Lincoln Child's revision memo to Douglas Preston was dated April, 1993. They had been asked to complete the manuscript of RELIC within four months. In August of that year, the manuscript was submitted to Tor.

But this was not the end of the saga. In November of 1993, a new, revised manuscript was delivered to Tor, reflecting additional changes and suggestions. In February of 1994, line editing of the manuscript was completed and approved by the authors. Finally, on August 16, 1994, Child returned the corrected copyedited manuscript to Tor. Publication was set for the following February.

 

"From our earliest discussions about the book, to the point of actually holding a finished hardcover copy in my hands, almost seven years elapsed. Despite the countless manuscripts I edited during my tenure at St. Martin's Press, nothing could have prepared me for the experience of seeing a book of my own come to fruition. I can't speak for Doug, but for myself at least, taking part in the development of RELIC--from the merest germ of an idea to the finished novel--was undoubtably one of the defining learning experiences of my life."
--L. C.

 

This completes the tour. We hope you've gained a better sense of how Preston and Child work together as a writing team, as well as a clearer understanding of the long and at times complex history of how RELIC came to be written. Thanks for coming along!