May 8, 2010 · 11:41 am

Now Authors have to pitch that book

And you thought all you had to do was write a good book!

As more pitching opportunies come up, it is not enough to be able to write a good book, you need to be able to sell it to an agent or publisher. Over here at the ROR blog, I’ve done a post on how to pitch.

In Australia there are online pitches like the  Allen and Unwin Friday pitch and the Random House children’s book pitch.

If you are brave enough to pitch in person the national romance conference run by RWA, have pitching opportunites.

And the Childrens and Young Adult Conference has pitching opportunities.

Over at this UK agent’s blog The Pitch Parlour you can send in your pitches and get feedback.

And keep an eye on the agent and editor blogs. They offer advice on pitching.

Sydney Literary Agent.

Kristin Nelson from Nelson Literary Agency.

Nathan Bransford from Curtis Brown.

Book Ends Literary Agency.

So there you are, no excuse. What, you’re nervous? You never thought you’d have to sell your book to an agent or editor? Welcome to the brave new world of publishing, when the author has to not only be able to write, but has to be entertaining as well. I saw Ncholas Evans speak, when his book The Horse Whisperer came out and was made into a movie. He told a story about being asked to pose for a photo to go with an interview and the photographer said, ‘Try to look intelligent!’

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May 7, 2010 · 10:10 am

E-Books, a growing tidal wave?

Artwork by Hhen

As Kristin Nelson said:

When I’ve got an older grandmother expressing unabashed enthusiasm in owning an eReader, I can’t help but think the tipping point is near—even if current electronic sales only equal about 2% of the market right now (statistic via a recent PW article). (Read Kristin’s article here)

Over at the Mad Genius Club blog there’s been several posts about e-books — the prices, the eReaders and what the publishers are doing. I don’t seem to come across many e-books. When I ride the train to work I see lots of people reading paperbacks but not virtual books. Of course they could be reading e-books on their laptops, but they seem to be typing away like mad.

According to Amazon e-books sales out sold print book sales over Christmas.

Spare a thought for the humble hardback this Christmas. It seems the traditional giftwrapped tome is being trumped by downloads, after Amazon customers bought more e-books than printed books for the first time on Christmas Day. (Read the article here).

So I took a quick poll through several e-lists. The listers were readers and writers who are familiar with technology so they probably aren’t representative of the general Australian public. But they could be representative of them in a few years.

The responses were interesting. They ranged from people who bought 90% of their books as e-books and had been buying books in this format since 1996, to others who didn’t buy e-books at all. One person had downloaded free e-books or won over 40 of them, but had only read one so far, as … I love to hold a book, turn the pages, and put it on the bookshelf.

Some people are buying e-books to save the cost of postage from the US or because the books are hard to get in print format. Many had just started buying e-books within the last couple of years.

Those who are reading a lot of e-books are reading them on their iPhones, Kindle, Sony eReader, Adobe Digitial Editions, eeepc or on their lap tops. Lots of readers were considering buying a eReader of some kind. As one reader said:

I’m curious about e-books and I think I’ll be open to them as a reader (maybe even a writer) but I’m not confident with the technology at this stage. Waiting to see what emerges as the best reader. I like the idea of less paper (less dead trees) and also less storage space needed in my home. I’ll always love and covet particular paper books but I do think the space thing is marvellous – once I do embrace the technology I’m sure I will buy more books just because I’ll have room for them!

Many confessed a love for traditional books. While some saw advantages in e-books:

They are so immediate. You want a book, and – click- it’s there.

Or:

I read quite a few ebooks.  I use Project gutenberg and other sources to access out of print stuff that would otherwise mean I’d have to hunt in libraries.  I also download the freebies from publishers for authors I want to try.  If I love the writing, I then buy their books in paper, but my reading for long bus journeys etc is on my netbook.

Those who buy e-books are buying them through many different outlets: Fictionwise, Mobipocket, Library.com, Apple’s iBookstore, All Romance ebooks, Diesel ebooks, Books on Board, My Bookstore and Amazon Kindle.

Many people bought from several outlets and most liked going directly to the publishers. The feeling was that e-books in Australian bookstores were over priced.

My major gripe with ebooks for sale in Australia (through retail chains, particularly) is that they cost around the same as a paperback, so I don’t think ebooks will take the Aussie market by storm because of the price through bookshops. Online stores and publishers’ websites sell the ebooks at competitive prices and I like to be able to read a few sample pages before I decide whether to buy the book in print.

When asked if they were buying e-books for a specific purpose, most people said, they were either buying them for research or pleasure, or both.

I just buy them as I would once have bought paper books – only I find I’m buying at least twice as many (because they’re so cheap).

Those who were published in e-books felt they were getting a fair royalty which ranged from 20% to 40% and their books were available direct from the publishers as well as several other on-line outlets.

On the subject of the types of books available and royalties one reader said:

I think that when you move away from the idea that novels are simply re-presented as e-books, and look at short stories suitable for short bursts of reading time, or stories created specifically for the medium, a decent shop front should make self-publishing relatively effortless. The royalty issue becomes less important when authors can reasonably do everything themselves.

Even those who bought only print books were curious about e-books and, as one reader said:  

E-books do not go mouldy on my boat. — LOL!

On that note, I’d like to thank the many people who responded to my survey.

What is your experience of e-books? Are they a tidal wave, gathering out there in the ocean of the public’s book buying habits?

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May 4, 2010 · 10:56 am

Steampunk

My friend Richard Harland is riding a wave of success with his YA steampunk, Worldshaker.

There is something very alluring about steampunk.

Long before I’d ever heard of the term, I was a fan of books from this era. I read Mark Twain’s Tom Sawyer to my children. Dickens was a staple of my own childhood and Sir Author Connan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes was one of my comfort reads. Another of my favourites is the satirist, Saki. I read his Sredni Vashtar in my early twenties and never forgot it.

Jules Verne, HG Wells, Mary Shelley and Bram Stoker were all writing steampunk back before the term was coined. For movies which set out deliberately to mine this genre, think Wild Wild West, The League of Extraordinary gentlemen, the Prestige and Sherlock Holmes.

For a list of contemporary writers who have dabbled in this genre look here. I think Mervyn Peake’s Gormenghast could be added to this list. His setting and characters were very steampunk.

Here’s an article on ‘The Victoria Steam Exposition … a celebration of a growing subculture called steampunk — which unites Victorian era esthetics and futuristic inventions with modern literature and fashion.’

There is even a steampunk magazine, for those of us who can’t get enough of the genre.

So what is the allure of steampunk?

For those of you interested in writing steampunk, Richard has done a post about it here.

I could not resist this steampunk dalek!

Has steampunk caught you unawares? Have you been reading it, without realising that it was a subgenre, like me?

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May 2, 2010 · 11:37 pm

The Writing Fraternity

The wonderful thing about being a writer (apart from doing something you love) is meeting fellow writers.  Sometimes you read their books before you get to meet them. I met George RR Martin at the Glasgow World Con and suffered one of those embarrassing ‘fan girl’ moments where I gushed madly about how I loved his books.  And other times you meet them, then read their books. This creates a strange dissonance because you can hear  their ‘voice’ in your head as you read. This happened with Maxine McArthur for me. I met her at Aussie Con 3.

Today I want to thank three writers. When Solaris emailed me asking if there was someone who could do a testimonial on book one of King Rolen’s Kin, I madly emailed a couple of writing colleagues. Trudi Canavan (knitter, manga fan  and writer) was able to squeeze mybook in her crazy schedule.

Jennifer Fallon was scrambling to pack all her belongings and move from Australia to New Zealand, but she was such a trooper, she agreed to read the book and give me a quote.

I ‘d never met Gail Z Martin but I had read her books. When Solaris bought my trilogy I ordered all their fantasy books and read them to familiarise myself with the publisher. (I’m such a  girly swot!). So, when Solaris said they were asking Gail to read my book I was thrilled.

So there you have it, 3 great writers,supporting a fellow writer!

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May 1, 2010 · 7:02 am

Indulgence Day!

Ok, I’ve worked hard all week. In fact, I’ve worked hard all term and it’s not over yet. Next week all the final assessments are due in, which means I’ll be doing marking for hours on end.

So this weekend I am treating myself, and my boys. We’re going to see the new Iron Man movie. What’s that? As soon as I say the words you can hear the music? Now that’s what I call Resonance. Black Sabbath’s ‘Paranoid’ which contained Iron Man was released in 1970. So I grew up with it. And it is still as powerful as it was then.

What else do you think of when I say Iron Man? This weekend with the second movie just released it has to be Robert Downey Jr’s portrayal of the Tony Stark character. Kudos must go to the script writers of the first movie, Markus Fergus, Hawk Ostby, Art Marcum, Matt Holloway and John August. Of course, Downey did a great job with the role, but I think the script writers’ strike proved that without writers you don’t have a TV show or a movie.

So what we’ll do is watch the first movie tonight, to refresh ourselves, then see the second movie tomorrow. I’ll be looking for stylistic consistency. And I’ll be looking to see how they develop Tony Stark’s character.

A lot can be learnt from movies and TV shows. Everything, character, world building, plot clues and tension all have to be established fast. And then there is Resonance, the feel you associate with a movie or TV series. There is also Resonance associated with books and book series. And if you don’t think that books carry Resonanace, what do you feel when I say Terry Pratchett’s Disk World series? Totally different from China Mieville’s Perdido Street Station. What about Mervyn Peake’s Ghormenghast? It’s been thirty years since I read that and yet, I still have a strong sense of place and character.

Maybe I’ll do a post on Resonance. I find it really interesting. What books and characters stick with you over time?

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April 29, 2010 · 12:43 pm

Currently watching …

The Guild!

This is a satire on on-line gamers. The first season of The Guild was financed by fans. It is sweet and insightful as well as sharply observant at times. I have four sons. They play on-line games. I teach at the college which specialises in teaching computer game design, so it is filled with gamers.

This series made me laugh aloud.

The Guild is an example of what can happen when a bunch of talented people get together and a studio isn’t standing over them telling them what is commercial.

The show was written by Felicia Day, an actress who turned an addiction to World of Warcraft into a sitcom pilot. Now there’s a comic, issued by Dark Horse.

Go Felicia!

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April 27, 2010 · 9:27 pm

Writers lead exciting lives!

What I’m NOT doing today is lying on my back in a sunny field watching the clouds go by.

What I am doing is checking the page proofs for book one of King Rolen’s Kin.

I suppose I could be cleaning the stove …

No, honestly, I’m happy to spend the day checking the page proofs. There is something very satisfying about polishing your work and the closer the book comes to publication, the more satisfying (and scary) that is.

I had a nightmare the other night. I dreamed the book had come out and a reviewer gave it a scathing review. They said it was derivative. Then they pointed out all these things that were derivative and I was thinking how did I not see this? And feeling awful!

In the light of day I know the book is not derivative. Sure it is a traditional fantasy so it plays with themes that are familiar to all of us, but it is also quirky and fun because the characters are what drive the plot forward, which makes it a satisfying read. I hope.

I’m guessing every writer quakes in their boots when their book is about to be published.  Here’s hoping King Rolen’s Kin is a Keeper. What books do you consider Keepers?

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April 26, 2010 · 9:42 am

Industry Insight

Over at the ROR blog we’ve opened the blog to industry questions.

We realised that between us we had over 70 years experience in the publishing industry. (Now that is a scary thought!). So we’re answering questions.

Over at the Mad Genius Club – Writers Division, we’ve been discussing e-books and their effect in publishing.

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April 23, 2010 · 10:00 pm

Currently watching ….

Mad Men Series 3

First let me say, I always buy the whole series of a TV show and watch it in batches of 3 or 4 episodes at a time because I’m interested in the story arc and character development.

I keep watching this show because it is like a time capsule. As I sit there watching Betty, heavily pregnant, smoke and drink blissfully unaware of the damage she’s doing I think, what a nice piece of writing/directing.

Someone complained when the first season came out that there were no black people in it or, if there were, they had subservient roles. (A few  black people have turned up since). This isn’t a story about the emancipation of the blacks in the US in the 60s. It is a story about the advertising world of Madison Avenue and it would be anachronistic to show a black man working in advertising with Don Draper. (If someone can prove me wrong, I’m happy to be corrected).  The way women and blacks  are treated in the show is accurate for the time.

And that’s what I find fascinating. Betty and Don Draper could be my mother and father. Not that they drank, smoked and had affairs, but the limitations of their life choices were the same. My mother had three career options, teacher, nurse or secretary. And women were expected to stop work when they got married.  The clothes, the cars and the furniture are all from the period when I was a very small child. So, for me, this show is a trip down nostaglia lane.

Watching Salvatore try to hide he fact that he’s gay, watching copy writer Peggy battle to have her abilities recognised, watching head secretary Joan be passed over when she could run the place, watching house wife Betty’s quiet desperation as she describes herself as a pampered ‘house cat’ makes me very relieved that I don’t live in the 1960s.

But I do feel the show would be a little stronger, if it veered one step closer to social commentary. There is so much material to work with. What do you think?

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· 9:27 am

Text YA and Children’s $10,000 Fiction Prize

It is hard to get noticed if you’re writing and you don’t have an agent. One of the best ways is to enter competitions. So here is the link to the Text YA and Children’s $10,000 Fiction Prize. Entries open on the 3rd of May.

Last year’s winner was Leanne Hall, with her book ‘This is Shyness’.  From the blurb it sounds like YA magic realism.

The 2008 winner was Richard Newsome with  his book ‘The Billioniare’s Curse’. From the blurb this looks like an upper end primary aged mystery/adventure.

Even if you don’t win, placing in a competition like this is a great recommendation when you approach an agent. What competitions have you entered and how did they help you?

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