[Forster]

I'm wondering if it would be appropriate to start a new forum/sub forum for the board's many authors to hawk/discuss their books rather than in the Book Corner as they now are.

Don't get me wrong I really enjoy the opportunity to get to know the authors and gain insight to their works and I have bought many of their books it's just that the Book Corner seems to be getting cluttered with these types of threads.

Anyway, just a thought and I'm curious to know what others think about this.  Hopefully this doesn't come across too negatively.

 

[Gertie Kindle]

I'm wondering if it would be appropriate to start a new forum/sub forum for the board's many authors to hawk/discuss their books rather than in the Book Corner as they now are.

Don't get me wrong I really enjoy the opportunity to get to know the authors and gain insight to their works and I have bought many of their books it's just that the Book Corner seems to be getting cluttered with these types of threads.

Anyway, just a thought and I'm curious to know what others think about this. Hopefully this doesn't come across too negatively.

No, you're not being negative. It's a valid point.

I would like to see it stay the way it is. There are so many forums now that I know I'm missing a lot. At least I hit The Book Corner and the Book Klubs every day, and if the authors post there, I won't miss them.

It was weeks before I bought the books by Jeff, Mike and David (sorry, David, haven't read yours, yet, but I'm getting to it). I'm glad they had threads that kept reminding me to buy their books. I had some favorites ahead of them, but when my budget had enough give to it, I bought all their books. Happily.

 

[Tippy]

I agree with Forster.  That way we can go to their own forum/sub forum just in case some of us forgot to buy their book. 

I have purchased several of the books and have enjoyed them.  But it gets a little overwhelming when every other message is about their own book.  Good idea Forster.

 

[Edward C. Patterson]

You're not being negative in the least. As an author (an established one, but relatively new to Kindleboards), I like the forum as it stands now. I must admit, my first foray was dizzying because I didn't know the rules (MY BAD), but now that I do I like the capability of listing my books. I only have 4 books there out of 11 (soon to be 12 - with 9 more in the works), but I try to keep the bargain priced books before the reader's eye and I enjoy the live feedback.

Of course, segregating the authors would be anomolous, because we are also readers. I'm also a Kindle Pioneer and have become extremely active in all the theads and will continue to do so. The suggestion is valid, but I'm always antsey when asked to move to a different part of the . . . room, when I am as much a reader and member as the next person, who recommends through links their favorites and gives out their recipes and expresses points of view and opinion. It also smacks of a giant "ignore" button.

Edward C. Patterson

 

[Forster]

You're not being negative in the least. As an author (an established one, but relatively ew to Kindleboards), I like the forum as it stands now. I must admit, my first foray was dizzying because i didn;t know the rules (MY BAD), but now that I do I like the capability of listing my books I only have 4 books there out of 11 (soon to be 12 - with 9 more in the works), but I try to keep the barain priced books before the reader's eye and enjoy the live feedback. Of course, segregating the authors would anomolous, becauase we are also readers. I'm also a Kindle ioneer and have become extremely active in all the theads and will continue to do so. The suggestion is valid, but I'm always antsey when asked to move to a different part of the . . . room, when I am as much a reader and member as the next person, who recommends throuh lnks their favorites and gives out their recipes and expresses points of view and opinion.

Edward C. Patterson

See this is the negative part I would like to avoid, I would hate for something like this to alienate valued member/authors by somehow insinuating they are second class citizens, they are not...........but there are a lot of these threads and they get bumped quite often.........makes it more difficult at times to find the other threads of conversation. On the other hand if the author threads were segregated it would make it easier to find them as they can get lost in the clutter too.

I would definitely be against the idea if it were to drive author/members away from the Kindle Boards.

Anyway as I said it is just a thought.

BTW Ed, I bought Turning Idolater a few days ago, looks like an interesting read, looking forward to starting it.

 

[Edward C. Patterson]

Foster:

You have a valid point (and thank you for becoming one of my readers); however, here are rules we're supposed to abide by, and at first I inadvertently was not. The moderator is key here - and great moderator she is. Now I do not include reviews fro Amazon. I only "bump" if I have valid additional news (like my appearance on the Bobby Ozuna show tomorrow - which is tied to The Jade Owl or  price change) or to respond to another member, thanking for a new reader or a new review from a Kindleboarder. Otherwise I won't touch the item now for 10 days. I believe if we are abusing the rules and becoming obnoxious, we show be cast out . . . like devils. Proper house cleaning. However, I, like many others, how an issue with different classes of membership. I know you are sensitive to that, and you are to be applauded.

Ed Patterson

 

[Susan in VA]

I'm always antsey when asked to move to a different part of the . . . room, when I am as much a reader and member as the next person, who recommends through links their favorites and gives out their recipes and expresses points of view and opinion.

Edward, no need to be antsey... the comments you'd make as a "regular" reader wouldn't be affected by this... it's just an attempt to separate the boards, not to segregate the authors completely!

After all, think about accessories. If you're looking for some sort of Kindle covering, you go to the Accessories Board, right? And you go there hoping for recommendations from other members who have actually tried some particular product and have specific feedback about it. If every third post is from an accessories vendor, wouldn't that get a little distracting? Maybe even annoying, to some? Sure it would be nice to have a place where they can all introduce their wares, but that's not the same as actual "customer feedback". On the other hand, sometimes you just want to see what's available, and make up your own mind without others' opinions prejudging for you. That would be the time to go to a Vendors' Board, if such a thing existed. And if those same accessories vendors have recipes or opinions on Hugh Jackman or whatever else to post, they can do that in the appropriate thread.

I can understand the fear, voiced elsewhere by an author, that a separate authors' board might be ignored by many. And yes, it might. But those same people that would ignore it probably don't read "My New Book" threads anyway. Instead, I think that many people who are now frustrated by what they perceive as constant advertising might relax, read the Book Corner reviews and recommendations by members, and on a different occasion go check out all the new offerings by authors with an open mind because they don't resent those postings anymore.

Of course you need to market your books. But when people have the same response to a "Look at me, I have a new book" thread as they do to a dinnertime telemarketer, then maybe a different approach would get better results. The authors could find ways to entice people to visit their board, after all... maybe some kind of competition... c'mon, you know a lot about marketing, you could figure out something to make an Authors' Board be a cool place to visit and not a place to avoid!

 

[Forster]

Edward, no need to be antsey... the comments you'd make as a "regular" reader wouldn't be affected by this... it's just an attempt to separate the boards, not to segregate the authors completely!

^ This in particular and the rest of your post as well.

As a member and potential reader of your works I'm much more interested in getting to know you through conversation/posts on books of common interest etc... I mean how bad can a guy be who's read The Lord of the Rings 37 times.

These types of threads have a much different flavor than here is my latest work and it's now on sale. Again not that that is bad, it's just generally not what I'm looking for when I go into the Book Corner. Trust me, the members know who the authors are and when we want to see what you have going on as an author and we are curious about your works we will know where to find the pertinent threads.

 

[Shizu]

I agree with Foster and Tippy. I thought The Book Corner was a place to discuss about the books. Yes, it's nice to have the authors to the board and learn about their books. The discussion about their book by other members will be wonderful but all I see lately is often just bump without any discussion. And there's so many book promotion threads lately. When the book club started, the Book Corner was crowded by the book club discussion that there was need for the separate forum for the book club. I think same thing is happening right now. I counted the other night that 7/20 of the first page are the author's promotion threads and 7/25 in the second page. For me, that is a lot.

There are more than 44 authors in the board and all of earlier author's book thread are buried. So if the forum are separated, it will be easier for us reader to see all of them too. And I think the authors will feel more free to post their books or bump it. I don't know how many of those authors still visit the board...

If the member read the member author's book and want to discuss the book, he/she can always start the new thread in the Book Corner. This way, we are discussing about the book. As matter of fact, this is what's happening with the earlier member author's book. The members who read the book want to tell how they liked the member author's book. Aren't these discussions what the authors want? I think more member will notice the book if there's discussion.

 

[Edward C. Patterson]

I'm fine with any method, actually, but bear in mind (I love that ursine phrase and keep thinking of a big Grizzly romping around the cranium cavity) that on most forums Authors, especially Indie-authors are treated as pariahs, persecuted as spammers, called names (Kindleboards is a much friendlier place). I'm less sensitive to it, having a thick skin. Gay men tend to grow a real thick skin in the schoolyard, if they don't jump off a bridge first. I'm just stating the case as an advocate for member parity. Authors have no rights on any site. Kindleboards is paradise. I wish I could convince some of my fellow authors to realize that and not abuse their member privileges. I hope, after my radio stint tonight with Bobby Ozuna, there will be more Kindleboard members as I intend to plug this place to the 7,000 or so listeners. But alas, among the listening tribe will be authors, who I hope will come up the gangplank in the spirit of membership and not with fishing tackle and line.

Edward C. Patterson

 

[Betsy the Quilter]

Thanks so much for having a thoughtful discussion about this very important issue. It's something the mods and Harvey discuss pretty often. We're very sensitive to the fact that The Book Corner was created for a place for members to discuss books and want to keep it that way. We also think that the mingling of authors and members in the Book Corner is desirable if we can make it work. I think it's too cool to be bumping elbows with the authors we like. We're asking that authors bump their books no more than once a week. It does seem to me that this guideline has helped a lot, and that I see lots of other threads rather than just the author threads these days when I click on "show new threads." We're listening to member concerns, and monitoring this closely.

Authors--bear in mind that KindleBoards, unlike many social network websites, is EXACTLY your target audience: book lovers who have Kindles and aren't afraid to use Whispernet! This is a great place for you to spend some of your precious marketing time by being active in The Book Corner in a way other than just advertising. Our most successful author-members have done just that. There's more than one way to get your name and book title out to our members Surely you have a comment about release of the Lord of the Rings? Or the latest Pulitzer books? Or publishing on demand? Or as an Indie author? We've had threads in the Book Corner recently about all of these. You don't have to read all the threads in all the forums, but a post every now and then in the Book Corner in one of our many topics also gives you visibility. Just sayin'....

Thanks to the authors and members for keeping this a civil discussion and for working with us as we fine tune the system.

Love KindleBoards!!!!

Betsy
Book Corner Moderator

 

[Edward C. Patterson]

Lord of the Rings? They published it on the Kindle? (lol) Never heard of the book.

In fact, if it weren't for Kindleboards, with my busy schedule, I wouldn't have had mine within hours of the release. But kidding aside, the threads here are engaging and I love sharing my experience and learning new stuff daily. I just wish I can remember to differentiate between my Kindle 1 with the new Kindle 2. he he he. But I'll chalk it up to being blind in one eye and finding the #1 and #2 keys too close in proximity.

Ed Patterson

 

[Susan in VA]

but bear in mind (I love that ursine phrase and keep thinking of a big Grizzly romping around the cranium cavity)

LOL! Such a nice image.

What it makes me think of is a woman carrying a basket on top of her head, with lots of facts and advice stuffed in.... carefully balancing the load...

 

[Susan in VA]

And by the way....  that vivid phrase just made me decide to read one of your books, hoping for more of the same.  It's not always the *intentional* advertising that sells books.

(So...  off topic but....  which one would you recommend as a "starter"?)

 

[Edward C. Patterson]

Susan:

How wonderful to have a new reader. My day is made. Without a doubt I suggest for a short read - (114 pages) - No Irish Need Apply (which is not one of the $ .99 ones - yet)

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0012NOW44

for a longer read (600 pages) - my magnus opus - The Jade Owl

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B001J54AWO

But I promise you, whatever book you choose, I shall not fail you.

Thanks again

Ed P

 

[Susan in VA]

Thank you for those recommendations.  They both sound good...  I'll add 'em both to my Amazon list today.  It's intriguing that they're such completely different themes. 

 

[Edward C. Patterson]

Susan:

Thank you. Well, as a gay guy who was once a gay child, I have something endearing to say about being a gay teen. (Ah to be a teen again. Ah to be 60 again). And as a Sinologist (no that's not a sinus specialist, but a masters in Chinese history and culture), I have a wealth of stuff to share n that score. Everything I write seems to gravitate between those two poles.

Ed

 

[Susan in VA]

Susan:

Thank you. Well, as a gay guy who was once a gay child, I have something endearing to say about being a gay teen. (Ah to be a teen again. Ah to be 60 again). And as a Sinologist (no that's not a sinus specialist, but a masters in Chinese history and culture), I have a wealth of stuff to share n that score. Everything I write seems to gravitate between those two poles.

Ed

60-plus.... When you were a teenager, it must have been even more difficult to be a gay teen than it is today, at least if you grew up in the U.S. No wonder you developed a thick skin. (I'm pushing fifty, and I remember the way the gay kids were treated in high school in the 70's... appalling.)

 

[Edward C. Patterson]

Susan:

God has blessed me. I was 62 two weeks ago, and I have survived being gay and being in the military (another novel - Surviving an American Gulag), and watched my fellow gay folk emerge carefully from their closets. I watched them fall to disease, and be abused - but now there's Massachusetts, and Iowa and VERMONT, and perhap California again. I thank God for letting me see this in my lifetime, that all people have something to bring to the table, and some aren't relegated to the kid's table. So from the drag-queen adventurer, Simone DeFluerry in The Jade Owl to the 19 year old who dies of AIDS - the inspiration for Bobby in Bobby's Trace, I write to share, but most of all to engage my reader. Life is tough, but life is also beautiful, and we all get one. My mother (rest her soul) told me, the most precious gift we all get is to live, and that's why she will live forever and waits for me, as Stephen King says in The Dark Tower, "at the clearing at the end of the path." Perhaps I share too much, but when there's more behind than ahead, memories tend to play again like soft lullabies to the waking day, and as hard as some of it was and is, none of it is bitter unless we come up . . . empty.

Ed P

 

[Susan in VA]

So true, Ed...  we have to move beyond the experiences that could make us bitter, and instead celebrate the life we have, the joys still to come, and the good memories.  And perhaps those experiences make one stronger, at least. 

And happy belated birthday!