Kevin's Watch

The StephenRDonaldson.com site offered this News today:

In an effort to keep Donaldson readers informed, Putnams publicity and I are working to put together an SRD news mailing list. If we can get enough email addresses, readers on the list will receive direct news of upcoming publications and ongoing projects, as well as--possibly--JPGs of cover art, opportunities to get ARCs, and whatever else we can think of. There will not be a lot of traffic on this mailing list, mostly because I write so slowly. And there will be NO traffic if we don't get enough email addresses to make the effort worthwhile. But if you're interested, and you'd like to take a chance on it, email a brief note (e.g. please add me to the SRD mailing list) to:
NMJen11@yahoo.com
You'll know the project is successful if you start receiving news.

6/24/15

NMJen11? Who could that be?

Anyway, I will be signing up for sure.

Thanks for the heads up. We should post this in the Announcement Forum. Try to get the word out to everyone on the Watch.

-jay

I've signed up.

NMJen11? Who could that be?

It's not who you think.

By signing up are we going to be flooded with Palencar tree spam?

-jay

dlbpharmd wrote:

NMJen11? Who could that be?

It's not who you think.

Yes. I found out. (By signing up.) But, if anything, someone of greater significance.

kevinswatch wrote:By signing up are we going to be flooded with Palencar tree spam?

Isn't buying a Donaldson book every three years "being flooded with Palencar tree spam"?

kevinswatch wrote:We should post this in the Announcement Forum. Try to get the word out to everyone on the Watch.

Agreed.

Who would like to do the honours?

I signed up.

--A

I suppose it is my place to cross-post the news to Announcements, so I have.

I'll sign up if I can remember the password to my email. (Yes, I am terrible.)

Done!

Better late than never, right? (Hope they haven't yet given up on the idea...)

I haven't heard anything since I signed up. Hopefully they didn't abandon it already.

-jay

kevinswatch wrote:I haven't heard anything since I signed up. Hopefully they didn't abandon it already.

Given that it was posted on a website that's been placid (shall we say) for six years, I doubt there are many people who even know about it. Probably re-posting the invitation on Kevin's Watch gave it significantly more exposure than it otherwise would. And, let's face it ... news these days should be delivered through twitter, instagram, or even facebook, else it's not going to be noticed.

Given the author's admitted reluctance for public exposure, none of this is surprising.

So, yeah, I am not bursting with enthusiasm for the success of the mailing list. (But I am willing to be surprised.)

Unfortunately, I think you're right. Mailing lists are pretty old school now a days. But I do still see them used effectively even in this "twitter" age.

-jay

kevinswatch wrote:Unfortunately, I think you're right. Mailing lists are pretty old school now a days.

I was referring to the process of distributing news by posting to a news page on a website and hoping people visit the page frequently. (Referring, here, to the "news" that there's a mailing list to sign up for.)

I mean, I do that. But the ways in which I am old and/or weird are innumerable.

wayfriend wrote:

kevinswatch wrote:Unfortunately, I think you're right. Mailing lists are pretty old school now a days.

I was referring to the process of distributing news by posting to a news page on a website and hoping people visit the page frequently. (Referring, here, to the "news" that there's a mailing list to sign up for.)

I mean, I do that. But the ways in which I am old and/or weird are innumerable.

Ah, I see. Well yes, then you're right about that, too.

He needs a Facebook page, at the very least. Most of his readers are older and still on Facebook anyway (as opposed to Instagram). Need to get Romeo on that.

-jay

Yeah, no kidding. I'd run the thing for him -- I'm already modding several FB pages (including one I never asked for ).

I did get a reply from NMJen11, so they're still collecting email addresses.

One thing about email lists being old school: Facebook and Twitter, et al., can go belly-up when some new shiny thing is invented (remember MySpace? Live Journal?), and you can't directly migrate your followers to a new platform. Plus -- especially on FB -- you can't control how many of your followers see a particular post, thanks to FB's stupid algorithms. But when people sign up for your email list -- man, you *own* those names.

A number of people in indie-author-land are working toward getting newsletter signups, to guarantee their fans hear about new releases and stuff. In fact, I need to put together a freebie to give to people who sign up for my newsletter. (Note to self...)

I hate marketing.

I got more mailing list mail today.

REALLY good stuff.

I guess it's best to leave it in the author's original words, so I will repost his e-mail. However, I reserve the right to highlight the exciting parts in red.

[This is available on-line here: app.streamsend.com/private/2bjpxjunqn/B ... e/25261377
This includes a picture of SRD at work which was very large (although it looks very small) and so I chose not to embed it here.]

Stephen R Donaldson @gmail.com wrote:Stephen R. Donaldson
November 2015 News

First--I have to say this first because that's the kind of guy I am--a message to anyone who does NOT want to be included on this email list, especially anyone who has already told Putnam's to take them off the list: I'm sorry! Any "stop!" messages received by Putnam's were deleted rather than shared with me. As for the rest, I gathered them in what I thought was good faith. So let me assure you that getting off this list is easy. Email "Stop" or "Unsubscribe" to: NMJen11@yahoo.com. Your wishes WILL be respected.

If, on the other hand, you know someone who would like to be included--or you want to report getting multiple copies--use that same email address.

And now that I've got that off my chest--

I intend these emails to share news about what's going on in my writing life. There will not be many of them: I work too slowly to generate news very often. But I do want to let interested readers know that I AM still working, and I hope to keep going for a long time.

Since I finished working on "The King's Justice: Two Novellas," I've been writing a short novel I call "Meltman's SEVENTH DECIMATE." Not a good title, I've been told: at some point, I'll probably have to come up with a better one. But for now.... As of about a month ago, I have the whole story written. Now I'm into my elaborate, obsessive, and absolutely necessary revision process. I'm not sure when I'll have a version clean enough to show to my agent; but I hope I can get there before the end of the year.

Incidentally, this story has nothing whatsoever to do with anything else I've ever written--aside from the obvious fact that I'm writing it; so it's probably more characteristically "Donaldson" than I realize.

In my spare time (ha!), I've also been working on a "treatment" for a COVENANT film, or series of films, or tv series, or whatever. I hasten to add that I'm doing this entirely "on spec": nobody in the movie business has expressed any interest at all (yet), except my agent's Hollywood sub-agent. He believes there will be interest--but only if I write the "treatment," and only if I write it (for lack of a better term) correctly. So I've been trying to learn how to do what he wants. He's rejected the first two iterations. Eventually (soon?) I'll start working on the third.

Thanks for your time!

--Steve

I got that email as well. Great to hear of another story in the works and as for the idea of a tv treatment, well, I hope I live to see the day!

u.

Remembering how SRD has dealt in the past with editors / publishers / agents suggestions on commercializing his stories, I am not going to hold my breath for an on-screen Chrons.

I'd love to see The Gap brought to a visual medium - but the story will probably not sit well with the powers-that-be. Kazes are such fun...

Savor Dam wrote:
I'd love to see The Gap brought to a visual medium - but the story will probably not sit well with the powers-that-be. Kazes are such fun...

I still say HBO might be able to pull it off. They don't seem very squeamish.