As I write this, I am staring at a paperback called The Laughing Ladies. It is the first time I have seen my book in print. The cover is glossy and the colors are perfect. When I held the actual book in my hands, I thought I would burst with pride. I now understand the meaning of that phrase, it felt as though my body would not be able to hold in my emotions. What a heady experience to hold a three dimensional book, not a manuscript. This is better…much better.
Now, I must change from a book writer to a book seller. My first piece of marketing is to announce that copies of The Laughing Ladies are available on Amazon (including Kindle), Barnes and Noble and the AuthorHouse bookstore.
I finally finished the galley corrections and bid a fond farewell to all those little formatting dots and backwards paragraph signs. I picked up a back issue of The New York Times from the pile that has accumulated on my coffee table and found the most encouraging article. It seems that self-publishing star, Amanda Hocking, has signed a substantial deal with the traditional St. Martins Press. How wonderful to read a self-publishing success story. I volunteer to be next.
The galley proofs have arrived and I am to go through them and find mistakes, if any. Faced with this tiresome task, my mind wanders. Why are they called proofs? I suppose I could google “galley proofs” and get the answer immediately, but I prefer to imagine my own explanation. I think of all the times I encountered the word proof.
“The proof is in the pudding.” Evidence that someone is a good cook?
“Show me some proof.” Exhibit A, no doubt.
“Geometric proof?” Reminders of high school days, long past.
“14.5% proof” One drink would probably do it.
“Proof” A fine theatrical experience.
But, I am facing a galley proof – the printed copy that I must check for errors before it goes to the printer. Do I need further proof of my procrastination? Back to work!
No, that is not a misspelled word in the title. I am searching through numerous fonts, trying to decide on one for my book. Who would have ever thought there could be so many different ways to shape a letter. Do I want a modern typeface or something more classic? Since the story takes place in the 1890s, I’ve decided to go with a more traditional font. I’m studying the little squigly that hangs off the letter “g.” I’m concerned that an “rn” combination doesn’t look like the letter “m.” How close is the “t” to the next letter in the word? This process does make you look, really look at what you are reading.
I finally recommend Calisto MT to the design team.
February 26th, 2011 in
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I was thinking about genres since I have to identify one for The Laughing Ladies. First, I thought it would be called a romance. But, after browsing novels called romances and looking at their covers, I decided that was not where it belonged. Then I tried historical fiction, but most books took place in the days of knighthood or involved kings and queens. Wrong again! That left calling it a western. Once more, that didn’t seem quite right. The book focuses on women, not men. But still, it really is a western, just one with a different slant. It’s about life from a female’s point of view.
I have decided: The Laughing Ladies is a western historical romance. If you know any others, I’d love to hear about them.
I’d never heard of an elevator pitch until I was told I needed one. The name comes from the idea that your pitch should be delivered in the short period of time it takes for an elevator ride, usually 20-60 second. That notion translates into 25 words to sell your book. That’s a lot of wallop to pack into a few words. Think about it. Just 25 words to entice the browser into the world of your book. Here are my 25 words. You’re going to count them, aren’t you?
Three women travel west, escaping their oppressive Victorian society. But, independence has a price and they must decide whether they are willing to pay it.
You can’t judge a book by its cover. Oh, yes, you can. I do. And I bet you do, too. When I pick up a book, I almost always know whether I am interested enough to find out what’s inside. It all starts up front.
The design team at AuthorHouse wants to know how I envision the cover of The Laughing Ladies. The American West in the 1890s suggests sepia tones to me. And no faces please, the reader’s mind will determine what the women look like. I favor old-fashioned illustrations instead of photographs. I sent them the cover design to the right. What do you think? Does it suggest the time period and who the laughing ladies are?
I’ve mentally packed up and returned to NYC. My fictional town of Crystal Creek was not easy to leave, but it is time. The story of The Laughing Ladies is told and ready to be published.
Since controlling is a word I am familiar with, I have decided to self-publish. The process is turning out to be as energizing as writing the book. Except, this time, I am not making the journey alone. Author House experts are guiding my way. I hope you will follow as I describe this new path I am traveling.
My first task is to provide a biography. I am asked to distill my life into no more than 150 words, but I have been around a long time. I find writing about my characters is a lot easier than writing about myself. I finally decide on the part of my life relevant to the book:
After living in Key West for 16 years, Karen, a native New Yorker, moved to Salida, Colorado. There, she found The Laughing Ladies, a charming restaurant, previously a bordello. Intrigued, this novel is her version of its origin. Karen continues to search for another restaurant with such a captivating pedigree.
The Laughing Ladies found me, rather than the other way around. It started when Pat Porter, a good friend and fantastic watercolor artist and teacher, said in her marvelous offhand manner, that if she couldn’t paint some time during the day, she might as well not get up in the morning. I thought enviously, “How wonderful to have a passion like that.” I remembered her words when I started writing The Laughing Ladies, eager to get to the computer every day. This was feeling Pat described.
As the story took shape, I wondered where it had been hiding all these years. I never imagined myself a writer and here I was, living in a mining town, high in the Colorado Rockies. I created a world to inhabit for a few hours a day, with no idea why I chose to be there. Perhaps, I was being channeled by an 1893 prostitute who wanted her story told.
Why does a native New Yorker, living in a Manhattan apartment high above the city, find herself boarding a westbound train to the Colorado Rockies in 1893? This is not about time travel, but about how one woman found her way, in fiction, to the Old West.
It started with a visit to The Laughing Ladies, a charming restaurant in Salida, CO. When asked how the restaurant got its name, the proprietor explained that I was dining in a former bordello. Definitely not an answer I would hear in New York City. The evolution of the space intrigued me. How does a brothel wind up a restaurant? I decided to create the answer. The story of The Laughing Ladies began.
