Writing the Blockbuster You Can Be Proud Of

Hey, gang,

I didn't want to post here until I had consistent Internet access to follow-through with it. Anyway, my novel Apollo's Arrow is finally finished and uploaded to the printers and we're directing all of our energy towards the promotion and marketing. I'm taking off my writing hat and putting on my P.T. Barnum hat. I'm getting lined up for the book fair, book show, book signing circuit for selling books, but at writing groups I was thinking about a lecture "Writing the Blockbuster You can be Proud of."

What I'd like to do is to triage the most pressing questions about self-publishing and marketing your fiction novel, in return, it would help me construct an outline. So, if you have any myths I can dispell or specifics you'd like to know about during the publishing and marketing phase for your novel I can save you months of wasted time and thousands of dollars/pounds and just direct you to where you need to start right here for free (it's because I've been a longtime member of ABCtales, and it's the best writing site on the Internet as far as I'm concerned). Also, I have an obligation to help get great stories out of boxes in people's closets and into print for the rest of us to enjoy.

I did see some inquiries about POD, or Print On Demand, in this forum; and that's the best way to get your book into the real world until you can afford offset printing and a distributor. I use Lightning Source, which is at www.lightningsource.com, and they also have a UK branch. Their print quality is exactly the same as any offset printed book, their service is excellent and their prices are a bargain, since you're eliminating a seperate distributor (no, I don't get any kickbacks from Lightning Source for saying this). Lightning Source will also list you with amazon.com, barnes&noble.com and a few others I can't think of right now for a nominal fee---I think it's $12 US a year.

Warren Weisman
www.apollosarrow.com