Can You Spot the Indie?

Barnes and Noble, Sandy, Utah.

Like two little hobbits starting off on their first big adventure.

Hint: Second row, third and fourth from the left.

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Crossover: the Moon Realm Invades Barnes and Noble Bookstores Everywhere

Crossover

The Moon Realm Invades Barnes and Noble Bookstores Everywhere

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I wish I had a more exciting tale to tell, but getting a self-published book into Barnes and Noble is all about time, diligence, and whether or not they want your book.

In a nutshell, here’s how I got the Moon Realm series into Barnes and Noble. Last fall I submitted to their Small Press Dept., at their Headquarters on 5th Ave, in New York. On their website, they said that if I didn’t hear back from them I should resend, as they get 2,000 submissions a week, which means, every once and a while, they have chuck everything and start over. I got a letter back from them maybe two weeks later requesting paperback copies of The Moon Coin (the only Moon Realm book in paper at that time). That was back in November. My next task was to get a distributor or wholesaler. B&N had sent me a list of them. I sent submissions two wholesalers that could work out for me. One replied in a week with a no. The other, Baker and Taylor, took longer. On March 26th, B&N sent me another letter saying they still wanted The Moon Coin, but that since they hadn’t heard from me in a long time, they were going to take their offer off the table 30 days from the date of that letter. That seemed more than fair to me, generous, in fact. It was a bit of a bummer, though, as I’d decided in my mind that Baker and Taylor, not having gotten back to me—I’d submitted to them in January—wasn’t interested in my book. Then, on April 11th, Baker and Taylor sent an email to Gibbering Gnome press saying “We are pleased to inform you that after reviewing your materials, we would like to have your company become a vendor with Baker & Taylor.”

That was a fine day.

Since the second book in my series, The Dragondain, had come out in December, and since my original contact from Barnes and Noble had changed since last November, I decided to send my new B&N contact new copies of both titles. She called a few weeks later to say they were going to order The Moon Coin, and that The Dragondain was now being reviewed by their buyer. During that time, Gibbering Gnome Press set up its account with B&T. I sent copies of books to my contact at B&T at that time, too. Soon, I was in B&T’s system.

On July 18th, the day before I was leaving for vacation, the first two purchase orders from B&T rolled in. So, instead of packing, I spent the evening thumbing through a 55 page document on how to make a proper shipping label for B&T’s warehouse. It involved me—I’m Gibbering Gnome’s typesetter, among other things—generating a label containing six barcodes. I’d never made barcodes before. I mean, I’d order them from Bowkers, of course, but never made them from scratch. By midnight, though, everything was boxed and ready to ship. I did what packing I could, then finished up in the morning. We sent the books off as we left town.

Unrelated to all this, I’d been in contact with a B&N Children’s Book Manager since last summer. Her store is in Utah. She’d contacted me on GoodReads, and wanted to know why my books weren’t in B&N’s catalog, Bookmaster. I’d told her I was trying my best. We kept in contact during this whole process, and, now that my books were in the system, she ordered copies for her store. She’s picked out a display, and Gibbering Gnome Press has sent her posters and postcards adverts.

Now all I need to do is sit back and watch the purchase orders roll in, right? Ha! If only it was so easy! But seriously, my job now is to run around to local B&Ns and independent bookstores, handing out free review copies and letting them know that I’m in B&T, or, in the case of the B&Ns, that I’m in Bookmaster. If I’m lucky, I might be able to get in on a few signings.

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Copyright © 2011, 2012 by Richard Due. All rights reserved.

Gibbering Gnome Press,

A Division of Ingenious Inventions Run Amok, Ink^®

The Moon Realm^®

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NEWSFLASH: The Moon Coin and The Dragondain are now in Barnes and Noble’s brick and mortar bookstores!

Gibbering Gnome Press NEWSFLASH!

Paperback copies of The Moon Coin and The Dragondain are now in Barnes and Noble’s brick and mortar bookstores!!! Not every location has them on the shelf, but they can all order it for in-store pick-up.

It also means you can order the paperback books through B&N’s website (free shipping eligible). In fact, B&N is currently offering the best deal I’ve seen: 25% off The Moon Coin!

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Copyright © 2011, 2012 by Richard Due. All rights reserved.

Gibbering Gnome Press, A Division of

Ingenious Inventions Run Amok, Ink^®

The Moon Realm^®

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The Mothership has Placed an Order for Books!

My Barnes and Noble rep called me and said she could see The Moon Coin in Baker & Taylor’s catalog, and that she was ordering copies for Barnes and Noble’s brick and mortar bookstores!!! She also said that their book buyer is currently reviewing The Dragondain (which I  sent them just last week).

Update: My Barnes and Noble rep sent me a letter confirming that The Dragondain has also been approved by their book buyer, and that paperback copies have been ordered. Woot!

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Good news for Moon Realm fans! Baker & Taylor has picked up Gibbering Gnome Press as a vendor.

Which means . . . after I slay a thousand forms, hire TRON to break into B&N’s catalog system, kill the witch, and bring back the broom to Oz . . . after all that . . . The Moon Coin is headed for Barnes & Noble!

Here’s how it happened: back in the fall, Barnes and Noble sent me a letter saying they wanted to carry The Moon Coin in their brick and mortar bookstores. The problem is that B&N doesn’t acquire books from publishers and authors, they get them from distributors and wholesalers.

Well, this week I heard back from Baker & Taylor. I’VE GOT THE BROOM AND I’M HEADING BACK TO OZ! My book is going to be available to B&N, (among many other bookstores), and a 95% of all libraries!

I have no idea how long it’s going to take me to get back to Oz, though. A couple months maybe? There’s just never a roving band of blood-thirsty flying monkeys around when you need one. Have you ever noticed that? But when I do get back, and into the Barnes & Noble catalog, B&Ns everywhere will be able to stock the series!

I’ve already heard from one B&N children’s dept manager who says she already has a special display in mind. She also plans to put up posters! Yikes!

One B&N store down, 722 to go.

In other news, I’m back up on Google Plus: https://plus.google.com/u/0/116346566164783346454

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The Barnes & Noble Letter or Help, I Need a Distributor!

It came in the mail yesterday. A snail mail letter from Barnes & Noble, postmarked New York. My wife opened it. She scanned it. “They don’t want your book,” she said. [insert explosions, screams, and that little light that came out of Sirius Black’s mouth shooting out like a bullet from mine] Okay. It wasn’t that bad. Honestly, it had been the answer I’d been expecting all along. I’m a small publisher of two books, both by me.

Then, she said, “Wait, I skimmed over this first part.” She read it aloud: “Thank you for sending us THE MOON COIN. We welcome the opportunity to review books of all types from publishers large and small. After a careful review, the buyer for the category has decided to place an order for approximately 10 copies on THE MOON COIN.”

Then I read it. Ten times. I read it ten times because I was certain that on the next reading it would say something else.

But . . . it didn’t. It’s been a whole day. I’m still in shock.

The one big hitch is that B&N wants me to get my book into a distributor or wholesaler (there’s a difference?), before they’ll order the copies. I’ve been thinking about distributors for awhile now. I even went the the Self-Publishing Book Expo in New York last month, mostly to go to a workshop on distributors. What did I learn? There’s no way I can swing a distributor for THE MOON COIN or the upcoming THE DRAGONDAIN. My unit price is just too high. 22 full-color illustrations can do that to a book, you know. I stopped crunching the numbers after I got to the point where I was losing several dollars on each book (and I just knew there were more fees). Distributors want exclusives, which means I’d have to pull the book out of my own bookstore (and all the independents that are currently selling it). Distributors want a hefty cut of ebook sales. It’s endless.

My was despair incarnate.

Then I flipped over the list of distributors B&N had sent me. A list of wholesalers, huh? What are those?

I googled them. Wholesalers don’t ask for exclusivity. Wholesalers don’t ask for a cut of ebook sales. Wholesalers don’t ask for as big of a cut.

I said all right.

Our bookstore even had an account with one of the wholesalers on the list!

I submitted the book to them today. If they give me the thumbs up, THE MOON COIN is headed to a Barnes & Noble (and thousands of independent bookshops) near you. If they give me the thumbs down . . . all is lost and I sink into a pit of despair deeper than tar is black. Stay tuned.

Here’s the actual letter:

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The Moon Coin Print Edition Book Cover

“Tales, unlike stories, never lie. You see, a tale is an account of things in their due order, often divulged secretly, or as gossip. Would you like to hear one?”

—Lord Autumn

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Click the image above to enlarge or HERE to download a PDF.

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Here’s the final cover. The book measures 7.5″ x 5.5″, has 3″ flaps, and an inch spine. It’ll will weigh in at 304 pages. Should be ready by June.

2012 Moonbeam Children’s Book Awards: Gold Medal Winner

Preview: The Moon Coin.

Six chapters formatted for ePub, Mobi, or PDF.

Please share these files with your friends. Enjoy.

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Paperback and eBook now available:

Amazon and Second Looks Books.

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Click HERE to Read Reviews of The Moon Coin.

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Copyright © 2011 by Richard Due. All rights reserved.

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Gibbering Gnome Press, A Division of Ingenious Inventions Run Amok, Ink^®

The Moon Realm^®

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Typesetting THE MOON COIN: The Print Edition

These are some screen shots from CS Indesign 5.5.

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When I was working on the eBook version of The Moon Coin, I was very limited in what I could do. Since then, Amazon has introduced a new Kindle .Mobi format that promises a slew of new features, including embedded fonts. After I finish evaluating what that means for users of older kindles, I may adopt that new format later this year. Similarly, Apple has recently introduced iAuthor, a new proprietary software program to build their ebooks. It also promises a slew of new features.

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First up, a presentation shot.

Click HERE or the image directly above to enlarge.

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Here’s a detail shot of the graphic elements in the header.

Click HERE or the image directly above to enlarge.

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Here’s a detail shot of the graphic elements in the footer.

Click HERE or the image directly above to enlarge.

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The Howling Turtle Interview

Howling Turtle

Click HERE or the image directly above for the Interview.

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The Joys of Sick, or, Knowing When Your Book is Finished

I reached one of my favorite book-writing milestones today. I’m sick of my book! Don’t worry. It’s mostly temporary, I hope, and it happened at just the right time: seven years and about twenty-five editing passes in. (If I’d gotten sick of it earlier—trust me—I’d be seriously depressed.)

What did I do to celebrate, you ask? Well, yesterday, as the printer in my hallway was still warming down its jets (ink-low lights blinking furiously), I slid into the Post Office just ten minutes before closing time, slapped a delivery conformation sticker on my handmade cardboard box, and sent it roaring off to Carolyn Arcabascio, the illustrator extraordinaire for The Moon Realm Series.

Sure, The Dragondain still needs more work, but I’m looking forward to being truly ill? during the final read-through and polish. 😀 I’M SO HAPPY!

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Howling Turtle Reviews THE MOON COIN

Click HERE or the image directly above to read the review.

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ForeWord Reviews Reviews THE MOON COIN

“The Moon Coin is a beautifully written fantasy novel, perfect for middle graders to pore over themselves or as a bedtime story for younger kids. The descriptions of everything, from Uncle Ebb’s electronic fish-bird hybrids to the fanciful creatures Lily meets in the Moon Realm, are so rich that the action instantly comes alive for the reader.” —Molly Horan of ForeWord Reviews

Click HERE or on the image directly above to read review.

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Courtney’s Book Nook Reviews THE MOON COIN

Click HERE or the image directly above to read the review.

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Brazen Broads Book Bash Get Their Rave On

Brazen Broads Book Bash review The Moon Coin.

Click HERE or the image directly above to read the review.

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A Sampling of First Pages

Some first pages, featuring illustrations by Carolyn Arcabascio.

You might not want to read the chapter text below the illustrations too carefully. I don’t think you’ll find any huge spoilers, but you could pick up on some cool bits that you might not want to know beforehand. 🙂

Click HERE or on the image directly above to enlarge.

Click HERE or on the image directly above to enlarge.

Click HERE or the image directly above to enlarge.

Click HERE or the image directly above to enlarge.

Click HERE or the image directly above to enlarge.

Click HERE or the image directly above to enlarge.

For the curious, these are iPad 2 screen shots that I later stitched together with Pixelmator 2.0.1.

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Preview: The Moon Coin.

Six chapters formatted for ePub, Mobi, or PDF.

Please share these files with your friends. Enjoy.

2012 Moonbeam Children’s Book Award winner for pre-teen fiction: Gold.

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Paperback and eBook now available:

Amazon and Second Looks Books.

❍

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Copyright © 2011 by Richard Due. All rights reserved.

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Gibbering Gnome Press, A Division of Ingenious Inventions Run Amok, Ink^®

The Moon Realm^®

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Say Hello to a Gibbering Gnome

Carolyn’s been busy. Now all I have to do is find a type font fit for a Gibbering Gnome.
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Gibbering Gnome Press,

A Division of Ingenious Inventions Run Amok, Ink^®

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Rambling Bookmarks Reviews THE MOON COIN

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Click HERE or the image directly above to read the review.

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Little Red Reads Revews The Moon Coin

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Click HERE or the image directly above to read the review.

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Carabosse’s Library Reviews The Moon Coin

Click HERE or the image directly above to read the review.

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Carolyn Arcabascio’s Behance Portfollio

Click HERE or the image below to see some

illustrations from Carolyn’s Behance portfollio:

She put some illustrations up from The Moon Coin, too. Click HERE to see them.

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