Ellie Lieberman's Blog: Dusty Shelves, page 2

Popcorn: More Than Just a Minor Detail

A couple days ago was National Popcorn Day. So, of course, what came to mind for some of my readers as well as myself was Society's Foundlings, since the main item of food consumed within the 90 pages is overly buttered, stale, movie theater popcorn. While this is but a simple detail, it got me thinking about what that popcorn represented to each of the characters.

The popcorn is a very minor detail. It is used to illustrate the lack of food, finances, and resources offered to the character. Yet, despite this simple view of food, it has a larger meaning to Sampson, Carver, and Math in particular,

Sampson sees it as a divide between himself and others, such as Nicole Brennerman. He wonders how she could possibly understand comparing past cheap food that created a regular diet (plain spaghetti and minute rice) to the assumption of richer, more expensive foods she grew up eating (lobster). This is not only used as a dividing line, but to illustrate and represent the feeling of being an outsider.

For Carver, it remains solely a representation of things he cannot have. Lack of resources, lack of security, lack of the 'more' he's constantly searching for. It remains a barrier in not only what he can provide for himself, but what he can provide for the people he cares about, seen when he questions what else the three other main characters had to eat that day.

Math views popcorn as the complete opposite. For him, it is belonging and security. He includes it in his descriptions of Sampson and Carver's place, which in and of itself is a sanctuary. It is a sure and constant thing for him in a world that is slowly falling apart around him.

Each of these representations become even deeper when the reader recognizes nobody else would necessarily think of or even know they eat mostly popcorn. It illustrates an internal struggle, and how they view themselves and their situations.

Home and Belonging

Home and belonging is a common theme in my books. Whether it's the dragon from A Dragon's Treasure in A Horde of Dragons. or it's Math from Society's Foundlings wondering why what feels like home can't be where he rests his head at night.

For the dragon, belonging is a chain around his neck until a friend tells him, "There's a difference between being someone's treasure and being treasured by someone." For Math, home transforms from a brick-stepped, light-flickering sanctuary where no one can trespass to a hand that catches you when you fall.

Home, what it is and how we define it, changes as we do. It doesn't always look the same, but there are common elements. As Billy Joel sings, "Home is just another word for you." One constant is the people. Those you've known all your life who become more than just family, and communities, no matter how big or small, who become more than just friends. These Shadows, as I like to call them, like Shadow from The Treasure of Ravenwood. Those bosom friends and kindred spirits as Anne of Green Gables called it.

For Jenna from Solving for X it was the memories within the place or the person. The plaid blanket where she and Erik watched fireworks. It was the line of photos. For Erik, it was the smell of salt water and the old basketball courts.

Sometimes home is in the traditions. Mom's coffee in the mornings. Jenna's painting. Decorating for the holidays or Friday night dinners with the grandparents.

And, home can be a place. Where love abounds and there lies a type of safety one can only find in those four walls.

Home for me is a lot of things. It is paint and pencils, notebooks and sketchpads. It is an orange, furry hug. It is a steaming cup of tea.

It is laughter and kisses goodnight by a porch light and under stars. It is a hand on my knee, fingers that tickle mercilessly, and his hat that I wear like a crown.

It is smiles and shared dreams and a hand to hold and a hug I've known since birth. It is my mom. It is a Christmas tree decorated the day after the turkey is cooked. It's dancing and singing Ten Minutes Ago from Roger and Hammerstein's Cinderella. It's Chinese Food for Christmas. It's stories I now know by heart.

It's a neighbor who I count as family. A blessing in the form of fabulousness. Another Pheonix- I am so fortunate to be surrounded by so many!

My Fairy Godmother! Filled with as much wisdom as magic. Who could touch dust and turn it to gold. Whose sparkle always makes the day brighter.

It is a goddamn masterpiece. A modge podge worth of 21 years. Home is where I rest my head at night.

I think Sally Fingerette said it best, "Home is where the heart is. No matter how the heart lives. In your heart where love is, that's where you've got to make yourself a home."

What do you consider home?

The Creative Community

For as solitary as writing and art is, creative people tend to build communities around each other. They gravitate to one another, sometimes without even meaning to. Whether it's my soul recognizes something in your soul or the need to create is as basic the need to breathe and is a primal urge shared among all, communities tend to grow around us.

History has shown us the inevitability of this converging of souls. The group of artists who got together in the 'Cafe Gurebois,' which included Monet and Degas and Renoir. The Algonquin Round Table. Even today, we've seen it taken to a new, ever expanding platform online. A prime example being IABB (https://www.facebook.com/HeyIABB/?fre... ).

Though one could actively seek out such communities, they also tend to build themselves. My own little writing group came to know each other before some of us even put to paper. There was simply a mysterious connection. Such a phenomenon is an amazing thing to experience.

While there is something equivalent to a high in the act of writing or drawing, getting together with other like minded individuals gets the creative juices really start to flow. One of the many things my group and I discover is that we also feed off each other and leave feeling even more inspired.

As long as there is a seed of creativity in you, a community will bloom around you. If you are a writer or an artist you are never truly alone. After all, history is on your side.

Happy Halloween!

A year ago around this time, I made a post about Samhain and new beginnings. About how much had changed, sweeping out the old to make room for the new. About dreams and all we wished for.

A fabulous friend and neighbor brought up just how a couple months ago we sat around a table and discussed these crazy dreams of ours. Crazy, impossible, and yet filled our notebooks.

Now, at 10:30 at night (might have written this a couple of weeks ago), I sit in my new home, from the very floor to the ceiling. The couches are mismatched and second hand. There's an ugly carpet in between them that somehow manages to fit both colors. But, I wouldn't trade it for the world.

It is mine. From the floor to the ceiling. The walls will be painted. Our stuff will be unboxed and displayed in just the right place. There are already pots of flowers outside thanks to tat same fabulous friend. And, I have my most bosom buddy and kindred spirit beside me throughout this entire journey, not to mention the community around us.

It's taken a very hard year. Full of sweat and tears. Full of friends and bonds we wouldn't trade for anything. It's taken us a year, but my very best friend and I have found our way home.

Happy Halloween and a magical Samhain!

Marketing in the Indie World

So, I was watching a youtube video by Hank Green about why NerdCon Stories wasn't doing so well. In it, he began talking about marketing and the event from a business perspective and with the way my brain works, through a labyrinth of tangents that probably would not make much sense to anybody else, it got me thinking about marketing for indie books in particular.

As some know, my mother, Barbara Lieberman, or Barb Freaking Lieberman as she's better known in our Indie circle, and I have recently started a publishing company, Pipe and Thimble (http://www.pipeandthimble.com/) and will be opening an indie-only bookstore as well! Marketing was already essential to us, being indie authors ourselves, but it now becomes even more so as we go forth with these new ventures.

Indie books present a unique challenge. I equate it to the handmade businesses we've run in the past, my mom's Seeds of Inspiration, and my Acorn Tops (http://acorntops.weebly.com/). Seeds of Inspiration sold not-your-everyday aromatherapy and scented products. Acorn Tops sells a variety of handmade fairy products such as fairy doors or Raggle Taggle Fairy Dolls. These are unique products that not everybody recognizes instantly or knows.

There's an advantage to this. It's one-of-a-kind. You have the corner market. But, there's also a disadvantage. It's different, so there's always a bit of hesitancy. There also requires a lot of education. How do you use it? Why that one in particular compared to the mass produced counterparts I instantly recognize? What is it even?

If we apply this to books, specifically Indie books, we're essentially answering the same questions. Instead of competition with the mass-produced, you're up against recognizable names and age old classics.

One of the reasons I've been given for independent bookstores to not carry truly indie books is because of name recognition. One bookstore in particular cited an experience where a reader gravitated to a lesser known book written by the author of The Lovely Bones, rather than a novel written by a self-published author. This reader never read a book from either author, but because she recognized the name, she was more interested in the work by Alice Sebold. This makes sense when you think about human nature. We tend to gravitate to what we know.

So, how as indie authors can we make something more recognizable, or at least these not so recognizable works into something people would feel more comfortable gravitating towards? You relate. You relate it back to the reader, hit something they recognize or that's at least common in our culture.


A prime example is Barbara Lieberman's Why Does the Moon Follow Me?. She compares her children's book to Goodnight Moon. Who doesn't know that rhyming bedtime story classic? On top of that, she describes this story as a lullaby in a book, which not only furthers the whole "rhyming bedtime story" marketing, but once again also gives you an age range and reading level.

Another great example is Squirrel Bait by Chip Davis. The book has been equated to a B-horror movie. Describing it this way allows for someone to make a connection and have an idea of what awaits them behind the first cover.

Evangeline Duran Fuentes does something similar with Cry on Hallow's Eve. She not only likens it to R. L. Stine's Goosebumps, which again allows a connection to be made, but also explains it's her twist on the folklore of La Llorona. Why is that so important to marketing? Anyone who knows Mexican culture and folklore knows La Llorona. The moment she says "La Llorona" many readers instantly gravitate toward the book because they or someone they know has grown up with the tale. If they haven't, she goes into explanation, but by including "folklore" readers can already make connections to the folklore they know of their culture or other culture.

You find a way to relate something unrecognizable. You educate.

Not only do you need to educate on what the book is about, but also the world of Indie and Self-Publishing. Unfortunately, there is still this negative stereotype and stigma surrounding the word "indie," especially in the world of publishing. Why is indie important? Why did you decide to go with self-publishing? Mentioning "indie" can be a huge turn off, so turn it into something positive.

Barbara Lieberman published The Unchained Spirit through a small press, Pipe and Thimble, because she enjoys the freedom that come with being an indie author and she wanted the book to be her words, unchanged and unedited. It was personal and it needed to remain that personal and that raw. And, the cover was just as essential to the book itself. The book is not about what sells and doesn't sell, it's simply a soul-changing story that needs to be told.

One of the biggest challenges, I think, is trying to market and sell your book. It's a business. It doesn't end the moment you put the pencil down or it's up on Amazon. It needs to be treated like a business, if you want to sell books, especially if your name is not "Jane Austen" or "John Green" or you don't have a publishing house like "Harper-Collins" or "Penguin." The reality of it is, we are little fish in a big ocean, trying to get someone to sink their lines into our stories and our words.

The best advice is to see what the other fishes are doing. How are they getting their readers hooked? What tricks do they have up their fins? Take what you like, leave what you don't and if something isn't working, try something else. Your best bet, though, is to relate it back to your audience, be it genre, comparison to other works, etc.

The best part about books and stories is that it is part of human nature. And someone someday soon will pick up your book because on some level it speaks to them. And, it was the right book at the right time.

The One-Star Review

It has happened. As my friend has called it, "A rite of passage" for any author. If you are an author, I'm sure it is inevitable. The one-star review. My very first and on my most recent story.

There has been a great debate over one-star reviews. For me, I fall on the side that a reader has every right to be completely honest. If that means a one-star review, it means a one-star review. Not everyone is going to love or enjoy a book. Therefore, not everyone is going to love a book I've written. After all, even the classics and most popular books receive one-star reviews.

I fully recognize that this is easy to say when you've never had a one-star review. Except, now I've received one. And, yeah, it hurts. I don't think anybody really enjoys getting them. But, it doesn't make the review any less valid.

As my grandfather always said, "practice what you preach." You have to walk your talk. If I truly believe in reader's being able to be honest in their reviews, I have to believe in it when I'm the one receiving that one-star review. And, I do.

Maybe it's a bit easier since I have the protection of the computer screen, but this one-star review also benefits me. 1) It gives me another review on my book. It kind of follows the idea of "any publicity is good publicity." 2) It adds some appeal to my book. If all I have are five-stars and beta readers or friends, the views and opinions of the book appeared skewed. If I have one five-star review and one one-star review, it makes it seem more balanced and genuine. 3) Because it was through K.U. I still got royalties.

One-star reviews are going to happen. They are going to hurt, but it's part of being an author. It helps you grow. So, this book wasn't for one reader, but it might be a great read to another. And, if I believe in the reader's right to post an honest review, I believe in the reader's right to post an honest review on my books as well.

Lessons from the Lunchroom Table: Self Censorship

As a side job to support my writing career, I work as a yard supervisor at an elementary school. Part of this job includes assisting children in the lunchroom. That was what I was doing when some students noticed a cloud of smoke in the distance beyond the fence on the other side of the playground.

A group of the students began speculating as to what might be the cause of the smoke. A fire seemed to be the most likely culprit, according to them. A house fire.

Another little boy raised his hand to get my attention and informed me that he not only did not appreciate the type of conversation but that it was putting him off his lunch. I suggested to the group of students that they needed to respect the fact this other kid asked them to please stop and maybe speak quieter so the other student did not have to hear and could finish his food. Understandably, a conversation of that nature is rather frightening and even unsettling to think about. And, all in all, it is lunch time and the boy needed to be able to eat his food.

As I walked away from the table, something about how I handled the situation did not sit right. What happened kept replaying in my head and upon a minute or so of more thought led me to another way of looking at it.

Why shouldn't that group of students still be allowed to talk and speculate? Yes, it was an unsettling conversation, but what did it teach to them and that boy about when unsettling conversations are brought up? Just as that boy has a right to eat his lunch in peace, that group of students had a right to talk it out.

Talking is a way of coping. And smoke, like a car accident, is hard to ignore. Human nature lends itself to curiosity and often talking it out is a way to reach an understanding.

I went back to the table and told that boy, "You know what? Just as they need to respect that you don't like this conversation, you need to respect that they might need this conversation. If you ever find yourself in a situation where you don't like what is being talked about, you don't like what show just came on television, you don't like a certain book, you can remove yourself from the conversation. I understand that it is frightening or unsettling, but if they keep talking about it and you can still hear it, you can take your lunch and move to a different seat."

Big concept in a seemingly little moment, self censorship. It reminded me of banning books. Amazing books that bring up some incredible conversation, but because one person objects, suddenly they try to silence it, ban it. More often than not, these are conversations we need to have, too. That people do more harm than good in trying to censor others, rather than simply censoring for themselves.

Hardest Part of Being An Author

Recently at Wondercon, someone asked what the hardest part of being an author was for me. It made me pause for a moment, because while there are some challenges, none really stuck out. As an indie author, the things I would find most challenging such as a deadlines are not a problem for me. As I have the ability to set my own and I detest the things because they tend to stunt my creativity, I simply fly by the seat of my pants. Books come when they come. Time is a constraint I only permit for my side job.

And, of course, as often happens with things such as wit and comeback, the answer hit me the moment they walked away. The hardest part of being an author is the promotion. I don’t require motivation to write, because if I didn’t write I’d cease to be and, quite frankly, that’s motivation enough. But, once you have the physical book in hand, once it’s up on Amazon, how does one start the process of getting it seen.

Someone once compared the world of publishing, being traditional and big houses or indie self and small presses, to a sea of books. Every day countless books are being published and it’s hard to break through the waves. Here’s what I’ve found thus far:

- Local events and craft shows:
Events give you the opportunity to speak to readers face to face and one-on-one. The benefits are the ability to become more personable in a way that modern day technology just can’t achieve. Who hasn’t heard the debate over ebook versus physical copies? There are many people who still appreciate, love, and prefer paperbacks. Plus, there is the excitement for them to meet an author and get it signed.

If you do craft shows, you also have the corner market on all those book-lovers. Recently, I helped out Barbara Lieberman at her Torrance Craftsman’s Guild and all the customers were shocked to discover her treasure trove of books. Another author, Evangeline Duran Fuentes, had the same experience. Even with other authors there is no competition because book lovers have the wonderful addiction. They’ll buy more than one. And with no two books being the same, it minimizes the competition even more.

Other benefits include minimum booth fees, great experiences, practice discussing your books, building a following, just to name a few.

- Book swag:
Book swag provides benefits in introducing people to your books and building interest. They may not pick up the book first, but be drawn to a necklace with a quote that speaks to them or a button because they like the image. Always include the information of the book, so they can find it and you for when they’re realize they can continue their love of that quote or find out more about that image.

It also allows the readers of the books to continue the story. If they loved your book, and your book swag relates back, it gives them the opportunity to bring the story to life. Barbara Lieberman has scented fabric “Mouse’s Apples” that are tied back to her The Treasure of Ravenwood. She sells seed packets of Arrowleaf Balsamwood that relates to her Message on the Wind and To Reap a Whirlwind.

- Collaborations:
I have recently joined not one, but two, anthologies. The beauty of the anthology is that it can feature a variety of authors from all different places. That means that while I’m promoting a work that includes their stories, they’re doing the same for me. I will be introduced to their following and their fan based.

The same goes for if you have an illustrator or cover artist or if you work with a local handmade business to help make some book swag. The same can be said for holding your own signings, release parties, or other events in local bookstore for instance. Collaborations are a great source of cross-promotions.

- Joining the 21st Century:
Just as in-person events are important and hold many benefits, so does the world of technology. With social media and other forms of technology, you are able to reach wider audiences, both out of state and out of country. It is a great place to build communities, such as Indie Authors and Book Blogs on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/Indie-Author...). This will allow you to build necessary connections that could get you more seen or more help, whether you’re looking for an editor, illustrator, formator, PA, etc. With a wide variety of social media sites to choose from, you also have the opportunity to pick one or more that fit you or are more geared toward what you’re trying to promote.

That being said, they have to be updated. Yes, it can be time consuming, but with certain sites there’s the instant updates, such as Instagram, or posts that can be scheduled, such as Facebook or twitter. There are ways around that such as hiring a PA to assist in scheduling posts or programs like hootsuit that can schedule posts across Social Media.

Online Author events, such as Virtual FantasyCon on Facebook, is always a fun and wonderful way to meet other authors, see what they’re doing, and get your book in front of the eyes of readers.

Whether or not you are going to route of big publishing houses or you’re a self-published indie author, promotion is on you. It is a big challenge and it can be daunting as well as discouraging at time, but when you stick with it, it makes all the difference. What are some ways you would like to see book promoted or what are the methods you use as an author?

Character Interview: Carver

Using the questions asked in Inside the Actor's Studio, I will be interviewing characters from my books. I'm starting with Carver from Society's Foundlings.

1. What is your favorite word?
Redemption.

2. What is your least favorite word?
Can’t. I don’t like limitations.

3. What turns you on creatively, spiritually or emotionally?
A well written book and any conversation about books in general.

4. What turns you off?
Little princess-bitches in platform five-inch heels who shrills in a voice equivalent to nails on a chalkboard and a dying cat and whose favorite book is about sparkly vampires, whose favorite show is a tie between some soap and a reality, and who owns more shoes than books. My friend, Ophelia, tells me I’m a stuck up bastard and a snob. It’s mostly the righteous attitude, like a parent who gets pissed off that I’m cursing when they’re at a sleazy fast food joint at midnight and buying their kid caffeine. If a few curse words is the worst thing a kid experiences, than I’d call it good.

5. What is your favorite curse word?
Pardon the French, but Fuck.

6. What sound or noise do you love?
A page being turned.

7. What sound or noise do you hate?
Gunshots. Police sirens.

8. What profession other than your own would you like to attempt?
Travel writer. As Jack Kerouac said, “The road is life.” Anything to find whatever “more” I can.To go places and meet people, with “nothing behind me, everything ahead of me, as is ever on the road.”

9. What profession would you not like to do?
Any of the jobs I am currently doing. Laundromat, stocking shelves, cashier, etc.

10. If Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the Pearly Gates?
I’m surprised to see you here.

Never Too Young To Start

You are never too old to start. But you are never too young, either. Yes, education and experience has benefits. There’s something to be said for wisdom acquired through years. In no way am I attempting to down play the hours spent in college courses and papers that caused lack of sleep only to be covered in marks of red pen. I’m not ignoring the lives lived that result in a well turned story. And it is inspiring to know that even at the age of 60, I can dust off the dreams I put aside and ignored.

But, I am not 60. I am 20. And, despite what people might say about lack of experience or life starting outside of a classroom that everyone seems to want to put me back in, I have lived. It might not have been as many decades, but I’ve had my share of scars and heartache and life. And, I have gained wisdom. I have something to say, and so do other young people.

S.E. Hinton wrote The Outsiders when she was 18 years old. She wrote a piece of literature that still affects us decades later. It is now part of our culture and commonly referenced. It had such influence that is a banned book. At 18 she accomplished this.

Phillis Wheatley at the age of 12 was the first published African American female poet. She had a huge influence on the Revolution as well as Abolition.

You’re never too young to start. Learn from those who kept their dreams filed away for years. Go out and try for your dreams today. You don’t have to wait.