Tips from the Masters: Barry Eisler

Author Lin Robinson

Barry Eisler has two different claims to fame. To readers, he is the best-selling author of two exciting thriller series: the guy who doesn’t just write about heroes who are ex CIA covert ops specialists, Judo experts, international players, and start-up lawyer/operators but actually IS all those things himself. Or was at some point before coming in out of the cold to do boring things like collect awards for his work.

To indie authors, he’s a hero of another kind: one of the handful of writers like Konrath and Doctorow and Hocking and Locke who have become icons, living totems that not only testify to seismic changes in publishing, but have had a major hand in making those changes happen.

It would be hard to identify a single action that did more to light up new potential and realities for independent writers and publishers than Eisler’s decision last March to snub a half-million dollar advance from St. Martins in order to go his own way. The answer to the sneering, “Yeah, but if they offered you a big advance, you’d take it, wouldn’t you?” officially changed from “Damn straight” to “Maybe”, and that small shift put a very major crack in the monolith. Continue reading “Tips from the Masters: Barry Eisler”

Promoting via Local Television? Yikes!

Author Rachel Hunter
Author Rachel Hunter

If any of you are like me when it comes to public speaking or appearances, you know what it feels like to get “the jitters.” Yes – “the jitters.” It’s what I call the strange tightening of the gut, the chill that spreads throughout the body (starting with the temples), the warmth that claims the fingers… and, of course, the sensation of noticing every little thing goes on with your body: from every swallow to every seemingly imperceptible blink. Yet, part of the responsibility of being a published author is that one must make a presence every now and then – whether that be through conventions, signings, or, as I wish to expand upon today, television interviews. Yes, that’s right: television. Some of you must be quivering in your flip-flops and curl-rimmed fedoras at the word; though, some of you may also be perking your head up with interest, ready to make an appearance. Either way, whether you are the of the former or the latter, I am here today to assure you: interviewing on television is quick, painless, and ultimately rewarding – not only for the feeling of accomplishment that it brings, but also for the promotional benefits it delivers. And you don’t have to be on Good Morning America or Oprah in order to be featured and reap the benefits. Continue reading “Promoting via Local Television? Yikes!”

Video Trailers: So Many Options!

"to set" photo by K. S. Brooks
You don’t need your own movie production company.

I have seen that many book trailers over the last month that I no longer need my subscription to Sky. They are as varied as they are entertaining and to be honest I am developing quite a penchant for them. It all started as part of my research for this article. I am, let’s face it, technologically challenged. Two years ago I didn’t know what a blog was. I had no knowledge of Facebook, Twitter or how – indeed – to use Word. My computer allowed me to shop on-line and let me send emails.

Since I became a fully fledged author I have had to keep up with the times and the latest puzzle or task has been producing a book trailer to accompany my new novel. Now this isn’t blatant promotion of my novel, it serves merely to help fellow authors who, like me, feel they should have a promotional tool: a book trailer video to help sell their book. Everyone is doing it. That’s great if you, like the Evil Mastermind, are a techno wiz but I am a middle-aged woman and videos are not my bag. Continue reading “Video Trailers: So Many Options!”

L. Leander Announces New Release

INZAREDAuthor L. Leander is pleased to announce the release of her new young adult historical fiction book, INZARED, Queen of the Elephant Riders.

Bertha Maude Anderson was born in the Appalachian Mountains of North Carolina. Raised on a small farm, she lived a hard life far-removed from everything she craved. Misunderstood by her parents, her only confidante her brother Ezra, Bertha yearned for excitement. A Gypsy circus came to town and her world changed forever.

Coaxed into joining the Romanoff Brothers Circus, Bertha’s name was changed to INZARED, Queen of the Elephant Riders. She learned to ride Cecil, the elephant, and the two forged an unbreakable bond. Inzared fell in love, learned to co-exist with the Gypsies, solved a mystery and grew into a woman, all the while searching for the life she had always dreamed of.

INZARED, Queen of the Elephant Riders was released on June 27, 2012. It is available on Amazon.com as an e-book.