So we have a Christmas tree. For the first time in many years it actually didn't need to lose 10 feet to fit into the house. Mind you as we had to leave all our decorations behind, this had to be a bit smaller. It needed a nail-file not a chainsaw.
It's odd coming up to our second Christmas away from the farm and the way things were. Our first in Australia, of course. I think it is the time which is hardest for immigrants, and we're so grateful to have James here for this one. Maybe... someday, when the stone has found its home again, we'll get to the Somerset pye (with deboned ham hock (coated in chicken liver pate) inside a deboned chicken (coated in an apple and mushroom pate) inside a deboned duck (coated in a nut-pate) and inside a deboned turkey (coated with a layer of forcemeat with capsicums and pitted olives - which I don't think very traditional but I like them, and pastry case. My sister always hated it and moaned. My brother always did a very good gammon which he steamed over sherry and we made a slew of salads and ate for Africa, with trifle and Christmas pud with brandy butter after.
Maybe another year, when finances and life finally sort out... (keep swimming up the undertow!)
Anyway, I now should get all the Bookscan data from all my books, in exel form I believe once a week. It cost a bit but I'll never ever have the terrible shock of DRAGON'S RING again. Hopefully the pre-order will help to affect my career, so thank you, anyone who did this! I will have a very good idea of what if any royalties (instead of the current impossible budgeting situation) I will get and also a very good idea of just what is going on. Which areas books are selling in, which bookshops simply didn't take/get any stock. Where to direct attention, where not to waste my time. I'm rather iffy about having to do all this (I write. Time taken to do other things, is less books. BUT someone needs to watch all these things, and it appears it will be me, or not done. And if it isn't done... I won't sell books. So I will be watching it. I'll post sales so you can see them.)
From the below link, it appears that since early this month, Amazon has provided Bookscan info free to authors registered with them (which is also free).
ReplyDeletehttp://latimesblogs.latimes.com/jacketcopy/2010/12/amazon-gives-nielsen-bookscan-to-authors.html
I've preordered Dragon's Ring, and since one of my goals for 2011 is to read 100 books, I'm happy to add this to my list! :)
ReplyDeleteIn the States we call that a Turducken. It lacks the ham hock and the pates.
ReplyDeleteGood news about Bookscan. I'm still shaking my head over the botched roll out of the hard cover. There was nothing wrong with the book to create such a low sales figure. In fact I would have bet money on it being a better seller then Mankind Witch.
Surviving an undertow requires one to be brave and smart enough to do the counter-intuitive.
Thank you Paw3pals, Amazon did this the week after I had agreed to pay for the data, and I'm of the kind that takes agreeing as commitment. Anyway, on the plus side, the information is delivered as exel, and they give me a year's back data. I am hoping the Amazon move finally gets publishing as whole to get around to a shake-up, instead of merely trying to defend the indefensible. We don't still need 18th century type reporting and payment. No one counts the books in the warehouse twice a year by hand. Payment for e-books particularly is recieved and final within a couple of days. It doesn't need up to 18 months.
ReplyDeleteluneray :-) why are you cutting down on the number of books? ;-). Seriously, I hope you enjoy it. My target has always been to write books which are not an effort to read, but have layers and leave you satisfied, and thinking. And maybe coming back to read it again one day.
ReplyDeleteQuilly... I wish I was smarter dan de average bear. My own thought now is instead of swimming against the current, I need to start swimming across it. As I've said my needs are to look after myself and my family (and fortunately the two boys are nearly entirely able to look after themselves now) which leaves the fur-kids and B who is also helping to pull in the pieces... My wants are to live off the land and sea, and to write. I'm hoping to balance the two.
ReplyDeleteI think that was why the debacle with DRAGON'S RING hit me so hard: I expected it to - at VERY least - do as well as AMW. Actually I expected it to do a lot better. Given the fact that I am far better known now than I was for AMW, and that DRAGON'S RING launch (if you can call what they did a 'launch') co-incided with the SAVE THE DRAGONS project - which introduced my name and work to a lot of people who had not read anything I had written (I reckon 2/3 of 16 000 people who read that had never even seen my name before)the book had advantages, a good cover, and a story most people seemed to like...
So this was the last result I was expecting.
Perhaps it's just that hard-backs are more expensive and it's a tough time economically for everyone. I know I rarely buy hard-backs unless they are on sale. Mostly because I'm brutal with books (I'm a clumsy so-and-so and knock over cups of tea, etc), and they're also too heavy to tote everywhere when I'm in the middle of reading, since once I start a book, I read at every opportunity, so there's always a book in my handbag.
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