Jami Attenberg Names the Most Dysfunctional Families in Literature~Is Your Favorite Novel on the List?

Posted on November 6, 2012 by Regina Jeffers

This article comes from Publisher’s Weekly. I admit that when I read the title of the article, I immediately thought “Pride and Prejudice” and “Wuthering Heights.” My second thought included “The Way We Live Now,” “Ethan Frome,” and “House of Mirth.” What do you think of Attenberg’s list? WHAT BOOKS WOULD YOU ADD TO THE MIX? THERE ARE LOTS OF DYSFUNCTIONAL FAMILIES OUT THERE. If you wish more than a list of the titles, Ms. Attenberg includes her reasoning at http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/tip-sheet/article/54424-the-most-dysfunctional-families-in-literature.html

Neuroses run rampant across three generations of the Middlestein family in Jami Attenberg’s sublime new novel,The Middlesteins. Who better to recommend great books about profoundly imperfect families?

In literature, as in life, every family is pretty much dysfunctional in one way or another. So what makes one dysfunctional literary family more memorable than the next? Personally, I prefer a little wit with my disaster, not to mention a little soul; it makes the pain go down easier. But every once in a while I like my families extra wicked and dark. I guess it makes me feel like I’m not that terrible after all.

Jonathan Franzen’s “The Corrections”

Lionel Shriver’s “We Need to Talk About Kevin”

George R.R. Martin’s “Game of Thrones”

Andre Dubus III’s “Townie”

Lauren Groff’s “Arcadia”

Mario Puzo’s “The Godfather”

Alison Bechdel’s “Fun Home”

Maria Semple’s “Where’d You Go Bernadette?”

Jane Austen’s “Pride and Prejudice”

Jeannette Walls’s “The Glass Castle”

Posted in Industry News/Publishing, Jane Austen, writing | Comments Off on Jami Attenberg Names the Most Dysfunctional Families in Literature~Is Your Favorite Novel on the List?

Women Writers in Jane Austen’s Time

Posted on November 5, 2012 by Regina Jeffers

Novels during the early Regency were geared toward the female reader; therefore, the door opened, if only a crack, for the female writer to step through. The female writers of the time assisted Jane Austen in several ways, among them the influence on her writing and building an audience for Austen’s early works.

The early female authors faced something that Austen did not. They faced public criticism, as women of the time, especially those of genteel birth, did not seek employment of any kind. Women were not to pursue fame and a career. They were discouraged by their husbands and families from publishing their works. Austen was fortunate to have a family who encouraged her writing, but even she published anonymously. Austen’s father, the Reverend Austen, even approached a publisher for Jane when she was but two and twenty. Later, Jane’s brother acted as her representative with the publisher under which she served.

Women of the period had a limited number of means at their disposal under which they might see their works come to fruition:

(1) Publishing by subscription – Subscribers signed up to purchase a novel. When enough subscriptions were guaranteed, then the publisher released the book.

(2) Publishing by profit sharing – The publisher released the book at his expense. Copies were sold until a profit was made. Only then did the author received a fee for his work. If no profit was made, the author received nothing, but the pleasure of seeing her name in print.

(3) Publishing by selling the copyright – The author took a chance in selling her copyright to the publisher. She would receive a fee for the sale, but nothing beyond that. If the book  made a profit, only the publisher benefited.

(4) Publishing on commission – For this venture, the author paid all the costs for the book’s publication. The publisher acted as the author’s distributor. In the sales, the publisher would earn a 10% fee from the profits. If the book saw no profits, the loss rested on the author’s shoulders alone. This was the method Jane Austen used for her releases. Jane Austen published her first book at the age of four and thirty.

First Edition title page of Austen’s “Sense and Sensibility,” published in 1811

 

Posted in British history, Jane Austen, Regency era, writing | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Pledging Profits from November Book Sales to Hurricane Sandy Relief Efforts

Posted on November 3, 2012 by Regina Jeffers

In response to a challenge by my friends Abigail Reynolds and Sally Smith O’Rourke, I am donating half the profits from my November book sales from any of my Indie titles to Hurricane Sandy Relief. No matter the format (print or eBook). No matter the retailer (Amazon, CreateSpace, Barnes & Noble, Nook, Kindle, Kobo, Smashwords). Buy one of the following at your favorite online outlet and in your favorite format. I will donate half the profits to the Hurricane Sandy Relief efforts to aid those in the Northeast.

A Touch of Velvet (Book 2 of the Realm Series)

A Touch of Cashémere (Book 3 of the Realm Series)

A Touch of Grace (Book 4 of the Realm Series) 

The First Wives’ Club 

Honor and Hope: A Contemporary Romantica Based on Pride and Prejudice

Second Chances: The Courtship Wars

Darcy’s Passions: Fitzwilliam Darcy’s Story (Be certain it is the version  pictured below that you purchase.)

Posted in Industry News/Publishing, Regency era, writing | Tagged , , , , , , | 7 Comments

A Breakdown of How Bestsellers Lists Are Determined

Posted on November 2, 2012 by Regina Jeffers

This short article comes from Tim Ferriss. It is a great summary of how The New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, and USA Today Bestsellers Lists are determined. What factors are considered in creating these lists? Mr. Ferris also introduces the reader to The Amazon Monthly 100. If you are an author or a budding writer, this one is well worth the read.  To read the article, please visit http://www.fourhourworkweek.com/blog/2012/08/17/amazon-monthly-100/

“Having had two bestsellers (and preparing to launch what I hope will be a third), I’m constantly asked about how bestseller lists work.  It can be a very complicated subject, but I’ll provide a summary of the major lists below, with the bonus of a brand-new list you’ve never seen: The Amazon Monthly 100.”

Posted in Industry News/Publishing | Comments Off on A Breakdown of How Bestsellers Lists Are Determined

Regency Era Lexicon – the Letters “I” and “J” and “K”

Posted on November 1, 2012 by Regina Jeffers

Imperial – the term “imperial” designated the officially adopted uniform system of weights and measures that replaced the MANY different standards that the English had used prior to 1820

Impropriate – tithes made to a layman rather than to a member of the clergy

Indenture – the agreement between an apprentice and the master craftsman

India Office – the governmental office that oversaw “issues” in India

india rubber – used to make erasers

inform – to bring formal criminal charges against a person

in-law – used to both designate a relationship achieved through marriage (mother-in-law, brother-in-law, etc.), as well as a step relationship [also “brother” and “sister” was often used to designate an “in-law” relationship]

Inns of Court – four institutions [the Inner Temple, the Middle Temple, Lincoln’s Inn, and Gray’s Inn] which housed barristers and their law offices, as well as dining facilities for the barristers and law students

Irish Union Act – actually two complementary acts [The Union with Ireland Act 1800 and The Act of Union 1800]; passed on 2 July 1800 and 1 August 1800 respectively, the twin Acts united the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Ireland to create the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland; the union came into effect on 1 January 1801

ironmongers – a seller of hardware

irregulars – part-time volunteers or militia

jackboots – above the knee boots, often worn by the military to protect the knee/leg from leg injuries and sword attacks

Jack Ketch – an infamous hangman from the 1600s; his name became synonymous with the hangman

Janeites – a term used for devoted fans of Jane Austen; was popularized by Rudyard Kipling in a short story called “The Janeites,” first published in 1924

jet – coal that is highly polished and made into beads, etc.; one of the few jewels that were considered acceptable to wear during mourning

jig – a lively one-person dance

jobber – one who rented horses

The Jockey Club (a supposedly anonymous pamphlet, also known as Sketch of the Manners of the Age) – written in 1792 by the Radical journalist Charles Pigott; to answer the questions of the Prince Regent “unsuitable friends,” his mistress Mrs Fitzherbert, and his debts

jointure – the portion of the husband’s estate which he would leave to his widow upon his death; part of the “marriage settlements” which preceded marriages

joseph – an old-fashioned long coat, which was worn by woman when riding; was buttoned down the front

junior lordship – subordinate positons in governmental departments

justice of the peace – position to regulate peaceful/law affairs in a county; commissioned from the lord lieutenant

Juvenilia – the early works of Jane Austen

Kensington – an area just beyond Hyde Park in the western section of London

King’s Bench – one of the three superior courts of common law that sat in Westminster Hall in London; heard criminal cause

K. C. – an abbreviation following the name of barristers who were actually supposed to be counselors to the king; the initials represent “King’s Counsel”

knife – long favored as the instrument with which one ate; forks were late comers to the English table.

knight – the lowest of the titled ranks; used “Sir” before his given name (Sir William in Austen’s “Pride and Prejudice”); his wife was “Lady” + surname (Lady Lucas); a knight’s property was not automatically entailed

Posted in British history, Regency era | 4 Comments

The Journey of an Indie Author and Free KDP Marketing

Posted on October 30, 2012 by Regina Jeffers

This article comes for David Biddle and A Knife and A Quill. Please visit http://aknifeandaquill.wordpress.com/2012/08/24/the-challenge-with-free-kdp-select-and-selling-books/ for the complete article. It’s well worth reading if you are thinking of offering your book as part of a “free” campaign.

 I recently ran a Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) free day campaign for my novel, Beyond the Will of God. The kickoff was on a Friday, so it got listed here at A Knife and a Quill, in the WTFBF feature. I did some long legwork getting a number of indie websites to include my novel in their “free” listings. I also tweeted the crap out of my offering. And I bombed my FaceBook friends and Google+ buddies with information on these free days.

It all turned out better than I could have hoped for. My little novel was downloaded by over 10,000 ereaders in a three-day period of time. Before that, I’d made 62 e-book sales (at $2.99) and 13 paperback sales (at $15.99).

So, more than 10,000 people can now read my story. That’s incredible. I’m not letting myself think about the fact that I gave away over $30,000 worth of books. I know the value of having my book in the hands of 10,000 people. The idea of the KDP free days promo is to give your novel lift for a while on the Amazon lists and to make it likely that word-of-mouth about your book will pick up. According to Rex Jameson in his article “Preparing for Your KDP Select Free Days,” “It will take 2-5 days for paid sales to start rolling in after a free period.”

Well, we’ll see. I’ve been getting about 10 purchases a day for the past week – not huge, but consistent.

But I realized something pretty important by Sunday morning during my free run: people who download things for free are not the same as people who buy things for real money.

Posted in Industry News/Publishing | Comments Off on The Journey of an Indie Author and Free KDP Marketing

What To Really Believe About The Ten Rules of Writing

Posted on October 29, 2012 by Regina Jeffers

This article comes from The Saturday Morning Post. To read the complete article and ALL the advice, please visit http://joeponepinto.com/2012/09/22/the-10-most-encouraging-and-the-10-scariest-of-the-10-rules-of-writing-from-28-writers/

The 10 Most Encouraging and the 10 Scariest of the 10 Rules of Writing from 28 Writers

POSTED BY  ⋅ SEPTEMBER 22, 2012 ⋅ 30 COMMENTS

Part 1, because otherwise this blog would be ridiculously long.

In my Internet travels this week I stumbled on an article published in The Guardian, in which 28 famous writers offered their “Ten Rules for Writing Fiction.” The rules are a couple of years old, and the writers mostly British, but some of their suggestions stopped me cold, because they call out some of my biggest writing fears.

Of course, with 28 writers, there’s bound to be overlap—at least a quarter of them suggested a “long walk” as a good way to clear one’s head or solve a plot problem. And there’s contradiction aplenty too. For example, got a piece you just can’t make work? Neil Gaiman says finish it; Helen Dunmore says throw it away. Maybe I don’t need to take these so seriously, but as I write this blog, some of the rules have me reconsidering what and how I write.

Among the 200-plus rules (not everyone offered ten), here were ten I found encouraging.

Posted in Industry News/Publishing, writing | Comments Off on What To Really Believe About The Ten Rules of Writing

Jane Austen and Healing Depression

Posted on October 26, 2012 by Regina Jeffers

This article comes from JoJo Moyes and The Telegraph. To read the complete article and several complementary ones, please visit http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/7535768/The-healing-power-of-Jane-Austen.html

I can’t have been the only one taken aback to hear that the apparently cheerful and pragmatic Emma Thompson suffered severe depression after the break-up of her first marriage, and to such a debilitating extent that, in her own words, she “should have sought professional help”.

But her choice of self-medication drew a huge nod of recognition, in this house at least. For Thompson was “saved” not by Prozac, or Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, but by immersing herself in Sense and Sensibility, the Jane Austen novel she turned into an Oscar-winning screenplay. “I used to crawl from the bedroom to the computer and just sit and write, and then I was all right, because I was not present,” the actress and screenwriter said. “Sense and Sensibility really saved me from going under, I think, in a very nasty way.”

Obviously meeting the very handsome Greg Wise, starring opposite him in said film, and then marrying him might have provided a little balm to the soul too, but as anyone who loves books knows, fiction – and Austen especially – is a great remedy for the steeper humps of the human condition. In fact, so effective is Austen’s facility for helping people overcome adversity that she has spawned a sub-genre: books like The Jane Austen Book Club – in which characters improve their lives and overcome heartbreak through reading … um …Austen.

Posted in Jane Austen, Regency era | 4 Comments

Writing About the “Senses”

Posted on October 25, 2012 by Regina Jeffers

This article comes from The Editor’s Blog: It’s All About the Words, and it is excellent!!!! To read the complete article and to pick up some excellent pointers, please visit http://theeditorsblog.net/2012/09/09/the-eyes-dont-always-have-it/

Maybe I should say, the eyes shouldn’t always have it.

No, the title isn’t a reference to parliamentary procedures, simply a play on words.

While we learned all about the five senses when we were kids, and while we sometimes read of characters with extra senses, I’ve found that writers often limit their characters to a single sense.

Characters interact with their story world by seeing people and events and objects. They don’t necessarily notice every detail, but they do notice, through the visual, quite often.

That is, they see a lot more than they touch, taste, smell, or hear.

They look over at, look up at, look down toward. They see the expression on another character’s face and correctly conclude that character’s emotional state, often from a single glance (but that’s fodder for another article).

And while they’re always looking, the style or method of looking usually isn’t conveyed to the reader.

Writers tend to use the same words in every scene of every story to show how a character sees, and many times those words are simply too basic or bland. They add no punch to the scene. They fail to take advantage of a character’s emotions, educational background, or experiences. They may be a poor fit for the genre.

The two terms I find used most often for conveying a character’s perception of events or other characters, through sight, are look at and glance at. And those words are repeated many times in most manuscripts.

Posted in Industry News/Publishing, writing | Comments Off on Writing About the “Senses”

Ingrams will Distribute Amazon eBooks to Amazon Competitors

Posted on October 24, 2012 by Regina Jeffers

This article came from paidContent. If you are interested in the complete article, please visit http://paidcontent.org/2012/08/29/exclusive-amazon-ny-to-sell-its-ebooks-through-bn-kobo-other-retailers/

Amazon’s New York-based book publishing imprint, which is headed by publishing industry vet Larry Kirshbaum, has signed a deal with Ingram to distribute its ebooks to other retailers, paidContent has learned. Amazon and Ingram confirmed the news.

The deal, with Ingram’s digital distribution arm CoreSource, will make the ebooks available to Amazon competitors like Barnes & Noble, Apple and Kobo — though, of course, those competitors won’t be required to stock Amazon titles. The idea of Apple selling Amazon’s ebooks is particularly interesting, given the Department of Justice’s lawsuit against Apple and book publishers for allegedly colluding to set ebook prices.

Posted in Industry News/Publishing | Comments Off on Ingrams will Distribute Amazon eBooks to Amazon Competitors