Response Time

Ok, maybe I am anal...fine I know I am...but what the hell is wrong with follow through? If you are told you will here a response on your query in X # of weeks, wouldn't one think that an industry professional would adhere to their own guidelines? After all they were the ones who wrote them.

So here I sit, still waiting, twice as much time has passed as the "supposed" hear back and I have yet to hear anything. Hell I didn't even get an automatically generated "we got your submission" email. WTF?

This is the second time I have been this route with this "industry pro", and I use the term Pro loosely, and I think this will be my last. I have yet to find anyone that has said good things, though to tell the truth I haven't really been looking.

Here is what I know, IF I were given a time line by them for response and they didn't hear back from me, do I really think they would wait around? Nope. They don't really care about me. I think this is sad. After all, aren't they in the business to make $ and produce a product? What happens if you keep crapping on the folks you depend on for that product? They get tired of smelling like shit, that's what happens. They take a shower and then tell you to stuff it.

I am about at that point. I sent an email today asking is it usually took longer than the guidelines specified and am waiting to see if I get ANY response. Have no intentions of being a pain in the rear but come on! Any response at all is better than just ignoring folks. How hard can it be to set up an auto response? I know other Pro's do it. Why not this ONE? maybe they just suck.

I have heard stories from a few others who have sent to them and their tales of woe were just as bad. One got a rejection after sending a follow up eamil after the alloted response time had lapsed...then after another "unspecified" length of time actually got an email from them saying they wanted to see it? Huh? Yeah you heard me right. Rejected then later got this lovely "sounds great and we would love to see it" email.

Another person I spoke with was treated about the same. Waited 4 times the specified response time because she really wanted in with them, sent a followup email and recieved a rejection within an hour. Ugh.

Now, don't get me wrong...these are just a few incidences. I am sure there are those out there who can say nothing but good things about this Professional but I haven't found one yet.

is it just me? Am I being a bitch by expecting someone to follow their own rules? Or should I just shut up and deal, after-all I have sent to them before and know that there are others not happy with them and their practices?

What would you do?

Loops

My word there are a shit load of loops out there! I had no idea that there were so many...and it seems they are all they same.

How helpful are Promo loops in the grand scheme of things? Do they really help sales that much? OR are they just another one of many "tools" that an author can use that really don't reach the people we want them to...READERS!

I have been trolling the loops for awhile now and am ready to give my impression.

I think that loops were a GREAT idea when started. They offer a way for authors to get "out there" and make themselves known. But at what point does it become over kill?

When I stop by six or seven loops in a day and I am seeing the same names over and over, the same excerpts, the same blurbs is it helping?

There are a handful of loops out there that get a HUGE following and are always very active with not only authors but what appears to be readers (though in the age of Cyber-tech who can really be sure who they are) These loops I think are the best bets. Unfortunatly they are loops that belong to authors of specific publishers.

Is there a better way to advertise so that we are showing our face to readers? Not that authors aren't readers but you know what I mean.

Hmmm, I will have to think on this one

Release Day

The day is here. Finally after months of work, work, tears, frustration, work, anger, work....the day has arrived. You have arrived. You are now officially a PUBLISHED AUTHOR!!

Congrats. Now what? Promote on loops, blogs, and such until your fingers are numb and your vision is blurry. Interact with potential readers, post excerpts, blurbs, have contests. Comment. Comment. Comment. and then do it all over again on the next designated day. You post of Myspace, Facebook, you tweet your news. Cross promotions with other authors, blog hops...the list is endless...and tedious...and time consuming.

Does it really help? Maybe. I think you will generate some sales from this type of promotion but how much? And is it really worth it?