My new schedule is working really well, I'm getting a lot of writing accomplished, but I'm thinking about bumping my internet free time up even further. I'm a night owl by nature, but I'm finding that getting online to read boards and research topics at night is also keeping me up until the wee hours of the morning. Last night I was up until sometime after 4a and the night before, I went to bed at around 4:45a! Both nights I was reading up on traditional vs. self-publishing (incl. POD and Vanity Presses), the greeting card industry and creating a greeting card line. Fascinating stuff, but it keeps me up waaaay too late. This evening, I'm going to adjust the time again and see if I can get to bed by 2a (my usual time is btwn. 2a and 3a...I told you I'm a night owl).
Since I've been reading up on the topic, let's talk a little about publishing. I've owned my own publishing company since 2000 (Lamasa Publishing, LLC) with the intention of self-publishing my books, songs and my play. I just love Tom and Marilyn Ross' book "The Complete Guide to Self-Publishing" and Peter Rubie's "The Everything Get Published Book" (though I always want to move the 'Everything' to it's proper place in the title...lol). I think it's always been in me. I'm an entrepreneur at heart, so the idea of paying for professional editing, printing, binding, creating cover art, buying ISBN's, creating marketing strategies, self-promotion, etc. has never discouraged me, but has always excited me. I also am a bit of a control freak and have found myself, many times, cringing at stories I hear of publishers changing book titles and cover art into something that a writer finds difficult to stomach. Or the urging of writers to write what sells as opposed to what's naturally in them. Besides, I'm quite impatient and the thought of waiting for an editor to find my books worthy of publish could take forever, if it ever happens at all. Freelancing articles and such is one thing, but when it comes to my books and my play...the independent route is definitely my thing. Plus, it's all just so exciting. To each her own, right?
What I read about one so-called "traditional" publisher was particularly disturbing. Publish America (PA) has duped many an author into believing that they are signing with a bona fide, old-fashioned publishing house and that their books will be sold from major bookstores all over the country. Relieved authors, believing they have reached the elusive goal of being published, happily sign away their rights for 7 years only to find out that PA is nothing more than a POD (Print on Demand) company. You can read more about PA in this Washington Post Article from 2005: http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A25187-2005Jan20 or explore this thread on Absolute Write's forums.
And, speaking of Absolute Write, I found both of these threads on self-publishing to be quite helpful (not just in helping me stay up past 4a either...lol):
http://www.absolutewrite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=21485
http://www.absolutewrite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9185
In true Absolute Write fashion, both threads are packed with information and give plenty of FFT on the whole notion of self-publishing.
(No eloquent seque here, just a quick change of subject...lol)
No word yet on my Blue Mountain Submissions, but I've been considering the idea of publishing my own line of cards in the near future. I have 9 articles that I'm querying for this week, but I plan on spending next week just working on prose (If I can get all of my queries done this week). I may end up submitting a few more, but most I plan on publishing myself.
I'm wondering about the whole Blue Mountain test market too. If you'll recall, I told you that BM often takes up to 2 years to accept a submission as they send it through a test market first. What I don't get is are they testing it with review panels or focus groups or are they actually running public test markets (i.e. selling cards)? If it's the latter, shouldn't the writer still be credited and compensated on those sales? I'm assuming that they are sending it through review panels and focus groups for now (but why the 2 year process?). I'd hate to think of them literally testing the sales market while offering no accounting to authors. Does this make sense to anyone? I'll have to remember to ask the few people I've met who have actually been picked up by them. Or, if you're reading, please comment.
Which reminds me, I read my stats and want to give a warm welcome to all of our readers all over the U.S. and, a special "hello" to those of you stopping by from Germany (hi Rachel!), the U.K., Uganda, South Africa, Australia, Canada, Israel and Singapore! A few of you have posted comments and I hope all of you will post your blogs (even if they're not about writing) so that we can connect to one another. I haven't taken the time to revisit my sidebar issue in a while, but soon and very soon, I'll get it fixed and I'd like to add all of your links to it. I sincerely hope that my blog is helping you. I don't know it all, but I'm sharing what I do know as I fumble along.
Hope everyone has a blessed week and I'll see you all again soon!
~BabyBlogger
Since I've been reading up on the topic, let's talk a little about publishing. I've owned my own publishing company since 2000 (Lamasa Publishing, LLC) with the intention of self-publishing my books, songs and my play. I just love Tom and Marilyn Ross' book "The Complete Guide to Self-Publishing" and Peter Rubie's "The Everything Get Published Book" (though I always want to move the 'Everything' to it's proper place in the title...lol). I think it's always been in me. I'm an entrepreneur at heart, so the idea of paying for professional editing, printing, binding, creating cover art, buying ISBN's, creating marketing strategies, self-promotion, etc. has never discouraged me, but has always excited me. I also am a bit of a control freak and have found myself, many times, cringing at stories I hear of publishers changing book titles and cover art into something that a writer finds difficult to stomach. Or the urging of writers to write what sells as opposed to what's naturally in them. Besides, I'm quite impatient and the thought of waiting for an editor to find my books worthy of publish could take forever, if it ever happens at all. Freelancing articles and such is one thing, but when it comes to my books and my play...the independent route is definitely my thing. Plus, it's all just so exciting. To each her own, right?
What I read about one so-called "traditional" publisher was particularly disturbing. Publish America (PA) has duped many an author into believing that they are signing with a bona fide, old-fashioned publishing house and that their books will be sold from major bookstores all over the country. Relieved authors, believing they have reached the elusive goal of being published, happily sign away their rights for 7 years only to find out that PA is nothing more than a POD (Print on Demand) company. You can read more about PA in this Washington Post Article from 2005: http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A25187-2005Jan20 or explore this thread on Absolute Write's forums.
And, speaking of Absolute Write, I found both of these threads on self-publishing to be quite helpful (not just in helping me stay up past 4a either...lol):
http://www.absolutewrite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=21485
http://www.absolutewrite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9185
In true Absolute Write fashion, both threads are packed with information and give plenty of FFT on the whole notion of self-publishing.
(No eloquent seque here, just a quick change of subject...lol)
No word yet on my Blue Mountain Submissions, but I've been considering the idea of publishing my own line of cards in the near future. I have 9 articles that I'm querying for this week, but I plan on spending next week just working on prose (If I can get all of my queries done this week). I may end up submitting a few more, but most I plan on publishing myself.
I'm wondering about the whole Blue Mountain test market too. If you'll recall, I told you that BM often takes up to 2 years to accept a submission as they send it through a test market first. What I don't get is are they testing it with review panels or focus groups or are they actually running public test markets (i.e. selling cards)? If it's the latter, shouldn't the writer still be credited and compensated on those sales? I'm assuming that they are sending it through review panels and focus groups for now (but why the 2 year process?). I'd hate to think of them literally testing the sales market while offering no accounting to authors. Does this make sense to anyone? I'll have to remember to ask the few people I've met who have actually been picked up by them. Or, if you're reading, please comment.
Which reminds me, I read my stats and want to give a warm welcome to all of our readers all over the U.S. and, a special "hello" to those of you stopping by from Germany (hi Rachel!), the U.K., Uganda, South Africa, Australia, Canada, Israel and Singapore! A few of you have posted comments and I hope all of you will post your blogs (even if they're not about writing) so that we can connect to one another. I haven't taken the time to revisit my sidebar issue in a while, but soon and very soon, I'll get it fixed and I'd like to add all of your links to it. I sincerely hope that my blog is helping you. I don't know it all, but I'm sharing what I do know as I fumble along.
Hope everyone has a blessed week and I'll see you all again soon!
~BabyBlogger
posted by BabyBlogger at 11:14 AM
2 Comments:
Hey Baby Blogger! I got to your blog through your sig link on the WAHM forum (I'm Havsaworkin on there) and have been enjoying reading. You sound a lot like me in many ways--let's just do it!--and I want to link your blog to mine. In fact, that's why I came on here tonight was to get your blog address and cross-post it, when I saw that you had talked about this very thing on your blog. Too funny.
Anyway, my blog address is http://havsaworkin.blogspot.com/ if you want to check it out. Have a great night!
Hava, your blog is so entertaining (I left you a message there too) and thank you so much for linking to mine. :)
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