Problems of Promotion on Small Presses

Crystalee Calderwood has posted an excellent article about the problems of promotion for authors using small presses. In today's environment, I wonder if this problem is confined to small press authors.

It's no secret that the publishing industry is in disarray. I suspect that some has to do with the fact that they promote books that don't sell. I belong to at least one book club presenting the work of first time authors. These authors are from major publishers and the publishing houses spend a lot of money promoting the book. Still, at least half the people who are first readers don't like the book and wouldn't recommend it. This suggests that the big houses are missing the mark.

Another problem is that even authors wil big houses have to promo. I took a seminar with Jonathan Mayberry. He told the story of Sara Gruen and "Water for Elephants." She didn't get much of an advance. No one expected the book to sell very well. However, she got on the groups, talked up her book and made it into, if not a best seller, at least a cult classic.

The moral is: no matter who your publisher is, you have to do it yourself. This includes authors published on Lulu and Create Space as well as those with small presses like Red Rose Publishing. Being with a "big publisher" is no guarantee of success!

Learn about "A Teacher's Life" with Helena Harper

Ever wonder what it's like to be a teacher. Helena Harper gives us a birds eye view in her book, "A Teacher's Life.

Blurb for 'It's a Teacher's Life...! A Collection of Poems Set in a Girls' Private School' and summary of contents

No doubt you remember your life at school as a pupil - the long lessons, stringent rules and chaotic classrooms - but what was it like from the teacher's perspective? Did they savour the experience of setting and marking our homework? Did they get a kick out of writing our reports? And, most intriguingly, what did they get up to in the staffroom?

If you've never been there yourself, you need to follow Helena Harper into this alternative world of coffee addiction, frantic marking, lesson-planning and inspections. She answers all of your questions and more, and her insightful, evocative and often sardonic descriptions leave you more appreciative of the trials and tribulations (and the occasional pleasures) of being the dragon in front of the whiteboard.

It's a Teacher's Life...! will open the eyes of the pupils who always thought that teachers didn't exist outside of school hours... On the other hand, with such a long roll-call of meetings, assessments and after-hours activities, perhaps they were right all along!

Content

The School Ethos — gently does it: kid gloves needed!

The Workplace — old and new: in harmony or at odds?

The New School Year — meetings, meetings, meetings, meetings! Brains creaking, creaking, creaking, creaking!

The Staffroom — a blessed haven, a refuge from all this teaching insanity!

The Lessons — rush, rush, rush! Sigh, sigh, sigh!

The Workroom — moaning, groaning, gossiping...moaning, groaning, gossiping...moaning, groaning, gossiping...

The Duties — brightening every teacher’s day

The Prize Giving — examination success applauded, independent thought neglected

The Carol Service — angelic voices and appearance: would it could always be like this!

The Trips — definitely, definitely, definitely not a good idea! Infamous risk assessments hanging like lead around the neck...eating and drinking, blinking and breathing must go in...hang it all, where’s the bin?

The Open Afternoon — uniformed angels painting the school in such a beautifully perfect light!

The German Teacher — hawk-like eyes, bubbling laughter, prejudice and French her common foes!

Matron — a cup of tea, a kind word, a listening ear: all provided with TLC

The Cook — Joy, her name, and joy her very nature (an unsung hero of everyday life)

The Caretaker — Emilio from Spain in the land of rain, glorious rain

Amy, the Able — Queen of Resources, organised, efficient, expert and skilful (another unsung hero)

The Inspection — smoking-hot photocopiers, senior managers and HODs on their knees...

The Exams — eyelids growing heavy with hours of sleep denied...

The Reports — the once a year chore, delight bursting forth in every breast at the joy of the long nights in store...

The End-of-Year Bash — bleary eyes shaking off tiredness for one last evening of merriment true

Here's what people are saying about "It's a Teacher's Life."

REVIEWS FOR “IT'S A TEACHER'S LIFE...!” from amazon.com and amazon.co.uk (reviews by Top Reviewers are first, then come reviews by ordinary readers)

A Work With Feeling. By Don Blankenship, Amazon Top 100 Reviewer
5 stars

Free verse has become a universal mode for expressing thoughts, feelings, reality and unreality for many. Some writers write very bad verse (I find myself in this category), while others have mastered its form and are able to use it as a sharp tool, a soft pillow for pleasing landings and most importantly, sharing the many little pieces of their world with others. Helena Harper is quite obviously one of those with the skill and the feelings to accomplish the last mentioned.

"It's A Teacher's Life" is a small volume of free verse telling her story; her experiences and her thoughts during the time she taught at an all girls school in England. Now I judge poetry, in any form, by a few simple standards. First, is the author conveying her or his true feelings about and for the subject being addressed? Secondly, does the subject touch me; can I relate to what the author is trying to tell me. Thirdly, does the author use metaphors and similes that are realistic? As an example, if the author suddenly tries to compare a walking stick to some dead Etruscan God that no one but one extremely familiar with Etruscans and walking sticks could possible relate to, much less understand, then it is a useless attempt at communication. (Walking sticks possibly; Etruscan Gods, well that is rather problematic for most of us). The obscure becomes irrelevant, the more obscure; the more irrelevant and the fewer there are to enjoy and appreciate the author's work.

Fortunately for me, and for all of us, Ms Harper has fulfilled each of my requirements and given us an understandable work that most of us can perfectly relate to, even if all of us are not in the teaching profession. I have to admit that without exception I enjoyed each of the twenty offerings in this wonderful little book. As I read each piece, I could actually feel the happiness, frustrations, and indeed a twinge of anger and sadness here and there. Her obvious love for the children comes through, as well as her rather sardonic, caustic and realistic view of many of them, and her complete confusion and non-acceptance of many of the modern "things" that fill our lives is also shown. Her impatience with the mundane meetings, parents that to a certain extent make life difficult for both teacher and child, and the endless institutional requirements is quite apparent. Readers should not expect that each and every image presented here is a "happy' little glimpse into the life of a teacher, there are very realistic and rather whimsical "down" moments.

"The teachers feed off the food
and the words of thanks
that fall occasionally from
pupils' and parents' lips.
These scraps of appreciation
satisfying momentarily
While thoughts of doing
something worthwhile
surface - though just temporarily -
until fatigue overwhelms
and drives the teachers home...
The meager morsels of gratitude
becoming rarer each year,
yet somehow teachers survive
on this diet of starvation
for year after year..."

Read these lines well. While we find here the words of a very dedicated individual, we also pick up just a bit of justifiable bitterness. Again, these words touched me, they communicated and I could relate; I could feel. On the other hand, there are many light moments expressed in this work to which I could also relate. That is one of the strong aspects of this collection as a whole; we get a taste of both the up and of the down. I must warn you though; due to the small size of the little volume and the author's propensity to use, at first glance, to use simple and easly understood language, a reader may be tempted to rip through this one. That is a big mistake as there is much more here than meets the eye!

This is a wonderful collection of poems that were written from the heart. This work would be an absolute wonderful gift for any teacher in your life; it would be a wonderful gift and read for anyone wishing to understand not only teachers, but all people who dedicate their lives to service.

PURCHASING INFO. FOR “IT'S A TEACHER'S LIFE...!” AND LINKS

Available in paperback from all major online retailers. Not stocked in bookstores, but can be ordered from any bookstore.

http://www.amazon.com/Teachers-Collection-Poems-Private-School/dp/1847481825/ref=dp_return_2?ie=UTF8&n=283155&s=books

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Its-Teachers-Life-Collection-Private/dp/1847481825/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1230149878&sr=1-1

http://www.amazon.ca/Teachers-Collection-Poems-Private-School/dp/1847481825/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1239391752&sr=8-2

http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Its-a-Teachers-Life-a-Collection-of-Poems-Set-in-a-Girls-Private-School/Helena-Harper/e/9781847481825/?itm=1

http://www.google.com/products?q=1847481825

Meet Helena Harper

Helena Harper is a native of England, but she grew up in a household that did things somewhat differently to other English households, because her mother was German (her mother had met her father in Hamburg at the end of WWII, when as a British soldier he had been stationed there). This mixed background has had a profound influence on Helena and her understanding of so-called national divisions and whom we call an 'enemy' and whom we call a 'friend'.

From an early age she loved to read and write, particularly fantasy stories, and later she enjoyed studying foreign languages. At Surrey University she studied German, Russian and International Relations and spent considerable periods of time in Germany, Austria and Russia as part of the course. After university she went into banking, but soon realised that was a big mistake. “I felt like I was being suffocated,” she says of the experience.

She then spent a year teaching languages at a private school in London, and enjoyed it so much she decided she would get properly trained. She did a Postgraduate Certificate in Education at Exeter University and then started her career as a modern languages teacher, a career which has lasted twenty years. During that time she has continued to write, concentrating primarily on fantasy stories for young children. However, in the past few years she has also discovered the joys of writing poetry for adults, and her first two books are poetry collections: It's a Teacher's Life...! and Family and More – Enemies or Friends?, which have been inspired by her professional and personal life.

Helena is now a private tutor and translator. She is continuing to write children's stories, and illustrations for her first children's picture book are now being done. Her aim is to see the book in print before the year is out. Many people ask Helena why she likes to write. She feels she can best express it like this:

The blank page calls,

the heart responds,

imagination spreads wide its wings

and launches into infinity...

Fingers dance,

words flow,

the page fills,

the soul takes flight

and the spirit sings.

Copyright © Helena Harper

I asked Helena some questions. so we could get to know her better.

1. Can you tell us a little about yourself? (i.e. Pets? Where you live? Special interests of hobbies?)

I live in the UK, quite near London, in a county called Surrey. I was born in this county and – apart from periods spent abroad when studying my foreign languages – have always lived here. Although it's very much 'communter' country and very densely populated, there are still lovely pockets of countryside and quaint, historical villages. I'm within easy travelling distance of one of the neighbouring counties, Hampshire, and the village of Chawton, where Jane Austen lived for the latter part of her life. I love Jane Austen's stories – don't you?

Besides reading and writing, I enjoy walking, playing tennis, doing Pilates, dancing and spending time with my niece and nephew.

2. What inspired you to write your book? My book “It's a Teacher's Life...!” is based on my own experiences as a teacher and came about after I'd written some poems whilst on a retreat, including one for the cook who was producing some wonderful meals for us. It reminded me of one of the cooks at the school where I worked and I thought I could adapt the poem for her and then I started to think of other 'school' poems I could write about.

3. Do you have a favorite poem, if so tell us why? No, I can't say I have a favorite. They are all so close to my heart.

4. Tell us a little about your writing schedule. What do you find most difficult, easiest? I have to fit my writing around my tutoring and other commitments. I write whenever I find some time to write, which could be any time of the day. The easiest thing is coming up with an idea, the most difficult thing is then sorting out the details of the story.

5. What are your future writing plans? I hope to get my second collection of poems, Family and More – Enemies or Friends?, which at present is an ebook, published as a paperback, and the illustrations for my first children's picture book are being done at the moment. I have another picture book that I would like illustrated after that and I will be looking for suitable publishers.

The Art of Science by Ransom Noble

Blurb:

Janie Hunter’s plans for seventh grade (including weekly jam sessions, Art Club, volleyball, and maybe Pom Squad) change when she qualifies for a special science program. Even when her grades drop, her mom doesn’t allow Janie to drop the special program.

Life becomes complicated with trying to find a balance between her popular friends and the bright kids in her classes, her academic classes and her love of art, and friends and classmates who won’t get along. The biggest surprise comes when she discovers she may be able to combine science and art.

Synopsis:

Janie Hunter begins seventh grade looking forward to doing activities that she enjoys. Her mother has other ideas, she thinks it's time for Janie to start preparing for college and Art club isn't a part of that plan. When Janie qualifies to get into Argonauts, a special after school science club she has to find a way to make her mom happy and do the things she loves.

When Janie’s dropping grades and her first dance come to her mother’s attention, Mom intends to steer her in the ‘right’ direction.

To make matters worse, a boy at school threatens to make her miserable, though his motives aren't clear. Janie just wants everyone to get along, but even her friends can’t manage that.

Excerpt:

Sophia met Janie outside the school. “Mom says we’re to be home right away, Janie.”

“I’m on my way.”

“I’m driving us. Get in the car.”

Janie grimaced. “I’ll walk.”

Sophia rolled her eyes. “Don’t be difficult.”

“I’m not difficult.” Janie got in the car with her sister. “You don’t have to rub it in all the time. You got your license last month.”

“I don’t mean it that way, Janie. I’m just wondering why Mom wanted us home so fast.”

“Wait …” Janie paused, completely shocked for a moment.

“Doesn’t Mom have to work?”

Sophia shook her head. “I guess not. She just called the school to tell me to pick you up. We’re supposed to go directly home. I don’t know what’s going on either.”

Janie’s fingers traced the raised patterns on the cover of the book sitting in her lap. What could this be about? She and Sophia didn’t speak again on the drive. When Sophia pulled the car in the driveway, Janie realized she was missing the first Art Club meeting. Too late now; she hoped the teacher would allow her to join next time.

Sophia and Janie walked in the house, dropping their book bags by the door. “Mom? Dad?” Sophia called.

“We’re in the dining room,” her mother called back. “Please join us, girls.”

Four wineglasses sat on the table, filled with white grape juice, Mom’s favorite family celebration drink. Janie and Sophia sat in their usual seats. “What’s the big deal, Mom? Did you get a promotion?”asked Janie.

“No, guess again.” Mom’s smile was bursting with happiness.

Janie didn’t remember the last time she smiled like that.

“What?”

“You.”

Janie’s heart pounded. “What did I do?” It had to be something good, or Mom wouldn’t be smiling, right?

“You got into Argonauts at school.” Mom’s smile grew larger.

“I’m so proud of you, honey.”

“What?” Janie hadn’t heard of such a thing before.

Mom explained, “It’s a special program at school. On Wednesdays, you’ll stay after school for two hours with some other very smart children, and you get to do exciting science stuff. Doesn’t that sound like fun? Let me remember: They said you’ll be studying chemistry, physics, electronics and robotics. It will prepare you for the future.”

Janie didn’t say anything. Why did everything have to be working toward the future? At thirteen, college seemed far away to Janie.

“Wow. Congratulations, Janie,” Sophia said quietly.

“Yes, congratulations, Janie,” her dad added.

“You’ll get all the information about it tomorrow.”

“But volleyball meets on Wednesdays!”

Her mother continued like she never heard her. Most likely, she didn’t. “And Dad will be able to pick you up afterwards. Isn’t this wonderful?” Mom smiled down at Janie.

“But what if I don’t want to quit volleyball?”

“This is going to help you get into college, Janie. This is important. You can play volleyball on the weekends or next summer.”

Janie gulped down some grape juice.

“And we’re going out to dinner to celebrate.”

Janie sat quietly the rest of the evening. The decision had been made. She thought her dad must not have mentioned Art Club yet, since her mother didn’t add that to the lecture.

Facts Sheet for The Art of Science

Title: The Art of Science

Author: Ransom Noble

Illustrator: Stephen Macquignon

Category: Young Adult

ISBN 10: 0-9818685-4-1

ISBN 13: 978-0-9818685-4-7

Pub Date: April 2009

Price: $12.99

Pages: 87

Publisher: 4RV Publishing, LLC

Language: English

Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.7 inches

Shipping Weight: 8 ounces

Web sites:

Find Ransom Noble at http://ransomnoble.wordpress.com

Find Stephen Macquignon at http://scketch2color.multiply.com

Visit 4RV Publishing at http://4rvpublishingllc.com

Media Contact:

Ransom Noble

Meet Ransom Noble

An early love of reading and the
sciences led Ransom into writing and a
career in mechanical engineering.
Believing determination can help
one attain any goal, she constantly sets new goals for herself
and encourages others in their quests
for knowledge.
She can often be found with her
husband and their friends listening
to music or playing games (every kind).

Her work includes "Qui's Contract,"
a short story that appeared in Ruins
Metropolis, June 2008 and The Art of
Science, April 2009 by 4RV Publishing.

I asked Ransom some questions about her writing.

Can you tell us a little about yourself? (i.e. Pets? Where you live? Special interests of hobbies?) I live in Des Moines with my husband and baby girl (10 weeks). The only pets I can claim are my plants, and though they have names, they're barely hanging on most of the time. I just don't have the knack of them. I enjoy yoga and knitting as hobbies.

• What inspired you to write this story?

I was in a class at the time at the Children's Institute of Literature. I talked with my mentor about several ideas before deciding to write this one. I felt closer to the characters in this one than my mentor's favorite idea of mine, so I wrote this one. Sometimes it's what you feel capable of doing at the time, and you might be able to do more next time. We grow as writers with each story we tell.

• Do you have a favorite character, if so tell us why?

I think in some way all of them are dear to me. I like Katya's spunk (Janie's best friend), so if I had to choose one, it'd probably be her.

• Tell us a little about your writing schedule. What do you find most difficult, easiest?

Right now I find it most difficult to find a schedule. I work through my daughter's feedings and we're just managing. Usually I can manage to catch up on my things in the evening when my husband returns home.

• What are your future writing plans?

Other than getting back to a regular schedule? I have a couple novels in mind, just seeing which one speaks to me first to get written. I also finished one last November for NaNoWriMo, but it needs some good editing/rewriting work before it's ready to go anywhere.

A Road Trip into The Past

Ken Mansfield, his wife, Connie, and Moses, his van, take a road trip into the past. Ken had an amazing career full of highs and lows. Retracing his steps in a road trip into the past made him think about the people he knew and some of the highlights and disasters of his life. I found the description of selling and producing records very informative. The stories he had to tell about being on the road with the stars were worth the price of admission.

The deeper element to the story is that at a certain point many of us ask why are we here, and more importantly who are we? Ken has found a deep relationship with his God. He was looking for that same relationship with himself. His talks with God were very illuminating. Believing that God is showing him the way wasn't the total answer, he still had to come to terms with who he is. I found it fascinating that visiting all the places of the past didn't do the trick until he realized that they were past. The future is the only thing we can change and going into it having shucked off the highs and lows of our past makes it a much more accessible adventure. It allowed Ken at the end to become a whole person.

Published by Thomas Nelson

Available on Amazon http://www.amazon.com/Between-Wyomings-iPod-Open-Road/dp/1595551654/

Meet Angelina Jellybean by Crystalee Calderwood

Angelina wants to eat nothing but jellybeans. Year round, from Easter to Christmas, she asks for her favorite treat. But a strange even teaches Angelina that there's such a thing as too much of a good thing.

With colorful, delightful illustrations by Stephen Macquignon, Angelina is sure to win over hearts of young picky eaters everywhere.

Where to buy:

http://www.amazon.com

http://www.barnesandnoble.com

http://www.4repbulishing11c.com/Store-Books.html



Crystalee's Links



Blog: http://www.crystaleecalderwood.blogspot.com

Website: http://www.crystallcalderwoood.bravehost.com