Today my brain is scattered — and almost as chaotic and busy as the ballroom pictured here, which so crowds poor Mr. Darcy — so my post here will be scattered and chaotic as well.
AWARDS
Don’t forget to vote in All About Romance‘s 2005 Reader Poll! Just go to:
www.allaboutromance.com/ballot2005.html
Ignore the list of books near the top — those are THEIR favorites, not yours — and vote your opinions!
OSCARS
This morning it was announced that the recent film of PRIDE AND PREJUDICE was nominated for four Oscars! Of course, the serious films got the nods for best picture, but P&P got nominations for costume design, art direction, original score, plus a best actress nomination for Keira Knightley! (Well deserved, in my opinion!)
OBSERVATIONS
My first novel (MY LADY GAMESTER) was released on November 1. Looking back, it’s been an interesting and educational three months for me.
So . . .
First, my thank-yous.
1) Thank you to the many members of my family, and my husband’s family, who bought my book.
2) A particular thank-you to my mother, my uncle’s mother-in-law, and Todd’s parents and their spouses, for making the supreme sacrifice of actually reading it.
3) An extra-special thank-you to my mother-in-law, her husband, and my father-in-law’s wife, for sharing their thoughts on my book, and what they liked about it.
4) Thank you to my friends who took the time to buy and read my book.
5) An extra special thank you to the two members of my local RWA chapter who went the extra mile, and reviewed my book on Amazon. I am eternally grateful.
6) Thank you to pretty much everyone I’ve mentioned my book to, for not calling romances trash, or making snide or patronizing remarks about the genre, or my book.
Now, what I have learned…
1) Most of my relatives, and some of my friends, will never read my book. They may read other books, or they may not, but they won’t read mine. They would probably be more interested in hearing about my attempts at cooking, my cat’s bad habits, the last movie I saw, or the details of my mortgage, than hearing about the book that took me years (and blood, toil, tears, and sweat) to write. That’s life.
2) The most common question I will get on my book is “How is it selling?” (I guess this is a question my relatives can ask without having read my book.)
3) Some of my friends who read my book will decide the most useful thing they can do is to list for me any errors they believe they have found in it. I confess I do not know why they think this is a good idea.
4) Even if the theme of my satiric holiday letter is the fact that almost no one has reviewed my book on Amazon, no one I send the letter to will be persuaded by it to review my book on Amazon. I hereby resolve to learn to be happy with my two good reviews, and stop nagging my relatives (who haven’t read my book anyway.)
So . . . does anyone else have any similar observations to share?? All opinions (and venting of your own) very welcome! (You can also comment on the AAR poll or the Oscar nominations!)
Cara
Cara King, www.caraking.com
MY LADY GAMESTER — out now from Signet Regency!!!!
Cara,
If it’s any comfort, the most common question I get from relatives is not how much I’m making, but how much I PAID to get my book published.
But those who know I make money from my books think I make so much I can afford to give away boxfuls to whoever might want them.
So far, my best defense against both types is to start explaining how advances and royalties work. If that doesn’t make their eyes glaze over, I’ll progress into issues like returns against reserves and foreign rights.
Elena 🙂
I ALWAYS get the “Oh, you’ll have to give me a copy!” comment. Like I just have piles sitting around to toss hither and yon. Then I do what you do, Elena–I explain about sales, royalties, author copies, contests, etc. That usually shuts them up. 🙂
I voted in AAR! Hope I did it right, I’ve never tried it before. And I always find the Oscar noms interesting. I was very glad to see P&P in there! Though I’m puzzled a bit over the costume category (a category I always pay attention to, though not many other people care!). How could Charlie and the Chocolate Factory be nominated, and not Casanova or The New World (which had particularly authentic-looking costumes, IMO)???
Yes, I hate that “how is it selling?” question too. But I have a positive family story. We sent ALMOST A GENTLEMAN to my nephew and his longtime girlfriend as part of a wedding-gift package when they finally got married, and when next we all got together, the now-wife (who’s a rather reserved girl) hugged me and giggled and whispered that they’d taken the book on their honeymoon. So you simply have to find the RIGHT family members — the whole thing made me feel very young at heart.
I’ve gotten the “how much did you pay your publisher” question too, Elena! I guess they’re thinking along the lines of a writer being a true small business, and getting all the profits from the book, and the publisher being nothing more than a printer…
And yes, I too have found that explaining about royalties and advances satisfies most questioners about the money questions! I also use it as part of my response to the question “how is the book selling?” I explain that (1) I have no idea, and will have no idea for a very long time, and (2) my book will be selling pretty much what any debut Signet Regency sells, so it’s not as urgent a question as they think…
When the subject first came up, my mother said she was going to give each of my aunts a copy of my book for Christmas. Now, see, I have four aunts, but about forty other relatives. I didn’t much like the implication that only a tenth of my relatives might have any desire of reading my book… And if the implication was actually that my aunts would then lend their books to my uncles, cousins, cousins’ children, etc, so that four copies would do for my family of forty-odd, I didn’t much care for that implication either! (Call me selfish, but it’s my first book, and I wanted my family excited for me. And heck, it only costs $5!!!! Why people who’ll buy a $100 (or $150) wedding gift without thinking (and some of my cousins have been married multiple times) would balk at paying $5, I don’t know…)
Okay, sorry, getting off the track here, and into multiple parentheses… As I was saying, when my mother suggested she would buy a copy for each of my aunts, I said something like, “heck, I’m expecting every member of my family to buy a copy” and my mom sort of gave me a disgusted look like I’m so greedy and so selfish…. Ah well, maybe I am… 🙂
Cara
Oh, and Amanda, sometimes when they say “You’ll have to give me a copy!” they say it like they’re doing you a big favor. 🙂
As to the Oscar costume category… I agree, it’s frequently weird! Or at least it used to be. They often give it to historical things, as if that proves the costumer had to do work… When in modern things, they often have to do more work!
Anyway, I remember the year Branagh’s HENRY V won the costume Oscar — agh! I adore that movie, I simply love it, but the costumes were terrible! But oh, it was historical, so they have to be good, right? 🙂
Sometimes I think it’s volume of costumes — if they’re dressing hundreds of extras in period costumes, the voters assume it was more work for the costumer. 🙂 (And certainly the Lord of the Rings movie was a true example of that!)
My guess is that MEMOIRS OF A GEISHA will win…
Cara
Pam, what a great story! I should try to be more positive, and not sit here and grump so much! (After all, I’m going to ruin the image I’ve carefully built up over months on this blog that I’m nice!) 🙂
Cara
What I find really unnerving is dead silence from people whom I know and who have read my book. Do they now think I’m some sort of perv? (No need to answer that, thank you.)
My father (in his 90s) was lent a copy and told me he was looking forward to the dirty bits. Since his memory is pretty much shot we haven’t had a follow-up conversation.
As for snide comments, I usually find that an innocent “Oh, and what sort of books do you write/have you had published?” shuts them up quite adequately. Of course it does depend on the sort of people you hang out with. Or you can look them in the eye and say something like: “Yes, I write about desire and passion.”
Pam, I loved the honeymoon story. That’s very sweet.
Janet
Well, I intended to post hours ago, but got caught up in the ballot for All About Romance…
Cara, I haven’t published in Regency yet, but I have anticipated just the sort of problems you’ve mentioned from my own family. They tried to read my academic article in an anthology on Jane Austen and Film, but I don’t think they made it past the first mention of Foucault…
Great story, Pam! What a great honeymoon gift!
Janet, I got my prize copy of Dedication yesterday and am LOVING it!!! Got a new cast on the ankle today…beginning to feel a bit like Jimmy Stewart in Rear Window, but I’ve got some good stuff on the TBR pile so I don’t think I’ll start looking for murderers among my neighbors. Though a male equivalent of Grace Kelly would be a nice way to pass the time:)
As for the Oscars, this is the first year I can remember that I haven’t seen ONE of the best picture nominees! I wanted to see them, but they only played here briefly if at all. I was glad for Kiera Knightly’s nomination, though. And George Clooney just has to breath and I’ll give him a thumbs up…
OMG, Mandacoll!!! If I were one of your relatives, I would have framed your article in the Jane Austen in film anthology!!!! Okay, can’t really frame an article, but you know what I mean! That’s so cool. I read that book several years ago, so I’ll have to go get it again and re-read your article, but that’s so neat!
I do have a bit of an obsession with the Jane Austen films, and when I was searching a library catalog several years ago and saw there were actually two books published on Jane Austen & film, I was in heaven!!! Anyway, I think it’s SO NEAT that our Mandacoll had an article in one of those books! (The academic one. I recall the other one was more a popular book.)
Okay, so this comment of mine here is sort of rambling and incoherent (okay, more than “sort of”) but that’s due to my enthusiasm, surely! 🙂
Cara
I’d just like to thank Cara for the Kind Words regarding my Maternal Parental Unit. (And, for that matter, regarding my Step Maternal Parental Unit and Step Paternal Parental Unit. Now try saying that ten times fast.) I have heard that in many families, one or the other spouse fails to get along with their in-laws, so I guess we are pretty lucky!
I, of course, read her book and recognized its brilliance early on. And yet, the Nobel Committee stubbornly refuses to return my phone calls! Maybe I’ve got the time change wrong between here and Sweden…
(You know, I’ve never noticed before that “Paternal” is an anagram of “Parental.” Coincidence? I think not.)
And I would like to say to the relatives of all authors out there: read their books! Advertisers talk about making two months salary last forever–OK, bear with me, I really am going somewhere with this–but you can make a few hours of reading (or, well, maybe more than a few in some cases, but a finite number anyway) into a source of Lasting Pleasure to the hard-working and underappreciated Author in Your Life. Just by reading her book and making a few Positive and Intelligent Comments! And, if the truth be known, they don’t even have to be that intelligent!
I don’t know where all those capital letters came from, BTW. They just appeared.
Anyway, in conclusion…what was I talking about?
Todd-who-associates-freely
Aww thanks, Cara! That article was the most fun I ever had with academic writing (which is probably why I’m not in academia anymore…there is only so far you can go with the finite number of Austen films:) If only Hollywood could be *persuaded* to make more…
I’d love to read and review it, Cara. Any idea where my copy is?
Your friend, really,
Rob
Rob, darling!
You may have a hard time believing this, but I put your book in the mail yesterday (that is, the day before you posted here.) Coincidence? I think not. 🙂
And you can check the postmark when it arrives to see if I’m lying. (I’m not.) 🙂
Sorry I took so long — it was because
1) I’m lame
2) I’m a lame procrastinator
3) I have rehearsals every night, and a million lines to learn, and
4) I’m kind of lame. 🙂
Cara (who really honestly will be content with her reviews on Amazon, particularly because a third one has appeared which is SO NICE!!!)
I never would have thought such a delay was due to your laziness or inattentiveness. To the contrary, I felt like a cad bringing it up simply due to my eagerness to read the book!
And for those of you reading these exchanges wondering what is going on, Cara and I know each other from long ago, long enough that, conveniently, neither one of us will admit to remembering exactly that far back.
Rob
Cara:
I saw that review, which was excellent, and made even more excellent because the same person reviewed my book, and didn’t like it as much–although the review was fair, and pointed out flaws and such–so it’s not like the person loves every book she reads. So yay for you!
Megan, I think what really floored me about the review is that I don’t know the person! It’s my first review from someone I’ve never met. My other two reviews on Amazon are by members of my RWA chapter (though I did NOT ask them to post reviews — they did it quite spontaneously — so I consider them real reviews, albeit reviews that might not have been posted had I not known the readers at least a little bit, if that makes sense)…
Cara
As he says, Rob and I knew each other a long long time ago, when we went to college together, oh, about, um, was it three years ago now? 🙂
I declared a major in chemistry, and if I recall correctly, he too toyed with chemistry before majoring in Engineering. Perhaps I wanted to major in engineering too, but got the codes mixed up — and my ENG major ended up being an English major instead…
Now he lives in a vast forest or something somewhere that’s, like, north of stuff.
Cara