Writerpedia discussion

Hey all,

Been reading a lot of JA Konrath's blog lately - some absolutely fantastic resources there for published and as of yet unpublished authors alike over there.

I noticed he talks in a section about his experience with 'chapbooks.' In my ignorance, I always thought 'chapbooks' was a lazy-ish shortform for MG chapter books, as they tend to be called at that age.

Apparently, I'm dead wrong - Konrath describes them as short (15-20 pg) mini-books with a card-stock cover, usually made by the author with fairly cheap supplies to give out at expos, tradeshows, etc. He swears by them - and I think they could be a great marketing tool too.

He makes a good point - when was the last time you bought a book because you were given a bookmark / flyer/ etc? Like him, I had to say 'well... never." He says he generally prints "$2.50" as a price for them on the cover (though he never charges for them) because of 'implied value,' and again, I'm forced to agree - sounds like a good strategy.

Anybody had experience using these, or know someone who has?

They sound sort of like zines, which I've made. I think it really depends on if you have somewhere to hand them out.

Ian wrote: "Hey all,

Been reading a lot of JA Konrath's blog lately - some absolutely fantastic resources there for published and as of yet unpublished authors alike over there.

I noticed he talks in a s..."

They sound like a good idea; better at any rate than bookmarks or flyers.

Yeah, the feedback from personal experiences on AbsoluteWrite was mostly positive.

Certainly going to try it out.