Re the photo from B&N I posted yesterday, it seems this was the front-of-the-store display. What you see as you walk in the front door. Right next to Margaret Atwood’s latest too…
And just after I posted yesterday’s blog, feeling frightfully smug, I followed a link tweeted by a Twitter friend about author expectations on a blog by a literary agent, Rachelle Gardner.
Here are a couple of extracts:
But there are many writers who hold on to unrealistic expectations long after reality should be setting in. This is an ongoing concern for agents, editors, and publicists who constantly find themselves not living up to writers’ expectations. In many cases (and yes, there are plenty of exceptions), the writer’s hopes and beliefs were simply too idealistic to begin with.
and then this about one of the common unrealistic expectations:
“I’ll go with the publisher who will commit to putting my book on the front table of Barnes & Noble.” I’m sorry to say that this is highly unlikely if you are a first-time author without a huge platform or marketing hook. Now, I’ve had clients whose books have been on the front table of B&N and other exciting places. But it’s more the exception than the rule, so enjoy it if it happens, but don’t expect it as a matter of course.
So I had to have a bit of a giggle at reading this so soon after seeing the photo…
Stormlord Rising is my ninth book, so it’s taken a while for me to get on to the front table. And now that I am there, I am going to wallow in delicious smugness.
Until reality sets in, which it will.
.
With the way you write, why should reality set in? I can fully understand why you should feel so smug. Enjoy the feeling.