For Elephant's Bookshelf Press, December and January are often about finalizing all the planning we've been doing throughout the year.
We begin 2019 with several projects under way, including our latest anthology of short stories around the overarching theme of flight. We have received some wonderful stories and are excited about publishing the best.
We have some other items in the pipeline, and also have several ideas. Just as importantly, we're able to switch things up a little if we need to. Who says elephants can't be nimble?
But what I'd like to know is what would you like to see this year from Elephant's Bookshelf Press?
A novel from another emerging author looking to develop his or her audience? Got someone in mind? We're open to submissions! Direct queries to submissions@elephantsbookshelfpress.com.
An online course? (And if so, what would is it you have in mind? How to publish anthologies? How to write/self-publish short stories? How to develop your authorial voice? Something else?) Frankly, we have a couple course ideas that are in the hopper, but we are still trying to determine which makes the most sense. I believe the best way to start is with a free course for writers, but there are a lot of them out there already. But maybe you want to hear what the elephants have to say about that!
Another anthology of short stories? By "another" I mean in addition to the one we have in process right now. Anthologies take time to prepare, so if you're looking for a second anthology in 2019, we need to know that early on!
A collection of nonfiction essays (and if so, on what topic?) We haven't really tried this before, which could be exciting. But we need to have a focus. It's one thing for our brain trust to bang ideas around, but we want to know what readers are looking for.
Something else? There is no end to the number of possibilities. And we love learning new things, so perhaps we can learn together! Perhaps you want to see some sort of Facebook group or a series of author interviews. Let's face it, we've had some fantastic authors grace the pages of EBP anthologies before they became best selling and award-winning authors in their own right. Would you like to know what they're doing now?
We love to hear what our readers are looking for more of, so please let us know!
You can leave a comment here or send an email to matt@elephantsbookshelfpress.com.
Happy New Year!
Monday, December 31, 2018
Sunday, October 14, 2018
EBP Launches New Anthology
At long last, Elephant’s Bookshelf Press is launching a new
anthology effort!
So, what is the genre? Science
fiction.
In a sense, it’s a way for me to go back to my beginnings,
because when I started writing, my primary focus was on science fiction.
The best EBP anthologies to date have all had an overarching
theme, and I think we have something unique and interesting to shoot for in
this anthology.
The unifying theme of these short stories will be Flight.
One of the reasons I like this theme is because it’s a term
that has multiple meanings and therefore multiple interpretations. Of course,
flight can involve human or alien spaceships, heroes with super-human
abilities, winged creatures, but it just as easily could include flight from
danger. Heck, I bet there’s a clever person out there who can make a flight of
stairs into a vital element of a science fiction story.
I don’t want to be too restrictive in this description. The
story should incorporate flight; I leave the details to you.
For our anthology,
the stories can be up to 5,000 words long. No erotica.
The submission deadline
is January 15. There is no payment, though the published authors will receive
both a paperback and electronic edition of the completed anthology.
(This will likely be
the first EBP paperback since the demise of CreateSpace, but I’ve been told
that this process will be as straight forward as what we had grown accustomed
to.)
An early spring
publication is my target.
Our team will review the stories as they come in.
Feel free to ask any questions. Send them to
matt@elephantsbookshelfpress.com, and I’ll reply as soon as I can.
Friday, June 01, 2018
So, what do you do?
How often has this happened to you? You’re talking to
someone and either you or the other person asks what you do for a living.
It happens all the time. I’d say it happens to me at
least once a week, and I’m probably being too conservative.
But how do you answer?
For me, I usually say I’m a writer. Sometimes I say I’m
an editor. Other times I say I’m a journalist.
They’re all true.
When I tell people that I write or that I work with
words, they make assumptions about me. They assume I’m creative, for example. Some
assume something about my level of education. Some others try to stump me on a
random subject, as though writers know everything about everything.
You know who else we tend to think those same things
about? Teachers.
I know I do.
It makes sense, because at a certain level, most writers
are also teachers.
Even though I minored in education and did my student
teaching, I never served professionally as a formal teacher. I served as an
instructor for various short-term classes, but it wasn’t my full-time job.
I spent a few years conducting classes at YMCAs where I
was a full-time employee, but I was running programs. I thought of it as
different.
I was wrong. I was a teacher and an instructor and a
coach. I’ve realized lately that I still am.
I suspect this old saying (meant as a joke) is still
told: Those who can’t do, teach (and
the corollary: Those who can’t teach,
teach gym.)
I never really liked those jokes, though I probably told
them more than once, too.
But within those sayings is something that is certainly
true, even if it feels like it shouldn’t be: You don’t have to be an expert to teach.
As writers, we should have lots of skills that
non-writers envy. Our ability to imagine out-of-the-ordinary scenarios is one
of my favorites. A way with words is another.
I was talking with my sister recently about another trait
that she and my brothers share: We’re good at grammar. I suspect it had a lot
to do with our parents, but we always valued quality writing. We read it often.
It’s true that reading quality writing helps writers recognize bad writing.
Sometimes our preconceived notions of what something should look like distract us from what something is.
Maybe we think of teachers as people at the front of a
classroom lecturing on how to do a task. My best teachers also taught why things are the way they are. They
taught about perspectives.
Sharing perspectives is absolutely a part of writing.
From my perspective, I’m still a writer. I’m still an
editor. I’m still a journalist. And when people ask what I do, those are the
answers I’ll still give them.
But perhaps it’s time to change my perspective and see
how my vocation and avocation can change how I answer those questions.
How about you?
What do you do?
Fix the grammar glitch:
In the comment section, please indicate which sentence below is correct.
a) Please contact Amy or me if you have any questions.
b) Please contact Amy or I if you have any questions.
c) Please contact me or Amy if you have any questions.
Wednesday, May 23, 2018
The Genesis of the Elephant
In the six years since I created Elephant’s Bookshelf Press, I’ve seen my personal writing time winnow down to a dribble.
I’m not making excuses. I chose to focus my creative time on publishing.
This year, however, that has changed. I’ve been working on two different writing projects and one major edit/revamp effort, too. In a sense, I have spawned a similar problem. Once again, I have taken large bites and tried to chew too quickly.
So, with the second quarter of the year a little past midway, I’m slowing things down a little. On the bright side, you’ll probably see more of me on the blog this way.
I want to talk about our genesis. Think of it as a “why we exist” post.
In the beginning was the word... and the word was “elephant.”
When I was a small child, I fell in love with elephants. When I learned to talk, and people asked my name, I would say, “Elephant.” I didn’t have a big nose. I was possibly small for my age, but the name wasn’t intentionally ironic.
I simply loved elephants.
As the son of a scientist who worked at perhaps the premier research laboratory of its day, I grew up among books and learning and smart-ass older brothers. Eventually a smart-ass sister would enter the mix, too. I enjoyed educational experiences that I only learned to fully appreciate years later.
And there were lots of elephants. Stuffed. On the pages of books. (I had a wonderful collection of Babar books, and many of the volumes are in my attic.)
My grandfather bought me a Dumbo that I played with so much his felt wore off, and he eventually wore a baseball-playing elephant shirt that I’d outgrown. My mother even created an elephant pillow that my daughter now sleeps on or cuddles depending on where her dreams take her in the night.
I grew up among loving parents and loving extended family members. We played together (lots of Wiffleball), prayed together, and stayed together. When sad or bad things happened, we got closer. Still do.
As genesis stories go, it’s not much. Just another happy kid from a privileged upbringing with lots of books in an unfair world.
My biggest challenges growing up, I realize now, were related to ambitions. All I wanted to do was write or play baseball.
As hard as I tried, I simply didn’t have the skills to reach the major leagues as a ballplayer. The writing came more naturally.
I’m fortunate that in my adulthood, my ambitions of making a living as a writer never left me, and I should feel proud that I’ve been living my dream of being paid to write. I do. But…
But like most dreams, they’re not quite what you expect. The nightmares are rarely as harrowing as they seem at the time. And the “normal” dreams carry more portent and potential than we might recognize.
Back to Elephant’s Bookshelf Press...
Assuming some of the readers here are friends I’ve made at AgentQuery Connect, you’ve probably heard this before, but I’ll share it anyway.
EBP arose out of e-conversations between several of my fellow moderators at AQC. We decided in 2011 that we wanted to find out what the whole e-publishing revolution was about. And while some of us had gained agents, many of us were finding the reception to our queries not so encouraging.
I couldn’t tell you when I last sent a query to an agent. Struggling with perfectionism, I was still plugging in the electrodes on my moribund manuscript waiting for lightning to strike so I could cry out, “It’s alive! Alive!”
So, I was happy to volunteer to lead the effort that became Spring Fevers, the first anthology from Elephant’s Bookshelf Press.
Initially, it was to be an e-book only, but we decided a few weeks after initially publishing that it would be fun to have a paperback.
I can’t remember which came first, the decision to publish a paperback or the decision to publish a second title, The Fall. Either way, I’d bought myself several ISBNs because I had already decided that mine would not be a one-book adventure.
Unbeknownst to me, I was developing new ambitions.
You see, Elephant’s Bookshelf Press was borne from a desire to help other writers. We wanted a way to share our stories, literally and figuratively. I built a platform, and initially I wasn’t fully aware of what that would mean.
Starting in 2015, but especially last year, I’ve spent a lot more time developing systems for EBP and determining what new products we can create. I’ve looked to develop new services for writers, not just to help them as writers, but also because it’s abundantly clear to me that being a writer in the twenty-first century is not simply about writing.
It’s about creating.
Creating books, sure. Creating websites. Creating blogs. Creating courses, perhaps. Creating partnerships. Creating relationships with readers.
Creating an audience.
Sharing and amplifying a voice.
It has been slow going. Mostly because I haven’t always understood what EBP is really about.
I know what we do: we publish books.
But why?
At Elephant’s Bookshelf Press, we love stories. We love telling them. We love hearing them. We love sharing them.
Stories are as old as humanity.
In the beginning, God snapped a finger and blessed a walking ape with an extra sense of self and a new level of curiosity. That ape started thinking in stories.
Language evolved.
Soon, that imaginative ape attracted a similarly gifted mate, and so sparked humanity.
We’re attracted to authors who tell interesting stories and tell them in an engaging manner.
Like elephants, we tend to travel in herds; at EBP, we call them anthologies. We haven’t published an anthology in a couple years now, but we will in time.
Because Elephant’s Bookshelf Press isn’t just about selling books; it’s about helping authors meet and mingle with their audiences.
Not the end.
I’m not making excuses. I chose to focus my creative time on publishing.
This year, however, that has changed. I’ve been working on two different writing projects and one major edit/revamp effort, too. In a sense, I have spawned a similar problem. Once again, I have taken large bites and tried to chew too quickly.
So, with the second quarter of the year a little past midway, I’m slowing things down a little. On the bright side, you’ll probably see more of me on the blog this way.
I want to talk about our genesis. Think of it as a “why we exist” post.
In the beginning was the word... and the word was “elephant.”
When I was a small child, I fell in love with elephants. When I learned to talk, and people asked my name, I would say, “Elephant.” I didn’t have a big nose. I was possibly small for my age, but the name wasn’t intentionally ironic.
I simply loved elephants.
As the son of a scientist who worked at perhaps the premier research laboratory of its day, I grew up among books and learning and smart-ass older brothers. Eventually a smart-ass sister would enter the mix, too. I enjoyed educational experiences that I only learned to fully appreciate years later.
And there were lots of elephants. Stuffed. On the pages of books. (I had a wonderful collection of Babar books, and many of the volumes are in my attic.)
My grandfather bought me a Dumbo that I played with so much his felt wore off, and he eventually wore a baseball-playing elephant shirt that I’d outgrown. My mother even created an elephant pillow that my daughter now sleeps on or cuddles depending on where her dreams take her in the night.
I grew up among loving parents and loving extended family members. We played together (lots of Wiffleball), prayed together, and stayed together. When sad or bad things happened, we got closer. Still do.
As genesis stories go, it’s not much. Just another happy kid from a privileged upbringing with lots of books in an unfair world.
My biggest challenges growing up, I realize now, were related to ambitions. All I wanted to do was write or play baseball.
As hard as I tried, I simply didn’t have the skills to reach the major leagues as a ballplayer. The writing came more naturally.
I’m fortunate that in my adulthood, my ambitions of making a living as a writer never left me, and I should feel proud that I’ve been living my dream of being paid to write. I do. But…
But like most dreams, they’re not quite what you expect. The nightmares are rarely as harrowing as they seem at the time. And the “normal” dreams carry more portent and potential than we might recognize.
Back to Elephant’s Bookshelf Press...
Assuming some of the readers here are friends I’ve made at AgentQuery Connect, you’ve probably heard this before, but I’ll share it anyway.
EBP arose out of e-conversations between several of my fellow moderators at AQC. We decided in 2011 that we wanted to find out what the whole e-publishing revolution was about. And while some of us had gained agents, many of us were finding the reception to our queries not so encouraging.
I couldn’t tell you when I last sent a query to an agent. Struggling with perfectionism, I was still plugging in the electrodes on my moribund manuscript waiting for lightning to strike so I could cry out, “It’s alive! Alive!”
So, I was happy to volunteer to lead the effort that became Spring Fevers, the first anthology from Elephant’s Bookshelf Press.
Initially, it was to be an e-book only, but we decided a few weeks after initially publishing that it would be fun to have a paperback.
I can’t remember which came first, the decision to publish a paperback or the decision to publish a second title, The Fall. Either way, I’d bought myself several ISBNs because I had already decided that mine would not be a one-book adventure.
Unbeknownst to me, I was developing new ambitions.
You see, Elephant’s Bookshelf Press was borne from a desire to help other writers. We wanted a way to share our stories, literally and figuratively. I built a platform, and initially I wasn’t fully aware of what that would mean.
Starting in 2015, but especially last year, I’ve spent a lot more time developing systems for EBP and determining what new products we can create. I’ve looked to develop new services for writers, not just to help them as writers, but also because it’s abundantly clear to me that being a writer in the twenty-first century is not simply about writing.
It’s about creating.
Creating books, sure. Creating websites. Creating blogs. Creating courses, perhaps. Creating partnerships. Creating relationships with readers.
Creating an audience.
Sharing and amplifying a voice.
It has been slow going. Mostly because I haven’t always understood what EBP is really about.
I know what we do: we publish books.
But why?
At Elephant’s Bookshelf Press, we love stories. We love telling them. We love hearing them. We love sharing them.
Stories are as old as humanity.
In the beginning, God snapped a finger and blessed a walking ape with an extra sense of self and a new level of curiosity. That ape started thinking in stories.
Language evolved.
Soon, that imaginative ape attracted a similarly gifted mate, and so sparked humanity.
We’re attracted to authors who tell interesting stories and tell them in an engaging manner.
Like elephants, we tend to travel in herds; at EBP, we call them anthologies. We haven’t published an anthology in a couple years now, but we will in time.
Because Elephant’s Bookshelf Press isn’t just about selling books; it’s about helping authors meet and mingle with their audiences.
Not the end.
Tuesday, March 27, 2018
Perceptions Matter
The other day, I was included in the photo shoot for the annual report at the nonprofit organization where I work. From my perspective, the key contribution I made was when the photographer was setting up the first shot. He was going to have me at white board, looking like I was leading a meeting.
“I don’t think you want to have the middle-aged white guy leading the meeting,” I said.
Almost immediately there was agreement around the table. A moment later, a woman whose family is from India was at the white board.
The characters experience the story. And perceptions matter.
As an author, you need to know your characters, but I think it’s at least as important to know how your readers will see your story.
I’m not arguing for being politically correct (whatever that means these days). But I’m saying we’ve seen a lot of the same stories. There's room for diversity.
We don’t need the story to be about the middle-aged white guy all the time. As a reader, I’d like to know more about the 20-something Indian girl; or better yet, the Native American woman in urban America.
There’s lots of stories about teens who feel like fish out of water. I mean, that’s what being a teenager is all about, right?
But what about the third grader from Egypt, or the second grader who moved to mainland U.S. from hurricane-ravaged Puerto Rico. There are so many stories that can be told.
What are their stories?
Usually, when I talk about these things with other writers, the chief argument is that they need to write what they know.
I get it. But it’s also true that to learn, we need to explore the unknown.
What are you writing? Could it be made better by changing the race, gender, or orientation of the protagonist?
Give it a try, even if it’s just a writing exercise. You might surprise yourself.
“I don’t think you want to have the middle-aged white guy leading the meeting,” I said.
Almost immediately there was agreement around the table. A moment later, a woman whose family is from India was at the white board.
The characters experience the story. And perceptions matter.
As an author, you need to know your characters, but I think it’s at least as important to know how your readers will see your story.
I’m not arguing for being politically correct (whatever that means these days). But I’m saying we’ve seen a lot of the same stories. There's room for diversity.
We don’t need the story to be about the middle-aged white guy all the time. As a reader, I’d like to know more about the 20-something Indian girl; or better yet, the Native American woman in urban America.
There’s lots of stories about teens who feel like fish out of water. I mean, that’s what being a teenager is all about, right?
But what about the third grader from Egypt, or the second grader who moved to mainland U.S. from hurricane-ravaged Puerto Rico. There are so many stories that can be told.
What are their stories?
Usually, when I talk about these things with other writers, the chief argument is that they need to write what they know.
I get it. But it’s also true that to learn, we need to explore the unknown.
What are you writing? Could it be made better by changing the race, gender, or orientation of the protagonist?
Give it a try, even if it’s just a writing exercise. You might surprise yourself.
Sunday, February 11, 2018
Questions for those who write for children
Lately, I've been working on a short novel. The best part about it is I know exactly who my ideal reader is, because I read to them every night.
The characters in this story, which I believe will be the beginning of a series, are third graders, just like my girls. We're talking about a book that'll probably have no more than 10,000 words. This is not a middle grade novel.
It's not ready for prime time at all; I haven't even finished the first draft, and I know I've created some tangents I'll need to lop off before I'm done. But that's part of the editing and revision process; I'm writing right now.
But I'm curious about what other writers out there have learned during this process.
How have you determined whether you're writing with the right language? I tend to write too old (probably related to my writing for a business audience for the past twenty-plus years).
Do you test with children?
Do you share with other parents?
How do you find these things out for yourself?
If you have thoughts or suggestions, feel free to comment here. Or send an email to me at matt@elephantsbookshelfpress.com.
And if anyone's interested, I'm putting together an early readers' team for these books. I'm very much at the early stage of this, but I'll definitely give you free copies of the book when it's ready.
The characters in this story, which I believe will be the beginning of a series, are third graders, just like my girls. We're talking about a book that'll probably have no more than 10,000 words. This is not a middle grade novel.
It's not ready for prime time at all; I haven't even finished the first draft, and I know I've created some tangents I'll need to lop off before I'm done. But that's part of the editing and revision process; I'm writing right now.
But I'm curious about what other writers out there have learned during this process.
How have you determined whether you're writing with the right language? I tend to write too old (probably related to my writing for a business audience for the past twenty-plus years).
Do you test with children?
Do you share with other parents?
How do you find these things out for yourself?
If you have thoughts or suggestions, feel free to comment here. Or send an email to me at matt@elephantsbookshelfpress.com.
And if anyone's interested, I'm putting together an early readers' team for these books. I'm very much at the early stage of this, but I'll definitely give you free copies of the book when it's ready.
Wednesday, January 31, 2018
Novelists, Meet Filmmakers. Filmmakers, Novelists
By R.S. Mellette
Right now, there seem to be two schools of production in Hollywood – those companies that make movies based on short stories or novels, and those that don't. I haven't run the numbers, but I'll bet dollars to doughnuts that the first group is doing a lot better than the second.
The companies making films based on published properties tend to be either major studios or mid- to upper-end independents. A few of these companies started as uber-indies and were smart enough to acquire published work, and are now playing in the big leagues. Temple Hill with the Twilight series comes to mind.
But most uber-indie production companies don't mess with published works. I know this because I've been a screener and/or programmer for the Dances With Films Festival in Los Angeles since 2001. I can't tell you the number of submissions I've screened where I think, <em>why did the filmmakers decide to tell THIS story</em>?
I'm also a novelist. I have novelist friends all over the world who have wonderful stories they've told on paper. They would love to see these works made into films, but they’re completely baffled by the filmmaking community.
This article is intended to help both sides bridge the gap, meet each other, and hopefully work together on mutually beneficial projects.
I'll start with the filmmakers:
Ladies and gentlemen, I'd like you to think long and hard about why you chose filmmaking as a career. Deep down in your soul, is the answer to that question, "I want to make movies," or "I want to tell stories?"
Don't cheat. If you had to choose between just making movies and just telling stories, which would it be?
Knowing thousands of filmmakers, I have a feeling that most would never give up the set. They love the sweat, pressure, art, camaraderie, adrenaline, thrill, and insanity of making movies. Creating the story on the blank page is secondary to making the story come to life, and that's fine. That's why you're filmmakers.
Sure, some would rather gouge out their eyes than make someone else's story, but most are just as happy to make any story – as long as it's good, or the pay is high.
So, filmmakers, don't feel like you must also be the story creator. You're a storyteller, for sure. No doubt about it, but you don't have to tell a story that you created. Better that you should find someone who has the same passion facing the blank page that you have facing an eager cast & crew.
That someone might be a screenwriter, sure, but many screenwriters have the same answer to the "why did you get into this business?" question as you do. So many of them – even some very good ones – want to make movies more than they want to tell stories. If you ever do take a meeting with a screenwriter, tell them you're not going to make the movie, you're just going to publish their story. See how they react.
Novelists, on the other hand, are 100 percent pure storytellers. Their passion is what they've put on the page. Your turning it into a living, breathing thing is wonderful, mostly because it means more people will be exposed to their story. And, let's not lie, they'd also be into increased royalties, participation deals, etc.
But their passion is the page, not the stage.
Now to novelists:
Men and women of letters. There is no way around it, filmmaking - as both a business and an art - is a social endeavor. Film sets have been accurately compared to a royal court. Navigating them can be hazardous to your health.
Still, the best way to meet filmmakers is not when they are dressed nice, celebrating the premiere of their film at a festival, but when they are covered in blood, sweat, and tears while working as a Third Assistant Director on someone else's project.
Why? The filmmaker who has just premiered has two years of trying to sell that movie to the public before they can even think about their next film.
They also have a slew of people who have been pitching them like crazy, and they've burned all their favors on that first film. The second one will be ten times more difficult to launch.
Meanwhile, the hardworking crew of that film are owed some favors. If they want to step up to the plate as a producer/director, their chance is next. You just have to hope they didn't answer "to tell my stories," to the question of why they got into this business.
But how do you get on the set? How do you get to meet filmmakers when all they do is work on each other's projects and go to festivals?
That's easy. Every film needs people. From extras to PAs (Production Assistants), filmmaking is social because it takes so many people make them. And there's more good news.
Because of the availability of cheap, high-quality, digital cameras, you don't have to live in Los Angeles or New York to find a filmmaking community. Chances are, there is a filmmaking group in whatever town you live in.
Hit the internet, find them, and join up. If you do live in a filmmaking hub, and you can afford to take a low-paying job, sign up to be an extra. The pay is terrible for non-union (and the work isn't readily available for union), but you're usually fed well and it's a lot of fun.
But what do you do once you're on the set, or in a meeting of filmmakers at a group? First, don't try to be what you're not! The industry is full of those people.
Don't tell anyone you're a screenwriter. Everyone is a screenwriter. They need another screenwriter like the Sahara needs more sand.
Just tell the truth. You're a novelist. You don't know anything about filmmaking, but you'd like to meet some filmmakers to maybe talk about some projects. I think you'll find filmmakers think novelists are as mysterious as you think filmmakers are.
Okay, novelists have a way to meet filmmakers, but how do filmmakers meet novelists?
Filmmakers. Novelists write. They also read. If you're going to reach out to a novelist, you're going to need to read them.
But your buying all the best sellers and slogging your way through them until you find a writer you like is just like a novelist trying to network with a major filmmaker. The big novelists don't need your uber-indie eager help with their major works.
So what's the answer?
Short stories. Anthologies. You can get to know ten to fifteen authors reading an anthology in the time it takes to read one novel. And if you reach out to pretty much any author with, "I read your short story…" you will immediately have their attention.
Short stories are like short films. They are a labor of love. Sure, they might also be a way of testing out an idea, or just getting something done, but just like your short films, they are gems that you never forget.
I often call Elephant's Bookshelf Press the Sun Records of publishing. Just the way Sam Phillips discovered Elvis, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, etc. Matt Sinclair has published <a href="http://www.stevencarman.com/">Steven Carman</a>, <a href="http://rclewisbooks.com/books/">R.C. Lewis</a>, Robert K. Lewis (well, actually Don M. Vail), <a href="http://www.mindymcginnis.com/">Mindy McGinnis</a>, and many more.
Are they as big in the writing world as Sam's discoveries are in music? No. Not yet. If they were, you wouldn't be able to work with them. But they are just as talented.
Filmmakers, if you're looking for a story to tell, anthologies are a good place to start. <em>Roller Ball</em>, <em>Running Man</em>, <em>Stand By Me</em>, <em>Breakfast at Tiffany's</em>, <em>Brokeback Mountain</em>, <em>Children of the Corn</em>, and so many more feature films started life as short fiction. Fire up the Kindle app on your phone, download some anhologies, and get reading. EBP is a good place to start. When you find a writer you like, reach out. You never know what beautiful friendship might begin.
R.S. Mellette is the author of Billy Bobble Makes a Magic Wand and Billy Bobble and the Witch Hunt, both from Elephant's Bookshelf Press. He also has written several short stories that have appeared in EBP anthologies.
Right now, there seem to be two schools of production in Hollywood – those companies that make movies based on short stories or novels, and those that don't. I haven't run the numbers, but I'll bet dollars to doughnuts that the first group is doing a lot better than the second.
The companies making films based on published properties tend to be either major studios or mid- to upper-end independents. A few of these companies started as uber-indies and were smart enough to acquire published work, and are now playing in the big leagues. Temple Hill with the Twilight series comes to mind.
But most uber-indie production companies don't mess with published works. I know this because I've been a screener and/or programmer for the Dances With Films Festival in Los Angeles since 2001. I can't tell you the number of submissions I've screened where I think, <em>why did the filmmakers decide to tell THIS story</em>?
I'm also a novelist. I have novelist friends all over the world who have wonderful stories they've told on paper. They would love to see these works made into films, but they’re completely baffled by the filmmaking community.
This article is intended to help both sides bridge the gap, meet each other, and hopefully work together on mutually beneficial projects.
I'll start with the filmmakers:
Ladies and gentlemen, I'd like you to think long and hard about why you chose filmmaking as a career. Deep down in your soul, is the answer to that question, "I want to make movies," or "I want to tell stories?"
Don't cheat. If you had to choose between just making movies and just telling stories, which would it be?
Knowing thousands of filmmakers, I have a feeling that most would never give up the set. They love the sweat, pressure, art, camaraderie, adrenaline, thrill, and insanity of making movies. Creating the story on the blank page is secondary to making the story come to life, and that's fine. That's why you're filmmakers.
Sure, some would rather gouge out their eyes than make someone else's story, but most are just as happy to make any story – as long as it's good, or the pay is high.
So, filmmakers, don't feel like you must also be the story creator. You're a storyteller, for sure. No doubt about it, but you don't have to tell a story that you created. Better that you should find someone who has the same passion facing the blank page that you have facing an eager cast & crew.
That someone might be a screenwriter, sure, but many screenwriters have the same answer to the "why did you get into this business?" question as you do. So many of them – even some very good ones – want to make movies more than they want to tell stories. If you ever do take a meeting with a screenwriter, tell them you're not going to make the movie, you're just going to publish their story. See how they react.
Novelists, on the other hand, are 100 percent pure storytellers. Their passion is what they've put on the page. Your turning it into a living, breathing thing is wonderful, mostly because it means more people will be exposed to their story. And, let's not lie, they'd also be into increased royalties, participation deals, etc.
But their passion is the page, not the stage.
Now to novelists:
Men and women of letters. There is no way around it, filmmaking - as both a business and an art - is a social endeavor. Film sets have been accurately compared to a royal court. Navigating them can be hazardous to your health.
Still, the best way to meet filmmakers is not when they are dressed nice, celebrating the premiere of their film at a festival, but when they are covered in blood, sweat, and tears while working as a Third Assistant Director on someone else's project.
Why? The filmmaker who has just premiered has two years of trying to sell that movie to the public before they can even think about their next film.
They also have a slew of people who have been pitching them like crazy, and they've burned all their favors on that first film. The second one will be ten times more difficult to launch.
Meanwhile, the hardworking crew of that film are owed some favors. If they want to step up to the plate as a producer/director, their chance is next. You just have to hope they didn't answer "to tell my stories," to the question of why they got into this business.
But how do you get on the set? How do you get to meet filmmakers when all they do is work on each other's projects and go to festivals?
That's easy. Every film needs people. From extras to PAs (Production Assistants), filmmaking is social because it takes so many people make them. And there's more good news.
Because of the availability of cheap, high-quality, digital cameras, you don't have to live in Los Angeles or New York to find a filmmaking community. Chances are, there is a filmmaking group in whatever town you live in.
Hit the internet, find them, and join up. If you do live in a filmmaking hub, and you can afford to take a low-paying job, sign up to be an extra. The pay is terrible for non-union (and the work isn't readily available for union), but you're usually fed well and it's a lot of fun.
But what do you do once you're on the set, or in a meeting of filmmakers at a group? First, don't try to be what you're not! The industry is full of those people.
Don't tell anyone you're a screenwriter. Everyone is a screenwriter. They need another screenwriter like the Sahara needs more sand.
Just tell the truth. You're a novelist. You don't know anything about filmmaking, but you'd like to meet some filmmakers to maybe talk about some projects. I think you'll find filmmakers think novelists are as mysterious as you think filmmakers are.
Okay, novelists have a way to meet filmmakers, but how do filmmakers meet novelists?
Filmmakers. Novelists write. They also read. If you're going to reach out to a novelist, you're going to need to read them.
But your buying all the best sellers and slogging your way through them until you find a writer you like is just like a novelist trying to network with a major filmmaker. The big novelists don't need your uber-indie eager help with their major works.
So what's the answer?
Short stories. Anthologies. You can get to know ten to fifteen authors reading an anthology in the time it takes to read one novel. And if you reach out to pretty much any author with, "I read your short story…" you will immediately have their attention.
Short stories are like short films. They are a labor of love. Sure, they might also be a way of testing out an idea, or just getting something done, but just like your short films, they are gems that you never forget.
I often call Elephant's Bookshelf Press the Sun Records of publishing. Just the way Sam Phillips discovered Elvis, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, etc. Matt Sinclair has published <a href="http://www.stevencarman.com/">Steven Carman</a>, <a href="http://rclewisbooks.com/books/">R.C. Lewis</a>, Robert K. Lewis (well, actually Don M. Vail), <a href="http://www.mindymcginnis.com/">Mindy McGinnis</a>, and many more.
Are they as big in the writing world as Sam's discoveries are in music? No. Not yet. If they were, you wouldn't be able to work with them. But they are just as talented.
Filmmakers, if you're looking for a story to tell, anthologies are a good place to start. <em>Roller Ball</em>, <em>Running Man</em>, <em>Stand By Me</em>, <em>Breakfast at Tiffany's</em>, <em>Brokeback Mountain</em>, <em>Children of the Corn</em>, and so many more feature films started life as short fiction. Fire up the Kindle app on your phone, download some anhologies, and get reading. EBP is a good place to start. When you find a writer you like, reach out. You never know what beautiful friendship might begin.
R.S. Mellette is the author of Billy Bobble Makes a Magic Wand and Billy Bobble and the Witch Hunt, both from Elephant's Bookshelf Press. He also has written several short stories that have appeared in EBP anthologies.
Wednesday, January 17, 2018
A Different Take on Book Launches
No two books are alike, and from what I can tell, book launches are often different.
The latest book from Elephant’s Bookshelf Press is unlike anything we’ve ever published before, and so is the launch. Which the Days Never Know: A year in Vietnam by the numbers is the first nonfiction book from EBP.
The name might imply that it’s a memoir, and in a sense that’s correct. But not quite. It contains memories from the author, Dr. Donald McNamara, who walked off his flight home from Vietnam on January 13, 1968; we published the paperback on the fiftieth anniversary of his return home. But the book conveys moments more than memories, impressions rather than intensity.
Which the Days Never Know does not set out to recount battles or delve deeply into personal matters – or even personnel matters. Instead, Don takes the approach of a workaday soldier.
Everything in the Army seemed to have a number, he said, so in his book Don marched through 365 days – the typical one-year term of service in Vietnam – number by number.
From a visual standpoint, he wanted the book to look like verse or poetry.
From a publishing standpoint, I knew right away that we were taking a risk. But I think it’s a risk worth taking.
In launching EBP’s nonfiction division, I wanted something that felt true to what the company has been aiming to accomplish – its mission, if you will. Unlike many EBP authors, Don is not unpublished; he has retired as a professor of literature and during his academic career wrote pieces on Irish language and literature in particular. He also has written countless journalistic pieces, which is how our paths crossed.
But EBP prides itself on helping authors share their voice and helping their stories find an audience.
As a bit of EBP trivia, Don helped me find the voice of my company, years before I knew I become a publisher. He taught me the phrase bionn gach tasu lag, which I used in the first paragraph of the introduction to Spring Fevers, EBP’s first book, back in 2012. For those who do not recall the intro – or might not be fluent in Irish – it means “every beginning is weak.”
And in a mirror image of Spring Fevers, I have decided to publish Which the Days Never Know first in paperback; Spring Fevers was originally planned as an ebook only.
Think of this as a soft launch.
In this age of electronic and independent publishing, we learn to stagger launches every few months – more often, if you’re able to write that quickly – and build up a team of eager early readers. These approaches can work. I haven’t done that with Which the Days Never Know.
As I said above, this is a very different book for EBP -- and for me. I’m not sure he’s aware, but Don has been a helpful mentor to me as I’ve grown as a journalist and author. Many EBP authors are people I’ve met maybe once or twice. Most of them I’ve never even spoken to on the phone. Don and I worked together years ago. We even shared office space.
Without a doubt, I aim to build the audience for Don’s book, but I also want to share with this audience. I want to share the book with readers who might be able to use it best; veterans’ organizations, for example. I suspect the paperback version will be better appreciated for those groups, though I’m sure many of those readers also enjoy building their ebook collections.
In fact, for readers who buy a copy of the paperback, I’ll provide them a free ebook version.
So, if you’d like to get a free copy of the ebook, send an email to matt@elephantsbookshelfpress and we’ll make that happen.
The latest book from Elephant’s Bookshelf Press is unlike anything we’ve ever published before, and so is the launch. Which the Days Never Know: A year in Vietnam by the numbers is the first nonfiction book from EBP.
The name might imply that it’s a memoir, and in a sense that’s correct. But not quite. It contains memories from the author, Dr. Donald McNamara, who walked off his flight home from Vietnam on January 13, 1968; we published the paperback on the fiftieth anniversary of his return home. But the book conveys moments more than memories, impressions rather than intensity.Which the Days Never Know does not set out to recount battles or delve deeply into personal matters – or even personnel matters. Instead, Don takes the approach of a workaday soldier.
Everything in the Army seemed to have a number, he said, so in his book Don marched through 365 days – the typical one-year term of service in Vietnam – number by number.
From a visual standpoint, he wanted the book to look like verse or poetry.
From a publishing standpoint, I knew right away that we were taking a risk. But I think it’s a risk worth taking.
In launching EBP’s nonfiction division, I wanted something that felt true to what the company has been aiming to accomplish – its mission, if you will. Unlike many EBP authors, Don is not unpublished; he has retired as a professor of literature and during his academic career wrote pieces on Irish language and literature in particular. He also has written countless journalistic pieces, which is how our paths crossed.
But EBP prides itself on helping authors share their voice and helping their stories find an audience.
As a bit of EBP trivia, Don helped me find the voice of my company, years before I knew I become a publisher. He taught me the phrase bionn gach tasu lag, which I used in the first paragraph of the introduction to Spring Fevers, EBP’s first book, back in 2012. For those who do not recall the intro – or might not be fluent in Irish – it means “every beginning is weak.”
And in a mirror image of Spring Fevers, I have decided to publish Which the Days Never Know first in paperback; Spring Fevers was originally planned as an ebook only.
Think of this as a soft launch.
In this age of electronic and independent publishing, we learn to stagger launches every few months – more often, if you’re able to write that quickly – and build up a team of eager early readers. These approaches can work. I haven’t done that with Which the Days Never Know.
As I said above, this is a very different book for EBP -- and for me. I’m not sure he’s aware, but Don has been a helpful mentor to me as I’ve grown as a journalist and author. Many EBP authors are people I’ve met maybe once or twice. Most of them I’ve never even spoken to on the phone. Don and I worked together years ago. We even shared office space.
Without a doubt, I aim to build the audience for Don’s book, but I also want to share with this audience. I want to share the book with readers who might be able to use it best; veterans’ organizations, for example. I suspect the paperback version will be better appreciated for those groups, though I’m sure many of those readers also enjoy building their ebook collections.
In fact, for readers who buy a copy of the paperback, I’ll provide them a free ebook version.
So, if you’d like to get a free copy of the ebook, send an email to matt@elephantsbookshelfpress and we’ll make that happen.
Wednesday, January 10, 2018
Falling Behind My Goals
All of a sudden a week has passed since my last post. Not only that, between a pair of heavily crowded trains on the home-bound commute, a book release that needed to be worked on, and simply being too tired on the way into the city to write, I have been running short of my personal writing goals of 500 words a day.
This is how I fall behind.
Indeed, the best laid plans often go awry. Heck, I barely have time to write this. And this blog post won't come close to 500 words.
Then why write the blog post? In part, because writers must write, despite what life throws in their face. But more importantly, I believe it's worthwhile to share with other writers that it's ok when we don't hit our goals. We get back up and try again. And again. And again.
If you're hitting all your goals so far on day 10 of 2018, I applaud you. I still have time in my day today, so I think I can reach my goal. And I'm aiming to kick butt tomorrow, too.
This is how I fall behind.
Indeed, the best laid plans often go awry. Heck, I barely have time to write this. And this blog post won't come close to 500 words.
Then why write the blog post? In part, because writers must write, despite what life throws in their face. But more importantly, I believe it's worthwhile to share with other writers that it's ok when we don't hit our goals. We get back up and try again. And again. And again.
If you're hitting all your goals so far on day 10 of 2018, I applaud you. I still have time in my day today, so I think I can reach my goal. And I'm aiming to kick butt tomorrow, too.
Wednesday, January 03, 2018
Writing 500 words a day
I was shocked. My brother, who isn’t really a writer, sent
me an email inviting me to join him in a writing assignment. It was the
500-words-a-day group that Jeff Goins leads through his blog.
To be honest, even though I’m on Goins’ mailing list, I
hadn’t noticed that email invitation. So, when it came from my brother, it
carried more weight. And when Goins indicated his commitment included blogging,
I realized it was just the kick in the pants I needed to start the year right.
By writing!
Now, truth be told, I write 500 words a day nearly every day
anyway. It’s what I do for a living, after all. But while I could use those
words to weasel my way through to the finish line, the personal goal of writing
that much was what really mattered most to my ambitions.
So, in addition to a blog and an article for work, on my way
home I popped open one of the works-in-progress that I began last year and
refreshed myself. I added a scene. Added some tension. Introduced a character.
There’s still a lot of flesh to go on this skeleton, but there is more to the
spine than there was twenty-four hours ago.
Then, some ideas came to me while I was in the shower this
morning. More tension. And the story’s resolution came into view. It’s a
children’s story – kind of a late birthday present for my daughters – but it’s
also the beginning of a series. The inspiration to write was gelling into a
marketable product!
You might say that an unexpected email from a trusted source
resurrected the manuscript. But it’s more than that, really. What made it worth pursuing
was that the goal was tangible and attainable. Five hundred words is
essentially two pages. I know of writers who write thousands of pages a day. I’ve
just hit 300 and I’ve only been typing about 20 minutes.
Of course, doing it day after day takes discipline. In my
opinion, that’s a crucial ingredient to the recipe of a full-fledged writer and
author. Call it discipline, call it consistency. Whatever you call it, it boils
down to this: Writers write.
So, my writerly friends, it’s January 3rd. What
have you written today? I’m not going to criticize you if you haven’t written
anything. I don’t know your schedule. But if you aim to reach your writing
goals in 2018, there’s no time like the present to get into gear.
If my brother can do it, you can too.
Monday, January 01, 2018
Story sharing in 2018
Happy New Year!
I will share with you that, aside from the Eastern chill (another polar vortex?!), I do enjoy January. It brings out that sense of renewal in me and jump-starts my creativity, which can languish in the fall.
When you’re a writer, especially an independent writer, there’s always something that needs to be done. Update the website, post a blog, create a newsletter, test new ways of building your audience. And if you’re lucky (or better yet, disciplined) you work on a book or story.
I resolved in 2017 to write more. It worked. Sort of. I started two completely new books. You’ll notice, however, that neither of them were published. That’s because they’re not finished. And neither of them will be full-length novels.
What was I doing with my time all year? Well, mostly learning more about publishing. The business side of things. And I’ll apply more of what I learned in 2018. Indeed, I already have begun.
One of the things I resolve to do much more of in 2018 is communicate with you. After all, what are we writers if not communicators? From the time our bardic ancestors told tales around the campfire to today, when we offer up something more delectable than photos of our lunch on social media, we storytellers share our thoughts for consumption and pleasure.
Stories are nutritious. They feed our mind and our soul.
Audiences are nourishing. They provide feedback, which enables the storyteller to gain a better understanding of what the listener or reader expects.
And a good storyteller knows when to provide that and when to hold it back. We can be such teases!
So, let’s share a little. My little publishing company is five years old and, frankly, it needs to grow. So, this year I’m aiming to publish in ways we haven’t before. It will start with Which the Days Never Know, which is coming out soon. It’s a verse memoir by Vietnam veteran Don McNamara.
After that, I’m looking to box up the seasons series that were the inspiration of EBP. I’m in the works on an omnibus edition of short stories, which will be an electronic-only publication. Of course, if you’ve got Spring Fevers, The Fall, Summer’s Edge, Summer’s Double Edge, andWinter’s Regret already, then you’ll have no need for the omnibus edition. But there are some terrific stories in those collections that deserve to find a wider audience.
The next bit of newness on tap for 2018 is about voice. Not simply a writing voice, though that’s in the works, too, but the spoken voice. I’m beginning to record audio books and expect to roll out the first EBP audio book later this year. I’m very excited about it, but it’s a lot of work.
I also expect to publish at least one of those books I started writing in 2017.
Whew! It’s a workout just thinking about 2018, but I feel great. Like ending a morning jog in bracing January air.
So, what do you have in store for yourself? Will you be writing more? Publishing more? Reading more? All of the above, more?
Please share. And let’s keep sharing. Remember, we’re in this together.
And speaking about sharing, I want to share your accomplishments through my channels, too. That means interview opportunities, guest posting opportunities, and cover reveals. I’ll be happy to help you promote your books and help you find other books to read.
And products! Wow, has my publishing business been enhanced lately by certain products and tools!
So, let’s get started. I believe 2018 is going to be exciting, and stressful, and whimsical, and romantic. All the qualities we want in a book and in a year.
Welcome, 2018. Let’s see what we can do together!
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