Random Story Idea

Where do you get your ideas from? Probably one of the questions I (along with other novelists) get asked the most. 

So I thought from time to time as I think about it, I'll share a random story idea. One that pops in my head that I know I won't ever write but that's an interesting story idea regardless (note--interesting doesn't always mean good). I just want to show my thought process.

I just read this today on CNN.com: "Michael Jackson's body will be returned to Neverland Ranch on Thursday for a public viewing on Friday, CNN has learned."

So a story idea pops in my head. 

A group of friends who have grown distant over the years reconnect to go view Michael Jackson's body. Could be a comedy, could be a love story, could be a drama. They might not even make it to Neverland Ranch--who knows. They (along with millions of others) grew up listening to Jackson and still share this bond even though their lives have gone in opposite directions. 

I looked on iTunes to see if Jackson has a song with the word "Never" in it. Of course--a classic: "Never Can Say Goodbye." 

There's your title. 

The theme of saying goodbye resonates in the story, along with the word "never." 

Am I a huge Michael Jackson fan? No. But doesn't mean that it couldn't be a moving story. 

See--a story idea simply from seeing a blurb on CNN.com. That's how my mind works. 

Top #100: #2

"Morning Glory" by Oasis

All your dreams are made
When you're chained to your mirror and your razor blade
Today's the day that all the world will see
Another sunny afternoon
(I'm) walking to the sound of my favorite tune
Tomorrow never knows what it doesn't know too soon
Need a little time to wake up
Need a little time to wake up wake up
Need a little time to wake up
Need a little time to rest your mind
You know you should so I guess you might as well

What's the story morning glory
Well
(you) need a little time to wake up
Wake up well
What's the story morning glory
Well
Need a little time to wake up
Wake up

(Cos) all your dreams are made
When you're chained to the mirror with your razor blade
Today's the day that all the world will see
(It's) another sunny afternoon
Yeah I'm walking to the sound of my favorite tune
Tomorrow doesn't know what it doesn't know too soon

Need a little time to wake up
Need a little time to wake up, wake up
Need a little time to wake up
Need a little time to rest your mind
You know you should so I guess you might as well

What's the story morning glory
Well
Need a little time to wake up, wake up
Well
What's the story morning glory
Well

Need a little time to wake up, wake up
Well
What's the story morning glory
Well
Need a little time to wake up, wake up
Well
What's the story morning glory
Well
Need a little time to wake up, wake up

Michael Jackson

Ten thousand other people have summed up his life, his legacy, and his legend in the last day. Here's a quote that Michael Jackson said that seems poignant:

"I know the creator will go. But his work survives. That is why to escape death I attempt to bind my soul to my work." -Michelangelo, quoted by Michael Jackson in a 2007 interview with Ebony

Are booksignings for you?

There are many, many things I don’t know a lot about in this world. But I can safely and confidently say I know about booksignings. Probably more than I would like to. With the release of my twelfth published book (eleven novels and one repackage), I’ve had twelve different products to sell at bookstores (and other places). I’ve probably done over two hundred booksignings since The Promise Remains came out in 2000.

That’s about one hundred and ninety-eight too many, if you ask me.

But I gotta say that I have a love/hate relationship with booksignings. I’ve already done a dozen for Ghostwriter and hope to do up to fifty before my next book comes out.

I get a lot of questions from writers, published and not, about signings. The biggest one tends to be this: Are booksignings worth it? They ask this because many publishers, booksellers, authors, and consumers all feel that booksignings are a colossal waste of time.

So here are my thoughts up to this point on the wonderful thing called booksignings.

A BOOKSIGNING IS NOT AN EVENT. A U2 concert is an event. So is an Obama rally or Michael Jordan signing autographs.

A BOOKSIGNING IS AN OPPORTUNITY. It’s a chance to meet book lovers and book readers. This doesn’t mean they will be lovers and readers of YOUR book. But they might become that. It’s an opportunity to encounter the very people you’re writing for.

A BOOKSIGNING IS NOT A PARTY BEING HELD FOR YOU. Okay, maybe it is if this is your first or second book published. I had a few booksignings like that, where my friends and family all came to celebrate (and to look in curiosity to see who else came). But look—the party will eventually be over. After having a few children, nobody cares. Nobody really cares about celebrating your 41st birthday, right? Or your fourth marriage. If you’re hoping for a party, go to Mardi Gras.

A BOOKSIGNING IS WORK. And yes, sometimes work can be fun, but most of the time work is work. You might not pull a muscle at a booksigning, but it can still be taxing on your nerves and your psyche trying to talk to strangers and sell your book and doing this for three or four hours.

CHECK YOUR EGO AT THE DOOR. I’ve seen bestselling authors of runaway hits have four readers show up at their signings. “It’s marketing’s fault.” “We picked a bad place.” “It’s the weather.” I’ve seen and heard everything. The reality is, booksignings aren’t that big of a deal unless you’re a celebrity or your name is J.K. Rowling or Stephanie Meyer. I remind myself that I’m not a bestselling author and don’t have a runaway hit. If anybody shows up specifically to buy my book, I’m grateful (and usually surprised).

BOOKSIGNINGS ARE ALL—ALL—ABOUT EXPECTATIONS. First off, I want to meet the store’s expectations. I want to sell a good amount of books. If they actually expect me to sell one hundred copies, then I’ve done a bad job explaining who I am and what I’m hoping to do. If they have fifty books there but think twenty or thirty sold is a good number, then I’m doing my job. I want the bookstore to feel good about how many I sell. For me, selling twenty books is average. Thirty is above average, ten below. But I try not to have expectations because I’ve been surprised time and time again (both in a positive and a negative way).

I can hear someone now saying TWENTY BOOKS, THAT’S ALL?? Which leads into the next discussion.

HOW VALUABLE IS YOUR TIME? Do you have ten boards to serve on, a conference you’re speaking at every weekend, a family of ten to take care of, a fulltime job that sucks up sixty or seventy hours of your week? What does three hours mean to you? Ask yourself that. For me, it’s worth my time to sell twenty or thirty books. I usually meet at least a hundred people, passing out postcards and introducing myself. Some might come back and buy a book. Others might go online. It’s worth my time because I’m slowly gaining new readers, and for my job that is crucial. The line I’m saying lately is that I’m trying to fill an ocean one pebble at a time.

A BOOKSIGNING IS A CHANCE TO CONNECT. If a reader spends several hours of their life actually reading one of my books, the very least I can do is spend a small chunk of time talking with them at a signing. Many times they have questions or comments related to the book. This is fabulous and I love being able to engage in a discussion with a reader.

A BOOKSIGNING CAN BE INTIMIDATING & UNCOMFORTABLE TO PEOPLE. I’m not talking about authors here. I’m talking about readers. Consider this. There are probably more introverts that come into a bookstore than extroverts. I know this personally after 200 signings. Introverts like to read, but they don’t necessarily like to meet strangers. A lot of people don’t like meeting strangers. Know this when it comes to doing a signing. That’s why I always try to BE APPROACHABLE.

DON’T TAKE YOURSELF TOO SERIOUSLY, BUT TAKE YOUR WORK SERIOUSLY. I apply this to my life as a writer and it really works when I’m doing a signing. I will do almost anything to get someone to come up to my table and talk. If I have an air of I’m a sophisticated literary novelist who won’t be as tacky as to try and pawn off my magnum opus like a girl scout cookie, then most people will take a hike. I’m a guy who writes stories for a living. Most people haven’t heard of me. That’s the reality. And the other reality is that if I have the chance to engage them in conversation, they might end up buying one of my books.

A BOOKSIGNING MAKES AN IMPRESSION. Everything, big and small, makes an impression. From that sign at the front of the store to the interaction you have with a bookstore manager, everything counts when it comes to signings. I try to be friendly to the store staff along with customers. I hope that most people who meet me think that I’m a nice guy. Does that mean they’ll necessarily buy one of my books? Of course not. But some might. For the bookstore staff, my hope is that I’m friendly enough and sell a good amount of books to be invited back.

Some of my biggest fans are ones I met at a booksigning. A complete stranger who walked by me and listened to my spiel and bought a book.

So are booksignings for you? Hopefully this overview will help you decide. Some writers don’t have the personality to engage customers. Some don’t have the time. There are other ways to sell books. For me, I’ve learned that I do well at signings. And for those diehard fans I’ve made while doing signings, that’s something that no amount of marketing money can buy. As they say in the Mastercard ads, that’s priceless.

The Latest

Just got back from my Carolina tour on Saturday and still trying to get back up to speed. Lots of things to share but wanted to give you an overview of stuff happening in TT land.

First off, Ghostwriter is out. Okay, if you've paid any attention to anything related to me in the last month, you'll know this. But please pick up a copy to help support Kylie's college fund (wait, no, more like her breakfast fund). 

I've done twelve signings for Ghostwriter so far. For those of you who have come out to buy a copy and see me, THANK YOU! It means so much to me. I'm doing more so please stay tuned (and please come out). 

I just handed in the edited manuscript for Broken, my third book with Faithwords that will be coming out May, 2010. I'm feeling very good about that. It's another supernatural thriller telling the story about a woman on the run. 

I'm getting started writing the first of four teen supernatural thrillers. More on that coming soon. The first will be coming out in September, 2010 (busy year for me next year). 

Two-thirds of the way through the scariest story I've written yet. Again, I'll share more as time goes by on this. 

Longing for another love story by me? Don't give up. :) 

Enter my contest this summer simply by posting a review of any of my books on Amazon.com. Every time you do this, I'll put your name in the hat. The winner wins all twelve of my books. 

Thanks for everybody paying attention to my writing and my books! I really appreciate it. 

Ghostwriter Carolina Tour

Heading to the Carolinas tomorrow. If you live in Cincinnati, Asheville, Greenville, Spartanburg, or Louisville, please stop by one of my signings. Looking forward to going back down to the Smoky Mountains to see relatives and friends! 

Here are a few details:

Will be interviewed on Wednesday, June 10 on the Cincinnati Fox Morning News show (WXIX/FOX 19). Followed up by an interview later that morning on Northern Kentucky Magazine (live television show). 

Wed. June 10 (3-6 p.m.): Signing at the Barnes & Noble at Newport on the Levee in Kentucky. 

Friday, June 12 (3-6 p.m.): Signing at Books A Million in Asheville, NC

Sat. June 13 (1-4 p.m.): Signing at The Open Book in Greenville, SC

Sun. June 14 (1-4 p.m.): Signing at the Barnes & Noble in Spartanburg, SC

Fri. June 19 (7-9 p.m.): Signing at the Barnes & Noble in Louisville, KY

If you're a fan, I'd love to meet you at one of these signings! 

Top 100: #1

I'm going to start something new on my blog. My top 100 songs of all time. This will be very hard because I have probably 500 top songs, but I'll try nonetheless. 

Now for those of you interested in my writing, this does have something to do with a future work in progress. That's all I'll say now, but it might be interesting to pay attention to this if you're a regular reader of mine. 

The The is a popular group from the 80's and early 90's who was the brainchild of Matt Johnson. "This Is The Day" is from their Soul Mining album. You might have heard an updated version on M&M commercials. I love this song. So I'm making it my first entry into my top 100 songs of all time. 

Here are the lyrics: 

"Well... you didn't wake up this morning,
'cause you didn't go to bed.
You were watching the whites of your eyes turn red.
The calendar on your wall is ticking the days off.

You've been reading some old letters.
You smile and think how much you've changed.
All the money in the world couldn't buy back those days.

You pull back the curtains, and the sun burns into your eyes.
You watch a plane flying across a clear blue sky.
This is the day your life will surely change.
This is the day when things fall into place.

You could've done anything, if you'd wanted.
And all your friends and family think that you're lucky.
But the side of you they'll never see
Is when you're left alone with the memories
That hold your life together like -- GLUE

You pull back the curtains, and the sun burns into your eyes,
You watch a plane flying across a clear blue sky.
This is the day your life will surely change.
This is the day when things fall into place.

This is the day your life will surely change...
(repeat to fade)"

Booksignings This Weekend

Join me if you're in the area this weekend (June 6th & 7th) at two Chicagoland booksignings: 

Friday, June 6: Barnes & Noble in Bolingbrook (at The Promenade) from 7-10 p.m.

Saturday, June 7: Barnes & Noble in Downers Grove from 1-3 p.m.