Author Tells Writers to Skip the Book Signings

Sell Your Words, Not Your Soul" says new author who promotes selling books behind the scenes.

Phoenix, AZ (PRWEB) October 31, 2004 -- Sell your words, not your soul," says C. Hope Clark, founder of FundsforWriters and now author of The Shy Writer. Clark became a writer because of the seclusion, but she quickly learned that writers, known for their reclusive natures, could not publish without the dog-and-pony shows demanded by publishers and editors. So she fought the mainstream advice and published The Shy Writer.

Here you receive pointers on how to maneuver in the writing arena without the social weight around your neck. What you wont receive is a message telling you to get over it," says Clark.

Every book on publishing says in so many words that a writer has to be an extrovert. Writers are not natural salesmen, and many good writers give up or live in poverty as a result of the commercialism of publishing today. I am shy, and Ive had to fight to overcome that part of my personality on a daily basis. I got tired of it. I wanted to write AND publish without dancing under a spotlight. I'm not an extrovert. That's not who most writers are.

To make her point about traditional publishing, Clark self-published The Shy Writer. Id be a hypocrite if I preached about dodging the public appearances then signed on with a traditional publishing house and jumped to their requirements to speak and tour. So I found a sympathetic company that allowed me to self-publish this book."

Clark knew that refusing the speaking circuit would land her an immediate rejection by most standard publishing houses. So she paid part of the publishing costs up front and printed the book, with the publisher and Clark sharing the royalties. In traditional publishing, the publisher bears all the upfront expenses, and turns down 99% of submissions.

Clark already manages an Internet newsletter service to 10,000 writers, and plans to educate writers via this service. Writers Digest Magazine selected FundsforWriters.com as one of its 101 Best Websites for Writers for 2001-2004, a firm indication that the author knows how to reach customers other than eye-to-eye. Clark and her company FundsforWriters is listed as a resource with such entities as Michigan State University, the Speculative Literature Foundation, Writers Market, Jeff Hermans Writers Guide, numerous writing manuals, and hundreds of writing websites. Clark has published in Writers Digest, The Writer Magazine, Home Business Journal Magazine, and many other paper and online periodicals.

The Shy Writer, ISBN 1-59113-583-4, $14.95 trade paperback, Booklocker Publishing

Contact Information:
C. Hope Clark, FundsforWriters.com
www.fundsforwriters.com   
Email: hope@fundsforwriters.com
www.theshywriter.com    
3145 E. Chandler Blvd, Suite 110
Phoenix, AZ 85048

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