Good Books and Beating Starving Artist Syndrome

   I’ve spent a good portion of my life in starving artist mode. Not that I regret any of it, as we always managed to scrape up enough to make the bills and feed and dress the kids but the annoying part was that I was almost always in the situation where I wasn’t sure where my next buck was coming from.

   As a musician I’d have gigs every night for weeks then nothing. Go on tour then, BOOM something happened and the money was gone. You spend every free minute perfecting your craft hoping that someday someone will pick you out from a crowd and launch you into a world of fame and fortune.

   And that last sentence is the reason why there are starving artists. Whether you’re a singer-songwriter or an illustrator or a novelist or a painter, or whatever form of art you practice, we’re stuck in the position of trying to get noticed and promoted by word of mouth. Why? Because if we went around telling everyone what a good singer or author or sculptor we are, we’d be dismissed out of hand because that’s considered bragging or even worse, the ravings of an egomaniac.

   Mohammed Ali once said, “It ain’t bragging if you can actually do it!”

   Maybe so, but that has never been my experience. In the many years I’ve performed before the public, I’ve learned the average person resents talented people, unless of course their circle of friends are touting you as an amazing piece of work, then you’ll be accepted because most people believe that, in order to get along, you got to go along.

   There is no middle ground, my friends. In the creative profession the people are either at your feet or at your throat.

   I remember as a kid listening to rock and roll radio in the late hours of Friday night. After each song some announcer would bellow SUNDAY, SUNDAY, SUNDAY! At Motorcraft Speedway, Monster Trucks breathing fire! Featuring the ELIMINATOR! SUNDAY, SUNDAY, SUNDAY! What would follow was a commercial for Denison clothing just two miles off the Jersey Turnpike, absolutely the best clothing at the best prices. The first 50 customers get free tickets to Motorcraft Speedway, SUNDAY. SUNDAY, SUNDAY!

   This kind of shameless self promotion is called advertising. It is universally accepted by nearly all cultures, and businesses that don’t advertise are companies you DON’T invest in.

   I can’t imagine Emily Dickenson shouting “SUNDAY SUNDAY SUNDAY! I’ll be performing my poetry at the Motorcraft Speedway! Children under 12 free! The first 50 get a free 10% discount coupon for any pair of footwear at Denison’s!”

   No, seriously can’t see that happening. Primarily because she’s dead but you get the point.

   So how do we get our creative enterprises before the public without appearing as shameless self promoters with more ego than talent?

   Mostly we get other people to showcase us. Singer-song writers get featured at benefits to free the Willy’s, the Chicago sevens and the people of Tibet. 

   Writers give talks at libraries; donate books to charity and children hospitals. Artists display their art on the walls of coffee houses and underground galleries. All of them hoping their hard work will be seen and appreciated and maybe, just maybe, a buzz will be created, people will notice and your career will catch fire.

   But it doesn’t happen. Why? Because unlike others promoting their products, artist are expected to live lives of quiet desperation, in lofts and unheated flats where they suffer from some sort of respiratory ailment while they create the masterpieces that will become world famous and will fetch millions at auctions…

  Once they’re dead.

   Frankly, I’d much prefer to be loved and appreciated while I’m alive and able to spend some of the millions my work generates. So have a look at my books on the slideshow above. Click on a title and read a sample from Amazon.

   Why?

   Because I’m actually very good and I need more people to know that.

   Is that so bad?

   And should you be a blog reviewer who would like a PDF of one of my books e-mail me at czarrichards@gmail.com and I’ll send it to you   

My Wal-Mart Glimpse into the Future

   Just so you know, this post isn’t going to be a rant on Wal-Mart’s business practices, or on the people that shop there (I sometimes do myself) or that the Walton family heirs are on the top 20 richest people in the world list.

   It’s about the future.

   Recently my posts have been about how the job market has changed, how the economy has changed and how the middle class employee is being made obsolete.

   I was in Wal-Mart the other day purchasing a 6 pack of beer when I noticed that approximate 1/3 of the cashier aisles had been closed off and the machines removed.

   I asked a Wal-Mart employee about it and she explained that those manned cashier aisles were being replaced by automatic checkout machines. For those unfamiliar, they are computerized machines that you, as the purchaser, run the bar code of the product past the barcode reader, which tallies up your bill. Then you pay by inserting your card or cash into the machine.

   These eight new machines will replace 7 cashiers (one will remain to oversee the process and to punch in the code when a customer wants to buy alcohol or tobacco products.)

   How many of you remember gas station attendants? When was the last time you saw one?

   Those cashiers will be losing their jobs. (In fact, when I asked my cashier if she was concerned that her job was being phased out, she was stunned, obviously not having considered the possibility. Then she said, “Well, I’m the best cashier they have on the line, they won’t be replacing me.”

   I believe that paraphrased line was once said by one John Henry, the Steel Driving man.

   I am in the process of creating two new Ari Publishing websites. The first one will focus on supplying new authors with the knowledge, products, software and marketing tools they’ll need to get their books in the hands of new readers.

   There are too many Print on Demand and vanity press scams that con new authors into thinking that by signing with them, their novel will miraculously rocket to the top of the best seller lists.

   It won’t. In fact, in order to make any money at all the author has to sell it at an unrealistically high price. In addition the product is poorly produced, has a cookie cutter cover and ordinary graphics. At the new Ari Publishing website we’ll show them how to produce a novel they can be proud of and sell at fair market value.

   And regarding the publishing industry itself, well, the sales statistics are beyond grim; in reality you can almost hear it’s death knell. Here are some of the stats following the introduction of the electronic reader from the American Association of Publishers (AAP): 

   In February 2007 adult hardcover sales were $111.9 million. It dropped steadily over the next few years until February 2011 where it hit a record low of $46.2 million. Paperbacks have dropped as drastically from $128.8 million in 2006 to $81 million in 2011. Mass market books have plummeted 50% since 2008!

   On the other hand during the 2012 holiday season, purchases of electronic reading devices DOUBLED. Ebook sales have more than made up the difference with audio books rapidly gaining market share. In 2013 ebooks and audio books sold more copies (downloads) than hardcover, paperback and mass market books combined!

   The reasons are obvious. If you’re stuck inside on a dreary day with nothing to read, you’re out of luck. With an electronic reading device you can instantly download nearly any book you want. If the print is too small, with a book, you are again out of luck. With an ebook you simply push a button to increase print size. 

   If you have to drive somewhere, the book gets closed. With an ebook reader like Kindle you simply switch to narrate and the kindle electronic voice will read the book to you as you drive. Want to lay on the couch and read? After a few minutes your arms start giving out under the weight of that hardcover. Kindles and Nooks weight less than most paperbacks and are less than ¼ inch thick.

   My point? If you are seriously considering a career as a author, you’ll have a far better chance at breaking into the industry if you have garnered a loyal following with your inexpensive self-published ebook than you will with any POD or vanity press novel especially if you’re an unknown trying to catch a break.

   I’ll give out the link when the site opens and I hope all my writing buddies will stop by and look around.  

   The second site will be constructed to help those who have been downsized and haven’t been able to secure another well-paying steady job. There, anyone who wants to learn how to sell products over the internet can learn how. I recently did a 10 part series that was so well received, I’ve decided to make it a regular thing.

   One last note. Thanks to all of you that downloaded Storytime over the past few days. I hope you enjoy it as much as all the other readers did, and if you do, please write a quick review here:  http://amzn.to/11KogDw

  Talk to you soon,

   Zack