BY AUTHOR R. A. SMITH
Welcome to Xchyler Publishing’s newest innovation, Featured Friday, wherein authors connect with readers discussing anything that strikes their fancy. We here at XP pride ourselves on the depth and breadth of our established and soon-to-be-published writers and their collective works. We know their insights will inspire the aspiring, motivate the hesitant, and introduce the uninitiated to what used to be (and never should have been) the insular, enigmatic world of publishing.
First up: R.A. Smith, author of Oblivion Storm (Grenshall Manor Chronicles Volume I), a fast-paced, thought-provoking paranormal thriller/urban fantasy, released in October of 2012. An avid gamer and role player/reenactor, Russell hails from Manchester, England, where he lives with his girlfriend and his cats.
Russell can be found elsewhere on the web at his blog, ProjectShadowLondon, Facebook, and Twitter.
Hello! I’m R.A. Smith and I’m a new author. Those who know me will know exactly how happy that makes me.
But in that last sentence lies one of the challenges of the game: those who know me. Now, I’m quite honoured to have the number of friends that I do. I’ve been kept out of a lot of scrapes, been kept going at times I’ve wanted to quit and greatly supported with my progress as a writer.
The thing is, the world has both become larger and smaller. Indisputably larger in terms of population than it has ever been. Which means more people that any writer, new, or established, has to get news of any fresh or existing works out to.
But smaller in that a person can have a conversation at the other side of the world simply by switching on a computer and having a bit of a look around. For example, though hardly lengthy conversations, I have directly communicated with both K.W. Jeter and Sebastien Foucan.
Smaller too in that there are many, many more authors emerging in recent years than ever before. Let’s go back in time briefly for a moment. The 15th Century saw the Renaissance, during which many innovations of convenience and technology happened. One of the most significant was the rise of the printing press as a commonplace operation.
Though Europe had access to the secrets of paper production since the 8th Century, it remained prohibitively expensive to all but the wealthiest in society right up until the 1450s. Between the combination of the press and access to cheaper paper, prices tumbled. 150 identical copies of Gutenberg’s 42-line Bible rolled off the press back in 1454, and less than fifty years later, Europe saw 35,000 titles and 20 million books in print. Quite literally, revolutionary.
I talk about this a lot to my peers in writing and publishing because, in the last few years alone, we have seen a change to the publishing industry I genuinely believe will be looked upon by historians with equal significance. Whatever they name this era, the changes to the way we access music – and of course books, are here to stay, whatever our opinions.
You see, anyone of a certain age who has read a book can probably name at least one of the great publishing houses that have been around forever – at least, within living memory. In years gone by, only a clutch of places existed in which an aspiring author could get published. Now, there are hundreds of publishers; more. And the option of self-publishing has become much, much easier too. And all coinciding nicely with the rise of the e-book.
This is great. It means that we are being exposed to many more authors than at any time before. Of course, on the flip side, this means that many more authors are needing to get the word out there about their work. That’s a whole lot of shouting. And that means even after the hurdle of getting published has been overcome, the next is to ensure your voice is heard over all that.
Talking can be like a nice busy day on Wall Street. If you’ve seen the stock exchange scenes in the 1980s film, Trading Places, think about what you could pick out of what they’re saying during those scenes. Not much.
I’m talking about this now following the release of my debut novel, Oblivion Storm. Writing a book is one thing. Getting readership going is the ‘fun’ part. I’m very glad to have found Xchyler Publishing when I did, both for having given me the opportunity to be published and for the buzz they have already developed for a company so relatively young. There’s a lot of knowledge here though, as to what works for today’s audience, today’s writers. And that is invaluable.
I’ll tell you what else is invaluable. In the massive ocean of the Internet, it is easier to hear the whispers of a thousand people than the shouts of one or two. The presence of the company has grown from a few whispers to a proper buzz now, and that has happened with the help of a good community. That’s you. Yes, you: the person reading this, and linking it on your Facebook page, Tweeting about Xchyler or myself, if I’m lucky. You, the reader who helps to make sure Book Two of a series actually happens.
There’s a really good thing about there being so many of us so tightly packed into this great ocean. It means more often than not, we’re right next to someone. So lean over and have a chat to them. See if they’ll whisper along with you. They’re not all going to be writers. They may not even do the whole online social networking thing.
But everyone social networks in some capacity. The old fashioned way is by talking. They may know someone who likes reading. Or spends all day checking their Facebook. It’s all good. Chat to them. Make sure they remember you. Maybe they’ll chat to someone else. And so, the whisper grows.
One final thing before I leave you for now. On the walls of many small businesses is a small sign or sticker, saying: “If you like my work, tell others. If you don’t like it, tell me.” It’s very true for authors. This isn’t a request for trolls, so you know. It’s the value of some of these whispers returning to the author, in order for them to improve their craft.
Though there are some solid and dedicated book review sites out there, a review can take place anywhere someone can talk. And whether good or bad, a number of reviews tells the author that a number of people have read the work. That the whisper is spreading. That it’s out there. That little word that you say can prove invaluable in the long run. Hence for those who may have written reviews or mentions of my work that for whatever reason I haven’t seen, I’d like to thank you. It’s incredibly helpful in the long run, and if you take nothing else away from reading this, it’s this: every whisper helps.
R. A. Smith lives in Manchester, UK with his girlfriend. Among his extended family, he counts two considerable war gaming armies and several bears, including Sir Arthur and Frost. His favorite jobs held in the past have been working as an editor on his old student magazine, as a Tudor soldier, and as a time travelling guide. (So is that in the future?) He holds an M.A in Creative Writing from Manchester Metropolitan University and holds it as his proudest achievement to date before getting his first novel published.
R. A. Smith’s first book with Xchyler Publishing is Oblivion Storm. Its sequel, Primal Storm, will be released later in 2013.
