A small article about me leaving Last Things in places in Solihull centre before it comes to our local Waterstones store has appeared in our local paper. I say small advisedly because it was so easy to miss. No photograph this time which makes a big difference so don't expect much publicity from it. i ahve started to leave books in Solihull and actually saw someone pick one up and take it with them this morning. They actually took it with them! Looked inside and carried it away. Just hope they read it and tell others. Still no guarantee of a sale though. Have you read this does not mean someone goes and buys it. They either borrow or read and hand on. Still it means it is being read. A big difference though between 'being read' having thought it worth buying and being read 'cos someone gave you it. No sign of it appearing in Waterstones yet and so sign of any order. Don't see my contact around much. perhaps she has already moved on and was just trying to be nice. Still I suppose the 'ordering process' can take a long time. It did for Herod Dreams.
My brother phoned and said he read it in two nights and enjoyed it. Wondered if it was true as he had heard of a girl going missing and someone being found hanging. Assured him it was not true at all, I had made it up.
Asked him to let his friends know about it and perhaps encourage them to buy it. Didn't fell too god about that, rather cheap, but what else are you supposed to do? I am writing and trying to become an author. Won't be that until people are not just reading what I have written but are buying the stuff!
No sales for the month on kindle. Found a discussion forum on ebooks and it is full of people like me, trying to promote their book and having very little success. One or two you find have sold thousands. Maybe marketed at 73p but they are rare and have not created that market by promoting their work on the discussion site. They seem to have found that right moment, right tag, right review that enables their book to suddenly take off. The rest of us just complain about the injustice of big publishers' influence and the need to keep plugging away, believing that one day...
Any progress on Authonmy site seems to have stopped and I am gradually losing interest and so the book begins to fall from its dizzy heights of 143.
Found Alan Guthrie, who is keen on crime novellas, on the discussion site. His blog is worth looking at again, perhaps, although his success is based on a long career in writing and he has a well organised publiciy machine worked out. Steven Leather's advice about to become a write you have to have been writing for 10,000 hours and stop writing shit is a bit hard.
Wednesday 25 May 2011
Wednesday 18 May 2011
Crime Novellas
Had an email from a friend who has just finished reading LT. Although she enjoyed it a great deal she thought it was too short. Needed more about Peter and Simon. What happened to them? To be honest I couldn't say, only guess. They are both at important moments in their lives and I don't know if their lives are going to turn out for the best or not. I can guess but that would be unfair. Maybe I am waiting for them to tell me. For now I think they want to be left alone because I don't hear them any more. Young Foskett on the other hand keeps whispering and hinting at more to come.
Found a man who is enthusiastically promoting crime novellas as well as his own on his own sites and on a amazon discussion site. Emailed him about LT and now wait with bated breath.
No sign of order from Waterstones, nor of any article in local paper. Oh how it tests your patience. Promisd my selfto go in and see person at local paper tomorrow.
In the mean time, in the real world, a friend has been diagnosed with kidney cancer and it does not look good. Sod it.
Found a man who is enthusiastically promoting crime novellas as well as his own on his own sites and on a amazon discussion site. Emailed him about LT and now wait with bated breath.
No sign of order from Waterstones, nor of any article in local paper. Oh how it tests your patience. Promisd my selfto go in and see person at local paper tomorrow.
In the mean time, in the real world, a friend has been diagnosed with kidney cancer and it does not look good. Sod it.
Thursday 5 May 2011
Still trying
Contact at my local Waterstones seemed quite positive about being able to 'market book' after only reading five pages and says she has ordered four copies. Four copies! Doesn't seem very much. But its the risk they have to take, I suppose. They only had three copies of Herod Dreams and still have one left tucked away on its shelf between Sparks and Steinbeck. Mind you Steinbeck's book has been there for just as long! She seems to think that Last Things will be put on the local author section with its face pointing outwards. Wonder if cover is enough for people to pick up on a whim?
Also dropped off a copy and small article for local newspaper to see if they might be interested. Can never find the place open. Sign in the window today saying, due to cut backs and shortage of staff, office only open for three days/week. Envelope had gone from floor so might have got to David Irwin. Check tomorrow.
Gave copy to hairdresser who cuts Ethan's hair. He was pleased to get copy and seemed enthusiastic. Might be the sort of person who will pass it around or tell people about it and create an interest. Enough for Solihull to buy four copies from Waterstones? Who can tell?
No sales on Kindle nor Amazon yet!
Also dropped off a copy and small article for local newspaper to see if they might be interested. Can never find the place open. Sign in the window today saying, due to cut backs and shortage of staff, office only open for three days/week. Envelope had gone from floor so might have got to David Irwin. Check tomorrow.
Gave copy to hairdresser who cuts Ethan's hair. He was pleased to get copy and seemed enthusiastic. Might be the sort of person who will pass it around or tell people about it and create an interest. Enough for Solihull to buy four copies from Waterstones? Who can tell?
No sales on Kindle nor Amazon yet!
Monday 25 April 2011
Do not read this unless you have read the book
Jim's comment on authonomy has picked up a deliberate style/technique I try to use:
‘This story has an oddly dual quality. On the surface it has a gritty realism in the description of the scenes and the very naturalistic dialogue; and yet one feels as if one is viewing it in a dream and everything is subtly "off" - very disconcerting and sinister... As a story it makes my skin creep, '
There are two scenes in particular that are intended to create a feeling of unease, perhaps even dis-ease. One is the toddler standing at the front door while his mother is coming to pay her bill. I wanted him and his erection to make the reader feel uncomfortable, as though there is some sort of evil presence that Peter is trying shield Simon from. No one has mentioned it at all, so it probably didn't work, even though it felt as though it did when writing the scene.
Another is the two boys playing hide and seek. Tracy picked this up and wondered what the hell was going on there. There seemed to be no point in the scene. Others have said they are just figment of Simon's imagination and agree with Peter that it must have been the effect of the coffee. No one has yet connected it to the death of Peter's brothers in the war. For me they are ghosts, waiting for Peter to play with them. Perhaps that is too much!
I used this way of the reader 'viewing it in a dream' and 'everything is subtly off' a lot in Herod Dreams.
‘This story has an oddly dual quality. On the surface it has a gritty realism in the description of the scenes and the very naturalistic dialogue; and yet one feels as if one is viewing it in a dream and everything is subtly "off" - very disconcerting and sinister... As a story it makes my skin creep, '
There are two scenes in particular that are intended to create a feeling of unease, perhaps even dis-ease. One is the toddler standing at the front door while his mother is coming to pay her bill. I wanted him and his erection to make the reader feel uncomfortable, as though there is some sort of evil presence that Peter is trying shield Simon from. No one has mentioned it at all, so it probably didn't work, even though it felt as though it did when writing the scene.
Another is the two boys playing hide and seek. Tracy picked this up and wondered what the hell was going on there. There seemed to be no point in the scene. Others have said they are just figment of Simon's imagination and agree with Peter that it must have been the effect of the coffee. No one has yet connected it to the death of Peter's brothers in the war. For me they are ghosts, waiting for Peter to play with them. Perhaps that is too much!
I used this way of the reader 'viewing it in a dream' and 'everything is subtly off' a lot in Herod Dreams.
Getting it out there.
Been working on promotional letter to add to books when sending for review. I seem to be becoming happier with the process now and have more to say about the book. I think at first I was loathe to say anything about the book's content because it seemed to me to be giving away the plot, opening the book before actually holding it in your hand and turning the first page, denying the surprise. Perhaps it was just that I didn't know what to say, having said all I wanted to say in the story itself. The book was meant to say it all. Anyway, here it is. It has a picture of the front cover with it as well, but has not copied to blog. See what you think:
These are a few of the comments made by strangers who have read Last Things on the internet:
‘A stunning piece of writing, one which will linger in the mind long after others have left. The prose is economic, minimalist, but evocative. You have created a world in microcosm and your characters lives are interlinked so cleverly.’ (Jay Hill)
'...dark and compelling.' (Jilly Paddock)
Sweet, little Georgia Lee has been taken. The papers are full of it.
So why is Simon watching Mrs Johnson from his bedroom window? Who is the man leaving his mother’s bed in the early morning? How did Tom find the pretty blue cardigan? Why is old Peter surprised that Simon is taking over his round? What is happening in the back of the van? Why are the police calling at Simon’s house?
So why is Simon watching Mrs Johnson from his bedroom window? Who is the man leaving his mother’s bed in the early morning? How did Tom find the pretty blue cardigan? Why is old Peter surprised that Simon is taking over his round? What is happening in the back of the van? Why are the police calling at Simon’s house?
In the following chapters we follow Simon and Peter as they follow the path in the book to its dreadful end.
On the way we meet Frank, who paints nightmare visions on the walls inside his house. We have tea with Joseph and Jess, who share their tales of beasts and monsters. We call on Tom, who cannot come out to play. We find that Peter is threatened by some youths. And someone is trying to find Georgia Lee before it is too late.
How are all these connected? How many will come out of this unscathed?
And Crow? Crow knows they are all animals.
Are some crimes justifiable? Make up your own mind.
And Crow? Crow knows they are all animals.
Are some crimes justifiable? Make up your own mind.
These are a few of the comments made by strangers who have read Last Things on the internet:
‘A stunning piece of writing, one which will linger in the mind long after others have left. The prose is economic, minimalist, but evocative. You have created a world in microcosm and your characters lives are interlinked so cleverly.’ (Jay Hill)
‘I actually read the first two chapters of it again yesterday and I was thinking how cleverly you slowly filter knowledge and the need for order into the dark and somewhat helpless chaos of a child's mind. There is a sense of a curtain being drawn back, a rite of passage beckoning. And the rows and columns of the book the old man shows Simon becomes a kind of mantra against the primitive force of the dead moth in its puddle of rainwater. It's superb writing and beautifully crafted.’ (Violet Wells)
‘I love ‘mute, with an air of whispering menace.’ That just about sums up my impression of your story – somehow innocent, yet with an air of whispering menace.’ (Diana Mair)
‘The tension underlying the minute move of each character is gripping, like being steeped into a Hitchcock movie... (I was) fascinated by the slow but steady building up of connections and intrigue, the weaving together of characters. Simon's pov is mesmerizing. He starts out on this new collection round for the local paper shop, puzzling over certain things he learns and observes, troubled by the crow which slips from his dream into the day via subtle signs here and there. There is no word and no observation wasted in this writing.’ (Ashen Venema)
‘Really, this is everything I look for in a book: the immediate and total immersion into another world, guided by a confident and wise voice. You draw characters that instantly breathe and move about in my mind; you expertly drop little bread crumbs that will develop into full loaves later in the story...the mystery of the neighbor girl, Simon's mother's philandering, Simon's burgeoning sexuality and particular childhood. Beautiful, beautiful prose that is a joy unto itself.’ (Mary Vensel White)
‘Was very impressed with the writing of this. Lyrical and mythical quality to it with beautiful imagery and ideas, especially in the last five paragraphs. I love Crow - an archetype more than just a bird, the minute observations (the man using 'his father's' toilet, the small details of everyday life and the habits of people). The start of the book is wonderful - I defy anyone not to read on from here.’
(Pam Johnson)
‘I came back to look again at the last chapter. The old man is nearly finished showing Simon the ropes of the paper-round on his last day in the job. Your style captures all over again, I'm full of admiration for the way you use subtle detail and dialogue. I feel I'm right next to these characters, almost breathing the same air in that shed. ... 'What if it doesn't match up?' ... 'You start again' ... They smile at each other, as thought sharing a joke ... Or ... The tips of his fingers tingle from the touch of the metal. Each plastic bag clings to the sweat on his hand as he fumbles to open it ...
The chapter brings the main characters and their secrets into focus, the old man musing on his life and the point of it all, reading to Mary about Sisyphus ... the endless repetition of the senseless task ... He has become the man he is and that is all. No better, no worse. And Simon, stacking away his earnings in the cut-out cavity of a books he only now discovers the theme of. Then Tom, the mother-bound man-child, Foskett, the self-styled vigilante. And the boy, the poor snitch, the one who believes he saves his skin by locating the old man for his tormentors - a great chase, by the way. The boy, an innocent agent of dark fate, is taken out, adrift in the waters under the bridge. He seemed so inconsequential, and yet ... Foskett remains the most mysterious character, a man on a mission who has power over animals and people, a dark force with his own ideas of justice. The crow as the witness returns most effectively. This is not a tale of morals, it gives a glimpse of the abyss to the dysfunctional, and the twisted motivations running through generations. Yet what we think of as humane prevails in all its vulnerability. We love the old man. And we invest in Simon's future. Who would have thought so much can be learned about human nature and the vagaries of fate from a day's paper-round.’ (Ashen Venema)
The chapter brings the main characters and their secrets into focus, the old man musing on his life and the point of it all, reading to Mary about Sisyphus ... the endless repetition of the senseless task ... He has become the man he is and that is all. No better, no worse. And Simon, stacking away his earnings in the cut-out cavity of a books he only now discovers the theme of. Then Tom, the mother-bound man-child, Foskett, the self-styled vigilante. And the boy, the poor snitch, the one who believes he saves his skin by locating the old man for his tormentors - a great chase, by the way. The boy, an innocent agent of dark fate, is taken out, adrift in the waters under the bridge. He seemed so inconsequential, and yet ... Foskett remains the most mysterious character, a man on a mission who has power over animals and people, a dark force with his own ideas of justice. The crow as the witness returns most effectively. This is not a tale of morals, it gives a glimpse of the abyss to the dysfunctional, and the twisted motivations running through generations. Yet what we think of as humane prevails in all its vulnerability. We love the old man. And we invest in Simon's future. Who would have thought so much can be learned about human nature and the vagaries of fate from a day's paper-round.’ (Ashen Venema)
‘Everywhere you turn in the opening chapter you encounter something newly sinister. Everyone seems to have a secret or an involvement with some horrible stuff but with the prevalence of so much darkness you still manage to provide an ambience that teases the tragicomedy inherent in the relentlessly macabre.’ (Hughie MacMahon)
‘This story has an oddly dual quality. On the surface it has a gritty realism in the description of the scenes and the very naturalistic dialogue; and yet one feels as if one is viewing it in a dream and everything is subtly "off" - very disconcerting and sinister... As a story it makes my skin creep, and it will work very well for people who like that sensation.’ (Jim Williams)
Monday 18 April 2011
Trying to get Last Things 'out there.'
Returned from break to find LT on kindle ebooks. There are a lot of books out there with LT as part of their title. No-one is going to find LT without knowing about it already. Or, if they come across it while browsing the blurb/ editorial comment has got to grab their attention. At the moment I don't think it does so will have to change it. So, still left with the biggy of how to spread the word and create a demand. Need to get it reviewed in reputable magazine or paper as well as giving copies to people who might spread the word.
Finally met up with MG from my local Waterstones. She had not had the copy I left for her and eventually found it under a pile of papers and proofs on her desk. Says she will look at it and I need to go in again a week on Wednesday. She liked the cover! Oh the ups and downs of being an author.
Finally met up with MG from my local Waterstones. She had not had the copy I left for her and eventually found it under a pile of papers and proofs on her desk. Says she will look at it and I need to go in again a week on Wednesday. She liked the cover! Oh the ups and downs of being an author.
Saturday 9 April 2011
Crow in Last Things
T. commented the other day that she was not sure about Crow as, for her the image of a crow carried so much meaning with it. Using Crow seemed like a too easy shorthand. A lot of comments on authonomy refer to Crow's presence throughout the story. For me Crow is an ambiguous figure, not only representing a quiet menace and the connection to Crow by Ted Hughes, whose images of 'the black shape of Crow falling across the page' have such a fascination for me, but also how Crow can stand for 'an enduring bond' between male and female in the myths and legends of crows. So for me he stands not only for death of the body, but also a soul bereft of his partner, adrift in the world.
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