“The New Paradigm of Online Publishing”

“How do I get attention for my self-published book?”

“How can I impress the bookstore owners in my community?”

“How did you get all those endorsements for your first book? I guess you have to know someone. I could never get that for my book.”

These are questions we are often asked by aspiring authors, and we always explain that we bribed a bunch of people. No, seriously, we suggest, as a first step, that you find and become part of the literary activity in your community.

Case in point: Ransom Stephens is someone we’ve known for years—not as an author, but as a volunteer at San Francisco’s high-profile literary events. We’ve described him as “the smile of Litquake.” (Litquake is San Francisco’s stellar week-long literary festival, and it wouldn’t be the same for authors without Ransom’s warmth at the welcome table.) Ransom has also participated in the San Francisco Writers Conference (coming up this weekend—they’re sold out but there’s still room in their “preconference day” at www.sfwriters.org) and bookstore events too numerous to mention here.

Ransom hasn’t stopped at volunteering, which is in itself a rewarding experience. He has also embarked on a non-traditional publishing adventure. His novel, The God Patent, was originally published as an e-novel and did so well that Numina Press asked for publication rights. The San Francisco Chronicle describes Ransom’s book as “The first debut novel to emerge from the new paradigm of online publishing . . . an ambitious first novel that sings of the heart and the scientific method as two parts of the same song.”  The God Patent is now officially available in print.

We think Ransom’s book deserves attention because he’s a terrific writer. But there are a lot of good writers out there, and we read his press release, and are now promoting his book on our blog, because we know him as a beloved member of our local literary world.

Our two cents: don’t hesitate to volunteer your time, intelligence, and energy at literary events in your town. You’ll meet fellow writers, influential booksellers, and other shakers and movers. You’ll be helping a good cause. And when your turn as a debut author rolls around, you’ll “know someone.” 

Don’t Be A Crazy Author

HarperOne, the imprint of HarperCollins where Sam works, receives a lot of interesting email. So does every other publisher on the planet. When we say “interesting,” we don’t mean in a good way, as in attention-grabbing or remarkable; we mean odd, bizarre, and even crazy.

People in publishing, especially people with the title of publisher or editor, are contacted daily by writers with book ideas. Good  ideas are always welcome—we need more and are constantly on the lookout for the next great book. But a lot of components are required to make a book work; we’ve talked about this in our blog and column, and will continue to do so.

A certain percentage of the ideas that land on publishers and agents’ doorsteps simply make no sense, and they are often sent by people who come across as mentally unbalanced.

For instance, there was the doctor author who shared in his bio that he had lost his license to practice when he was imprisoned for sexual misconduct, but who felt he still had some good sound medical advice to share with the world. He certainly helped us make our decision by being so forthcoming. And the other day at HarperOne we received an envelope containing three playing cards and two clippings from celebrity gossip magazines. The cards and clippings had completely indecipherable handwriting all over them consisting of numbers and fragments of oversea addresses—we think. Who knows? We won’t ever know, as there was no contact information included in the package. Which is just as well.

Getting a book published is something like launching a new career, and two essential components of successfully initiating a new career are a resume and a job interview. Think of your query letter, book proposal, or manuscript as your resume and job interview, since there is a good chance you won’t meet anyone until after they’ve “hired” you, i.e. bought your book.

People don’t often hire the lunatic fringe. Publishers don’t publish the lunatic fringe either, unless they are famous lunatics who already host a talk show.

Take our word for it: you don’t want to come across as one of the crazies, because you’ll just wind up in the paper or digital recycling bin.

The World Still Loves A Good Story

In these Wild West days in publishing everyone is angling for position. The latest shoving match came when Amazon temporarily stopped selling books by the major publisher Macmillan, following a dispute over e-book terms. While this particular tussle seems to be resolved, it is a sign that the old rules have been tossed out, and no one is sure what the new rules will be.

What does this mean to authors? We can’t say for sure, yet, but it is certainly good news that so many important companies: Google, Apple, Amazon, Barnes & Nobles, Wal-Mart, etc.—care enough about books to be concerned. And from what we see, deals are still being made. So keep on writing, writers! For now, let the publishers and big players in retail wrangle about book formats, pricing, and the role of agents—your job is to produce interesting and well-written manuscripts.

Readers still love a great story, and we think they always will.

Do Book Reviews Still Matter?

Do book reviews still matter? Conventional wisdom suggests that reviews in print publications are crucial for a book’s success. Starting with what we call in publishing the trade publications, or “the trades” (such as Publishers Weekly and Library Journal), and moving on to major newspapers and magazines, authors and publishers alike place a lot of importance on a book’s “reviewability.” Even a bad review could boost sales, if it is the right kind of bad.

However, lately we’ve been seeing ads for panel discussions suggesting the notion that in our wild new online-publishing world reviews are becoming less important to a book’s success. We asked Jane Beirn, Senior Director of Publicity at HarperCollins, what she thinks.

“Print reviews still matter,” she says. “It’s the simultaneity of reviews that makes an impact. Nonetheless, I am trying to enhance coverage with online reviews, but the jury is still out on their ultimate effect.”

So writers, you heard it from a pro. Tweet all you want, but it’s still awfully nice to get a rave in the New York Times, San Francisco Chronicle, BookPage, or better yet, all three. The important thing to remember is that a well-timed publicity campaign will be more successful than one conducted in dribs and drabs. Whatever they are . . .

The iPad Comes Out

At the moment we are writing this, Apple is announcing the launch of its newest device, the iPad. The iPad, which will be available in March for a WiFi iPad and April for the 3G version, has a ten-inch glass screen, a decent-size virtual keyboard, weighs a pound and a half, is about the size of a slim hardcover book, and is priced to sell (for Apple) at $499 to $829, depending on which model you choose. In eBook world this new gadget is expected to take on Amazon’s Kindle by providing users with much higher quality video and audio capability, which can be used to enhance the reading experience (as well as enabling the user to email, keep a calendar, watch videos, listen to music, surf the web, and play games). The device includes a virtual bookstore that slides open to reveal images of books on shelves. Users turn the pages with their fingers and can navigate around a book. Publishers and authors can add videos, pictures, and additional content.

We don’t have any hard news to add that you can’t find in more detail on other blogs. There are blogs dedicated to every aspect of Apple’s business, including what Steve Jobs had for breakfast this morning (it’s a secret). Publishers are paying attention to Apple’s new device because it may break Amazon’s virtual monopoly of the eBook market. For some time Amazon has been setting the price of eBooks; the publishers would like to wrest back the prerogative in this area of the business. In other words, they’d like to be able to charge more for eBooks. To justify charging a higher price, books will need to offer more—hence, the importance of the iPad, which can do more things better than the Kindle.

The iPad launch is a big development in publishing, and that’s why five major publishers announced that they have signed agreements to work with Apple—a whole new market of iPad and iPhone users is about to open up.

So what’s next? Our guess is that in time we will move to one standard platform for gadgets like the iPad—and derivations from it—and that the price will go down, enabling more people to own these devuces. This is good, because it is another way for authors to reach readers. But that’s later—for now we are in the Wild West days of eBook gadgets and publishing online.

Coming Soon: the San Francisco Writers Conference

At noon on Valentines Day, the Author Enablers will be presenting at the Seventh Annual San Francisco Writers Conference (San Francisco, February 12 – 14, 2010 http://www.sfwriters.org/) along with nearly 100 other agents, editors, and authors. Our presentation, FROM INSPIRATION TO BACKLIST: A Guided Tour of the Publication Process, offers a preview of our forthcoming book, Write That Book Already! (Adams Media, May 2010).

Attendees have access to more than fifty “how to” sessions, panels, and workshops taught by authors you know and love. Speed Dating for Agents and Ask a Pro offer one-on-one opportunities to pitch your work directly to an agent or editor. Other events include book signings and social gatherings with other writers.

We’ve been on the faculty of this conference ever since its beginning (seven years ago), and think it’s a great place to get basic information about publishing as well as meet influential players in the industry and network with other writers. But more than anything else, spending a weekend thinking about nothing but your own writing can’t be a bad thing.

Time to Buy an E-Reader?

Just a short time ago the future of the eBook and, or for that matter, publishing in general was in doubt. Now a different debate is in the air—which device will win the contest? Amazon’s Kindle? Barnes and Noble’s Nook? The Sony Reader? The new Apple Tablet? Some other device? While your Author Enablers are aware of these books (Sam’s book How to Play the Harmonica: And Other Life Lessons is available as an eBook and phone app and no doubt the Author Enablers’ forthcoming Write That Book Already! (Adams Media, May 2010) will be available in all these digital formats) neither of us has spent a lot of time reading this way. Come to our house and you will still see the traditional format by our bedside and in our traveling bags. And now we are wondering when it will be time to commit: which device is best? Or should we wait, because in a few years all eBooks will be issued on one standard platform, and today’s transitional models will have gone the way of the 8-track tape deck? We can imagine $20 eReaders being available in the supermarket.

Fellow readers—what’s a reader to do when it comes to buying a reader?

When Will a Self-Published, Online Book Becomes a Bestseller?

We here at the Author Enablers are wondering when a book published solely online will go viral and become a bestseller. In some ways it has already happened. For instance, many of the essays in Traveling Mercies by Anne Lamott were originally published in Salon.com. Julie and Julia: My Year of Cooking Dangerously by Julie Powell famously originated in a blog, leading to a book and a movie.

It seems to us that it is only a matter of time before a book will be self-published online, without a print edition, and will become an online bestseller. This will lead to a print edition, which will become a traditional bestseller. Perhaps it will be a religion book, since this is an area where self-publishing is thriving. We don’t know. Will this book be yours? Keep us posted.

Partying with the Pulpwood Queens

Last night we danced to a live band playing “Brick House” and “Sweet Home Alabama” with dozens of women dressed in costumes based on Wizard of Oz characters. We were featured authors at the Pulpwood Queens’ Tenth Annual Girlfriend’s Weekend, the brainchild of Kathy Patrick, creator of Beauty and the Book (the only hair salon/bookstore in the USA), an event that has to be experienced to be properly understood.

 

What does this have to do with literature? Well, among the many other wonderful presentations this weekend was Pat Conroy, who was there for his new book South of Broad, telling stories as only he can. While we were there we sold copies of Kathi’s novel And My Shoes Keep Walking Back to You and Sam’s How to Play the Harmonica: and Other Life Lessons, and we promoted the Author Enablers’ forthcoming book, Write That Book Already! (Adams Media, March 2010).

Does it make sense to travel all the way from California to a foreign nation like Texas to give a talk and sell some books? Does it make sense for authors to take time from writing and their busy lives to go to events like the Pulpwood Queens Girlfriend Weekend (although there is really nothing else quite like the Pulpwood Queens, who are pretty magical)?

Your Author Enablers say yes, absolutely, go for it and attend events like this one. The Internet may be changing the publishing game, but there is still nothing like meeting face to face with the people who matter most to authors: readers. As an author, you gain experience and a sense of who your audience is that can’t be fully understood sitting alone, writing (your other crucial task).

We’re not saying you should attend any event that comes along. It must make sense financially and logistically. But we are saying that attending book clubs and other author-related events is an important part of what writers do to earn the title of “author.”

And in the case of the Pulpwood Queens’ Girlfriend Weekend, it’s also wonderful fun.

Does It Pay to Write for Online Publications?

Librarian Teresa Vosper is considering freelance writing to supplement her income. “I read about websites such as Examiner.com, Textbroker.com, and myams.net, that promise to establish you as a writer and pay you for your articles,” writes Teresa. “How legitimate are these websites, and are these websites really the proper way to establish oneself as a freelance writer in the twenty-first century?”

Broadly speaking the answer is yes, writing for websites is a legitimate way to establish your credentials and make a little money, too. As with all occupations, how beneficial the arrangement is must be determined on a case-by-case basis. We know people who write for online publications and some who are even making a career out of this. That said, writing for the sites you mention is not a great way to make cash, though you will gain writing experience and bylines. Worker beware, as in, be aware.

This article in The Weekly Paystub quotes several people who write for some of these entities. We invite other writers to share their experience and questions here about writing for online publications.