6th. April and all's sorta OK

I have an advert running in a local magazine and that magazine will review my book next month. Will it increase my sales? I'll just have to wait and see. On another note, still no sign of my galley proof yet. I'll write to the publisher today to find out why I have yet to receive it.
I have the children with me today as my partner is working and they are on a school vacation. Lucky me.
I gave a way another copy of my book yesterday, at this rate I'll be going broke because I published a book.
One of the last of my elderly aunts has died, it's a shame, but that whole generation is leaving us and we are replacing them as the elderly family members. However, the sun is still shining, the kids still fighting and I'm not dead yet. Some things provide me with a degree of optimism.

Michael John

More dissapointment

27th. March; still no job and the group of persons who are writers helping writers, upon hearing that I may wish to find an agent, seemed to imply that they would review my work and help me get it to a state where and agent would be interested, all for free. Got the come on and then got asked for £426 to do it. I declined the offer.
On another front, I've still to receive the galley proof for the long awaited 'View Through My Spectacles'. It promises to be good, but who can tell.
I'm going to check the post and have a late bath now.

St. Patrick

Yesterday was St. Patricks day. I remembered my father with a pint or two. Still no job in site and I am running out of money fast. I have approved the design for my advert; it looks really good and I'm tempted to buy the book myself.
No sign of the galley proof for my poetry book. It's all agreed now and I can't wait to see it in the flesh.
Another funny thing happened yesterday. I've googled my book title a few times and found a site in Finland that sells it. However, I found a site in Germany listing it yesterday. All in German of course it provided a short biography of the author, me. Strange but I never knew that I was born in 1954 and educated in Germany resulting in a professorship in sociology. Strange what you can read about yourself and I must say that I am tempted to adopt this new found youth and high qualification.
I will take this as a sign that things will soon get better.

Michael John

A New Day

Well, here we are with a new day. Today I created an advertisement and sent it off to a local magazine with a large circulation, I also enquired with other local magazines, but with no results so far. I was so taken with my advertisement that I printed six copies of it off and then went to the pub for lunch. The young lady in this first pub posted my advert. in a prominent position; I couldn't have asked for more. Encouraged by this I went down the road to another pub. However, the atmosphere was such that I secretly found places, hidden till someone comes along and looks, to place copies. We'll see how that goes.
I've decided that I must do my own marketting. Maybe this was obvious but, I needed to learn and believe it for myself. This I have now done and I am embarked on a marketting campaign, so watch this space.

Michael John

BookEnds, LLC — A Literary Agency: Publishing Advice

BookEnds, LLC — A Literary Agency: Publishing Advice

Progress

Well I've agreed both the cover and the printing blocks for my book of poems. Should be receiving the galley proof in the near future.
On the agent front, no success. As usual, despite my wishes otherwise, my book was only scanned. They cannot seem to understand that scanning and reading bring forth entirely different reactions. There is so much hidden in my book that they just do not see when they scan. Still I asked the question 'Which parts didn,t you like and why?' As I suspected, ask an awkward question and there will ne no answer forthcoming. How am I expected to take my work and get it to the point where professionals will like it if they will not tell me what it is they don't like?

Still, that's all for today.

Getting Worse

Now the agent I approached has rejected my work. 'Unfortunately we do not feel enthusiastic enough about it to take this further.' If I was a celebrity and they could smell cash then it would be different, even if it was a pile of rubbish, which it is not.
Stil, no time to stand around feeling bitter. I have instead mailed another agent with a nice long text to introduce myself. Lets see what response that gets.
On anther note, I have now agreed the cover concept for 'The View through My Spectales'.

Michael John