Golden Duck Awards

If you were listening really hard this morning, you would have heard me give a loud whoop! We are excited at our house this morning! Henry got an email notifying him that his YA novel, "Lighter than Air" had WON the Golden Duck Eleanor Cameron Award for Middle Grades. The Golden Duck awards are designed to encourage science fiction literature for children. It will be presented at this year's WorldCon in Montreal.

Henry is getting us signed up to go to Montreal in August!

Real Books - Will they be around for the next generations?

The Seattle Tech Report's Andrea James' blog: All reading will be digital one day, C reports that Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon books will be on Nightline tonight. Amazon has come out with a new electronic reading device, Kindle. I don't think I've seen an actual Kindle live, but I suspect that more and more books will come out in electronic format. And I suspect that sometime in the future that perhaps books as we know them will be the exception rather than the rule.

My daughter has already read her first book on her I-phone. Henry's books are already available on every electronic device you can think of.

But I find myself mourning the loss of something that has been part of my life forever. My earliest memories are of children's books with colorful illustrations. I have memories of sitting with a child in my lap reading my favorite and their favorite picture books to them. While I know that both Kindle and the I-phone are portable, I suspect we won't take them with us into the bathtub for a long soak reading. Real books have gotten expensive in printing, marketing, warehousing, and selling in brick and mortar stores. However, I still like to go to a local bookstore and browse - you can't quite do that the same way online.

But the state of book selling is pretty dire right now when you realize that the leading seller of books is Walmart. Titles will not stay on the shelf long at a Walmart like they do in a full time book store. You may not be able to see all of an author's previous work ready to buy at a store whose major purpose in life is not selling books. Many of my most favorite authors are popular with others as well and I can generally find most if not all of their work on the shelves at my local Barnes & Noble. Right now I only go to Amazon for books whose titles or authors I'm already familiar with.

Another issue with real books that is unresolved has to do with new laws regarding lead and children's products. I don't think lead is part of the process of producing children's books. However, because of problems with children's toys that were painted with lead paint, all children's products must be tested and certified lead free. What does that do to generations of children's books in libraries?

Yes, real books are under attack right now, but I'm hoping that somehow they survive. Real books have sensory appeal - beautiful covers, sometimes beautiful photos or art inside, touch, smell, etc. Somehow, I don't think electronic books are going to be as satisfying to all our senses as a real book. If enough others feel the same way, then perhaps real books will survive this latest economic downturn.

Archon31 - The Editor and Agent Panel

There were several ways I could go with this blog - my first thought had been to combine thoughts from this panel with at least two other presentations I've been to over the last few years. But I've decided that longer discourse needs to wait for a different blog. I am adding my own thinking about some of these topics - things that either went through my head during the panel discussion or insight about the issue that has surfaced in my brain as I've had a few days to mull over these issues.

Several things have remained in my mind from hearing this panel. For one thing, there was a lot of talk about reading patterns of the generation coming up behind the "boomers"- Generation y:

They seem to be reading more than ever - but not books - instead they read blogs, online fan fiction, games.
They tend to create their own entertainment
They are bypassing the commercial print entertainment

This makes it difficult to find a format to get materials out there in a way that can make a profit - A major issue is that so much of the content online is free. As the internet becomes a place for reading, people begin to believe there is no reason to pay to read fiction. Apparently there are people who believe that every work of fiction should be available online for free.

Think about the music industry - Napster broke new ground when it allowed people to share music - and in the process avoid paying for it. Fortunately for the music industry that was shut down. For listeners the IPOD and the Itunes Store has made it possible to obtain many classic pieces of music - and provide some revenue for the musicians.

But then think about newspapers. Several years back I discontinued all newspaper subscriptions - I was tired of all the physical paper that was coming into my house. I did not want to throw them away - I wanted to recycle. But we live in an area (out in the country) where we don't have curb side recycling. So newspapers just stacked up until I got around to loading them in my car and driving 10 miles (or more) to find a place that would accept them for recycling. I have found that almost any paper I want to read has an online version. But think about this from a profit making point of view. Almost all of these newspapers are free when you are reading current news. Some of them have a fee to read archived information. But think about the economics of newspaper publishing. Subcriptions have never paid the cost of publishing a newspaper - advertising has always been the dominant source of revenue. And yes, people are still buying newspapers. But . . . more and more people are reading their news online. And the online versions of the papers have only a few ads on each page. One of the online papers I read occasionally has annoying ads that flutter and float along the page, obscuring the article I'm trying to read. Now do I remember what products were in those ads . . . no. And apparently, newspapers are increasingly being bought up by big nationwide companies. Could we see a day when you buy an Austin paper and see NO local news - all national news that is being printed in all the papers everywhere? I have a hard time picturing that because I go to the Austin paper to read about Austin news, the Hutto paper to read local Hutto news. But if the economics changes . . . who is going to pay the writers to write the news and opinion pieces. And even scarier will our sources for news become so limited that we no longer get to see the different view points on current issues?

As far as books - there are many issues driving book sales - the vast majority of books sold are sold at Walmart, Sam's Club, Target, etc. Shelf life there is SHORT. While I really enjoy going into Barnes & Nobles and Borders, they can keep an inventory of more books at a cheaper wholesale cost than can a small local bookseller. And there are fewer chain book stores in the malls today for those impulsive book buyers. Think about this: most stores sold Harry Potter with a very slim profit margin - hoping that the additional purchases people made would be their profit makers. They were also hoping you would buy it from them rather than one of the discount stores. And the success of Harry Potter is amazing - but is it a new trend or a "dying gasp"?

And then there was a lot of discussion about the difference between Proctor and Gamble marketing soap and the selling of books. Think branding here. Think how much effort goes into making you choose one shampoo or detergent from another. And if you really like the product you're going to buy it again. But trying to market books like you market soap is NOT going to work. Think about it . . . You don't buy a book because it is published by Tor, Baen books or DAW (Although BAEN and DAW have successfully mained their brand image for loyal science fiction and fantasy readers.) You buy a book because you've read the author's work before, the cover art attracts your attention, or the title catches your eye. Each author is really a "brand." Think how many authors are represented in one book store alone. To go back to the soap analogy. Soap sellers sell four or five diferent kinds of soap every week, year end and year out. Publishers are selling 10 new and different brands each and every month! It is a new brand for each author, sometimes even for each book. I guess you could say that with series books the series itself is a brand. Another analogy - cherrios - simple decision - regular or honey nut. You can see for book selling it is a much more complicated equation. And if a big comglomerate publisher gets a new MBA marketing manager who was trained in marketing consumer items . . . .

Back to Generation Y:
The good news is that young people are reading more than ever, the bad news is that they are not necessarily reading books. My first thought when thinking about my children is that I raised one reader and one non reader. But then I thought again, my son does not devour books like his sister, however, he reads news articles avidly on the internet. He is well versed on current events, current politics, and business news.
Another interesting thing, there were two diferent view points on how generation y tackes a reading project. One study seemed to indicate that they don't read books linearly - from front to back. Rather they talk to their friends and read the favorite passages. It is a little like how most of us read a magazine - we pick out the articles we are interested in and read them in the order of our interest rather than from cover to cover. However, another study indicated that this same group of people will rent the DVD's of television series and watch the episodes in chronological order back to back. One implication of this iks that they may not be as interested in series fiction until all the series is completed. Since book publishers base their acquisition of books upon the number of books the first book in a series sells . . . you can see the contradiction or conflict here for marketing books. RIght now we don't have the things in place to put out a ten book series all at once so that pattern can transfer. I do read a lot of series fiction. It takes a year to two years between books. My memory is such that I have to go back and reread previous books to get back into the story line.
A young person in Generation Y seems to have up to five other intimate friends. They may rather read something written by one of their friends than go out and back the best novel out this week.

This panel definitely gave us different perspectives of good news/bad news. Some were optimistic, believing that publishing will find new ways to take advantage of these changing trends. Others were pessimistic, because the changes in technology and some social structures will impact how books and other intellectual material reach their audience.

Thought provoking panel . . . don't your think?

Archon -Promoting Your Book

People who are trying to make a living with their creative work are always going to have to find a way for people to find out about them. If you are writing books, people need to know the book exists . . . people outside your immediate circle of family and friends. For nature photographers, I've been told that you need to have many sources of revenue for your photography - prints, magazine sales, photography books, photo tours, teaching classes, etc. For anyone to want to go on a photography tour you might want to lead, they've got to know something about your skills and credentials as a photographer. I have long term goals of being a retreat speaker to encourage other Christian women. Getting my Christian books published is part of that goal. To be successful, they will need to be promoted. Even if your book comes out with a major publisher, it is still up to the author to promote their work. The publishing house may help you . . . and then again, maybe not. And, if your first book does not sell well, it may be impossible to get the next one published.

So when I saw the panel: "Promoting Your Book" I figured that some of this information presented for science fiction writers would carry over into the Christian writing I'm trying to do and with my photography.

Amazingly enough, having a web presence - a website and perhaps a blog was one of the first things mentioned. And not just any old webpage - you need to have a good web page with your own domain name. People who meet you at conventions and other events will want to go check out who you are. I'm finding that I want to change the photo on the front page of my website so that people who visit regularly have a reason to come back. I also try to have links to my newest work - so that repeat visitors can see new things. And your blog needs to be interesting. One piece of advice: Only write when you have something to say. Better to blog only occasionally but have it worthwhile. I disagree with that a little bit. I find that if I don't keep putting up new posts, my readership falls away. But . . . I have to find things people are interested in reading about. I check my Google Analytics regularly to see whether I am getting new readers and what kind of return visits I'm getting. One caution is real - you can spend all your time on your blog and not get your "real" work done - writing your books, processing your photos, and producing new work.

I learned a new phrase: ego surfing. It is simple: Google your own name. See who's talking about you or linking to you. Having Google Analytics set up for your website will also help see how people are finding you. Thanking people for mentioning you on their website or on a podcast or radio program also creates good will. Whether you call it ego surfing or research, it is important. You may also find copyright violations that way . . . unauthorized use of your work.

Haley Elizabeth Garwood set up a road trip for her aging mom and contacted libraries, bookstores to set up talks and book signings. In 5 1/2 weeks, she managed to do 55 presentations or events.

As always, thinking outside the box - one of the authors - I think it was Haley ghost wrote a book that is being marketed in the hair salon business all over the country! Another one had an opportunity to do a book signing in an antique store. One of the writers got her book included in a catalogue of swords!

And, of course, don't forget your local newspapers - they are eager for interesting stories about local people.

When you have a book coming out, get started on your promotional contacts about 3 months before it is scheduled to come out. If you are working with a big publisher, find out which publicist is assigned to your book. Make contact, show interest.

And you may have some fortuitous things happen. One cruise line wanted books as part of their turn down service. They bought books for every room on the ship! What great publicity was that!

Above all, be nice. Whether an author or a photographer, once you start competing - somebody is going to be a loser. When you are nice to the people that are coming up behind you, it helps promote your work. If you are ugly and mean spirited, it will have an impact on your book sales and your future as a writer.

From Archon . . . Blunders New Writers Make

When you go to a science fiction convention, it is amazing how many people want to be writers. Most of the attendees are readers, but a large number of them really want to create stories and books that other people will want to read. But out of all the people that want to be writers, only a small percentage will actually get their work published in a magazine or book. A few more will get their work into fanzines (but I don't know how many fanzines are still out there.)

I'm not trying to write science fiction, but I am trying to write Christian books and publish photographs and articles in nature magazines. So I thought this panel would probably have some information I would find useful.

First and foremost . . . Did you follow the submission guidelines? This is going to be true no matter what genre you are involved with. Photography magazines, stock photography agencies, book editors all have their own way of wanting material presented to them. If you have ignored the submission guidelines, that is a strike against you from the word go. For photography, file size, amount of post processing, image quality, subject, etc are going to be listed. And I discovered that I needed to recheck guidelines. The technology is changing fast. One magazine changed its guidelines in between submisions I made. I was lucky, the editor patiently pointed me in the direction of upgrading my software and workflow. Some of the Christian book publishers want to meet you at a Christian Writer's Conference. Science fiction book editors seem to prefer that you have an agent. And, of course, there is a standard manuscript format. Ignore that, and they probably won't even look at your work.

If you are going to get your work out there, it is going to be rejected. Each market will have a different time frame in which they get back to you. If you try to rush this, they'll just send your work back. Read the rejection letters. Some of them are going to be very impersonal and obviously mass produced. But some are going to be written personally to you. Take note o those personal rejections. Many times you can make small changes and resubmit. But if the editor has suggested specific changes - don't change everything else and leave what was recommended unchanged . . . Don't laugh . . . it happened.

While sometimes a change an editor wants may go against your creative muse, the editor has the final say. If you are a new writer, you won't have the clout to get away with not making the change. On the other hand, you also probably don't have the experience either. The editor KNOWS his readership - what they like and what they don't like. It is to your benefit to get your work out there rather than having it sit lonely on your computer or in your file drawer.

Another mistake was one that really struck home for me: Finish your work! One of the panelists said, "Perfect is the enemy of good enough." I certainly made that mistake with my first book. I had it written for 3 years before I put it out where editors could see it. And then I waited another year before actually getting it into editors hands. I have more books to write. It is more important to get them started, written, finished, and SUBMITTED. I'm fighting that with my photography as well. It is more important to get those images submitted than to fret that they are not "good enough" and leave them wasting away on the hard drives.

On the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America website there is a lot of information for beginning writers. If you surf this website, there is much information that is available for anyone to read. One of the panelists mentioned The Saga of Myrtle the Manuscript. It takes awhile to read, but it certainly shows what can happen to a manuscript as it goes through the submission process. My own story - one of my first photographic submissions I sent with the DVD and the contact prints in a large brown envelope - no cardboard stiffener. When I got it back, I was appalled, with no reinforcement, the dvd case had bent up the contact prints. Now I got off on this trip without my cardboard inserts, so I did send a submission without as good a protection, but I did find a way to separate that hard DVD case from the prints.

Living with a writer all these years, I know how hard it is to receive rejection letters. But the panel ended by talking about how much people learn from what at first looks like a failure.

While there were other things worth mention- especially for fiction writers - like point of view, showing rather than telling, the importance of the opening sentence, etc, I'm going to end this blog here. Science fiction conventions often have panels like this. New writers are well advised to attend conferences like this to learn from other people's mistakes. Plus, experienced writers leave all psyched up to go out and write some more.

Henry's Book, Emperor Dad

It's official, Henry's book, Emperor Dad, is a reality. We have our intial copies to take to the North American Science Fiction Convention (NASFIC) in St. Louis this week.

Needless to say, we're very excited.

For those of you that may want a copy, the link above takes you to one of several places it can be ordered.

If you live in the Austin area, we will have copies available for purchase as well.