YES, PEOPLE REALLY DO READ BLOGS

Each time I post an entry on my blog I wonder if anybody actually reads them. Well I am happy to report that they do. Recently I have heard from several new authors who are facing the same obstacle I am, “how do we get bookstores to stock our books?” No one seems to know the answer.

Today I wandered around in a Barnes and Nobel on the Upper Westside in Manhattan and saw thousands of books by authors I have never heard. Now I am not saying that I would know every author in the world, and I don’t begrudge them their coveted spot on the shelf; I just want to know why there isn’t room for just one more.

“Worry Looks Around, Sorry Looks Back, Faith Looks Up”

KEEP THE FAITH!

CATCH 22

Now that I have asked everyone I know to ask everyone they know to buy a copy of “Behind the Shadows” and have mailed out over a thousand promo cards, I feel as though I have hit a brick wall in the sales department. Of course, if book stores carried “Behind the Shadows” -- even if only a few copies -- things would be much easier, but they do not. I have now lost count of the number of people who have told me “I will stop at the bookstore on my way home and pick up a copy.” And each time I must explain that “Behind the Shadows” is not in bookstores, but they will order a copy for you, which, by the way, takes about 2 weeks to get; or you can order it online. With a look of amazement everyone asks me the same question “how can you sell if you are not visible?” -- I wish I knew. So in an effort to boost sales I am contacting PR firms. Many have told me that they do not handle new novelists and one actually hung up on me! But I will not give up. Each time I get discouraged I remember what a young wander recently told me (did I mention that I speak to everyone?) –

“The only place to find the light is to look “Behind the Shadows”

KEEP YOUR LIGHT SHINING!

KEEP DREAMING

Last night as I lay my head on my pillow I was obsessing about making time to continue writing the sequel to “Behind the Shadows” and as I slowly drifted off to sleep I promised myself that tomorrow I will write. This morning, as the sun streamed into my bedroom and nudged me from my sleep, it awoke me from a wonderful dream. I was dreaming about the characters in my sequel. It is no secret to those who know me that my characters talk to me and tell me their stories; but this is the first time that they have come to me in my dreams. So today I will sit at my computer and continue with their story and hopefully they will visit me again. Some may say I’m crazy; but I’m not. As I say about getting on the Best Seller List “I can dream can’t I?”

SWEET DREAMS!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

With every New Year comes new resolutions; and my resolve to complete the sequel to “Behind the Shadows” is a strong one. However, as a newly published author with little recognition, the need to promote “Behind the Shadows” has overshadowed my desire to write and I find my focus turning to sales, numbers and the knowledge that a sequel must have an audience waiting for it before it can be sent to print. And that is the root of the problem of all newly published authors. We are so consumed with the monitoring of our on-line sales’ rankings, which no one understands; and are so bemused by the notion that our publishers do not overtly promote our books; that we put off writing until tomorrow. However, when tomorrow comes, we are back to monitoring our rankings and brooding over the fact that our voices cannot be heard.

HAPPY WRITING!