Postcards from the Virtual Book Tour, and Leaping Tall Buildings (or Bad Reviews) in a Single Bound
The realities of publishing, to someone just starting out, as opposed to someone who has actually been in the business for a while, vary enormously. I discovered this when I received a scathing review for my book, Wives and Sisters, from my local newspaper, The Salt Lake Tribune. One of the "newbies" on one of my writing lists accidentally sent a message ON the list, meant only for the eyes of her crit partner and friend. To paraphrase, her comment was something about the fact that if I had received such a review, surely my career should be in shambles.
This person, who, by the way, is a very nice person, was mortified that she had sent her "private" message public, and apologized both onlist and privately, to me.
But here's the thing....once you have been around the block a bit, you realize that a scathing review is rarely career-ending. However, had I received this review at the beginning of my career, I would most likely be looking for a tall building to jump off.
The review was that bad. However, taken in context, it becomes more understandable. Number one, it was in a local (Utah) paper. I have never expected my work to be popular here. Number two, it was obvious that I touched triggers for the reviewer. And even if all that WEREN'T true, the bottom line is, reviews do not a bestseller make.
Case in point: The Da Vinci Code. This has not been a universally well-reviewed novel. Now, it has received some quite glowing reviews, such as that by Janet Maslin, of the New York Times Book Review. But they have not all been so good. Many have been bad. Many have been angry. Many, downright nasty.
That has not stopped Dan Brown's book from appearing in top spots on the The New York Times Bestselling List for 99 weeks now.
But when you're just starting out, a bad review can seem like the end of the world. It takes a while before you become hardened enough that you just "laugh" it off, if it is ever really that easy.
But first-time authors take heart. It is indeed, a rough business, but you become hardened as you go. Things that seem major at the beginning, will probably seem minor when you are in the middle.
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The "next big thing" in the world of publishing is virtual tours. I've become a participant of this, myself, as part of the Girlfriends Cyber Circuit, organized by author Karin Gillespie, the author of the Bottom Dollar series of books, who astounds me with her marketing skill. There are seventeen authors of womens fiction involved in our tour, and right now we are featuring Alison Pace, the author of If Andy Warhol had a Girlfriend.
It's been interesting, and fun to learn about these authors and their books, and who knows how successful it will be.
We, of course, are not unique. Right now, author Tom Dolby is doing a virtual book tour, through a Web site, called, oddly enough www.virtualbooktour.org to promote his book, The Trouble Boy. You can read about Tom on Beatrice.com, one of my favorite places to stop.
No word yet on how successful virtual book tours are, or are not, but it'll be an interesting ride. I'll send a post card....
This person, who, by the way, is a very nice person, was mortified that she had sent her "private" message public, and apologized both onlist and privately, to me.
But here's the thing....once you have been around the block a bit, you realize that a scathing review is rarely career-ending. However, had I received this review at the beginning of my career, I would most likely be looking for a tall building to jump off.
The review was that bad. However, taken in context, it becomes more understandable. Number one, it was in a local (Utah) paper. I have never expected my work to be popular here. Number two, it was obvious that I touched triggers for the reviewer. And even if all that WEREN'T true, the bottom line is, reviews do not a bestseller make.
Case in point: The Da Vinci Code. This has not been a universally well-reviewed novel. Now, it has received some quite glowing reviews, such as that by Janet Maslin, of the New York Times Book Review. But they have not all been so good. Many have been bad. Many have been angry. Many, downright nasty.
That has not stopped Dan Brown's book from appearing in top spots on the The New York Times Bestselling List for 99 weeks now.
But when you're just starting out, a bad review can seem like the end of the world. It takes a while before you become hardened enough that you just "laugh" it off, if it is ever really that easy.
But first-time authors take heart. It is indeed, a rough business, but you become hardened as you go. Things that seem major at the beginning, will probably seem minor when you are in the middle.
***********
The "next big thing" in the world of publishing is virtual tours. I've become a participant of this, myself, as part of the Girlfriends Cyber Circuit, organized by author Karin Gillespie, the author of the Bottom Dollar series of books, who astounds me with her marketing skill. There are seventeen authors of womens fiction involved in our tour, and right now we are featuring Alison Pace, the author of If Andy Warhol had a Girlfriend.
It's been interesting, and fun to learn about these authors and their books, and who knows how successful it will be.
We, of course, are not unique. Right now, author Tom Dolby is doing a virtual book tour, through a Web site, called, oddly enough www.virtualbooktour.org to promote his book, The Trouble Boy. You can read about Tom on Beatrice.com, one of my favorite places to stop.
No word yet on how successful virtual book tours are, or are not, but it'll be an interesting ride. I'll send a post card....