The other thing that I do is write unmarketable fiction. Roughly aimed at 9-13 year olds.
One book I self-published a few years ago. Two more have never seen book form. They live in a file-folder, and on a flash-drive. This is hard to admit to because, statistically speaking, unpublished fiction has a high probability of being crappy (at least from an objective analysis of subjective opinions.)
One actually came close to being picked up by 2 different actual editors, but no dice. A fourth is in progress.
Still, I’d rather die as someone who failed to achieve publishing than die a person who didn’t keep trying. But, in the meantime, written works hate sitting around unavailable for reading.
Hence, I am playing with the idea of putting them online, in serial form, on maybe a subset of my personal blog. Not that this will generate a massive audience, but perhaps 20 people will read them instead of 3. Or something. You never know. Available is better than stuck on a shelf.
I believe I can copyright them via online services. (The self-published one is already copyrighted.) And then perhaps set up a Creative Commons type of license to delineate allowable uses. And then create a site, linked to my blog, for serialization.
The biggest benefit, to me, will be that I will then be able to carry on with the work-in-progress without the niggling nasty feeling that it has nowhere to go, even it it’s a lame somewhere to go. It’s hard to dedicate oneself to creative endeavors which have no end outlet.
Don’t tell me to do something else. I’m too stubborn. And life parameters, for now, limit my scope of influence to that which I can do here and disseminate from here. Pretty much.
By all means go for it. Maybe also find out how to make Kindle versions available at Amazon. Most Kindle books have the first chapter free, then $10 for the rest of the book. You might actually sell a small number going that route, though not many 9-13 year olds have Kindles at the moment.
Plenty of writers write with no one to read their completed works. There is the November Internet group that writes a novel in a month, with tens of thousands of participants. Most of those find tiny audiences, mostly within the group of writers. Maybe five or ten get a wider audience. These days, even the top publishers give close to zero money to first time authors.
A few Chiffers will no doubt read some of your stuff. Even, my songs and tunes get a limited audience here, even though most Chiffers don’t care for the kind of music that I do (most opt for the polite no-comment).
There are in-person as well as online writers groups for people to share and critique, but reading a few pages isn’t the same as having time for the entire work.
Finally, I suggest dumping the “lame-o writer” tag. Self talk can be an important part of the creative act. Good luck.
Oh no…that’s not too angry. It’s just foot-stamping. Then it all blows away. Don’t worry!
Indeed. There’s a balance between “lame-o” and taking oneself too seriously. I’m so careful about not being guilty of the one, that I veer in the direction of the other. But you’re right.
If I’m writing as part of my day job, for instance as a salaried journalist, it’s my employer who is presumed the owner. I can also assign (sell) my copyright to someone, but the onus is on that person to prove that I have done so.
Go for it! Trust me, some pretty … no…actually… some really crappy writing gets a lot of reading online, so your i-can’t-imagine-it-being-bad writing ought to net some readership. There are many writing communities that might be good spots to put them. I know I’d put on my 11-14 glasses and read it.
Go for it! How about contacting someplace like Fictionwise.com for ebook distribution? They are a great site and have a “free ebook” section too, which has some nice stuff in it.
I am a proud owner of an Emmline book
(Edited to add - I just checked out Fictionwise’s terms and sadly they only accept authors with ten previously published works. This is good news for you in a way, because I have read some absolute rubbish on there.)
When is my work protected?
Your work is under copyright protection the moment it is created and fixed in a tangible form that it is perceptible either directly or with the aid of a machine or device.
Do I have to register with your office to be protected?
No. In general, registration is voluntary. Copyright exists from the moment the work is created. You will have to register, however, if you wish to bring a lawsuit for infringement of a U.S. work. See Circular 1, Copyright Basics, section “Copyright Registration.”
Don’t be to quick to mark a designated age on your readership.
Just say “aimed at younger readers”. How far do you think the Harry Potter books would have got if they had been labelled “9-13”? They even put adult-style bookcovers on them, for heaven’s sake! Same with Pullman’s Dark Materials.
And Gulliver’s Travels? That was NEVER a children’s book, although that’s how they market it these days.
Well, all I can say is that I enjoyed the book of yours that I read.
My current plan is to do a print edition of the best of 5 years of Right Hand Pointing and I think I’ll do it through lulu.com. The print-on-demand concept is fabulous.
I used XLibris for print-on-demand for my first book. It’s still available there. But their prices have gotten pretty outrageous, AND they have a horrible habit of calling to try to sell me new services, none of which would be any use.
So, I’m likely to give Lulu a try, for the free eBook set-up, and a better deal if I want to go hard-copy.
