I should be, and I am, a happy bunny. After a few weeks of feeling stressed and smoking too much I now have a book deal. Not just a book deal, but a deal for two books.
I also have an agent to negotiate it for me, which is even better news. She won’t be able to get me more money on the deal, but she’ll do a god job on the details. I was surprised at how difficult it was to even have an agent willing to work with me – until I happened to say I had a book offer (to be fair, the one I’ve signed with showed interest before that news came through).
The publisher, which is Severn House as there’s no secret about it, wants to have the book – to be known as Drive The Cruel Away – out in May. That’s fine by me and I’ll be glad to get it out there after a good editing process. I’m lucky in that Lynne Patrick, my original publisher, will be my editor, as I know she’ll do a great job for me.
Of course, there still needs to be a signature on the contract. Nothing is certain until that happens. But it’s definitely a move forward.
Sunday 31 October 2010
Wednesday 20 October 2010
Promoting Your Book
Many writers think that the publication of a book is the end of the process. After that it’s just a case of sitting back and waiting the royalty cheques.
Wrong.
It’s just the beginning. Once the book is out there people have to buy it, and to do it, they need to know it’s there and be convinced. Many writers with small, independent publishers know their publisher has no promotional budget. Even those with big publishers can find themselves not being pushed. So who’s going to take on the load? The writer. After all, it’s your book.
Contacts are important. In my case, I’d done some writing for a regional paper. When The Broken Token was published the paper did a short feature on me (I had a hook to the story, which made it more attractive to them). Since I also work as a music journalist, I was able to find another general writer at another paper through musician friends. That brought another piece with the great pull quote that my historical mystery “reads like an 18th century Red Riding.” Not true, of course, but it sounds good.
The point is to use the contacts that you have. It might take some persistence, but it does help sales. You have to make yourself visible. Use those publicity copies wisely to go to people you feel can help.
Plenty of people blog about writing. They want to review books, do interviews with writers. Research, find out who these people are and contact them. Word your query in such a way as to make your book and yourself fascinating (well, you’re a writer, you can do that). Not everyone will agree, but every time someone does, it’s more publicity.
Create a website. With all the software around these days, it’s easy to do. It doesn’t need to be huge, it simply needs to be attractive and do the job, telling people about the book, where to buy it. Use Facebook – have a Facebook page for your book. Get yourself on Twitter, an excellent way to network. Start blogging, too. It doesn’t all have to be about your book. Again, it’s getting your name out there.
Record an extract from your book, a self-contained piece running 5-7 minutes. Add a slideshow of pictures and put it up on You Tube. It’s one other weapon in your arsenal.
Bookshops love authors. Contact some of the small ones near you and say you’d be interested in doing a book signing there. Go in and sell yourself to them. Contact Waterstone’s, too. They generally have local writers in on Saturday mornings to do signings. You might need to contact them several times to elicit a response but it’s worthwhile.
When you do a signing don’t just sit at a table and wait for people to approach you. Unless you’re a big name, that won’t happen. Grab a couple of copies of your book, head off to the relevant section (such as mysteries) and start talking to people. You need to be outgoing and friendly. Convince them to take a punt on your book. It can work – at the Leeds Waterstone’s in August I sold out their stock of my book, 14 copies, in an hour. That astonished me. But if I can do it, anyone else can.
Contact the small literary festivals in your area. Talk to the organisers and it can result in an invitation. Maybe not this year, but possibly next.
Libraries need speakers for groups. Contact the person in your area who’s in charge of this. Send a copy of your book and offer your services. You might not get paid, but you can sell copies of the book after. Most people will buy, and it can be fun to do.
All of these things require effort, of course, but the outlay is minimal. It all helps to make people aware of your book, and of you as an author. Every single copy sold is a victory. Enjoy every single one. Put as much effort into selling your book as you did into writing it.
Wrong.
It’s just the beginning. Once the book is out there people have to buy it, and to do it, they need to know it’s there and be convinced. Many writers with small, independent publishers know their publisher has no promotional budget. Even those with big publishers can find themselves not being pushed. So who’s going to take on the load? The writer. After all, it’s your book.
Contacts are important. In my case, I’d done some writing for a regional paper. When The Broken Token was published the paper did a short feature on me (I had a hook to the story, which made it more attractive to them). Since I also work as a music journalist, I was able to find another general writer at another paper through musician friends. That brought another piece with the great pull quote that my historical mystery “reads like an 18th century Red Riding.” Not true, of course, but it sounds good.
The point is to use the contacts that you have. It might take some persistence, but it does help sales. You have to make yourself visible. Use those publicity copies wisely to go to people you feel can help.
Plenty of people blog about writing. They want to review books, do interviews with writers. Research, find out who these people are and contact them. Word your query in such a way as to make your book and yourself fascinating (well, you’re a writer, you can do that). Not everyone will agree, but every time someone does, it’s more publicity.
Create a website. With all the software around these days, it’s easy to do. It doesn’t need to be huge, it simply needs to be attractive and do the job, telling people about the book, where to buy it. Use Facebook – have a Facebook page for your book. Get yourself on Twitter, an excellent way to network. Start blogging, too. It doesn’t all have to be about your book. Again, it’s getting your name out there.
Record an extract from your book, a self-contained piece running 5-7 minutes. Add a slideshow of pictures and put it up on You Tube. It’s one other weapon in your arsenal.
Bookshops love authors. Contact some of the small ones near you and say you’d be interested in doing a book signing there. Go in and sell yourself to them. Contact Waterstone’s, too. They generally have local writers in on Saturday mornings to do signings. You might need to contact them several times to elicit a response but it’s worthwhile.
When you do a signing don’t just sit at a table and wait for people to approach you. Unless you’re a big name, that won’t happen. Grab a couple of copies of your book, head off to the relevant section (such as mysteries) and start talking to people. You need to be outgoing and friendly. Convince them to take a punt on your book. It can work – at the Leeds Waterstone’s in August I sold out their stock of my book, 14 copies, in an hour. That astonished me. But if I can do it, anyone else can.
Contact the small literary festivals in your area. Talk to the organisers and it can result in an invitation. Maybe not this year, but possibly next.
Libraries need speakers for groups. Contact the person in your area who’s in charge of this. Send a copy of your book and offer your services. You might not get paid, but you can sell copies of the book after. Most people will buy, and it can be fun to do.
All of these things require effort, of course, but the outlay is minimal. It all helps to make people aware of your book, and of you as an author. Every single copy sold is a victory. Enjoy every single one. Put as much effort into selling your book as you did into writing it.
Monday 18 October 2010
New Novels and the Problem of Literary Agents
Now 12,000 words into The Constant Lovers. The Broken Token was published in America last week, and I’m awaiting word from a pair of publishers about Drive the Cruel Winter Away.
I would happily have stayed with my publisher, but she’s sold out to someone larger (one of the publishers considering the new book). It’s a shame when that happens, having built up an excellent relationship, but she has her reasons, and I respect that. I was pleasantly surprised to receive interest from another publisher, so it’s a case of wait and see what happens, and whether one, or both, make offers on the book.
With this you’d have thought it should be no problem finding a literary agent. Instead it’s just as difficult as if I’d never been published. One, recommended by a fellow author (who also told her agent I’d be getting in touch) hasn’t even bothered to answer my e-mail. Another has my book but has yet to reply; I’ve been advised to give her a month.
All of this makes me greatly appreciate the non-fiction agent I had in America. She replied very promptly, and if she believed something was saleable it tended to sell in days. Fiction is a different beast, I understand that, and that agents can be overwhelmed with submissions. However, you might imagine a record of 30 non fiction books, countless articles, one novel, and 16 years of making a living as a writer (not to mention the interest from two publishers on the second novel) might carry a little clout. Apparently not. The attitudes I’ve had have been decidedly offhand.
Ah well, such is life, it seems. There might well be a good agent out there who’s truly interested in working with someone.
I would happily have stayed with my publisher, but she’s sold out to someone larger (one of the publishers considering the new book). It’s a shame when that happens, having built up an excellent relationship, but she has her reasons, and I respect that. I was pleasantly surprised to receive interest from another publisher, so it’s a case of wait and see what happens, and whether one, or both, make offers on the book.
With this you’d have thought it should be no problem finding a literary agent. Instead it’s just as difficult as if I’d never been published. One, recommended by a fellow author (who also told her agent I’d be getting in touch) hasn’t even bothered to answer my e-mail. Another has my book but has yet to reply; I’ve been advised to give her a month.
All of this makes me greatly appreciate the non-fiction agent I had in America. She replied very promptly, and if she believed something was saleable it tended to sell in days. Fiction is a different beast, I understand that, and that agents can be overwhelmed with submissions. However, you might imagine a record of 30 non fiction books, countless articles, one novel, and 16 years of making a living as a writer (not to mention the interest from two publishers on the second novel) might carry a little clout. Apparently not. The attitudes I’ve had have been decidedly offhand.
Ah well, such is life, it seems. There might well be a good agent out there who’s truly interested in working with someone.
Wednesday 13 October 2010
University Fees and the Lib Dems
Back in May I voted in a General Election for only the second time in my life (well, I did spend 30 years abroad). I voted Lib Dem. Never for a second did I consider voting Tory (and considering Ken Clarke is the MP here, my vote wouldn’t have made much if a difference anyway), and Labour, even if it did manage the credit crunch right, had long ago sold out its old values.
The Lib Dems seemed honest. But like so many con men, the real truth only emerges later. Their leaders, at least, have been perfectly happy to throw away minor things like ideals and scruples for power. The latest, and worst, is the U-turn the party has made on the rise in university fees.
Britain was its young educated so the country can continue to compete in the world. That, we’ve been told, is a necessity. But now there’s the barrier of massive debt hanging over graduates, as bad as anything America has cooked up in the past. It’s a hurdle that will put many ably qualified people off going to university, and there’s no real set of scholarships in place to benefit those who are poor but academically gifted.
Once more it appears to be a case of the Tories aiming to make the rich richer. Those wealthy families who can afford it will easily be able to send their offspring to university, after which they’ll be in good jobs and essentially set up. The poorer, on the other hand…yes, the students will have to earn a certain amount before they start paying back this money, but the interest rates aren’t being kept low to help them. Suddenly everything is at market value, even your future, which you’ll mortgage for a degree to enter the marketplace with the promise of a good future.
Labour isn’t without a large share of blame in this, either, for introducing top-up fees in the first place, which seems to me to be a sell out of the idea of equality and education. But that was under Tony Blair, who at heart was about as Labour as my cat. The jury is still out on what Ed Milliband can offer. But it won’t have to be too much to draw many voters away from the Lib Dems. Possibly including me.
The Lib Dems seemed honest. But like so many con men, the real truth only emerges later. Their leaders, at least, have been perfectly happy to throw away minor things like ideals and scruples for power. The latest, and worst, is the U-turn the party has made on the rise in university fees.
Britain was its young educated so the country can continue to compete in the world. That, we’ve been told, is a necessity. But now there’s the barrier of massive debt hanging over graduates, as bad as anything America has cooked up in the past. It’s a hurdle that will put many ably qualified people off going to university, and there’s no real set of scholarships in place to benefit those who are poor but academically gifted.
Once more it appears to be a case of the Tories aiming to make the rich richer. Those wealthy families who can afford it will easily be able to send their offspring to university, after which they’ll be in good jobs and essentially set up. The poorer, on the other hand…yes, the students will have to earn a certain amount before they start paying back this money, but the interest rates aren’t being kept low to help them. Suddenly everything is at market value, even your future, which you’ll mortgage for a degree to enter the marketplace with the promise of a good future.
Labour isn’t without a large share of blame in this, either, for introducing top-up fees in the first place, which seems to me to be a sell out of the idea of equality and education. But that was under Tony Blair, who at heart was about as Labour as my cat. The jury is still out on what Ed Milliband can offer. But it won’t have to be too much to draw many voters away from the Lib Dems. Possibly including me.
Tuesday 5 October 2010
The Witch and The Child Allowance, a Sort Of Fairytale
It’s good to know that Christine O’Donnell, the woman who won the Republican primary in Delaware and goes up against the Democrats in the election next month, isn’t a witch. She can’t be, she’s said so herself in a TV ad.
Of course, a few years ago she claimed on TV to have dabbled in witchcraft. So maybe she was a witch but gave it up for Lent, or because the Lord told her to (but how did she know that voice wasn’t Satan).
This is also the woman who says that masturbation is a form of adultery, which means that the majority of people in Delaware, not to mention other states and countries, have been judged adulterous by O’Donnell. And let’s not talk about teenaged boys and what they get up to under the covers. Almost certainly already consigned to hell.
The simple fact is that her past has come back to give her a very heavy, unforgiving kick in the ass. Although the Democrats can’t seem to get their act together on these elections, they do seem to be making hay at O’Donnell’s expense. And why not, when you have a comedy opportunity like this.
Back in Britain, the Tories are alienating their fanbase by taking away the child allowance from families that don’t need it. Of course, last year they said they wouldn’t touch it, but they weren’t in power then. The level is £44,000 per year if there’s one income. But if both parents work and make, say, £43,000 each, the allowance stays. Cue plenty of Tory mum squawking.
Better to say that if the household income, regardless of whether one or both parents work, is over £44,000, then the child allowance goes. There are others who need it. Same with the winter fuel allowance. If your pensions are giving you over £40,000 a year you don’t need my taxes paying for your heat.
Much as I hate to see cuts, the simple fact is that they have to be made, and all the protests in the world won’t stop that fact. It’s where they’re made and who suffers that’s the important part. Scrap Trident, don’t just put it on a back burner. Talk to the other countries that are having to make cuts (which is most of them) and everyone put together a tax on bankers. That way they can’t shuffle off somewhere else to keep their bonuses intact. After all, the banks need viable markets as much as we need the banks, and I don’t see hedge fund managers and investment bankers being happy to set up shop somewhere in Central Asia.
Of course, a few years ago she claimed on TV to have dabbled in witchcraft. So maybe she was a witch but gave it up for Lent, or because the Lord told her to (but how did she know that voice wasn’t Satan).
This is also the woman who says that masturbation is a form of adultery, which means that the majority of people in Delaware, not to mention other states and countries, have been judged adulterous by O’Donnell. And let’s not talk about teenaged boys and what they get up to under the covers. Almost certainly already consigned to hell.
The simple fact is that her past has come back to give her a very heavy, unforgiving kick in the ass. Although the Democrats can’t seem to get their act together on these elections, they do seem to be making hay at O’Donnell’s expense. And why not, when you have a comedy opportunity like this.
Back in Britain, the Tories are alienating their fanbase by taking away the child allowance from families that don’t need it. Of course, last year they said they wouldn’t touch it, but they weren’t in power then. The level is £44,000 per year if there’s one income. But if both parents work and make, say, £43,000 each, the allowance stays. Cue plenty of Tory mum squawking.
Better to say that if the household income, regardless of whether one or both parents work, is over £44,000, then the child allowance goes. There are others who need it. Same with the winter fuel allowance. If your pensions are giving you over £40,000 a year you don’t need my taxes paying for your heat.
Much as I hate to see cuts, the simple fact is that they have to be made, and all the protests in the world won’t stop that fact. It’s where they’re made and who suffers that’s the important part. Scrap Trident, don’t just put it on a back burner. Talk to the other countries that are having to make cuts (which is most of them) and everyone put together a tax on bankers. That way they can’t shuffle off somewhere else to keep their bonuses intact. After all, the banks need viable markets as much as we need the banks, and I don’t see hedge fund managers and investment bankers being happy to set up shop somewhere in Central Asia.
Saturday 2 October 2010
The Constant Lovers
Well, the new book has been started. 4,000 words written – 4,028 if you want to be very picky. I know the final scene, pretty much how it will all end, and a few signposts along the way. Other than that it’s a long journey full of undiscovered places.
That’s the beauty of writing. We create, maybe, but much more it seems like a case of transcribing the movie that happens in the head. Of course, sometimes the projector doesn’t want to function well…
Or, to keep with the journey analogy, it can be like walking through a dense wood. Sometimes you can barely make out the path ahead and you’re stumbling. Then it will open up a little and you can walk more freely. Sometimes you’ll even turn a corner and the landscape will open up before you with a long, straight match ahead.
What this means, of course, is an interesting few months ahead. The new book, provisionally titled The Constant Lovers, will work like the previous two, with the crimes and also the family lives of Richard Nottingham and John Sedgwick. Time will tell how well it goes….
That’s the beauty of writing. We create, maybe, but much more it seems like a case of transcribing the movie that happens in the head. Of course, sometimes the projector doesn’t want to function well…
Or, to keep with the journey analogy, it can be like walking through a dense wood. Sometimes you can barely make out the path ahead and you’re stumbling. Then it will open up a little and you can walk more freely. Sometimes you’ll even turn a corner and the landscape will open up before you with a long, straight match ahead.
What this means, of course, is an interesting few months ahead. The new book, provisionally titled The Constant Lovers, will work like the previous two, with the crimes and also the family lives of Richard Nottingham and John Sedgwick. Time will tell how well it goes….
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