Timewaster's Guide Archive
General => Site News => Topic started by: House of Mustard on January 27, 2004, 01:15:35 PM
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Well, the book finally has a cover and a release date. You can check it out on Covenant's website:
http://www.covenant-lds.com/Products/comingSoon.htm
Scroll down to the March books.
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So when are you holding the signing? I want my autographed copy.
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It would certainly be nice if they had a definitive date. Whenever I ask them, they say: March. I don't know what their problem is.
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Congrats. Looks like a pretty good cover treatment, though it doesn't immediately suggest "comedy," at least not at that size. Are you going to be doing signings and readings and stuff? My understanding is that most of that you have to organize on your own, and hitting some major bookstores in the first few weeks could really help out.
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Why is it Covenant Communications? Its not based off that Donaldson person's books is it? Not that that is going to deter me from purchasing your book. And huzzah to ya!
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I'm not sure what Donaldson thing you're refering to. I assume it's called Covenant because of the religious affiliation (not to say the book is a religious book).
So far, I haven't heard anything about book signings, although I've only recently started talking with the marketing dept.
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Donaldson's Thomas Covenant series. Thats the covenant I'm referring to. Didn't really get a religious connotation until I started seeing books about Mormons, and other religious things.
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Covenant in this case certainly refers to religious connotations. It is a publisher primarily of material about LDS doctrine or for an LDS audience.
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My editor just emailed me, and the release date is officially March 1, 2004.
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Looks like a pretty good cover treatment, though it doesn't immediately suggest "comedy," at least not at that size.
I don't know. Isn't the guy's head the "<--->" traffic sign? But, it is very small. Looks cool though. :)
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there's a person on that cover? i seriously couldn't see ANY detail.
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There's a guy in the lower left corner. He is wearing a suit (I don't know why) and he is holding the <--> sign in front of his face (it has a short little handle -- one arm is at his side and the other is at his chest, holding the sign). He is standing in a deserty/sagebrushy field.
It actually works pretty well. The street sign thing started out as a little goofy joke, and Covenant had me convert it into an overarching moral. Kinda odd, but at least the cover is nice.
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Speaking of lower corners, I notice I'm not at war anymore, but that my reference to The Who was appreciated.
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This is very cool!
Congrats, Mustard!
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Huzzah!
And so the TWG forum members begin their march to take over the publishing world!
Well, okay. Stacer probably already began that march. But this begins the author side of it!
In thirty years or so we'll all have to get together and have some hoity-toity "We're cool" club where we sit in overstuffed, high-backed chairs by the fireplace and congratulate each other on being so awesome. (Ala the inklings.)
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can we have bubble pipes? I want a bubble pipe when we do that.
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You can have a bubble pipe. I'll have a bubblegum cigarette in one of those sophisticated long cigarette holders. And a monocle.
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Oh oh, I want a big glass of wine and a stock ticker.
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I'm above such petty concerns as that value of my stock.
But I want a fanged howler monkey that's trained to fetch me nuts, fruit, and candy.
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I don't really care either. I just want one so I can watch the tape stuff roll out of the machine thingy. That always made me smile.
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Dan, in his 'Stuffy British Guy' persona (we've joked that he should pretend to be British, because all the good SF/F comedies come from England) will have to be our host.
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Will he play Moret's Rondeau at the beginning of our meetings?
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Speaking of taking over the publishing world, I just got a 4-month contract today to work at Houghton Mifflin. It's a start! It's not a full-time permanent position with benefits, but it is job security, and it pays more than temping. And come May, they'll know me even better and hopefully give me an even better offer.
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yay! Congrats! Children's publishing, I assume?
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Almost. It's elementary school social studies textbooks. But at least it's closer than electrical motors. The company name is what's important, really--when I apply elsewhere, they'll see Houghton and know I've got children's experience, even if it's not trade. Plus, now that I'm officially in the company, they're more likely to hire me over to trade if an opening comes up. Not likely anytime soon, I'm afraid--they have a hiring freeze up there.
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well, congrats again. Sounds like a step in the right direction
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Thanks.
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I would suggest starting a TWG publishing company, but the extreme foolhardiness of letting a bunch of procrastinaters run a company struck me.
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:D That's about the funniest thing I've heard all day!
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That's especially humorous in that we all got our start in the magazine publishing industry. I guess we migrated to web because it allows us to be so lazy. (Speaking of which, where's all those articles you guys said you had? I spent the weekend moving, so don't expect any from me until Wednesday.)
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You know, Brenna dreams of starting her own publishing company sometime. She keeps warning me that someday in the future she is going to hit me up for a novel or two to help her get started....
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My creative writing teacher has a novel that she hasn't been able to get published. She said the large publishers don't want to publish it because of its tone (a dark one I think she said), and the smalls one don't want to because they aren't sure if it will sell well. I have to read an excerpt for friday's class. I'll let you know how it is, and if its anything worthwhile, it'll get to someone.
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Brenna is welcome to talk to Jeffe and I who've talked about soemthing like that (mostly games related) for years.
And Gemm, without knowing your teacher, it sounds like an excuse. <shrug> I could be very wrong though.
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Ooo! I'll be the, uh, the european, uh, correspondant and local administrator of, uh, stuff!
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yup, I'm going to own my own company. I've decided that it'll probably be about ten years from now, because I need more experience in the field and I need to take some business classes in order to learn how to run a company and such. I also need time to build up capital and contacts. But I think I can do it, and I have people like you guys to draw upon (mostly a good thing. ;) ), so that's a plus. We'll see how it goes.
Now, back to the thesis of doom! (I wrote a 28 page chapter yesterday...go me!) Happily, I only have one more full chapter to write, and then it's in the revisions stage.
Now my only question is this--is the lack of a deadline the only reason my creative writing takes me so long? I've written almost 100 pages in two weeks for this thesis. Maybe I just need to convince myself that something is due and I'll write faster...
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My dad could give you pointers on starting/running a business, even if not a publishing business. Heck in 10 years he might be considering retirement and could help you out.
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I'll definitely have to keep that in mind, Fuzzy. :)
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Great news!
Yesterday I picked up the first copies of the book and it looks great. I've listened to half of the audio, and it sounds much better than I expected (although the story is a little weird since I had to cut so much for the audio edit). The book will be shipped on March 1st, so if you live close to the Wasatch Front, then it will be in stores by the 2nd or 3rd. If you're farther away, it will be longer. For more info, you can visit the website that Tage is building for me: www.robisonwells.com. It's still under construction, and very little works, but it gives you more info on purchasing etc...
But the really big news is: They're buying my second book! I haven't actually heard from the managing editor yet, so I don't know any contract details, but my editor let the cat out of the bag this morning. She said the revision process is going to go much faster this time, and my hope is that it will be out by Christmas!
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dude, that rocks. congrats!
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Yes, a hearty congratulations to you!
On a side note, that will put both of your books in the stores six months before Tor gets to my first. (Sigh.)
Anyway, when's the book signing?
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Nothing's scheduled yet.
However, for everyone who's around SLC, you're invited to come to an openhouse at my place: March 5th, between 6:30 and 9:00. It'll be very informal--just drop in for a few minutes when you can.
If you need the address, email me.
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Ahh it ships today, I went to B&N and they didn't have it, all thought I did enjoy hearing the cleark say Robison over and over again. I'll go check for it on Wensday.
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When/how do you want us to buy the book, HoM? First day? At a future book signing? Through Amazon so your sales rank goes up?
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I think that I could sell every copy of the first printing through Amazon and I'd still have a pretty crummy sales rank. Since there are no book signings scheduled yet, I'd say buy it this week. I'm tempted to say buy it from someplace other than Seagull, just because other stores will have fewer copies and will be quicker to have to reorder. Still, I don't know how much of a difference that will make. I guess my recommendation is: buy early, and buy often.
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And try to come to the openhouse.
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well, i can't do that, but I'll try to make room in the budget for your book. After all, I did just get a nice tax return. Or i could have one of the other guys buy it for me, have you sign it, and then ship it. Anyone want me to paypal them for it?
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Update: as of right now, the half dozen stores I've called still haven't recieved it yet. Hopefully tomorrow.
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Hey wow: look at this email I got from the marketing director of Covenant:
We are putting your book on the cover of Seagull's March catalog. That will mail out to about 110,000 households. The book is also on a flyer that will be part of Deseret Book's mailing that will go out later this month. The book is also in April's books&things agazine which mails out to about 200,000 customers from 70 independent bookstores. We'll also have the book featured Seagull April catalog, which mails to 400,000 plus households. The book will also be featured on a radio commercial that will start sometime next week, probably on KSL radio.
Of course exposures in catalogs and the media don't ecessarily equate to large numbers of books sold, but we are excited about the book and hope that consumers will be too.
Thanks!
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Wow, getting radio spots, there probaly spending more on you then Tor will on EUOL (for a single market).
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If you consider the per-capita spending, you're probably right. That's good news, HoM. They must really be expecting you to have some sales--which means they're intending to build you up as a writer. Dave always said that the LDS market was one of the more lucrative specialty markets--you could build yourself quite a career if everything goes well.
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FINALLY!
At long last, after all the hype and ballyhoo, the book is available for sale!
At lunch today I stopped at two different stores (the Seagull Book and Tape on Redwood Road, and the Seagull in Holladay) and they both had the book! The Redwood Road store actually had a large display front and center when you walked in the door.
While chatting with the sales girl, I even got my first sale! She saw some customer walk by and called out "If you buy his book, he'll sign it for you." The guy bought it, and I signed it.
And frankly, it was awesome.
So: go and buy! And then buy another!
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that kicks some righteous booty, brother. Congrats! This must be so cool for you. I hope to have the same experience some day.
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*sigh*
Ok, I know I'm going to get flamed for my ignorance, and I don't care.
WHAT IS THE BOOK ABOUT? I know nothing about this book, and subject matter has not been discussed on here for months, if it ever was.
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You can read a whole bunch of stuff on the FAq of my website: www.robisonwells.com
Basically, it's about a guy who gets fed up with life and moves to a tiny little town in New Mexico. Wackiness ensues. It is a comedy, making fun of both small town life and LDS culture.
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I'll stop at B&N today and see if I can grab Spring's copy.
Not that B&N would let me do that. ;)
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well I just got back from B&N and they still don't have the book. They said that they have 5 ordered, and I asked if they had gotten them and sold out. But they said that they haven't recevied any yet and probaly wont for several weeks.
So I'm probaly going to have to goto seagull books to get it. I just wanted to by it at B&N because I have EUOL's 10% off card.
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Hey wow. I find that exceptionally cool. B&N only buys a very limited selection of LDS stuff (their LDS selection is only two or three shelves). I'm quite pleased that they are carrying me at all.
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Ha ha. I just looked my name up on Amazon to see if they had a listing. There was only one entry:
The Fundamental Wisdom of the Middle Way: Nagarjuna's Mulamadhyamakakarika
Kind of cool.
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Want me to try and buy it there? Would that help you in some way? Or do you just want it bought in the first coupple of days, and not care where?
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I'd rather just have people buy it early. I don't really care where. Seagull has it on sale, if your interested. (They have everything on sale).
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Yeah, after running around at lunch today, it looks like Seagull is the way to go. It doesn't look like B&N or even Deseret Book will have it until Monday at least.
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Well I got my copy:
(http://www.timewastersguide.com/VG/pictures/robinson.JPG)
they guy at segull said he's sold about 5 of them in the past 2 days and is planning on getting it himself.
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SWEET!
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What's up with Covenant placeing an excerpt from someone elses book in the back of yours? I'd cry foul, throw on my tin foil hat, and claim their ESP couldn't affect me.
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Yeah... it sucks. But it's pretty standard procedure for them. If there's a silver lining, it's that a chapter of my book will be in somebody else's somewhere.
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So, does Deseret News do book reviews...?
And, why no Amazon.com?
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I don't know why it's not on Amazon. One Barnes & Noble that I talked to said the book won't even be in until the 28th, so who the heck knows.
I don't know if the Deseret News does book reviews, but KSL does (which is where my ad will be).
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The first book signing is scheduled:
Seagull Book and Tape
Taylorsville, UT
(somewhere around 5470 South, Redwood Road).
April 3rd, from 12 to 2 (between conference sessions).
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so who is volunteering to pick up my copy and get it signed? for which, obviously, I'm paying back.
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I'm happy to do so. I'll need your address--you can email me: [email protected]
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ok, it's on the way
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How too, brown cow, could I come across a signed copy of your book Mr. Robison? And I would ask that you specifically sign it "Homsar" somewhere. ;D
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Email me your address. I'll be buying the books at Seagull, so it'll come to $10.47 a pop.
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Any news on first week sales?
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Are you kidding? I'm only the author - they don't tell me anything.
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I ran into the same thing at B&N. The book won't be "released" until the 28th. So I wait, since I need to buy it with my gift card.
My theory is that Covenant release to the "Church bookstores" before it does to the national chains to give them an advantage on sales. OR (this theory being more probable) that it takes longer because B&N's corporate office has to buy the books and inventory them and then send them to their stores, and that takes much longer for such a big company than it does with Seagul books. Anybody seen the book at Deseret Book?
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Obviously, you're not checking my website. Surprisingly, it's been spotted at two different Barnes and Nobles now (Sandy and Sugarhouse), but only at one Deseret Book (Ogden). One DB clerk told me that it's because they're switching over to a new computer system right now, and they're having trouble recieving new products. I don't know. Just go to Seagull--it's cheaper there anyway.
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/me apologizes.
;)
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No need to apologize, although, you know, the best apology would be to buy a dozen copies. :)
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I would just like to point out that copies in Sandy and Sugarhouse don't do me much good with gas prices the way they are.
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Yeah, but there are no less than five Seagulls in Utah County, and they all have piles of the book.
Also, I recently heard that the BYU bookstore has several copies.
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So I got my copy in the mail yesterday. Thanks, Mustard! I'm already half done. I stayed up later than I planned last night reading. And laughing. I'll be passing the word along to friends.
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Just finished the book yesterday. It was hilarious! I guess cause I also grew up in a small town, so I knew somewhat how he felt. My dad's reading it now, and so far he loves it. It's funny to hear him laugh every once in a while when he's reading it.
PS. How'd you decide which funny quotes to use at the start of each chapter?
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I'm glad you guys are liking it (and I'm impressed with the speed of the fine US Postal Service--I thought it would take a lot longer to cross the country).
Teikel, the quotes are mostly things that I collected over the years. I tried to get quotes that tied into the chapters, but were also funny on their own (not all of them are funny, now that I think about it).
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Wewt, just got my copy not more than 30 minutes ago. I will begin reading when I return to my room after work! And thanks for the sig!
Ok, reading through it now, on chapter 5, I just realized (after reading the name some 20-50 times) that there's a girl named Jenny. Its beside the point that her last name is Jenny Smith. But wow, I don't want to say anything upsetting to you Rob, but I'm not sure if I can really keep reading it right now. I'm a bit afraid of what Jenny is going to end up looking like in the book.
[EDIT] Wow... kind of scary. Jenny is about an inch shoter than I, and has blonde-ish hair. You make the scare jump back in me HoM.
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I haven't got mine. Though it might be at my parents, where I told you to send it
If it's there, it got there yesterday or today.
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Hmm...so What's the chance of being able to get this in the land you call down under, but is on top of the world from my perspective?
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I'm happy to sell you one -- i don't know what kind of shipping charge it takes to get to Australia. However, if you're willing to pay whatever it is, email me your address.
[email protected]
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I might find out the sort of cost it'll be first. I don't exactly have a money tree in my backyard.
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you don't? What happened to yours?
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I sold it, since I needed to water it every day, so I figured I'd sell it, then save up enough the difference to purchase a USB one.
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the problem is, if you've sold your money tree, you dont' have a means of generating MORE money, since it doesn't grow on non-existant trees, you know.
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Yeah, I shouldv'e thought it through.
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I don't have a money tree. I do, however, have lots of books. :D
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good book, HoM. I spent various short spaces of free time yesterday reading the first 53 pages or so (I didn't have it from my parents' house till Friday, and didn't have time till yesterday). I chuckled and chortled aloud so much that my wife said she didn't want to wait till I finished, so I had to start over and read it out loud to her. So, by 10 pm I had read 60+ pages out loud. We're both enjoying it.
My favorite part is the EQ meeting. Having been to church in Las Vegas, I identified strongly.
And uh... I know I'm a jerk that you haven't got my money yet. I'm assuming a check is ok?
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A check is fine. I actually didn't know you hadn't sent it yet: I have my accountant (wife) handle all of that kind of thing. If I cash checks then they end up in my lunch account, whereas, if my wife cashes them, they pay the bills.
I'm glad you're liking the book!
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The worldwide tour begins!
My book signing schedule:
Saturday, April 3
Seagull Book and Tape -- Family Center 12-2 PM
5720 South Redwood Road, Taylorsville
Saturday, April 10
Seagull Book and Tape -- Bountiful 11-1 PM
40 West 500 South, Bountiful
Seagull Book and Tape -- Layton 2-4 PM
448 West Antelope Drive #3, Layton
Saturday, April 17
Seagull Book and Tape -- Orem South 11-1 PM
331 East University Parkway, Orem
Seagull Book and Tape -- Orem North 2-4 PM
111 South State, Orem
Saturday, May 1
Seagull Book and Tape -- Spanish Fork 11-1 PM
1060 North Main, Spanish Fork
Seagull Book and Tape -- American Fork 2-4 PM
177 East 30 North, American Fork
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You had me for a second Homsar. For a second.
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I'm totally going to be a groupie for the north orem one.
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I'll stop by the south Orem one, that's 4 blocks from my house.
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I don't see why we three can't drop by both of them.
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So here's something I find exceedingly pleasant: Apparently, the corporate offices of Seagull Book tell their stores which books to promote, and they set a goal for each store (how many books to sell in a month). And then the stores have competitions between themselves to see who can sell the most.
Well, On Second Thought was chosen as one of them to be pushed the hardest. Two stores that I've talked to (the Redwood road store and the Am. Fork) both said that their monthly goal is 200 copies. They've also got me on the cover of the current catalog (the catalog that will be out during conference--the biggest selling time of year other than Christmas) and I'm on the front page of Seagull's website.
Why am I getting so much attention? I have no idea.
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Other than that you deserve it, I guess. THat's some cool news.
We're still about 80 pages from finishing, since I'm reading it out loud, I anticipate two more evenings of this, and tonight won't be one, since Kirsti has young women's and I have writer's group. But we should still finish this week. I'm really enjoying it.
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I plan to be at the Orem one.
Congrats on the extra publicity HoM!!
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welp, we finished (wife wouldn't let me wait till tomorrow to finish the last 30 pages, which I mostly wanted to do to infuriate her). It was very cute. And funny. Only now it may have forced me into a new activity: reading out loud to my wife. Her response after I finished was to ask what book next. So I'm trying to broker a deal where we read two nights a week, and I write two nights. (the other night she goes to mutual).
Anyway, just thought you should know, HoM, to me, it doth not stink.
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Speaking of which, I really liked that part.
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I know you're all sick of me bragging, but I just found out that I made Seagull's bestseller list. Number seven. The official LDS Bookseller list (for March) comes out in a week or two.
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brag away. That's what we're here for. That rules dude.
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Go You!!
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When I'm done with classes, I will celebrate by buying and reading your book.
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Well, I finished it the other day. I like it. Now I want the unabridged version with all the words you had to cut! =P
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They're not the kind of words you're thinking.
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No Gemm, the version you read was the full thing. I had to cut words for the audio edit.
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Ok, yes. I have to say, the ending was a bit cheesy though. =P
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Oh come on, Gemm. You need a little churchin' up.
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I've had 18 years of the junk. I'm all churched out.
I'm not saying the whole Mormonology, or religious tones are tacky. I actually sort of liked them. It's just that the ending, guy gets girl thing, I found a bit tacky. But I was happy for the ending.
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so it's cheesy for there to be anything other than a sad ending?
ugh. I fear for the future of humanity.
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umm, I've read your post four times now, and I still don't understand it Saint. I think you missed a word . . . or three
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I think he missed the word cheesy, and I think it might not be entirely his fault. There's a space there as if the board edited a word out.
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I don't know what you're talking about. You'll get whatever words I choose to give you, and not one more.
Ok, one more: melifluous
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You put it back in, but you put it in the wrong place. Smooth.
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I still don't know what you're talking about.
fuddled
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Well, I like cheesy things though.
I especially like my cheese sharp!
Oh! Ba-zing! I'm on a roll today.
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/me staps Gemm with a sharp cheddar spear
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Please note spelling mellifluous (http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary?va=mellifluous)
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why? because you had to look it up and couldn't find it right away?
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No. That's the beauty of dictionarys online.
I'm just rubbing it in.
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I think more along the lines of you're being mocked rather than rubbing it in.
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No. That's the beauty of dictionarys online.
Please note the spelling of dictionaries. ;D
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/me points and laffs
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Please note the spelling of dachshunds, which I was smart enough to look up before talking about that cell phone commercial, since the stupid word is German and involves badgers.
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/me laughs
Oops
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Please note the spelling of "I don't really care."
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So noted.
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Any sales figures yet, HoM? It's been about a month.
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I should have official sales figures by the end of the week, but this is a good indication.
http://www.ldsba.com/topten.html
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Ok, only thing cornier than the ending to the book, would have to be the names for those top 10 musical CDs. No offense to anyone, especially you Homsar. It just makes me smile, and giggle a little.
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I'm totally in agreement there, Gemm.
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"not your mother's LDS music."
Man, now I remember why I try not to step into the "This is the Place" book store...
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And he'll be in Orem this weekend for book signing.
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I would ask someone to go and get me a signed copy, but I already got mine, straight from the sorce no less! Boom-diddy.
And I'm glad you find your religious music just as corny others.
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Wow, I bet Crosswallk is laughing it up. Deseret Book and Covenant fight like wombats to see who can beat the other, and some random little 3rd party publisher walks away with the #1 bestseller. Sounds like a pretty heavy romance from the title.
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Crosswalk is laughing more than you think. It's a new publishing company Anita Stansfield (Queen mother of LDS romance) started because Covenant wouldn't accept her latest book -- it contained premarital sex. So she started her own company. When the book came out, both DB and Seagull refused to put it in their stores, so it's only available through small indie stores or buying it direct. And it's still number one!
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Hey EUOL, I just got an email from the marketing guy. He said they sold a little over 4000 in the first month.
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Not bad! Pretty darn good, actually--since most first books generally never sell more than 5k overall.
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Congratulations!!!
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Yeah, and Covenant usually pushes a book for three months. The big radio campaign hasn't even started yet, so I have high hopes right now.
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I have to say that I agree with Covenant and Seagull on not publishing or carrying that book.
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So do I. I have no idea what she was thinking (unless she was thinking that controversy would sell a lot of books -- which it did.
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Just a reminder for all you Utah Countians -- I'll be in Orem all day signing books.
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Well I was going up to Wal-Mart this afternoon so I figured I'd swing by the mall and pick up a copy at Deseret books.
The girl who checked me out was very enthusiastic when she saw what I was buying- "Oh wow, I read that one. You'll really like that book, it's so funny! It's like the funniest book I've ever read!"
So there you go. Another good review.
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Dang, HoM. You should have posted this reminder earlier. No one checks the board at 8am on a Saturday.
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i do. The girls wake me up long before then and I'm too brain dead to do much else.
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I read it too. Actually thats a cool review, because its only been out for so long.
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Just finished it. Great book. I don't know if you'd be flattered or offended if I tell you that the protagonist reads like John Bytheway, in a good way.
I think I'll send it to my mom so she can read it, unless Brenna or someone else in town wants to borrow it.
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I'd like to borrow it, please. :)
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Luckily, there were two signings in Orem on Saturday, or I would have missed him. I'm loving the quotes at the beginning of the chapters so far, but I've only gotten through the prologue.
Packing is like that I guess.
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So how are sales going? Are you rich and famous yet?
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I haven't heard any new sales figures for about three weeks, but things are going swimmingly. I am now Seagull Book's #1 best selling fiction, which means that I'll probably do really well on the LDS Booksellers monthly list (it comes out next monday or tuesday)--I'm guessing I'll be 4th or 5th on that list. Both Anita Stansfield and Jack Weyland are sure to hang around in the 1 and 2 spots, and the rest of us will fight over what's left.
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so that means /me waits a beat
your a bestselling author, at least for seagull anyway...
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Hey, I'd take that. Bestseller is bestseller.
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So, the new LDSBA list is out, and I'm not on it. That list is based on what bookstores buy, rather than what bookstores sell. My book, I found out today, sold through it's first printing so there was nothing left to sell to the bookstores. Therefore, even though I'm the #1 fiction at Seagull, I'm not in the top ten fiction with LDSBA. Make sense?
The good news is: the second print comes out next week! Woohoo!
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I decided to do some Joshua-style reconnaissance (if you don't know about my agent's wacky bookstore practices, ask me sometime.) Anyway, I didn't go as crazy as he does, but I did stop by a Seagull book to make certain they still had you displayed prominently--which they did. You'd moved off of the central little display table, but you're still out in front--and I personally think the one you're on now is easier for the just-coming-in customer to see.
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Would your agent's methods having anything to do with changing books to face-out, etc? I know writers who do that for their own and their friends' books.
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Ha. I always do that at Deseret Books and Barnes and Nobles, Stacer. So far, I've never had to do it at a Seagull.
What wacky bookstore practices EUOL?
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He deciphered what all of the numbers mean on the Borders Books price tag sticker, so he can tell how many books were ordered by the store and when. Then he counts them to see how many have sold. Then, for new books, he moves copies out of the back up to one of the front 'sampler' table. Then he digs the extra copies out of their hiding place behind the first line of books and stuffs the shelf with his authors' books. Then he turns one of each face-out. THEN he sneaks over to one of the Border's "look up a book" stations and puts in the employee code he filched from somewhere, and uses that to check up on how his authors are selling, and whether the Borders is keeping them appropriately in stock or not.
The guy's a nut. Fortunately, he uses his powers for good (ie, for me.)
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I want him on my team.
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Heh. Well, if you decide to go national with some fantasy/sf I'll hook you up.
Though, it would be hilarious if you brought an agent into your Covenant negotiations now... (You made him sign a TWENTY YEAR first refusal clause? Excuse me while I call our lawyers....)
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Fortunately, he uses his powers for good (ie, for me.)
What does the E in EUOL stand for?
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Extremely Beneveloent
EBUOL just sounds too much like Ebola
Evil backwards is "live." and we all want to live, don't we?
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Y'know, that seems strangely fitting for EUOL, except note the benevolance is like this:
"Friend Evil Undead Overlord Only wants the best for you. You must obey Friend Evil Undead Overlord, it is for your own good".
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EUOL backward is LOUE. Loue. Hmmm...interesting.
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Lol. The 'E' stands for 'Awesome', of course.
I'm a Sanderson. You all know we have troubles with spelling.
...and if you have powers, do you use them for good, or for awesome?
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Congrats on selling the first printing!!
My husband and I just finished last night. We highly approve. :D When you're next one coming out?
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Same bat-time next year: March or thereabouts.
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Oh? I thought for some reason your next one was slated for December.
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It was, for about a week. I'm actually pleased by the new release date though. The LDS market has two really busy periods: Christmas and March/April. Summer and fall are apparently slower than cold tar. This means that if my book is released in the spring, nothing of great importance will push it off the good shelves for a long time (it might last on the new release shelf for six months or more). If it's released at Christmas, there will be more people buying books, but it will also have more competition.
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And then EUOL's book will come out a couple of months later. Happy, happy. :)
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And, hopefully, it will continue that way for decades to come. HoM every March, me every May.
There are ten more months to fill, people. Better get to work. :)
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I'm hoping to eventually claim one of them.
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Now THAT would be cool--having twelve different people publishing yearly on our little forum.
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Hehe, and then we all end up arguing with agents and contracts, "NO! It CAN'T come out in March, Rob's book is coming out in March!!!"
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Hey neat: I got my first crappy review. On the Deseret Book website, some customer gave my book a one-star rating and said it was a really crappy rip-off of Robert F Smith (another LDS humor writer).
It makes me laugh. You can read it here if you like: http://deseretbook.com/store/product?product_id=100100022
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I especially liked how he spelled "buy." I trust his literary judgement.
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I used to own Baptists at our Barbecue. Someone borrowed it and never returned it. It was funny, and did involve a guy escaping Provo for New Mexico because he was 29 and everyone was trying to set him up with their daughters, including a girl who wore a bonnet. Yes, a bonnet.
So when I read On Second Thought, I did think it had some similarities, but only superficially because of a couple details. The stories are completely different.
Have you read any Robert F. Smith, Rob?
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Yeah -- and I fully admit the close similarity. Smith owned the LDS bookstore in Albuquerque while I was living down there, and we were pretty good friends--which is why I don't feel too bad about using his 'formula'.
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A book such as this one is successful because of its ability to be humorous and entertaining, not because of its plotting brilliance or originality. If that guy's criticism were valid, then every romantic comedy ever made--and pretty much every action movie--would have to be thrown out the window too.
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Here's something cool: my publicist just called me and wants me to read another author's manuscript so that they can put a quote from me on the cover. It makes me all giddy.
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I bet that sheds a whole new light on cover-quotes, though.
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True. Here are two odd things about it:
1) Nobody knows who I am, so why would they take my word on anything.
2) More importantly, they are over-nighting the book to me tomorrow, and they need the quote by the middle of next week (the book goes to print the first week of June) - that doesn't give a lot of time for in depth analysis.
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they don't WANT in-depth analysis. They want something short, pithy, and complimentary.
And, believe it or not, people DO know who you are now. You were Covenant's best seller for a month, and you might be again when they get more prints out. You're like a famous Mormon now, dude.
I would be incredibly hyped for that opportunity.
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Oh, I am incredibly hyped. It still just blows my mind that I'm, like, a published author.
For that matter, it blows my mind that I can casually say "My publicist called me this morning..."
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Yeah yeah, keep it up. Then when you fall off that horse I'll be poking and proding you with the 'stick of dead-man poking'.
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ahh.. Gemm's back into his old form. Good times...
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Is that a good thing, or an entirely different thing?
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actually, I'm pleased. You made me chuckle. What with the dead-man poking and all. I'm going to make my self a stick of dead-man poking.
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heh, hurrah
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I would just like to point out that Covenant's incestuous cover-quote relationship is NOT the standard for the publishing industry.
At Tor, at least, they expect to give potential cover-quotes six months or so to get back on the book. And, there's no promise that the person you send the book to will even read it, let alone give you a quote. Authors are very stingy with their cover-quotes. As L.E. Modesett told me "Your name, and your reputation, is the only thing you have in this business. It's what sells your books. Authors, rightfully, will not put their names on books that they don't think are worthy of the honor."
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That's good to know. I already have a hard enough time finding books that don't sound like slightly-better-than-average slushpile material.
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That's the odd thing about the LDS market, EUOL. No one, it seems, is allowed to speak ill of anybody else. The other day, on one of the LDS authors forums I visit, I asked what LDS movies other people liked because, I said, some are good and some are really really awful. Most people responded that they didn't think ANY were bad, and someone even said that we, as LDS artists, should never criticize other LDS art. It's screwy.
Even though I disagree with that, however, I'll most likely try to be nice to the book. If it's really bad, I won't comment at all, but I'll do my best to find something good to say. It's a weird little world, LDS publishing, but for now I'm fine playing their games.
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They're probably the same sort of people Orson Scott Card talks about in the first chapter of A Storyteller in Zion, how so many people think that evil shouldn't be depicted in stories.
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but for now I'm fine playing their games.
I think you've got the right idea. If Tor sent me a book right now, where I am in my careers, and said "Give us a good cover quote for this!" I'd be quick to do as they said. (Not that they're likely to do something like that....)
We don't have the luxury of being picky right now in our careers. We pretty much have to do as we're told.
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So, your saying cover quotes are all bribed. I'll never trust a books cover again.
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well, no, he didn't say that per se. But the main idea is...
Wait, you trusted book covers in the first place?
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So what are some good back handed comments I could use if the book stinks? For example, Groucho Marx once said "From the moment I picked up your book until I laid it down, I was convulsed with laughter. Some day I intend reading it."
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"This was the best book I read today. Think I'll go have breakfast."
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So, your saying cover quotes are all bribed. I'll never trust a books cover again.
...? What are you talking about 42? Didn't you read my post:
I would just like to point out that Covenant's incestuous cover-quote relationship is NOT the standard for the publishing industry.
At Tor, at least, they expect to give potential cover-quotes six months or so to get back on the book. And, there's no promise that the person you send the book to will even read it, let alone give you a quote. Authors are very stingy with their cover-quotes. As L.E. Modesett told me "Your name, and your reputation, is the only thing you have in this business. It's what sells your books. Authors, rightfully, will not put their names on books that they don't think are worthy of the honor."
I thought I said the opposite....
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I now have the manuscript in hand. It's titled REWIND by Jeff Downs. It's labled by Covenant simply as "drama."
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"Almost as much fun as disembowelment by a screaming horde of ninja monkey assassin priests"
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Ugh... So the book wasn't very good. It wasn't awful, but there wasn't an original idea in the whole thing.
For a plot summary: imagine It's a Wonderful Life, at the end of which George Bailey sits down with his family and reads the scriptures.
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does an angel still get his wings?
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The angel is replaced by some voice called The Guardian, who we later learn is the main character's deceased Dad.
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"This book is truly a charitable creation. Mr. Downs does an admirable job of lowering his audiences expectations, thereby allowing the rest of us to look better by comparison."
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It was the plot that was bad, so I chose to compliment something else in my quote. So I talked about the theme and the characterization and ignored the plot--that way I could compliment the book and still be honest.
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So, HoM, how were sales the last couple of months? Did they keep up with that first month?
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The most recent sales figures I have are about a month and a half old, but here's how they stood:
Books: 4500
CDs: 950
Tapes: 650
I don't know what has happened in the last month or so, but I imagine that I've sold about another 1000. Things have slowed down quite a bit recently since I'm no longer being actively advertised (I'm still in the catalogs, but on page six or seven instead of one.)
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That's quite a fine selling record, especially for a first novel. Most authors only sell about 5000 books in the life of the book, and certainly the life of your book isn't nearly done yet. And for the LDS market, a much smaller niche market, that's an even better record. Good job!
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The LDS market is a weird thing. Unlike major national publishing houses, where one in ten books will hit it big and the rest don't even pay for themselves, almost 70 or 80% of LDS books will sell at least 6,000 copies. Also, LDS books (because there are fewer of them) tend to have a pretty long shelf life, and don't go out of print nearly as fast as things do nationally. (Seagull Book is especially good at this. Deseret Book likes to rotate their stock pretty often, but Seagull will keep pushing stuff for a long time -- my book is still on their new release shelf even though it's been out for four months.)
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That's cool. And, of course, the more books you publish, the more you'll sell of your older titles. If Covenant is serious about making you into one of their big names, you could easily sell another big run of SECOND THOUGHT next year when your other book comes out.
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Oh, are you going to write a sequel and call it "For My Next Thought?"
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"And now for a completely different thought."
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I could see a really weird use of this "thought" word for book titles.
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That's because your thoughts are really weird.
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REWIND by Jeff Downs is out now, and the quote that I gave is on the back. The publisher really hacked it up. I'm not misquoted, since its still the basic gist of what I was saying, but it looks like I can't write complete sentences.
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...They sent you the book at the end of May when they were publishing it in early August? That doesn't seem like much time....
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I'd think they sent him galley proofs to read, in which case it'd be right on schedule for a paperback, I'd think, especially with a small print run.
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It's a small publisher. Keep in mind that from acceptance to publication is generally only 12 months--as opposed to the national market which is much longer.
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Still doesn't seem like much time. If I got a book like that, I'd want a month or more to find the time to read it, and know that I'd still be able to give them a quote in time to be of any good.
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Well, it's official. I'm a real, honest-to-goodness Professional Author. I got my first check in the mail yesterday. It's odd to think that I've been working on On Second Thought for two years, and just now I'm starting to see some cash. However belated it might be however, it's nice to see it.
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Welcome to the club.
*Gives HoM a fake cigar.
If this is the royalty check off those 4500 copies you sold in the first month, it ought to be a pretty nice chunk of change. Congrats!
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It is. It will pay my tuition this fall, and pay off a few credit cards. It's sad to know that it will all be gone in a month. (But it's nice to know that the bills will be gone too.)
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Yeah, I know that feeling.
Incidentally, I'm in the opposite boat as you. I got my advance last year, and I'm STILL waiting for the book to come out. I don't think I'll feel like a real author until I can hold it in my hands.
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It took long enough, but On Second Thought has finally been reviewed in Meridian Magazine. I'm quite pleased--not so much with the review itself, but because Meridian has a pretty big readership.
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Oops... Here's the link: http://www.ldsmag.com/books/040819thought.html
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Hum. It's laudatory, but it's kind of a poorly-written review. A big long summary of the plot, followed by a rather unimportant tangent, with finally one single paragraph review of the book.
Anyway, congrats.
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Yeah--that was my complaint. She doesn't really critique anything--just tosses out a few compliments and muses about the importance of humor.
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"Too much is the new enough." Hmmm, where did that come from HoM? It's strikingly familiar.
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Hum. It's laudatory, but it's kind of a poorly-written review. A big long summary of the plot, followed by a rather unimportant tangent, with finally one single paragraph review of the book.
Anyway, congrats.
Exactly my thoughts.
Also, her bio is as long as the review. Who the heck cares who her parents are or where she met her husband? The only thing that matters as far as her reviewing goes is when her new reviews appear, and *perhaps* one or two shining points from her professional life.
(I started this posting at 7:30 and realized right in the middle of it that I had to run out. Good thing my computer didn't crash, because I wouldn't have remembered it!)
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'Too much is the new enough' comes from some font design site, talking about the state of web design. (At least, that's where I saw it. I wouldn't be surprised if they lifted it off of something else.)