Monday, July 19, 2010

Close Encounters of the Literary Kind

I popped into my local Chapters bookstore yesterday, (that's the Canadian version of Borders or Barnes and Noble), and had the pleasure of running into Rich Meyrick, there to promote his new book JASPA'S JOURNEY: THE GREAT MIGRATION.

Rich was friendly and enthusiastic, and his book - an adventure set in the serengeti - sounds like a lot of fun for middle-grade-level readers. Apart from the obvious writer-chat (I blog! Do you? Have you been to such-and-such conference? Etc.), Rich was gracious enough to congratulate me on my recent magazine publication, and to sign my brand-spanking-new copy of his book, which I can't wait to read!

It served as a good reminder for me of how hard authors need to work to promote their books. Before I started writing, I only thought of marketing in terms of the really big-sellers, with their dolls and their movies and their posters and what-have-you. I thought marketing was something the publisher did for you. But I was wrong. Being a writer is not just about writing; it is also about self-promotion.

Thanks to Rich for helping me remember that, and more importantly:

Congratulations, Rich, on the publication of your first fiction novel. May there be many more to come!

Thanks for stopping by.

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