Mayan December
What if you were a famous scientist and had studied astronomy and ancient culture for years? What if the one time period that drove your career was December, 2012? And worse, what if on December 14, your only daughter disappeared into the past in the Mayan jungle?
What do an ancient shaman, a modern-day scientist, a computer nerd in dreadlocks, and an eleven-year-old girl have in common? Join these adventurers as they traverse the Yucatan peninsula – and time itself – in a search for the meaning of life. Oh, and for jaguars.
Events: I’ll be reading from Mayan December in Olympia on Thursday night.
I’ll be reading from Mayan December in Olympia on Thursday night at the Timberland Regional Library in Olympia. Love to see some of you there! The snowpocalypse appears to have quieted, but it is still a cold and snowy landscape, at least around out house. So if you do come, drive carefully!
Marketing Mayan December
Mayan December is different than my other work. That doesn’t mean readers of The Silver Ship and the Sea might not like it, some clearly do. But – very different than my other work — every unsolicited email or review or comment has been from a women. A lot of my science fictions readers are male, but clearly this book attracts women. At any rate, I thought I’d share the things I’ve tried for marketing and what I thought of them. So here goes:
I’ve done all of the usual readings and signings. And they have been just as successful as usual. Meaning fun (I really like them), but a slow way to gather sales since it’s really book by book by book. The best I’ve done that I know of is 18 books at one reading. I have two more formal signing events – one at World Fantasy and one at Orycon (at Beaverton Powell’s). At any rate, the return for personal appearances seems pretty low. To be honest, I think I like them because they are so much more personal than social media, and because I am convinced that having good relationships with booksellers at stores remains useful in spite of spiking Kindle sales.
I sponsored the Adventures in Science Fiction Publishing podcast. Mostly because I enjoy the podcast. They also treat the books they accept as sponsors very personally. I have no way to tell how effective that might or might not have been as a marketing tool. Anecdotally, however, I did that for a previous book and I think it did help. I heard from a few people who had heard about it there. I suspect this podcast has a largely male audience, so I tried to balance that by buying some blog ads via Blogads and picking women’s book blogs. That’s running now, so I don’t have any feedback yet. So far, it’s more expensive than Goodreads, and I guess time will tell if its more valuable.
Goodreads does a great job. I did a Goodreads giveaway (and there’s a blog post about that) and I’ve also advertised on Goodreads. I only pay per click and the ads get a lot of impressions and only a few clicks (but within the norms for what Goodreads said they might get). That many impressions seems pretty good. I also kind of like hanging around on Goodreads and I think they do a nice job of supporting their authors (all authors – all the time. Not just when they have an active ad campaign). I can also target my ads there pretty well by gender and even by looking for readers who like particular authors.
I’d love to hear any other marketing ideas any of you have – whether you’re a reader or a writer.
Fulfillment: The Goodreads Giveaway Process
Goodreads does a book giveaway program. This is basically a chance for authors or publicists or publishers to give away copies of the book. I just finished a run through of the program where I gave away 10 copies of Mayan December.
I like the process of autographing copies and sticking them in envelopes and hand-addressing them. It seems personal, like a signing is personal. And so much of this business isn’t actually very personal.
It’s also a small thing that’s not done in cyberspace. It’s physical copies of the book going into physical envelopes and being mailed. Yes, I love technology. But sometimes it’s good to step away from a screen for a few minutes. The top picture in the assembly line for getting the books ready. And below are the books are all ready to be shipped out tomorrow. They are being watched over by the Nixie, the golden retriever…
Worldcon Report – Belated
I came back from the convention to be swept immediately into busy days and a visit from family. So here is a rather belated and short Worldcon report. I’m usually by myself at Worldcon, but my long-time friend Gisele from Florida (I met her over half my life ago!) and my partner Toni joined me this time.
Special moments:
I got to meet Alliette deBodard. I love her writing in the Aztec world. She is gracious and quiet in person. I also got to meet N.K. Jemisin and see Patty Briggs. Even established writers get their fan girl time at Worldcon.
Speaking of fan girl time, I am now lusting after Kim Stanley Robinson’s next book. I heard him read from it, and it’s going to be gorgeous. I don’t know if it has a pub date or even a name, but he is one of my favorite writers, and his next book is a return to science fiction.
I had a lovely dinner with Greg and Astrid Bear, the three of us (me, Toni, and Gisele), and Louise Marley. We got to celebrate Greg’s birthday. The Bear’s are some of the most gracious and brilliant people is the SF community, and I always feel blessed when I get to spend time with them. I also saw many people from the Starry Heaven/Wellspring writing workshop community.
The Hugos were particularly well-done this year. A shout out to Jay Lake and Ken Scholes for that. I know them both, and this was surely not easy for either of them. Jay is busy winning his cancer fight and Ken is more shy than he appears. They did great.
Special thanks:
The joint book launch for Mayan December and The Brahm’s Deception went incredibly well, and I needn’t have worried about it at all (I did, lots, but I’d never thrown a party at any con, much less a Worldcon). Food and drink were acquired easily and more passed to us from a Nightshade authors party, which we then passed to a George R.R. Martin fan party. People did come, and they even bought books. Mayan December is apparently hard to find in the wild, so I’m glad I had some there, thanks to my hugo-winning publisher, Sean Wallace (the Hugo was for the excellent work he does over at Clarkesworld). I do have to shout out huge thanks to my partner Toni and my friend Gisele who greeted and shlepped and decorated and organized and kept me functioning even though I was tired by then. Also a big thanks to Kay Kenyon for bartending.
The con was really well run. The communication was great, the volunteers all fabulous, and the programing excellent.
The only bad thing:
The con was very mixed up with casino people (expected, based on location). But twice I saw other casino guests of the young white male variety poking fun at con-goers. They didn’t seem to appreciate the beanies of first-fandom very much, nor really much of the costuming in general. There were a two times I really wanted a handy nearby Klingon.
Mayan December Launch Party and Trailer
I am a bit nervous about the book launch party at Worldcon tomorrow. It’s the first time I’ve done a book party of any kind (much less at Worldcon). Louise Marley and I are co-hosting a book launch – for her excellent Brahm’s Deception (Kensington) and for Mayan December (Prime). Since it’s a year for “firsts” I’m also doing a “first” book trailer. Credit for the trailer goes to my son, David Cooper. The party will be in the Atlantis in Reno, in Suite 1552. Wish me luck, and if you’re around, drop by. Louise and I would love to see you.
Worldcon 2011 Schedule
I’m pretty happy with the 2011 Worldcon schedule. Lots of Mayan December launch activity, a reading for No Man’s Land, a party, and some great topics to discuss. I hope to see many of you there.
Thu 13:00 – 14:00, The Amish Approach to Changing Technology: The Error of Presumed Neutrality of Technology (Panel), D05 (RSCC)
The Amish do use technology, but they reject the idea that technologies are value-free tools, and they acknowledge that they can change social order, so all technology must be evaluated before being allowed into the community. Would we be wise to adopt this cautious approach?
Thu 16:00 – 17:00, Autographing (RSCC)
Fri 11:00 – 12:00, Social Media for Writers, A03 (RSCC): Writers know the Internet, but not all writers take advantage of its full potential. With the evolution of Social Media, potential readers are only a click away. But what exactly is Social Media? At this panel, you will pick up the vocabulary and background of exactly what Social Media is, what it can do, and what it cannot do.
Fri 12:00 – 13:00, Reading: No Man’s Land, A15 (RSCC) Defending the Future: No Man’s Land is an anthology of military SF, written entirely by women. Come and hear them read.
Friday 8:00 PM: PARTY! Atlantis Suite 1552 Come on by – Dual Launch Party for Mayan December and for Louise Marley’s The Brahm’s Deception.
Sat 11:00 – 11:30, Reading A14 (RSCC) I’ll give away at least one copy of Mayan December….
Sat 16:00 – 17:00, KaffeeKlatsch: KK1 (RSCC)
Sun 11:00 – 12:00, How I Learned the Craft: Three of My Favorite Books on Writing (Panel), D03 (RSCC)
Authors share and discuss three books on the craft of writing that they recommend to aspiring writers and tell why these works are so helpful.
Contest to Celebrate early e-release of Mayan December
I got an unexpected gift today from Prime Books. Perhaps it will cause a few of you to get gifts, too. Mayan December can now be purchased in eBook for Kindle and Nook. So here’s how this might benefit you. The first three people who review the book in either platform and contact me via email (which can be done from this site) will win. That will be 6 winners. So the six prizes will be:
- 2 hardcovers of “The Silver Ship and the Sea,”
- 1 ARC for “Building Harlequin’s Moon” (written with Larry Niven)
- 2 copies of “Year’s Best SF 16″ which has a story by me and a lot of other great stories in it; and
- 1 copy of the military SF anthology “Defending the Future IV: No Man’s Land,” which also has a story by me and a lot of other great stories in it.
Winners can pick in the order they win — so the first person to post a review gets their first pick! Etc. Etc. You get the idea….and they are true prizes. I will pay the shipping to anywhere in the US.
Here are the links for the eBooks:
Mayan December at Amazon.com (Kindle)
Mayan December at Barnes and Noble (Nook)
Note: The physical book will not be available until August 23rd.
There’s no advantage for more or less stars, and no advantage for liking the book. I’m hoping reviews will be genuine. They must show that the reviewer has read the book! There is a time limit: Reviews need to be up by the time the physical book comes out…so the contest ends whenever all six prizes have been claimed or August 23rd, 2011, whichever is sooner.
And since we’re still climbing out of the great recession, any people who want a FREE chance at a physical book can email me, and I’ll draw for one to three winners on release day. No cost to entrants at all.
Just to tease you a bit, here’s what a recent reader said about the book:
“A brilliant mix of culture, history, science fiction and fantasy, Cooper has written a delight for the senses. A fun read with interesting characters, surprising twists, and interesting ideas. A departure for her, it will also carry readers away to a new place and a new time in a fun way they’re sure to enjoy.” – Bryan Thomas Schmidt, Science Fiction And Fantasy Writer’s Chat www.bryanthomasschmidt.net/sffwrtcht and author of the forthcoming novel “The Worker Prince.”
Mayan Reading (Watching!): The Fountain
One
of the authors whose books I’ve been using for reference in this time period mention Darren Aronofsky’s movie “The Fountain” to me. It really does seem to mirror the Mayan sense of time, and I liked it very much. It’s part new age trip, part science fiction, and all love story, complete with some magical cinematography. It’s very strange in a good way.
SFFWRTCHT: Where a Twitter Chat turns into a Blog Post
Bryan Thomas Schmidt hosts a great weekly chat at Twitter hashtag #SFFWRTCHT, which I was lucky enough to be invited to join. I got to talk about current work, and Mayan December, which is coming out soon, and about kids. Even nicer, he turned the chat into a very nicely illustrated blog post over at Grasping for the Wind. By the way, if you don’t drop by Grasping for the Wind from time to time, you might add it to your list of blogs to follow.
