the nearest book

This was originally posted by some guy on Facebook. It's a fun little game. Feel free to copy and paste on your own blogs or Facebook pages.

Rules:

1. Grab the book nearest you. Right now.
2. Turn to page 56.
3. Find the fifth sentence.
4. Post that sentence along with these instructions on your blog (or post to your Facebook wall in a note).
5. Don't dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual. Use the CLOSEST.

Here's mine, from Nora Ephron's I Feel Bad About My Neck:
"They never really change," people often said (back in those days) about babies.

"my guest tonight..."

I've been having fanstasies of appearing on The Daily Show and The Colbert Report to promote my novel. Of course, I am a fabulous guest. I have plenty to say. I tell the story about the time I encountered Jon Stewart in the Sag Harbor drugstore and, in suck-up fashion, recommend that Stephen Colbert would make a good Devin in the movie version of Faking It. I make the usual jokes about the book itself: No, it's not autobiographical. No, I did no formal researh of male escorts. No, I don't really hate my mother.

With my luck, I'd be interviewed for one of the mock news pieces -- and, in the process, I'd be severely mocked.

Ah well. Maybe I'll just try to get tickets to a taping when I go home for the holidays (or will they be on hiatus then?) and put my guest fantasies to rest. (Or should I send a book to Oprah instead?)

on self-publishing: a message from the converted

With each day that passes, the ambivalence I had had regarding self-publishing is becoming a distant memory. My advice to those who want to self-publish but are afraid of the stigma that accompanies it: Don't be afraid. And don't listen to those who tell you not to because of said stigma. Times are a changin'.

That is not to say that there aren't any crappy books that have been self-published. But there are a lot of crappy books that have been traditionally published, too. As my twin brother says, there's a market for *everything.* Rise above it.

The keys to self-publishing are commitment and planning. Make the decision and stick with it. Don't waffle back and forth, and don't let others talk you out of it. Some people may tell you it's hard. Some agents may tell you that the traditional publishing world and/or literature departments in universities across the country have a disdain for it. Some booksellers may tell you that they never stock self-published books. All of the above *might* be true.

But...
What they don't tell you is that there is such a thing as viral marketing, i.e. marking via word-of-mouth that is used to promote and sell everything to music to movies to medicine. Heck, why do you think Barack Obama's campaign was so successful? Technology gives us a quicker and easier access to a market than ever before. Podcasts, Facebook, blogs, etc. connects us to many at once.

Of course, I'm not saying anything that you probably don't already know. You're a smart bunch.

If you are committed to self-publishing, then go all the way. Don't skimp. Make every aspect of your book as professional as possible. Proofread and edit it w/in an inch of its life. Get feedback.
And when you're finally ready to sell, don't just sell your book out of the backseat of your car. Make contacts. Network yourself professionally (no stalking!). Get a Myspace or Facebook page. Get your own website. Join a Meetup. Make the book as accessible as possible. Arrange to do a reading. But plan these things. Assess how much time and/or money you can invest into promoting yourself. Be thoughtful in your approach. Set goals and timelines.

I can probably do a better job of all of the above than I am now. But I am certain I'm on the right track, and that feels *really* good.

I'm not telling you to abandon traditional publishing. I'll likely go back to querying agents when my current fiction manuscript is ready (and that likely won't be until next spring). But it's so encouraging to know that there are more options than ever before (and really, don't we writers need all the encouragement we can get?), all w/in our reach.

Take 'em! Go for it!

Introducing FAKING IT

Faking It has finally arrived! Go to my Storefront to order your copy!!!

I am sooo excited that this day has come. It's even a little scary. I mean, I finally did it! And for all my ups and downs, ambivalence and reassurance, I'm happy that I've taken this step.

My hope is that you'll buy it, you'll tell your friends to buy it, and that you'll like it.

Thanks for stickin' with me!

the elements of memoir

I enjoyed today's QRB panel on memoir writing. It's a genre I've taught, but from a rhetorical point of view. Interestingly enough, as the panelist spoke, I found myself jotting notes not about her insight or advice, but ideas for how to improve my own narratives in my nonfiction book. Inspiration struck. There was something else I was reminded of, although it wasn't something that was said today: in a memoir, the writer acts as both an observant and a participant of the event he/she is writing about, and the reader needs to be the same.

I have some ideas about what I'd like to attend to in my narratives -- I don't know that I would classify them as "memoir," but they are stories that need to encompass more of memoir's elements. These include:

• establishing a better sense of place.
• doing just a tiny bit of research (tiny, at least, for my purpose and audience) to get a sense of historical context. (My concern is getting too far off the track of the lesson of the story, and turning such context into "info dump".)
• as of right now, the voice of the narrative has a "going-through-the-motions" feel to it. I want to be more mindful of the narrator as observer and participant.

I'd also like to share something that Stacey, as panel moderator, shared w/ the audience, in regards to process (and revision, I'd say) in his novel-writing, and I think it serves creative nonfiction as well. (Please correct me if I've misprepresented you in any way, Stacey.) At the end of each chapter, he takes inventory of several elements:

• character POV
• where is the protag? (and/or supporting characters)
• how are they feeling?
• what do they want (internal, external)?
• how are they going to get it?

After the event, I got to say hello w/ some attendees that I haven't seen in awhile, and got to unveil my newly printed novel. The exitement on their faces, and their compliments and congratulations were all very validating and contagious. I think I am finally ready to take the last step: the ISBN. It's time.

There's something really wonderful about being a part of a community. This Write2Publish group is quite gratifying. To all my readers (many of whom are part of this same community), I'm glad to know you and belong. And to those readers who haven't found their community yet, seek them out. They will benefit your writing -- and you -- in more ways than you know.

I wrote the book I wanted to read

Today I lost track of how many hours I spent revising the introduction to my book, but I like what I came out with. And because I kept in mind that I wrote the book I wanted to read, I got out of my own way and wrote without trying too hard, without worrying about what others would think, without worrying about whether it was good or not.

I also realize that I need to stop kavetching when it's not going well. Calling attention to the negative, keeping those thoughts alive and active, only attracts more of them. Begone!!

Writers are such goofy people, yes? I say that lovingly, of course. :)

I considered moving on to another chapter, but I think I'm gonna just enjoy this little bit of momentum and move on to other pleasant things. Low volume, high content. Why stuff yourself with the whole cake when one slice is so satisfying?

update

After much back-and-forth w/ Lulu, my new test copy has arrived, and it looks pretty good.
Thing is, I'm not sure "pretty good" is good enough.
I want professional grade. I want this book to be taken seriously.

It could be me in perfectionist mode, or it could be that I have legitmate concerns. I'm just not sure. I'm going to show it to some people this weekend and see what they think, and if I'm satisfied w/ what they say, I'm going to go ahead and purchase an ISBN and make it available to the public. If not, it might be worth it to wait a bit longer--even after the holidays--and get it as close to perfect as possible.

I have learned so much about this process and made several mistakes, which, in the end, are successes since I can apply them to the next project (the corrections, not the mistakes!). And I believe more than ever that this is the next wave of publishing and, if done carefully and thoughtfully, can yield just as much success as traditional publishing.

As for my nonfiction manuscript, well, I think it's time for me to ask for an extention on it. I don't think my publishers know that this is a very young manuscript -- I began writing it in May -- and such things can't be rushed. I had thought that because it was a relatively short book that I could complete it quickly, but revision is slow and meticulous, and I live by the saying: "Do you want it done fast, or do you want it done right?". There are three weeks left of the semester, and they're going to require my physical and mental energy. I'm just not going to be able to attend to this manuscript the way it needs to be attended to.

This morning, my novel-writing partner asked how the writing was going. I replied, "It's going very well in my head." Right now, that's good enough. Thoughts are the keys to manifestation. If I can't get the physical writing done, I'm going to keep composing in my head, seeing it as a finished manuscript, see it as something that I already know and am able to complete, see myself working on it w/out fear or resistance. That much I can do and believe in.