Getting a late start today. I debated hijacking my own blog after some debate on Facebook, but decided to stick with the subject of the week. At the end maybe I'll touch on the Facebook debate.
So, you have an agent, and OH MY GOD, they've found a house that wants your book!! You have an editorial meeting with the publisher and guess what? They love your book, but want to see some changes done.
You make the changes, then comes line edits.
You edit, then comes more changes.
Then more, and more and more.
And they've given you a release date two years from now. Two years that will seem a lifetime.
It's all worth it though, from conception to publication, the hours, the frustration, the tedium, just to see your book in print. I can't wait for that day.
But you know what? That's when the hard work starts. Publicizing, market, making sure your book sells so you can sell another...your job as a writer is never done.
Good luck to ya.
Kisses,
:*
Megan
non sequitur: It's hard enough making it as a first time writer, especially for writer's of YA, give me your thoughts on competing with the celebrity writers out there, Madonna, Brittany Spears, Jamie Lee Curtis, and now Hilary Duff, etc etc. Let me hear your thoughts on this. This was the subject of debate on Facebook yesterday and today.
In order to be able to put yourself out there and be able to market your book, you have to have the confidence to love your book. Your friends will be paying money to read your book. You will have to go into a newspaper office and look the editor in the eye and say your book is worth doing an article in his / her newspaper.
ReplyDeleteI've done one local neswpaper interview, have one more sceduled, and am trying to arrange another at a larger paper. You have to arrange these yourself. It won't been done for you. And, you are a nuisence to these people if you haven't written something really special.
It's tough if you don't have a really outgoing personality. If an author is the type who just wants to stay at home with their cat, they will not make it.
My gimmick to to give me confidence and establish my crediability? I went out and got a big time review by sending out multiple requests online. Famous science fiction author Piers Anthony have me a good review in his online January 2010 newsletter. Also, I kept X rated language and content out of my book. Well, I at least kept the swearing down. It's hard enough to go out there and sell your bookwithout having to explain that. Can you immagine what it is like for some new author to explain in public why they wrote X-rated material? Immagine taking another violent vampire book to a neewspaper editor.
I don't have a major publisher (big dog) in my pocket, and I am not going to win a literary contest, so I tried to make my books special by writing a 12 book series. It's hard to ignore a project that large. But even if you have a large publisher, Barnes & Noble will still not automatically put your book on their shelves. You still have to write something that has quality, and put yourself out there in front of everyone and say you wrote something worth buying and better than what Hilary wrote.
And I won't even start about being psycho-analized by amature shrinks wondering how much of yourself you put into your book lol. So, I did quite a rammble there, but that is what I am experiencing now as my novel series attempts lift off.
If I could only get the Angsty Writer to do a vidoe book review of America's Galact Foreign Legion, I just might make it into orbit.
And that is the last issue. Your promotion effort has to be shameless. Try to do that without driving your friends nuts because all you want to talk about is your book. They will roll their eyes and shy away. I have to set aside quiet time for myself to be real again.
This Sunday I'm taking the wife to the casino in Pendleton, Oregan, for a sleepover If I mention my book even once she will kill me and feed my body to the coyotes.
You want to send me your book?
ReplyDeleteI love your video reviews. I think you could make money doing those alone. Sure, E-mail me a mailing address to wwallygatorr@hotmail.com and I will send you an autograpghed copy.
ReplyDeleteAnyone one else out there seeing my E-mail adress (it's on my website too) go ahead and send me trash talk. I love it. No viruses please, I practice safe computer. I have a big clear bag over my monitor.