Why Books Don't Sell!

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Warning, I’m going to try and sell you something. It’s billed as ‘the best new writing from ABCtales’. Who decides what’s best? That’s a question that is often difficult to answer. Certainly, Stephen Thom, who wrote story of the year is here. And Alex Graves who wins poems of the year, every year, is included. My work is also in, but I’d guess that’s because I’ll have a book out later this year in which ABCtales act as my agent and get a fee. I’m glad about that. Although it costs nothing to join ABCtales, or to publish your work online, the expense of running the site is met by Tony Cook, chief cook and bottle washer. Every year I pay around £40 to ABCtales because I know it’s not free and I can afford it. Mr Cook will probably pop up here and say no you don’t – in the eight years you’ve been here you’ve paid six shillings and two pence. But listen, I’ve got an active imagination and no real interest in Facebook, I do like stringing a few sentences together and passing them off as original prose. And I get a buzz when someone reads it and comments. Without a reader the circuit of writing is not complete. ABCtales gives me that opportunity. It gives you that opportunity. But I’m not stupid. I know whatever I’ve written will be forgotten quicker that a photo of last night’s dinner. That doesn’t bother me. There’s no glory in what you’ve written, but what you’ve still to write. Even then, I’ve no illusions, ABCtales is gang hut in hyperspace few folk know about and fewer still cares?

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Well, I care, because it’s my gang hut and my turf. And John Wilks who edited this slim volume also cares. He offered up his time and expertise to get this published. Publishing is the easy part. We all know that now. There’s an extract from Joe Lawrence’s East End Butcher Boy here and it’s better than anything published by Unbound, and I include my own work in that. The difficult part is selling something. I know that and Laurie knows that and Ewan knows that and Tony knows that. And I’d add that Scratch (Peter) who has also written a novel on ABCtales, although he’s not included in this volume, also knows that. It’s only when you actually go and try and sell something that you realise how difficult it actually is. It’s not like that Kevin Coster film Field of Dreams, when you build that baseball diamond, ‘they will come’. No they fucking willnae.  Ask Richard Penny,  who has a story here ‘The Tipping Point’, but who also published a sister volume,  My Baby Shot Me Down which included the works of some my favourite writers on ABCtales, including Rachael Smart, Claudine Lazar and ‘Katherine Black’ (Harpie). And really if you’re going to publish the best of ABCtales you’ve to have something from Maggy van Eijk. Why stop there? What about Philip Sidney who is also not included in this volume and to my mind merits inclusion (I love this for example,  http://www.abctales.com/story/philip-sidney/triptych-1-mass). But I don’t really think it matters that those other names aren’t there. That’s editor’s choice. I’ve been there with A Celtic Anthology, which I co-edited with Kevin McCallum (Old Pesky on ABCtales). I could rattle off another few anthologies I’ve been involved in. It’s that gang-hut mentality that makes you part of a group, and your mum and your sister and their brother might buy a copy. And then you become invisible. Christopher Isherwood’s narrator in The Berlin Novels jokes about selling eight copies of his poetry before fleeing England for Berlin. Funnily enough that’s the number of copies John Wilks claimed to have sold so far. I can name a few buyers. Joe Lawrence, Claudine Lazar, Ewan Lawrie and myself. That’s 50% of the buyers. And it’s pathetic. Thirty of those published in the volume haven’t bothered buying a copy. Whatever the opposite of resounding success this is the opposite.  Build the field and they will come? Just because you get ABCtales for nothing, doesn’t mean it costs nothing. Put something back (if you can afford it). There’s some good stuff here. I can’t claim any credit for that. At least think about it.   

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/offer-listing/1326510258/ref=sr_1_1_twi_pap_1_olp?ie=UTF8&qid=1453034710&sr=8-1&keywords=abctale

http://www.best-book-price.co.uk/Product-266239/1326510258-Abctales.html

Comments

Just for the record I have one piece in the book and I  bought a copy. Does that make it 62.5% of sales?

 

I bought 3 yes yes reviews help. There are wee sites could send it to for reviews/promo

 

 

you're points are taken, 62.5% less discounted copies. My point is this is my blog and I write what I want. I write fiction. More print the legend kinda guy.  

 

well said Celtic et al. Hopefully a few more sales will come from this!

 

I will buy one. Have been self absorbed lately. Let's try for ten. 

 

Writing it is the easy bit. Getting someone to buy it is the hard part. My blood boils when I hear someone say " Read your book mate. loved it." Then they add. " I borrowed it from Steve then I lent it to Tom." That means 3 reads but only one copy sold. I reply "Why didn't you flippin buy a copy its less then a fiver!"  So please buy a copy of the book. The anthology is great, with brilliant poems and stories. Buy a few, give them as presents on Birthdays if you like. But buy them. PLEASE.

 

I bought six copies. Gave them away as xmas presents to some friends and family who don't seem to read my stuff no matter how many times I send them the link. My wife has been telling everyone she knows about there being a book, and now other family members and friends want to know why they didn't get a copy. lol. Now I have to order more books. Go figure. Happy to do so. I live in a small artsy-fartsy village. Population 2,000. Everyone knows everyone. I will post a notice around town. Wish I'd thought of it sooner, but I'm a little off my game this year. Btw. I want Daniel Day Lewis to play Joe in the movie version of The East End Butcher Boy. I like the way he handled a butchers knife in Gangs of New York. It's a damn fine book and there's definately a movie there. Cheers.

Rich

 

well, Daniel Day Lewis would be good, but I'd just get Joe on a Rocky training scheme and get him to play himself. That's what Stallone does in every film. I've been saying for years, it's a better film script than any of the other stuff like Lock Stock, by a factor of 10 plus. It would be easy enough to write the script, taken directly from the book, no need for any great innovation. 

 

Daniel Day Lewis was a bit busy when I asked him so thats a no go I'm afraid. My Rocky days are behind me so thats me out. But theres good news and bad news. The good news is that the phone keeps ringing from someone wanting to play the part, the bad news is it's Danny Dyer!

 

Damn you, Lewis! If he won't play you, Joe, I will! Get me my script. I'll be in the dressing room practicing my slicing technique. Also my British accent. (Think I'll go with Dick Van Dyke's Bert from Mary Poppins.) lol.

 

I bought eleven books but  I'm annoyed because I missed a trick with my Parkinson  group so will   try  to get it included in our newsletter.  It is a beautifully  produced quality book with a super cover and I am  thjrilled  to have st ory in it .   sorry about                                                                  tyoubg  tii early for neds. cant keeo correctinng.

moya x

 

 

I'll play the part of Bruce Lee with a Scottish accent in the film. Obviously, we don't want two of us sounding like Dick van Dyke. 

 

You as a kilted Bruce Lee and me as a grimey chimney sweep butcher boy with an over-the-top British accent would be fantastic, celtic. We'd leap from rooftop to rooftop sweeping chimneys, artfully slicing choice cuts of beef and winning the hearts of curvy carnivores everywhere! Damn, I'm psyched!

 

To hell with publishing. It's a mug's game

 

well, you'd know that better than most blighters. 

 

Books do sell, obviously, but they have to be spoken for, marketed and mediated by those who have a vested interest in the global market as a closed book (excuse the pun). Without these people, the constant regurgitation of classics and food/mindfulness publications wouldn't be at the helm. If serious publishers still existed, rather than the conglomerates that invade our senses to satisfy their own ends, they'd be clamouring over eachother to sign Alex Graves but poetry's for the birds these days, even when people's attention spans are being compressed to bitesize. In terms of fiction, the public probably believe that everything that needed to be written has been, much like the music industry, so they've lost faith in new titles/authors. When Bowie died, I realised/imagined that there would never be another even remotely as influential, so maybe the big guns are right in sapping the market with tie-in tripe. Cynical, yes.