Popping the Question

In many endeavors there is the question. The one question that almost everyone asks. For example, if you were a Boy Scout people will ask, "Are you an Eagle scout?" If you answer No, then they will move on. It doesn't matter how many good turns you did, or merit badges you earned, or tents you accidentally set on fire there are no more questions.

When people find out you write novels they ask the question, "What have you published?" They don't always phrase it that way, "What have you written?" or "Where can I get your books?" are common ones. And if you answer that you haven't published anything, the conversation stalls and you find a new topic.

At first, I tried to explain why I love writing. How I've written multiple novels, but I wasn't interested in getting them published. Even now, I risk losing you, precious reader, with my reasons. And so, I learned to just let it slide. I write for my own reasons, and I have reasons for not seeking publication.

Until now.

As my kids grow older, I've started to feel like I should get a story published. I'm not sure if I will go traditional or self-publish--there are so many pros and cons to weigh. But either way, I'm working a story through the last few stages of editing and beta readers.

I'm excited for this next phase in my writing career. I've been writing for over 10 years, and I've learned a lot. Now it's time to share with the world. I'm sure that much of the world won't notice, some of the world won't like it, but I'm hoping there is a small slice of awesome people out there who will love it enough to buy it.

And I'm looking forward to being able to answer the question in a way that moves the conversation forward.

* Joshua Rothhaas either worked very hard or got very lucky to capture this image of a popping bubble--probably both. Either way, it's really cool.

The Whitney Awards and Me

Several years back, Robison Wells asked me to serve on the committee for the Whitney Awards. I was both flattered and perplexed. I wasn't an author and wasn't a publishing insider. Maybe that's why he chose me. I don't know, and I didn't ask.

I wasn't a complete newb. I had started my own company and founded a non-profit, so I knew how that side of it worked. I also knew technology.

But I was a newb in so many ways. By-laws--I could handle. Analyzing and improving processes--good there. But one of my responsibilities was to judge a category.

Over the course of a year, anyone can nominate novels for consideration. At the end of the year, a select group of judges reads nominees and votes to narrow each category to the five best novels.

It was hard. I agonized over each book. Thinking of their strengths and weaknesses. Thinking of the hundreds of hours each author spent on the work. I would narrow things down and re-read scenes and sections until I finally came to a decision.

The great thing about the Whitney Awards, is that it's not just about a select group of judges. Once each category is narrowed down to five finalists, they are sent out to a much larger group, called the Academy, made up of booksellers, publishers, authors, and other publishing professionals. This large group casts their votes, which determine the winners.

To be a part of this process sparked something for me, but it wasn't until I went to my first gala that I really saw what the Awards were about. I met many authors and editors. I saw people moved to tears of happiness and sadness. The conflicting emotions of people cheering on their friends who won, while hiding their own ache of losing (Consolation Chocolate Cake anyone?). I saw, not a group of competitors, but comrades in arms.

I know I'm waxing a bit poetic, but it really struck me how cool everyone was about it. And how many friends I made.

Then the next year came. I saw authors roll up their sleeves to do better. Maybe this year was their year to win. I heard people talking about the Awards with anticipation.

It's awesome to be a part of something that can inspire my friends, but the awards do more than that. They help readers find great books. They bring writers together. They add some excitement to our little corner of publishing.

I'm grateful for Rob. I still don't know what he was thinking, but whatever it was, it worked. I've been involved with the Awards ever since. I'm not on the committee anymore, but I try to help in whatever ways I can.

I encourage everyone to go read one of the past winners or finalists. They are great stories, told by great people.

And to all my friends competing this year, Good Luck.

Why I Chose a Pen Name

Pen Name, Pseudonym, Nom de Plume. Whatever you call it, I have one.

There are many reasons to use a pen name, and you can find good information online that explains the pros-and-cons. For this post, I'm going to explain the reasons I decided to use one.

Online marketing is becoming more and more important. The internet is a wonderful way of leveraging a writer's time and money. You can promote your works to hundreds and thousands of people without leaving your home. You can listen to and interact with many great writers, publishers, editors, and agents without getting off the couch. It's awesome. That's why we always hear about building your brand.

That's where I ran into trouble.

I like my "real" name. I have a family name with generations of history behind it. If I could, I would choose to use the name my parents gave me. I debated a long time with myself and others before finally decided to take on a different one.

My last name isn't very common, but the problem comes with my first name. Of all the names in my family, my first name is, by far, the most common. During my research, I learned that my first name has been a family name for many generations and in many different lines. When I went online to search for my name (I know you all do it, and it's a good thing to do), I found over 2 million hits. Even using my middle initial and quotes turned up over half-a-million pages.

Doing a quick Google search turned up a high school, a Canadian politician, a professional hockey player, a lawyer, and a musician. Argh! It got even worse when I searched Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Blogger. In order to come up with anything consistent, I would have to use "MyNameAuthor1". I guess there's another budding author out there with the same problem, because "MyNameAuthor" was taken on one of the networks. Sigh.

I didn't want to compete with all these other people, so I decided to use a different name. It took weeks  of searching to find a name that was available. I tried searching on lists of last names, but in the end my name came from somewhere much closer.

Why I chose John Waverly:

• It's unique. It's available on all the different platforms I wanted.
• It resonates with my audience. "John" is very common and "Waverly" appears in many places: towns, streets, TV shows, companies, etc. So, while John Waverly is unique it is also familiar.
• It's easy to spell. Online searches will find me. I can't tell you how many times I've searched for a common-sounding name only to find out the person uses a strange spelling of the name. That's great once people find you, but it's frustrating the first time (or even the first few times) you search for them.
• The clincher is that "Waverly" was my grandfather's name. How awesome is that?

I'm happy with my decision, but it has come with a lot of extra work. I'll talk about the challenges in another post. In the end, I feel the challenges will be worth it.

Question: Do you use a pen name? Have you considered it? Do you think I've made a good decision?


* Name tag picture by Alan O'Rourke can be found on Flickr.

Pottermore: Awesomeness or Meh?

The other day @MarionJensen asked on Twitter if we thought Pottermore was #HUGE or #yawn. I couldn't fit my answer in 140 characters, so here goes. 

Will Pottermore be a popular internet destination and continue the Harry Potter empire? Yes.

Will the affects of Pottermore be felt across the publishing industry? Probably.

Will Pottermore change the face of publishing and be the death knell of traditional publishing? No.

Let me just say, there is a lot to #yawn about, but there is also potential for #HUGE awesome.

Before I go on, you need to know that everything I've seen so far looks cool. The screenshots are beautiful and remind me of the artwork from the US covers, but not too much. The descriptions of the site and how it will work sound great. And we can buy the eBooks! I may not qualify to be in the first million to sign up in July, but I'll definitely be there when it opens up to everyone. I mean, it's HARRY POTTER. I know there are people who aren't fans out there, but face it, you're in the minority. Sorry.

With that out of the way, let's look at what J.K. Rowling is doing with Pottermore.

She is setting up a website that enhances her books. #yawn. This has been done so many times.

The website will have interactive games that tie in with the books. #yawn. Again, been-there-done-that. In fact, crossovers from books to games to movies to TV to t-shirts to household items have been going on for a long time.

The website will have a social network component where people can interact with each other. #yawn. Everything today is becoming a social network.

She is partnering with Sony to create the site. #yawn. Don't get me wrong. Sony is a big company with years of experience producing some great games. If Sony wanted to create a site for me, I would be ecstatic, (Note to Sony Execs, I'm available via email, Twitter, and Facebook.) but anyone with enough money and a big enough platform could do the same thing. It's not revolutionary, so #yawn.

She is releasing the eBooks on her website. #yawn. Yes, they are Harry Potter books, but really, how many authors have released eBooks on their websites? Just this week?

"But wait!" you say, "Where's the #HUGE you talked about?"

I'll tell you.

While nothing about Pottermore is especially groundbreaking by itself. It's fascinating when you put it all together. I'm not privy to the internal details, but I'm guessing this is how it will go down.

She'll release the first book on the site with the games and social aspects that go along with it. There will be a flood of people visiting, some will buy the books, some will play the games, and some will stick around. Several months later (maybe a year), she'll release the second book along with an update to the site. Media blitz. Even more people go to the site, more people experience the games, more people stick around. This goes on for three to seven years. During that time, she not only has eBook sales and plenty of news hype, but she also has a loyal following of people signed onto Pottermore. She has statistics the likes of which marketers would die for. She has a direct communication network with her most loyal fans, and a social structure to keep them united and energized. That is #HUGE.

What about her traditional publishers? I don't think it's doom and gloom for them. Can you say, new releases of the books with special codes in them to get you cool stuff on Pottermore? Even if this doesn't happen, a rising tide lifts all ships. The publishers will see a bump in book sales. Plus, they get to see the results of this big experiment without putting any of their dollars on the line. Let's face it, book publishers aren't (currently) in the business of creating web destinations. If this works, that may change. Or maybe one of these big game companies (who have been doing pretty well lately) may buy up a publisher to get access to their properties. That would be #HUGE.

Pottermore feels more like a step in evolution and not a revolution. I think it's a great step. The recent changes in publishing are exciting and this just adds to the excitement. While I think much of what J.K. Rowling is trying to do is #yawn-worthy, when you put it all together it's #HUGE.

And in the immortal words of Ron Weasely, "Not good, brilliant!"


* Pottermore image © J.K. Rowling