Excellent A gleam of hope for all writers--Keep the Faith! A Writer's Dream by RaymondJohn To everyone who feels they will never be discovered. Keep the faith and take hope.

Category:  Self Improvement Non-Fiction   Posted:  March 7, 2007      Views: 468

RAYMONDJOHN  IN PRINT   ABOUT RAYMONDJOHN  Raymond John is a hopeless FanStory addict who has at times spent as many as twelve hours in a single day reading, reviewing and writing for the site. His three purposes are based on three "Es" which are Explain, Enlighten and Entertain. His greatest fear is to take himself too seriously. He may not always smile, but he always has a twinkle in his eye. Knock his socks off with a fantastic write and he'll be your best cheerleader and give you a banner award, to boot. He has written two novels and numerous short works. His first book, The Cellini Masterpiece, has sold nearly 3,000 copies and received an Honorable Mention in the 2006 IPPY awards. It is now available in a Kindle edition from Amazon.com. An audio version (ISBN 9780615268125) is now available read by the renown actor, James Cada. MP3 edition, downloadable for IPOD, is 14.95. Order at www.raymondjohnbooks.com. His second mystery, Mix and Match Murder, which was originally scheduled for release in September of 2008 is now in print and available from Amazon.com, barnesandnoble.com and North Star Press. A scholar born in the golden age of radio, Raymond always appreciates hearing a well-told story, especially one with action and believable dialogue in a historical setting. I have written and received many reviews. I have a thick skin, so if constructive criticism is forthcoming, bring it on. He has won several contests. The contest submission Mousie, Kittie and Booger was the first place winner in the contest Tales of the Weird.. Gold In Them Thar Words was the first place winner in the contest Tales of the Weird.. Lot 386 was the first place winner in the contest Tales of the Weird.. He is a top ranked author and is currently holding the #22 position. Portfolio | Become A Fan The last couple of weeks have been every writer's dream for anyone who has had trouble getting recognition. I also offer a note of encouragement for all writers who write "because they have to." Perseverance pays. First of all, don't let any publisher, agent, professional tell you that you have only a tiny window of time to promote your book. If you believe this fallacy you'll find tons of people who are willing to promote it for you--for a price. Usually a substantial one. This service usually will cost you at least a thousand dollars. One worthy quoted me a price of 3,500 and guaranteed my book's name would appear in 500 newspapers across the country. Don't be taken in. Publishers spend millions on publicity. You can't compete, nor should you try. Every publisher wants to make the big hit, so they buy as many books as they think they can market, prints thousands of copies, spend their publicity budget and then get their unsold books back from the booksellers when they don't sell. As Nora Ephron remarked on Public Radio, this is sheer insanity. Word of mouth and slowly increasing sales numbers is the way to sell books. The worthy ones don't go away. The others can die a slow death as well as a quick one. Second of all, know your market. Have a core group in mind whenever you write something. In my case, people in Malta or those with a Maltese background were my primary targets. Unfortunately for me, this is a rather small population, but there are enough world-wide to make it pay off, assuming I can reach them and they can find the book. I also was sure that the book would appeal to Ludlum fans. The international thriller is a very popular thriller, and in my case, the echoes of The DaVinci Code didn't hurt, either. The Cellini Masterpiece is not a New York Times bestseller. Yet. But I'm hoping. Thirdly, keep the faith. This is the hardest part for most writers. If your book is good, sooner or later it will find a home. The Cellini Masterpiece has been out since October of 2004. My early trips to Toronto and London, Ontario were exhilarating. The one to San Francisco, even more enjoyable. I was treated as visiting royalty. No one had ever written a thriller that had Malta as the exclusive setting before. I was regaled with pastizzi, a wickedly bad dessert, and had long coversations with natives. Everyone was amazed at my knowledge. Finally, keep at promoting. I have several folders of promotions in my computer. My first trip to Malta, which I thought would be grand tour, was disappointing. I had a bookstore willing to be my distributor, but I held one book-signing, and the company went out of business before Evie and I left the island. My second such trip will be quite a bit different. Miller Publishing of Malta has agreed to be my distributor. I have six booksignings, have had a full-page article in one of the Maltese newspapers, mention in the Times, which is by far the largest paper, and a promise of an exclusive interview and another full-page article with the same paper. I also have a radio interview, and will be meeting with members of the American Consular Staff. Best of all, I will be the guest of the British Embassy when it hosts a party in honor of Louis De Bernieres who wrote Captain Corelli's Mandolin. Needless to say, I can hardly wait! To all my readers and friends, SAHHA u hbibierija. Health and friendship. All my best. Ray. Recognized Share your own writing! - Information on our membership for writers. Pays one point and 2 member cents.

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