How to Do a Book Launch

You finally finished your book, edited and all. I mean really finished: have a stunning cover and, with pride, you hold the copy in your hands. Now what? How to get it out and spread the word?
Writers who have a traditional publisher needn't read further.
For us Indie authors, so called self-pub'd authors, here the real struggle begins.Marketing is the key-word that you should have learned along the way to publication.
FB is a good start, get your book on Goodreads is advisable from day one. With my first book I didn't know that.
Another author wrote the other day she was hosting a launch party in some cafe/pub/maybe bookstore and offered finger-food and a glass of wine. That sounded lovely but doesn't seem to be a viable option for me. FB launch parties were fashionable for a while. If I only had attended one, I would have a clearer picture in my head!
Wondering what else to do I send press releases to the local papers and TV and radio stations who featured me before about my other publications. As luck would have it, one of my FB friends is launching her new book on the same day. I had picked 16 June or Bloomsday because of its Irish affiliation. It's not exactly a holiday in Ireland but great fun for those who know about it and dress up for the occasion to retrace Leopold Bloom's steps in Dublin. (The protagonist of Ulysses by James Joyce. For further info, especially which pubs are involved, see Wikipedia.) Not that I have aspirations even to be mentioned in connection with him; nor did I read the whole book. On my last trip to Dublin, I happened to run into revelers and it was fun.
My FB friend mentions to  send her a mediakit if I want her to get involved.
How did I make it through several books without one? Putting all other chores and obligations aside, I looked for guidelines for a mediakit and got help again from FB fellow writers.
The incredible KS Brooks offers a solution by sending me a link to her fantastic website Indies Unlimited and the answer to my question how to put such a kit together. Check it out if you haven't done so yet: Indies Unlimited.
With this power tool at the ready, I can approach fellow writers and bloggers and ask for help. So together we do a blog tour.
My friend, however, is only starting on the launch date, whereas I decided to create some build-up to the launch date. Also, she offers her book for free on Kindle for a number of days. There is an old German saying: You only make money on the things you don't give away for free. I tried that before and it was not convincing to me. There were 1300+ downloads of my book for free and only 1, yes one!, sale after that for the longest time.
24 hours later, I'm exhausted but I have gotten almost every date between now and the 16th covered thanks to some marvelous people I met on various writers sites, in particular MasterKoda. And among them is yet another lady who launches her book that day! All of that is so exciting! I'm intensely grateful for the help I got all around.
Watch this space and everything that goes on on FB! If you have tips for me, please leave a comment or email them to me.

Siggy Buckley
Available on Amazon: Kindle for $2.99
Paperback $12.80 after Bloomsday-- link to follow!

When Truth Hurts: The Nonfictioneer's Dilemma

Don't bend; don't water it down; don't try to make it logical; don't edit your own soul according to the fashion. Rather, follow your most intense obsessions mercilessly.

~ Franz Kafka

Kafka, you haunt me.

Whenever I read these words, I am divided. One half of my heart swells in awe of your insolent wisdom, at your unabashed defense of the artist's impertinence. You forbid us to whitewash, to pretty-up the ugly corners of life. Do not tread lightly on reality, you insist, but delve deep, and without apology. Show life with all of its thorns, no matter who objects. Where inspiration leads, the writer should follow with frenzied passion.

The other half of me spits at you.

I don't believe my heart was made for fiction. It goes against everything that has made me a writer -- a love for daily life, a quiet belief that every "normal" person, including myself, has a story. The little struggles we encounter each day say much more about our humanity, I think, than some grand, fictional misadventure. The truth is, I long for nonfiction. I long for its contemplative nature, its ability to find meaning in the mundane. Most of all, I long for its potential to highlight reality, and say, "There's no need for fiction. Life is dramatic enough on its own."

But I need fiction, Kafka. I need it terribly.

With nonfiction, there comes a risk. There are many things in our lives that contain all the elements of a good story -- a mother's coldness, an uncle's cancer, a best friend battling alcoholism. If we stop to look around, we realize that the people we interact with everyday have tales begging to be told. But this fascination with the trials of others is dangerous. It requires us to investigate and speculate about people's private lives. The nonfiction writer must intrude -- often without permission -- upon someone's darkest, most intimate secrets.

What is wrong with us, Kafka? Why is it the darkness in people's lives, that which makes them most vulnerable, that inspires us most? We are sadists and parasites. Our work thrives upon the draining of others for our own gain. We delight in their shame, their injury, their deformities, exposing them for general entertainment and "the sake of art." We cannot see someone's wound, and leave it be. In our sick fascination, we pick at the scar, peek beneath its stitches, until it bleeds. Because as a writer, as an artist, we must know what’s inside.

You did well to choose the word "mercilessly," my dear Kafka. To write directly from reality, we have to adopt a kind of indifference. We can't care too much about our subjects; otherwise, we'd always feel guilty, and never write anything for fear of violating their privacy and soiling their reputation.

This is why I write fiction. It was never because my life was uninteresting. My family life has been rocked by death and mental illnesses. My friends have been torn by scandal and abuse. There are always things to write about. But my conscience is my weakness. I don't have the stomach for trespassing onto others' lives, for being an invader. For you see, the greatest danger of being a writer is not the lack of things to write about. It is the risk of someone getting hurt.

Did you ever love anyone, Kafka? Or did not loving give you the freedom to write?

 

Image Courtesy: Emma Moser

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Emma Moser is a lifelong New England resident currently balancing her lives as a college senior, local musician, and emerging writer. Her writing pursuits include blogging, poetry, fiction, and creative non-fiction, and her work has appeared or is forthcoming at several national venues, including Sigma Tau Delta Rectangle, Zoomoozophone Review, Thoreau’s Rooster, Sweatpants & Coffee, and Fuck Fiction.

For more articles, links to publications, and information about the author, please visit her blog at: antiquedwriter.blogspot.com
Find me on Twitter

[Image courtesy: author, google, and  haaretz.com]

FREE THAT SEAGULL IN YOU

That Unforgettable Story: Bestselling Author Anu Lal at Capitol Mall, Kannur, Kerala

Jonathan Livingston Seagull is a small volume of fiction written by Richard Bach. Some of you have read it. Some of you haven’t. It’s a highly readable novella with a seagull named Jonathan Livingston as its titular hero. The totality of the essence that shines through this story is not just about a seagull and the quest for success. More importantly, one must look at this book as a motif that corresponds to the inner voice of an individual. When I read this book, as a young student of English literature, I immediately associated it with a writer’s journey. I contemplated on the many nuances Mr. Bach, who I consider one of my gurus, must have employed to reveal his own life through the pages of Jonathan Livingston Seagull. The reason I considered the possibility of an autobiographical element in this book is that in every writer, there is a seagull.

Image Courtesy: Google

Those very few successful authors are able to free the seagull engraved in their consciousness by the same creative power that generated their life force. Is it possible to live without consciousness? Perhaps, but think about the quality of life one must be missing under an unconscious state of existence. Every writer goes through stages of evolution. We evolve into being who we are. This evolution need not be biological. It could be spiritual or intellectual. Just like an ordinary person having lost his consciousness, a writer struggles if one does not free the seagull within one.

Image Courtesy: Google

What do I mean by “the seagull within us?” The seagull within us is our inner voice. This same voice sometimes gives a character in one of our stories, a unique individuality, and the narrative a significant identity. Voice is literature has a different meaning. It is not literally an audible sound. But in a novel or a story, ‘voice’ is the narrative style and peculiar alignment of thoughts and words. In order to achieve a unique and poignant voice on paper, one must achieve the same in life outside the paper.

There may be a multitude of concerns that haunt you each day—electricity bill, water bill, cable and internet bill, food, family, house maintenance or mortgage, etc. Often, these many concerns put a lock in the cage in which our inner seagull resides. This inner seagull came with us while we were born, within the same package that is we.

Once we realize our karma that is the cause of our restlessness, the path that we need to travel, we must take the courage to let the seagull free. Let it fly, away and above, everything we have known and seen; let it find new horizons; let it guide us. Let your inner voice take up thoughts that were, until then, impossible for you to handle, or improbable. Let your imagination accompany that inner voice. This is where fiery books were written.

Image Courtesy: reutersmedia.net

In the last decade of the previous century, a woman had a dream-like idea. It was highly improbable and senseless. Had she been living in Kerala, her own self-respect might have prevented her from penning down this story. But she lived in Europe, and she took the courage to free her seagull that is in her. In a few years, her book became a phenomenon. You must have heard of her, everyone does. She goes by the name, J. K. Rowling.

About The Author:

Anu Lal is the author of Wall of Colours and Other Stories, Book-1 in the Hope, Vengeance, and History Trilogy. He resides in India. His upcoming book is Clenched Hands, Bloody Nails. His second book You Should Know How I Feel has been a bestseller in Amazon India.

Blog: http://anu-lal.blogspot.in/

Author Page: Here

Twitter: @Anulalindia

MEASURE OF WRITING: Inborn Talent?

Image Courtesy: Google

In this glorious chaos of what to listen to, and what not to, I would like to invite your attention to the fantastic idea called “good writing.”

I am aware that one of the areas, a person coming to WGT might be looking for, is insights from personal experiences of other authors. Due to that very purpose, I would like to share an experience of mine here, in this ‘internet coffee house’ of a blog, as author and editor Scott Bury remarks.

Good writing is an imperative every writer pets with in one’s consciousness. Consequently, there are several myths circling this idea.                

 

Image Courtesy: blogs.denverpost.com

Stephen King once remarked that creative writing could never be taught in schools. He was telling the truth about ‘good writing’ too. Perhaps the biggest impediment in being a creative writer (and a good one in that) is the only boon capable of propagating one in the direction of a successful writing career—Inborn talent. But what about you, a person blessed with the gift of weaving extraordinary tales out of ordinary events in life? Are you born with “Inborn talent”?

What might be the secret of being a good writer, of selling more stories than the number of tickets for the next Hollywood blockbuster; of being the most loved and respected man of letters? The surest way to success in this dimension is perseverance.

As a writer, one might come across many external obstacles; obstacles from our day-job, obstacle in the name of family, etc. These obstacles, sometimes with our knowing and sometimes unknowing, sucks out what could be described as the surest key to becoming a good writer. I would never suggest one must wait for the right moment to pen a story or to edit a previously written manuscript. The right time for a writer is NOW.

Remember, you are here because you love reading about writing and want to learn a few techniques on improvising your writing. You have listened to your call, by coming here. You have that inner radio inside of you that could tune into the cosmic energy that is the Source of all Creation.  

If you arrived here with a desire to learn, I must tell you that you have the necessary ingredients in your DNA to make it big as an author. You are in alignment with that dream that you have nurtured throughout your life, of sitting on a table, signing books at one end of an incredibly long line of people, simply because you are reading this article.

This is not a self-help forum. Still, I would advice a new author to take perseverance as your measure when the path in front of you is not visible, when you meet a dead-end. For example, think about Dr. Viktor E. Frankl’s experiences in the concentration camp of Auschwitz. Had he not been persevering, his future and the future of psychoanalysis itself would have been something else. In such a situation, perseverance means you trust your abilities to risk every other madness around you. It results from trusting oneself. Dr. Viktor E. Frankl shares his experiences in the book titled Mans’ Search for Meaning.  

 

Image Courtesy: Google

The craft of good writing also stems from trusting oneself. However, I would also suggest you should not limit your trust upon the blind faith that ‘whatever you do would be good’; or daydreams about long lines of people waiting for your autograph. Although, it sounds almost naïve, I must say that one must act in order to bring success into the world of reality. This, I consider, is a valid thought for any aspiring writer. Most aspiring writers never make it to the successful line of authors. The reason for that is simple: most aspiring writers only aspire. Their aspirations are not strong enough to manifest themselves into material reality.

The next best thing to do in order to bring in your ‘good writing’ is to trust your own intuitions and write steadily. By carrying the purpose, and following the discipline required to finish specific writing projects, you are sure to succeed. In writing-life, failure has only one meaning—stopping a work. This means, essentially that if you don’t stop, you never fail.  

About The Author:

Anu Lal is the author of Wall of Colours and Other Stories, Book-1 in the Hope, Vengeance, and History Trilogy. He resides in India. His second book You Should Know How I Feel has been a bestseller in Amazon India.

Blog: http://anu-lal.blogspot.in/

Author Page: Here

Twitter: @Anulalindia

We're alive...let's get kicking!

Created on Thanksgiving 3 years ago, this blog has been in hibernation for the past year.  My writer friend Anu Lal encouraged me to resume posting. He will join me as an editor and contribute to this site.
We need  Y O U, writers, authors, aspiring authors, bloggers, poets and readers to let this site thrive again. Even if you only dabble in writing, give it a shot. We take submissions about almost every topic under the sun with the exception of porn and religion.

And in the spirit of true Thanksgiving, this is my first post:
"My way of giving thanks this year: Free copies of my short story "There is No Going Back" from: Nov 25th (my birthday till Black Friday!) http://amzn.to/1Fl9Ezc. Thanks for a life I am allowed to live in freedom and without wars in contrast to my ancestors' generations and many millions of people around the world who spend these days as refugees. Happy Thanksgiving!"

Like many of you, I feel privileged to be able and allowed to express my thoughts without prosecution, to let me hopes and dreams run wild and free, to enjoy the right of freedom of expression, to exchange views with like-minded individuals around the globe. Yes, this has been a truly International site and it would be wonderful if we could keep that going. I'll provide the statistics on that shortly.

Send us your submissions: about 500-800 words; include a pic of you or your book; include a link to your books and blogs. Help us make this blog multi-facetted, multi-cultural, exciting, inspiring, informative- fun! And leave comments!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Reviews and Style

by Alex Lukeman

This blog was stimulated by a reader review on one of my books. A three star review, which is like damning with faint praise. Most of the reviews on this book are five star, with a few fours thrown in. People like it.

Reader reviews are an interesting part of being a writer. You can learn a lot from them. You also have to remember that it's impossible to make everyone happy, no matter what you do. This particular reader dinged me because she didn't like and/or understand my style of writing.

Style is a subjective thing. You like Picasso or you don't. You like ZZ Top or you don't (I like both). The reader seemed to think I didn't understand how to use commas (I do) and said most of my sentences were 5 or 6 words long (they aren't) and that Robert Ludlum could write twice as many pages to tell the same story (he could). Ludlum is also dead.

My style is consciously direct, clipped, fast moving. I could write sentences that went on and on if I wanted to, with plenty of commas. My English background is unusual. I know what I'm doing, even though I do make mistakes. I break rules on purpose. I don't follow the Chicago Manual of Style. My style would make most editors completely crazy, but there's nothing prohibited about it.

Think of  writers who break the rules: Hemingway, Thomas Wolfe, Steinbeck, Lee Child. Raymond Chandler comes to mind. William Shakespeare. In fact, pretty much every good writer you ever heard of.

This reader was disturbed because the sentences were too short for her liking. She probably wouldn't like Lee Child either. He sometimes writes sentences of two or three words. What do you think I should take away from a review like this? Should I be worried that my sentences are too short? Should I feel upset and inadequate, a failure when held up against Robert Ludlum?

Right, mate, no way.

Some reviewers love to make unflattering comparisons to other authors. I have reviews that compare me favorably to James Rollins. I have a review that says Rollins is a much better writer. I don't copy Rollins or anyone else. My style is mine and not anyone else's. I don't think I'm as good or better or worse than James Rollins and other successful writers. I try and learn from them. I am what I am, as Popeye said.

Finally, there are negative reviews from readers who are sure they know a lot more than you do about any given subject and that you are a dumb screw up who has his head you-know-where. For example, I had a review that took me to task for not knowing what I was talking about, because I had my heroes carrying around 35-40 pounds in the Himalayas at 17,000 feet. The reviewer was sure it couldn't be done. As a matter of fact, I have trekked in the Himalayas at 17,000 feet with a 35 pound pack, and I wasn't in the kind of shape my heroes are (super!). I was writing from experience. Then the reviewer became personally insulting.

Part of me would dearly love to review him, but that is not a good idea. The only thing to do with a negative review is learn from it if it has any truth and see it as a back-handed compliment if it does not. Hey, at least you got someone's attention!

I had one reviewer give me 2 stars without reading the book. That's a lousy review. She said she read the description, though, and didn't like it. I mean, SHE DIDN'T READ THE BOOK! All of which means you need to take reviews with several pounds of salt. Believe in yourself: that's what counts.

Author of the PROJECT Action/Adventure series
http://www.alexlukeman.com