The Sexy, Sexy Indy Press–Part II

Troy Cook, here, filling in for Simon one last time. He should be back next week.

Last week I mentioned how the sexy, sexy Indy Press could work for a lot of authors. That they can be a dynamic place to launch new authors with unique voices. Because I spoke out in favor of it, I feel it’s necessary to talk about both the good and the bad side of small presses. I don’t want to mislead you—it’s not an easy road. But I still think it’s worthwhile.

I was fortunate enough to have multiple offers for publication from small presses. I got offers from a POD (print on demand) press, from one that paid very small royalties, and from one that did a regular offset print run (which means that they print thousands of copies right from the start). None of them paid a large advance so chuck that notion right out the window.

All of them seemed like they could work, but with different pitfalls for each one. A real danger of dealing with small presses is that they often have very little capital to work with, which often leads to them going out of business. In fact, one of the presses that offered me publication went under around the time my book would have been released by them. Wow, would that have sucked!

The POD press had been in business for a few years and published lots of books. But the reason I didn’t go POD is because it’s very difficult to get your books into stores. It’s hard enough for any small press, but it’s extra hard for POD. This is because they print them one at a time so they usually have to charge more for each book and they’re often not returnable, which is a standard in the industry. I’m not saying it’s impossible to launch a career with POD, but you need to know that it’s going to be a much tougher slog. BTW, the POD is the one that went out of business, in case you were wondering.

The next press paid very small royalties, but would use regular offset print runs. That meant they had a better chance of getting it into stores. Because of both my film and business background, I had already decided to spend a chunk of change on promotion. You know the axiom: You’ve got to spend money to make money. Because the royalty at this press was so small, it would be nearly impossible to make money and I would be more likely to lose a lot of money because of my promotional efforts. A little backward, by my way of thinking. Still, if that’s what it took to launch a career, I would consider it.

But the last press paid larger royalties and also used offset print runs. The scary part about them was that they were new, without a good track record to judge them. But the part about them that I liked was that they had a national distributor. When I was directing films, one of the key elements to success was having good distribution for your movie. I believe it is the same process here. If you go with a small press, try to choose one that has a good distributor with a national sales force. This means that your book will likely be carried in quite a few more stores than without the sales force. So any promotional efforts you do have a better chance of working, and of bringing an eventual profit.

And for me it paid off, my book sold out its first print run in a matter of months and brought even more attention than I had thought possible.

So there are definitely pitfalls to avoid, but I think it can still work out with a sexy, sexy Indy Press.

But this is just one man’s story. What do you think?

Troy Cook
Award-winning author of
47 Rules of Highly Effective Bank Robbers
A “Killer Pick” by the Independent Mystery Booksellers Assn.
“A literary jewel. Don’t miss it.” – Library Journal
www.troycook.net

ON THE BUBBLE WITH CARA BLACK

I wanted to introduce Cara in French – you know – something sophisticated – something to make me look worldly – but my Berlitz Dictionary of Foreign Terms only has one listing that came close; "Parler francais comme une vache enragee – which means – to speak French like an enraged cow – or – murder the French language.  So – I’ll just say you don’t have to murder anyone to read Cara’s wonderful series – she handles the murders very well on her own – and solves them with utmost soigne.

CARA BLACK   http://www.carablack.com

Caras_color_photo And here is Cara’s new book!  Ohh, La La!  This one looks like a dark and stormy night is ahead!

Caras_new_b_ook_2007 EE:  Whispers are rampant that some envious wags (once upon a time) claimed you began your series in Paris just so you could fly over there each year and call it ‘research’ – but now that your SEVEN books have become such hits – isn’t it terrific to have the last laugh?  Come on – fess up – it feels great, n’est-ce pas?

CB:  It’s a tough job, but someone has to do it.  Now at least I can write it off.  But I still pinch myself, wish I could say there was a big plan – but in my wildest dreams I never thought I’d write a book set in Paris, let alone more than one, or a series.  I never intended to.  Pablo Picasso said, "I am always doing things I can’t do.  That’s how I get to do them."  For me, since childhood, there was always this draw to Paris and this passion to find a voice and relate a story of my friend’s mother – a hidden Jewish girl during the German Occupation of Paris – that drove me.  I was reading tons of P.D. James (Baroness P.D. James), at the time…and thought, well, what about using a detective story as a structure, a framework to tell this story?  I needed a detective, one who tied her scarf the right way, but was an outsider because I can’t write as a French woman.  That idea, three and a half years of writing it and dumb luck converged.  My publisher took a big chance and bought it.  I’m truly blessed.

What an important and inspiring subject matter to explore – particularly today for so many younger readers.

EE:  With the great success you’ve had in Paris, any chance you might someday begin another series in a different locale?

CB:  I’d like to take Aimee out of my Paris to Marseilles or Lyon for the weekend.  There’s lots of crime there, but every time I mention it, my editor shakes her head.  So I guess a new series is in order.  Or a standalone.  People always ask me why I don’t write about San Francisco, where I live – but it feels too close.  I don’t feel removed enough to write about it…at least now.  During several years spent traveling – I’ve got experiences to draw on; living in Switzerland and working in a train station, riding a motorcycle across North Africa – Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco, later running out of money and sleeping in a Bangkok temple.  It’s all fodder.  And there’s an incredible part of London with canals – they call it the London Venice – and it’s so cool and…I really need to explore.

Need to explore?  What?  You haven’t seen enough yet?  Sheesh.

EE:  Speaking of Paree – what is your greatest extravagance when there?

CB:  I go bare bones on research trips, scrape up frequent flier miles and camp on my friends couch in Montmartre.  But taking my friends and contacts out to dinner has become part of the routine, especially the policewoman who invited me to the police firing range and the private detective who lets me hang out with her…inviting them out is the only way I can thank them.  And the French dining is an art form, a wonderful experience lasting hours, with the wine flowing, many courses and full of discussion.  I splurged once attending the Comedie Francaise, the national theatre – red velvet seats, murals – the works – to see Phedre, the Greek tragedy.  Despite the classical French which went right over my head, just sitting in those seats that Proust, Cocteau, you name it, had sat in was worth it.

Oh, to sit in the same room as Proust or Cocteau!  How I envy you that!

EE:  If you were not writing – what other artistic career might you have chosen?

CB:  Photography.  I’d master an old Leica, figure out all those F-stops and adjustments and develop my own film and do gelatin prints.  Lazy me, I use a digital like everyone and I wish there was more ‘traditional’ photography.

Honey, I’m all for the old stuff – I royally screw up my digital.  A simple point & shoot is my speed.  Do they even make those anymore? 🙂

EE:  Is it true you listen to old Yves Montand and Edith Piaf recordings when you write?  Or, is that another little tid-bit one of my not so dependable spies made up?  I tell you – I gotta watch those guys like a hawk.

CB:  They are remarkably informed.  Matter of fact, Piaf’s on right now singing ‘Je ne regrette rien’ – she sets the mood.  And the singer Georges Brassens who slips in zingers of social content and sexual innuendo in his songs and isn’t well known here.  He was sort of a folk hero, anti-establishment, and died in poverty – but is almost as well-beloved as Piaf in France.  I love those old died-in-the-wool socialists and anarchists who breathe character along with their Gitanes smoke and are never PC.

I once had a mad crush on Montand.  But Simone Signoret (his wife for those of you too young to know) wasn’t too happy with me.  But when he was spirited away by Marilyn – we became fast friends.  She was a formidable woman – hell of an actress too.

EE:  Mysteryville is abuzz with the rumor that your Aimee Leduc is being considered as a future "Marianne" = the symbolic figure of the French Republic (ala Catherine Deneuve whose face graced the medal between 1985-2000) – but you’ve declined the honor.  What?

CB:  That was Aimee’s decision.  Not mine.  I tried reasoning with her. But she just shrugged, expelled air with that Gallic pout and rolled her eyes.  "Not my style," her only comment.

You need to sit down and talk to that woman!  She turned down having Paris at her feet?  Nay – the whole of France?  Listen, Cara – I can fly down to The City anytime.  Just call me, okay? We’ll talk some sense into her.

EE:  Okay, time to get serious.  You’re going on tour – you can combine efforts with two other writers.  Uh, departed writers.  Who would they be?  And what about the new book?

CB:  The dream dead tour would be; Raymond Chandler ( a big drinker-we all know him), Jean-Patrick Manchette (a hard drinking, smoking French noir writer who died too early).  I’d just sit on the sidelines and watch.  For the new book – I’m doing a series of events with David Corbett, Tony Broadbent and Rhys Bowen.  We’re taking the California libraries hostage with panels on mysteries in foreign lands.  I’d love to do another reading with Diane Johnson, (Le Divorce).  She’s a wonderful writer, wit and ex-pat doyenne of Paris.

Like I said – I can fly down to The City anytime.  I mean – if you needed an extra hand, that is.  Oh, wait.  Carmel isn’t a foreign land, is it.  Scratch that.

EE:  What book do you wish you’d written – and why?

CB:  I just finished The Comedians by Graham Greene.  I could never write that book.  It’s his, but it blew me away.  There’s two books that inspire me.  The Lover by Marguerite Duras.  The words, the sensory detail, the emotion painted with economy, forbidden love, the poignancy of a young girl adrift in the turmoil of colonial Indochina…the book touches me every time I read it . And The Day of the Jackal by Fredrick Forsyth.  Not a false note – we’re every step of the way with the Jackal – and despite the fact that we all know de Gaulle escapes assassination, I’m hooked each time.

Great choices!  Graham Greene is one of my all-time hero’s.  I haven’t tried Duras – but I’m all for sensory detail. 🙂

EE:  With seven books under your belt – what do you consider your greatest challenge with the series?

CB:  Finding the part of Paris that gets under my skin and makes me go out at night to explore and walk the cobbles.  In the rain or sleet – but holding that something, a nuance that intrigues, indefinable and hard to pinpoint.  Sometimes it comes from an old black and white photo in a bin a the flea market, an 1940’s Paris phone book in the bookstall on the quai, the damp morning grass in the Luxembourg gardens, or meeting my friend’s neighbor who found an abandoned baby on her doorstep, overhearing a conversation in a cafe, that nugget the cafe owner drops about his time in the Resistance, or the gangster who he hid during a turf war in Pigalle.  It’s always different and I’m always searching for that speck of gold to grow into a story.  And to keep it fresh.

Hell, any one of those ‘nuggets’ would be terrific!

EE:  What trait do you most admire in people?

CB:  Loyalty.  It’s underrated.

Oh, tell me about that.

EE: What is your least favorite word?

CB:  Totally.

I thought you were going to say ‘Awesome’.  But I totally agree. 🙂

EE:  Time for the Walter Mitty Dream.  What’s yours?

CB:  Besides the farmhouse in Provence?  The dream starts ‘Fasten your seat belts please, we’re beginning our descent into Charles deGaulle airport, Ground Crew reports weather in Paris a sunny 75 degrees.’  By some force of magic – a motorcycle awaits me outside Terminal 1 and I zoom along the peripherique into the outskirts of Paris, then onto Boulevard Saint-Ouen, nodding to the local cheese seller who waves ‘I’ll save you that good Camembert that just came in.’  I pull up at Cafe Rotonde, to find my smiling friends Anne-Francis, her beautiful one year old daughter, Zouzou, Sarah (re-united with her long lost love-but that’s another story) and Cathy, my policewoman friend with an open bottle of champagne – Veuve Cliquot, of course -sitting at an outdoor table.  And then my son, magically arrived from high school, appears with our dog Kipper who also magically behaves and has – by osmosis – imbibed the well behaved manners of Parisian dogs followed by my husband who smiles..’I’m going to run a bookstore in Paris now…you’ve convinced me.’  Of course, we’re joined by Catherine Deneuve who just happens to be walking by and shares her makeup secrets and Charlotte Gainsbourg who begs, "I want to play Aimee in the new film, please.’  And the incredible director, Bertrand Tavernier appears with a script in hand.  ‘I’ve made a few changes, little ones.’  And then Georges Simenon, magically risen from the dead and writing again, sits down, pipe hanging from the side of his mouth and says – ‘Maigret needs a helper.’

Seriously, what is REALLY your Walter Mitty Dream?

EE:  I’m almost afraid to ask what you consider a perfect day now.

CB:  Awakened at five by the aroma of freshly brewed espresso next to my pillow.  The laptop connected and open to the page I was working on yesterday.  Without further thought rereading the last paragraph I worked on and my fingers going from there into killer chase scenes…my favorite thing to write…and this time Aimee takes off into places I’d never even thought of.  Five pages later – after figuring out a wonderful plot line that needs a little more simmer time in the unconscious, I throw on sweats, clean and warm from the dryer, take my dog for a walk, pick my son up from school and hear the teacher say ‘Yes, his homework was on time.  He’s even done extra credit.’  My husband returning home from his bookstore after a record breaking day of sales, we order South Indian take out, and eat in front of the tele watching the French news and then The Wire.

Actually, that sounds pretty perfect.

EE:  Oh, you’re gonna love this question – I stole it from Barbara Walters;  If you were a tree – which would it be?

CB:  A budding plane tree on the quai d’Anjou bordering the Seine outside Aimee’s apartment.

Why am I not surprised?

EE:  Which writer would you love to have all to yourself in a quiet corner of the bar at the next con?  And what would you talk about?

CB:  Olen Steinhauer.  Over a bottle of Polish vodka.  We’d talk about everything-everything Budapest and Eastern Europe and where the hell does he get those stories, those multi-layered characters that live on the page, that breadth of knowledge about Hungarian secret police and how does he write such gorgeous books?

He won’t tell.  He’s ignored my e-mails.  But if you can wrangle it out of him…well, maybe we can talk?

My thanks to Cara for playing On The Bubble with Evil E today!  I hope she’ll think kindly of me and come back again.  And don’t forget – MURDER ON THE ILLE SAINT-LOUIS is ready and waiting for you to pick it up.  And you don’t have to use, beg or borrow frequent flier credits to visit Paris – just tag along with Aimee and you’ll see the real deal. 

 

What’s your point?

Point of view.

The Narrative.

X touched on it back in December. It’s talked about a lot among writers, but for me, I still don’t freaking get it.

Okay, I get it mostly. But here’s where my head’s at today: we’ve got 1st person – everyone knows it, pretty tough to screw it up unless you’re writing a story that just shouldn’t be told in 1st person. But even then, you can’t really muck up the POV.

But this frocking 3rd person. We’ve got 3rd person omniscient, 3rd person limited, 3rd person objective, 3rd person subjective, 3rd person limited-omniscient, 3rd person limited-objective, and blah, bla-freaking blah.

WTF?

Does anyone really know the differences between these? Other than the obvious Wikipedia defs. I mean, how do we know when a book is 3rd person omniscient as opposed to poorly executed 3rd person objective? Or vise-versa?

Now, one of the problems I’ve had in going from screenwriting to prose is POV. At times I thought I was writing 3rd person omniscient, but it was pointed out to me that what I was really doing was a poor job of 3rd person limited. Or subjective. Or vise-versa.

Which leads me to…

Rules. We always hear about the rules of writing, and how it’s okay to break them ONLY if you understand them (which I believe), or you’re a very good (or successful) writer. But I gotta tell you, lately I’ve been reading some books where the rules of POV are being bent and broken, and it bugs the gerunds out of me. It takes me out of the story.

The latest book by a writer who I think is brilliant, one of the best out there, is a 3rd person story.
Now, I’m pretty sure the book is what would be called 3rd person subjective. And for me, I’m okay with the writer switching character POV’s within the 3rd person telling, so long as it’s done by chapter, or by paragraph. That’s pretty basic, right? Don’t most of us feel that way?

And this bestselling book does that. But it also jumps subjective POV within paragraphs. Not throughout the book, just in three or four spots. And when I hit these spots, it jumps out at me. It bugs me. But is it just me? The writer of this book knows a helluva lot more about writing than I do.

And then there’s my favorite book of all-time, LONESOME DOVE. This book is brilliant. Amazing. Stunning. Entertaining as all heck. It’s got about six thousand characters and though it’s 3rd person, we’re in each character’s head at different times. Sometimes sentence to sentence we’re switching POV’s. Freaking Larry McMurtry, writing the best freaking book I’ve ever read. Does anyone know more about sentence structure and language than old Lawrence? Is this 3rd omniscient? If so, where’s the narrator’s perspective?

And does any of it matter? Or does it, and we give free passes to big names? I recently got some feedback on my prose and one of the issues was that I jumped POV within my 3rd person narrative – at the wrong time. I did what McMurtry and this other great writer did.

Oh, before your eyes begin to roll, let me point out that I am in no way comparing myself to these folks. When my reader pointed out my issue, my reaction was, "Oh, God, they’re right. I screwed up." Because to me, it’s wrong. I wasn’t trying to do it, or being lazy – not intentionally – I just… screwed up.

In another book I recently read – one of those where the narrative shifts from 1st person to 3rd person via chapters – there is a 3rd person chapter happening. And in one scene the protagonist walks into the room, and suddenly we go into 1st person. But we didn’t start a new chapter. We were literally in 3rd person, inside a supporting character’s subjective POV, and in walked the character whose POV we’re in 1st person in other chapters… but suddenly we go inside the protag’s head – in 1st person.

Isn’t this wrong? It felt wrong. But again, this is a very skilled writer doing this. One with many books on the shelves, and many awards and much critical praise. So what do I know? Not much. At least not about this.

So, help me out. Throw me a bone. All of you who are smarter than me, please help me out… and that means, uh, one, two, three, the guy in his underwear sipping coffee, the chick on the phone, sixteen, seventeen, yeah… that means every one of you. Help me out.

Clarify all this POV shite for me. Explain the difference with all these 3rd persons – and I don’t mean the basic dictionary defs, I mean explain it. Help my pea brain understand it.

What’s right, what’s wrong, when can you switch, when can’t you? Why, if you’re looking at a manuscript – or even your own work – a sudden, out of place POV shift bothers you, but if you’re reading a NYTBS author’s latest smash hit, you look the other way? Or do you?

Or maybe you feel the same I do about all this – you just don’t get it – but have been afraid to admit it. I admit it. I’m an idiot.

So, help me.

Guyot

This week’s If I Picked Character’s Watches:

Phil Hawley’s fabulous Luke McKenna would wear an IWC Big Pilot Watch.

Iwc1_1

By the way, STIGMA goes on sale today. BUY THIS BOOK. I am offering a money-back guarantee… if you read this book and don’t like it, email me and I will GIVE YOU YOUR MONEY BACK. Yes, it’s true. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain. BUY THIS BOOK.

 

The Heroism Vacuum

by Pari Noskin Taichert

Anna20nicole20smith204Is anyone else sick of the Anna Nicole Smith saga?

Parishiltonsuntzu_1Does Paris Hilton really deserve any of our mental space?

What’s happened to heroes in our culture? Can they only be found in fiction?

Where are the real-life ordinary people who face astounding odds, and prevail, because of innate goodness, strength and a sense of justice?

Okay, maybe I’m feeling grumpy. I’m not unhappy to be older, not really. But every year, on this date, I search for life models, for people to look up to.

0021_1

Right now, I’m not finding much to admire.

Of course there’s always fiction. Heroes aplenty grace the pages in our genre and others. If I were feeling nobler, I might write a post about them. That’d be the self-sacrificing thing to do.

Nah, not today. I want to whine.

You see, this is a real yearning, heartfelt and painful. I want to know — beyond a Pollyanna, pop culture optimism –that real living, talking, breathing heroes walk among us.

I know that certain professions lend themselves to selflessness — community service, law enforcement, medicine, education. If I were in a different mood, I’d be singing the praises of the everyday champions in our lives, of their great hearts and generosity.

But I want something different today. I’m looking for the inspirational oddball; one I can relate to as a regular person. My soul screams for examples of ordinary Joes and Josephines who become epic, who rise above the normal to the extraordinary, without thinking of the potential for a book deal or television movie.

For some reason, in the past, heroes were easier to spot. Two come to mind without effort. Both glimmered during the darkest moments of the Holocaust.

First there were the "righteous gentiles"– non-Jewish people who risked their lives to prevent even more deaths.

Excerpt_sidebar_02_1Couples like Chinue and Yukiko Sugihara sacrificed so much during those same years.

I want to know that these most-admirable people are still being born, that they exist in this crazy world.

These are the real-life heroes I crave to learn about now.

At lunch, a few days ago, a friend said that today’s heroes are working behind the scenes, secretly, just as those from WWII did. She might be right.

Maybe I’m not looking in the right places for these true stars of humanity.

Or, it’s possible I should just stop watching the news for a couple of months . . . The quiet selflessness of heroism often doesn’t lend itself to speedy soundbites or sexy visuals.

Maybe this kind of courage isn’t required in the world at the moment.

I don’t know.

However, on this last Monday in February, I want to hear about heroes —
if there are any toBirthdaycakes1_3 celebrate nowadays.
I want to grow up to be like them.

Do you know any? Are you willing to share their stories here?

That’d be the best birthday present of all. 

And the Award Goes too…

Academy20awards2095 I have a love/hate relationship with a bald man whose shimmering naked body has been dipped in gold paint.  Wait… that didn’t come out right.

I have a love/hate relationship with the Academy Awards. 

My complaints aren’t original.  At its worst, Oscar night is a self-congratulatory love fest full of millionaires patting each other on the back.  The broadcast is too long, 99% of the acceptance speeches are mind numbingly boring, and some of my favorite movies never even get a nod (and the Oscar for best foreign film goes to…Shaun of the Dead!).  And yet, I watch it every year for one reason and one reason only…to see Salma Hayek fill out an evening gown.

No, I watch it for those little moments that are off the cue cards.  Like last year when Jon Stewart pointed out the absurdity of the awards after a hip hop group won for best song.  "Martin Scorsese: Zero, Three 6 Mafia: One."  Or in 2002 when Michael Moore got booed off stage after his political rants against Bush (I wonder if they’d boo him now.).  Or when Cuba Gooding Jr. brought some life to the show in ’96 after his win for Jerry Maguire (what ever happened to that guy?).  Put simply, the Oscars are at their best when real life creeps in.

Okay, enough of the nostalgia.  What does this have to do with the writing biz?  For me, the Oscars brought to mind the subject of AWARDS.

I’ve had a couple editors nominate me for things in the past, but I’ve never made any finalists lists.  I won’t lie, on some level it bothered me.  Getting overlooked made me feel that my work didn’t have the same merit as others.  Being an infant in this industry, maybe I didn’t have the writer’s leather-tough skin yet.

The question becomes, was I right to feel that way?  After all, in most cases these things are judged by our peers, aren’t they?

And here’s a few more queries to keep you busy.

How important are awards in the publishing world?  An Oscar can add a few zeroes to your next paycheck.  What can an Edgar do for you?

And…

On a personal level, are awards important to you?  If you had to pick, would you rather have recognition from your peers or would you rather have a large following, while other writers looked down on your work?

Just a few things to think about tonight while watching beautiful people stumble through lame jokes written for them on cue cards.  Let’s hope some of them fumble and accidentally say something interesting. 

 

What do you tell them?

by Alex

This has been a very busy and teaching week for me – first several workshops and panels at the Southern California Writers Conference in San Diego, which has been masterfully run by Michael Steven Gregory and Wes Albers for going on 22 years now, and then a library talk and signing and a high school appearance (a full-fledged assembly of 500+ students – yike!   I’ve never thought of myself as an assembly before…)

These events this week have been different than the convention panels and bookstore events I’ve grown used to.   It’s actually hugely different to talk to high school and college students – much more of a responsibility, somehow, because you just know that it can be one single sentence you say that sets a young writer off on this insane path that writing is.   Or – not.

And I find myself weirdly torn between saying that perfect inspiring sentence – and screaming “Don’t do it!!!” at the top of my lungs.  (Not that any real writer would ever listen to the “Don’t” part, I certainly didn’t – but still, I get up on stage and the impulse to tell them to save themselves now, before it’s too late… is very definitely  there.)

What’s overwhelming is looking out at these kids and thinking just how LONG I’ve been doing all this.   I started acting when I was – well, when you really think of when it STARTED – we were putting on plays in my parents’ garage when I was eight or nine, charging the neighbors a quarter admission.
Then years and years and years and YEARS of choir and dance and musicals and street theater and God only knows what all else… theater major at Berkeley, singing in a bar in Montana, video production in San Francisco, writing my very first professional treatment for Todd Rundgren (top THAT!)… dancing in campy burlesque film fests in LA, the whole screenwriting thing (most of which I’ve deliberately blanked out)… endless, endless, endless.
So how do you boil all that down into: “If you want to be a writer, this is what you do?”

But that’s what they’re waiting for you to say.

But the bottom line, I guess, is that writing is two things.    
First of all, writing is WRITING.   You have to write.   You have to sit down every day and write at least a page.   Or like Pari says, an inch.  Or write for an hour.   One or all of the above, but EVERY DAY.  If you start writing, and keep writing, and a writer is what you ARE, you will find the next step – book, class, mentor, theater program, film school, critique group, whatever – to make you a better writer.   And the next.   And the next.   And you will look up ten or twenty years later and you will be a writer and not really know how you got there, except that you wrote.   Every day.   And that’s what makes a writer.

And second, you have to LIVE.  Which is inevitable.   And good news for the people who have not been writing for the last twenty years but have hopes of starting now.    They may not have been writing for the last twenty years, but they have been living.    And if they can figure out how to put all that life into words, and write every day, they will be writers, too – no matter when they start.   Whatever your life is and has been, it’s infinitely worth writing about.   

I am finding myself looking for the most general and universal advice I can give.    We – writers – all know how hard this life is, and how few people end up doing it with any physical measure of success, but part of our job and responsibility is NOT to kill the dream.
And you know, it’s really exciting to have that one girl that you notice instantly in the crowd, waiting in line to talk to you afterward with that certain set to her chin and her pen out and poised over her notebook and so focused she’s practically vibrating as she says to you all in one sentence – “I’m writing stories like the ones you write and my mother thinks I’m weird and doesn’t understand so I can’t talk about it can you tell me what publishers I should be sending my work to?”   
And for a moment you’re breathless and speechless because you just KNOW.  That’s a writer, just as much as you ever were or will be, and nothing you can do could ever stop that inexorable and somewhat frightening force, but you have a chance to make it maybe a little easier…

Well…  THAT’S what this is all about.   

So, dears…. I’d really like to know.   What do YOU find yourselves saying, when you’re up there on stage with people’s dreams in your hands?

(For more on the Southern California Writers Conference…)

Cover Me

JT Ellison

One fun aspect of being a first time novelist is learning
the internal publishing ropes. I’ve just passed a major milestone – the
copyedits  of ALL THE PRETTY GIRLS are finished and have been turned in to my editor at
Mira. Whoo-hoo!

This was by far the most difficult step I’ve faced in the
process. It took me three days to go through all the notes, changing a word
here or there, striking a repeated sentence, double-checking tertiary character
names. It’s amazing what these copyeditors catch. You see so many readers on
the webthreads discussing errors in manuscripts, and I hate to be culpable for
any reader distress. You have to wonder, though, if they knew what went into
these pages, understood the process and the care taken by the publisher to make
the book error free and pretty, maybe they’d cut us a little slack.

The term STET, Latin for "To Let Stand," is now my best friend. Especially because
I’m writing a novel based in the South with some lesser-known southern
vernacular. Our colloquialisms seem strange to many outsiders, including
copyeditors from New York.

I’m at the point where I can no longer hold back. I’ve got
my cover. I’ve had it for a couple of months, and have been sitting on it
because . . . well, I don’t know why. Newbie terrors, the sense that you’re
going to wake up and find out all of this is a dream? It certainly feels that
way sometimes.

I’m beyond thrilled with the art. My editor sent it to me
and I about passed out from sheer joy. It captured the essence of the book in a way
I could have never begun to suggest. It’s time to share. This book is
happening, and there’s no sense holding back any longer.

Without further ado . . .

                        Atpgcover_2

I leave you with a thought that sums up the current
experience quite well.

My candle burns at both ends;
It will not last the night;
But ah, my foes, and oh, my friends —
It gives a lovely light!

            — First Fig, Edna St. Vincent Millay

Wine of the week: Vitiano Falesco

Mystery Shop Company

Elaine Viets is probably one of the most ‘fun’ writers I
know. I mean, she’s a special gal – and
I’m not just saying that because we share a first name. Honest. But I love telling her – "Oh, Elaine! You look just gorgeous (which she is)." It just has a nice ring to it, you
know? Kinda like a personal echo? Anyway, you’ve all heard that mantra –
‘write what you know’ – Elaine Viets does exactly that! She has worked in a bookstore (Murder
Between The Covers), a bridal salon (Dying To Call You), and with her fifth
novel coming out next month – MURDER UNLEASHED – her first hardback (where she
belongs!) – she worked at a high-end dog boutique! I mean, this is suffering for your craft! This is a writer who brings you the real
inside dope, so do yourself a huge favor – get thee to a bookstore and load up
on a fun Florida ride with Elaine.

And now – a few things you never knew about Elaine Viets! 

EE: Word is you’ve created your new ‘mystery
shopper’ series just to get freebies from Valentino, Versace, St. Laurent and
Gucci and they’ve been sending you boxes of designer clothes just to stay on
your good side. Care to comment?

EV: There’s absolutely no truth to that story –
darn it!

EE: I understand Uma Thurman and Charlize Theron
– who share your willowy height- are really ticked off about this designer deal
since they only get one gown for the Oscars and are threatening to become
mystery writers so they can get in on the largesse. You really need to answer this, Elaine.

EV: Is that one gown apiece or one gown between
them?

 How did you know it was only one
gown? Charlize told me the cat fight
was Oscar worthy.

EE: Other than scoring this incredible deal with
these jet setting designers, what is your proudest achievement?

EV: What? Isn’t that enough? If I have to
be serious, I’m proud of making a living at mystery writing. Not many people like their jobs.

 And if anyone deserves it – it’s you!

EE: What
is your favorite movie? And I don’t
mean Batman that George Clooney sent you as a personal gift.

EV: I’m such a movie slut. I don’t have favorites. I like the last one I spent the evening
with. Currently, it’s "Good Night
and Good Luck", about Edward R. Murrow.

 Sigh. I miss Murrow. Yeah, I’m old
enough to remember him.

EE: What best selling book do you wish you’d
written?

EV: Anything by Nelson DeMille.

 Wonderful choice! He’s truly one of the very best.

EE:  Tell us what you would consider a perfect
day.

EV: I am awakened by my agent, who says he sold
the movie rights for my Dead-End Job series to Spielberg. I try to go back to sleep, but the phone
rings again and my editor says I’ve made the New York Times Best Seller List
again. After my massage, I settle in
for five minutes of uninterrupted hours at my computer. At four PM, I meet my writer friends for
drinks, when we complain about out agents and editors. Then my husband and I go out for dinner, and
afterward, we walk along the beach.

 What? You mean writers bitch about their agents and editors? I’ll be darned.

EE: Readers have been bombarding me with
questions for you, but I’m selfish and would rather ask my own, so me first, so
WHY do you keep turning down an appearance on Letterman?

EV: The dress hasn’t arrived form Versace yet.

  Donatella
told me it is on the way – so get ready!

EE: Who would be your ideal book signing tour
mate?

EV: The mysery genre has lots of congenial
writers. I’ve toured with Marcia
Talley, and we still liked each other at the end of the trip.

 That’s wonderful! But then, like they say-great minds think
alike.

EE: And speaking of writing stuff, which writers
would be on your ideal panel at a con?

EV: Charlaine Harris, Reed Farrell Coleman,
Laura Lippman, Michael Connelly, Harlan Coben, Harley Jane Kozak.

 An absolutely Standing Room Only crowd.

EE: Talk is you can’t write a word unless your
favorite Rock & Roll artists are playing in the background. Now, for a gal who gives so much of her time
helping new writers, the least you could do is share their names.

EV: I am a huge (well, very tall) fan of the
Austin Lounge Lizards, especially their non-hit sont, "Jesus Loves Me (But
He Can’t Stand You)."

 Is it out now? Where can we buy it before it goes platinum?

EE: Everyone has a Walter Mitty dream. Tell us yours. But keep it clean, okay?

EV: See answer to Question 6

 Quick! Which one was No. 6??

EE: Which writer would you like to have all to
yourself in a cozy corner of the bar at the next Bouchercon?

EV: Gasp. I’m a happily married woman. Maybe Robert Crais, with Michael Connelly, Lee Child and Harlan Coben as
chaperones. I want to ask Mr. Crais
about that episode of "Miami Vice" he wrote staring Frank Zappa.

 Uh, could you sqeeze over? 

EE: Level with us, Elaine – what is your
favorite indulgence?

EV: My favorite printable indulgence is 70
percent Lindt dark chocolate.

  We
were hoping for more, but that’ll work.

EE: Even though your closet is loaded now with
designer duds, what was the last thing you bought for yourself?

EV: A nice batch of publicity. Seriously, my new book, MURDER UNLEASHED, is
coming out May 2nd in hardcover. I’m
giving a buck a book to PAWS and other animal charities if you buy the book
betweennow and May 20th online at bn.com or at selected IMBA bookstores. Pre-orders are accepted. This is my own money, not the
publishers. Buy the book and help me go
to the dogs. NOTE: The details are on
Elaine’s website at http://www.elaineviets.com

 How can you not love this gal? Go out and buy the book, okay? You’ll love it anyway!

EE: My most burning question is why the hell did
you refuse to accept those flowers from Brad Pitt after he vowed his undying
love for you at last years Edgar’s? One
can’t help but wonder if this is what threw him into his mid-life crisis and
Angelina’s arms.

EV: It’s all my fault, and he never even called
to thank me.

 He may be calling you again to
reconsider.

A round of
applause, if you please, for a terrific writer, a lovely person, and for having
the courage go go On The Bubble!

 

The Sexy, Sexy Indy Press

Troy Cook, here, filling in while Simon goes under the knife for a little nip/tuck, or so I’ve heard. <grin> Or maybe he’s off promoting his new book. Either way, I’ll be filling in next week as well.

Have you ever fallen for someone mysterious? Someone with a smoldering intensity?
As you got to know them better, you found out that they were hard working, unique, and full of passion—but at the same time broke. Before I make this too confusing, I’m not talking about the opposite sex, I’m talking about my recent love affair with the magnificent Independent Press. We all love the big NY publishers and want to be published by them, so why does Indy get me excited?

It probably starts with my background in independent filmmaking. In the film business 80% of all films are produced by the independents. Yes, a lot of them are crap, including plenty of the eighty films I made in my career. But it’s also where you discover the next great filmmakers of our time: Quentin Tarantino, Ron Howard, Martin Scorsese, and Francis Ford Coppola, among others. These guys, with their crazy ideas about filmmaking, explored and created works of art in the independent world before being snatched up by the big guys.

I think it’s the same with big publishers as it is for the studios. Big publishers are defined by their stockholder value, which makes it next to impossible for them to take too many risks. And every new author is a risk. That’s where the sexy Indy comes in. They can take a chance on a new author because they don’t need huge sales numbers to be profitable. They can grow an author from scratch all the way to big sales.

Of course, then the NY pubs swoop in and lead the author to bigger and better distribution and sales. Which is pretty cool.

Will this happen to me? To you? It remains to be seen, but it is possible to make a splash even when you’re with a small press. My debut mystery picked up rave national reviews and won multiple awards, garnering interest from a big NY pub and landing me a film deal. So I think it’s plausible.

A couple of examples of the small press rags to riches story are Sean Doolittle and Victor Gischler. Well…rags to riches might be a stretch since very few authors get to the riches stage. But these guys were with a cool small press called Uglytown, with good sales, and eventually got snatched up by Bantam/Dell. One day, I hope to follow in their footsteps.

And I think you can, too.

This post is about the “why” of going with a small press. Do you agree or disagree? Next week I’ll write about the “how”—the positives and negatives of going with a small press. You definitely want to avoid some of the pitfalls.

Troy Cook
47 Rules of Highly Effective Bank Robbers
www.troycook.net

ON THE BUBBLE WITH BARRY EISLER

BARRY EISLER doesn’t really need an intro.  A Barry Award and Gumshoe Award winner, not to mention being on countless ‘the best of’ lists – his books have been published in twenty countries – his national reviews are top-notch – and have been optioned for film by Barrie Osborne, Oscar-winning producer of the Lord of the Rings trilogy.   A lot of ‘Barry’ mentions here – so maybe that’s a good omen.  But there is more to this very nice gentleman (a term I do not use widely) – there is a razor sharp mind inside this handsome head – and all you have to do is spend a little time with this guy to quickly recognize there are many layers of insights and thoughts swirling round.  Where they’ll  eventually land – is anyone’s guess.  For our sake – let’s hope it will be many more books.  But don’t take my word for it – come meet a side of Barry Eisler you may not know.

Barry_eisler_photo BARRY EISLER     http://www.barryeisler.com   

Darn!  I wish I could have made this photo larger!  Sigh. I mean – it’s a killer!

EE:  What prompted you to create that great blog – THE HEART OF THE MATTER?  http://www.barryeisler.com/blog.htm  And when the hell do you find the time?

BE:  I realized it was unfair to make my wife continue to endure my constant political rants all by herself.  HEART OF THE MATTER is my support group for her.  The other reason is, I’m a longtime political junkie, and I read, think, and talk politics constantly.  But what really engages me isn’t the kind of venting and acrimony you see on 99% of political blogs, but rather an attempt to honestly understand – and possibly respect – bedrock political differences.  Hence the name of the blog…the point isn’t to yell, vent, insult, etc., but to try to work together to understand what’s really going on for a given issue.  Thinking is hard work, and not getting irritated when someone doesn’t share your politics takes discipline, but I find the whole exercise enormously satisfying.  I wish I had more time for it.

Well, for once – an author won’t get a cute reply from me here.  I’m a big fan of THOTM and seriously urge you to stop by.  The subject matter is always concise, pertinent to what’s going on in the world – and presented in a simple and straightforward manner.  The exchanges are wonderfully civilized and erudite – and from some names that would surprise you.  I just wish Barry would let me bandy his name around the political blogs as a man we need to represent us some how and somewhere.  But damn, he’s such a spoilsport.  He won’t let me.  Do I hear any volunteers out there to give me a hand?  Hell, we could really start a grassroots movement.

Barrys_new_book_2 EE:  I hear whispers that the next book after REQUIEM FOR AN ASSASSIN is a standalone.  Can you give us a hint or tow?  Or, is this one of those ‘need-to-know basis’ things?

BE:  I do have an idea for a Delilah-centric Rain book, so there will probably be more Rain at some point, but I’ve decided to put that on hold and write something entirely different for #7.  It’s a thriller, it involves Asia, and there will be plenty of realistic action and steamy…er, love scenes, but that’s all I’m saying for now…

Darling, say no more.  I’m ready.  To read, of course.

EE:  Rumor has it that you’ve patterned John Rain after a real person.  That can’t be you, can it?  I mean, Barry – I’ve always thought you were such a sweet guy.  Not that I don’t adore Rain, it’s just that…

BE:  I’ve never admitted this publicly, but…John Rain is patterned after Paul Guyot.  There, I said it! The burden is lifted!

Who?  Is this someone I should know? 

EE:  I love that section on your website – JOIN THE FIGHT.  Your crusade, as it were, against ‘linguistic viruses.’  What is your feeling about writers lately using that venerable musician’s term – ‘doing a gig’ – when describing a book signing?  I know a few musicians – and they’re a little pissed off about this.

BE:  This is the first I’ve heard of it.  But it seems a little silly to me…the point of live music is live music.  the point of an author reading is to sell books.  I know I’m over-generalizing a little, but writing is my ‘gig’, not book signings.  Those are more a means to an end.  But that’s just my opinion; I could be wrong.  On "like," "you know," and the other linguistic viruses with which I do battle, I know I’m doing God’s work…

And He is pleased. 

But, like… you know…what I’m hearing from friends (names withheld to protect their careers not their innocence) is that writers supposedly have vast vocabularies and they should coin their own words, man.  Like, you know?

EE:  And speaking of words…which words or phrases do you think you most overuse?

BE:  Elaine, I doubt you could print them here.

Oh, those words?  Probably not.  Betcha they’re some of my favorites too.

EE:  So, I understand the CIA got into a tizzy when your publisher used their official seal on the jacket of the UK versions of your first four books, huh?  Uh, just how angry were they?

BE:  I don’t know that the organization is sentient enough to become angry.  Actually, their objection created a terrific promotional opportunity, which my UK publisher, being a bit more retiring than I, declined to pursue.  I wanted to put big orange stickers on all of the covers declaring that "The author’s previous employer, the CIA, has not authorized, endorsed, or approved the contents of this book."  It would have been great.

Damn, what a lost opportunity!  Too bad you couldn’t have sneaked a few on. 🙂

EE:  What are you reading now?  And which book do you wish you had written?

BE:  I just read Cormac McCarthy’s The Road.  It blew me away – maybe his best yet.  As for a book I wish I had written…there are a lot of books and authors I admire enormously, but I never really think about writing anything other than what I write.  I couldn’t write anyone else’s books, and on one could write mine, and that always feels good to me.

Perfect answer…and one which I will leave alone.  And what timing – I have The Road on order – and am doubly looking forward to it now.

EE:  Which living person do you most admire?

BE:  Nelson Mandela.  If to forgive is divine ( I think it is), he’s as close to a living god as I expect to see in my lifetime.

Yes – I think forgiving is divine.  And I applaud your choice.  How sad that Stephen Biko wasn’t able to do the same.

EE:  What do you consider your biggest challenge?

BE:  Right now, juggling writing, the writing business, and family.  But that’s a quality problem to have.

Ah, yes.  The business part.  A complaint widely heard these days.  Newbies take note.  It doesn’t get easier either.

EE:  Have your many travels to Japan – and your experiences there – influenced any aspect of your way of life or your thinking?

BE:  Probably more than I’m aware of.  Living in Japan certainly gave me the kind of perspective – that is, relative objectivity – about my own culture you can only get by looking in from without.  I also admire (and aspire to) the restraint that is fundamental to so many aspects of Japanese culture.

Restraint.  Yes, a perfect word to describe so much that is Japanese.  From their manners, to their sense of personal dignity and honor.  I too am an admirer of their way of life – and their impeccable manner of simplicity.  Much of our home reflects their artistry – simple pieces, yet offering a daily sense of serenity.  So, Barry – let me know when next you traipse off, okay?  I have a never ending shopping list.

EE:  Okay, let’s get serious now.  Tell us who would make up your ideal panel – and why?

BE:  I think I already did the ideal panel, at the Toronto Bouchercon.  I moderated, the subject was something like "The Bad Guy Protagonist," and the panelists were Ken Bruen, Victor Gischler, Simon Kernick, and Jason Starr.  Duane Swierczynski couldn’t make it, and Reed Coleman, who’s a terrific panelist, was set to stand in, but graciously made way for Victor instead.  We had a blast.

So did the audience – and so did I.  Uh, so did the gals sitting behind me.

EE:  If you could change one thing about yourself, what would that be?

BE:  I wish I were one of those people who needed three or four hours of sleep a night.  It would be like having a whole additional life to live.

If you figure out how to accomplish that – please do let me know.  We could bottle it.

EE:  Barry, darling – something has got to be done about all those swooning women when you’re on a panel.  I couldn’t hear a damn word you said at the last one with all the sighing and moaning going on around me.

BE:  Yeah…someone needs to get ’em new eyeglasses!  That, or Jim Born was up there with me, and the swooning was for him…

Oh, be modest if you must!  Such an endearing trait…but Jim – adorable/macho as he is – wasn’t on the panel.

EE:  Time for your Walter Mitty Dream.  Other than a cozy dinner with moi -what’s yours, Barry?

BE:  I get to do my life over again, and start living abroad, learning languages, and training in martial arts from a much earlier age.

Oh.  I was hoping that…well, nevermind.

Arigato, Barry – for playing On The Bubble.  And Sayonara – but not for long, okay?