Today is FOBSP day!

By Alison

Tired of all the complaining about blatant self promotion?  I am -- and I've complained about it myself! BSP wise, blogs (such as ours) are sort of like the apple in the Garden of Eden. Here we are, dangling on the web -- a ripe, delicious looking, juicy opportunity to flog your fab new book/short story/public access TV show appearance for people who read our blog and presumably read mysteries ... and yet, if you take that bite you risk opening up a world of pain on yourself as readers roll their eyes and say, "Sheesh! Can you believe the blatant self promotion?!"

It's not just blogs, either. I lurk on DorothyL, a listserve of thousands of mystery readers, but where BSP is severely frowned on. There they are, all these wonderful readers laid out for you like your seemingly willing prom date, but the minute you whip out your upcoming release... they go completely cold, throw the corsage in your face and ask you to drive them home, no kiss goodnight. I get that, though. DorothyL was created by readers to truthfully discuss the books they love, and once we authors start poking around in there, hyping and flogging and bragging, it starts to look more like an informercial.

I also blog on amazon. Now, you'd think that would be the ideal place to flog your book -- it's a damn bookstore! But in the instructions for amazon connect, they specifically try to steer you away from blatant hype, suggesting, instead, conversational-type tour diaries and messages to readers. Because -- and this is AMAZON talking -- hard-sell turns readers off.

The way I see it, there has to be somewhere -- a safe haven free of eye-rolling, where you can sell it as hard as you want to, and people will  simply read and smile and take note. Since true reform begins at home, I'm declaring November 27, 2007 Blatant Self Promotion Day at First Offenders! Use the comment section to tell us all about your new book, series, screenplay-you-want-to-sell-after-the-writers-strike-ends... or, if you don't write, feel free to brag here about your kids, recent weight loss (or gain. We aren't shape-ist here.) promotion at work. ANYTHING.

I, for one, am all ears. (That would be me, Alison Gaylin, who has a short story in the fab new anthology A HELL OF A WOMAN, out in December on Busted Flush Press and edited by Megan Abbott with an intro from Val McDermid. A whole bunch of other authors and I will be at Partners and Crime in Greenwich Village on December 6 at 7 PM, so check it out!!!)

Comments

[Clair Lamb]

Congratulations, Alison!

For people on the opposite coast, The Mystery Bookstore will be celebrating A HELL OF A WOMAN as part of its big holiday party on December 1. The "Hell of a Woman" signing starts at 2:00 p.m. and will include Megan Abbott, Christa Faust, Naomi Hirahara, Charlie Huston, Eddie Muller, Cornelia Read, Theresa Schwegel, Kevin Burton Smith and Robert Ward.

Alison, flights to LA are cheap this weekend...

[Lori G. Armstrong]

Congrats, Alison!!!

I have a booksigning at my beloved local Borders in Rapid City, this Friday night, 7:00 sharp, and I'm even thinking about bringing candy! Oh, and if you already have your signed and battered copy of HALLOWED GROUND, 2007 WILLA Award Winner, bring it and I'll slap a gold medal "Winner" sticker on the front of it, while you're picking up stacks of SHALLOW GRAVE to hand out to your nearest and dearest as Holiday gifts!

[Karen Olson]

OOOHHHH, I love this. Thanks for giving us permission to do this, Alison.

I've got two events on Saturday: the first is the Winter Words, a first-ever writers conference at the Fairfield (CT) Library. I'm going to be on a panel talking about dialog with Da Chen, who will totally intimidate me because I've just finished both his novel and his memoir.

And the second is at 2 p.m. at the Yale Bookstore, where I'll be taking about my new, third Annie Seymour book DEAD OF THE DAY, which just got a great review in the Chicago Sun-Times!

[Sandra Scoppettone]

I also have a story in A HELL OF A WOMAN. I'll meet you on the 6th.

[AlisonGaylin]

Sandra: Can't wait to meet you -- and get you to sign my copy!

Lori: Don't hold back. What kind of candy? Are we talking Godiva chocoloates, because if that's the case, I may have to check airfares..

Karen: The events sounds great! Might I suggest a Tom/Vinnie lookalike pageant? And I saw and second the Sun-Times review!

Clair: I'd love to come to L.A., but... and here's my second BSP: My daughter is starring in a production of 101 Dalmations this weekend. (Okay, she's not starring. She's one of the dogs. But she has her own lines!)

[J.D. Rhoades]

Go, Alison, Go!

As for moi, Alex Sokoloff and I continue our barnstorming tour of Borders (with Stacey Cochran in the moderator's seat) this Saturday at 3:00 at the Central Raleigh Borders:
404-101 East Six Forks Rd.
Raleigh, NC 27609
Phone: 919.755.9424
Fax: 919.755.9484

And copyedits continue on my standalone, BREAKING COVER, which is scheduled for August 2008.

[mysdawg - Aldo]

Yes, Mystery Bookstore this weekend. Alison, you should join us

[Katherine Howell]

Morning all,

my novel Frantic is featured on Marshal Zeringue's Page 69 test today -
http://page69test.blogspot.com/

Wish I was over there to go to all those events!

Katherine.

[Jeff Shelby]

I have all my Christmas shopping done. Ha-ha, suckas!!!

[Lori G. Armstrong]

Wait? It's almost Christmas? Last time I looked at the calendar it was summer! Shit. Guess it's fruit of the month club (or fruit of the loom) for everyone again this year.

Thanks, Shelby.

[Felicia Donovan]

Congrats, Alison! I'll be reading and signing copies of THE BLACK WIDOW AGENCY on Dec. 6th at the Exeter, NH Public Library's BookTalk program. I'm really excited today because I got the final artwork for the cover of SPUN TALES - A BLACK WIDOW AGENCY MYSTERY, the next in the series, due out July '08.

Felicia Donovan
THE BLACK WIDOW AGENCY
www.feliciadonovan.com
www.blackwidowagency.com

[AlisonGaylin]

Excellent, Felicia -- and thank you for steering the topic back from Christmas shopping, which I have done NONE of. (Damn you, Jeff Shelby!)

Great page69 test, Katherine -- I really love that blog... and I owe Marshall a page 69 for TRASHED. Hope I'm not too late.

Aldo, great to see you here! Wish I could make it to L.A., but please raise a glass for me!

Wish I could see you and Alex, Dusty -- I bet you guys are great up there! And I can't wait for the standalone!

Keep the BSP coming, folks! Remember, November 27, 2007 only comes once in a lifetime!

[Clea Simon]

A day late and several dollars short, but, hey, if you're in the NYC area, why not come by Partners and Crime on MONDAY, Dec. 3, too? I'll be celebrating the release of my third mystery, "Cries and Whiskers."

Thanks for letting me sneak that in!
Clea
www.cleasimon.com