Wednesday, December 18, 2013

Building an Online Presence: Website

Hey guys, this is Social Media Intern Kenny and I've been tasked to give a short and easy guide to building an online presence.  For the inaugural blog on this subject, the best starting point would be on an author's main website.  Since it is 2013 and every author has to have a website, there are a few tips and tricks to make your website more simplistic and more inviting so that you can get more hits.  Let's get started!


Tip #1: Less is more.

In very general terms, the online community hates a website that has too much.  Much like writing, a website should not have too many fillers.  Keep pictures and distracting images to a minimum and have as few tabs as possible.  Here's an example of what not to do:
Yes, this site, arngren.net, exists.  No, you should not go to the site. 


Tip #2: Easy like Sunday morning.

Ease of use is very important for a website.  Much like keeping tabs and pictures to a minimum, do not overcomplicate things.  Include purchasing links to your books on the homepage and put them next to pictures of the book.  The less reading online people have to do, the more they will like your website.

Dennislehane.com
This is author Dennis Lehane's website.  Notice that in the top right corner are links to his other social media and in the banner, he has a total of six tabs.  This provides the ease of navigating through his website and allows his fans to go to where they want to go with appropriate quickness.


Tip #3: Be more social.

Even just five years ago, a good website would have been enough for a successful online presence but now, a good website isn't a luxury, it is a bare necessity.  The point of a website, nowadays, isn't to draw in as many hits as possible, it is to direct fans and other dwellers of the internet towards more important places like an author's Twitter account, Facebook account, blog, or any other forms of social media.  You want to connect with your audience


Tip #4: First impressions matter.

In reality, most people will only see the front page of a website before clicking away.  This means that you have to include all your links on the front page and this can get very messy.  Luckily, there are many ways to make those links more inviting by including links like in icons on your page rather than text links.  It is because of these links that can cause a page to look cluttered and that is why unnecessary pictures and articles should be removed.


These are just four easy tips to build a better website.  Of course, there are always more things you can do to make a website more inviting but these basics are always good to follow.  For more tips to build an online presence, come back to the KC&A blog in the future.

For more up-to-date news, please follow Kimberley Cameron & Associates on Twitter @K_C_Associates and on Facebook at Facebook.com/kimberleycameronandassociates.

Monday, December 9, 2013

James Gunn's TRANSCENDENTAL makes BuzzFeed's Top SciFi List

Good news, everyone!  BuzzFeed.com's top science fiction books of 2013 list was recently released and James Gunn's Transcendental made it to #2 on the list!  In a post titled, "The Top 14 Greatest Science Fiction Books of the Year", contributor Sean McCarrick ranked the best books in the genre.

The article states the reason why TRANSCENDENTAL made the list: "Gunn brings the realities of space alive and creates a science fiction Canterbury Tales of the experience, binding together the stories of different alien species and asking the question of why we keep exploring even past the point of no return."

For more on James Gunn, visit his website at www.sfcenter.ku.edu/bio.  


For more up-to-date news, please follow Kimberley Cameron & Associates on Twitter @K_C_Associates and on Facebook at Facebook.com/kimberleycameronandassociates.

Tuesday, November 19, 2013

Great new review for Thatcher Robinson's WHITE GINGER

Reviewing The Evidence has recently reviewed Thatcher Robinson's WHITE GINGER and they are fans of the book.
For the full review, click here.  You can see more of Thatcher Robinson at his website, www.thatcherrobinson.com and get his book here.



For more up-to-date news, please follow Kimberley Cameron & Associates on Twitter @K_C_Associates and on Facebook at Facebook.com/kimberleycameronandassociates.



TRANSCENDENTAL makes Kirkus' Best Fiction Books of 2013

Kirkus recently released their full Best of Fiction Books of 2013 list and James Gunn's TRANSCENDENTAL made the list!

For the full list, check out Kirkus' website here.  For more on James Gunn, visit his website at www.sfcenter.ku.edu/bio and get his book here.


For more up-to-date news, please follow Kimberley Cameron & Associates on Twitter @K_C_Associates and on Facebook at Facebook.com/kimberleycameronandassociates.

Kenneth Worthy's INVISIBLE NATURE garners more praise!

Great news for the environment!  Kenneth Worthy's book, INVISIBLE NATURE, has received a great review from Times Higher Education.

The reviewer, Laurence Coupe, a senior lecturer at Manchester Metropolitan University, stated, "I have seldom come across the whole story of how we came to be so hopelessly severed from the sources of life...told with such detail and eloquence."


You can read the full review here.  For more on Kenneth Worthy and his book, INVISIBLE NATURE, visit his website at www.kennethworthy.net and follow him on Twitter @ken_worthy.


For more up-to-date news, please follow Kimberley Cameron & Associates on Twitter @K_C_Associates and on Facebook at Facebook.com/kimberleycameronandassociates.

Tuesday, November 12, 2013

D.P. Lyle's interview in Suspense Magazine.

D.P. Lyle, author of RUN TO THE GROUND, was recently interviewed by Suspense Magazine.  In the interview, he talks about his own "Rules of Fiction" for the magazine's ongoing segment interviewing America's favorite suspense authors.
For the full interview, follow this link to The Writer's Forensics Blog.   


For more on D.P. Lyle, check out his website at www.dplylemd.com and follow him on Twitter @DPLyleMD.  


For more up-to-date news, please follow Kimberley Cameron & Associates on Twitter @K_C_Associates and on Facebook at Facebook.com/kimberleycameronandassociates.


Wednesday, November 6, 2013

Garrett Calcaterra at Mysterious Galaxy Bookstore

Everyone be sure to catch Garrett Calcaterra, author of DREAMWIELDER, on Nov. 9th at the Mysterious Galaxy Bookstore in Redondo Beach, CA.

The event is a meet and greet with many other writers that will take place from 2:30pm to 5:30 pm, for more information on the event, click here.

For more information on Garrett and his book, check out his website at www.garrettcalcaterra.com and follow him on Twitter @GCalcaterra.


For more up-to-date news, please follow Kimberley Cameron & Associates on Twitter @K_C_Associates and on Facebook at Facebook.com/kimberleycameronandassociates.

Tuesday, November 5, 2013

Arther Kerns' New THE AFRICAN CONTRACT Cover

Hey everyone!  Check out the cover for Arthur Kern's new book, THE AFRICAN CONTRACT due out on shelves in 2014.


For more on Arthur Kerns and his upcoming book, visit his website at www.arthurkerns.com and follow him on Twitter @arthur_kerns.


For more up-to-date news, please follow Kimberley Cameron & Associates on Twitter @K_C_Associates and on Facebook at Facebook.com/kimberleycameronandassociates.


Tuesday, October 29, 2013

Matt Coyle, author of YESTERDAY'S ECHO, events in Southern California

Matt Coyle, author of YESTERDAY'S ECHO, will be appearing at two Southern California events this November.

The first event will be the Noir at the Bar event in Los Angeles, CA that will be held on November 10th.  For more details, visit the Noir at the Bar Facebook pages here.

The second event will be the Men of Mystery event held on November 16th in Irvine, CA.  For more information, visit the Men of Mystery website here.

For more information about Matt Coyle or YESTERDAY'S ECHO, visit his website at www.mattcoylebooks.com and follow him on Twitter @Coylem.


For more up-to-date news, please follow Kimberley Cameron & Associates on Twitter @K_C_Associates and on Facebook at Facebook.com/kimberleycameronandassociates.

ICYMI: SILENCING SAPPHIRE Google Hangout

In case you missed it: Mia Thompson, author of the recently released SILENCING SAPPHIRE, did a Google Hangout for the pre-release of the book.



You can buy SILENCING SAPPHIRE here and STALKING SAPPHIRE, the first book in the series is also available here.

For more on Mia Thompson and her books, visit her website at www.mia-thompson.com, follow her on Twitter @Mia_Thomp and join her on Wattpad.


For more up-to-date news, please follow Kimberley Cameron & Associates on Twitter @K_C_Associates and on Facebook at Facebook.com/kimberleycameronandassociates.

Wednesday, October 23, 2013

Great Review for Thatcher Robinson's WHITE GINGER

WHITE GINGER, Thatcher Robinson's recent novel, has garnered more praise, this time from Buried Under Books blog.
WHITE GINGER is on shelves now in paperback and on Kindle. 
You can find out more about Thatcher Robinson and his book at his website thatcherrobinson.com.


For more up-to-date news, please follow Kimberley Cameron & Associates on Twitter @K_C_Associates and on Facebook at Facebook.com/kimberleycameronandassociates.

Linda Herman featured on Forbes

Linda Herman, author of PARENTS TO THE END, recently wrote an article for Forbes.com.  The article, titled, "The Bill of Rights for Parents of Adult Children" is an expansion of an excerpt from Linda's book.
PARENTS TO THE END is on shelves now.
For more on Linda Herman, visit her website lindaherman.com and follow her on Twitter @parentstotheend.


For more up-to-date news, please follow Kimberley Cameron & Associates on Twitter @K_C_Associates and on Facebook at Facebook.com/kimberleycameronandassociates.


Tuesday, October 22, 2013

Mia Thompson's SILENCING SAPPHIRE Available Now!

Mia Thompson's new novel, SILENCING SAPPHIRE, is finally on sale!  On the heels of her successful first novel, STALKING SAPPHIRE, and her popular Wattpad book club, Mia Thompson has released the hotly anticipated sequel.
Previews of SILENCING SAPPHIRE have been posted on Wattpad as well as parts of her first book, STALKING SAPPHIRE, which has hit over 64,000 reads.    
For more on Mia Thompson visit her website at www.mia-thompson.com and follow her on Twitter @Mia_Thomp

For more up-to-date news, please follow Kimberley Cameron & Associates on Twitter @K_C_Associates and on Facebook at Facebook.com/kimberleycameronandassociates.

Wednesday, October 16, 2013

James Gunn interviewed on Authors on the Air

James Gunn, author of TRANSCENDENTAL, was recently featured on the Authors on the Air podcast for it's Science Fiction Spotlight.



For more on James Gunn and his book, visit his website at www.sfcenter.ku.edu/bio.

For more up-to-date news, please follow Kimberley Cameron & Associates on Twitter @K_C_Associates and on Facebook at Facebook.com/kimberleycameronandassociates.

Big Orange Book Festival Recap with Garrett Calcaterra and Terri Nolan

The Big Orange Book Festival took place over the weekend and our very own Garrett Calcaterra did a recap on his blog.  Check it out here!
Kimberley Cameron & Associates author Garrett Calcaterra moderated a panel on "Making a Career in Writing" at this year's Big Orange Book Festival, Which included panelist and fellow KC&A author Terri Nolan, along with science fiction writer Bruce McAllister, and Writer's Digest book author James Scott Bell.

For more up-to-date news, please follow Kimberley Cameron & Associates on Twitter @K_C_Associates and Facebook at Facebook.com/kimberleycameronandassociates.

Watch the Trailer for Earl Merkel's FIRE OF THE PROPHET

Earl Merkel's new book, FIRE OF THE PROPHET has a new video trailer out!  Check it out here:



Earl Merkel's book is available now.


For more on Earl Merkel and his book, FIRE OF THE PROPHET, check out his website at www.earlmerkel.com and follow him on Twitter @earlmerkel.


For more up-to-date news, please follow Kimberley Cameron & Associates on Twitter @K_C_Associates and Facebook at Facebook.com/kimberleycameronandassociates.

Tuesday, October 15, 2013

Even more praise for James Gunn's TRANSCENDENTAL

Yet another glowing review has come out for James Gunn's TRANSCENDENTAL! Amazingstoriesmag.com's Jack Dowden recently wrote a review on the website stating, "James Gunn's TRANSCENDENTAL is one of my recent favorites."

For more information on James Gunn or his book, visit his website at www.sfcenter.ku.edu/bio.

For more up-to-date news, please follow Kimberley Cameron & Associates on Twitter @K_C_Associates and Facebook at Facebook.com/kimberleycameronandassociates.

Dr. Suzana Flores featured in Esquire article

Dr. Suzana Flores, author an upcoming book about the effects of Facebook and social media, was recently interviewed by Esquire's Stacey Woods.

You can see the article here and for more on Dr. Flores, visit her website at www.drsuzanaflores.com and follow her on Twitter @DrSuzanaFlores.

For more up-to-date news, please follow Kimberley Cameron & Associates on Twitter @K_C_Associates and like us on Facebook at Facebook.com/kimberleycameronandassociates.

Great Interview with Joe Clifford of JUNKIE LOVE

KC&A's very own Joe Clifford, author of JUNKIE LOVE, was recently interviewed by RadikalNews.com's Renato B.  The interview, which talks about Joe's writing style and his body of work, can be found in both English and in Slovene!

For more on Joe Clifford and his book, JUNKIE LOVE, visit his website at www.joeclifford.com and follow him on Twitter @joeclifford23

For more up-to-date news, please follow Kimberley Cameron & Associates on Twitter @K_C_Associates and Facebook at Facebook.com/kimberleycameronandassociates.


Leigh Anne Jasheway, author of DATE ME, DATE MY DOG, is coming to Eugene, OR

Comedienne and Author Leigh Anne Jasheway (DATE ME, DATE MY DOG, Reputation Books), will be a featured storyteller at Dog Tales: Waggish Stories with Bite at Cozmic Pizza in Eugene, Oregon, on October 24th at 7:30 p.m.
Come support Leigh Anne and the Greenhill Humane Society for a fun night of storytelling.  
For more on Leigh Anne Jasheway, visit her at her website, www.accidentalcomic.com and follow her on Twitter @lajfun.


For more up-to-date news, please follow Kimberley Cameron & Associates on Twitter @K_C_Associates and on Facebook at Facebook.com/kimberleycameronandassociates.

Wednesday, October 9, 2013

Mia Thompson's SILENCING SAPPHIRE Cover

The cover that won the Diversion Books / Wattpad "cover-off" has been revealed!  Below is the new cover of Mia Thompson's upcoming book, SILENCING SAPPHIRE.

SILENCING SAPPHIRE will be on sale on October 22nd and a preview is available now on Wattpad. Read the first book in the series, STALKING SAPPHIRE, on shelves now.  
For more on Mia Thompson, visit her website at www.mia-thompson.com and follow her on Twitter @Mia_Thomp

For more up-to-date news, please follow Kimberley Cameron & Associates on Twitter @K_C_Associates and Facebook at Facebook.com/kimberleycameronandassociates.

Tuesday, October 8, 2013

Joe Clifford, Holly West, and Tom Pitts at Litquake

Lip Service West, Joe Clifford's "gritty, raw, real" literary event, will be presenting True Stories at Litquake on October 19th, 2013.  Authors will come and speak about their lives at Luna Rienne in San Francisco at 8:30 p.m.

Lip Service West promises a literary event like no other where speakers will be detailing the gritty, raw reality of their lives.  The event will be produced by Joe and Justine Clifford.  For more information visit www.lipservicewest.com or follow the authors on Twitter. 
Joe Clifford: @joeclifford23  Tom Pitts: @MrTomPitts  Holly West: @HollyWest


For more up-to-date news, please follow Kimberley Cameron & Associates on Twitter @K_C_Associates and Facebook at Facebook.com/kimberleycameronandassociates.

Linda Herman's PARENTS TO THE END Featured in The Wall Street Journal

The Wall Street Journal recently published a feature of Linda Herman's book, PARENTS TO THE END.
The Wall Street Journal calls it "a wise and invaluable book," and highlighted the section, "The Bill of Rights for Parents of Adult Children."
Linda Herman is a psychiatrist and author based in Seattle.  To find more information, visit her website at www.parentstotheend.com or follow her on Twitter @parentstotheend.

For more up-to-date news, please follow Kimberley Cameron & Associates on Twitter @K_C_Associates and Facebook at Facebook.com/kimberleycameronandassociates.

Thursday, October 3, 2013

Leigh Anne Jasheway will be on Animal Radio on October 5th

Comedienne and Author Leigh Anne Jasheway will be appearing on Animal Radio this Saturday, October 5th, at 12:15 p.m. PDT to discuss animals, love and her book, DATE ME, DATE MY DOG: FINDING MR. RIGHT FOR YOU AND YOUR PACK (Reputation Books).  Check local listings at animalradio.com for how to tune into Leigh Anne's interview.
Later in October, Leigh Anne will appear at Cozmic Pizza in Eugene, Oregon for a Greenhill Humane Society event.  Information about that event will be posted later, so check back at the blog for more information.  

For more on Leigh Anne Jasheway, visit her website at www.accidentalcomic.com and follow her on Twitter @lajfun.
For more up-to-date news, please follow Kimberley Cameron & Associates on Twitter @K_C_Associates and Facebook at Facebook.com/kimberleycameronandassociates.

Ah, queries! Why must you torment me so?

A couple of weeks ago, the agents of KC&A participated in the Writers Digest Bootcamp. It was frazzling, exciting, exhausting, and most of all, illuminating. I realized that the majority of the issues with each query or manuscript lay in the presentation of either or both. Either the format of the query letter was off, or the synopsis was confusing, or the pace/plot/voice/premise hadn't been thought through enough. By this I mean, deciding on the right place to start your manuscript, deciding how much detail to put into these pages, how little, whether the voice is unique enough to stand out, if the story is set in the right time period, if it's told in the right POV...I could go on. Finding that balance between giving us too little and too much can be a nightmare to achieve, but it can be done. 

TIP: Get your manuscript critiqued by other writers or critical readers, writer folks! This is a must! It is hard enough to spend years with a book, living it, breathing it, and then revising it. Finding flaws in your manuscript can be impossible once you've stared at it too many times, so let someone else do the staring for a change. Take a break, have a Kit-Kat :). I guarantee when you return to your 'now critiqued' manuscript, it'll be with ideas and angles you've never considered before.

When this isn't done, the submissions that come into my inbox have large crater sized holes in the plot that I can jump into, and I don't think I want to spend my evenings and weekends peering into those crater sized holes in befuddlement. I'd rather be spending that time doing cartwheels of joy around a manuscript that has been done just right and has succeeded in blowing me away completely. 

With that in mind, I thought we could re-visit the query letter. Ah, yes, I can hear you lovely writer folks groaning and shaking your fists at me. Most of you do a wonderful job researching on how to do this right. Your queries are formatted right, has the right amount of information, and the information conveyed is direct, simple, and intriguing. A hard thing to achieve, but a great many of you do this wonderfully. But then we the other wonderful writer folks out there who, in their hopes to reach out to agents, give us way too much information. This information, though touching and inspiring, can take me ages to get through. Suffice to say, the pertinent information gets lost and I'm left feeling exhausted and lost. Nowadays, a query that isn't well-researched or well-written barely gets a cursory glance from me. I'm sure a great many of you think that this is sheer blasphemy. But, and hear me out for a second, if you can't be bothered to take the time to do your research and hand in your work professionally (we are professionals and this is a professional business after all), then why should I take the time or effort to go through it? I would rather help a writer who has tried to follow the rules of submission but is need of some guidance along the way. At least it shows me she or he is interested in doing it right.

SO, without much ado, here are some thoughtful DOs and DON'Ts. I wrote a blog post in my personal blog about this eons ago, so I'm going to paste that down below. This is the first step to realizing that lifelong dream of being an author, my writer friends. So do this right, because, trust me, a good query letter is the key to getting your manuscript read. 



Let me go through some examples of what NOT to do. DO NOT:

...send a query with no content in the body of the email. I get it, you've pasted the required attachments, but take the time to introduce yourself to me. Such anonymous emails could be considered as spam or viral and this would enough for your hard work to end up in my trash box. 

...send a query written to me by an editor.

...send a query that mentions a lot of unnecessary information in the author's quest to sound mysterious, while leaving out the main plot points, therefore, leaving the main questions unanswered.

...send a query that gives me a time-limit or exclusivity, when I have not asked for the latter, and do not appreciate the former.

...send a query that has been sent to me more than once within thirty days (patience is key, people.)

...send a query that clearly indicates the author has not bothered to do any research regarding agents' respective tastes.

...send a query that expounds on the greatness of the author's own writing and how he believes it's similar to (bestselling author's) work.

The first thing to remember while sending out a query letter is, the way you write one sets the tone of how the prospective partnership could be, at least in our minds.

If you sound pompous and full of yourself, then I'm going to wonder how you'll absorb my notes on revisions, if it's required. I'm also going to wonder if you'll be able to work with the team at your publishing house, especially when things may not always go the way you planned.
If you sound conscious and unsure of your writing abilities, by telling me that I should feel free to reject your work, since you've already been in this game long enough not to feel bad, it tells me you've been rejected before. That is not the best first impression to give. You must always strike the right balance between confidence in your abilities and humbleness.

If you give me a time-limit and exclusivity, it's mostly going to come off as being a tad high-maintainence, assuming that your manuscript is the only one I'm looking at (which isn't true). This does not show me that you value my time, but shows me that your time is so important, you're unwilling to be patient like everybody else.

Now let us talk about how a query letter SHOULD be. Firstly, like I mentioned earlier, your query sets the tone of your relationship with the agent. But it also sets the tone for the kind of book you've written.  Make sure the query reflects what kind of a manuscript you've got on your hands.

Start your letter with a BRIEF (a line at most) explanation as to why you chose the agent. Was it because something about the agent's profile caught your attention? Was it because you read a book she wrote, or an article she wrote, or an author she represents? Was it because something in her blog made you feel like you could connect? Was she referred to you by someone? If so, who? --This information should be concise. Once you do this, mention the title of your book, what genre your book falls into (try not to club a million genres together, be specific), and what the word count is, and any comp titles you think are similar to your book or similar audiences might enjoy.

Then move onto the pitch. Give me a paragraph of information about your story that introduces me to the main character, what his predicament is, what he needs to do to solve it, and what's standing in his way. What are his choices and inner conflicts that make things harder for him to resolve. If the story is set in an international location or a different time period, you could find a way to begin with that information, too.Of course, it's not possible to give the agent all the answers in one short paragraph, but it should distill what's important. Be specific.

The last paragraph should introduce me to you. Do you have an M.F.A (from where?), have you been writing for long? Have you published anything before? (If so, be specific- where? when? who is the publisher?)

Lastly, a line thanking the agent for her time, and saying something positive.
So there it is. A query letter is not that difficult, especially when you've gone through the battle of writing an ENTIRE BOOK. So why not spend an extra few hours researching how query letters should be?

My next blog post will be dealing with queries a little bit more, along with initial submissions. Hopefully it'll be helpful. Stay tuned for QUICK 10: MOST COMMON MISTAKES SEEN IN QUERIES/SUBMISSIONS THIS WEEK (where I'll be listing out ten things I've noticed that you should not do or should do).

Have a great day, folks!




Joe Clifford's feature in SF Examiner

Joe Clifford, author of JUNKIE LOVE, was recently featured in an S.F. Examiner article.
Camila Bernal/Special to the S.F. Examiner
To see more on Joe Clifford, visit his website at www.JoeClifford.com and follow him on Twitter @joeclifford23.
The article spotlights the "Clean Slate" program and highlights the difficulties of reformed offenders in finding employment and assimilating back into society. In the article, Joe talks about his past history with drugs and how the "Clean Slate" program helped him.  Joe was also recently featured in the L.A. Weekly.
Junkie Love is available in stores now.
For more up-to-date news, please follow Kimberley Cameron & Associates on Twitter @K_C_Associates and follow us on Facebook at Facebook.com/kimberleycameronandassociates.

Great Review for Kate Hopper's READY FOR AIR

Kate Hopper's memoir about new motherhood, READY FOR AIR, has received a beaming review from Meganne Fabrega of the Star Tribune.


Fabrega remarks, "Hopper's memoir can be seen as comfort to some and an explanation for others, but for her it is proof of her own strength as she writes, 'As long as I have words, I'll be strong enough.'"

READY FOR AIR is available through the University of Minnesota Press.  You can find out more about Kate Hopper at her website www.KateHopper.com or via twitter @MNKateHopper.
For more up-to-date news, please follow Kimberley Cameron & Associates on Twitter @K_C_Associates and follow us on Facebook at Facebook.com/kimberleycameronandassociates.

Kenneth Worthy brings INVISIBLE NATURE to Berkeley

Kimberley's client, Kenneth Worthy, author of INVISIBLE NATURE (Prometheus Books), will be discussing his book, the environment, and what we as individuals can do to make the planet better for everyone, at Mrs. Dalloway's in Berkeley, CA on October 23rd, 2013.


Kenneth Worthy recently received a great review from Publisher's Weekly.  His book is touted as offering "realistic suggestions" to improving our relationship with the environment.
Invisible Nature is in stores now via Prometheus Books.  You can see more about Kenneth Worthy from his website www.kennethworthy.net or on his Psychology Today blog, The Green Mind.
For more up-to-date news, please follow Kimberley Cameron & Associates on Twitter @K_C_Associates.

Wednesday, October 2, 2013

Guest Blog from DREAMWIELDER author, Garrett Calcaterra

Follow Garrett Calcaterra on Twitter @GCalcaterra.

It’s been a little over four months since my debut novel, DREAMWIELDER, was released by Diversion books, and looking back, I really wish I knew then what I know now about marketing a new book. No, scratch that. I wish I knew four or five years ago what I know now, because that’s when I should have really laid the groundwork for promoting DREAMWIELDER.

Like many authors, I tend to close off from the outside world when I’m working on a project. I’d had two books published prior to DREAMWIELDER, a horror collection of two novellas and a mosaic fantasy novel co-written with two other writers, but both were published by small, fledgling publishers with little in the way of promotional guidance or assistance. I marketed the books to the usual friends and family, made a lot of noise on Facebook and Twitter, put up a website and a blog, and that was about the extent of it. I cloistered myself away again and moved on to work on writing DREAMWIELDER. Signing with Liz at Kimberley Cameron & Associates and then subsequently signing a publication deal with Diversion was the first step of my wake-up call. 

Liz, along with Mary Cummings, my editor at Diversion, got me rolling on the marketing of the book a good three months prior to its release. First off, I started blogging more regularly with articles and interesting tidbits geared towards my target audience at The Machine Stops, my personal blog. Next, I sent out dozens of advanced reading copies of the book to magazines and book review blogs. Just like submitting a manuscript to editors or agents, this was a numbers game and netted only a handful of reviews.

The more effective route was offering myself up for interviews and writing guest blog posts. I landed interviews at the popular BookFox, Dab of Darkness, Defective Geeks, and Be Obscure Clearly. I wrote articles on the craft of writing at Inkpunks and Waistcoat & Watch. And the biggies were my guest articles at the renowned fantasy magazine Black Gate and Hugo Award winning SF zine SFSignal

It turns out bloggers and magazines need daily content and are grateful to have you do a guest post (assuming, of course, you can write a decent article with a clear angle, not self-gratulatory, self-promotional PR trash). It also turns out, writing for all these different magazines and getting to interact with their readers was a lot of fun. More importantly, writing these articles got me in contact with my readers and peers in the speculative fiction community, something I had gotten away from. It took a humbling experience in the classroom for me to finally realize that. 

I had two particular students at the time (Will and Ian at the Orange County School of the Arts) who were researching how to get into the video game and comic book writing industries. What they both presented to my Writing for Alternative Mediums class was a simple, obvious finding: the best way to get your foot in the door and make a name for yourself is to immerse yourself in the community. Interact with other creators, go to conventions and conferences, take courses and workshops, present your creations to your audience…. I’ve said the very same thing to my students dozens of times over the years, but hearing it from my students—actually seeing them immerse themselves in their communities—made me realize I was no longer practicing what I was preaching. Somewhere along the line I’d left behind the enthusiastic SF and fantasy fan version of myself, the guy who relished chatting with other fans and writers, and instead turned into the taciturn craftsman locked up in my office.

It was a definite head-slap moment. I could have been having fun writing guest posts, hitting up conventions and interacting within my community for years, and if I had, people would have recognized my name when my novel came out. Instead, I was just another unheard-of, debut author. Lesson learned! No more cloistering myself up. As I continue work on my current work in progress, a near-future cli-fi novel called REMEMBER THE FUTURE, I’ll continue to interact within the spec-fic community, because, as I learned, if you really want to reach out to fans, you have to be an active contributor in your field and you have to be a fan yourself.


For more up to date news, follow Kimberley Cameron and Associates on Twitter @K_C_Associates.

Praise for Thatcher Robinson's WHITE GINGER

Thatcher Robinson's new novel, WHITE GINGER, has just received a rave review from RT Book Reviews!


"Robinson starts a new series featuring delicious characters and an intriguing setting with a bang... This is an unconventional, very modern take on a mystery, with dry humor and wit. Definitely worth a try!"
-RT Book Reviews, 4 1/2 stars, (Fantastic - Keeper), October 2013

For more information about WHITE GINGER or Thatcher Robinson visit his website at http://thatcherrobinson.com/


WHITE GINGER will be released on October 8th, 2013 by Seventh Street Books.


For more news and updates follow @K_C_Associates on Twitter.

The United Kingdom, Please Welcome Vaughn Entwistle!

Vaughn Entwistle, author of the upcoming THE REVENANT OF THRAXTON HALL (St. Martin's, Spring 2014), has sold foreign rights to the United Kingdom.

Vaughn's book, along with its sequel, THE DEAD ASSASSIN, will be available through Titan Books publishing group in the U.K.  Those in the U.K. can look for THE REVENANT OF THRAXTON HALL on shelves in 2014.

For more information about Vaughn Entwistle, visit his website or follow him on twitter @VaughnEntwistle.

For more information, follow @K_C_Associates on Twitter.