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Ask the Author: James Conroyd Martin

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James - Congrats on your great success with your Polish trilogy. I write to thank you for trailblazing this Polish fiction sub-genre and to wish you success with your latest novel. My Chopin trilogy attempts to do the same for espionage thrillers. How did it come to pass that your self-published novel was picked up by St. Martin's Press? Did you actively seek them out due to the Polish theme of the novel?
James Conroyd Martin Tardy in answering this~so sorry. I published with Xlibris right on the cusp of self-publishing. Getting a big publisher interested in a self-published book that does well was easier then. I posted my success on Publisher's Marketplace, and when Random House became interested, I got a TOP agent who sold it to St. Martin's. My excellent editor left in the middle of the sequel, so I got little support. I went on to create my own company for the third and haven't looked back. Unless you are one of the true biggies, you'll make 4 to 10 percent on a book with an established company versus much more by self-publishing (for e-books it's 25% [a travesty!] versus up to 70%.) And, the big companies do less and less as far as advertising~it's up to the author. Oh, and after two or three months after publication, your book is forgotten.
Best of luck with your trilogy, David!
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Son traducidos al espanol sus libros? Gracias.
James Conroyd Martin
No Desafortunadamente. Gracias por tu interés. Lamento llegar tarde a la hora de responder.
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Having known nothing about Polish history, I picked up your book to learn about it and loved that it was based on the diary that was found. Also, as a Jew, I appreciated that you had a Jewish character and mentioned some of the history of how the Jews arrived in Poland. Are the other books of the trilogy also connected to the diary or is it your imagination combined with history?
James Conroyd Martin Forgive my oversight of your question, Shira! So sorry. I was finished with the diary when St Martin's asked for a sequel, so I studied the history leading to the next big event in Polish history and placed the characters I knew so well into it. I took the same approach with the third book.
Thank you so much for your interest and question!
Best,
J C Martin
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I read your book because my old book club chose it and I loved it. Taught me a lot. Have you thought it could be a mini-series for TV?
James Conroyd Martin Hi, Maria, Sorry to be tardy is answering this. The trilogy would make a great mini-series. I do hope to get it in front of some entertainment people. The Boy Who Wanted Wings would make a fine film, too. Best to you!
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Holy smokes! I'm Polish, and I just finished "Push Not The River." You can sure write glorious plots and prose! Congrats! I'm on to the next part. It's like the Polish "Gone with the Wind"!! Thumbs up, Mr. Martin! Are you Polish and how did you research this gem?
James Conroyd Martin Hi, Tom,
Ancestry.com says I have a bit of central European blood that inches over into Poland. Quite a bit of Irish, English, and Nordic make up most of the rest. I started researching in libraries long before the internet happened. Also, I had the inspiration and primary source of a diary that had been handed down in the family of a friend, who translated it from the Polish. Thanks for writing, Tom!
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James Conroyd Martin
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