For those of you interested in the convoluted inner workings of the small press there’s an interesting discussion going on over at the Horror-Web message board about the “impending doom” of the industry. John has been making quite a few posts on the thread and it’s a lively discussion. Unfortunately I don’t have the time to jump in but I would say that as long as the big publishers keep putting out as much awful stuff as they are the “small press” is in no danger. Especially since the recent trend of mass market publishing is turning away from taking time to develope authors and instead just searching for that one instant success. Here’s the link:
http://p219.ezboard.com/fhorrorwebfrm14.showMessage?topicID=135.topic

And, if that doesn’t satisfy your publishing sweet tooth here’s an interview John recently did over at LitKicks http://www.litkicks.com/BeatPages/msg.jsp?tag=JohnLawson It’s chock full of advice for writers about getting published which many people have said they found very useful.

One thing I admire about John is how generous he has always been with his advice for authors. It’s taken years of struggle for him to build up that knowledge and he’s always giving it away at the drop of a hat. Now that I think about it we know quite a few authors who are always ready to give good advice like Mike Arnzen, Ron Malfi and Matt Warner. If you are a new author and run into a generous soul like these people make sure you appreciate their help even if it’s not always what you want to hear like; it isn’t easy getting your work published, it takes persistence and patience.

11 comments

  1. Sweet God, did someone actually commit the sentence “I’ve been reading guys lately like Kevin Donihe, Brian Keene, Eric S. Brown, Steve Niles, etc. and they are either in their 20’s or early 30’s and have MANY books out already.”

    Niles is money. Keene is now money. Kevin I like just fine but he is not money, he is a DIy kid. Eric S. Brown is a joke. If this is breaking in, all this dumbshit needs is a photocopy machine.

  2. Hey, someone mentioned me (without gun to head) on a message board! The fact that I got an unexpected frisson out of this proves I’m not money . . .

    FACTOIDS: (A) I recently turned 28. (B) I’m the antithesis of ‘money.’

  3. funny

    I actually missed that comment. It’s strange the ideas that people get. Kevin definitely doesn’t have money written ANYWHERE on him. But that’s why it’s important to talk to other writers. I’m sure Kevin would be the first to let anyone know that if they are planning a rich and famous lifestyle becoming an author is not the way to go. But if you enjoy traveling by Greyhound then, by all means, author away!

  4. Re: funny

    I plan on spending any money you give me very foolishy, infact i’m putting that in the acknowlagements.

    And finnaly to everyone who bought this book, please be assured i am spending your money very foolishly.

  5. Re: funny

    Grey(hell)hound — ah yes . . .

    But I’m going to get a little snazzy when I travel to the San Francisco WHC next year . . . I’m going 3/4ths of the way on . . . wait for it . . . Amtrak.

  6. Re: funny

    I’ve ridden on Amtrak, from PA to NM. I have a feeling you’ll wish you’d gone by Greyhound. My train got stranded on flooded tracks last time, and the staff locked us in the train then disappeared, left us without food for almost 12 hours. By the time they let us out, we were just about ready to resort to cannibalism.

  7. Re: funny

    Egad! Hmmmm . . . well, the main reason I wanted to go Amtrak was to see the sights that you can’t see from a Grey(hell)hound window . . . and the seats are more comfortable on Amtrak, or so I hear. And you don’t have crazy, foaming people sleeping on top of you as you try in vain to force them (without waking them) to stay on their side of the frickin’ seat.

  8. Re: funny

    Hahaha. Well I didn’t have a sleeping car, so I slept in my seat next to a teenage gangsta who shared his bag of vanilla creme cookies with me.

    Only thing about the “sights” on Amtrak, mostly all you see is woods and graffiti-ed train yards. The latter was actually pretty cool, some of the graffiti was really amazing.

    My favorite thing about Amtrak(reminded me of fight club) was their emergency exit procedure. Which went something like “if we crash, and you survive, and the window is not obstructed, here’s how to open it.” Haha

  9. Re: funny

    I won’t be getting a sleeping car, either. But the seats look big and roomy and maneuverable (at least they look that way on Amtrak’s website). Less chance of getting slept/drooled on all night if that’s the case.

    In the end, I’ll be getting the best of both worlds, though, as I’m taking the Grey(hell)hound to Chicago and getting on the Amtrak from there to San Francisco . . .

    The Amtrak scenery should be a bit better on this trip, I hope. (Goes through Colorado, Utah, Nevada, California, and other states not quite so pretty. On the return tip — Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana, and, again, other states not quite so pretty.)

    Will keep an eye out for graffiti.

  10. Anonymous

    Re: funny

    I loved Amtrak. Travelled from Chicago to Salt Lake City. Two wonderful days – honestly. The seats are WWWWAAAAYYYY more comfy than on a greyhound. More comfy than airplane seats, in fact, except that you have to sit in them longer. The observation car is a great place to get some writing done. I wrote a good chunk of my novel on the train. You’ll sleep through Nebraska, but be sure to get in the observation car for the climb up the Rockies west of Denver. It’s amazing, and you won’t want to go back to your seat until you’re on the other side of Colorado. It’s gorgeous!

    Forrest Aguirre

  11. Re: funny

    Thanks, Mr. Aguirre . . . you went one of the routes that I’ll be going on — California Zephyr — only you stopped in Salt Lake City, and I’m going on to San Francisco).

    And yes, I plan to get a lot of rest in Iowa and Nebraska . . . on the return-trip, I plan to rest a lot in North Dakota, Minnesota, and Wisconsin. Very eager to go through the Rockies . . .

    > The seats are WWWWAAAAYYYY more comfy than on a greyhound.<

    You know, I’ve traveled Grey(hell)hound more times than I want to mention . . . so even the tiniest morsel of Amtrak comfort will seem like sleeping on a stack of matresses to me.

    I’d never even feel the pea . . .

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