The money hurdle...

There are two major hurdles to jump to being an author. One is getting your work published. The other is earning sufficient money to enable you to remain devoted to your writing. Never assume if you have jumped either of these hurdles, that you will not have to jump them again. This is a hurdle race that goes on for the entirety of your writing career. Some writers seem to get a tail wind as they leap. Sometimes the hurdle is pushed closer as you jump and a crash is inevitable. And there are many other things that you must consider and include in your training as a long distance hurdler. Keep working on your technique. Maintain a healthy diet. Get plenty of rest. Stay hopeful.

Earning sufficient money is still a mystery to me. Income for writers generally comes from two key sources; one is the sale of books, and rights (including the public lending right which currently does not include school libraries), and the other is from secondary sources associated with writing such as workshops, author visits, speaking engagements, and maybe editing or mentoring or assessing the work of others. Many writers also have other employment in unrelated fields in order to pay their bills. Some receive government grants but these are not perpetual or to be expected or relied upon. I had a busy year last year. I have seven books published so far (of which only 1 is now out of print). I visited, work-shopped, spoke and mentored last year and had a heavy schedule. My year's earnings will be less than $10,000 inc. GST (so less than $4.81/hr for a forty hour week for a year before tax). Yet this has been a good year. Mostly I want to write but I like having the additional skills for speaking, workshopping and mentoring etc... but it is a juggling act to make sure I spend enough time on my key task (writing) and don't accidentally become something else. Few of us are bestsellers in New Zealand.

If you are considering inviting an author (or illustrator) to workshop or visit, or speak to your group of adults/students/insert your demographic here, it is important to remember most do not earn a regular salary or wage. In fact if they can visit during daytime hours it is because they do not have a paying job. It is good to know that any book sales generated through their visit are likely to be in the single or double figures at most. On average they may get $1/book for a picture book and $2/novel for each copy sold in their next royalty cheque (usually paid twice yearly). If they sell 25 books (a red letter day for any author/illustrator) following their 3 hour visit they might expect $25-$50. This is $8.33 to $16.67/hour and does not cover preparation, travel time or the cost of getting to or from the event.  And the money may not turn up in the bank balance for another six months. Or they may still be paying off their advance, which was already spent long before the book came out. The book may be discounted so it could be less than $1 per book. And many times visits and workshops do not include the opportunity for book sales.

Many authors and illustrators have specific skill sets based on education, experience and practice. They can tell you a lot about patience, perseverance, motivation and hope. They can teach creative and general writing or illustration and sometimes design skills. They can foster a love of books and generate discussion on a host of other topics related to the content of their work (themes, historical aspects, other cultures and countries etc...).The benefits to your students/group may go on for days, weeks, months or even years. For some the visit could be life changing.

Ideally I would like to get paid a meaningful salary via some other means (a stipend, bursary or gummint support?) for the hours I spend crafting stories and doing the secondary associated work. Asking for a fee can be awkward. I have been asked by some about visiting and never heard back when I raised the topic of payment (although this is not true of all those making enquiries). My fee structure is modest. I have done a number of visits, talks and workshops for free in the past by choice and for a variety of reasons. But there are reasons why it is good to be paid. If I do these things for free then either it is assumed I can afford to do them for free, or that there is no value in what I do. Neither is true. As much as I love sharing my passion and my writing with others, I really, really want to keep writing and paying my bills. And being valued for my skills and efforts makes a huge difference to me.

Please note - this is not a complaint but more an attempt to explain why authors and illustrators request a fee for visits,workshops and talks

Be brave...

Further to my last post on wot I got out of the conference I want to add the following observation/advice (with reference to Tania Roxborogh's presentation on Presentation chaired by moi) - "Be Brave". This is a good mantra for the industry we are in. To send that submission in, be brave. To open that email/letter from the publisher, be brave. To get up and talk in front of a room full of strangers, whether they are adults or children, be brave. Whether it is fair or not that authors now must take more responsibility for their own marketing/publicity/promotion; as Vicki Allpress-Hill noted in her talk on The New Era at Spinning Tales, you are the best person to promote yourself. Who knows you better and will commit more to that task than you will yourself? Be brave, and as with the writing itself, the more you do it the better you get at it. We are not all born performers and some speakers make it seem effortless to have the crowd rolling in the aisles and eating out of the palm of their hands. But if you avoid author talks because you are not a born performer you are missing the opportunity to 'learn' how to be a performer. If you are not a 'natural' then you must find what you can do that does connect you with the audience and leaves them smiling at the end. All the talks I have done so far have taught me plenty of things that do and don't work. They have taught me how to recover if things go astray. They have taught me what I need to know before I begin. This was one of Tania's other gems. Be prepared. You need to not only know what your audience is wanting to know, how big the audience will be and what environment you will be meeting them in but also what tools of the trade you will need with you and what your own strengths and weaknesses are so you can plan how you personally will address their needs and interests. Be prepared, be brave! Like a triage nurse going on to the battlefield with a first aid kit, my box of tricks means I can adapt to just about all situations, no matter the size of crowd, the type of venue, or the range of equipment at my disposal. I have my laptop, my memory stick, (both with several powerpoint presentations loaded) my whiteboard pen, a range of stories for reading and a couple of drafts of several of my stories to show my process. I have a selection of writing tips and exercises on, and examples of, things like show not tell, tone and POV. And I am always listening out for other exercises and ideas I can incorporate for future talks and workshops. And because I have my fantastic box of tricks and always try and wear something quirky or humorous I feel ready to face my audience. They are my lucky charms, my dutch courage and my security blanket.

More on promotion...

So it would seem promotion is something we aren't exactly all keen on but that we do accept is part of the business. If you are not a natural, then fake it. If smiling even when you don't feel like it, can fool your body right down to the basic elements and make you healthier and come full circle to make you happier, then faking confidence and enthusiasm should do the same. However, like blogging (as Ms Morgan so sensibly puts it in her latest blog here), your promotion should fit with your persona - while its smart to fake the smile its not a good idea to fake who you are (unless you're permanently grumpy and a misanthrope in which case - get to it) And if I'm unsure what to say I think of one of my SO's work mantras (he who is in PR, Communications and Marketing) - how can I add value? What can i say or do that might be useful to this group of children or adults. If they are very young and not yet reading and writing on their own, then I'm not too embarrassed to make it all about Sponge Bob - he's very wise for an inanimate object. As the audience gets older I try and add more practical tips about writing and creating. If talk about writing is making them glaze over then I ask lots of questions and get them to talk to me. And if it turns ugly then I know tomorrow is another day. JK Rowling knew what she was doing when she made chocolate the antidote to a happiness sucking attack by the dementors. While its true that children can smell fear I'm not sure if they can detect fake confidence. By the time they do, you could be working with the real thing.

Of course promoting yourself to publishers and booksellers is a different animal. But doing promotional work with your target audience will earn you brownie points with Publishers and booksellers. Keep a note of any thing you have done to promote yourself and include a summary in your writing CV and perhaps a very short note about it on your query/ cover letter, if its relevant.

One of the best things about throwing yourself into promotion and giving it a go, is figuring out what works for you and maybe getting to try on different sizes and styles of event. One of my favourites so far was the Speed Date the Author event I was lucky to participate in recently. Here is a nice write up on the event from the Dominion. The more things you give a go, the more you can edit and rearrange to come up with a presentation that works for you. I cannot play a guitar and sing in public like Julia Donaldson does for her promotional appearances but I don't want to do someone else's presentation and I'm trying to create my own style. I want to do something that fits with me and my persona and my kind of writing.

How many books are you going to write....

Q "Why did you decide to become a writer?"
A "Because its the only job where I can wear my pyjamas to work."
Q "What's your favourite book?"
A "The publisher's chequebook."


As you can see I'm working on some answers to the kinds of questions authors usually get asked at author talks. There are more in development. Stay tuned to see what comes out of this naughty brain of mine.

Was anyone else as horrified as I was at the image of that sweet pachyderm's body being loaded on a truck in yesterday's NZ Herald. The death of this beloved animal made grown men weep on national TV and the paper follows this up with a demonstration of its somewhat less than sensitive side with a tasteless and completely unnecessary photo no one wanted to see. Ack.

I was a little cheered by the picture on the back of the sports section (although it doesn't make up for what they did in the front section). Yay the Tall Blacks. What an excellent result for our basketballers against the Boomers on tuesday night (100 - 78). Way to go guys. Keep up the good work.

After being coy about the character Silas from the Graveyard Book in a blog post recently I realised today that its probably a lot more bleeding obvious than I thought and I've been a bit obtuse and anyone could have guessed what he really was by other hints Mr Gaiman dropped much earlier in the book. Someone else has to read this and discuss it with me because its hard talking about it with myself.

And OMG I have homework for the Spinning Gold conference. No one told me there would be homework. Please Miss, I can tell you right now, the dog ate it.

In other news, I will be appearing at the Thames Library on Wednesday October 21st for some NZ Book Month Were-Nana related festivities and don't forget I will be at the Aotea centre for the Storylines Family Day this Sunday if you want to come and say hi.

Books rock - and the children know it

I had a school visit on Tuesday. Over the course of the morning I talked to the whole school - in two groups. They had a wonderful new school hall - an auditorium with tiered seating like a lecture hall. When I was first ushered in to speak to the year 3-6 classes, the tiered seating was full of children and down in front was one single solitary chair - for me. Whenever I have the choice I opt for smaller groups, but this isn't always possible. This was the biggest single group I've addressed so far and the more perceptive members of that audience might have noticed my sudden 'possum in the headlights' appearance. Turning the hall lights up helped. After my initial surprise, I got into stride and delivered my talk.

I continue to be impressed by the behaviour of the children I talk to. They sit quietly and listen, are keen to answer my questions and think hard about good questions of their own to ask. Its extremely thrilling to think I might positively influence someone's love of books or writing. And the children who glow with the excitement of books - they make me super happy.

Books are right up there with the air we breathe...

A large proportion of my time over the last few days has been spent either helping my daughters prepare for their trip to the US, buying items for them to take, or worrying whether a)they have everything they need and b) that they are ready for every eventuality once there. I am exhausted and stressed. They are part of a large group with plenty of adult chaperones and the trip is pretty well organised but there are plenty of lists to be ticked and advice to give and of course they are my children and therefore extremely precious to me. Somehow i did not get enough chocolate for my needs this long weekend despite it being Easter. All I got was closed offices, and no mail deliveries for four whole days. My favourite distraction is always writing and everything that that entails (bugging the agent just back from Bologna and London, bugging the editor, the publisher, my writer friends and anyone else remotely connected with getting my words into print) but these things are not available over long weekends made of public holidays. So all I've had is housework and fretwork.

To compound things, the day after my daughters depart I have an author talk. No matter how much I enjoy these there is always stress involved and a fair amount of mental preparation and worry. This all has to be got through before the visit because children can smell fear a mile away and have no qualms about making you squirm. Speaking to school groups (or similar) is a completely different beast to book tours and signings - with school groups (or similar)your audience does not necessarily want to be there or hear about your books, your writings or you. None of this 'preaching to the converted' here. You have to win them over, entertain them and make them think books are better than playstation, television, and youtube. I have a bit more experience now and have a few tricks up my sleeve and down my jumper. And ultimately I have my firm belief that books are right up there with the air we breathe in terms of their importance and value. I will be keeping the faith and hope I manage to get a few converts.

You like me, you really like me...

(Ten points to the people who get the reference in the title of todays blog post). After welcoming NZ Book month in with the official Auckland opening last monday night, I followed up yesterday with author visits to three Auckland libraries. Karma smiled at me making my last visit the one to my own library at Mt Roskill. Unlike the other libraries, they had advertised my visit in their display case outside the library and set up another display featuring my work inside the library alongside where i was to sit. They had made fairy bread for the children and gave me flowers and chocolate at the end of the visit. I was overwhelmed by their appreciation and left feeling ten feet tall. I had my son with me and i swear he stood a lot taller too. So thank you to the librarians at Mt Roskill, you obviously care about children's literature and I'm sure it rubs off on your young readers. Mt Roskill library - YOU ROCK!

I have to say I was impressed with the children at all three libraries. The audiences were never huge but the children were patient, well behaved and polite. In a library you are kind of preaching to the converted as these are people who have already decided they like books. They are there because they want to be which is the best kind of audience to have. I have two more library visits later in the month and a visit at the Auckland Art Gallery.

It is good to have those first three visits under my belt. I was a bit stressed about it before hand. I am not a natural speaker and I'm still learning about finding the right tone for different audiences. I have a better handle on speaking to classroom groups as I'm clearer on what the agenda is but a public venue like a library is a different kettle of children. They are there because they enjoy reading but may have no interest in writing or the process of making books. They might not care where you get your ideas from or what you did when you were growing up. They want entertainment in the here and now. (School children probably feel the same but there is an expectation from all parties that some educational elements will be included). Thanks to Maria Gill's good advice I'd generated some word-finds which many of the children seemed to enjoy and I had some lovely flash-looking Jack the Viking postcards to hand around. I think most children get a kick out of taking something like this away. Best of all they did seem to enjoy being read to, which is great because I get a buzz out of reading aloud. At the Storylines Margaret Mahy Day earlier this year Wayne Mills gave a stirring lecture on the benefits of reading aloud. And not just to the younger children. I'm a big fan and I'm now thinking i might see if i can do more of it. The only tricky thing about reading aloud is what to read to a mixed audience. I am lucky to have written material over a range of age groups from picture books to short stories to novels. There's pretty much something for everyone. With school groups the ages tend to be homogenous and selection is much easier. Most older children don't mind hearing the occasional picture book but sadly I lost a few older boys at one of the venues despite having suitable material for them because of the littlies in the audience. I don't know if there is any way around this. I hope some of my other picture book stories are published so I have a wider range of material to read from. It is still looking possible that a third one will be published but it is (as with so many book related things in my life right now) up in the air. Even if it is, it is probably a couple of years away.

Even though they're not in the same room, I know they're there...

All three of my children are home sick today. I think only one is faking it. Even though I've banned them from using the computer so I can have free reign, it still changes the atmosphere around here and I find I don't work the same. My eldest has been off all week and I worry she has forgotten how to go to school. I will be re-training her in the subtle arts of school attendance as soon as she is well enough.

I am signed up to do author visits at a number of Auckland City public libraries for NZ book month in September. I am busy inside my head deciding how to approach these visits. Times like these I wish I had one or two more picture book titles out there as reading them all would fill up the time nicely. I certainly have written a couple I am very proud and fond of but they are unpublished and without pictures they don't have the same appeal to a bunch of littlies at your feet. These visits are not like author talks at schools where students might be expected to take an interest in the activity of actually writing stories. At the libraries the key theme will be a love of books. Still, I have a few weeks to come up with a game plan. Of course so much of this is still fairly new to me. Although I've done a few school visits, I have no teaching or library background but I have a few ideas about what I can do to get the children involved.

Today Kristin Nelson blogged about the benefits of Google Alerts and I have already signed myself up. I confess I do regularly google myself and have had some surprising and useful results, discovering new reviews, where my books are being touted online, and finding teaching resources associated with my work amongst other things. All good stuff. Sometimes it can be hard to see the new entries though and Google Alert will hopefully not only save me time and effort but improve my ability to keep tabs on what is happening to my work. Yay the internet.