Dear Jane mentioned an article in Publishers Weekly a few days ago. Angie talks more about it on her blog and has a short interview up with one of the authors mentioned Jacquelyn Frank who has a book that just came out called Jacob: The Nightwalkers.
from PW
Subgenre: Paranormal
First printing:250,000 mass marketEditor’s take: “It’s so magical, sexy and intense…. I’ve never been more enthusiastic about a project.” Kate Duffy
I know little about this book. I had never heard of it or the author until the PW article was brought to my attention. I did pick it up at wally world last night and didn’t make it past the first two pages.
The first page is pretty much author quotes telling me how much I am gonna like this book. Or how blown away they were by it. And honestly it left me with the feeling the only thing blowing was hot air.
These are good authors. Authors I read (for the most part). And because I am ever the optimist I am gonna say I believe they mean what they say (vs faves called in, cropped quotes, or whatever). But isn’t there a point where too much it too much.
A quote from Linda Howard, Lori Foster (oddly missing from the website press page), Kenyon, Feehan, Ross and Cathy Maxwell to me equals too much. Having Kate Duffy saying this is the bestest ever (I think that is promo hype but feel bad for her other authors) is too much on top of all those author quotes.
Where the heck are the reviews? Where is the buzz from people who aren’t in the business? Or you know… best friends with the author. (note to all newbie authors, tell your friends to not play fangirls [earn your minions!] or at least make sure the three people posting on your message board and blog don’t go around defending you or ‘getting your back’)
Sell me a book. Sell me an idea but don’t force feed it to me. I don’t want it. Tell me I have to love something and I will tell you what I will hate sight unseen. It is a knee jerk reaction I know. But color me annoyed: publishers can’t put out a historical because the market is soft, can’t take chances, can’t buy a book by an author whose last book sold poorly but who has been a proven winner. Can’t, can’t, can’t….
Maybe they can’t because they are putting too many eggs in a very breakable basket. Maybe putting out an unknown author, with such grand promo that people who hunt the internet for book info hear about it two weeks before the release date isn’t a good idea. Maybe having a message board, blog, website, six book deal with first run at 250,000 mass market is jumping the gun. And to pick a market that is so over run right now… and do 250,000 MM books… seems like a bad idea. Hell I want historicals. I want GOOD historicals and it seems like a shitty idea to have two unknowns come out with a print run of over 100,000k (although I do hope to have my hands on Campbell and McCarthy’s books soon).
Honestly some of those print run numbers turn my stomach. What is that going to do other than ensure if you want any of them wait a week… it will be in the used book store. Is it good for the author? How can a newbie author with no press or following hit those numbers? Are they being set up to fail?
I don’t write. I don’t have a book to sell. I don’t work in publishing. But I am offended and greatly annoyed. Susan Kay Law can’t sell a western (after winning a Rita, go team Rita! /endsacrasm). Alexis Harrington has had a book shopping for a while. Marsha Canham chooses to retire vs keep up with the game. Laura Kinsale can’t get a deal she wants to take. And I could go one and on… But a newbie can get a 6 book deal and 250,000 MM print run?
Or will this prove that if you put enough of anything ‘out there’ and that anything in large numbers at wally world will end up in the cart of the ‘average reader’.
I generally ignore cover quotes. Because publishing is a business. But the biggest thing is, just because I may think your book is the shit that doesn’t mean I am going to have the same taste as you.
Can this be seen as the same thing as Dear Authors 100 bloggers blogging? I admit I am a book pimp. And if I love something I am the first person to talk about it. Repeatedly. I love to have the chance to turn a reader onto a new to them author I love almost as much as I love to find new to me authors. For some reason having those ‘readers’ all be ‘writers’ doesn’t work for me.
Does it work for you? Will you be heading out to wally world to pick this up? Has anyone read this yet? Do you think this is a sign of good things to come? Bad things to come? Or is this normal and I have never noticed before? Is that noise we hear readers rushing to go buy the book or writers rushing to find Cindy Hwang’s email addy?
Hey there. Can’t tell you much — haven’t read this book. *BUT* I can tell you based on what I’ve heard — that PW overestimates print runs. Maybe this book did get a huge run, but I know of a very big author who told me PW over estimated her print run by 100k. I’ve written 14 books and my print runs are no where near 250k! lol.
I can’t comment on the book in question, because I know as little about it as you, probably less, (I first noticed it because it has the same cover as another Kensington book that came out in Oct.) but I can say that six book deals for newer authors aren’t unheard of at Kensington. Kate Douglas and Kathy Love come to mind immediately.
Kensington bought 6 books from me before BAD BOYS AHOY! released (over multiple contracts). I’m sure there are more. Maybe Noelle Mack? Her first book came out in January, and she already has 8 Kensington books listed on Amazon.
I say goddamn. I want a 250,000 print run and a goddamn 6 book deal. But no one’s pounding at my door. Dayuuum. That’s some crazy shit.
Anywhoo, I bought this thing. I was curious enough. I was buying M. Liu’s latest Dirk & Steele book anyway, so I just added it on.
Will let you know IN GREAT DETAIL if I liked it or not.
Well I can tell you that we got an ARC here at work – and it’s published under the Zebra imprint at Kensington. This caught my eye immediately because 1) I don’t think I’d ever seen a Zebra ARC before and 2) the quality of the ARC was very good. Also, worth noting, the cover art must have changed. The ARC cover art looks nothing like the finished product.
I’m not sure if it’s my malaise or not – but I’m finding it hard to get excited about “another paranormal.” I’m at the point where I follow the authors I follow in that sub genre, but trying something new is a hard sell unless the concept really “wows” me.
Interesting post.
Maybe the book IS that good, that deserving. Dunno, haven’t read it.
But there is such a thing as overkill. I don’t want to read a dozen recommendations. Give me one or two that actually SAY something, and I’ll check it out.
But wishing the author luck!
(love the see-no/hear-no/speak-no evil kitties, lol).
As an author my print runs are no where near that high, and I still pray every day that someone buys a book so I can sell through my small print run. I want to be in this business for a long time, I’m willing to earn the higher print run. I want peopel to want to buy the book because they like my style, not so much because of publicity.
That said, I’d also love to know that my editor and publisher had such faith in me that they would go to the lengths that they have for something like that.
LOl
Yeah I know, I want it all. LOL
It’s a paranormal, so I wont be reading it anyhow. I’m sick to death of them.
Author quotes go right over my head, not interested in them at all. I’m sure they’re only good for stoking the ego of the author in question.
I too am going to wait to see some of the reader reviews come in…I’m interested in it, looks like a storyline I’d love…but I too don’t want to be sucked in and be disappointed. I want it to be as great and compelling as Kate Duffy and fellow author say…