Summer was a bummer, but I’m back
23 Sep 2010 23 Comments
in Art of Marketing, Art of Writing, Bipolar mood swings, Mental health and illness Tags: bipolar disorder, creative block, depression, Julie Lomoe, manic depression
It’s the first full day of autumn, an auspicious day for new beginnings, and for better or worse, I’m back on my blog, after a leave of absence that lasted virtually all summer. I’ve been mired in a deep depression that stole over me last May, robbing me of my motivation and self-confidence, convincing me that I no longer had anything worth writing about, much less anything people would care about enough to read. But with the coming of fall, I’ve resolved to write myself out of my doldrums.
Writing is an integral part of my identity, and the notion that my writing years might be behind me severely deepened my depression. I spent far too many beautiful summer days ensconced in my old Lazy Boy recliner, endlessly reading other authors’ novels. For the first time in ages, I bypassed the races at Saratoga.
The sorry state of my parched and weed-infested garden all too accurately mirrors my state of mind. Upstate New York’s been unusually dry this summer, with only half its normal rainfall over the past two months, and my imagination has been suffering a similar drought. In May and June, my posts grew less frequent, more downbeat. Afraid of becoming a Debbie Downer like the Saturday Night Live character, I made a deliberate decision to stop blogging, possibly forever.
I made a mistake. I missed the creative excitement that came with crafting a new post, the cameraderie of the online community, and I came to feel increasingly like a nebbishy nonentity. So I’m jumping back in, hoping it’s not too late.
Charles Burchfield
What brought on this dark night of the soul? Probably a combination of biochemical and psychosocial factors. I’ve written before about my bipolar diagnosis, but it’s been well controlled with medication, and over the past few years, my mood has been amazingly upbeat and sunny. Back in May, in the post titled “Depression – cloudy, cool and drizzly,” I said, “I’m a firm believer in the biochemical nature of manic depression, as some still prefer to call bipolar disorder, and I know medications work.” I had faith in my shrink’s ability to tweak my medications enough to banish my increasingly bleak moods, but I’ve undergone lots of tweaking in the months since then, and nothing seems to work.
What triggered my depression, I’ve come to believe, is an old-fashioned identity crisis. For years I’ve identified myself as a mystery writer, but the success I’ve dreamed of has eluded me. I’m proud of my two self-published novels, Mood Swing: The Bipolar Murders and Eldercide, but the sales have been less than stellar. I’d hoped that building an online identity through my blog would boost my readership, but I came to realize that impressive blog stats don’t necessarily mean lots of people will buy my books, and my track record isn’t likely to inspire an agent or editor to beat down my door any time soon.
Even so, I enjoy online schmoozing far more than marketing my books in person. My depression descended soon after a signing at a local independent book store. It was my first straight solo signing ever, with no talk, panel discussion or party to drum up interest. True, I sold a few books, but each sale took painstaking effort in teasing out the themes that would appeal to each reader. For some it was the regional locale, for others an interest in bipolar disorder or end-of-life issues, for still others an interest in mysteries pure and simple. I’m basically an introvert, and the expenditure of energy left me drained and exhausted, with the realization that I’m just not cut out to be a demon marketer. Never was, never will be.
But am I still a mystery writer? At the very least, I’m a woman who has written four mystery novels and published two of them, and that’s something to be proud of, or so I try to convince myself. Will I write another? The verdict’s still out on that one. But one thing’s for sure – I’m still a writer, and I need to write. My life literally depends on it.
Can I write my way out of this depression? Stay tuned to find out. Never fear, I’ll cover other subjects as well, but I plan to post at least twice a week. And if you’ve read this far, please leave a comment – I know my readership has dwindled during this hiatus, but I need to know you’re out there.
Marketing Tips from Larry Thacker
04 May 2010 6 Comments
in Art of Marketing, Guest bloggers Tags: Appalachia, Julie Lomoe, Larry Thacker, marketing, Mountain Mysteries
Are there any authors out there who honestly love marketing their books? We all know it’s an absolute necessity, but if you’re anything like me, you find excuses not to do it nearly as much as you should. Larry Thacker, author of Mountain Mysteries: The Mystic Traditions of Appalachia, seems genuinely to enjoy it, and he has a lot of great tips I’m passing on today. Larry’s book is chock full of fascinating tales of supernatural sightings in Appalachia. I hope you’ll check it out, and leave comments too.
THE HOWS AND WHYS OF BEING YOUR OWN MARKETING MANAGER
By Larry Thacker
As you’re already finding out, marketing your book, even when others at the publishing house may also have that responsibility, can be a wonderful and challenging experience. Besides the pleasant anxieties of having to learn – often by teaching yourself – how to be a self-promoter, you have to get quickly comfortable with everything from interviews to tabletop displays, from speaking gigs to press releases. At the end of the day, the only person losing any sleep over who hasn’t heard about your dynamic personality and your world-changing book, however, is you. Whether you like it or not, it’s mostly your job to get that book in the hands of readers. This is a fine arrangement since, of course, no one knows your material better than you, no one can give that twenty second blurb about your work better, and no one should be more excited about what your book has to say to the world. In other words, you are your best marketer.
Unfortunately, most of us authors are not marketing managers. Most of us don’t have MBAs and wouldn’t know a viable marketing plan if one crashed from the sky and split our signing table in half. In fact, depending on our personalities, self-promotion may be quite an uncomfortable expectation. Your silent attitude might be, I’m an author not a marketing manager, but if you want to get your book and message out, get used to it.
If you’re not quite comfortable yet with the salesperson role in this endless sea of struggling authors, perhaps thinking about your work as a message will make it taste better while you wait on that next curious-looking, but only window shopping book buyer. Your book, no matter what the genre, is your message; a message about something important that you are passionate about. People need to hear what you have to say, don’t they? When I’m most frustrated, reminding myself of the purpose of my work re-energizes me. 
We have to eventually realize there are no days off. Like most of our day jobs, work stays at work when we go home. Not so with writing. We are author’s 24-hours a day. People will approach you all the time about your book. They’re interested. And though you might not be in your best mood and may be tired of parroting your same spiel a thousand times, you must approach the conversation like it was your first ever. Being ready for those out-of-the-ordinary situations is a must. Expected opportunities can sometimes disappoint, while unexpected opportunities can be fruitful. Your constant awareness will bring opportunity. I promise.
New authors often associate “promotion” with the romance of book signings. That’s what popular culture has shown us as the writer’s public life. I’ve had mixed experiences with these and have determined that book signings alone don’t accomplish much. Unless you’re a huge name that draws lines before the store opens, sitting behind a table at a signing on a slow day will most likely frustrate and discourage you, perhaps even make you wonder why you bothered pouring your life into such a project in the first place (we have such delicate egos, do we not?) But sitting alone waiting for a “bite” offers a lot of self-reflection. Finish that doodling and make good with your time.
Here are a few suggestions for marketing your work:
Speak first, then sign: Book signings by themselves? Not so great. Book signings AFTER a presentation? Guaranteed better results. In these difficult economic days, people are more apt to purchase after they’ve been drawn into your unquenchable enthusiasm and convinced they have to be reading your book before the night ends. Other means of getting your word out before you sign can be press releases, radio and television interviews, and classroom presentations. If you can’t talk first, have a table with several authors. A crowd draws interest.
Holidays: Figure out what popular holidays mesh with your topic and plan for presentations and events during the two weeks leading up to the holiday. Additionally, that familiar crazed look in shoppers’ eyes the week before Christmas says, “Get out of my way! I need something unique and I need it now!” Be that unique item. Get yourself a visible table at the entrance of your local bookstore and watch that stack of books melt away. I once sold twenty books in two hours like this.
Speakers Bureaus: Get on a speakers circuit. Though your talk may only be vaguely connected with your book topic, that can lead to other talks and additional interest in your writing work. For instance, I am a member of the Kentucky Humanities Council Speakers Bureau. One of my presentations is closely related to my book, Mountain Mysteries: The Mystic Traditions of Appalachia. You can bet I’ll have copies of my book there post-speech.
First impressions: Have more on your table than just your book and an eager autograph pen. My publisher has been great at providing stacks of slick bookmarks and promotional postcards covered with reviews and quotes. I display these in a nice twisted antique basket that fits the mood of my book. Whether they buy or not, give them a business card or a bookmark. Send them away with a reminder.
Search out your book: Always search for your books at whatever store you’re in. If you can’t find any, approach a manager and ask where you might find your book. If they’re not carrying them, offer some promotional material and ask them to consider making an order.
Autograph your books: When you do find your books on the shelves, gather them up and take them to the counter and ask – with an assuming attitude – if you can autograph them. Autographed books sell faster. They’ll more than likely have “signed by the author” stickers as well. If they’re low, suggest they reorder.
Your own website: Nothing is more frustrating when someone wanting to buy your book finds the publisher’s website down. Not everyone wants to purchase through Amazon and the like. Even if it’s a single page, have your own just in case. Include ordering information, reviews, blurbs, important links, past and upcoming events. Make it eye catching, professional, and update it regularly.
The trunk: Consider the trunk of your car as your mobile sales office. Have copies at all times. Be able to put a copy in anyone’s hand whenever the opportunity presents itself. And be flexible on the price! Selling it for a little less might make the sell. Hopefully they’ll talk.
A second book: Be working on a second book. Or a third. Or a fourth. I’ve been asked many times when “the next book” is coming out by satisfied readers of the first. Having two or more published books on your table will lead to additional sales. If your second work isn’t out yet, have examples of your other types of writing to show you’re not a “one hit wonder.”
Enjoy yourself: Above all, have a good time introducing the world to your writing! The moment it’s no longer fun, re-evaluate what you’re doing. It should be more fun than work.
Larry Thacker is author of Mountain Mysteries: The Mystic Traditions of Appalachia (now in its second printing, 2007, published by The Overmountain Press, www.overmountainpress.com). He is a frequent speaker and a published columnist, a blogger for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, non-fiction writer and poet. He is editor of the on-line Roadkill Zen Journal (www.roadkillzen.net). A seventh-generation Cumberland Gap area native, Larry serves as Director of Student Success and Career Planning at his alma mater, Lincoln Memorial University in Harrogate, Tennessee.
Mystery Writers of America’s Edgar Symposiuim – a networking bonanza
01 May 2010 5 Comments
in Art of Marketing, Community of Authors Tags: Donald Maass, Edgar Symposiium, Julie Lomoe, Laura Lippman, Mystery Writers of America
“How was your trip? I know you had to catch an early train.” That’s how Margery Flax of Mystery Writers of America greeted me at the registration table for the Edgar Symposium. That could mean only one thing – she’d read my blog the day before. Yes, the post in which I’d expressed ambivalence about whether I should be going at all.
Margery’s the Administrative Manager for the MWA, and she uses a Google search to bring up new references to the MWA. I felt instantly validated, and the feeling continued throughout the day as people I’d never met in person scrutinized my name tag and said “I know you from somewhere.” We then played the traditional game with an internet twist – “Oh, I know you from CrimeSpace.” Or the Yahoo groups for Sisters in Crime or Murder Must Advertise or maybe the Poisoned Pen Web Con.
I’ve been busy building my brand online for the past year, and it was good to know my name actually has some recognition value, even though I haven’t yet hit the big time with my books. Actually I’ve been paying my dues – and my conference registration fees – for several years now. I was thrilled when I handed Laura Lippman my brand-new bookmark, she read the title Mood Swing: The Bipolar Murders and said “I remember your talking about this book at Malice Domestic a couple of years ago.”
I told her I’d gone the self-publishing route and explained I wouldn’t be going to Malice this year because they no longer recognize nontraditionally published writers as “authors.” We chatted about the pros and cons of this issue and she urged me to publish my work on Kindle ASAP.
At the Baltimore Bouchercon in 2008, Laura raffled off a bottle of red wine from South Africa called “Herding Cats” with a label featuring two gorgeous leopards. I won it, and on Wednesday I told her I love the bottle so much that it was still sitting unopened on my kitchen counter. She told me it actually isn’t a very good wine, so it’s no great loss if I never get around to drinking it.
This was only one of many friendly encounters on a day that kicked off with Donald Maass’s condensed workshop on “Writing the Breakout Mystery” and ended with the traditional Agents and Editors party. We authors had name tags bordered in red. Agents had green, editors and publishers blue. Fortified by a glass of Pinot Grigio, I bravely made the rounds and introduced myself to as many green- and blue-tagged folks as possible. I hadn’t rehearsed a pitch, but I had my bookmarks conveniently stashed in my handbag so that I could instantly whip them out.
The bookmarks proved excellent ice breakers, and I told people that although I’d self-published two books, I was still hoping to land a good agent or publisher when the time felt right. And they definitely perked up when I discussed my success as a blogger. I came away with a pocketful of business cards from agents and editors open to future contact. When I arrived home and showed them to my husband, he said, “Great – now what are you going to do with them?’ In other words, I shouldn’t just stash them away in a bottom drawer and forget about them. He knows me all too well.
I chatted with other authors on the prowl, and some who were more stationary. One man had parked himself at one of the high circular tables, saying, “If I station myself right here, I figure all the agents will have to pass by eventually.” And so they did – pass him by, that is.
So what did I do right, and what would I advise for others?
- Work the room – with a little alcoholic lubrication if necessary.
- Get and use bookmarks – they’re a great icebreaker and time saver.
- Talk about your books but maybe more important, about what you can bring to the table in terms of promotion, for example blogging and social networking skills.
- Ask for business cards and an agreement that it’s okay to contact the people you meet – then do it!
All in all, it was a rewarding day. In upcoming posts, I’ll report on the Q&A with Lee Child and Laura Lippman, and on Donald Maass’ workshop and why my novel Eldercide could be a breakout mystery.
Am I a patient here? My mysterious ophthalmological morning
27 Apr 2010 5 Comments
in Art of Marketing, Miscellaneous Musings, Vignettes from my life Tags: Edgar Symposiuim, Iconix, Julie Lomoe, Mystery Writers of America
Alex Katz
Tomorrow’s the Mystery Writers of America’s Edgar Week Symposium in New York City. I sent in my check back in February, especially because the cocktail party that follows the day of talks and panels is limited in size, and I wanted to be sure to snag myself a reservation in plenty of time.
I’m ambivalent about going, though. If my check hadn’t already cleared, I might stay home. Instead, I’m psyching myself up to catch the Amtrak train at 5:10 am so as to make it there in time for Donald Maass’s opening talk on “Writing the Breakout Novel.” I’ve got brand-new bookmarks to pass out, but I’m ambivalent about those as well. Iconix did an excellent job and carried out my instructions exactly, but they turned out a tad busier and more lurid than I’d hoped. Oh well, live and learn.
With two self-published novels, I haven’t exactly “broken out,” but maybe Mr. Maass will inspire me to take it to the next level. Then there’s that cocktail party with the bountiful hors d’oeuvres, the open bar, and the agents and editors wearing specially colored name tags so the authors can more knowledgeably accost them. By then I hope I’ll be feeling more jazzed and sociable than I am right now.
This morning threw me badly off my stride. When I showed up for my 9:30 appointment for an ophthalmology checkup at the office I swore I’d been to before, the receptionist said they had no record of my appointment. The office looked strangely different as well.
(Note: the following saga is tangential to the topics I usually blog about, but I feel the need to vent. In case you prefer to skip the rest of the post, this is a reasonable place to stop.) More
Empire State Book Festival – so many authors, so few book sales
13 Apr 2010 12 Comments
in Art of Marketing, Miscellaneous Musings Tags: book fairs, conventions, Empire State Book Festival, Julie Lomoe, Rockefeller Plaza
I spent last Saturday in the bowels of Albany’s underground Convention Center, listening to authors talk about their writing at the Empire State Book Festival. This first-ever event was sponsored by the New York Library Association and billed as “A Celebration of New York State Writers, Books and Literacy.” But how celebratory was it, really? I came away with mixed feelings, though with enough material for several more blog posts.
Ever the diligent student, I attended six panels, each with several participants. That’s a couple of dozen authors, and as is traditional at large conferences, their books were for sale in a separate book room, with tables set up in the adjoining corridors for signings by these authors and well over a hundred others from the many concurrent panels. To my surprise, though, the book room didn’t have much traffic, and when I went to cash out with three books from the mystery writers’ panel I’d attended, there was no line at all.
There were virtually no lines at the authors’ tables either. They sat marooned at their tables, some with their game faces on, others looking more like folks in the dentist’s waiting room. A few chatted with writers at adjoining tables. Initially I’d been miffed that, like most Capital District writers, I wasn’t invited to participate, but after making the rounds of the sales and signing area, I was relieved to be excluded. There’s no more depressing way to spend a beautiful spring day than sitting ensconced behind a table waiting to sign books that nobody’s buying.
There was New York State money behind this festival, but an advance news story made a point of stating none of the authors were paid to attend. The majority traveled from out of town, especially New York City, so I expect they’ll be taking the day as a tax write-off. The same is probably true for the vendors. At $275 a booth, only a few small presses took the opportunity to hawk their wares, and the cost no doubt discouraged many.
Still, the festival was free, and thousands of people reportedly attended. The workshop rooms were packed with avid listeners who asked intelligent questions. So by many measures, the event was a success. Here’s hoping some of the authors thought so too, even if they didn’t sell many books. After all, it’s good to get your name out there, or so they tell us.
At the end of the day I came away more drained than invigorated, but part of that had nothing to do with the contents of the conference. I’d bought some pricy new shoes I’d hoped would be perfect for events like this, but the straps sliced into my insteps. Parking my behind on the same unforgiving chairs for hours wasn’t much better, and there’s something about the low-ceilinged cement aesthetics of the convention center below Rockefeller’s Empire State Plaza that’s inherently oppressive. Fortunately, my husband showed up in time for the last workshop and to take me out to dinner.
Although you might not think so from the above post, I’m glad I went to the Empire State Book Festival. The panels gave me considerable food for thought as well as ingredients for three posts:
- Hints for structuring a book-length project
- Judging a book by its cover
- The future of the book – Is publishing in freefall, or just in flux?
I’m sure many of you have been to big book conferences like this, either as authors or fans. What’s your take on them? Are they worth it? Are they just a drain on your time and your pocketbook, or do the networking and the inspiration make it all worthwhile?
ANNOUNCING AUTHORS AVANT GARDE!
25 Mar 2010 8 Comments
in Art of Blogging, Art of Marketing, Art of Publishing Tags: Authors Avant Garde, Avant garde, blogging, Julie Lomoe, POD, self-publishing
I’ve just registered two new domain names for my latest blogging brainchild, Authors Avant Garde. One is a dot-com and one is a dot-org. I’m not posting the links, because there’s nothing there yet, but Go Daddy assures me that courtesy of my Visa Gold card, I now own the domains for two years. I’m amazed the name hasn’t been taken already. So what am I going to do with it? You’ll just have to wait and see.
For over three months now, I’ve been planning to start a new blog titled Authors Avant Garde. I even registered the name with WordPress back in December, but till now, that’s all I’ve done. The idea came to me after an ill-fated trip to New York City wherein I missed the Mystery Writers of America’s holiday party due to acute intestinal distress, followed by a memo from MWA banishing Harlequin from their list of approved publishers because they’ve started a POD and self-publishing division, and that’s strictly verboten.
This confluence of MWA events ratcheted up my rage over the many snippy comments I’d been reading online about self-publishing and quality concerns. I was growing increasingly angry about industry snobbism and old-fashioned gate-keepers. Rather than conjure up the winter’s foul mood by writing more on this issue, I invite you to read my post from December 4th, titled “Was Jane Austen a professional writer? Not according to the Mystery Writers of America.”
I’m hoping the new blog will be a communal effort. Back in December, I even toyed with the notion of forming a not-for-profit corporation, an association of nontraditionally published writers, but I quickly realized that was a terrible idea, at least for me – I don’t always play well with others, and at this stage of my life, I have no need to subject myself to daunting bureaucratic games. So I’ll keep the ultimate control, thank you very much.
So what will I (or we) blog about? I envision Authors Avant Garde (AAG for short) as addressing aspects of writing, publishing and marketing especially from the perspective of self-published writers. I may sell memberships or (gasp!) paid ads, and I’ll offer others the chance to sell their books as well. Traditionally published writers will be welcome too, but they’ll be considered affiliate members.
AAG is very much a work in progress. Till now, it’s existed primarily in my head, but now my brainchild has survived the first trimester of the long dark winter, and I’m going public with the announcement of its impending birth. I don’t have a launch date yet, but if I commit to periodic progress reports on this blog, perhaps that will kick my motivation up a few notches. Never fear, though – it won’t take a full nine months.
I’d love your reactions and ideas. And no matter how this new venture evolves, those of you who’ve helped inspire me with your ongoing comments and support, especially the folks from Blog Book Tours, will always have pride of place.
Narrow Escape from an Art Attack
22 Mar 2010 12 Comments
in Art of Marketing, Julie's Paintings, Miscellaneous Musings Tags: art shows, coop galleries, Julie Lomoe, Schenectady Art Attack
Sidewalk art show (anonymous)
Wandering the streets of Schenectady during the “Art Attack” on Saturday, evading the pleading eyes of the artists hawking their works throughout the city’s downtown, I felt an overwhelming sense of relief that I wasn’t one of the hundreds who’d signed up for what may become an annual event. I was reminded, too, how writers have it easy compared to visual artists when it comes to displaying our work.
It’s not that I wasn’t tempted. When I read the e-mail invitation to display my work at Art Attack, I gave it some serious thought. A chance to display several of my paintings and collages for free in a city-wide festival on the first day of spring, perhaps even to sell them – what’s not to like? Then I reminded myself of the logistics involved – loading my paintings into my trusty Focus hatchback, schlepping them to Schenectady, hanging them and arranging a display area, maybe babysitting them throughout the weekend, then putting the entire process into rewind on Sunday evening. Not worth the hassle, I decided.
Daumier "This Year Venuses Again"
Five-star Frame and Art, the first venue I visited, was a lovely gallery, with quality work displayed in mini-one-person shows. Damn, I thought – I shouldn’t have blown this off. Maybe next year. Unfortunately, it was all downhill from there. Schenectady’s striking city hall, designed and built during the Depression by McKim, Mead, and White, was temporary home to hundreds of art works in many media – some truly excellent, but the majority mediocre or worse.
Artists sat or stood by their works with their game faces on, doing their best to make eye contact and smile. There were plenty of visitors, but there and at the other venues it was obvious that they were out for a leisurely stroll on a gorgeous spring day, and that the art was strictly secondary. I didn’t see any serious discussions of art happening, let alone any sales. I chatted with some of the artists, and learned they’d been advised to stay with their work if possible, since the event offered no insurance coverage.
Comparatively speaking, we writers have it easy. All our merchandise and display paraphernalia fit easily into a couple of cartons and a wheeled cart, so the logistics are simple, and we usually don’t have to put in the long hours that visual artists do. Our works come in multiples, so they’re priced low enough to tempt the occasional impulse buyer. Original works of art, in contrast, are luxury items and beyond the reach of most of us in today’s economy. Nonetheless, regardless of medium, we artists have similar motives. “I put my heart and soul into this work,” we think. “Pay attention. Please care enough to take my creations home with you, or failing that, at least to truly see them for what they are – portraits of the artist.”
But hope springs eternal, even for this jaded painter. A beautiful new coop art gallery will open soon in downtown Troy, and I’ll probably display some of my work there on consignment. As the New York Lottery hucksters say, “Hey – you never know.”
How about you? Do you enjoy hanging out at public venues showing and hoping to sell your work? Is it a necessary evil you endure? Or do you bypass it entirely?
WIN A BOOK BY COMMENTING WHEN I REACH 50,000 HITS!
13 Mar 2010 12 Comments
in Art of Blogging, Art of Marketing Tags: blog hits, contest, Eldercide, Julie Lomoe, milestone, Mood Swing, stat meter, Winner
I’m about to reach a milestone on this blog – 50,000 hits! My stat meter when I logged on this morning at 8:58 a.m. stood at 48,888, so based on my current number of visits, over 300 per day, I expect to hit 50,000 sometime today! I love all those eights – that’s the number of great riches, according to the extensive numerological knowledge I picked up in a Cosmo article years ago.
To celebrate, I decided to give away a copy of MOOD SWING: THE BIPOLAR MURDERS or ELDERCIDE – your choice – to the person who leaves a comment closest to the time my blog meter hits 50,000. A few guidelines:
- This will be the comment I find on my dashboard most closely following the time I reach the 50,000 figure.
- Your comment can be on any blog post – scroll down or check the categories for subjects that interest you. On my dashboard, the comments come up in order received, most recent first, rather than by subject, so it won’t matter whicih post you choose.
- Comments must be at least a couple of sentences long and relevant to my blog – not just “Hi, I’m here! Did I win?” or the equivalent.
- If I can’t figure out which comment comes closest to the 50,000th hit, I’ll choose the winner by quality, content, and/or personal whim.
I’ll post the results as soon as I have a winner. Thanks, and best of luck!
I’m self-published, I’m out and I’m proud
01 Mar 2010 6 Comments
in Art of Marketing, Art of Publishing, Blog Book Tour Tags: Eldercide, Julie Lomoe, Mood Swiing: The Bipolar Murders, Morgan Mandel, POD, prinit-on-demand, self-publishing, Virtualbookworm
Here’s another post that’s new to this blog. I wrote it for Morgan Mandel’s site as part of my blog book tour last November. I’ve talked about self-publishing here, but not for ages, so some of my newer readers may be unaware of what I’m about to confess.
IN PRAISE OF SELF-PUBLISHING
True confession time: I’m a self-published author, I’m out and I’m proud! There’s still a certain stigma associated with self-publishing, but the publishing industry is undergoing seismic changes, and I believe those of us who’ve bypassed the traditional system are taking back our power and gaining greater credibility with every passing day.
When I began blogging seriously back in May, I posted about my bipolar diagnosis, saying I’m out and I’m proud. At that time I wrote that self-publishing with a print-on-demand publisher rather a traditional publisher had even more stigma attached than revealing that I’m bipolar. But in the six months since then, I’ve changed my mind. Here are some reasons why.
I was recently honored as 2009 Author of the Year by the Friends of the Albany Public Library for my suspense novel Eldercide. They had a wonderful luncheon in my honor, and when their President Gene Damm introduced me, he pointed out that although they’ve been giving the award for decades, this is the first time they’ve ever chosen a self-published author. The fact that I was self-published didn’t weigh into their decision either positively or negatively; they simply thought my book was the best of the many they considered, and they liked the way I dealt with important social issues regarding aging and death.
In October, I moderated two panels for the Poisoned Pen Web Con, sponsored by Poisoned Pen Press and billed as the first-ever virtual worldwide mystery conference. When I volunteered to serve as moderator, the organizers didn’t ask who had published my books. Rather, they gave me free rein in organizing my panels on social issues and point-of-view. Most of the authors on the panels, which I put together by e-mailing back and forth, had far more impressive publishing track records than mine, but it didn’t matter. (By the way, you can visit the Web Con at the link above to read my panels and access the rest of the conference proceedings free of charge.)
Putting together those two panels made me even more grateful that I took the self-publishing route. Especially in the social issues panel, authors related stories of agents and editors who dictated what they should and shouldn’t write. Child abuse was taboo, for example. Appealing to the broadest possible audience without offending anyone seemed to be the dominant concern, and for the most part, the authors acceded to the restrictions. Those of us who self-publish have no such limitations – we’re free to write about whatever we want, however we want, and to build our own readership without having to appeal to the lowest common denominator.
I tried the traditional route to publication for both my mystery novels. While attempting unsuccessfully to find an agent for Mood Swing: The Bipolar Murders, which deals with mysterious deaths at a social club for the mentally ill on Manhattan’s Lower East Side, I wrote Eldercide.. Perhaps mental illness was too specialized a topic, I thought, and I hoped for more success with the novel that drew on my experience running a home health care agency. No such luck: the rejections continued. Approximately 15 rejections for each book – not many at all, but enough to throw me into a profound clinical depression. I nearly gave up, until some writer friends convinced me to try print-on-demand publishing. I did due-diligence online research on POD companies and settled on Virtual Bookworm, a company in Texas that received consistently good reviews. Within two months of my decision, I had a published book in my hands. I had a major say in the design and layout, and I did my own cover illustration. Lo and behold, my depression lifted, and it hasn’t come back since.
Do I still want a big-time agent and publisher? Yes, that would be great, but my life no longer depends on it. And I plan to acquire them on my terms, when and if I choose. In the meantime, the people buying my books don’t care who the publisher is. Bookstores and libraries carry them when I do the necessary outreach, and they’re available worldwide through Amazon and Barnes & Noble. At my high school reunion last June in Milwaukee, I learned the school had purchased both books for their collection of alumni writers. And a fellow alumna from Norway, an exchange student back in the day, had bought them online as well.
Do I recommend POD self-publishing to other aspiring authors? Absolutely, and even more so since I’ve met Morgan Mandel and so many other successfully self-published writers on line. I firmly believe we’re just beginning to come into our power.
Are you a self-published author? If so, what sort of stigma have you experienced? If you had it all to do over, would you take a different route? Or are you out and proud like me?
Want to order one or both of my books direct from the source and personally inscribed to you? E-mail me at jlomoe@nycap.rr.com and I’ll tell you how it can be arranged. One of these days I’ll have PayPal up and running on this site, but why wait? I’d love to hear from you.
A starving artist and a viral spiral
22 Feb 2010 19 Comments
in Art of Blogging, Art of Marketing, Miscellaneous Musings Tags: anger, David Bollier, Julie Lomoe, online civility, PayPal, suicide, Viral SPiral
Pablo Picasso, The Tragedy, 1903
Yesterday one of my Facebook friends invited people to visit his website, where he’s put up a PayPal button for donations. The cause? Help him with his daily struggles – pay the rent, buy food, that kind of thing. He described himself as a starving artist. The first comment: “Are you f*&%ing kidding? Who do you think you are, asking for money? What do we get for it?”
I jumped in, saying, “What we get is the chance to read Ned’s* poems online for free.” I then proceeded to say how few local writers had bought my books. This in turn prompted more angry responses. How dare Ned and I think we deserved to get paid? So what if I was Albany Author of the Year? The exchange between the two gentlemen continued with considerable vitriol, and other writers jumped in with their own tales of woe – “I can barely make ends meet either, but you don’t hear me bitching and moaning about it!”
Why not? What’s so shameful about admitting we’d like to sell our own work, or even inviting people to make voluntary contributions in order to read it on the Internet? This in turn brings up another important topic – how much are we willing to give away by pouring our creative energies into sharing online? Does there come a time when we can reasonably ask for payment for everything we’re putting out there? What’s in it for us?
For me, what’s in it is the joy and excitement of communicating with people all over the world, the instant gratification of knowing my words are being read and appreciated. But I wouldn’t mind a little cold hard cash now and again.
I’m reading a fascinating book by David Bollier titled Viral Spiral: How the 
Commoners Built a Digital Republic of Their Own. I saw the author on C-Span’s BookTV a couple of months ago and was intrigued enough to order it online. It’s not easy reading, and I’m not yet ready to write an entire post about it, but here are a few provocative quotes:
Never in history has the individual had such cheap, unfettered access to global audiences, big and small . . . .
The people . . . are reclaiming culture from the tyranny of mass-media economics . . . overthrowing the ‘read only’ culture that characterized the ‘weirdly totalitarian’ communications of the twentieth century. In its place they are installing the ‘read-write’ culture that invites everyone to be a creator, as well as a consumer and sharer, of culture . . . Two profoundly incommensurate media systems are locked in a struggle for survival or supremacy . . . (pp. 8-11)
Powerful stuff. But although Bollier stresses power to the people and the heady virtues of sharing information in the global commons of the Internet, he’s not clear about exactly how we commoners are supposed to profit in this new marketplace. Maybe he’ll have some answers later in the book – I’ll keep you posted.
Words have the power to wound, even – or maybe especially – online. In the course of the angry Facebook exchange, I interjected a memory from the years I was working as an art therapist at Hudson River Psychiatric Center in Poughkeepsie. At a social on a locked ward one Friday afternoon, an alleged “recreation therapist” said to one of the patients, a gifted artist, “I hate to say it, but you look like shit.” The next day the patient escaped from the ward, headed over to the railroad tracks that ran along the river, and committed suicide by train.
The Viral Spiral of the Internet can be a force of positive energy, a way to build community, or it can infect people with hostility and anger. The choice is ours every time we log onto the World Wide Web.
Please share your thoughts on this important topic – I’d love to hear from you.
*I’ve changed Ned’s name, but the online exchange took place among members of the Capital District’s vibrant writing community. We don’t all need to agree – getting total agreement from artists is like herding cats – but I hope we can agree to disagree in a more civilized manner. Then again, who am I to talk? I’ve been known to use the F-word too.
