Krill Press has recently published an edition of Tim Wohlforth‘s novel No Time to Mourn.
Here’s a classic interview with Tim from 2007 (courtesy of Ashland Mystery and fearturing a reading by Garth Pittman).
grieflection, n. thoughts on the life of a passing friend or loved one, and on your life too (suggested by Jon Lange). 2 Jun
bucolage, n. construction or creation of something new from whatever is available in the countryside; also, bucoleur. 3 Jun
kedawdle, v to take too long leaving an event or ending a conversation, to the point of frustrating others. 4 Jun
confête, n. a celebratory day, especially one involving a tickertape parade. 5 Jun
sasstisfaction, n. the pleasure that arises from giving lively, cheeky backtalk. 6 Jun
brimdowed, adj. to have part of one’s face shaded by the brim or bill of a hat or cap. 7 Jun
dediduum, n. one’s mental or writtten to do list, encompassing both personal and professional tasks (plural: dedidua). 8 Jun
kabood, v. to group or pack people or things into some space (backformation of kaboodle, a variant of caboodle). 9 Jun
cogregate, v. to act as cogs in a machine, i.e., as teeth on a wheel, adding force by interacting with other cogs. 10 Jun
done sequitur, n. when the ending of a piece of writing has little to do with the rest of the essay. 11 Jun
sclare, n. look on a presenter’s face that could be either controlled panic or quiet determination. 12 Jun
blut, v. to fall asleep in a library, especially during exam week. 13 Jun
indoctorination, n. the awarding of a doctoral degree (with thanks to Jeannie Green). 14 Jun
laccalaureate, adj. to be just a few credits short for graduation from college. 15 Jun
gladuation, n. happiness and satisfaction felt by high school or college graduates, their families and their teachers. 16 Jun
gruve, n. the grading curve in a large class of students. 17 Jun
alsomore, adv. a transitional word used in a sentence after one has already used “also.” The equivalent of Post PS. 18 Jun
inglorified, adj. to be made ignominious, as opposed to mere deglorification. 19 Jun
tattooboo, n. an offensive or inappropiate tattoo that one regrets having gotten (from tattoo + taboo + boo boo). 20 Jun
extimidate, v. to make yourself larger and louder in order to show a cougar that you’re not afraid. 21 Jun
gagand, v. talk to oneself while preening and titivating in front of a mirror (titivating is a real word!). 22 Jun
hearread, v. to listen to an audiobook. Pronounced as HEAR-READ or past tense HEAR-RED (suggested by Mary Williams). 23 Jun
dilemmification, n. to create an either-or problem where one does not exist (to invoke the false dichotomy fallacy). 24 Jun
zeitweaver n. one whose narrative creates a backstory through a series of flashbacks (also, the backform zeitweave). 25 Jun
quipness, n. when a situation lends itself to a brief witty remark or spontaneous yet pointed observation. 26 Jun
enthudiasm, n. initial excitement about or interest in something followed by rapid disillusionment. 27 Jun
textpectant, adj. anxiously awaiting a text message. 28 Jun
broccolize, v. to make a false analogy, especially one using green vegetables. 29 Jun
smidgle, v. to reduce the size of a product while leaving the price the same. 30 Jun
Wow. I’ve made it to the half-way point. I can see Dec. 31 up ahead. Thanks to Jon Lange, Jeannie Greene and Mary Williams for their suggestions.
Another new deal for authors is Amazon Select and the opportunity for authors with a decent backlist (and the digital rights to their work) to manage their own sales. An engaging presence and a commitment of marketing and systematic discounts can enable authors to build new readership—$0.99 ebooks are here to stay and at $2.99 your royalties go way up. So get people interested for $0.99 (or free) and make then repeat readers at $2.99 a download.
Ebooks still (so far) have interesting demographics (older and more well-off) and are not yet a textbook delivery system. And the impact of ebook digital rights management on libraries is still being sorted out, since ebooks don’t naturally wear out. One topic that didn’t come up, surprisingly, was environmental impact? Which is greener—ebooks, with their batteries and electronics, or book books, which their paper, ink and glue?
We looked too at distribution—how books get to people—from books by mail to book shops, to distributors and wholesalers like Publishers Group West and Consortium. We talked about issues of return and the role of publishers in product placement in bookstores and even in “staff picks” (is nothing sacred). And for the distribution of used and rare books, Amazon and ABE shifted book sales back to the mail for a time. (Now ebooks will change that dynamic again.) And what about Google, Apple, and Amazon are they now publishers or distributors?
There were some nice interviews this term as well, with Bill Gholson, Diana Malta, Warren Hedges, Steve Sendar, Mandy Valencia, Kelsey Clark, Abbi Nguyen, and Molly Best Tinsley.
Academic and textbook publishing turn out to be special cases, academe with its blind review, long process and high cost (especially in the sciences) and textbooks, with their captive audiences, frequent revisions and faculty inertia. Epublishing and self-publishing seem to have not made a big impact yet on textbooks. But keep an eye on the textbook cost and information laws like Oregon’s HB 4058. And a topic we didn’t discuss enough is the role of open access laws on academic publishing.
We looked at job and careers skills too, from the classic proofing symbols to jobs like ghostwriter, copyeditor, creative consultant, fact checker, proofreader, and indexer. Our guests helped to bring out the balance between acquisitions editing, developmental editing and copyediting—roles that increasingly fall together fpr small publishers and are sometimes opportunities for freelancers. We looked at two very different audiobook operations and the operation of a bookstore, which includes selection, promotion and events. We talked about used, rare and collectible books—both the kind that are routinely resold for half the cover price and the rare books that might be in a library special collections or sold by a book dealer. How do you assess a books condition? What determines a book’s price, or value?
And in our middle of the term reports, we investigated freelance writing and some of its issues and tools: pitch letters/query letters, book proposals, how much to charge, what records to keep, time Management, contracts and rights (don’t sell you digital right in perpetuity!), and other skills you want to develop (photography, video). For some of you, finding work may mean finding an agent or a publisher, who will want to know more about your platform than your plot.
We looked at copyright and what (and who) it protects and at some of what you want in a book or article contract. Be careful but flexible and don’t get starry-eyed about big advances. It’s not free money.
Finally—and throughout—we’ve tried to focus on audience. From grandparents with kindles and nooks to Ashland’s 200 plus book groups. It’s audience, audience, audience.
We had a lot of discussion, in fits and starts, about the roles of authors and publishers. Consolidation in the 1980s brought things to a point where, as Molly Tinsley stressed, the large publishers were no longer invested in or investing in authors–they were more often generating bestsellers and maximizing profits. Naturally we talked at lot about the economics of books—what it costs to produce a book book versus an ebook (and what it costs to produce an audiobook) And there’s the impact of the Thor decision, changing the worth of unsold inventory.
With digital books it’s all different and much cheaper to produce (especially is you skimp on editing, proofing or design [DON’T—trust me on this]). But while, it turns out that self-publishing is not that hard or that expensive, it’s not just a matter of writing something brilliant and expecting the world to discover it. Self-publishing is easy; self-editing and self marketing is where the hard work is.
Good publishing still requires a commitment to editing and killing one’s darlings, but even more it requires authors being businesslike and active partners in the publishing process—or, if they self-publish to be serious entrepreneurs. The co-publishing model is one good examples, where author and publisher collaborate to invest in and produce a book connected to an author’s other platform (i.e., as a consultant or public speaker).
We talked about marketing and the importance of tailoring marketing to the book and to the strengths and platform of the author (hence the long author questionnaires). And everyone stresses the importance (necessity) of social media, blogging, review sites like Goodreads, book trailers and virtual book tours. The traditional publisher-driven marketing—ads in the New York Times, etc.—was really only something available to bestsellers in any case. (And, what is impact of ebooks on the free advertising that books used to get when someone saw you reading them on the bus; with ebooks, no one knows what you are reading (except Amazon, Apple or whoever sold it to you…)).
The importance of social media to literary marketing raises another question: what makes an author interesting to Facebook friends and Twitter followers? It’s more than just endlessly promoting books, appearances and project. What do people want from authors?
[to be continued…]
Follow