Comments on: Why That Author Won’t Help You

By: Barbara Foster

Barbara Foster — Mon, 27 Aug 2007 07:18:57 +0000

My daughter came over to use my computer, when she left all I could get on the computer was her own name and password. I cannot get my own info to work .Please help me

By: Dharmashanti

Dharmashanti — Tue, 28 Nov 2006 00:09:42 +0000

I was once approached by a POD publisher wanting me to use their services. Even if I was considering using a POD (which I wasn’t and never would), the attrocities committed against the English language were enough to convince me that they would be a bad choice. At first, I figured the errors were typos, but in further correspondence (she also invited me to a writers’ group), I recognized that issue was systematic. Be afraid. Be very afraid.

By: Paul Volponi

Paul Volponi — Mon, 27 Nov 2006 17:43:27 +0000

Great piece. People ask me for help and referrals all the time. In fact, the person who was introducing me to a crowd for a literary talk, asked me for help on the way to the podium, seconds before she introduced me. That’s pressure. But the truth is unless a writer reads your work, usually because he already has a real relationship with you, and is just totally blown away by it, why would you want him to speak for you? He’s not going to be a convincing advocate. Introductions don’t really work. The open door is going to be your writing. But maybe the publishing game isn’t as important as what we write. It’s ALL part of the chain of self-expression, history and reporting. There’s big value in every piece that gets churned out. Hopefully, it shows us who we are and where we’re going. Whether it’s in a binder or a book, it stands for something. I think it’s too easy to get sucked into the idea that it’s either publishable or garbage. We would never try to sell a high school student on that idea. So why do so many really smart adults buy into it? -Paul Volponi