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Featured Author - Maggie Dana


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Hello Maggie. Shame you can't fit in coming north of the border on you booky trip. Never mind.

 

Just wondering what would be your ideal exotic setting for a writing a book and how it would inspire you?

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  • 3 weeks later...

Hi Everyone:

 

I'm back in the U.S., safe and sound, and missing England like mad. To say I've just had the trip of a lifetime is putting it mildly. It couldn't have been smoother, thanks to British Rail (don't laugh ... it's brilliant) and friends with cars who met me at stations and airports, gave me beds to sleep in, and drove me to signings and other events.

 

Picking highlights from a trip literally studded with them is tough, but I'll give it my best shot. It began with Katie Fforde who was not only kind enough to blurb my novel, she also came all the way from Stroud to have lunch with me and a couple of my friends in London ... and then (sweet and generous woman that she is) she insisted on picking up the tab. From L to R: Pat Waye (a dear friend who provides me with a home-away-from-home); Elaine Simpson-Long who blogs as RandomJottings; me; Katie Fforde

 

PatElaineMaggieKatie.jpg

 

 

Then it was off to my launch party at Macmillan's head office and this is what was on display in the ground-floor foyer (I suspect my clever publicist, Sophie Portas, had something to do with it):

 

foyerdisplay.jpg

 

 

After recording a PR video in their basement studio (here's a link if anyone has the patience and fortitude to sit through it)

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UxvgZUPG0Fk&feature=channel

 

I was whisked upstairs to Macmillan's top floor conference room where my editor and his team had laid on wine and appetisers (followed by dinner at a local restaurant) for me and my friends. Here are some of us outside on the balcony. From L to R: my editor, Will Atkins; Pat Waye; me; author friends Mark Bastable, Sue Cook, and Len Tyler.

 

Macmillan01.jpg

 

 

The next day, June 5th, was my official publication date, so I popped into several bookshops in London to sign copies of my novel, including Hatchards on Piccadilly, only to find out that the table I'm using was also used by Oscar Wilde to sign his books.

 

Hatchards_low_res.jpg

 

 

On June 6th, I was part of a panel discussion on writing and publishing at The Writer's Handbook Live event in Regent's Park. Here I am sharing a smile with my editor, Will Atkins, while Big Brother Beachcombing watches over us. I had no idea that whopping great image was up there till after our segment was over!

 

MaggieWillatseminar.jpg

 

 

After a couple of days catching up with family and old friends, it was off to Waterstones in Oxford for a signing with Eliza Graham and Sue Cook. Their latest novels, Restitution and Force of Nature have just come out in paperback.

 

ElizabethSueMaggie.jpg

 

 

It's been many years since I visited Devon and Cornwall and it's just as beautiful as I remember. Driving across Dartmoor, dodging ponies and reveling in the rugged landscape, reminded me of all the things I love (and miss) about England. I signed copies of Beachcombing at bookshops in Ivybridge and Paignton, in Tavistock and Wadebridge, and spent the night at a B&B on the north coast of Cornwall where part of my story is set. The scenery is breathtaking and I gathered up as much tourist information as possible because I'd like to bring my family (all ten of them) over next year to enjoy it with me.

 

It rained while I was in Truro, but that didn't dampen my spirits. After signing copies at Waterstones and W.H. Smith's (who've purchased a substantial number of copies for their station and airport shops), I was interviewed at Cornwall Today magazine for their August issue, followed by a live interview at BBC Radio Cornwall with presenter Martin Bailie who put me at ease right away. He was so charming and friendly it was like chatting over a cup of tea at the kitchen table. If anyone's interested, here's a link to the show; my bit starts about 25 minutes in:

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/p003ctrt/Martin_Bailie_17_06_2009/

 

My trip ended on yet another high note, this time at the W.H. Smith's at Heathrow where I found 6 copies of my novel, followed by another 8 copies at the W.H. Smith's on the other side of the security checkpoint. I signed them all, then the salesperson put 'signed copy' stickers on the front and reshelved them face out at eye-level!

 

Needless to say, I hardly needed an airplane to get me back to the States.

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Maggie, I really enjoyed meeting you when you came over.

 

I've seen Beachcombingin several shops which is half the battle. Let's hope it's a smash and you have to revisit the UK soon!

 

~Tim

 

Hi Tim:

 

How lovely to see you here. This is a super site full of friendly people. I think you'll have a great time with them. Which shops did you see the book in? I know WH Smith's is carrying it, especially in their airport and station outlets, and many Waterstones have it, too.

 

Maggie

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Well Maggie - I went into my local WHSmiths today, to see if it was there. Unfortunately it wasn't, but I ended up coming out with four other books! I think I should send you the bill..? :blush:

 

How does it make you feel when you walk into a shop, and see your own book on the shelves?

Edited by Michelle
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Well Maggie - I went into my local WHSmiths today, to see if it was there. Unfortunately it wasn't, but I ended up coming out with four other books! I think I should send you the bill..? :006:

 

How does it make you feel when you walk into a shop, and see your own book on the shelves?

 

This icon :006: just about sums it up! Though I have to admit that I'm hopeless at finding my own novel on the shelves, or even on a display table by itself. I'm too distracted by looking at others I want to read. ;)

 

My friends always found my book first, and the best one was, of course, in the Smith's at Heathrow. My friend Pat (who saw it first) said it was 'the icing on the cake.'

 

And yes, send along the bill. It will be added to the rather large pile that accumulated while I was away.

Edited by Michelle
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  • 2 weeks later...

Maggie, having had some children's books published in the past, have you seen many differences in the publishing world between then and now?

 

I've also spotted that you have your own book design company.. has that helped you make any contacts?

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Maggie, having had some children's books published in the past, have you seen many differences in the publishing world between then and now?

 

I've also spotted that you have your own book design company.. has that helped you make any contacts?

 

Hi Michelle and everyone:

 

Thanks for the questions, and my apologies for being dormant for so long.

 

Question 1: Some would say that e-books are the biggest change, and while it's significant, I think an even bigger change is the overwhelming number of people writing books these days. Back in the 1980s when I wrote my first children's book, hardly anyone (outside of a business) owned a typewriter. But now, almost 30 years on, practically everyone has a computer or access to one, and most of them have a story to tell. This, of course, translates into many more submissions to publishers. In fact, most of the large publishers (Random House, Penguin, St. Martin's, Bloomsbury, etc.) no longer accept unsolicited manuscripts. They only look at agented submissions, which means that agents have pretty much become the gatekeepers when it comes to fiction.

 

Question 2: Having my own book design company hasn't helped me make any contacts because my clients only publish non-fiction: medical, self-help, business, and academic. That said, my experience in book production was a plus because I knew what to expect and understood the importance of deadlines.

Edited by Maggie Dana
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Just read your blog article at thedebutanteball.com - I enjoyed your blog and the comments that followed. :icon_eek:

 

My daughter just told me she loved the book and promised me that she'd closed her eyes while reading the racy bits. My son's teenage daughter is taking the book on holiday with her. Good thing (for me and my ability to blush) she'll be 2000+ miles away when she reads it.

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