Saturday, May 30, 2009

Give It Away Now


Talk about the universe rewarding those who give...!

Greg Pincus provided the link to this amazing story about Seth Harwood, a crime fiction writer. Read how he got a publishing deal by giving his book away and hook up your microphone. It sounds to me like a fun way to get your work out there.

Ready for your podcast?

10 comments:

Sarah Laurenson said...

I've seen other articles about people doing this, developing a loyal 'readership' and then selling the idea to a publisher. The one story included a photo of the guy recording his podcast in his closet. It was the best room in his house for acoustics.

There are many ways to become published. The traditional method still has the best success rate, but discovering something new and different can be very exciting and open doors you didn't even know existed.

Anonymous said...

I've heard that it's really a good way to get your nonfiction out there. And that, often, people end up buying it in the long run.

Podcasting still scares me!

Sherrie Petersen said...

Sarah - I would love the see the photo of the guy recording in the closet. What a great image!

Becky - Your son can help you record a chapter :^)

Seth Harwood said...

Thanks for the posts here. There's nothing scary about podcasting, once you learn to avoid listening to the sound of your own voice. ;-)
That guy in the closet might've been me: here was an article from the SF Chronicle. http://sfgate.com/ZCYR if that wasn't it, it was my friend Scott Sigler in a NY Times article!
I was also recently covered in the Boston Globe.

What I fear is that there isn't a traditional route to getting published anymore. If the traditional method is submitting to agents, waiting for one to miraculously pick you, and then sell your book to an editor just based on how good it is... I'm not ready to wait and see how long that'll take anymore. I went to the Iowa Writers' Workshop, pushed myself out there to agents, lit mags, you name it. And when those didn't get me published, I looked for what else I could do on my own.

Hope this story inspires some of you to take matters into your own hands too. You can find me at http://sethharwood.com where I'll be more than happy to answer any of your questions about how.

Best,

Seth

Seth Harwood said...

The closet photo was either at:
hereor hereor Boston Globe;-)

Best,

Sherrie Petersen said...

Thanks for the links, Seth. And for the inspiration!

Vivian Mahoney said...

Speaking about books...you've won the books by Jo Knowles!

Anonymous said...

I am off to see this! Thanks :).

Suzanne Casamento said...

What a fun cool way to get your work out there. I like it. I might even try it. Thanks Seth and Sherrie! : )

Seth Harwood said...

And the book's not bad either: “Jack Wakes Up rocks! It's a fast, smooth ride on a highway not found on any map.” --Michael Connelly
"The storytelling has vitality and a spirit of rebellion, giving us hope for the future of all those bad girls with dirty faces and bad boys on bikes.” --Marilyn Stasio, New York Times Book Review
I hope some of you will give JACK WAKES UP a chance. Either as a book, a free PDF or as a podcast.
Find 'em all here: http://sethharwood.com/jack-wakes-up

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