Tag Archives: Echelon Press

Reviews? Really?

Posted on March 17, 2011 | 6 comments

Okay, another hot button for readers. I keep hearing how important reviews are when deciding what books to buy. How true is this?

As an author, I can tell you readers how difficult it is to get anyone to review a book or short story unless you have been published by one of the big 6 publishers in NY or have made it onto a best seller list.

How is a new author supposed to get the ball rolling when they hear the same thing every time they ask for a review. “We don’t review every book that is submitted.” What that really means is, “We have never heard of you so we aren’t going to waste our time.”

As a publisher, I have submitted hundreds of books to reviewers that have gone ignored. This is a HUGE expense to us as a business. I have queried so many Bloggers and reviewers and most of the time I get rejected. I have even offered FREE downloads to anyone who would read them, those have also been rejected.

So, whose reviews are most valuable? Whose opinion is the right one? What makes a good reviewer? Why don’t more readers post reveiws if they find them so important in their selection process?

I’ve got a new novella out and would love to get some reviews. Anyone want to review it? You can get more info at OmniLit.com

6 Comments

Posted in Blatherings, Just for Fun, New Book Releases

Tagged ebooks, Echelon Press, karen syed, publishing, readers, reading, romance novella, sales, Too Fast for Love

Stop Saying that, Damn it! (Rant)

Posted on March 16, 2011 | 2 comments

Okay, I have held back long enough on this topic and now I am just going to speak my mind and get it off my chest.

Dear Librarians:

PLEASE STOP making generalized comments about publishers. I get that you are really mad at HarperCollins and MacMillan and whoever else is trying to screw you over with eBooks. There are MANY publishers of all sizes who are more than willing to work with you on selling you eBooks on fair terms.

For weeks now, there has been constant complaining and blogging about those FEW publishers who want to cheat you. How does this make sense? As you continue to spotlight them in your Blogs and tweets and so forth you continue to promote them and lead people who otherwise might not have sought them out right into their greedy little hands.

Why not focus your attention and energies on the publishers who are BEGGING to work with you? Why not work with your Boards to make it possible to order from organizations other than the Big publishers.

I BEG of you, please take all the negative energy you are expelling on the bad guys and get to know the rest of us. Some of us actually have great books, print and eBooks and we would LOVE to sell them to you so you can loan them to your patrons.

I’m just sayin’!

2 Comments

Posted in Blatherings

Tagged author, authors, books, change, ebooks, Echelon Press, librarians, libraries, Marketing, publishing, readers, reading, sales

Characters Across Genres

Posted on March 14, 2011 | 1 comment

Click Cover to Buy Now!

Often I am asked, “What’s your favorite genre to write?”

And often I reply, “Um. All of them!”

It’s a completely honest answer. My first published novel, released this past summer, is of the spy genre. The next book, slated for June, is a dystopian. Fantasy was the genre of the first long story I ever completed (writing with my sister, good memories). An Oregon Trail journal turned into a seventy-page piece in sixth grade. In my writing thus far I’ve also dabbled in ghost, school, contemporary, perhaps gritty (I say perhaps because I’m still not sure what that means, Google refuses to clear it up for me—perhaps I should try Bing?), murder mystery, and sibling stories.

While I know some authors prefer to stick to one or a few related genres, I enjoyed different aspects of all of them and had equal fun while writing. Therefore, the first time someone asked me about genres—a reporter for my school newspaper—led me to spend about an hour and a half in deep contemplation. (The alternative was math homework, so it worked out.) I came to the conclusion I placed more value in the characters of a story than the genre, or even the plot. The plot, to me, is a device to portray characters. My characters are the personalities I slip into or interact with (fictionally), and I work a plot around them, creating believable and changed people by “The End.” Plus, the characters supply dialogue, description, action…the plot wouldn’t happen without them!

Because the plot is a tool my characters use to propel themselves to the last page, the genre is also a secondary matter. If my characters fit best into a ghost story because one feels guilty over the death of another, then a ghost story it is. If another set of characters need disguises and secrets to best be themselves, I formulate a spy story. If the characters in my mind are best suited for overcoming severe societal challenges and barriers not yet in existence, we create a dystopia.

So, in essence, I’m not sure which genre is my favorite—or maybe all of them are, because until my next character shows up in my mind calling out, “Idea! Idea! I have an idea!!!” I don’t even know what my next genre will be.

Kieryn

www.kierynnicolas.com

http://twitter.com/KierynNicolas

http://www.kierynnicolas.blogspot.com/