2013 my predictions and some off color humor.

Reading all these blogs about the new year, what people are planning on doing and in publishing what may happen in 2013. I was not going to say much on the subject as I imagined many blogs would say the same thing. To my shock and horror I'm seeing not only a lack of info on the subject but the ones I have read are way off base. Thus...you get me. lol

First off, I plan to lose a little more weight...hahaha!

What to do about Amazon...the big monster, the bad boy on the playground? We sure do love to build them up and tear them down don't we.

So far every blog I've read says that Amazon is going to go down in flames, B&N, Kobo and other sites are going to rise from the ashes and give them a run for their money. To this I giggle...snicker and break into a full laugh until my gut hurts and I am weeping!!! See I even used three !!! just to show you how funny this prediction is.

But Aaron, why do you say this? They have unhappy authors fighting bad reviews and all around they are big, mean and scary so they HAVE to go down.

I am sorry but Amazon is a baby company, just about to hit their stride and no one is in their way. B&N...who are they? Oh yeah, an old school store that has an outdated website with poor search engines. Kobo? I think I saw them on the side of the road chocking on Amazon's dust... They may be a player in 4 years but not any time soon, again, they only sell books, Amazon sells everything so they get more traffic. But wait, you didn't mention Apple.

Wow, nothing gets by you. I didn't mention them because in the eBook world they don't exist.

I guess I will mention Google only cuz if I say the word Google in my blog I might get something out of it. They put out an outdated eReader and are not user friendly. Enough said.

The simple truth is people go to Amazon to shop for EVERYTHING. They are bigger, have more stuff and ship fast. What is the downside?

Not only that but they have department after department dedicated just to eBooks. The rest treat eBooks as a sideline.

So my prediction is in 2013 there will be more of the same.
*Doom and gloom from the big 6, Indies will fall off cuz they don't sell due to bad writing and crappy covers.
*The big authors, indie and otherwise will get even bigger and to get noticed you will need to have money or be really good at building up a fan base.
*Next, Amazon will take even more marketshare and freak out just about everyone.
*B&N will shut its doors by the end of the year or get bought-out.
*Goodreads will open their doors and sell eBooks on their site and try to play the Amazon game.
*Smashwords will seal their doom as they continue to be marked as the place to go if you have no clue what you are doing. They are already known for putting out junk and as a publisher and want to be taken seriously, they are the mark of death.
*"Marketing your book" scams will explode as indies scramble and kill each other over the scraps.
*The rise of the small press will keep trending but many will fall away as they see that publishing is more than just listing a book online.

I could go on and on but you may want to know that most of this is good. Amazon doing better is SWEEEEEEET, it means we sell more books, make more cash and build a solid fan base. B&N going under is good because they refuse to change even though they know how. You don't have to be a rocket scientist to figure it out. When they go down it will send a message that people just want a good book and they want it fast and cheap. Lol... that sounds bad but its true.

How can you end the year with a smile instead of a frown?

*Keep writing books. Most will get frustrated with their sales and quit, if you don't you will do better.
*Stop talking to doom and gloom people. One they don't know what they are talking about and it is just annoying most the time. Go get a massage or get arrested, live a little and stop infecting people.
*Learn, learn, learn. The big mistake with most indies is they do not learn. They want to be spoon fed and have no clue what business they are in.
*Be nice...people like and buy from nice people. I once did not buy a book even though I really wanted to read it because I didn't like the author, they were mean and grumpy so I skipped the book.
*Write more books.
*Build a newsletter, the best way to let people know what new junk you are selling.
*Write more books.... get it?

I am really excited for this year, big things are coming and if you are ready you will be sitting really good this time next year. So strap on and put on your big boy pants the ride is gonna be awesome!




Author Aaron Patterson: Blog: The Worst Book Ever.

Update of IBPA and chillin with Amazon!

Amazon and the future of books and authors!

A few weeks ago I was asked by amazon to come and speak at the IBPA show in SanFran or as my friend calls it,(The City). I was not sure what to expect and by the time I got home I found out that this trip will change my life and my business forever.

First, the Amazon peeps were super cool, we had dinners, conversation and joked and laughed so hard that tummy's hurt and tears were shown. I was glad to find out that just like you or I, they are people too and just trying to do the best job they can.

Second, I met three amazing authors that are killing it in eBook land! Bella Andre is a rock-star, I mean not only is she way cool, but she makes some crazy cash! She knows her stuff and we have some exciting plans in the future. Stay tuned...

How will this all filter into your world? Well, the first thing is next month, StoneHouse University will be hosting Amazon for a one-of-a-kind webinar. Yeah, you heard it right. Real people from Amazon are going to join us, and you can ask them questions and learn from THEM, (Not some rumor-mill) what they are up too and what they have planned looking forward. This is...(Sorry Ashley) EPIC! Yes, I hate the word Epic, yet in this case there is just no other word.

I am so honored to have Amazon come and hang with us at the University. At what other time can you have a chat and hear from them direct? Unless you fly to a Con and pay hotel and flight etc... I am way stoked about this class, and if you want to get in on it keep a look out for the dates and times.

Here are some things I learned.
Amazon wants B&N to do well. Why you might ask? Because the government will step in if they get to far out front. It can be looked at as a monopoly. So a lot of things that Amazon wants to do, try and gain ground in are on hold because they are waiting for B&N to catch up. This is crazy to me, I mean, Amazon is holding back, keeping from growing to fast because their competition is #lame! They are going to win the race, in fact, they already have but they just need it to LOOK close.

The other thing is that Amazon wants authors like me and Bella and you to do well. The more I make and the better I do the more they will bend over backward to help. It is good for them and for their image to have authors and small publishers do well.

As to some of my questions. The advertizing they tried in the past but because they did not feel like it was bringing in the return compared to the money it cost for the authors they pulled it. Again, they were looking at how much the author was getting out of it and did not want to cheat them. They are open to more options but only if the cost of the advertizing and the return is worth it for both parties.

The reviews are being tightened up, in fact a lot more quality control is going on all fronts. Some of it is annoying but that is better than a free for all!

The legal contracts are not going to change, they have so many bases to cover it just has to be like it is. But what is a law if not enforced?

As to more human interaction...well this webinar is step one. They do want to reach out to their authors and this is part of that.

It is a big company so things just move slow but they are moving. I look forward to more good things from Amazon in the future.



Author Aaron Patterson: Blog: The Worst Book Ever.

IBPA Publishing University (Amazon, Bella, and Me!)

Next week I will be going to SanFran as a guest of Amazon.com. Just saying this sounds a little weird as a year ago just being able to have a email contact with the book giant was super cool! Now I get to go speak with them as well as an amazing author like Bella Andre!

I will be talking about eBooks, marketing, and social media. I am amazed to see the relevance of this conference. From speakers like Mark Coker of Smashwords to the publisher of Publishers Weekly, and Google.

What does all this mean?

It means that the new publishing world is starting with the small presses like StoneHouse Ink and working up. In time the big boyz will be hooked in and time will tell what will come out the other side. But going to other conferences where there was not a single class on eBooks to this is a breath of fresh air.

Oh, I almost forgot, the CEO of Goodreads is even going to be there! how cool is that!

Some things I would like to see or at least talk about with Amazon are as follows:

1. Will we Indies ever get the same benefits as the Big 6? Such as Free sales, not just in Select, pre-order listings for eBooks, cool author pages and book listings with video and all the same things the Big 6 now have.

2. More human interaction. A 24 hour notice on problems without the "I will delete your account" threats. I know, your legal team is the one who writes all that junk, but come on!

3. Better wording on legal contracts and less control in the Select program. i.e. Make it okay to give away free eBooks on a blog or site, be open to blog tours and giveaways so we can market and push them to you etc...

4. Better control on Createspace. Link books faster, better cover color, or use the Kindle image, maybe even a upload front cover area for the product page. More options for covers and things like that.

5. Can we have better reports? A per day option?

6. Better review control. Must read the book, some reviews the person even says that they did not finish. Take off reviews from people that are just there to make trouble, maybe a higher level reviewer has more power so their review makes your stars jump more...not sure, just not so lax.

7. More advertizing options.

This is just a few things that have been on my mind, but I am sure more will come up. If you have anything you might want to say, leave a comment and I will see what I can do.

If you are in the area, come on out to the conference, it would be great to meet you!

Author Aaron Patterson: Blog: The Worst Book Ever.

Guest Post by J.R. Rain: (The Waiting Game is Over)

The Waiting Game is Over
by J.R. Rain

Hi there. My name’s J.R. Rain and I’m a self-published author. No, this isn’t an AA meeting. In fact, I’m proud to say that I’m a self-published author. Admittedly, this designation once had a negative connotation to it. Now, not so much.

Now, thanks to Amazon Kindle, Barnes & Noble Nook and a place called Smashwords, writers from around the world are publishing their books independently, giving birth to the indie author.

I kinda like that: indie author.

It fits me. I’ve always been independent, from my complete inability to play well with others (read: bosses), to living on the fringes of society.

Yes, indie author. I like it. It fits. I’ll take it.

Like many indie authors on Kindle and Nook and elsewhere, I had gotten close to selling books to the major New York publishers. Specifically, The Lost Ark nearly sold to Mira Books, Moon Dance nearly sold to Kensington and Dorchester and Elvis Has Not Left the Building nearly sold to St. Martin’s Press.

That’s a lot of nearlys.

Meanwhile, while I waited months and months and months to hear from these publishers (Kensington never gave me a response...do you sense some bitterness here?), I went bankrupt, lost everything, and was generally one big, pathetic mess.

All because I was pursuing my writing dream.

All because I was waiting.

Then came Kindle. In 2009, I had heard about this thing called Kindle, that Amazon was allowing authors to publish directly onto their “platform” and, subsequently, directly into their bookstore.

Oh? I was intrigued.

Turns out, publishing with Amazon Kindle was the best choice of my life. It also turns out that these traditional publishers (see above) had done me a phenomenal service. By not publishing my books and leading me along and dashing my dreams, they gave me a great gift:

Product.

I still owned the rights to all my books. Books that didn’t quite fit the typical mold--like a soccer mom private detective who just so happened to be a vampire--a book I had written in 2003. A man writing about a woman was apparently taboo, and more than one publisher rejected it based on this alone. Now my “Vampire for Hire” series has gone on to sell more than 400,000 copies, hitting #1 in many categories. Maybe a man can write about a woman. What a concept.

Now publishers approach me. In fact, I had the very great pleasure of turning down a major publisher’s offer a few months back. Their offer wasn’t much of an offer. Put it this way: they were offering to take my money and my rights.

It was an easy no, although a part of me was flattered. And why wouldn’t I be flattered? I’m forty years old and I had spent the greater part of my life pursuing a writing dream.

Thanks to Amazon, I’m living my dream. Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Smashwords.

Sometimes people just need a voice, and, as it turns out, writers just needed a platform, an outlet. We got that initial outlet thanks to Amazon Kindle. Publishers told me they didn’t know how to market my books; well, I had a fair idea how to market my books. Turns out it wasn’t that hard to do, after all, and it was a lot of fun, too.

And this brings me back to my main point:

Thanks to Amazon’s revolutionary approach to getting books to readers, by helping authors bypass the traditional publishers, they have given us the gift of time. They have freed us from the waiting game. The endless waiting. The mind-numbing and soul crushing waiting.

That, in and of itself, is priceless.

Now, the waiting game is over, and the living game begins. Now I can spend my time writing the best books I can, with the full knowledge that they will be published on my terms, and in my time. My time.

That, in and of itself, is priceless.

--J.R. Rain

Friend J.R. on Facebook
Website
Follow J.R. on Twitter

BOOKS BY J.R. RAIN

VAMPIRE FOR HIRE
Moon Dance
Vampire Moon
American Vampire
Moon Child
Vampire Dawn (coming soon)

THE JIM KNIGHTHORSE SERIES
Dark Horse
The Mummy Case
Hail Mary (coming soon)

ELVIS MYSTERY SERIES
Elvis Has Not Left the Building
You Ain't Nothin' But a Hound Dog (coming soon)

THE SPINOZA SERIES
The Vampire With the Dragon Tattoo
The Vampire Who Played Dead
The Vampire in the Iron Mask (coming soon)

THE GRAIL QUEST TRILOGY
Arthur
Merlin (coming soon)

WITH SCOTT NICHOLSON
Cursed!
Ghost College
The Vampire Club

WITH PIERS ANTHONY
Aladdin Relighted
Aladdin Sins Bad

STANDALONE NOVELS
The Lost Ark
The Body Departed
The Silent Echo (coming soon)

SHORT STORIES
The Bleeder and Other Stories
Teeth and Other Stories
Vampire Nights and Other Stories
Vampire Blues: Four Stories

SCREENPLAYS
Judas Silver
Lost Eden

SHORT STORY ANTHOLOGIES
Vampires, Zombies and Ghosts, Oh My!

Author Aaron Patterson: Blog: The Worst Book Ever.

How Much Should An eBook cost? Part #3

How Much Should An eBook cost? Part #3

Wow, this topic always brings out heated discussion and sometimes the guns come out, held sideways and the bloodbath begins. Good thing I am safe behind my laptop and not in a large room filled with authors and publishers.

eBook pricing, it is a big deal. China is fighting it now as they talk with Amazon about selling eBooks in their country. We know what the Big 6 think, keep em high as eBooks will one day replace print books and all their income goes the way of a Kindle.

"If you price your eBook low you say that you as an author or your writing is not worth anything but a cup of bad coffee."

As we talked about in the first post this is not true. Your worth as an author in the eBook world is what you make per month not per book sold. This is different in the print world as each book has to be printed, shipped sold and so on. So each sale must hold a value and in the big bookstores most all books are priced the same. Publishers do not have that control in eBook land. In print they can beat up the Indie all day lone with print pricing, but not in E. The tables have turned my friends.

"But if all the eBooks are priced low we will not make any money and it will ruin the book market."

Nope. This again is what "Publishers" say as yes it will ruin their market unless they adapt. itunes makes a ton of money, authors make a ton of money if they control their books. It is not bad for anyone except the big publishers. We also have looked at the way we all buy in the US. It is a low price high volume deal... we are always looking for the next best deal.

"The market will get overrun with .99 books and flood the system. How will we know what is a good book?"

Good question. The gatekeepers were the big publishers and they could only handle so many books a year and they missed a lot of great books as they are not a perfect system. The book market has always had more books in it on a to reader to sold ratio. About 1% of all books published ever really sell, so that has not changed it is just that now with the aid of social media we know if a book, movie, restaurant or play is good about twenty minutes after it comes out. The masses are so much faster about weeding out the junk so in a way we are amazing gatekeepers. We can spread something good or bad in seconds when in the past it could take a long time for a crappy book to get shut down.

"But if I price my book low the literary crowd will not think of me as a ligit author."

Hmmm... who cares? They buy a few books compared to how many the masses buy. Market to the people not a small group. I understand if you do a lot of speaking like Anthony Doerr. He make a great living speaking and holding classes and has a high priced eBook. Now do I think he could make a ton more at a lower price and reach more people? Yes... now for him I would go at about 5 bucks and maybe do a special month at 1.99, but I am not on his marketing team and he does really well as he build his name from the inside out. All the big names can get away with more, but some day it will not stand as the people decide that no matter who you are they will not pay over a set price. Just like coffee... we will pay so much.

Again, I want to say, find your sweet spot. The place where your book sells the most copies and you make the most money and reach the most people. If you have to give up some money to reach more fans, do it. It will pay off.

"But if I sell my eBook at a low price they will not pay more for my other books."

Not true. I have sold my books at .99-2.99 for a few years. My new book came out and I have it at 4.77 ant it is selling just as well as my 2.99 books. They like it and if it is in a series you have some play with price point. You build more value as they get to know your writing style and so on... if they love your work they will pay more and not feel like they are getting ripped off.

If you have more questions or think of a good reason to have a high priced eBook let me know in a comment and I will see if I can address it.

Cheers

Author Aaron Patterson: Blog: The Worst Book Ever.

How Much Should An eBook cost? Part #2

How Much Should An eBook cost? Part #2

eBooks are a big thing and will in time replace print books. I do not say this cuz I hate books or bookstores, I say it cuz it is the truth. You notice how I use slang here on this blog? It is cuz it drives some of you literary types nuts... hee hee, I got to have some fun or I will go crazy!

Sorry, that was a bit of a rabbit trail. Now to the main event.

In the last post we looked at pricing for fiction, and saw how it is not the money per book but the monthly income. This will change how you look at eBooks, how you market and plan your marketing.

So to re-cap, it is about volume and fans. Your worth as a writer is not in the per unit sale but the monthly income. And if you want to really get picky, your worth is in what you sell in a year and ten years from now. I plan to be around for a long time and what I do is what we call the "Long Look."

The Sweet Spot.

As one comment in the last post said, some sweet spots are different from others. Each book is different. Some sell well at 2.99 and some at 4.99, it is up to you to test the market. The other thing to consider is that the market is changing all the time. It used to be that a book at .99 would sell a ton but now not so much. Some even have worse sales numbers at the .99 price point. Why is that?

Well, because people look at things different. Maybe all the self-published books are priced low so the reader thinks if a book is low it will suck. We need to keep testing and find out where the market is and what it is doing.

Now what about non-fiction?

Non- fiction is so different and does not sell as well as fiction. Most books that are non-fiction are sold at an event or by hand by the author. Also NF eBooks have a different fan-base. They are going to be the last to change over to E.

But as we see with textbooks they are making the switch right now, soon all schools will use them, students will buy expansion packs to get the latest update but not have to buy the new book.

So how do you price a NF eBook?

Again, testing. But as a whole 5.99-9.99. You are not talking volume with NF so you need to look at it different. Even with some fiction if you have a small fan-base you might look at pricing it higher to get the most out of each sale. I have one author that has all her books at 9.99 because it is a narrow book. She does well at the higher price cuz not everyone will like what she writes.

If you write a book on how to sell a house, you might price it at 7.99. Look at all the other main stream books with your subject matter and try to under cut them, but look at apples to apples. If other books on selling houses are in the 9.99 range do the same but price it like 8.97. Not to much lower but just enough to get you noticed.

One more thing you can try is a blog tour. They are not done as much with NF but that is just why you should do one. Finding bloggers that review NF might be hard but you will be getting in front of the right readers. Look into sites that talk or blog about your subject and work with them. NF is also a good eBook to sell on your own website or blog as again your readers are not as many and you will want to save their email and contact info.

Ask for reviews.

NF most of the time is information and helps people. Ask people that have read to leave a review. This will help sales and add value to your book so the reader feels good about forking over more money for your eBook.

Tag yourself to other books and authors that sell similar eBooks. This goes for any eBook or book on Amazon. Learn how to tag and use the tool Amazon gives you. If you want to learn about tagging I have a post on it, just click HERE.

In the next and final post on eBook pricing I will look at all the literary arguments against low eBook pricing. From the you are worth more side to the you will ruin the market side. It is all just a different way of saying "I'm Scared of Change!" But let us look and ponder the bad side of eBooks.

Again, remember. You want to reach the most people(fans) and get the highest return (Money) out of each sale. The SWEET SPOT is there, it is up to you to find where it is. It is not what people are willing to pay but what they WILL pay.

Cheers



Author Aaron Patterson: Blog: The Worst Book Ever.

The Idaho Book Extravaganza! This Weekend!

This is a post all about the Idaho Book Extravaganza this Friday and Saturday. Why post about this event? I will tell ya. First, it will change your life if you are a writer. Just ask many authors that attended last year.

You will learn about eBooks, marketing, publishing, agents and all sorts of other stuff that is relevant. So many book shows or writing conferences are so outdated that is is sad, no really, I cried at the last one that only had one class on social media and nothing about eBooks.

If you can make it please do yourself a favor and come. We will have Vincent Zandri, Estevan Vega, and some other amazing authors. Want to talk to an agent? We will have them, and it might surprise you what they have to say about the publishing world.

“Attending the Idaho Book Extravaganza was a life-changing experience for me. I heard about the event on the news, and the next day prepared a package of materials to take with me. I had been trying to get some of the big name publishers to view my CD and workbook for over fifteen years. The good news is that within four months had a newly packaged CD, and will be releasing my first book in the fall.
– Yvonne Rousseau, author Beyond Myself: Reclaiming Your Life After Sexual Abuse

I will link the details but here it is just for fun:

To Register click HERE

I hope to see you here.

Author Aaron Patterson: Blog: The Worst Book Ever.

Risky Business: Guest post by J.E. Fishman

I met J.E. in New York at Thriller Fest. He let me butt in on a conversation and I found that he was up to date on the publishing world and was doing things that most authors were scared to do. He is the model for DIY publishing as he has done his research and looks and feels like a New York Press. Great cover, editing and distribution. Take note as this is just the beginning and I am sure we will all see more of this amazing author.

Risky Business

Life is risky. We fall ill, we trust too much, we have business or career setbacks. One accident, one wrong word to our boss, giving in to a single temptation…boom! All of a sudden we’re fighting for our lives or watching our bank account empty or our spouse walk out the door. No wonder we avoid additional risk when possible or lay off our risk on others when we can persuade them to take it.

Writing is risky. From deep within us we conjure images and characters and stories, then lay them out for the world to judge. No wonder books like The Courage to Write by Ralph Keyes become perennial bestsellers. Some people find writing so risky that they can’t get past the blank page.

Publishing is risky. All that effort and money and time expended up front, then the book put out into a crowded and noisy world where it’s just as likely to get swamped as it is to get noticed. No wonder publishers and independent authors so often cut corners on their way to the marketplace.

We know all these things are risky, but here’s something we rarely acknowledge: Every time potential book readers consider whether to buy your book, they, too, are weighing risk. Not just the risk of wasting their money, but also the risk of wasting their time, which is usually far more important.

People can judge a picture’s value at a glance, judge the quality of a garment at a touch, the taste of a meal perhaps by a single bite, but it can take hours of immersion in a book before we know whether it was worthy of our time.

Thus, before we commit to purchasing a book (or even reading one we acquired for nothing), we look for signals as to its riskiness. Do we know the author’s previous work? Are there reviews? What does the jacket tell us? How do the first few pages read?

When I decided to publish independently — and to do so via Verbitrage, the authors’ consortium that I founded — I realized I had to find ways to tell readers that their risk would be minimal. Here’s what I did:

1. I wrote the best book that I could and solicited feedback from a group of readers to make it better.
2. The manuscript I chose to publish, Primacy, fit into a popular genre — in this case, thrillers.
3. I signed up a professional editor with a stellar reputation.
4. I found a distributor that would offer my book not only through select websites but also through the book trade.
5. I committed to offset printing the physical books, a process that still yields a higher quality product than print-on-demand technology does.
6. I hired two of the best designers in the business for the jacket and interior.
7. Finally, I engaged a world-class publicity firm that could help me get media attention.

These things were all risky because they cost me money, time and other considerations. But they lower the risk my customers must take. The jacket grabs their attention in the familiar way of major commercial fiction. The story engages them and doesn’t let go. The book — if they’ve bought the physical version, not the ebook — feels substantial in their hands and looks like a book should look in all the subtle ways. And they’ve likely found it through a reputable bookseller rather than in some far-off corner of the blogosphere.

Will it work as a business proposition — this allocation of risk away from the book’s purchaser and onto myself? It might not; it’s a risk, after all. But early signs are encouraging.

Primacy has received good notices from Publishers Weekly and Kirkus, the latter listing it in mid-August as one of five “Top Books to Pre-Order This Week.” Barnes & Noble decided to carry it. Before publication date, I received word that some wholesale warehouses had gone quickly out of stock and re-ordered. Most important, the book will appear on tables and face-outs at 185 Hudson News airport stores this fall.

By now maybe you’re wondering about the subject matter. Kirkus succinctly described Primacy this way: “In Fishman’s eco-thriller, a voluble primate threatens to bring down the animal-testing industry.” Yeah, it’s a thriller about a talking ape. Sound familiar?

I didn’t have Planet of the Apes in mind when I wrote Primacy, but that doesn’t mean I won’t benefit from the glow of the film’s success. That would be a break I couldn’t have anticipated, but as the saying goes, you gotta be in it to win it.

With the movie’s success, buying and reading Primacy may seem to strangers like even less of a risk than it would have otherwise. That should be fine with them and it sure is fine with me. As Louis Pasteur said, “Chance favors only the prepared mind.”


About the Author
J.E. Fishman’s first novel, the mystery Cadaver Blues, was serialized on The Nervous Breakdown in 2010. He is author of Primacy: A Thriller, available wherever books are sold. When he isn’t writing fiction or blogging, Fishman — a former Doubleday editor, literary agent, and ghostwriter — works as an entrepreneur, dividing his time between Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania, and New York City. Follow him on Twitter (JEFISHMAN) or Google+ (J.E. Fishman) or find him at Verbitrage (www.Verbitrage.com/jefishman).

If you want to buy PRIMACY you can get it here: Amazon and B&N.

Author Aaron Patterson: Blog: The Worst Book Ever.

Her Story: J Carson Black, Guest Post

Aaron, thank you for inviting me to your blog today.

When I decided to write a new thriller, I had several ideas on the table. None of them made the final cut. Then the idea for THE SHOP came out of the blue.

One evening while eating dinner, my husband (and publisher) Glenn and I were watching cable news. John Mark Karr’s plane was coming into Boulder, Colorado, where he would face charges for killing JonBenet Ramsey. He’d been flown over from Europe, dining on shrimp cocktail and entertaining his captors—federal marshals—and generally having a great time of it. Now the press was lined up along the airstrip in Boulder to cover his arrival. Picture the private jet coming in for a landing with all the pomp and circumstance of the Space Shuttle. The reporters, the news vans, the cameras, the microphones, the breathless reporting on the ground and in the studio: an absolute frenzy!

Glenn and I looked at each other. This was a farce worthy of commentary. What we were seeing was the new American way: celebrity conjured out of nothing. It turned out later that John Mark Karr was playing everybody. He didn’t kill JonBenet Ramsey. But he’d fulfilled his purpose—he’d fed the hungry maw of the media for a short time.

Something could be done with this—the distraction of celebrity. That was the seed for my story, THE SHOP.

In the opening scene of THE SHOP, celebrity Brienne Cross is killed in her Aspen chalet, along with the four finalists of her reality show, SOUL MATE, and the producer of the show.

I knew right away who killed them. But why? Even the killer wants to know why. And so he sets out to find the truth.

Sometimes stories come from strange places, and sometimes they come from cable news.

I’ve been writing most of my life, and sold my first book, a ghost story, in 1990. My career went like this: I would sell a book or two for very little money, get kicked off the carousel, and then write something much better, get on again, get thrown off, go back to the woodshed and improve my craft, and sell again. I think the important thing here is the “getting better” part.

I ran into a buzz saw when my agent tried to sell my new thriller, THE SHOP. She absolutely believed in the book and thought it would sell very quickly at the highest level. Two miserable years ensued, ending with a whimper, not a bang. She said, “There’s just no other place I can try.” And so, with her blessing, I put the book up on Kindle at the end of March.

At the beginning of April, THE SHOP spiked. By the end of April I’d sold almost nine thousand copies of THE SHOP alone---and I had other books up as well.
My idea in March had been simple: I wanted a Big Six deal. I would go the Boyd Morrison route and rack up a ton of sales, which would parlay into a six-figure deal with Random House or Penguin. But my thinking changed as I learned how much fun it was to design covers, write cover copy, market a book my way, and, yes, count the money rolling in. It made me feel smart and savvy. And I remembered a road trip two years before, a conversation with my husband all the way from Ruidoso, New Mexico to Lordsburg (that’s a good piece of distance) about our strategy for selling THE SHOP. 1) We needed a powerful, top-flight agent. 2) She had to get the book in front of the best editors at the best houses. And we agreed then: we wanted as much money up front as possible, because we knew that by the second book the publisher would be disillusioned and would kick us to the curb. Not the best model for a career, is it?

And so my attitude changed. I no longer wanted to sell to a Big Six publisher. I did sign with Thomas & Mercer (THE SHOP and two other thrillers), but I kept my Laura Cardinal series and plan to keep one foot firmly planted in the indie camp.
You ask me what I did for marketing. I didn’t buy any ads. I didn’t guest blog a lot. We did Tweet and Facebook the successes as they came, like getting on to the Top 100 list. I spent a lot of time on Kindle Boards Writer’s Café, sharing experiences. I truly believe that Writer’s Café taught me what was possible. When you see so many people reach 1000 sales, 5000 sales, 10,000 sales and more, you begin to think you can do it. Your own Vince Zandri inspired me. He said he was selling 1000 books a day for a week. So I thought: I’ll sell 1000 books a day for one week. And I did. I know it sounds crazy, but just knowing you can do it really helps.

It also has helped tremendously that I have great quotes from John Lescroart, T. Jefferson Parker, Gayle Lynds, and David Morrell.

I think marketing comes down to Joe Konrath’s creed: good books, good product descriptions, good covers. I would add that we emulated the look of Big Six covers, because we wanted to capitalize on the familiarity factor. So we studied the Edgar Award book covers, paying particular attention to fonts. We wanted a unified look for our books, but knew they should stand out from one another so no one would be confused and buy a book twice. Hence the colors and different themes: THE SHOP has a thriller look with menace and a silhouetted protagonist. THE DEVIL’S HOUR is blue, DARKNESS ON THE EDGE OF TOWN is red, and DARK SIDE OF THE MOON is mostly yellow, navy and white. We didn’t consciously come up with these colors—they just happened. But the art, which I always feel is secondary to the font, fits each book. I see the art as behind the font, which is super-imposed over it. I think books need to have a uniform look. If they’re thrillers, they have to look like thrillers. You can be creative, but you have to maintain the brand.
When we were really broke last fall and were coming to the end of the line with publishers, I was within sight of a deal with a real bottom-feeder of a publisher. I figured we’d get $2500, and at that point I was willing to take it.

They turned me down.

Favorite song: Garth Brooks’ “Unanswered Prayers.”

http://jcarsonblack.com



Author Aaron Patterson: Blog: The Worst Book Ever.

BLOGFEST 100! Guest Post by Martin king.

When I think of my childhood I have so many good and funny memories that it is hard to pick just one. If I stick to reading I would say the day I read three books in one sitting and went blond for 24hrs. I had a splitting headache and everything turned white, I freaked out and yes when it went away I went back to reading under the covers with a flashlight.

Here is Martin King:

You may wonder why I am doing this blogfest of 100 mini childhood stories on 100 different websites during the month of August. Well I’m wondering the exact same thing myself... it’s killing me!

So while just releasing my first book, launching my new website, having to decorate my mother-in-laws new apartment and working full time, I’m beginning to wonder is being a writer really worth it?

It reminds me of a childhood memory of what happened one day when we were around ten years old. Myself, Holly, Baker and I think my sister too (yes they do bear an uncanny resemblance to the characters in my book), were out walking in a field near where we lived. It was a hot day and we were all just in shorts and trainers.

Half way up the field we stopped to mess around in some trees, we were always clambering around in trees like little spider monkeys. Holly was up in one tree when he slipped and fell. Now he didn’t drop far and Holly was made of stern stuff so thankfully he didn’t hurt himself badly.

However, I failed to mention he fell into a whole ditch full of nettles. Now just remember back to the start of the story... that’s right he was only wearing a pair of shorts. The poor thing was stung on every inch of his body. Can you imagine the pain? And then watching him get covered all over in calamine lotion was probably no fun for him neither.

Well in some ways, trying to get published feels that painful. To everyone else driving around on that day – it was a hot, beautiful day. But nothing is ever what it seems. Writing a book to everyone else seems amazing.

“Wow, you’ve wrote a book!”

But the hard work and pain, the social networking and marketing... none of that was written on the tin.

But you know what, I watched my mate soon recovered and he still had his mates, his life. After all the hard work of trying to get my books published, no matter what, I’ve still got my friends and my wife and my life. But now they are written down on paper... and that becomes an eternal memory.
These blogs are all about fun and sharing. Thank you for reading a ‘#100blogfest’ blog. Please follow this link to find the next blog in the series:

http://martinkingauthor.com/blog/7094550076





Author Aaron Patterson: Blog: The Worst Book Ever.

Should Agents Publish? (Writers Beware!)

AGENTS, ERR... PUBLISHERS...?

The answer to this question is a resounding don't even try to argue with me NO!

How can I say this when so many have neat little answers? Because it is like having your lawyer be your judge. In the last few months I have seen the book agent turn tail and not only abandon all ethics of their business, but chase the money like so many drowning rats. Am I being to harsh? Maybe, but I have good reason.

First, your agent has a job. That job is to get you a book deal with a real publisher, and after that to get Sub rights and so on... This job is like having a partner in your corner helping you so you don't get screwed over by a big money-hungry-publisher. NOW, as they turn into publishers they went from your friend and partner, to something resembling a wolf covered in a sheep skin. They make a deal for YOU but with THEIR interest in mind, not yours.

I know, they are good people, they rock, they are nice and have done so much for you and... and... and. It is all the same. A lame argument. And I have seen them all. It is to HELP authors in this changing market. We just provide a service, well... we have a different publishing house, it is not the same... Oh, and we can make sure you have good editing! Don't forget we know the book business!

I am sure you can name a few more, but in the end it is all about the money. Agents are scared, they don't know where their job is going, what will happen as more authors realize that they don't really need agents outside of Sub rights.

*Note: I want to say, I have no problem with a EX-Agent publishing, but not both at the same time. If you want to be a publisher do it, but don't do both.

I work with some of the top agents in the country. You know what they do for me? They do their job, and bring me authors and work with my existing authors to sell Sub rights. But most the time they are not on a book deal as the author can talk to me direct. So they have to work harder, but we all do, it is a job after all.

Now my friends, yes I am talking to you the writer, the one who has stars in your eyes. The one who will take a bad deal because all you want in life is to be published, so you let all reason go out the window. If your agent wants to be a ePublisher ask yourself one thing... What do they know about publishing? Really... what?

They sell books to a publisher, they are in sales. They sell to one-five people at a publishing house. How does that mean they have any skill in selling to the public? To bookstores, to make sure your cover art is good? How can they sell to the public when all they do is sell to a corporation? They, I am sorry to say don't know what books will sell, they just know what books they can sell to a publisher.

I am not discounting their power and pull, but do you see how all of the agents doing this are only going E for the most part? Cuz they don't want to work at the print side of the business, the marketing and distribution. So the end result is a well edited book (MAYBE) with little to no marketing and a bad cover and one super excited author that thinks they will make it big cuz their Publisher is somebody.

So here is what you will get:

*Bad cover art 90% of the time
*Good to fair editing
*Out of touch marketing or no marketing
*eBook only or POD printing
*No print distribution
*Good in with Sub rights (maybe)

lets call a horse a horse. They want a piece of the pie, want to do as little work as they can and pool from the list of authors they have in their pocket, for some easy cash. This is WRONG! In so many ways. I know how authors think, they will jump at almost anything without thinking of the long term. Give away their book all in the name of being published.

So what should you do?

First, do not ever sign up with a agent/publisher. No matter how nice they are, deep down your best interest is not at heart. Second, if you are at that place, just publish on your own and have your agent look for Sub rights. Only pay them when they make a deal. But you hire someone to convert your eBook and do a cool cover. I know a host of cover art people, eBook converters and so on. Most any indie press or author can help you out for free. You can do it for a low price and why give them a % when they offer nothing you can't on your own.

Or... find a small press to work with. I work my tail off for my authors and even behind the scenes I am trying to do even more. But I am a publisher... Do I post all this because I am scared they will take all the good authors? Lol... NO... We are so busy we can't really take on any more new authors this year. I say this cuz I see so many of my fellow authors getting burned and thrown into this mess and I feel for them.

On a side note, please run from these little so-called publishers that are popping up everywhere. Bad covers and poor quality will kill your brand if you are not careful. Just be smart and ask around and don't ask authors, ask people in the business or ask your agent who is not a publisher. One of out agents we work with told me the other day, he said he would never get into publishing, he is an agent, he is good at what he does and will not sell out his clients like that.

I respect him and am glad we still have some agents out there that really do care about their clients and don't talk themselves and others into thinking that this is all okay.

Now to end thins I will say that I know of some publishers that are agents part time. But they were publishers first and the work they do as an agent is for another house and they never refer clients to their own house. I also know of agents that quit and started publishing houses, I have no problem with this, as they are not riding the fence but made a choice.

I could go on and on about this but I leave it to you. What do you think? Why do you think it is okay or not okay? Do you see this as a long term solution to publishing? Why do you think agents should publish? What do they know about publishing outside of selling a title? As a writer do you trust them? Should you trust them?

Cheers





Author Aaron Patterson: Blog: The Worst Book Ever.