Lifescapes

Books and markets

Look closely at the bloom of this staghorn milkweed (Asclepias asperula), and you'll see some tiny ants enjoying the sweet nectar.

Erratic dialup service this morning, so this is a short post--hope the connection is good enough to manage this photo.

But I do want to say something in response to your blog comments (and your many emails) about self-publishing the Potter YA biography. (I've withdrawn the proposal as unsaleable at this time.) As many of you know, I'm a supporter of self-publishing, which is a wonderful way to get the work out there--for certain markets. But a biography of Beatrix Potter for young readers would find its best market in public libraries and school libraries, not in bookstores and over-the-counter sales. While it's certainly possible to publish the book as a POD, libraries (especially school libraries) generally wouldn't acquire it in that format. If you're considering self-publishing and POD, think about your market. Who is likely to buy this book? How are you going to market it to them?

More later, when the connection is better. (There is a certain price to be paid for living in the country. And please don't write suggesting satellite. There are good reasons NOT to do that here--at least not now.)

Portulaca: In bloom this week

I love the simplicity and color of these portulaca, in baskets hanging beside the deck. They're made for our hot, dry summers, and their bright blooms are a delight.

Quick note, for those of you who are wondering. The Beatrix Potter YA biography project isn't going to go. My agent has done a great job putting it out there into the marketplace, but hasn't found any interest. The feedback from editors: 1) kids don't want to read ABOUT Beatrix Potter and 2) now that the movie has been and gone, there's no "platform" for a book. Odd. I thought that Beatrix herself would be sufficient "platform," but I guess that's not the case.

I'm disappointed only in the sense that the existing YA biographies are based on outdated information and are wrong about a lot of things. It's definitely time for an update. But I have plenty of projects on the desk, and have to admit to a certain relief that I will not have to squeeze another one in. I'll go back to the memoir after Briar Bank is done, and then on to Wormwood, the next China Bayles. Lots of good work to do.

Just wanted you to know that even published writers get rejection slips. Happens all the time. And the world doesn't come to an end. (It's much more likely to come to an end because we are burning too much fossil fuel, which is by far the larger calamity.)

Reading note. First remember George Seither's rule: 'We don't reject writers; we reject pieces of paper with typing on them.' . . . Don't get huffy because you have already made sales and therefore feel that no editor dare reject you. That's just not so. He can reject you and he need not even offer any reason.--Isaac Asimov