It’s weird to be born straddling two centuries. So many changes. Many good changes. The internet is a mixed blessing for writers. Many more opportunities for voices to be heard, things like blogs. Which now are relics, maybe, but I like having a website with a blog. I like old things, always have. Just look at my favorite book cover! By the way, this book is free on Amazon!
Now that wasn’t a marketing ploy, at least not an intentional one. If only marketing was as easy. Truly, the duty fills me with ennui. I am weary of being a seller of my books. That is the other, less fun part, of 21st century writing. Publishers don’t market a writer’s work. The writer, unless she is Stephen King or a viral TikToc star, will have to do her own marketing. Most of the time.
My publisher has given me some marketing help, as has Amazon. They paid for some of my books to be on Audible. They have done some free advertising online in a limited way. But mostly it is me schlepping my paperback books and maybe a poster or some bookmarks to reader and writer conferences. Art fairs, too. Book signings. Library events. I’ve done this for many years. It used to be fun, especially if I was with friends and we sold lots of books.
And then…it stopped being fun. I’m older now, so there’s that. But also I have done it for a long time and it occurs to me that I can retire now. Not from writing, I’ll probably never stop doing this. Writing, blogging, tidying my website. But it gets increasingly more difficult and I’m not sure if that’s my aging brain or the emergence of AI.
AI just happened. I didn’t invite it in yet it crossed out my last sentence when I tried to spell check. What was easy and fun in 2002 is now difficult to keep up with. Things move very fast. For example, when I moved to Florida and wrote my Jane in St Pete series (still working on book 3), and heard a big mystery conference (Sleuthfest!) was happening in St. Pete, I believed attending would be marketing made in heaven.
Then I slowly remembered that I really haven’t had much fun at conferences in the last few years. Then I recalled my particular writing friends may be going. Plus other writers I know and/or admire. And I do love hearing the talks. So maybe. One more for the road?
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