I was just reading my beloved Poets & Writers magazine, which includes a great section on the future of independent publishing. I’ve been with a “Big 5” publisher (St. Martin’s) and an indie publisher (Turner), so I’ve had a range of experience. What I’ve noticed is that, no matter the publisher, fiction books seem to be having — Read More
Tag: poets and writers
For the long haul
I’ve written a couple posts before about the similarities between writing and running (here and here). I’ve been thinking about it more lately. I haven’t been able to run for the past few months and, whereas this is something that used to torment me before, it doesn’t bother me now. I plan to be a lifelong — Read More
The daunting outline
When you want to get your first novel published, you have to submit the entire manuscript for consideration. Nonfiction is different in that you can get a book deal based on a detailed proposal. I always envied this. But, now, as I’m working on pitches for various ideas for my second novel, I’m realizing the difficulties. — Read More
The writer’s fraudulence complex
In the April issue of Poets & Writers, Leigh Stein wrote a piece called “Poet, Writer, Imposter” that had me nodding along vigorously. She starts: “To begin with, my credentials are worthless. I’m no expert. A better writer should have gotten this assignment. My editor is ignoring my e-mails because my work is unpublishable and — Read More
Why we write: Finding meaning
In the most recent issue of Poets & Writers magazine, the feature article (“The Deepest Place” by Kevin Nance) is about Adam Haslett and his new novel, Imagine Me Gone. The novel is based largely on events and losses in Haslett’s own life, centering around the mental illnesses that infiltrated his family. Haslett says, “The — Read More
Why I don’t want to tell you to pre-order my book
My book releases in less than 5 months. It seems like just yesterday that it was a year off. The other day, my friend said, “You should start telling people to pre-order it” (because pre-orders are very important, which deserves a post in itself. Stay tuned). I said, “Um, I can’t tell people that.” I — Read More
Publishing Journey: Going Hollywood
These are the 2 most common questions I’ve been asked by people in regards to my upcoming book: 1. Do you get to design the cover? 2. Will it be a movie? As for #1, I sincerely hope I don’t design the cover because I can barely draw a stick figure. Furthermore, I have no — Read More
Why it’s good to write when you’re busy: Part II
I wrote Part I (not knowing it would have a Part II) in February of 2013. Meaning, I’ve been f-ing busy for over a year. A crazy work schedule, family stuff, weekend trips, wedding planning, honeymoon planning, and a couple half marathons (with the requisite weeks of training) has made it difficult to find any — Read More
Running and writing
I never used to be a runner. In fact, I used to think runners were crazy. As in, certifiably insane. I wanted to attend races with a sign that read, in big red letters, “WHAT ARE YOU RUNNING FROM?” So, I state sheepishly that I have become a runner. It started with 5Ks. That 3-mile — Read More