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Last week I received the printer’s proof of Nyphron Rising. It looked great. I skimmed over it and gave my approval. Then just to be sure, I started reading. This is the fourth time in three weeks I’ve read it so I can’t really see it anymore, it’s like going snow-blind. This final reading was just for peace of mind.

I was very pleased. There is always the word or two I would change. A sentence that sounds suddenly awkward that didn’t before, but nothing awful. Then I came to page 187. There was nothing wrong with page 187, except that it wasn’t 187 it was supposed to be 188. Page 187 was now 189. For no reason I can figure, the pages were shuffled.

Crap. That’s a show stopper. I can’t let the book go out with pages out of order. I can recognize they are mixed because I can recite the novel by now and know what comes next. New readers will be flying along oblivious to the fact that they are being derailed.

I continued to read and the same shuffling of pages occurred in four separate points after that. The book was toast. It has to be reissued and that means delays. On top of this, I already ordered several cases. Not sure if I canceled the order in time. So I expect I will be receiving a hundred expensive doorstops soon.

Now, with just four days left, I am waiting on the next proof to arrive. No idea if it will make it in time for the Oct 1 release, so at this moment I can’t tell you exactly when the book will be available. The good news is everything else was fine. If the pages come in order with this new edition, then I should be able to push it live the next day. I am guessing it will only be a week delay at the most, but right now, all of us—me included—are waiting to see when the Green Book will be out.

As we get down to it, less than ten days, I thought I’d say a little something about the launch of a novel. Keep in mind my experience is not necessarily the norm.

Launching a book is not like launching a rocket. You can countdown all you want, but there’s too many things outside of your control to be accurate. Nyphron Rising is not having a midnight release. I know. All of you are holding a hand to your mouth in shock right now. Not having that kind of expected interest, neither I nor my publisher, have the power to mount an orchestrated release. Although wouldn’t that be cool? All these people dressed up as Royce and Hadrian giving nasty looks to those dressed up as Saldur and Guy. Perhaps there would be a Montemorcy Vineyard wine tasting, huge inflatable Gilarabrywns and By Mar! t-shirts.

Instead we try to queue things up as best we can so that the book comes out roughly on schedule in all its forms, Amazon, Bookstores and Kindle—sorry still no audio or eBook with this release. Each of these venues takes a different, and mystifyingly unknown, amount of time to process the book and make it available to readers. Anywhere from three to fifteen days, which is an annoyingly vague spread when trying to set up a coordinated effort. Can you imagine the British telling Eisenhower that from the moment he says go it will take between three and fifteen days for the D-Day invasion to actually launch? And that the timing will be arbitrarily different for the paratroopers, infantry and armored divisions.

The result is that Nyphron Rising will not burst on to the world stage with a fanfare, but rather trickle out here and there. Most likely those with Kindle will see it first, then those accessing Amazon, then those getting it directly from me, and finally, the bookstores. The more complex the distribution system the longer it takes to process.

The good news is that it is coming and on schedule—depending on which venue you plan to buy it through.

The final manuscript was sent out late last night—a little birthday present to myself. Now I await the first proof, which I expect to see in the next few days. If it is good, then the book will be available to you on schedule. Although, like Avempartha, Nyphron Rising will likely have a couple week delay before it gets to the bookstores, just because despite my best intentions, I was still way late in getting this out the door. It will be available via Amazon and directly from my publisher (www.Ridanpublishing.com) and from my website, because the set up time for these outlets is almost instantaneous.

It’s funny how things change. I couldn’t wait to drive. Once I had a license, I loved it. I don’t know when that affair ended—probably when traffic entered into the picture, when “driving” turned into stopping-and-occasionally-going.

For decades I wrote books. I wrote for fun, which placed writing on the priority list right behind playing solo computer games or watching reruns of Gilligan’s Island. It was something I did when absolutely everything else that needed doing was finished. After all, writing was a waste of time. No one ever read the stuff I wrote. I liked to think that I was improving, learning my craft, or that the books I wrote would be discovered in a box years after my death and some professor would declare them masterpieces. Too bad he was never appreciated in his lifetime, but alas the greats never are.

Then I started the Riyria series. Halfway through book four we fell on some hard economic times. A lot of people did. We moved and it looked like I would have to suspend writing the series indefinitely. Once I put a project down I have lightning-odds of picking it up again. Too much is forgotten because so much is stored only in my head. We struggled forward and I forced myself to keep writing. Writing was no longer fun, it was a chore, something I felt I needed to do so I didn’t leave one more thing half done. It was a good story and it didn’t deserve to die the quiet death of inconvenience. I still hoped someone would read it someday…even if that person was the future me. I’ve done that, picked up a book I forgot I wrote years ago and delighted myself. Wow. I wrote this?

It was a miserable task, forcing myself to write. Some people say pain and depression gives birth to art. I prefer to be happy. Writing when depressed isn’t fun. It did help to escape. Rather than alcohol, or drugs, or even the television, I would slip into my computer and like a C.S. Lewis character pass into another world—a better one, one that I controlled.

When I learned Crown was going to be published it became exciting—first-day-of-school exciting. One part scary, two parts kiss-the-dog delirium. Suddenly writing has merit, it has respect, it is legit. What I used to do to entertain myself is now my job—sweet! Like someone saying they will pay you to eat ice cream.

The rollercoaster comes after that. Ups and downs. Good reviews. Bad reviews. No reviews at all. No money. Things get quiet and I wonder if the ride is over. Do I get out now? I look at the t-shirt souvenir they handed me, the one that says, “I’m a Published Author,” and think—at least they can never take it back. After a few washes it might fade, but I can always wear it with pride. It’s mine to keep.

Then people start talking, not to me, to each other as if I died or something. “Have you read those books? I can’t wait for the next one.” They can’t wait? “I’ve read the first one three times already.” Three? “My son and I will be fighting over it when it arrives.” Starting fights?

Writing changes again. It is no longer for fun. It is not a chore, but most of the initial excitement is gone. What replaces the vacuum is a most unexpected sensation. I knew writing wouldn’t always be fun, I certainly guessed getting published would be exciting, but there is no way I could anticipate this. Yet as comments are made, small insignificant posts discovered on obscure blogs and forums where they never think I’ll find them, statements of hopeful anticipation; it sinks in. These people really like the books. Some love them. They make comments that make me think of when I read those few great books in my youth that stayed with me. I’m doing that? The story I am writing is doing that to people? That’s when I realize this isn’t mine anymore.

The writing changes. It’s no longer what it was, but what it’s become—a duty, the good kind though, the kind called an honor. When you realize there are people who have fallen in love with your characters, you suddenly feel an obligation not just to finish the story for them, but to do the best job you possibly can.

Sometimes change can be good.

The countdown timer ticks…

Robin finished last night and handed Nyphron Rising off like the baton in a relay race. I was up at 6am this morning checking it, re-writing the first sentence and now it is printing. When done I will sit down with my coffee and a pen and begin the final read through.

Geez I hope it’s good!

And the countdown timer ticks…

The countdown timer ticks…

Looking back, I find it astounding that The Crown Conspiracy hit shelves only a year ago, but the rush of Avempartha is still with me. Now I am back in the countdown again, but I haven’t seen the book in weeks. Nyphron Rising went off to the editors in August like a kid on his first day of school. Since returning, Robin has had it. Being one of those detail-oriented people, she volunteered to compile all the changes from the various editors and proofreaders for me. I’ve purposely stayed away from the book. Reading it too many times can make you blind to the words.

I will receive it Tuesday—like starting a new year at school.

I’ll have exactly one week to read it over, proof it, and make any changes necessary before it has to fly to the printers in order to make it on shelves by October 1. The book was in good condition when last I saw it so I’m not too worried. I just have to make certain the editors didn’t change something important thinking it was an error when it wasn’t.

So far all who have read it like it. Robin is my most reliable critic. She loves the books, but she also isn’t shy about being honest. Like Avempartha, she began unsure about this latest release, but now, after the polishing, she says she likes it best. She always likes best the last book she’s read in the series. Hopefully you will too.

That is the goal of course, to make each book just a little better than the one before. As a reader, that’s what I’d want. Some mysteries explained, more introduced, greater excitement as the stakes rise steadily, all the while learning more and more about the characters and watching them grow. The hard part is restraint in the early books while still managing to make them good enough to pull in an audience. Give away too little and no one is interested—too much and there’s no place to go.

The countdown timer ticks…

If you’ve been looking at this blog and watching the countdown to Nyphron, you might have noticed it was off by a month. I think I’ve got it fixed now give or take a day.

The book just returned from the editors. Robin is busy inputting some changes from hardcopy corrections. When she is done I will begin my final read through. I’ve purposely not read it in a month so I could approach it as fresh as possible.

I now have less than two weeks to review all the input and make any last minute changes. I always have last minute changes. I already know I have to change the first sentence. The first sentences are always the hardest. I’m never satisfied until I’ve beat myself bloody over them.

Feel free to start the buzz about this book. Just start asking people if they are ready for Nyphron Rising. I think you will find there are a surprising number of people who aren’t. Sadly, at the moment, I’m one.

As we close in on the release date for Nyphron Rising things are taking shape. The cover art is just about finalized and so I can show it to you here.

Some of you may have remembered a sketch I provided a few months ago however and wondered what happened to that idea.

I completed that painting some time back, but was never completely happy with it.

Both covers depict scenes from the novel but it was thought that the bridge image was harder to understand by the viewer. Also the general look of the bridge image failed to fit the pattern—it is just a bit too detailed of a scene lacking a central focus and less ethereal than the others. But mostly it was the color scheme that ultimately decided its fate.

It was my intention to create the series using a different color scheme for each novel. I toyed with the idea of having each color match the season of the story. Crown Conspiracy takes place in the fall, hence the gold color. Avempartha was painted in a blue green for spring. Nyphron Rising takes place in the summer so green was the obvious choice. I doubt I can keep up this theme however. The next book, The Emerald Storm, takes place in autumn again, so I will be at a crossroads then as to what color to use. And of course there are only so many colors.

Having completed both covers, I am interested to hear which you prefer. So leave a note here with your vote for your preference. It is not likely to change the choice, but I am curious to hear what readers think. Which cover do you like best? Which one looks the most intriguing—compelling?

The plot of a novel is the story, how it is told is the style. Some books are plot-heavy, meaning that the focus is on an elaborate, usually fast-driving series of events. Others are style-heavy. Style comes in many varieties, some cleverly poetic in their prose, others place the weight of the story on the nuance of the characters, still others are setting-heavy. Combinations of various plot types and style types can keep each book—even by the same author—unique. There are also formulas to certain series. Developed by one author, the tradition is carried on by new writers who must follow a lengthy style guide. I once attempted to submit to one of these publications, namely Wizards of the Coast. I never heard back and today see that as a bullet dodged. The idea of being confined to a single specific style designed by another is a horror to me.

Plot and style types I feel should follow the form of the book being written. A simple plot is bolstered and made engaging by a lively and elaborate prose style that employs a vibrant setting to create an experience that lets the reader taste the air and hear the wind. A complex plot however, would drown in a similar style. The average James Bond story, written in the beautiful manner of Suzanna Clark, would result in a tome of immense size and leave readers struggling to lift the important points. Plots with numerous characters, scene changes and actions I feel are best served with a simpler style that allow the reader to concentrate on events rather than the eloquence of the writing. In particularly tricky plots, even characterization can be simplified and revealed more through events than through lengthy reflection, the kind you find in your average Stephen King novel.

I have written novels in numerous styles, and while I enjoy the fun of creating artwork in sentences, I’ve always found this best done in conjunction with simple plots. Most successful novels of this type cover scant ground in terms of story. Few events occur and a plot can be as simple as a man coming to grips with his impending death, yet the in-depth character study, palpable settings and writing style make the story just as griping as any action adventure. Still this kind of work is not usually found in fantasy. Stories in the realms of dragons, vampires, ghosts and knights rarely confine themselves to the minute and the diminutive. Imagine the Lord of the Rings written in the style of Stephen King, John Updike, James Joyce, or better yet, Shakespeare or Milton. Those who scorn the trilogy for its lengthy prose might then perceive the brevity of Tolkien. For this reason I have always advocated a lighter style for the traditional fantasy adventure as they are rarely of the ilk associated with sipping a glass of wine. Fantasy is like a drag-queen, grand and sweeping and adverse to the small, understated, or reflective.

The Riyria Revelations was born out of my trying something new. Coming off a novel of deep prose, Riyria was a great leap to a story of simplicity. I had a huge story to tell, one of complex themes, numerous characters and dozens of twists where things are not always what they seem. This idea would be unmanageable in a thick style. I’m already asking a great deal of the reader—to keep track of everything that happens over the course of six separate novels as if they were one long book. To make the trip as comfortable as possible for my readers I attempted a style I had never tried before—invisibility.

I thought I was a genius for inventing this concept only to learn later that I had discovered the light bulb in 2004. The idea is to make the story pop off the page and make the writing disappear. Neither awkward prose nor eloquent phrases should distract the reader from immersion in the action and the world unfolding before them. I have needed on many occasions to rewrite passages that were too pretty; too sophisticated for fear the reader would notice them and pause to reflect. The result I have discovered, much to my delight, is a book that reads like a movie in the reader’s mind. A number of people have posted reviews mentioning this very thing.

When Crown was first sent to the publisher and handed over to the editors the one comment I heard was that they had a very difficult time working on the book. Immediately I guessed it was my bad grammar, (and I have reason to be concerned.) Yet I learned it was not due to a proliferation of mistakes but rather the addictiveness of the story that prevented the editors from concentrating on the words—words that kept “disappearing.” Those working on the text found themselves repeatedly caught up in the story. While this did not help the book, I did take it as a mark of success. So did the publisher who signed the second book even before the first hit the stores.

This then is the “light-hand” approach that some of you have read about on my website. While I now know that I am not the first to employ it, it remains something of a rarity in the fantasy realm. While there are precious few writers penning speculative fiction in the style of Joyce or Marlow (although I have read some—most as yet unpublished,) few are willing to thin their styles beyond the traditional boundaries of the genre. For me this is a great disappointment, for while I enjoy a beautifully written novel—I love a great story.

“Wait—back up. What did you just say?”

Robin looks up peering over the back of the laptop. I can only see her eyes and the bridge of her nose, but I can see the same forced innocence the dog manages when I catch it chewing a shoe.

She looks back down and reads, “Amilia sat for several minutes searching her mind for some way to reach the girl. ‘Can I tell you a secret? Now don’t laugh…but…I’m really quite afraid of the dark. I know it’s silly but I can’t help myself. I’ve always been that way. My brothers tease me about it all the time. If you could chat with me a bit, maybe it might help me. What do you say?”

“That’s what I thought you said.” I scowl. “I didn’t write that.”

“I know you didn’t.” she admits. “I did.”

Nyphron Rising is deep in the final editing stage. I’ve personally gone over the book a dozen times. Robin went over it and asked for changes and now we are doing the polishing. Polishing is a nice word in English, it sounds pretty and conjures images of men in white gloves breathing on a tea set and rubbing it gently with a cotton cloth. In Elan it means every night in the Sullivan household is a re-enactment of the Lincoln-Douglas debates.

The technique is simple. Robin sits with the laptop and reads my story to me. Hearing it out loud reveals awkward sentences, repeated words, and errors. I will stop her whenever I hear a sour note and say, “Him, him…there are two hims there change one to Hadrian.” Or, “Really did I write that? That sucks, just cut the whole thing.”

The real fun starts when we come to a section that Robin did some “heavy editing” on, that is, she rewrote something. Robin is a good editor so most of the time her re-writes take a muddy paragraph and wipe it clear, but when she decides to actually create sections I get critical. When she writes character dialog I flip out.

Now we can’t determine which of us changed.

In The Crown Conspiracy she rewrote the entire scene just before the party entered Gutaria prison. Upon reading her revision, I backed all her changes out and rewrote the whole scene myself addressing the issues she highlighted. During Avempartha, I had fewer problems with her changes, and in Nyphron Rising she is experiencing an unprecedented freedom. She insists I’ve learned to trust her more, I insist she’s become a better editor/writer.

Nyphron Rising is undergoing the most thorough editing we’ve done to any of the previous books, and it is starting to show. The sentences are smoother, cleaner, and the plot tighter. A lot of this is thanks to the efforts of my wife who is willing to throw herself in the lion’s mouth.

Nyphron Rising is going to be a much better novel because of her efforts.

“Read it again,” I tell her.

She does and I listen with my eyes closed picturing the scene, and Amilia’s face as she delivers the lines.

My wife finishes and looks up at me. “What’s wrong with it?”

I open my eyes. “Nothing. It’s good. Go on.”

When I posted on my experience at RavenCon a comment was left suggesting that I write more on the subject of Cons and in particular provide tips for authors attending them. I didn’t see the comment for some time and have since been caught up with other projects that prevented me from posting anything. Now that I have a breather, I thought I would address this.

First, let me explain that I am not an expert in Cons. There are those who work these events religiously attending the same Cons for decades. The author, Tee Morris, who I had the pleasure of meeting on several occasions, used to do the “convention circuit” going “on the road” like a rock star living out of a suitcase. I never went to a convention of any kind until I published The Crown Conspiracy just this past October. Since then I have attended only four cons: MarsCon, RavenCon, Balticon and CarolinasCon, conventions located from Baltimore to Charlotte, North Carolina.

Let me begin by explaining what a ”Con” is. Cons, or Fan Conventions, are a gathering of people with a specific interest. There are cons for comics, for railroad building, or even a specific person—I hear Stephenie Meyer, author of the Twilight series, has her own con now: TwiCon. My daughter attends anime conventions for example, while the cons I listed above—the cons I attended—are Speculative Fiction cons. Speculative Fiction being anything to do with, Horror, Science Fiction, and Fantasy—the real geeky stuff. These cons attract the folks who thought high school extra-curricular activities should include Dungeons and Dragons. The people who exited Star Wars, walked around the theater and got back in line again. They are the much lampooned Star Trek fans who Josh Whedon, paid tribute to in his Buffy the Vampire Slayer series with his characters—The Trio. They also possess an above average intelligence, an interest and respect for arcane knowledge, and a curiosity and tolerance for new ideas. For a writer of fantasy, they are also my fan base.

Cons are held in a hotel and usually take over the place. Conference rooms and large halls are commandeered and private rooms are opened to the attendees for specific uses or just parties. Cons usually span a three-day weekend and visitors pay anywhere from $30 to $60 dollars depending on the con. Attendees, who often dress in flamboyant costumes, can go to various lectures given by authors or artists, sit in on panels where a group of professionals discuss a topic, listen to authors perform readings from their works, join in elaborate table top games, or visit the Dealer’s Room where a vast array of unusual merchandise is sold. There are also movies screenings, concerts, costume contests, and a host of other events that go on into the night.

As an author, I don’t get to indulge in any of this. I spend all my time in the Dealer’s Room. I pay in advance for a table and arrive early to set up before the con starts. One of the first things I learned was to travel light. At my first con, I just threw the kitchen sink in my trunk and assembled what I needed when I arrived. After that, I saw the virtue of planning and worked at getting everything I was bringing into as few boxes as possible.

Now some people, Tee Morris to name one, prefer to go the minimalist approach. He brings only his books and a pen. But Tee has a very out-going personality and for him accoutrements would only get in the way of his hand gestures. My experience with business tradeshows led me to bring a few basic advertisements to catch the eye of the hundreds of people walking by. I bring a nice dark tablecloth, as you never know if the con will provide any, and a bare, rickety folding table doesn’t present well. It also provides a hiding place under the table for personal stuff, like a sweater, a drink, extra books, and your coat. I also bring bookstands. These are clear plastic holders that merely stand my book up so people can see the cover better. I make posters, which I spray mount on form-core and stand up on the table or hang in front, (depending on how much room I have.) The posters help catch the eye of people even across the room. You should always bring tape and scissors—for some reason you always need those, or someone else does. If you did forget something talk to your neighbors, the other vendors are very friendly and helpful, like soldiers in the same foxhole.

I also bring bookmarks, which I hand out. For shy authors this is a great conversation starter and this is the real trick and the difference between a successful con and a not so successful one. All too often authors sit behind their tables waiting for people to come up and talk to them. They do this at bookstore signings too (which tends to irritate the bookstore managers who just ordered twenty of your books and expect you to move them out the door.) Some will even have laptops out, or be reading a book. This is no way to make sales. When I used to attend tradeshows for my advertising agency, rule number one was “never sit down.” Sitting makes you passive. Standing you are engaging, and approachable. If you look like you don’t want to talk about your books, people will avoid “bothering” you. That said, remain behind the table, standing out front is just too aggressive.

Still you have to do more than just stand. You have to engage the masses. This is hard for most writers. We are a solitary lot. We write so we don’t have to interact with people. We lock ourselves up in rooms and wander off into made-up worlds to avoid just this kind of thing. If we wanted to shake hands and laugh at bad jokes we’d be politicians. The reality of being a published author means that you have to spend a lot of your time pretending to be an unknown celebrity. Still, introverted shut-ins like us, have no clue how to engage a stranger. The idea of stopping someone we’ve never met and saying, “Say fella! Guess what? This is your lucky day! I’m the world’s best author. I wrote the world’s best book and if you don’t want to give me your hard-earned money in return for the privilege of reading it, then you’re an idiot!” Okay, so no one says that, but no matter how you go about it, it feels like you’re saying that.

The best solution I found is the bookmarks. As someone walks by, you just hold one out and say, “Care for a bookmark?” or “Would you like a free bookmark?” People like free things and ninety percent of the time, they will accept. Sixty percent of the time they will say, “thank you.” Thirty percent of the time, they will pause and read it. And twenty percent of the time they will look up at you and say, “Bookmark eh? So are you the author? What’s your book about?”

This is the moment you’ve waited for, the Con equivalent to being the understudy and learning the star had a plate of bad fish. Heart rate increases and you realize you have no idea what your book is about. The guy in front of you is holding three heavy plastic bags, a lightsaber and a Big Gulp with a twisty straw and he’s not going to wait all day. But how can you explain the full breadth of your story before the Seven Eleven slurping Jedi gets bored? This is why you need to have a pitch. A pitch comes in the long and short form. The short form is just a few sentences that sums up your book. The long form is a paragraph or two. Both are targeted at conveying the most interesting aspect of your story to the general audience. Don’t waste time with character’s names or backgrounds, or the nature of the elaborate world. Just hit them with the nutshell.

In my case:

“It’s a medieval fantasy adventure about two thieves caught in the wrong place at the wrong time. They are hired to steal a sword and when they try, they stumble on the body of the king and realize they’ve been set up to take the fall for his murder. After that they have to find a way to escape and then discover who the real killer is before the killer finds them.”

The Jedi might nod politely at this point, hand back the bookmark and walk away saying, “I’m really more a Sci-Fi guy.” Or he might betray a little smile which he will try and poker-face away by quickly taking a long pull on his Big Gulp’s straw. This is an invitation to say more and I might then go on about how it is a fast, fun romp (plagiarizing reviews of my book,) how it is part of a series—all of which have already been written. At a con, this conjures a set of raised eyebrows as it sets at ease the ghost of Robert Jordan. I usually follow this with the quip, “So even if I get hit by a truck on my way home, my wife will be able to publish the rest of the series.” I don’t mention that if I really was hit by a truck that I doubt Robin would be prioritizing the publishing of my remaining books at the top of her list of things to do—at least I hope not. I focus on how my book is different, how the names are pronounceable, how you don’t feel you need to take a course in the history of the world, and how there’s no youth prophesied to save the world from a dark lord.

Then there is a pause.

The Jedi sets his gianormous plastic cup on the table, tucks his lightsaber in his armpit and actually picks up a book and thumbs through it. Now if my wife is there—and she attends all the cons with me—she prattles on about reviews and how much she loved the books. Her enthusiasm is usually contagious, but I don’t feel comfortable raving about myself, so I just wait trying to look cool, as if all my hopes and dreams did not rest on the actions of this one lone Jedi. Use the force, damn it! Search your feelings—you know the book will be good!

Another tradeshow trick is to place a bowl of candy out on the table to entice people over, like the proverbial stranger in a car. “Come here Hanzel, have a Tootsie Roll.” The moment they reach out you slam the oven door closed with a… “Say! Do you read fantasy? No? Do you know anyone who reads fantasy because a signed book by the author makes a great—don’t know anyone either, eh? Well…could you use a good doorstop?”

You can also auction off a book. I sometimes put out a jar for people to enter their email address and then after the con I randomly pick one, contact them, and mail whichever book they want. This not only brings them over to talk to you, but has the added benefit of providing you with a list of addresses which you can then use if you want to say, announce your next book release. NEVER SELL OR GIVE THESE ADDRESSES AWAY. People provide them under the trust that only you will use them for the contest and the occasional announcement about your books. People don’t like to get spammed.

Since you will likely be alone at your table, and since you don’t want to leave your table unattended, and since the Dealer Room is usually open from 10am to 5 or 6pm, you might want to pack a lunch or at least bottled water and some kind of snack to keep your blood sugar up. Chocolate chip cookies work great. There is a courtesy room that provides coffee and some food, but that still requires leaving your table and if you’re going to leave, you’ll likely benefit from leaving the hotel entirely just to get away for a little while.

At the end of the night, an odd thing happens that no one outside of the Dealer Room vendors know about. Once the Dealer Room door close tight, all the vendors perform a strange ritual where they put their tables to sleep. They each bring an extra sheet or blanket to cover their wares and drape them with the care of a mother tucking their child into bed. Even though the Dealer Room is locked up, they feel that out-of-sight-out-of-mind is a technique that works trusting that should a would-be-thief go to the trouble and risk of breaking through the massive steel enforced doors, they would be dumbfounded by the sheets. Since I only have books, and wouldn’t be terribly upset if they were stolen, hoping only that the thief would see to it that the copies got into reader’s hands, I don’t bother with the nightly shrouds of mystery.

This brings up an important subject. Dealer Rooms have been stolen from so don’t leave valuables in the Dealer Room, and above all don’t leave your cash box there! This of course suggests you should have a cash box, or bag—some container of small bills that you will want to have on hand in order to make change. To help this, price your books at an even number. If your book retails for $11.95, sell it at a discount of $10.00, not only is it an incentive, but it’s a whole lot easier to make change. Just make sure you put a little sign out with the price tag. And if it is a discount, announce that. People like getting deals.

What should you wear? Unless you are planning on dressing up like a character in your book, (and I’ve never seen an author do that,) just dress casually, but neat. Usually, jeans or khakis and a T-shirt or polo shirt is fine. No one wears a suit. And wear the most comfortable shoes you own. No one will see your feet behind the table anyway. Don’t smoke or drink before the con, people are often turned off by the scent of smoke or alcohol and by all means, shower—if not for your fans then for the other vendors trapped with you for eight hours.

You aren’t there for the fun. You’re there to sell books, and maybe make money so don’t feel you need to stay at the hotel where the con is. You can often find cheaper rooms down the street and the less money you have to pay out, the fewer books you have to sell before you’re in the black. After all, you have to pay for the table, a room, meals, the book stands, the posters, the bookmarks and your transportation there and back, all before you even break even. Depending on how much money you make off the sale of a book, cons can often be a losing venture, so you’ll want to keep your expenditures as low as possible. Usually the first thing I do is calculate how many books I need to sell to make back the cost of going and that becomes my minimum goal.

In such a target rich environment, with three days to work with, I expected to sell over a hundred books at my first con. After all, I have often sold twenty books at a random Barnes and Noble in only four hours. So I was very disappointed when after the first day I had only sold ten books. On average, I sell about thirty books a con—about ten a day. This has been consistent across all the cons I’ve attended. At first, I thought I was a failure, but later discovered that I was doing surprisingly well. Most authors that I’ve met often sell only five books after three days behind the table. This might sound futile, but it has a seeding factor. A few books sold in the fertile fan base, can reap unexpected dividends. You can also establish connections to other authors, publishers, agents, and publicists.

Still, it would be nice to bump into someone at a con dressed in a hooded cloak with a white dagger in his belt holding a Big Gulp cup and two plastic bags of trinkets and have them grin and ask, “Guess who I am?”

I’m certain I will shrug genuinely stumped.

“Royce Melborn,” he’ll say.

After recovering from the shock I will mention, “Royce never wears his dagger on the outside of his cloak.”

In response, I assume the Royce-clad role-player will roll his eyes, shake his head and remark. “Geez, what a geek.”

I was recently (July 17th) interviewed by Dark Wolf’s Fantasy Reviews. If any of you are growing impatient with my lack of blog posts this might tide you over until I get the next one together.