MARCH 2011
MARCH 2011
Spokane Authors and Self-Publishers (SASP) began in 1998 when Chuck O’Conner, Elmer Freeman, Joe Meiners,
and Dan Vollmer, Spokane area authors
formed a club in order to share their knowledge and experience with those
interested in writing and alternative ways of publishing. Today, SASP is a large non-profit
organization dedicated to anyone with interests in any aspect of writing and
art. Members now include aspiring (and
successful) authors, poets, journalists, illustrators, editors, publishers,
printers, writing instructors, and many others.
Monthly luncheon meetings provide inspiration and education by way of
knowledgeable and entertaining guest speakers, and the cheerful camaraderie of
people sharing common interests and goals.
Membership is open to all who love writing, art, and interesting people.
Spokane
Authors and Self-Publishers meets
the first Thursday of each month, September through May, in the banquet (back)
room of the Old Country Buffet
(509) 484-5026
Speakers’
presentations begin at NOON. The room opens at 11:00 AM to allow members and guests to dine, converse, join, pay
dues, browse, and perhaps buy other member’s books that are on display. Generally a short business meeting is held,
either before or after the formal presentation.
New members and guests are introduced, members relate their accomplishments,
and various door prizes are awarded.
All
members and guests are requested to buy lunch upon entering the establishment,
and to leave an appropriate tip for the waiter/waitress.
Members
need to be present to win door prizes.
Current
membership benefits include a
listing on the SASP website, www.spokaneauthors.org. Many
members provide short biographies and links to external personal websites,
creating more marketing exposure.
Current members may list and describe their published works on the SASP
website and offer their work for sale at meetings.
Guest speakers at our monthly meetings
inform, inspire, and entertain members and guests with a variety of topics, all
designed to provide knowledge pertinent to writing and publishing.
SASP
members are encouraged to purchase or trade completed works of and with fellow
members. They are also encouraged to
donate examples of their work for use as door prizes. Those who win other members’ works are
expected to provide a review of that work.
Dues for SASP
membership are $15.00 per calendar year.
Dues may be paid directly to
our Treasurer at our monthly meetings.
Alternatively, you may remit your dues to:
2011 Officers
President:
Dave McChesney (509) 325-2072
Vice-President:
Bob Weldin (509) 327-2897
Secretary:
Robert Pillsbury (509) 842-6803
rvpsasp07@comcast.net
Treasurer:
Bonnie Stichart (509) 684-0424
Public-Relations:
Russ
Davis (509) 768-6206
Newsletter Editor:
Jim
Parry 509)
325-9922
parry9922@q.com
Web Master:
Dave
McChesney (509) 325-2072
Advisory Board:
Jolene Feher (509) 489-0544
fehersong@yahoo.com
Gail Mangano (509) 535-1434
mamamia3224@comcast.net
Bob Manion (509) 448-2901
gunnerbob@comcast.net
OUR
NEXT MEETING!
Please join us on Thursday,
March 3 at 12 noon. We’ll be at our
usual location, Old Country Buffet,
We
are honored to have an award-winning published author as our guest speaker this
month. Dawn Nelson currently has five books published, another at the editor’s,
and 36 manuscripts in different stages on her home computer. Dawn and her husband own and operate a large
cattle ranch in
Ms.
Nelson will explain how to market your book. She believes strongly that
“marketing is what sells a book, period; end of story.” She will discuss various ways of marketing
your book, paying particular attention to hard-to-market books. Dawn encourages you to bring one of your
books with you to the meeting, even if it’s still in manuscript form.
The
President’s Page
February 2011
OUR LAST MEETING
Whether
it was the speaker and his topic, or the condition of the roads and weather, we
had a great turn out for our February meeting.
Andrew Corder, senior editor at Gray Dog Press, graciously discussed the
various publishing options available to writers and patiently answered all of
our questions.
Following
a well-deserved break, we met guests Dave Clark and Nancy Hill. We all hope you enjoyed your time with us and
that you will return as full-fledged members.
Attending for the first time and immediately becoming members were Jim
Stinson and Steve Ward. Welcome!
James
Vasquez has two new books out. Soul
Karriem will have a book signing in the next couple of days and then will take
a hiatus from marketing activities.
Relatively new member Bobbie Ochse announced her upcoming signing at
Auntie’s Bookstore. Lastly, Dave
McChesney noted that, if by the middle of the summer, no offers of
representation or publication were forthcoming, he would pursue the
self-publishing route.
We
had a bonanza of door prizes. Due to the
new arrangement for group meetings with Old Country Buffet, we had certificates
for two free meals. While one should
have gone to our speaker, we weren’t sure of the process and ended up including
both as door prizes. Joan Carter and
Bonnie Stichart were recipients of these.
SASP also provided a free meal, for which Kevin Kuenkler had the winning
ticket. John Heffernan donated a copy of
Not One Drop of Blood, won by Jim
Stinson. Michael Marsden won a copy of
James Vasquez’s Words Jesus Spoke (in
Verse). Peggy De Hart donated a copy
of Sheriffs 1911 – 1989 by Tony
Bamonte, and Soul Karriem took that volume home. Finally, Loren Robinson provided two of his
books in audio format. Kevin Kuenkler
took home The Guardian, and Bob
Weldin won Follow Your Star. (Multiple prizes are possible when purchasing
extra tickets.)
Standard
announcements concerning copies of the newsletter being available at the front,
the need for members to write and submit bios, a request for reviews of fellow
members’ books, and mention of dues for 2011 were made. Ideas for future programs were requested,
along with the note that such be routed through Vice-president Bob Weldin. Dave mentioned he would check on the
possibility of SASP members selling and signing books in conjunction with the
Spokane Club’s annual Craft Fair in November.
OTHER ITEMS OF INTEREST
At
our January meeting many of us were upset by the change in Old Country Buffet’s
pricing policy. Our secretary generated
a questionnaire that was sent along with the meeting announcement for the February
meeting and copies were available at the meeting. Of those that responded, the overwhelming
majority suggest that we stay where we are.
One of these folks did suggest that we try a different location this
summer and see what happens. Another
commented that if we met more frequently, a location closer to downtown would
be better.
One
individual asked that we find another location for our monthly SASP
meetings. This person noted that
availability of food was not important, and that being on a fixed income, it
would be a relief to not be forced to buy a meal in order to attend or
participate. This member also suggested
meeting either earlier or later in the day, but ruled out evening meetings. Finally, it was suggested that a meeting
location in the
It
appears that SASP will be at Old Country Buffet for some time to come. However, we cannot be insensitive to members
who feel a genuine hardship in paying for a meal in order to attend our
meetings. Over the next few months,
perhaps we can come up with a way to assist these individuals without invading
their privacy or causing resentment amongst other members.
Following
our last meeting, the question of changing our name circulated within the board
of directors and advisory board. With
all but two of those individuals responding in some fashion, it appears we are
content to continue with our current name.
If even some of us are self-published, shouldn’t we be proud of it? Shouldn’t we flaunt it, while working to
lessen the stigma that is sometimes attached to self-publishing?
Lastly,
our Peer Review Program seems to have lost whatever momentum it had. Is it too formal of a process, both for
submitters, as well as those charged with administering or reviewing
submissions? Should SASP simply be a
contact point between those with work to be read and those available to read
it?
On March 3rd we are
scheduled to have Dawn Nelson, a local western writer published by Gray Dog
Press speak about marketing. In April we
will hear from Mary Farrell, a children’s book author and member of the local
chapter of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators. I’m sure her presentation will be welcome by
our members specializing in work for younger readers. A Novel (or any other kind of) Writing Forum
is a possibility for some future meeting.
Write
on,
For What It’s Worth
Recently, the editorial staff here at the SASP Newsletter conducted an interview with a potential SASP Newsletter editor. (The current editor is retiring as soon as a successor can be found, or at the end of the year – whichever comes first.)
The following is a transcript of the interview with the front-running candidate (Potential Editor of the Newsletter). It was administered by the current editor (Incumbent Newsletter Know-It-All):
Incumbent
Newsletter Know-It-All – Thank you
for showing an interest in this position and for meeting with me today
Potential Editor of the Newsletter – It is my pleasure. I’m here to learn more about this job.
I.N.K. – Well, it’s actually a fairly easy job. I simply use the previous month’s newsletter as
a template; that is, I copy and paste the old newsletter to a blank document,
and from there, start adding and deleting.
The month gets changed on the title page and in the footers, and then
it’s just a matter of deleting the previous Speaker’s Bio and sticking in the new one. Same goes for the President’s Page (which Dave emails me), for the NEWS, and for the For What It’s Worth column.
P.E.N. – Would I be allowed to change the set-up? Like, what if I
wanted to get rid of that stupid For
What It’s Worth feature? Hope I’m
not stepping
on any toes.
INK – Ouch! You could change anything you want to. You’d be the editor-in-charge. The column was just a little self-indulgence
on my part. I don’t think anyone reads
it, except Michael Marsden, Esther Hildahl, and Dave McChesney.
PEN – Great! By the way, why
are you quitting?
INK – Well, I’ve been doing the job for over a year now. Also, I’m hoping to write another book and
want to devote more time to that project.
Although, as I said earlier, the editorial position is not too tough, nor
does it take up much time. It takes me
only about an hour or two to update everything.
(And remember: It’s just once a
month.) Then it takes another half-hour to run-off 10 copies for the members who
don’t have internet access (and I e-mail an attachment to Dave to post), and,
finally, another hour to fold,
label, and stamp those 10 copies. The For What It’s Worth column is a bit
trickier. For me, it’s a matter of getting an idea, be it from
something overheard at a SASP meeting or something observed at a book signing. Then, in my case, it takes anywhere from 20 minutes to four hours to get it into
some sort of coherent written form. But
sounds like you might throw out the column anyway
– which would save you several hours. Or
maybe you’ll want to start your own feature.
PEN – So, do you think this editing of the newsletter is a
worthwhile endeavor?
INK – You betcha! There are always a few minor hiccups here and
there, but, overall, it’s been a very enjoyable experience. And the membership finds value in it. As a bonus, it has sharpened my writing and
computer skills. You seem like a
well-qualified candidate so I’d like to offer you the job. By the way, Dave McChesney and I would be
glad to show you the ropes and help you get started. We’ll offer as much assistance as necessary
to get you off and running.
PEN – Garsh. Let me think about it. In the meantime, why don’t you open the position
to any and all members of SASP to see if anyone else might be interested?
INK – Good idea! Will
do. “Anyone? Anyone?”
Jim
NEWS
Listed below are acknowledgements of
members’ accomplishments, book-signing dates, locations, and other
items of note:
A New “How to” Book
THE WRITER’S PORTABLE MENTOR
A guide to Art, Craft, and the Writing Life
By Priscilla Long ISBN: 978-0-9842421-0-8, $17.95,
Recent Newsletters now on Site
All issues of our recently revived SASP Newsletter are now posted
and available on the web-site. Simply go
to the Newsletter Tab on our home page and click on the month you are
interested in. All content of the
e-mailed or “snail-mailed versions is there, although the format is changed
somewhat.
Publishing Accomplishments
Jim Parry’s book, Book All
the Teachers,
is now available on most major bookstore sites
(Amazon, Barnes & Noble,
New “LINKS”
We’ve recently added several “general interest”
links on the web-site page of the same name.
Many SASP members web-sites and blogs
are linked here as well.
A Local Publisher
Andrew Corder has recently come on
board as senior editor at Gray Dog Press.
For more information, go to:
A Most Generous Offer
Writer Kirt Hickman has generously provided
SASP with several “how to” articles on various
aspects of writing. We are
reposting Kirt’s articles on the WRITER’S TOOLS
page. Each will remain for approximately
one month or until replaced by the next.
A New
Publishing Company
Hello
My name is Bob Griffin. I have just
started
a small publishing company that will be
publishing fantasy, science fiction and
horror stories. If anybody is interested
in submitting
their works of fiction, please visit us at
The following is Russ Davis’
2nd reply re. self-publishers and small publishers:
After
reading Michael's note to Jim about the article I would like to make a couple
of observations....
1)
Michael's brother in
2)
I would like to think that the GDP authors are more than second class. While
the odds of most hitting the big leagues is slim we do have a number that I
would put up against anything coming from any of the big six
publishers. Truth be known, there are few authors, even those in the big
leagues, that do not require help and some form of editing. I came across an
anecdote from a major publisher once that lamented on how poorly many
authors write. He talked about the difference between an author and a
writer. Something along the lines of "an author can tell a story; a writer
can write one; and there are too few actual writers." You can be
assured that those names that get tossed about, King, Clancy, Walter, etc., get
edited as much, if not more, than other lesser known authors. They know how to
tell a story and can probably get most of it into a coherent form, but there is
not a publisher that is not going to read, analyze, edit and check the
marketing viability before they put thousands of dollars into the editing
and promotion if they don't feel like it is at least salable. It is the
salability, quality of the story and in many cases the editing to tighten
up the story that will make a first tier versus second tier effort.
3)
There is a stigma with being "self-published." Much of
this is propped up by a very well entrenched system setup by the big
publishers that do not want the unwashed to enter their domain. As a
publisher I probably should not say this but... Truth be known, an author can
make far more money on the sales of their book by self-publishing than by the royalties
they receive from a publisher. Much of what a publisher makes from the book is
time spent on the marketing and promotion of someone's book. If authors can do
that themselves the 5-15% offered by a publisher is nothing. But, here's the
catch... An author must be able to setup, format, produce, market and
sell a quality product. This takes time to learn how it's done and
money to have the work edited and more money to invest in producing the books.
Follow that with the signage and support materials, phone calls, follow up
calls, postage and shipping, personnel to do all of that, etc. I have no
problem with authors that are considering the self-publishing route and we work
with many. Most of the works are things that are very specialized or do not
have enough market for us to consider as part of our catalog but what we
make from charging for setup, layout and the production pays for what we
can and do publish. However, there are a few that we do the production
work for that, over time, have outsold many of the published works we have.
Don't
sell the self-publisher short... I've known of many that have kicked major butt
along the way.
Russ