A Weekend Reader Offer on Coffee and Vodka!

Coffee and Vodka, dubbed 'Nordic Noir Meets Family Saga' at The London Book Fair, is now on a very special and very limited offer. From today until Sunday (26-28 April 2013) you can download my book for only £1.35  (or $1.99).

Here are more details and links to where you can download the book.

Now Only $1.99 

Was $4.99

Offer Ends Sunday 28th April 13

Buy it Now:

Amazon  iBooks   Kobo   Nook

Readers give Coffee and Vodka  ***** stars

"Compelling Narrative"   "Fabulous reading"

Nordic Noir meets family saga in this heartfelt story of immigration and family breakup set in Finland and Sweden. 

'In Stockholm everything is bigger and better'. 11-year-old Eeva is excited when Pappa decides her family will emigrate to Sweden from Finland. But adjusting to a new language and culture is not as easy as Pappa thought. Thirty years later, when Eeva returns to her home town of Tampere to see her dying grandmother, she is forced relive the dramatic events of her childhood. 

Some prices may change wthout notice, so please make sure to confirm the offer before downloading. 

Have a nice weekend and happy reading!  The sun has come out again in London….(for a brief moment at least).

5 Reasons Why an Author Should Visit The London Book Fair

Many people ask me why on earth I attend The London Book Fair. Here are five reasons I always try to make the Fair:

1. To learn. During this year's London Book Fair I attended over ten seminars, and although not all of them were right for me, the majority taught me something new. I will write about specific subjects under another post, but for example in AuthorLounge on Tuesday (16 April 13), two industry giants, Pottermore CEO Charlie Redmayne and Eric Huang, Director New Business and IP Acquisitions at Penguin, gave an interesting and informative talk about how books are changing with additional digital content. Apps, games and toys are all part and parcel of the digital future for books. I came away excited about the future, rather than fearful.

2. To network. Each year, sometimes by pure accident, I meet someone who is interesting and who I can exchange views and keep in touch after the Fair. This year, because of the wonderful Alliance of Independent Authors, I met many like-minded writers. I also got two definite promises of book reviews from influential people. And I got to pitch to an agent who asked me to send my book to him. (I've been here before, still it was great to have affirmation from someone in the traditional industry that my writing pitching is on the right track).

3. To make friends. This year particularly, I really feel I've made some true friends. Having all the fellow ALLi members there has been such a huge support. Thank you Orna Ross for making it happen! Thanks must also go to AuthorRight who provided us with the AuthorLounge seminar area - and drinks at the end of each day! (VERY important). Gareth Howard was a tireless host - I wonder if he slept at all during the three days? Not forgetting the giant Amazon who hosted the ALLi 1st Birthday Party on Monday. What a coup!

4. To sell your books. Here planning is key. Making appointments with agents and publishers at LBF is notoriously difficult, but it does happen. However, even if you haven't planned ahead, just your presence at the Fair, talking about your book and asking other writers about theirs will provide results. As Joanna Penn from The Creative Penn says, reviews sell your books, and talking about your book(s) will gain you those. You are the best salesperson for your books, so be yourself and talk about your work.

Me with Joanna Penn

5. To see the bigger picture. I always remember the first time I entered the hall and was surprised by how many segments the industry was made of. The vast space at Earls Court is divided into areas by genre, from the academic press to children's literature, as well as industry segments from international focus (like Finnish Literature Exchange, FILI), the digital zone, to a few second hand booksellers. In the middle are the grand stands (some with staircases to bars) of the major publishers like Hachette (below), while the smaller boxes of the independent presses and second-hand booksellers line the walls, with perhaps a chair or two around a lonely table.

I took this picture at the end of the
last day - during the show this space was filled with literary folk having meetings.

One of the larger second hand booksellers at LBF13. Nice to see!

Finland was represented by FILI in the Nordic countries stand.

Inside the Finnish FILI stand.

This year there was a definite change in the air at the Fair. There was a rumour going around (I heard it from Rohan Quine ) that the International Rights Centre upstairs was a bit quiet and that all the action was downstairs. There certainly was a huge buzz around AuthorLounge (and no, it wasn't just the bar). Most of the time it wasn't possible to get inside to listen to the seminars, let alone get a seat.

So, if you are an author, or an aspiring writer, try to make it to The London Book Fair next year. It inspires, it makes good business sense and it's fun!

A-Z Blogging Challenge: O is for Overdoing it….

Oh dear, I think I rather tried to overdo it this month…



Not only is April the month of two important birthdays in our household, it is also the month of The London Book Fair, so when you honestly think about it, trying to also blog every day was a little bit overambitious. Welcome to my world!

So I'm afraid I will have to accept defeat (not an easy task). Please can all of you lovely A-Z Bloggers, accept my apologies for a spectacular A-Z Fail. I promise to do it another time (as long as it doesn't co-incide with LBF).

Look out for several post here about the Fair in the coming days. I know its no consolation, but it's something..? I will also not forget to post about MA in Creative Writing, something I was meant to do a few days ago under M.

A-Z Blogging Challenge: L is London Book Fair

My theme: Writing and the business of writing

I remember when I first came up from the country to the London Book Fair about five years ago, and was struck by how business-like and un-literary the whole event was. And how lacking in writers something calling itself a Book Fair could be. Plus the agents were nowhere to be seen; they were tucked away in the International Rights Centre upstairs, which wasn't accessible unless you had an appointment. I was reminded of the New York Stock Exchange, where huge amounts of money were being moved but where not a dime nor a nickel was ever to be seen.

But, to reflect the rest of the publishing industry, even the London Book Fair is changing. These days there's something called Author Lounge, with several events aimed at writers. Of course majority of these are companies selling digital publication and printing solutions to writers, biggest one being Amazon's KDP, but there are also many seminars aimed to help us Indy writers produce and sell our books.

Alliance of Independent Writers (ALLi) is organising a series of events, including Kobo book presentations by ALLi authors, and a talks by Orna Ross and Joanna Penn on self-publishing. And there's going to be ALLi's 1st birthday party too! (I can't wait!)

So, this year at the LFB, I will be a busy little bee, attending seminars, meeting many other ALLi authors. I even have a pitching slot with an agent. Wish me luck, I'll be on around two o'clock tomorrow!

I will attempt some live blogging from LBF, so watch this space.

London Book Fair, Earls Court, London 14-17 April 2013

A-Z Blogging Challenge: I is for Independent Publishing

My theme: Writing and the business of writing.

[I know, I know, I'm running a day late again! Please be patient, I shall attempt to catch up soon.]

Before the ebook revolution, the only route writers (like me) had for getting their work published was through an agent and a publisher. If your book sold a certain amount of copies (I guess 1,000 would be a good number for a first book), the publisher would buy the author's next book. If the first book didn't sell well, the author would be dropped first by the publisher and then by the agent. (Unless the book won an award, in which case sales would be boosted anyway.) In a worst case scenario, a first novel might not even make enough money to cover the advance which the agent had negotiated for the author. If you happened to be that poor author, you'd pretty well know your career as a writer was over. No-one in the business would touch an author who'd lost a publisher money.

If a writer didn't want to go the traditional route (or had lost all hope after having received enough rejection letters to paper the walls of the office), there was an option to self-publish. This used to be called, rather nastily by the establishment, Vanity Publishing. There were a few presses who'd charge thousands of pounds / dollars, promise editorial and marketing support, and produce a (often an inferior looking) book. I'm sure there were some successful vanity books out there, but I wager that most of the copies produced ended up in the authors' garages and cellars.

When Kindle, iPads and other reading devices came onto the market, and Amazon et al established their publishing platforms, many authors realised they could get their books straight to readers with a much smaller investment. With Amazon and Smashwords, authors also got a larger share (up to 70%) of the book than with a traditional publisher. Suddenly self-publishing became Independent Publishing and authors began making money without the help of the 'old' establishment.

Finally last year, the success of 50 Shades of Grey really made the traditional publishers and agents take notice. They began to sign up authors who'd made money out of their ebooks. It's strange how a few spondoolies make people change their minds about something as unspeakable as Vanity Publishing?

Today more and more ebooks are being read and published. Digital book sales continue to grow rapidly each year, as does the number of Independent Authors who are making good money out of their writing. Some of these writers are declining offers from agents and publishing houses, preferring to remain in full control of their careers. They can decide what to write, how the cover looks, how much to charge for their books and how many titles to publish each year. At the same time they get to keep a larger proportion of their book sales.

If your books sell well, why would you need a second and third layer between you and your readers?

As the balance of power in the industry shifts, what happens to the writers? Are Independent Authors leaving themselves unprotected, since they're not receiving the technical and legal knowledge agents usually provide? Or the moral support they give their authors? Or are these just fabricated reasons to make money from an author?

There are now so-called 'hybrid' agents and publishers who take on just the physical book rights of an Indy Author, while the digital rights remain with the writer. This, as I discussed before in my post under agents, is the ideal situation; an almost 'eating your cake and having it' -scenario for a writer.

Many members of the one-year-old Alliance Independent Authors believe that the future is going to be very bright indeed. As the organisation grows, it also gains more power. In the various ALLi forums, there's talk of establishing a quality mark of some sort, as well as discussions on whether Indy Writers should be included in the annual awards circuit. At the moment independently published books do not qualify for literary awards like The Booker or The Costa.

I'm not sure I wish to write off agents and publishers quite yet. At the same time I am really, really enjoying being my own master. (See that fence?)

During next week's London Book Fair, ALLi Founder and Director, Orna Ross, is speaking at Digital Minds Conference and other LBF seminars, and an ALLi guide to publishing services is also going to be launched.

The London Book Fair 2012

This is the first glimpse of London Olympia you see when you walk from the Earl's Court Tube station.

It's been a few years since I last went to the London Book Fair. I remember the occasion well because as well as being my birthday, I got talking to an agent who asked me to send him my latest manuscript, 'Immediately'. Nothing came of the exchange, but it was certainly memorable.

Another thing that struck me that day was the total lack of amenities for writers at the London Book Fair. Looking over the vast exhibition hall at Olympia, I wondered how it was that when your badge read, 'Author' you were the least welcomed visitor at any stall. Apart from the few self-publishing sharks who in those non-digital days were trying to sell their £1,000 a pop (and some) publishing 'deals', no-one else wanted to know an unpublished author. Yet, all the industry and deals being made in front of my eyes, must have begun with words written down by an unpublished writer (poet/photographer/illustrator).

That day, three years ago, I was feeling bold after my encounter with Mr Agent (and my birthday), and blagged a pass to the International Rights Centre on the second floor of the exhibition hall. I knew from my research that this is where all the agents sit and do their deals of the week. I wasn't planning to accost any of the agents who had not replied to my approaches (the worst crime of them all in my book), although this seemed very tempting. Instead I just wanted to see what their secret den looked like. Sadly, it was quite disappointingly unglamourous. There were rows and rows of little cubicles where well-dressed (mostly) women sat and scribbled in their notebooks (this was the pre-iPad age). After wandering about for a while, I had a coffee in their private cafe and headed downstairs.

This year at the Book Fair, I felt so much more grown-up. I was here with a mission, to find out everything new going on in publishing. I had taken the precaution not to display my lowly badge of 'Author' but was surprised to find that this year there was something called Author Lounge at the fair. On closer inspection it was just the same old, same old: self-publishing companies, now offering digital deals costing much less money. (Progress?) I headed instead for the Digital Zone where I sat through a few lectures. These proved to be very educational. It is mind blowing how quickly the publishing industry is changing. Take dictionaries: the online digital versions of the two heavy volumes I still use give so much more content. It's no wonder that these products can still be sold at a healthy price online.

I also listened to the Booker Prize winning author, Howard Jacobson, who was interviewed by Lisa Appignanesi at the English Pen Cafe. He was so witty and self-deprecating that I immediately wanted to go and buy all of his books.

Apologies for the picture - there were a lot of people listening to Howard Jacobson.

Listening to Howard Jacobson's stories and being able to laugh at writers and the publishing industry was a perfect way to end the first day at The London Book Fair.

Digital - the new garlic bread?

It's an old joke, 'Garlic bread - it's the future.'

At the London Book Fair I sat through two seminars on the future of publishing. First one was a prediction for 2020 (=digital) and the second a discussion on what's free in the new digital age and where the money is going to be made.

Everyone agreed with the speakers of the first talk that digital is where we are heading (and fast), but where the large publishing houses thought they could make the money was unclear. As an aspiring novelist, I was scared to see people who'd been in the industry for decades looking at best confused and at worst defensive. It was clear that the members of the panel didn't know - or wouldn't say - what they intended to do about the digital revolution, how they plan to make money for authors or themselves, or how they would even survive. A question from the floor, 'Are publishers going to be needed in the future' was left largely unanswered. Another comment from the audience was, 'No-one has mentioned book sellers?' The answer to that was a dry, 'No.'

On Saturday there was an article in The Telegraph titled, 'Is the writing on the wall for books?' I started reading with great anticipation but soon realised it was merely a promotional piece for various e-books on the market and on how to get free downloads. It did have one piece of good news for old-fashioned books. Apparently they are a hard act to follow.

"The book is an exemplary example (sic) of good design, being robust enough to survive spilt cups of coffee, sun cream and sand, or being buried at the bottom of the briefcase or handbag, yet always ready for use."

The LBF panel of publishers cited examples from other industries struggling to adapt to the digital age: Newspapers give away issues, music artists make their money from performances (not cd's or downloads), in the TV and film industry piracy is a business model.

It occurred to me that books have other good features:

1. Books are generally only read once. It's not necessary to store them in the similar way as music or film on an ipod to be listened or watched over and over again by the same person.

2. Books are not current. They last forever, whereas yesterdays' newspaper is today's recycling (or should be).

3. Books are tactile - even paperbacks. They can be shown off on shelves and stroked.

I don't think it's wise to stare blindly at the horror stories from other related industries of moving to the digital age without considering the very unique aspects of the book. Surely the book as a form of communication is older and wiser than the rest of the field?

And no, I've never liked garlic bread much.