Kimberley and Liz will be attending the Book Passage Mystery Writers Conference this weekend. They will be on a panel tomorrow at 11:15 am and will be doing consultations with scheduled writers regarding their work. To finish it off, Kimberley will be hosting the faculty after party. Look for KC & A at the conference!
Thursday, July 25, 2013
KC & A are off to the Mystery Writers Conference!
Kimberley and Liz will be attending the Book Passage Mystery Writers Conference this weekend. They will be on a panel tomorrow at 11:15 am and will be doing consultations with scheduled writers regarding their work. To finish it off, Kimberley will be hosting the faculty after party. Look for KC & A at the conference!
Labels:
Book Passage,
Kimberley Cameron,
mystery,
writers conference
Pooja and Ethan are in Seattle for the PNWA!
KC & A agents are traveling the country this week! Pooja and Ethan are attending the Pacific Northwest Writers Association conference in Seattle, Washington this weekend. They will be doing one on one writer consultations and Pooja will be sitting on a panel.
Labels:
Ethan Vaughn,
PNWA,
Pooja Menon,
writers conference
Wednesday, July 24, 2013
The Midwest Book Review raves about Yesterday's Echo!
Yesterday's Echo is a
terrific thriller starring a protagonist who understands first hand deja vu.
Rick's options are surrender, die or find the killer as his ex-peers salivate
with a second chance to destroy him; the woman he loves he distrusts; and clues
lead him to people who wants secrets kept buried along with him. Readers will
enjoy Rick's investigation that also takes him back eight years.
- The MBR
Run to Ground gets 5 stars from Tome Tender Book Blog!
I was hooked on
this thrill ride from page one with its modern day grit, wicked-fast pace and
web of subplots to get tangled up in! - Tome Tender Book Blog
Read the review here.
Elements of a Successful Book Trailer
My client, Joe Clifford, put together a guest post for Chuck Sambuchino's blog on Writer's Digest called "Elements of a Successful Book Trailer."
I've seen a few book trailers as an agent, but never one so well orchestrated as Joe's. A book trailer is another way you can draw interest in your projects; however, it's worth taking the time to do it well.
I always suggest that my authors "friend" Joe on Facebook. In terms of self-promotion and marketing, Joe is the best; he's an agents dream, and not just because he's terribly handsome (that's for you, Joe).
Joe believes in his work and it shows, which is very attractive to agents and editors.
Take a look at Joe's article on Writer's Digest by clicking here. And don't forget to watch the book trailer and friend Joe on Facebook!
Tuesday, July 23, 2013
Elizabeth Kracht Interview On Writing/Publishing
I did an interview on writing and publishing with my client Peter Hogenkamp for his blog. I'm currently shopping Peter's thriller manuscript ABSOLUTION.
When I signed Peter it was with the understanding that we had to get a website up and social media humming. Peter wasted no time and now actively networks to draw support for his work(s).
Many writers aren't sure how to maintain a blog or social media, though they understand it's necessary in today's publishing climate. My interview with Peter is one idea for how you can draw interest to your blog. But small, daily contributions to Facebook, Twitter and other social media outlets works just as well.
To see my interview with Peter Hogenkamp on writing and publishing, click here.
Thursday, July 18, 2013
Add Gunn's highly anticipated Transcendental on Goodreads!
Click here to add James Gunn's newest release, Transcendental to your to-be-read pile on Goodreads.
Transcendental, an epic, high-concept space opera, is
a Canterbury Tales of the far future in which beings from many planets
hurtle across the universe to uncover the secrets of the legend of
Transcendentalism. Riley, a veteran of interstellar war, however, is not
journeying to achieve transcendence, a vague mystical concept that has drawn
everyone else on the ship to this journey into the unknown at the far edge of
the galaxy. His mission is to find and kill the prophet who is reputed to help
others transcend. As the ship speeds through space, the voyage is marred by
violence and betrayal, making it clear that Riley is not the only one of the
ship’s passengers who is not the spiritual seeker they all claim to be.
As tensions
rise, Riley realizes that the ship’s journey is less like the Canterbury Tales
and more like a harrowing, deadly voyage on a ship of fools. Looking for
allies, he becomes friendly with a mysterious passenger named Asha, who, like
so many others on the ship, is more than she appears. But while she professes
to be just another pilgrim, he comes to realize that like him, she is keeping
secrets could be the key to Riley’s assignment, or might make him question
everything he thought he knew about Transcendentalism and his mission to stop
it.
This
long-awaited novel is a grand space adventure of exploration, intrigue,
redemption, and the universal spirit that unites all beings. This is a
real departure for Gunn, a novel of grand scope and high concept, a capstone to
the career of this Grand Master of science fiction.
Tuesday, July 16, 2013
Enthusiastic Review of SAVING LAURA!
Thriller writer Jim Satterfield |
Jim Satterfield's SAVING LAURA has received an enthusiastic review by thriller writer Peter Hogenkamp.
Hogenkamp says of Satterfield's thriller: If you are, like me, on the lookout for a fresh voice in the thriller genre, clear out your schedule for a few days and pick up a copy of Jim Satterfield's Saving Laura.
To read, Peter Hogenkamp's full review of Saving Laura, click here.
To read more about Jim Satterfield and his work, click here.
Guest Blog: 'A Social Media Primer for Writers' by Peter Hogenkamp
A Social
Media Primer for Writers
I heard the collective groan
when you all read the title: 'Ugghhhhh, not social media.' But that’s okay, I
understand that reaction, because it was the same reaction I had several years
ago when I realized I was going to have to crawl deep into the belly of the
social media beast. But I am here to tell you that—now that I’ve tunneled my
way inside—it ain’t half bad. That is not to say that I didn’t have the
occasional bump in the road, which is why I decided to dedicate this blog post
to the issue to keep you tweeting smoothly.
But before we get to the how,
let’s discuss the why. Why is it necessary to become a social mediaphile? Or,
perhaps, before that: Is it necessary to become a social mediaphile? The answer
is, of course, yes—unless you are Hillary Clinton or some other household name.
(And you are not, because you are reading this blog—Hillary avoids it like the
plague.) Okay, then, now that we have firmly established the need, let’s explain
why. And the why is.... 1) no one knows who the heck you are, other than you’re
mother, and she is expecting a free advanced review copy of your book; 2) social
media feeds you a host of resources that will make you a better writer and help
you find an agent and/or publisher; 3) the publishing companies expect you to
do more and more (and more) of that promoting thing (you know, that thing many
writers hate).
Okay, the long awaited how. Very
simple. Create Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn accounts if you don’t have them,
and start a blog by typing Blogger into your browser and following the simple
instructions. There are many other ways to utilize the Internet in general and
social media in particular, but these four are plenty to get you going, and, if
used well, they may be all you ever need.
1) Facebook: Let’s start with the original, and still the
best, in my opinion. Consider Facebook to be free advertising, because that’s
what it is. Facebook allows you to reach hundreds—even thousands—of people at
no cost. That’s free advertising. Even better, it’s free, targeted advertising
because you select the people you reach, and they all have a vested interest in
you because of your already established relationship with them. For example,
many of your high school friends would love to buy your book, if they only knew
about it. Facebook lets them know about your book, your blog, your website, and
your upcoming appearance on the David Letterman Show (you know you want to!).
As this is a primer, I will leave it at that, but suffice it to say that you
can do a lot more with Facebook once you have learned the basics, and the best
way to learn the basics is by Facebooking—yes, that is a verb.
2) Twitter: What the heck is a Tweet, anyway? A Tweet is
short message (140 characters or less) that you send to your followers on
Twitter. I know, I know, it sounds a lot like a Facebook post. But there is a
fundamental difference, and it relates to the people who receive the message. A
Tweet is seen by all of your followers, who, unlike Friends on Facebook, don’t
need to be people you know. The advantage is that you can have many, many
followers—tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands—who will receive any and
all messages you send them, such as announcements about the release of your
second book, an attached blog post featuring your new short story, or a picture
of your daughter. Twitter is a great way to keep your fans connected to you
between releases of your books, as well as a way to build up a loyal following
before your first book is released.
3) LinkedIn is a network of
professionals, and is quite different from Facebook and Twitter. I have had
much success with LinkedIn as a consequence of the fact that many publishing
professionals (agents, editors, publishers, reviewers, book publicists etc.)
use it as means of networking. In addition, you can join large groups of
like-minded professionals (such as The Fiction Writers Guild) and share your
news, blog, stories, comments, etc., with the other 18,000 members, who, by virtue
of their membership in the group, you can be sure are interested in fiction
writing. I belong to an ebook group that has over 60K members, many of whom
are very knowledgeable and willing to share what they know, so you can learn as
well as get your stuff out there.
4) Blogger is a free blog
creation and publication site, and is a must for the aspiring writer. (WordPress
is another choice.) If you plan on being published in any venue, traditional or
otherwise, you have to have a blog. But you shouldn’t be looking at it that way
in any event. You should want to blog! If you have previously conceived notions
about blogging, discard them and look at the discipline again. Blogging is a
great venue to promote your writing, but it can be much more, such as a way to
network with other writers and readers, a media to experiment with different
genres and writing styles (I use a much lighter and hopefully more humorous
tone in my blogs), and a great way to build your audience and readership.
In a future post (on http://www.phogenkampvt.blogspot.com) I will discuss more advanced uses of social
media to include reach amplification sites that can get your work seen by many
eyeballs, but first things first. And remember that the best way to build a
platform is through good content, not widgets or gimmickry. I will end here and
hope I leave you wanting more (and I need to weed my asparagus bed). Thanks for
your attention; please check out my author website at http://www.peterhogenkamp.com. And thanks again to my fantastic agent Liz
Kracht for giving me this opportunity. If you are interested in learning more
about Liz (and you should be) watch my blog for a soon to be published
interview with Liz. Ciao.
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