And what about the news about Kate Forbes and whether she is fit for office in Scotland. Can someone’s personal religious views restrict the public office they hold? This isn’t to do with publishing and writing, but it is relevant.
On the face of it we could all perceive these issues as a great thing. After all we are living in enlightened times … Aren’t we? We respect everyone’s way of life as long as it does not impair our own.
We are far more aware of racism, sexism, fatism and all the other isms and I’m sure as authors we see it as our responsibility to watch out for the words and phrases we use which might upset.
As a publisher we have an even greater responsibility don’t we, to ensure that the books we launch out to the public will not offend anyone?
Another question to you:
How can we do all of this without affecting creativity as an author, constricting the richness of the English language and living in fear of offending someone?
It seems fitting that Eventispress should arrive at Stockwood Park #Luton, not all that far from where the publishing business was conceived.
A selection of our books are on display at Stockwood Park Museum, alongside the various crafts etc. We will replenish and vary stock from our growing selection.
We now stock dystopian, mystery and historical fiction.
Our non fiction focusses on the environment and in some cases pertinent to Bedfordshire.
We also sell motivational and inspirational books.
Yes, is the fast answer. With Prince Harry’s book Spare soon to become to greatest selling memoir of all time, and celebrities like Boris Johnson saying that he is writing his memoir too (like no other!), is there still space in the market for lesser known authors?
Yet again the answer is yes, but let’s unpick why.
Have you overcome a huge obstacle in your life?
This could be health wise, as in The Salt Path by Raynor Winn, whose husband rose above severe health problems and walked, including wild camping, along coastal paths of the south-west of England.
It could be some kind of learning difficulty which you turn around to your advantage, for example Richard Branson who has dyslexia, and writes in his blog about Kate Griggs, who has her own story to tell. See This is Dyslexia, a blog by Richard Branson himself.
You could be rising above one of those traumatic moments in your life ~ bereavement, redundancy, divorce, empty nest syndrome …. Our own author Diana Jackson wrote The Healing Paths of Fife after being made redundant and relocating 400 miles away from home. Diana has raised over £700 for local charities, including The Kirkcaldy Foodbank with this book.
You could be becoming aware of your own sexuality as in Scatter of Lightby Malinda Lo.
In the end, if you are thinking of writing your memoir, then question who your target audience might be:
Questions you might ask yourself?
Who would read it?
Who might be inspired by your memories?
Who could learn something from your experiences?
Does it make a gripping or/and enjoyable read?
IMPORTANT POINT: Be careful of libel though, if you are including stories of real people in your life including confessions for example, but that is really another blog post entirely.
How should you write my memoir?
A memoir does not have to be linear to have an impact. It could be a series of stories written at key times in your life. It could be in poetry form, or part thereof. It does, however, need to flow, and have an order which makes sense.
Eventispress has just taken on a new writer who has done just that. It has taken about two years of tweaking to find a format which works, weaving together several otherwise random life stories, but it now works as a whole; so beautiful and moving. Watch this space!
Eventispress are signing off today until the New Year when we have good news and new publications for 2023. Our authors are brimming with ideas for both writing and marketing and we’ll see some new faces joining us too.
Margaret, a friend of my wife, used to write quite a bit. She told us once that I figured in one of her stories but despite that fact – or perhaps because of it – she wouldn’t let us read it. In fact, she wouldn’t let us or anyone else, read anything she’d written. Which gave rise to the question, why had she written her stories in the first place? We both asked her this but got no clear answer. So we have to assume that she wrote for her own satisfaction because, when you come to think of it, she did have one reader. Herself.
I am not suggesting that Margaret is typical in this respect. Or in many others. For example, she disputed that there was such a thing as poetry. When I wasted a couple of hours drafting a response to her view, she replied along these lines: I take these points but I still think . . . Putting it another way, she didn’t take these points at all. Her view was that poetry was an invention of people in the upper classes who were pulling a fast one on their social inferiors. You could call this approach Marxist insofar as it rested on class distinctions. And this was odd in itself, because she was very well off.
With the exception of the Margarets of this world, most people would assume that writing is a form of communication with the greater world, though there are a few exceptions. Those who keep diaries might well prefer that others don’t read them, allowing them to communicate their thoughts and feelings to the page, paper or electronic, without fear of contradiction or exposure. Some are so apprehensive about it that they resort to code (for example, Samuel Pepys and Anne Lister). Then there are those who write memoirs of their lives for which the only intended audience is their children and grandchildren, and who would have a problem with that?
But Margaret was not writing a diary or a memoir. She could have chosen to publish her stories but had no intention of doing so. But at least she had the choice. There have been some who have been obliged to have their writing circulate in manuscript, passed from hand to hand. An obvious case of this was samizdat in the Soviet Union – which might well make a return under the oppressive regime of Vlad the Vicious. This approach was forced on writers such as Mihail Bulgakov who were frowned on by the authorities. Of course, those same writers would probably have chosen to publish in the traditional way had they been able to do so.
Moving to the realm of music, it is interesting to compare the reputations of Joseph and Michael Haydn. It is almost always the case that mention is made of ‘Haydn’ as if only Joseph wrote music.
In fact, his brother Michael wrote music of great quality and a lot of it. But where Joseph made sure his music was published, Michael made no attempt to publish his.
This did not prevent his reputation reaching far and wide during his lifetime. His work was commissioned by the Spanish court (Missa Hispanica) and he was honoured in Sweden. Mozart, who had some trouble with sacred music when it came to style, wrote to his sister asking for copies of Michael’s work. And Leopold Mozart, while doing his best to undermine him in favour of his son in public, privately expressed a true appreciation of Michael Haydn’s talent.
When Michael died his achievements gradually faded from view. There are probably two reasons for this. As was recognized during his lifetime, he excelled in sacred music, and some people prefer symphonies and concertos, though he wrote quite a few of them as well. But a major factor will have been that his works, never published, were not easily available. It was necessary to search them out.
We are fortunate now that they are being sought after and performed, often to a very high standard. Discographies may not reflect this much, but there have been many live performances in recent years, some of them exceptionally good. Which is where Youtube comes into its own and where you can find them if you look.
The following performance is outstanding.
(The wonderful Hanover Girls Choir on this recording should not be confused with the Hanover Choir based in London, which is named after Hanover Square and includes male voices.)
Thank you so much Rod for sharing this wonderful post with us; so interesting and the music is uplifting.
Post re-blogged with permission from Roderick Hart’s website:
Eventispress’s view is that ‘For most of us ordinary mortals, we will not need verification or a blue tick; unless you are famous, make loads of money, have loads of money, wish to stroke your own ego, or you have problems with anyone impersonating yourself on social media.’
If you would like to look into it or apply, here’s the link:
This makes an interesting read as to who has gained momentum and who has lost out in the take over.
We’ll give Eventispress the final say here,
‘For most everyday authors on Twitter our advice is take no notice. If you find Twitter a good way of reaching out to folks, readers, friends and other authors and more than that if you enjoy being on Twitter, then we suggest you carry on regardless, but of course it is your choice.’
Be honest. Most authors start in their own little bubble. Hopefully they soon link up with other authors for:
mutual support,
sharing ideas,
promoting each other’s work,
generally spreading the word.
After all, other authors sharing the news of a fellow author’s book adds a whole new audience into the mix. If we don’t open ourselves up for this opportunity we miss a whole exciting dimension of being an author but also, don’t forget:
‘Authors are readers too!’
So on to Eventispress Team Meetings
When we meet, usually on Zoom, we can share:
our joys and successes
our frustrations
our ideas
arrange to meet up to plan promotional activities
any business news and updates too, to ensure Eventispress runs as we would all like it to, for the benefit of all.
Going forward and summary
The day after our authors are already getting together locally, taking forward ideas and planning their next events.
The most important outcome of these meetings, though, is the BUZZ!
They leave us feeling optimistic, a feel good factor and above all no-one feels alone.
Hide your head in the sand and hope it all goes away?
As an author you sometimes feel like that, don’t you! You try and reach out on Twitter, your blog, Facebook and the list goes on, but time is short and there’s no real time for the positive meaningful interaction you need, for it to be worthwhile and enjoyable.
Flit from one platform to the other as the new fashion come along?
‘You must try Tick Tock,’ a fellow author cries, ‘It’s great!’
… or whatever the trending platform is at the moment. You spread your precious time more thinly than ever and take hours getting it all set up. It’s called familiarisation! Then you launch it in a big funfair, mentioning it on your other platforms. Your enthusiasm keeps the adrenalin going for a few weeks as you juggle all you were doing, with your new ‘social media pal’ and then what? Burn out!
‘I’m a writer’ I hear you cry, ‘and not a marketeer!’
I’m afraid all authors have to market their own books, unless they sell squillions and can pay for a publicist; even those debut writers with the big publishing houses. Finding a balance between writing, marketing and, well, life too, is tough at the best of times.
So, have we a magic bullet here at Eventispress?
Sadly no, but we do offer some sound advice:
Once you’ve chosen a platform, take time to establish yourself before moving on.
Post regularly, especially if it is your blog and connect with other bloggers by reading and commenting on their posts. That’s essential.
Be part of the community. Don’t just dip into it.
Make contacts and build relationships with other authors and readers.
Share areas of your own personal interest to show yourself as a ‘whole person’ who is engaged in life; interesting to know beyond books.
Ask other authors you have got to know as to what worked for them. Remember though, one authors plan to success may not work for you. You need to furrow your own path.
Make a marketing plan and try to keep to a loose schedule.
Allow a budget per year for paid marketing, for example Amazon ads (and Bryan Cohen gives wonderful free courses on this), blog tours, twitter tours and other marketing platforms.
This way you are not alone ~ your reach is far greater, as is your presence on the internet. You cannot do it all yourself.
The list goes on and I’m sure you could add to it.
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