onna roll

Panama Canal in the spotlight

It was Saturday today. (Ok there are still 1 1/2 hours of today to go, but at least for business porpoises most is finished.)

I sold 4 copies today. Still to friendsnfam, so that's a limited pool. But 4 copies is 4 copies. Iain's out selling another 2 and doing like the computer sales force of the 80's, selling the sequel (it's not even printed yet!!). Well!! He also wanted to sell one for free but that's where I drew the line. I didn't buy those copies for free!

From the amount of commentary I get, I deduce I'm still blogging for myself - more or less like Radomir Lascek's Solar Wind Ship Log, it's just to keep the past organized and keep tabs on the process. That's okay. It would be nice to know someone is benefiting, except myself, but oh well. Maybe who knows, with this blog as a historical record of what I did, I'll be able to write a stepwise manual to self-publishing a novel (in South Africa, today), once it's successful.

Feedback from readers:

So far every single reader who absolved the whole book came back to tell me they loved it and want more.

Correction against bias: All of them are so far people who know me personally, and as they are on a good foot with me, they are unlikely to tell me the story stinks. However on the other hand there are one or two ace critics amongst them who'd really tell me if something bothered them. (Remember: Friends and family!)

Iain made me write these steps down for the marketing campaign:

Radio podcasts and interviews:
Radio Tuks
Jakaranda
702
Book clubs
A friend of mine, S
Find more book clubs
library
Try to get in at Leisurebooks!
Readings at
house concerts
libary
other devious means of advertizing:
Review by a well-known South African youth author whose daughter I know personally
Magazines - book reviews (find the operative person who writes them and send in a gift copy)
Newspapers: Record
Hot air balloon and small air plane with banner