Bookstore moments yield wisdom for authors

A couple days ago I finished up an interview and dropped by a bookstore on my way home. I’ve been visiting bookstores in a purely clinical way lately. Rather than wandering around mindlessly and coming out with a bag of books, I’ve been studying the way books are arranged in stores and especially the way they’re categorized. Either way, I still come out with a bag of books. When I visit stores I talk to people. I’m in the process of formatting my nonfiction manuscript, and this time, I’m doing my homework ahead of time. This will also help me to put together a marketing plan for my publisher.

I asked one bookseller how books with a geographic theme sell—I can’t help but notice all those Florida-related titles in every bookstore I visit. “They sell great,” came the response. I’ve noticed those titles are re-stocked on a regular basis.

I told another bookseller it’s hard for me to understand how some books are such blockbusters. “They’re sort of like a movie of the week, the novels at least,” I told him. His answer was uncomplicated. “A lot of them buy their way onto the shelves.”

I confess for me, the hardest part of the book business is committing to doing the legwork to help promote the book—that’s especially important with a small or regional publisher. I’ve come to learn big publishers also expect effort from an author, but many of them actually prohibit some authors from doing booksignings. That’d be fine by me. Booksignings are a tedious, draining way to sell your book even if you meet really nice people in the process.

Yesterday, I picked up a copy of a new novel, Nelson DeMille’s Wildfire (it's proving to be a good read). As I headed to checkout, I dropped by the regional authors section to see if my own nonfiction book was there. Four copies were on the shelf. I stood there for a few minutes, remembering that when I was young, I dreamed one day I’d have a book with my name on it. Standing there, I took in the measure of that. It was a good moment to savor. I didn’t let myself remember the hard work doing the author jig. I figure there’ll be plenty of time for that when the next one is about to come out.

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Can a generalist survive today’s writing market?

Publishing has increasingly become a forum for experts. If you are a weight-loss guru, a financial expert or a spiritual sage and, more importantly, if you have succeeded in making money off your area of expertise, you automatically have an edge in pitching an article or even a book. And this phenomenon isn’t confined to nonfiction—look at Patricia Cornwall who, after working as technical writer and analyst in a medical examiner’s office, parlayed that experience into best-selling crime novels. But there are writers like me who for whatever reason decline to focus on a specialty area.

Part of the reason may lie in necessity. When I first began to freelance, it was necessary to take just about any project that came my way. As my options expanded, I decided I was basically interested in just about everything. Along the way, poetry became a sort of specialty—the study of it, the history of it and the writing of it. But most outlets for poetry are either small lit magazines that don’t pay or magazines like Poets & Writers who either have a steady stable of writers or rely on MFA types for content.

I’ve often thought expertise can be sort of dangerous, at least for the reader. If a writer relies on a single expert for content, you will see only one perspective on a subject. This has become commonplace in media—toss in a quote by a high-profile authority and prove a point. But experts often disagree among themselves, and I think we’d be better off if varying, even conflicting, perspectives are included, especially in informational pieces.

I’ve survived as a generalist, and I don’t foresee changing my tactics anytime soon. I’m having an amazing, diversified journey through the lives of others, shaping their stories into content for readers.

And frankly, there aren’t a whole lot of experts I trust these days anyway.

Networks that pay off for freelance writers

I get email frequently from different people but with the same question. How do I get started in freelancing? I always view these with frustration, because there’s no easy answer and of course because there’s so much information about this on the Web free of charge. But one of the first things I point an aspiring freelancer to is a network. You can do one physically or on the Web. You can do one as part of an organization or a commercial group. You can even start one yourself.

Most states have writing organizations. Some effective organizations—and this is my opinion so do your own research first—are the North Carolina Writers Network, the South Carolina Writers Workshop and the Florida Writers Association. If you’d like a group with a regional slant, take a look at the Southeastern Writers Association. I’ve spoken at conferences for each of these, except for the NC organization. They run top tier programs and the people in charge are very helpful. Do a search for an organization in your own state and see what the group has to offer versus what it will cost you to join.

Web-based networks are also very effective. Most of these communicate by way of message boards and/or email news groups. Online News Association is on the cutting edge of technology that changes this profession on an almost daily basis. ONA has a fantastic conference; I plan to attend this year. Freelance Success (commonly known as FLX) is not non-profit, but the fee is well worth it. I speak from experience and I know many writers who say FLX brought their career to the next level. It certainly helped me. Very nice members; all very helpful.

Finally, there are organizations like the American Society of Journalists and Authors and The Authors Guild. Both of these are pricier because their base comprises professional writers. Once you have national publication credits, you can apply. ASJA does allow non-members to attend the annual conference.

Some writers opt to start a network. This is easily done by way of Yahoo or Google groups. You simply set up a group, solicit members and take it from there.

The writer in the lonely ivory tower is mostly a myth. I won’t say he or she doesn’t exist. I will say most of us need a network, myself included.

Great marketing Web sites for writers

The Web is a great resource for writers because so many professionals make information available free. I’ve come across some sites that are useful to me, and hopefully, they’ll be useful to you as well. Most writers focus on process and that’s the way it should be. But if you want to sell your work, or if you want to market your book, information from insiders comes in handy. It's true that I spend time speaking at events like the presentation I did for a civic group here in Florida. But sometimes you can devote an hour or two on the Web and accomplish just as much.

One site that is also a freelance client of mine is Beneath the Brand. This site focuses on the advertising industry and marketing in general. I learn as much as I share there. If you want to know more about branding, marketing and publicity in general, from an industry and tech perspective, this is a great resource.

Marketing Tips for Writers and Book Authors is a fairly deep site—also included are writing and business tips. This is part of the Writers-Editors site, where for a fee, you may join as a member and get listed in a freelance directory. You will also receive access to a continually updated job/markets board, and receive a regular newsletter that is definitely useful. Before I became a member of ASJA, I also obtained a press pass through this group.

Danuta Kean is an expert on publishing in the United Kingdom, and much of what she writes on her site is applicable to publishing in the U.S. All sorts of tidbits and insight, with many links.

If you thought Midwest Book Review was just a place for reviews, you’d be wrong. This site has a whole page of links to resource sites for writers.

Publishing Central is a busily designed commercial site, but there are lots of links and articles, grouped by category.

Finally, don’t forget about Zeitgeist, pages at Google where you can find top search terms for the week and hot trends. Lots to digest in these pages. (photo by Jen Day)

A reminder: read my column Web Savvy at The Writer. It’s premium content, but twice a month I bring writers news and information about Web related developments, practices and opportunities.

Does a writer deserve to be paid?

There's an interesting post at the blog TechCrunch, about how easy it is to use portable media devices for "stealing books." The writer notes the technology known as BitTorrents conveniently enables this act. What's even more interesting is the discussion following the post. One fellow, Chris, who describes himself as a writer, offers some interesting views about compensating writers. He posits that publishers rip us off on contracts, but a reader who illegally acquires a book by the use of technology is doing no harm. Chris believes we should value all readers (desperately seeking readers?) whether they pay for our product or not.

I posted a question on the discussion, asking Chris whether he's paid for what he writes or whether he's been doing the deed for free. I'll let you know if there's a response.

While ivory towers are useful, most of us who try to earn a living by the pen do not have the luxury of an ivory tower. Some of us write full-time, others teach and write on the side, and still others work a non-related day job to be able to write during leisure time.

I obviously love my work--otherwise I wouldn't do it. But I also expect to be paid for content I supply to a publication or Web site. I like royalties from my books. Do you think those who own publications, presses, or Web sites are doing it for free? Should the U.S. follow the suit of countries where government controls the written word, reimbursing journalists and others who write?

I have a hard time wrapping my brain around working for nothing. When grocers fill my bag with free food items and gas stations pump fuel at no charge, when utilities supply me with free water and when cats stop chasing songbirds, I suppose we can all work for free. Until then, you work you should be paid.

Ed. note: In the article at Tech Crunch, since BitTorrents is mentioned, readers should be aware the technology does not cloak users' identities. Numeric Internet addresses are viewable, according to Bram Cohen, BitTorrents developer. Cohen was interviewed by The New York Times. He told the paper he didn't envision people using his technology for copyright infringement. Read our Covering Florida story of an Orlando man facing 10 years in prison and a $500,000 fine for participating in a the Elite Torrents network, involving file sharing of music, games, movies and software.

NYT news desk reportedly suggests omitting dates from stories—big bad move

Charles Kaiser at Radar Online says the New York Times news desk has (reportedly) proposed omitting dates stories were filed.

Kaiser says there’s a suggestion “circulating." Kaiser quotes a NYT memo stating, "We'll still call them datelines, but they will now give only the name of the place, with no date."

Apparently, staffers want stories to retain that fresh feel. Maybe they could come up with an expiration date, like the ‘use by’ date on my milk.

It really feels silly to even talk about why this is a bad idea. Accountability. Duh, once. Wire services may abandon you. Duh, going twice.

Leave your dateline intact, NYT. You should never leave the presses (or the screen) without it. Duh for the final time.

~~~Related link: Visit Kaiser’s blog at Radar Online.

Women's magazines buck trends, sizzle

A writeup in Time magazine (Nov. 12) suggests women’s magazines are bucking industry trends by thriving. Ad revenues in one division of the Hearst Corp.—the division that publishes O and Cosmopolitan along with 17 other titles—increased to $2.5 billion from $841 million over a ten year period. Freelancers can take heart because this field, dominated by glossies, tends to pay more than creative, literary or news oriented publications.

Readers basically are bombarded with information in these content-laden (and ad-heavy) periodicals. I know because I have two daughters. I contribute to the well-being of these magazines by having more subscriptions than we can possibly read. I am at least two weeks behind on both Time Magazine and months behind on National Geographic. But our femme mags are dogeared within days of trotting into the home. We often hit high points with the information onslaught. Recently my husband received a cucumber facial, courtesy of our younger daughter. I am holding onto the photo of my man with his face covered in perfectly symmetrical cucumber slices. This photo is a powerful weapon. He won’t admit it, but his face really did look more youthful when the veggies came off.

Read women’s magazines and you will know what to cook for every meal, even if all your guests are from Morocco. You will be inspired to go on any number of special diets guaranteed to remove tummy flab. You will not be inspired to remain on those diets. You will learn things you never knew about sex, even if you have a long time mate and have reasonable levels of creativity. You will also read mountains of spiritually moving stories penned by women who have overcome every conceivable obstacle, including having 14 kids stuck in a 1500 sq. ft. Fargo home when the snow is higher than the barn and you can stand in front of the mirror and watch your eyes take on the sheen Jack Nicholson displayed so well in The Shining.

A managing director at a New York brokerage firm told Time everybody thinks the Internet is…where things are happening, but women’s magazines aren’t getting the attention they deserve. Unless that is, you’re the mother of daughters and all of you want to know what’s hot in colors for the upcoming season. Lots of attention from these quarters, and from 74 million readers of Hearst Corp.’s glossy content as well.