An Answer to Yesterday

As an answer to the article that I posted to yesterday (here), one may either read this compelling (and for this blog record breaking in length) comment that Kristi  (one of our more avid readers) posted at the bottom of this page or one could read the article I'm posting today.

Today's article is taken from the WSJ and is written by Eben Shapiro and is titled Daniel Suarez Sees Into the Future. The article does little to counter Mr. Maass' claims during the first 50 to 60%. It deals with a new book by Suarez called Influx and how many expect Suarez to replace Crichton and Clancy.

In the publishing world, there is a growing sense that "Influx," Mr. Suarez's fourth novel, may be his breakout book and propel him into the void left by the deaths of Tom Clancy and Michael Crichton.

And they touch on his writing by saying.

"He has an uncanny ability to take bleeding edge, incredibly complex technologies and blend them into a fascinating story," says Mr. O'Brien, the cybersecurity expert.

But then there is this nugget.

He began writing in his free-time. Rejected by 48 literary agents—(a database expert, he kept careful track)—he began self-publishing in 2006 under the name Leinad Zeraus, his named spelled backward. His sophisticated tech knowledge quickly attracted a cult following in Silicon Valley, Redmond, Wash., and Cambridge, Mass. The MIT bookstore was the first bookstore to stock his self-published books in 2007. Picking up on that buzz, literary-agent Bridget Wagner Matzie approached him and landed a publishing deal with Dutton in 2008. (She no longer represents Mr. Suarez.) "It took a lot of convincing to get him to go mainstream," she said. "He said, 'I want to write for my people. I don't want to dumb it down.'" Mr. Suarez left the software consulting business and began writing full-time in 2007.

I'm going to break my resolution and buy his books if only cause he is/was "Freight Class" and wanted to stay that way!

Gotta love a story of writing success.

Freighters Unite

Although he has written what is without a doubt my favorite book on the craft of writing, Writing the Breakout Novel, Donald Maass has not written my favorite article in Writer Unboxed with his effort titled The New Class System.

Although there are several points I agree with, among them:

e-books have not hurt the print publishers but rather have helped them. Especially in the recent recession, low-cost/high-margin e-books have been a bright spot. They’ve kept publishers profitable even as brick-and-mortar book retailing has shrunk and consumers have grown cautious. 

and

Second, the self-publishing movement has been a boon to the print industry. Far from being threatened, print publishers instead are now gratefully relieved of the money-losing burden of the mid-list. 

I don't agree with this snippet:

High success at self-publishing has happened only for a few who have mastered the demanding business of online marketing.

I think there are far more authors out there who have found success in the self-publishing world over and above just those who have mastered the business of online marketing. Just as there are videos out there that go "viral" so have some books. The one that pops to mind first is Wool. That sucker got started from pure word of mouth and good reviews. I think the same could be said for Diane Gabaldon's Outlander series.

Maass then goes on to discuss the new class system in publishing as he see's it; Freight, Coach and First Classes. If I am on the train at all (doubtful) then I am firmly in the freight class. I aspire to Coach, and think with each new effort I get closer to it.

My writing buddy Kristi (who first told me about this article) intoned that she wasn't too much pleased with the conclusions, but it actually tends to follow the model that Donald Maass wrote about in Writing the Breakout Novel. Although I may not have said it succinctly, or at all, in my review of the book it comes across (as I recall) quite clearly. Maass seems to believe that if an author has not achieved that breakout novel, a well-written, engaging, intriguing better than the rest book by their third published effort than it's time to pack it in and try something else.

I don't believe that. If the past few novels I've written have shown me anything it's that my writing gets better with each draft. At this pace where will I be when I'm 50?  (Speaking of 50 year olds, my new favorite author (more on this in coming days) didn't publish his first book until he was 50 and then went on to greater and greater success. Stay tuned for more on that!)

Maass does leave himself an out. He says near the end of the article:

In the world of publishing, though, it’s not like that. Authorship is a true meritocracy. (Sorry, it is.) In publishing there is social mobility. As an author you can change your class, though of course it’s not always easy to do so. It takes education, time and effort. It means seeing yourself differently, having courage and violating the norms and expectations of your community. (One of the most common laments I hear is, “I got published…and lost a lot of my friends.”)

What class will I be in when I'm 50? I hope I'm firmly in coach.

Keep in mind, in terms of railroads there's no money in passenger travel, look out how many passenger train business models fail, is Amtrak a success? Name one passenger rail system that is as profitable as freight (see here). Freight is where the big money is. Go ask Warren Buffet. Maybe I should be happy with Freight class and find some way to make money off all the other Freighters out there working the keys with me.

Still, The New Class System is an interesting view into the world of the publisher and as always I would highly recommend his book, Writing the Breakout Novel.

A Color of Snot Morning?

I looked toward the light coming through the window. It was the color of snot; I knew the sun wasn’t shining. I wasn’t hung over. I mean my head didn’t ache, my stomach didn’t bubble. But I felt disoriented. And I had all these problems. It seemed easier to stay exactly where I was, under warm blankets, and forget about “taking arms against a sea of troubles.” Hamlet’s soliloquy. Hamlet should have spent a week in Coburn, N.Y. He’d have found a use for that bare bodkin.

Sanders, Lawrence- The Sixth Commandment

Never fails, . . . . there's going to be a description of "the morning" in every book.

Not Much Into This Genre

Although I don't necessarily lean toward this genre, unless we're talking about a Vernor Vinge novel, I took a flyer on Roger Lawrence's Three Hoodies Save the World due in large part to his contributions to this blog and my resolution to not pay more than 3 bucks for books this year.

I read a Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy when I was a kiddo, and I LOVED that first scene, the scene with the bulldozer claiming imminent domain followed by the aliens doing the same to Earth. From then on it went down hill in my estimation. I liked it, but I was never as much a fan as others. That being said, I thought that Three Hoodies Save the World was quite similar in that it felt like I was being taken on a crazy, wild ride and just wanted to see where things went.

There were a few things that screamed "this is a self-published book" just as you would find in my first effort, Toe the Line, but the author has an impeccable ability for cliff hangers that make you want to read on at the end of a chapter and for foreshadowing. I was confused about the action several times and that might be the worst I could say about the story.

All in all I look forward to reading the sequel.

Sixth Thing First

I chewed through Lawrence Sanders' McNally Series and loved every single moment of them. I think I may have liked them too much. It's nice to go back in time a bit and read his early stuff. It's like seeing the conception of Archie McNally but in a rougher, less refined manner. Plus, that's a pretty damn good first line.

LATE NOVEMBER, AND THE world was dying. A wild wind hooted faintly outside the windows. Inside, the air had been breathed too many times.

Sanders, Lawrence - The Sixth Commandment

Every Now and Then

Every now and then I post on the future of e-readers, self publishing, and trends in the digital publishing age. I knew and have discussed the difficulties that Apple is experiencing due to their apparent, suspected, (unproven) price fixing of digital content for their iPads, and I was duely aghast. I was not aghast enough, based on this article I read in the WSJ today.

The Apple Inquisition goes into a lot of detail for an opinion piece and even more subdued outrage at what is happening to Apple. I followed right along with my own outrage. Among the passages that caught my attention:

Mr. Bromwich says he must oversee Apple's "corporate structure, process, culture and tone" and the "tone at the top of the company," 

and

The improper relationship between Judge Cote and Mr. Bromwich extends beyond their friendship, political ties and ex parte communications, as we reported in December in "Apple's Star Chamber." Special masters are usually imposed on companies in negotiated legal settlements and the litigants consent to the terms of their appointment. Yet Apple is appealing Judge Cote's injunction and the terms of Mr. Bromwich's installation.

The core problem is that under Article III of the Constitution judges aren't allowed to conduct open-ended investigations, as Mr. Bromwich is doing. To the extent his position is legitimate, he is serving as an agent of the court. Judges can appoint surrogates to help carry out their judicial duties, but in that case they must be as objective and impartial as judges.

But the worst is:

Mr. Bromwich's declaration is filled with what he regards as personal slights, such as the fact that Apple scheduled interviews at a remote location instead of its Cupertino headquarters. But his main accusation is that Apple is "using its outside counsel as a shield to prevent interaction between senior management and my monitoring team."

So try to sort this one out. An agent acting on behalf of the judiciary volunteers to become literally the star witness for the plaintiffs. This arm of the court then claims that the defendant's right to counsel is preventing him from conducting his adversarial investigation.

I haven't even posted the passages about the veiled threat.

The worst part in my view is how under-reported this all is. Imagine this happening to another company?

The silver lining? This too was reported today in the same paper. Based on that . . . looks like Apple is still plugging along well ahead of the competition. I'll keep my stock.

Right Now

My foray into the three dollar or less realm is working out A-okay so far.

Interstellar war was not at the top of David’s schedule as he jumped excitedly out of bed. At nine o’clock on Saturday morning such absurdities even plummeted below the trivial status of maths homework. 

Today, on his actual birthday, all that mattered were the tangible demands on a fourteen year old boy’s life. In strict order these were: looking cool, finding a girlfriend, not getting into trouble and of course, looking cool. A little shallow perhaps, but to a teenager the only realities worth considering.

Lawrence, Roger - Three Hoodies Save The World 

Is it as good as finding a stranded man in the middle of the Black Sea (see here) . . . perhaps not, but it's certainly enough to make me want to read on (I'm a third of the way through now).

Finished a Great One

This year I'm saving some of my really good books. Anyone who reads this space will remember that one of my resolutions is to pay no more than $2.99 for a book this year (see here). Thank goodness I had an unread stockpile of brandnamers in my library. The Devil's Advocate by Frederick Forsyth was one such stockpiled book.

If you are looking for a book worth the money, with depth of story and intrigue everywhere, this could be it. Unlike Avenger, also a good book, this was rich with plot. It was similar to a John LeCarre in terms of spy master thriller, and like Tom Clancy's Red Storm Rising in that it focused so much on geopolitical positioning during the cold war.

The final line? Unlike the first line (here) it doesn't offer the reader too much. But the final twist that reveals who the real spy master is occurs just one line prior so I had to cut and paste carefully.

The impassive major with the cold eyes drew at Munro’s elbow; he was outside the Throne Room, and the door closed behind him. Five minutes later he was shown out, on foot, through a small door in the Savior Gate onto Red Square. The parade marshals were rehearsing their roles for May Day. The clock above his head struck midnight. 

He turned left toward the National Hotel to find a taxi. A hundred yards later, as he passed Lenin’s Mausoleum, to the surprise and outrage of a militiaman, he began to laugh.

Forsyth, Frederick - The Devil's Alternative

Best one I've read for awhile, and probably the best for some time based on my resolution.

Since I Posted that Last One . . .

. . . I thought this one should get some play as well.

I'm sure many of you have already seen this, probably on a t-shirt, but this is my first exposure to it. Can't wait to use it myself.

And that leaves out the <sarcasm> little </sarcasm> issue of Benghazi. The Senate Intelligence Committee report is at once a fascinating and utterly banal artifact of Washington. It identifies a huge mistake. It denounces said mistake. It concludes that the mistake could have been prevented. But nobody is responsible for the mistake. The bureaucracy did it! Jonah Goldberg - National Review, Hillary the Hyped

Now, regarless of the political leanings of the sours, that sarcasm tag, " little " is tres funny to me.

Posted Without Comment

I never do this but this seemed apropos.

(found via Newsbusters)