Last night I had the pleasure of a reading/book signing at Fact and Fiction, in Missoula, on North Higgins. Barbara has had that bookstore since my daughter was quite young. I remember going in for books with Autumn's hand in mine, and enjoying her divese offerings in both the children's and adult sections. That part hasn't changed although her location is right on the main drag in old Missoula now.
I felt truly honored in this event. Barb had put a sandwich sign on the sidewalk, had copies of my book on the table as you walked in, and another big sign with a few notes about the book itself. Honored, that's the word, and welcomed! She introduced me herself, had read a bit of the book, and seemed really excited that I was there, along with the 12 or so folks that showed up.
Yup, more friends, bless their souls. Three came who had come to the public library reading just a week ago. That's friends! The good news is I sold 10 or so books, and Barb wanted four to have on hand that were signed already! Even my local Hamilton bookstore didn't bother to do that. They didn't value my effort for some reason. They will, soon enough!
Even more exciting to me was two women who didn't know me and purchased the book anyway. That was heartening.
Next event will be over Memorial Day weekend at Inland NW Sufi Camp on Lake Coeur d'Alene. Then on to Spokane at Auntie's Bookstore early in the week and my friend Quan Yin Lynn Williams' home on Friday.
I wish I had a picture to insert tonight, but alas, no time to do all the techno that requires. Will get to it maybe next week.
Book Recommendation for the strong of heart: WAR, new hardbound, $24.95. A journalist was embedded in a platoon stationed on the Pakistan-Afganistan border for a year. Harsh realities interpreted from the lens of why men love war, and how hard it is to return home sometimes. I'm bracing myself to read it very soon.
Thanks for checking in...we're headed to Pasco, Washington for the weekend. More soon.
Friday, May 21, 2010
Saturday, May 8, 2010
THE MAZE HAZE
I admit, some days are slipping by in a haze of computer searches, little lists, computer glitches (thanks to grandson who installed a SECOND modem), forays into independent bookstore lists, and, just today, a book contest.
Okay, so the odds are long, not as long as Montana Power Ball, and not so cheap either. My book gets read by folks in Cincinnati (Writer's Digest), judged, and picked in the top ten. That would be great. First prize would be even greater, but I'm a bit skeptical about first prize. If they just talk about it with a friend over lunch, and she buys it and gives a copy to her girlfriend for her birthday...gotta start somewhere.
The unseen path I am treading to bring MEDICINE ROCK to notoriety is filled with pitfalls and prattles! I just today remembered to send an email to the agent in Tennessee who liked it at one point. And I'm having lunch with an international book agent who happens to live in our valley, for any tidbits she might drop. I have yet to let THE FARM know it's out, and that would be my generation!
Another very serious issue cropped up: Ingram, distributor for IUniverse books, says bookstores won't get their money back if they don't sell MR's they've ordered. This mistake occurred in January? or was it February? IUniverse supposedly got it squared away, but this week Auntie's in Spokane called to let me know Ingram isn't playing by the rules. Back to IUniverse, by phone: get this squared away ASAP! My contract is explicit and cost an extra bundle just to have the books returnable.
In the meantime there's a little buzz in town. Yeah, really! "I heard about your book. She said it was fabulous!" "I want another copy to give to my sister for her birthday!" Nice. Makes my day. Now, on to an email to THE FARM!
Okay, so the odds are long, not as long as Montana Power Ball, and not so cheap either. My book gets read by folks in Cincinnati (Writer's Digest), judged, and picked in the top ten. That would be great. First prize would be even greater, but I'm a bit skeptical about first prize. If they just talk about it with a friend over lunch, and she buys it and gives a copy to her girlfriend for her birthday...gotta start somewhere.
The unseen path I am treading to bring MEDICINE ROCK to notoriety is filled with pitfalls and prattles! I just today remembered to send an email to the agent in Tennessee who liked it at one point. And I'm having lunch with an international book agent who happens to live in our valley, for any tidbits she might drop. I have yet to let THE FARM know it's out, and that would be my generation!
Another very serious issue cropped up: Ingram, distributor for IUniverse books, says bookstores won't get their money back if they don't sell MR's they've ordered. This mistake occurred in January? or was it February? IUniverse supposedly got it squared away, but this week Auntie's in Spokane called to let me know Ingram isn't playing by the rules. Back to IUniverse, by phone: get this squared away ASAP! My contract is explicit and cost an extra bundle just to have the books returnable.
In the meantime there's a little buzz in town. Yeah, really! "I heard about your book. She said it was fabulous!" "I want another copy to give to my sister for her birthday!" Nice. Makes my day. Now, on to an email to THE FARM!
Monday, May 3, 2010
PAY PAL GLITCHES
PayPal has been one of the easier connections to make between the web, my bank, credit cards, etc. This morning I discovered I actually had a purchase occur through pay pal (from Michigan). But after all was said and done, I did not have her ADDRESS to send the book. Need to do a little adjustment there I guess.
I wrote to her email address and hope that will get us connected in such a way that I can mail her book, maybe today. Just another step in the marketing link, and maybe emailing is more personal anyway!
* * *
I'd like to thank WIND DAUGHTER of the Panther Lodge (and Bear Tribe) for sharing the news of my book with her email list. I've already received two orders from this thoughtful gift. Wind Daughter received the Bear Tribe Medicine Bundle from Wabun some years ago. She is located in North Carolina where there will be a Medicine Wheel gathering this August. She is deeply committed to Sun Bear's vision. Now I'll return to MR's website and see if I can put HER link up in case folks are interested!
I wrote to her email address and hope that will get us connected in such a way that I can mail her book, maybe today. Just another step in the marketing link, and maybe emailing is more personal anyway!
* * *
I'd like to thank WIND DAUGHTER of the Panther Lodge (and Bear Tribe) for sharing the news of my book with her email list. I've already received two orders from this thoughtful gift. Wind Daughter received the Bear Tribe Medicine Bundle from Wabun some years ago. She is located in North Carolina where there will be a Medicine Wheel gathering this August. She is deeply committed to Sun Bear's vision. Now I'll return to MR's website and see if I can put HER link up in case folks are interested!
SLEEPY TOWN SALES
Saturday I had the distinct pleasure of returning to the town I lived in when first coming to Montana in 1973: Seeley Lake. I've returned before, of course, to visit friends, hike and collect larch balls. This time I returned as an author to read at the Grizzly Claw Trading Company (which used to be the Seeley Lake Merc). D and Sue have collected an amazing array of stunning objects including many fur pelts, beautiful beads and jewelry, clothing, artwork with a Native American emphasis, and a huge selection of books.
I admit, I carried my old concepts about Seeley. I strongly doubted anyone but the few friends we have up there would show up. I'm afraid I still saw the tiny mountain town as a haven for loggers and trappers. But this is not the case! We had about 15 folks, and sold TEN books! The questions were fun because most of the audience was my age, and remembered bits and pieces of the seventies.
I had worn my snow boots out of the old memories of May in Seeley when snow was still in 3-4 foot berms, and puddles froze solid at night. Again not the case: no snow in sight in the valley although the mountains still wore their winter shawls. But one thing that hadn't changed was the resident deer population wandering along the shoulders of the highway, or crossing without looking! Driving 45 mph seemed the safest thing to do, so our return journey at night was a little slower.
I've begun work on a book about Morning Star's adventures in Seeley in 1972 such as midwifing, skinning animals, working in the cafes and a deepening connection with nature when the little town had 300 residents in the winter and 500 in the summer. Now there are easily five times that number of folks in the little village that rests cozily between the Rockies and the Swan Range.
Thanks to the Grizzly Claw for their hospitality, for folks that brought goodies and wine, and for the new readers willing to open to another reading delight.
I admit, I carried my old concepts about Seeley. I strongly doubted anyone but the few friends we have up there would show up. I'm afraid I still saw the tiny mountain town as a haven for loggers and trappers. But this is not the case! We had about 15 folks, and sold TEN books! The questions were fun because most of the audience was my age, and remembered bits and pieces of the seventies.
I had worn my snow boots out of the old memories of May in Seeley when snow was still in 3-4 foot berms, and puddles froze solid at night. Again not the case: no snow in sight in the valley although the mountains still wore their winter shawls. But one thing that hadn't changed was the resident deer population wandering along the shoulders of the highway, or crossing without looking! Driving 45 mph seemed the safest thing to do, so our return journey at night was a little slower.
I've begun work on a book about Morning Star's adventures in Seeley in 1972 such as midwifing, skinning animals, working in the cafes and a deepening connection with nature when the little town had 300 residents in the winter and 500 in the summer. Now there are easily five times that number of folks in the little village that rests cozily between the Rockies and the Swan Range.
Thanks to the Grizzly Claw for their hospitality, for folks that brought goodies and wine, and for the new readers willing to open to another reading delight.
Thursday, April 15, 2010
ONE STEP AT A TIME
"I couldn't put it down! I stayed up way too late last night!"
"I read the whole thing in one sitting. You really touched on my experience in that era; it was an amazing time!"
I am truly humbled by the number of folks who have already given me positive feedback, and so grateful to them for shelling out the purchasing price. They've stopped me on the street, called on the phone, and flagged me down in the local cafe.
After my initial two appearances, I felt an old identity rearing her head, the one that could sell anything to anyone. I used to say I could sell coffins to teenagers, but there wasn't any objects I really wanted to sell, except maybe comfrey, but that wouldn't pay the bills. So that shining Venus woman, full of light, humor and persuasiveness went underground. Now she's back. I am so delighted to read from my book, share stories, and chat with folks about Sun Bear that I'm totally looking forward to a full spring and summer of appearances. The book is so valuable to share, in a format that is easily accessible; the time is right.
So far I have appearances in Missoula (2), Seeley Lake, Spokane, WA (2), Darby, MT (gotta get a date for that one!) and a time frame for Kalispell and Whitefish, north of Missoula.
I'm actually considering attending a Medicine Wheel Gathering in North Carolina in July to share the book with folks, and see how Bear Tribe looks now, 39 years later. It would be a stretch, given transportation, housing, and shipping books, let alone the humidity! But what a kick, and what a great market for MEDICINE ROCK. Of course I'd blog daily about the adventure.
When I first considered the marketing task I felt discouraged, my primary passion being the writing itself. But now I'm into it, see how important my personal touch is and am getting my sea legs calling bookstores cold. The worse so far was Barnes and Noble in Missoula. They don't take "print on demand" books; it's their store's policy. Is it a national policy? She didn't know. Too bad, their loss. The local bookstore made over $60 from my books in just two hours. Not bad for lunchtime, no extra staffing. The other frustration this week is getting the website up on the web. I switched from godaddy.com (don't recommend their website builder) to Intuit, but this last step of it actually making it to the web has been challenging.
Also, in all honesty I need to say that all but THREE of the 50 books I've sold have gone into the hands of my friends and acquaintances. Bless their hearts!
Now, how do we get them to the East Coast??!
"I read the whole thing in one sitting. You really touched on my experience in that era; it was an amazing time!"
I am truly humbled by the number of folks who have already given me positive feedback, and so grateful to them for shelling out the purchasing price. They've stopped me on the street, called on the phone, and flagged me down in the local cafe.
After my initial two appearances, I felt an old identity rearing her head, the one that could sell anything to anyone. I used to say I could sell coffins to teenagers, but there wasn't any objects I really wanted to sell, except maybe comfrey, but that wouldn't pay the bills. So that shining Venus woman, full of light, humor and persuasiveness went underground. Now she's back. I am so delighted to read from my book, share stories, and chat with folks about Sun Bear that I'm totally looking forward to a full spring and summer of appearances. The book is so valuable to share, in a format that is easily accessible; the time is right.
So far I have appearances in Missoula (2), Seeley Lake, Spokane, WA (2), Darby, MT (gotta get a date for that one!) and a time frame for Kalispell and Whitefish, north of Missoula.
I'm actually considering attending a Medicine Wheel Gathering in North Carolina in July to share the book with folks, and see how Bear Tribe looks now, 39 years later. It would be a stretch, given transportation, housing, and shipping books, let alone the humidity! But what a kick, and what a great market for MEDICINE ROCK. Of course I'd blog daily about the adventure.
When I first considered the marketing task I felt discouraged, my primary passion being the writing itself. But now I'm into it, see how important my personal touch is and am getting my sea legs calling bookstores cold. The worse so far was Barnes and Noble in Missoula. They don't take "print on demand" books; it's their store's policy. Is it a national policy? She didn't know. Too bad, their loss. The local bookstore made over $60 from my books in just two hours. Not bad for lunchtime, no extra staffing. The other frustration this week is getting the website up on the web. I switched from godaddy.com (don't recommend their website builder) to Intuit, but this last step of it actually making it to the web has been challenging.
Also, in all honesty I need to say that all but THREE of the 50 books I've sold have gone into the hands of my friends and acquaintances. Bless their hearts!
Now, how do we get them to the East Coast??!
Saturday, April 3, 2010
VIRGIN FLIGHT
I have to admit to being preoccupied yesterday, knowing I would be offering my first reading of the book to my community. I tried to be cool about it, but in fact I couldn't focus and ended up playing with my granddaughter much of the day! I had found a new skirt and blouse at the thrift store, and my girlfriend brought me a gift: a necklace of silver in the shape of a morning star. How perfect was that.
Then the question, how many books to bring? I settled on two boxes (40), but left one in the car! We set up a table where my daughter and her two girls managed the sales end. I perched on my stool from home, hoping my voice could be heard over the kitchen and cash register sounds.
With every familiar face that entered the bakery, I felt more and more excited and confident. Finally I introduced myself, and read the first chapter to about thirty people who sipped tea and coffee or enjoyed a light dinner. By the third page I noticed the atmosphere was focused, deeply quiet, and I felt the amazing honor of sharing my efforts with my dear friends, finally! No unfamiliar faces were in the audience--what a wonderful way to launch my baby!
Twenty-two books now live in others' hands and hearts, hopefully to be shared and discussed. Several people in the group knew about The Farm, and one knew Sun Bear as well. Am I tapping into the dormant culture of the seventies? Well, not really so dormant around here. Our valley has herbalists, farmers, environmentalists, peaceniks, craftspeople, and communes living side by side with Bushniks, private rightists and the extremely wealthy. We're all still doing what we did 35-40 years ago, manifesting our deepest beliefs in lifestyles and financial choices that are highly personal.
I was happy to see the surprise on the face of the local bookstore owner when I shared the number of books that had been purchased. I'll be in his space next Saturday, and I hope it is prosperous for both of us. While we were wandering around looking at the book shelves the elder granddaughter (13) came over and said, "Nana, how do you get the people on the East Coast to know about your book?" Now wasn't that the question of the day! And only a few minutes later the younger one found me to ask, "Nana, what are you going to buy with all that money?" Her brown eyes were wide and innocent.
"Books, Sarah, more books!"
With this small victory behind me I will call Missoula and Spokane and begin more scheduling. Maybe the local paper will show up at the book store? In the meantime my royalties account on IUniverse shows two books purchased from the web. My account is $6.56 in the black.
Perhaps I should start buying weekly lottery tickets! Yes, and I'll just keep working on marketing...and oh yes! I've started the next book!
Then the question, how many books to bring? I settled on two boxes (40), but left one in the car! We set up a table where my daughter and her two girls managed the sales end. I perched on my stool from home, hoping my voice could be heard over the kitchen and cash register sounds.
With every familiar face that entered the bakery, I felt more and more excited and confident. Finally I introduced myself, and read the first chapter to about thirty people who sipped tea and coffee or enjoyed a light dinner. By the third page I noticed the atmosphere was focused, deeply quiet, and I felt the amazing honor of sharing my efforts with my dear friends, finally! No unfamiliar faces were in the audience--what a wonderful way to launch my baby!
Twenty-two books now live in others' hands and hearts, hopefully to be shared and discussed. Several people in the group knew about The Farm, and one knew Sun Bear as well. Am I tapping into the dormant culture of the seventies? Well, not really so dormant around here. Our valley has herbalists, farmers, environmentalists, peaceniks, craftspeople, and communes living side by side with Bushniks, private rightists and the extremely wealthy. We're all still doing what we did 35-40 years ago, manifesting our deepest beliefs in lifestyles and financial choices that are highly personal.
I was happy to see the surprise on the face of the local bookstore owner when I shared the number of books that had been purchased. I'll be in his space next Saturday, and I hope it is prosperous for both of us. While we were wandering around looking at the book shelves the elder granddaughter (13) came over and said, "Nana, how do you get the people on the East Coast to know about your book?" Now wasn't that the question of the day! And only a few minutes later the younger one found me to ask, "Nana, what are you going to buy with all that money?" Her brown eyes were wide and innocent.
"Books, Sarah, more books!"
With this small victory behind me I will call Missoula and Spokane and begin more scheduling. Maybe the local paper will show up at the book store? In the meantime my royalties account on IUniverse shows two books purchased from the web. My account is $6.56 in the black.
Perhaps I should start buying weekly lottery tickets! Yes, and I'll just keep working on marketing...and oh yes! I've started the next book!
Friday, March 19, 2010
THE BOOKS ARRIVED!
I have just finally received the first twenty MEDICINE ROCK's via the ole brown UPS truck. The day is considerably brighter for seeing those shiny, neatly stacked, red, white, and black books, waiting to be read by folks I know and folks I don't know!
For those of you who have ordered from me already, I will be mailing your precious copies out on Monday. (I am still hiding out a bit from facial surgery, but can box them all up over the weekend.)
Just a clue: when you order from the web (unless it's from my website or me) it will take 7-10 days to arrive at your house. Gone are the days of boxes of books in the back of a warehouse waiting for instant mailing. How they satisfy the hundreds of orders for various books coming in a different times I'll never know.
I'm quite certain most of my sophisticated readers understand all of this, but just in case, I thought I'd mention it.
This is a new benchmark, a very important one, that launches me forth as a published author. Thanks one and all for your encouragement, orders and faith that I'd actually complete a very long project!
For those of you who have ordered from me already, I will be mailing your precious copies out on Monday. (I am still hiding out a bit from facial surgery, but can box them all up over the weekend.)
Just a clue: when you order from the web (unless it's from my website or me) it will take 7-10 days to arrive at your house. Gone are the days of boxes of books in the back of a warehouse waiting for instant mailing. How they satisfy the hundreds of orders for various books coming in a different times I'll never know.
I'm quite certain most of my sophisticated readers understand all of this, but just in case, I thought I'd mention it.
This is a new benchmark, a very important one, that launches me forth as a published author. Thanks one and all for your encouragement, orders and faith that I'd actually complete a very long project!
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