What to Do When You Have a New Book Out

57º ~ rainy days, cloud cover, trees beginning to turn to gold, red, and brown


Several times I've said how grateful I am that I had the experiences of Blood Almanac in my back pocket as The Girlhood Book of Prairie Myths came out.  BA came out before I had a "web presence,"and it came out in May/June of 2006, meaning at the end of the spring semester so that I had several months to focus on having a new book out.

News of The Girlhood Book arrived just as one wickedly over-committed semester kicked off. The actual copies arrived right after midterms of the same semester.  What follows are some of the things I did to both bring the book to fruition and since it landed on my front porch.

1.  Proofed a) the text file one last time before layout and b) galleys of the finished layout, paying careful attention to the acknowledgments page on top of the poems.
2.  Collected an email list of contacts so that Richard Krawiec could send out an offer for pre-order. (Silly me, I should have had this list going in an Excel file all along.)
3.  Looked at cover images provided by RK and made final approval.
4.  Sent RK names for blurbs.
5.  Sent RK names and addresses for review copies.  Here, both RK and I are cautious and only sent to those folks where we thought there was a pretty good chance of a review.
6.  Posted on this blog about the goings on, and tweeted posts, which then showed up on Facebook.
7.  Set up a launch reading at a local venue.
8.  Waited for books to arrive.

I want to take a moment to thank my blurbers: Stuart Dischell (as judge of the contest), Traci Brimhall, and Al Maginess (whose blurb didn't make it on the cover, but I'm grateful just the same).

Since the books have arrived, I've done the following.

1. Posted news of the book's release here and on Facebook.
2. Mailed copies to blurbers with thanks.
3. Responded to a bunch of Facebook posts from folks who pre-ordered and received their copies.
4. Emailed news of the book's arrival to the journal editors for all of the individual poem publications in the book.  Some journals post such news on their websites; some journals ask for review copies. All share the joy.
5. Sold two copies, one in person, one via the post.
6. Created listings for both books in my Etsy Storefront, which was first created when I thought I'd be able to make and sell collages, but I just don't have the time.

Things I still need to do.

1.  Set up readings. Set up readings. Set up readings.

Now, what have I forgotten?  Anyone else out there have items for my to-do list?  Please share!

A Book is Born! The Girlhood Book of Prairie Myths has Launched

51º ~ finally, something akin to fall weather has arrived ~ leaves still green, watching for the first hints of color

While I knew The Girlhood Book of Prairie Myths had made it back to Jacar Press from the printer, I didn't know it would land in mailboxes yesterday.  That is, until Facebook page lit up with folks sending word of the surprise arrival.  What a wonderful way to end another grueling week!

PR/Marketing break: To order copies, click here. Then, scroll through the menu to find The Girlhood Book of Prairie Myths.

I'm overjoyed to know this long process has finally reached fruition, and by "long" I don't mean anything having to do with the actual production and publication.  I found out that the book had won the Jacar Press Full Length Book Contest in the last week of August; seven weeks later, the book existed in physical form. Wowza! By long I mean the years and years and years of writing, revising, and sending out, much of which is chronicled in the archives of this blog.

All my thanks, sincerely, to everyone who has been part of the journey, both family and friends.  Your support during the lows and the highs and everywhere in between is priceless.  And now, we celebrate!

Angie Macri provides me a cameo with Buzz!

Marie Gauthier, selfie with TGBoPM

Amy Baldwin couldn't wait to get inside;
that's her front step under the book.

Poet-friend and Blogger-extraordinaire, Kristin Berkey-Abbott beat everyone to the punch and has already blogged about receiving her copy.    

With thanks and thanks and thanks!

Gazing Grain Press Reading and Reception ~ September 22, 2013

69º ~ a beautiful fall rain storm tapering off, weak sunlight filtering through, leaves dripping

A two-week illness prevented me from posting these photos earlier, but I do want to thank M. Mack and the other fine folks with Gazing Grain Press and The Fall for the Book Festival for inviting me to read as runner up in the 2013 feminist chapbook competition.  It was a spectacular event, and I was blown away by winner Meg Day and her chapbook, We Can't Read This.

M. Mack

Meg Day and Me

Bobblehead Lincoln

The conference was in Fairfax, VA, which meant flying through DCA. With a US History teacher for a spouse, I'm always on the alert for presidential doo-dads.