There is always room for another good book!

Author jealousy. Did you hear the collective gasp. Oh no! This doesn't happen/doesn't exist/I-love-all-my-fellow-authors...yeah right. Author jealousy is a very REAL institution. You know, no congrats on your good news. No fellowship when you are at conferences. Eye rolling, lip smacking because all the books on the table are actually yours.

I just don't get it. If you r book is good, folks will always continue to look for your work. AND if you are floating off of past accolades, you've got to step up the pace or your readership will dwindle. I'd rather be a striving good writer than a "has been" writer putting out junk. But then again...hmmm...if I float on my name and put out a bunch of novels, I can retire earlier...I can now see the logic. Carry on!

I've got the money honey!

Well, that magazine has decided to set things right. A few more emails and now...I've got money! Wish things had gone differently but I call a spade a spade. No hard feelings. Just good news. Keep the faith, it works!

Good Day all around

Hey, Hey!
Today has been a great one. I'm off to a booksigning tomorrow--well actually I'm traveling tomorrow and signing Friday and Saturday--but I'm definitely on a high about it. I guess the main reason is, I'm going to a market where my books have been selling like hotcakes! They are raring to meet the author! Hot dang a doo! Move over book kings and queens. Sydney's coming through!

If anyone has time, come out and support me. I'll be at Rust College, in Holly Springs, MS Friday and Saturday. It's supposed to be a blast and I plan to blast off with the good people there. Let's do the doggone thang together!

See you there!

Simply Sydney!

I have got a queen of a publicist! I thought I was hyper, she definitely has my behind beat. I'd been slow about losing these last few pounds but I better get ready 'cause sistergirl has BIG plans for me. And I plan to be ready!

A new year, a refreshed outlook...I am so blessed. Yes, there is plenty of stress out there, but I'm not picking that sucker up! I figure that stress will eventually wear its own self out versus wearing me out. So, what I use to not walk past, I now do. What I once worried about, I push it to another corner of my mind and most importantly, I speak my piece. If you don't want to hear the truth, push down on the pedal and speed past!

I am excited, relaxed, invigorated and high on life. Hope you guys can join me!

Sydney Molare
www.sydneymolare.com

Beward of squandering Advertising funds

Sometimes I'm convinced that the con artist have decided to target authors. I mean they are coming out of the woodwork. Everyone is an agent, copyeditor, critquer, publisher, etc. and the list is growing by the second. The big thing they leave out of their spill is--they have NO track record of having provided a flea with oxygen let alone making your manuscript the next big thing.

Now, I have an ongoing saga with a magazine publisher out of Atlanta--I'll let them remain nameless for now. I was one of the first authors to advertise in this publication, at a time when I hadn't sold a book, so of course money was an issue--but I thought it would be a good stepping stone. I think I did this 2 more times plus individual ads. The truth, after almost $2000, I have yet to sell a book due to this publication.

Now the bone I've got to pick? Even though I'd been told I would be a featured cover author, the editor to date has taken my funds but either doesn't think my work is good enough to merit being a cover author and won't say (Amazon.com reviews would make that statement a blatant lie!) or this magazine treats its clients badly. I'm good for the money but not the exposure--no give and take.

The last straw? A former publicist scheduled a sign & Dine for Nov 7. After paying the remainder fee, I got an email from the editor asking what date did I want to do the Sign & Dine. This was a week before the event was "supposed" to happen. In the end, THEY had not written it down, and that weekend really didn't work but she would "work" me in...Now I don't know about anyone else, but I want the full benefits of advertising that go along with my dollars and I'd not been advertised at all. The event wasn't free either. It was $250 just to have the sign & dine. That translates into selling 21 books before I make any money.

So, I cancelled. Guess what I have yet to receive? Yes, my money. This may get nasty...

I met a goal today!

One of my writing goals is to submit to 4 contests, call for submissions etc monthly. Well, remember that persistence theory i have? Today, my story "Possession" was accepted by Underground Voices for their February issue! A paying market folks! Am I excited? You betcha! But then again, I'm always excited whenever my writing reaches more and more readers.

Got a dose of daily inspiration now it back to the keyboard!

Peace out.

Syd

Writer's Trinity

Pushing, persistence and patience. Definitely the writer's holy trinity. Pushing past your doubts to enter contests, submissions, interviews, and presenting you work to agents and publishers, persistently networking with authors, agents and publishers and finding the patience to wait until they have time to review your work and get back to you.

Now not everyone in the publishing industry adheres to these guidelines. There are renegades amongst us! **Gasp!** These are the folks that grab the manuscript by the footer, publish the book prior to waiting for industry permission and then, amazingly, make real money.

Let us not fool ourselves. Traditional publishing is one step short of author slavery. They own the rights, the date of publication, how many they will print and you MUST meet the preset numbers or find yourself homeless again. Yet, the "dream" is to be published traditionally. It's "acceptable."

I've crunched the numbers...Let's see, they give you a $25,000 contract for one book. The print run is 15,000 copies. Now if your book sells for $12, then that 15,000 copies translates into $180,000 gross. Minus your $25,000 and print costs, the publisher nets a cool $100,000 or more...and you wrote the sucker. They just have the distribution! Kind of rubs you raw, huh?

This is one of the reasons why I began my publishing company, Fishbowl International, Inc. It's a flat fee hybrid publisher. Yes you must pay to get everything set up, but once the books start rolling off the press, you only pay $2 per book. Anything over and above that after print costs is YOURS! That's right, if your book costs $3.50 to print, add Fishbowl's $2 for a total of $5.50. If you sell that sucker for $12, then the remaining, $6.50 is YOUR profit. Visit www.fishbowlinternational.com for more information.

Think about it...

Riding the author wave

Still rollercoaster riding with my writing. One person loves me to death, the next asks if I'm native or a foreigner. What's that mean? Since I'm a thinker, it definitely puts some doubt in the house.

I finally realized that it all comes down to one thing--patience. Unfortunately for me, patience and I don't set eye to eye. I want what I want, when I want it, how I want it, and no deviations from the set path unless I (currently known as one-step-from-deity to my lovers) say so. That's the way LIFE is supposed to be.

I've been doing the throw out the agent line, get a nibble but no deep hook yet. Guess the last author standing gets the contract. **Sigh** Better fluff out that pillow some more. Seems like it's gonna be a long one. Peace out.

Knee Deep In Wonder

You know how you think you've got it all figured out and God puts a monkey wrench in your plan? That's how life has been for me lately. I 've set the goal, made the resolutions and sure enough, things...shift. Not necessarily in the negative, just not what I'd planned in the first place.

Take my writing career. I've written a number of books and am having a difficult time focusing on the last one. BUT, my publicist just gave me another hot idea and to be honest, I'm all over it like white on rice. AGAIN, this is a deviation from the "paper plan." Yet, I don't want to miss the opportunity either. I think I'm going in circles here.

I think the real issue is the lack of acceptance I've felt when I step outside of the "box". Yes there is a literary box that shifts authors into certain genres, ethnicities, just categorization at its zenith. When an author wanders outside the familiar, the unspoken gasp is very audible. Shame too. I always believed that being a writer was like being an actor, you should be able to write from any perspective and with enough research, imagine yourself as anybody or anything. It's reflected in my writings also.

Guess I'll just have to sit around a little longer and wait and see!