by Louis Bertrand Shalako
c2010
All Rights Reserved
As an independent self-published author, my two toughest challenges right now are both big and small.
These are 'Proofreading and Promotion.'
I've been submitting stories all over the place, and in this very tight professional market, it is terribly discouraging to re-read a story and find a missing word or a typo.
While 'writing fast,' has its allure, simply putting the thing away for a day or two might have helped. I have no beta-readers, and in fact had never heard of them before this year.
The dividing line between success and failure can be razor-thin at times. Editors all over the world are looking for any excuse to reject, and to cut down that pile of very professional looking submissions.
***
In her recent blog post, Kristine Kathryn Rusch says, 'The best promotion is getting your work out there.' (I'm paraphrasing, but that's what she said.)
A story in a professional magazine immediately brings you to the attention of thousands of committed readers.
Promotion is hard for one very good reason: as self published authors, we still don't really know if the work is any good. Without any good reviews, and no feedback from beta readers, it really is a tough thing.
We don't want to make unreasonable claims, and we don't want to be perceived as dishonest, or bad writers, or whatever.
In my own case, simple shyness and lack of confidence makes it hard to ask anyone for a guest post slot.
Why would anyone care what I think? I don't have a big name, I don't have big sales numbers to brag about. I don't even have any track record of success in 'a previous life,' as I have been on a very small pension for about fifteen years. The fact that I was sports editor of a small weekly paper years ago, or wrote a couple of magazine articles along the way, is not particularly impressive or helpful.
The one vital element in all of this is time. I do have something of a head start, with three more novels 'in the can,' enough short stories to keep submitting them, and a few more available to produce another collection this year.
I will put out a pretty good poetry book at some point, and the world will become my oyster.
Over time, the trickle of books that I am selling now will become a flood.
Friday, February 18, 2011
Sunday, February 13, 2011
Cultivating Trust.
by Louis Bertrand Shalako
c2010
All Rights Reserved
No commerce can take place without some element of trust. Building trustful and fruitful relationships is the key to any successful business.
This is especially true in the virtual world. How does the little old lady from Pasadena know that you can be trusted and you're not just going to grab the cheque, 'perform some work so it isn't legally fraud,' and then bolt?
She doesn't. Building relationships takes time. If facebook and its counterparts are now the new Main Street, then let us go back to that model of 'kinder and gentler times.'
The past really wasn't Mayberry, okay? But the important thing to remember is that in the old village economy, everyone knew everybody else, and quite a bit about their personal business.
They knew who drank, who strayed, and whose kid was sick, and whose grandmother was dying. People don't buy things out of sympathy for your suffering, far from it.
They buy things from people they like, trust, respect or admire. They buy things they need, want or like. If you've ever really felt like you were screwed over by someone you liked, you probably never went back. You might have gone out of your way not to go back--and not out of spite, but sheer self-defense.
There has been some question as to whether 'you' are the product; or if some 'artifact' that can be 'shipped' and then 'billed' is the real product.
Labels are useful for convenience, although they have their limitations.
I am a writer. I write things, things which I then sell or try to sell to editors and publishers and readers around the world. It's what I do.
Whether we write on sheer speculation or sign people up for a monthly newsletter, really doesn't matter. People work hard for their money and they like to know who they are dealing with.
Simply interacting with people helps them to get to know you. Serving them in some way lets them get some idea of who you are.
Twitter is a wonderful medium for social networking.
First and foremost, it is a rich source of relevant posts. I get data and tips for my work.
The 'perfect tweet' would be helpful, informative, relevant, funny, non-threatening, and not cryptic or even enigmatic. It would be targeted at your audience, your followers, who are presumably there for a reason.
If you need to remove a person or entity from the list of people you are 'following, just do it. To tolerate someone is one thing, to take abuse out of politeness is another.
Like facebook, sometimes I just sit there and listen. This is a skill which is highly-underrated in today's virtual economy.
c2010
All Rights Reserved
No commerce can take place without some element of trust. Building trustful and fruitful relationships is the key to any successful business.
This is especially true in the virtual world. How does the little old lady from Pasadena know that you can be trusted and you're not just going to grab the cheque, 'perform some work so it isn't legally fraud,' and then bolt?
She doesn't. Building relationships takes time. If facebook and its counterparts are now the new Main Street, then let us go back to that model of 'kinder and gentler times.'
The past really wasn't Mayberry, okay? But the important thing to remember is that in the old village economy, everyone knew everybody else, and quite a bit about their personal business.
They knew who drank, who strayed, and whose kid was sick, and whose grandmother was dying. People don't buy things out of sympathy for your suffering, far from it.
They buy things from people they like, trust, respect or admire. They buy things they need, want or like. If you've ever really felt like you were screwed over by someone you liked, you probably never went back. You might have gone out of your way not to go back--and not out of spite, but sheer self-defense.
There has been some question as to whether 'you' are the product; or if some 'artifact' that can be 'shipped' and then 'billed' is the real product.
Labels are useful for convenience, although they have their limitations.
I am a writer. I write things, things which I then sell or try to sell to editors and publishers and readers around the world. It's what I do.
Whether we write on sheer speculation or sign people up for a monthly newsletter, really doesn't matter. People work hard for their money and they like to know who they are dealing with.
Simply interacting with people helps them to get to know you. Serving them in some way lets them get some idea of who you are.
Twitter is a wonderful medium for social networking.
First and foremost, it is a rich source of relevant posts. I get data and tips for my work.
The 'perfect tweet' would be helpful, informative, relevant, funny, non-threatening, and not cryptic or even enigmatic. It would be targeted at your audience, your followers, who are presumably there for a reason.
If you need to remove a person or entity from the list of people you are 'following, just do it. To tolerate someone is one thing, to take abuse out of politeness is another.
Like facebook, sometimes I just sit there and listen. This is a skill which is highly-underrated in today's virtual economy.
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