What a ride!

I got back from NYC yesterday after taking part in this year's 20th Annual Independent and Small Press Book Fair in New York City. What a crazy few weeks these past ones have been! Between two book signings at local Barnes and Nobles and now the book fair, it seemed that November (and early December) were all about getting the word out. Which is good, because that’s the only way people are going to know about Solstice ^^;

The book fair was pretty good. Though none of the big industry names that were supposed to be there showed up, it was still a good chance to promote the book with readers, and to get to meet some very cool people. I ended up selling 10 copies of Solstice, too ^__^

I got to chat with some fellow self-publishers and authors, including Marc L. Abbott who wrote The Hooky Party, and with Polly Frost, an author of erotica who gave me a copy of her book, Deep Inside. Very cool people who were great to talk to and get to know! Did a book exchange with them, so I’m looking forward to reading their work.

Also got to meet and chat with a lot of up-and-coming authors. Two of my customers, in fact—Lauren Small and Fayomi—are writers looking to publish (actually, Lauren is already published) and are considering the self-publishing route for their future works. It was fun to be able to talk with them about the long, but rewarding, process of self-publishing a book. Another future writer, a young man named David, bought two copies ^^; It was great to be able to talk to him about the writing process, and to hear about his great ideas for his first novel. If you’re reading this, David, remember: write, write, write! Some stories have to be told ^_^ Another of my customers was the actual Assistant Director of the whole book fair, Christopher de la Torre, who himself is a speculative fiction writer and member of a coming e-zine, Urban Molecule. Also got to chat with a fellow Latina writer, Jaqueline Donado of NY Book Expo. I didn't get a chance to say goodbye to you, but thank you for the copy of your book! I hope you also enjoy Solstice!

Overall, I’d say it was just a rewarding experience because of the many interactions I was able to have with customers and non-customers alike. Since I only sold 10 copies, you can say that I took a big loss on the whole thing (when factoring registration and transportation costs). But I actually see the experience as a complete success. It was invigorating and rewarding just to be there, talking to people about Solstice, watching them take an interest in the story, taking the bookmarks I printed out for the fair. It’s a thrill unlike many others to have others express an interest in your work, even if they don’t buy a copy. And when they do, it’s an amazing experience to think that they’re going to read your words, and hopefully enjoy them.

Being there, I felt part of a writer’s community for the first time. Because, surrounded by writers and publishers like myself, I realized that we are a community, and it’s one that’s always inviting new members. I guess that’s why I love talking to people about writing—I always want others to discover this incredible joy that is writing, publishing, and promoting your work. That’s why I’m always badgering my friends Dan and James into writing. I guess I just want others to be able to share in this incredible experience.

So, thanks to all of you who bought a copy of Solstice at the fair, or who took the time to chat with me, or who just passed by and said hello! Thanks to all of you, including Christopher, David, Jacqueline, Polly, Lauren, Fayomi, and Marc, who shared your works and your ideas with me! Now I gotta get to work and follow up with you!

I’m excited to mention a couple of other things. I’ve now passed the 1300 book sales mark, and my distributor is now recommending I send over another 850 copies even though they still have 355 in stock. I am looking into just sending them my remaining stock (about 1500 copies). And if they sell those…are we looking at a reprint of Solstice??? @___@ Wow…

And the first draft of my next novel is almost done! I’ve mapped out the rest of the story, and I have exactly nine chapters and the epilogue to go! But considering that two weeks ago I was punching out a chapter a day, it’s now conceivable that I can meet my goal of finishing the first draft before the end of the year. The projected page total? A whopping 800-900 pages! ^^;; Eep… I really want to push myself and finish it; my mom really wants to read it, and I’d like to have it to her by the time I go back home for the New Year’s celebration in three weeks.

Okay, I’ve babbled too much again, as usual ^^;;