J.Conrad Guest's Cobb Legacy

J. Conrad Guest is the author of five novels—January’s Paradigm, One Hot January, January’s Thaw (all based on the character, Joe January, a Philip Marlowe type private investigator circa 1940), Backstop: A Baseball Love Story in Nine Innings, and The Cobb Legacy—and a novella, Chaotic Theory. Backstop was nominated as a Michigan Notable Book in 2010 and was adopted by the Illinois Institute of Technology for their spring 2011 course, “Baseball: America’s Literary Pastime.” His short fiction, memoirs, op-ed pieces and sports articles can be found at a variety of websites; simply google J. Conrad Guest.

J. Conrad Guest finds his muse in a good cigar and a pot of coffee or glass of scotch, depending on the time of day. They’ve become part of his ritual, his creative process.

Welcome back, Conrad.

Where do you live, and how has your environment affected your writing?

I live in Michigan, where the long winter months make for a grand environment for writing. I live alone, which is also good for writing, which is a very solitary endeavor. I’ve had my heart bloodied and bruised several times—the warm and caring guy women claim to seek, tossed away in preference for the bad boy. But I’ve also bloodied a couple hearts myself and so my name is likely still cursed. Writing is therapeutic for me. I write largely about regret and the relationships between men and women and between children and parents. In short, I succeed in crafting happily ever after stories for my characters I can’t seem to write for myself.

Give a short synopsis of your most recently published book.

The Cobb Legacy spans more than a century. Baseball legend Ty Cobb’s father was killed, by his mother, a week before Ty became a major league ballplayer. Although she was acquitted on the grounds it was accidental, who can know what Cobb thought. His father, who was against his son playing ball, told him only not to return home a failure. He never did, but he did lament, after his playing days were done, that his father never got to see him play.

More than a murder mystery, The Cobb Legacy is the story of a man’s search to connect with his dying father while also coming to terms with an adulterous affair and impending divorce, and doubting that love with an old friend can be his.

What sets your books apart from others?

I probably rely more on personal experience—the disappointments I’ve encountered throughout my life—than most writers. I tend to write mostly in first person, which gives my work an almost autobiographical or memoir feel. I like to think this allows my readers to connect with my work more than books written from a purely fictional perspective. I also don’t follow a specific formula; I tend to mix several genres.

Is it available in print, ebook, and Kindle formats?

All my books are available as e-books, including Kindle and Nook, and several others as well as print—The Cobb Legacy will be available in print in May.

The Cobb Legacy i snow available for download for your Kindle, Nook, EPUB, MOBI orin PDF. Normally priced at $2.99, download The Cobb Legacy today for only $1.99. From the Pulse Publishing website, insert the promo code “FFTCLJCG” when prompted and you’ll be able to download The Cobb Legacy.

What do you think is the greatest lesson you’ve learned about writing so far? What advice can you give other writers?

The greatest lesson I’ve learned is to enjoy the process. I used to get too wrapped up in publication. Rejection letters were, to me, a reflection of my work, its value. When I learned to enjoy the creative process, I became a writer, and publication eventually fell into place.

My advice to other writers is not to be so quick to self-publish. Try to learn from your rejection letters. Sure, publishing is highly subjective—what one publisher or agent seeks may make another yawn. Publishing on a credit card is the easy way; but it also results in stagnation—one can’t learn the art of writing because one continues to make the same mistakes.

We all know how important promoting our work has become. How do you get the word out both off and online?

Oh, gosh, that’s a difficult question because I’m still learning. Promoting my work doesn’t come easily to me; I’d much rather spend my free time writing than marketing. But it’s a necessary evil. Even the monster publishing houses expect more from their writers. A few years ago I learned that in order to get anywhere I needed a website and a blog, so I’ve got both. The trouble is, so does every other writer, so it becomes an exercise in making mine different to separate myself from all the others, and that’s something that is ongoing and which I’m still learning. I try to do interviews elsewhere, like this one, but it’s difficult to measure whether or not they’re effective.

Funny story: I posted an excerpt from The Cobb Legacy on Good Reads, a lengthy diatribe on Romeo and Juliet, which has gone quite literally viral. It’s been picked up by dozens of sites and been viewed by thousands. My name appears as the source; but unfortunately none of my book titles accompany it, so I have no way of knowing how many readers may have discovered my novels through that venue.

Can you tell us your writing goals/projects for 2012 or beyond?

I’m currently shopping my sixth and seventh novels—A Retrospect in Death and 500 Miles to Go. The former takes the reader to the other side after the protagonist’s death, where he meets his higher self. The two of them analyze his past life, looking for the breadcrumbs that led to his unhappiness in preparation for his return to the lifecycle. The latter takes place in the 1960s, during the golden age of motor racing, and chronicles the efforts of a young man to achieve his dream of winning the Indianapolis, but at the cost of losing his childhood sweetheart, who is certain he will leave her a widow. It’s a story of the importance of, as well as the dangers associated with, pursuit of dreams.
 

I’m just getting involved with a collaborative novel with several other Second Wind Publishing authors, which will keep me busy through the first several months of 2012, and I have a couple of ideas for my next novel; but neither has gotten to the point where I need to set pen to paper.

Where can folks learn more about your books and events?  

I can be found on Facebook, Red Room and Good Reads, and at my website: www.jconradguest.com.

A Box of Texas Chocolates

As Valentine's Day approaches, I thought I'd repost my first interview with multiple anthology authors. Today’s interview is with A Box of Texas Chocolates authors, Betty Gordon, Laura Elvebak, Cash Anthony, and the team of Charlotte and Mark Phillips. A Box of Texas Chocolates is the third short story collection from the Houston-based writing group, The Final Twist. Since the group is composed of writers of many genres, they decided to try a multi-genre anthology. Each story features chocolate and Texas. The award-winning A Box of Texas Chocolates is published by L&L Dreamspell.


Welcome, folks. Before we get into questions, please introduce yourself and your story.

Betty Gordon’s biography:

Betty Gordon is a native Texan who draws inspiration for short stories and novels from years of experience in the legal arena as a law student, legal assistant and paralegal. She also has extensive backgrounds in dance and sculpting which continually prick her imagination for future creations. Betty holds a B.S. Degree in Professional Writing, University of Houston-Downtown, as well as graduate degrees in Literature (creative writing) and Visual Arts from the University of Houston-Clear Lake. Publishing credentials: “The Journal of Graduate Liberal Studies,” “Murder in the Third Person,” “Deceptive Clarity,” and numerous short stories in L&L Dreamspell’s anthologies. She is past president of The Final Twist Writers, a member of Mystery Writers of America, Sisters in Crime, Writers League of Texas, Ft. Bend Writers Guild, and Bay Area Writers League. (http://www.bettygordon.com/)

Synopsis of “The Cowboy’s Rose”: A rodeo cowboy, Hank, and his girlfriend, Rose, become embroiled in a suspenseful crime puzzle. Hank discovers that sitting on top of bucking bulls is nothing compared to involvement with a box of chocolates. Intriguing mystery leads this hard riding cowboy through nerve-racking experiences.

Laura Elvebak writes: “I write The Niki Alexander Mysteries, Less Dead and Lost Witness. I am past Chapter President and current Treasurer and Newsletter Editor for Mystery Writers of America, Southwest Chapter, a member of Sisters In Crime and The Final Twist.

Synopsis: “Dying For Chocolate” tells the story of a meek child car provider who suspects one of her employers is having an affair with her husband and vows revenge with a special box of chocolates she whips up herself.

Cash Anthony says: “I’m a Houston writer of short fiction and screenplays. I’m a semi-retired attorney and a biker chick. In addition to writing stores, I direct for stage and make short films.

Synopsis: “A Bona Fide Quirk in the Law” features Jessie Carr, the heroine of a series of short stories. This is the third one, and the fourth should be released this year. Jessie is a writer and amateur detective with a sideline as an occasional assassin. In this story, she’s terrorized by a rogue cop while out on her Harley, but she finds a way to get sweet revenge.

Charlotte Phillips writes, “I’m from the Keystone State. In addition to Pennsylvania, I lived in Florida and California before settling in Texas. I’ve always been surrounded by book, and spend a good part of my childhood in the doghouse for making up tall tales. It seemed only natural that I move to Texas and write.
Synopsis for “Books and Bon Bons”: A scrumptious assortment of desserts, a seminar on herbal poisons, and a harridan bent on evil, tempt a waitress towards the biggest mistake of her young life. Young Sassy learns vengeance can have unintended consequences.

Mark Phillips says, “I grew up in central Illinois reading the classis, especially Greek mythology, James bond novels, and Batman comics. I am a graduate of both the University of Illinois and Northwestern University. I live in Houston with my wife, Charlotte, and teach math and philosophy at Bellaire High School.
“You’ll find two of my short stories in A Box of Texas Chocolates. In “Truffles of Doom”, innocent homeless poor have been struck down by poisoned Christmas chocolates. Detective Eva Baum tracks a fiend without conscience or remorse to deliver a present of her own—justice.

“The Invisible Hand Will Smear Chocolate on the Face of Tyranny” finds the Rell buying up the cultural legacy of Earth with the merest trinkets of their advanced technology. Earth monopolists and Rell exploiters beware: rogue entrepreneur Kinkaid will sell Earth’s sweetest secret, chocolate, but only at the price of revolution and freedom.

Okay. Now for a few questions.Do you write any other genres?

Betty: Suspense—paranormal and romantic, and thrillers.

Laura: The fiction I write is all mystery. I have written non-fiction articles for magazines in the past, particularly in the self-help field.

Cash: I write several genres of screenplays. I have written documentaries, an adaptation of a YA novel, and a dark thriller. I have a medic-legal mystery in progress. My short fiction is usually mystery.

Mark: Charlotte and I write the Eva Baum mystery series together. I write science fiction and we’ve experimented with one-act plays.

Is there a different writing process for short stories compared to novel?

Betty: There is a big difference between writing the short story and novel aside from the obvious. Most of my short stories are written in First Person while the novels are written in Omniscient or Third Person. I like both formats, but prefer First Person for a short story as it brings me closer to the reader in a brief time.

Laura: While novels have a wider scope within which to work, short stories have to be concentrated with few characters and certain obstacles that the main character must hurdle to attain a goal that’s set out in the beginning, or having the main character finding an alternate goal more worthy.

Cash: For me, it’s hard to give up the layers of subtext, and the variety of settings and characters that you can have in longer fiction. My writers group has been the main cure for that, and they have been tremendously helpful.

Charlotte: For novels we like to start with an outline of sorts for the plot of the actual mystery. For shorts, we often start with an image or the question “what if?”

How do you discipline yourself while writing?

Betty: Discipline is fortunately not a problem for me. Perhaps my years of work and schooling trained me well. My day begins with getting ready as I would for a job—putting my derriere in front of the computer to check emails, taking care of responding to same, and beginning the day’s project which I have visualized before leaving my warm bed. If research is necessary, I do that first and then move forward.

Laura: I work best when I can close myself up in my office at home. I make myself write and once I get past that first bump, the ride gets much easier.

Cash: If I’m writing a first draft, I try not to read back to far before I continue with the story, or I’ll slip into editing mode. When I’m editing and in rewrite, I try to start at the end and work backwards in chunks, so as not to overlook problems.

Have you participated in any other anthologies? If so, which ones?

Betty: The Dead and Breakfast anthology has two stories: “Dead by Breakfast” and “Veiled Deception”, published by L&L Dreamspell. “Anna Rose” is in the A Death in Texas: The Final Twist anthology, also published by L&L Dreamspell.

Laura: “Searching for Rachel” is in A Death in Texas.

Cash: “The Stand-In” is in the Dead and Breakfast anthology. I wrote “The Best Man” for A Death in Texas.

Charlotte and Mark: We wrote “Death on the Bayou” for A Death in Texas anthology.

When writing, what themes do you feel passionate about?


Betty: who wins, who loses, and why.

Laura: Injustice and the underdog.

Cash: Injustices for which there seems no remedy, injuries to children and animals, the good and the bad in all of us.

Parade magazine recently asked 89-year-old P.D. James why so many women write detective novels. She responded “…women are particularly interested in strong emotions…the reasons people step over that invisible line which separates the murderer from the rest of us.” Please respond to that statement.

Betty: I’m sure most us agree that women are emotional creatures. We learn to control and direct our emotions, of course, but these strong emotional-based reactions play well in detective/mystery novels.

Laura: What fascinates me is what motivates a person to cross that line. What final straw must break before it tips the edge from fury and hate to an emotion that chills the blood and brings that person to a dead end where there is no other way out.

Cash: I believe people are interested in murder mysteries for the intellectual puzzle most of them offer, in terms of discerning motivations and analyzing behavior, as well as the “car wreck response” that draws our attention to anything violent and out of the norm. When a villain has managed to fool his community while planning something intended to destroy it, I think people are deeply interested, especially if they feel they have been fooled.

Other writing projects underway?

Betty: My third novel, Valley of Obsessions, is in the hands of my publisher, L&L Dreamspell. To learn more about my work, please check my website: www.bettygordon.com.

Laura: I am working on the third Niki Alexander mystery, Heartless, and a memoir.
My website: http://www.lauraelvebak.com and my blog, A Writer’s Musings: http://lauraelvebak.blogspot.com

Cash: Always! I’m working on a new feature-length screenplay called “Nailed” which will, hopefully, be a comedy-thriller, and another short story about Jessie Carr tentatively called “The Wild Throbbing Dark”. I also have several scripts to read for friends who want feedback, and I take writing classes year-round with ScriptforSale. You can get the anthologies at Cash’s eShop, from Cash’s Closet, www.cashs-closet.com

Mark: Charlotte and I are hard at work on the next full-length Eva Baum story, tentatively called “The Golden Key”.

Charlotte: Mark is also creating a book on political philosophy called the Water Cooler Dialogues. His hope is to make political philosophy accessible to a general audience.

You can learn more about all our writing projects at MarkandCharlottePhillips.com.

Thanks to all of you for the interview!

Readers can learn about A Box of Texas Chocolates and all the L&L Dreamspell anthologies at http://www.lldreamspell.com/
The print book is available for purchase on Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble.com, and all other online bookstores. It’s also available for Kindle, of course, and in multiple ebook formats at fictionwise.com.

Killer Recipes Cookbook Proceeds Donated

When my grandson, Caleb, was diagnosed with luekemia at the tender age of 2, my family and I were devastated. I felt truly helpless for the first time in my life. But now when I look back at all the pain he and his family and friends endured, I am eternally grateful for incredible doctors at Pitt Children's Hospital in Greenville, North Carolina and the latest research from The American Cancer Society and hospitals around the country who collaborated in efforts to save him. Caleb is now a healthy, happy 12-year-old and we are truly blessed to have him in our lives. 

What does my story have to do with the cookbook, Killer Recipes?  I wanted to do something other than write my usual checks to The American Cancer Society and my local Relay For Life. I decided to invite the huge network of mystery writers I'd connected with (mostly on Internet) to submit recipes for a cookbook in exchange for promotion underneath. I told them up front that the proceeds would be donated to cancer research--they wouldn't be getting any royalties. I was amazed at the response! Over sixty writers sent recipes! (I've interviewed many of them here on the blog and some are telling their stories at the new blog, www.killer-recipes.blogspot.com.

To make the pot even sweeter, my publisher, L& L Dreamspell, jumped in quickly, offering to publish the cookbook and donate their share to the cause. How sweet is that?

Killer Recipes is a fun cookbook because we changed the names of our family recipes to fit the mystery theme, and even though the names may seem ominous, the recipes are all safe and delicious. The categories are:

Breads and Breakfasts To Die For

Criminal Bites, Dips, and Beverages

Devilish Desserts

Insane Soups, Salads, and Sauces

Shameless Sides

Slayer Casseroles
Suck-ulent Main Dishes
Unlawful Vegetables

Our hope is to have a little fun, offer some wonderful family recipes, and kill cancer during our lifetime!

Won't you join our efforts by purchasing a few copies for yourself and others? You can get them at Amazon.com in print, ebook, or Kindle formats and feel good about giving the gift of hope to victims of this horrible disease. http://www.amazon.com/Killer-Recipes-Susan-Whitfield/dp/1603183507/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1328905556&sr=8-1


You can also purchase directly through my web site, www.susanwhitfieldonline.com for autographed copies.
If you'd like to purchase a case to sell at signings or Relay For Life events, please contact the publisher at http://www.lldreamspell.com/

It's a great time to try some of these recipes. Enjoy! And feel great that you've helped the fight against cancer.

Need more gifts? The Logan Hunter Mysteries are available at http://www.susanwhitfieldonline.com/ at a discount (I knocked down the price to cover shipping).

Book 'em!

Please Join Us for
The First Annual Book 'Em North Carolina Event!

Please make plans now to join me, more than 75 authors and more than half a dozen publishers at the First Annual Book 'Em North Carolina event! We are asking all authors and publishers to help spread the word your friends, family, fans, and customers!

Where &When

Robeson Community College

A.D. Lewis Auditorium (Building 15)

5160 Fayetteville Road
Lumberton, North Carolina 28358

February 25, 2012

9:30 AM - 4:00 PM

It's FREE and open to the public!

OUR STATE Magazine lists it as one of the top five things every North Carolinian needs to do in February!

Meet New York Times best-selling authors Carla Neggers and Michael Palmer, more than 30 award-winning authors, more than 75 authors of various genres, and more than 6 publishers for an innovative Writers Conference & Book Fair to raise money for literacy campaigns!

I'll be there with my four mysteries and I hope to see you there. Here's a message from co-founder, Trish Terrell:

Buy a Book – and Stop a Crook!

Many of us enjoy what reading a book can do for us. It can take us around the world, through the ages, enlighten, educate, pull at our emotions, change our perceptions of the world, and so much more.

But have you ever stopped to think about the connection between being literate and living in a low crime area? Or how literacy impacts social services?

It’s a fact that 83% of all those in juvenile court are functionally illiterate. Have you ever wondered how their lives might have been changed if they’d learned to love books and reading?

More than 60% of our prison population is functionally illiterate, and most male inmates read at a third grade level or below. At a time when the prison population is exploding, could literacy be one key to reducing that number?

A full 90% of all welfare recipients are high school dropouts. At a time when jobs are hard to come by, those without reading skills are destined for lives at minimum wage—if they can find a job. And as comedian Chris Rock so eloquently put it (and I paraphrase) employers paying minimum wage are saying if they could pay you less, they would. Reading is one ticket out of that cycle.

The national unemployment rate for persons without a high school education is double the rate for persons with some college.

Three out of every four food stamp recipients perform at the lowest literacy levels—usually below third grade.

With these facts in mind, Book ‘Em North Carolina comes to Lumberton on Saturday, February 25, 2012 with an innovative book fair and writers conference. It takes place from 9:30 am to 4:00 pm at Robeson Community College, conveniently located along Interstate 95 at Exit 22 and just 8 miles from Interstate 74.

More than 75 authors will be on hand to sell and sign their books, with a substantial portion of the proceeds going to increase literacy in our community.  More than 6 publishers will join these authors for panel discussions and solo talks on everything from writing to publishing to improving the quality of your life.

New York Times best-selling authors Carla Neggers and Michael Palmer are traveling from Vermont and Massachusetts to help bring attention to the connection between illiteracy and crime and raise money to increase literacy and reduce crime. Both have new books being released and Lumberton is one of their first stops to launch these new titles.

A Children’s Corner will conduct readings to the smallest children all day long, as well as special activities and events. And the first 100 children age 9 and younger will receive a free book when they come to the Children’s Corner Saturday morning.

With authors coming from as far away as Scotland and attendees coming from New Jersey, Florida and points in between, it’s sure to be an exciting, fun-filled day. We hope you’ll join us! For more information, visit www.bookemnc.org.

This guest blog was written by suspense author and Book ‘Em Foundation co-founder p.m.terrell.

Funny Valentines

How does this blog cover a book that was conceived on an internet group, has forty writers, occupies a sales niche with a shelf life, and doesn't even take itself seriously?  This humor anthology bills itself as "America's funniest writers take on love, romance, and other complications," and that’s exactly what it offers.  No literary pretensions here: this pocket-sized book only wants to make you laugh.  Or at least chuckle, chortle or guffaw.  This collection of "Love Day" humor essays, jokes and cartoons was brought together by two writers already known for tickling ribs: Karla Telega has a highly-regarded humor blog as well as authoring the funny cozy mystery "Box of Rocks" while Linton Robinson was a co-perpetrator of "Mayan Calendar Girls," in addition to the scathing "The Way of the Weekend Warrior," based on his cult humor columns.

Both Karla and Lin contributed pieces to My Funny Valentine but are quick to note that other writers really power the book: writers who syndicate their columns, win contests, write for standup and television, produce programs, and pester people in subways.

I interview a lot of authors here, but aren’t you actually the editors of My Funny Valentine?

Lin:  Well, Karla and I both contributed pieces, but what makes this book so cool is that it was written by forty very funny writers, so there's a gamut of style and types of writing and humor.

Karla:  I have to check in the mirror each morning to see which hat I’m wearing. One day I’m writing, and the next day I’m trying not to squirt coffee out my nose while reading a story from one of our contributors.

Lin:  Editing gives a different perspective to writing.  I used to hate snotty editors who thought they were superior, and now I am one. Actually, I have edited publications before, just never funny ones.  Not intentionally funny, anyway.

Where did you find the writers?

Lin:  That was the main job on this project--and believe me, we were learning the job as we went along.  We posted public calls on many forums and sites, but many were people we already knew and invited personally.

Karla: I’ve gathered a bit of infamy in the online humor community, so we called on some contacts there. We didn’t have to resort to bars or houses of ill-repute, although Lin volunteered to check them out.

Other than "funny", how would you characterize the writing?

Lin:  One thing I noticed is that, although there are quite a few sweet and/or surrealistic pieces in what we think of as the "canon" of Valentine, a great many stories were from two viewpoints: women defying the stereotypes that Vday urges on their relationships, and men terrified that if they don't get the right present or do the right thing they'll end up sleeping alone and unconsummated in a Toyota.  This goes beyond cheap laughs (hey, ten bucks for a book is cheap these days) into sociological significance.  Since I'm not a sociologist, I have no idea what it signifies, but it's major, see?

Karla:  With forty writers, odds are good that there is some socially redeeming value mixed in with all the hilarity.

Who do you think would read My Funny Valentine?

Lin:  Two kinds of people, I think.  One kind would be humor fans, people who like funny books and pick up titles by Dave Barry or Sedaris or Grizzard or Foxworthy.  The other kind would be people who just want something novel as a Valentine's stocking-stuffer. One of our writers convinced us to do the Kindle version for the sort of last-minute panic purchase to avoid the doghouse, as is touched on several times in the book itself.

Karla:  I boil it down to: women who have bought Valentine’s Day power tools for the last five years running, and men who prefer not to be blinded by the perfume spritz-person (the politically correct term) at the department store.

Why did you choose humor as the topic of your imprint?

Karla:  I talked to several agents when shopping my own humor book, and got the same response: “This is hilarious, but you have to be a nationally syndicated humor columnist before a publisher will take it on.” It seemed outrageous that traditional publishers would turn their back on a whole genre. I skipped over self-pity and went straight to stubborn. If fresh humor was going to get into the hands of readers, some idiot(s) would have to champion the cause. “Some idiot,” by the way, is my job title.

And why Valentine's Day?  It's not what we think of as a funny holiday, particularly.

Lin: One thing our writers brought out, Valentines might be the most bipolar, ambivalent holiday of them all.  Most people feel the same way about Christmas and Thanksgiving and Halloween (other than fundamentalists and humbuggers) but a day that is all about love is just a set-up for touching on some complex emotions and attitudes.  But mostly we just figured people would buy it to give to their love objects.

Karla:  Besides, Christmas, Armistice Day, and Purim were already taken.

Were you friends or writing partners before editing My Funny Valentine?

Lin: Not really.  I knew Karla's name and had seen her work on a humor webzine called  The Flying Trapezezine, but our decision to do this together came out of a discussion about publishing on a writing forum.  We were talking about publishing and I think I came up with the question of, "Why don't we do it?"  And Karla was the only one who stepped up and said, "Yeah, lets."

Karla:  I actually ran a background check to make sure Lin wasn’t in witness protection, an international spy, or a Cubs fan.

Was it difficult for two independent writers like you to work together?

Lin:  Not at all.  And I'm not known as the sweetest guy in the world to work with.  Karla, on the other hand, is a dream to work with.  But what was spooky to me was how much somebody across the country was on my same wavelength.  We've actually come up with the same idea and mentioned to the other in crossing emails.  Even odder, it turns out that we shared a lot of background.  Both military brats, both graduated from University of Washington, both of us speak Spanish.

Karla:  My first marriage should have gone so well. What I most appreciate is the mutual respect. We’re both good listeners when there’s a disagreement.

How are sales going for My Funny Valentine?

Lin: Nicely, but it's hard to tell for sure.  We expect a last-minute flurry around the first week of February (followed by a drop off to zero until next year).  It's moving on Amazon and Kindle, but at least half the sales are coming from writers buying them at wholesale for signings and sales from their websites or standup gigs, and those sales don't show up on retail rankings.  These are POD books, but we now realize we could have gone to an offset run.  Next time we will.

Karla:  Marketing an “event” book leaves very little time for a learning curve. We’re pleased with the numbers, but there’s so much more we can take from this for future projects.

So you are planning to do more humor books?

Lin: Definitely.  Humor anthologies are our entire focus, though we might get into single-writer collections once we figure out what we're doing.  Our plans at the moment are to issue a call for contributors on March 1 and produce at least three more titles in 2012. 

Writers interested in receiving calls, or humor fans who want to know when new books are available, can sign up for notices at http://myfunnybooks.biz/mail

The topic of our next book isn't yet carved into stone.  (eBooks and POD make all that carving unnecessary.)  We've rejected "My Funny Prostate Operation", "My Funny Rotten Junkie Teenager", "My Funny Post-Partum Suicide Attempt" and "My Funny Expense Account Cheating", but will come up with something as equally fabulous, we promise.

Do you have advice for humorists?

Lin:  Yes: quit clowning around and get serious.   Seriously, I think there is a strength in association and mutual support.  You see this in the networks of humor bloggers out there.  And--surprise, surprise—you’ll want to pursue anthologies like ours, McSweeney's, Chicken Soup.  Three of our contributors were offered assignments from publications on the strength of their inclusion in My Funny Valentine. Take every opportunity to get your name out there.

Karla:  Humor is so subjective. If you’re a new writer, don’t be discouraged by rejections. We’ve had to turn down some very funny pieces because they didn’t fit with the overall style of the book, or it was a subject that was already well covered. If you stick with it and you’re lucky, your book may grace the backs of millions of toilet seats around the country. See you all at the next humor conference: John Con II.

Karla and Lin, thanks for contributing humor to the blog. It's always appreciated.

2011 Whitfield Cover Award Contest Winner

Congratulations to Randy Rohn and artist Linda Houle for winning the Whitfield Book Cover Award by a large margin!

Thanks to all 83 folks who voted.

Are you a good juggler?

As I sit here working on a panel topic (Marketing) for the Cape Fear Crime Festival this weekend, I'm trying to figure out how I'm going to write, keep up with two blogs of my own, visit other blogs, arrange signings and conferences, update my web site, and....oh, yes! My family needs some attention as well. I'm curious about how you guys juggle the list of things we're all told we need to do each day, or at least every few days. Leave comments in the link below and someone will win a free copy of Just North of Luck, the second Logan Hunter Mystery.