Chip MacGregor .com

Meet Shannon Potelicki

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

When I learned to write, I couldn’t stop. I became “The Weird Writer Girl.”

I see now that this nickname was a commentary on my tendency to spend recess writing stories instead of playing on the monkey bars. Back then? That name meant I was a superhero—saving the world one handwritten (in pink crayon) Barbie play at a time. To my little brothers, however, it meant I was a supervillain—holding them against their will to provide the voices for the boy dolls. Superhero or not, I decided that I was going to spend the rest of my life mastering the power of words.

With that resolve, I didn’t shock anyone when it came time to pick a college. I chose Taylor University’s acclaimed Professional Writing program. I graduated after earning the Jerry B. Jenkins Annual Writing Scholarship, having my byline published in a variety of magazines and newspapers, and completing an editorial internship with Focus's book publishing department.

I’ve continued to pursue a career as a writer since graduation. My projects have included ghostwriting, writing marketing and donor relations copy, and freelancing articles for online and print publications.

For the past several months, I’ve also been serving as Chip’s assistant—going through the slush pile, helping out with research, and handling other small projects. It’s been a pleasure to work with the MacGregor Literary agents, and (now that I’ve gotten the hang of things) they’ve asked me to join the team as their new International Rights Specialist.

In this new role, I’ll handle MacGregor Literary’s international deals and enable our authors to maximize their income potential. The agency has wanted to expand its involvement in the international market for awhile, and I’m excited to be giving leadership to this endeavor. As I get things going, I’ll continue to serve as Chip’s assistant and pursue my own writing projects. It’s a pretty cool gig for “The Weird Writer Girl”—I finally get to save the world with words!

I look forward to all of the possibilities this holds for MacGregor Literary—and I hope you do too. Thanks for welcoming me to the team.

—Shannon Potelicki

 

If your novel is "not quite there..."

Okay, so you’ve hit a wall with your novel. Perhaps the creativity you once enjoyed lies dormant. Maybe you feel as if you’ve written yourself into a corner and don’t know how to get out. Your story isn’t flowing like it should. You’re tired. You feel a bit at odds with the project you once couldn’t wait to sit down to. But you still have faith in the vision you developed so long ago. Maybe you know your novel isn’t ready for submission but you don’t exactly know why. A host of reasons explain why writers  experience a  need for support, each one unique to the writer.

Luminary was formed by novelist Lisa Samson for writers who find themselves right where you are. Instead of traditional critique, Lisa wants to help you succeed as a novelist. Luminary isn’t simply about revealing the weaknesses in your manuscript. It’s about highlighting your strengths as well and helping you write with those in mind.

After writing for two decades as well as enjoying work in visual arts, Lisa possesses an intuitive understanding of the creative process. She understands people express themselves best when they are true to who they are and aware of how their life journey affects their work. Lisa provides thoughtful support based on each individual’s style of creativity and vision. In other words, Lisa wants to help you develop your own unique voice, not become a version of someone else.

Lisa brings experience with thirty books, three Christy Awards, and multiple starred reviews from Publisher’s Weekly Magazine. Christianity Today named her novel, Quaker Summer, one of the best novels for 2008. That same novel was Women of Faith’s novel of the year, and seemed to win named by reviewers everywhere as one of the best books in print that year. A host of positive reviews and respect from her peers assures you that Lisa is able to produce quality fiction and can help you do the same. (I was a fan of Lisa's writing long before I became her agent.)

If you're interested, Luminary offers support in two levels.

Story Support:  Lisa will read thirty pages of your manuscript as well as the detailed synopsis you will provide. She’ll help you get your book off to the start it deserves with insights into character development and overall story direction. You’ll receive a thoughtful write-up as well as a brainstorming phone call.  $350.00

Manuscript Development: With your submission of 100 pages and a detailed synopsis, Lisa will offer story support, more comprehensive help with character development and help with the more technical aspects of writing. You’ll receive your manuscript back with more detailed comments and suggestions as well as a phone call to answer any questions you might have. $700.00

To see if you and Lisa are a good fit, email her at [email protected] or check out her website: http://luminarycreative.blogspot.com/ . Just thought you should know.

By the way, Rob Eager over at Wildfire Marketing is offering his "Bestseller Website Tutorial" for authors. This resource is designed to help authors in need of some website help, and he has distinctly different versions for fiction and non-fiction. You can get the details at: http://www.startawildfire.com/websitetutorial.html -- and Rob is offering a $5.00 discount for anyone who mentions this blog!

In other news, the people who run the ACFW Conference (which is without question the best CBA fiction gathering for authors) are making the entire 2011 convention available on MP3s for just $99. And they include everything -- the workshops, the continuing education sessions, even the classes that had prerequisites to join. Seems like a pretty good deal, but I understand it's just for the month of March. Stop by their website to order.

Oh, and if you're a Left Coast author, I notice there's a new writing conference taking place this summer. Corban University in Salem, Oregon, is offering a brand new writer's conference. You can find out everything you need at http://www.corban.edu/news/2011-12/0223WritersConference.html,http://www.corban.edu/wordworks/writers-conference.html

One last note: Alice Crider, the longtime editor at Waterbrook/Random House (and my former assistant), has also started working on proposals from writers that have potential but are “not quite there yet.” If you're an author who needs some assistance, Alice can help you get your project where it needs to be. Check her out at www.alicecrider.com  

Happy writing!

 

 

Conspirators R Us

 

If you're a regular reader of my blog, you doubtless understand this blog is, at heart, a "publishing journalism" site. Things happen in the publishing industry, and I talk about them. There are lessons for writers to learn, and I share them. Other people have opinions, and I let them offer their thoughts. That's why I found it interesting that a publisher is threatening to sue me. 

 

You might have heard the news that Wine Press Publishing, a vanity press in the state of Washington, is in a battle with the former owner of the company, a woman named Athena Dean. You can google the topic to get all the details, which is how I found out about it. The argument basically comes down to the former owner claiming she was treated badly by a group she believes is, more or less, a fundamentalist church that has taken over the company. The current situation is an interesting study in business ethics and church governance and arcane theology, but you'd have to go somewhere else to find the details, since I've never blogged about it before. I haven't said anything about it on my corporate website, either. Nor have I written about it for any other magazine, e-zine, or journal. I could have -- I mean, I'm a trained journalist, talking about the publishing industry, and the allegation that a big company that's very involved in Christian publishing has acted unfairly toward employees or tried to intimidate people is news. But I didn't. Not because I was afraid to (and yes, I've heard a couple people warn that Wine Press has used lawyers and intimidation tactics on others in the past), but because I wanted to wait and see what the facts brought out. I don't have a dog in this hunt -- but I'm very interested in the hunt itself and the story surrounding it. 

 

My sole reference to this particular cat-fight is a comment I left on a Facebook page. That's right -- I once read an article and left a comment on the piece I saw, since I found it shocking. Here's what I wrote upon reading about the allegations: "Holy cow. I mean... WOW! This will blow the socks off of anyone who's been involved in CBA publishing in recent years. Wow..." 

 

That's the sum total of my verbiage so far on the topic. Certainly if you've read some of the things that have been alleged, you were probably shocked as well. But, like me, you probably refrained from taking sides and writing attack pieces. And that's why I thought it was interesting when I opened my mail last week and found an official letter from the Wine Press attorney, accusing me of being "a co-conspirator" with some people to interfere with their business. Really. Me, a co-conspirator. 

 

As evidence of the conspiracy, they sent me copies of confidentiality agreements signed by former employees Cindy Scinto (a person I've never met, and never spoken to), Amber Payne (a person I've never met, never spoken to, and never even heard of), and Athena Dean (who I've met at several writing conferences, always when she was representing Wine Press). Yes -- these are my alleged co-conspirators... three people I don't know, two of whom I've never actually spoken to. The letter also noted that my activity was "illegal and shameful, and your liability for it is great, and growing by the day," and the pages offered various Bible verses to show me how godly their argument was. It failed to explain which part of my Facebook comment was illegal, or what was shameful about making a comment, or how exactly I'd be liable, but it did note that I was to "disavow all support and agreement with the conspiracy in order to avoid further liability." I particularly like that part -- I'm thinking this is sort of like being on the old "Mission Impossible" team -- where you don't know the other people, but, like Mr Phelps, you had to disavow any knowledge of your actions. Anyway, the letter demanded I send proof of my actions to the lawyer's office within ten days, and ended with the dire warning, "Failure to do so can and will result in full prosecution of you... to the full extent of the law." Uh huh. 

 

I have a couple thoughts I'll share... First, the lawyer really needs to brush up on his First Amendment reading. For all the scary language, I'm fairly certain freedom of the press still exists in this country, so unless I slander someone or intend actual malice in a review, I'm not sure I can actually be charged with a crime. I mean, I understand if the people running Wine Press are embarrassed about the current situation getting talked about negatively in public (former employees complaining publicly, the person who started the company taking accusations to local law enforcement, etc), but I'm pretty confident the limited number of CBA news outlets, such as this blog, are still allowed to report on the story. 

 

Second, I'm no lawyer, but it would appear to me there has to be some sort of collusion (or at least a conversation) for there to be a conspiracy. For that matter, I'm surprised they didn't list Carla Williams as a conspirator -- she's the only person at Wine Press I really know. (But her being married to the guy behind all of this probaby kept them from going after her as well.) Of course, I'd love to hear what law I broke. Maybe in the follow-up letter, the people at Wine Press can explain it to me, and include some more Old Testament verses to shore up their claims. 

 

Third, the threat of criminal prosecution came... from their lawyer? Unless Wine Press has now been put in charge of the District Attorney's office, I don't think they can actually prosecute me. I don't know -- maybe I need to watch some more reruns of Law & Order, so I can brush up on my legal stuff. I know the folks at Wine Press sued an author for criticizing them (and lost), but perhaps they learned something when they got smacked down by that judge.

 

Fourth, it seems like it would be completely inappropriate to send out signed copies of someone else's confidentiality agreement. I mean, isn't that why you have a confidentiality agreement? So you can keep it, you know, "confidential"? (The attorney I spoke to told me that's pretty much all I need to recognize their lawyer's level of professional competence.)

 

And fifth, the threats in the letter they sent me would appear to support what I've heard -- that Wine Press likes to try and intimidate people in order to get their way. 

Of course, most of the people behind Wine Press are all part of a church -- the Sound Doctrine church, which I know some online reports have branded a cult. They are perhaps best known for their belief in "hating for Jesus" -- a concept I SWEAR I'm not making up. Anyway, they were nice enough to include some Scripture verses in the packet they sent me, to try and dress this up as a "Christian" conversation. (I'm pretty sure I could pull out some verses from Corinthians about not threatening to take other believers to court, but that's beside the point.) One verse they cite is this: "Gossip separates close friends." Which was good to read, considering this came from the company that set up THIS website:  http://hardtruth.sdoctrine.org/realfacts/ which appears to me to be nothing more than a hatchet job on the woman they're now fighting with, Athena Dean. So apparently SOME gossip is okay (for example, I notice they make a point of revealing Athena has been divorced twice -- a fact I'm not sure is germane to the current conversation).

[Editorial Note: I noticed the Sound Doctrine Church people have tweaked this website, apparently trying to soften some of the language or steer readers to other pages. My apologies if you click on it and it now leads to a "Chip MacGregor is the Antichrist" page. You never know with these folks.]

 

Anyway, I really wanted to write to them and explain that (a) I'm not part of a conspiracy, and (b) I don't scare easily, and (c) up until they acted like jerks and inspired me, I'd never actually written about the situation, but only read about it online, in stories available to anyone with an internet connection and a Facebook account. Instead, I think I'll write and offer them some of my own biblical advice: "Be fruitful and multiply." Except I may not use those words...

 

What does an author need to ask about book contracts? (Part 3)

We've been exploring what you need to know when you approach a book contract. Here are five more questions to ask...

11. Are there restrictions on the sale of the contract? Check to see if your publisher has the right to sell the entire deal to another house. This doesn't happen often, but it can happen, especially with smaller houses, and you need to be aware of the possibility. It would mean you go through the entire process of negotiating a deal with one house, then suddenly you find yourself working with another house. I once had a sleaze-ball publisher sign a well-known personality to a book, then immediately start shopping the contract... In other words, he never had any intention of publishing the book; he just wanted to sign a lowball deal and flip it to a bigger house. (This is something he admitted to me, but denied to the author. Mr. Sleazeball is now an agent, by the way.)

12. If it all goes south, who pays for the lawyers? Remember that a contract is put in place to clarify two things: what will happen if everything goes well, and what will happen if everything goes to hell. A good contract covers both scenarios. In case of the latter, check to see who covers the cost of the lawyers. True story: A short while back I was sent a contract that called for the publisher to pick the lawyer, but the author to pay for it. Um... we suggested a minor wording change to keep the author from getting hosed.  

13. Does your contract clarify what constitutes "out of print"? It should be simple: When the publisher is no longer selling your book, it's out of print. Don't get caught up in windy explanations of why publishing-on-demand titles constitute a book for sale. (Years ago, I worked on a deal where a publisher claimed a popular author's book was still "in print" because they still were offering an audio version to libraries, so they still controlled rights.) Get a clear definition that includes having regular books commercially available. This has gotten much more complicated since ebooks became popular, so you're going to have to figure out if a digital book qualifies. Most publishers will say it does... so WHEN do you have a chance to actually get those rights reverted? Possibly never. So read your contract carefully. 

14. Does your contract have an option clause? There are various forms of options -- everything from "you promise us your next book" to "we'd like you to give us a first look at your next one." Options aren't necessarily evil (they can reveal a commitment on the part of the publisher to an author's career), but you should know the risks and rewards of a proposed option clause. (True Item: In days of yore, one publisher used to insert an option clause that promised two books for every one you published... so an author could never actually get out from under the contract. For every book he wrote, he owed two additional titles. Ugh. That's no longer the case at that house, by the way.)

15. Is this a perfect contract? The answer, for those who aren't sure, is "nope." In a perfect world, you'd get a perfect contract. But, in case you haven't been paying attention to the war in Afghanistan and the Republican primaries, we don't live in a perfect world. So while you'll sometimes hear people make declarations about all contracts (things like "You should NEVER sign a multi-book deal!" and "I MUST have approval of my cover!" and "I would NEVER allow them to cross collateralize my contract!"), be aware that a contract is a negotiated settlement. You ask for some things, you give up other things. That's the nature of the business. Every good agent understands that. And it's why you might be best served having somebody negotiate on your behalf. Nobody gets everything they want, so learn to compromise and you'll find yourself more at peace with the process.  If you approach a book contract as a sort of partnership between author and publisher, rather than as a battle to be won, you'll be happier with the results. I'll talk more about how to negotiate a contract next week. 

What are your lingering contract questions?

 

What does an author need to ask about book contracts? (Part 2)

Okay, so you've got a book contract, and you're wondering what you don't know. Here are a few more questions to ask...

6. When will the book be published? In most book contracts there is a window that explains your book will be made available for sale within two years. I recently saw a contract that had a five-year window on it, and another contract that didn't limit the publishing time at all. The danger (and it's happened to others) is that you'll turn in a book the publisher keeps forever but never actually publishes. Generally you want wording where the publisher makes a legal promise to produce your print book in an 18-to-24 month window, your ebook faster. 

7. When are advances paid? Make sure you know when you're getting paid. Traditionally an author received half the advance on signing and the other half on completion. Many of the New York houses now pay one-third on signing, one-third on delivery, and one-third on publication. Random House has this author-unfriendly clause that calls for one quarter of the advance to be paid a year after the book releases (so it's not really an "advance," it's more like a "delay"). And HarperCollins pays a portion of the advance after the author has filled out a marketing questionnaire -- their way of making sure they get their information. I recently saw a contract that called for the advance to be broken into eighths (signing, completion of a questionnaire, after an interview with marketing, completion of the manuscript, completion of typesetting... um...the next full moon, etc.)

8. When are royalties paid? Many publishing houses pay twice per year. Some of the larger houses pay quarterly. I still see some contracts that call for royalty payments to authors once per year... and no, that publisher won't be offering to pay you interest on that money they've been holding for you. And your ebook publisher might pay you monthly. Find out when you're getting paid, and if it's less than twice per year, request they send you your money more frequently. 

9. If you're doing a novel, who owns the subsidiary rights? Publishers are in the business of licensing and selling rights, so they'll ask for the dramatic rights to your story. But check something out -- Has this publisher ever sold dramatic rights? Do they actively pursue movie and TV deals? If not, you might be wasting your time granting them to the house. Nothing frustrates an author more than having rights that could be generating income tied up with a house doing nothing. 

10. If you're doing a nonfiction book, what's your buy-back discount? The publisher's boilerplate contract will call for you to receive about ten copies of your printed book, and allow you to purchase your own book at about a 40% discount. But if you speak to large groups, you'll want to negotiate for a better deal. You don't want to be in competition with your publisher, but if you regularly have a captive audience listening to you speak, selling books is a sure money-maker for you, and your publisher isn't losing money on the deal, so ask for more copies and a better buy-back rate. 

What questions are you asking when negotiating a contract? 

 

All the news that's fit to print...

There's always a ton of publishing news going on, and I realize it's tough for most writers to stay on top of it all. The fact is, you DON'T NEED to stay on top of it all. But occasionally it's nice to know what's going on, so you can impress your friends or get girls to notice you at parties. So may I share a handful of things I think you should be aware of?

1. Barnes & Noble has decided not to carry any books published by Amazon. Books-a-Million made the same decision. That may not be a huge shocker (The Gap doesn't sell clothes from Abercrombie & Fitch), but fascinating none the less, as it sets up a battle between the nation's biggest retailers (and every writer's best supporters). The various sides are turning this into a blood feud. You can read about it here:

www.tinyurl.com/7blso7a

2. And that leads to an interesting discussion on the influence Amazon has in publishing these days. A fascinating story here, on "how Amazon is burning down publishing"...

http://tinyurl.com/889ot2s

3. And our friends at Digital Book World have explored how Barnes & Noble has certain advantages in the book wars:

http://tinyurl.com/7wslzzs

4. Meanwhile, over in the UK, there's interesting thinking on the ebook wars:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/dec/18/ebook-price-wars

5. And back here in the Colonies, somebody noticed that HarperCollins is using the Expresso Machine to make their backlist available:

http://tinyurl.com/7tta9yn

6. I found this fascinating -- a look at how important covers and complete information are to those who e-publish:

http://tinyurl.com/7o2ek54.pdf

7. And this gives me hope and makes all the noise of the ebook wars fade away -- World Book Night is coming April 25th. If you don't know about it, read this:

http://tinyurl.com/8y4kth5

8. This also made me happy -- a story about an editor deciding to become an agent:

http://tinyurl.com/89w95uf

9. One of the most intelligent reviews of the current e-book situation was shared with me by crime-noir novelist Les Edgerton:

http://tinyurl.com/778ecza

 

10. And finally, I have good news for all those who want to know more about writing. The aforementioned Mr Edgerton is teaching an online course at the New York Writers Workshop: http://newyorkwritersworkshop.com/category/courses/onlinefiction, AND famed novelist Lisa Samson has started offering training to support up-and-coming writers: http://luminarycreative.blogspot.com/  That is good news for writers -- and I'll say more about it in a few days. 

Okay -- now you're up to date!

Who REALLY Needs a Publisher? (A guest blog)

Let’s talk about the word publisher for a moment. The notion of a publisher has changed recently. We used to think of the Big Six -- the old-school thinking, where they pay you a pittance, take on 1-to-4 new authors a year, and rely on their current bestselling novelists to pay all the bills. Their attitude is frequently, "No platform? No past sales? Then no deal."  They focus on retailers, not readers. They dread having "midlist" authors. Isn't there another way to think of a publisher?  

The last few years have brought us the "new model" publisher -- an indie publisher who is more of a publishing partner than a publishing boss. They do both print books and e-books, and they don't think anything to do with digital books are evil. They've learned to sell to readers, not just to retailers. And they understand that the huge majority of authors are mid-listers -- people who have another job because they don't really make enough from their books to be full-time writers. Best of all, they've figured out that a "midlist" author might actually be able to make a living at this writing thing, if only the writer learns how to work the online game. 

Let me tell you my own story: I went full time at writing with only two books to my name. My first book (Sweet Dreams) came out in all its unedited glory, in December of 2008. By the time my next book was out and I starting to figure out this business, I had hit the Amazon bestseller list. I was #1 in three categories for over two years. I went full time at this in November 2009, and started my own company, StoneHouse Ink. We now have about 40 authors and are blessed to have around 10 bestsellers with us. I speak all over the country about publishing, online marketing, creating eBooks, and the future of the industry.

Why the brag list? I figure after beating up some people in my last post, you might want to know that I am pretty good at what I do. I'm not special, I just did not know that there were rules to publishing books -- so I broke them all and found a new way to do it. And it's all working so far.

I also am the co-founder of the Idaho Book Extravaganza, which meets every October in Boise Idaho. It's a combination trade show and "future of the industry" conference, and we had over 5000 people this last year. We teach classes and hold workshops and tell you what you need to know in the changing world, and we also share the behind-the scenes stuff that the big publishers don’t want you to know. This part is my favorite subject (in case you couldn't figure that out on your own...). 

StoneHouse Ink also just started StoneHouse University, a series of online and local classes on different subjects related to publishing. How to Market on Amazon, What is a Blog Tour, and How to write a Book People Can’t Put Down are three of our recent titles. As one of the "new model" publishers, we want to be more than just a publishing house —we want to be a resource center for writers. If you want more information about what we are doing check out my list below.

Thanks for having me on, Chip. And I thank you for being one of the good agents that get it!

Aaron 

***

Aaron Patterson is the publisher of StoneHouse Ink and the author of the best-selling WJA series, as well as two digital shorts: 19 and The Craigslist Killer. He was home-schooled, grew up in the west, and loved to read. As a small child he would often be found behind a book, and this love drove him to want to write his own books. His wife Karissa prodded him to try it, and with this encouragement he created Sweet Dreams, the first book in the WJA series, in 2008. Airel is his first teen series, and it is already climbing the bestseller charts. He lives in Boise, Idaho with his wife and children, Soleil, Kale, and Klayton. 

Twitter: @Mstersmith

Facebook: HERE

Blog: HERE

Aaron's Books

Sweet Dreams

Dream On

In Your Dreams

Airel

Michael (coming soon)

The Craigslist killer (Digital Short)

19 (Digital Short)

Sweet Dreams (UNCUT Edition)

 

StoneHouse Ink

Twitter: @StoneHouseInk

Facebook: HERE

Blog: HERE

Website: HERE

StoneHouse University: HERE

 

Who Needs a Publisher?

In these times of self-publishing, ebooks, bookstore closures, agents turning into publishers, and the crumbling of the traditional publishing model—who needs a publisher?

May I offer an indie publisher’s perspective on that question?

First: Ask yourself if you know the industry. Many writers seem to have no clue about the changes in the publishing market. You need to do your research, learn book marketing, and educate yourself. One day your publisher is going to ask you, “What is your marketing plan?”, and if you say, “I can email my friends and do a book signing…”, there is a good chance your book will fail. No matter what path you take to publish, you will be responsible to market your book. Not the publisher—you.

Second: Ask yourself if want a publisher. You may feel you don’t need a publisher these days, as you can do much on your own. But a publisher can do it faster and better, and brings expertise to the process… so do you want a publisher? (And when I say “publisher” I mean the indie publisher, the new model publisher, the partner publisher, or someone who is not stuck in the old way of doing business. I do not mean the Big 6 or old-school, dying on the vine publishers who seem to think eBooks and news of thinking are evil.)

The fact is, a good publisher can do a few things for you that you can’t do on your own. But that will cost you something. You will give up part of your royalty to cover their services. Think of a publisher as someone who knows 50 people that you need to meet in order to get your book into reader’s hands. All a publisher does is make the introductions:

·      A publisher can get your book into bookstores. To sell with Ingram you need 10 titles before they will even talk to you. You can go through a third party to get in, but it will cost you 10-15% of your sales. Why do you need to be with Ingram? Because they are the big dog in distribution. Most stores buy from them.

·      A publisher can sell special rights, foreign rights, movie rights, mass market rights, blah blah blah… Now to be fair, you could do this on your own, but the publisher knows who to talk to and who is buying. It is all about contacts. Remember when your dad said it is not what you know but who you know? It turns out, he was right.

·      A publisher can work to get you into a better deal through an agent. I know I am going to open a can of worms here, but the agent’s job is changing. They are almost not needed for a book deal with an indie publisher. Why would you give up 15% when you can talk directly to the publisher and hire someone to look over your contract? Most charge a one-time fee for things like that. I use Chip and other agents to sell subsidiary rights—they work and get paid based on the deals they bring in. This works out well for the agents, as they are free to use their contacts to make money without being tied up with the time it takes to sell a book to big OLD publishers.

·      A publisher can put out a better product. Some of the books going up on Amazon are awful. Covers that make your eyes bleed,  no editing, poor layout. With the changes in the industry, many cover artists and editors are leaving or getting fired. Most can be hired as freelancers or go to work with a small press. If you doubt what I am saying, look around Smashwords or Amazon.

·      A publisher can help you market. Notice I did not say, “they will market for you”? They know how to market, so they can hold your hand and show you the ropes. Most publishers market their line of books, not just one book or one author, so they have learned where to go and what to do.

·      A publisher can make the process easy. I can’t tell you how many writers I have worked with that are happy to have someone on their side who knows what to do. Selling books can be like a giant puzzle, but once the various pieces are put together, it gets easier with every try. Why invent the wheel all over again? Besides the industry is changing so fast that if you create a new design it can be outdated as soon as you are finished.

·      A publisher can make you more money. A small press or new publisher usually pays higher royalties than the big guys, (40-60% vs 12-25%). This means you make more money per sale and can make a living on fewer books with lower sales.

Who needs a publisher? If you’re an author trying to make some money writing books, the chances are YOU do.

 

Aaron Patterson is the publisher at StoneHouse Ink, which has sold more than a quarter of a million books in the past two years.

Twitter: @StoneHouseInk

Facebook: HERE

Blog: HERE

Website: HERE

StoneHouse University: HERE

 

 

 

Getting To Know Us

We've had a bunch of "get to know you" questions lately, so I thought I'd group several of them together...

Andrew wrote to say, "You used to be a publisher with Time-Warner -- why did you go back to agenting?"

 

I love agenting. I enjoy working closely with authors, doing book development, planning careers, and spending time talking over projects. Actually, I never really got comfortable in my role as publisher – I always felt like a “suit.” Much happier being back on the agenting side of the desk.  

Janice asked this: "It seems like you and Sandra have had a lot of success in a short time -- to what do you owe your success?"

 Most likely it’s my good looks and Scottish heritage. But aside from that, I have a pretty good eye for writing. And let’s face it – an agent is only as good as the authors he or she represents. If I’ve had good success, it’s because I’ve had the privilege of representing really good writers. Go to my web site, select any author, and read a novel… all of them can write. That’s the main reason I’ve been successful.  

Jim wants to know, "What types of projects do you get excited about?"

I always tell authors at writers’ conferences that I’m looking for “books that change me.” It’s true. I get excited about reading a book that will leave me changed, since I know it will have the potential to significantly impact readers. I also look for a strong voice – your book shouldn’t sound like everyone else’s book. If there’s great writing, a strong voice, and a message that has the potential to change me as a reader, I know I’ve got a winner.

Dana asked, "Are there stories that you know right away you're going to be tired of?"

Sure – The tough-guy hero opens his eyes, squints, stares at the ceiling fan, looks out the window, stares at himself in the mirror, and reflects on life. The Christian novel that starts with a rape scene. A novelist who feels a need to describe every piece of furniture in the room, or every article of clothing the smart-but-rambunctious heroine is wearing. ANY novel that wants to re-create Left Behind or The Shack, or correct perceived theological errors in Left Behind or The Shack. And, of course, the romance novel that has a first page filled with adjectives. Yeesh.

Nathan asked me, "How would you describe your ideal author?"

 Great writer. Creative. Listens. Low maintenance. Good sense of humor. Strong writing voice. Wants to change the world. Loves God and other people. Preferably Scottish, I suppose... but I'll give grace to those who aren't.

Denise asked, "What is one thing you'd like to suggest to writers today?"

 Read books on writing, and read classic literature. I love words and books, so I’m always reading books that offer tips on improving writing. That makes me a better agent. 

Jana asked, "Be serious for a moment -- why do you think it's so important to blog?"

Um, I don’t know if it is important. But I enjoy having a place to vent, it keeps me close to people and offers me instant feedback. I suppose the best thing for readers is that it gives them a bit of a peek behind the curtain into what an agent is thinking, and the best thing for me is that my blog has proven fairly popular and has given good exposure to my agency. I don't get that many chances to write, so this is my big chance these days. I do it to give back, because I believe in mentoring, but I also do it because I enjoy writing and this is my best venue right now. 

David sent this: "How do you view publicity, and what role does an agent play in the publicity process?"

 This is the single biggest change in the years I’ve been an agent. We’ve always done editing, and talked through book ideas with authors, and kept healthy relationships so that we could effectively sell manuscripts for authors. But nowadays it’s imperative an agent become involved in the marketing of the books he or she represents. Since “platform” is now king, an agent has to help his or her authors strengthen platform, make an effort to work on publicity, and maximize the marketing done by the publisher. Frequently that means helping the author fill in the gaps in the marketing plan. Most agents probably don’t enjoy the publicity angle a lot (it’s usually the “word” side that got them involved in the business in the first place), but it’s absolutely necessary. So I’ve become more of a marketing strategist than I ever planned to be. I think most successful agents see it this way. 

Sandi wants to know: "Why do you and Sandra attend writing conferences? It seems like many agents are staying away from conferences, but you seem to thrive in that setting."

It’s true – going to writing conferences probably isn’t significantly boosting our agency business. I do get to spend time with editors who are on faculty, and I occasionally see an author with a great voice and platform, but for the most part it’s just a way of giving back. I’ve had several people question why I have spent time at conferences over the years, and the simply response is probably, “Because I enjoy it.” I like speaking to people about the industry and helping newbies navigate their way. Some of us were made with a built-in desire to mentor, so I find it hard to stay away from conferences. Next week I'm going to be at the Southwest Christian Writers Studio in New Mexico -- a boutique conference limited to just 100 writers (and I hear they still have slots available, if you're interested). To me, that's a lot of fun. 

And Barbara asked, "What is the one thing that will surprise those of us who have read you but have never met you?"

Um... I have a soft voice. You can sit at a table with me in a cafeteria and not hear me. People read my blog and assume I’m a loud guy – but that’s only in print. I’m much bigger in print than I am in real life. 

 

Newsday Tuesday ...

Some quick notes and random stuff…

Well-known writer Alton Gansky has put together a strong faculty for his intimate, new-style writing conference, coming up October 18-22 in New Mexico. If you’d like to meet people in the industry, but are a bit intimidated by one of those 500-attendee gatherings, check out what he’s doing at the Southwest Christian Writers Studio: http://www.altongansky.typepad.com/swcws/

The INSPY Awards have announced their list of 2010 finalists. Included this year are some authors we represent: Gina Holmes, in the Literary Fiction category, for Crossing Oceans; Jim Rubart, in the Speculative category, for Rooms; and Jenny B Jones, in the YA category, for So Over My Head. Other finalists included two authors we represent, but whose books we weren’t representing at the time—Dean Nelson for God Hides in Plain Sight and David Gregory for The Last Christian. And Mark Bertrand made the finalist list for his fabulous novel Back on Murder, but then was taken off the list when it was revealed his book released one day too late to make the list! You can see the entire list of finalists here: http://inspys.com/

Publishers Marketplace (a great resource that you should consider subscribing to) did some research on the number of deals being done so far this year in all of publishing. As usual, they reported things were slow in the summer, then picked up considerably in September. Overall books deals are up about 16% from last year (which is great news for authors), with “thrillers” being a clear growth category, and YA fiction on an upswing. And while big-money deals are growing, “debut” authors are down considerably—meaning publishers are looking toward their A-level authors to pay bills more than ever before. If you’re interested in staying on top of the publishing news, check it out at http://www.publishersmarketplace.com/automat/

In case you missed it, Michael Cunningham, author of The Hours, penned a wonderful piece of writing in the New York Times on the use of words. It’s worth reading: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/03/opinion/03cunningham.html?_r=1

I frequently get people asking about freelance editors. There are ton of them (especially now that all the publishing houses have trimmed their staffs), so if you go to any decent writing conferences you’re sure to meet a few folks who do freelance editing. For copyediting, I have often worked with Hannah at DoubleCheck:  http://www.doublecheckediting.com/  , and I noticed at ACFW several authors were chatting up the developmental editing abilities of Jamie Chavez, who you can find at

http://www.jamiechavez.com/ 

If you need help just getting your novel up to snuff, we are big fans of www.mybooktherapy.com , and we like the work Joyce Magnin is doing with authors. Of course, if you want some basic "how do I make this writing gig work" advice, consider talking to Tiffany at http://writingcareercoach.com/ 

I also have people write to ask me, “How can I make sure my site is the top one listed on a search engine when somebody does a search for my name or topic or genre?” There are whole books about this subject, but here are a couple places to start: http://www.seomoz.org/article/beginners-1-page

and

http://www.google.com/webmasters/docs/search-engine-optimization-starter-guide.pdf

And in the NEWS OF THE WEIRD category, a paper in Pennsylvania refused to run an advertisement from the Christian Book and Gift Shop because the name of their store was “offensive.” True story – the guy at the paper said the fact the store had the word “Christian” in it meant an ad “could offend non-Christians.” Good grief. It’s all here: http://www.christianretailing.com/index.php/newsletter/latest-etailing/22074-store-rejected-over-offensive-christian-name-

Here’s something you’ll enjoy – the 100 Best First Lines from novels, according to the American Book Review: http://americanbookreview.org/100BestLines.asp