One of the joys of writing is the ability to escape to other places and pretend to be whomever you want to be or create characters who do many of the things you might be afraid to do yourself. Writing is also a way to work through personal difficulties.
One of my ancestors, Wallace Bruce - or WB as I call him, was a world-renowned Robert Burns scholar and poet. In fact Wallace Bruce held the same Poet Laureate post in Scotland in the late 1800's that Robert Burns had held a century before and it is through WB that I am a descendent of Robert the Bruce according to genealogical records. While I'm not putting my self anywhere near WB's league in my writings I find myself drawn more and more to poetry to work through some difficult times.
Here's my offering of a poem-in-progress (the name I use is another story):
Learning to Fly by Vashtie
I learned to walk
I wanted to learn to fly
I learned to smile and talk
And I learned how to cry
Every step I take a treasure
In this journey called life
Bringing both pain and pleasure
With intense joy and strife
At times the pain is too great
At times the joy euphoric
I hang onto the ride each takes
The highs, the lows are chaotic
I dared to love but life stalled
While I tried learning to fly
My wings breaking in the fall –
I fell hard looking up at the sky
But I will take these broken wings
And learn to fly again and again
Because to not try, to not fly nor sing
Is like slowly dying before the end
As I put one foot in front of the other
I console myself that I can even feel
But these feelings threaten to smother
Both what is farce and what is real
Every step is part of life's journey
Every joy and pain part of a story
Every story is a journey
Every journey has a story
Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Monday, July 30, 2007
Who are you writing for?
Not my Mom, that's for sure.
When I wrote my first book, I think vaguely that I had some idea that my readers would be male, late teens to mid forties. Who else would like a book so full of sophomoric humor, with cussing, a lot of cleavage worship, and all of the dimwitted stuff that guys find so amusing?
Not women, for sure I thought. Not even my Mom. Well, my Mom's a woman, but I don't think of her that way ... well, I guess any guy's relationship to his mother doesn't much include thinking of her as a woman with, um, womanly thoughts and stuff.
She's just Mom, right?
Anyway, I remember my first query letters to agents and publishers, who all wanted to know who the target audience is, and how I would attack the market to attract their interest. All the time I'm thinking that it's for guys and figuring, "Okay, advertise in tool magazines, Playboy, gaming magazines..."
Hah, just kidding, my budget is more like put a flier in front of a tool store, strip club, electronic games store.
But I was pretty much convinced that I knew who would like the book, who would get the most from my dazzling prose. And that's when the surprises started.
First was my publisher - half female owned, ... then my first ever review (and an awesome one it was) - a woman, ... the editor of a magazine that my publisher advertised it in - a woman, ... my first blurb from an already published author, Barb D'Amato. The most recent review from Pop Syndicate ... a woman.
And they all raved about my so-called 'guy' book. Barb even wrote me later and asked permission to send the ARC to a friend of hers who needed cheering up... a female friend.
I thought to myself, "Huh?"
So I sent an email out to Barb saying, "Huh?"
She got back to me that women like my book because I point out what goobs we - guys - are. Because I wrapped my book around stereotypes and just knotted everything good and tight ... then I cut the bonds. Well, she didn't put it that way, but that's how I understood her.
With this new perspective on my target audience, I had to revamp my marketing efforts and made sure that woman knew that they would enjoy my book. It wasn't just for guys! You could read it somewhere other than the bathroom! Woo-hoo!
So I took my newfound knowledge that both men and women would like my book and now I knew whom to go after. Men and women age 19 and ... well, up. No upper limit.
And that's when I got my next surprise. My book somehow hit the local high school, and next thing I know, I'm learning that teenagers like it! Both sexes, and, well, those in-between ones who dress in black and all look alike regardless of their sex.
And a YA reviewer wrote how it's the funniest book she (yes, she) has ever read, and she puts it on both of her sites.
What to take from all of this?
You can't exclude people from your readership based on assumptions and misconceptions. Young people may have mature tastes and older people may be more interested in slapstick humor. You just never know.
Why I myself actually enjoyed a romance novel once. Yeah, so kick me out of the Guy Union. I had an excuse, it was wrapped in a sci-fi novel.
Anyway, open your horizons because every single person you see may be one of YOUR readers! Don't forget it!
Norm
www.normcowie.com
The Adventures of Guy ... written by a guy (probably)
The Next Adventures of Guy ... more wackiness
When I wrote my first book, I think vaguely that I had some idea that my readers would be male, late teens to mid forties. Who else would like a book so full of sophomoric humor, with cussing, a lot of cleavage worship, and all of the dimwitted stuff that guys find so amusing?
Not women, for sure I thought. Not even my Mom. Well, my Mom's a woman, but I don't think of her that way ... well, I guess any guy's relationship to his mother doesn't much include thinking of her as a woman with, um, womanly thoughts and stuff.
She's just Mom, right?
Anyway, I remember my first query letters to agents and publishers, who all wanted to know who the target audience is, and how I would attack the market to attract their interest. All the time I'm thinking that it's for guys and figuring, "Okay, advertise in tool magazines, Playboy, gaming magazines..."
Hah, just kidding, my budget is more like put a flier in front of a tool store, strip club, electronic games store.
But I was pretty much convinced that I knew who would like the book, who would get the most from my dazzling prose. And that's when the surprises started.
First was my publisher - half female owned, ... then my first ever review (and an awesome one it was) - a woman, ... the editor of a magazine that my publisher advertised it in - a woman, ... my first blurb from an already published author, Barb D'Amato. The most recent review from Pop Syndicate ... a woman.
And they all raved about my so-called 'guy' book. Barb even wrote me later and asked permission to send the ARC to a friend of hers who needed cheering up... a female friend.
I thought to myself, "Huh?"
So I sent an email out to Barb saying, "Huh?"
She got back to me that women like my book because I point out what goobs we - guys - are. Because I wrapped my book around stereotypes and just knotted everything good and tight ... then I cut the bonds. Well, she didn't put it that way, but that's how I understood her.
With this new perspective on my target audience, I had to revamp my marketing efforts and made sure that woman knew that they would enjoy my book. It wasn't just for guys! You could read it somewhere other than the bathroom! Woo-hoo!
So I took my newfound knowledge that both men and women would like my book and now I knew whom to go after. Men and women age 19 and ... well, up. No upper limit.
And that's when I got my next surprise. My book somehow hit the local high school, and next thing I know, I'm learning that teenagers like it! Both sexes, and, well, those in-between ones who dress in black and all look alike regardless of their sex.
And a YA reviewer wrote how it's the funniest book she (yes, she) has ever read, and she puts it on both of her sites.
What to take from all of this?
You can't exclude people from your readership based on assumptions and misconceptions. Young people may have mature tastes and older people may be more interested in slapstick humor. You just never know.
Why I myself actually enjoyed a romance novel once. Yeah, so kick me out of the Guy Union. I had an excuse, it was wrapped in a sci-fi novel.
Anyway, open your horizons because every single person you see may be one of YOUR readers! Don't forget it!
Norm
www.normcowie.com
The Adventures of Guy ... written by a guy (probably)
The Next Adventures of Guy ... more wackiness
Sunday, July 29, 2007
Round Robin by Margot Justes
The biggest advantage an author has is name recognition. If you are new on the circuit, it is hard if not impossible to sell your books without marketing and gaining that all important abstraction, called name recognition. As in any business, you need to advertise, to spread word that you are out there, this is where the Round Robin concept comes into play.
J. R. Turner, an Echelon author who wrote My Biker Bodyguard (I do have to give her a plug) formed a round robin set of interviews for anyone at Echelon interested in the project.
This is how it works; we interview each other once a week and post it on our blogs, websites, my space, absolutely anywhere we can.
It will allow us to get a much broader public reach, get the readers to become familiar with our names and writing styles.
So, for each of the next few weeks, I will hopefully be posting a different interview with an Echelon author on this blog.
Till next Saturday,
Margot Justes
A Hotel in Paris
Echelon Press, LLC June 2008
www.mjustes.com
J. R. Turner, an Echelon author who wrote My Biker Bodyguard (I do have to give her a plug) formed a round robin set of interviews for anyone at Echelon interested in the project.
This is how it works; we interview each other once a week and post it on our blogs, websites, my space, absolutely anywhere we can.
It will allow us to get a much broader public reach, get the readers to become familiar with our names and writing styles.
So, for each of the next few weeks, I will hopefully be posting a different interview with an Echelon author on this blog.
Till next Saturday,
Margot Justes
A Hotel in Paris
Echelon Press, LLC June 2008
www.mjustes.com
A New Age for Short Fiction? –Part 4 -- by Larry D. Sweazy
Are there opportunities for the professional short story writer on the Internet?
First let’s decide what the definition of a professional writer is. Simply, it’s a writer who gets paid professional rates for their short stories. In today’s world, that translates to 4 to 6 cents a word. A 5000 word short story will bring $300.00. Whether or not that’s a fair wage is another discussion, but it is obvious that making a living by writing short stories is just about out of the question. There are few writers, like Ed Hoch, doing so—but they are rare.
I went to www.duotrope.com and searched for electronic markets that paid a professional rate. I searched the mystery genre, and the results were 5 hits--3 of those markets were marketed Temporarily Closed. So there were 2 professional markets listed. On the entire Internet there were 2 open markets that paid professional rates for mystery short stories. It also listed secondary markets. There were 6. 1 was closed. So for a total, there were 7 potential professional paying markets.
I expanded the search to “any genre” and came up with 28 markets with 7 closed—so the net result was 21 markets. Not a lot of markets to chose from, and assuredly, the competition is fierce.
I have no way of knowing whether or not these numbers reflect an improvement or a decline from the past, I haven’t been tracking markets since the Internet proliferated. I can only hope that paying markets are increasing. But with every else on the Internet, why should you pay for something when you can get it for free (minus the monthly cost for your Internet service)? The playing field is not level, but that is the double-edge sword of the Digital Age.
To see if these numbers from Duotrope held up, I went to www.storypilot.com. Story Pilot is primarily a market listing for sci/fi and horror, but I’m looking for professional paying online markets, not genre-specific markets. The results of that search yielded 11 results.
Now, what I didn’t include in this equation are programs like Amazon Shorts. They pay. But they don’t pay up front, and they don’t pay per word. It’s a different model. One I’ll talk about in an upcoming post since I have stories on Amazon Shorts.
To be fair, I did another search on Duotrope. This time my criteria was professional rates, any genre, any medium (print, electronic, etc.). That search resulted in 113 hits, with nearly 30 closed or temporarily closed. 70 paying markets. OK, that’s not bad. But the point of this discussion at this point is Internet-related. I am very interested in how the online media has affected print media. I think it is obvious, but short story writers the number suggest that there are more professional paying print markets than online markets.
Are there more markets than what I have found? Sure there are. But my guess there aren’t many more that pay professional rates.
Are there opportunities on the Internet? Yes--though few and far between. But these numbers point to what we all know to be true: If you publish your work on the Internet, you’re probably not going to get paid for it.
And that’s next week’s topic: Is writing for free beneficial to a long-term writing career?
First let’s decide what the definition of a professional writer is. Simply, it’s a writer who gets paid professional rates for their short stories. In today’s world, that translates to 4 to 6 cents a word. A 5000 word short story will bring $300.00. Whether or not that’s a fair wage is another discussion, but it is obvious that making a living by writing short stories is just about out of the question. There are few writers, like Ed Hoch, doing so—but they are rare.
I went to www.duotrope.com and searched for electronic markets that paid a professional rate. I searched the mystery genre, and the results were 5 hits--3 of those markets were marketed Temporarily Closed. So there were 2 professional markets listed. On the entire Internet there were 2 open markets that paid professional rates for mystery short stories. It also listed secondary markets. There were 6. 1 was closed. So for a total, there were 7 potential professional paying markets.
I expanded the search to “any genre” and came up with 28 markets with 7 closed—so the net result was 21 markets. Not a lot of markets to chose from, and assuredly, the competition is fierce.
I have no way of knowing whether or not these numbers reflect an improvement or a decline from the past, I haven’t been tracking markets since the Internet proliferated. I can only hope that paying markets are increasing. But with every else on the Internet, why should you pay for something when you can get it for free (minus the monthly cost for your Internet service)? The playing field is not level, but that is the double-edge sword of the Digital Age.
To see if these numbers from Duotrope held up, I went to www.storypilot.com. Story Pilot is primarily a market listing for sci/fi and horror, but I’m looking for professional paying online markets, not genre-specific markets. The results of that search yielded 11 results.
Now, what I didn’t include in this equation are programs like Amazon Shorts. They pay. But they don’t pay up front, and they don’t pay per word. It’s a different model. One I’ll talk about in an upcoming post since I have stories on Amazon Shorts.
To be fair, I did another search on Duotrope. This time my criteria was professional rates, any genre, any medium (print, electronic, etc.). That search resulted in 113 hits, with nearly 30 closed or temporarily closed. 70 paying markets. OK, that’s not bad. But the point of this discussion at this point is Internet-related. I am very interested in how the online media has affected print media. I think it is obvious, but short story writers the number suggest that there are more professional paying print markets than online markets.
Are there more markets than what I have found? Sure there are. But my guess there aren’t many more that pay professional rates.
Are there opportunities on the Internet? Yes--though few and far between. But these numbers point to what we all know to be true: If you publish your work on the Internet, you’re probably not going to get paid for it.
And that’s next week’s topic: Is writing for free beneficial to a long-term writing career?
Thursday, July 26, 2007
ICU - not your regular text message!
ICU - intensive care unit - that's where I've been hanging out for the last few weeks. I'm a couple hours from home, living out of a suitcase that right now holds only dirty clothes. It's time to go home. I'm tired of hospital food, weary of deciphering doctor speak, and really miss my own bed.
But my family continues to rally around the ICU waiting room, giving up vacation days, personal days and unexcused absences for a few. But still we stay. We chit chat, we walk the halls, we retell old stories and try to nap in lumpy chairs. And we wait.
I'm sure many of you have been in the same situation. I don't know what to pray for anymore and the good Lord knows my wishes anyway. I want my mother-in-law to get better. I want the horror of watching her deteriorate to vanish from my mind. But this isn't a story I can rearrange. I don't even know the outcome yet. I can't write the main character out of her tragedy. I wish I could. Oh, how I wish I could.
A month ago Skip was out golfing, beating my son and husband, laughing and teasing just as she loves to do. She's a fighter and I know that's why we all wait, hoping for the miracle that will make her whole once more.
I know I've written about death before in this column, but it seems to be the summer of reflection and so I have spent these last few weeks thinking back on what a wonderful influence Skip has had on my life. Whether she lives or dies, I will cherish the memories we have already made and will give thanks for each day we have with her from today on.
Skip has encouraged my writing from the onset. She's an avid reader and likes to compare my books with other authors, always favoring my style over someone else's. I'm sure she'd think she isn't worthy of mentioning in one of my blogs. But I know she is. She's the perfect character for a fun, light-hearted spoof. She's silly in a I Love Lucy kind of way, ornery when you least expect it and loves to gamble. I'd put her on a gambling boat and let the mystery unfold.
Since I am writing on the ICU waiting room computer, my time is up and I haven't really said all I wanted. Please forgive my abrupt end and for not writing last week. I hope you understand I was busy with family and I must return to them now.
Til next time ~
DL Larson
But my family continues to rally around the ICU waiting room, giving up vacation days, personal days and unexcused absences for a few. But still we stay. We chit chat, we walk the halls, we retell old stories and try to nap in lumpy chairs. And we wait.
I'm sure many of you have been in the same situation. I don't know what to pray for anymore and the good Lord knows my wishes anyway. I want my mother-in-law to get better. I want the horror of watching her deteriorate to vanish from my mind. But this isn't a story I can rearrange. I don't even know the outcome yet. I can't write the main character out of her tragedy. I wish I could. Oh, how I wish I could.
A month ago Skip was out golfing, beating my son and husband, laughing and teasing just as she loves to do. She's a fighter and I know that's why we all wait, hoping for the miracle that will make her whole once more.
I know I've written about death before in this column, but it seems to be the summer of reflection and so I have spent these last few weeks thinking back on what a wonderful influence Skip has had on my life. Whether she lives or dies, I will cherish the memories we have already made and will give thanks for each day we have with her from today on.
Skip has encouraged my writing from the onset. She's an avid reader and likes to compare my books with other authors, always favoring my style over someone else's. I'm sure she'd think she isn't worthy of mentioning in one of my blogs. But I know she is. She's the perfect character for a fun, light-hearted spoof. She's silly in a I Love Lucy kind of way, ornery when you least expect it and loves to gamble. I'd put her on a gambling boat and let the mystery unfold.
Since I am writing on the ICU waiting room computer, my time is up and I haven't really said all I wanted. Please forgive my abrupt end and for not writing last week. I hope you understand I was busy with family and I must return to them now.
Til next time ~
DL Larson
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
NORTH WOODS VACATION AND MINOCQUA PUBLIC LIBRARY APPEARANCE By Morgan Mandel
Hi folks,
I spent a good portion of the day today traveling back from the North Woods of Wisconsin, but wanted to get a few words for my blog in.
While on vacation I not only got a chance to enjoy the greenery and scenery, but also put in an appearance at the Minocqua Public Library. The audience was quite friendly and offered some very insightful questions.
I want to thank Cindy Wentz from the Minocqua Public Library for offering me this opportunity. Here's a photo with the both of us. I'll be putting up more on my website by the weekend at http://www.morganmandel.com/
PS I also spent a bit too much time at Lac du Flambeau/Lake of the Torches Casino. I won once out of four tries, but had a great time playing the penny slots. I'll have to save up more money for my next vacation over Labor Day.
Time to sign off now and get some sleep so I can go back to my day job in the morning.
All the best,
Morgan Mandel
http://www.myspace.com/morganmandel
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
It takes more love--
to share a seat on a motorcycle than it does to share a bed. At least, that's an old biker's maxim. And if taking a road trip while perched on a motorcycle passenger pillion is something of a comfort challenge and requires a greater connection than sleeping together, then riding backseat on a writer's journey requires something even greater.
I'm thinking here of the "significant others" who ride back seat in our (the authors') careers. Like a biker's back-seat passenger, these loved ones go where we drive them--fascinating (hah!) places like conferences, bookstores, and libraries. It's a grand trip, to be sure, but it is not their trip--it's ours. We share the ride, but it's still in very many ways our trip-- our careers, our moments in the public limelight and our 15 minutes of fame. And although the authors are responsible for the success or failure of a given book or book event, like a couple riding two-up cross-country the rain falls on both, the wind chills driver and passenger alike, and both sweat it out in traffic.
Passengers on both journeys sometimes complain. Those who ride back seat on a motorcycle can frequently be heard bemoaning the soreness in their posteriors. The same is often true of those who go along with authors on their trips--in other words, we authors can also be real pains in the ass.
A good passenger can make or break a rider. If from the backseat the passenger moves with the rider as he or she leans into curves, if the passenger pays attention to the route and navigates, if he or she offers a friendly wave to those the pair meet along the way, and if that passenger actively stays "in tune" with the rider and performs a dozen other tasks--then the ride is likely to be pleasant and rewarding.
As writers or bikers, then, we need to be very mindful of those we take along for the ride.
I ride and I write, and I have been very fortunate to have had the very best of passengers.
I'm thinking here of the "significant others" who ride back seat in our (the authors') careers. Like a biker's back-seat passenger, these loved ones go where we drive them--fascinating (hah!) places like conferences, bookstores, and libraries. It's a grand trip, to be sure, but it is not their trip--it's ours. We share the ride, but it's still in very many ways our trip-- our careers, our moments in the public limelight and our 15 minutes of fame. And although the authors are responsible for the success or failure of a given book or book event, like a couple riding two-up cross-country the rain falls on both, the wind chills driver and passenger alike, and both sweat it out in traffic.
Passengers on both journeys sometimes complain. Those who ride back seat on a motorcycle can frequently be heard bemoaning the soreness in their posteriors. The same is often true of those who go along with authors on their trips--in other words, we authors can also be real pains in the ass.
A good passenger can make or break a rider. If from the backseat the passenger moves with the rider as he or she leans into curves, if the passenger pays attention to the route and navigates, if he or she offers a friendly wave to those the pair meet along the way, and if that passenger actively stays "in tune" with the rider and performs a dozen other tasks--then the ride is likely to be pleasant and rewarding.
As writers or bikers, then, we need to be very mindful of those we take along for the ride.
I ride and I write, and I have been very fortunate to have had the very best of passengers.
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