has had her book accepted for publication. I wish we lived closer so I could celebrate with her -- it's quite a feat these days to have something new accepted. Publishing is changing faster than most writers can comprehend. There's so much self-promotion involved, and so much e-this-and-that. I've worked for a week to get myself cross-referenced on Amazon with the various versions of LILY
now, and with an author page, etc. Now, I'm told I need a personal web site. Geez!Read an article in a magazine today about branding yourself, as in self-promoting not the actual thing -- branding like cattle. The writer had attended a webinar about self-branding, trying to become more relevant. He was obviously an old dinosaur like me. Well, in fact, this was all about ME. No, not me myself, but market branding "ME." Everyone's so-called Unique Selling Proposition, and developing our own brand to pinpoint what sets us apart, playing up our achievements, our consistencies. Well, I found all this difficult back in the old days (translate that to the 1990s) and maybe even harder now. That's not to say I'm not game. I just never have had anyone tell me exactly how to go about defining myself and what I do best.
Thinking about all this consistency stuff, I've never liked the idea of pigeon-holing my stuff quite that definitively. I always wanted to leave myself a way out of writing to a particular genre. I wanted, and still do want, to write things that are different from what I've already done. I have The Endless Novel, which is more consistent with my other novels (could that be why it's "endless?"), as well as a western, young adult novel with a few chapters written, and a screenplay with a few written scenes, and a memoir that has also stalled. Well, and then there's the children's book that keeps coming back to me. Got it back again just a couple of days ago. I still like it but nobody else seems to agree with me on that one.
I have a vision for all of these projects, just need to get them out there, and need to take some lessons from my writer -friend with the new publishing contract. She has this whole new wave of Internet publishing figured out. I'm trying to get there but I feel like I'm falling behind.
(BIG SHOVE)
Onward ....
Thanks for the shout-out Cindy, but, Oh, I wish I did have this whole internet thing figured out. I do things by inches, baby steps. There's a new Sister in Crime book on promotion called Shameless Self Promotion for Brazen Hussies. I've ordered it, will let you know if it's helpful. All reviews say so far that it is.
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