Independent reporting and commentary from TJ Sullivan, a national award-winning writer, formerly of Los Angeles, now living in Chicago. Sullivan is an author, independent journalist, photographer and college-level journalism instructor who has been featured as a speaker at several national writing conferences. To request an interview, or to inquire about scheduling Sullivan to speak at your event, please include the name and address of your organization and a contact telephone number.
The official Web site for my novel, "Boon," went live Sunday night.
The new site offers readers an opportunity to learn more about the book, its characters and setting (be sure to check out the character profiles). There's video and audio, as well as events listings, and press info.
If you really want to hear about it, the first thing you'll probably want to know is where I died and what my lousy adult life was like, and how I could turn away from writing and all before you were even born, and all that Harper Lee kind of crap, but I don't feel like going into it, if you want to know the truth ...
When I was outlining my novel "Boon," I created a playlist of songs with themes similar to those in the story, or that I identified with particular characters. This is that playlist.
Also ... I'll be the guest at tonight's SPJ-LA Mixer in Downtown LA. More info at LAObserved.com
The first book trailer for "Boon" is online [short version above, full-length version at right]. Although the concept of book trailers may seem odd to some, it's becoming more common in the book industry for both fiction and non-fiction. I'm interested in hearing what you think about the concept.
Also ... I'll be making my first official appearance as the author of "Boon" on Tuesday, Jan. 26, at the Society of Professional Journalists - Los Angeles Chapter Mixer in downtown Los Angeles.
The mixers are very casual, so I expect to keep it brief, a Q&A perhaps, more of a conversation than a "talk." The focus of the discussion will be the journey from journalism to fiction. I initially referred to it as a "road" from journalism to fiction, but changed my mind as the word "road" implies that there is a distinct path between the two worlds, which, in my experience, is not the case.
There will be no reading. I learned long ago to never read aloud in a bar. But, I will gladly sign a few books.
THE LOWDOWN:
WHEN: Tuesday, Jan. 26, at 6:30 p.m.
WHERE: The back room at the Redwood Bar and Grill, 316 W. 2nd Street in downtown LA; 213-680-2600. Street and lot parking is available in the area. The bar is close to the Civic Center Red Line Metro stop.
COST: It’s free fun for all! (You’ll have to buy your own drinks. Happy hour ends at 7 p.m.).
SPJ-LA asks that you let them know you’re coming by sending an e-mail to: spjlosangeles@gmail.com.
More info is available in the SPJ press release on the event. Download it in pdf format. Or, view it online at the SPJ-LA Web site.
Hope to see you there.
More information about "Boon" is available on the Books page.
I don't think so, and here's just one reason why: The Espresso Book Machine.
The ability of the EBM to create books on-demand at the point of sale not only makes it possible to greatly reduce the amount of real estate that bookstores have to lease (shelving one sample book of every current title takes a lot less space than shelving dozens), but it also eliminates shipping costs, and ensures that no bookstore will ever run out of a particular title. In green terms, it means far less books will be returned to publishers [to be destroyed] since books will only be printed on-demand.
Pretty cool stuff.
The EBM was in the news again this week with the announcement of a new agreement with Xerox. As the LA Times Jacket Copy blog highlights in its January 14 post, the EBM is expected to show up at seven new venues this year (mostly university libraries and bookstores). Bookstores have so far been slow to embrace the EBM, both because of the cost (about $125,000 per machine, says Jacket Copy) and concerns about digital files and piracy (the EBM makes it possible to print more than 2 million books in Google's public domain catalog, which has been the focus of much legal wrangling).
