Author's Journey
Don't Look Down on Me
by Ryan Kaelin on 07/21/11
In my interactions with other authors, I cannot help but notice a disturbing mindset emerging from many.
It would seem that there are a number of authors who view the shifting sands in publishing as a bad thing. I happen to vehemently disagree.
First off-so you understand where I am coming from-I am an indie author. And by that I mean, after spending a number of years writing for pleasure, I decided to write a novel. After spending well over a year on my manuscript, I ended up hiring my own editor, copyeditor, and layout person and made the conscious, informed decision to publish under my own press. I did not smack the keyboard, dub myself Tolkien, and hit the 'Make Kewl Book Now' button.
While I had interest from agents on my manuscript, all I heard back was "we like it, but it's too long, the publishing world is in flux, we don't want to take any risks." Fine. Agents/publishers want sure things now. They are scared...I understand. Travel agents were scared too when people could start booking their own flights online.
I had made a few contacts (authors, other people in publishing) through various places and asked for feedback on the content of my work. The response was universally positive (along with some invaluable criticism).
So, here I was: an unknown with a great, long story that had no chance of ever sniffing a traditional publishing house because of skittishness flittering about the industry.
Going the indie route was my intentional, professional choice. The reviews, accolades, and fans I have garnered tell me it was the right one. Had I not, Progeny would be sitting on my hard drive still, the nine short stories of the Terrene Chronicles would never have been written, and the manuscript I am editing for the second book in the series would have been non-existent.
For authors like me, these are exciting times. Doors are opening for us that would have remained closed for an indeterminate amount of time. I would have languished for at least as long as the publishing industry figures out what in the hell they are going to do now that they are not the sole gatekeepers.
I have heard some established authors lament that there is not some sort of way to thin the herd of the self-published ebooks flooding the market. To a big extent, I agree with them. It would be ideal if there were some sort of benchmark to identify the good from the bad. But what could that be? Would you be in favor of some sort of vetting process for indie authors? Perhaps like a sort of credit rating agency for writers?
However, is that not consolidating the power to 'make or break' authors in the hands of the very few? Just like it is today?
I understand there will be authors who have been in the industry for thirty years that look at us with heavy skepticism. It is natural. Luckily, I have found some kindred souls in this process-some are indies like me, others are multi-NYT bestsellers-who have been nothing but supportive and encouraging.
Yes, publishing is changing. But in my mind, this is a good thing.
I'll be at Origins in June...
by Ryan Kaelin on 05/01/11
Just got the schedule for me at Origins (http://www.originsgamefair.com/)in Columbus, OH in June. If anyone is near Columbus, OH on June 22-26 at the time:
Thursday, June 23:
7PM Reading of something by me (can't decide if it should be from Progeny or a short story)
Friday, June 24:
Rm 226 – 10 AM: Worldbuilding for Writers. USA Today Bestselling author Jean Rabe and veteran worldbuilders CS Marks and R.T. Kaelin demonstrate that fantasy and SF tales are more believable when the worlds they are set in are well thought out. You have to do more than draw a map, add a river, and sprinkle in some mountains and other geographical features. Learn what elements make a setting believable, including weather, population clusters, animal life, and more. Jean and CS share their techniques for engineering countries—and even entire planets—that will make your story breathe. (Seminar cost is $2.)
Rm 226 – 12 PM: Genres: What Are They and Where Do You Fit In? Fantasy, Science Fiction, Urban Fantasy, Alternate History, Steampunk, Horror, Fantasy Romance, oh my! Where does your story fit on the bookshelf? What publishers are buying which genres? Readers find demons, vampires, aliens, and other genre denizens compelling and will buy book after book after book filled with them. What can you as a writer do to provide more of those craved-for characters and settings while carving out your own niche on the store shelf? Are there genres that shouldn’t be crossed? What combinations are natural? What combinations should be avoided? Are there rules to follow? And what rules should you break? Panelists: Jean Rabe, Sarah Hans, CS Marks, Bryan Young, R.T. Kaelin. (Seminar cost is $2.)
Rm 226 – 4 PM: Slay ‘Em!: Hang ‘em. Poison ‘em. Blow ‘em up. Slice ‘em to ribbons. Or just run ‘em over with a train. Marc Tassin, Janine Spendlove and R.T. Kaelin cover how to kill your characters. They discuss how to time a death scene right, how to give the death meaning, what details to leave in and out, and how to decide which heroes and villains should “bite the dust.” (Seminar cost is $2.)
Saturday, June 25th:
Rm 226 – 5 PM: The Techniques of Terror: Our resident horror-masters discuss how you can frighten your readers. What writing tools do you need to send shivers down their spines? They cover the different styles of horror writing and who are the best authors working in the genre today. Panelists: Steven Saus, Marc Tassin, R.T. Kaelin.
Sunday, June 26th:
Rm 216 – 11 AM: Crafting Conflict: Make war, not peace! Ruffle the feathers of your characters. Stir the pot of emotions. Add a fistfight or two. Craft a clever and entertaining argument among your heroes. Not all conflict has to be bloody or increase the body count, but it does have to keep the reader turning the pages. Janine Spendlove, Bryan Young, and R.T. Kaelin discuss the art of adding a dash of conflict to your pages
Rm 216 – 1 PM: Second Bananas. Supporting characters—sidekicks, lieutenants, minions, and the like—can make your major characters and plot more complex. Your hero needs a best buddy or confident, a sounding board for dialogue, someone to turn to when the villain gets him down. And your villain . . . lackeys are good. Marc Tassin, Steven Saus, and R.T. Kaelin show you how to abolish cardboard cutouts while preventing your second bananas from stealing the show. (Seminar cost is $2.)
Rm 226 – 2 PM: The Small Press and Self-Publishing: We’ve had success with the small press . . . and we’re happy to discuss the advantages of getting your book published by this route.. Panelists: VJ Waks, CS Marks, R.T. Kaelin. (Seminar cost is $2.)
Upside Down...
by Ryan Kaelin on 04/01/11
The publishing world is changing. Quickly.
The rise in popularity of eBooks as well as the reasonable cost of publishing POD (print-on-demand) for hardcopy books has turned the traditional model of book publishing on its ear. Anyone can write a book and publish it today.
The keys to the kingdom are no longer held by a few publishing houses. Even Publishers Weekly recognizes this, having started a quarterly supplement called PW Select that is dedicated to self-published titles only.
As the behemoths of the industry struggle to anticipate what the future holds, the lower barrier to entry has prompted an explosion of self-published work by new authors frustrated by the incredible odds stacked against them. If you are not an established author, publishing houses and agents do not want to speak to you. Your query letter goes in a pile with the other hundred they get every day, and your precious manuscript gathers dust.
In recent years, many authors decided to take a different approach. I am one of them.
After finishing my first novel, Progeny, I followed the traditional process of querying agents and publishers. Those that replied were scared away at the length of the novel by a debut author. A lucky contact turned me onto the concept of doing POD and publishing my own book. I hired a copyeditor and published the print edition of Progeny in December, 2010. The Kindle edition came out two months later.
Now, publishing a book in this manner is relatively easy. Marketing it is the challenge.
Think about how you choose what books you read. Take a moment…
Now, if you enjoy the feeling of turning a paper page, you might choose your books by perusing the aisles of their local bookstore. Self-published authors must overcome this obstacle as brick-and-mortar stores will not automatically carry your book. If you want it there, you must fight for shelf space on a store by store basis.
If you are among the growing segment of readers who love the convenience of eBooks, you still might find your book selection is based on browsing online, looking at authors with whom you are already familiar. In this case, a new, self-published author must compete with already established authors in an overcrowded environment.
Regardless of format, many readers make their book choices based on recommendations from friends, family, or online communities. Yet again, a self-published author must fight the realistic fact that if no one knows about the book in the first place, how can he or she ever hope to start a word of mouth campaign?
So, what is an author to do?
The short answer is anything and everything.
I contacted review sites and book blogs, offering free copies for review as well as interviews. I became involved with a number of communities dedicated to active readers. I toured local high schools, speaking about creative writing. I have released dozens of press releases in an attempt to strengthen my search engine rankings. Most recently, I am writing short stories that tie into the book and offering them free. I am writing a guest blog post right now, right here.
One of my goals is to find a loyal base of readers and hope they start a word-of-mouth campaign vital to a book’s success. As of now, Progeny has an average 4.5+ star rating from over forty combined user reviews at Amazon.com, BarnesAndNoble.com, LibraryThing.com, and GoodReads.com. I am hoping that as it seems most people really like the book, they will share it with their friends and family.
Traditionally, books published by a major house see the bulk of their sales in the first three months after a book is released. Think of it as a sprint. For a self-published author, marketing a book is a marathon. You must slowly build up a following, fighting for every reader, all the while crossing your fingers for a lucky break.
It would be nice if there was a magic formula, but there is not.
Christopher Paolini and family marketed the self-published edition of Eragon for over a year, selling copies from the trunk of their car, before Knopf publishing picked it up for the Inheritance Cycle.
Amanda Hocking has self-published all of her work and has been a great success despite never having the power of a publisher behind her.
Ultimately, it takes good writing, hard work, positive thinking, and persistence.
A burst of well-timed good luck does not hurt, either.
Been a busy week...
by Ryan Kaelin on 03/19/11
In the last week, I've had two more reviews come out (both really good ones) and was asked to write a guest blog post at LuxuryReading.com (has not come out yet). Once it does, I'll repost it here - it's a look at what being a self-published author is like.
I have finished the third story in the Terrene Chronicles and will be making one last pass over it tomorrow (need to take a break from staring at it). The Kindle edition (for only $.99) of the first three stories, titled Merchant, will be coming out this week. As all three stories follow Nundle starting 20 years prior to the events of Progeny, I've come to affectionately refer to the stories as the "Nundle Bundle."
I've sketched out the concepts around the next few bundles and will be revealing the title of the next one soon. (Here's a hint - we get to see a lot more of two characters that we only saw briefly in Progeny).
That's it for now. Keep an eye out at www.rtkaelin.com for more details on the progress of Progeny and the Terrene Chronicles. I'm off to start on #4 - I know exactly how it should start...
Announcing the Terrene Chronicles
by Ryan Kaelin on 03/04/11
I have an announcement of sorts to make.
It has been three months since the print edition Progeny was published and a month since the Kindle release. The excellent reviews of the book have been more than I could have hoped for and are most definitely welcome. As it is a self-published title, I am still struggling with getting the word out, but I think I might have come up with something to help with that.
One of the things many of the readers I have heard from after they are finished reading, or when they are done, is how much the love the feeling of the world the book takes place in. Take for example this excerpt from the review by Her Book Self book reviews:
“[The] characters flourish in the expansive fantasy landscape that Kaelin has created. A single village or kingdom is not enough to contain the story, so the setting is an entire nation with multiple terrains, laws, races, and cultures. Along with a pantheon of gods - good, neutral, and evil - the story refers to seasons, history, education, politics, ancient prophecy, customs, and legends of the land, all of which contribute to bringing the world to life.”
A few readers had even made the comment they would almost rather see a prequel to Progeny rather the next in the series (which I am actively working on – first draft nearly complete).
So, in an effort to respond to the fans as well as draw others into the world, I am announcing The Terrene Chronicles.
The Terrene Chronicles will be a series of standalone short stories – released periodically – that investigate the history of the world in which Progeny takes place. Key moments in the past are will be explored in depth in each short story, giving fans of the Progeny a peek into what shaped the people, countries, and history of Terrene.
Some stories will look at characters familiar to readers of the book and examine past events only alluded to briefly in Progeny. Others will simply be a look at historical events, rich cultures around the world, or something entirely unique and different not even addressed in other writings. Readers can expect to get a glimpse of the lives of Halflings in the Five Boroughs, the melting pot of the Commonwealth of Cartu, life in the desolate deserts of Yut, as well as events that led to the founding of the Oaken Duchies.
Each story will be available free at my website. Additionally, I will be bundling a few together at a time and releasing them for purchase on the Kindle. I would like to do it for free, but the Kindle store requires me to charge at least $.99.
So, stay tuned. The first story is nearly complete and will be released shortly.
Good days ahead.
