The ePublishing Road, Part Two

Wow! Where did that week go? The appearance of blossoms on the redbud and dogwood trees, the explosion of azalea blooms, and the blizzard of dead leaves from the live oak trees have bemused me. If you're seeing crocuses in the snow, brightly colored tulips and pussy willow buds, then I'm sure you feel the same way. Even with the Easter cold snap looming, I've put away the heavy coats.

The arrival of spring is not the only source of my bemusement. Publishing options have me looking slightly glassy-eyed. Like the sudden switch from winter to spring, the explosion of ways to turn my manuscript into a book seemed to go – overnight – from only a traditionally published ink-and-paper book to a number of open-ended options with multiple solutions.

In order to begin getting a grip on this transition, I asked Mr. David Nicholls to share his story with us. Last time, David explained how the reality check he experienced when he attempted to publish his manuscript led him to start the Aspiring Writers' group on LinkedIn. The explosion of the group (It's closing in on 1300 members.) encouraged him to take another step. I'll let him tell the story.

"With the growth of the Aspiring Writers group on LinkedIn, it occurred to me that, with the emergence of online publishing, I was looking at an opportunity to empower authors to take charge of their own careers. So many writers, worldwide, want to get their work published, but the traditional publishing industry treats aspiring writers as second-class citizens. Unless an aspiring writer is a celebrity chef or has appeared in a soap, traditional publishers rarely take a chance on a new writer.

With these thoughts and a growing group of writers passionate about wanting to get their work published, I came up with the idea of developing an online portal for aspiring writers. Unique? Certainly not. What is unique these days? But learning from the sites that had already been developed, I set about turning my ideas into reality. I wanted to give these passionate writers the opportunity to publish their work, earning money for the time and work they had already invested.

They say that naiveté can be a good thing and in this case, I would certainly go along with that sentiment. I consider myself an entrepreneur not a 'techie' so I started to look for people who could share my vision. With a small team that included a web developer and a creative director, we put together Lebrary.com. We put out initial feelers and the feedback was very good. In February, it was launched – and we held our breath. Within a very short time, we hit our first target of twenty books on the site, with sales of these books already starting. We even attracted a US Ambassador who put his work on the site. Although these are early days, the signs are very promising. We have plans to develop the site with the ability to download on e-readers, including mobile phone Apps.

Some people have said that online publishing is only a temporary success, but I remember someone saying that about the Internet! So if you feel you want to be part of this exciting revolution – then have a look at Lebrary.com – you'll be more than welcome."

In preparation for today's post, I popped over to Lebrary.com. It now has twenty-eight registered authors with thirty-five books for sale. Though the site is in Great Britain, the transactions use US dollars. Authors can sign up for one of two publishing packages. The basic package is free, with books sold for $2 or $4. The link to the "Author Terms and Conditions" can be found at the bottom of every page. If you have used Lebrary.com, please leave your thoughts about the site in our comments.

The ePublishing Road: Part One

Hello, friends. Daylight savings time has arrived. If you’re like me, having that extra daylight means you can spend more time writing in the evening – or coming here to visit. I’m glad that you chose to spend some of your time at our table in the coffee shop.

A week or so ago, David Nicholls left a comment. He had some interesting things to say, so I asked him to be a guest blogger. I wanted everyone to have a chance to read what he shared. Mr. Nicholls comes from the U.K., which should be obvious from some of the British terms he uses.

Before I let David Nicholls take the stage, I want to announce that Marsha Moore, our resident travel book writer – who also lives in the U.K. – graciously offered a copy of her book 24 Hours London for the winner of our next drawing. Everyone who follows Calling All Aspiring Writers of Nonfiction Books by March 31 is eligible for the drawing. (The exception is Jennifer Ortolano, who won the drawing last month.)

Now let’s find out how Mr. Nicholls got into ePublishing.

“I’ve never considered myself a “career writer.” In fact, up until 9 months ago, I never considered myself a writer at all. Having been in the advertising and marketing industry for more years than I can remember, I became one of the many to fall victim of the economic climate. If the truth were known, my first reaction after getting over the initial trauma of being made redundant was a feeling of relief. A strange reaction I know, but being “pushed off the merry go round that you hated being on, but were too scared to step off of” makes you feel like someone who’s just been released from a long spell in prison. You know you have to face reality eventually, but you do enjoy that euphoria of freedom.

Apart from being tied into a contractual “garden leave” arrangement for a month and knowing I wouldn’t be able to pick up employment immediately, I set about putting down that story we all promise ourselves to write. I knew I had a vivid imagination, but my planning is appalling, so I sat at the computer and let it flow out of me. I realised it would never win a Booker Prize but felt I could tell a good story.

Feeling very proud of myself, I started to research the process of getting my hard work published. I put my head on the pillow at night seeing my book in shop windows and discussing the film rights. However, I soon found out the reality of being a writer. First get an agent, and then get a publisher. We all know how difficult a process this is and for most, impossible. Apart from getting the standard response from agents, the reality is that traditional publishing has been and certainly is now, playing safe. If you’ve been on a reality show, you stand more of a chance of getting work published, even if it’s by a ghost writer, than if you are an extremely talented writer. Of course, people do get their work published, but they are rare.

In a moment of sheer frustration, I started a writers group called Aspiring Writers on LinkedIn, which if you didn’t know, is the leading professional social networking site. My thoughts at the time were to attract a few fellow Brits to the site so we could have a good moan about the state of publishing. To my astonishment within five months, we attracted 1,200 members. The vast majority of the members come from North America, but the group is truly international. The group has attracted a vast array of talent, including professional authors, agents, publishers and of course aspiring writers, all who have the aim of helping and encouraging each other within this very competitive market place.

Am I still cynical about the publishing industry? The simple answer is yes, but the passion that most writers have about their craft doesn’t diminish and I am now flying the flag for online publishing which empowers any aspiring writer in a way that was historically never possible.”

Next time, Mr. Nicholls will explain how he went from LinkedIn to ePublishing. Come back to hear more of his story.

Community Spotlight 4

Wow. Would you look at all the aspiring writers who have joined us lately? We've added so many new faces to our community that one table is no longer enough. Let's rearrange the tables and chairs so that we can all be together. Today, I want to introduce you to our new members.

Let me introduce you to Inside the Shrink, Dr. Bobbi Craigmyle. She is a licensed psychologist in the state of Missouri who writes three blogs. Psychobabble covers topics related to mental health and to the brain. Her most recent article is about psychopathic personalities. Dr. Bobbi also blogs at Inside the Shrink where she talks about issues affecting her own life. Link to her latest post to read how she overcomes adversity. The third blog is Daily Grace, a short devotional thought for the day. Check out her blogs. One of them might spark an idea for an article.

My introduction to Steve Player will be much less informative, since his name is all I know. Leave a comment, Steve, and tell us more about yourself – and welcome!

Rebecca Ford joins us from La Vergne, Tennesse. Besides nonfiction writing, Rebecca is interested in the future of the publishing business. (Aren't we all?) If you have any opinions on what's going on in the publishing world, Rebecca, please leave a comment and we'll plan on a guest spot for you.

Please greet Lynette Benton. Lynette is a published author who holds a Master's degree in Communications Management. She also teaches classes on writing in Arlington, MA. We'd be interested in hearing what you have to say, too.

Misti is another community member I can only introduce by name. Misti, it appears that you may be new to the blogosphere. We're glad that you chose to join us in the coffee shop. We'd like to know more about you, so please leave a comment.

Please welcome, Mickmas. Mick blogs at – are you ready? – at Mick Blogs. What the name of his blog lacks in imagination, the work on his blog completely makes up. Mick hails from the UK where he takes the most amazing photographs and shares them on his blog. If his photographs don't inspire you, nothing will. Oh, yeah, Mick REALLY likes music, too.

My final introduction of the day is queeninme80. Ms. Queen doesn't blog, but I have a feeling that she has a story to tell. I trust that by joining us at the table, she'll someday find the words to tell it.

I have one last subject for the spotlight, today. If you scroll down the page and look in the right-hand column just above my picture, you'll see a new gadget/link for BookSneeze. Some of the books I discuss on this blog will come from Thomas Nelson who owns BookSneeze. (In the set of articles about memoirs, I received a free copy of Thin Places as part of a blog tour for Mary DeMuth, I bought copies of By Searching and Writing for the Soul, I borrowed Plenty, and Thomas Nelson gave me a free copy of A Century Turns.) If you blog and are interested in reviewing books for Thomas Nelson, you can link through the icon. (No, it is not an affiliate link.)

It's been a pleasure getting to know all the new members of our community. We hope that you will feel comfortable enough to stop in often. We enjoy getting together and there's always room for one more.

Memoir Month #4

Welcome! It's time for some good news. I have the winner of the drawing for a copy of Mary DeMuth's book,
Thin Places.

Jennifer Ortolano, you are the winner. Congratulations! Please contact me at lynndaell [at] live [dot] com so that I can send it to you.

We've viewed memoir writing from several perspectives. Mary DeMuth gave us information about writing memoirs in general and followed up with the personal issues she faced. Last time, we looked at memoir writing from an agent's prospective via Laney Katz Becker's interview.

Today, I have another blog excerpt. Rachelle Gardner blogged about writing memoirs. Link here to read the whole letter. I want to focus on a few lines:

"Memoir is a demanding genre; it will only sell if the writing is stellar, and the story is crafted in way that is very compelling. It usually needs a unique hook or a fresh spin on a common topic… Selling a memoir is not just about your story. It's about how that story is written. Lots of people have a story similar to yours; only a few will be able to write it in such a way that it could become a bestselling memoir."

Rachelle uses strong words: demanding, stellar, compelling, and unique. She also talks about the agent's perspective of having a best seller: "only a few will be able to write it."

So what's a writer to do?

What else? Write a book!

Write a memoir. Just don't call it a memoir.

No, I'm not talking about some magician's razzle-dazzle. I am asking you to rethink your book. Think about a memoir as a guided trip into someone else's world. How deeply we delve into the author's life determines what type of memoir it is.

When, by opening the book, we read the answer to the question, "Hello, how are you?" the book is primarily about the author's past. Memoirs like,
Thin Places and Isobel Kuhn's book By Searching answer that question by inviting us into the deepest places in their lives and souls. They share memories and experiences that may be painful, but their answers help others who hurt.

Sometimes, the book answers the question, "What do you do?" I've recently read two great examples of this type of memoir. Plenty is an example of the memoir style "A year in the life of…" It's about how a couple lives out the goal of securing locally grown food. It contains strong personal and emotional elements of the couple who wrote it. It makes compelling reading.

Jerry Jenkins' book Writing for the Soul skillfully weaves his personal life into information on how he writes. Because his writing style reflects his lifestyle, the account of his writing life would be hollow without the personal life that sustains it. As co-author of the Left Behind series, Mr. Jenkins has a unique hook.

Another question a memoir can answer is, "So what happened?" Of the three types of memoir, this type is the most objective. I recently read A Century Turns by William J. Bennett. In it, Mr. Bennett wrote about the twenty years of American history beginning in 1988 and skillfully constructed a stained-glass window of national life. Because he was involved in much of the political activity during those twenty years, he adds a personal touch to the account. Much as the thin strips of lead hold a stained-glass window together, his touches of memoir become the slivers of light that give definition and cohesion to the picture he creates.

As you look at your story, think about it in relation to the food you eat or the work you do or the people you know. You will still need all your writing skills. It's just that by turning outward, you might find a larger audience for your story and make your memoir a best-seller.

Memoir Month #3

If you’ve been coming to the coffee shop regularly, you know that we are focusing on memoirs, this month. With all the nasty weather we’ve experienced, I almost wished that I’d chosen something a little cozier to snuggle up with during these cold, dark nights. As we’ve learned from Mary DeMuth, most memoirs, including her own (the newly released Thin Places) are not “cozy” books to read. Most of them contain experiences so difficult to read that one wonders how the author survived. Yet, the story of the ways God heals our brokenness is endlessly fascinating. So what do agents want in a memoir? What can get the attention of someone who can help sell it?

To provide insight to these questions, I have an excerpt from an interview with an agent. The interview was originally posted on Guide to Literary Agents.

This excerpt features Laney Katz Becker of Markson Thoma Literary Agency. Laney was an agent at Folio Literary Management before she joined Markson Thoma. Prior to becoming an agent, Laney was an advertising copywriter and freelance journalist, as well as an award-winning author of fiction and nonfiction.

Guide to Literary Agents (GLA) asks for three tips from Laney Katz Becker (LKB), but she generously gave twice that many.

“GLA: You say you love memoir, and a few of your recent sales - Unsane Childhood and then First Comes Love, Then Comes Malaria - are those great books writers love to see – i.e., memoirs written by people who are NOT celebrities or politicians. Give us your top 3 tips on writing memoir and catching your attention.

“LKB: Love this question. Everyone thinks their story is interesting to others, but more and more publishers are worried about “platform,” which is why we see so many (too many!) celebrity books. But even if you’re not famous, you can do yourself a huge favor if you have some following/audience/readership. Whether it’s through Facebook, Twitter, a blog, a regional radio show, a regular column in your local paper …something!

“When it comes to memoir, I’m a sucker for voice. I want it to feel fresh and compelling. I want to like you on the page. I also want a fresh story. I’m not interested in the dysfunctional family memoir, or the abuse (drug, sexual, etc.) memoir. I’m sorry, I truly am, but I feel like I’ve read that story too many times and I just don’t want to invest months of my life working with an author on a proposal if it’s a topic/story that doesn’t wow me. BTW: that’s another thing. I sell memoir by proposal only. And no, it doesn’t mean if you’ve already written the whole book it’s better. Proposal. Only. I also like a memoir that exposes me to a different culture or country. I like stories that allow me to walk in someone else’s shoes. In both fiction and memoir, I like racial stories.”

Information like this is extremely valuable if your writing goal is to publish a memoir. Make yourself a checklist from this excerpt that you can use to critique your own manuscript. Then take a chance and send Laney Katz Becker a proposal. What do you have to lose?

Memoir Month #2

According to the groundhog, we'll have six more weeks of winter, so I guess we'd better put down the spring seed catalogs, flip open the laptop, and write a few thousand more words. Before we do that, however, we might want to take the time to listen to Mary DeMuth's wise words on writing a memoir. So, sit back, take a sip of your latte, and give her your attention.

"I wrote Thin Places only after I gave myself permission to say it all. (More on that later.)

First, one clarification about memoir: no memoir can be 100% accurate. Every memoirist must recall, to the best of his/her ability what happened in the past. Only God knows what truly happened! And to protect the people listed in a memoir, I've changed names and distinguishing characteristics. That's allowable in a memoir, and is often expected.

To make a memoir work, it must be either:

1. From someone famous or
   
2. A story so strong and surprising, the story carries the book.
   

I'm of the latter category since I am by no means famous. But my story is raw and redemptive. And a bit out there. Find out more about Thin Places here.

The most important thing for a memoir is that it be memorable and beautifully written. If you don't have a platform, near perfect writing is a must backed up by an intriguing/surprising story. Think of a memoir as a novel with rising action, climax and denouement. Consider writing it as you would a novel, with characters, dialogue and a plot (even if the plot is your life!)

A great example of a memoir that tells an amazing story is Parting the Waters by Jeanne Damoff.

Even though the story is beautifully written, Jeanne shopped the story to every publishing house far and wide through her agent. Though it was a great story, she faced a lot of rejection.

Eventually, after much prayer and seeking wisdom, she decided to self-publish the book through WinePress. It's got a wonderful cover and is selling well.

Another amazing memoir is Startling Beauty by Heather Gemmen. Wow. It's one of the most beautifully written, achingly painful memoirs I've read.

It's not easy to write a memoir. I fear that some people are so afraid to do it because the people involved aren't yet dead. So they work on a fictionalized version. Is that really honest? What is the purpose of telling your true story if you make it fiction? Of course, you can take elements of your struggle and life and place that in fiction, but I've found that tacked on messages seldom make a book.

My best advice: obey God. Write what He tells you to write. If you're too afraid to write a memoir, then don't do it. Prayerfully consider whether your need to get it all out is, instead, a form of catharsis that no reader really needs to see. And if you add some of your story to the memoir, consider that story is the king. The story must support the rest of what you write."

Remember, one member of our community will be chosen in a drawing on February 28^th to get a copy of Mary DeMuth's new book, Thin Places. (Note: Be sure to become a follower of our blog to be eligible for the drawing.)

Memoirs Month #1

Hello, everyone! I hope you are making good use of this pause between winter storms. Coming out to spend some time with us at the coffee shop is the perfect opportunity for you to meet a friend of mine, Mary DeMuth. Mary writes both fiction and nonfiction. This month – today, in fact - her memoir, Thin Places is debuting.

I’ve learned that a good book needs both a premise and a story. The premise of Mary’s book comes from a Celtic belief. To quote Mary’s introduction: “The Celts define a thin place as a place where heaven and the physical world collide, one of those serendipitous territories where eternity and the mundane meet. This describes the membrane between the two worlds, like a piece of vellum; where we see a holy glimpse of the eternal – not in digital clarity, but clear enough to discern what lies beyond.” Mary laces her story into this backdrop.

This is a busy season for Mary, but she generously offered to tell us a few things about memoir writing. In this first installment, Mary talks about the way she tells her story.

“When I started my writing journey toward publication, I thought I’d always be a novelist. My agent at the time suggested I write parenting books, something I balked at for quite some time. I was a storyteller after all. And because of my upbringing, I suffered from deep wells of insecurity in my parenting. And yet, I sold three parenting books. I wrote them from a position of weakness, and I prayed other parents with struggles similar to mine would be encouraged that they’re not alone. One facet strung its way through all my books: story.

I can’t help but tell stories, whether they be fiction or nonfiction. As I brainstormed with my next agent and my editor about who I wanted to be when I grew up, we all came back to story. I am a storyteller. We decided it would be best for me to place my primary focus on novel writing, but keep the storytelling alive in nonfiction.

Two years ago, I sensed the need, urge, and desire to write a memoir. I’d come a long way in my healing journey, enough that I could write it without bitterness, with a view toward God’s intervention. Thankfully, my vision for a memoir fit well within the story idea, and Zondervan took a risk and bought the book.

I wrote the book much like I’d write a novel, with an inciting incident, some flashbacks, a rising action and a late climax. Of course, as memoirs go, I had more freedom to explore and meander through the story, but I kept the book mostly in scenes, written in first person present tense to create intimacy and immediacy with the reader.

It was difficult to create me as the main character, to place the potential reader into my own head, to play it out in a way that would woo the reader to turn the page. In doing that, I learned even more about myself, how I viewed the world (sometimes in a warped way!), and what possible impact my journey might have on fellow strugglers.

Though I knew well the landscape, setting, and characters of my life, it proved difficult to give myself permission to truly delve in deeper, to re-feel my pain, angst, joy, frustration, anticipation, and worry. Once I let myself go there, the memoir progressed. And my editor helped me shape the book more chronologically, something for which I’m deeply thankful.

The end result is story: mine. It’s the story of a little girl who faced sexual abuse, neglect, drug-using parents, fear, death of a parent, and a host of other malevolence. And yet it’s a hope-filled story, where the bright light of God’s climactic redemption outshines the dark places. It’s a story of God’s nearness when I thought I’d nearly lose my mind and will to live. How grateful I am for the beautiful love of Jesus, how dearly He chose frail me to shame the wise. It’s really His story after all.”

Mary DeMuth not only writes, she helps other writers. Check out her blog So You Wanna Be Published .
One member of our community will be chosen in a drawing on February 28th to get a copy of Mary DeMuth’s new book, Thin Places. (Note: Be sure to become a follower of our blog to be eligible for the drawing.)