Saturday, December 3, 2011

Um . . . am I back?


Hmmm.

Gotta admit, I never really expected to be back here. In fact it's been so long, I couldn't even remember the email address for this blog, much less the password.

But something strange happened.

Comments kept coming in, for which I'm very grateful and even touched. I started this blog originally as a way to help sort out points in my own head as I was revising my novel. As such, it was really more of a log or diary for myself, than an attempt to reach an audience. I was really trying to teach myself, not others. I'm thrilled that so many people have found my meandering missives to be of some value. So, thank you.

Because of your continued interest, I thought I'd give you some updates.

1) Since I started this blog, the publishing industry has been turned upside down, both for the good and the bad. With the introduction of e-readers, print publishers have ducked their head deep into the sand, terrified to sign new writers unless they are reasonably guaranteed a blockbuster. Big name. Big topic. Whatever. The days of the small novelist getting signed are gone. At least for a while, until the industry sorts itself out.

The flip side of this, is that its never been easier to self-publish, and with e-readers, you're guaranteed instantaneous distribution around the world.

This same series of events has happened to the music industry, where the major labels are losing money every day, but small bands can get their music released easier now than ever before.

The problem is getting attention to your book. But let's be honest, big publishers didn't really spend much effort in publicisizing new authors anyway. As I found out when our health book was published, we still had to hire a publicist and hit the pavement on our own.

2) As a corollary to #1, the novel never got published. I had an agent pick it up and start shopping, then drop out of contact. This was a "major" publisher at an established New York Agency. A name I'd heard for years. Turns out the younger agent at this house quit the business. The novel got pushed over from one agent to another but the enthusiasm was lost. Eventually, it just languished a painful, lonely existence.

3) As another corollary to #3, I'm going to self-publish the novel. I've been researching my options and I'd like to e-publish, but also with about 500 physical copies that I can sell at my office.

4) In the meantime, I've been very busy. The music writing site, The Ripple Effect, has really taken off, and now has 14 writers and millions of readers. One thing led to another, and my Ripple partner and I started a record label, Ripple Music, to release hard-driving, authentic 70's-infused rock music. It's been an amazing journey and a real kick in the tush.

Now a question for you:

I don't know if there are any readers out there who pop over here from time to time, but if there are, would you like me to write about my experiences with self-publishing?

I figure the self-publishing journey will be just as full of ups and downs and rights and wrongs and successes and mistakes as the original journey was. I'm happy to share these as I go through them, if you'd like me to.

Just let me know.

In the meantime . . . peace.

14 comments:

Erin said...

please do, i would love to hear about it.

Anonymous said...

I'd like to read more about self-publishing, please. :)

I really enjoy your articles and it's utopian but the thought of one day publishing my own novel like you is really tempting. :D

Anita said...

I actually just found your site. I was looking for some info regarding font type and size, and your blog showed up in the results. Personally, I would like to hear more from you, especially regarding self-publishing. So, if you wouldn't mind adding the info, I'd be glad to stop in from time to time. ~~Anita

ArtistCG said...

Welcome back! I'm not sure how I first discovered your blog, but in reading your recent post perhaps it had something to do with The Ripple Effect (I have a painting and poem by the same title). I'm making it my New Year's resolution to post in my Wishing Thinking blog daily! I'm starting today to gear up for this self challenge. I've also been researching the self-publishing, and cyber publishing options, so input from other writers is always valued and appreciated! WRITE ON!

Unknown said...

I read your post and wanted to wish you the best of luck in your self-publishing adventures! I hope to publish a book some day but realize with changes in the industry, self-publishing may be a very real option for me in the future. So personally, I'd love to hear about your experience! Good luck!

Natalie said...

Wow, good luck! I'd love to hear about your self-publishing.
Agreeing with what Jen said, I think it'll definitely be coming up in the future for me. :) I hope to take a peek at your novel soon as well!

Elinor said...

Yes, I think the writing world is longing for some good advice about self-publishing. Anything you can do to help would be appreciated! Elinor

W. Scott Bowlin said...

Self-publishing used to be given such a rough ride from the print publications and the publishing houses. The name "vanity press" was assigned to it by the boys already in the club, and self publishers were looked down upon as inferior writers. Granted, a larger portion of self published books are just bad writing, but that doesn't mean there aren't some good books lurking out there. I'm working on a short story collection that I'm going to self pub, hopefully with at least one story from a lit mag like Glimmertrain or The Sun, which I submit to frequently but to date have not broken through. Feel free to offer up any comments you feel are relevant to the process.

Elinor said...

Yes, Please. I just began to read your old blog and you have some excellent tips. I'm sure many of us would like to hear about your experiences with self-publishing.

Elinor said...

Many of us would love to hear about your self-publishing experiences. Please share.

Unknown said...

Yes please. I would one day like to write a children's book and I think self publishing would be the way to go once I get the book written. I appreciate what you've done here and would like to hear more.
Thank you.

Unknown said...

Yes yes yes. More please :P

Unknown said...

yes yes, please. I would love to read. :)

racer said...

Thank you all for your comments. Again, I dropped out of sight for a while simply because the Record Label is consuming so much time. But we did successfully release a digital edition of our health book,

(http://www.amazon.com/Life-Longer-Live-Healthier-ebook/dp/B00AIHLXUG/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1360104772&sr=8-2&keywords=sanford+severin)

But I didn't do all the work on this one, so no real stories to tell. But now I'm fired up, so this Spring I'm going to get to work on the novel again and I promise I'll keep you updated.

Best,