Unquiet Desperation

photo credit: carlosgomez

Had a nice weekend…drove up to Santa Barbara on Saturday and spent some time at Stearns Wharf. We hung out on the Wharf itself for a bit, then walked down to Wheel Fun Rentals and rented a double surrey. We rode along the beach, four of us pedaling, my son in the front seat ringing the bell the whole time.

The fog along the coast that morning was amazing. I’ve never seen anything like it. We were driving inside a cloud for miles. The fog started to roll back around noon as we ate lunch. We sat, watching the beach and coastline reveal itself to us minute by minute.

Sunday was a day for discovering community. We visited the local Methodist Church and found them to be kind, friendly and welcoming without feeling like they were going to suck the life from us — it was a good sign. They have activities for the kids, and half of the adults we met lived in Northeast Ohio at some point in their lives. It was really funny, talking about how odd L.A. can be at times with people who know exactly what we mean, because they remember the midwest.

After that, we took my eldest daughter to a small social thrown by her school. She’s had a hard time making friends, but finally she broke the ice and met some nice kids. We’re hoping she can bond with them a bit. She’s been very lonely since we moved. We went out for frozen yogurt with the kids and their parents, and found that we all had a lot in common. it was nice to break out of thew house for a bit and socialize with our peers.

So, here we are on Monday morning, staring down the barrel of another week. Driving up the mountain today I saw the first proper cumulus clouds since arriving here. The local NPR station is predicting a 20% chance of rain, which seems to be Big News around here. At the moment I’m sipping a coffee at the Waterlily Cafe in Topanga, enjoying the morning sun and the cool temperatures. It was 102F yesterday…this morning it’s around 64.

Enough relaxing. Time to get to work.

My blog is rebelling. Check out what it returned as a set of random posts when testing a new plugin.

The irony is not lost on me.

photo credit: ishkamina

First, I want to thank everyone who posted comments on my article about the Amazon Rush. When I write articles like these, I’m looking to start some discussion, and the discussion is now happening. I believe that’s a good thing, whether I’m right or wrong in my assessment.

Second, there’s a misunderstanding. I’m not criticizing how past authors have acted. I received one very angry email, asking how I could turn on my own authors this way. If that’s what you thought, let me assure you that’s not the point. The point is this: I believe that this summer saw the last major lift that people will get from this marketing tactic. What has worked in the past will not work as well in the future.

Finally, when I talk to new authors coming through Podiobooks.com, I hear a lot of “I want to do what Sigler, Lafferty, Hutchins, and Selznick have done.” Well…so does everyone. After watching how much work past authors have put into their own marketing campaigns (of which the Rush was only a piece), I need tell them that this is not a magic pony you can ride into Never Never Land. Please, listen to I Should Be Writing #99, and hear about how the “magical success” of today’s biggest podcast novelists was the result of years of work, not a single marketing tactic.

The Amazon Rush is an arrow in the quiver. As Matt Wallace pointed out, NOT to do so just because I say so is a foolish move. As Mur pointed out, I’ve never done it myself. These criticisms have merit. To you new podcast novelists out there: all I ask is that you think of a full marketing strategy for your podcast, then for your published novel when it happens. Don’t try to fly away on a magic pony.

Update: Other blogs have picked up the topic. Check these out:

• Is the Amazon Rush Dead? at Indiana Jim’s Blog
• End of the Amazon Rush? at Jason Penney’s All the Billion Other Moments
• Amazon Rush Days Aren’t Dead (They’re Just Pining for the Fjords) at SocialMediaJunkie.com
• The Amazon Rush: Comes the Apocalypse by Kris Johnson
• What We’ve Learned – Why the World Needs the Amazon Rush

photo credit: twenty_questions

Dear American:

I need to ask you to support an urgent secret business relationship with a transfer of funds of great magnitude.

I am Ministry of the Treasury of the Republic of America. My country has had crisis that has caused the need for large transfer of funds of $800 billion dollars US. If you would assist me in this transfer, it would be most profitable to you.

I am working with Mr. Phil Gram, lobbyist for UBS, who will be my replacement as Ministry of the Treasury in January. As a Senator, you may know him as the leader of the American banking deregulation movement in the 1990s. This transactin is 100% safe.

This is a matter of great urgency. We need a blank check. We need the funds as quickly as possible. We cannot directly transfer these funds in the names of our close friends because we are constantly under surveillance. My family lawyer advised me that I should look for a reliable and trustworthy person who will act as a next of kin so the funds can be transferred.

Please reply with all of your bank account, IRA and college fund account numbers and those of your children and grandchildren to wallstreetbailout@treasury.gov so that we may transfer your commission for this transaction. After I receive that information, I will respond with detailed information about safeguards that will be used to protect the funds.

Yours Faithfully

Minister of Treasury Paulson

[via SuperJesus]

photo credit: mpsfender182

I have yet to see any evidence that these Amazon rushes are accomplishing anything apart from making the author realize how ardent their fans are. “We’re going to make the suits at Amazon stand up and take notice!” seems to be the battle cry, but can you show me something that indicates Event Days for these books are anything more than a blip on Amazon’s radar (if that)?

– Kris Johnson, in a comment on Matthew Wayne Selnick’s blog

The Amazon rush is dead. I don’t think we’ll see authors getting the same kind of lift from it going forward.

When everyone is doing the same thing, audiences will start to ignore it. You start getting into “Yet Another” turf…Yet Another Podcast Novelist Twittering Their Release Date. There is a place for marketing and publicity, and yes, you need to hit it hard…there’s no doubt about it. When you’re planning for your launch date, observe what is going on around you. If other folks are flooding the community with their Amazon rush, perhaps it’s time for you to look at some other tactic to get attention. Think about it…if you were getting phone calls constantly about buying something, what would you do?

So, a word to all the podcast authors out there: find another “First.” Be creative, be innovative, take a chance. Do not rely on Yet Another Amazon Rush. People are tuning these out more and more now — it’s old news.

Update: Read the follow-up post, Beware the Magic Pony