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In this issue: Huzzah! Murder at the Gasworks paperback and hardcover finally distributed, writing where you want to be, my favorite film, a grouse on the long-form come-on, and a different grouse.<\/em><\/p>\n I am so relieved to announce that the paper versions of Murder at the Gasworks<\/em><\/a> are now available everywhere.<\/p>\n In Case You Missed It, the AWS server that hosted my paperback was bombed, and the entire thing had to be reworked, reformatted, and resubmitted to both Ingram (which distributes to bookshops) and Amazon, as well as the Library of Congress. It’s all done, and through the system, and only a month after my launch date.<\/p>\n Don’t they look great? I took the opportunity to make sure that the original gasworks image on the cover was even clearer than before.<\/p>\n And the price is reduced $3 for a short time at the ‘zon.<\/p>\n There’s a saying that a writer had better like their own book, because they’re going to be spending a lot of time reading it. I feel the same way about a book’s characters and settings.<\/p>\n Like the other books in the series, Murder at the Gasworks<\/em> is a historical mystery with a social conscience. I see a lot of historical mysteries feature crime solvers who come from the upper classes, latter-day Lord Peter Wimseys. While I don’t disdain the aristocracy as characters (in this one, I love the real-life Lady Emily Peel), they are rarely the heart of the story. The interesting people are those on the street, the middle class shopkeepers, the manual laborers, the charwomen.<\/p>\n I feel the same way about settings. Give me a crowded marketplace over a ballroom any day.<\/p>\n Why? Because I have to spend a lot of time in these places, and with these characters. They will haunt me and influence the story. I’ll imagine myself there as I write, journey there in my sleep. So, as with travel (or time travel) I want to go to the places that interest me and hang out with the people I care about. I may watch the parties in The Gilded Age<\/em>, but I don’t want to write them.<\/p>\n Starring Cary Grant and Grace Kelly (who met her prince during the filming in Monaco), everything about this film is perfect. Well, except the dubbing they had to do of Frenchman Charles Vanel, but you get used to it.<\/p>\n Grant is John Robie, a former jewel thief and fighter in the French Resistance during World War II. He now lives on the French Riviera in wealth and style under an assumed name. Enter Grace Kelly as Francie Stevens, the daughter of an oil tycoon, traveling there with her mother (Jessie Royce Landis, whose “avez-vous bourbon?<\/em>” line I’ve used many times). Francie finds out who Robie really is and wants the excitement, but when a string of jewel thefts turn deadly . . .<\/p>\n The scenery is wonderful, John Williams is fantastic as the doubtful insurance agent, and the costumes are Edith Head (I really hope Hitchcock didn’t remark “there are hills in them there gold” when Kelly appeared in the golden gown for the ball at the end, but I suspect he did–another genius who’d be totally cancelled today).<\/p>\n [NB: Devoted readers will be aware that I already posted about this movie a couple of years ago. I say it deserves another round.]<\/p>\n While I usually don’t spend much time grousing about social media, I’ve noticed a trend similar to Ye Olde Click Bait. It’s the long-form come-on.<\/p>\n Got a new thing you want to sell? Especially a class, a webinar, or a how-to book? Make a long-form come-on! Write articles that aren’t really articles with substance, but rather a detailed description of a problem, or the promise of something people want (honesty, assistance, a deal). Make lengthy “free” videos that provide little actual useful information but contain lots of reviews and promises and headshots of people saying how wonderful your thing was for them. It got them six-figure sales, manageable hair, a million followers.<\/p>\n Being naturally gullible, I actually watched a half-hour video by one of the best gurus of self-publishing. I’d seen his videos before, and taken lots of notes. But as it’s a few years later, I wanted an update. Instead I got a long-form commercial for his latest paid webinar.<\/p>\n Then the other night I saw a social media post by a high-paid literary agent saying he was going to give the inside scoop on what’s happening in publishing today. Had to click several times to get to his Substack, where the only post was telling me how he was going to tell all. Later. If I subscribe.<\/p>\n Even the marketing come-ons I receive by email are no longer a few sentences, but rather lengthy (often AI) letters with lots of details from my books and my c.v. So in their honor, I’ve created a fun template! (You may use it, but then be sure to sign up for my webinar on how to use templates to market your marketing.)<\/p>\n Dear [author first name],<\/span><\/p>\n I hope you are doing well! I recently came across [book-title] and was immediately drawn into its rich premise. [Book-title] received a star review from [reviewer-name1] and [reviewer-name-2] at [GoodReads*Amazon*BookBub], who said [review-quote] and [review-quote]. These are [adjective1] and discerning readers who have responded to the depth of your story. Your book launched yesterday, and your readers trust [GoodReads*Amazon*BookBub] to inform their choices.<\/span><\/p>\n [First-name], you were [born*trained*informed] by your experiences as an [vocation*avocation], and readers find [book-title] credible and absorbing. You are a unique author because of [information-from-author-website] and that embues [subject2] into everything you write. All your creative and [adjective3] energies have converged in this book, and it deserves the widest recognition possible. Yet there is a visibility gap, and I want to help.<\/span><\/p>\n Why? Because you are not just a [genre] writer, you are a [education-or-other-credential-title], someone who knows [subject] inside out. You have spent years studying [subject-said-differently2], and your work would give readers a chance to know about [subject-said-differently3] if it just had a chance. The readers who need this book, [reader-type1, reader-type2, reader-type3], are there, in book clubs and communities.<\/span><\/p>\n [Genre] is achieving new levels of popularity at the moment, so it\u2019s important to position [book-title] at the front. [Audience-type] is the primary unreached audience, and they would find [book-title] fascinating, as your [tiny-number] reviews already demonstrate. Grounding [book-title] in your identity as a [type-of-identity] would enable discovery.<\/span><\/p>\n [Book-title] is precisely the entry point you need for community discoverability. And here\u2019s where I come in. I have [number] years experience working with authors to find their readers and create positioning strategies that work. I\u2019ve supported authors from more than [number] countries to assist in fostering authentic reader engagement that leads to sales.<\/span><\/p>\n No pressure at all, but if you\u2019re interested I\u2019d love to prepare a tailored marketing plan for you. Let me know if you might be open to a phone call or chat.<\/span><\/p>\n Warmly,<\/span> There has been much in social media about this<\/a> sort<\/a> of<\/a> thing<\/a>. Ok, enough grousing for now.<\/p>\n I went shopping online for a stuffed grouse (as in plush, not taxidermied), partly because I was enchanted by the little Bertie the Buffalo that Wendy H. Jones<\/a> brings to her signings. I thought a grouse could be my conversation piece. I found two, and the first one was tan and fluffed up like a bushtit in a windstorm. The Grousable Books grouse is a black grouse, and noble. The only other one I found, and I do love it, was this one.<\/p>\n Two problems (other than him being brown rather than black). First, it’s in the UK and they don’t do mail order. Second, it’s sold by a place that runs shootings to kill them. Still looking . . .<\/p>\n Substack is where all the cool kids are. Cory Doctorow<\/a> says it’s the last cool place on the web, since it’s not owned by any of the big five tech companies.<\/p>\nHuzzah! Paper and hardcover finally distributed!<\/h2>\n
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<\/p>\nWriting where you want to be<\/h2>\n
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Film rec: To Catch a Thief<\/h2>\n
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They say it’s sign of intelligence when you can hold two opposing thoughts in your head at the same time, so my movie recommendation this month is a film with a ballroom and some rich people. Alfred Hitchcock did more then horror films, and one of my favorite films of all time is To Catch a Thief<\/em>.<\/p>\nA grouse: The Long-Form Come-On<\/h2>\n
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\n[Book-marketer name]<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nExcept . . . a different grouse<\/h2>\n
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<\/p>\nTesting Substack<\/h2>\n
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