When I was a young teen, say 12 or 13, I used to get a kick out of playing pranks on my family. Pranks like refilling the empty milk carton with water. My father was not amused by that. But who couldn't see the humor in a entire bowl of breakfast cereal wasted? Sigh.
My very best prank was on my mom. Every morning my mom had to have her infusion of caffeine. Same time every day, same routine. Pull a cup down from the shelf, pour in her coffee, take out the sugar bowl and scoop from the centre of the bowl. I watched her do this morning after morning and found it interesting that she always scooped her sugar from exactly the same spot every morning.
One morning I decided to swap out the sugar for salt. She came into the kitchen, reached up for her coffee cup, poured in her coffee, took the sugar bowl out and scooped her scoop from the centre of the sugar bowl. She stirred her coffee and took a sip. I was sitting at the breakfast table working impossibly hard to keep a straight face. Mom got a horrified look on her face and bellowed "who put salt in the sugar bowl?" I concentrated very hard on my bowl of cereal and muttered that I had no idea who would do such a thing. Mom then licked the tip of her finger and dipped it into the sugar bowl to confirm the crime I imagine. Then a very puzzled expression came over her face. She tasted her coffee again and then tasted the sugar bowl again. "What is going on?" she cried. For you see, I had only put a single teaspoon of salt into the sugar bowl.
I used the teaspoon she used for her coffee every morning and measured out exactly one teaspoon of salt. And I placed it exactly in the centre of the sugar bowl where I knew, from watching her day after day, she would scoop her sugar from. Her precision from practice of this ritual on a daily basis meant that she would get exactly and only that scoop of salt in the sugar bowl.
I never admitted to it. Part of what makes this prank so perfect is that she had no idea how the salt got into her coffee. Telling her that it was a prank would ruin it. I secretly imagined her telling people how the sugar in our sugar bowl mysteriously turned into salt when it touched her coffee.
Over 30 years have gone by and I still giggle about this every time I think of it. As far as I know, to this day she does not know what happened nor that it was me who did it. I suppose if she ever reads this, the truth will be out but somehow it won't be as funny anymore. The prank is perfect because she never knew what happened that day.
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
Sunday, April 17, 2011
Dear Publishers: Why Do I Need You?
As an author, you slave and slave over your manuscript until it is polished. You then try and convince a publisher to purchase said manuscript. If you are lucky enough to sell it, your publisher has a staff of editors who work with you to bring it to perfection. Once it is ready, the publisher has a vast marketing department who packages your book and develops a comprehensive marketing strategy to sell it for you. Or at least that is the way it used to work.
Last year I attended a panel about non-fiction publishing at CanWrite, the Canadian Authors' Association conference. I heard publisher after publisher talk about how they would like you to include a market analysis of your idea along with strategies for how you are going to sell it. I thought, "wait a second here, isn't that their job?" So naively, I asked them. "Aren't you the professionals who know the market best? Isn't that why I am signing with you?"
I was roundly shut down by all them. "Gosh no," they all said. "You know your market best, because you wrote the book."
Mmmm, no. I'm a writer. Not a marketer. You have marketing staff. But more and more, writers are being asked to do their own marketing, organize their own book tours and signings. Many agents and publishers won't even consider your manuscript if you don't already have an established presence in social media and on the Internet.
As a writer, more of your time is spent on business and less on the creative process itself. You are being expected to do the work your agent or publisher used to do. Recently, Guy Gavriel Kay and Steven Heighton bemoaned this very thing on The Next Chapter with Shelagh Rogers.
Traditionally, self-publishing has been discouraged if you wanted to be taken seriously because generally these books were by authors who weren't really all that good and didn't see the benefit of having a talented editor working with them to help refine their work. But in today's world, getting signed with a publisher no longer guarantees an editor will touch your book. Editors are being laid off in droves by publishing houses. Many agents and publishers don't want to look at your book unless it has already been edited—yet another expense for the author.
So the question in my mind now is, if my publisher is no longer properly editing my book and no longer marketing my book, what is it that they are doing? Printing it? But with today's technology I can distribute it myself using clever technologies such as ebooks and, for you Luddites who love your hard copy, the Espresso Book Machine. As an author in the 21st century, what does my publisher do for me?
You still can't enter most contests, such as the Giller prize, with a self-published book, but that too will likely change as self-publishing begins to gain respect as more and more good authors give up on publishers who want a cut of sales, but provide little service in return.
The publishing industry is in crisis. Large publishing houses are laying off staff and small presses are closing every day. There is all kinds of blame thrown around, but the general public is still buying and reading books. If I have to write my book, get it edited and market it myself, then why would I sign with you? Publishers might save money in the short term by offloading work to authors, but in doing so they are quickly making themselves obsolete. If publishers are going to survive this brave new world they are going to have to give up on flint knapping and find innovative new ways to work with authors, make the most of modern technology and let authors get back to the job of writing.
So dear publishers, why do I need you? It's a serious question. I don't write for my own pleasure; I want to sell books. How will you help me do that?
Last year I attended a panel about non-fiction publishing at CanWrite, the Canadian Authors' Association conference. I heard publisher after publisher talk about how they would like you to include a market analysis of your idea along with strategies for how you are going to sell it. I thought, "wait a second here, isn't that their job?" So naively, I asked them. "Aren't you the professionals who know the market best? Isn't that why I am signing with you?"
I was roundly shut down by all them. "Gosh no," they all said. "You know your market best, because you wrote the book."
Mmmm, no. I'm a writer. Not a marketer. You have marketing staff. But more and more, writers are being asked to do their own marketing, organize their own book tours and signings. Many agents and publishers won't even consider your manuscript if you don't already have an established presence in social media and on the Internet.
As a writer, more of your time is spent on business and less on the creative process itself. You are being expected to do the work your agent or publisher used to do. Recently, Guy Gavriel Kay and Steven Heighton bemoaned this very thing on The Next Chapter with Shelagh Rogers.
Traditionally, self-publishing has been discouraged if you wanted to be taken seriously because generally these books were by authors who weren't really all that good and didn't see the benefit of having a talented editor working with them to help refine their work. But in today's world, getting signed with a publisher no longer guarantees an editor will touch your book. Editors are being laid off in droves by publishing houses. Many agents and publishers don't want to look at your book unless it has already been edited—yet another expense for the author.
So the question in my mind now is, if my publisher is no longer properly editing my book and no longer marketing my book, what is it that they are doing? Printing it? But with today's technology I can distribute it myself using clever technologies such as ebooks and, for you Luddites who love your hard copy, the Espresso Book Machine. As an author in the 21st century, what does my publisher do for me?
You still can't enter most contests, such as the Giller prize, with a self-published book, but that too will likely change as self-publishing begins to gain respect as more and more good authors give up on publishers who want a cut of sales, but provide little service in return.
The publishing industry is in crisis. Large publishing houses are laying off staff and small presses are closing every day. There is all kinds of blame thrown around, but the general public is still buying and reading books. If I have to write my book, get it edited and market it myself, then why would I sign with you? Publishers might save money in the short term by offloading work to authors, but in doing so they are quickly making themselves obsolete. If publishers are going to survive this brave new world they are going to have to give up on flint knapping and find innovative new ways to work with authors, make the most of modern technology and let authors get back to the job of writing.
So dear publishers, why do I need you? It's a serious question. I don't write for my own pleasure; I want to sell books. How will you help me do that?
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Blog Upkeep Fail
So in a previous post I talked about how this was my third attempt at a blog, but that this time I had a plan! Well I did, and I do. I have two notebooks full of great ideas for blog posts. Somehow none of them seem to make it here. My challenge has always been finding the time to do this.
Well I am no longer going to try to find the time. When you try to find the time to do things, everything else gets in the way. This time I am making the time. "Wow that sounds great," you say. "How are you doing that?" Well, I quit my job. "Huh? You quit your well-paid job with benefits to write a blog for free? Are you NUTS!!?" Well -- yes. In fact, I am. But, no I didn't quit my job to write a blog. I quit my job because I am a writer who was paid to write words for other people and had no creative energy left at the end of the day for my own writing projects. While I did love my job and was passionate about my company's products and services, there was a hole in my heart.
One week ago yesterday I made the leap to be a freelance writer and editor. While terrifying, it has also been exhilarating. Fortunately, I have a network built up and I am not wanting for paid work. Ironically, most of this work is in communications. But that is how folks know me best. I am good at it and I am grateful that I am not hungry and on the street with my husband, two kids and the cat.
My hope is that by making the time for myself and my own writing projects, I can transition away from the communications stuff and begin to earn my income as a "legitimate" writer. I plan to chronicle my efforts because I am just narcissistic enough to believe that you care enough to follow my angst-ridden journey coming into my own as a writer. Check back often. I'm sure it will be a wild ride. I know, I know, I have teased you before and not followed through. Please feel free to work with me as my accountability partner and poke me in the comment section belooooooow.
Well I am no longer going to try to find the time. When you try to find the time to do things, everything else gets in the way. This time I am making the time. "Wow that sounds great," you say. "How are you doing that?" Well, I quit my job. "Huh? You quit your well-paid job with benefits to write a blog for free? Are you NUTS!!?" Well -- yes. In fact, I am. But, no I didn't quit my job to write a blog. I quit my job because I am a writer who was paid to write words for other people and had no creative energy left at the end of the day for my own writing projects. While I did love my job and was passionate about my company's products and services, there was a hole in my heart.
One week ago yesterday I made the leap to be a freelance writer and editor. While terrifying, it has also been exhilarating. Fortunately, I have a network built up and I am not wanting for paid work. Ironically, most of this work is in communications. But that is how folks know me best. I am good at it and I am grateful that I am not hungry and on the street with my husband, two kids and the cat.
My hope is that by making the time for myself and my own writing projects, I can transition away from the communications stuff and begin to earn my income as a "legitimate" writer. I plan to chronicle my efforts because I am just narcissistic enough to believe that you care enough to follow my angst-ridden journey coming into my own as a writer. Check back often. I'm sure it will be a wild ride. I know, I know, I have teased you before and not followed through. Please feel free to work with me as my accountability partner and poke me in the comment section belooooooow.
Monday, July 26, 2010
Celebrating Books
I love books. I love reading books. But most of all I love talking about books. I have a bookshelf in every room in my home except the bathroom and that is just because I worry about condensation from the teenagers' 45 minute showers destroying the books or there would be one in there too.
My dream job would be working for the CBC on Authors and Company with Eleanor Wachtel or The Next Chapter with Shelagh Rogers. OR better yet, having my own show called Talking Books! ......wait.
Oh yeah, and I am also a writer myself. I don't have anything of any consequence published yet. I have been a contributing author for educational resources for elementary students. I work in communications so I write lots of ad copy, newsletters, press releases and that sort of nonsense.
One day I may have my own books published but for now I am content in celebrating the works of other authors. So check back here from time to time and I'll share with you my faves old and new. I'd love to hear about your favorite books so leave your comments below. All comments are moderated to avoid trolls and spam, please don't take it personally.
Sunday, July 25, 2010
New Blog
This is now my third attempt at a blog. The biggest challenge for me has always been the upkeep, but this time I have a plan! I have a story idea file now so I never (fingers crossed) run out of things to write about and I plan to keep them short. One thing I never seem to run out of is words. I am verbose and even talkative. Well that is the challenge I have set for myself -- to be more concise and that just equals better tighter writing.
Leave your comments below, I'd love to hear from you, but all comments are moderated to avoid trolls and spam. Don't take it personally. I learned about comment moderation from Drew McLellan who writes a marketing blog I follow. He is a very smart person that you might want to follow too.
Leave your comments below, I'd love to hear from you, but all comments are moderated to avoid trolls and spam. Don't take it personally. I learned about comment moderation from Drew McLellan who writes a marketing blog I follow. He is a very smart person that you might want to follow too.
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