A guest blog from Australia

Like two ham radio operators, Clancy Tucker Down Under and I on the Eastern Seaboard found each other on the same frequency and playing the same ballad seeking recognition for indie writers. Here is his daily blog, set to appear July 17 (which is tonight at Midnight in Australia) in cyberspace. Note his plug for indiePENdents.org: 

Quote of the day:

'The real essence of work is
concentrated energy."

Walter Begehot

Writing tip of the day:

G'day guys,

All writers have different approaches to writing, but generally there are three methods of attack:

1. Dream up an idea and shoot from the hip. That's me. Most of the time I have no idea where the story will head or finish up. Fortunately I find it an adrenalin rush and the story becomes self generating. It's exciting and normally takes me three months to write manuscripts 85,000 to 100,000 words. A few years back I went overseas two weeks after completing a manuscript and wondered why I was so tired. Mm ... any wonder?

2. Plan everything out before you start writing. I have been to an author's home and found entire walls covered in A3 sheets of white paper. Each sheet contained personality traits of the characters, chapter points and other issues relevant to their manuscript. I found it gob smacking, but that's the way she approaches a novel.

3. Write everything by hand, then type it up. Many authors do this. I certainly do. Why? Good question, but I think it relates to the fact that many of us started writing early in life; well before computers. Our mind was trained to write on paper. It's an odd connection between the hand and the mind. However, as with most things, do whatever you find best. There is no right or wrong way. Experiment until you find a happy and creative space. Once you have typed it on your laptop you can go back at anytime and add or delete any part.

Just do it. Many people over the years have told me they'd always wanted to write a book. My stock answer is, 'Do it!'. However, they usually cringe and give some excuse for not having started. My simple advice is this: writing a manuscript or short story is a draft in the first instance, so just let it out, let it rip. You can sort things out in the many revisions you will do; especially the first read when you've finished it. Revision of your work is vital.

Be brave. Try to be brave in each story, play or manuscript you write. Step out of your comfort zone. Maybe use a different gender as your main character, or write a story about something you have to research. It can be an enriching experience. I wrote three manuscripts in what I call the 'Kick Ass' series and the main protagonist is a girl. She is 14 in the first manuscript, 18 in the next and 32 in the third. That surprised some of my feminist friends. On the other hand, 'Mister Rainbow' has a boy and girl as the chief protagonists. Why? It allows you as a writer to give a male and female perspective to whatever disasters or events occur in your story. Also, it makes the book appealing to boys and girls.

f. Retain your own voice. Retain your own voice at all times. Never try to emulate another writer's style. Find your own and present it well. It's great therapy.

A message for all self-published authors:

Self published authors! Looking for exposure? We think that to reach readers, they should be able to see your titles in the first place. The do-it-yourself marketing and social media publicity may pave a way to some, but where most readers could see them is on display in bookstores. We are trying to open the doors of independent booksellers to indie authors. How? Look up The indiePENdents.org -- a non profit, volunteer membership organization, set to level the playing field. It is non commercial and free, with just one item on the agenda: the interests of new literary talent, neglected by the publishing industry.

Keep writing!

Don't be shy ... leave a comment or send me an email: clancy_tucker@hotmail.com

Thanks for listening.

I'm Clancy Tucker

www.clancytucker.com.au

Bragging rights?

Today's mail brought a large manila envelope with a copy of Publishers Weekly Select for July 2012. It is A quarterly guide to what's new in self-publishing.

I was surprised as I never subscribed to PW. The explanation was inside, on page 19, where, under non-fiction, I spotted this item:

Requiem for a Country
A History Lesson
Jasha M. Levi, Editions JML HIBOU, $15
paper (166p), ISBN 978-1-105-22956-6
Amazon; www.jashalevi.com
The birth and death of Yugoslavia twice
between 1918 and 1994 and the world
events of the century that found its author
"waterboarded by history."

I am glad they found me. I am even more delighted that -- like The New York Times, they have started taking notice of independent authors. Indies are on their way to the days when the gates will be open to them, ending the bookstores' boycott, giving access to  the libraries, and leveling the playing field.  

Judging a book by personal taste or literacy?

This past week brought up an interesting question from a member of The indiePENdents who had signed up as a reviewer and took exception to one particular title: Do we judge a book by our personal tastes or by its literacy. My response, for obvious reasons omitting mention of the title, follows:

 All I can say is that your letter made me read excerpts of not just the title in question but several others under the same name. There are so many of identical titles, one could call it a genre, as they all suck blood (and other things), pierce each other in many ways and pulverize a confusing array of ill-defined enemies or friends, it don’t matter. I now have a better idea what the current movies of this kind are all about, movies that I am told are the delight of teenagers and hits at the box office.

To each his own.

Some of the titles I checked out of curiosity seemed better written than others; I am sure it was my sheer luck I didn’t come across any that wouldn’t pass a literacy test. As you yourself said, the one [you got to review] can be faulted for formatting: I don’t know about that aspect of the book, so what I am left with is that you fault our standards for somehow not aiming at excluding content you and I may not like. The answer is that we can reject a book if it confuses its characters or for a fault in formatting, but not on the basis of personal reading preferences.

But friend, can we arrogate for ourselves the rights to be arbiters of the literary tastes and access of others to them? I remember how, back in 1985,  I grossed out a lady lunching with me at a Greek restaurant on 9th Avenue, while they were still serving roasted lamb’s head on a platter, soft cheeks, succulent eyeballs, tongue et all. Age and lack of availability had since made my barbaric yen for innards disappear, but I will not agree with anyone picketing a restaurant offering such fare.

Similar to that was a dilemma we faced at In Touch Networks, a national 24/7 radio reading newsstand for the blind (and otherwise print-handicapped people) over whether or not we should read Playboy on the air. Some donors questioned our broadcasting such disgusting material and Indiana authorities banned it. A blind lady client of ours objected to our reading The Daily News, and thought that we should stick to The New York Times. 

My answer was that as long as sighted people have the right to pick up anything they fancy from a newsstand, who are we to deny such right to those among us who are blind. The venerable newspapers and magazines, all of which gave us copyright permission, didn’t object to be in the same program with The National Inquirer sold on the street or read in our scheduled broadcasts.

Similarly, our Seal does not tell people what genre they should read: Our only intention is to distinguish, within each genre, those who don't do damage to the English language. 

Our Seal should not be construed as a card of identicality (my coinage) of its recipients. It is a given that they are diverse. Neither do the Seals mean that we recommend the political or any other orientation of the authors or that any of us approve each other’s company; they do attest that the titles carrying them have earned the right to a level playing field in public spaces. The final arbiters are the readers.

...., I hear your concern about the company you keep. But, please, did you take a look at the three awardees so far? They are all different. [The book you got for review] happens to be about vampires, with 13 more in all kinds of genres now in the pipeline. We cannot determine who will submit what work to us in the future. An objective reviewer shouldn’t ask for an assignment to his/her taste. This is not what we evaluate. We are not censors of the public taste. Let the readers buy what they want. We just tell them if the author passes muster as a writer.

I have come to respect your knowledge, judgment and persona.  It would pain me to see you separate from our goals on the basis of a misunderstanding. I am sure we can find a joint ground. 

Please reconsider. Don't leave. Give me your suggestions as to where you think we might change, improve and clarify. 

Most cordially, and reciprocating your affection,

What is the qualification of a book reviewer?

The indiePENdents being an international group, my email rings around the clock. At many a time in the middle of the night, I answer.

Last night, it was about the qualification of reviewers, ours, those on indiePENdents.org. I answered by asking about the qualifications of mainstream reviewers, who anoints them and why. Ours are professional writers and editors, probably at least as good, I said. 

In the morning, letters to The Sunday New York Times Book Review made me take the compliment back. Four out of six letters addressed reviewer’s inaccuracies, misrepresentations, or lack of understanding of the books they were writing about.

One of them pointed how the reviewer of A Difficult Woman -- a history book about Lillian Helman by Alice Kessler-Harris -- made the review a polemic against Hellman’s character and took the opportunity to express agreement “with McCarthyite purges that Hellman abhorred.”  The reviewer also referred to the work as an “unsparing psychological examination of Hellman and [Dashiel] Hammett”, to which the author responded that “there are no psychoanalytical categories involved in my biography.”

Another reader speaks of a “scathing and unwarranted” review of Anna Quindlen’s Lots of Candles, Plenty of Cake.  “I defy anyone" -- the letter goes on to say -- "to read the book and not find it uplifting, humorous and personal on some level. The reviewer  definitely sounded churlish, negative and sarcastic ... The book isn’t just an honest and thoughtful look at the good things that age and experience bring most people. I think I am in good company in having eased into my older age with a lovely sense of wisdom, humor and comfort -- exactly what the reviewer does not have”.

As one letter says: “The Times should have assigned this book to someone prepared to evaluate a historian’s attempt to interpret Hellman both as a creature and defier of her world."

The author of the novel Miss Fuller,” April Bernard, says of another Times review: “The reviewer’s assertion ... is belied  by Fuller’s  sentiments in her actual letters ... That the  reviewer could mischaracterize these urgent personal and political matters ... amazes and confounds."

To which I would add that an author could trust even everyday book readers with the ability to make a sensible evaluation better than some mainstream critics. 

A GUEST BLOG FROM AUSTRALIA

RE: [Fwd: Indiependents - G'day from Australia]

FROM:

• clancy tucker

TO:

• lastexile@yahoo.com

Message flagged

Thursday, May 3, 2012 6:02 AM

Fellow self-published brothers and sisters:


I am a serious Australian young adult fiction writer, author, photographer and sometime poet who has been working fulltime for 12 years. I recently published my first book which has won two awards in the Australian National Literary Awards, and am about to publish my second book. I rejected four contracts for the first book (Sydney, Melbourne, London and New York) after consulting a literary lawyer. Hopefully I can offer some ideas from the 'land downunder'.


Here are my thoughts:


1. Maybe a You-tube video, Twitter or Facebook connection etc could be organised to advertise this push to gain recognition. Publicity and numbers are the keys to the success of this.  


2. It might be an idea to obtain the views of self-published authors from each country represented: USA, Europe, Australia, UK etc. It could be interesting to learn the differences from one country to another. Example: I gather authors in the US must have an agent before they approach a publisher. In Australia, agents are as rare as dinosaur eggs.


3. Could we not organise the most lucrative book prize in the world? That would make publishers sit up and listen and give us some power and publicity. Publishers would want to enter the books of their cherished authors. Give Bill Gates a call!!! 


4. (a)Yes, each book must have a prestigious seal of approval - an internationally accepted and recognised logo. Also, the world must learn what we are doing and everyone must immediately recognise the logo!!!


(b) Each approved book must have an ISBN.
(c) Each book must be registered with the Library of Congress ... Australian National Library etc


5. Once some books have been given the seal of approval, can we maybe organise for three top publishing house editors to look at them? It is a conciliatory way of keeping 'in' with them, not 'opposing' them. Honey is sweet, vinegar is sour. Their comments might also give weight to our 'seal of approval logo'. OR, why not have some famous authors read our approved books and give their official sanction. That would give our organisation some clout.


6. This must become a worldwide movement, one picked up by the press and all media and social media outlets.


7. When we are suitably backed and supported by thousands of writers, it would be wonderful to contact a distributor and bookseller to take all of our approved books without question. It might be in their best interest to do so, especially financially, considering how many self-published authors exist, and are coming on the scene.


8. In view of what is written in points 1-3 below, pressure must be placed on major book awards to accept 'approved' indiependent authors' books.


9. I am a member of an Australian organisation for self-published authors. I have contacted the president and suggested that their organisation fully back this movement. Suggestion: there must be other such organisations around the world. They also must get onboard. Trust me. Numbers are the key to success! This is not an 'us' and 'them' scenario. No, I see it as writers stepping up to the plate and barking to be taken seriously and fairly, and have their work judged on its merits. That's it! Simple. Done and dusted.


Recent discoveries: 


1. I recently self-published a book to enter major Aussie book contests to gain some recognition. Mm ... the results were disappointing indeed. It is a closed shop. Example: the most expensive book award in Australia is the Children's Book Council of Australia Awards (CBCA) - revered by teachers, parents and librarians as the doyen reference. It cost just under $400 AUD and ten books to enter. Everyone on the short list was a well established author, none were self-published and all of the 30 short-listees were published through mainstream publishers. Not only ... at the bottom of their list of short-listed authors were two paragraphs that were blatant: DONORS & BENEFACTORS. Yep, 3 of the 30 short-listed authors were donors! 27 of the 30 publishers were benefactors of the CBCA! 


2. I have been fighting a battle with the Australian Prime Minister's Office for some months. Why? Because self-published authors cannot enter the PM's Literary Awards! The First Assistant Secretary and I have become friendly adversaries. However, I've had one major victory. Now, we have a poetry category in the PM's Awards. Amazing to think we never had one in the first place, considering that one of our most famous Australian authors and poets, Andrew Barton 'Banjo' Paterson, is depicted on our ten-dollar note and is the author of Waltzing Matilda! Hello!


3. Now, in recent days, the State Premier of Victoria's Literary Awards have opened. Mm ... self-published authors are NOT allowed to enter!


Guys, I've been battling against the odds for some time. Not only, very few authors have the courage to challenge those with the 'power', or write the emails I have written to the likes of our Prime Minister etc. I am fully behind you, but this must become a worldwide movement to change the thinking of publishers and distributors. The bottom line is simple. In regard to major book awards, the judges are not judging the full literary talent of this country - only a small percentage. So, who is really looking for the next Dickens, John Grisham or Lord Jeffrey Archer?


By the way, two years ago in Australia, the two biggest selling books were self-published. Yep, 'Underbelly' and '4 Ingredients' - one about Aussie crime barons and the other a simple cookbook. Both have gone from rags to riches - movies etc.


Thanks for listening.


CT (Clancy TuckerFrom the land downunder

 

 

            

Reply to:

CONSIGNING INDIES TITLES TO BOOKSTORES

There is no code used in alternating the description of a self-published writer as an indie or independent. The moniker is accepted by other professions, such as by musicians, who had a similar problem with their industry and solved it by releasing their works by themselves. They didn't kill the mainstream issued music, but did gain respect and a just return for all those who produce it. The market evaluation is not provided by a bunch of  industry executives, but by the listening public, . This is not yet the case with independent authors.

The industry funnel is much too narrow to accommodate all writers who seek to be published. Therefore, one should not assume that the fact a manuscript wasn't "vetted" by an industry gatekeeper is to be considered inferior by definition. But the ease of self-publishing (in print and digital) enabled by new technologies, does allow books of lesser quality to flood the market along with many perfectly solid works.

To understand better where The indiePENdents. org and I as its founder stand: We are simply proposing  to separate the wheat from the chaff, by peer-reviewing indie titles which were not given access to the traditional publishing channels. To our surprise, we are encountered resistance to the idea from some indie authors; many are simply rugged individuals, but others may be driven by other considerations.

So far, bookstores and libraries have been accepting only books issued and recommended by the industry. Our aim is to certify, through panels of three reviewing peers for each submitted indie title, that the book with our Seal deserves a place on their shelves. 

We don't claim this as a right, but do want to level the playing field, which is not the same as asking for an entitlement. 

The economics we suggest are no less appealing than those bookstores get from the publishers. 

A consignment contract by which the indie author ships a requested number of copies at his/her expense, pays a stocking fee of $40 or so, and is responsible for the return of all copies not sold in six months. In the meantime, the bookstore retains 25% of the selling  price. I don't think "mainstream" is giving a better incentive to bring a book to the judgment of readers. 


Some marketers try to discourage consignement placement, claiming that the bookstore will favor titles from'mainstream' publishers the way supermarkets display their wares. I say that if the bookshop owner gets a comparable percentage of profits, with prices which are comparable, he will not spend time to hide 'self-pubbed' books in favor of  the 'pubbed' ones.

As an example: a writer strapped for money need only $115 to send 20 copies on consignment. He will get his total investment paid back after half of the books are sold.  Each additionsl copy brings him a royalty of about $10. Multiply this by a factor of x if the book takes off. 

If need be, sometime in the future, The indiePENdents.org  may consider finding sponsors for an escrow fund: it would lend authors seed money for the initial investment cost of consigning their books. We can call it  ABSOL ("A Book Send Off Loan") program until a good writer comes up with a better title.

LEVELING THE PLAYING FIELD FOR INDIE WRITERS

The idea of peer review, the basis of imdiePENdents.org came to me in one of the LinkedIn discussion among writers about their books. It was also the genesis of The indiePENdents.org which my editor, Julia Petrakis, and I launched December 13, 2011. It is volunteer and free, not open to any commercial interests, and doesn’t sell any services or goods.

Some of the writers in the discussions were seeking an honest criticism of their work by other authors. Some wanted a peer review of a draft they were still not sure about, but most were offers of an exchange of copies for reviews on Amazon.

I mailed printed copies to several people, and electronically to a few others.   I knew I was risking a bad review being posted where my books are sold. So did all the others. 

Their reviews were published on Amazon, ranging from perfunctory to glowing. On a writers’ digital exchange, one said noncommittally ‘Jasha is worth reading.’ But whatever judgment it brought, this novel way to get an evaluation looked to me both valid and valuable, but most important not corrupted by commerce nor nepotism. 

This turned out to be a genuine, professional, thoughtful review and commentary, welcome even when less than favorable. It was completely different from the playful (perhaps incestuous’): “Like my Facebook page, and I will like your Facebook page,” which has been going on for a while on another LinkedIn site.

The peer reviews also seemed more trustworthy than those issued, for a fee, by “professional” review mills. Some authors are induced to buy these, in the hope that -- since they couldn’t get the attention of the overwhelmed mainstream book industry --  this will bring them recognition in the marketplace. 

It is a real question whether a knowledgable reader will give much credence to a hack review. What’s worse, with or without such paid reviews, self-published  books are still refused access by bookshop owners and shunned by librarians because they have not been vetted by gatekeepers set up by ‘legitimate,’ mainstream publishing channels. Up to now, this was for them the only guarantee that a book earned its right to see the light of day. Thus, they haven’t been giving a place on their shelves to ‘unproven’ titles. The indiePENdents.org aims to open these gates to ‘indies,’

The indiePENdents.org seal will give them the assurance they seek.  Our peer review seeks to establish an even playing field and open the market to printed and digital works, wether they are mainstream or independent i.e. self-published titles. 

Last December, the loudest objections to even starting the indiePENdents were in the form of questions like “who are you to judge anyone?’ and  accusations of elitism. Then, the discussion boiled down to the standards themselves. Having now been voted on by the membership, they have become the official basis for our three member panels to start reviewing already published works. They are no different than those used by the best book reviewers.

We now need more members to volunteer as peer evaluators, and others willing to approach their local media, give out information, and spread the word about the work of The indiePENdents. The general reading public, you local bookstores and libraries need to learn about  this new validation tool on which self-published author can star relying right now.

If you are reading this, join The indiePENdents.org. Whether you are an independent author or simply care about the future of literature and the new model of publishing, you will be part of publishing history in the making.

You cam find both Jasha M. Levi and The indiePENdents.org on Facebook and Twitter. We will expand into other social networks when we master using these two. Also, visit the LinkedIn discussion group The indiePENdents.org