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emy-loves-you · 4 years

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Wrong Numbers and Useless Gays Chapter 12

Starlight, Star Bright

Virgil’s list of crushed is growing, but why do they seem so familiar?

Chapter 11 | Masterlist | Chapter 13

The next day, Virgil found himself walking up to Puppy Pastries. He had texted a standard “Good morning” to his crushes before leaving to go flirt with Angel. He decided not to tell his crushes about Angel. If he had any chance with the three of them, it would be immediately lost the moment he told them about his new crush. Part of him was worried that Angel would recognize him as Anxiety, but so far there was nothing on social media that hinted at Anxiety even living in Florida. So either Angel didn’t recognize him, or he knew and decided to respect Anxiety’s privacy. Even though it was probably the first option, Virgil felt his blush grow at the thought of Angel caring that much.

Virgil entered the cafe at 11 AM, scanning the people there. Today was obviously a slow day, with only 3 customers throughout the building. As Virgil made his way to the counter, he saw the same worker from yesterday- Katherine, if he remembered correctly. Katherine’s eyes widened at the sight of him, and she quickly turned to face the kitchens. “Boss!”

“Yes, Kyle?” Angel’s asked, still obviously caught up in whatever he was doing. Kyle? Virgil glanced around until he saw a blue pronoun bracelet on Kat- Kyle’s wrist.

“That one guy from yesterday? He’s back.” Virgil heard the clunking of pots and pans before Angel came out covered in flour, wiping his hands off with a blue dishtowel. He wore a light blue apron with the Puppy Pastries logo written in cartoonish white letters.

Flirt Mode: Activated.

“Hey there, Angel.” Anxiety purred, leaning up against the counter. “Did you just lose a flour-fight or something?”

Angel blushed, looking down at his apron. “Nah, I just spilled a little, that’s all.” He looked back up, a slight scowl on his face. “Now, why did you tip $100 on a free meal, Kiddo?”

Anxiety smirked. “Why did you give me an extra muffin, Beautiful?”

“Because I almost broke your nose with a door!” He near-yelled, clenching the towel in his hands. He must really be beating himself up about this.

“And you cleaned me up and gave me an ice pack.” He glanced at the cup of lollipops on the counter, priced at $1 apiece. He took a dollar out of his pocket before grabbing the lollipop, quickly unwrapping it to stick in his mouth.

“It was the right thing to do! You still didn’t have to tip!” The guy looked close to hyperventilating. Anxiety sighed, pulling the lollipop out with a quiet pop.

“Listen,” he said, lazily gesturing with his lollipop. “Tipping you was my decision, got it? I was gonna tip anyways, if only because Kyle made my friend’s monster drink without complaint. And I shouldn’t have been standing in the doorway, either. So don’t blame yourself, cutey.” He turned to Kyle, who seemed to be watching them talk like it was a tennis match. “One medium chai tea and a… blackberry muffin, please.”

“On the house!” Angel yelled before Kyle could list off the price. “You’ve already paid enough to have breakfast here for at least the whole week. Let me make it up to you, please.”

Anxiety sighed, pulling out his wallet. “Angel, if you don’t let me pay for this, I’m just gonna tip again. You’ve already made it up. Stop it with this guilty shit or I’m gonna have to do something drastically expensive.” He and Angel had an intense staring contest before Angel huffed, going back to the kitchen. Anxiety paid for his breakfast before walking out the door. “Nice talking to you Angel, Kyle!”

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Virgil sighed as he finished his muffin. It wasn’t quite noon yet, and the streets started getting a little more hectic with people on lunch break. Virgil walked aimlessly down the street, having planned nothing beyond visiting Puppy Pastries. He stopped at a random library, deciding to take a look inside. Lo’s Birthday is in a few weeks. I’m already getting him chocolate, but maybe something in here can give me ideas?

Virgil strolled through the library, trying to find anything on space. He eventually found a section tucked away in the corner. Even though the section was near impossible to find, it was definitely popular, judging by the massive array of books on the shelves. He quickly grabbed the first book he saw and opened it up, skimming it to see if it might interest Lo. His heart sunk as he realized something.

“May I be of assistance?” Virgil’s eyes shot up, staring at the man in front of him. He had dark brown hair, brushed neatly out of his face. He wore a pair of square glasses, which perfectly framed his dark blue eyes. He wore a black button-up shirt with a perfectly straightened navy blue tie. He also wore a pair of dark wash jeans that perfectly hugged his-

Flirt Mode: Activated

“There are many ways you could help me, Beautiful.” Anxiety purred out, closing the book and putting it on the shelf. “But unless you know anything about space, you can’t really help me with this problem.”

If the man realized that Anxiety was flirting, he didn’t acknowledge it. “I happen to know a great deal about space. I have read the majority of the books in this section. Now, what is this problem of yours?”

Anxiety sighed, carding a hand through his hair. “My friend’s birthday is in a few days, and I need a present for him. I know he really likes space, so I was hoping I could find information in one of these books. But then realized that I don’t know anything about space beyond the names of the planets.”

The man sighed. “That is a problem.” He turned to the shelf next to Anxiety, pulling out a giant paperback book. He then handed it to Anxiety. “This book gives simplistic descriptions of most of our universe’s known types of celestial bodies. If you are only learning this to find a proper gift, this will be your best choice. If you need any further assistance, I will be here until 2 PM.”

Anxiety smiled, giving the man a casual two-finger salute. “Thanks, Starlight. I’ll let you know if I have any questions.” Starlight blushed at the nickname before walking away.

He stayed at the library for around 2 hours, taking pictures of what he found interesting and finding Starlight when there was something he didn’t understand. Every time he asked a question, Starlight would get a certain shine in his eyes as he spoke passionately about the topic at hand. Starlight would stop every few sentences to make sure that he understood, and every time Anxiety would give his own recap while flirting. By the time they were finished, Anxiety felt confident enough to hold a decent conversation about space, and Starlight’s cheeks were bright red.

It was now 1:45 PM, and Virgil was ready to head home. He put the book back on the shelf and went to the front desk, where Starlight stood helping an older woman. He waited until the woman left before approaching. “Oh, did you have another question?”

“Nah, just wanted to say goodbye before I head out. Thanks again for the help. Will you be here on Monday? You know, in case I have another question?”

Starlight smiled, typing something into the computer. “Yes. I am here from 10 AM to 2 PM every weekday.” He paused, looking up at Anxiety’s face. “I’ve been meaning to ask all day, and I don’t mean to be rude, but what happened to your face?”

Anxiety cringed, hand flying to cover his nose. Even though it’s not broken, his nose was still an ugly shade of purple. “I fought a door,” he joked, “the door won. Catch you later, Starlight.” And with that, he walked away.

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The next day, when Virgil gushed to Janus and Remus about how cute both Angel and Starlight were, they were cackling with laughter. He ended up sending another box of chocolates to Logan, if only to talk to someone that wasn’t laughing at him. They spent the weekend debating whether or not Pluto was a planet. Logan wasn’t quite sure how to respond to Virgil’s main argument of “Viva La Pluto Fuck You.” Virgil, on the other hand, was extremely thankful for those questions he had asked Starlight over Dwarf Planets. Every time he saw Patton or Logan take a moment to respond, he imagined how they would look in that moment; Patton’s face would be bright red from giggling. Logan’s would be bright red from Patton’s teasing puns. They would be curled up on the couch, their glasses shining from the bright light of their phones-

Wait a minute, why the hell was he imagining them with glasses? Sure, it would probably match their aesthetics (especially Logan’s nerdiness) but they’ve never mentioned wearing glasses. So why was he imagining it? Virgil thought for a few more minutes before he sighed, going back to their conversation. The increase in social interactions must be triggering his overactive imagination. That makes sense, right? Virgil smiled. Lo and Starlight would be proud of him, finding logical and rational reasoning instead of freaking out.

But why did that thought make him feel so… uneasy?

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Taglist: @bisexualdisaster106 @self-taught-mess @itawalrus @arodynamic-enby @sanderssides-angst

#useless gays #sanders sides fic #virgil sanders #logan sanders #patton sanders

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bookishbratbabe · 3 years

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I gotta ask this question because it has been kicking my ass for awhile now. Do you prefer to read books on a table or do you prefer to have the book in your hand? I struggle with this because I feel like with buying the book I'm supporting the author and I don't feel that when I read via my tablet. But also, I know I can save on space at my place if I don't turn my apartment into a library. I've held off on buying books for awhile and it's convenient having everything on a tablet but at the same time there's a look of sophistication with having your own personal library displayed for guests to see.

Great question and thank you for asking! 💕

I love books and all of their many forms (ebooks, paperbacks, hardcover, audiobooks, etc) and there are pros and cons for all of them.

While hardcover and paperback books offer that specific comfort that comes with the physical sensations of reading - like holding the weight of a book, feeling the pages, smelling that sweet paper scent - and they are aesthetically pleasing (bookshelves, book stacks, photos of books, people seeing you reading a book), they can also be really inconvenient. They’re expensive, heavy, harder to hold, they take up space, sometimes the print is too small, and are inaccessible to some readers.

I am a huge fan of e-readers and ebooks and frankly, I’m annoyed with the superiority from readers who look down on ebooks. I get it if it’s a preference but ebooks are more accessible and more convient to a wider range of readers than physical books for a lot of different reasons.

They are typically cheaper than physical books - while physical books can range in price from $10-$25, e-books can range anywhere between FREE and $9.

They’re a lot easier to hold because they are lighter and an easier shape to hold. Plus you can add a pop-socket or something to make it more comfortable for each reader’s needs.

They travel a lot easier than books. Not only can you have multiple books stored on one e-reader as opposed to lugging around multiple books but you can usually sync between devices (kindle, iPhone, tablet, etc) so that you can pick up where you left off even if you left your e-reader at home.

They are instant! While you can be waiting on a book in the mail or taking the time to go to bookstore, the only time you’re waiting on an ebook is when you did a pre-order or if you’re on a waitlist with your library. Keep in mind, not all readers have easy access to physically go to a bookstore when they’re in need of a new book.

E-books are just easier to read. You can adjust the size, font, spacing, and alignment of the text to fit your needs. You can update the page color to make it easier on your eyes. YOU CAN READ THEM IN THE DARK WITHOUT A LIGHT!!!

E-readers typically have a built in dictionary or allow you to run a web search if you don't know a word so all you have to do is click on it. And same thing with translating foreign language. I’ve read a few books with latin, Spanish, French, or Italian passages that I wanted to know what they meant but the author didn’t translate it for me (and I really need to brush up on my foreign language skills). All I had to do was highlight the text and a translation popped up. This is really helpful to readers who maybe didn’t have the same access to education that other readers have had.

They allow a greater access to variety and diversity in books that readers in, say for instance, a rural or conservative area might not have the same access to at their local bookstore or library.

They’re discreet. Maybe you don’t want everyone around you to know you’re reading blue alien smut (there’s no shame but it’s also okay if you don't want people to know). Or maybe queer teens want to read queer books without their unaccepting family to know about it.

I also did a little bit of research in terms of the author making money on physical books vs e-books and I’m not really finding much data to say they make more money one way or another. Physical books cost more to print and bind and sell which is why they cost more to purchase. That doesn’t mean the author is getting more money in their pocket. And if you sell ebooks at a lower cost, that means more people are more likely to buy, meaning more money in the authors pocket.

Now you could make the argument that physical books are better for the economy because then you’re paying for the labor of printing the books and then selling the books. Which I would agree with but that’s also any technological advancement.

While I can’t display my beautiful collection of ebooks in my home for all my guests to see, I can buy or borrow the cheaper ebook to see if I like it and if I’d want to read it more than once. If so, then I buy the physical copy and add it to my physical collection.

I hope that answers your question and helps you figure out your own preference. And if your own preference is physical books, that’s absolutely fine! Just remember that ebooks are a completely valid and justified form of reading, especially because of the convince and accessibility it offers to all kinds of readers.

Happy reading! 📚💖

#ask #anon #anon asks #physical books #ebooks #physical books vs ebooks #booklr

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brynwrites · 6 years

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What I learned while self-publishing.

@milkyteefs asked:

I'm unsure about the entire self-publishing world! Do you have a basic outline of the process? Some key highlights/headings of how you started and what connections you needed to make? Thanks again! <3

I went through the process of self-publishing Our Bloody Pearl this summer. Even with all the guides in the world it turned out to be a very grueling experience. I’ll be doing it again with Quasi Stellar soon, but I also hope to traditionally publish The Warlord Contracts trilogy.

First, let’s get this out of the way: Self published books are often very bad.

But they don’t have to be.

Self publishing requires you, the writer, to either wear the hat of everyone else at a publishing house, or be your own investor and pay for professionals to do the jobs you can’t. If you’re willing to put in that effort and money then you can come out with a more professional book than you might have had you published traditionally. If you’re not, then self publishing might not be the right road for you.

Now then, how do you self publish in a way that produces a professional book?

Fifteen Basic Steps to Self-Publishing:

1. Write and edit the book.

This is, understandably, the step that a lot of people get stuck at. Writing a novel is hard. Don’t worry about how or when you’ll publish it until it’s finished.

Just write it.

During this time you should also be marketing yourself as a writer. Learn more about that via my marketing tips tag.

2. Beta readers and critique partners.

Getting feedback from handpicked peers is essential for any book no matter which publishing route you choose. If these terms are new to you, learn more about beta readers here and critique partners here.

During your first book (or two) I recommend starting with critique partners and then moving to beta readers afterward, because critique partners will shred your novel down to the bare bones, which you usually really need the first few books you write. Critique partners will also generally pick at your grammar and typos though, which can be very useful at the end of the editing stage so that your manuscript looks cleaner to an editor (or agent, if you traditionally publish.)

3. Write your blurbs and summary.

While your story is in the hands of your final group of readers, you should already be working on blurbs and summaries. By the end of the publishing process you will need:

A back of the book blurb.

A one-two sentence logline style blurb.

A one page summary of the story.

Don’t put these off! They won’t get any easier if you wait. You can find tips on writing blurbs in this article.

4. Determine that you’re done making changes to the manuscript.

A writer who’s growing and learning will forever feel as though there’s something they can change in their manuscript, but at some point you have to decide that what’s done is done. You will always have another awesome book which will be even better than this one.

If you have trouble determining when this point should be, check out this explanation!

5. Make a publishing timetable.

Give yourself more time on your timetable than you think you need! Traditional publishing takes about two years for a reason. A lot of the steps below this point seem relatively simple compared to writing and editing a book, but they require you to learn new skills and spend a lot of time waiting for other people with busy schedules.

Five and a half: Start book two.

You might have already done this during the beta reading stage, but if not, start another book! Writers should never stop writing and editing (outside of planned vacations, emergencies, and mental health breaks, of course), so pick that pen back up and start pounding out another book.

6. Find a content editor.

If you ran a beta reading stage with 10-20 critical and knowledgeable beta readers in your target audience then congratulations, they served the purpose of a content editor already!

6. Find a copy editor.

A copy editor is the person who checks your grammar, sentence structure, flow, and word usage. I found my editor though the editorial freelance association directory. The main things to look for when choosing an editor:

Experience. This should include testimonies, information about any publishing companies they worked with, and the works they edited in the past. If you can’t easily access and double check these things, then keep looking.

Sample edits. Any editor worth your time will offer you a free sample edit. (For copy editing this is generally 750-1k words of your novel. I’m not sure about other types of editing.) Take advantage of this! Send the same sample to the top four or five editors who fit your price range and see who returns feedback that you jive with and feel comfortable paying.

What if I can’t afford a copy editor?

In general, you can probably get away without hiring a professional copy editor if you (a) find 3-4 solid critique partners who are willing to do a very detailed line edit and proofread of your final draft (do not take advantage of your fellow writers!! Offer them the same in return!!), (b) get free sample edits from a handful of freelance authors to see if they catch any major formatting issues you do regularly, and (c) learn what a style guide is and make at least a simple one for yourself while you do another round of proofreading.

Remember though, traditionally publishing exists specifically so that you, the writer, can get a professional edit without having to pay for it. If you want a professional book without putting in the investment, then querying an agent might be the better option for you.

7. Prepare to offer ARCs to reviewers and friends.

Getting reviews for your book is the most important marketing activity you can do. The sooner you contact reviewers about this, the more reviews you’ll have when the release date comes. Note that the large majority of book reviewers you contact will never respond. If you email 20 reviewers, expect to get one or two reviews out of it, most likely in 4-6 months. (Which is why you should email all your friends and past beta readers too.)

How do we maximize the number reviewers who will read our books?

You know those neat little lists of book blogs who will review indie books? Don’t use them. Anything that with nicely compiled and easy to get reviewer lists is going to be overcrowded with blogs who have two year wait-lists and 97% of them will never even email you back.

Instead, try searching for reviewers you already follow on twitter and tumblr. Look for semi-popular goodreads reviewers who put positive reviews on books similar to your own and check if they have a link to a blog, or an email for review inquiries. Find less well known booktubers that youtube links to off your favorite popular booktubers.

8. Format the book.

You can pay someone to format your novel, but its rather expensive for something that’s relatively easy to learn to do yourself using guides off the internet. Paperback and ebook formatting must be done separately, and your first time I would set aside a full Saturday to tackle each of them, just to be safe. If you have a program like scrivener, with a little tweaking you should be able to get a nice looking ebook with none of the hassle of learning html. There are many other options though. Do a little research to find the one which works for you!

(Note: If you’re printing a paperback you cannot get a paperback cover until you’ve formatted the book and know final page count for your print size!)

9. Hire a cover artist.

The book cover is the most important part of your book, so far as sales and success are concerned.

There’s a huge trend in self published books to skip this stage and work with photoshop or cavna instead. I would not recommend this. Cover artists for professional books do what they do full time. They know the market. They know what sells. So do some writers, but the truth is, many of the writers who think they can design covers, turn out the sorts of designs that are easily pegged as self-published books.

If you want a professional looking book that pops in the amazon charts, hire a professional.

There are a multitude of ways you can go about this. Some large cover art sites like damonza offer bundles which can get pricey, but let you back out with no charge if you don’t like their first drafts and include unlimited changes if you commit. There are also many freelancers who specialize in book covers, for a wide range of prices.

What if I don’t have the money to hire a cover artist?

If there is anything you don’t want to go cheep on, it’s your cover art. But let’s say you absolutely have to get a cover for cheap or free. There are people who do cover designs for $5 on Fiverr, and I think some of them actually turn out half decent covers for very specific genres, but its a gamble. A couple writeblrs do cover design as part of their day job and might be willing to do something cheep or for a trade. You could also learn how to design covers yourself, but if you want to compete with books whose designers went to school just to do what they now do full time, you’ll either have to put in a lot of time or be lucky enough to have a very good, easily executed idea for your particular novel, and hopefully not one with requires any stock photos unless you want to purchase rights to them.

Now, there are some exceptions. Some writers have a natural design brain, and some writers are in fact designers themselves. Sometimes you write a book where the perfect cover design is very simple and easy to produce yourself. But that won’t be most people, with most books.

So far I have seen exactly two of the hundreds of self publisher made covers I’ve seen have actually made me want to buy the story. I’m not trying to be mean. It’s just the truth.

10. Offer ARCs to more reviewers.

Now you have a nicely formatted book and everything! Who can resist that?

11. Do a cover reveal, and during the cover reveal, offer everyone there an ARC.

Cover reveals come in many different forms. Some writers just post the cover on their blog, some do livestreams on facebook, some do question and answer sessions leading up to the reveal, some even go all out and have other writers come talk about their books on their site for a full day prior to the cover reveal.

Do whatever works best for your schedule. The goal is to attract attention for the book, so make sure you link to anything you’ve already set up from #12, so people can easily find your book when you release it!

And, as always, give out ARCs.

12. Get your book and author profile set up on everything.

Prior to your book’s release you should have a goodreads author page, an amazon author page, and a bookbub author page, all with your book attached. You should also have a website and a mailing list (linked to via your ebook), prepared release announcements for every social media site you work off of, and be ready with attractive and easily noticeable links to the book’s sale page off your tumblr blog and website.

Keep in mind that some of these things will take a decent chunk of time to set up, and a few of them require a live human being to confirm you are who you say you are. Start them as early as possible!

13. Release the book!

Time to actually put the book out there for all to buy. You can do a similar hype release as you do with a cover reveal, if you so desire. Make sure you remember to post all your announcements and put up all your links.

Try not to check on the book’s sales until the following day! It does not help their growth or your mental health to constantly be haunting your sales charts. When you do check them, keep in mind that a book which sells two thousand copies in its entire life time has done well, all things considered.

The fantastic thing about self publishing is that you never have to stop selling your book. If you sell fifty copies your first month and then twenty the second and then five the third, you can always dive back into marketing, run a discount, apply for a bookbub ad, focus on marketing yourself as an author and gaining followers. You chose whether your book is done selling.

To offer pre-orders or not?

This is a toss up. In my experience, pre-orders aren’t a good idea for your debut self-published novel, even if you think you have a large audience who will buy them, because they take away from the sales you could have your release week, and the boost those sale give you on the amazon charts. If you do wish to offer pre-orders though, try going through ingramspark instead of amazon advantage, to save yourself tears and heartache.

To go amazon exclusive or not?

Many authors claim that you have to try both to know what’s right for any particular book. Do your own research and decide what you think is best for you.

Thirteen and a half: Start book three.

At this point you should already have finished at least the rough draft of second novel, so don’t forget to start your third book at some point!

14. Offer people read for review copies.

Especially if your debut novel is aimed toward broke teenagers and younger adults, there will be a lot of people who are interested in the book but aren’t motivated enough to actually buy it on faith alone. By offering free ebooks on a read for review basis, you...

Grow your reviews.

Create fans out of people who may have never read the book otherwise.

Have higher paperback sales, because readers who loved the ebook you gave them may decide to buy themselves a paperback.

15, unto infinity: Keep promoting your book into the sunset, while writing new books!

The time to stop promoting you book is whenever you feel you’ve had enough sales and reached enough readers. Until you reach a point where you’ve published so many books that you can’t handle marketing them all, you should still be trying to expand your readership!

And don’t forget to have a little bit of fun along the way. You worked hard for this. Celebrate it.

But what if I just want to get a book out there?

If your goal is not to publish a professional looking book with will expand your fanbase and set you on a path to full time authorship, but rather to have a piece of your writing available in a book format your friends and family can buy, then there’s no reason not to publish exactly how you wish to.

Are all these steps really necessarily?

I believe they are, at least for a debut novel. In fact, there are probably more steps which I missed entirely. But, if you can find multiple self-published authors who went through a less rigorous publishing process and still received hundreds or goodreads reviews, then by all mean, follow that process instead (and let me know about it!)

So which book did you self publish?

This one here! You can support me and my ability to keep giving writing advice by purchasing a copy today =D

#writeblr #writing resources #writers on writing #writers on tumblr #self publishing #authors on tumblr #writing tag: publishing

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emeraldnebula · 6 years

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Thoughts on the comic book industry, Part 2

One of the biggest gripes about comic books is one that’s gotten a lot of traction since the end of the big 1990s comic book boom. And it’s only become a much bigger, much more unavoidable issue since then:

American comics are inaccessible to the general public, largely inappropriate and/or incomprehensible for all-ages audiences and newcomers, and are prohibitively expensive for anyone who isn’t already a die-hard collector.

Let me put it this way: For about $5 to $7, you can buy at your drug store or supermarket a 300-page paperback novel that tells a complete story. For $4 or $5 bucks at minimum, your money will get you a 22-page comic book that more often than not is part of a prolonged story arc that even upon completion probably won’t be a complete story. And you won’t be able to find said comic anywhere but a comic book store, so you have to put out the extra effort to see if there even is a store in your area. Which is the better value for your money? The complete story that’s easily accessible and reasonably priced, or the 22-page booklet that won’t be a complete story, will likely be impossible to understand unless you’re already a fan, and will be much harder to come by?

Obviously, the devolution of American comics from something easily available and accessible to all to the impenetrable mess they are today is the result of the industry switching over to the direct market system exclusively. In the late ‘70s and early ‘80s, comics started abandoning newsstands, grocery stores, and drug stores in favor of comic book stores. That transition bled a lot of readers over time, and gradually led to comics catering almost exclusively to an audience of aging die-hards. Dick Giordano commented around the time of John Byrne’s Man of Steel that they were playing to “a much smaller and much more demanding audience” than had existed before. So there was no more incentive to make comics reader-friendly for potential newcomers or to bother with wide distribution. Just play to your captive audience and call it a day.

The consequences of this have been playing out for the last 32 years. Since 1986, when Alan Moore and Frank Miller made their names by shaking up the public perception of comics (for good and ill), the major publishers have adopted soap opera-style storytelling as the default model, a nihilistic and mean-spirited overall tone, lots of graphic violence and shock value gimmicks, and the default assumption that their readers are the same people who’ve been with them all along. Little to no effort is made in publicizing their wares to appeal to a larger audience; any publicity that’s done is purely to pimp the latest bad idea the editors are stuck on at any given moment to their existing readership. (This is even more baffling when you remember DC and Marvel are both owned by major studios, and could have used those resources at any time.)

And by not even bothering to make themselves available on a mass scale, comics have abandoned any notion of being reader-friendly, relying on convoluted, incomprehensible “continuity” and seldom bothering to open issues with even a brief recap of previous events to get new readers up to speed. The assumption is that anyone who’s reading today’s comics has already been doing so for years, is already an adult, and is more than likely somebody who gets off on material that can best be described as malicious. The high price of modern comics is even more of a problem when you have franchises with multiple books to their name, as crossover events either within said franchises or within the publisher’s entire line force readers to buy multiple books just to follow one storyline. And God help you if there’s a book or even just a creative team you don’t like, because you’ll be faced with the choice of buying stuff you don’t like or not buying anything at all. At $4 or $5 a pop for 22 pages at a time, that’s not an investment worth making.

This all assumes, of course, that there’s even a comic book store anywhere near you. In the last 18 years or so, comic book stores have been gradually dying out with the emergence of digital media. (In my neck of the woods alone, at least four stores have bitten the dust.) Again, availability is a major issue. And since the overall idea behind crossover stories is essentially double-dipping – profit off both the individual issues and the eventual trade collection – missing out on the individual issues automatically means having to wait for the trade. But by that time, any potential new reader is likely to lose interest and move on to something else. So again, the industry is still playing to the same aging, ever-shrinking audience.

Another failing of the direct market system and the overall inaccessibility of comics is that new readers more often than not won’t have any idea what all is really out there and how much variety there is. In the olden days where comics were available everywhere, it wasn’t just DC and Marvel running the show. You had stuff like war comics, funny animal comics, crime comics, horror comics, romance comics, comedy comics...anything and everything you could imagine was available on the newsstand. And while there is still some variety in the comic book industry from the smaller publishers, it doesn’t get nearly the exposure it should because DC and Marvel both stand to benefit from the limited availability of comics in general. If all you’re aware of is those two companies, you won’t know to seek out anything else. And if you find those companies’ output to be absolute shit (and it is), you’re not going to want to bother looking for anything else. So again, the other, smaller publishers end up suffering for it.

And let’s be honest, there’s really no reason for the comic book industry to be so exclusive and inaccessible in the age of social media. With Facebook and Twitter alone, promoting and bringing awareness to comics should be a snap. It’s even less excusable when you remember we live in a time where digital downloads for books and music are the standard, and movies and TV are gradually following suit. But since the industry by and large doesn’t want to be accessible to a bigger audience and doesn’t care about appealing to anyone outside the tiny clique it already has, a golden opportunity to bring in new fans is being wasted. Then again, as gruesome and nihilistic as DC and Marvel have become, would parents even want their kids reading this stuff? Would kids really want to see the heroes they watch on TV and in the movies making deals with the devil, being humiliated/torn down/killed off and replaced with alternate universe impostors, being dismembered and having loved ones killed off needlessly, having their romantic relationships destroyed out of the blue on a whim, turned into glorified villains in heroes’ clothing, or changed beyond the point of recognition?

(Yes, I’m fully aware that there are still kid-friendly comics in existence. But those books don’t get nearly the publicity and the attention as the event-gimmick crap I just mentioned, and tend to fall by the wayside. Again, another opportunity to get new readers on board is being largely wasted.

And yes, I also know that as of this time of writing, DC’s planning a series of 100-page digest comics for distribution with Wal-Mart. But since it’s just going to be more of the same shit they’ve been doing and failing miserably with in the direct market, I’m not holding my breath on it.)

The biggest sin with the current setup of the industry? Everybody who’s currently in the fandom was a newcomer at first. They all, in one way or another, benefited from the industry at one time being accessible and easy for a newbie to understand. By making comics so impenetrable, hard to find, unappealing to anyone who isn’t maladjusted, and expensive, the industry has effectively cut itself off from the people who could, in theory, keep it alive for years to come. You can’t expect comics to stay in business when you’ve made them too costly, too unpleasant and confusing, too far under the radar for anyone not already in the know to be aware of them, and too hard to come by. And by clinging to a dying brick-and-mortar system in a digital age...well, we all know how that sort of thing ends.

It’s not rocket science. The 22-page pamphlet format of comics is obsolete. In the age of digital, it’s not worth the inflated price tag and doesn’t give you any real value for your money. Digital comics made widely available thru a variety of distributors AND complete paperback graphic novels on sale at retail stores and/or newsstands would be a far better bet. Greater convenience, more satisfying formats than the old model, more value for your money, and a cool-looking graphic novel available for a decent price at your grocery store or drug store would be an enticing impulse buy for kids (provided, of course, the content wasn’t nihilistic garbage). But that would require looking beyond the ever-shrinking core audience of entitled fanbrats the major publishers cater to, so thus we’re not seeing anything like that happening. They won’t take advantage of digital media (if they do digital comics at all, it’s in the most half-assed way possible), and they do not want in any way, shape, or form to reach a wider audience. This goes beyond leaving money on the table; this is the industry saying they don’t want to make money at all if it means actually putting forth anything resembling effort. Forget long-term business sense, this is idiotic even in the short term. And it’s ignoring the most basic truth of the comic book industry: Without new fans, without another generation to carry it along, the industry will die.

But as we’ll be discussing soon enough, neither the major players of the industry or its ever-shrinking core audience of aging, lunatic fringe fanboys and fangirls see anything wrong with that at all.

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cydoniandetective · 2 years

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hello! i know you get a lot of these messages, but I just wanted to offer my appreciation. like a previous anon, my country has removed iasip from most streaming services, and it’s hard to find other places to watch. you’re a saving grace, thank you! can’t wait for s12. 💓💕

Aw thanks though I don't think I deserve such appreciation considering I went away and delayed s12/s13, sorry!

But about streaming services... It's so weird, because at first they were pretty comforting to me. I was earning my own money, I was able to pay for the content I wanted, supporting people behind and I felt pretty happy about it (thanks, VPNs). But then suddenly we had a million streaming services, and they split the content and suddenly you'd have to subscribe to a whole lot of different platforms and it's kinda unsustainable. You wanna watch football? There's this service. You wanna watch frasier before going to bed? There's this one service. Do you wanna watch comfy gilmore girls while you're sick? There's this other one. Do you wanna watch you're the worst? There's another one. Do you want to watch doctor who? Welp, here's another service. And it just goes on and on.

Besides that, I don't trust these services to keep a lot of TV content alive...

I think it's ironic because I have always been the person who encouraged digital everything, but I can't say I'm 100% behind content being released only on streaming platforms.

I say this because in my country it's pretty rare to get a DVD or Blu-Ray release for a TV show, so we only have digital services left in most cases (importing the physical version is insanely expensive). Most shows already get filtered at that point. Then they get filtered by copyright and whatever, so yeah, ok. So when everyone loses the right to stream a show there's basically only physical copies left (besides piracy)? Right now I'm thinking about That '70s Show, but I could be talking about a lot of shows that weren't that popular back in the '90s or '80s or whatever, but that could be someone's favorite or just really good content that someone could discover and really find something in it for themselves. Literally nobody here knows about Frasier, but I love it and it got me through a really tough time back in 2012. Of course the situation is different on other places, but it was basically already lost over here and I would never have found it if not for the internet. (Also, I know Frasier isn't that popular but that unpopular in the US, I'm just saying as it is in my country lol)

So uhh basically, the same way they pick what they want to stream, any company can just pick not to store/maintain "old" shows, and they could just be lost forever if they're deemed disposable. I don't mean to sound like a crazy person, and I'm not like downloading everything in the world to storage/archive "just in case", but I do think it's important that content remains accessible for everyone. I can't even explain how much tv shows helped me reflect about things out of the scope of my reality (and also learn a new language) and understand my feelings better. Also, I seriously doubt that people would prefer to pirate stuff if they had access to properly priced content. It's been 14 years and I'm still buying imported paperback copies of Ultimate Spider-Man to complete my collection lol so yeah, I'll shut up now

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deardragonbook · 3 years

Text

How much did it cost me to self-publish my book on KDP?

So, you thought self-publishing on Amazon was free?

You’d technically be correct actually.

At least if you have a vast array of talents.

But, that wasn’t my case and statistically speaking, it probably isn’t yours. So let’s get into it.

There are six parts of your book that could cost you money: writing, editing, formatting, cover design, publishing costs and advertising.

I wrote the book myself, so that part was completely free (other than years of time, obliviously).

I was very lucky to have people close to me for beta reading so I didn’t have to pay anybody, I gave PDF copies to the younger readers and printed some copies on standard A4 paper for my family, this would have cost perhaps 1 euro between paper and ink. Add an extra 1 euro to this budget on post-its over a series of drafts.

So far so good, formatting, again, I did this myself. You could pay somebody to do this and if you have money to spare, well, it’s tedious work, but it’s pretty easy. Amazon has several pages dedicated to explaining how to do this with several programs and other than being a bit fiddly it’s easy enough.

Cover design. Okay, this is where the money goes. At least for me. I considered designing my own cover as I’ve said before, but a cover really is going to be a big selling point so unless you’re really confident in your abilities I have to recommend you commission a profesional. In my case, I went to fiver which is a site I’ve spent a lot of time on as a seller but never bought anything on. I commissioned Banana Art Studios and it cost me a total of 104,95 euros (applying a coupon). I think this is super cheap for the amazing cover I got! But it is the most expensive step, so be prepared for that!

Publishing costs, well, like I said at the beginning, technically free... but, if like me as well as an ebook you are offering a paperback, I have to recommend buy at least one proof copy! A proof copy is basically just a printed copy that says no resale and allows you to check everything looks good. I had to buy two, the first copy my name was out of frame and the margins were too big, the second looked a lot more like I wanted it to, I also took the opportunity to order a different type of cover (glossy instead of mate) and different page colours (cream instead of white). Just to see which I preferred. Good thing I did because I ultimately went with glossy and cream coloured paper! They only charge you printing cost plus delivery (yes, even if you have prime), which came to about 13 euros each proof, so 26 euros for the two.

Once you’ve pressed publish, you can order author copies at the same price, I ordered ten of these to give to me beta readers so this can be considered extra editing costs, 60 euros in total.

Advertising, this again is another costly part of self-publishing, nobody else is going to sell your book! And platforms are hard to build, I still don’t know how to do that. But I do know a thing or two about marketing, right now I’m still adding up data and testing different sites, I’ll get back to you with more information later. But for now the most cost-effective site for me has been Pinterest, I’ve started of with a 10 euro budget and plan to increase once I’ve sold a couple more copies. I also used some ad credit Facebook gave me for free, but in twelve hours it pulled of less than Pinterest did in it’s first five minutes. So take that as you will.

Let’s add this up (rounded up for simplicity sake):

Writing....................0€

Editing....................62€

Formating..............0€

Cover Design..........105€

Publishing Costs.....26€

Advertising.............10€ (so far)

Total.......................203€

Is that a lot? Is that a little? Well, probably depends on who you are and your financial capacity. But to put that number into perspective let’s see how many copies I have to sell to make that money back!

I sell my copies at about 5,99$ for Ebook and 14,99$ for Paperback. This results in royalties approximately 3€ per copy.

So to make my money back I have to sell approximately 70 copies.

And I’m not going to lie, that’s a pretty scary number. As of this moment I’ve sold three copies, which is amazing, I’m super happy to have sold any, because I’m not going to lie even thought I’m proud of my book, the scariest thing is will I sell even one?

From what I’ve found online, and let’s be honest, this isn’t really trustworthy information, most KDP authors won’t sell much. Most will sell next to nothing.

Do I expect to make this money back?

Maybe, over the entire life-span of the book. But then you have to keep in mind taxes and other stuff.

I guess what I’m trying to say here is, if you wrote a book, and querying isn’t going anywhere because the marketplace is over-saturated and you perhaps don’t fit the molde, and you really want to publish it, go ahead! It’s not that expensive and you can cut down on some of the costs I previously mentioned. But you should be prepared to lose money.

I’m three days into this experience, I may make my money back, I may even make money, I’ll keep you all updated for sure! But I’m being realistic and not holding high expectations.

I think the best way to help someone understand the difficulty of self-publishing and amazon specifically, is how little sales it takes to be a top seller. I’ve seen many authors proudly announce being best-sellers when only selling a couple of copies a day, what does this mean? It means most aren’t selling any.

And that’s a reality you just need to be prepared for!

Remember your first social media post? Bet nobody saw it! The same might happen to your book, it hurts more because it can take years to write, but that’s the reality of it. So, if you’re going in for money, maybe don’t.

If you love writing with a passion and it’s not about the money but the book, then do! Self-publish! Whether I make my money back or not, just holding this book that I worked for years on in my hands is an experience I wouldn’t swap for the world.

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playeroneplayertwo · 3 years

Text

I like the pictures for these two posts, but neither HORRIFIED nor WINGSPAN will appear on this two-part list. I would, however, fully endorse Horrified as an excellent gateway--and superior (!!) alternative to Pandemic.

NOTE: Part 1 can be found here--and apologies this took a lifetime to complete.

Harbour (2015) WTF is this OOP?; Complexity 2.09/5; BGG; Mechanisms: Worker Placement, Set Collection, Variable Player Powers

I already said that, for many, worker placement is the evergreen mechanic, so I figured I'd turn two entries on this list over to it. Where Coal Baron was a slight subversion of the genre, Harbour is not. This is the prototypical game in that you place a worker, do an action, and block a space. In Harbour, believe it or not, you're working in a... harbor. You, as a small gremlin-looking fellow visiting buildings to take actions, selling goods (cows, stone, wood, fish) in order to parlay those sales into purchasing new buildings in the harbor, thereby giving you new action spaces to do new cool stuff.

Harbour is a great entry into the inherently meaner side of worker placement because you only have one worker, so it's not quite as overwhelming as games where you start with a heap o' workers, but you can most certainly block action spaces. Not only that, but the market of the game is a simple system of fluctuating prices that are affected each time a player sells something. For a small box game, Harbour includes the idea of supply/demand, so things that aren't being sold to market are worth more, while things being sold constantly tank in value. Buildings have varied and interesting special abilities, and there are a lot of buildings that will come out into play during any given game, as well as a huge host of special abilities that players will start with, making the game play slightly asymmetrical.

With its worker placement, fluctuating market prices, buying/selling, and special abilities, Harbour is an excellent small box introduction to a plethora of Euro mechanics, and the fact that all of these interesting aspects are encapsulated in such a cleap, small box is remarkable. I will say, however, that of the six games on this list, Harbour is the game I'm least likely to play because I've grown past it as a gamer. I've seen this jokingly referred to as Tiny Epic Le Havre, which feels very on the nose. That being said, it does a remarkable job of introducing a handful of popular Euro mechanics, so if this game piques your interests, it has plenty of bigger, meatier siblings out there.

For a game that I haven't touched in a long while, Harbour is probably one of the best single small box game introductions to Euro mechanics I've played.

For those meat and potato worker placement fans (light to heavy): Lords of Waterdeep, Viticulture: Essential Edition, The Gallerist

If you enjoyed the market-based buying/selling/producing bits: Clans of Caledonia

Valley of the Kings (2014) Try it and get the deluxe edition; Complexity 2.19/5; BGG; Mechanisms: Card Drafting, Deck Building, Hand Management, Set Collection

It was inevitable that I include deck building on here. For me, deck building is like the junk food of mechanics. When I first encountered deck building, it was all I wanted to do. There is something driving and compulsive about it. You have the feeling that all you have are options, with infinite combos laid out at your feet. I wanted to try every theme and variation possible. For a little bit, the hobby seemed to be exploding with deck builders of all stripes, with variations popping up everywhere.

Things have cooled now, and it seems deck building has found a more comfortable passenger seat behind (or partnered alongside) other mechanics in mid+ weight Euros, and I think that pairing it with additional mechanics in bigger games actually brings the mechanic to life. Deck building is the idea that all players will start with a small deck of very basic and underpowered cards--generally consisting of cards of different currencies, like attack and some kind of purchasing currency--that you'll use to either buy or defeat other cards, adding them to your deck and thereby increasing the strength of purchasing or fighting, as well as the abilities available to you.

It's a simple idea, but boy is it like Pringles when you first play it. We have a lot of deck builders, and a bunch more that we've since parted ways with. The problem is that many feel a bit themeless and similar, begging the question: If you've played one deck builder, have you played them all?

I would argue no. That being said, if you've played one, you've played... most. Dominion, Marvel: Legendary, Star Realms, Aeon's End, Hero Realms, Nightfall, Paperback, Eminent Domain, Core Worlds, Ascension, Marvel Dicemasters (not deck but dice pool builder), Shadowrun: Crossfire/Dragonfire, and Thunderstone all feel pretty sorta similar. Granted, they each bring a little teeny bit of something different, but if you didn't like one of these, you probably won't like most/any of them.

Valley of the kings subverts a lot of the classic expectations of a deck builder. First of all, the market is spatially interesting. Not just a flat row of cards that randomly come out, these cards form a pyramid, and you're only able to purchase cards on the bottom row. For the first time, maybe it would behoove you not to buy a decent card on the bottom, because once you do, the card above it will "fall" down and become available to the next player. But maybe you should do it anyway, because there are plenty of cards that let you slightly manipulate the arrangement of the pyramid, anyway. More interesting than the pyramid, however, is the end game scoring. Most cards are not worth flat rate points, but rather points based on how many you were able to squirrel away. And by "squirrel away," I mean you'll literally need to start removing them from your deck, one at a time, and adding them to your "tomb" (errr, thematically-named scoring pile) in order to score. Great cards in your deck or hand at the end of the game are worth nothin'. Timing is everything. If you realize that the other player is burying way more cards than you and accelerating the speed of the game, you really need to get on your horse and get those cards into your tomb, otherwise you're going to be out a lot of points. But by removing the cards from your deck, you will become less powerful. So... when do you do it?

Tough choices are the queen in great games, and for a tiny box that is not expensive, this game packs a lot of difficult, interesting decisions.

For excellent straight-up deck builders to get you shufflin' everyday: Legendary Encounters: Alien and Arctic Scavengers

If you want a little bit of deck building in your slightly heavier Euros: Great Western Trail (most Alexander Pfister, really), Orléans (not deck, but pool building), Time of Crisis, Newton, Concordia, Founders of Gloomhaven, Undaunted: Normandy/North Africa

Welcome To... $20ish depending on the day; Complexity 1.82/5; BGG; Mechanisms: Roll & Write, Bingo, Pattern Building

Roll and write games are like the little subgenre that could. So small, so simple, and so popular. For the past few years, roll and writes have fought for a place at the table, and at this point, I think they've done it. Heck, they even have entries that are skewing heavier in weight (Welcome to Dino World). That being said, lightness permeates most roll and writes, and that's not a bad thing. Light doesn't necessarily translate to SLIGHT.

Roll and writes are games where players begin with the same, or very similar, starting sheets of paper, at which point some randomizing thingy like dice (see: roll and write) or cards are used to present variable restrictions or requirements that players must work on accomplishing. As you draw or write or fill-in boxes on your little paper, your sheet will begin to look quite different from everyone else's. At the end of the game, you'll calculate scores and the highest wins. Yay.

Roll and writes have a great tactile nature, which for some reason is easier to teach than more abstract ideas you'd find in an equally light game. Being able to draw routes or write down numbers or shade specific areas feels oddly familiar, which makes roll and write games very family friendly. They also generally have a small footprint, small box, and low price tag, without sacrificing replayability. We have a few roll and writes, and I can say that they all seem to have high replayability--if roll and writes are your thing. I've read plenty from people who don't seem to like roll and writes, but the myriad options that clever designers have managed to get into these tiny games are remarkable. In Railroad Ink, you will roll dice that show sections of track, and slowly you will draw tracks on tiny dry erase boards, working to score specific features before your turns run out. In the aforementioned Welcome to Dino World, you'll be building dinosaur pens, powering electric fences, building features for your park, and trying to prevent the dinos from busting out and devouring people your score.

But what about Welcome To...? This game is a small, card-driven roll and write where you flip three double-sided cards so you'll be showing a trio of pairs baring number on one side and a feature on the back of another card, forcing you to choose one and add it to your map of a minute subdivision. Your working to meet end game objectives for points, as well as build specific features, like parks, to make sure you have the best neighborhood around.

Welcome To... brings the simple gameplay and high replayability along with a charming theme and low price tag. I could always play Welcome To..., and it does everything without falling into a roll and write pitfall of being too vaguely mathy or themeless. We've played with family who have not moved beyond Scrabble, and they loved it. And we've played it more than our fair share at the end of the night with a cool adult beverage in hand.

Roll more and write more, too: The Cartographers, Railroad Ink, Silver & Gold, On Tour, Imperial Settlers: Roll and Write

I want something a smidge heavier than that Welcome To... game: Welcome to New Las Vegas!

If you just want a taste of this because it sounds a little juvenile: Get the app for Ganz Schon Clever, which technically may be my most played game ever considering how you just want to get a higher score. You can do better. No, you can do better! Play again! No, now!

***

SORRY this took so long to complete. The problem with taking a long time to write about some games is that now a handful are hard to get. Go figure. Check your local store, older games have plenty of life.

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autismcomments · 7 years

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Discussing autism with a child

When my son was diagnosed with autism aged six, I wanted to tell him about his autism, because I think it’s important that people know about their own diagnosis (it helps them to understand themselves - always a good thing, and they will notice differences in themselves anyway that they need to understand the reason for - not guess at a wrong reason), but I struggled to know how to go about it.

I didn’t think a direct conversation would work very well, it can be difficult to get his attention sometimes and he also has a verbal processing delay, something which was very obvious at that age (he is now 8, and his sister is 11). He’s always been better at reading things, he takes it in straight away. Bedtime reading quickly became him reading to himself rather than us reading to him! He loves reading, and finding out things - science, how things work etc (but also funny books like the pig diary books by Emer Stamp, the Danger Is Everywhere series by David O'Doherty and the Storey Treehouse series by Andy Griffiths being some of his favourites). He’s very good at reading, and very fast too!

I remember at school, when he was in Year 1 and being assessed for autism, they had an art day. At one point the children were sat around tables covered in newspaper and a teacher was telling them and demonstrating what they needed to do to make an item. My son appeared to be paying no attention at all, he was busy reading the newspaper article in front of him on the table, which was there to protect the table from glue! He just can’t help but read things. I worry that when he gets to high school age he’ll spend all his time standing in corridors distracted by displays, reading them, and missing all his lessons!

So, naturally, I thought a book would be the best way to start telling him about his autism.

I initially tried buying a short picture book about the friendship of two boys, one of whom was autistic. It had good reviews but I was extremely disappointed with it because the autistic child was incredibly tailored to very specific autism presentation, none of which seemed to apply to my son! It just wasn’t relevant, so I didn’t use it, and didn’t know what to do next. What I really needed was a “See Inside Autism” book, but it doesn’t exist (my son loves those non-fiction books, and owns most of them).

So, eventually, I decided to write something myself for him. This idea gradually grew! At first I wrote and sketched by hand and thought I’d put together a handmade thing for him. Then I realised I could self-publish on Kindle and I paid an animator friend (Billy Allison) to draw some professional versions of my rubbish pencil sketches. It would then be something more appealing for my son which might engage and maintain his focus; he would also know that his mum went to the effort of making a book for him and I could include a dedication. The book could then also be read by his friends, and if it was of any benefit to anybody else in the world it would be out there for them too. I just got it finished in time to publish on Amazon Kindle during World Autism Awareness Week (WAAW) in 2015. A print on demand paperback version followed (after a positive Amazon review requested a paperback version, and me finding out how to provide one).

I’ve always been very open about my son’s diagnosis, talking to parents of his friends, and parents of children at school. I’ve always had a very positive reaction and I know some parents talked to their children about it and used my book when I launched it free during WAAW; it benefitted everyone. It definitely benefitted my son to have people around him that had some level of awareness and understanding. Children seemed to be more friendly and supportive to my son afterwards, definitely not less, and parents were interested in finding out more. Although I appreciate that my positive experience of course doesn’t guarantee that everyone will find the same.

I do believe peer awareness is important. Having attended an anti-bullying workshop for parents of children on the autism spectrum it (peer awareness) is highly recommended for helping the prevention of bullying (not only for the understanding of people who may otherwise be the bully, but also for your child having a protective barrier of people around them that understand and help to prevent others from bullying). I have also discovered the fantastic Gareth Morewood since then, a secondary school SENCo who is a prominent advocate of peer awareness in the classroom: http://blog.optimus-education.com/peer-support-autistic-students-bobby%E2%80%99s-story

Knowing about my son’s autism has also meant that parents sometimes ask me questions about it, giving me the opportunity to further spread understanding. They also tell me if they’ve heard something on the radio about autism, or seen something on TV or read an article - incase I’m interested; or thoughtfully ask if he’ll be alright (sometimes their own child has prompted them, which is particularly wonderful) at their child’s upcoming birthday party etc. (e.g. should they tell the professional leading the party, is there anything they should specifically cater for etc.).

So, if you are struggling with how to explain your young child’s diagnosis to them, or would like a young child to understand something about autism, feel free to give my book a try! Everyone is different, but it seeks to get that message across and that difference isn’t bad (it’s an encouraging and positive book!). It’s a conversation starter where you can then talk about how autism affects your specific child. My son, and some of his friends, read it at age 6/7, when in Year 3 of primary school. The Children’s Guide To Autism by Fiona Reeves on Amazon: Amazon UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Childrens-Guide-Autism-Fiona-Reeves-ebook/dp/B00VC4XY24/ Amazon USA: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00VC4XY24

I few months ago I finished my second book, The Children’s Guide to Things People Say (but don’t really mean), which is a children’s reference book about UK idioms / metaphors / phrases / sayings e.g. “set the cat among the pigeons”. It is full of child-friendly example scenarios, and a few opportunities to colour in pictures. There are two paperback versions, full colour interior (more expensive) , and monochrome interior (half the price and more opportunities to colour in).

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haackhaus · 7 years

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Branding: The Art of Perception

*Young lady or old woman?

I was fortunate very early in my career to learn a great lesson about a simple, yet extraordinary phenomenon called perception. I had been out of college for about two years and was still honing my craft as a copywriter. I had even become confident enough in my abilities to add that title to my resume without ever having gone to … Portfolio School (gasp!).

I was lucky. But to tell this story fully, I must, indeed, go back two more years. I landed an internship at a good agency just a few months after graduating from a state university in the generic concentration of Advertising. The internship wasn’t on the creative side. I was actually mostly working on research and coffee runs for the account team. But, when I told them why I was really there, they gave me a shot, I impressed them with a few headlines, and the rest is history.

Now, back to the original story. It’s already starting to feel a little too Midsummer Night’s Dream in here, anyway. I was a full-fledged copywriter with a couple of years and recommendations under my belt, and a friend of mine was interested in putting my skills to use. This person worked at another advertising agency. This person was not a copywriter. But, this person had been asked to write a newsletter for one of their clients. This person, in turn, asked for my help.

I wouldn’t be paid for this, because this person wanted their agency to think that they wrote the piece, thus “wowing” their clients and superiors, winning the Most Awesome award and being carried out of the office on the shoulders of their peers for having the amazing ability to both write and account exec (Ya, I’m using “account exec” as a verb).

I didn’t mind. Hell, at that stage in my career, any chance to hone my skill was an opportunity I would jump at. Now, of course, I still would, but there’s usually going to be a price tag attached.

So I wrote it. It took me about five hours. But I wrote it. And guess what happened. This person’s superiors hated it.The page bled in edits. Red replaced black as the majority. Scribble superseded Times New Roman.

This person asked me, “What happened?” I said I didn’t know. I thought it was good. Maybe not my greatest work ever (Does anyone love writing newsletters, after all?), but it certainly should have done the job for a newsletter that would likely be read by a subscribing audience of no more than seven.

So the edits were made. The superiors were satisfied when few of the original words on the document remained. The clients were satisfied when the superiors advocated it. And everyone was happy. Except, this was a monthly newsletter. This process was going to come around in another 30 days. And what then?

Well, I had done some freelance work for this agency in the past. I was currently working at an internal marketing department for a very niche product, so there was absolutely no conflict of interest … Just in case you were wondering. Ironically, the agency reached out to me the following month to write the succeeding five page newsletter. The same young copywriter that they had thrashed and stained in red the month prior. I hesitantly agreed, knowing that this was an opportunity to learn and grow. And make some extra money, of course.

So I wrote it. Again. And again, it took me about five hours. And you know what happened this time? They loved it. A resounding, unanimous acceptance, without edits, of the golden god of newsletters. It was perfection in local publishing. It was heaven on paper. I could hear the applause from my office on the other side of the city. No edits needed. No changes required. A masterpiece. They showed my friend, the one who had initially solicited my help, stating “This is how a newsletter is supposed to be written.”

I am sure that a small part of that person wanted to spill the beans, if not walk from superior to superior kicking everyone in the “beans”. But I think at that moment, this person realized the same lesson I learned when I got the news. Perception means a whole hell of a lot.

I pride myself on learning from past mistakes, writing or otherwise. But there is no way that over the course of one month, I could have gone from writing a newsletter that was about one more edit away from becoming garbage, to a beacon on which all other newsletter should strive to resemble. The decision-makers of this ad agency saw the first newsletter and were prepared to see a flood of writing errors and missed voice attributes, because it was coming from someone without specific experience in copywriting. And because that is what they expected, or perceived, they found the errors they were looking for, and then some. A self-fulfilling prophecy.

When they looked at the second newsletter, they expected a certain level of greatness. One, because it was coming from a copywriter, not one of their Account people. And two, because they paid a freelance fee for it, and wanted to validate their expense.

Perception means everything in the world of consumer marketing and advertising, as well as B2B. What does your customer think of your company and does what you are saying about your company match up with their perception? “Think Different” worked for Apple, because they had always portrayed themselves as the outlier to the corporate big brother of IBM and Microsoft. “Just Do It” worked for Nike because their customers are athletes, and that’s exactly what they want to do, and need to be told sometimes. But if you were just another clothing store on the corner, “Just Do It” and “Think Different” would make no sense, and a pair of the greatest taglines ever would have been wasted.

I’ll give you another example. Stephen King, the world’s most renowned horror author of all time was rejected by over 30 publishers before someone decided to back Carrie. King went on to a successful career that continues to horrify and captivate audiences, from paperback to big screen to Amazon Kindle tablets. But for a brief period, King wanted to find out if he really was as good as people thought he was, or if it had all just been a fluke, and was now being carried by his name alone, and not his quality. So, he penned novels under the name Richard Bachman. The secret didn’t last long, but King found, much to his delight, that he sold nearly as well, and the quality of his writing was, at least in large part, the reason for his continued success. But, it was the perception of his fans that he wanted to test. And it could have just as easily failed. If it had, it would have proven my point in a much stronger fashion, but you get where I’m going with it.

Cool begets cooler. Smart begets smarter. Fun begets excitement. Building perception in a forward direction is like rolling a rock downhill. As long as your product, and the perception of your consumer matches up, your success will be imminent (as long as that perception isn’t shitty).

Shifting perception is another beast altogether. Volvo is still considered the safest line of automobiles in the world, when, in fact, they are no longer even ranked in the top ten, as far as safety is concerned. But I won’t get into that right now. Shifting perception, as I said, is a whole other beast.

Just remember the importance of perception. It affects everything. You. Your brand(s). Your work. Your friends. Your family. Find a way to use it to your advantage, and realize when it is working against you. Once you take perception into account, you’ll find a lot of formerly unanswerable questions become much simpler.

#branding #perception #marketing #brand identity #brand image

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