Monday, January 29, 2007

Things You Might Want To Know

  • Go watch the Nora Roberts movie Monday, January 29th on Lifetime at 9:00. It's Angels Fall and there will be three more, Montana Sky, Blue Smoke and Carolina Moon, for the next 3 Mondays! Though none of them are Silhouettes (sniff) they are all Nora's, so they are wonderful stories. We not only should support our very own national treasure, we need to show Lifetime there is a real audience for stories that deliver a feel-good experience. Consider it your job.
  • Angela Bassett and her husband Courtney B. Vance wrote a book, FRIENDS: A LOVE STORY, detailing the story of their lives, courtship, marriage and the recent birth of their twins. It's coming out this February--Black History month and Valentine's, is that perfect or what?
  • I got a chance to read the proposal and found it opened a window into a intriguing world I knew little about. Mavis Allen, their Kimani editor, found the final story "a fascinating and intimate look at two highly talented, complex artists' emotional, spiritual and romantic journey. It gave me a glimpse of two very public people's private world. I found it riveting."
  • The book will be published on Valentine’s Day, Feb 14th, 2007.
  • Yes, St. Valentine's Day is coming up--are you ready? I use the inspiration of sending a Valentine to send all the thank-you notes I haven't gotten around to sending yet (!) and as a way to say "I love you" to all the people in my life that are precious to me for so many reasons and in so many ways.
  • Intimate Moments becomes Silhouette Romantic Suspense.
    • Susan Wiggs has launched her own blog. Before you go and say hello, go to your bookstore and grab a copy of THE WINTER LODGE, Book two of Susan's Lakeshore Chronicles. But before you do that, click here for a $1.00 off coupon, Valid 1/30/07 to 2/4/07, also available on her website. You can check out the starred Publisher's weekly review, if you need convincing! Then check in to the lodge that was the inspiration for her novel--a wonderfully writer and reader friendly place to be.
    • There are some great bundles of eBook bundles, some delicious and sizzling ones from Susan Mallery!
    • Seth Godin talked about how cool MJ Rose's initiative for THRILLER--a collection of stories from fabulous thriller writers--is on his highly popular blog...how cool is that? He talks about her initiative: "MJ Rose points us to http://www.150thrillers.com/ and talks about the power of writers pooling their resources.
      • For those who don't bother to click:"There are some real insights here. The first is that having 'competitors' band together to gain attention is really smart and really rare...By using the Net to coordinate their audiences, they all win.
      • The second brilliancy is that the only people who want to win the prize are the people who'd like to get the newsletter... Instead, what they've done is created an easy way for one thriller reader to introduce the newsletter to another... "hey, I know you like Stuart Woods, check this out...
      • Wanna bet that newsletter subscribers end up buying more books?"
      • MJ is highly websavvy--check out her blog Buzz, Balls and Hype. I think she occasionally offers courses.

    • Linda Lael Miller's first in the exciting new McKettrick series, MCKETTRICK'S LUCK is out right now with a great PW review!
      • PW has starred review of MCKETTRICK'S PRIDE by Linda Lael Miller. HQN Books, coming out in March, 2007.
    • February launch of Everlasting Love, two books a month: check out DANCING ON SUNDAY AFTERNOONS by Linda Cardillo and FALL FROM GRACE by Kristi Gold.
    • In February, Harlequin Romance will combine the best of both the Harlequin and Silhouette Romance stories in a six title a month line.


          Friday, January 05, 2007

          Successful Storytelling in the Digital World

          Slide1

          Happy New Year! Here, at long last, is our presentation at the RWA on Successful Storytelling in the 21st Century. We wanted to review the evolution of storytelling over time, determining what the essential elements are, how they have changed and how they have remained the same over time.

          The goal of a story is to entertain or inform—sometimes it achieves both. That has remained true over the centuries, though the kinds of stories and the way those stories are shared have changed with the times.

          Our session at the RWA explored how the changes and opportunities that technologies have brought us as publishers and writers enhance and open up storytelling in new and different ways.

          The group also shared insights into how they were exploring this new frontier. With the advent of new formats, technologies and the rise of consumer controlled content, writers have the opportunity to think differently about connecting with their audience, sharing their stories, and they do....

          Workshop presented by: Malle Vallik Editorial Director, New Business Development & Isabel Swift, VP, Author & Asset Development at the RWA National Conference, 2006. Workshop Notes, including Q & As are courtesy of Vicky Elabd with profound thanks! I would also like to credit Amy Wilkins for her brilliant selection of graphics to accompany our 10 points, and thank the amazing Maria Marfori for translating them so I could post them on the blog. Truly, it takes a village!

          Introduction

          In the storytelling world of the future, publishers and authors can leverage assets into new formats to reach a broader audience.

          Stories both entertain and inform. An attitude of New Vs Old, “us” Vs “them” has historically prevailed when new technology came along—the monks thought they had nothing to worry about with the appearance of the Gutenberg Press. They were secure that the superior quality of their workmanship with illustrated manuscripts would win! Do we see similar responses now as traditional publishers look at electronic publishing? Perhaps.

          Slide2

          Now we are seeing new ways of reaching an audience being layered upon the old, and the challenge is to get the story to the audience in some format—often more than one format. In fact often the more formats used, the more people can be reached.

          Additionally this is a “communal age” in which we can all participate and build on each other’s ideas to move storytelling to a new level.

          Slide3

          Top 10 things to remember when telling stories in the Digital Age:

          Slide4

          1. A great story is still the foundation. Humor, emotion, effective characters, a compelling situation, strong conflict are all key elements. A storyteller must deliver universal themes that connect with readers, making her laugh, cry—touching her. That has always been true. That will always be true. But a great story can be shared across many different formats as well.

          Slide5

          2. Bite-sized presentation reaches a larger audience, and more quickly. Examples are RSS feeds, cable news, computer news, Sesame Street, Headline News, making information or entertainment so 'easy to swallow' it's impossible not to access. Several examples of authors who write in this style are Sharon Sala (in her Mira books) and James Patterson. Harlequin On The Go (HOTGO) a mobile phone service providing Harlequin content: chapters, tips, trivia polls, book covers, etc., every day directly to cell phones.

          Q: How is this format different from an e-newsletter?
          A: this service comes directly from the cell phone provider (Verizon, etc.) and is the first such service geared towards women.

          Q: Is the content different from eHarlequin?
          A: The menu is new. We offer on-line reads from eHarlequin as well as original material, and in future we may be bringing in additional original content.

          Q: Is it going through the e-mail service on our cell phones, or does it hook up to a web page from Verizon?
          A: It is one of the entertainment menu options from Verizon. You do not require an e-mail hookup to view content.

          Slide6

          3.Re-purposed Content: The market has changed with the addition of these new formats. Now there are more ways to access stories that might never have been reissued in the past. eHarlequin reads, Harlequin Mini and Round Robin as 99cent eBook offers, backlist series romance in Retail and eBooks. Re-releases are now much more popular, and more readers are able to access back-list material. We can release them chapter by chapter, even by cell link. This is good for both readers and authors.

          Audio Books: Gives an added dimension of sound and the quality of the narrator's voice to the story experience. Additionally you can 'read with your ears' during times when you normally couldn't physically read.

          eBooks, the kind that you can download to a portable PC or reader are a small market right now, but give readers another option. Harlequin has increased to 40 new books per month and the backlist program is over 20 titles per month.You can add information to an e-book that is not available in print versions, i.e., back-story on characters for readers who want more information (in the same way a DVD contains “bonus material” on movie releases).

          Slide7

          4. Portability: phone downloads, TV shows on iTunes for IPOD; you can have access to so much material anytime, and there is more of everything.

          Audience suggestion: you can schedule what’s coming out so you can go buy new books when they are released, as well as utilize electronic contest entries and PR materials.

          Slide8

          5. Multiple layers: Back-story can help publishers/producers by soliciting reader/viewer response to storylines.

          Example: Lost used customer online response to create interest and also develop a richer, better story. Snakes on a Plane also used the audience to change elements of the film to improve the experience.

          Audience comments:
          • “I’ll often post scenes I’ve discarded, and get reader responses from them.”
          • “I include interviews with characters, character photos, and email addresses, so my readers can communicate with them directly. I have an opportunity to expand and do more with my story and characters, and interact more with readers.”
          • “Adding content makes the fictional worlds we create more real, so that the line between fiction and reality is blurred.”

          Slide9

          6. World building: audience participation in the fictional worlds of the story, i.e., Lost,Lord of the Rings, Star Trek spin-off stories, fan-fic. If you ask for interaction, you let go of some of the control over your story. But you gain because you have more ideas to work with. One author is thinking about creating a virtual casino that exists only in her story, so readers can visit.

          Slide10

          7. Interactive, connectedness, participation: A collaborative business model in which everything comes together, and everyone is part of the whole (example: Wikipedia). A writing group does this, as does “TV Without Pity”, in which producers and writers will look at comments and respond to their audiences.

          Audience examples of interactive experiences: Choose-you-own-adventure; DVDs; kids are also writing their own stories online, since they are familiar and comfortable with the media. With virtual movies, you could throw out an ending you don’t like and replace it with one you like better. How can we make more of those things happen?

          Slide11

          8. The world we’re in now is full of discovery, uncertainty, and lack of control. We’re all in it together. In genre fiction, there is an element of predictability, but we should always ask ourselves how we could add more unpredictability, discovery and sense of adventure to our stories. Technology and interactivity can help make that happen.

          Slide12

          9. Voyeuristic: reality-show appeal. We relate, gain insight, feel superior to the people we see on “reality” TV. The lack of polish can make the experience seem more relevant to our own lives. What does this trend do to storytelling? What is the window into reality? How might that relate to the more grounded-in-fantasy storylines? Not at all? Or is there a spin?

          Slide13

          10. Freedom: to tell the story of your heart; new technological options allow you to create a deeper, more complex story. The audience can become involved in a much richer storytelling world, and can help create it too. The possibilities are virtually limitless!

          Two quotes very relevant to our time:

          Slide14

          “Omni mutantur, nuhil interit.”
          “Everything changes, nothing perishes.”
          Ovid, b 43 BC

          “Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose.”
          “The more things change, the more they stay the same.”
          Alphonse Karr, b.1808

          These words are centuries old, but they are as relevant today as they were when they were spoken.

          Some things really don't change.

          As authors, always: Embrace change, and Evolve....

          Slide15

          Experiment and Entertain

          and never stop Engaging your reader with your story, no matter what the medium

          Change creates options--it's often not "instead of" but "as well as." Most of us will always enjoy reading a book. But when we are trying to travel light, isn't it great that we have an option to carry all of Proust--or far more appropriate, the entire works of Nora Roberts, Diana Palmer, Penny Jordan and Debbie Macomber in our Kate Spade purse?

          To have the option of accessing all my favorite keeper romances without having to build a second addition to my home? To listen to the latest while I'm walking the dog? It's appealing!

          General Q & A:

          Q: Yesterday at the digital fair, you talked about original content, what are you looking for?
          A: If you have a great idea for our cell phone content, we’re very open.

          Q: Are you doing wallpaper?
          A: The people we hired weren’t able to do that yet.

          Q: You could do wake up calls (like Target does on sale days)
          A: Great idea!

          Q: (from panel) How do authors respond to readers rewriting your story (as in fan-fiction)
          A: some like the idea, others feel that it would take away from their voice

          Panel comment: Your story moved them so much that they wanted to engage in it? Awesome!