The Fabulist Flash

Issue 112

with Photography by Gregory A. Kompes

2007 Leaf in Time

In This Issue:

1. This Week
2. Resolve to Make it Happen
3. Opportunities
4. Roger Storkamp takes the 18Q
5. About The Fabulist Flash

1. This Week

When the calendar message "Order the tree" flashed I read it in disbelief. How did it get to be November so quickly? Did 2006 pass at warp speed?

The message refers to ordering our Christmas tree. You can't get a decent one on the lots here in Vegas and there's nowhere close to cut your own. So, we order ours, like just about everything else, online. No matter where you are in the US, if you're going to order a tree on line, I highly recommend The Rocks Estate (http://therocks.org/) in New Hampshire.

The other indication from the popup message is that the year is coming to an end and that means there's a lot to do. In addition to preparing for the holidays (creating our family holiday cards, shopping lists, shipping of gifts, and holiday party planning) I spend time around now reviewing my past year's goals. I'll do the annual plan for 2007 in December, but I like to take some time in November to reflect on the year that's ending, see what I've accomplished, and spend a few moments patting myself on the back.

As we head into the busiest social time of the year, our writing time may diminish a bit. Look back on all you've accomplished this year so you'll be ready to boast at all those get togethers with family and friends.

A final reminder: the fifth annual Vegas Valley Book Festival--celebrating the written, spoken and illustrated word-- is happening November 3-4, 2006. Located in the heart of the downtown Las Vegas Arts District, this literary and arts event includes two full days of readings, book discussions, workshops, and spoken word performances. I'm speaking on two panels on Friday, November 3: Self-publishing vs. Traditional Publishing (10:30 AM) and The Importance of Good Editing (11:45 AM). I'll also be signing books in a booth with members of the Henderson Writers' Group on Boulder from 6:00-10:00 PM as part of a literary First Friday. Hope to see you there. (For locations and more information, visit http://www.vegasvalleybookfest.org/)

Until next week,

Gregory
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Gregory A. Kompes (www.kompes.com) is a writer, manuscript consultant and author of the bestseller 50 Fabulous Gay-Friendly Places to Live, The Endorsement Quest, The Everyday Gay Activist and Turning Your Writing Hobby into a Writing Career.

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Preview 9 essential books for writers on The Writer's Bookshelf

2. Resolve to Make it Happen

Resolve to Make it Happen by Teresa Ambord

"There is no scarcity of opportunity to make a living at what you love to do, there is only scarcity of resolve to make it happen." --Wayne Dyer, author and motivational speaker

"Unless you're John Grisham, you can't make a living as a writer!" I heard that over and over, not just from pessimists, but from friends who actually had published books on the market. They knew what they were talking about, but they didn't know what I wanted. I wasn't looking for a six-figure income, though I wouldn't turn my nose up at it. Plus I'd burnt out on my day job as an accountant and would've given anything to be able to leave it behind. But I was a divorced mother with a mortgage, so I had no choice but to trudge on, counting beans until I could find another source of income. That's what led me to freelance editing, and eventually, an excellent writing/editing job.

Like most people, I started writing as a hobby. After a few minor publishing successes, I was hooked. That just made me more motivated to leave my day job, so I started searching for writing-related ways to earn money. When I discovered that my local college was offering an online copy editing class, I was curious. I'd had enough experience with editors that I'd come to believe they were blood-sucking, bat-like creatures who existed only to slash the hard work of writers like me. Maybe if I took this editing class, I could figure out what editors wanted, and in the process, improve my writing.

Six weeks and seventy dollars later, I finished the class with a new perspective, plus a new set of skills and a goal. The instructor encouraged us to hone our new skills by doing some freelance editing. I found a fee-based Web site called Contractedwork.com, where people who needed editors, writers, etc., posted projects and invited bids. I signed up and spent the next two months not winning a single bid. But I watched and learned.

About that time I was told that my employer was cutting back the staff and I was to be laid off. Losing my day job came as a shock, but not an altogether unpleasant one. My employer gave me a nice severance package and a lot of free time. Coincidentally, that's when I started winning bids for editing jobs. I started by editing papers for PhD students, then moved on to stories and a pre-edit on a book-in progress. Each job led to the next as I built my skills and earned some money. I was having a ball, but the work wasn't steady enough to pay all the bills. As my severance pay ran low, I knew I'd have to get another day job. My dream was two-fold: one, to never, never, never return to accounting; and two, to find someone to pay me to work full time from home. Thanks to my newly acquired editing skills, I did.

One fine day I saw an ad on Journalismjobs.com that described me. Someone was looking for a writer with a business background who had editing skills. Voila! That was me. I was hired, and my new east coast employer installed a new computer and phone systems in my west coast home. Now my commute each morning is about four feet, unless I detour to the kitchen for coffee first. Life is good, and I owe it all to the desire to find an alternate stream of income, in my case, editing.

About the Author
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Teresa Ambord writes for a business-to-business publication by day, and enjoys writing creative nonfiction by night. She lives in far northern California with her dogs/best friends, Annie and Bean.

3. Opportunities

Opportunities

Reader’s Digest has a new spread titled: "5 Things We Don’t Want You to Miss." Profiled in this section are a collection of DVD’s, books, TV shows, video games or pop-culture events.

Keep in mind that while Reader’s Digest gets in excess of ten million readers a month, the median age for their reader is 49, the majority of them women. Offering the magazine a book or product that appeals to someone in this demographic is an ideal submission.

If you’re considering a submission, remember that the magazine works on a lead time of two to three months, so pitch new books far enough in advance. Ed Shanahan and Lindsay Miller are column contributors and should be contacted directly.

You can reach Miller in her Los Angeles office at: 816 Masselin Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90036. Shanahan is in the New York office and can be reached via mail at: One Reader’s Digest Road, Pleasantville, NY 10570.

Reprinted from "The Book Marketing Expert newsletter," a free ezine offering book promotion and publicity tips and techniques. http://www.amarketingexpert.com

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Fred Gleeck, an information marketer, creates, markets and sells books, ebooks, audios, videos, seminars and software to a variety of niche markets. For a short time, you can get 5 of his most popular books (in pdf format) at no charge. [Editor's note: you do have to give him your email address, but the books are worth it.] http://www.FredGleeck.com/ebooks

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The Author's Coalition and Red Engine Press are making plans once again for participation at the LA Times Festival of Books. There are several affordable packages that include book placement, catalog inclusion, book signing opportunities and more. If you'd like your book featured in the Author's Coalition booth during this prestigious event, Contact Carolyn Howard-Johnson (HOJONEWS@aol.com). Space is limited.

Have Something to Share
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If you have an opportunity writers can take advantage of email it to editor@fabulistflash.com

4. Roger Storkamp takes the 18Q

Roger Storkamp

Biography:
After a teaching career in suburbia, Roger developed a nostalgia for the rural Minnesota setting of his childhood and adolescent years. Away to college, was his excuse to escape as a young man and back to his origins, is an effort to endear himself to the people who helped mold his personality. The characters and their roles in his fictional Minnesota setting were created from the attitudes, values and foibles he has learned to cherish and respect. Roger holds a Master of Arts degree from the University of Wisconsin and did post graduate work at Pepperdine University in California, Nova University in Florida, Fordham University in New York, and the University of Texas, El Paso. He taught high school English in Minnesota and Wisconsin and education courses at United States International University in San Diego. He earned a Doctor of Arts degree from East Coast University in Florida. He and his wife, Laurie, currently reside in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Website
www.rogstor.com

Bibliography
Just Thelma, a literary novel
Beneath a Crescent Moon, a literary novel

1. Did you choose the writing profession or did it choose you?
It patiently waited until I retired, then screamed at me like a jilted lover.

2. What is your background? (education, work, etc.)
Educator for thirty five years, small business half that long

3. When did you 'know' you were a writer?
When I read an advanced copy of my first novel

4. How would you describe your style of writing?
Succinct

5. What is your writing process?
Inspired and uninterrupted rambling at the word processor, scrolling sentence-by-sentence rewrites until I feel they can stand up to the scrutiny of my critiquers, and then begin to seriously rewrite

6. What was your path to publication?
Self publishing until my friends and relatives get their parts right.

7. What is your favorite self-marketing idea?
Presenting myself and my book surrounded by period props to an audience of people who like to read

8. What are the biggest surprises you've encountered as a writer?
How easy it is to please my reader but how difficult it was to get her to buy my book.

9. How do you inspire yourself? What are your sources of creativity?
Walk the dog, clean up the poop and rush back to my word processor

10. What is your proudest writer moment?
Reflecting on my writing achievements thus far (Creating answers for this interview is a near sexual thrill.)

11. What's the best advice you were given about writing?
My own advice—LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION (Each word in a sentence, sentence in a chapter, character in a setting, etc. must be carefully chosen and placed.)

12. What is your most embarrassing writer moment?
When a librarian from my home town presented me with a list of errors in my novel

13. What business challenges have you faced as a writer?
Creating a market for my book

14. What is your writer life philosophy?
Live and create life between the covers

15. When you're not writing what do you do for fun?
Mostly vicarious (I make one of my characters do something I’d be too timid to try.) I also play the slots.

16. Who do you like to read?
Haven’t had much time lately, but some of John Irving’s characters come to mind

17. What’s your advice for new writers?
Why wait?

18. What are you currently working on?
A companion novel to the ones recently published.

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Are you a published writer? Take the 18Q today!

To read all the 18Q responses or take the 18Q visit EighteenQuestions.com

5. About The Fabulist Flash

ISSN: 1554-0804

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