Sunday, April 26, 2015

Book Publishing Secrets with Chris Karlsen, author of 'Silk'

Book Title:  Silk
Genre:  Suspense/thriller
PublisherBooks to Go Now
Thank you for your time in answering our questions about getting published, Chris.  Let’s begin by having you explain to us why you decided to become an author and pen this book?
Author: From the time I was a teenager I rewrote scenes and story endings in my mind. After I retired, I decided to stop imagining and write my own stories. As a retired detective, I enjoy a good mystery. I'd written and had published 5 other books, historical romances and romantic thrillers. I thought it was time to try a suspense thriller that wasn't a romance.  I like to write in different time periods and had a detective protagonist in mind and chose Victorian London as the perfect setting for him.
Is this your first book?
Author: No. This is my sixth. This is book one of a new series though.
With this particular book, how did you publish – traditional, small press, Indie, etc. – and why did you choose this method?
Author:  Books to Go Now is a small, indie publisher. I got tired of trying to break into the NY publishers. I knew the owner of Books to Go Now and knew I'd have a lot of input in getting my story out  and I trusted her with all aspects of the book.
Can you tell us a little about your publishing journey?  The pros and cons?
Author:  The pros have been working with a publisher that was enormously patient with all my questions and who made good suggestions. I love working with the cover designer. She's done 5 of my 6 books. I have a certain vision for what I want with each and she understands my aesthetic. It's a lot of work but I like making the trailers for each. I have a PA that put the last two together with the soundtrack and stock images I sent her. She's another with a good understanding of what I am going for.
The cons have been trying to get noticed by NY agents and editors. It can get you down when you go to a conference and pitch your story to 30 agents and editors and 2/3 ask for a partial and then you never hear back. You don't even get a standard reject letter with many. Some you know haven't even read the first chapter. You email the manuscript and the reject comes within a day. A lot of times you're told they aren't interested in the storyline or genre or this and that. Part of you just has to wonder why they asked for the partial. Another con is when you pitch your story and the editor/agent listens and then totally ignores the pitch and asks if you can write a completely different story. For example: Many years ago I pitched my paranormal ghost romance. After I went through the whole pitch the editor blinked and asked if I could write a mermaid story, they didn't have any of those. I politely turned her down. 
What lessons do you feel you learned about your particular publishing journey and about the publishing industry as a whole?
Author:  You need a tough skin. You will likely get rejected many times. You have to learn to deal with bad reviews. Everyone gets them even the biggest authors.  Readers will like and dislike the same story for a variety of reasons. Some of the bad reviews won't make sense to you and other readers simply don't like your plot or your characters or your style. Read reviews or don't, but resist letting the negative ones affect you too much.
Once you're published you must, must be ready to commit a great amount of time to promotion. There are hundreds of thousands of books out. You can't get noticed if you don't promote. I also feel the days of only going through NY and the big publishing houses are diminishing. I find a lot of self-pubbed and indie pubbed authors are doing very well. The small houses like mine are growing and becoming strong contenders in publishing.
Would you recommend this method of publishing to other authors?
Author:  Absolutely.
What’s the best advice you can give to aspiring authors?
Author: Don't write a story in a genre that has no interest for you just because it's a popular genre. You have to love what you write or it will show in the story.
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Purchase on Amazon

SUMMARY
London-Fall, 1888
The city is in a panic as Jack the Ripper continues his murderous spree. While the Whitechapel police struggle to find him, Detective Inspector Rudyard Bloodstone and his partner are working feverishly to find their own serial killer. The British Museum's beautiful gardens have become a killing ground for young women strangled as they stroll through.
Their investigation has them brushing up against Viscount Everhard, a powerful member of the House of Lords, and a friend to Queen Victoria. When the circumstantial evidence points to him as a suspect, Rudyard must deal with the political blowback, and knows if they are going to go after the viscount, they'd better be right and have proof.
As the body count grows and the public clamor for the detectives to do more, inter-department rivalries complicate the already difficult case.





Wednesday, April 15, 2015

Book Publishing Secrets with Joel Fox, author of 'The Mark on Eve'

Name: Joel Fox
Book Title: The Mark on Eve
Genre: Paranormal suspense
Publisher: Bronze Circle Press
Link to Amazon
Author website
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?
Joel: Thank you for the opportunity to talk to you. This particular book comes out of a combination of my love for history and a desire to answer the Great Writer’s Question: What if? This book is actually drawn from a Cape Cod legend in which a woman in colonial New England was suspected of witchcraft in drawing her pirate lover’s ship into a storm and the ship sank in 1717. The pirate ship was real and it was discovered and salvaged in 1984.  I simply took some of the persons in the old legend and changed the story by asking: What if the woman was not a witch but was be-witched to live forever? It allowed me to explore how she would manage through different periods in American history. All the while suspense builds in the modern day story in which she tries to keep her secret while giving meaning to her long existence by helping a female governor run for president of the United States.
Is this your first book?
Joel: How to answer that question? I wrote a draft of this book a dozen years ago. However, I subsequently went on to publish two other books in a mystery series. I created a character, Zane Rigby, a senior FBI agent, who finds himself against his wishes assigned to Cases of Historical Significance in which he has to solve a puzzle from a president’s past history in order to unravel a modern day murder mystery. I have written two books in the series, Lincoln’s Hand and FDR’s Treasure. I went back to The Mark on Eve and completed it because I always liked the story and my wife said she thought it was different and her favorite.
With this particular book, how did you publish – traditional, small press, Indie, etc. – and why did you choose this method?
Joel: I self-published this book. My first published book was with a small press. However, I felt the small press gave me few advantages whereas self- publication would give me more control.
Can you tell us a little about your publishing journey?  The pros and cons?
Joel: As I noted above, I went from a small press to self-publication. While the small press gave me confidence that my writing was acceptable and gave hints on how to help market the book, most of the marketing work falls to the author. While the work falls to the author, the rewards are limited. My feeling was that if I were going to do the marketing work necessary to sell the book without very little help from the small press then I could continue the same work ethic but reap greater rewards. It seems to be working that way. Of course, with a small press, you more easily can get into distribution networks and you have a group of other writers, also members of the press, with whom you can team up with ideas on selling the book. But with no money for a marketing campaign from the press, you are basically on your own.
Another advantage to the small press is they will provide an editor and create a book cover. When you self-publish you have to create a cover, usually by hiring an appropriate artist. You should also hire a professional editor to look at your story and your writing. Especially with self-publishing you must be as professional as possible.
What lessons do you feel you learned about your particular publishing journey and about the publishing industry as a whole?
Joel: As we all know, the publishing industry is constantly changing. You have to do your best keeping up with the technological changes and the effects of those changes on the business. The major lesson I learned is that you have to be engaged in the business side of publishing. Authors must understand, unless they produce a major hit with a major publisher, they are the marketer-in-chief for their book. They must engage.
Would you recommend this method of publishing to other authors?
Joel: I don’t mean to cop-out with this answer but I would say, “It depends.” If you don’t mind taking risks and sailing out on a sea alone and are willing to do the work, self-publishing is a respectable avenue to take and one that can be more rewarding compared to some other publishing experiences. If you want the security and reputation of a recognizable house behind you, then an author should get an agent and attempt to go that route.
What’s the best advice you can give to aspiring authors?
Joel: Publishing a work can be intimidating but first you need a work to publish. That means you have to write the work, finish it, and have a professional editor work with you. And the best way to move your writing along is to ask the Great Writer’s Question: What if?



Wednesday, April 8, 2015

Book Publishing Secrets with Graciela Limón, author of 'The Intriguing Life of Ximena Godoy'

Book Title: The Intriguing Life of Ximena Godoy
Genre: Historical Fiction/Hispanic
Publisher: Café Con Leche

Graciela Limón, born in Los Angeles, California, is the daughter of Mexican immigrants.  She attended public and Catholic schools in her hometown, and continued on to university after which she became a professor of Latina/o Literature.  Parallel to her teaching she has been an activist in Latina affairs, gender affairs and Trans Border issues.  Limón has published nine novels, including her latest work, The Intriguing Life of Ximena Godoy.

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

Graciela:  I’ve been an author for years, and the reasons for writing each of my novels has varied.  However, as I look back on that work I sense that at the heart of it all has been an intense desire to portray the inner condition of Latinas, which is my own background.  I never stop being intrigued by the vastness and complexity of that condition; very much like a large canvas on which appear different women in different times and spaces.  With my latest novel, it was my character Ximena Godoy’s own time and space that intrigued me.  It was also her unconventional and untraditional manner that captivated me, but above all, her complexity and unpredictability fascinated me beginning to end.

Is this your first book?

Graciela: No.  I’ve published eight prior novels.

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

Graciela:   I’ve published this particular novel with Café Con Leche, a new imprint of Koehler Books Publisher.  I’m thrilled to say that my book was selected as the first of the works under this new imprint aimed at our Latina/o readership.  Why did I choose this method?  Well, it’s more that we chose one another.  It’s historical, meaningful, and I feel honored that my book was chosen as the lead title.

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

Graciela:  First of all, it’s never easy.  The road to publication of an author’s work is always filled with challenges, bumpy roads and a lot of hurt.  The many rejections hit hard.  The harsh, negative criticisms hurt, and needless to say, it’s hard not to lose heart.  This part of my publishing journey has been a contra.  However, when I look back and see that I have indeed traveled the road, that somehow my work has prevailed, I have no regrets, only joy.  And this is definitely a pro. 

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

Graciela:  The most important lesson that I’ve learned about my publishing journey is the need of always having faith in the worthiness of my work.  As you can imagine, there have been bleak moments, but I’ve learned that although just a speck in the huge canvas of literature, my work has been at least a small contribution.  It’s a matter of faith and confidence.  And what lesson have I drawn about the publishing industry as a whole?  I’ve learned that without the many men and women who have the courage to represent the literary talent of a generation, our world would indeed be empty and meaningless.

Would you recommend this method of publishing to other authors?

Graciela:  Yes!  It’s tough but productive.

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

Graciela:  Never lose confidence in the value of your work.  Reject the mean-spirited critic and rejections, and constantly renew your dedication to your God-given talent.  Always!