Hey everyone, today I have the amazing author Jennings Wright to share about her book and her writing. Below you will find the great post from her and information about her book and her as an author. Also we have a great giveaway for you all to enter as well! Enjoy.
Guest Post
Conventional Wisdom
The definition of conventional wisdom is “something that is
generally believed; prudence; the ideas, opinions, or understanding that are
considered to be generally accepted by the public; a widely held belief on
which most people act.”
Notice that nowhere in this definition does it mention
“facts” or “truth.” Most people act on conventional wisdom as if it were truth,
though, like when doctors didn’t think smoking was bad for you, or when people
thought the earth was flat. In general, conventional wisdom is behind the times
when it comes to new information or facts, or even new behaviors.
I have found this to be very true in publishing. For more
than a century, traditional publishers held all the cards, except for the short
time when the dime novels came out. Those were independent publications at
first, and are the original mass market paperbacks that we enjoy today. But the
traditional publishing houses bought up the dime store guys, and have pretty
much run the show since then.
Until Amazon came along. Before the internet and Amazon,
independent publishing was called vanity press, and no one meant it in a nice
way. These were the military history books your Uncle Joe gave away at
Christmas, or the long family tree accounting that your grandfather game all
his progeny. They were hardback and expensive, and many a box of books
mouldered in basements and garages.
Publishers called all the shots, from genre categories to
chapter length to cover design. Royalties were (and still are) 10% until you’d
sold more than most mid-list authors combined. Publishing houses not only owned
your work in this country, they owned world-wide rights, meaning you couldn’t
publish your book in another country, even if they didn’t. And not only did
they own your rights when you were alive, most often they kept owning them,
even after you died.
Royalties were paid a couple of times a year. Accounting was
convoluted and sometimes suspect. Some publishing houses uses underhanded
tactics to keep prices low, like selling the book to another division which
would bring lower royalties (true story with a well known romance publisher in
the UK). Authors dint’ have control of their title or their cover. In more
recent years, most marketing was left up to the author, who didn’t get more money
for their efforts.
But then true indie publishing came along, and the game is
changing. Sometimes it changes so fast that your head spins, but the overall
direction is in favor of the self-published author. In a recent survey of
traditionally published authors and independently published authors, the
majority of traditionally published authors were looking at going indie. The
only reason indie authors cited for wanting to be picked up by a traditional
publisher was for marketing and distribution – ironic since, unless you’re
already famous, they aren’t doing much marketing, and you only have 6 month to
sell your book in stores before they yank it.
Like anything that’s new and growing fast, there are
mistakes and bad products out there. When something is free, it tends to
generate a lot of dusty, unedited, been-in-the-bottom-drawer novels. But that’s
okay, because it is also spawning a lot of great, professional, serious authors
who are turning out great stories, taking their business seriously, and who are
willing to spend some money to produce a professional product.
For me personally, I can’t imagine giving up control over my
work to a traditional publisher. For one thing, I write fast, and on my own, I
can get 4 or 5 novels a year out to readers. Traditional publishers keep it to
one. For another, I’m really particular about cover design, and I would have a
hard time being excited about a cover I hated (and since I’d be doing the
marketing, that’s a double whammy). Thirdly, I absolutely love the independent
author community.
If you’re a writer, even if you haven’t published yet, I
suggest you read some of the wonderful self-publishing blogs out there. You’ll
be amazed at how generous and gracious other authors are, sharing their highs
and lows, passing on what works for them, sending contact information for
professionals to help edit, design, and format. It’s truly an amazing community
of people.
If you’re a reader and you haven’t checked out many indie
authors, I’d recommend looking around Amazon (yes, there are other sites like
Nook, Apple, Kobo and Smashwords, but Amazon is the king right now and you’ll
find more awesome authors there than most places). There are some really great
writers out there writing some truly unique and intriguing stories. Sure, they
may not fit neatly into a genre like traditionally published books do, but
that’s what makes them so fun. It’s a whole new world out there these days, and
a whole lot of indie authors that not only need but deserve great fans.
Book Summary
The McClellands are enjoying a lazy summer vacation at the beach
when they are lured from our world into Ixeos, an alternate Earth. Finding
themselves lost in a maze of tunnels under Paris and surrounded by strangers, they
discover that they have been brought to Ixeos for one purpose: to take
the planet back from humanoid aliens who have claimed it. With the aid of the
tunnels and a mysterious man named Landon, the teens travel the world seeking
the key that will allow them to free Darian, the long-imprisoned rebel
leader.
The aliens aren't the only problem on Ixeos -- the
McClellands have to deal with brutal gangs, desperate junkies, and a world
without power, where all the technology is owned by the aliens, and where most
of the population has been killed or enslaved.
The worst part? There's no way home.
Born and raised in
Rockledge, Florida, Jennings spent her early years reading anything she could
get her hands on, when she wasn't spending time in and on the water. She won a
prize in the 6th grade for her science fiction stories.
Jennings attended the University of the South and the University of Tampa, graduating with a B.A. in Political Science, and almost enough credits for B.A.s in both English and History. She spent time over the years doing various kinds of script doctoring, business writing, editing, and teaching writing, but mostly having and raising her family, homeschooling her children, owning and running a business with her husband, and starting a non-profit to Uganda.
Thanks to a crazy idea called NaNoWriMo Jennings got back into creative writing in 2011 and hasn't stopped since. She's written four novels and a screenplay in less than a year, with more ideas on the drawing board. She currently lives in North Carolina with her husband, also a writer, and two children, and travels extensively.
Jennings attended the University of the South and the University of Tampa, graduating with a B.A. in Political Science, and almost enough credits for B.A.s in both English and History. She spent time over the years doing various kinds of script doctoring, business writing, editing, and teaching writing, but mostly having and raising her family, homeschooling her children, owning and running a business with her husband, and starting a non-profit to Uganda.
Thanks to a crazy idea called NaNoWriMo Jennings got back into creative writing in 2011 and hasn't stopped since. She's written four novels and a screenplay in less than a year, with more ideas on the drawing board. She currently lives in North Carolina with her husband, also a writer, and two children, and travels extensively.
Author Links:
Facebook – www.Facebook.com/JSWwrites
Website – http://jenningswright.wordpress.com
Twitter – @JenningsWright
Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B008QO3BP8
Goodreads Author Page: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6450269.Jennings_Wright
Goodreads Author Page: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6450269.Jennings_Wright
0 comments:
Post a Comment