Elspeth Cooper's Blog, page 9

Is it just me?

From time to time, other writers decide to follow me on Twitter. Some of them are self-pubbed, some traditional. I read their profiles and decide whether I want to follow them back – if they’re funny or interesting or wise, or they write in my genre, or we have something else in common that makes me think they’re going to enrich my Twitterverse.

Sometimes, when I do follow back, they promptly DM me with links to buy their book(s). No “Thanks for the follow”, no “Hi, nice to make your acquaintance”, just jump straight to the sales pitch. Which says to me that they weren’t really interested in me as a fellow writer or someone who could enrich their Twitterverse, just as another target.

I think that’s rude. If you’re hoping to get me to part with my money on the basis of zero acquaintance, zero interaction between us, I’m afraid you’re going to be disappointed. Like any customer, I need to be wooed a little. Why should I buy your book? What makes you think I would enjoy it, or would want to read it? You don’t know – you can’t know, because you’ve made no effort to engage with me, which means you are attempting scattergun marketing in the hope that if you throw enough links out there, someone will click on one.

Newsflash: that doesn’t work any more than spam in my inbox encourages me to buy fake Rolexes or help Nigerian bankers get millions out of the country.

What works on social media is networking. Joining the conversation. Engaging with other individuals and showing yourself to be an interesting person who has something to contribute to the online experience beyond shouting BUY MY BOOK every hour. Cos, y’know, that looks kinda desperate. And more than a bit unimaginative. And after a while it gets boring, and people tune you out, or unfollow. Congratulations, your marketing strategy is alienating people.

The latest writer to do this to me, I replied: “Um, don’t you think it’s a bit rude to hit me with a link to your book without so much as a thanks for the follow? Social Media 101: network, don’t sell.”

His reply was that he didn’t think much of rules, and that people who tried to impose them were a bit ridiculous (nice subtle implication there, eh?) but that he hoped I had a lovely week anyway. Mighty big of him.

I said: “There’s rules, and there’s simple politeness” and promptly unfollowed.

He wasn’t the first this week, either. The other one didn’t even follow me, just @messaged me straight out with his sales pitch for his child-abuse survivor memoir. Several dozen other people in my Twitter circle got the same message. When I said I thought he was doing the equivalent of buttonholing strangers on the High Street he claimed that I was being rude to him by reacting that way to an innocent “Friday Reads”, which might have been more convincing if it had been

a) hashtagged as #fridayreads

b) somebody else’s book, and

c) not an @message, including praise from one of his reviews, sent individually to 20 or 30 people.

World, is it just me? Am I the only one who gets utterly pissed off with this behaviour?

I know, it’s my own fault for responding and I should just Delete and Move On. Few people are capable of grace when told they’re being a bit of an arse, and trying to cram a lesson in Social Media Etiquette into 140 characters often results in one sounding a tad snippy.

Or am I merely a grumpy old woman, waving my walking stick in frustration at a world that simply doesn’t care about good manners and politeness and respect any more?

Eee, I remember when all this was trees . . .

 

 

 

Images from freedigitalphotos.net

Book 3 title news

I broke cover with this elsewhere on teh internets just now, so this makes it official: Book 3 of The Wild Hunt series will be called The Raven’s Shadow.

The title has only just been agreed on with my agent and editor, so Amazon and other e-tailers might not have got all their ducks in a row yet, so be patient with them.

To the best of my knowledge, the book should be out round about this time next year, assuming I can get to the bottom of the to-do list* taped to the side of my monitor, deliver the script by the end of next month, and no horrific blunders emerge in the edit.

*crosses off  today’s completed tasks, viz. Items 18 & 19 – yay. Achievement unlocked: ice cream!

Signed books

From time to time I get requests from people wanting to send their books to me, have me sign them, then send them back.

This makes me feel really awkward, because I hate saying no to people, but there’s a couple of reasons why I just can’t do this.

Firstly, once you’ve said yes to one person, it becomes very difficult to then start saying no. As much as I like every single one of you who’s parted with their hard-earned to buy my books, if I spend all my time unpacking, signing, re-packing and getting taxis to the Post Office, I’m not going to have much time for writing. And you all want more books from me, I hope. Don’t you?

Secondly, I’m a bit leery about giving out my home address. As much as I like every single one of you etc etc I’m not quite ready to invite you all in for a cuppa, because then I’d have to get the hoover out. Plus, it would totally ruin the authorly mystique.

Furring up the world, one nap at a time

I’m sure you’ve watched Castle on TV and you think all authors can afford glamorous loft apartments and fresh blueberries every day for breakfast (which they never, ever finish).

The reality is we mostly slob around in faded t-shirts and PJs with no makeup on, avoiding housework and not really caring about the cat hair on the furniture.

That authorly mystique? It’s there for a reason.

Fortunately, there is a solution. If you want your much-loved book defaced with my scrawl, you can bring it to me at an event, convention or signing session, if ever I’m allowed out into polite company, or you can buy a signed copy from the following selection of fine independent retailers:

Analecta Books – first edition hardcovers, signed, lined and publication dated

Anderida Books – first edition hardcovers, signed, lined, publication dated and numbered, strictly limited to 100 copies

Goldsboro Books – first edition hardcovers, signed, lined and publication dated

They are all top, top chaps and it has been my pleasure to work with them since the very beginning of my career as an author (i.e. last year). Go check them out, and support independent booksellers. You can’t get my signature on Amazon.

Cover love, part 2

A couple of days ago, seeing as publication of Trinity Rising was imminent, I had a poke about on my overseas publishers’ websites to see if I could find some release dates for the translated editions. Imagine my delight when I found this.

Isn’t it gorgeous? Yet again, Heyne have done me and my books proud with a stunning, subtle cover. I don’t even mind that they’ve changed the title to Die Wilde Jagd, which according to my rusty high school German translates as The Wild Hunt.

I can’t wait to see the whole series of these covers side by side on my bookshelves!

My left foot . . . again

You know what’s coming, don’t you? Something like this, perhaps? Ah, but this one’s even better.

Last night. It’s late, it’s dark, I’ve had a couple of glasses of wine. Not enough to be falling down unprompted, but certainly enough to get me out of bed needing the loo. I’m heading for the bathroom, which requires negotiating my way round the bottom of the bed, and . . .

CRUNCH!

It’s a solid oak bedstead, and my tootsies are mere flesh and bone. I woke up my husband with the swearing, but managed to make it to the bathroom and back without further mishap.

Today, well, the picture speaks for itself. That’s starting to look like a busted toe to me – or at least a hyper-extended one. My mobile has failed to capture the delicate nuances of the bruising coming out, which extends below the toe into my foot, but suffice to say I can’t scrunch my toes in the carpet just now, and both stairs and shoes are somewhat challenging.

I have to admit, it’s not quite as spectacular as the time I fell into the pond and did this:

but my rap sheet now has a further charge of aggravated assault occasioning actual bodily harm on it.

Seriously, I should not be left unattended. This is getting embarrassing.

Fifty Shades of…

. . . Fantasy, of course. What did you think I was going to say?

There has been much talk of late on teh intertubes concerning the fact that so many “Best of . . .” and “Top 100″ lists of fantasy and SF writers are male author-heavy, with many people feeling that female spec fic authors are under-represented, marginalised or downright ignored.

In reaction to this, Amanda Rutter started Fantasy Mistressworks (as a sister to the SF Mistressworks site) and put together the following list of 50 Fantasy Mistressworks, based on suggestions from readers.

Curious, I checked out the list and marked in bold the ones I’d read (italics mean I own the book). Drumroll, please . . .

1. Songspinners – Sarah Ash

2. The Bloody Chamber – Angela Carter

3. Rats and Gargoyles – Mary Gentle

4. Outlander – Diana Gabaldon (this was published as Cross Stitch in the UK)

5. The Riddle-Master of Hed – Patricia McKillip

6. The Blue Sword – Robin McKinley

7. Lud-in-the-Mist – Hope Mirrlees

8. The Curse of the Mistwraith – Janny Wurts

9. Shadow Magic – Patricia C Wrede

10. Assassin’s Apprentice – Robin Hobb

11. A Wizard of Earthsea – Ursula K Le Guin

12. Familiar Spirit – Lisa Tuttle

13. Beauty – Sheri S Tepper

14. Diadem from the Stars – Jo Clayton

15. The Crystal Cave – Mary Stewart

16. Black Horses for the King – Anne McCaffrey

17. The Clan of the Cave Bear – Jean M Auel

18. Fortress in the Eye of Time – C J Cherryh

19. Red Moon and Black Mountain – Joy Chant

20. The Birthgrave – Tanith Lee

21. Briefing for a Descent into Hell – Doris Lessing

22. Interview with the Vampire – Anne Rice

23. The Wood Wife – Terri Windling

24. Briar Rose – Jane Yolen

25. The Porcelain Dove – Delia Sherman

26. The Winter Prince – Elizabeth Wein

27. The Time of the Dark – Barbara Hambly

28. Sword of Rhiannon – Leigh Brackett

29. Tam Lin – Pamela Dean

30. Fire in the Mist – Holly Lisle

31. The Sacrifice – Kristine Kathryn Rusch

32. The Beleagured City – Margaret Oliphant

33. The Soul of Lilith – Marie Corelli

34. The Citadel of Fear – Francis Stevens

35. Jirel of Joiry – C L Moore

36. Sheepfarmer’s Daughter – Elizabeth Moon

37. Dragon Prince – Melanie Rawn

38. Black Trillium – Julian May

39. The Thief’s Gamble – Juliet E McKenna

40. Daggerspell – Katharine Kerr

41. The Blue Manor – Jenny Jones

42. The Barbed Coil – J V Jones

43. In the Red Lord’s Reach – Phyllis Eisenstein

44. The Spirit Ring – Lois McMaster Bujold

45. The Last of the Renshai – Mickey Zucher Reichert

46. Archangel – Sharon Shinn

47. The Hall of the Mountain King – Judith Tarr

48. A Blackbird in Silver – Freda Warrington

49. Kindred – Octavia Butler

50. The Red Magician – Lisa Goldstein

Wow. To my horror, there are authors here I hadn’t heard of. Only slightly less embarrassingly, I’ve only read nine – although maybe that should be eight and a half, because I can’t remember actually finishing Black Trillium despite loving and re-reading Julian May’s entire Saga of the Exiles *blush*

I’ve read other books by some of the authors listed, though, or have them on my to-be-read pile. Grunts by Mary Gentle, for instance, is one of my favourites. I’ve also read C J Cherryh’s The Paladin and Angel With a Sword, Jenny Jones’s Fly By Night, and I have Sheri Tepper’s The Gate to Women’s Country on the TBR pile. But as for the rest . . . um . . . guess I’d better hunt out my library card, eh?

So, now that I’ve exposed my reading deficiencies, why don’t you tell me yours?

Image courtesy FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Me! On the internet! Talking about stuff!

It’s all happening this week.

A bunch of us recent debut authors got together and decided to do something kinda fun to jointly celebrate our upcoming novels. Us crazy kids, right?

All this week and next*, we’re taking over Justin Landon’s blog over at Staffer’s Book Review, one author per day, to talk about our experiences of writing our second books and give you an exclusive sneak peek at these stories.

Mark Lawrence kicked off the event yesterday, with a post about Scary Shit, and a brilliant excerpt from King of Thorns. Today it’s Kameron Hurley, of God’s War fame, telling us Don’t Lose Your Edge and treating us to the first chapter of Rapture. And tomorrow, it’s some English upstart called Elspeth Cooper . . . Dunno who she is, but apparently she’s got a book out next week and you will be able to read a chunk of it on Justin’s site if you so desire.

You can read all about Justin’s Debut Authorpalooza 2012 here and check out the list of authors. There’s also giveaways every day, and a whopper of a grand prize at the end. It might just blow your mind.

Sounds pretty cool, eh? But wait, it gets better. Justin has also arranged with the nice folks at Reddit Fantasy to get all ten of us on a joint Ask Me Anything on Thursday 19th July. Most of us will be there live, answering your questions on life, the universe and everything from 7pm CST/1am UK. Details are here.

Please don’t leave us all sitting there twiddling our thumbs and counting the dead flies in the light fittings. I mean, ten bored authors? It could get really messy.

*Uh, this post was supposed to go up on Sunday but I was . . . busy. Hiding from a man with a paintbrush. Srsly.

What a difference a year makes

It’s hard to believe a year (and a bit) has passed since I saw finished copies of Songs of the Earth – where has the time gone?

Well, if you really want to know, it’s gone here:

- over 300,000 words of fiction

- over 2500 tweets

- 1538 miles travelled

- over 400 bookmarks given away

- 387 books signed

- 28 fanmails received and responded to personally

- 23 blog posts (I know, I know, I need to blog more regularly)

- several many new friends made (you know who you are)

- 1 convention attended

- 0 nervous breakdowns, divorces or psychotic episodes (but it was a close run thing)

Whew.

 

Cover love

With two weeks to go until official publication day, finished copies of Trinity Rising have arrived at Gollancz Towers, and don’t they look gorgeous? Of course they do.

I’ve got a busy couple of weeks planned, with guest blogs coming and sneaky-sneak extracts of the book to whet your appetite, so watch this space, or hunt me down on Facebook or Twitter for all the latest news.

In the meantime, I will leave you to feast your eyes on the pretty. Click it to embiggen for the full effect. Wouldn’t that look great on your bookshelf?

Go on, you can admit that you want it. There’s no-one watching, honest. Your secret is safe with me.

 

 

And in other news . . .

Honestly, I go for weeks with nothing to blog about and then I have to write two posts in one day!

The big news is that I’ve signed a contract with Orion for a fourth book in The Wild Hunt Series. As I finished Book 2 and got into Book 3, there turned out to be rather more story still to be told than I’d thought, so The Wild Hunt is now a quartet (I like the way that sounds better than “tetralogy”, which always tries to tie my tongue in a knot for some reason) and will keep me off the streets until 2014.

The new book is provisionally entitled The Wandering Moon, and I’ll keep you all updated on its progress in due course.

I also found out recently that Book 2, Trinity Rising (coming out next month, hint hint) will be available as an audiobook, read by the wonderful Allan Corduner who did such a great job of Songs of the Earth. He’s currently filming, but we hope to get him in the studio later in the summer to start recording.

Woo, and may I say hoo.