Thanks to a tip from my friend, Kirsten Menger-Anderson on the Zoetrope writer's workshop, I signed up for an online class on Innovative Publicity Basics for Writers with Lauren Cerand, who is a well-regarded publicist (and friends with awesome editor Rachel Kramer Bussel as well). The class was very informative and at the end Lauren offered to do individualized consultations. I know I could never afford the full services of a publicist, but I decided to take my Winter Solstice gift early this year and give it a try.
I was really pleased with our discussion. We covered a lot in thirty minutes and I could tell I was dealing with a smart, savvy professional. Lauren gave me lots of great detailed advice, but the main big picture strategy was to embrace and celebrate my erotic interests holistically and not separate myself into a "literary" good girl and a "smutty" slut. After getting the snooty treatment from a number of booksellers because my dirty novel is beneath them, this was truly balm to me.
A good publicist should of course help you with the details, the bookings and the interviews and so forth, but my talk with Lauren made me realize it's important to have a strong overall vision as well.
As a cherry on the sundae, Lauren mentioned me on her blog, Lux Lotus: Art, Politics and Style Broadly Defined as a person she likes. I have to be honest and admit it--I like Lauren, too!
2 comments:
a "literary" good girl and a "smutty" slut. After getting the snooty treatment from a number of booksellers because my dirty novel is beneath them, this was truly balm to me
Personally, I think there should be a genre "literary smut." Or more eloquently, Literary erotica, as Olivia Knight puts it.
There's a huge difference to me between sophisticated and well written smut and plain old slutty smut. And what you write is definitely in the sophisticated category.
I'm sure those same book stores carry Anais Nin, who I'm positive would be classified and respected as literary erotica by most even if they weren't into erotica.
If only those book store people could see that there is a definite difference.
Maybe it takes too much time and imagination to see a difference unless someone else has done it for them?
The real problem for me is discovering that "independent" booksellers in a supposedly progressive area of the country are so blinkered about this. They really DO judge a book by its cover!
Thanks for your support though! Frankly the opinion of people like you who know Japan is what I really care about :-)
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