Michelle Zink's Blog, page 14

Zen and the Art of Book Marketing

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about the first couple of years after I sold Prophecy of the Sisters (in 2007). I had an old blog on blogger, and excited about my news, I was fairly good about posting regularly, something that’s always made easier when the good publishing news is plentiful, as many of you know.

Then came Facebook and Twitter and Tumblr and Pinterest and Google Plus. For awhile, I was all up in your internet. I was was on Twitter throughout every day. Ditto Facebook. And while it took me awhile to get on Pinterest and I was never super great at marketing my books there (I was too busy with recipes and fashion and quotes), it was part of my social networking repertoire. I’ve so far resisted Tumblr, though I wonder on an almost daily basis how long it will be before I succumb to the temptation of MORE FOLLOWERS! NEW READERS! UNTAPPED MARKET! I did epic giveaways, attended online chats, retweeted everyone else’s stuff, and basically just did all I could to be visible at all times. I answered EVERY single tweet directed my way, every email. I doled out writing advice to anyone who wanted it and blurbed books as often as possible, trying to pay forward my good fortune.

Because it wasn’t all about selling books. I just felt so LUCKY, so damn fortunate to be writing for a living, so GRATEFUL for the faith placed in me by my publisher. I wanted to do my part. At the very beginning of the self-promotional blitz that is now par for the course, I didn’t want to sit back and count on the publisher do the marketing work.

In 2009, shortly after Prophecy of the Sisters came out, my editor said (about my marketing pace), “You will not be able to keep this up forever.” And I said, “I know, but I’ll keep doing it as along as I can, or at least until Prophecy has a solid readership and I can take a step back.”

But then something terrible happened. Prophecy never quite gained the footing everyone expected. Despite critical acclaim, multiple starred reviews, sales in over thirty foreign countries, it fell short of the extremely high expectations my publisher had for it. Whether marketing choices, three cover changes, and/or lack of promised rebranding on said covers had anything to do with the numbers is something we’ll never know. Because the truth is, the stuff of big hits is still something of a mysterious alchemy. Some books just don’t hit the way we expect them to. And while Prophecy sold extremely well for any book in the marketplace at that time, the fact that it didn’t meet the enormously high expectations set for it is still a smudge on my publishing record.

And it left me feeling so disheartened. I had truly done EVERYTHING I could. Beyond writing the best books I could (the Prophecy trilogy really is the story of my heart, at least thus far), I marketed like a madwoman, gave all kinds of shit away, tweeted my heart out, connected with anyone and everyone on as personal a level as possible. I signed stock all over the country, was away from my children for two tours covering twenty cities. All while being a single mother to four teenagers. But it didn’t matter. None of it seemed to matter.

I started to wonder if all the naysayers were right. All the people who said whatever we did as authors to supplement the publisher’s marketing efforts would never be enough to effect a measurable difference in sales. Talking to some of my fellow writers at a conference, a couple of them said they’d done the figurative math and determined that we could maybe sell another hundred books through an active social networking presence. It was a quandary that left us all feeling a little bit helpless.

So I withdrew. I rarely tweeted and only posted on Facebook because it had begun to feel more personal (my kids and family and friends are there). Last year, I gradually stopped doing giveaways, and this year, my blogging has been hit and miss at best. More than just doubt about how much of a difference it all made, I was busy. Busy trying to keep my writing career afloat, trying to work my way into other areas like TV and film, trying my hand at digital publishing with a small press, strategizing about possible next directions. Because one way or another, I was (and am) going to write for a living. On top of that, I made personal choices that led me away from being online all the time, practicing Buddhism (and with it mindfulness), meditating, doing yoga daily, and generally trying to keep it simple, because I noticed that was when I was happiest. Marketing just kind of fell by the wayside.

But all my hard work and focus this past two years is starting to feel like it might pay off. I have several interesting projects in the works and a couple of already-contracted ones (that I can’t talk about yet). They are all leading me in a slightly different direction than the road I’ve traveled in publishing so far. And I’m really excited about that.

So here I am six years after selling Prophecy, trying to figure out how much I want to do online. How much I can enjoy (because I do enjoy some of it and I love connecting with readers) and how much of it will make any kind of difference in the financial success of my work. I still don’t have it figured out, but I do know I need a little of both. A little solitude and a little connectivity. A little silence and a little collective noise. A little c’est la vie, a little help from outside and a whole lot of Zen. How that mix will shake up in the end remains to be seen.

But the short answer (too late for that! ha!) is that I’m back. For now, I’ll continue to blog when I have a great vegetarian/vegan recipe, when I have something to say that maybe a thousand other people haven’t already said, and yes, when I have news to share or need your help spreading the the word (And I will when THIS WICKED GAME comes out later this year!). And I WILL be doing giveaways again, because that is something I’ve always enjoyed. I’ll still be on Facebook (my online “home”) and will be ramping up my Twitter a bit, though I will never be as active there as I once was, because the truth is; I can’t take the mental noise.

And here’s the thing; I’m a writer, not a blogger or marketer. I am still being paid to write books (thank you, Universe). So that must be my primary objective. And I think I’ve finally learned that for me to write great books I need a few things. Mental silence. Time to ruminate. Walks in nature. Time to read great books. I will have to learn to put those things above everything else, because it’s the only way I can honor the faith my readers have in me and the burden I place on myself to do the very best work I can.

I hope you’ll be patient with me when I disappear to work. Comment here when the spirit moves you. Let me know what you’d like to see. Because I don’t have all the answers. As with great stories, some of the time I have to sit back and let everything take on a life of it’s own. That’s where all the magic is anyway.

”Sometimes you need to do something bad to stop you from doing something worse.”

 

This one’s for my fellow cinephiles. If you haven’t seen STOKER, you must. Beautiful, riveting, and twisted is only the beginning. The score is amazing, too, and I’m especially grateful for the introduction to Emily Wells, whose song  BECOMES THE COLOR brings the film to a perfect close.

 

Little Things – Movies

Now that I finally have a little break between writing projects, I’ve been watching tons of movies. The visual is such a nice break from the words streaming constantly through my mind. Plus, with Netflix and Redbox and all the other video and streaming services, it’s good, cheap entertainment. Make some popcorn or dish some ice cream, and you pretty much have the perfect recipe for writerly downtime.

All of which make at-home movies this week’s little pleasure.

Recipe of the Week – Vegan Fettuccine Alfredo

This one’s mine! Because let’s face it; sometimes you just need some creamy, cheesy goodness. Which is fine… unless you’re vegan (or trying to be as much as possible, like us).

I came up with this one after testing nutritional yeast as a cheese substitute in another recipe. After some initial skepticism, I was pleasantly surprised by its cheesy, slightly-nutty Parmesan flavor and even more surprised by the whole new world of vegan dishes it opened up.

Plus, it’s super easy, fast, and requires very few ingredients.

 

Vegan Fettuccine Alfredo

Olive oil

5 cloves garlic

Fresh (chopped) or dried basil (to taste)

1/2 cup nutritional yeast

1 package fettuccine noodles

Salt and pepper

Boil noodles according to package direction. While they are cooking, mince garlic.

Reserve four cups of pasta water, then drain noodles. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in pasta pan and saute garlic for one minute.

Reduce heat to simmer and add noodles to pan with yeast, basil and an additional 1/4 cup olive oil. Add a little of the reserved pasta water and stir until heated through and well blended. Keep adding reserved pasta water to get the dish to a “creamy” consistency. When you have it where you want it, season with kosher salt and fresh ground pepper to taste.

Bon Apetite!

 

 

 

 

Precious Blood, Seduction, and Five Book Swag!

I know, I know. We all get tons of book news from Publishers Weekly, Publishers, Marketplace, SLJ, ALA, and the New York Times.

But there are TONS of authors busting their asses every day running contests and giveaways, self-publishing books, promoting their work when all they really want to do is pull the covers over their heads. So I’m going to make an attempt at spreading the word for them. I’ll do a shout out on Facebook every Monday and will troll my Feed for news. No promises I can fit it all in, but I’ll do my best.

And this week is filled with book awesomeness;

WBLI.com is giving away a signed copy of Tonya Hurley’s, PRECIOUS Blood, the first book in a series about Lucy, Agnes, and Cecilia, all of whom may or may not be modern day Saints. I’ve read the first two books and loved them for the dark, Gothic tone set against the celebrity culture of contemporary New York City. Tonya will be at Books of Wonder in NYC on June 23 from 1 -3 PM for a Sunday Bloody Sunday launch party and book signing. In the meantime, entering to win the signed copy from WBLI.com is just a click away.

 

 

 

Seduction, by M.J. Rose, was included in a USA Today Fiction Roundup. I adore M.J.’s writing, and USA Today seems to agree, saying, “Readers will be enchanted by M.J. Rose’s supernaturally charged novel Seduction, inspired by Victor Hugo’s self-imposed exile on the British island of Jersey in the 1850s. Great elements of suspense are present — a remote, misty island teeming with century-old Celtic ruins, an unreliable narrator who may or may not be going crazy.” Sounds amazing, right?!

 

 

 

Lastly, you can win five – count ‘em, FIVE – books, including Nazarea Andrew’s upcoming THIS LOVE in a massive swag giveway from five authors. Like this Facebook page to enter! And you can find Nazarea on Facebook here!

 

 

 

 

 

Megan Curd will release her first Steampunk novel, STEEL LILY, in August. Megan is also the author of Bridger, Traitor, and Forbidden. STEEL LILLY is the first book in the Periodic Series. AND she designed the cover herself. Isn’t it gorgeous?! Watch for it on Amazon and B&N!

Little Things – Time

Okay, this isn’t EXACTLY what I look like when I have free time.

 

 

 

 

More like this;

 

Still, time is the biggest little thing in the world. I haven’t had much of it the past few months. Really, the past couple of years. I’ve been working non-stop, running from one project to another, editing in between, and generally just trying to stay on top of it all. Unfortunately, blogging is one of the first things to go when things get crazy, which is why I’ve been MIA.

But there is good news! Some of it I can’t tell you just yet, but I have lots of stuff in the works, some official and some not-yet-official, that you’ll be hearing about soon. In the meantime, I finally have a little time. Not run-through-a-field-of-wildflowers time, but time to take a breath and figure out what to write next. Time to plan a marketing strategy for THIS WICKED GAME, which comes out in November. Time to do some soul searching about which direction I want to take my career. Maybe even time to bake some cookies.

And there’s nothing like NOT having time to do those things to make you appreciate the very big, little thing that is time. So today, I’m grateful for having a breather. For every nap, every moment talking to my girls on the couch, every morning enjoying the sun on the patio.

I hope you enjoy it, too. Whether it’s five minutes, five hours, or five days. Make the most of every moment.

Win a Fantine Necklace and Manuscript Page from Seduction!

This week’s recipe is being pre-empted by a contest announcement. Because sometimes great books and amazing freebies at better than food.

 

Seriously, though. I know I haven’t done a giveaway in a long time, and for someone who was once legendary for them, I feel bad about that. So I’m sending you to M.J. Rose’s giveaway instead. If you haven’t read M.J.’s previous books (The Reincarnationist and The Book of Lost Fragrances among them), you’re missing out. She’s so talented at weaving historical mystery with modern characters. Her books are incredibly atmospheric, and I know I can always count on them for a really immersive (I think I just made up a word!) read.

M.J.’s newest book, SEDUCTION, comes out very soon, and to celebrate, M.J. is giving away signed manuscript pages AND the amazing Fantine necklace you see on the cover of the book.

Take a look at her website for more info! And to tide you over, here’s the summary for SEDUCTION;

In 1843, novelist Victor Hugo’s beloved nineteen-year-old daughter drowned. Ten years later, still grieving, Hugo initiated hundreds of séances from his home on the Isle of Jersey in order to reestablish contact with her. In the process, he claimed to have communed with Plato, Galileo, Shakespeare, Dante, Jesus—and even the devil himself. Hugo’s transcriptions of these conversations have all been published.

Or so it has been believed . . .

Recovering from a great loss, mythologist Jac L’Etoile thinks that throwing herself into work will distract her from her grief. In the hopes of uncovering a secret about the island’s mysterious Celtic roots, she arrives on Jersey and is greeted by ghostly Neolithic monuments, medieval castles and hidden caves. But the man who has invited her there, a troubled soul named Theo Gaspard, hopes she’ll help him discover something quite different— transcripts of Hugo’s lost conversations with someone he called the Shadow of the Sepulcher. Central to his heritage, these are the papers his grandfather died trying to find. Neither Jac nor Theo anticipate that the mystery surrounding Victor Hugo will threaten their sanity and put their very lives at stake.

Seduction is a historically evocative and atmospheric tale of suspense with a spellbinding ghost story at its heart, written by one of America’s most gifted and imaginative novelists. Awakening a mystery that spans centuries, this multilayered gothic tale brings a time, a place and a cast of desperate characters brilliantly to life.

Recipe of the Week – Pasta with Roasted Tomato Basil Pesto

This week’s recipe comes from Oh She Glows. It is AH-mazing and super easy. Last time I made it, I didn’t use the nutritional yeast. I can’t explain why this product made me suspicious, but it did. It just seemed… gross to put YEAST in my food.

But I’ve seen in a lot of vegan recipes and everyone seems to be a convert, swearing by nutritional yeast’s “nutty, Parmesan-like” flavor, so I did some research and decided to give it a try. Apparently, it’s a perfect source of protein that’s packed with vitamins, especially B, which has proven to be super important to me for dealing with anxiety and depression.

And I have to say, while this recipe was good last time I made it, it was GREAT with the yeast. It really did give the dish a creamy, slightly nutty/cheesy taste, and the teenagers LOVED it. Plus, it was super easy, and I think it will even be good as a cold pasta salad in the summer. If you’re a vegetarian/vegan who likes to bring a dish to cookouts, parties, etc., this is definitely a candidate.

I only made a couple of changes; I used a few more tomatoes than is called for and I used pine nuts instead of almonds (I used almonds last time and it was delicious, but Andrew said they got stuck in his braces). Otherwise, it was perfect.

And check out Oh She Glows! Angela has some fantastic vegan recipes.

Pasta with Roasted Tomato Basil Pesto

Yield: 1 cup pesto

Ingredients:

9 large roma tomatoes, sliced in half lengthwise
1/2 cup almonds, toasted
2 garlic cloves
1 cup tightly packed basil + more for garnish
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil + more for drizzling on tomatoes
2 tbsp nutritional yeast (optional)
Kosher salt & freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Your desired amount of cooked Pasta

 

1. Preheat oven to 400F and line a baking sheet with parchment. Place sliced tomatoes on the sheet and drizzle with oil, salt, and pepper. Roast for about 1 hour and 10 mins at 400F. Watch closely during the last 15 minutes of roasting.

2. Reduce oven heat to 325F and toast almonds for 8-10 minutes. Add 1/3 cup into food processor and process until finely chopped. I left mine a bit chunky for texture. Remove and set aside.

3. With processor turned on, add 2 garlic cloves and let it whirl around until finely chopped. Now add in the basil and process until finely chopped.

4. Add in the oil, optional nutritional yeast, and 1.5 cups of roasted tomatoes (you will have tomatoes left over). Process until smooth. Pulse in 1/3 cup toasted almonds. Season generously with salt and pepper. I think I used about 1/2 tsp salt or a bit more.

5. Pour your desired amount of pesto over the cooked pasta and mix well. Chop the remaining roasted tomatoes and stir into pasta. Chop remaining almonds and Chiffonade the basil (see below).

Little Things – Spring!

It’s a little BIG thing. Let’s all just take a moment to send a word of thanks to Mother Nature.

For realz.

Recipe of the Week – White Bean, Spinich and Couscous Bake

I can’t take credit for this one, guys! It came straight from Beard and Bonnet and is basically perfect as is. Beard and Bonnet specializes in gluten-free recipes, but one of the things I love most about their blog is that they usually include vegan options as well.

Other than adding a bit more salt, using quinoa instead of couscous (more protein!), and baking it altogether in one big casserole dish, I followed this recipe exactly. Next time, I think I’ll try omitting the Parmesan, just to make it vegan (you can also top with Parma per the recipe). I’m thinking it would be good with some bread crumbs on top instead, and I don’t think we’d miss the Parmesan. You could probably replace the couscous with rice, too, if that’s what you have on hand.

Following is the recipe, reprinted from Beard and Bonnet. And you should totally check out their website! They have some great recipes.

White Bean, Spinach, and Couscous Bake

Serves 5 as a main course

1 box of brown rice Couscous, prepared as directed or substitute quinoa (about 2 cups of any grain)

1 large yellow onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 14.5 oz can of fire roasted tomatoes, drained but juice reserved

1 can of cannelini beans, drained and rinsed

1/4 cup fresh basil, minced plus an additional 2-3 Tbsp. basil for garnish, chiffonade

1/3 cup pine nuts

5 cups baby spinach

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 cup olive oil

Freshly ground black pepper to taste

1 cup Trader Joe’s Creamy Toscano Cheese with Black Pepper or Parmesan, grated

*For the vegan option: Substitute Mozzarella Rice Shreds for the Creamy Toscano cheese and sprinkle the top of your dish with Parma!

Preheat oven to 375°F. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Gently saute the onion until tender about 4-5 minutes then add the minced garlic and saute 2-3 minutes more until softened and onions are translucent. Add the drained fire roasted tomatoes and crush any large chunks with a potato masher or the back of a fork. Add the white beans and allow to cook for 5-7 minutes or until beans are warmed through, stirring frequently. Just before the beans are cooked through add the fresh spinach and gently turn and toss so that it will start to wilt, about 1-2 minutes.

In a large bowl combine 2 cups of the precooked couscous, reserved tomato juice, minced basil, pine nuts, salt and pepper; mix thoroughly. Fold the bean and tomato mixture into the couscous mixture until combined then spread half of it into the bottom of a shallow baking dish or individual ramekins. Sprinkle the grated cheese evenly over the dish then top with the remaining couscous mixture. Cover the dish with foil and bake 15-25 minutes until warmed through and bubbly. At the very end of the cooking time uncover the baking dish and pop it under the broiler just to lightly brown the top, 1-2 minutes max.