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Recap!

Hello! This Blog was intended as a ‘recap’ (or the blog equivalent of a clipshow?) but a few new things have cropped up. I’ll do a quick recap first, and keep you waiting for the new info (unless, of course, you scroll down…)

I can’t honestly tell you how the book has been selling – it’s been up and down the Amazon charts like a yo-yo! As you know, it’s still only in two bricks and mortar shops (Henry’s Books and Waterstones – Hexham), so it’ll probably just be bought by people who are specifically looking for it… Perhaps I’ll get paid any royalties in loose change!

I still have no real printed reviews. I’ve got a few mentions on the internet (aside from the Trashionista review that you know about) but these are mainly from people on forums that I belong to. These are generally positive, apart from the one that said Karma was predictable…but I KNEW she was going to say that! Ha, ha! By the way, the competition to win a £15 Amazon voucher is still running: just submit your review for the chance to win. It would be nice (although I realise now that it’s close to impossible) to get a review in a women’s glossy or a national newspaper. We can live in hope…

You’re all well aware that I’ve had little support from local quarters (except Henry’s Books, Waterstones – Hexham and the Sunday Sun) – that theme continues. I’ve had most publicity from sources I’d never anticipated ie ME Essentials, That’s Inspiration, etc. I’ve come into contact with a lot of nice people I would probably never have met, had it not been for the book – so that’s been a positive thing.

At the end of the day, I still don’t feel like I belong in the writing community. I joined several groups, but feel unable to contribute as I am clueless about the business. I feel out of my depth when they talk about PR, agents, promos, workshops, conferences, prizes, BSPs (what the heck is a BSP?), submissions – the list is seemingly endless! Even the so-called ‘newbies’ know more than me.

One thing I’ve never been short of is support…from all sorts of people and places! Hope you all know who you are and how grateful I am. Finally, for this recap, I’ll answer the question I posed in my first ever posting: it’s not impossible for one little tired woman to take on the task of book promotion in a competitive market, but practically impossible!

Now to new things. I was contemplating being in my fourteenth minute of fame, and winding things down when I got some advice from an unexpected source. I got an email from Adele Parks! I’d contacted her as part of my ‘enquiring minds wanna know’ phase a few months ago, and she actually replied – how nice was that? Soon afterwards, I got a call from my publishers saying that the Kindred Spirit magazine may be interested in running a story on me (www.kindredspirit.co.uk). I love alternative and holistic therapies, so I am delighted that they are considering interviewing me for their September/October issue. I began studying to be a Massage Therapist a looonnnnngggg time ago, as I thought that when I was well, I’d be able to start my own business. Maybe it will still happen – who knows???


Predictable? Moi?

Excuse the French but, for some obscure reason, everything apart from my typing is appearing en Francais. There’s also an odd message that I can’t get rid of from someone telling me to “have a great time when Emily is here and a wonderful time when you go to Canada” – if anyone can enlighten me on why this may be happening, I’d be interested to know. I don’t know a single Emily and have no intention of going to Canada at all! C’est tres strange, n’est pas?

Back to the reason I posted: a quick scan of the forums I look at showed that someone (not naming screen names) is finding my novel predictable. I am a little saddened by that, as sometimes, the characters even surprised me…I never knew what they’d be getting up to next!!! Is that a failing of mine, or is the reader just very astute (that’s not quite the word I wanted to use, but I can’t think properly today as the dog kept me awake half last night). Oh, that word is really bothering me. Maybe I mean she’s “insightful”… You get my gist, don’t you???

I have to go now, as it’s my wedding anniversary and I have a special meal to microwave (bless Marks & Spencers and their ready meals). Then a lovely dessert. Mmm…profiteroles (doing my best Homer Simpson impression…without the drooling!)


ME in a magazine

Only a short message this time, as I’m not feeling up to writing tomes. Just wanted to say that I received my copies of ME Essentials newsletter this morning, and Tony has written a fantastic article. I’m very pleased with it, and was (surprisingly) happy with the cover. There’s a shot of the magazine in the ‘March & April’ section of my photo albums. No disrespect to anyone who’s supported me, but it’s nice to get a mention in a magazine where the readers really appreciate how much it took for me to complete the book…and to keep plugging away, trying to get Paige & Co noticed!

That’s all for now. Retiring back to my sofa and Sweet Baby James (on TV, unfortunately, rather than my sofa). Speak to you all soon.

PS A comment from the good lady, Dubai Reader, made me wonder why you are all such a quiet lot. I know from the web stats that quite a few of you pop in every day. Why not introduce yourself? I don’t bite. Promise.


London Book Fair, etc

Had a good old email-moan at Natalie about all things book-related (she probably dreads seeing my name popping up in her Inbox). Anyway, all is sorted with distribution to the distributors, and Natalie’s spoken to the nice lady at Waterstones Hexham (although it sounds to me as if Newcastle branch and Borders Gateshead seem to be avoiding Natalie’s calls – and that’s AFTER me leaving a free book for the Borders lady to read…not a great sign, is it?)

Seems like my book might be appearing on Amazon.com in the near future, so it will be available in the US (like the other Discovered Authors’ books), and it WILL be on the Bookforce stand at the London Book Fair, which I believe is next week and is a big event. Natalie explained why my book wasn’t on the LBF website: they were only allocated space for five books, so they chose the most recent. Sounds fair enough. Maybe I’m just being overly sensitive again, as I’ve been feeling a bit second rate compared to the other winners (more to do with my own poor self-esteem than any favouritism, I suspect).

I’m fast running out of ideas as to how I can raise the profile of my book – yep, Mrs I.M. Creative is indeed running out of ideas (and energy, in this rotten heat). There is the odd thing in the pipeline, but it’s pointless mentioning them until they come up. The person who approached me about doing an interview for a Uni mag in Scotland never got back in touch with me, nor did the Essex DJ who mentioned doing a radio interview for his show (and that was also AFTER he was sent a book, so it’s got me wondering…) Anyway, I may be a little down, but I’m not out!

Oh, and I had my annual ‘prophetic Grand National dream’: I dreamt that I’d shown someone my sketch book, and it suddenly dawned on me that my portraits and drawings were absolutely rubbish! I was really embarrassed, as I had given some of my drawings away to people. So, when I woke up this morning, I had a look through the horses’ names to see if anyone of them fit in with my dream – the closest one I could find was GRAPHIC Approach. I also chose Homer Wells, for entirely unrelated reasons. Neither my horses nor hubby’s were even placed! Maybe my dream was just telling me that my art-work is lousy!!!


Impromptu book signing!

Went to Hexham for a couple of hours today, and went in to Waterstones for a book on Counselling Skills (you’ll be pleased to know I found a good book for the bargain price of £9.99). I got to meet Steph, at last (the Manager, who was extremely nice and very helpful, and believed in Karma when all other Waterstones didn’t). Apparently, all the books I came in and signed in March sold out! I was speechless…for at least a second. Steph asked me if I’d mind signing their new stock. Mind? I was delighted to do so, despite the fact I was writing on books in the middle of the shop, in full view of everyone… and was looking messy with NO make-up on and frizzy hair (whoever said, “No change there, then,” please shush)!

There have been some problems with actually getting hold of stock of the book, for some reason – they have been trying to order more copies for a while, and they’d only recently come in (they’d originally ordered twenty, but had only been able to secure seven, at first). I believe that, somewhere down the line, there has been trouble contacting the publishers regarding the availability of stock (or lack of it). This is something I need to check out. All of this affects my sales, so I feel a bit disheartened if it is the case that I’m trying my best to promote the book and no-one can actually get hold of it! Perhaps it was just a one-off glitch?

I can’t hide the fact that I’m chuffed to bits, and I thank Steph for her support. I’m grateful with a capital ‘G’! Off to email Natalie now.


Writing, the free hobby

Hello! Hope you had a lovely Easter. We didn’t do much, but managed to find a quiz to go to on Easter Sunday – mid-way through, we were doing so badly that we were looking for ways to make a sharp exit. However, we (my parents, Gordon and I) made a comeback and finally WON a quiz…albeit by one point.

Back to the writing. I wanted to say that writing is a great hobby, because it doesn’t take up any energy and it costs nothing (I also love to pencil-draw portraits, which is almost free). Unfortunately, now I’m meant to be a writer, suddenly I’ve discovered that I’m meant to know about the art of writing, belong to groups/forums, have an agent, and be able to advise others (who probably know more about being an aspiring author than I do)! I only know a little about something, something about nothing, and nothing about everything else!

* A writer apparently must have a current copy of The Writers’ And Artists’ Yearbook, or similar – cost £15 (less online, or free if you can find it in your local library)
* I found an online writers’ community which was both friendly and helpful – cost £30 per year (worth the outlay, if I had it!) There are free groups via Yahoo which are equally as useful and friendly, but if you join these groups, you need to be prepared to contribute, and they all know more than I do about ‘the craft’, as they call it)
* Society of Authors – many people have advised joining the SoA, which seems like a good idea, but I think it’s around £85

I haven’t been able to save up for the above yet, but is it worth investing any more in this venture? Or should I say ad-venture? I’m not so sure – this feels more like my fifteen minutes of fame than the start of a career… Maybe that’s why my local shops aren’t taking an interest (Natalie still can’t get in touch with the lovely ladies at Waterstones in Newcastle or Borders in Gateshead). Good job that Waterstones in Hexham and Henry’s in Ryton stocked the book, or I would never have fulfilled my dream of seeing something I’d written on the shelves (that sounds like I mean graffiti, but I meant my book).

Fortunately, I have heard from Tony at the M.E. Assocation who has inforrmed me that I am featured on the cover of their magazine and have a full page article inside – I’m honoured, as the M.E. Association is a great organisation (www.meassociation.org.uk) and they have a very informative website. Apologies to the good people who are members of the Association and find a picture of me, looking up at them from their doormats, when they receive their quarterly copy of M.E. Essentials!

Between you and I, I’m more than a little uncomfortable that people seem to think it’s such a big deal that I’ve written a book, just because of this CFS/ME thing. There are people far worse off than I am, and achieve more with their lives. I don’t want anyone to feel sorry for me, as I’m pretty happy, really. I know I can’t do as much as I’d like to (and get very frustrated about it, believe me) but I count myself as lucky compared to some people.

Let’s just agree that I’m so dull and boring that the CFS is the only thing that differentiates me from other writers!


Izzy wizzy, let's get busy!

My inner child and I had a FANTASTIC day, today! I finally got to meet Mark Jones when he arrived in Sunderland – he’s a genuinely nice man, and is a talented entertainer. I got to see Sooty’s Magic Castle (I know I’m 32, but for a couple of hours today, I was young again and I enjoyed every minute of the show). My companion (naming no names) was joining in the audience-participation bits with gusto! I have to point out that the child-to-adult ratio was not as I’d expected: I saw three adults to one small child, children who were barely out of prams (with parents who were clearly having a whale of a time) and an elderly couple who didn’t seem to have any children with them (though I’m a fine one to talk). I have spent the rest of the day annoying the dogs with my Sweep hand-puppet (they tired of it before I have, I’m sad to say). Was worth the bus and train journey to Sunderland. Unfortunately, I’ll not be going to the James Martin book signing tomorrow, but I think I made the right choice of excursions!

What does any of this have to do with book stuff? Not a thing, but I don’t care – there’s very little going on with the book at the moment. Following the Sunday Sun article, the book rose through Amazon’s rankings…but they have no books in stock (website states orders will be despatched in 2-3 weeks, which has probably put some people off). Don’t know if Waterstones (Newcastle) or Borders got in touch with Natalie, so can’t tell you anything about that.

Oh and I read an interesting article about the woman who selects the books for Richard & Judy – there’s no chance a book like mine would ever find its way on the show. Why, you ask…apart from the obvious? Because the cover is pink!

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/article607041.ece

I almost started working on one of the other books I have ideas for – had an excellent idea but, unfortunately, I was in the bath at the time. By the time I was dry, I’d forgotten what I was going to write. I have a lot of scenes in my mind, but they aren’t all from the same book – I know that sounds odd, considering there are no other books yet, but it makes sense in my strange mind! If I ever get a book deal (I need some motivation) I have something to work from…

One last thing, someone (and hope they don’t mind me mentioning this) commented that they don’t like to talk about illness, but I don’t seem to mind. I do, really. I spent years being embarrassed about being ill, and making excuses for myself. I hate being defined as someone who is ill primarily, and then whatever I’ve done is mentioned almost as an after-thought. However, I would be doing a disservice to everyone who has the same illness as I do if I pretended I was fine – we have a hard enough time trying to get people to recognise CFS/ME as a genuine illness, so how would it look if I ignored it too? *Just climbing down from my soapbox now, hoping I’ve cleared up any misunderstandings.*

Before you leave, check out the new piccies I’ve added!


A beautiful dog, my book…and M.E.

Link to article on icNewcastle site

The link above will take you to the article printed in today’s Sunday Sun – I was very impressed with it, as it didn’t make me sound too ‘poor me, I’m not well’. I was happy to see the photo because one of my dogs, Holly, is in it: she was so good for the photographer (far more compliant than me, in fact). I am very difficult to take a good photo of, as I’m a blinker and I forget how to smile as soon as a camera is pointed in my direction. I involuntarily lose control of the muscles that control my mouth and begin to twitch – it’s not an attractive sight, and the photographer had his work cut out for him!

The only thing that was slightly inaccurate about the article is that I have worked since I was 19 (whenever I had a period of relative normality from the CFS) but I have had to give up several promising careers because of the illness. Maybe I’m not destined to be rich…

I was very tempted to take my copy of the newspaper into WHSmith and Waterstones in the Metrocentre and say, “This is me! Why don’t you stock my books?” but as you know, I’m far too shy for that…

I probably won’t be online much this week. Not sure I can afford to go and see James Martin in Leeds (though may be able to stretch to York) so I’ll get some rest, just in case. Am also hoping to get a chance to meet up with Mark, who’s at Sunderland in Sooty’s Magic Castle (4th April, Sunderland Empire). I used to love the Sooty Show, and think it’ll be great on stage, but my nieces and nephews are now too old to see such shows (shame, when their auntie isn’t!!!) Off to my mam’s now as it’s her birthday and we’re having a Chinese takeaway.

PS I’m not house-bound or bed-bound at the moment, as the article suggests (although I have been at times, often for weeks on end) – I spend the majority of my time lying on the sofa (as you can see from the photograph ‘The Real Me’) I am able to get out more in the winter months, when it is cold, as I find the summer warmth draining. I don’t leave the house much in the summer so maybe I can write another book!


Another quickie!

Hello. Another quick message today, as I’m exhausted after my telephone interview with a very nice journalist called Coreena from the Sunday Sun. I know it sounds pathetic to be tired after a conversation, but this happens sometimes (Gordon and I even developed a kind of sign language so that I could ‘talk’ to him when I was very tired – you’d laugh at the sign for ‘toilet’ Laughing).

The journalist was very friendly, and I hope that I was able to answer her questions properly without wandering too much off track (as I’m prone to doing) – I’m sure we’ll see once the article comes out. And next, the bit I’m dreading: the photographer’s coming tomorrow. I’m not terribly photogenic, so I apologise if you have to look at my face over your conflakes on Sunday…

Off to lie down again now – too much excitement for one day!


What is her problem?

🙁 I am sitting here, alone, fuming about something I’ve just read. In truth, I’m a bit upset about it too.

I’m a member of a number of book forums, and on this particular one, there are links to my website, etc. in my signature. I only did this because another forum member advised me to put my details in my signature, so that everyone knew my pseudonym – I personally didn’t set out to go on the site and promote my book (as you know, I’m the worst self-promoter in the world). Anyway, this particular ‘member’ seems to have a bee in their bonnet about the various mentions to Karma on the site, and seems to suggest that it’s inclusion is lowering the tone of the book forum! The thing is that many other links appear on the site: to other people’s websites, to books…and occasionally to some very dodgy sites indeed (but these are spam, to be fair). She seems to have a problem with me being there and I feel she has attacked my work.

When I think how hard it was for me to even complete the book, it get really frustrated that someone can dismiss my work just because it doesn’t fall within her view of literature. I respect anyone who has put in the time and effort to write a book, and certainly wouldn’t denigrate their work because it wasn’t within a particular genre.

I feel as though I am no longer welcome at that particular forum, which is very sad. I am also angry at myself that I allowed myself to be provoked into defending my work. Stopped short of picking her up on a word she mis-typed in her posting, though – that would have just been petty and childish…but it was tempting!

Glad I got that out of my system. Am a lot karma now – geddit? Calmer? Think I must be very tired to be coming out with pathetic puns like that! Laughing

My promotional leaflets arrived yesterday – they’re very nice. I’ve put my name down for the book event at Blaydon Festival in June – more details to follow. Am waiting to hear from Waterstones in Newcastle via Natalie, and hoping to speak to the Sunday Sun journalist this week. Still no word from Borders in Gateshead, but Natalie’s working on it. Just thinking, I never did hear anything from WHSmith…so the places that I thought were most likely to stock the book (ie those most local to me), WHSmith and Waterstones in the Metrocentre have shown no interest. Oh well, can’t win ’em all! Ooh, one more thing before I go – I’m now in the A-Z listings of Literature Northeast with REAL writers:

http://www.literaturenortheast.co.uk/writers/Holly-Harvey

Bye for now!