SPECULATIONS
for writers who want to be readAuthor Topics : Sonya M. Sipes
Managing editor of CatsCurious Press... Contact me at:
editor@catscuriouspress.com
submissions@catscuriouspress.com
editor@catscratchbooks.com
CatsCuriousPress.com
ThreeThingsAboutAnimals.com
CatScratchBooks.com
:-)
Sonya M. Sipes
- Message 508892 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2007-01-05 06:22:19. Feedback: 0
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I got my first SPAM submission:
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SUBMISSION- MUCH, MUCH IMPROVED VERSION OF
"Bare Bottom Spanking and Wedging of a High School Senior with a Hard-On for Bullying."
Please discard the original and replace with this.
Thank you.
See Attachment.
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egad. - Message 508785 by Terry Hickman on 2007-01-03 12:50:16. Feedback: 0
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Never mind - I finally saw the TickerFactory.com address. Cool beans! - Message 508784 by Terry Hickman on 2007-01-03 12:46:15. Feedback: 0
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Hey, I hadn't seen that - I *love* your word count gizmo, Sonya! Isn't that CUTE??? Did you create that yourself or is it available online somewhere? I love the smiling snail. Awww... - Message 508782 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2007-01-03 11:39:45. Feedback: 0
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I posted a job on craigslist.org for a marketing plan...
if anyone knows of anyone who might be interested in applying - please send them here --> http://dallas.craigslist.org/mar/257062928.html - Message 508775 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2007-01-03 08:59:30. Feedback: 0
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Happy to announce that CatsCurious Press (CatScratch Books) anothology has been added to RALAN.com!!!
Check under Anthology Markets...
For guidelines, please check the CatsCurious Press website for guidelines... please scroll to the bottom to find the 'GuideLines' link. An easier-to-find-link is coming soon!
Yay! - Message 508768 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2007-01-03 07:00:25. Feedback: 0
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:-) Happy New year, Ruth.
OK, so I finally sat down and looked at the book all the way through and am relieved to say that there are only about 5 or 6 errors in it, not 12 as I had originally feared. I think I just saw them and blanched and assumed it was so much worse.
Now, I am not proud of 5 or 6 but I feel less yucky about it... and a couple of people pointed out that they were problems that they didn't even notice until I pointed them out. (they could have just been saying that!) But I hope that all of this practice will bear me well and I hope to be able to take that number of errors down to zero with project number two.
Project number three should be downright professional! :-P
- Message 508732 by Ruth J. Burroughs on 2007-01-02 16:59:47. Feedback: 0
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Nothing like getting a bill on Christmas. I got a threatening letter from the Hospital over a nine dollar co pay just before Christmas, just because it was supposedly late. I'd paid their 75 dollar copay and hadn't seen the nine dollar one and it took all my will power not to write them a nasty gram back.
I like your pencil scale, Sonya. Happy New Year!
- Message 508704 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2007-01-02 06:35:33. Feedback: 0
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Guidelines have been posted for the new Anthology (to be put forth by CatScratch Books later this year) -- you can find them at the bottom of the page, next to the privacy policy!
To reiterate - CatsCurious Press is not open for submissions at this time, but CatScratch Books will be open for the Gothic Romance/Horror Anthology as of March 1st, 2007.
And for all of you dial-ups out there, we are currently re-designing the site in HTML so that the page-load time will go down dramatically. - Message 508699 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2007-01-02 05:51:37. Feedback: 0
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Sorry - not emails... but a 'bill' in the mail. - Message 508661 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2007-01-01 08:13:20. Feedback: 0
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Happy 2007 Everyone :-) - Message 508529 by Robert E. Porter on 2006-12-29 15:50:04. Feedback: 0
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Sonya,
I saw your post at Wilson's topic. If you're soliciting illustrations for the small press, Cathy Buburuz may be another good person to contact. She seems to know a lot about this subject from both sides, as illustrator and editor/publisher at Sam's Dot.
Robert - Message 508511 by Jim C. Hines on 2006-12-29 12:11:55. Feedback: 0
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You can also make the e-mail address a clickable link. For that, you want to code it as:
<a href="mailto:editor@catscuriouspress.com">editor@catscuriouspress.com</a>
Crossing my fingers that the angle brackets come through... - Message 508510 by Jim C. Hines on 2006-12-29 12:11:34. Feedback: 0
- This message has been hidden by its author's request.
- Message 508509 by Jim C. Hines on 2006-12-29 12:09:53. Feedback: 0
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Ah! Remember you have to replace the [square brackets] with <angle brackets>
(Getting the angle brackets to show up is a pain, which is why I didn't do it originally. They get processed as HTML code and disappear.) - Message 508507 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-12-29 12:05:45. Feedback: 0
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[a href="http://www.jimchines.com"]Jim's Web Site[/a]
a test...
- Message 508502 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-12-29 11:34:49. Feedback: 0
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2 more copies sold! yay!
and found a link that is very useful from the 2006 SPAN conference...
http://smallpress.typepad.com/index/2006/10/index.html - Message 508430 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-12-28 10:46:52. Feedback: 0
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Books mailed to Amazon.com - check
Book mailed to the Library of Congress - check
Order for 10 books mailed to my dear old mum - check
Post office runs - all done!!
Total of 25 copies sold, 10 gone as either gifts or contributor copies. - Message 508374 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-12-27 14:22:59. Feedback: 0
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Please check out the new topic 'CatScratch Books' under 'Markets'.
- Message 508357 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-12-27 06:06:16. Feedback: 0
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Today we are officially listed on AMAZON.COM! YAY! You can find us by searching on either 'Jason Shannon' or 'Three Things About Animals'.
Amazon has us listed for our full cover price... our cut is... much much less. Oh well. I guess that's how they manage to stay in business!
But if you buy a copy through our website (http://www.catscuriouspress.com) Jason Shannon will personalize it for you- and we will sell it to you for $2.95 off of the cover price (that includes tax and shipping!). That's only $10 for a copy of our first book, "Three Things About Animals... And Only One of Them's True!"
That's a heck of a deal!
(ok do i have the sales pitch down yet?) - Message 508345 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-12-26 06:58:58. Feedback: 0
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4 more copies sold!
And the Amazon.Com Advantage order for 2 copies has just come in, so I will be sending those out soon too.
yay!
Hope everyone has been having a great Holidays Season! (For me and mine, that is Christmas :-) TO each his own holiday!)
- Message 508190 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-12-21 10:56:08. Feedback: 0
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I have officially _sold_ 18 copies :-) Gotta love the people at my workplace and my dear Mom who has been pimping the book all over the place!!
If I can manage to sell them all I should be able to justify another print run of the 'second edition' hehe.
...or else just funnel the money into project number three. We'll see how we do once I get the post-christmas catalogs in the mail and finally get listed with Baker & Taylor next month.
I guess it's time to officially open that business checking account!
- Message 508150 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-12-20 10:14:01. Feedback: 0
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ah ... words of wisdom from my friend Ilona Gordon (a.k.a Ilona Andrews of 'Magic Bites' due out in March 2007 from ACE)...
Sell it as is. None of these are life-threatening. Also, this way I can buy a copy.
Look, dude, do you know how many errors were in my freacking galleys? And will there be errors in print? Of course. Just suck it up and drive on. - Message 508146 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-12-20 08:20:12. Feedback: 0
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SO here's an idea I had...
What if I were to pretend that these books are galley copies - and send them out for review with an errata sheet? Then asking if anyone finds any additional errors while reviewing the book to let me know?
Then I could get some use out of them (so it won't be a wasted $1200) ... and in a month or two I can do another run with a corrected PDF (which I would examine closely) and also perhaps include some review blurbs on the back cover?
I dunno... am I trying too hard here? - Message 508145 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-12-20 08:16:20. Feedback: 0
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Hi Robert,
I created the files in MS Powerpoint then used Adobe Distiller to convert them to PDF (via the print to Adobe option in the file menu). This worked wonderfully - the main problem though is that the font I had chosen to use did not have a 'hyphen' so I chose a hyphen from another font and laid it over the top where it needed to go. So when I increased the page size in MS Powerpoint some of the lines moved around and the hyphens stayed in place... hence random placement all over the place. Some are fine -- many are not. And its not something that you notice in a cursory glance -- you can only see this stuff when you actually doa line by line read of the book.
So essentially this is all my fault - because I gave the printer press quality pdf to use for printing... and when I got to look at the proof, I found one glaring error, but did not see the others - until yesterday when they came via UPS and I got a chance to really sit down with it.
I would love a chance to sit and discuss this with you! Name a time (after 5:00pm on CST weekdays though) and I will make sure to log on. Thanks a bunch!
Sonya - Message 508126 by Adventure Books of Seattle on 2006-12-19 22:32:59. Feedback: 0
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Maybe we should meet sometime at the Adventure Books chat/shoutbox and discuss this. - Message 508125 by Adventure Books of Seattle on 2006-12-19 22:31:49. Feedback: 0
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I may be able to help you on this, but I need to know a few minor things.
In what format was the book submitted to the printer? (Straight Word Doc for conversion, hard paper copy, PDF?)
Let's start there, first. - Message 508124 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-12-19 21:00:51. Feedback: 0
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And so I sit here in some chagrin... the books have arrived - and they are quite nice! Yet as I paged through one I noticed many formatting errors that must have cropped up the last time I resized the thing to account for 'bleed', etc. And so I can't quite get excited about the thing because of that (what on earth do I do with 100 books that have formatting errors, i.e. hyphens in the wrong places??) and I can't quite get good and depressed about it either because DAMN its good to see an end-product!
So now what? This print run of 100 books was quite expensive... due to the fact that we had to do the cover on offset due to it's size (which was unavoidable no matter which printer I went with) so I can't 're-do' the books any time soon.
And I have two more projects on my agenda... one that is ramping up, and one that I am preparing to start working on in March - August. So I am already stretching myself a little thin.
And yet - it is against my nature to leave something undone - and I have a hard time 'pimping' this version of the book with the errors -- no I did not expect it to be perfect but sheesh - without actually doing a hard count I would say that there are at least 12 errors in a 56 page book... that's one error to every four pages (although some pages have more than one).
Anyone have any advice? Sell it like it is? Ditch the whole thing and take a damn loan to do it all again after additional proof-reading? Chalk it up to experience and not worry about it?
I sure have learned alot though...
1. Get someone else to proofread for you -- you tend to overlook things after looking at them the thousandth time
2. If you have to resize/reformat your book for any reason go over it with a fine toothed comb... then do it again. then have someone else do it.
3. They aren't kidding when they tell you to leave space on the pages near the spine... I would suggest an inch or more... in fact, one inch margins all the way around might have been a good idea... or maybe 1.5 inches?
4. Page numbers... upper right corner for recto pages, upper LEFT corner for verso pages *sigh* Same for thumbnail art... again not something I thought about until I saw it bound!
5. Make Sure (and this should probably be rule number one) that your printer will be able to accomodate your desired book format BEFORE you format the dratted thing. - Message 507926 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-12-13 13:33:13. Feedback: 0
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Got to do the press check today! (the pressman was out yesterday) and wowie was that neat-o!
my dad used to be a 4-color press operator and a helper on a 7 color press, so it was very cool to see what it must have been like when he was doing that kind of thing when I was younger...
the covers look great!!!!! I should get the books on Friday! - Message 507899 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-12-12 06:09:57. Feedback: 0
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going ... to... PRESS! - Message 507826 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-12-09 12:30:53. Feedback: 0
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the proof looks AMAZING! I almost got teary eyed just looking at it!!! - Message 507755 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-12-07 06:41:10. Feedback: 0
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THE WEBSITE IS LIVE!!!!
please visit: http://www.catscuriouspress.com
YAY! - Message 507749 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-12-06 20:52:59. Feedback: 0
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yet more printing complications (turns out that digital presses can only handle a max paper size of 13" x 19"... my cover is 8.5" x 22"... ahem... and that's without the spine... see the difficulty?)
But Mitchell Hill was VERY nice and helpful and we got it worked out... A more expensive solution, but in the end, I simply had to face the fact that I picked and was married to a format that no POD printer was going to be able to carry off (which is why I ended up not going with LSI, because even they couldn't accomodate me) and I certainly shoulder the blame there -- my inexperience. But hey, we all have to learn sometime! :-) Anyways, I don't have a proof yet - but I was so busy with my day job I couldn't have gotten over there to look at it today anyhow. I should have one tomorrow or Friday though. so it's still exciting! yay! - Message 507684 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-12-05 07:36:51. Feedback: 0
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I just got an email from Mitchell Hill (At Hill Print Solutions) and he said he should have a proof ready for me tomorrow! - Message 507683 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-12-05 06:58:22. Feedback: 0
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Whoo! I just sent off the check! faxed it in actually - I think they will be starting the process today! I am PSYCHED!! did I mention that I am psyched?
It's been a long trudge from April of 2006 til now... The art took longer than expected, my job ate up my entire summer, the printer thing was a real bummer... having to wait a step at a time until i can steal more money from my 'real world' paycheck to put this first project together...
Running total now: approx $2500
(website + hosting, ISBN publisher's prefix + block of 10 numbers + SAN, barcodes, illustrations (26 watercolor paintings + cover), Domain Names, Printing)
So for all of you who want to start up a small press... that's about what you will need to 'do it right'. That's also only for a first run of 100 books too, in case you were wondering... you can cut corners (do only b&w; paperbacks, instead of full-color) and not have a professionally done website & hosting, but you'll still need about $800 to start if you cut all the 'extra' corners.
This has been a fantastic learning experience!
I can't wait til I get to see the proofs!!!
Sonya - Message 507670 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-12-04 20:03:28. Feedback: 0
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Hill Print Solutions actually came back cheaper in the end... they were able to work with me (half of my pages aren't actually color, so that reduced my cost) and though they are not affiliated with Ingram (which is a big plus for Lightning Source) they are local, so I save on shipping costs and proofs. - Message 507549 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-12-01 06:31:21. Feedback: 0
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Good news:
Well the website will go live this weekend, yay!
Bad News:
I won't be unsing lightning source for this first project after all -- due to my lack of experience (and unfamiliarity with Lightning source's options) I realized that they do not print 8.5 x 11 in landscape orientation (which in reality is 11x8.5) and after fidgeting with the format of the book I realized that their options won't look right) so I had to find another printer. I am awaiting 2 final estimates, one from ADI Books and one from Hill Print Solutions... http://www.hillprintsolutions.com/estimate.php
So far I am leaning towards Hill Print, as they are here in DFW and they took the time to call me and make sure they knew what I wanted -- offered me a tour of their facility... very customer oriented!
Anyways, this isn't to say that I won't use Lightning Source for the next project, only that they aren't the right fit for this project.
- Message 506755 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-11-13 06:50:43. Feedback: 0
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The website is coming along! Anyone who wants to take a sneak peek at the development site (it has a picture of our 'new' cover for 'Three Things About Animals...') you can go here: http://dev.catscuriouspress.com. The site is only partially done (this is the modified template that I purchased) but I think it rocks already! :-P
- Message 506686 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-11-10 18:46:13. Feedback: 0
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Book stuff... ok, the designer I was going to have do the site renigged, so that was sucky - but then the developer I hired (who also happens to work with me, sometimes its good to be in I.T. :-P ) suggested buying a pre-built template which he would then modify... so I did! If anyone is interested you can find TONS of templates here: http://store.templatemonster.com/?aff=quincint If you use this link, my bud will get credit for it, so that would be sweet :-) The template I chose is: 10666 ... I can't wait until it's customized! whoo!
More book stuff... I asked the illustrator to repaint the cover for the book, since when she originally did it, she painted the title in too, and it's just too fuzzy once its scanned in... I get to pick up the new cover tomorrow! Yay!
Oh yeah, I got my first piece of junk mail addressed to CastCurious Press on Thurday :-D I know, I am a dork for thinking that's so cool. - Message 506682 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-11-10 17:04:08. Feedback: 0
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So the insurance adjuster came out (he was very nice, what a relief!) and it looks like maybe we will have the work all done by December. They are pretty much gutting our bathroom (the only thing that isn't getting replaced is the tub and counter top) and downstairs they are going to replace the damaged ceiling parts,then repaint the entire ceiling and all the walls in that room. yay! This may have been a blessing in disguise! (cuz now I get to change the color and hubby can't give me grief about it :-P ) - Message 506511 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-11-07 05:45:04. Feedback: 0
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Thanks, Terry! The house is only 8 years old (we have owned it for three) so the plumber thinks that this toilet has likely been leaking since before we even moved in. In his opinion, it was installed incorrectly (using the wrong sized wax ring). My husband and I are going to wait until we get the adjuster out to the house and get estimates before we try pursuing the default home-owners warranty that comes with our house for the first ten years (we have been this route before and trying to get those guys to pay for anything is almost impossible without a lawsuit *sigh*). Our homeowners warranty that we purchased won't do anything because it's not 'broken'... instead it's a 'faulty installation'. *grumble* Oh well, at least now I get the excuse to fix up that bathroom, I never liked the cheap-o linoleum on there anyway! - Message 506505 by Terry Hickman on 2006-11-07 04:40:38. Feedback: 0
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That sucks, Sonya. You have my sympathy. - Message 506418 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-11-06 13:38:11. Feedback: 0
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Rats... its official, the floor in the bathroom is swollen and mushy, the ceiling portion downstairs is going to have to be ripped out (just so that they can replace the rusted-rotten flange and drainage pipe)... and of course so we don't all get black-lung from the mildew. :-( Apparently this leak has been going on for *years*... we only just got lucky enough to find out about it now. *sigh* - Message 506363 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-11-06 07:18:27. Feedback: 0
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well, all that preparation to see y'all at WFC and... a pipe burst in the *floor* of our second story bathroom (which just happens to be above our dining room) and now we have a bloated brown spot from leaky toilet on the ceiling downstairs.
*sigh* Just didn't seem like a good move marriage-wise to ditch dear hubby with my kids to hare off and have fun with you guys.
Hope everyone had a great time! I wish I would have been able to have a good time with you! Instead - I finished formatting 'Three Things About Animals...' and we have revised the test copy. One more 'home' printing and I think it will be ready to send off... say tomorrow?? woohoo! - Message 504488 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-11-02 06:55:09. Feedback: 0
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http://www.tshirtspot.com/catalog/Style.asp?Item_style=Z200
This seems like a great deal! Thing is -- there's no way I could get them in time, so I guess T-Shirts are still out of the question (and I dunno how I feel about th 48 piece minimum order...)
- Message 504486 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-11-02 06:41:49. Feedback: 0
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OK, nevermind about the T-Shirts... they aren't turning out as nice as I had hoped, and getting them done professionally is just too expensive (at this time). I will have to come up with something else.
OTOH, I should get my business cards either today or tomorrow!! So I can definitely hand those out at the con too, though they won't be promoting 'Three Things About Animals... and Only One of Them's True!' (by Jason A. Shannon, Illustrated by Janie Johnson). They will just have CatsCurious Press info on them.
- Message 503585 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-10-31 06:25:34. Feedback: 0
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Happy Halloween! :-)
Well the kids costumes are finished, and they didn't turn out too badly, if I do say so myself! Alex is a Crusader (his costume pretty much rocks) and Gabby is a Mermaid (I am less pleased with hers, but she likes it, so that's what matters, right?) I will try to get pics up some time in the next few days so that anyone who cares to can see my little gremlins in full regalia :-)
As for bookish stuff, the business cards have been ordered - with rush! so I should have them in my hot little hands to give out this weekend! whoo! I also had a few minutes to work on a t-shirt design last night, and I am going to enquire about that today.
yay!
Sonya - Message 503131 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-10-30 05:37:54. Feedback: 0
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So! The formatting is almost done! Yay! The websites are on their way (yeah, you knew that) and Robert gave me a good idea for getting my book out there!
I will be at World Fantasy this coming weekend, and I will be the curvy (blonde) lady wearing the CatsCurious Press t-shirt. I think I will have some extra t-shirts printed up to take with me... any takers? I will give you one for free if you promise to wear it for awhile at the Con!
Now here's a thought, I have an idea for a horror anthology that I would like to put out next fall (around Halloween), and I plan to open for submissions for that in March or April of 2007. Anyone have an idea of when I should list myself with the various websites out there, i.e. ralan.com? Should I list now, and say that I am not currently open to submissions? or should I list later (i.e. March, when I do open to submissions)?
Sonya - Message 501537 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-10-27 06:17:53. Feedback: 0
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Thanks, Robert! I am going to work on that this weekend!
Sonya - Message 501357 by Adventure Books of Seattle on 2006-10-26 20:42:47. Feedback: 0
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Sonya...
Press kits are okay. But since you have your own isbn's now, and you are going through LSI for books, this means you can REALISTICALLY wholesale books to bookstores.
So...Google on this: 'Independent bookstores in (your state)
Create a catalog with the ordering information from your LSI account, use small cover images and descriptions for each book. If you want to save postage, make the catalog a simple one-page fold of light card stock.
Mail the catalogs out to all stores, and don't forget to set your wholesale prices at LSI, including them in the catalog...
Remember: A majority of bookstores have accounts at Ingram/LSI...YOU have and account at Ingram/LSI...imagine the possibilities. Hell, those guys are getting a serious lock on the market. If they were any better at hooking up bookstores with publishers, they would get sued by the Feds for anti-trust violations...(LOL)
Robert M. Blevins - Message 501154 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-10-26 11:27:03. Feedback: 0
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OMGoodness the ideas are flooding into my brain... now all I need is unlimited money, and a list of people to send press kits to *sigh*
Neither of which I have, though I shall keep searching. I thought I saw somewhere that said something about who to send the press kits to, but now I can't find it :-(
ppbbbt.
Thanks for the magnet idea, that's groovy! I wonder if I can get those business card magnet sheets @ Staples? or order them through VistaPrint? We have two good quality laser printers at home, so I could do some of that myself for sure.
:-)
Sonya - Message 501092 by Jim C. Hines on 2006-10-26 10:08:42. Feedback: 0
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"Wish I didn't have a full-time job, I could be so much further ahead by now!!!"
Believe me, I understand and sympathize. I'd have finished the current book weeks ago and be well into the next... Sigh. On the other hand, I like my medical benefits :-)
Toby Buckell made up refrigerator magnets for his novel Crystal Rain, and those seemed to be pretty popular at cons. I've still got mine. - Message 501084 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-10-26 09:52:35. Feedback: 0
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Thanks, Jim!
I do have domain names already (one for the company, www.catscuriouspress.com and one for the book www.threethingsaboutanimals.com) but the site is under construction (I have contracted with a designer and with a programmer to do this) so I can't make it go any faster than they can go. I anticipate having it up in a week or maybe at the most, two weeks.
I am also thinking about printing up a few T-Shirts, and wearing one to World Fantasy as a sort of promotion. If I can get anything else done by then, I will.
Libraries are a great idea! I will add that to my list *scribbles furiously* Can't believe I didn't think of that...
ACK! Wish I didn't have a full-time job, I could be so much further ahead by now!!!
Sonya
- Message 500996 by Jim C. Hines on 2006-10-26 06:36:33. Feedback: 0
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Sonya,
My book is fantasy, not children's non-fic, but the first thing I'd suggest is getting that website up. Something simple that people will remember. For example, www.goblinquest.com is a lot easier to recall than www.sff.net/people/jchines/GQ. A domain name is only a few bucks, and it's a good way to send people over to read snippets and learn more about the book. I know you're working on it, but personally, I'd make that a priority.
The elementary schools sound like a good idea. You might try talking to local libraries as well.
Best of luck! - Message 500992 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-10-26 06:18:32. Feedback: 0
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Well the PCN came in about two days, which was a pleasant surprise! Go to: ( http://pcn.loc.gov/pcn001.html ) to get one :-)
I have found out that PDF/X is a 'standard' (and not a 'version of pdf') which makes much more sense now. :-) And I have found that Adobe Distiller (which comes with Acrobat) will convert .ps files to PDF/X for you (Which is what Lightning Source requires). You can also tweak the settings of distiller to make sure that it converts all images to CMYK (from RGB) which takes care of my other problem too.
So, aside from that last bit of formatting that must be done, I think I am ready to see my project go to the printer!
Now when it gets back from the printer... there-in lies the mystery for me. If anyone has any good ideas on good marketing tips for non-fiction children's books, please, give a shout!
So far my ideas include:
I plan to send copes to Oprah of course :-P
Get signings at local elementary schools (donate copies to the library and offer books for sale at the signing/reading to the kiddos at a reduced price).
Get signings at Barnes and Nobles', Borders and Brystone (local kid's book store)
Send a copy to Jessie Diva Radio on 102.1 The Edge (she loves to read, and then talks about it on the air, might get some free air time with that)
Send review copies out to some newspapers (local, like The Star Telegram and Dallas Morning News) as well as some other big ones, i.e. NY Times. (which other ones??)
Offer the book for sale on the Publisher's Website, have a monthly contest/drawing for a free book
Get the Fort Worth Zoo to review it and hopefully endorse it (in their gift shop)
It will be listed on Amazon.
Do some Christmas Craft bazaars and shows (with signings and readings)
And maybe.... put an ad in Val-Pak????
Help!
I want to make up press kits but I don't know who to send them to???
ACK... NOW the overwhelming looms... I got through the rest of it ok, one step at a time, perhaps I will make it through the marketing part too...
Sonya
- Message 499651 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-10-23 18:04:35. Feedback: 0
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ABS: Believe me, I will! :-)
So... what have I done in the last few days? Registered the book in 'Books In Print' and applied for a PCN (Library of Congress Catalog number, pre-reserved). I have investigated CMYK vs RGB (because I need to have my entire file converted to CYMK for printing) and found that my use of powerpoint is not as original as I had thought :-P (others have tread there before me!!) and I have looked up a few opportunities for direct sale/signings for my author... such as Christmas Craft bazaars, etc, since I plan to get some copies out in time for Christmas! And the more we can sell @retail$, means the better off my little company is going to do financially!
yay!
Sonya - Message 498463 by Adventure Books of Seattle on 2006-10-21 18:47:53. Feedback: 0
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Use those isbn's wisely...reject crap ruthlessly! - Message 497475 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-10-19 10:44:40. Feedback: 0
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Thanks, Sue!
Acutally no I don't have a website yet, though that should go up soon (under construction). With a full-time day job, husband and three kiddos, I can only get so much done in a day ... but when I do have that info, I will definitely put it up in my bio... in fact I think I should post the email address now (even though I am not open to subs just yet):
catscuriouspress@yahoo.com
I will eventually get the email tied to the domain, but for now, the yahoo account works fine.
OH! And I got my ISBNs (+ prefix, + barcodes) in my email today!! WOOT! :-P I am literally (pun intended) official!
And I only just applied for them last week friday ... they got it done in less than a week, even though I didn't pay for the rush job. That is so excellent.
Anyone know... when should I register my book in 'Books In Print'? Should I do as the name suggests and wait until I have a printed copy in my hand? or should I do it now?
Sonya - Message 497414 by SueO2 on 2006-10-19 07:01:20. Feedback: 0
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Good luck. Do you have a website for your production company? If so, you may want to add its link to your bio section above. - Message 497387 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-10-19 05:57:43. Feedback: 0
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OK, half of th ebook has been formatted. I am awaiting quotes from a few printers, but mostly I am anxious to get my info back from BOWKER (ISBNs etc) so that I can create a Lightning Source account. I have been in touch with one of their new account representatives and it looks like I might have done my homework thoroughly enough before I even found out about them, because I might just have all those loose ends taken care of! Wouldn't that rock? *grin*
BTW -- the book pages look even more amazing than I ever thought they could... I am really pleased with everything so far, considering that this is my first project for my new little company!!
yay!
Sonya - Message 496383 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-10-17 07:18:00. Feedback: 0
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Thanks! But I am a step ahead of you -- I did that, and then I emailed them (hehe) and now I am talking with a very nice lady named Judith who has assured me that she is willing to help me out with anything that I require (*grin* and I have LOTS of questions!).
Sonya - Message 496339 by Adventure Books of Seattle on 2006-10-16 23:59:08. Feedback: 0
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To answer your question about Ingram/LSI, you should go to the Lightning Source site and see for yourself. Paste and copy and print functions would be a good idea here. Any other questions...use the email links at AB and I will be happy to answer. - Message 496175 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-10-15 17:57:05. Feedback: 0
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Scanned in all the art!! I decided to see how fuzzy or not it looked using our old scanner (and since I wanted to get to work 'formatting' the pages) and am pleased at least with what I got out of it. Since these are just 'line drawings' with water color,I may not need to invest that money in a new scanner after all... YAY!
The formatting --that is coming out well too... I am going to be submitting this as a PDF to the printer's that I choose, so I am actually formatting the pages in ms powerpoint (yeah, weird choice I know, but I am super familar with it!) and then using adobe acrobat to convert it to PDF. Since I am using an 8x10 format for the book, this is actually working out great!!
Still trying to get a good quote from a printer though -- we'll see where that takes us... i have high hopes...
I have my second project lined up for Spring 2007 already, so I am really starting to get psyched. whoo!
- Message 495936 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-10-13 09:41:28. Feedback: 0
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OK... now for the other news.
CatsCurious Press is official!
I have purchased all the art for the first project (a children's book) and have also purchased the ISBN Publisher's Prefix, a block of 10 ISBN numbers, Registered with SAN (got an address with them) and also purchased my first barcode... $369.95 total for regular priority (two weeks). So far, total monies invested in my little publishing venture: $969.95.
Next on the block: finish formatting the PDF and scanning the art for the book (purchase new scanner, at least $100, am doing that this weekend, which will up my total to at least $1069.95)
Then when I finally get the ISBN & Barcode in the mail (email) I will be able to get *real* quotes from the printing companies I am interested in (much more accurate if I have the whole thing mapped out as to how many pages etc). But before that I will be buying a sample copy or two so that i can see the quality of a book similar to mine would be.
I am hoping to get galley's by Christmas, which I think is feasible since I will be using a more POD digital type printing process rather than the standard type that BIG houses use... I'll let you all know more details as it goes...
Sonya
P.S. for those of you interested in setting something similar up, here is a link to the ISBN application:
https://commerce.bowker.com/standards/cgi-bin/isbn.asp - Message 495934 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-10-13 09:34:37. Feedback: 0
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broked... broked his leg... I cannot believe I wrote 'broked'. *sigh* - Message 495933 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-10-13 09:33:18. Feedback: 0
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OK, update:
I got a request to send a PDF up to Baen's back in May... then my husband broked his leg, then there was this killer project at work which involved hundreds of hours of OVERTIME over the summer... so then when that was over I found a new job... and so then I thought, yikes, I finally have time to work on that blasted story and send it up... don't know if I still can?
So I queried Paula, she said to send it to her, so I did, and then I just got an email from Baen's on Tuesday evening saying that it had been slapped on Eric Flint's desk. YAY! Now of course, I need to wait until Eric has read it.......
................................................which might take awhile. :-P - Message 485096 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-05-15 19:32:13. Feedback: 0
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No word from Shadowed Realms yet (good? bad? who knows?)... and tried to get onto Baen's Bar to resub my other short, and can't get the website up *urgh* *sigh*. Figures, I am finally ready to put it up and can't get on.
ppbbtt.
Sonya - Message 483109 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-04-11 09:08:43. Feedback: 0
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So far, no rejections...
I have a bit of insight into how Jim Baen's Universe Slush works now, in case anyone is interested:
You post your story to the Universe Slush Conference (Universe Slush is a *forum*) and then you wait... and you wait, and eventually someone from the editorial staff will read your story and comment on it. I have gotten very nice and very helpful comments from Mike Farell (Farrell?) so far... and another nice bloke whose name I can't remember at the moment.
Anways, if they make any recommendations or whatever that you agree with you can feel free to revise your story and repost it as a new version (they recommend waiting a week between versions; after my personal experience, I too recommend waiting this long). I posted my second version the day after my first version and feel like it got fewer reads that it would have if it had been posted later... 'fresh eyes' and all that.
So after Mike Farrell's first comments and my revision, he got back to my story about a week later and wrote me a lovely in-depth crit which I happen to think was ... 99% spot on :-D I plan to use his comments to revise my story a third time... and hopefully he will like it enough to pass it up (he hinted as much in his critique, which of course made me feel all warm-and-fuzzy!) Yay! But of course, Eric Flint makes the final call and so passing my story up wouldn't mean anything really unless Eric liked it too.
So ... this is what I know: You post a story, you can revise it as many times as you like without penalty. They will keep reading it - and when they like something they will post in the comment thread for your story to let you know they are passing it up (I saw they did this for a story called 'Pastry Run' which was brilliant! wish I could remember the guys' name... can't log on from here to check, but I will try to include names in another post later when I get home).
If at any time you wish to withdraw your story, you may, just post it in your comments that you are doing so and it is considered withdrawn.
Stories 'age out of the thread' though I don't know at what speed... I will see if I can check on that.
You won't ever get a formal rejection from Baen's if/when you post to the Unverse Slush conference. HOWEVER, if you qualify for 'SFWA' status (whether you are a member or not) you should not post to the Universe Slush Conference at all... instead you should email your subs to the regular slush pile.
After all of this I think I have come to the conclusion that I like this method of slushing (it can only help us unpublished writers!) and look forward to finding out if my story gets 'passed on up' after my next revision.
Whoo! - Message 482547 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-04-03 06:54:22. Feedback: 0
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So I subbed two stories this weekend, one to Shadowed Realms and one to Jim Baen's Universe.
The second (Jim Baen's Universe) is an unorthodox submission method that I am not too sure about yet... Some things about it are quite interesting, such as the wide range of topics that an author can participate in (thus getting to know his peers and his editors better) but then there's the method of submission as well... you post your sub to a forum thus putting it up there for the whole world to read (all they need to do to read it, is register) which causes me to wonder about first rights... aren't there some arguments that having your work available on a web page could cause it to lose first rights?
Also another thing that I wonder about is... how do you know when you have been rejected? I have seen a sub get passed up the chain already (it deserved it too, it was a fun story!), so that's no mystery, but what about when they clearly don't want your story? How do you know when you can submit it somewhere else? Do you delete it? (can you? I haven't tried yet, the whole thing is brand new to me as of this weekend)... Questions, questions.
News about the small press... not much yet. Still waiting to hear back from printers. I have gotten a couple of quotes thus far, not outrageous but none of them cheaper than my original (except one, WhiteHall, but they only do black and white, magazine style or paperback book style) so who knows where it will go yet. I'll keep updating you all here.
- Message 482265 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-03-29 08:20:35. Feedback: 0
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Ok, an update...
I purchased my Logo last night (for my little small press company) and as soon as I get it (and get paid from my day job again), I will get a domain name, and start a temporary website with logo on it... so that I can have an 'official' web presence. Once we get a little further along in the book process, I will even start up a topic here in the New Markets section. Unfortuantely I won't be open for submissions for awhile considering I already have my first book under contract, but I may be open once that one gets put out :-D
Whoo! There's a small sort of adrenaline rush that comes with starting up something like this!
Sonya - Message 482163 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2006-03-27 13:51:28. Feedback: 0
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OMG, I still have a topic on here... *blush* Well I didn't suffer a tragic car accident and end up in a coma, and I certainly haven't dropped off the face of the Earth (this is Earth after all, and not Disc World!) instead I just took a leave of absence... from writing (for about a year) and then from anything else to do with writing. Then last year I got a kick in the pants that lasted about 3 months... and here I am again infused with fresh motivation... I actually finished the outline for my (wip)novel, and so therefore feel that I can actually finish the novel itself. Yay! Huzzah! let's see how long this stint lasts!
On another note, I have decided to start a small press. I have a manuscript sitting on my desk and am in the works of getting the rest of my balls in a basket, or is that my eggs rolling? or whatever. You know what I mean. :-) Once that happens I will announce the website and other neat-o things that go with it. Including opening for subs. I hope to release the first book in September. We'll see how that goes! :-D
here's to monumental tasks and uncertain oddities. ahem.
Sonya - Message 440361 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2004-06-17 14:42:40. Feedback: 0
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I am not assuming that these food companies, as an entity, have any other motivation than to make money... you can not attribute humanitarian characteristics to such an organism. I do, however, find fault with the fact that some judge, in my own state for Pete's Sake, had the gall to agree that 'fresh vegetables' was ambiguous enough a term to allow OreIda, Frito Lay (or whoever) to classify their patently *not fresh* processed products as 'Fresh Vegetable Food' because they are still considered 'perishables'. What's the shelf life on potato chips anyhow? How about Frozen French Fries? When you get to a point that something that can remain edible for 4 years is still classified as fresh, we might as well pack up and go home, since our children are doomed to a future of obesity, medical and mental conditions brought on by preservatives, colorants and additives, and the fact that a person's worth will be decided by how much they can spend rather than how much they contribute. Some days... some days I feel like we should nuke the world and let evolution start over 'fresh'. - Message 440357 by Terry Hickman on 2004-06-17 13:40:33. Feedback: 0
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It's all about the benjamins, dear. Once you finally internalize the fact that some people (a LOT of them, evidently) have literally, truly, adopted the almighty Dollar as their only God, to the exclusion of all other values, then at least your system doesn't suffer such shock at items like this. Outrage, yes--well and good. But it's not good for *you* to endure the shock. It's a lot of stress on you to keep thinking that certain people MUST have a kernel of humanity when in reality, no, they don't.
*only 1% sarcasm*
Terry - Message 440356 by Sonya M. Sipes on 2004-06-17 13:34:31. Feedback: 0
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***RANT RANT RANT***
Ok, so it's been ages since I have posted anything to the OWW lists or even to this website, but I just read something today that absolutely leaves me in disgust. What you will read below is one of my favorite soap-box topics... the way we eat today and how it's NOT good for us - and how the government perpetuates this downward spiral it likes to call nutrition, and Daily Recommended Allowances. Do you have any idea of the impact this will have on the travesty that we currently call School Lunch? 'Nachos' as a 'main course' was bad enough... but this!? This takes us to a whole new level...
*** END RANT ***
http://www.guardian.co.uk/usa/story/0,12271,1239835,00.html
So you want fresh veg? Grab a carton of chips
Dan Glaister in Los Angeles
Wednesday June 16, 2004
The Guardian
Think of fresh vegetables and you think of fields of crops, or perhaps rows of supermarket shelves brimming with luscious, colourful variety.
But thanks to the US department of agriculture, American consumers will no longer have to bother with such healthy fare. A little-noticed ruling by the department reclassifies french fries as fresh vegetables.
Arguing that the process of coating or battering a vegetable does not change the end product, the department has ruled that a chip is as fresh as, and indeed not that different from, a waxed lemon.
The change, introduced last year after pressure from the US chip industry, will come as a relief to parents who weary of the daily battle to persuade their offspring to eat fresh vegetables.
The ruling came to light this week after a Texas judge ruled against a lawyer who challenged the reclassification on behalf of a bankrupt vegetable distributor. The judge, Richard Schell, agreed with the agriculture department that the term "fresh vegetables" was ambiguous.
Lawyers for the department had argued in court that chips, far from being a processed food, were in fact still fresh.
"While plaintiff argued that batter-coated french fries are processed products, they have not been 'processed' to the point that they are no longer fresh," the agriculture department's lawyers argued. "It is still considered 'fresh' because it is not preserved. It retains its perishable quality."
The change was first proposed in 2002 after lobbying of the agriculture department by the Frozen Potato Products Institute. The amendment to the perishable agricultural commodities act, which was drawn up in 1930 to protect fruit and vegetable growers, goes beyond potatoes to include most battered vegetables as well as products such as caramel-coated apples.
The reclassification will be welcome news to the french fries industry, with consumption having dropped in the US. In 2001, consumers ate an average of 13.3kg (29.4lb) of frozen potato products, down 2.4% from 1996.