About Books

I have a confession to make — I love used bookstores.

I know, I know. Used bookstores are the devil. They’re downright evil, according to some published authors. You see, authors don’t get any royalties on sales at used bookstores. Even if a certain book is bought and sold 10 times at the same store, the author will never see a dime of that money. Not a penny.

Authors would much rather you buy their book brand-spanking new at Barnes & Noble so they can get their $1 in royalties and have the sale register with their publishers. I’ll probably feel the same way when my books come out next year. Gotta keep those sales numbers up and make the bean counters happy. 😉

If I ever see someone selling (gasp!) one of my beloved books or see it on the shelf in a used bookstore, I’ll probably sit down in the middle of the floor, have a good cry, beat my breasts, and wail why didn’t they like me???

But for now, I’m totally digging used bookstores. In fact, I went to one of my favorite ones today — Mr. K’s — and picked up some stuff to read. I got five books for $15 — a steal at twice the price.

But it’s not just the cheap prices I like at used bookstores — it’s the atmosphere. The slightly musty odor in the air, the tinkle of the bell over the front door, the low murmur of conversation, finding a hidden treasure among the towering stacks.

It’s a perfect way to spend an afternoon.

What about you? Which do you prefer — new or used? Inquiring minds want to know …

So, my agent called me today and said that we had gotten another awesome blurb from a fellow writer. Huzzah! Everything seems to be coming along nicely for Karma Girl. 😉

I’ll be posting the blurbs just as soon as I know which ones we’re officially going to go with. More to come soon …

I have seen the promised land! Well, not exactly, but I did get my first glimpse of the cover art for Karma Girl this week.

And it rocks! 🙂

The final version isn’t quite done yet, but it features a skyline, a big spotlight, and a character in a little black dress. I’ll be posting it just as soon as I get the final version from my editor at Berkley. 😉

Cover art is one thing that a lot of authors fret about. If you’ve been to the bookstore recently, you’ve probably seen lots of good covers … and plenty of bad ones too. I personally hate covers that feature a man or woman’s face. I’d much rather picture the characters in my mind than have a real-life representation of them on the cover.

What about you? What do you like on covers? Bright colors? Sexy guys? Inquiring minds want to know …

Well, I’m happy to report that Karma Girl has received another thumbs-up from a second respected author. 🙂 I can’t tell you who it is just yet, but I’ll be posting the blurbs from both authors on the Web site soon.

And, of course, shouting my good news to everyone that I meet. Stay tuned …

So, I’m going to a women’s expo event in late October, and I’ve been asked to make some goodies to give away.

And I have to idea what to do.

I don’t have cover art for Karma Girl yet, so bookmarks are out of the question. So is anything else I could put the cover on, like mugs, nail files, mints, etc.

I’m pretty much reduced to slapping my business card on something … I just don’t know what that something should be yet. I’m leaning towards chocolate, though. You can never go wrong with chocolate. Unless you put coconut on it. ;-)  Maybe I could find someone to make me some chocolate-shaped business cards. Not very practical, as they would get eaten, but they’d definitely be fun. Hmmm …

What about you? What sort of goodies do you like to give and get at conferences? What do you keep? What do you throw away? Inquiring minds want to know …