Q & A on MBDD, Part 1

      Over the past few weeks, I've had many comments and questions about Murder by Dewey Decimal. Most of them concerned why I choose to self-publish MBDD rather than going the traditional route. I thought I'd answer those questions as well as respond to some of the comments.

      Why aren't you going with a traditional publisher?

      Listen, children, to the sad tale of MBDD. I wrote MBDD nearly twenty-five years ago. I was younger, more energetic, and certainly more naïve. I wrote the book in Wordstar, used a "near letter perfect" dot matrix printer to print it, and sent it off.
      The first publisher took six months to respond. It was a nice hand-written note suggesting that I try an editor at St. Martin's Press. I was disappointed that the first publisher didn't take it, but I knew that hand-written rejection slips were rare (I was reading Writers Digest by then) so I felt confident that it would be accepted by St. Martin's.
      Off it went. And lo and behold, they accepted it! They sent me a contract to sign! I signed that baby and sent it off. After they signed it, I'd receive an advance check. Wow! I told everyone and their dogs -- and cats -- about it. Except ... the contract didn't get returned. I waited a month and then called, hoping that my call wouldn't make me look like an amateur. I was in for a rude shock. The editor that had accepted my book was no longer with St. Martin's. The editor that had taken her place hadn't read my book, but he promised to read it "soon" and get back with me.
      Three months passed. I finally called again and asked the status of the book. He still hadn't read it. I asked if they were going to publish the book. He paused. And then said, "I'll let you know this week." And he did. My manuscript returned on a Friday with a nice letter that said they were trimming their mid-list mysteries. It was all strictly business. Also included was a small check for the "kill" fee, all specified in the contract that I had barely read. I didn't have a publisher anymore.
      I dreaded having to tell everyone so I thought that I would submit the book quickly to other publishers and maybe sell it to them. Submission packets flew out of my house. I was desperate to sell the MBDD. But there were no takers. I got many printed rejection slips along with a couple more hand-written rejections. One rejection even suggested that I try the book with St. Martin's.
      Of course, publishers take months to respond -- I think my shortest response time was three months -- and gradually I began to tell my family and friends what had happened to the first contract. I was having to eat my pride with a side dish of embarrassment, and it wasn't tasty.
      I started to dislike the book. It had offered such hope at the beginning. To make things worse, while the book was being submitted, I had written two sequels to it: Murder by the Acre and Murder by the Mile. I had plans for a whole series. I stopped talking about the book and continued to quietly submit it to various publishers and agents and wait for an answer.
      The submission process was long and discouraging. I'd find a publisher or agent in Writer's Market, send off the book or submission packet, wait months, then if I was lucky, I'd get a hand-written rejection note. If not, a pre-printed one. "Not for us." Folks, a hand-written rejection note may be a sop to the ego, but it's still rejection. I also became aware that my book wasn't being read in some instances. I estimate that half of the submission packets were never even opened. They were simply put back into the return envelopes and mailed back to me. (Three copies were returned still in the original boxes with the return postage still attached to the cover letter inside. The tape that sealed the box was still in place. I also received copies that had cola or coffee stains on them, crumpled copies, and once a copy that apparently someone had stepped on. My "favorite" was a title page that some editor had started writing a shopping list on. He or she had marked out what they wrote and then penned a brief "Sorry" beside their scribbles.)
      All in all, MBDD received over 30 rejections from publishers and agents. By this time, I was using a friend's laser printer. I had updated the book, changed the book, rewrote the book twice, and frankly I was sick of the book. I hated the book.
      Finally, I gathered up the books and all their materials and put them in a box and the box into the closet. I was done with writing novels. I wasn't good enough to be published. It about broke my heart, but there was also a release in giving the dream up. I wasn't a writer. Fine. I'd be something else.
      However, I had continued to write poetry and humor during that time. I had several poems published. A friend of mine and I had written two one-act plays, and the plays were published. My writing received enough encouragement that it hung grimly on, lurking in the back of my mind. Slowly, I started to write again. Oh, not novels. I was done with that, but poems, plays, articles, and humor.
      Somewhere in this, I ran across Forward Motion. I had previously joined a writing group on AOL, but it hadn't helped me much. At FM -- where I met the fabulous Holly Lisle, the charming Mama Rose, and the incredible Jean -- I found a group of supportive, intelligent, struggling writers. I devoured the site's forums. Slowly I let a few of the other writers there read my fiction. They liked it. Some of them really liked it.
      It was enough to awaken the monster again. I threw myself into writing. Dragons Gather, Red Hot Sinner Man, Ice Cold Passion Princess, Tin Man Dark, Vampire Run, etc., I kept starting novels. I had suddenly had more ideas than I had time to write. The words flowed.
      And on a whim, I pulled out MBDD. It had been over 15 years since I'd read it. Reading it after all that time was like rediscovering my youth. As I turned the pages, I remembered how much I had enjoyed writing it, how hopeful I had been. I found that I liked Bernard, Lisa, and the chief. I wanted other people to meet them. So I started posting it on my blog. And the nice response to it there made me think about how nice it would be to have their story in book form.
      I know I will have to go through the traditional process with Darkness, Oklahoma and Dragons Gather and the other books. But MBDD has already suffered enough. It's time for it to be a book. Technology has made it possible for MBDD to finally achieve publication.
      Admittedly, Lulu doesn't have the "bragging" rights that you receive from a traditional publisher. I know that many people will dismiss it because it was self-published. They're wrong because it's a good little cozy mystery (that has been read, edited, and vetted by many astute readers) but I'm not publishing it for them anyway. I'm doing it because 25 years ago, a young man put out a lot of effort and wrote a book without any support or encouragement, just his faith in his talent. This book is for him. He was naïve and ridiculously hopeful, but you know what, he was also pretty cool.
      The answer to this question was long so we'll resume our Q&A tomorrow and talk about bad words, sex, Lulu, vanity publishers, etc., then.
      Have a great day!