Wednesday, April 30, 2014

Book Publishing Secrets: Interview with Gulten Dye, author of 'Semi-Coma: Evolution of My Intermittent Consciousness'

Our guest today is Gulten Dye, author of Semi-Coma: Evolution of My Intermittent Consciousness. She is here to give her experiences as a self-published author.

Thank you for your time in answering our questions about getting published.  Lets begin by having you explain to us why you decided to become an author and pen this book?

For as long as I can remember, I have always loved writing. Whenever there was a pen in front of me, and regardless if there was any paper to write on or not, I would write on anything in sight, which included my hand, trousers, or my shoes.  It literally included anything.  At different times, especially when I would go for walks and forget to carry a pen, I would find myself writing on the ground with my finger. To answer your question about why I wanted to become an author I don't remember consciously thinking that I wanted to become anything. I just wanted to write a book and I did.
Is this your first book?
 Yes, it's my first published book.
With this particular book, how did you publish traditional, small press, Indie, etc. and why did you choose this method?
I decided to self-publish my book since I did not think I possessed any patience to pursue the traditional publishing methods. I knew that once I wrote it, that they would pick it up, but surprise, surprise, it took longer than I could ever have imagined to self-publish.  
Can you tell us a little about your publishing journey?  The pros and cons?
As with anything else, although I knew that I could do anything that I set my mind to do, including self-publishing, it was an amazing accomplishment for me since I had no clue as to how much I didn't know!  So although it took a bit longer than I had planned, during the process of self-publishing, I have learned a lot of very useful information that I will be able to use in the future for my other publishing needs. The biggest thing I can think on the side of the cons has been by self-publishing my book, I took on all the promotion and marketing of my book myself, which is another foreign subject to me.
What lessons do you feel you learned about your particular publishing journey and about the publishing industry as a whole?
I learned patience. I learned that unlike my experience as an operating room nurse, and, later as a jewelry designer, my decisions were final and were always made in an instant.  But in self-publishing since there were a lot of topics that were so foreign to me, like editing, lay out, and electronic versions of the drawings that I wanted to use in my book, it took several people's assistance, which meant that I had to depend on them, as well as wait on their timing to help me.
Would you recommend this method of publishing to other authors?
I definitely would. What I learned more than anything is that we are capable of fulfilling any of our desires regardless of the subject. I am here to tell you by taking matters into your own hands, in the case self-publishing like I did, is not only doable, and might be much more rewarding than the idea of someone else deciding if your writing is good enough or not to be published.
Whats the best advice you can give to aspiring authors?
Just write. Write what comes to your mind, but do it from your heart. Your book doesn't have to look like anybody else's, and no one in your neck of the woods has to think that it is very good, nor does it have to be any good. I promise that if you keep writing, there will come a day when you think what you have written is very good, and when that day comes, be ready to take the responsibility of publishing it no matter what method of publishing you choose. And by the way, good luck to all of you.

About the Author:



Gulten Dye was born and raised in a small town in Turkey and moved with her family to Istanbul as a small child.  It was there that she earned a bachelor’s degree in nursing, and worked as a nurse at a local hospital before moving to the Philippines with her boyfriend.

After being there a little over a year, they got married and a short while after that moved to Shreveport, Louisiana where she immediately began her studies to be able to work as a Registered Nurse. While studying for her boards, she was allowed to work as a scrub technician in an operating room at a nearby surgery center. She passed her boards and worked in an operating room for many years before moving to Las Vegas, Nevada there she worked at a busy University Medical Trauma Center as a staff nurse for several years until she earned the position of Charge Nurse.

By 2001, she was divorced and living with her two young sons.  Her desire to make more money became her impetus to start her own business, which soon became her sole source of income as her success grew.  She has never looked back.

Gulten found her talent and passion in creating one-of-a-kind jewelry pieces and sold them to well-known people, such as Celine Dion, Rachel Ray and Mary Higgins Clark.  She became an international success when her work showed on Entertainment Tonight and Insider and was for sale in the high-end casinos in Las Vegas and on high-end cruise liners. She then created a jewelry line called Metamorphosis, a line of interchangeable jewelry that brought her even greater success.

Gulten is also an author and self- published her first book Semi Coma - Evolution of my Intermittent Consciousness in 2011, currently selling on all digital media as well as in hard copy.  Her second book “The Missing Link” is awaiting publication in 2013.

In 2013, she opened her new concept store where she not only sells her own designs, but includes many local artists of different medium, including a local authors section.  In turn for being able to sell their artwork in her store, all artists have agreed to teach others their medium for the future generation free thinkers.

Gulten lives and creates in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Visit her website at www.gultendye.com.
 

About the Book: 


This book is about self-discovery and the journey that awakened me to the many facets of life. The road hasn’t always been easy with its tolls and junctions. It’s about my struggle to discover who I really am, what I believe in and how I’ve arrived at a place where I am able to appreciate myself and my surroundings.

Most of my life I lived in a state of arrested consciousness without being aware of it. Then one day out of nowhere my eyes opened just enough for me to question my way of living and my state of mind. That was the day questions started to arrive. They were nothing like the questions I had before. As if they weren’t even questions they were an unraveling string of realizations followed by overwhelming sorrow. How could I have lived my life as if I was in a semi coma and in turn induce my own suffering?

Of course in the beginning of seeing I didn’t realize that my eyes would open slightly from time to time to give me an illusion of happiness, but because I had no idea what true happiness was I would drift back to my state of familiarity. I lived my life mostly on an automatic life-sustaining machine by my body without my mind interfering with it.

It is my hope that the stories I share with you will somehow touch your heart, perhaps crack open a door and shine a light for you to embark on your own quest of self-discovery. I don’t presume to have all the answers; I don’t even know all the questions. At the very least, I am seeking to understand and allow life to happen; learning to take responsibility and ownership of myself and my actions, and appreciating all that is.

Read the chapters, each on its own. As you move through them, you will uncover my intermittent consciousness as I explore my thoughts or beliefs and might be able to even get a glimpse of my evolution along the way. 

I am blessed to have had so many people touch my life and, knowingly or unknowingly, helped me on my journey. I have come to realize that because we are all one, that anything I come to know and am willing to share with others affects all of us in a positive way. With great humility, I open up my imperfect, yet perfect, life for you to walk beside me. I am forever grateful and honored. 

Purchase your copy at AMAZON


Tuesday, April 29, 2014

Book Publishing Secrets: Interview with Annu Subramanian, author of 'Another Heaven'

Our guest today is Annu Subramanian, author of Another Heaven, and is published by Apprentice House.  She is here to give her experiences as a small press author.

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Thank you for your time in answering our questions about getting published.  Let’s begin by having you explain to us why you decided to become an author and pen this book?
 
Annu: While teaching a high school course titled Eastern Literature, my research invariably led to two global issues; human trafficking and terrorism. Compelled by the more recent events involving acts of terrorism, I decided to write this research-based novel. An incident that occurred close to my home in India, an explosion that was triggered at the end of a
dispute between two religious groups, cemented the purpose in my mind to expose the atrocities associated with human trafficking and terrorism, and I began to write the first chapter of Another Heaven. This is a story I had to tell.

Is this your first book?


Annu: This is my second.

With this particular book, how did you publish – traditional, small press, Indie, etc. – and why did you choose this method?
University press. Apprentice House (Loyola University) is my publisher. As an educator, I was drawn to this publishing house as it is the only publishing facility that is primarily run by students, with guidance from professors and mentors. Publishing is a powerful media, and I am glad these students have an opportunity to learn it first-hand while they are in an environment that fosters writing and reading.

Can you tell us a little about your publishing journey?  The pros and cons?

Annu: Finding a publishing company that matches the writer’s needs is hard. This publisher understood my rationale behind the novel and supported my cause, and I chose to publish my novel with Apprentice House.


What lessons do you feel you learned about your particular publishing journey and about the publishing industry as a whole?

Annu: Writing is the easier part of creating a book. However, getting a book published is a very difficult task.


Would you recommend this method of publishing to other authors?


Annu: It depends on the project and the author’s needs.


What’s the best advice you can give to aspiring authors?


Annu: Be passionate about the topic you have chosen. You are writing a book and allowing your readers to step into a different world because your voice is bursting to come out. Speak to the world as freely and as often as you can.
 
 


Annu Subramanian is the director of the Writing Center at Brown School, Schenectady, New York. She co-founded Albany Women Connection, a support group in Albany, New York. She was chosen as one of four national finalists by the Norman Mailer Center and National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) in 2011 for her short story, SO FAIR AND VERY LOVELY. She was chosen as Educator of Excellence in 2011 by the New York State English Council.



Her latest book is the factu-fiction, Another Heaven.



Visit her website at www.annusubramanian.com.



Thursday, April 24, 2014

Book Publishing Secrets: Interview with Barry Rudner, Author of 'Silent Voice'

Barry Rudner has been an author/poet of self-esteem books for children for over thirty years, dealing with universal truths such as, reaching for your dreams, homelessness, undying friendships, disability awareness, always being yourself, autism awareness, hope and utter silliness. He firmly believes that we cannot educate our children unless they feel good about who they are; and ultimately, as they grow up, they will not feel good about themselves unless they educate themselves.

Thank you for your time in answering our questions about getting published. Let’s begin by having you explain to us why you decided to become an author and pen this book?

Barry: While I was in graduate school in the late ‘70s, I was at a friend’s house. He had a room mate who was taking a children’s literature course. On the kitchen table was Shel Silvertein’s, The Giving Tree. I read it, put it down and knew I would spend the rest of my life pursuing the most linear thought that has ever been committed to paper for children.

The book that was just published, Silent Voice, is a modern day allegory about autism awareness. Whether most of us are aware of it or not, children that fall within the spectrum of autism is a pandemic disorder: afflicting one in eighty-eight children worldwide. This is a staggering number. What is even more staggering, is the population who is not even aware of the problem.

Is this your first book?

Barry: No, this is not my first book. There are nine previous fairy tales or allegories written for children. They deal with universal truths such as reaching for your dreams, being yourself, disability awareness, homelessness, the ecology and other topical issues, as well as utter silliness.

With this particular book, how did you publish – traditional, small press, Indie, etc. – and why did you choose this method?

Barry: This book, Silent Voice, is a hybrid of all of the methods above. Since it is so target specific, and the need for awareness so enormous in scope, we decided to take the best that all publishing genres had to offer and use them to launch its success.

Can you tell us a little about your publishing journey? The pros and cons?

Barry: It took eleven years to get my first book, The Littlest Tall Fellow, published. For anyone aspiring to become an author, do not take rejection personally. Take it as a complement. It means your work is being circulated. You are looking for that one editor who is searching for that very manuscript
you have written.

What lessons do you feel you learned about your particular publishing journey and about the publishing industry as a whole?

Barry: It is the toughest business you will ever love. But even editors are human. Case in point: I once met the editor at a symposium who rejected Richard Bach's, Jonathan Livingston Seagull, because there was no mass market appeal for it. Need I say more.

Would you recommend this method of publishing to other authors?

Barry: With the advent and evolution of digital printing today, if you feel that strongly about your project then print the book in limited numbers to circulate it. The industry has come a long way and the advantage now belongs to the author.

What’s the best advice you can give to aspiring authors?

Barry: Firstly, learn the word “rewrite”. Even Hemingway said, “The first draft of anything is #@$#.”

Secondly, learn your craft. I write children’s literature. Specifically thirty-two page picture books. But for years I read Campbell, Eliade, Fletcher, Burton, Bettelheim, Grimm and many others. I truly believe you must always remain a student.

Lastly, I recommend this book for any author who wishes to enter the arena of writing. Although it was written specifically for screenplays, its information is invaluable. More times than I wish to count, I have read this book by Robert McKee, entitled, Story. He taught me the three most important concepts I have ever read about story. The first is to always write from the inside out. The second is to always look for the turning point or transition. The third is to never fall in love with what you write: the chances are it will end up in the recycle bin.

Connect with the author and publisher on the web:

Wednesday, April 23, 2014

Book Publishing Secrets: Interview with David Burnsworth, author of 'Southern Heat'

Our guest today is David Burnsworth, author of Southern Heat, and is published by Five Star/Gale.  He is here to give his experiences as a traditional published author.

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Thank you for your time in answering our questions about getting published.  Let’s begin by having you explain to us why you decided to become an author and pen this book?
First of all, thank you for asking.  My story is probably typical.  From as far back as the eighth grade, I’ve always enjoyed writing.  I can remember getting jazzed up about writing assignments, even though I was not the best student.  Instead of following my writing interest in college, I went into Engineering.  While that decision has provided a
nice livelihood, I knew there was something missing.  It took encouragement from my wife to get me to sit down and write.  And thanks to her support, I have a book out there with my name on it.
Is this your first book?
Yes, but I’m working hard to make sure it isn’t the last.
With this particular book, how did you publish – traditional, small press, Indie, etc. – and why did you choose this method?
My publisher is Five Star / Gale.  It’s a small imprint within a big publisher and they have been wonderful to work with.  I didn’t choose this path in as much as they chose me.  I knew I wanted to publish the traditional way, and I found a great match with Five Star.
Can you tell us a little about your publishing journey?  The pros and cons?
Let’s start with the cons.  I have a file full of rejection letters from agents collected over about four years of submissions.  I don’t blame them—my work wasn’t ready and they knew it.  It took help from a professional editor to get Southern Heat to the point of being ready for a contract.
The pros are much better.  I believe it doesn’t matter what your personal story is, you will not succeed in getting published without the help of others.  I have been fortunate enough to have joined a great organization called South Carolina Writers Workshop.  Through their critique sessions, I learned how to write.  The networking opportunities I received while attending SCWW conferences have proven invaluable.  That was how I found a reputable editor.  And then there are the folks at Killer Nashville who bend over backwards to help authors.  My first time there and armed with a decent manuscript, I found a publisher and an agent.

What lessons do you feel you learned about your particular publishing journey and about the publishing industry as a whole?
The publishing industry is a business.  They are there to make money, or else they won’t be there for long.  There are no free rides.  You have to be serious about writing something people will want to buy.  And you have to be serious about marketing your work.  I’ve been blessed in my publishing journey.  The right people were there to tell me when my work wasn’t ready.  And the right people were there when it was.
Would you recommend this method of publishing to other authors?
While there is something to be said for the total control self-publishing gives authors, I’m not sure I’d have known enough to make the right decisions.  I have a phenomenal agent, a hard-working publicist, and good relationship with a publisher.  That is what I know and that is what I would recommend.
What’s the best advice you can give to aspiring authors?
Decide what you want out of your writing.  If you like to write because it makes you happy, then by all means write.  If you want to have your work published and sell books, you will have to learn the business.  Find a support group of other writers like SCWW and go to conferences.  Network with those in the publishing industry.  Be intentional.

 
David Burnsworth became fascinated with the Deep South at a young age. After a degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Tennessee and fifteen years in the corporate world, he made the decision to write a novel. Southern Heat is his first mystery. Having lived in Charleston on Sullivan’s Island for five years, the setting was a foregone conclusion. He and his wife along with their dog call South Carolina home.
His latest book is the southern noir/mystery, Southern Heat.

Visit his website at www.davidburnsworthbooks.com

Connect & Socialize with David!