Small Presses are the Risk-takers

GUEST POST BY:  Cat Rambo

Dark Continents Publishing is introducing a new forum this month — we present the same question to 10-15 people, and give them an open opportunity to answer the question based on their own interpretations and beliefs. Over the next few weeks, these views will be posted as part of our ongoing series. We encourage everyone to read and react to our questions, and all comments are welcome.

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For our inaugural March 2012 forum, the question is:

Why are small publishing companies important?

We are pleased to welcome author and Board Member of Broad Universe Cat Rambo as our first guest in the series.

 ♦

I don’t like decisions by committee. Given a choice between the story that had two editors raving and the third threatening to quit the magazine and the story that everyone agreed was “pretty good,” I will always pick door #1.

And to me, that’s often the dividing line between a small press book and one from a large, established press. The small press is willing to risk that some people won’t like the book – heck, they KNOW everyone won’t like the book — where the large press is more worried about that. Small presses live closer to the edge. They’re willing to gamble, willing to test things out.

I’ve worked for small companies and for multinational corporations. Give me the small company, where traditions haven’t become so entrenched that no one knows where they came from and where people are working not for stock options but because they love what they do enough to put insanely long and hard hours into it.

Small presses have a sense of humor, a willingness to poke humor at themselves in a way that the larger ones often lack. They don’t have a projections about fourth quarter earnings, but they do have a complete collection of rubber skulls in the bathroom that everyone’s sharing — assuming there’s office space at all and the enterprise isn’t being run from the cloud.

I’m about to put out another collection, a two volume set, with a small press. Do I think it’ll set the world on fire, or that I’ll be able to see it in airport shops? No. (Though it would be cool.) But I know I’ll be working with people who love my writing and want the books to be beautiful. That my idea for the books will remain intact, and any changes will be ones that make them better, not worse. I can’t guarantee that a small press will work with the writer like this, because sometimes it’s not the case — but it seems much more likely with one.

As e-publishing’s popularity swells and physical books become less common, it’s the small presses that will keep producing them, and will be the ones to be making books that are art objects, because they’ve been doing that all along. Go to the dealer’s room at your next con and look at small press versus large press. Small press doesn’t mean cheap POD paper — sometimes it means books that are lovingly crafted, that feel good in the hand, are legible and lovely and error-free, that didn’t just roll off an assembly line.

Here at least, or so I hope, their gamble will pay off. Because a world without at least a few hard-copy books here and there is surely a lesser one.

Biography:

John Barth described Cat Rambo’s writings as “works of urban mythopoeia” — her stories take place in a universe where chickens aid the lovelorn, Death is just another face on the train, and Bigfoot gives interviews to the media on a daily basis. She has worked as a programmer-writer for Microsoft and a Tarot card reader, professions which, she claims, both involve a certain combination of technical knowledge and willingness to go with the flow. In 2005 she attended the Clarion West Writers’ Workshop.

Among the places in which her stories have appeared are ASIMOV’S, WEIRD TALES, CLARKESWORLD, and STRANGE HORIZONS, and her work has consistently garnered mentions and appearances in year’s best of anthologies. Her collection, EYES LIKE SKY AND COAL AND MOONLIGHT was an Endeavour Award finalist in 2010 and followed her collaboration with Jeff VanderMeer, THE SURGEON’S TALE AND OTHER STORIES.

She has edited anthologies as well as critically-acclaimed Fantasy Magazine, is a board member of feminist science fiction group Broad Universe, a member of the Codex Writers’ Group, and volunteers with Clarion West.

Although no longer actively involved with the game, she is one of the minds behind Armageddon MUD, the oldest roleplay-intensive MUD (an interactive text-based game) on the Internet, which has been described as “like no other mud I have played before“, “the most entertaining game I’ve ever played“, “the most creative, emotionally involved mud on the Net” and “a place of astonishing beauty and detail“. She continues to do some game writing as well as technology journalism and reviews for Publishers Weekly. 

Contact information:
Cat is represented by Ginger Clark of Curtis Brown Ltd.
Contact Cat at catrambo@gmail.com

 

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The Greatest Common Denominator

Guest Post by:  A.J. Brown

Pop Question:  What is the greatest common denominator between most people?

Anyone?

Bueller?

The Answer:  Fear.

I know, I know.  Some of you out there are probably saying to yourselves: ‘Self, I ain’t afraid of nothing.’

Go right ahead and lie to yourselves then.  Everyone is afraid of something, admitted or not.

Fear is one of the driving factors in most lives.  Fear of being homeless makes most people work.  Fear of being alone makes people seek out a mate.  Fear of dying makes some people exercise religiously and eat right.  Speaking of religion, fear of going to Hell drives some folks to a faith in a higher being.  Fear of failure pushes many people to work hard to become successful.

Hmmm… fear of failure.

Once upon a time in a small town in South Carolina lived a little boy who grew into a young man who wanted to become a writer.  However, the man feared that he would never succeed.  So he almost didn’t pursue his dream.

Almost.

Fear of failure almost kept him from trying.
Again, almost.

Did you know Henry Ford failed a few times before finally getting it right with Ford Motor Company?  Thomas Edison was quoted as saying, “I failed my way to success.”  President Lincoln failed in his first foray into politics.

Failure happens.  It’s part of life.  What’s the difference between Ford, Edison, Lincoln and the average person?  They kept trying.  They didn’t let the fear of failure slow them down.  They didn’t even let the reality of failure slow them down.

I used to think failure is not an option.  But, that’s not true.  Not trying is not an option.  Failure may happen, but I have to try in order for that failure (or success) to come.

If every child gave up after their first attempt at walking we would have a bunch of people with calloused hands and knees crawling around the world.  If every athlete gave up when they didn’t succeed there would be no sports.

The fear of failure is great for many.  So great, that I’m sure it paralyzes some people and keeps them from even thinking about trying.

We can’t be that way.  Not in life.

What does all of this have to do with writing?  If Stephen King gave up after throwing Carrie in the trash would the horror genre be what it is today?  If his wife hadn’t fished it out of the trash would King have been what he became?  His wife didn’t give up on him and didn’t let him become a failure at what he loved to do.

Why should we give up on ourselves?

When I first started out I was told I sucked as a writer and that I should stop writing–it wasn’t my thing.  Ouch.  That could have been a mental wound that stayed open for years and later became a scar.  Instead, that was my motivation to prove that editor wrong.  That’s right.  Tell me I can’t do something.  Go ahead.  I’m going to prove you wrong.  And I don’t prove you wrong I’m going to try my best regardless.

Fear is the greatest common denominator.  Add failure to the equation and you have a paralyzing grip that often will not let go of people.  Conquering that fear isn’t easy, but all it takes is one step to get you going.  Then another step.

Start small. Gain confidence then reach higher.  Climbing the ladder of success is all about taking one rung at a time–if you skip a few on the way up, you might just hit them on the way back down.

Learn the craft–not just the technical stuff, but your voice and how to develop it.  Learn about making stories flow and, if at all possible, try to be original.  I don’t listen to people who tell me my work won’t sell.  It does and it will.

Learn from your mistakes.  Samuel Smiles said, “We learn wisdom from failure much more than success.  We often discover what we will do, by finding out what we will not do.”

Use failure as a learning device.  If you do then making the same mistakes over and over will not be something you have to worry about.

And don’t be afraid.  If you want to run with the big dogs you can’t stay on the porch.  You have to leap off and chase after them, chase after that dream.

Nothing good ever happens if you don’t try and not trying is the worse thing you can do–or not do.
As I’ve said, fear is the greatest common denominator.  The fear of failure is paralyzing.  Don’t be afraid to fail.  Be afraid not to try.

Now, get out there and write.

Until we meet again…

AJ Brown is a story teller who pens emotionally charged/character driven stories that often include a touch of dark paranormal. His work has received such honors as a Pushcart nomination, and editor’s choice for Issue #12 of Necrotic Tissue. Bards and Sages Quarterly, Liquid Imagination, and SNM Horror are a few of the literary zines where his stories can be found.

Above all else, AJ is a husband and father of two beautiful children who not only support his creative endeavors, but also provide inspiration (sometimes in rather unexpected ways).

If you’d like to learn more about AJ Brown’s life and work, visit his blog: Type AJ Negative. However, beware, AJ is a unique mixture of strawberry Kool-aid drinking redneck and traditional values Southern gentleman.  The only things he takes seriously are serious things and he isn’t one of them.

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Monster’s Ink Book Launch

BY: S.L. SCHMITZ

It was a dark and stormy night…

OK, not really. Let’s try again… it was a foggy and rainy night… Definitely getting closer, but not quite doing justice to the event.

How about: It was a little drizzly out and S.L. Schmitz needs to buy a Garmin, because she spent way too much time lost trying to find the elusive Sylva, NC and the fabulous Scott Nicholson’s December 21, 2011 book launch for Monster’s Ink.

Yep – that’s about right. Blame it on the rain and the highways…

Before I launch into some bad cowboy song, I just wanted to everyone to know that Scott Nicholson’s new story compilation from Dark Continents Publishing is called Monster’ Ink, and it is officially available wherever books are sold. This is not available on E-book, people – this is the real thing. A real book with a spine and paper sandwiched in between two illustrated covers. Don’t be frightened, folks – books are here to stay. The only thing left to fear is the excellent content and chillifying tales of the master himself – Scott Nicholson.

Be forewarned, because Nicholson’s stories have a way of creeping around the corner and peeking at you through the keyhole. They are treacherous, and luminescent, and shining in a light that is not quite golden. Well worth the journey, for those who enjoy a story that leads them down a twisted path…

I included a few pictures from the event, held at the gracious City Lights Bookstore in lovely downtown Silva, NC. The town really is quite nice, once you battle your way through the misty mountains and the odd sense that you have reached a place where few have feared to tread (sounds a little Tolkien, doesn’t it? Alas, no Hobbits here, unless you count the children roaming City Lights in search of bookstore cats and bedtime stories). We met new friends, had a little wine and cheese, and Scott signed a few books. All in all, a most successful evening.

For those of you desiring to obtain a piece of ghoulish history for your very own, please take a moment and order any one of the three new books that are currently available; Monster’s Ink via Dark Continents Publishing or one of those other (best selling) books from Thomas and Mercer Publishing called Liquid Fear and Chronic Fear. Pretty, pretty books that you can hold in your hand and read at your leisure… there is such luxury in the holding of bound paper in one’s hands. Won’t you step forward and join the cool kids who still own bookshelves? After all, friends may come and go, but the books spilling out of every nook and cranny in your rooms will last forever…

http://www.darkcontinents.com
http://www.citylightsnc.com

PURCHASE MONSTER’s INK HERE:

http://darkcontinents.com/2011/12/19/802/

From London, with love

BY: S.L. Schmitz

What do you call a room full of Hellraiser Cenobites, a line of people, a megastore in downtown London, and a brand new anthology from Dark Continents Publishing? The December 9, 2011 Phobophobia Book Launch, that’s what!

The high profile book launch was hosted by the famous Forbidden Planet Megastore in Picadilly Circus, London, and the event was a huge success! Authors at the signing included Adrian Chamberlin, editor Dean M. Drinkel, Wayne Goodchild, Jonathan Green, Greg James, and S.L. Schmitz.

In addition, Dark Continents Publishing was honored to have Barbie Wilde, the Female Cenobite in the movie The Hellbound Heart from the Hellraiser film franchise, contribute a story to the Phobophobia Anthology – and than we were even more honored when she brought along some friends to the book signing! Cenobites Doug Bradley, otherwise known as Pinhead, and Nicholas Vince, The Chatterer, came to visit and stood patiently in line to have their copies of Phobophobia signed. They were really nice guys, too, which made the experience even more special.

After the Forbidden Planet launch, everyone gathered up their signing supplies and headed over to the London Bridge area to the British Fantasy Society’s gathering at the Mug House Pub. There, another rousing round of launching and signing occurred, and two lucky people won copies of Phobophobia in a drawing. Interim BFS Chairperson Graham Joyce and newly ratified BFS Chairperson Lee Harris were there, and they both congratulated Dark Continents on the successful publication of Phobophobia. Author Paul Kane, also a contributor to the anthology, showed up later in the evening.

The Mug House was still full of people at last call, at which time editor Dean M. Drinkel rounded up a bunch of friends and led the way to a private after-hours club. After a few hours of dancing, drinking rum and Cokes that cost £10.50 each (that’s $20 American dollars per drink, for those of you that need a conversion) and listening to really bad drum machine music, a few hearty souls known as Dean, S.L. Schmitz, Ade Chamberlin, Greg James, and Fiona Ní Éalaighthe went in search of good curry and good 5AM conversation.

Everything that happened after that is top secret to protect the innocent. See you next time at the next fabulous Dark Continents Publishing book launch!

Julia’s memories of Archon…

BY: Julia Messina

I didn’t know what to expect at Archon in Collinsville, Illinois.

I’d been to tradeshows and book fairs throughout the US and Europe, but never had I attended a fantasy/horror tradeshow, so this was going to be interesting. Like everything else I do, I went into it with an open mind and a relatively open wallet–and that’s a good thing, because there was a lot to buy! From character costumes to game cards and books and souvenirs, all the way to the sexiest corsets I’ve ever seen (probably because I haven’t really seen that many…)–it was fun, fun, fun to watch the constant parade of costumed attendees roaming the warehouse-sized trade floor. One minute I’d be chatting up the Dark Continents book line with a sophisticated gent dressed in an expensive woolen blazer, while the next minute would bring a group of buxom corset-clad zombies to the table, looking for a good read.

Everybody loved our zombie ducks. Sylvia brought them and made a game of “Pick a Duck” as an extra-added attraction for our table—and it was a smashing success! Buy a book, pick a duck—the number on its butt corresponded to a prize that could be had with the purchase of a book! Ah, yes…gimmicks. Well, they drew attention and were definitely crowd pleasers (we had to hide them at night so that folks didn’t walk away with them when we weren’t looking).

At the artists’ exhibit, David and I found some extraordinarily good artists to pass on to our Art Director, John. David made some good connections with other small publishing houses as well. By attending in three, each of us was able to participate in some of the workshops and author talks, while the others manned the table during our absence.

One thing I noticed was that cover art is the real draw when dealing with an audience that is unfamiliar with the authors’ works. Hot covers of sexy women really do draw the attention of passersby, as does the big, beautiful Dark Continents Banner that we were able to hang behind the table, thanks to the serendipitous positioning of another vendor’s back wall. Another important aspect of making a success of a tradeshow sales opportunity is that you really have to talk up the line, asking potential readers what interests them and then guiding them to what we have that may suit their tastes. Hand selling is definitely the way to a reader’s heart—and it’s a great way to find out what’s hot and what’s not…all of which brings me back to the corsets…

As a modest-yet-buxom, kind of geeky Italian-American from the Midwest, I hadn’t had a lot of experience with super-sexy garments…but I was curious, so I made my way over to the vendor (who was doing a bang-up business, by the way) and tried on my first “bar wench” corset. It was OK but nothing special, so I decided to pass on it until… the vendor offered up a beautifully brocaded underbust version that—once laced up, made me look amaaaazzzzing—so much so that I could vividly imagine my husband’s reaction to it, and pulled out my handy-dandy credit card.

So, yes, the tradeshow, the book sales and the events that surround it are well worth our time and effort as a publishing company, and I’m looking forward to future cons, particularly the DragonCon in Atlanta next year—who knows what fanciful treasures I’ll find there…