...and the reason that's interesting is this: We rarely receive any kind of fan mail.
Which isn't to say we don't hear from you and you on occasion. Happily, we do. It's just that, most often, the communication isn't a glowing note of love and appreciation. It's more along the lines of one friend writing to another, offering fresh insights about writing or suggestions to improve sales or the odd expression of curiosity as to why Renée painted herself with an eyeball in her mouth. Every now and again, we hear from a Fencken.
But fan letters? Not so much.
This particular reader had discovered Something Wicked, had enjoyed it, and took the time to find our website, read several of our posts, and use The Contact Thing (above) to write us. She wanted to know if SW would ever have a sequel. Because she, personally, wanted to read it tomorrow.
Her kind comments made us think about Kristine Kathryn Rusch and one of KKR's recent blog posts. She wrote a spank-your-hands piece on self-publishing (here), saying, "You indie writers treat your readers as badly as traditional publishers do. And you do it in the exact same way. You deny your readers the next book."
Our next book in the Anne Lippens/Something Wicked series, by the way? Something Evil.
Then she said, "Here’s what readers expect: They expect writers to publish one book, then two books, then three books. They expect several books from their favorite writers." Later still, "Is it hard? Of course it’s hard. In the beginning, no writer has a fan base. Writers earn their fan base, one reader and one book at a time. Fans come back. Writers—and traditional publishers—need to remember that."
KKR's actual post goes on for pages and it's worth the read. It certainly made an impact on us. This morning, we e-mailed and promised our reader that, yes, there would be a sequel to SW...but, first, we had to complete our sequel to The Atheist's Daughter ('cause, y'know, our other fan asked about that particular novel first).
And then, the fates willing? Frankenstein P.I. vs Dracula, M.D. Not the cover above, not by a long shot. The good craftsmen and women of Fiverr.com have provided us with several winners but this particular image isn't one of our favorites. We're on a roll, baby!
Which isn't to say we don't hear from you and you on occasion. Happily, we do. It's just that, most often, the communication isn't a glowing note of love and appreciation. It's more along the lines of one friend writing to another, offering fresh insights about writing or suggestions to improve sales or the odd expression of curiosity as to why Renée painted herself with an eyeball in her mouth. Every now and again, we hear from a Fencken.
But fan letters? Not so much.
This particular reader had discovered Something Wicked, had enjoyed it, and took the time to find our website, read several of our posts, and use The Contact Thing (above) to write us. She wanted to know if SW would ever have a sequel. Because she, personally, wanted to read it tomorrow.
Her kind comments made us think about Kristine Kathryn Rusch and one of KKR's recent blog posts. She wrote a spank-your-hands piece on self-publishing (here), saying, "You indie writers treat your readers as badly as traditional publishers do. And you do it in the exact same way. You deny your readers the next book."
Our next book in the Anne Lippens/Something Wicked series, by the way? Something Evil.
Then she said, "Here’s what readers expect: They expect writers to publish one book, then two books, then three books. They expect several books from their favorite writers." Later still, "Is it hard? Of course it’s hard. In the beginning, no writer has a fan base. Writers earn their fan base, one reader and one book at a time. Fans come back. Writers—and traditional publishers—need to remember that."
KKR's actual post goes on for pages and it's worth the read. It certainly made an impact on us. This morning, we e-mailed and promised our reader that, yes, there would be a sequel to SW...but, first, we had to complete our sequel to The Atheist's Daughter ('cause, y'know, our other fan asked about that particular novel first).
And then, the fates willing? Frankenstein P.I. vs Dracula, M.D. Not the cover above, not by a long shot. The good craftsmen and women of Fiverr.com have provided us with several winners but this particular image isn't one of our favorites. We're on a roll, baby!
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