SuckerFish Books

Book 2!!!

2007-03-27T18:08:00.000-07:00

I've started to publish Book 2 in serial on pitofdestruction.blogspot.com. Basically, I'm going to publish later chapters after earlier chapters get sufficient attention. Once we reach a critical mass, I'll start posting them once a week.

Enjoy!

Joseph

Long time, no post

2006-08-17T23:18:00.000-07:00

As one headstrong fan has noted, it has been a long time since I've updated this blog. Things have been slow, which I guess is what happens with most books. I am patient though and I think that with time the project will succeed. I'm in no rush.

I have continued to sell some books and I've had an opportunity to think about what I'm trying to accomplish with this whole exercise. I grew up thinking I would change the world with the written word, it is my single strongest talent. I was thinking I would write some powerful book that would have some powerful effect - but it never happened. I never had that sort of book in me and my viewpoints and beliefs don't translate well to that medium. Particularly if you are explicitly trying to push an angle. I'm a religious liberal (in the classical sense). I read a book many people said was a powerful book that at least had the liberal sense covered. It was one of Ayn Rands books - and I couldn't read more than a few chapters. Fundamentally, it wasn't any good.

I got to kid's books almost by accident. I understand kids. I understand how to entertain them and I guess to some extent I live in their world. A few of my brother's friends saw me playing with my nieces and nephews and thought it was kind of quaint, how I had remained entertained by childish things. I'm not sure if it was an insult or not, but it hardly matters, it was pretty accurate. Looking at myself I see a very educated person with a somewhat harsh worldview who thoroughly enjoys throwing kids around while they imagine they are on some talkative horse or tree or something.

Eventually, it had to come out on paper. That's what it did with Grobar and the follow-on books. There's a bit of seriousness. There is a fair amount of information. But fundamentally they are fun, mad escapades.

I still do want to affect the world. My teacher as a kid, Beverely Shaff, mentioned that Grobar had a quiet morality in it. I didn't see it at first, but she was right. It is about freedom, it is about responsibility, it is about taking action. It is, as I see it, about life. I certainly didn't mean it to be about all those things, but that is how it turned out, and continues to turn out.

In the longer term, I hope to sell lots of books, I hope to share this quiet morality. Impress its messages about right and wrong onto the young minds of lots of kids. Scheming, I know. But in the short term I want to help in other ways. The fact is, the world is in a bit of a war right now. And lots of people are affected. Lots of people pay attention to Israel and Lebanon and Iraq - but the impact of terror and the evil of those who back it is felt just as strongly in India, Iran, London, Indonesia, Russia, Sudan etc... etc... etc... The list just goes on and keeps getting longer. In America, there are quite a few resources for victims. But this is not the case everywhere.

And so I want to dedicate 50% of the gross profits from Grobar to charities that help kids affected by terror. I don't know what groups we'll give to yet, but there is a need and there must be some reliable groups helping out.

With this, everybody wins. Your kids (or if you're really a kid yourself, like me) will enjoy a fun book. And kids under fire in Israel, or Lebanon, or Iraq, or India, or Sri Lanka, or Bali or London or Russia or ... will get some much needed help. This is, in my opinion, an excellent way to make my writing useful in the short-term.

The books are only $10 on Amazon or B&N. If you buy from Amazon I'll be able to give $2/book to charity. If you buy from B&N or from a bookstore (almost any bookstore can order the book in overnight - no shipping fees!) I'll be able to give $1.25.

Everybody wins and G-d willing, in time, there will be war no more.

Just maybe this series will be able to make a difference.

Happiness,

Joseph

Bookstore Signing

2006-01-22T18:01:00.000-08:00

I did my first bookstore signing at a Barnes and Noble here in Portland. They were very nice and it was great fun. With the major help of my nephew Toyam we sold like 19 books - which is pretty good for an hour and a half. And a bunch were sold to people I didn't know :)

It was a good day. Hopefully I can do more in the future :)

Happiness!

Joseph

Reading and Grobar

2005-12-24T16:11:00.000-08:00

I don't know if you remember that kid I wrote about a while ago - the one who started reading the book by himself after I read some to him. He hated reading, primarily (I thought) because he couldn't read all that well. Well, he started reading some to himself after I stopped reading to him and then he came to me a few weeks ago and told me that HE FINISHED THE ENTIRE BOOK! It was pretty cool :) So why am I mentioning this now? Well, we went out for Shabbos dinner to another family here in Melbourne. The husband is a kollel Rabbi who is starting a new small shul and the wife is a teacher - the kid's teacher. She mentioned that she had noticed that his reading had gotten a lot better. So it wasn't just my imagination and it was a big enough effect for his teacher to notice. In fact, she liked the effect enough that she bought a copy for her own son :)

Pretty cool, no?

Happiness!

Joseph

Good Week

2005-12-22T15:54:00.000-08:00

It has been a good week. There have been 11 individual people who have bought the book - and most of them weren't even buying it for Christmas :) It isn't a lot of sales, but it is more than I sold in all of November. Basically, I was concerned about running out of momentum and I am actually managing to build it back up some. Here's where they got sold:
1 on Amazon
3 through a kid distributor in Boston
1 at a Coffee Shop
2 in synagogue
2 at a Chanukah party
1 to a kid of a colleague at my wife's work
and 1 someplace else I can't remember...

Gotta keep pushing :)

Happiness,

Joseph

AdWords

2005-12-04T23:36:00.000-08:00

Well, I sold 4 books through Adwords - I think. I got my first click through and then 4 sales I couldn't identify the source through. So, I'm guessing one click (at $.12) and 4 sales (at $9.95). I wish I could find a way to ramp it up :)

I am doing my first big reading tomorrow - for 50+ kids. It should be fun :)

Happiness!

Joseph

Little Distributors

2005-11-28T21:42:00.000-08:00

I'm beginning to get some positive feedback on the little distributors. A kid here sold one to his school library, one in Boston has sold two books and I've got the payment system working (PayPal is awesome, and easy). I've sent out some more books and we'll see how it goes.

Happiness!

Joseph

Oz Bookshop!

2005-11-27T18:53:00.000-08:00

I've got an Australian bookstore carrying the book. Called Book Street (with an London underground logo), they seem like a very nice store. We'll see how it goes, but I've got someplace to send whatever business I can drum up ::)

In other news, I've sold more books direct. I sold one to the owners of a motel we were staying at - to some friends of my mother-in-law, to a school library here and next week I'm doing a reading at the largest Jewish day school in Melbourne :)

It should all be fun.

Happiness!

Joseph

Fun Stuff

2005-11-10T18:14:00.000-08:00

One reader asked me for a plot for her class Chanukah play... I figured, what the heck, I'll post it here :) Tennessee Williams I ain't :)

The Real Story of the Chanukah Miracle:

Not everybody knows this, but it was permissible to use any of the temple oil for the Menorah. The whole priest's seal things was just the Jews being a little extra machmir to set the mood (I learned this from a friend of Bec's Adrian Treger).

Or, so we think...

Actually, the problem was a great larger than a few broken seals.

Purpose of scene 1, with a few Greek generals talking: 'Folks, we're losing this war! We need to do something about these upstart Jews - something that'll really set them back a step.'

Scene 2, in Jewish command headquarters: A spy (probably a girl, boys tended to be soldiers), rushes in with critical news. Something very strange is going on in the Greek camp and they're not sure what it is - but lots of the army is getting rid of their armor and leaving (on orders!). Describe it and everything and they work out that the Greeks are trying to worship every olive tree in Israel so that none of the trees will be kosher. The Jewish command decides to send out two groups - one to protect a far away grove and one to try and stop the idol worshippers. The spy tells him that 50 soldiers took up the new mission.

Scene 3, group of Jewish soldiers takes up positions around olive grove. There aren't very many of them, most are fighting the main battle. They are pretty worried about how to defend themselves incase many of the 50 tree worshipping greeks are left.

Scene 4, a Jewish pursuit group tracks down a tree worshipper. He tries to climb away and so they call him a 'tree hugger.' (you can work in stupid jokes like this if you'd like.) Anyways, they cut him down. But afterwards they're worried. It's taking too long and they're not sure if they can catch all the tree worshippers.

Scene 5, The Jewish soldiers see a Greek (obviously unseen) army approaching in the distance. There are still 40 of them left! They are really in trouble. One smart soldier decides that in order to fight better they have to squeeze all the olives and make them into ancient-style molotov cocktails. They all set to squeezing.

Scene 6, the fight scene. Throwing oil this way and that.

Scene 7, the temple is taken and the war is over. But they don't know how to tell which oil is kosher. Not just sealed, but from that one unworshipped grove. And they squeezed all the oil out of the good grove defending it so they can't make more. One Jew (or Jewess) has a great idea. He says he can get out his science kit and does DNA testing on all the oil to determine which ones came from that grove. Another points out that they're an easier (and faster) way. The high priest's seal was actually a barcode and they can trace the oil back to its' precise grove and tree using the barcode system.

Scene 8, Noboby (but one person who explains it) knows what a barcode is - but they set to searching. They can't even find a single bottle with a good barcode. And then, low and behold, they find one. Everybody is very excited and holding their breath and hoping it is from the right grove. None of them want to do lots of DNA testing. A person walks up, and 'BEEP' scans the oil. When he announces the result, everybody shouts with joy!

The end!

Person-to-Person

2005-11-09T20:47:00.000-08:00

I had a pretty good book day today. I went to shul this morning, and a guy who learns in the morning with me (for about 5 minutes, I show up late and he leaves early) was there because his son was putting on Telifin for the first time. His whole class was there with him.

Anyways.... I told his dad about the book and I had him read the first chapter. I told him, "Read it, and if you don't like it tell me - because while I can't change the book now, I can change the marketing." He started reading and his face just lit up. It was really cool to behold. So his dad bought the book and then announced after the kid's speech that I was an author. So I read the first chapter and the kids really seemed to dig it (and asked lots of questions about being an author). The problem was, I didn't have any extra books with me. So, I told the kid that I would give him $1AU for each book he sold. And so he's off making a list and he'll give me his order tomorrow and I'll give his dad some books. I thought, 'hey, I don't have a distributor here, so this is probably the best way for me to move books.'

Later in the day, a lady emailed me. She wanted 3 books (she'd already bought and enjoyed one). She was also going to check with friends so I could give her a bunch of books at once. I offered her a commission too (as she's basically a distributor for me). She took me up on it and is off and running. I'm thinking, readers really like the book, I can probably use this model everywhere.

The fact is, I'd thought about it before. My mom gave me a posting from an old newspaper. In it, Mark Twain (who self-published) was offering commissions to people to sell his books. Very aggressive commissions and very aggressive terms (you had to pay to see the contract). And he was a very successful author. But I didn't think it would work nowadays. Door-to-door selling (and things like it) seem a bit out of touch. But, after today, I think I might be wrong. Person-to-person sales, especially among people who know each other, has one major strength in my case. The seller knows and loves the book. So the seller can recommend it and close the deal right there - and more credibly than I possibly could.

The fact is, things get sold by force of personal recommendation. Especially books. A little extra juice to encourage people to close a sale, not just recommend a book, might work quite well.

So, I'm extending this. I'm going to sample it with some people and see if it is worth the bother. I'll let you know how it goes :)

Oh, and my Amazon ranking has tanked. I need to sell more online - and I'll do that. Nov 15, I have a newspaper review coming out and I'll be sending out a message for the Chanukah/Christmas season.

Happiness!

Joseph

The pain :)

2005-11-09T20:44:00.000-08:00

Malunu wrote:
"I NOW HEREBY OFFICIALLY DECLARE "WHITE FANG" MY FAVORITE BOOK!!!!!!!!!!
(after which comes either "Harry Potter" or "Grobar and the Mind Control Potion". I can't seem to decide which!)"

For more see her blog.

Ah, the pain, the misery, the horror - not to have written the best book ever. The disappointment - it is a heavy burden.

Well, actually, to be mentioned in same paragraph as Harry Potter and White Fang, is really cool :)

Thanks!

Joseph

Another Nice Review

2005-11-08T16:02:00.000-08:00

I got another nice review from a reader in Baltimore. I didn't know her before, but she's a friend of my brother's. Anyways, she wrote me (removing the brother related bits):

"When I finally had a chance to read the book, I read the whole thing over Shabbos (it would have been in one sitting too, but I looked at the clock and realized that shul would be over by the time I got there, and we were supposed to eat lunch at someone's house).

Anyhow, congratulations on a fantastic book. Even though it is written for kids, I really enjoyed it...

I don't ususally write to authors, no matter how much I like their books - but there is one thing that I have to tell you. When I finished the book, there was only one thought in my head - "That's it??? This guy Joseph is SUCH A JERK!!!" My feeling is that mediocre authors are allowed to write endings like that, but if you are going to write such a great book, it is just not fair to the reader. And the book said that the sequel wouldn't come out until 2006."

Again, readers love it - so I just need to keep promoting it. Hopefully, I'll have a article in the Jewish Review on November 15th and then I'll send out a Xmas/Chanukah message to bump up the sales a bit.

My adwords have been a total failure. 429 views, no clicks. I have to learn how to build them better. It is a real challenge.

Oh, and a friend at Penguin submitted the book to another friend at Penguin (the publishing penguin, not the international spy network) and we'll see how that develops.

Happiness!

Joseph

Google Adwords

2005-10-26T04:01:00.000-07:00

I'm trying my hand of Google AdWords - so far I have 67 impressions and no clicks (and no orders). I'm trying things like "boys birthday", "birthday gift" and "fun book." If you can think of better things to try, let me know!

Happiness,

Joseph

Better Reading Through Grobar

2005-10-19T16:37:00.000-07:00

There's a kid here in Melbourne who is a bit remedial in his reading. He looked at the book and told me it "wasn't interesting." So, later on in the day, I read him the first few chapters. He didn't want me to leave because he can't stand reading (it's hard for him) and he wanted to know what happens.

I left.

He came to me two days later. He's struggling, but he'd read two more chapters. He can't stand reading because he hasn't done it - but now, he's doing it.

This is, to put it simply, very cool :)

Happiness,

Joseph

Another nice review

2005-10-16T22:35:00.000-07:00

This one from a David Gursky - another fellow once removed :)

He wrote on Amazon: "The Demarche of the Penguins... Talking penguin armies, an insecure elephant, and a goat hell bent on world domination. All that and a frog that can teleport itself around the world but not a foot in front of you. Good read for kids of all ages. (I.e. hide it from Dad...]"

Thanks David :)

Joseph

Follow-up Review from Son'ka

2005-10-13T05:11:00.000-07:00

I got a more detailed comment from Son'ka - posted on her blog http://www.livejournal.com/users/ariya. She is indeed a friend of Malunu (an earlier poster). In anycase she wrote something very very nice - which I really appreciate. I've copied it below:

"Ah. malunu was right.
I thought she was slightly crazy at first, with her book about 'secret penguin spy agency that is fighting against a goat who is trying to take over the world', but now I've read it myself, and I think I'll join the ranks of crazy people ranting about secret penguin spy agencies and evil goats.
It's a really, really weird book. (I think having the villain be a diabolical goat bent on world domination guarantees weirdness!)
Grobar is also really, really fun. And really, really GOOD. Having picked it up, I had trouble making myself put it down. (This resulted in my reading until who knows what time and then sleeping through classes, but hey! Vacation's here!)
My advice to you all is to REED. TEH. BOOK.
In case any of you missed it, here is the link provided by malunu - ShortEddy.com.
Another link - Grobar on Amazon, where I left a review. :)"

Once again :)

If you haven't yet, take her advice :)

Happiness and have a wonderful year,

Joseph

Nice Review

2005-10-09T19:55:00.000-07:00

I just got a review on Amazon.com from somebody I don't know - even secondhand. I'm assuming, because of the name (Son'ka), that the poster is Russian and probably related to my other recent reviewer there, but otherwise I know nothing. That is pretty cool :)

Son'ka wrote:
"This is a really awesome book. It's wierd - no other word to describe it - and incredibly fun.
I picked it up yesturday, and couldn't put it down until I finished it, so engrossed was I in the adventures of this evil goat, ten-year-old boy and underground organization of penguin spies.
All the wierd, unexpected twists kept me riveted.

This is a book you absolutely /have/ to read."

This part is me: " :))) "

The earlier poster (who is a friend of a friend who bought her the book as a present) wrote:

"If I would have had more than about 30 minutes a day to read, I would have read it in one day. And I can only read good books that fast! It's the perfect book for all ages!This book includes a large variety of characters, from friendly elephants to curious boys to frogs with special abilities. A very entertaing book. This is a must read book! Definitely one of my favorites!"

Happiness (you know I've got the spirit :)),

Joseph

Shipping

2005-10-01T20:53:00.000-07:00

I'm hoping to get the books to Australia tomorrow or Tuesday (I hope I don't have to sign for anything, Tuesday is Rosh Hashanna and I can't sign stuff). I got nailed for GST (Goods and Services Tax). The taxes were not only on the books, but on the *shipping.* Quite interesting. Shipping is a service and generally subject to GST. I just didn't expect that I was going to be the one paying it :(

The book just won't be big enough business to make registering for GST worth it at this time. But I am learning about Australian tax and corporate law. It is a bit scary here - I won't bother with the details :)

I have an approach with the book that I'm going to try here in Oz. One of my readers here (who I hopes will like the book) has a sister who runs a library and is very active in librarian associations here. It is a natural place to put the book and raise its profile. Keeping the business goals in mind, the purpose of book one is to get attention for the series. Nothing works better than people reading the books. So if I can get librarians interested they might not *sell* copies, but they can still create a bit of a buzz for book two and some people who hear about book one will want their own copies of book one. Will it work? We'll see :) It is a long way from here to there :)

Happiness!

Joseph

Distribution and a friendly Blog

2005-09-29T22:27:00.000-07:00

A good friend of mine shipped me 200 books here in Australia. They aren't here yet (customs is a bear), but they should be soon. I've also sent off my distribution application to one of the distributors here. Called TowerBooks they just seemed the most suited to my needs - although I don't really know.

In other notes... because I knew I was getting books any day I sold one to the lady at the Health Insurance company. She read Chapter 1 and loved it. Also, a girl I don't know (she is a friend of a friend) posted a review of Grobar on Amazon and on her blog. I think it helped bump up the sales a bit (we were around 600,000 and popped up to 90,000). Check it out at http://www.livejournal.com/users/malunu/. In response to her friend thinking the book was weird, I posted a secret link to Chapter 2 in her comments section. Hopefully, it'll help things along :)

Happiness to all (and a good year too)...

Joseph Cox

Yom Kippur Greeting

2005-09-29T22:21:00.000-07:00

I figured I'd post the below to this blog as well. Grobar is mentioned at the bottom :)

*****
Hello all,

Every year I write an annual Yom Kippur greeting and send it to people I've interacted with over the course of the year. This is the eleventh year I have done so. I appreciate the time you take to read it.

*******
The Torah states that a man can be excused from military service in a preventative war for one of three reasons: If he has been betrothed, but not married. If he has built a house but not dedicated it. Or if he has planted a vineyard, but not yet redeemed its fruit. They seem like three odd things to take precedence over a war. Perhaps, you might say, these are things that leave a lasting impact on a country, on a society. All are things that will outlast the man's life. Vineyards can last for hundreds of years. The shells of ancient homes are around even today. And families can last forever. But the act of creation isn't what excuses the soldier from duty. By the time he has built a house or planted a vineyard, the act of creation has been completed. It isn't enough to build the house, he must dedicate it. And it isn't enough to plant the vineyard, he must redeem it's fruit. Indeed, in last week's portion of the Torah we see among the list of curses that a man will betroth a woman, but another will take her. That he will build a house, but another will live in it. And that he will plant a vineyard, but another will drink its fruit.

It's clear that it is a curse not to enjoy the rewards of ones accomplishments. And it is not just a blessing, but a mitzvah (a good deed), to realize those rewards and to recognize G-d's hands in those accomplishments.

This hasn't been a year of curses. But it hasn't been a year of fundamental accomplishment either. It has been a muddled year. A year of complexity. People talk of maturity as a process of understanding the complexity of the world. Of not just intellectually understanding that the world is a complex place, but of actually feeling it. In a way, that is maturity. But it is also darkness. You get wrapped up in the complexity of the world, and you lose the clarity - the light - of simplicity. You grow up, and you grow old.

It doesn't, of course, have to be that way. There is another path. A path of wisdom. As I understand it, wisdom is achieving understanding, and clarity, *because* of the wrinkles that may be thrown in your direction. For me, this has been a year of maturity - but not of wisdom. I have been blindly stabbing away without much accomplishment, and without enjoying the fruits of what I have accomplished. I've been buried in the details and forgotten the greater picture.

There is a man here (in Australia), who davens at the shul in East Bentleigh. He is an old man, from Moscow. He goes back regularly. For our wedding he gave us a bottle of Russian vodka. His name is Benyamin. Why do I mention him? Because every time he sees me, his face lights up. He shakes my hand vigorously. He smiles. And he assaults me with a barrage of Yiddish and Russian words that he knows I don't understand.

And I smile. I enjoy shaking his hand. Because that is how you greet people. That is how you react to people.

That is how I used to greet him, and he is returning the favor.

In the day-to-day complexity of publishing the book, of moving, of handing over the reins of the shul, of looking for work in Australia and of spinning ones wheels on various and sundry other things, I've forgotten to interact with the world with that kind of simple love and attention. You can infuse every moment of life with holiness and blessing. Greeting the old man reminded me of that. His was such a simple action. And yet it cut through so much that is complex. It cuts through so much that clouds a life and prevents it from getting the light it needs to flourish.

Before Yom Kippur Jews attempt to wipe the slate clean. They turn to G-d to ask forgiveness for their sins against him. But G-d can not grant them forgiveness for their sins against their fellow man. In this message, I am asking you for your forgiveness for anything I might have done to harm you, whether it was intentional or not and whether it was overt or hidden. But there is more to apologize for than outright harm. There is also a failure to create holiness and light.

All of us have so much to add to the world. We can accomplish great things. But small accomplishments are not to be forgotten. Small things like infusing a handshake with love.

In the coming year, may you all experience true joy and happiness. May you accomplish things great and small and may you taste the fruits of your accomplishments.

Oh, and if you get the chance, read a copy of "Grobar and the Mind Control Potion" :) I know that sounds like a gratuitous pitch, but it actually isn't. It is a book people enjoy. The pleasure it has brought its readers has been my year's greatest accomplishment. And seeing that pleasure has been my year's greatest reward. I thank G-d for both.

May you all be inscribed in the Book of Life and the Book of Joy and the Book of Wisdom.

Happiness to all,

Joseph Cox

It's been a while

2005-09-22T17:49:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since I last posted something on Suckerfish. The reason is pretty simple, Bec and I have been travelling and settling in in Australia. It hasn't been uneventful though. I did a mini-reading in Israel. Only the kids of bookstore employees showed up, so it wasn't a real reading - but they loved it and the bookstore has been selling the book. Other big things include:

I've been working on getting distribution in Australia. I'm preparing a package to send to one of the distributors, Tower Books. We'll see what happens. I chose them simply because they had the most information on their web-site - and they had fiction titles. My experiences so far (combined with some patience) have led me to really streamline my promotional efforts. I did some research on the financials of bookstores. B&N has DSI (Days Sales in Inventory) of 160 days, Borders DSI is 175. This means the average book goes unsold for almost a half a year. This is incredible. Now, obviously, some books sell much more quickly. And I imagine a lot of bookstores don't keep unsold books for six months. Three is probably more realistic. So, to maintain a 160+ day DSI despite returns, these bookstores are returning *a lot* of books. Being on the shelf gives you absolutely *nothing*. Buyers have to be pointed to the book. Reviews can help, but they aren't enough. Let's say you get a nice review in the New York Times. You might move 1000 copies. There are over 1000 new bookstores nationally. So if you place two books in each store, then you're going to lose out. Half will be sold. Half will be returned - eliminating no small part of your margin. What you really need is support from the bookstores themselves - particularly the staff. When a customer who is just looking comes in, you want the staff to consider your book. To get that, it is worth giving the staff free books, signing whatever copies they have and delivering promotional materials. This is more important than readings, in my mind. I sell more books personally than I would at a reading - and spreads the word just as effectively (more below). Promoting the book to bookstore staff brings in sales from people who aren't perusing the reviews, who aren't all that 'literary,' but who are buying books. These are precisely the kind of people my book is aimed at.
My dad met a lady on the plane who has recommended the book to Disney Radio. No idea what they can do with it, but she enjoyed the book and that never hurts.
The book is FINALLY available on Barnes and Noble.com. They actually sent out some copies. Now, I don't want returns, so I need to start getting these books flowing. I'm not linking up to them yet. They took way to long to get rolling, their publisher support was very very poor and of course you get paid very slowly by them. Please note, I'm not ripping on B&N stores, I've had good experiences with them. But the web site is a little sad.
I had a real fall-off in sales while travelling. It is understandable, books online don't sell themselves any better than books in the store. I need to continue the promotional efforts. I have been selling some books personally however. As I mentioned I sold two books on the plane to Chicago. I sold another one on the way to London. I sold another copy in Venice. But I didn't sell any for the rest of the trip. It was still fun. I don't have copies to spare here in Australia (I'm getting them shipped here), but there was a family on the train that was definitely interested. The oldest son, who was seven, enjoyed the book. He didn't admit it, but really got sucked into it. A lady at the health care insurance company also wanted to buy the book. She had her sister in mind. Her sister is a librarian on King Island (north of Tasmania). She is very active and if she likes the book it'll get spread to libraries across Tasmania and possibly across Oz. It never hurts :)

So, things are proceeding. Patience is key. I'm going to be applying for regional placement in the Northwest by Borders and B&N as well as regional placement in the Melbourne area. Of course, in Australia, I need distribution first and then I can approach the chain stores for support. Anyways, things are going on.

Have fun!

Joseph

More Travels

2005-09-01T00:25:00.000-07:00

We've been travelling for a little while now. We've had some successes on the book front. Amazon has ordered more copies. The distributor finally ordered the copies that Ingram finally ordered that B&N finally ordered - so only a small bit after the books became available, people might finally get them. Anyways, we were at a wedding in Chicago and I brought some books to an after-party to give to my mother-in-law to give to people in Australia who were still waiting for their copies. Well, it turned out she only wanted one copy, so we sold the seven copies to people at the party. It was fun.

We have quite a few copies to move, but I'm beginning to better understand the business. I'm going to try to get placement in B&N and Borders stores in the Pacific Northwest. Basically, getting the books on the shelves is step one. Getting them sold is a whole different story. So, I'll visit every store that is carrying the book, talk to the staff in the appropriate department (give them free copies, encourage them to read the book), and sign copies. Why? Because being on a shelf doesn't sell anything but diapers (and even then it doesn't work). Fundamentally, the book needs to be recommended. Having the staff do that will kick start sales in a way placement itself never could.

Oh, and one more thing, the national radio promotion (Grobar giveaways) should be starting soon. Let me know if you hear anything.

Happiness!

Joseph

Travels

2005-08-28T06:59:00.000-07:00

My wife and I are moving to Australia. Kinda hard to sell books on the road, but we've been doing our best. We actually managed to sell two on the first segment of our trip (to Chicago). We'll see how the rest of the trip goes :)

I also had two good reviews. One was a friend turning red while reading the Hadid chapter. The other was a co-worker of my wife's telling me that it was the best $10 she'd spent on a book in a long while.

In less enjoyable news, B&N.com sent out notices to people telling them they couldn't get the book. This is pure ********. Well, not pure. It seems THEY can't get the book. But others sure can. It is available on Amazon without any problems.

Happiness,

Joseph

Order placed

2005-08-21T14:32:00.000-07:00

B&N.com placed their order!

Happiness,

Joseph

B&N.com talked to me!

2005-08-19T15:51:00.000-07:00

I talked to somebody at B&N.com! They have 30 orders and said they'd hit Ingram today. I was hopeful, but it hasn't happened. So I have no idea when the delay will end. I know they order automatically and a computer figures it all out (as the guy kept explaining to me), but that wasn't the question I was asking. I couldn't care less whether they stock extra copies or not - all I wanted to know was when they would order the ones they had sold. The guy made a point of saying it did no good to call them. And I guess it didn't - there is still no order. But, at least I know how many they sold.

I have to say the B&N store people are a lot more pleasant - but I don't care as long as B&N.com get books to their buyers.

Mini-Tour

2005-08-18T13:57:00.000-07:00

Bec and I went on a mini-tour to Seattle. I learned a great deal. We were staying with a Rabbi who will soon be self-publishing a book of his own and we had some enlightening conversation.

To summarize the trip, we learned a great deal. Here are some highlights:

Big B&Ns have more leeway than small ones. The first store we visited was a large B&N and they were really really nice and interested in having me back for a signing. One of the guy's read some of the book and said it was like Terry Pritchard - which apparently is pretty high praise. I will definitely be going back there if I do a mini-signing tour. Small B&N's don't have that kind of freedom. Although, I believe that they do if the author is local. B&N has a poor reputation among small publishers. While B&N.com annoys me, I actually had a very good experience with most of their stores. Even the brush offs were polite.
Borders do all their buying through regional offices. I have to contact the Portland area guy.
Independents, being independent, vary widely. But generally we had very good reception from them.
Walking the street with flyers was very successful the first day. The local Duck Tour even stopped and pointed me out and took some flyers :) A fair number of people took flyers, but I don't know if I sold any books that way. Day two, nobody took flyers. I got the plague treatment - look and read from a distance, avert eyes close up. It isn't such a great tool.
Hanging out in Starbucks with the sign next to me was successful. It started conversation and I actually sold a book to a construction guy for his daughter. It was a good closing. He had a flyer and then I said I could autograph it he bought it from me directly. He did and I did :) We might try this some more. Conversation is really the best way to move books, I think.
My wife, Rebecca, was invaluable. From encouraging me to think and move positively to helping me communicate clearly and concisely to covering up my mistakes (like saying I'm running around Portland, instead of Seattle), she did a great job of making me do a better job.
Everything is relationships. You really want to create a relationship with every person you run in to. We saw some pretty cool bookstores, and you know what, they like to be told that. The coolest was Elliot Bay. We walked in and our eyes just kept looking at more and more books. We told them. They liked it. I think we'll be able to have a relationship. And they'll remember me, my book and they might even recommend it.
I like the independents quite a bit. The reason is simple. They'll push the book. If I do get the book placed regionally in Borders or B&N I'll have to visit each store that is carrying it, sign the books, talk to the staff and build the relationship. People may judge a book by its cover, but often they only look at the cover if somebody points it out.
Non-bookstores are intereting. Bec saw one and forced me inside. They might actually order it. A good place to be if you can get in just because people probably come in to independent toy stores more confused about what to get than bookstores. In other words, those relationships probably have a greater effect.

All in all, I think 4 bookstores out of about 15 will order copies. Not bad at all. I like doing this regionally because I can visit again and again and reinforce things in a way I can't nationally.

I'm really thankful that I'm self-publishing at least this first book. I am learning so much from the process that if I do have a chance to go with a big publisher I will have a great deal more to offer as a promoter.

Happiness,

Joseph

Grobar is AVAILABLE!!!

2005-08-14T22:58:00.000-07:00

Emailed the below to the list today:

**********
You can now get real copies of Grobar and the Mind Control Potion!!!

The only problem is, you have to get them through Amazon.

Unfortunately, I have no idea when Barnes and Noble or book store orders will show up - I just don't understand the book business well enough to know at this point. I do know that the distribution network is incredibly inefficient. However, Amazon runs on a different system - their own. They says it will take 1-2 weeks and they are correct. I shipped books to them on Monday of last week and they began to ship them out on Friday. So.... if you want your books in a timely manner, switch your orders to Amazon and we'll get them filled ASAP.

Oh, and if you go through www.shorteddy.com, I get another $.50/book :)

I'm really sorry about all the delays. By way of apology, I have remove all mark-ups on merchandise (shirts etc...) ordered through ShortEddy.com. The discount will last for the next three days (until Wednesday morning). There are some really cool shirts, bags etc... available there.

Thank you again for your patience.

Happiness,

Joseph Cox
p.s. To learn more about what's been going on, check out my blog at www.shorteddy.com. For all the troubles, publishing is still fun.

Still no response from B&N

2005-08-14T22:53:00.000-07:00

I called, left a message with another person, but still no response. I pretty much have no choice at this point. B&N won't respond to emails in any useful way, or call me back. So I'm going to totally switch my business to Amazon. They actually sent out some orders Friday afternoon. Not a bad turn time at all considering I sent them books on Monday - and I finally have a route to get books to the people who have waited very patiently for them... As they get more orders, they will stock up some more and we'll get 24 hour response instead of 1-2 week response.

It's a real pity I have to switch to Amazon. I just had no idea B&N wouldn't just send me a PO when they got their orders in. If I were an online bookstore and I knew the address of a publisher who had sold a decent number of books that's what I would have done...

A Phone Number!

2005-08-10T14:36:00.000-07:00

I got a phone number at B&N. I called it. They forwarded me to a voicemail box. I left a message this morning but got no response. I'll try again tomorrow. Perhaps there is hope. For now, I am resting with Amazon. They should be getting books today and if they're good - they might even mail them back out today....

Happiness,

Joseph

The Suckerfish International Headquarters!

2005-08-05T19:37:00.000-07:00

Working on Distribution

2005-08-05T08:02:00.000-07:00

I am trying to figure out how to get the books out faster. I have signed up for Amazon Advantage and they've moved the book from unavailable to available in 3 to 5 weeks. I emailed them telling them I could get orders to them very quickly (they are in Seattle and I am in Portland) and I hope that they'll take me up on it and order some books pronto. I can then forward all future orders to them. So far I haven't had any response from B&N. I am learning this business and next time around I'll wait for the Amazon listing before I publicize the book...

For now, I am holding off on promotion until I know how to get books to buyers.

I wish I knew how many copies have been ordered :(

I'll keep y'all updated. On another front I have my sandwich board and my headquarters finished. I'll post photos probably today :)

Happiness,

Joseph

ARGGGGHHH!!!!

2005-08-04T08:40:00.000-07:00

No big mistake this time - just incompetence in the book industry. So, here's how it goes...

I am trying to figure out how long it takes for books that hit my distributor to make it to Ingram and show up in inventory there. The books made it to my distributor on Monday. I email them today and they still haven't shipped them out. 4 business days to do shipping in a distribution house? Anyways, how long will it take for them to show up in Ingram once they are shipped? 3 weeks. THREE WEEKS. It takes Ingram, the giant in the industry THREE WEEKS to receive a book and show it in inventory. Are these guys in the stone age? From what I know (and I imagine every independent book store in the western world knows) you receive a book, you scan it, and then VIOLA! it is in inventory. But apparently if you are the world's largest and most respected book distributor it takes 3 weeks to receive a book, bar code scan it, and put it in your warehouse.

How?

Let's try to imagine it. They have one guy at the receiving dock. He drinks a lot of coffee. Books arrive, he drinks more coffee. Then, for 30 minutes each day, he carries the books that arrived a week ago and carries them to guy number 2. Of course, guy number 2 likes coffee as well. He drinks it constantly. But, for 30 minutes each day, he gets out his bar-code scanner and scans books that were handed to him a week ago. Then he puts them on a shelf behind his desk. There is, of course, a third guy. He's got a little truck. He also drinks coffee. But for 30 minutes a day he picks up the books that are at least a week old and drives them to their shelf in the warehouse. There, THREE WEEKS to show inventory.

I can't imagine how long it takes to retrieve a book, package it, label it and ship it out. That is a much more complex process. Most functioning adults could probably raise in child in that timespan.

As you can tell, I am a bit frustrated. I have books. B&N and Amazon have orders. How hard can it be to make a shidduch (marriage)? I want to do promotion - but why bother if the people I sell to can't get copies? I am moving to Australia, and I am running out of time.

ARGGGGHHHHH!

On a lighter front, I can and will reroute the Amazon orders directly to me. They have a nice online system for managing that. B&N seems to be another story, but I've got phone calls and emails assaulting them from every direction to convince them to fill their orders through me or from my distributor. Bookstores are just going to have to wait - although I will give them my distributor's information.

Happiness,

Joseph

Delay message

2005-07-28T22:59:00.000-07:00

I wanted to delay the below until the books were shipping, but Barnes & Noble sent out an apology, so now's the time :)

***
Just a quick update...

Some of you may have received notification from Barnes & Noble that the book is not yet available. This is true. The books are being shipped to me now. They should be available and shipping from Barnes and Noble within 2 weeks. For more updates on the nature of the delay, check out my publishing blog at http://suckerfish.blogspot.com/

I will send out one more message after this when the book is shipping and when it is available on special order through your local book store.

I apologize for the delay, I am new to this business.

Thank you for your patience,

Joseph Cox

Ups and Downs, but generally up!

2005-07-26T10:53:00.000-07:00

Okay. So, the book is now done (July 25th). I don't have it yet. But it is being shipped. A lot of the delay from the last guess (July 6th) is mine. I was in Gibralter when they wanted to ship me proofs, and so I delayed getting them their proofs back by a week. That wasn't good.

I discovered another problem with the book - but hardly one worth a toss. The book wasn't full justified like most books. But as I peer back into the many decisions I made on this project I'm pretty sure that was entirely intentional. I thought the left justification was just more in tune with Short Eddy, the main character.

Anyways, I got the sample book back (after photocopying the blue-lines they sent me) and it does indeed look very good. I am excited. Kinda waiting though, for the opportunity to get things rolling. It has been a while, but I have learned a lot.

The printer has been paid, the books are on the way - and I am both scared and excited. On the plane back from a business trip I met a woman with a few target aged kids. She read and liked the first chapter and I wasn't exactly modest. I said I knew the book was good or I wouldn't have bothered publishing it. Perhaps not to be perceived as my most shining moment - but I do know it is good, very very good, and there's no reason to be lie just to be modest :)

I am debating, for book two, which printer to use. On the one hand these guys were cheap and did a good job. On the other they missed obvious things like the missing quotes and the left justification. I might go with a printer who pays a bit more attention to small jobs like my own... Still debating. If they hadn't done round two at cost, I wouldn't have given them a second thought.

On the bad front, all of these delays are starting to cause problems. I've run out of time to do in-store readings. All I'll be able to do is visit stores with the book in tow. In addition, Barnes and Noble promised shipment by the 28th, but they still haven't communicated to me their orders from the book.

We shall see what's up - and when I know, I'll email my promotional list and apologize for the delay.

Happiness!

The Bright Side

2005-06-23T12:19:00.000-07:00

Okay, things have improved some. I've taken the opportunity afforded by the screwup to improve the book. The tab spacing is better, I fixed up the colors on the cover and I even caught a few typos. All pretty good stuff. And the printer is being really good. They are doing the reprint at cost and in a hurry. They expect to have printing done July 6th, which is 2 weeks flat from when I got them the new version of the book. That is quite good.

So, all in all, things are progressing well. I will lose even more money on the book (I cut the bleeding some by doing a shorter run this time, and the print shop managed to stop the first shipment in transit saving me like $700), but there is a price for pursuing one's dreams. Or else everybody would do it :)

The book is looking a lot better.

Happiness,

Joseph

AGONY!

2005-06-17T09:20:00.000-07:00

It was a good day (I got sample books) and a TERRIBLE day - the books were missing all quotes, dashes and apostrophes. In other words, they were useless. To make things just a touch worse, I had them shipped - at a cost of just under $1000 - before catching the problem. So, now I will be reprinting the books. Thankfully, despite it being my mistake, the printer is doing the next batch at cost. I feel very stupid (and poor). Perhaps the biggest cost is time. I now don't have time to do a book tour this summer - because I won't get the books until too late.

What can you do?

It is a good product, eventually I will make enough mistakes to do it right :) I just want to get books to those who bought them as quickly as possible.

Happiness,

Joseph

Fun Day

2005-06-15T12:33:00.000-07:00

Another fun day. The book is now in Ingram, so it has shown up on Amazon in Germany, France etc... Also, the book printing was completed yesterday with sample copies being sent to me today.

Lots of work to get ready for their arrival, but I am looking forward to it.

Going to Market

2005-06-10T15:06:00.002-07:00

I put the book up on Bowker a little while ago. On May 19th, it showed up on BarnesandNoble.com. I'd been planning to use Amazon, but B&N picked up the book first - so I used them. I added a link from my website (as well as doing some final modification as discussed before) and got ready. And then, over Memorial Day weekend (Sunday morning actually), I fired out an email to everybody I knew. The text is below:

"Hello all (and sorry for the mass email)!

So, there's a long and a short message in here.

The short message? BUY MY BOOK!

Just visit www.ShortEddy.com to order a pre-sale copy of my international thriller for children aged 9-90. From the leafy parks of Lakedale USA, to the mountain hidaways of Colombian druglords, to the backstreets of Mogadishu, Short Eddy, a 4th grade nerd, finds himself swept up into PENGUIN's efforts to stop Grobar the Goat from taking over the world.

The book is only $8.95 if you're a Barnes and Noble member.

The long message?

If you know me, you may have heard about PENGUIN, the world's foremost spy agency? You may even know some of their history: how Napoleon was a rogue PENGUIN commander who forgot that his human soldiers couldn't survive a Russian winter; how PENGUIN helped stop Hitler; and even how they faced down one of the greatest threats the world has ever seen: Grobar the Goat.

If you've never heard of Grobar the Goat, don't worry. PENGUIN hadn't either. But he was a grave threat nonetheless. He had discovered a mind control potion that, when mixed with ordinary caffeine, would deliver the drinker into his total control. He had plans to manufacture and distribute millions of tons of the stuff. He would control the minds of caffeine consumers - and use them to liquidate just about everybody else.

In other words, he wasn't a very nice guy.

Well, his story, and the story of those who stopped him, is finally being published. This was a job PENGUIN couldn't do alone. They needed help from heroes like Sam the Elephant, Bartholomew the Frog with Precision Hopping Ability, and, of course, Short Eddy.

The story is one of intrigue, humor and daring. And now, it is available to you (or your kids and grandkids!).

Just visit www.ShortEddy.com and follow the links to buy your own copy of Grobar and the Mind Control Potion. There's no need to stop at just one. Buy copies for your children, grandchildren, the children in you, and all your various friends!

Of course, being as you're my friends and all, I'd love you to pass this message along to as many people as you can. The more people read it, the more people order the book, the better the book looks to buyers (higher on the B&N sales rank), and the better the chance for PENGUIN, Sam, Bartholomew and Eddy to get the recognition they deserve.

Oh, and if you'd like me to do a reading in your city, just email me at jcox@shorteddy.com.

Happiness!

Joseph Cox
p.s. Don't be shy about forwarding this ;)
p.p.s. The book will ship earlier than Barnes and Noble says it will, they are just playing it safe."

I had been ranked 137,000. It got up to 89,000 on Monday. I woke up Tuesday at it was 813. EIGHT HUNDRED AND THIRTEEN. That day, it got up to 137. There are millions of books at it made it to 137. I still don't know what this means in terms of sales, but it got even higher, to 135 before it began to fall back. I had 3 days almost totally in the top 500, and then I fell back to about 1000 and then about 10,000. I sent out over a thousand flip cards to friends and family and I've been hovering about 10,000. I got mentioned on FoxNews.com as a SLD (Stupid Little Dreamer) (http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,158971,00.html). It is a complement. Two authors emailed me asking me for advice. I imagine I sold a few units. We'll see. It was great publicity. More importantly, I can now send a quote from a major news source when pursuing other publicity.

I'm trying to figure out how I'm doing. Currently, an author from my alma mater is touring. He'll be in Portland June 20th. He got published by a major publishing house and is doing a big-time tour. He's ranked lower than I am. He's sold 940 copies. Another book, being published in June by a major house, which my neice and nephew had heard about, has also been ranked lower. It is being featured prominently on B&N. They've sold just over 1000 copies. That is scary, but it also sets a benchmark. It is unusual to move a lot of copies, and you can make some real waves with 1000. I really want 1000 pre-sales. I probably have 150, but I can dream.

Today, Ingram (the national distributor), started carrying my book. At some point, the BarnesandNoble and Amazon systems will point to them and I'll be able to figure out my sales to date. Needless to say, I am seriously interested in the results.

As an aside, the night before last, I got my Masters in Finance. It has also been a good business day in the real world :)

I hope I can build from what I think has been a good kick-off.

Printing

2005-06-10T15:06:00.001-07:00

When you deal in books, you have to actually have books. Terrible, isn't it. Well, let me run through this story. First, the artist (the wonderful Rebecca Becker) came to me and made individual chapter headings for every chapter. STUNNING stuff. If you're reading this and haven't bought the book, do so. Just the pictures are worth it. So, we moved towards printing. I kept making little changes in the QuarkExpress files to keep things up to spec for printing, as I understood it. Now I understand it a lot better and I could do a much faster job. So I used print-industry.com to get quotes. I got about 20 back - running from about 70 cents/copy including shipping to about $2.20. I didn't use the cheapest bidder. I used the cheapest who was a mainline book printer in the US. I don't know enough to work with Asian producers who can't speak or read English yet. So, I paid about 80 cents for my 168-page book. My print shop is Data Reproductions. They have been great so far. We'll see how the books come out. When I see them, I will be sure to update this page!

Distribution

2005-06-10T15:06:00.000-07:00

One of the big issues in books is distribution. You need a distributor to sell in stores. I guess in theory you might not need one, but then you'd need to sign a contract with every book store you want to sell in - and that is a major problem. Sure, you could sign the standard contracts for a Amazon.com and BarnesandNoble.com, but it gets dicey after that. It is very hard to sell to new people if the books can't at least be ordered through bookstores. So I sent off marketing kits to 8 distributors that specialize in small publishers. I got rejected or ignored by 7. Guess who I'm using :) Just to be sure, I tracked down some of their publishers and asked how their experiences had been. Yes, this place seemed to have some weakness in presentation - but people said they'd done well and we're cheap nickel and dimers. I signed the contract and we were off. I was very very happy to have cleared this bar. Without distribution, nobody in the business (book stores, reviewers etc...) will take you seriously. They'll just think you're a self-publisher. And with 175,000 books published a year, they don't need a self-publisher.

So, what do you send these guys? The answer is a marketing plan. I've talked about that some already.

Catching Up

2005-06-10T15:05:00.000-07:00

First off. It has been a long time since I sent an update. In hindsight that was a mistake. Lots of fun stuff has been going on and it is good to record it one way or another.

So, where shall I start? I will try to do this chronologically, but I'm not terribly good at that, so it will only be a try - not a success.

Let's start with the web page. I reworked the webpage - www.shorteddy.com - about 5 times. The first time was pretty basic and ugly. The second time I'd gotten some art from the artist and made a really cool page that moved around, had pop-up menus etc... The problem was, it didn't work too well. So I used the same design concept (the logo splits open), without the moving bits and made a more static page. And then I decided I wanted a few more areas on the page and more flexibility to modify it. I also wanted things to look far more professional. So I made graphical headers for everything, made my buttons graphical, got rid of my pop-up menu (made a static one) and redid the content so it could be served in two formats (simple and javascript enhanced) without actually having to modify it in two places. I also added a few features. I added a Forum. At this point it isn't terribly effective, so I may delete it. But I'll wait a bit more. I also added merchandise. I found in a Wall Street Journal article a reference to a POD (Print-On-Demand) shirt printer (CafePress). I set up an account and they let me customize the selection and the apperance and everything. Now you can order T-shirts, mugs, posters, bags etc... for the PENGUIN logo. It is pretty cool and their stuff is very high quality. I am extremely satisfied with this company. If you get a chance, check out the page, it is pretty cool.

Pricing

2005-01-26T01:07:00.000-08:00

I've been doing a marketing course in B-school. It is definitely
interesting stuff, although I can see the challenges of applying it to
the book business though, especially as a micro-marketer. You've got
all sorts of categorizations (it's a very Aristotelian art) and you
try to place yourself and the marketplace in the right ones to
identify what you should do. Of course, a plethora of judgements are
made along the way. Naturally, I read all this stuff through the eye
of Suckerfish. What are it's strengths, weakness etc... How does it
handle the four Ps (product, place, promotion, price)?

My basic analysis to this point is simple. For Grobar, there are
hundreds of thousands of competitors. You can narrow it down very
specifically demographically and still have tens of thousands of
competitors. It is a distinct product in many ways, but the
competition is intense. Interestingly, though, despite intense
competition there is no price competition. Aside from old classics
nobody is trying to do it cheaper. From my reading, they release a
book at full-price - fail to sell all the copies - and then discount
the remainder. It used to be that they'd release a hard-cover first,
and then a cheaper softcover and then the discounting would start.

Suckerfish has no advantages aside from its product. The book is
strong and I've done the market research to back that up. Not
everybody likes it, but those who do LOVE it. And that's enough. So
how do you back that up from a marketing perspective? As a little guy,
distribution is tough and you can only use yourself for promotion. An
author can do a lot to kickstart things, but there are very real
limits. But as an indy publisher, Suckerfish can play with price.

Now, the automatic thought when playing with price is "if people see a
cheap book, they'll assume its crap." Or, "You don't sell any more
books at a lower price point, so why bother trying."

Well, I'm thinking I might just want to try. But not in the usual way.
My book have loving adherents who can sell on. My goal, from the
starting gate, should be to get as many of those people as possible. I
don't want the book to look cheap, I don't want it to look like a
remainder, but I want it to be quite affordable. So I thought, "Why
not an introductory price?" Just put a sticker on the books and sell
it for 20% off. Right off the bat, the book looks like a bargain - but
because the price will be rising it doesn't look cheap. You move lots
of copies early this way and then you remove the introductory offer.
If the book is well received by readers, then the people they tell
about it will come and buy the book at full-price. Having been
referred by word-of-mouth, they'll be willing to swallow a higher
price. You bring in the trend setters with the introductory offer and
you sell to the followers at full price.

This flips the traditional approach on its head - and it's probably
been tried before unsuccessfully. But I think it just might be
interesting. The question is just how to set things up so it works.

Happiness,

Joseph

New Web Page

2004-12-20T18:41:00.000-08:00

I put in a lot of hours this weekend building a new web page for
suckerfishbooks.com. It is pretty sweet. Basically, I got a neat
graphic from the cover artists and I used it to create a nice, very
professional, web site (which I will admit was a pain to create). A
good weekend.

Joseph

New Web Page

2004-12-19T05:25:00.000-08:00

Folks, Rebecca Becker sent out a beautiful PENGUIN Logo. I've made it
into the new website at www.suckerfishbooks.com (or www.shorteddy.com)

Check it out. It is, in my opinion, very very cool.

Happiness!

Joseph

Think Locally, Act Globally

2004-12-17T11:09:00.000-08:00

I've been working on marketing for the book. Basically, it is a
twisted pop thriller for kids. I lack the basic 'hooks' people go for
when marketing books. For example, if you have a book on
homeschooling, you go after home schooling groups - or if action takes
place in Medford, you go after Medford area booksellers and clubs. My
books are aimed at pretty much everybody, which makes it harder to hit
any particular person with any impact :)

But you need targeting. There are over 2000 significant bookstores in
the US in lots of communities and if you don't target you spend a
whole lot of money and have very little impact.

So, as I mentioned before, I decided to target the book at certain
communities that have lots of kids in the right age range who can
speak English and whose parents are educated. I've identified those
communities and the bookstores in them.

The challenge is, bookstores like to sign up one of two types of
people for readings etc...: local people or nationally promoted
people. I am neither and I can't realistically pursue a national
promotion. So, instead, I am going to take on the appearance of
somebody nationally promoted, but all the promotion will take place in
the top 15-25 target 3-digit zipcodes.

My plan, presently, is to carry out the following three steps:
1) Find people I know in those communities.
2) Send promotional postcards to the bookstores in those areas just
prior to publication. Offer to do signings, readings, just drop by and
sign a few copies etc...
3) Have the people I know visit the bookstores shortly after the
publication of the book, asking for a copy and recommending the book
4) Have a third-party call the primed bookstores, as the publisher,
indicating that I am available
5) Pinging every community newspaper in the target areas with a
message that mentions book signings (if any yet), availability for
interviews, homeschool meetings and even school visits. Include a
standard press pack.
6) Having those papers that run articles get letters to the editor
from local friends reinforcing the quality of the book. And write
recommendation letters to the paper for those papers that haven't run
articles

This is an aggressive approach, but it might work. I'd love your thoughts.

By the way, the top 21 target areas are (I've put a * next to the ones
I might already have people I can lean on in :)). Please note, the
3-digit zips contain lots of other towns, these are just the most
noteworthy in the target areas. Most are suburbs of cities:
Marietta, Georgia*
Irving Texas
Highland Park, IL*
Fremont, California
Bellevue, WA*
Englewood/Littleton, CO
Mission Viejo, CA
Houston, TX
Naperville, IL
Sterling, VA
Minnetonka, MN
Stony Brook, NY
Lincoln Park, Chicago, IL*
DeKalb, IL
Scottsdale, AZ
Auburn Hills, MI
Bryn Mawr, PA*
Minneapolis, MN
Gaithersburg, MD
Overland Park, KS
West Orange, NJ*

Marketing to the right Zips

2004-12-17T10:51:00.000-08:00

I used the census to get a group of target zip codes. Ou tof 888 3 digit zips in the US, I picked the top 30 based on education, proportion of population which is boys aged 10-14, percentage of kids who speak english, and total population. These 30 zips have 19.7 million people (7%). They also have about 790,000 boys 10-14 (7.5% of total).

Of 1058 Barnes and Noble, Borders and Independent (with the word 'children' in their description) stores, 123 were in these zips (11.6%). So, somebody else agrees with my targeting.

Now, on to the work of marketing to them...

SuckerFishBooks

2004-12-17T10:11:00.000-08:00

The purpose of this blog is simple. It is to serve as a point for coordination and cooperation on the publication of Grobar and the Mind Control Potion. I might like to imagine this is an interesting experience, and it may be, but really, I'm putting this up here in order to share information with others without bombarding their inboxes.

At this point in the publication story, I've found (via my mom) a brilliant cover artist who has created some initial drawings that made me and my wife crack up while leaving the viewer very curious as to what was going on - always a good sign. I've ordered QuarkXPress an excellent piece of publishing software, both for my book and for my mom's book. I've also identified some potential distributors and run some numbers on them. I'm getting close to laying out the book and finding printers to actually get rolling.

The major outstanding issues as I see them are:
Scheduling, Securing Distribution, Marketing, and Promotion.

Minor stuff :)

Joseph