Alexandra Sokoloff's Blog, page 30
August 13, 2012
Subscriber glitch, and time-bending
Due to some bizarre glitch of - I guess Feedburner! - some people who are subscribed to my Screenwriting Tricks site are getting sent a post that I made back in April, saying that The Price and The Space Between are free today. They're not!
I have no idea why this his happening and am on my way to Australia so I can't look into it. It doesn't seem to have affected that many people, but I don't know for sure. So sorry for any inconvenience!
It was a day of time weirdness - some major time misreadings on the travel front. I guess that means while I'm traveling, I'm supposed to live in kairos rather than chronos. As we all do on the road, really.
So as I hit the road... um, air... for Diamonds are Forever, the RWAustralia National Conference, I'm leaving you with a post on this fascinating concept. Have a great week!
- Alex
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Well, convention season has kicked into high gear. If one were
looking to avoid writing, just for example, one could jet off to –
Romantic Times, Book Expo America, Mayhem in the Midlands, American
Library Association, Thrillerfest, RWA National… to mingle, network,
party with hundreds of favorite and soon-to be-favorite authors,
librarians, booksellers, DLers, 4MAers, MWAers, ITWers, Sisters, and most importantly,
readers.
Authors are strongly advised to go to conventions and festivals to
build their careers. There is no question that the networking is gold.
And except for having to continuously “sparkle”, as Margaret Maron
puts it, it’s so easy
to network at these things. All you have to do is relax and walk around
and just run into the people you need to run into. Really, it works.
Reviewers, booksellers, your publicist, the author whose incredible book
you were reading just the night before, extraordinary friends you
haven't seen in ten years - they're all there in a very contained space
and you will drift into them if you just go with the flow.
Some people call that work. But what it really is, is magic. What it is – is Faire Time.
I learned the concept of Faire Time, or Festival Time, over the years
of my interestingly misspent youth, hanging out at the Southern
California Renaissance Pleasure Faire
–a month-long semi-historical recreation of life in an Elizabethan
village, except with sex and drugs and overpriced irresistible craftish -
stuff.
(Wait, what am I saying? Of course they had all of that going on in those real Elizabethan villages, too...)
I’ll be lazy. Let’s see what Wikipedia has to say about festivals:
Among many religions, a feast or festival is a set of celebrations in honour of God or gods.
Hmm, sounds familiar, doesn’t it? A set of celebrations in honor of
gods – and goddesses. Take a look at the guest of honor lists for any
of the above- mentioned conventions. Gods and goddesses of the
mystery/literary world? You betcha.
What else?
Festivals,
of many types, serve to meet specific social needs and duties, as well
as to provide entertainment. These times of celebration offer a sense of
belonging for religious, social, or geographical groups. Modern
festivals that focus on cultural or ethnic topics seek to inform members
of their traditions. In past times, festivals were times when the
elderly shared stories and transferred certain knowledge to the next
generation. Historic feasts often provided a means for unity among
families and for people to find mates .
Now, does that sound like a convention or what?
Maybe it’s that first, religious purpose of festivals but I do notice
this unifying principle of “Faire Time” or “Festival Time" in full
force at conventions. There is an element of the sacred about a
festival – it is out of the ordinary, out of simple chronological time,
out of chronos - into kairos (again, from Wikipedia): "a time in between", a moment of undetermined period of time in which "something" special happens.
And here’s an interesting bit:
In rhetoric kairos is a passing instant when an opening appears which must be driven through with force if success is to be achieved.
Synchronicity and opportunity happen with such regularity at these
convention things that they’re really more the rule than the exception.
It is my absolute conviction that much more important career business
gets done at conventions and festivals than anywhere else because it is
being done in Faire Time – a suspended moment of opportunity.
And that is not even mentioning the creative and personal inspiration
of being in that state of suspended time with so many passionate
worshippers of the book. By the end of a convention I will always know
the next right step to take, professionally and creatively, just as
clearly as if it has been spoken to me. All it takes it to ask the
question.
And one of my favorite things about conventions these days is running
into aspiring authors who I met and connected with at previous
conventions – only to find that they’re now published or about to be.
It reaffirms my whole faith in the process.
As many of you have witnessed, I love the total debauchery of
these gatherings, but I’m never unaware of something also sacred under
all that revelry.
I’m sure that all of us have stories of improbable connections and
synchronicities at festivals, and I’d love to hear them today!
I have no idea why this his happening and am on my way to Australia so I can't look into it. It doesn't seem to have affected that many people, but I don't know for sure. So sorry for any inconvenience!
It was a day of time weirdness - some major time misreadings on the travel front. I guess that means while I'm traveling, I'm supposed to live in kairos rather than chronos. As we all do on the road, really.
So as I hit the road... um, air... for Diamonds are Forever, the RWAustralia National Conference, I'm leaving you with a post on this fascinating concept. Have a great week!
- Alex
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Well, convention season has kicked into high gear. If one were
looking to avoid writing, just for example, one could jet off to –
Romantic Times, Book Expo America, Mayhem in the Midlands, American
Library Association, Thrillerfest, RWA National… to mingle, network,
party with hundreds of favorite and soon-to be-favorite authors,
librarians, booksellers, DLers, 4MAers, MWAers, ITWers, Sisters, and most importantly,
readers.
Authors are strongly advised to go to conventions and festivals to
build their careers. There is no question that the networking is gold.
And except for having to continuously “sparkle”, as Margaret Maron
puts it, it’s so easy
to network at these things. All you have to do is relax and walk around
and just run into the people you need to run into. Really, it works.
Reviewers, booksellers, your publicist, the author whose incredible book
you were reading just the night before, extraordinary friends you
haven't seen in ten years - they're all there in a very contained space
and you will drift into them if you just go with the flow.
Some people call that work. But what it really is, is magic. What it is – is Faire Time.
I learned the concept of Faire Time, or Festival Time, over the years
of my interestingly misspent youth, hanging out at the Southern
California Renaissance Pleasure Faire
–a month-long semi-historical recreation of life in an Elizabethan
village, except with sex and drugs and overpriced irresistible craftish -
stuff.
(Wait, what am I saying? Of course they had all of that going on in those real Elizabethan villages, too...)
I’ll be lazy. Let’s see what Wikipedia has to say about festivals:
Among many religions, a feast or festival is a set of celebrations in honour of God or gods.
Hmm, sounds familiar, doesn’t it? A set of celebrations in honor of
gods – and goddesses. Take a look at the guest of honor lists for any
of the above- mentioned conventions. Gods and goddesses of the
mystery/literary world? You betcha.
What else?
Festivals,
of many types, serve to meet specific social needs and duties, as well
as to provide entertainment. These times of celebration offer a sense of
belonging for religious, social, or geographical groups. Modern
festivals that focus on cultural or ethnic topics seek to inform members
of their traditions. In past times, festivals were times when the
elderly shared stories and transferred certain knowledge to the next
generation. Historic feasts often provided a means for unity among
families and for people to find mates .
Now, does that sound like a convention or what?
Maybe it’s that first, religious purpose of festivals but I do notice
this unifying principle of “Faire Time” or “Festival Time" in full
force at conventions. There is an element of the sacred about a
festival – it is out of the ordinary, out of simple chronological time,
out of chronos - into kairos (again, from Wikipedia): "a time in between", a moment of undetermined period of time in which "something" special happens.
And here’s an interesting bit:
In rhetoric kairos is a passing instant when an opening appears which must be driven through with force if success is to be achieved.
Synchronicity and opportunity happen with such regularity at these
convention things that they’re really more the rule than the exception.
It is my absolute conviction that much more important career business
gets done at conventions and festivals than anywhere else because it is
being done in Faire Time – a suspended moment of opportunity.
And that is not even mentioning the creative and personal inspiration
of being in that state of suspended time with so many passionate
worshippers of the book. By the end of a convention I will always know
the next right step to take, professionally and creatively, just as
clearly as if it has been spoken to me. All it takes it to ask the
question.
And one of my favorite things about conventions these days is running
into aspiring authors who I met and connected with at previous
conventions – only to find that they’re now published or about to be.
It reaffirms my whole faith in the process.
As many of you have witnessed, I love the total debauchery of
these gatherings, but I’m never unaware of something also sacred under
all that revelry.
I’m sure that all of us have stories of improbable connections and
synchronicities at festivals, and I’d love to hear them today!
August 9, 2012
Tom Cruise is Jack Reacher
I rarely find myself in the position of defending anything Hollywood
does, but D-Day is fast approaching, and I don't mean the global apocalypse, or at least, the reset of the Universe anticipated by the Mayan calendar. I mean the release of the first Jack Reacher movie, based on the incomparable Lee Child's Reacher books, (specifically One Shot ), with Tom Cruise as Reacher.
And the protests have started up again over the casting, and I am again unable to shut up about it, especially since I'm off to Australia in a few days and everyone can rage at me all they want and I will be completely untouched by the maelstrom in my state of transhemispheric bliss.
I understand that some Reacher fans, a lot of Reacher fans, are disappointed in the casting, to put it mildly. Look, nobody has to tell me about having your heart broken by Hollywood. I worked as a screenwriter, heartbreak was a constant state of existence until I finally snapped and started writing novels instead.
But seriously. We've all been watching Hollywood movies since before we could talk, right? So what in the world did anyone EXPECT?
I don't think I should have to point out how very few movies have ever lived up to the books on which they were based. Considering the development process of film, it's a miracle a decent adaptation ever happens at all. Hollywood is a commercial market, and rare gems are as rare as rare gems.
Hollywood casting is about what will make the most money for the studio. In these days of the weekend box office being reported like football scores, is this is a surprise to anyone?
But there is also a jeering ugliness to some of the criticism that really bothers me. And a literalism that mystifies me.
What are people obsessing over about this casting? “Cruise can’t play Reacher, Reacher is 6’5”.”
Seriously?
That’s all we’re getting out of that character and those books?
I've been excoriated for saying Reacher's size doesn't matter to me. Actually, I'm a big fan of tall men, as my romantic history bears out. But apparently I don't understand the books at all because I really don't care how tall Reacher is.
You see, I had this idea that action has something to do with
character. That there’s something about an iconic character that has to
do with essence and soul. I thought that Reacher’s brains and the fact
that he’s a walking (literally) archetype – a modern and completely
fucked up – I mean wounded - knight errant had something more to do with
his charm than – inches. I thought the actual stories - the
Mission Impossible-like intricacy of Reacher’s plans and the way he is
constantly able to rally the most unlikely teams of misfits to
accomplish hopelessly lost causes had a little to do with the appeal of
the books.
As much as I am in total favor of the objectification of male bodies,
preferably as often as possible, to me Reacher’s size and six-pack are
completely incidental to the man. But people are posting photos of
their picks to play Reacher that would launch me into the mother of all
feminist rants if people were posting the equivalent photos of female
actor choices for – oh, say, Clarice Starling, Jane Tennison, Jane
Rizzoli, Elizabeth Bennet. It’s embarrassing.
Would any one of us really want any of those slabs of beefcake who
were hulking around the Reacher Creature party at the SF Boucheron to play Reacher? Really?
And yes, there are some actors being named that I would have agreed are perfect Reachers - like Russell Crowe and Liam Neeson. Perfect - ten years ago, that is. The practical reality is, both of those fine and gorgeous actors are too old to do a three-movie action series now, unless their age is factored into a portrayal of an older Reacher, which would be absolutely fine with me, but I suspect not with quite a few other Reacher fans.
But I've also have seen some perfectly idiotic casting choices floated on boards
and lists, and no, I’m not going to name names, because those actors
might actually be fine actors. Or something. But we are not talking
about repertory theater, here.
The height thing aside (and height in Hollywood is relative - it's incredibly amusing how many people are protesting that Actor X is the only one who could possibly play Reacher when Actor X is in fact a couple of inches SHORTER than Tom Cruise....), there’s
a whole hell of a lot more to playing a role like Reacher than acting.
We are talking about a mega-million dollar movie that is supposed to
turn into a multi-billion dollar franchise. You don’t just need an actor
for Reacher, you need a movie star. You need more than a star - you
need someone who can carry the movie. And not just carry the movie, but
carry the franchise.
Carrying a film is something more than acting. It’s not a very
tangible thing. It has to do with being able to be present as a unique
character but also letting the audience inhabit you. It’s about being
the point of view character, a vehicle for the audience, and the film’s
authorial voice, all rolled into one. It’s why movie stars are rarely
as good actors as the character actors around them are, and why
character actors are almost never able to play leads. A lead actor can
be acting his heart out and the movie will still be dead on arrival
because the actor isn’t doing that other essential intangible thing.
And the more action and special effects going on, the more important it is to have a lead who can carry all that action.
Those wonderful actors who seemed to be rising really fast and
suddenly disappear and are never heard from again? Well, maybe they’re
on the rehab circuit, but just as probably they were cast in a film that
was supposed to be their big breakout and they just weren’t able to
carry the film.
Carrying this movie is going to be ten million times more important
than size. I can think of a couple of actors, good actors, who seem to
me physically perfect for Reacher, who in fact work just fine as Reacher
in those random Reacher fantasies, you know the ones I mean - but who I
wouldn’t want to gamble on being able to carry this film.
Tom Cruise has been carrying movies consistently since he was 21
years old. Ironically, what all these size-obsessed complainers don’t
seem to realize is that Tom Cruise is one of a handful of actors on the
planet BIG enough to carry a franchise that big.
And anyone who thinks Tom Cruise can’t act should go rent Collateral, or Magnolia. Or Jerry Maguire.
Tom Cruise is a hell of an actor. You don’t have a string of dozens of
successful movies over thirty years, the majority of which have made
over two hundred million dollars each, and more, worldwide, without
having something going on. Or would you like to try to argue that that list of movies succeeded in spite of Cruise?
Moreover, he is a terrific action
star. He is a superb athlete and known for training for weeks on end
to get the physicality of every action he performs in a film exactly
right. Do you think it’s easy even to fire a gun convincingly on
screen, much less perform the kinds of stunts he routinely does in the Mission Impossible films (not that I’m a huge fan of those, but that has nothing to do with Cruise)?
I say, give a
major actor some credit for knowing what he can and can’t play. No one
thought Dustin Hoffman could make a convincing woman and he only got
cast in Tootsie by making demo films of himself as Dorothy Michaels to convince the powers that be that he actually could do it. But he knew. And after the fact, can you imagine anyone else in that role?
Well, newsflash: Tom Cruise knows a whole hell of a lot better than a
bunch of us mystery readers what he can do. This is not a man in the
habit of doing things badly. Will he pull if off? Maybe, maybe not.
Think about it. Any time we sit down to write a book we think we just
might be able to do it some meager form of justice and from there we
work like dogs and pray like hell. What makes anyone think it’s any
different for an actor?
But we are talking about one of the hardest working and most
passionately dedicated actors in Hollywood. I’d lay down money that Tom
Cruise has a better idea of who and what Jack Reacher is than the vast
majority of the naysayers. Character is his job and he’s been doing it
brilliantly for over 30 years.
He’s a seasoned and successful producer as well, which I’m not going
to get into, but you better believe it’s good news for the movie.
But I will say it is stupefying to me that a community of readers and
writers, in all this ranting, seem to be saying not one word about what
could go wrong with the script. Josh Olson, the original adaptor
(adapted and was Oscar-nominated for A History of Violence) is
smart, passionate, angry, iconoclastic - I was excited that he was doing the adaptation. Christopher McQuarrie, attached as director, ended up doing his own adaptation of the book. He’s most famous for writing
and winning the Oscar for The Usual Suspects. All sounds good, right? But there’s no guarantee here that what ends up on screen will have anything
to do with the story we know from the book. Personally I would hate to
see the incredible ensemble energy of this particular story (based on the book One Shot), the way
all the seemingly minor characters come together as an unlikely and
sympathetic team, get eviscerated to showcase Reacher going it alone.
But that’s an optimistic view of what could actually happen, story-wise.
Instead of bitching about Cruise, we should be on our knees lighting
candles to the movie gods that whoever ended up in creative control of
this film (and that could well have changed radically in between the beginning of shooting and the film’s
release) didn't decide... oh, let’s say... that the stakes weren't big
enough, and get the bright idea to make the villains the joint heads of
the entire Russian mafia who have decided to take over the US and to do
so have acquired a nuclear warhead which Reacher will be forced to
dismantle while simultaneously trying to rescue his long lost and
hitherto unknown son or daughter or, hey, twin son and daughter– with
the loyal help of the dog the executives gave him to make him more
“relatable”.
Oh yeah, there is a whole lot that could go wrong with this film.
There also is a chance that a very smart movie could have come out of
this. And if it didn't, it’s not because of Tom Cruise.
So how about putting some energy into wishing for a great movie? It’s
rare enough that that happens. Does everyone really want to jinx that
with all this vitriol?
If you're an author, you need to understand - that you have NO POWER
over who gets cast in any adaptation of your book, if you're ever lucky
enough to have that happen. Even if the movie starts out with what
seems a perfect director, cast, designer... that could change in a
second. These things are totally out of your control.
If you're a reader, and the vagaries of Hollywood really are a surprise
to you, and this wasn't what you hoped for, I'm sorry for your pain.
I've been there with characters I created. But is stupefying to me that some readers are saying that the very thought of Tom Cruise as Reacher has spoiled the books for them. What??? We can have Reacher in any form we want, every
time we pick up one of the books. Cast at will. And it couldn't be more obvious from the wide variety of casting suggestions being thrown out that not
one of us sees him the same way. That’s the beauty of fictional
characters.
Reacher is Reacher. However you want him, any time you want him. That's
the miracle of a book. So don't see the movie if the thought of it
upsets you, but for the love of Reacher, don't let that spoil your love
of Reacher. That's just - masochistic, I think is the word. You're
letting Hollywood win.
But look, if you want to
talk about who really should play Reacher, here’s your chance to do it.
Share the fantasies. Go wild. Link to beefcake shots, or Youtube exotic
videos, I’m not going to object. Or tell us some books-to-movies that
were perfectly cast, and why.
So who do I see as Reacher? Lee Child. It is entirely mystifying to
me that anyone could not think so. And there’s not a living actor in
Hollywood who could come up to that level of brains and sexy. But it’s
not going to happen, and it shouldn’t.
(And for the record? Jack Reacher as a movie title? Epic fail. But you won't catch ME complaining).
- Alex
does, but D-Day is fast approaching, and I don't mean the global apocalypse, or at least, the reset of the Universe anticipated by the Mayan calendar. I mean the release of the first Jack Reacher movie, based on the incomparable Lee Child's Reacher books, (specifically One Shot ), with Tom Cruise as Reacher.
And the protests have started up again over the casting, and I am again unable to shut up about it, especially since I'm off to Australia in a few days and everyone can rage at me all they want and I will be completely untouched by the maelstrom in my state of transhemispheric bliss.
I understand that some Reacher fans, a lot of Reacher fans, are disappointed in the casting, to put it mildly. Look, nobody has to tell me about having your heart broken by Hollywood. I worked as a screenwriter, heartbreak was a constant state of existence until I finally snapped and started writing novels instead.
But seriously. We've all been watching Hollywood movies since before we could talk, right? So what in the world did anyone EXPECT?
I don't think I should have to point out how very few movies have ever lived up to the books on which they were based. Considering the development process of film, it's a miracle a decent adaptation ever happens at all. Hollywood is a commercial market, and rare gems are as rare as rare gems.
Hollywood casting is about what will make the most money for the studio. In these days of the weekend box office being reported like football scores, is this is a surprise to anyone?
But there is also a jeering ugliness to some of the criticism that really bothers me. And a literalism that mystifies me.
What are people obsessing over about this casting? “Cruise can’t play Reacher, Reacher is 6’5”.”
Seriously?
That’s all we’re getting out of that character and those books?
I've been excoriated for saying Reacher's size doesn't matter to me. Actually, I'm a big fan of tall men, as my romantic history bears out. But apparently I don't understand the books at all because I really don't care how tall Reacher is.
You see, I had this idea that action has something to do with
character. That there’s something about an iconic character that has to
do with essence and soul. I thought that Reacher’s brains and the fact
that he’s a walking (literally) archetype – a modern and completely
fucked up – I mean wounded - knight errant had something more to do with
his charm than – inches. I thought the actual stories - the
Mission Impossible-like intricacy of Reacher’s plans and the way he is
constantly able to rally the most unlikely teams of misfits to
accomplish hopelessly lost causes had a little to do with the appeal of
the books.
As much as I am in total favor of the objectification of male bodies,
preferably as often as possible, to me Reacher’s size and six-pack are
completely incidental to the man. But people are posting photos of
their picks to play Reacher that would launch me into the mother of all
feminist rants if people were posting the equivalent photos of female
actor choices for – oh, say, Clarice Starling, Jane Tennison, Jane
Rizzoli, Elizabeth Bennet. It’s embarrassing.
Would any one of us really want any of those slabs of beefcake who
were hulking around the Reacher Creature party at the SF Boucheron to play Reacher? Really?
And yes, there are some actors being named that I would have agreed are perfect Reachers - like Russell Crowe and Liam Neeson. Perfect - ten years ago, that is. The practical reality is, both of those fine and gorgeous actors are too old to do a three-movie action series now, unless their age is factored into a portrayal of an older Reacher, which would be absolutely fine with me, but I suspect not with quite a few other Reacher fans.
But I've also have seen some perfectly idiotic casting choices floated on boards
and lists, and no, I’m not going to name names, because those actors
might actually be fine actors. Or something. But we are not talking
about repertory theater, here.
The height thing aside (and height in Hollywood is relative - it's incredibly amusing how many people are protesting that Actor X is the only one who could possibly play Reacher when Actor X is in fact a couple of inches SHORTER than Tom Cruise....), there’s
a whole hell of a lot more to playing a role like Reacher than acting.
We are talking about a mega-million dollar movie that is supposed to
turn into a multi-billion dollar franchise. You don’t just need an actor
for Reacher, you need a movie star. You need more than a star - you
need someone who can carry the movie. And not just carry the movie, but
carry the franchise.
Carrying a film is something more than acting. It’s not a very
tangible thing. It has to do with being able to be present as a unique
character but also letting the audience inhabit you. It’s about being
the point of view character, a vehicle for the audience, and the film’s
authorial voice, all rolled into one. It’s why movie stars are rarely
as good actors as the character actors around them are, and why
character actors are almost never able to play leads. A lead actor can
be acting his heart out and the movie will still be dead on arrival
because the actor isn’t doing that other essential intangible thing.
And the more action and special effects going on, the more important it is to have a lead who can carry all that action.
Those wonderful actors who seemed to be rising really fast and
suddenly disappear and are never heard from again? Well, maybe they’re
on the rehab circuit, but just as probably they were cast in a film that
was supposed to be their big breakout and they just weren’t able to
carry the film.
Carrying this movie is going to be ten million times more important
than size. I can think of a couple of actors, good actors, who seem to
me physically perfect for Reacher, who in fact work just fine as Reacher
in those random Reacher fantasies, you know the ones I mean - but who I
wouldn’t want to gamble on being able to carry this film.
Tom Cruise has been carrying movies consistently since he was 21
years old. Ironically, what all these size-obsessed complainers don’t
seem to realize is that Tom Cruise is one of a handful of actors on the
planet BIG enough to carry a franchise that big.
And anyone who thinks Tom Cruise can’t act should go rent Collateral, or Magnolia. Or Jerry Maguire.
Tom Cruise is a hell of an actor. You don’t have a string of dozens of
successful movies over thirty years, the majority of which have made
over two hundred million dollars each, and more, worldwide, without
having something going on. Or would you like to try to argue that that list of movies succeeded in spite of Cruise?
Moreover, he is a terrific action
star. He is a superb athlete and known for training for weeks on end
to get the physicality of every action he performs in a film exactly
right. Do you think it’s easy even to fire a gun convincingly on
screen, much less perform the kinds of stunts he routinely does in the Mission Impossible films (not that I’m a huge fan of those, but that has nothing to do with Cruise)?
I say, give a
major actor some credit for knowing what he can and can’t play. No one
thought Dustin Hoffman could make a convincing woman and he only got
cast in Tootsie by making demo films of himself as Dorothy Michaels to convince the powers that be that he actually could do it. But he knew. And after the fact, can you imagine anyone else in that role?
Well, newsflash: Tom Cruise knows a whole hell of a lot better than a
bunch of us mystery readers what he can do. This is not a man in the
habit of doing things badly. Will he pull if off? Maybe, maybe not.
Think about it. Any time we sit down to write a book we think we just
might be able to do it some meager form of justice and from there we
work like dogs and pray like hell. What makes anyone think it’s any
different for an actor?
But we are talking about one of the hardest working and most
passionately dedicated actors in Hollywood. I’d lay down money that Tom
Cruise has a better idea of who and what Jack Reacher is than the vast
majority of the naysayers. Character is his job and he’s been doing it
brilliantly for over 30 years.
He’s a seasoned and successful producer as well, which I’m not going
to get into, but you better believe it’s good news for the movie.
But I will say it is stupefying to me that a community of readers and
writers, in all this ranting, seem to be saying not one word about what
could go wrong with the script. Josh Olson, the original adaptor
(adapted and was Oscar-nominated for A History of Violence) is
smart, passionate, angry, iconoclastic - I was excited that he was doing the adaptation. Christopher McQuarrie, attached as director, ended up doing his own adaptation of the book. He’s most famous for writing
and winning the Oscar for The Usual Suspects. All sounds good, right? But there’s no guarantee here that what ends up on screen will have anything
to do with the story we know from the book. Personally I would hate to
see the incredible ensemble energy of this particular story (based on the book One Shot), the way
all the seemingly minor characters come together as an unlikely and
sympathetic team, get eviscerated to showcase Reacher going it alone.
But that’s an optimistic view of what could actually happen, story-wise.
Instead of bitching about Cruise, we should be on our knees lighting
candles to the movie gods that whoever ended up in creative control of
this film (and that could well have changed radically in between the beginning of shooting and the film’s
release) didn't decide... oh, let’s say... that the stakes weren't big
enough, and get the bright idea to make the villains the joint heads of
the entire Russian mafia who have decided to take over the US and to do
so have acquired a nuclear warhead which Reacher will be forced to
dismantle while simultaneously trying to rescue his long lost and
hitherto unknown son or daughter or, hey, twin son and daughter– with
the loyal help of the dog the executives gave him to make him more
“relatable”.
Oh yeah, there is a whole lot that could go wrong with this film.
There also is a chance that a very smart movie could have come out of
this. And if it didn't, it’s not because of Tom Cruise.
So how about putting some energy into wishing for a great movie? It’s
rare enough that that happens. Does everyone really want to jinx that
with all this vitriol?
If you're an author, you need to understand - that you have NO POWER
over who gets cast in any adaptation of your book, if you're ever lucky
enough to have that happen. Even if the movie starts out with what
seems a perfect director, cast, designer... that could change in a
second. These things are totally out of your control.
If you're a reader, and the vagaries of Hollywood really are a surprise
to you, and this wasn't what you hoped for, I'm sorry for your pain.
I've been there with characters I created. But is stupefying to me that some readers are saying that the very thought of Tom Cruise as Reacher has spoiled the books for them. What??? We can have Reacher in any form we want, every
time we pick up one of the books. Cast at will. And it couldn't be more obvious from the wide variety of casting suggestions being thrown out that not
one of us sees him the same way. That’s the beauty of fictional
characters.
Reacher is Reacher. However you want him, any time you want him. That's
the miracle of a book. So don't see the movie if the thought of it
upsets you, but for the love of Reacher, don't let that spoil your love
of Reacher. That's just - masochistic, I think is the word. You're
letting Hollywood win.
But look, if you want to
talk about who really should play Reacher, here’s your chance to do it.
Share the fantasies. Go wild. Link to beefcake shots, or Youtube exotic
videos, I’m not going to object. Or tell us some books-to-movies that
were perfectly cast, and why.
So who do I see as Reacher? Lee Child. It is entirely mystifying to
me that anyone could not think so. And there’s not a living actor in
Hollywood who could come up to that level of brains and sexy. But it’s
not going to happen, and it shouldn’t.
(And for the record? Jack Reacher as a movie title? Epic fail. But you won't catch ME complaining).
- Alex
August 5, 2012
Write about what makes you angry
Denise Mina
is one of my absolute favorite crime writers and a constant
inspiration. At a recent Bouchercon (San Francisco) she gave some of the
shortest, sagest advice to writers and aspiring crime writers I think
I’ve ever heard:
Write about what makes you angry.
It doesn’t take me a millisecond’s thought to make my list. Child
sexual abuse is the top, no contest. Violence against women and
children. Discrimination of any kind. Religious intolerance. War crimes.
Genocide. Torture.
I have long found it toxically ironic that the crimes that I consider
most unspeakable: slavery, rape, torture, the sexual slavery of
children (including incest and prostitution – the average age a woman
begins that life is thirteen), animal abuse – none of these were even
worth a mention in the Ten Commandments. Apparently taking the Lord’s
name in vain, stealing, and coveting thy neighbor’s wife rank above any
of my personal hate list.
And I think the lack of Biblical sanction against those crimes has
contributed to society’s continuing and pretty mindblowing ability to
ignore those crimes.
And I’m angry about it.
That anger has fueled a lot of my books and scripts over the years. I've said this before, here, but I've always thought that as
writers we're only working with a handful of themes, which we explore
over and over, in different variations. And I think it's really useful
to be very conscious of those themes. Not only do they fuel our writing,
they also brand us as writers.
So when it came down to creating a series that I could sustain over
multiple books, it’s no surprise that this issue came up again as one of
the main thematic threads. I’ve finally created an umbrella to
explore, dramatically, the roots and context of the worst crimes I know.
And at least on paper, do something about it.
But while writing is great to call attention to a problem and explore
it, it's not enough in the face of real, everyday evil. There's
writing, and there's action.
I've been thinking a lot about child prostitution (more aptly called
child sex trafficking) recently as I'm writing the Huntress sequel,
because there are characters in Book Two who are in that life. The fact
is, most prostitutes start as child prostitutes. Women (and boys) who
work as prostitutes almost always begin that life well before adulthood.
Kids run away from abuse, usually sexual abuse, at home, and are sucked
up into the life by predators: raped, battered, terrorized, and hooked
on drugs so they're kept enslaved to the pimps who live off their
earnings. Yes, still.
I've worked with some of those kids, when I taught in the L.A. County
Juvenile Court systerm, and I find it unimaginable that we just let
this happen, and often treat these victims as criminals rather than
getting them help to break free.
So today, I don't want to just get angry about it, I want to do something about it.
I'm very grateful that sales of Huntress Moon have been very good - it's currently a Top Ten Amazon Bestseller in Mysteries, and the #1 Police Procedural. And since the issue of child sexual abuse is so much on my mind, I'd like to get active about it - in a slightly different way than one of my main characters chooses! Today I’ll be donating all of my proceeds from sales of Huntress Moon to Children of the Night, a Los Angeles-based shelter which helps children and teenagers in prostitution from all over the country get out of the life.
So if you haven't gotten your copy of the book and you'd like the
extra satisfaction that that money is going to an excellent cause,
today's your chance:
Amazon US
Amazon UK
Amazon DE
Amazon FR
Amazon ES
Amazon IT
Or - take that money and take a minute to donate directly to a cause that's fighting something that makes YOU angry.
So you know the question:
What makes you angry? Do you write about it? If not, do you think it might benefit your writing to try?
And I'd also love to hear about other people's favorite charities and causes.
Here are a few more of mine:
Planned Parenthood
Equality Now
Amnesty International
Kiva
- Alex
August 2, 2012
E publishing: Where do I START?
Lately I have had a LOT of people asking me for advice on e publishing (or, horrors, to teach a workshop on it...) and I’ve been promising to compile a list of e publishing resources here to at least direct people to some solid help while I get my thoughts on the subject together into some kind of useful order.
But lists of resources are most helpful for people who already have some knowledge of the subject matter. That wouldn’t really address the question I keep getting, which is “Where do I START?”
Selling a book in the e publishing world has just as many steps and pitfalls as going the traditional route. Even though in the early days of e pub (like, last year!) a few people got lucky by just throwing a book up on KDP simply because there was so little competition out there, those days are over. The competition is fierce. There’s no question that launching into e publishing without having a clue what you’re doing is not going to get you very far.
On the other hand, there is no way to learn this stuff without being hands-on about it.
This isn’t a great time for me to start a new blog series on e publishing (as evidenced by how far I’ve gotten on my supposed series on series writing, hah!!). I am scrambling on a deadline for my latest paranormal while working on the sequel to Huntress Moon (nothing is more important that), getting ready to sell my house in the fall, and oh, right – I’m going to Australia in two weeks to do a workshop and panels and signings for the the Romance Writers of Australia National Conference.
I made myself tired just WRITING all of that.
No, not a good time to take on anything else.
But I MIGHT be able to get this rolling for some of you with, dare I say it? – SHORTER and more targeted blog posts.
It’s tempting to just say: Go read Joe Konrath’s Newbie’s Guide to Publishing blog, in reverse order, from 2006 on. And maybe that is the best advice I could possibly give. Then you’d get it all as it actually unfolded from the actual leader of the revolution. I should actually take that advice myself, but, you know, the time thing.
It is a lot to sort through (and for God’s sake, if you do it, don’t get lost in the Comments!).
And there’s something equally basic that you need to do if you are thinking of e publishing.
Get an e reader. And USE it.
I have to say that because it is astonishing to me when I hear authors talking about e publishing who don’t even read on an e reader. Reading an e book on your laptop or phone is not going to do it. You will fool yourself that you get it when actually you don’t have a clue. There is NO WAY you are going to understand the incredible sea change that has occurred if you are not using the technology and understanding why and how readers are buying. You can’t. And I think once you’ve experienced the thrill of having an entire library in the palm of your hand, the delicious indulgence of being able to download ANY BOOK YOU WANT, INSTANTLY, you’ll understand why this is the greatest invention since the wheel, and why as an author OF COURSE you want to make your books available this way.
Which e reader? No contest. If you’re an author looking to make a living, you must get and understand a Kindle. I'm sorry if there are people who don't like that answer but that IS the answer. I do not know of one author who is making a living at self-publishing who is not doing it primarily through the Amazon platform. And all the authors I know who are making good money on Nook and Kobo sales launched themselves with Amazon. (More on this here: To Nook or Not to Nook?). I’m being basic here and that is as basic as it gets.
An e reader is easy to operate, you’ll see. So once you have one, what you want to do is start buying books. Or sampling them, it doesn’t matter, and sampling is totally free (Sampling: in the Amazon store, you can download several chapters of any book to your Kindle for free. If you do not have an Amazon Store account, you need to set one up. It's easy.). Sampling is an important thing to learn – among other things it will teach you volumes about your own writing, and what has to go in your FIRST CHAPTERS). But it’s also a no-cost to learn the device and experience e reading.
You want to sample books that are in your own genre, and you want to sample a lot of self-published books as well as traditionally published books . The 99 cent ones (brace yourself...) the $2.99 ones, the $3.99 ones, and the $9.99 and yike, $12.99 traditionally published ones. Try authors you haven’t heard of whose books sound interesting. (Don’t forget Huntress Moon, or any of the fine titles you can simply click through to sample if you just look to the right of this blog...).
Take an hour and download and read twenty samples in a row, and take notes. Did you want to keep reading at the end of the sample, or could you not get through it at all? Is there a difference between 99 cent books, $2.99 ones, $3.99 ones, and the $9.99 or $12.99 ones put out by traditional publishers? If there is a difference, what IS the difference? Would you pay $12.99 for an e book? If so, which authors would you pay it for, and which wouldn't you?
Wade into the market and see what’s out there. Get the lay of the land, and ask questions here.
So there, I’ve given you a couple of practical tasks that will get your feet wet.
You didn’t think you were going to learn this overnight, did you?
I hope not. Get a grip. E publishing is a full-time job, just like traditional publishing is. But if you don’t start now, a year from now you’ll still be asking, “Where do I start?”
- Alex
Huntress Moon, on sale now: $3.99
A driven FBI agent is on the hunt for that most rare of all killers: a female serial.
But lists of resources are most helpful for people who already have some knowledge of the subject matter. That wouldn’t really address the question I keep getting, which is “Where do I START?”
Selling a book in the e publishing world has just as many steps and pitfalls as going the traditional route. Even though in the early days of e pub (like, last year!) a few people got lucky by just throwing a book up on KDP simply because there was so little competition out there, those days are over. The competition is fierce. There’s no question that launching into e publishing without having a clue what you’re doing is not going to get you very far.
On the other hand, there is no way to learn this stuff without being hands-on about it.
This isn’t a great time for me to start a new blog series on e publishing (as evidenced by how far I’ve gotten on my supposed series on series writing, hah!!). I am scrambling on a deadline for my latest paranormal while working on the sequel to Huntress Moon (nothing is more important that), getting ready to sell my house in the fall, and oh, right – I’m going to Australia in two weeks to do a workshop and panels and signings for the the Romance Writers of Australia National Conference.
I made myself tired just WRITING all of that.
No, not a good time to take on anything else.
But I MIGHT be able to get this rolling for some of you with, dare I say it? – SHORTER and more targeted blog posts.
It’s tempting to just say: Go read Joe Konrath’s Newbie’s Guide to Publishing blog, in reverse order, from 2006 on. And maybe that is the best advice I could possibly give. Then you’d get it all as it actually unfolded from the actual leader of the revolution. I should actually take that advice myself, but, you know, the time thing.
It is a lot to sort through (and for God’s sake, if you do it, don’t get lost in the Comments!).
And there’s something equally basic that you need to do if you are thinking of e publishing.
Get an e reader. And USE it.
I have to say that because it is astonishing to me when I hear authors talking about e publishing who don’t even read on an e reader. Reading an e book on your laptop or phone is not going to do it. You will fool yourself that you get it when actually you don’t have a clue. There is NO WAY you are going to understand the incredible sea change that has occurred if you are not using the technology and understanding why and how readers are buying. You can’t. And I think once you’ve experienced the thrill of having an entire library in the palm of your hand, the delicious indulgence of being able to download ANY BOOK YOU WANT, INSTANTLY, you’ll understand why this is the greatest invention since the wheel, and why as an author OF COURSE you want to make your books available this way.
Which e reader? No contest. If you’re an author looking to make a living, you must get and understand a Kindle. I'm sorry if there are people who don't like that answer but that IS the answer. I do not know of one author who is making a living at self-publishing who is not doing it primarily through the Amazon platform. And all the authors I know who are making good money on Nook and Kobo sales launched themselves with Amazon. (More on this here: To Nook or Not to Nook?). I’m being basic here and that is as basic as it gets.
An e reader is easy to operate, you’ll see. So once you have one, what you want to do is start buying books. Or sampling them, it doesn’t matter, and sampling is totally free (Sampling: in the Amazon store, you can download several chapters of any book to your Kindle for free. If you do not have an Amazon Store account, you need to set one up. It's easy.). Sampling is an important thing to learn – among other things it will teach you volumes about your own writing, and what has to go in your FIRST CHAPTERS). But it’s also a no-cost to learn the device and experience e reading.
You want to sample books that are in your own genre, and you want to sample a lot of self-published books as well as traditionally published books . The 99 cent ones (brace yourself...) the $2.99 ones, the $3.99 ones, and the $9.99 and yike, $12.99 traditionally published ones. Try authors you haven’t heard of whose books sound interesting. (Don’t forget Huntress Moon, or any of the fine titles you can simply click through to sample if you just look to the right of this blog...).
Take an hour and download and read twenty samples in a row, and take notes. Did you want to keep reading at the end of the sample, or could you not get through it at all? Is there a difference between 99 cent books, $2.99 ones, $3.99 ones, and the $9.99 or $12.99 ones put out by traditional publishers? If there is a difference, what IS the difference? Would you pay $12.99 for an e book? If so, which authors would you pay it for, and which wouldn't you?
Wade into the market and see what’s out there. Get the lay of the land, and ask questions here.
So there, I’ve given you a couple of practical tasks that will get your feet wet.
You didn’t think you were going to learn this overnight, did you?
I hope not. Get a grip. E publishing is a full-time job, just like traditional publishing is. But if you don’t start now, a year from now you’ll still be asking, “Where do I start?”
- Alex
Huntress Moon, on sale now: $3.99
A driven FBI agent is on the hunt for that most rare of all killers: a female serial.
E publishing: Where Do I START?
Lately I have had a LOT of people asking me for advice on e
publishing (or, horrors, to teach a workshop on it...) and I’ve been promising to
compile a list of e publishing resources here to at least direct people to some
solid help while I get my thoughts on the subject together into some kind of
useful order.
But lists of resources are most helpful for people who
already have some knowledge of the subject matter. That wouldn’t really address
the question I keep getting, which is “Where do I START?”
Selling a book in the e publishing world has just as many
steps and pitfalls as going the traditional route. Even though in the early
days of e pub (like, last year!) a few people got lucky by just throwing a book
up on KDP simply because there was so little competition out there, those days
are over. The competition is fierce. There’s no question that launching into e
publishing without having a clue what you’re doing is not going to get you very
far.
On the other hand, there is no way to learn this stuff
without being hands-on about it.
This isn’t a great time for me to start a new blog series
on e publishing (as evidenced by how far I’ve gotten on my supposed series on
series writing, hah!!). I am scrambling on a deadline for my latest paranormal
while working on the sequel to Huntress Moon (nothing is more important that), getting ready to sell my house in
the fall, and oh, right – I’m going to Australia in two weeks to do a workshop
and panels and signings for the the Romance Writers of Australia National Conference.
I made myself tired just WRITING all of that.
No, not a good time to take on anything else.
But I MIGHT be able to get this rolling for some of you
with, dare I say it? – SHORTER and more targeted blog posts.
It’s tempting to just say: Go read Joe Konrath’s Newbie’s Guide to Publishing blog, in
reverse order, from 2006 on. And maybe that is the best advice I could possibly
give. Then you’d get it all as it actually unfolded from the actual leader of
the revolution. I should actually take that advice myself, but, you know, the
time thing.
It is a lot to sort through (and for God’s sake, if
you do it, don’t get lost in the
Comments!).
And there’s something equally basic that you need to do
if you are thinking of e publishing.
Get an e reader. And USE it.
I have to say that because it is astonishing to me when I
hear authors talking about e publishing who don’t even read on an e
reader. Reading an e book on your
laptop or phone is not going to do it. You will fool yourself that you get it
when actually you don’t have a clue. There is NO WAY you are going to
understand the incredible sea change that has occurred if you are not using the
technology and understanding why and how readers are buying. You can’t. And I
think once you’ve experienced the thrill of having an entire library in the
palm of your hand, the delicious indulgence of being able to download ANY BOOK
YOU WANT, INSTANTLY, you’ll understand why this is the greatest invention since
the wheel, and why as an author OF COURSE you want to make your books available
this way.
Which e reader? No contest. If you’re an author looking
to make a living, you must get and understand a Kindle. I'm sorry if there are people who don't like that answer but that IS the answer. I do not know of one
author who is making a living at self-publishing who is not doing it primarily
through the Amazon platform. And all the authors I know who are making good
money on Nook and Kobo sales launched themselves with Amazon. (More on this here: To Nook or Not to Nook?). I’m being basic here and
that is as basic as it gets.
An e reader is easy to operate, you’ll see. So once you have
one, what you want to do is start buying books. Or sampling them, it doesn’t
matter, and sampling is totally free (Sampling: in the Amazon store, you can
download several chapters of any book to your Kindle for free. If you do not have an Amazon Store account, you need to set one up. It's easy.). Sampling is an important thing to learn
– among other things it will teach you volumes about your own writing, and what
has to go in your FIRST CHAPTERS).
But it’s also a no-cost to learn the device and experience e reading.
You want to sample books that are in your own genre, and
you want to sample a lot of self-published books as well as traditionally
published books . The 99 cent ones (brace yourself...) the $2.99 ones, the
$3.99 ones, and the $9.99 and yike, $12.99 traditionally published ones. Try authors you haven’t heard of whose
books sound interesting. (Don’t forget Huntress Moon , or any of the fine titles
you can simply click through to sample if you just look to the right of this blog...).
Take an hour and download and read twenty samples in a
row, and take notes. Did you want to keep reading at the end of the sample, or
could you not get through it at all? Is there a difference between 99 cent books, $2.99 ones,
$3.99 ones, and the $9.99 or $12.99 ones put out by traditional
publishers? If there is a
difference, what IS the difference? Would you pay $12.99 for an e book? If so, which authors would you pay it for, and which wouldn't you?
Wade into the market and see what’s out there. Get the
lay of the land, and ask questions here.
So there, I’ve given you a couple of practical tasks that
will get your feet wet.
You didn’t think you were going to learn this overnight,
did you?
I hope not. Get a grip. E publishing is a full-time job, just like
traditional publishing is. But if you don’t start now, a year from now you’ll
still be asking, “Where do I start?”
- Alex
Huntress Moon , on sale now: $3.99
Amazon
Amazon UK
Amazon DE
Amazon FR
Amazon ES
Amazon IT
A driven FBI agent is on the hunt for that most rare of all killers:
a female serial.
Related e publishing and marketing posts:
My e publishing decision
To Nook or Not to Nook?
Giving it Away (Kindle Select promotion)
Marketing = Madness
Letting it Ride (Kindle Select promotion)
Bestseller lists and Tag lists
Liking, Sharing and Tagging
publishing (or, horrors, to teach a workshop on it...) and I’ve been promising to
compile a list of e publishing resources here to at least direct people to some
solid help while I get my thoughts on the subject together into some kind of
useful order.
But lists of resources are most helpful for people who
already have some knowledge of the subject matter. That wouldn’t really address
the question I keep getting, which is “Where do I START?”
Selling a book in the e publishing world has just as many
steps and pitfalls as going the traditional route. Even though in the early
days of e pub (like, last year!) a few people got lucky by just throwing a book
up on KDP simply because there was so little competition out there, those days
are over. The competition is fierce. There’s no question that launching into e
publishing without having a clue what you’re doing is not going to get you very
far.
On the other hand, there is no way to learn this stuff
without being hands-on about it.
This isn’t a great time for me to start a new blog series
on e publishing (as evidenced by how far I’ve gotten on my supposed series on
series writing, hah!!). I am scrambling on a deadline for my latest paranormal
while working on the sequel to Huntress Moon (nothing is more important that), getting ready to sell my house in
the fall, and oh, right – I’m going to Australia in two weeks to do a workshop
and panels and signings for the the Romance Writers of Australia National Conference.
I made myself tired just WRITING all of that.
No, not a good time to take on anything else.
But I MIGHT be able to get this rolling for some of you
with, dare I say it? – SHORTER and more targeted blog posts.
It’s tempting to just say: Go read Joe Konrath’s Newbie’s Guide to Publishing blog, in
reverse order, from 2006 on. And maybe that is the best advice I could possibly
give. Then you’d get it all as it actually unfolded from the actual leader of
the revolution. I should actually take that advice myself, but, you know, the
time thing.
It is a lot to sort through (and for God’s sake, if
you do it, don’t get lost in the
Comments!).
And there’s something equally basic that you need to do
if you are thinking of e publishing.
Get an e reader. And USE it.
I have to say that because it is astonishing to me when I
hear authors talking about e publishing who don’t even read on an e
reader. Reading an e book on your
laptop or phone is not going to do it. You will fool yourself that you get it
when actually you don’t have a clue. There is NO WAY you are going to
understand the incredible sea change that has occurred if you are not using the
technology and understanding why and how readers are buying. You can’t. And I
think once you’ve experienced the thrill of having an entire library in the
palm of your hand, the delicious indulgence of being able to download ANY BOOK
YOU WANT, INSTANTLY, you’ll understand why this is the greatest invention since
the wheel, and why as an author OF COURSE you want to make your books available
this way.
Which e reader? No contest. If you’re an author looking
to make a living, you must get and understand a Kindle. I'm sorry if there are people who don't like that answer but that IS the answer. I do not know of one
author who is making a living at self-publishing who is not doing it primarily
through the Amazon platform. And all the authors I know who are making good
money on Nook and Kobo sales launched themselves with Amazon. (More on this here: To Nook or Not to Nook?). I’m being basic here and
that is as basic as it gets.
An e reader is easy to operate, you’ll see. So once you have
one, what you want to do is start buying books. Or sampling them, it doesn’t
matter, and sampling is totally free (Sampling: in the Amazon store, you can
download several chapters of any book to your Kindle for free. If you do not have an Amazon Store account, you need to set one up. It's easy.). Sampling is an important thing to learn
– among other things it will teach you volumes about your own writing, and what
has to go in your FIRST CHAPTERS).
But it’s also a no-cost to learn the device and experience e reading.
You want to sample books that are in your own genre, and
you want to sample a lot of self-published books as well as traditionally
published books . The 99 cent ones (brace yourself...) the $2.99 ones, the
$3.99 ones, and the $9.99 and yike, $12.99 traditionally published ones. Try authors you haven’t heard of whose
books sound interesting. (Don’t forget Huntress Moon , or any of the fine titles
you can simply click through to sample if you just look to the right of this blog...).
Take an hour and download and read twenty samples in a
row, and take notes. Did you want to keep reading at the end of the sample, or
could you not get through it at all? Is there a difference between 99 cent books, $2.99 ones,
$3.99 ones, and the $9.99 or $12.99 ones put out by traditional
publishers? If there is a
difference, what IS the difference? Would you pay $12.99 for an e book? If so, which authors would you pay it for, and which wouldn't you?
Wade into the market and see what’s out there. Get the
lay of the land, and ask questions here.
So there, I’ve given you a couple of practical tasks that
will get your feet wet.
You didn’t think you were going to learn this overnight,
did you?
I hope not. Get a grip. E publishing is a full-time job, just like
traditional publishing is. But if you don’t start now, a year from now you’ll
still be asking, “Where do I start?”
- Alex
Huntress Moon , on sale now: $3.99
Amazon
Amazon UK
Amazon DE
Amazon FR
Amazon ES
Amazon IT
A driven FBI agent is on the hunt for that most rare of all killers:
a female serial.
Related e publishing and marketing posts:
My e publishing decision
To Nook or Not to Nook?
Giving it Away (Kindle Select promotion)
Marketing = Madness
Letting it Ride (Kindle Select promotion)
Bestseller lists and Tag lists
Liking, Sharing and Tagging
July 26, 2012
Romance Writers of America National Conference
This week I'm attending the Romance Writers of America National Conference in Anaheim. (Yes, a two-block walk from The Land, as So Cal calls that magical chunk of Disney real estate...)
Okay, even though I do write a paranormal romance series, I'm not at all what anyone would think of as a romance writer. And yet every year since I have been published, I have attended one or usually both of the two main romance conferences of the year: Romantic Times Booklovers Convention, or the Romance Writers of America National Conference.
And I'm hardly the only thriller writer who does so.
I feel the need to repeat this fairly regularly in my posts on the business of writing: ANY
writer in publishing today ignores the romance market at their own
peril. Industry insiders openly admitted that romance kept the book
business afloat during the bleakest times of the recession, and
continues to. And it’s no longer the case that mystery and thriller
writers are just outsider guests, mere curiosities at these
conferences. Just in the last couple of years that I’ve been a published
author, I’ve seen the huge tent that romance is take in more and more
subgenres, some of which tilt darker and darker - and I’m talking dark
like in zombie apocalypse stories, some very edgy dystopian tales – to the point that I’m not sure you
can realistically call romance ANY kind of genre at all, as much as it
is simply a marketing strategy.
(Okay, all right, I can hear romance purists howling out there, but I’m looking at this from a mystery/thriller perspective.).
ALL the publishers are here, some of them with dozens of reps, from
divisions all over the world. You can’t walk two steps without
tripping over an editor or agent from a major company. And not to be
crass, but you can tell how romance ranks with our publishers not just
from that overwhelming presence, but also from the sheer amount of money
the agents and publishers spend on parties, marketing, and book
giveaways to librarians, booksellers and fans (it's staggering…).
Because of that overwhelmingly professional slant, RWA is not the
free-for-all that Thrillerfest and Bouchercon and Left Coast Crime – and
Romantic Times – tend to be. (Although nothing beats that Harlequin
dance party – I'm looking forward to being too sore to walk on Saturday!). It’s a
working conference; many, many aspiring authors come to pitch to agents
and editors (and many, many do come away with representation and book deals), and
the very cool thing is that RWA chapters all over the country prep their
chapter members for conferences with practice pitch sessions and
conference how-to in the months before “nationals,” as they call the conference. No one preps writers for the business better than RWA does. Seriously - if you're an aspiring author in any genre and you're NOT a member of this organization and your local chapter, you are MISSING OUT.
One feature I really love about RWA (besides being able to wear all
my dressiest clothes and change outfits three times a day) is the
daily luncheons with keynote speakers. Not only do they feed us (which
means I actually eat, something I often forget to do at other
conferences), but there’s always a fascinating keynote speaker at the
lunches. I missed yesterday's because, well, I was the keynote speaker at the Young Adult RWA (YARWA) chapter's "Day of YA", an all-day event that included a stellar panel of editors and agents, a really wonderful Asian fusion lunch, my Screenwriting Tricks for Authors workshop with a YA focus, and an inspirational talk by YA author Simone Elkeles, plus some really cool raffle giveaways. Two of the agents at the event offered every workshop attendee a read of a ten page submission. That's a golden opportunity, but typical of what happens at this conference.
But the greatest thing for me about this conference, as really any of
the good ones, is hearing aspiring writers all around me say in a way
that makes me know they mean it – “That’s it - no more fucking
around. I’m finishing this book by ----“ (Oh, all right, it’s
Nationals, they’re not saying “fucking.”) And they mean it. I’ve
seen it happen over and over and over again – a conference like this is
what gets people past those last internal blocks and gets the book
finished, repped and out there. It's almost as if committing to the conference is telling the Universe, "Yes, damn it, I really am ready to DO this now."
And the Universe ALWAYS responds to that kind of declaration.
Something to think about.
- Alex
=====================================================
Screenwriting Tricks for Authors and Writing Love, Screenwriting Tricks for Authors, II, are now available in all e formats and as pdf files. Either book, any format, just $2.99.
- Smashwords (includes pdf and online viewing)
- Kindle
- Barnes &Noble/Nook
- Amazon UK
- Amaxon DE (Eur. 2.40)
- Smashwords (includes online viewing and pdf file)
- Amazon/Kindle
- Barnes & Noble/Nook
- Amazon UK
- Amazon DE
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Okay, even though I do write a paranormal romance series, I'm not at all what anyone would think of as a romance writer. And yet every year since I have been published, I have attended one or usually both of the two main romance conferences of the year: Romantic Times Booklovers Convention, or the Romance Writers of America National Conference.
And I'm hardly the only thriller writer who does so.
I feel the need to repeat this fairly regularly in my posts on the business of writing: ANY
writer in publishing today ignores the romance market at their own
peril. Industry insiders openly admitted that romance kept the book
business afloat during the bleakest times of the recession, and
continues to. And it’s no longer the case that mystery and thriller
writers are just outsider guests, mere curiosities at these
conferences. Just in the last couple of years that I’ve been a published
author, I’ve seen the huge tent that romance is take in more and more
subgenres, some of which tilt darker and darker - and I’m talking dark
like in zombie apocalypse stories, some very edgy dystopian tales – to the point that I’m not sure you
can realistically call romance ANY kind of genre at all, as much as it
is simply a marketing strategy.
(Okay, all right, I can hear romance purists howling out there, but I’m looking at this from a mystery/thriller perspective.).
ALL the publishers are here, some of them with dozens of reps, from
divisions all over the world. You can’t walk two steps without
tripping over an editor or agent from a major company. And not to be
crass, but you can tell how romance ranks with our publishers not just
from that overwhelming presence, but also from the sheer amount of money
the agents and publishers spend on parties, marketing, and book
giveaways to librarians, booksellers and fans (it's staggering…).
Because of that overwhelmingly professional slant, RWA is not the
free-for-all that Thrillerfest and Bouchercon and Left Coast Crime – and
Romantic Times – tend to be. (Although nothing beats that Harlequin
dance party – I'm looking forward to being too sore to walk on Saturday!). It’s a
working conference; many, many aspiring authors come to pitch to agents
and editors (and many, many do come away with representation and book deals), and
the very cool thing is that RWA chapters all over the country prep their
chapter members for conferences with practice pitch sessions and
conference how-to in the months before “nationals,” as they call the conference. No one preps writers for the business better than RWA does. Seriously - if you're an aspiring author in any genre and you're NOT a member of this organization and your local chapter, you are MISSING OUT.
One feature I really love about RWA (besides being able to wear all
my dressiest clothes and change outfits three times a day) is the
daily luncheons with keynote speakers. Not only do they feed us (which
means I actually eat, something I often forget to do at other
conferences), but there’s always a fascinating keynote speaker at the
lunches. I missed yesterday's because, well, I was the keynote speaker at the Young Adult RWA (YARWA) chapter's "Day of YA", an all-day event that included a stellar panel of editors and agents, a really wonderful Asian fusion lunch, my Screenwriting Tricks for Authors workshop with a YA focus, and an inspirational talk by YA author Simone Elkeles, plus some really cool raffle giveaways. Two of the agents at the event offered every workshop attendee a read of a ten page submission. That's a golden opportunity, but typical of what happens at this conference.
But the greatest thing for me about this conference, as really any of
the good ones, is hearing aspiring writers all around me say in a way
that makes me know they mean it – “That’s it - no more fucking
around. I’m finishing this book by ----“ (Oh, all right, it’s
Nationals, they’re not saying “fucking.”) And they mean it. I’ve
seen it happen over and over and over again – a conference like this is
what gets people past those last internal blocks and gets the book
finished, repped and out there. It's almost as if committing to the conference is telling the Universe, "Yes, damn it, I really am ready to DO this now."
And the Universe ALWAYS responds to that kind of declaration.
Something to think about.
- Alex
=====================================================
Screenwriting Tricks for Authors and Writing Love, Screenwriting Tricks for Authors, II, are now available in all e formats and as pdf files. Either book, any format, just $2.99.
- Smashwords (includes pdf and online viewing)- Kindle
- Barnes &Noble/Nook
- Amazon UK
- Amaxon DE (Eur. 2.40)
- Smashwords (includes online viewing and pdf file)- Amazon/Kindle
- Barnes & Noble/Nook
- Amazon UK
- Amazon DE
-------------------------------------------------------------------
July 24, 2012
Writing YA - Themes
Wait, weren’t we just talking about series writing? Welcome to my right brain.(Hey, I never said I did these posts in order! If you want order, order the workbooks.)
No, actually, this post today is because I am teaching a Screenwriting Tricks workshop at the RWA National Conference on Wednesday, and the focus is YA, so this is a good way to get my thoughts in order while letting you all benefit from the conference by osmosis. Plus, switching topics mid-stream is an excellent way for me to demonstrate that writing series, or writing YA, or writing YA series, or writing anything, will all benefit from exactly the same starting point: your personal Top Ten List.
Now first, YA isn’t a genre. It’s an umbrella for ALL genres. So the structure patterns for whatever genre you’re writing in apply just as completely to a YA book in that genre(or subgenre, or cross-genre) as they do to any adult book in the genre.
So when you’re sitting down with your new YA project to brainstorm, and making your Top Ten movie list (a list of movies and books that are similar in genre and storyline to your own project), it is often more useful to look at adult movies (I mean, not ADULT adult, but you know, adult) and books in the genre than it is to look at teen movies, simply because there are more, and usually better, adult movies out there with the structural patterns you’re likely to want to study and learn from.(If you need more clarification about what I'm talking about: What KIND of Story is It?)
The only real difference in a YA book is the age of the hero/ine and main characters, although there are some specific themes, elements and techniques that are very popular in YA, and themes are what I wanted to start off with today.
-- YA is very often written in first person – or a very close third. You are in the thoughts and skin of your protagonist.
-- There is very often a love triangle.Of course this is a popular trope in adult fiction, too – it
creates conflict and provides a fantasy sexual or romantic experience that a lot of readers are looking for. But it’s especially prevalent in YA, not just because people are copying Twilight and The Hunger Games, but because adolescence is hopefully a time for experimenting, including trying out who to love.
-- There is often a rebellion against entrenched adult values
and political systems. The
Hunger Games is a
prime example, of course. It’s the
teenagers who have to make moral choices and take moral actions against a
corrupt or broken or even horrific adult system.
This is nothing new AT ALL, it was the spirit that defined the sixties
and is pretty much is the major theme of adolescence. And this is why, I think, dystopian fiction is so popular
with YA readers. The genre by its
very nature says that the system is broken and challenges the characters - and the readers – to fix it. I love that about dystopian! Makes my Berkeley heart proud.
-- The characters often have special powers, or superpowers. This is another theme of the teen age. Because it is the absolute truth – we all DO have superpowers. We are all infinitely powerful, we just need to remember we are. As Marianne Williamson wrote in A Return to Love (a quote often attributed to Nelson Mandela, who used it in his 1994 inauguration speech):
Our deepest fear is
not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond
measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask
ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually,
who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not
serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other
people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children
do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not
just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we
unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”
Deepak Chopra says more succinctly, in a way that sums up the exhilaration of the Harry Potter series: “We are all wizards and witches.”
Kids KNOW that. Adults all too often forget it and spend a lifetime trying to remember.
-- There is commonly a theme of the changeling child. A classic childhood fantasy: “These aren’t my REAL parents. I’m actually a princ/ess in disguise!” Again, Harry Potter!
-- The changeling child is also an outsider, and the outsider theme is hugely popular in YA. Kids ALWAYS feel like freaks, and can easily relate to being vampires, shapeshifters, space aliens. New powers manifesting in embarrassing ways? You don't have to be Freud to get where that's coming from.
-- The King Arthur theme: that a seemingly ordinary person is
destined for greatness. The Hunger
Games, How to Train Your Dragon, Harry Potter. Cinterella is another one of these, of course.
So yes, YA themes tend to be extravagantly idealistic and empowering. YA is also often paranormal and girl-driven. Now, this could be attributed to the influence of Buffy, and Twilight, and you may have
theories of your own about it, which I’d love to hear. Personally I think that
the paranormal wave was in great part a reaction to the militaristic focus of
the post-9/11 government — the psychic, intuitive, feminine paranormal was a
reaction to and rebellion against the patriarchal domination of those war
years.
- There’s another very common formula to YA: stories that are revisionings of classic literature or fairy tales or fiction or plays, only with
teenage leads.
But I know there are a lot of YA writers out there, so I’d like to hear some of the common themes YOU see in YA. And also as always, I’m very interested in hearing people’s Top Ten lists. I need some good examples!
- Alex
=========================================
Screenwriting Tricks for Authors and Writing Love, Screenwriting Tricks for Authors, II, are now available in all e formats and as pdf files. Either book, any format, just $2.99.
- Smashwords (includes pdf and online viewing)
- Kindle
- Barnes &Noble/Nook
- Amazon UK
- Amaxon DE (Eur. 2.40)
- Smashwords (includes online viewing and pdf file)
- Amazon/Kindle
- Barnes & Noble/Nook
- Amazon UK
- Amazon DE
-------------------------------------------------------------------
No, actually, this post today is because I am teaching a Screenwriting Tricks workshop at the RWA National Conference on Wednesday, and the focus is YA, so this is a good way to get my thoughts in order while letting you all benefit from the conference by osmosis. Plus, switching topics mid-stream is an excellent way for me to demonstrate that writing series, or writing YA, or writing YA series, or writing anything, will all benefit from exactly the same starting point: your personal Top Ten List.
Now first, YA isn’t a genre. It’s an umbrella for ALL genres. So the structure patterns for whatever genre you’re writing in apply just as completely to a YA book in that genre(or subgenre, or cross-genre) as they do to any adult book in the genre.
So when you’re sitting down with your new YA project to brainstorm, and making your Top Ten movie list (a list of movies and books that are similar in genre and storyline to your own project), it is often more useful to look at adult movies (I mean, not ADULT adult, but you know, adult) and books in the genre than it is to look at teen movies, simply because there are more, and usually better, adult movies out there with the structural patterns you’re likely to want to study and learn from.(If you need more clarification about what I'm talking about: What KIND of Story is It?)
The only real difference in a YA book is the age of the hero/ine and main characters, although there are some specific themes, elements and techniques that are very popular in YA, and themes are what I wanted to start off with today.
-- YA is very often written in first person – or a very close third. You are in the thoughts and skin of your protagonist.
-- There is very often a love triangle.Of course this is a popular trope in adult fiction, too – it
creates conflict and provides a fantasy sexual or romantic experience that a lot of readers are looking for. But it’s especially prevalent in YA, not just because people are copying Twilight and The Hunger Games, but because adolescence is hopefully a time for experimenting, including trying out who to love.
-- There is often a rebellion against entrenched adult values
and political systems. The
Hunger Games is a
prime example, of course. It’s the
teenagers who have to make moral choices and take moral actions against a
corrupt or broken or even horrific adult system.
This is nothing new AT ALL, it was the spirit that defined the sixties
and is pretty much is the major theme of adolescence. And this is why, I think, dystopian fiction is so popular
with YA readers. The genre by its
very nature says that the system is broken and challenges the characters - and the readers – to fix it. I love that about dystopian! Makes my Berkeley heart proud.
-- The characters often have special powers, or superpowers. This is another theme of the teen age. Because it is the absolute truth – we all DO have superpowers. We are all infinitely powerful, we just need to remember we are. As Marianne Williamson wrote in A Return to Love (a quote often attributed to Nelson Mandela, who used it in his 1994 inauguration speech):
Our deepest fear is
not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond
measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask
ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually,
who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not
serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other
people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children
do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not
just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we
unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”
Deepak Chopra says more succinctly, in a way that sums up the exhilaration of the Harry Potter series: “We are all wizards and witches.”
Kids KNOW that. Adults all too often forget it and spend a lifetime trying to remember.
-- There is commonly a theme of the changeling child. A classic childhood fantasy: “These aren’t my REAL parents. I’m actually a princ/ess in disguise!” Again, Harry Potter!
-- The changeling child is also an outsider, and the outsider theme is hugely popular in YA. Kids ALWAYS feel like freaks, and can easily relate to being vampires, shapeshifters, space aliens. New powers manifesting in embarrassing ways? You don't have to be Freud to get where that's coming from.
-- The King Arthur theme: that a seemingly ordinary person is
destined for greatness. The Hunger
Games, How to Train Your Dragon, Harry Potter. Cinterella is another one of these, of course.
So yes, YA themes tend to be extravagantly idealistic and empowering. YA is also often paranormal and girl-driven. Now, this could be attributed to the influence of Buffy, and Twilight, and you may have
theories of your own about it, which I’d love to hear. Personally I think that
the paranormal wave was in great part a reaction to the militaristic focus of
the post-9/11 government — the psychic, intuitive, feminine paranormal was a
reaction to and rebellion against the patriarchal domination of those war
years.
- There’s another very common formula to YA: stories that are revisionings of classic literature or fairy tales or fiction or plays, only with
teenage leads.
But I know there are a lot of YA writers out there, so I’d like to hear some of the common themes YOU see in YA. And also as always, I’m very interested in hearing people’s Top Ten lists. I need some good examples!
- Alex
=========================================
Screenwriting Tricks for Authors and Writing Love, Screenwriting Tricks for Authors, II, are now available in all e formats and as pdf files. Either book, any format, just $2.99.
- Smashwords (includes pdf and online viewing)- Kindle
- Barnes &Noble/Nook
- Amazon UK
- Amaxon DE (Eur. 2.40)
- Smashwords (includes online viewing and pdf file)- Amazon/Kindle
- Barnes & Noble/Nook
- Amazon UK
- Amazon DE
-------------------------------------------------------------------
July 21, 2012
Writing series, part 1
by Alexandra Sokoloff
I've been getting a lot of questions about series writing, so today I thought I'd take a stab at it, and see where it goes from there.
I am writing my first series ever right now, with the exception of my part in The Keepers series, which is not a traditional mystery series but rather a series collaboration between three authors, Heather Graham, Harley Jane Kozak and me: related books set in the same paranormal/urban fantasy world with the same core characters. That is totally AMAZING fun, btw – sort
of like repertory theater, only with authors as director/writers. Love
it!
But I wrote my new crime thriller Huntress Moon with the absolute intention of making it a mystery/thriller series, and while I do have plans to do sequels to two of my other books ( Book of Shadows and The Space Between , which MUST be a trilogy!), I didn’t write those two thinking of them as series, they just turned out that way in the writing process.
Writing a series deliberately from the get-go – that’s a whole different thing.
The thing is, I don’t read many series. The ones I do, I’m obsessed with, but have never been one of those who have to read in order. I
really expect a book to work completely as a standalone, whether it’s in a series or not, so I’ll pick them up randomly and work my way through
them in whatever order I get to them.
I’m not much of a TV series watcher, either. I watch many more
movies than TV series. Well, not so much lately, since feature films seem to have hit a total low creatively, thanks to the corporate culture in Hollywood, which has driven all the good screenwriters to cable TV and jacked the quality of cable series up to mindblowing proportions. I
think it’s a second Golden Age of Television, honestly.
Hmm, I may be digressing, but it’s true.
But you all should KNOW my prescription for any story problem or question by now. MAKE A LIST. Yes, the Top Ten List I’m always preaching about! You need to look to your own favorite series and series writers to identify what you most respond to in a series, and take your inspirations and lessons from them.
Here’s my list.
- Lee Child’s Reacher series
- Mo Hayder’s Jack Caffery/Flea Marlowe series
- Michael Connelly’s Harry Bosch series
- Denise Mina’s Paddy Meehan series
- Tess Gerritsen’s Rizzoli and Isles
- Val McDermid’s Tony Hill/Carole Jordan series
- Karin Slaughter’s Georgia series
- Ken Bruen’s Jack Taylor series
- F. Paul Wilson’s Repairman Jack series
- John Connolly’s Charlie Parker series
And, well, I have to add Thomas Harris’s Red Dragon and Silence of the Lambs, but the rest of the Hannibal series I try very hard to pretend never happened at all.
(Now don't just sit there, go ahead, make your own list...)
Now take a look at your list and try to identify what the series you've listed have in common.
The first thing I have to say about all of my above authors is that – it’s not the series, it’s the authors. I would read anything any of the above put to paper, and pretty much have already, repeatedly.
And I’m actually often more interested in books OUTSIDE the series than
the next one in the series.
Writing a book, any book is an obsessive, encompassing, borderline
psychotic thing. (I threw in that “borderline” just for a laugh. Because, you know...)
Writing a series is all that, exponentially. You have an ongoing, multidimensional, multi-generational parallel world inside you ALL THE TIME.
Does anyone else feel like that’s just – crazy?
Some worlds crazier than others.
I worry about Michael Connelly a little, or maybe I mean a lot, walking around with Harry Bosch in his head all the time. Because Harry is so fragile, you know. To be constantly accessing that mindset, to be living in Harry’s skin... wow. What would that do to you? You just want them both to have a
BREAK from that, sometimes, but - yeah, like that’s going to happen.
I guess I should be worried about Lee Child, too, because Reacher
isn’t exactly the pinnacle of mental health. But Reacher has better
social skills than Harry.Even if Reacher never sticks around, he does
make strong human connections consistently. It just seems more
balanced, somehow. There was a point around the book Nothing to Lose, and then again in 61 Hours that I thought Reacher might finally be losing it entirely, but he seems to have pulled it together since then, at least for the moment. I feel like Reacher can take care of himself because he’s actually aware of the need for help and really expert at
recruiting it, while I always feel like someone should be taking care of Harry.
Notice how I’m talking about those characters as if I know them?
Well, don’t we? That’s kind of the point of a series, right? There is a lead character, sometimes two or three, that you want to get to know,
that you commit to for a long-term relationship.
And for me, those characters are complicated and haunted and flawed.
Which might be putting it mildly – most if not all of the above characters seem to be genetically set on “self-destruct” and half of the suspense of the series is whether or not they’re going to survive the next book at all, or with sanity intact.
The series I listed above have many more strong things in common, besides the fact that they’re mindblowingly well-written. They’re very, very dark. No happy endings (HEA) guaranteed here; in fact, you know going into any of those books that you’d better brace
yourself for what’s coming. They deal intensively with real human evil,
and often with sexual abuse and child abuse, and they deal with it in a way that only a psychopath could be titillated. The characters fight
that evil constantly and the battles are always bittersweet; there is no resolution, the battle may be won but the war rages on. Not only is that a core theme of mine as an author, I think that’s just reality, and I appreciate that those authors don’t sugarcoat it.
There is a sensuality and lyricism to the writing that is hypnotic and addictive. The male/female relationships are twisted but incredibly erotic. The stories often let secondary characters take major roles (a trick I first noticed with Tess Gerritsen, one of the first series writers I got hooked on – I read her series more consistently than I did those of other authors because she would let a secondary character take the lead role in many of the books, which kept the series fresh for me).
All of those things are what I aspire to with Huntress Moon . There are all kinds of ways that I’m trying to live my series, so I can do it justice. I’m taking kickboxing for the first time to see how my Huntress
feels, physically and mentally and emotionally, when she has to fight.
(And I have to say that’s a real trip. It’s not so different from
dancing, really, a handful of basic moves that create a language of
fighting, and then infinite variations on those.) I’m doing Lee Lofland’s Writers Police Academy in September to go through the law enforcement training that my FBI agent lead, and many secondary characters, would have had, and of course am addicted to Lee's blog, and Doug Lyle's, for fantastic forensics information. I am living with my nose buried in atlases
and Google maps and taking any number of road trips to be in the places that my characters are traversing, so I get that physical experience right.
But most of all I’m grateful to have such stellar examples as the authors I listed above, and many more that I have missed, to look to for guidance about what I am trying create. It is an amazing thing for us as authors that our favorite authors are also our teachers – for life. All we need to know about how to do this is right there for us on the
pages of our favorite books.
So today, make your lists and let's talk about your favorite series. What are they, what draws you to them, what hooks you as a reader, what keeps you reading, what’s your burnout point (if any!)?
What are the core themes you see?
And let me just take a minute to quickly address the question of series PREMISE, which I'll write a whole post about as soon as I can (probably not this week because I'm at the RWA National conference, teaching and signing and the whole conference thing... and there's still time to sign up for the Screenwriting Tricks workshop on Wednesday...)
A reader asked me if you need to do a premise line for your whole series as well as for each individual book. Well, yes, that would be a good idea, don't you think? However, remember, when you're in early stages of writing, a premise is just your road map. The premise can and most likely WILL change in the writing process, as you learn more about what you're actually writing. So don't be afraid to write a premise line for your whole series and know that it's not set in stone! It's just to help you take a stab at what you THINK you're writing. What you actually DO write - will inevitably be different. And that's okay!
- Alex
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Huntress Moon, an Amazon Hot New Release! On sale now: $3.99
Amazon
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A driven FBI agent is on the hunt for that most rare of all killers: a female serial.
I've been getting a lot of questions about series writing, so today I thought I'd take a stab at it, and see where it goes from there.
I am writing my first series ever right now, with the exception of my part in The Keepers series, which is not a traditional mystery series but rather a series collaboration between three authors, Heather Graham, Harley Jane Kozak and me: related books set in the same paranormal/urban fantasy world with the same core characters. That is totally AMAZING fun, btw – sort
of like repertory theater, only with authors as director/writers. Love
it!
But I wrote my new crime thriller Huntress Moon with the absolute intention of making it a mystery/thriller series, and while I do have plans to do sequels to two of my other books ( Book of Shadows and The Space Between , which MUST be a trilogy!), I didn’t write those two thinking of them as series, they just turned out that way in the writing process.
Writing a series deliberately from the get-go – that’s a whole different thing.
The thing is, I don’t read many series. The ones I do, I’m obsessed with, but have never been one of those who have to read in order. I
really expect a book to work completely as a standalone, whether it’s in a series or not, so I’ll pick them up randomly and work my way through
them in whatever order I get to them.
I’m not much of a TV series watcher, either. I watch many more
movies than TV series. Well, not so much lately, since feature films seem to have hit a total low creatively, thanks to the corporate culture in Hollywood, which has driven all the good screenwriters to cable TV and jacked the quality of cable series up to mindblowing proportions. I
think it’s a second Golden Age of Television, honestly.
Hmm, I may be digressing, but it’s true.
But you all should KNOW my prescription for any story problem or question by now. MAKE A LIST. Yes, the Top Ten List I’m always preaching about! You need to look to your own favorite series and series writers to identify what you most respond to in a series, and take your inspirations and lessons from them.
Here’s my list.
- Lee Child’s Reacher series
- Mo Hayder’s Jack Caffery/Flea Marlowe series
- Michael Connelly’s Harry Bosch series
- Denise Mina’s Paddy Meehan series
- Tess Gerritsen’s Rizzoli and Isles
- Val McDermid’s Tony Hill/Carole Jordan series
- Karin Slaughter’s Georgia series
- Ken Bruen’s Jack Taylor series
- F. Paul Wilson’s Repairman Jack series
- John Connolly’s Charlie Parker series
And, well, I have to add Thomas Harris’s Red Dragon and Silence of the Lambs, but the rest of the Hannibal series I try very hard to pretend never happened at all.
(Now don't just sit there, go ahead, make your own list...)
Now take a look at your list and try to identify what the series you've listed have in common.
The first thing I have to say about all of my above authors is that – it’s not the series, it’s the authors. I would read anything any of the above put to paper, and pretty much have already, repeatedly.
And I’m actually often more interested in books OUTSIDE the series than
the next one in the series.
Writing a book, any book is an obsessive, encompassing, borderline
psychotic thing. (I threw in that “borderline” just for a laugh. Because, you know...)
Writing a series is all that, exponentially. You have an ongoing, multidimensional, multi-generational parallel world inside you ALL THE TIME.
Does anyone else feel like that’s just – crazy?
Some worlds crazier than others.
I worry about Michael Connelly a little, or maybe I mean a lot, walking around with Harry Bosch in his head all the time. Because Harry is so fragile, you know. To be constantly accessing that mindset, to be living in Harry’s skin... wow. What would that do to you? You just want them both to have a
BREAK from that, sometimes, but - yeah, like that’s going to happen.
I guess I should be worried about Lee Child, too, because Reacher
isn’t exactly the pinnacle of mental health. But Reacher has better
social skills than Harry.Even if Reacher never sticks around, he does
make strong human connections consistently. It just seems more
balanced, somehow. There was a point around the book Nothing to Lose, and then again in 61 Hours that I thought Reacher might finally be losing it entirely, but he seems to have pulled it together since then, at least for the moment. I feel like Reacher can take care of himself because he’s actually aware of the need for help and really expert at
recruiting it, while I always feel like someone should be taking care of Harry.
Notice how I’m talking about those characters as if I know them?
Well, don’t we? That’s kind of the point of a series, right? There is a lead character, sometimes two or three, that you want to get to know,
that you commit to for a long-term relationship.
And for me, those characters are complicated and haunted and flawed.
Which might be putting it mildly – most if not all of the above characters seem to be genetically set on “self-destruct” and half of the suspense of the series is whether or not they’re going to survive the next book at all, or with sanity intact.
The series I listed above have many more strong things in common, besides the fact that they’re mindblowingly well-written. They’re very, very dark. No happy endings (HEA) guaranteed here; in fact, you know going into any of those books that you’d better brace
yourself for what’s coming. They deal intensively with real human evil,
and often with sexual abuse and child abuse, and they deal with it in a way that only a psychopath could be titillated. The characters fight
that evil constantly and the battles are always bittersweet; there is no resolution, the battle may be won but the war rages on. Not only is that a core theme of mine as an author, I think that’s just reality, and I appreciate that those authors don’t sugarcoat it.
There is a sensuality and lyricism to the writing that is hypnotic and addictive. The male/female relationships are twisted but incredibly erotic. The stories often let secondary characters take major roles (a trick I first noticed with Tess Gerritsen, one of the first series writers I got hooked on – I read her series more consistently than I did those of other authors because she would let a secondary character take the lead role in many of the books, which kept the series fresh for me).
All of those things are what I aspire to with Huntress Moon . There are all kinds of ways that I’m trying to live my series, so I can do it justice. I’m taking kickboxing for the first time to see how my Huntress
feels, physically and mentally and emotionally, when she has to fight.
(And I have to say that’s a real trip. It’s not so different from
dancing, really, a handful of basic moves that create a language of
fighting, and then infinite variations on those.) I’m doing Lee Lofland’s Writers Police Academy in September to go through the law enforcement training that my FBI agent lead, and many secondary characters, would have had, and of course am addicted to Lee's blog, and Doug Lyle's, for fantastic forensics information. I am living with my nose buried in atlases
and Google maps and taking any number of road trips to be in the places that my characters are traversing, so I get that physical experience right.
But most of all I’m grateful to have such stellar examples as the authors I listed above, and many more that I have missed, to look to for guidance about what I am trying create. It is an amazing thing for us as authors that our favorite authors are also our teachers – for life. All we need to know about how to do this is right there for us on the
pages of our favorite books.
So today, make your lists and let's talk about your favorite series. What are they, what draws you to them, what hooks you as a reader, what keeps you reading, what’s your burnout point (if any!)?
What are the core themes you see?
And let me just take a minute to quickly address the question of series PREMISE, which I'll write a whole post about as soon as I can (probably not this week because I'm at the RWA National conference, teaching and signing and the whole conference thing... and there's still time to sign up for the Screenwriting Tricks workshop on Wednesday...)
A reader asked me if you need to do a premise line for your whole series as well as for each individual book. Well, yes, that would be a good idea, don't you think? However, remember, when you're in early stages of writing, a premise is just your road map. The premise can and most likely WILL change in the writing process, as you learn more about what you're actually writing. So don't be afraid to write a premise line for your whole series and know that it's not set in stone! It's just to help you take a stab at what you THINK you're writing. What you actually DO write - will inevitably be different. And that's okay!
- Alex
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Huntress Moon, an Amazon Hot New Release! On sale now: $3.99
Amazon
Amazon UK
Amazon DE
Amazon FR
Amazon ES
Amazon IT
A driven FBI agent is on the hunt for that most rare of all killers: a female serial.
July 17, 2012
Huntress Moon an Amazon Hot New Release!
So I woke up this morning and the third day after my free run, now that it's back to $3.99,
Huntress Moon
has hit the Amazon Hot New Release List, currently #28
On other lists:
# 1 in Hardboiled Mysteries (Books)
# 2 in Hardboiled Mysteries (Kindle)
# 2 in Police Procedurals (Kindle)
# 3 in Police Procedurals (Books)
# 3 in Mysteries (Kindle)
# 17 in Mysteries and Thrillers (Kindle)
#18 in Mysteries, Thriller and Suspense (Books)
Top 100 Bestsellers list: #80
This is a fantastic thing, to be so high on all those lists - it's huge, targeted exposure for the book. So last post when I was asking whether all that frantic marketing was worth it? Today I would say HELL YEAH.
As giddy as I am about all this... on the question of how much what I did in terms of marketing influenced that happening - I'm not so sure. I don't know if anyone CAN be sure.
I know for sure I increased my CHANCES of this happening with the marketing push I did.
I know for sure that you all who have liked and tagged and reviewed the book, and who have shared and tweeted and Liked my posts and Facebook updates - all of you and all of that helped enormously and immeasurably. You're all rock stars in my book.
And for you writers, I hope you've been learning a little something about how to go about this for yourselves; I'll for sure be compiling a lot more information about what I found useful and effective (I think, anyway!) to post here.
This isn't over at all, but it's the launch I had been hoping for, and I know SO much more about what to do next time. That is, unless everything changes between now and then. But if it does, we'll adapt. If there's anything I learned from the spiral that I've been in (in a good way) - looking back at promotion as it was just three years ago, and what it is now, it's that things WILL change, and as long as we're willing to keep learning, we'll all be fine.
- Alex,
Huntress Moon , on sale now: $3.99
Amazon
Amazon UK
Amazon DE
Amazon FR
Amazon ES
Amazon IT
A driven FBI agent is on the hunt for that most rare of all killers: a female serial.
Related marketing posts:
The Madness of Marketing
Letting it Ride (Kindle Select promotion)
Bestseller lists and Tag lists
Liking, Sharing and Tagging
My e publishing decision
To Nook or Not to Nook?
On other lists:
# 1 in Hardboiled Mysteries (Books)
# 2 in Hardboiled Mysteries (Kindle)
# 2 in Police Procedurals (Kindle)
# 3 in Police Procedurals (Books)
# 3 in Mysteries (Kindle)
# 17 in Mysteries and Thrillers (Kindle)
#18 in Mysteries, Thriller and Suspense (Books)
Top 100 Bestsellers list: #80
This is a fantastic thing, to be so high on all those lists - it's huge, targeted exposure for the book. So last post when I was asking whether all that frantic marketing was worth it? Today I would say HELL YEAH.
As giddy as I am about all this... on the question of how much what I did in terms of marketing influenced that happening - I'm not so sure. I don't know if anyone CAN be sure.
I know for sure I increased my CHANCES of this happening with the marketing push I did.
I know for sure that you all who have liked and tagged and reviewed the book, and who have shared and tweeted and Liked my posts and Facebook updates - all of you and all of that helped enormously and immeasurably. You're all rock stars in my book.
And for you writers, I hope you've been learning a little something about how to go about this for yourselves; I'll for sure be compiling a lot more information about what I found useful and effective (I think, anyway!) to post here.
This isn't over at all, but it's the launch I had been hoping for, and I know SO much more about what to do next time. That is, unless everything changes between now and then. But if it does, we'll adapt. If there's anything I learned from the spiral that I've been in (in a good way) - looking back at promotion as it was just three years ago, and what it is now, it's that things WILL change, and as long as we're willing to keep learning, we'll all be fine.
- Alex,
Huntress Moon , on sale now: $3.99
Amazon
Amazon UK
Amazon DE
Amazon FR
Amazon ES
Amazon IT
A driven FBI agent is on the hunt for that most rare of all killers: a female serial.
Related marketing posts:
The Madness of Marketing
Letting it Ride (Kindle Select promotion)
Bestseller lists and Tag lists
Liking, Sharing and Tagging
My e publishing decision
To Nook or Not to Nook?
July 15, 2012
The madness of marketing
Since I seem to be taking a week to talk about marketing... I told you guys yesterday that in the middle of my huge Amazon promotion for
Huntress Moon
I am also clearing out my house to sell it, and am constantly finding reminders of the brutal days of book tours and bookstore drop-ins and how different things are for authors today, just three years later than what you're about to read below. While throwing out ten tons of paper promo material I was reminded of this blog I wrote for the hardcover launch of my poltergeist thriller,
The Unseen
, which I just put up for sale on Amazon and Nook this month. Just a bit of a different process!
But I think you'll find it uncanny how the more things change, the more they stay the same.
December 2008
Dear Diary:
You will be thrilled to know I’ve made an actual decision. No, I mean
it, stop laughing. Really. I’m just not going to kill myself promoting THE UNSEEN when it comes out. No more of this stress. I love this book. I know people want to read it. Who wouldn’t want to read it?
John Lescroart
says the only viable thing you can do to sell your books is to write
another book. So that’s what I’m going to do – I’m going to write
another book. In fact, I’m going to write two books.
And the Screenwriting Tricks for Authors book,
too – I can do an hour of that every other day. It all stops now. No
more traveling, no more craziness, just workshops close to home. That
people pay me for. I’m going to write. That’s it. Write. And have a
personal life, remember that? And then maybe Michael won’t leave me for
alienation of affection? That would be good.
PS. You won’t be hearing from me for a while. I have writing to do. And affection.
------------------------Five months later------------------------
May 1, 2009.
Well,
Diary, I am thrilled to report I have finished Book of Shadows and
Scott loves it and SO DO I. I got that paranormal proposal in to HQ
Nocturne and I will easily be finished with Ghost Ship by the end of the
month and get that in to St. Martin’s ON TIME. I have an entire first
draft of Screenwriting Tricks for Authors , and am psyched to launch into
revisions. I am so golden.
Lescroart is so right. We need to be writing.
May 2
Woke up to panic attack. OH MY GOD, The Unseen is coming out in twenty-four days. How did that happen? Who scheduled this?
I
haven’t done anything. Nothing. I haven’t even thought about doing
anything. I forgot about promotion. Who do I think I am, a screenwriter?
I’m an author now, I have to promote.
What’s promotion again? How did I do it before? OH MY GOD.
May 3
Woke
up thinking about Konrath. OH MY GOD. Konrath is doing a 100-stop blog
book tour for Afraid. I should be doing a 100-stop blog book tour. Wait.
I can barely write one blog a week. I’d have to have started 100 weeks
ago to do a 100-stop blog book tour. 100 weeks ago is – um, years, I
think. I can do ten. No, twelve. No, eight. In two months. No, one. No,
six weeks.
Is it worth it to do that? Does that even count as a blog book tour?
Note
to self: check Blog Book Tour site for… specifics. Wait. Wouldn’t I
rather just write more Screenwriting Tricks blogs? Won’t everyone hate
me if I stop those for a month to do blogs on… whatever I would be doing
blogs on? On somebody else’s blog site? Didn’t I start Screenwriting
Tricks because I had nothing left to say about myself? Do blog tours
really work? Konrath says it’s working.
Well, of course
it’s working for Konrath, I’m talking about for REAL people, do they
work for REAL people? Note to self: You are NOT under any circumstances
going to try to pull a Konrath here. Just get a grip.
May 4
OH
MY GOD. “The Edge of Seventeen” got nominated for a Thriller Award for
Best Short Story. I can’t believe it. I mean, I love that story, maybe
more than anything I’ve ever written, but… it’s supernatural. It’s got a
teenage GIRL protagonist. I’m so overwhelmed it got noticed.
Lescroart is right. I need to be writing. Nothing matters but writing. And affection.
May 5
OH
MY GOD. Thrillerfest is the same weekend as ALA. HOW DO THESE THINGS
HAPPEN? How can I not go to ALA? How can I not go to Thrillerfest? I’m
going to be just out with The Unseen in hardcover, I have to go to ALA.
But I’m nominated for a Thriller award, how can I not go to Thrillerfest? How can I be in New York and Chicago at the same time?
May 6
Woke
up thinking about social networking. OH MY GOD. I haven’t posted on
Facebook in weeks. I haven’t Twittered in longer. And I can’t remember
the last time I even signed on to MySpace. I need to update my sites. If
I can remember them. Amazon blog, Red Room blog, MySpace blog, Haunt
blog, Backspace, MWA something or other - Margery said we all had pages
somewhere and that I haven’t done anything on mine; Pretty Scary,
Authors Round the South, Indie Bound something or other, Library Thing?
Am
I on that? Or was I supposed to do it and forgot? And what about that
Facebook page thing? Did anyone ever figure out how to find my page as
opposed to whatever the regular Facebook thing is? Is that page thing
just going to open up a whole new spate of old boyfriends?
May 7
Woke up thinking about….
I can’t… think…
May 8
OH
MY GOD. Romantic Times is in two days. Did I book a flight? What state
is it in? Do I have bookmarks? Oh my God, I never ordered bookmarks for The Unseen . I have to e mail Kelley at Iconix and order more NOW TODAY
so they’ll come in time. Will they get here or do I have them delivered
to – whatever state RT is in? Kelley will handle it. IF YOU REMEMBER TO
TELL HER.
Where are my business cards? OH MY GOD. I have to learn
all the songs for the Vampire show. Shut up. Slow down. What you need
to do at RT is WRITE. Go rehearse the Vampire show and then go back to
the room and write, write, write. Five pages a day, minimum.
(Pages
done at RT: 7 total, done on the plane en route. Hours spent rehearsing
Vampire Show: 20. Hours on the dance floor: 3 per night. Hours in hot
tub after dance=2. Parties… a lot.).
May 9
Woke
up thinking about website. Hmm, worrisome. Most Awesome Webmistress is
not returning e mail on website update. Starting to panic. Better call.
OH
MY GOD. Most Awesome Webmistress has been sending e mails on website
update that have disappeared into the ether. Website needs complete
overhaul.
OH MY GOD. Must send in all updates by tomorrow and decide on design.
OH MY GOD.
May 10
Have
to get announcements of The Unseen in to all the organizations I belong
to for their newsletters. What organizations do I belong to again? Who
do I send this stuff to?
Have to send updated list of all reviewers I know to new publicist so she can send reading copies.
Have to send updated list of all media contacts I have to new publicist to she can send reading copies.
Have to send updated bookseller/librarian list to new publicist.
Have to do author questionnaire for Little, Brown for UK releases.
Have to do new author questionnaire for St. Martin’s.
Have to do AT LEAST FIVE PAGES on Ghost Ship today. I have to. I have to.
(End of day: Pages written: 0)
May 11
Woke
up thinking about bookstore mailings. Elaine Viets does bookstore
mailings. Elaine swears by bookstore mailings, and everyone loves her.
Does that mean I should do bookstore mailings? What is a bookstore
mailing?
Books? Still don’t have them. Bookmarks? Bookmarks are
great if you march them into the store and set them on the counter
yourself, but if I were a CRM and got bookmarks in the mail I would just
toss them in the trash. I don’t even open my own mail, how can I expect
anyone else to?
May 12
Woke
up thinking about book club mailings. Jenna Black swears by book club
mailings. Do I need to do a book club mailing? What is a book club
mailing?
May 13
There’s a
book club coordinator at St. Martin’s. Who knew? I give her my targeted
list of rabid book clubs and she will send books with my letter that I
send to her. I love St. Martin’s.
Lesson learned: Ask, Ask, Ask.
May 14
Going
through old promotional files and discovered Sisters in Crime has a
bookclub database with specific contact info for mystery book clubs
nationwide. Most want e mail contact first. I can do that. I can do that
in a night and pretend to be watching whatever movie Michael wants to
watch.
I love Sisters in Crime.
May 15
OH
MY GOD. I haven’t worked out in two weeks. Have you somehow for gotten
that you have the personality of a rabid armadillo when you don’t work
out for TWO DAYS?
Has it somehow slipped your mind that a BOOK
TOUR means you will be dealing with THE PUBLIC for all your waking
hours? Has it not occurred to you that if you don’t get an injection of
endorphins, not to mention muscle tone, then too soon to contemplate you
will not be fit for viewing?
May 16, 2009
OH
MY GOD. I haven’t updated my mailing list in six months. And I need to
do a newsletter. How does Vertical Response work again? What’s my
password? Why can’t I log in? Oh, right, I have to use Firefox to get
into that one. Um, I think. But do I have any news?
Did I for
sure take that guy off the list who wrote me that horrible letter about
how he didn’t know me and how did I get his e mail and why am I spamming
him? Does he know how many nights of sleep I lost lying awake wondering
the same thing?
May 17
OH
MY GOD. I have to be at BEA next week. What state is BEA in this year? I
need a pass. I need books. Did I book a flight?…. Frantic e mailing
ensues .... HAH! St. Martin’s has sent books and is sending me a pass.
I will do my Quail Ridge launch then drive up to NY with Natasha and stop at bookstores along the way to sign stock.
A
Garmin would be good, though. Konrath swears by his Garmin. Note to
self: need to get a Garmin. More to the point, need to figure out how to
use it before I hit the road. Can I realistically do that? I mean,
really?
May 18
OH MY GOD.
Right after BEA I’m due in L.A. for the HWA Stoker weekend and So Cal
MWA conference and Dark Delicacies signing and Mysterious Galaxy
signing. Did I book a flight? OH MY GOD - must do bookstore drop-ins.
Must do TONS of bookstore drop-ins. I can do 200 easily in two weeks
before I have to be back for my Southern tour stops. Even without a
Garmin. No Garmin required here at all. Konrath may be Konrath, but I
know California freeways.
HAH!
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I
wish I could say that’s as bad as it gets but it’s not even close.
Multiply the chaos above by twelve thousand and you have a rough idea of
my mental state at the moment. There is no order to anything.
The
funny thing is, I just did an interview in which the eminently sane
interviewer posed the question: “You’re a great business networker.
What’s your strategy?”Which I guess is encouraging because no matter
what is happening inside me I have the APPEARANCE of control and
organization. So that must count for something.
But you know
what? I was so fine while I was just writing. I really did get – almost -
two books, a proposal, and a rough draft of another (non-fiction) book
done in five months. This last month I’ve managed to do some editing,
but that’s about it. And I am miserable about it. I could so easily have
had my new book done by now.
So
I really, really want to know. Are we really doing ourselves any favors
doing this kind of insane promotion? Or is John Lescroart right, and we
should just always be writing the next book, period?
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
July 2012
And my question today, July 2012, is exactly the same:
Even though we're doing it online, now, Facebook, Twitter, blog tours - is that really helping us? Really? Are we really doing ourselves any favors
doing this kind of insane promotion? Or is John Lescroart STILL right, and we
should just always be writing the next book, period?
What do you think?
- Alex
Huntress Moon , on sale now: $3.99
Amazon
Amazon UK
Amazon DE
Amazon FR
Amazon ES
Amazon IT
A driven FBI agent is on the hunt for that most rare of all killers:
a female serial.
Related marketing posts:
Letting it Ride (Kindle Select promotion)
Bestseller lists and Tag lists
Liking, Sharing and Tagging
My e publishing decision
To Nook or Not to Nook?
But I think you'll find it uncanny how the more things change, the more they stay the same.
December 2008
Dear Diary:
You will be thrilled to know I’ve made an actual decision. No, I mean
it, stop laughing. Really. I’m just not going to kill myself promoting THE UNSEEN when it comes out. No more of this stress. I love this book. I know people want to read it. Who wouldn’t want to read it?
John Lescroart
says the only viable thing you can do to sell your books is to write
another book. So that’s what I’m going to do – I’m going to write
another book. In fact, I’m going to write two books.
And the Screenwriting Tricks for Authors book,
too – I can do an hour of that every other day. It all stops now. No
more traveling, no more craziness, just workshops close to home. That
people pay me for. I’m going to write. That’s it. Write. And have a
personal life, remember that? And then maybe Michael won’t leave me for
alienation of affection? That would be good.
PS. You won’t be hearing from me for a while. I have writing to do. And affection.
------------------------Five months later------------------------
May 1, 2009.
Well,
Diary, I am thrilled to report I have finished Book of Shadows and
Scott loves it and SO DO I. I got that paranormal proposal in to HQ
Nocturne and I will easily be finished with Ghost Ship by the end of the
month and get that in to St. Martin’s ON TIME. I have an entire first
draft of Screenwriting Tricks for Authors , and am psyched to launch into
revisions. I am so golden.
Lescroart is so right. We need to be writing.
May 2
Woke up to panic attack. OH MY GOD, The Unseen is coming out in twenty-four days. How did that happen? Who scheduled this?
I
haven’t done anything. Nothing. I haven’t even thought about doing
anything. I forgot about promotion. Who do I think I am, a screenwriter?
I’m an author now, I have to promote.
What’s promotion again? How did I do it before? OH MY GOD.
May 3
Woke
up thinking about Konrath. OH MY GOD. Konrath is doing a 100-stop blog
book tour for Afraid. I should be doing a 100-stop blog book tour. Wait.
I can barely write one blog a week. I’d have to have started 100 weeks
ago to do a 100-stop blog book tour. 100 weeks ago is – um, years, I
think. I can do ten. No, twelve. No, eight. In two months. No, one. No,
six weeks.
Is it worth it to do that? Does that even count as a blog book tour?
Note
to self: check Blog Book Tour site for… specifics. Wait. Wouldn’t I
rather just write more Screenwriting Tricks blogs? Won’t everyone hate
me if I stop those for a month to do blogs on… whatever I would be doing
blogs on? On somebody else’s blog site? Didn’t I start Screenwriting
Tricks because I had nothing left to say about myself? Do blog tours
really work? Konrath says it’s working.
Well, of course
it’s working for Konrath, I’m talking about for REAL people, do they
work for REAL people? Note to self: You are NOT under any circumstances
going to try to pull a Konrath here. Just get a grip.
May 4
OH
MY GOD. “The Edge of Seventeen” got nominated for a Thriller Award for
Best Short Story. I can’t believe it. I mean, I love that story, maybe
more than anything I’ve ever written, but… it’s supernatural. It’s got a
teenage GIRL protagonist. I’m so overwhelmed it got noticed.
Lescroart is right. I need to be writing. Nothing matters but writing. And affection.
May 5
OH
MY GOD. Thrillerfest is the same weekend as ALA. HOW DO THESE THINGS
HAPPEN? How can I not go to ALA? How can I not go to Thrillerfest? I’m
going to be just out with The Unseen in hardcover, I have to go to ALA.
But I’m nominated for a Thriller award, how can I not go to Thrillerfest? How can I be in New York and Chicago at the same time?
May 6
Woke
up thinking about social networking. OH MY GOD. I haven’t posted on
Facebook in weeks. I haven’t Twittered in longer. And I can’t remember
the last time I even signed on to MySpace. I need to update my sites. If
I can remember them. Amazon blog, Red Room blog, MySpace blog, Haunt
blog, Backspace, MWA something or other - Margery said we all had pages
somewhere and that I haven’t done anything on mine; Pretty Scary,
Authors Round the South, Indie Bound something or other, Library Thing?
Am
I on that? Or was I supposed to do it and forgot? And what about that
Facebook page thing? Did anyone ever figure out how to find my page as
opposed to whatever the regular Facebook thing is? Is that page thing
just going to open up a whole new spate of old boyfriends?
May 7
Woke up thinking about….
I can’t… think…
May 8
OH
MY GOD. Romantic Times is in two days. Did I book a flight? What state
is it in? Do I have bookmarks? Oh my God, I never ordered bookmarks for The Unseen . I have to e mail Kelley at Iconix and order more NOW TODAY
so they’ll come in time. Will they get here or do I have them delivered
to – whatever state RT is in? Kelley will handle it. IF YOU REMEMBER TO
TELL HER.
Where are my business cards? OH MY GOD. I have to learn
all the songs for the Vampire show. Shut up. Slow down. What you need
to do at RT is WRITE. Go rehearse the Vampire show and then go back to
the room and write, write, write. Five pages a day, minimum.
(Pages
done at RT: 7 total, done on the plane en route. Hours spent rehearsing
Vampire Show: 20. Hours on the dance floor: 3 per night. Hours in hot
tub after dance=2. Parties… a lot.).
May 9
Woke
up thinking about website. Hmm, worrisome. Most Awesome Webmistress is
not returning e mail on website update. Starting to panic. Better call.
OH
MY GOD. Most Awesome Webmistress has been sending e mails on website
update that have disappeared into the ether. Website needs complete
overhaul.
OH MY GOD. Must send in all updates by tomorrow and decide on design.
OH MY GOD.
May 10
Have
to get announcements of The Unseen in to all the organizations I belong
to for their newsletters. What organizations do I belong to again? Who
do I send this stuff to?
Have to send updated list of all reviewers I know to new publicist so she can send reading copies.
Have to send updated list of all media contacts I have to new publicist to she can send reading copies.
Have to send updated bookseller/librarian list to new publicist.
Have to do author questionnaire for Little, Brown for UK releases.
Have to do new author questionnaire for St. Martin’s.
Have to do AT LEAST FIVE PAGES on Ghost Ship today. I have to. I have to.
(End of day: Pages written: 0)
May 11
Woke
up thinking about bookstore mailings. Elaine Viets does bookstore
mailings. Elaine swears by bookstore mailings, and everyone loves her.
Does that mean I should do bookstore mailings? What is a bookstore
mailing?
Books? Still don’t have them. Bookmarks? Bookmarks are
great if you march them into the store and set them on the counter
yourself, but if I were a CRM and got bookmarks in the mail I would just
toss them in the trash. I don’t even open my own mail, how can I expect
anyone else to?
May 12
Woke
up thinking about book club mailings. Jenna Black swears by book club
mailings. Do I need to do a book club mailing? What is a book club
mailing?
May 13
There’s a
book club coordinator at St. Martin’s. Who knew? I give her my targeted
list of rabid book clubs and she will send books with my letter that I
send to her. I love St. Martin’s.
Lesson learned: Ask, Ask, Ask.
May 14
Going
through old promotional files and discovered Sisters in Crime has a
bookclub database with specific contact info for mystery book clubs
nationwide. Most want e mail contact first. I can do that. I can do that
in a night and pretend to be watching whatever movie Michael wants to
watch.
I love Sisters in Crime.
May 15
OH
MY GOD. I haven’t worked out in two weeks. Have you somehow for gotten
that you have the personality of a rabid armadillo when you don’t work
out for TWO DAYS?
Has it somehow slipped your mind that a BOOK
TOUR means you will be dealing with THE PUBLIC for all your waking
hours? Has it not occurred to you that if you don’t get an injection of
endorphins, not to mention muscle tone, then too soon to contemplate you
will not be fit for viewing?
May 16, 2009
OH
MY GOD. I haven’t updated my mailing list in six months. And I need to
do a newsletter. How does Vertical Response work again? What’s my
password? Why can’t I log in? Oh, right, I have to use Firefox to get
into that one. Um, I think. But do I have any news?
Did I for
sure take that guy off the list who wrote me that horrible letter about
how he didn’t know me and how did I get his e mail and why am I spamming
him? Does he know how many nights of sleep I lost lying awake wondering
the same thing?
May 17
OH
MY GOD. I have to be at BEA next week. What state is BEA in this year? I
need a pass. I need books. Did I book a flight?…. Frantic e mailing
ensues .... HAH! St. Martin’s has sent books and is sending me a pass.
I will do my Quail Ridge launch then drive up to NY with Natasha and stop at bookstores along the way to sign stock.
A
Garmin would be good, though. Konrath swears by his Garmin. Note to
self: need to get a Garmin. More to the point, need to figure out how to
use it before I hit the road. Can I realistically do that? I mean,
really?
May 18
OH MY GOD.
Right after BEA I’m due in L.A. for the HWA Stoker weekend and So Cal
MWA conference and Dark Delicacies signing and Mysterious Galaxy
signing. Did I book a flight? OH MY GOD - must do bookstore drop-ins.
Must do TONS of bookstore drop-ins. I can do 200 easily in two weeks
before I have to be back for my Southern tour stops. Even without a
Garmin. No Garmin required here at all. Konrath may be Konrath, but I
know California freeways.
HAH!
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I
wish I could say that’s as bad as it gets but it’s not even close.
Multiply the chaos above by twelve thousand and you have a rough idea of
my mental state at the moment. There is no order to anything.
The
funny thing is, I just did an interview in which the eminently sane
interviewer posed the question: “You’re a great business networker.
What’s your strategy?”Which I guess is encouraging because no matter
what is happening inside me I have the APPEARANCE of control and
organization. So that must count for something.
But you know
what? I was so fine while I was just writing. I really did get – almost -
two books, a proposal, and a rough draft of another (non-fiction) book
done in five months. This last month I’ve managed to do some editing,
but that’s about it. And I am miserable about it. I could so easily have
had my new book done by now.
So
I really, really want to know. Are we really doing ourselves any favors
doing this kind of insane promotion? Or is John Lescroart right, and we
should just always be writing the next book, period?
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
July 2012
And my question today, July 2012, is exactly the same:
Even though we're doing it online, now, Facebook, Twitter, blog tours - is that really helping us? Really? Are we really doing ourselves any favors
doing this kind of insane promotion? Or is John Lescroart STILL right, and we
should just always be writing the next book, period?
What do you think?
- Alex
Huntress Moon , on sale now: $3.99
Amazon
Amazon UK
Amazon DE
Amazon FR
Amazon ES
Amazon IT
A driven FBI agent is on the hunt for that most rare of all killers:
a female serial.
Related marketing posts:
Letting it Ride (Kindle Select promotion)
Bestseller lists and Tag lists
Liking, Sharing and Tagging
My e publishing decision
To Nook or Not to Nook?
