Any questions?
I'd like to start posting in here more regularly and had a thought.
Any questions for me, folks? Please feel free to ask away.
Any questions for me, folks? Please feel free to ask away.
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newest »
newest »
::chuckles:: Yes to both. There's always a demand for new science fiction and fantasy authors. Old ones stop writing, for one thing, and for another, our readership is avid and interested in fresh ideas.
But the unagented aspect? That's still real in SF/F circles because we're a small community. The editors who buy our work are fans of SF/F themselves. Many if not most go to cons. There's almost no barrier between us and them, in that sense. Since the beginning, there's been a pay-it-forward, encouraging attitude within these genres. I'm sure there's something like that in others, but I don't know them personally. I can vouch for ours. They'll gladly accept unagented submissions because that's how it's done in SF/F. Those that don't? Odds are if you meet the editor at a con and ask if you can submit, (and aren't obnoxious), they'll say yes. The "agent" barrier is raised most often just to control the flow when it's overwhelming -- not to stop you making contact.
That help?
I almost always read series in publication order, but on your website you recommend starting the Clan Chronicles with the 'prequel' series rather than publication order. Is there a reason for that? I read Thousand Word for Stranger when it came out years ago, and was looking to see which book was next in the series when I saw your comment. Trying to decide which way to go from here forward or backwards.
Sarah wrote: "I almost always read series in publication order, but on your website you recommend starting the Clan Chronicles with the 'prequel' series rather than publication order. Is there a reason for that?..."Hi Sarah. Good question ;-)
To anyone who has read THOUSAND, I would recommend reading the rest of the Trade Pact books, as you are planning, so next for you would be TIES OF POWER, then TO TRADE THE STARS. The reason is that those three are one story, Sira's, and set in the same time period. Going to the prequel trilogy after this will be interesting and you should catch set up bits that hopefully make you go Ahah!!! or oh oh ...
To those who are starting from scratch in the Clan Chronicles, I suggest starting before Sira's story, with REAP THE WILD WIND and the next two of that set, then going in order with THOUSAND etc, just because they will take you through to Sira with some foreshadowing.
That help, Sarah?
Yes, that helps. Thanks. I went digging through my TBR mountain yesterday and located the rest of the series, so I'm set to go.
Sarah wrote: "Yes, that helps. Thanks. I went digging through my TBR mountain yesterday and located the rest of the series, so I'm set to go."Yay!! ::happyauthor::
On a personal level, it's unlikely to change anything for me, Nathaniel. I started off as an editor and publisher. There's an astonishing and wearing amount of expertise and effort involved in both production and marketing of any book (including ebooks, btw). I'm not only deliriously happy to leave those aspects to those who focus on that, I wouldn't be writing for a living otherwise. It's not the money. (I made more as an editor/publisher, btw.) I want to write stories, not do sales. If I hadn't found a publisher, I'd write for myself and make my living in another way.
Self-publishing in general? It's a fabulous way to keep and share important personal stories. Family and community histories come to mind. Things that would never otherwise endure a generation.
For myself as a reader? I read two sorts of books. Ones published by a traditional publisher and ones that hope to be, ie. manuscripts by authors going that route who have asked me to give them a critique. My reasons are quite selfish. I don't have time to read all the published work I'd love to read. I enjoy helping other authors on their path -- since others helped me. And, to be brutally honest, the few self-published works I've started haven't lived up in production quality or editing to what I find a minimum standard, which makes me sad for both the stories and the authors.
Ebooks:
I'm seeing ebooks as a fantastic addition to print. Many of my readers tell me they buy both versions, one for the first read and shelf, the other for the convenience of rereading and travel. Wow. The ability to get a book around the world without shipping costs is also huge. It's great to see back lists being available, not just for out of print but for hard to find titles in a series.
I also receive a higher royalty % from ebooks, which is nice because people are unlikely to buy a replacement print copy ten years from now ;-). Now that libraries are getting involved, it'll be interesting to see how that works.
I also have enjoyed putting e-versions of short stories on my site www.czerneda.com as gifts for readers. I don't see selling a collection as viable -- the way bookselling works, if something comes out in my name that didn't sell well, orders for a new title would drop. Interesting, that.
Long answer, sorry. Got on the topic. Thanks for your question!