to me that this soft drink, 99% sugar water, had such a huge impact or such an interesting history until I looked into it. Among other things, I found the original formula, discovered that John Pemberton, who invented it in 1886, was a morphine addict, and proved that the drink did have a small amount of cocaine until 1903.
The book got rave reviews, was published in many foreign languages, and established my writing career.
Since then, I’ve written five other works of non-fiction, which you can see on my website.
How to Tell It’s Time for an Update
In the late 1990s, I realized that the Coke history was getting dated and was frustrated when the original publisher — Scribner’s, which had been purchased by Simon & Schuster –didn’t appear the least bit interested in a second edition. I made a stink and got Simon & Schuster to revert the rights to me. Then I took a revision to Basic Books, which had published my history of coffee, Uncommon Grounds. Basic Books published the second edition in 2000.
Flash forward more than a decade, and even more has changed, making it a propitious time for a third edition. Coca-Cola is in the eye of the storm over the obesity epidemic. As sales of sugary soft drinks decline, the company is adjusting and diversifying into other beverages, offerings 500 different brands with 3,500 drinks around the world, and about a quarter of them are low- or no-calorie.
The third edition of the book includes a facsimile of yet another version of the original Coke formula. It also covers controversies over paramilitary murders of Colombian Coca-Cola union employees, depletion of the water table in India, a class action lawsuit by African-American employees, and investigations by the Securities and Exchange Commission and Federal Bureau of Investigations. It explains how company morale sank to rock bottom and was turned around by CEO Neville Isdell and his chosen successor, Muhtar Kent. Today Coca-Cola is thriving and pursues the “halo effect” with safe water, exercise programs, and support of the World Wildlife Fund.
Tips for Pitching an Update
You would think publishing a third edition would be a no brainer. My editor at Basic Books agreed. But it’s not always so easy. In some cases, re-publishing an older book may mean getting the publisher to let the rights revert to you and publishing it on your own. There should be no cost in having the rights revert to you, and it is now relatively inexpensive to self-publish through print-on-demand and e-books.
Getting reviews for a new edition of an older book is difficult, even when you have a great deal of new material and a proven track record. Plus, you have to deal with the reality of dwindling book review pages in newspapers.
To help promote the third edition of For God, Country & Coca-Cola, I’ve sought out fellow writers who might be willing help by mentioning the book on their blogs or websites. I’ve also reached out to colleagues in the Society of Environmental Journalists and the National Association of Science Writers, and to LinkedIn contacts. I’ve been fortunate to appear on many radio and TV programs over the years for various books, so I also have been in contact with some of those venues as well (though I wish I had kept better records of where I’ve been interviewed).
Sales of Revised Editions
After all that work, what kind of sales can you expect? Good question, and not one that is easily answered, especially in this difficult publishing environment.
Basic Books is sending 3,000 copies of For God, Country & Coca-Cola to bookstores for starters. The book could conceivably sell in foreign editions, given the global subject matter and the fact that it has appeared in many different languages in previous incarnations. But it’s difficult to get foreign publishers to look at revised editions, especially when they are over 500 pages.
When it comes to getting a new edition of a book published, there is no one-size-fits-all answer. Still, it’s a universal desire of all writers to have the maximum number of readers to find their work. If you have written about a subject that remains essentially timeless, but that requires periodic updating, it’s definitely worth the effort.
Mark Pendergrast has written six books of critically acclaimed non-fiction and a very funny children’s book. He lives in Vermont and enjoys hearing from readers through his website.
If you’ve had a second, third or later edition of a nonfiction book published, how did you do it? Share your experience by leaving a comment.