The Coolest Writers in the Room

On Saturday we participated in the Ramona Local Authors’ Day at the beautiful new library in town. We had no idea what to expect. It turned out that is was mostly self-published authors plying their wares and writer wannabes looking for advice. The two most popular tables when we were there were the gentlemen pushing self-publishing how-to books. There were a couple of traditionally published authors too, but their advice seemed to be that, based on their last experience, they were going to go the self-publishing route next time.

We were the only authors in the room who were eBook only and we had the coolest display, if we do say so ourselves. Besides bringing the typical promotional material, we brought along our Kindles, Nooks, a laptop, and small flat screen TV, so we could show off our electronic wares. While the other authors talked about where you could find their books online, we were able to show everyone. We have to admit, however, we felt a little like aliens. For those of you who don’t know, our home town is not on the cutting edge of technology. The author at the table next to us didn’t accept an offer of a free eBook from us because she didn’t own a digital device except an old clunky desktop that connected over dial-up. Still, it was pretty cool when Lynn was invited to sit on a panel discussing the pros and cons of self-publishing and she was the only one who didn’t carry bound copies of her books. Instead she took the Nook and flashed the audience our eBook covers. We would love to show you pictures, but Evans couldn't figure out 

how to work Lynn’s new camera, which is a little embarrassing since we’re bragging about being techie writers.

Since we were online, we did a little e-snooping and checked out the other writers’ books on Amazon. This left us feeling pretty smug since we have more and better reviews than everyone else. The only one who was close was the collaborators who wrote about their experiences traveling in Turkey. Here’s the Kindle link if you want to check out the book: Anatolian Days and Nights.

 We were glad we participated, but we’re not sure we will do it again. We might reconsider if the organizers change the format so that one session can be devoted to fiction and they can figure out a way to get more young people interested. Still, it was kind of fun to feel like we were leading the parade. Just about everyone who stopped by mentioned how they knew eBooks were the future and several authors asked our e-advice. It made us feel connected and convinced us that the path we’ve chosen isn’t wrong but might be just a little ahead of its time – especially in Ramona.