Jason is “Slightly Trendy”

Present word count of WIP:  59,347

Okay, my Aspie son may not have a job…yet. And he doesn’t drive…yet. But, according to this terrific article from i09, one of my favorite futuristic websites, Jason is “slightly trendy.” It’s a fascinating read and so in line with my upcoming new novel (the title of which is yet again in limbo…the publishers decided against The Boy in the Pool, so stay tuned).

Meanwhile, Jason is reading on his own and attending Institute class and Mission Prep once a week (and we’re really grateful to the young men that give him rides home when they can). This weekend we’ll probably be shopping for a laptop for him to get used to using for his classes that start in September. He wants a Google Chrome book.

Anyone familiar with those? If so, please comment below, including both pros and cons.

Originally posted 2012-07-27 06:00:41.

The Balancing Act

When I set out to write I didn’t give much thought to publishing, let alone marketing. Now agents everywhere say your online marketing is an essential aspect of your professionalism as a writer. Many won’t even consider your work unless you have a significant online presence.

I can understand their point of view. After all, if the publishing house is no longer going to spend the time and money to really promote their beginning and midlist authors, who will? Certainly not your busy agent, beyond a tweet or a FB mention here and there. However, all this concern for marketing has gotten in the way of my writing. It has blocked my writing in ways I never envisioned.

It was so refreshing, then, to read Dean Wesley Smith’s take on keeping your writing first and foremost in answer to a comment on this excellent post:

There are a lot of promotions that are just a total waste of time. The best way to sell a book is write another one and then another one and make each one better. It won’t sell a lot of copies instantly as is the produce model of thinking, but over the long haul, you’ll make a ton more money and be a better writer.

I suggest most promotion be simply your web site (I am failing on this at the moment because of links, but fixing that), your publisher’s web site (we’re about to get WMG Publishing web site actually up and running), an occasional facebook post and an occasional twitter post. I don’t do either, really.

There are other things that do work a little. For trade paper books, WMG does catalogs to send to bookstores and we are making nice money that way. And sending out proofs, both electronic and paper, for major reviews of new books tends to work if your publishing house looks professional and your book looks professional.

But the rest is pretty time-wasting for most writers. They would be much better served in a five year plan to just write more work and get more readers. Let word of mouth spread the news about your great books. But again, that takes time and you can’t expect it to happen in a few months or even the first year.

I’m going to realign my social media efforts and put them back on the back burner where they belong. I can dip into Twitter 2-3 times a week, and maybe stir my FB status once or twice a week. I’m fortunate that Google+ hasn’t yet swallowed me up (and when it beckons, I’ll have to relegate it to the back burner, as well). What I can’t afford to do is get so sucked into internet surfing that I forget the main course–my writing.

Originally posted 2011-07-15 15:19:14.

I’m Ready for Review (I Think)

Once you add Google Friend Connect to your website, you feel absolutely naked online. It’s as if you’re alone in a vast wilderness. Hello? Can anyone hear me?

I decided tonight that I would throw all caution to the wind and invite all 600+ Facebook friends to check out the new website, leave some comments, and…hopefully…keep me company in that bare area of white space under “Followers” in the side bar.

Of course, I realize that most of my acquaintances aren’t checking out Facebook right now. After all, it’s FHE night. So all you ACS alumni–now’s the time to show some support, okay? I’m hoping that by tomorrow morning I’ll get a few hits and a few Google Friends. (I guess I’d better send out a few emails as insurance.)

Anyway, I’m still working on getting my book trailer embedded on the home page, as well as a few other images. But please feel free to tell me what works and what doesn’t. The Bio’s too long, isn’t it? And I know I need to post a couple of sample chapters from The Reckoning and my newly finished manuscript, Laps. I have a ton of links that still need to be added, plus some poetry. But I’d welcome comments on the Baghdad photos in the meantime. Should I add photos of Greece or Lebanon?

This is still very much a work in progress, so put your two cents in now.

Originally posted 2010-05-17 20:52:43.