Given my success, and the success of my friend Tim Wendel, in handing out autographed books last week at the book expo, my wife and I have come up with a slogan that we believe truly captures the Zeitgeist of early 21st century America:
"FREE SELLS!!!!!!"
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
A New Project
And so this morning, at around 11 a.m., I started working on my next project -- a screenplay titled NO GOOD DEED.
I have not written a screenplay in years, and I wonder if the Muses are screwing with me. The idea behind the script is strong, and even before I began working on it I had a good sense of what I want to do. (Rarely the case for me when I launch something.)
The truly great thing about screenplays is that you max out at about 120 pages. So I should have a first draft of this completed by the time we start our summer vacations in mid-August.
Stay tuned, as they like to say on TV ......
I have not written a screenplay in years, and I wonder if the Muses are screwing with me. The idea behind the script is strong, and even before I began working on it I had a good sense of what I want to do. (Rarely the case for me when I launch something.)
The truly great thing about screenplays is that you max out at about 120 pages. So I should have a first draft of this completed by the time we start our summer vacations in mid-August.
Stay tuned, as they like to say on TV ......
Monday, June 1, 2009
On the Nature of Fans
Margery Flax's description of my fan Beatrice Weinberg as a "nice Jewish grandmother from Queens" got me thinking ....
My first novel, THE SERPENT CLUB, was a book drenched with sex and violence and violent sex. (I've calmed down a bit over the years.) The reaction to the book was eye-opening. A lot of woemn I would have described as grandmotherly or maiden aunt types really liked it. (He has problems, doesn't he?" one such woman said about the protagonist, as if she thought she could help him.) Although those observations surprised me, I was rocked even more by the responses from some of my colleagues in journalism, presumably jaded and cynical types who were appalled at what I had written.
It's ten years since THE SERPENT CLUB, and I'm still not sure what to make of that divergence. Except to note the wisdom of something my parents told me over and over again while I was growing up: Don't make assumptions about people. You have to judge them as individuals.
My first novel, THE SERPENT CLUB, was a book drenched with sex and violence and violent sex. (I've calmed down a bit over the years.) The reaction to the book was eye-opening. A lot of woemn I would have described as grandmotherly or maiden aunt types really liked it. (He has problems, doesn't he?" one such woman said about the protagonist, as if she thought she could help him.) Although those observations surprised me, I was rocked even more by the responses from some of my colleagues in journalism, presumably jaded and cynical types who were appalled at what I had written.
It's ten years since THE SERPENT CLUB, and I'm still not sure what to make of that divergence. Except to note the wisdom of something my parents told me over and over again while I was growing up: Don't make assumptions about people. You have to judge them as individuals.
Where Have You Gone, Beatrice Weinberg?
Just after my appearance at Book Expo America on Friday, Margery Flax of the Mystery Writers of America told me a fan story. Since I don't have many fan stories, I thought I'd relate it:
Margery got a message one day from an elderly woman at a nursing hime in Queens. The woman, a mystery fan, wondered if there any books the MWA had access to that it could send along to her. Margery liked the woman and wanted to help her out, so she put together a collection of about 40 titles and shipped them along.
It turns out that the woman was a "hard-boiled" buff, and she specifically asked Margery if she had any more books by Tom Coffey. She loved my stuff! At the time, I only had two books out.
Well, now there's a third. Unfortunately, Margery lost contact with the woman, whose name was Beatrice Weinberg. So if anybody knows where Beatrice is, please please please tell her about BLOOD ALLEY.
Margery got a message one day from an elderly woman at a nursing hime in Queens. The woman, a mystery fan, wondered if there any books the MWA had access to that it could send along to her. Margery liked the woman and wanted to help her out, so she put together a collection of about 40 titles and shipped them along.
It turns out that the woman was a "hard-boiled" buff, and she specifically asked Margery if she had any more books by Tom Coffey. She loved my stuff! At the time, I only had two books out.
Well, now there's a third. Unfortunately, Margery lost contact with the woman, whose name was Beatrice Weinberg. So if anybody knows where Beatrice is, please please please tell her about BLOOD ALLEY.
Friday, May 29, 2009
Deep Thought
For an industry teetering on the edge of oblivion, there sure were a lot of people at Book Expo America on Friday ....
If You Give Out Free Books ....
.... the world will beat a path to your door. That's what I found out today at Book Expo America. Toby Press, which published BLOOD ALLEY, sent me two cartons of books. I figure there were 50 to 60 copies altogether. I had a half-hour to sign them and EVERY LAST ONE DISAPPPEARED.
Margery Flax of the Mystery Writers of America, who did a terrific job organizing the MWA booth, told me that the MWA was one of the few exhibitors at the Expo that was giving away books, so the line in front of the writers was pretty much constant.
For further proof of Margery's thesis, consider what happened when my stint was over. I joined my friend Tim Wendel, who was signing copies of his book RED RAIN at a table in the basement of the Javits Center. Tim signed every copy he had, and had to turn away some people. At one point he had signed every copy he had, and word was put out to get more. People waited patiently for book swag, in surprisingly good humor.
My thanks to Shari and Matthew at Toby Press for providing copies of BLOOD ALLEY, to Margery and her colleagues at MWA for running a smooth operation, and to everyone who showed up to chat and get a copy of BLOOD ALLEY. It was a wonderful event, and I have to add one more thing:
PAPERBACK RIGHTS ARE STILL AVAILABLE!
Margery Flax of the Mystery Writers of America, who did a terrific job organizing the MWA booth, told me that the MWA was one of the few exhibitors at the Expo that was giving away books, so the line in front of the writers was pretty much constant.
For further proof of Margery's thesis, consider what happened when my stint was over. I joined my friend Tim Wendel, who was signing copies of his book RED RAIN at a table in the basement of the Javits Center. Tim signed every copy he had, and had to turn away some people. At one point he had signed every copy he had, and word was put out to get more. People waited patiently for book swag, in surprisingly good humor.
My thanks to Shari and Matthew at Toby Press for providing copies of BLOOD ALLEY, to Margery and her colleagues at MWA for running a smooth operation, and to everyone who showed up to chat and get a copy of BLOOD ALLEY. It was a wonderful event, and I have to add one more thing:
PAPERBACK RIGHTS ARE STILL AVAILABLE!
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Neptune (I Think)
Just completed the revisions to my next novel, still tentatively titled NEPTUNE. I sent the ms. to my agent, Bill Contardi at Brandt & Hochman ... and we'll take it from there.
I slashed the first draft version, which exceeded 160,000 words, down to about 87,000 by the time I sent the ms. to Bill. And I have to say, the revised version is a lot better.
I'll be signing copies of BLOOD ALLEY at Book Expo America at the Javits Center tomorrow at 3 p.m. at the Mystery Writers of America booth. Let me give a special shout-out to my friend and colleague Tim Wendel, who'll be appearing at 3:30 to sign copies of his book RED RAIN. (It's a good read! Buy it! Tim's daughter is attending a really expensive private university!)
I want to give another shout-out to my friend and colleague Lew Serviss, who recently ordered a copy of BLOOD ALLEY and sent its sales rank on Amazon up by about 800,000 places.
I slashed the first draft version, which exceeded 160,000 words, down to about 87,000 by the time I sent the ms. to Bill. And I have to say, the revised version is a lot better.
I'll be signing copies of BLOOD ALLEY at Book Expo America at the Javits Center tomorrow at 3 p.m. at the Mystery Writers of America booth. Let me give a special shout-out to my friend and colleague Tim Wendel, who'll be appearing at 3:30 to sign copies of his book RED RAIN. (It's a good read! Buy it! Tim's daughter is attending a really expensive private university!)
I want to give another shout-out to my friend and colleague Lew Serviss, who recently ordered a copy of BLOOD ALLEY and sent its sales rank on Amazon up by about 800,000 places.
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