Telling a book by its cover

Ever wish you had two heads and four hands? Lately, that is how it has been for me. I am simultaneously trying to promote my novel, Double Trouble on Corned Beef Row, and write a new one for young adults. To promote the current one, I have had designed new covers to use at online vendors like Amazon and Barnes and Noble with their ebook versions. The hard copy version will retain its original cover that shows Attman's Deli's storefront. Marc Attman helped me a great deal with the launching of the novel with a book signing party at his deli. I believe I owe him that much. However, the existing cover does not show well when displayed at the postage stamp size used by the book sellers websites. Ergo, the new designs. They are more readable and use colors that attract the eye. Unless an author already has a large following, he/she needs visibility when their product pops up in an online search. Writers that already have a large fan base will only need name recognition for potential buyers to look at whatever it is they have written. Unknowns have to do anything they can to draw the prospect's eye. That includes changing the book's cover if necessary.
On my website, http://jamesbattee.books.officelive.com, I am doing a survey of several new cover options and have added sample chapters to read. A random respondent will receive a signed copy of the book. All will receive the author's gratitude.

Not as bad as I thought it would be

In my last post, I thought my favorite neighbor was going to be angry with me because I screwed up her lawnmower. It turns out that I had not screwed it up. She took it to a lawnmower shop in neighborhood, and they told her there was a trick to removing or tightening the blade. Obviously, I did not know the trick. Fortunately, it did not cost a fortune for her to get her lawnmower fixed or for her to have to replace it. Tomorrow we (my darling Judy and I) are going to Greetings and Readings in Hunt Valley for a book signing session. When we finish with that, we will be going to set up another book signing that will take place on August 6. I have to take a supply of books, and sign some paperwork so I can put them on consignment at the store. I also sent the note to a writer friend, who is also a doctor, asking about a disease I was thinking about using in my book. I don't know if such a malady exists, but I am hoping that somewhere in the annals of modern medicine something of its sort might be found. If there is not a real disease, then I will have to invent one. It is critical to my story. Now, all I can do is sit back and wait for an answer so I can get on with the book.

How can I write when everything else is given a higher priority. Fix this. Do that. It seems as soon as warm weather hits, writing takes a back seat. Waaaay back! The usual things that come with owning (along with the bank) a house take over, and by the time I finish with those, I am too tired to sit down to a keyboard and concentrate on the project at hand. Throw in the things that have to be done to promote your current work, and creativity time is gone. I need to figure a way to slough off some of the more mundane chores that keep bogging me down. No wonder my blogs have become less frequent. That is not an excuse, but it is a fact. Oh, well! Fall is only three months away.

A writers work is never done

I have started on a new project in hopes of capturing a new audience. People between say, 10 to 17 years old. I know it is a stretch for a man my age trying to write for youngsters like them, but I have been a storyteller all my life and have had more than a little success making up yarns for kids.
When my friend Richard Reilly would invite me up to his home in the western part of the state, I would tell spooky stories to his kids in the evening. These were 10 through 15 year old's, and to keep them attentive for an hour or more listening to me contrive stories was no mean feat. If they wanted to, they could watch cable TV or play video games. I told my tales in a style reminiscent of old time radio programs like "Lights Out," or "Inner Sanctum" that had engrossed me when I was growing up. I hope this latest endeavor that uses my grand kids as models works the same way.
While writing this one which has a working title of " the Berger Kids Meet Spiny Funkle," I am still promoting my novel "Double Trouble on Corned Beef Row." I have entered Amazon.com's Breakout Novel contest, and set up a second book signing at "Greetings and Readings," a top flight local bookstore. The last one was a roaring success, and they are happy to have me back again. Additionally, I am coaching another old man (like me) who aspires to being an author and passing on some of my experiences. I tried to make clear that promoting one's work is by far the hardest thing for a self published author to do. This blog is proof of the pudding.

Starting over

Here I am at the beginning of another writing project. As if the creation of my first book wasn't enough grief, I am now trying to produce one using my wife's grandkids as models. Fortunately, they are good models. Each of them has an interesting personality and traits that translate well into a story. They are of the correct age for a novel about youngsters and old enough to be able to do some interesting things as a group. Like some of the stories that have gone before such as the Hardy Boys or the Nancy Drew mysteries, their characters give a good mix that enables the plot to have multiple twists and turns. I describe one as brave, another as musically talented, the third as artistic, and one as athletic. Together, they have the makings of a team that has just the right mix of talents and skills to do the things outlined in the plot. I am not letting them know that they are being incorporated into the story until I had finished it. I want them to see themselves the way I see them. I hope that this has the desired effect. I love all of them, and I love the two new ones who are too young to be incorporated as they are only two and newborn. Maybe, if I live long enough, I'll write about them, too. Thanks to the experience gained with writing Double Trouble on Corned Beef Row, this one should be easier.

The Silver Lining

Sorry if my last post was a little depressing. I guess disappointment got the best of me. I am not usually a downbeat person. In a way, maybe it is good that things turned out as they did. There are lots of old adages that apply in a situation like this. One of my favorites is: "Every dark cloud has a silver lining." It surely applies in this case. I found, today, that a large number of legitimate publishers would relegate my book to the rejection list because it is too short. Only 52000 words. Having learned this, I am going back to the story and "fleshing it out" to make it more salable. I have eschewed inserting unnecessary verbiage, but it appears I was wrong in assuming that descriptions of decor and things of that sort are undesirable. Trudging forward and continuing to write will be more challenging and I will wax prosaic as best I may. My wife said I should put in some steamy bedroom scenes, but I want to have something that stands out without stooping to the prurient. My book is about Jewish people, and, as a non-Jew, believe they deserve to be portrayed respectfully. It's just the golden rule being applied as it should be.