I am not a tease

It dawned on me that I posted some general statement about "learning a lot" at the panel I did in Santa Barbara and talking to Sheri Fink, etc. It also dawned on me that perhaps I should share some of that learning, instead of just hinting, then leaving you all hanging.

You know that's not who I am.

What I learned can be summed up in two basic ideas, both of which seem like no-brainers, but were taught to me in a new way. Because sometimes you need to see things from another angle.

1. Value yourself. I have about 20 copies of the old version of Freezer Burn, and I was musing with Sheri about what to do with them. "Should I offer them as contest giveaways? Or sell them at a discount?"

Savvy Sheri was decisively against this. "No. You pair the book with some kind of trinket, give it a special autograph, and charge more for it as a Limited Edition."

Whoa. Instead of trying to dump them, I need to treat them as rare birds. Interestingly, when I mentioned this to Marla, she said, "It's a girl thing. We don't value ourselves enough."

So now I get to figure out what to pair with my books and how to sign them. By July. No biggie.

2. Write your thank you notes. I'm always grateful for whatever breaks I get, whether it's a nice review or a chance to speak or whatever. I always tell them how grateful I am, thankyouthankyouthankyou. But I don't always put it in writing.

From now on, I'm sending them a note. If I don't have their street address, I'll email them. Everyone will have a written record of my thankfulness. Because I AM GRATEFUL.

One more thing I took away from the panel was not really a lesson, but more of a result, a by-product, a residual that remained beyond the day: we writers ARE a tribe. Our community shares its secrets, supports its members, and rejoices in EVERY success.

That alone was worth the drive.

Where do I start?

I know you're supposed to keep blog posts short and sweet because, God knows, no one has seen their attention span since the 50s, but I've done so much in the past week, it's hard not to tell you all about it in EXCRUTIATING detail.

But I'll spare you and give you the highlights.

On Tuesday, I drove up to the Santa Barbara Writers Conference to be on a panel of entrepreneurial authors. Marla Miller asked me to join her, and of course, I was delighted. My other partners in crime were Sheri Fink, Madeline Sharples, and Jennifer Aderhold. I love panels because I learn as much as I share.

Sheri contacted me before the event to see if we could carpool to Santa Barbara. She lives in Mission Viejo (or as we like to call it, "Bitchin' Viejo"). Normally, I like driving long distances solo so I can sing along to my iPod, but I wanted to get to know Sheri better. Two-and-a-half hours, each way, seemed like a great way to either learn about each other, or start a cat fight.

As it turns out, Sheri is The Sweetest Woman in the World. When she arrived at my house, she had to run the Doggy Gauntlet in order to use the restroom. Duffy immediately jumped on her bare legs and scratched her, to the point of needing first aid.

I'm SO SORRY, Sheri!!! (Note: abject groveling and apologies are the only grammatically correct time to use more than one exclamation point.)

The panel was wonderful. The workshop attendees were interesting and savvy and asked great questions. All of the panelists had insights and information, and Marla facilitated effortlessly, so what was not to love? In addition, Sheri is insanely savvy as a businesswoman. I learned as much from her on our car ride as from the panel.

After the panel, we all scampered down to the bar and met up with good friends Michael Steven Gregory and Jeremy Lee James, who were giving a workshop on the following day. I wish I could've stayed for that workshop, but I had places to go...

Like Tameri Etherton's house on Thursday. I met her at her home in Carlsbad, where I went with her and her darling daughter, Alexzandra, to dinner and a play. The dinner, the play, and the whole experience was beyond fun, but started with a bang - I got a present!

Such a pretty box, what could be inside?

For me? Squee!

I didn't expect it. I may not deserve it. But I'll take it - now I can rule the world.

Thank you, Tameri! Thank you thank you thank you!

Yes, Sirree, I'm going places

Namely, I'm going to the Santa Barbara Writer's Conference tomorrow (that's Tuesday the 12th). Apart from speaking on a panel, I've never actually attended this conference, so I'm going to recommend it with the following caveat: it's run by some truly wonderful writers/editors/publishers/word enthusiasts, so I expect nothing but excellence from them.

Sadly, it's too late to register (the conference started on Saturday and ends this Thursday), but put it on your radar for next year. It's expensive, mostly because it's almost a week long, but it looks like you get a lot of bang for your buck. Plus, it's in Santa Barbara, which is beautiful.

I'm going to be one of a few people talking about being the entrepreneurial author. I've been thinking about it recently, and I've decided I'm the accidental indie. Self-publishing was the furthest thing from my mind until I wanted to publish a book of my columns and no one wanted to touch it. After I published What Would Erma Do? I still vowed that my mysteries would travel the traditional path.

It took several months of cumulative information about the publishing industry to get me to walk out on that skinny limb and self-pub Hit or Missus. Was it a rousing success that catapulted me to stardom and fame? Yeah, not so much. It's been more of a roller coaster, up one month and down the next, as I try different marketing tactics.

But I wouldn't trade the journey for the traditional route now. I love having control of my covers, my titles, and my marketing. I don't want to "never say never" to traditional publishing, but for right now, this is the right path for me.

One of the things that seems to make a difference is offering a one-day freebie on Kindle. Sales usually rise for the rest of the month. This is why I'm offering Hit or Missus for free tomorrow (that's Tuesday the 12th). If you're smart, you'll grab it up for your Kindle. If you're kind, you'll buy it (LOL).

Mikey, RIP, a Corgi

Duffy, also a Corgi

In keeping with my embrace of self-publishing, I've decided to create a "home" for my books, as in an official press name. The first name I thought of was completely fitting: Dancing Corgi Press. I've had Joe Felipe hard at work designing a logo for me. So far, this is my favorite (but I still might want to mess with the font):

What say you?