I'm taking a break from the Deadly Lessons origin story this week to engage in a call for help. But first, a little backgrounder.
Okay, clearly, I'm not in this for the money. If there is a Canadian author beyond Margaret Atwood or Michael Ondaatje who could even make the claim to be in it for the dough - and I'm sure they're not, oh legions of Atwood-lovers and Ondanjate worshipers so put down the pen; I'm just drawing an analogy - they probably have probably set the economic bar pretty low for themselves. Does rolling on the bed in a pile of dimes and quarters make one feel rich?
That said, last week I received a statement from the publisher and, well, let's just say, it wasn't exactly inspiring, at least in the financial sense. Sure, I know I have the day job that pays the bills but would it be so much to ask for, say, enough book sales to buy a weekend cottage? How about a new SUV? A high end vacation?
Maybe a latte?
I know, I know, artistic success isn't measured in numbers (thank God). Last Dance has been very well reviewed, not only by people I know who have read it (and I like to think they're not simply being nice to me because they're friends, or, you know, my mother) but also by book critics and reviewers as diverse as The Globe and Mail(Xanadu!), the National Post and Publisher's Weekly. Heck, when PW said good things about the book the publisher was so pleased they made sure a pull quotation from their review was put on the cover. If people saw the endorsement of Publisher's Weekly surely they would buy the book.
I haven't seen PW sitting on too many people's coffee tables, even pretentious people's.
Thus, I’ve given up on untold riches rolling in from book sales. I’m happy in my house; I don’t need one the size of J.K. Rowling’s. Really, all I hope for is that enough copies of my books move that when W3.doc is actually finished, the publisher is still interested in publishing it and, of course, any others that follow.
To be sure, the largest numbers of books move during the first month or so of sales, and last year I was surprised to see that I actually did receive a royalty cheque even though the fiscal sales year ended just four weeks after the release of the book. It wasn’t a big cheque and I hadn’t been expecting one at all. I was, after the positive reviews, expecting more books to have sold over the course of the past year than it appears did.
Weird, huh?
To that end, I’m seeking the help of readers of the blog (come on, there’s gotta be a dozen of you). I want to start a revolution in sales. I’m talking big here. I’m thinking about one of those ‘get a hundred thousand likes and my wife will let me buy a Harley’ kind of campaigns. Hell, if people help me get enough sales, I’ll buy a Harley and take you all for rides on it. I’ve even started a Facebook page, because what I’ve learned is that any problem you want solved can be by creating a Facebook page. So you can help by going to the page and ‘liking’ it. If they install a ‘really like’ it button, all’s the better.
I know, I know, Facebook alone won’t sell the book (if it was that powerful, Facebook would be trading above, not below, its IPO price of $38.00.
But here’s what you can do and it won’t cost you anything (okay, maybe a few minutes of your time but beyond that – free). Probably I’m not supposed to encourage the borrowing of my books but if they’re being borrowed from libraries, that’s a great thing. Thus, if you don’t already own a copy, and have no plans to (remember – I deliver!), you can help by checking with your public library branch to see if they have a copy. And if they don’t – request it.
It’s an amazing thing about our public libraries. Unlike so many government services, they listen to the requests of their citizens. If they don’t have a copy of the book for which you’re looking, most often they’ll get it. And whether it’s purchased by a library or an individual – the publisher still sees it as a demand for the book.
And here’s where you can really help: if you’re not local to the Vancouver area – or you know people across Canada who aren’t – please spread the word, either through liking and sharing the Facebook page (seriously – I just figured out how to make the page – I’m pretty excited) or sharing this post.
Let’s start this library revolution and make it big. There are over three thousand public libraries in Canada, more branches than McDonald’s restaurants – definitely something to celebrate. If every branch had at least two copies of Last Dance and Deadly Lessons, both books would be easily propelled into ‘bestseller’ category – a bestseller in Canada being 5,000 copies.
Too ambitious? How about one copy? What if a thousand library branches each had a copy? How about five hundred? I’m willing to modify my revolution.
But I need your help and the help of hundreds of readers like you. Haven’t you always wanted to be part of something big? This could be your chance.
I’ll even buy the lattes.
Next week: Deadly Lessons – the origin story – Part II.
