Road Signs: A Story of Practical Magic">Straddling the line between fantasy and literary fiction is a genre known as magical realism. It combines the poetic punch of literature with surreal and otherworldly elements to make a genre far richer than either genre alone. Our editors were pleased to work with such a book recently, and we're even more pleased to announce that Jay Archer David's ROAD SIGNS is now available to the public. "There is a road between places, between things, peoples and times. It conceals magic, bestows power-but mostly we travel it with eyes closed. David wants to open his eyes and travel farther." This is the premise behind ROAD SIGNS, and we've invited Jay Archer David to share more about his book, its creation, and his decision to self publish,  here.

TED: Tell us a little bit about the genesis of the book idea and/or how you came to decide to write it.

"A cabin hidden behind a padlocked gate, no power, no phone, just Revelation and a .38…a true story of abuse, loss, redemption and hope."

AS THE SYCAMORE GROWS, by Jennie Helderman, is a true story of domestic violence, told from the perspective of both the victim and the abuser. It's a unique take and provides an entirely new perspective on a very important, but often overlooked, subject. Unlike many books of this genre, SYCAMORE uses real names and places. The details were not changed, and the book includes photographs and copies of court documents from the participants. It was released by Summers Bridgewater Press, Inc. on October 11, 2010. To celebrate SYCAMORE's release in paperback and Kindle format, we invited author Jennie Helderman to tell us a little more about herself and the book. First, a little about Jennie and her approach to writing:

 

JH: I like to find out the how and why of things, whether it's reading mysteries, playing word games or working at Pompeii as I did one summer. I like to travel, but not with groups. I don't stay in line very well. I need to walk, let my feet touch the earth, and meet the people along the way. Back in 2000 I walked 125 miles of the Camino across northern Spain and I cherish that experience.

TED: Tell us a little bit about the genesis of the book idea and/or how you came to decide to write it.

This past week we received the thrilling news that two TED clients have been offered agent representation. Georgia McBride, author of the YA thriller PRAEFATIO, has signed with Mark McVeigh of The McVeigh Agency , and suspense novelist Nick Daniels, author of THE JIHAD'S MESSIAH, is now represented by Nicholas Croce of The Croce Agency after successful placement via our agent matchmaking program.

We previously featured Georgia McBride in our Building Your Author's Platform series, and she is proof that a great story and a strong online presence make an author irresistible to an agent. PRAEFATIO is the story of Grace Ann Miller, a girl found on a rock star's front lawn with no memory of how she got there. While the media has a field day with the rock star's arrest, "Grace has a much more shocking tale for the police than kidnapping. A secret existence steeped in ancient Biblical myth and guarded by the highest order of Angels-resulting in blood, death and more grief than Grace could ever imagine." Georgia is sharing the first chapter of PRAEFATIO on her web site, and you can view a book trailer there as well.

"What's your book about?"

If anyone knows that you are an aspiring writer, you have probably heard this question. It can come at awkward times - when another parent sees you typing away on the soccer field sidelines, or across the Thanksgiving table from a distant cousin. Or you can hear it at a writer's conference, when you find yourself in an elevator with the editor or agent who would be a perfect match for your Work In Progress.

So what do you say? You have spent months - even years - writing tens of thousands of words. You have agonized over the physical details of your characters or just the right anecdotes to help your readers understand your message. How can you possibly summarize it in the time it takes Uncle George to pass the gravy, or in time it takes your dream publishing partner to reach the twenty-second floor?

There are all sorts of reasons we love ebooks at The Editorial Department. We appreciate the fact that soaring ebook sales represent one real bright spot in an otherwise gloomy publishing economy. It's also very encouraging to see part of this remarkable upswing coming from publishers recognizing what ebooks can do for their authors whose books are no longer available in hardcopy.

It wasn't so long ago that once a book went out of print, a reader's only resource was a library or a used book store. All too often it seems that only the most famous authors--the Stephen Kings and JK Rowlings--have most of their catalog available and in print. The rest of us are at the mercy of sales numbers and limited print runs. But thanks to ebooks, that's all changing, and it's truly a win/win situation for writers and their publishers.

One of our favorite cases in point comes from a client of ours named Ann Brandt, whose original path to publication with HarperCollins in 1999 was harrowing as it was thrilling.

Her debut novel, Crowfoot Ridge, tells the story of a remarkable journey of courage and self discovery as a woman trapped in a loveless marriage and a life she can no longer stand confronts the darkest secrets of her past and reconnects with a life she never should have left behind. Crowfoot Ridge is a beautiful, moving novel that, sadly, has been out of print for quite some time. But now it's been given a well-deserved new life as a September, 2010 ebook release from HarperCollins.

To celebrate her return to print, we'd like to share Ann's story with you, in her own words. Like most published authors, her story is one of persistence, patience, and the unflagging dedication it takes to bring a book to fruition. We were delighted to be a part of Ann's creative journey and are thrilled her story is once again available to old and new fans.

In the last part of the How to Build Your Author's Platform series, I featured Dora Machado, a traditionally published author who came to platform building late in the game. For today's feature, I interviewed Georgia McBride, a YA author with a very different perspective. Georgia is not yet traditionally published, but she has an impressive social media presence, and is very active in both promoting her writing and mentoring and supporting up-and-coming authors. She also speaks to teens about writing, promoting within her target audience, and nurturing the next generation of writers. She has a background as a marketer and manager in the music industry, and has been a part of the launch of several teen and tween music brands including N'SYNC and Fall Out Boy. She's no stranger to promotion and branding, and her expertise can help both new and established authors refine their web presence.

TED: There are many ways to connect with potential readers and publishers. Which do you consider the most essential?

GM: You want both potential readers and publishers to recognize your name when the time comes. However, the attention span of a consumer (potential reader) is so short that spending lots of time trying to get their attention (and God forbid money) now, when there is no book/physical product to promote is like playing the boy who cried wolf. When you finally do have a book out they will be so tired of hearing about you, they may move right on past.

In part two of my series on Building an Author's Platform, I've asked a few authors to share their experiences. First up is Dora Machado, author of the Stonewiser series of award winning fantasy novels. Dora is a client of ours who has had great success with her debut novel, Stonewiser: The Heart of the Stone, and the sequels The Call of the Stone and The Lament of the Stone. All are published by Mermaid Press, a small press specializing in science fiction, fantasy, and historical novels. Like many authors, Dora poured all her energy and focus into achieving publication, and didn't give much thought to the need for a publicity platform. She was gracious enough to share her thoughts on publicity before and after the book deal.

What was your platform like before your first book was published? Did you have an online presence related to your writing?

I had no platform when my first book, Stonewiser: The Heart of the Stone was published. Zero. Zilch. Nothing. I'm embarrassed to say it, but it's true. I had been so busy writing that I had given little thought to the writing life away from the keyboard. In retrospect, I understand having an early platform may have helped me to publish earlier, but back then my mind was consumed by the idea of perfecting my manuscripts. I think writing can be such a demanding craft that sometimes it's hard to see beyond the end of a story.

Part two of this series is in the works, but I have so many great links and tips to share that I can't resist dropping in with a short post in between the meaty ones. Hopefully you've had a chance to read How to Build an Author's Platform: An Overview by now. If not, go ahead. I'll wait. All done?

The next thing I'd like to focus on is the art of crafting your pitch. It's all well and good to have an eye-catching web site and an engaging twitter presence, but what really matters is your ability to catch the interest of an agent or publisher.

In the past few weeks, there has been a surge of interest in the topic of building a platform. Agent and industry blogs are buzzing about the importance of having a platform, but few are pointing to resources for authors. To help fill the gap, I'm starting a short series on platform building. I'll begin with a round-up of helpful links, then share tips on maintaining your platform, and focus on a few authors who are doing it right.

First off, what is an author platform? In its simplest sense, a platform is a public presence. This means you have, at the very least, a web site and an account on any of the major social networking sites. It used to be that book publishers would handle a fair bit of a book's marketing and the author's publicity, but these days the publishers expect you to do the lion's share yourself. In fact, most expect you to have a presence before you approach them with your manuscript. Yes, you need to have a platform before you have a book to promote.

It's more than the numbers

It is fairly easy to create a Twitter account and amass hundreds of followers, but publishers don't care about the numbers.

I'll admit that I was skeptical about the marketability of "another cancer memoir" when Valerie Reiss' book proposal first crossed my desk. There are so may of them out there these days, and memoirs by the non-famous are such a tough sell, and, and, and... then I read it. It's true that it was a cancer memoir. But it was a cancer memoir with a clever and charming voice, intelligent, well-written content, and a very unique angle. In fact, the proposal was so good that we didn't even need to edit it!

 

Valerie had queried agents on her own in the past, but hadn't made much headway. We offered to go to bat for her and her fantastic project via our agent matchmaking program, and in late January we sent out the first round of submissions.