So far, so good.

But these days you don’t want a local — or, perhaps, only a local — book launch party. Your audience is all over the world, and letting that world know that your book is available is not only a smart business move, it’s a necessary one. And you do remember that writers have to be businesspeople these days, don’t you?

So how do you throw an online book launch party?

I’d love to hear your suggestions. I know that a lot of you have had successful online book launches and would love to post your tips here. In the meantime, here are a few of my own:

• use social media sites to generate anticipation and excitement about the event
• host the party on your website or blog
• host the party as a webinar (you can get a free trial account at WebEx or Go To Webinar) so that you have the most interaction possible
• make sure you have giveaways, since you have no food or drink to offer
• have a book trailer or video available to show on the webinar or at your website. These are becoming more and more de rigeur and can eventually go viral on YouTube

There’s a start. What else? Let me know your techniques and ideas, and then you’ll be … beyond the elements of style!

A colleague of mine talks wistfully about an acquaintance who got laid off from a newspaper reporting job and sat in Starbucks for a couple of months, baby on her knee, thus producing a novel that sold instantly and well. Stories like this one are dangerous, because they make us believe that it’s a real possibility.

Yeah, well, there are a lot of other real possibilities in the world, too. The earth could be hit by flying space debris. You could win the lottery. Your uncle Ernie could die and leave you a fortune. Your best friend could be hospitalized. The point is, we don’t move forward through life acting as though any of these possibilities will really take place. We may hope for some of them, but we don’t behave as though they’re a fait accompli.

The reality is that for most writers, rejection is part of daily life. And anyone who cringes at those words should right now, immediately, look into some other more profitable way of spending their time. Because otherwise they’re in for a great deal of nearly intolerable frustration.

Write because you love it; write because you cannot not write.

That doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t try to get published. It just means that the road is hard. And not just for you … go out, right now, and pick up a marvelous little book called Rotten Rejections, reviewed here as Even Proust Got Rejected — you’ll realize that you’re in really good company!

Next Saturday at the New England Crimebake conference I’ll be given an award for a short story I submitted to the Al Blanchard Memorial Prize. I’m pleased, of course. But here’s the whole story: Al Blanchard was a friend and colleague of mine. I was present when he died, and when the prize in his memory was announced, I wrote this story specifically for it. It got rejected. Okay, fine. I sent the story out to more journals and magazines than I can count, literally for years, and it always came back .. rejected. This year I thought, why not, and sent it again to the judging committee for the very same prize for which it had been rejected before … and it became a runner-up. If that’s not a tale of perseverence, I don’t know what is!

So there you have it. Write and write and write … and send stuff out, all the time, every week. When something is rejected, send it out again. Eventually it’s perseverance that pays off. And then you’ll be … beyond the elements of style!

The submission calendar is well worth checking on a regular basis: you may have some old unpublished piece that just fits in perfectly — or be inspired to write something new! Either way, keeping up with submission information will keep you … beyond the elements of style!

As I point out in that article, everybody is always talking about summer reading. But what about winter reading? What about comfort food for the mind?

What do you like reading in the wintertime? Visit the blog post above, leave a comment with your choices, and you’ll be automatically entered to win a copy of my book Open Your Heart with Reading (which will introduce you to a whole lot of other books and authors as well!). And then you’ll be … beyond the elements of style!

In honor of the holiday, Echelon Press is sponsoring a contest. The deadline for contest submission is October 14th — that’s this coming Saturday, folks — so get writing now! Specifics are below.

In honor of Halloween (and all the other holidays of fall) Echelon Press would like to publish your “Fast and Freaky” October story. The fast part means you have until October 14, 2006 to submit your story of 3000-6000 words. The winner will be notified by October 17, 2006 and have 5 days to edit/revise the story. Echelon Press will publish your story in its e-book division on October 23, 2006. Simple!

Our only real request is that your story be creepy! Creepy horror, Creepy romance, creepy mystery, you get the point. Stories must adhere to the following guidelines.

Standard Manuscript format:

File saved in Word format (.doc) or (.rtf)
8 ½ x 11 page
Times New Roman 12pt font/black
1-inch margin on all sides/ 1.5 line spacing
Align text left, do not justify (aligning text both left and right)
Header containing title, author name and page number
Capital letters at the beginning of sentences and proper nouns
Show new paragraphs by indenting first line of new paragraph. Do not add blank line between paragraphs.
Show scene breaks with * * * * centered in the appropriate line.

All cover letters must include:

Name (and pseudonym if applicable)
Mailing address
Phone number
Email address (if available)
Web address (if available)

Email your submissions to contest@echelonpress.com. The winner will be contracted and paid royalties.

So… go for it! Your chance to really have some fun with something short and creepy! And then you’ll be… beyond the elements of style!