Always an Awesome Time!

Greetings all,

AwesomeCon was a few weeks ago, and I always like to talk about how the conventions I attend go.

This con is special to me because it was one of my first ever and certainly the first “big” convention I ever attended. I go every year, and I plan on being there every year God grants me life.

From a business standpoint, I did fairly well. What I mean to say is I sold about what I normally sell at any convention. AwesomeCon is a bit more expensive to get to, but that means I get a lot more exposure too. It’s a weird balance between sales and marketing, but I’m pretty satisfied with how it meant.

I’m hopeful that the new readers I met enjoy the books and maybe drop me a review or two. I also made a few new author friends and linked up with some fans. Look, the fact that I can say with certainty that I have fans is still kind of a wondrously strange thing to me. Getting to say hello to a few loyal readers and maybe meet a few new ones is always a plus.

Another reason I’m such a fan of this event is the fact that I usually have a panel.  This year was no different.  My panel about “The Pitfalls of Unwary Self Publishers” has become a tradition.  I managed to record the event this year so anyone interested in the process (or more importantly the things they shouldn’t do) can just watch the video.

 

Finally, I got to see some cosplay, my favorite was of a young woman who dressed as the new Doctor. I’m a huge Doctor Who fan, and she was the first person I’d seen wear the 14th (there were 14.  Count them.  #AllRespecttoJohnHurt) Doctor’s attire.

These events are always fun, and I can’t express how grateful I am to everyone who comes to see hello, much less listen to me rant about my books and then actually buys one. I’ll always be indebted to those who help keep my dream moving forward.

 

Thanks for reading,

Matt

Farpoint: A Good Time Was Had By All

Greetings all,

One of the kind folks who picked up a copy of Bob Drifter. 

I had the pleasure of attending Farpoint last week.  It was the second of what will now be six conventions I’ll be at this year.

The most fun for me was talking to the other venders. It’s always fun meeting artists and venders, but this time was a particular pleasure. I ran into a few acquaintances, which is always nice because it allows me to catch up.  I made some progress on Worth of Words.

Oh yeah, I sold some books! For those curious about the financial feasibility of conventions, well, I didn’t sell quite enough to earn back what I paid for the table (let alone what it cost to purchase the books). The thing is though, if I don’t do conventions, I don’t sell any books. The investment is on building familiarity, building my newsletter, and getting my work out there. Those are all things I accomplished. I still only have two physical books to work with and three titles available. Things will improve as I keep at it. Last year, I didn’t do that many events, and my sales reflected it. While I can’t point to many sales, what I can say is I’ve almost sold more books in two months this year than I did in all of last year (I’m only 20 sales away from that mark).

Stock imagery from Pixabay.

I say this because it’s important anyone getting their name out there understands it takes time. I’ve always advised that the more patient (and probably successful) author waits until he has three books before he publishes.  It creates momentum and lets readers know you’re not going anywhere. None of the math made this any less fun or successful when considered with a longer, more strategic mindset.

I let that affect me far too much in my first year, so much so that I didn’t do many conventions in year two, and that made things even worse. I believe in this plan, and I have the regular sales to prove it. Doing conventions on a regular basis is the right way to go.

The other thing that matters are the reviews. The more books I sell, the more likely I am to see reviews. The reviews I’ve gotten are mostly positive. Of the 35 reviews I have on Amazon, only three of them (9 percent) are two stars or fewer. I’m not even sure I have any one-star reviews. Of the 41 reviews I have on Goodreads, only three of them (7 percent) are two star or fewer. Yes, there are some repeats, but there are also some originals, and I’m simply providing data to those thinking about publishing or becoming authors.  What this means to me is that the people who read my books like my books. That encourages me to keep putting the books out there, and I hope it encourages you to do the same. No, I wouldn’t do it the way I did it if I could do it over. But I’m fixing that this year and next year (four titles in 2017 and at least three in 2018).

On the other side of this equation is how much fun these events are. Like I said, Farpoint was a blast just talking to people and getting to know the other venders, and you all saw how much fun I had at Animorecon. The rest will work out in time.

My next convention is Awesomecon, which I’ve been to every year since I’ve been published. I’m doing my “Self-Publishing for Unwary Authors” panel again (folks seem to really like that one). I may even get another. I see a lot of folks at that event, and I can’t wait to meet more.

I’ll keep updating it, but it’s important I make clear this post is more about perspective than it is about immediate gratification, which is true of being an author. I want any hopeful authors to be informed, and I the conventions, readers, and newsletter subscribers to know just how much they mean to me. I hope this accomplishes that goal.

Thanks for reading,

Matt

It Was Indeed an Awesome Con!

This is me speaking at my panel on the pitfalls of self publishing. Photo by Peggy Trujillo.

I’ve had a few days to rest (at least a little), and I think I’ll be back to work in another day or two. It won’t be long at all before my next event, which is Shore Leave. I’ve just learned bout some more opportunities coming my way, so stay tuned for that. With that said, I wanted to give you all a bit more insight as to how AwesomeCon went.

First off, some special thanks.  The first must be my helpers. They get the chance to attend the event and have some fun, but they have to help me sell books and give me periodic breaks. Events like this take a ton out of me as it is, and I wouldn’t be able to do them without help, so I’d like to offer special thanks to Peggy Trujillo and Keith Simmons.   They made it so I could step away when I wanted. They made it so I could attend my panel (more on that later), and they made it possible for me to check a few items off the bucket list (yes, more on that later, too).  A note about Keith, turns out, his cosplay costume was well liked by the AwesomeCon folks. He made their list of favorite costumes.

Next I’d like to thank Andrew Hiller.  He actually joined me at my table this year. Teaming up with him gave me another person to talk to. I’ve read A Halo of Mushrooms, and A Climbing Stock is on my TBR. It was a pleasure working with him, and I want to make sure I say thanks for sending some traffic my way and keeping me company.

E.A. Copen speaks about self publishing during the first day of AwesomeCon 2017. Photo by Peggy Trujillo. 

Last, but in no way the least, is the new group of friends I made during my panel. I didn’t have anyone to be on my panel with me, and I truly wanted those in attendance to get the most out of the experience. So I approached a group near my table and asked if they’d care to join me.  They call themselves the Awethors, which is a clever name if I do say so myself.  They were a super group of people to meet.  Jeffery Cook, D.R. Perry, and E.A. Copen were fantastic additions to the panel, and they made it a huge success.  I had several people come up to me and tell me they loved it. I owe that success to them.  Thank you all for joining me.

For those interested in the marketing side of things, this is the spot you should be interested in. Jeffery wrote a book called, “Working the Table, An Indie Author’s Guide to Conventions.” I can’t wait to dig into that. I brought around 300 business cards, 75 bookmarks and a ton of QR-Code cards I’d made a while back. I should have brought more of the bookmarks and business cards. I ran out of those on the first day, and I think they were effective. All told, I sold about 10 more books than I’ve ever sold. Caught finally gained some traction, and I’m hoping readers start posting reviews soon. I’m also nearly sold out of soft-cover editions of The Journals of Bob Drifter. I’m proud of the fact that I sold enough product to make up the table, gas, new books (sorry, TBR pile), and parking. By any standard, that’s a success. I’ll admit I didn’t reach my super goal, but I’d still call that weekend a success.

I think my favorite part of the event was having people approach me and tell me how much they liked my work. I posted about that earlier, but I can’t say enough what it means to me for people to show their appreciation.  A lot of those conversations gave me some much needed motivation to stay true to my dream and keep at it. It’s amazing to think anyone would take time out of their day to stop by and just say they liked my books. Thank you!

A note on the value of reviews: I had a large number of people who spoke to me about my book. They took a night to think on it and then came back. A lot of them said my reviews on Goodreads  made a convincing argument to try my books. I’d like to thank those who reviewed my books. I’d be ever so grateful to anyone else who’s read my work to do the same. They really do matter. If you hated them or loved them, there is no such thing as a bad review in my eyes.

This puppy is going on the wall in my office (if I ever unpack). 

The convention wasn’t 100 percent business. Last year, I made it a point to meet Summer Glau.  This year I had a chance to meet someone who was fundamental to my dream to become a writer. If I’m being honest, Stan Lee was far too busy to do much more than sign a comic, but this Uncanny X-Men #101 is right up there with my signed copy of The White Dragon. I honestly only need one more autograph to have my own personal Rushmore of authors (ok, look, Tolstoy would be on that list, but I don’t think that’s in the cards). I didn’t pay for the photo or any of the events, but having that signature on my favorite comic ever is really special, and I’m glad I got the chance to do that.

 

It feels weird. This post is under 1,000 words, but I feel like I only scratched the surface. I wish I could talk about every conversation and every cool thing I saw, but there’s just too many. All I can do is say it really was a great time, and I can’t wait for next year!

Thanks for reading,

Matt

The Con of Awesome! What I’m up to this weekend!

Happy AwesomeCon everyone! So this convention has a special place in my heart. They were the first large con to contact me and invite me to their event. I’ve had a panel there every year (like last year) since I became published, and I have one this year as well.  I always look forward to this convention, and I’m excited about what I have going on this year.

First, I’ll have a partner in crime.  Fellow author Andrew Hiller will be with me at the booth, he’s joined forces with me. I read A Halo of Mushrooms, and posted my review here.  It’ll be nice to have someone to sit with and talk about writing with all day.  Andrew and I will be at table P19.

Next, I’d like to announce a few sales. To celebrate this event, Caught will be on sale for 99 cents from now until the 19th. If you were waiting on a deal, this is your chance. Outside of the electronic universe, the hard cover for The Journals of Bob Drifter will be reduced to $30. The soft cover will be down to $20.  Caught will be it’s regular price of $9.99, but if you haven’t had a chance to grab any autographs from me, I’m bundling the books.  You can buy Caught and The Journals of Bob Drifter together for a total of $25 (with a soft cover of Bob, $35 for the hard cover and Caught). I wanted to re-release Bob before this, but it’s my own fault for giving my editor two books to edit at the same time (I’m selfish really). So reducing the price to Bob is the least I can do for those readers who want to try out my work.

As I mentioned above, I’ll be hosting a panel (actually it’ll be more of a Q & A).  It’s about the Pitfalls of Unwary Self Publishers. That’s scheduled for 5:30 June 16 in room 154.  I hope to see you all there!

AwesomeCon runs from June 16-18.  Doors open at noon Friday and close for another year at 5 p.m. Sunday.

I think that’s about it. I’m looking forward to a great weekend, and I hope to see you all there!

Thanks of reading,

Matt

Book Shoutout: Entrepurpose, by Rusty Pang and Brian Laprath

I’ve always said I love it when other authors get published.  These particular authors and this particular book makes me that much happier because Rusty is a friend of mine.

Let’s start with the book blurb for Entrepurpose:

Begin blurb

You are here for a reason. So, the question is: Why?

Entrepurpose is a book inspired by 13 intense years of struggle to find the answer to the question,

“Why am I here?”

That journey took me through three depressions, alcoholism, and unhealthy weight gain as I tried to reconcile my life without purpose.

Now that I know my why, I have experienced an infusion of life and focus that I have never felt before.

This work has become my mission, and I can enjoy it more fully each day. But, it came at a price. That price was 13 years.

My story is our gift to you.

Inside these pages are the tools and principles that led me to understand what I was born to do.

If you apply these principles to your life, you will begin to see that every experience, no matter how painful, is part of your strength. If you feel different from others, a misfit perhaps, this book will show you why different is better than better. Maybe, for the first time, you will begin to accept who you are.

Whatever the reason that brought you here, know that you are here for a reason. That reason can be understood, and once you know it, you will have a responsibility to impact the world in the way only you can.

Welcome to your rebirth.

End blurb

This book is already doing well, and I couldn’t be happier for the creators.  It reached number 1 in three categories: Business and Money, Education and Education and Reference.

What’s most important about this book is, it’s designed to help people who truly feel low.  All the feedback I’ve seen and all the messages I’ve read continue to say, “This is what we need.”  Every writer wants his or her book to have an impact, and the early returns on Entrepurposve indicate this book does that.

Now let’s meet the creators.

I met Rusty somewhere around two years ago.  We both teach at the same school.  Over the last few months, we’ve been working more closely as he’s teaching the same segment of the course I teach.

There’s a bond between authors.  They don’t have to recognize it or accept it in any way.  It’s a bond of caring for your craft.  You see it when they’re a bit tired the next day because they rushed home to eat up whatever time they can with their family before they toil away at another job that takes not just a great deal of effort, but an insane amount of mental energy.  I’ve watched Rusty as he’s pushed himself to share this with you.  It’s not just his story, which alone is something compelling; it’s his passion.

Every day I see him talking to people about personality types and how they gather information.  Every thing he does as a teacher is driven to understand how the student thinks and learns, so that he can teach more effectively.  I haven’t had a chance to read the book just yet (it’s next on my TBR), but his story and his effort to find ways to reach people are already strong motivators for me.

I haven’t had the pleasure of getting to know Mr. Laprath.  He’s currently a reservist in the Air Force, and any time I can help out a fellow veteran, I’m going to.  You can find out more about him on the Entrepurpose website.  That site also has a blog and a ton of information worthy of checking out.

So I wanted to take a moment today and share this with you.  As most of my followers and those I follow know, I love giving shoutouts when dreams come true.  I relblog posts where authors announce they’ve finished a book.  I like it when people achieve their dreams, and I wanted to share this achievement with you.

Thanks for reading

Matt

Book Review: Magic-Borne by C.L. Schneider

I’m very glad I had the chance to finish this book last week.  I’d been excited to read the final book in the trilogy, and I wasn’t disappointed.  To remind you all what’s happened so far, please check out my review of Magic-Price land my review of Magic-Scars.

Spoiler Free Summary:  Magic-Borne is the final book in the Crown of Stones trilogy.  It takes place pretty soon after the events of Magic-Scars.  Ian is trying to solve the mystery of his scars, save a loved one, defeat his father, and find a way to bring peace to the land.  We get a lot of questions answered and the readers will get a complete resolution, which is all any reader of a series can ask for these days.

Character:  Ian is still amazing.  His arch shows a lot of progress from the character we met in Price.   He shines more in this book.  I’ll admit I missed some of the other characters who, while still in the book, didn’t get as much air time as I’d have liked, but Ian is, and should be, why people are reading the series.  In my  review of the last book, I’d noted I would have liked more from them, but I think pulling back a bit was a sound decision.  Jarryd had some major impact moments that showed his evolution in some pretty powerful ways, but the rest of the characters simply don’t get a lot of face time.  It’s understandable given the ending, but I won’t lie that I wished they had a bigger role.

Exposition: This is about the same as the last book.  Schneider has a knack for blending exposition with description to help the reader avoid large blocks of data dumping.  I almost never notice the exposition in her work.

Worldbuilding:  So what I have to do here is admit that if someone shouts that the ending “seems” convenient (or at least the plot device that brings about the end), I couldn’t get too angry because I’d understand what they see.  I’d like to argue though that what Schneider did here is not MUCH different (if not even done better) than what McCaffrey did in Dragon Riders of Pern.  Before anyone throws stuff at me, realize I’m only drawing a correlation between plot devices.

Pern is my favorite series (by a lot) and will always be.  But if the plot device in that series didn’t bother you, the plot device in this one shouldn’t either. Schneider did a great job closing all the loops here and letting the readers learn about a complex magic system as they needed to. She sets up the ending to be complete and fulfilling while simultaneously leaving the door open for more books from that world.

Dialogue:  I’d say the dialogue in Scars was better.  There were scenes and arguments in Borne that felt a little quick for me.  As I write this, I’d have to say Scars was my favorite in the series on a lot of fronts.  That doesn’t take away from what this book is and could be.  The biggest difference stylistically was the pace of the dialogue.  Even the amount of dialogue felt a bit more rushed in this book.  This was not to a degree as to degrade the quality, just not the same crips, visceral dialogue we saw in Scars.  It’s still a great book.  I just felt this was a weaker element of the book.

Description:  I mentioned problems with how I saw characters in the review for Scars, and Schneider followed up her novel with much more character description.  Her extra attention to smaller character details made the book that much more visceral than the last.  I thought this was a great blend between setting, scene, and character description.  This was an improvement from Scars to Borne.

A note on content:  I don’t think this book is as explicit as Scars.  There are some adult scenes in this book too.  This still serves as a plot device as intimacy is a theme that shifts through each book.  Where as with straight romance (note, I’ve only read two), you tend to see scenes like this for the sake of scenes like this.  Here, you get steam and impact for the character.  That’s something I appreciate.

Overall:  I stand by my opinion that Scars is the best of the three, but this book is a very satisfying and complete conclusion to a great story.  Where Scars upped the drama and the emotion, Borne lets us slip into the the resolution like a warm bath.  I appreciate how this story tied up all the loose ends and let us leave this world feeling as if we’ve seen all there is to see, for now.  This also holds true to how I usually feel about trilogies.  I tend to like the second act best because that’s where the most drama is.  That makes this book a perfect conclusion. No, it’s not the most exciting book because it can’t be.  A reader has to leave a story knowing there’s nothing more (in a manner of speaking) to be seen from this arc.  Borne does that.  If Schneider ever decides to go back, I’m going to be immensely pleased.  This was a sold, complete, well told story with an amazing protagonist and a fascinating twist on a few old tropes.

Thanks for reading

Matt

The Wrath of Cons: An Indie Author’s Guide to Conventions

So a while back, I posted my blog about finding new readers.  Quintessential Editor brought up a great idea in which I post some of my successes and mistakes.    Being the dutiful Brown Piper than I am, I sat down and wrote it my next “blog writing” day.

How to Find Them:  Well, in some cases, they found me.  They found my website or my book and shot me an email.  What this should tell you all is it’s a business.  They have table to sell to vendors, and you’re vendors.  If you go to one convention, they’ll have flyers for pretty much every other convention you could dream of.  Snag the flyers.  They usually have tables themselves, so you can ask them for an “artist alley” form and sign up.  (More on that later).  I’m based in Maryland, so I just google “Maryland Comic/Supernatural/(INSERT RELEVANT THING) Conventions,” and start shopping.  Just shop for the right ones.

Which Ones Should You Go To:  The closer they are to your genera or plot, the better.  It’ll be tempting to just got to every one you can, but trust me, it SUCKS to sit at a table for 8-hours a day for three days for no reason.  Don’t go to who will have you, go to the ones your readers are going to.  For me, comic conventions, science fiction conventions, Supernatural (the TV show) conventions are all great opportunities because that’s where people who love my book will go.

Big or Small:  My second convention was Awesome Con.  Another author told me it was a bad choice.  You see, that convention is huge, and the table price was higher because of it.  My table selection wasn’t smart (I PROMISE I’ll get there), but I wouldn’t trade that convention for anything.  I sold about 10% of the books I’ve sold so far at that first event.  Maybe that’s not good for most, but there’s a few reasons for that.

(TANGENT):  That author was right in one way.  I was at a table with one book.  That meant the most books I was going to sell per customer was, well, one.  Any author there with more than one book could literally sell twice as many books per customer as I could.  This is why I advise self-publishers not to go indie until they have at least two books ready to go.  It opens doors for marketing and repeat business.  I may be alone in this, but it made sense to me, and I saw it work in practice.

Artist Alley:  There are usually a  few types of booths.  You want an artist alley table, not a vendor table.  What’s the difference?  About $300.

How Many Books to Bring:  I get a lot of varying opinions here.  I made the mistake of buying a BUNCH of books, thinking I’d sell out at my first event.  It didn’t work out for me.  I sell about thirty books an event.  That’s on the low side.  I mentioned one reason above, the other reason is the price per book.  I made a lot of mistakes in publishing Bob, that cover price is one I’m literally still paying for.  I didn’t pick it.  I sell it on my website and at conventions at the biggest discount I can.  The next convention I go to, I’ll have Caught available.  I’ll bring sixty (thirty of each) to the event.

Matt’s Guide:  Don’t buy a table for more that $200.  Bring enough to profit $200.  This means you’d have to sell enough to earn that money plus what you paid to get that table.  Don’t forget to factor in gas and/or lodging.  If you sell out, celebrate, and adjust your inventory for next time.  (Any of my other indie authors out there, PLEASE don’t hesitate to comment on how many you bring to an event).  The more inventory you have, the more you should bring.

Marketing or No Marketing:  I always bring something, but I honestly don’t think I’ve sold a single book from any of the cards or bookmarks I’ve given out.    What they DO is open the door.  If you offer them something free right off the bat, they’ll probably be ready to hear your pitch.

Have a Pitch:  You better be ready to talk to people.  I have what I call an elevator pitch and then a small series of tidbits that helps.  One thing I do is something I learned when I heard an author speak a while back.  I forget what she calls it, but I call it the blending technique.  I take two things that are similar to my book.  I tell people the book is “Supernatural meets Dead Like Me.”

Those who say I shamelessly rip off Odd Thomas are also correct.  I don’t just say that to say it.  I genuinely feel that my book takes the tone of Supernatural and the situation of Dead Like Me and combines them into something new.  Give them the plot hook.  Have reviews ready. Have a  sell display.  That’s just a small stand-up display that you put on the table that has some reviews on it.  Me personally, I just print out multiple copies of a few and hand them out.
Tables Are Barriers:  If you have a  corner table, life is great.   I try to stand in front of my table four an hour or so, then I sit down for a while.  I wouldn’t do this if I were in the middle of a row.  You’re in the way of customers and other people trying to sell their hopes and dreams.  I’ve seen people spend the whole convention on their feet, in front of their table, and it worked.  They were in a corner table.

The Gretzky Approach:  A person not spoken to is a sale not made.  I’m confident I have a  pretty good feel for people.  So if a guy walks in with an F-U tattoo on his forehead just for me, I leave him (or her) alone.   I’m not there to jump in people’s face, and they’re not there to be accosted.  But I do say hello to EVERY person who walks by my booth.  I do offer them whatever I have to give, and I do ask them, “Can I tell you about my book?”  Boy do I love it when that beautiful cover of mine draws someone over.  That thing does half my work for me.  But at the end of the day, you have to be approachable.  Saying hello and BEING personable helps.

J.R. Handley offered some advice in the comments section of the blog mentioned above.  It all lined up with what I’ve seen.  He mentioned Dead Robots Society Podcast and Kristen Martin.    I’d be a fool not to mention them, and I think anyone about to start marketing at conventions should check them out as well.  J.R. If you have the direct links to either of those specific podcasts or Vlogs, please thrown them in the comments section and I’ll switch up the links.

I mentioned bookmarks.  Every convention I went to had some sort of cover.  I’m frankly too broke to buy much more than the table I sit at, and the promotional stuff I bring.  I’m not saying its a bad idea, I’m just saying I can’t do it.

Take Credit:  Not for your work, I’m pretty sure your name is on the book cover.  I mean have a  way to take credit.   I have a  pretty good split between cash and credit customers, but having that option means a lot.

Steal Ideas:  I saw one author create a display.  She offered to autograph that for people who bought the ebook from her QR Code reader.  I did it, and it does work.  That also did a LOT to help me reduce the pain of that cover price.  The e-version of my book is every bit as entertaining, and I make about the same profit.  This gives them the book, gives you a reader, and let’s them have something you can sign.  I think everyone wins.  That’s an idea I stole from someone I saw selling well at an earlier convention.

Bring Help:  Usually tables come with at least one other badge.  Take it, invite a friend.  Let him or her have fun, and have that person sit in for you when you have a panel or need a break (or you want a picture with that awesome person you’re a huge fan of.  No Corey, I’m not going to post that picture, I’m too afraid it’ll appear as appropriation.  I do make every effort to meet people I’d like to meet. I DO NOT try to sell THEM my book.  In fact, I try not to sell vendors my book.  They’re at the convention to sell products, work, and earn a living just like me.  If we just buy each other’s stuff, we’re not making any money.  Anyway, having someone there to help is great.

Sign Up For Panels:  Every convention has a request form for a panel.  Get a group together and have one.  I’ve done about three panels.  They’re fun, and they’re a great way to meet those ever elusive new readers.

Get Pictures:  Oh do I suck at this, but I mean to get better.  Getting pictures and posting them on social media really does a lot to legitimize your presence.  The help I mentioned above would be awesome for that.  Whatever you do though, get pictures and post them.  (NOTE:  all kidding with Corey aside, make sure you inform the customer what you’re taking it for and what you intend to do with it.  They have some rights.  You do too, but save yourself a lot of pain and just talk to people, especially if they’ve already bought your book.)

These events are DRAINING!  I love them, but they’re a ton of work.  If you have the time to take a vacation day, do it.  You should be exhausted, but you should also have fun.

Anyone else have a  few tips I haven’t mentioned?   I’d love to see them in the comments below.

Thanks for reading,

Matt

SIBA Update

Tomorrow is Sept. 1, and the Summer Indie Book Awards are scheduled to open voting.  If you sign up here for the newsletter, they’ll send you a genre link.  You can also vote through Facebook at this link.  You can get a bit more information on the host’s page.  The folks at Metamorph Publishing are committed to making this event a success.

As you all know, I was nominated for the award’s fantasy category.  If you’ve been following me on Facebook, you already know, but I’d like to make it official.  I’ve also been nominated in the paranormal category.

I can’t begin to describe how happy I am to receive one nomination, much less two.  Every artist appreciates being recognized, and receiving this nomination is a form of recognition in itself.  I still encourage everyone to vote only for the books you’ve read and enjoy, but I’d like to summarize the rules.

The poll is being run through pollmaker, and you’ll be allowed to vote one time a day from the first until Sept. 11.  You can vote for just one category, multiple, or all of them.  Also of note is the fact that you can vote for multiple books in a single category.  I appreciate that this allows for people to vote, but I’ve always been a sort of one or none guy myself.

You’ll see each choice with a box next to it.  You’ll be able to check each option you wish and then click vote.  Be sure you’ve clicked all the options you want to support before you hit the vote button, and make sure hit vote.  You can vote only once a day, but you can vote multiple days.

I wanted to take a few moments update you all and remind you to stop by tomorrow and vote.

Thanks for reading

Matt

My Journey So Far

On social media, I’ve announced the release of Andrew Hiller’s multimedia project about me and Julie Milillo.  I added the video below.  It touches on how self-publishing helped me stand behind a project I was proud of.  I’m a nostalgic person at heart, so watching that made me remember how I got to this point in my career as an author.

It starts with rejection.  About two years ago, I made the decision that The Journals of Bob Drifter (JOBD) was ready for the world, so I started looking for agents.  I think I sent a total of 50 queries.  Now I don’t really know if that’s a lot or a little in comparison to others, but I got some 15 replies back.  One went so far as to say, “I found your story un-intriguing” or something to that effect.  That particular email required some emotional support, massive Doctor Who, chocolate chip cookies, and a few days of moping.

I sent it to whatever slush pile I could get it to.  They all said no or ignored me.  In some of my old notes, I came across Balticon 2014 (I think…the years blend together).  I was speaking to one of the guests, whose name I will not mention because I refuse to use other people to sell my work, especially without their consent.  He told me about a few other options.  He told me that self publishing was a path I could choose.  He told me there are several successful self-published authors.  To say that conversation was memorable is an epic understatement.  Most importantly, it made me fell like if I believed in my work, I could stand behind it.

I love JOBD.  I think it’s a great story with compelling characters and an interesting twist on an old conflict.  I thought I deserved a chance to put myself out there.  More importantly, I thought Bob deserved a chance.

No one likes bad reviews.  No one likes to think his or her work isn’t loved by all.  Bob has had a few bad reviews, but he has had more positive reviews.  I spoke about that in the interview above.  As cool as that fact is, that’s not actually my point.  The story deserved to be seen.

I made mistakes.  I was impatient with the editing process.  I’ll go over the long list in great detail here and there.  Those are mistakes I’ve made and mistakes I must learn from, but I wouldn’t change the fact that I have a book for anything.

I have a book.  It sits on my rickety old wine-rack converted trophy case.  The cover was drawn by my best friend in junior high school.  It’s dedicated to my dad and a certain horrifically overweight cocker spaniel.    I can’t tell you what that feels like.  If I wrote a million words and used every synonym for the word “euphoric” in every language known to man, I wouldn’t be doing the feeling justice.  I’m as self-loathing as the next artist, but no one can take that book away from me.

For those devastated by rejection letters and lack of responses, this is my advice.  No one can tell you you’re ready.  No one can tell you your book is ready.  Those who have access are barriers. They’re well-trained professionals seeking product they already know they can sell.  That’s their job.  They’re not evil.  They’re evaluators.  I’d listen to what they have to say and learn from it, but I clearly didn’t let it stop me.   You have to make the choice.  Do you believe in yourself or not?

I’m results oriented.  Every sale I make is a victory.  Every day I don’t make a sale (and man are there plenty of them!) is a defeat.  Every 5-star review is heaven.  Every 2-star review is hell.  I take it all.   I learn from it.  I AM an author.  However Bob does over time is the right of readers to judge, but that book deserved to be judged by readers.

So if you have a project you believe in, if you’d bet everything on it, and it’s the best project you could develop, stand beside it.  It matters LESS how it sells than that it’s out there.  Trust me.  I KNOW how if feels to think you’re not successful.  I struggle every day with marketing, publicizing, working on the next book, making the next book even better, and reading reviews and comments.  When I’m at my lowest, I remember two things.

One:  I’m a writer.  I’ve written 1,000 words a day (give or take) since I was 26 years old (11 years now).  I didn’t get paid for one of those days, and I don’t care.   God put me on earth to write.  He didn’t promise me sales or awards or anything.   I feel happy when I write.  I feel at peace. Even as I write this, I’m smiling, because I’m doing what I’m meant to do.  Sure, I’d like to be well paid for that one day, but I won’t stop regardless.

Two:  I’d have zero reviews if I never took a chance.  People can say whatever they want about my book.  They can say whatever they want about Caught when it comes out.  The reason they can talk about them is because they’re out there.  To me, the purpose of art is to be consumed  (not literally, JOBD is 400-plus pages). The point is I created something I’m proud of.

Of course it hurts when someone speaks ill of it.   Of course it hurts that I’m not number one on the best seller list every week ever.  But if I focus on those two things I remember…

…I’m out there, and I never would have been if I didn’t try.

Thanks for reading.

Matt