By Chester Campbell
Anno Domini 2009 is just about history. I'm not too sure it will be missed. From last weekend's misfiring bomber to the continuing winterization of half the country, it's been one disaster after another. It started out with the economy in the doldrums, then Congress and the Federal Reserve proceeded to put us in debt up to our hairline (eyeballs won't get it anymore). The president rang in the new year as the great hope of the masses, and now the masses have turned against him for failing to live up to his billing.
In the mystery world, independent bookstores have been closing while the chains have cut back amidst singing the blues. Publishers talk hard times and slow the presses. Only the ebooks seem to be bucking the trend.
So what's a writer to do? It's probably time to take the plunge. But which plunge?
Door Number 1 opens onto a high bluff looking out over a magnificent valley filled with green grass and colorful blooms, a babbling brook winding serenely through the lush landscape. What a way to go!
Door Number 2 opens onto a small room littered with books read and to-be-read, stacks of manuscripts that may or may not see the light of an editor's desk lamp, a raft of notes containing nebulous ideas, and a blank computer screen with a winking cursor. What a challenge!
I chose Door Number 2. But it ain't easy. After piddling around with it the past several months, I found I had written barely over 29,000 words. Since my books average a little more than 70,000 words, that meant I would probably have the book finished sometime next summer. With 2009 winding down, I decided it was time to really take the plunge. I set a goal of 2,000 words a day, five days a week. At that rate, I should be finished by early February.
I strarted today (Monday) and ended up adding 1900 words. Close, but no cigar. I had to stop to write this blog entry. The blog must go on. I'll be at it again in the morning. What made the difference? I checked my email but didn't dawdle online. I replied to one Facebook message and skipped Twitter. I skimmed Murder Must Advertise but skipped DorothyL.
Another thing I did was advise my wife of my new commitment. She was quite judicious in asking my help around the house, and we made only one trip together to go by the bank, the post office, and to walk 30 minutes at the mall.
Now that I know I can do it, I'm off and running. So long 2009...welcome 2010. I see better days ahead. How about you?
Showing posts with label Federal Reserve. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Federal Reserve. Show all posts
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Fair Weather
By Chester Campbell
Outside it was cold and rainy, but inside the Frankfort Convention Center warmth and coziness prevailed. Conditions obviously weren’t as favorable as in years past, what with the economy sliding down the tubes.
So the question arises, is it worth an author’s time to weather the storm and trek off to a book fair?
I journeyed to Frankfort the past weekend for the 27th annual running of the Kentucky Book Fair. Despite the weather, a respectable number of buyers showed up for the Saturday event. But as one man told me apologetically, “Last year my wife and I spent $400. With the way the economy is now, we won’t do nearly that much today.”
Everybody came with the idea of buying books, however, and a few toted away bags full of them. Some authors had an inside track by being well known in Kentucky. Others by being well known in their field. A children’s author at the same table with me had a constant stream of kids, parents, and grandparents stopping to get his colorfully illustrated books signed.
Sitting beside me was Judy Moffett, a science fiction writer who lives part-time in Kentucky and the rest in Pennsylvania. Her paperback books sold well, but the hardcovers bombed, which was a sign of the times.
Book fairs like Kentucky’s bring in 200 or more authors, so there’s plenty of competition. You can’t just sit there and smile. Half the people look the other way and many more seem to be hurrying by on their way to catch the next bus.
If you’re not a household name, it can pay off to put in a little extra effort. Following my usual policy of ignoring the chair at a book signing, I stood behind my table from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., except for the time it took to eat my sandwich. Anybody who came within range of my voice, which isn’t all that strong, unfortunately, got the smiling query, “Do you read mysteries?”
I talked to enough of them to sell 39 books. Not a bad day, all things considered. The Wall Street Journal recently quoted Barnes & Noble’s chairman as saying he had never “seen a retail climate as poor as the one we are in.” Simon & Schuster reported store traffic was down and fewer customers were buying more than one title.
I had the luxury of four books in my Greg McKenzie Mystery series lined up on my table at Frankfort. A couple of people bought all four.
You never know what will push someone’s hot button. When I told one man that in Deadly Illiusions the Federal Reserve chairman is murdered at the Opryland Hotel, he grinned and said, “I’ve got to have that one.”
It’s always nice when a reader comes by (in this case a member of the DorothyL listserve) and says, “I’ve read all of your books and really love them.”
But the name of the game at a book fair is to sell books. It can be done if you play your cards right.
Outside it was cold and rainy, but inside the Frankfort Convention Center warmth and coziness prevailed. Conditions obviously weren’t as favorable as in years past, what with the economy sliding down the tubes.
So the question arises, is it worth an author’s time to weather the storm and trek off to a book fair?
I journeyed to Frankfort the past weekend for the 27th annual running of the Kentucky Book Fair. Despite the weather, a respectable number of buyers showed up for the Saturday event. But as one man told me apologetically, “Last year my wife and I spent $400. With the way the economy is now, we won’t do nearly that much today.”
Everybody came with the idea of buying books, however, and a few toted away bags full of them. Some authors had an inside track by being well known in Kentucky. Others by being well known in their field. A children’s author at the same table with me had a constant stream of kids, parents, and grandparents stopping to get his colorfully illustrated books signed.
Sitting beside me was Judy Moffett, a science fiction writer who lives part-time in Kentucky and the rest in Pennsylvania. Her paperback books sold well, but the hardcovers bombed, which was a sign of the times.
Book fairs like Kentucky’s bring in 200 or more authors, so there’s plenty of competition. You can’t just sit there and smile. Half the people look the other way and many more seem to be hurrying by on their way to catch the next bus.
If you’re not a household name, it can pay off to put in a little extra effort. Following my usual policy of ignoring the chair at a book signing, I stood behind my table from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., except for the time it took to eat my sandwich. Anybody who came within range of my voice, which isn’t all that strong, unfortunately, got the smiling query, “Do you read mysteries?”
I talked to enough of them to sell 39 books. Not a bad day, all things considered. The Wall Street Journal recently quoted Barnes & Noble’s chairman as saying he had never “seen a retail climate as poor as the one we are in.” Simon & Schuster reported store traffic was down and fewer customers were buying more than one title.
I had the luxury of four books in my Greg McKenzie Mystery series lined up on my table at Frankfort. A couple of people bought all four.
You never know what will push someone’s hot button. When I told one man that in Deadly Illiusions the Federal Reserve chairman is murdered at the Opryland Hotel, he grinned and said, “I’ve got to have that one.”
It’s always nice when a reader comes by (in this case a member of the DorothyL listserve) and says, “I’ve read all of your books and really love them.”
But the name of the game at a book fair is to sell books. It can be done if you play your cards right.
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