Canadian Author's Association - West Coast Branch - Jan. 11,2012

Notes from the CAA-West Coast Branch taken with two finger in put into digital note pad then emailed to myself and copy and pasted here:.
Not suddenly, by any means, very laboriously, really!
Jan11 12 CAA
President :Bob Mackay introduced new exec
Past pres - m hume
Margo Bates - v pres
Doris Pamela Grain secretary
Missing person
Ben Nuttall Smith - member at large
West coast author - needs name
Russ Harvey web master
- ---------------editor's note - if you get the spelling of any of these writer's name wrong they will boil you in oil!
Ben announced new book publication - Secrets Kept, Secrets Told.

Bernice  giving workshop 'business of writing'

Reading on north shore
Reading 20th risin cafe
-------------------------------editor's note - you idiot - you are supposed to write down the dates and places where Bernice Lever is reading.

Soldier of Horse listed top 2011 books in January mag
---------------editor's note - you said you asked Bob before the meeting began if the American blockbuster movie now out called War Horse didn't follow the publication of his Canadian masterpiece. Bob, with characteristic Canadian modesty only said, "yes". Why didn't you put that in your notes?

Annita from Ottawa announced that  downtown writers circle Starting jan 26
----------------editor's note - idiot, isn't that the writer's circle you're supposed to be attending?

Student doctor 7th in Irish doctor series already national best seller
--------------editor's note - Isn't this Patrick Taylor's book - you might have thought to mention his name.

8th Open Mike Next meeting
--------------------------------- editor's note - What's this about it being about anything or  Open Love because it's Valentine's Day. What the hell is Open Love?

Editors Assoc presenting

Website attached to CAA $25 a year - Russ would help
-----------------editor's note - I think you were trying to say that writer's could have a website on the CAA site

Dennis E Bolen
BA u vic 72-77
MFA Ubc- Jerry Newman
Taught at ubc and we were colleagues
Brian Wade a tv producer there
Vanc Sun
Judge for National Book Award CAA
Successful writer 30 years
Literary advocacy

"anticipated results'

Reason I like fiction is it is a form I can achieve a truth greater than newspapers and other forms that claim truth

Described growing up on Vancouver Island as an outsider

'I'm always suspicious of people who loved high school'

UVic / studied with Robert Skelton, an English minor poet,
A great teacher and weird looking person - practiced witchcraft

People take too long to start a novel , must rock and roll from the start

Federal parole officer 1978 to 2000

1975 -Published short story in Canadian fiction magazine

1988 wrote novel based on parole service

1992 'stupid crimes' Book
Anvil press - landmark serious west coast publisher
Later put out by Random House
'this genre has yet to find an audience' - Canadian crime - no machine guns or car chases'
---------------------editor's note: You say this is an example of typical Canadian dry wit"

Optioned - by tv and movies - got $5000 a year

Editors choice book by globe and mail

1995 'stand in hell' - about holocaust - Shane commission 1980's -

1997 'krekshuns' - street term for corrections - reviewed by Steven Reid - just released on parole - had just written his own prison book - ran a truck over my book
But got interview on Peter zosky's morning side - great getting a lot of exposure

My sales so bad I was fired by random house. No more limousines waiting at airport

I liken this time to being with the Yankees and being sent back to the juniors

2005 'toy gun' final of the corrections trilogy - very good reviews

2009 kaspoit! - my version of the missing women case

I no longer use he said or she said because if you are writing solid prose it shouldn't be necessary

2011 "Anticipated  Results" my take on my generation  -  50 year old  men who didn't make it
-

taught at langara

I can improve your writing by 30% - don't use

Really very sudden (ly)

Most overused words in English language - only place acceptable is dialogue

There are critics who say if they see suddenly in a book they chuck it

Catch a glance
Cast a glimpse
cliches
Watch out for cliche

Reading from "Anticipated Results" - 'not all of us made it .....
Many of us boomers. ... Looked for love that left like everything else "
Book is about falling asleep in the good times and waking up in the bad times
----------editor's note - this is the book you told me was brilliant - the one you bought after at Chapters ? Why didn't you buy me a copy too?

Sam shepherd said 'only assholes explain'

Discussing reading :  encouraged readers to read not explain and entertain and 'don't drink and read'

Jean Kay said 'we give them 2 minutes and then applaud'


Me and publishing
Wrote book and sent round and no one wanted it then entered play competition and met Brian Kaufman and I gave him my book and some money and started anvil
Sent out and globe and mail review took off, kind of self published.

Find someway to get exposure
Get on mailing list of all the small presses
Go to book launches
In a year you'll be a known person and will know publishing scene

If you are a prose writer study poetry and cross boundaries

BC book publishers association is good

Spend a couple of hour in social media - I cranked out my own trailer for 'anticipated results'

I expose myself a couple of hours a day.
-------------------------------------editor's note "Did he really say that?" Can we quote him?
Best thing I was invited to Vancouver Writers Festival and met acquisitions manager - now I'm working on another book

3 parole books were optioned as a package - for tv series - was author and tech advisor - Global - almost got it
2008 big decline of business hit

----...............Editors note - "I think it's good but we're going to need a couple of car chases and machine guns if we expect to sell it south of the border.



Sent from my iPhone
-

Canadian Authors Association - Vancouver Branch - Oct. 12, 2011

www.robertwmackay.ca/
www.bennuttall-smith.ca/

It's October 12, 2011. The Vancouver Branch of the Canadian Authors Association is meeting tonight at 7 pm in the Alliance for the Arts building on Howe Street beside Waves Coffeehouse. I got an email from Ben Nuttall Smith saying that he and Bob Mackay were talking on publishing.

I'm a blogger. Who needs a publisher. Ha! I don't even use an editor.  Ha! Ha! And no deadlines either. Ha! Ha! Ha!

I don't get fan mail like a Published Author.  Only comments. I have to respond to comments or the comment might overshadow the piece I've written.  Commenters are often more pithy than bloggers.  They're the blogger world's equivalent of the critic. But I even get to censor the critics in blogger world.  Published Authors don't have that luxury!

Bob and Ben, however,  since they published their books last year have had women chasing them.  Bloggers don't get swarmed, like Published Authors. You'd think it was the Vancouver Sun Run the way the Published Author Groupies charge, whenever Ben and Bob make a public appearance.

Bloggers don't have to do those public appearance things, either.   It's highly unlikely that Harper, Obama or Oprah are going to phone up this blogger. In contrast Ben and Bob live at daily risk of having CBC call them and ask them to talk about their books.
Published authors.  I'd not be surprised to see those letters after their names.  Bob Mackay, PA.  Ben Nuttall-Smith, PA.

As a blogger I don't have to re write. I don't even have to 'proof' my material.  It's a bit like going to the opera in one's underwear, mind you.

Ben and Bob's writing is so much more presentable and polished.   A bit posh really.  Complete sentences. Actual story lines.  Meaning.  Big words and catchy sly bits.
Apparently people liked their story telling even  before they  got published.

As a blogger I could go from an audience of none to the whole internet of billions, not that anyone needs to take notice of a blogger.  Blogging is democratic and subtle that way. Not in your face like a real hard book you could hold in your hand. Not even something that would get on Kindle.

Bob and Ben's books, Soldier of the Horse and Blood Feathers and Holy Men, respectively,   actually have beautiful covers and jackets.
 I might be able to spiff up my blog a bit but it's never going to adorn a coffee table, unless it were a virtual coffeetable.  Everyone has been gifting their friends with Bob's book or Ben's book but I don't even know if I can give my blog away.

Google doesn't pay at all like a real publishing house does,either.   My on line income from blogging has a certain elusive quality like the media itself.  Money always did have that here today, gone tomorrow aspect to it for me. But Google's not actually given me any real money.  Keeps telling me I have to score 100 before they'll give me the 20's they owe me. A bit like Los Vegas.

I was kind of hoping to hear from Ben and Bob about all the real money Published Authors make.  It's a paper business. Those publishing houses should be able to print their own money.

Now that Bob's a real Published Author and Ben is too, I expect they'll be telling us about their yachts and lear jets. Maybe I'll go tonight and hear what it's like to "get your money for nothing and your chicks for free'. I keep thinking there must be life after blogging.  A Published Author's life, perhaps.

PS
I went.  Jean Kay, Perry Wilson, Anthony Dalton, Bernice Lever and all the other "usual suspects" were there. The room was packed.
Jan Furst had died just short of 100 so stories were already being exchanged about this delightfully remarkable Norwegian Bowen Island character, much loved in the author community.

Patrick Taylor, author of the Irish Country Doctor series, read from his latest in that series, A Dublin Student Doctor, set in 1930 and just out for publication this week. http://patricktaylor.ca/ 
It was a glorious night.  Ben and Bob both humbly shared that if they could get published so could we.  All it took was a good idea, a draft, a manuscript, editting, rewriting, an outside editor, perhaps, a good query letter, maybe an agent if he wasn't a complete dodo, a willingness to self promote, and a powerful publicity machine helped. Then a publisher would likely consider your work if that publisher  actually published romantic goth fiction. In Canada no author ever admits to sleeping with the editors of Pen and Porcupine but it's been considered.
Blogging was recommended as was a web site. The Surrey Writer's festival was coming in 2 weeks and it was also recommended. As was the CAA December social and AGM as well as a 500 word Letter to Santa contest.

Dear Santa, I want to be a Published Author but I'd also like a Lear Jet even if my publisher can't afford one. My character isn't developed as much as the characters of the Published Authors I heard tonight so you might want to add that to the list. A plot would help too.  I'm still not sure you can get from here to there.  The CAA is truly inspirational and it's evident that Authors Helping Authors works.  But Santa I could really use a bit of extra help from you.  Has Rudolf got out of celebrity rehab yet?  Bill