Losers

And the rollercoaster of revision

Jun 17, 2025

At my friend Barbara’s1 award ceremony last month, I ran into my old friend Joe,2 who told me that years ago he was disconcerted to learn his novels were classified at the Library of Congress as “20th century American fiction losers.”

Even though Joe’s main characters are undeniably drifting and down on their luck, his first reaction was to take the label personally. I had to laugh. After all, with the recent release of his 10th novel, there’s no way Joe’s a loser. But it’s a rare writer who feels like a winner, no matter how many laurels they rack up.

I hope Barbara felt like a winner that night. Her many books have won a ton of honors, but still, I don’t think it’s betraying any confidences to reveal that she too sometimes doubts herself.

Me too, of course. Over the last weeks I’ve been struggling mightily to overhaul book 2 of my time-travel trilogy. Many of you know that I love revision. To me, it’s the most fun a writer can have.

Think about it: You know your characters, you’re comfortable in the landscape you’ve built, and you know how everything turns out in the end. Revising is an opportunity to raise the stakes and polish the writing. It’s not too late to add color, depth, humor, and foreshadowing. You get to watch your book get better and better!

Sometimes, however, revision is a pain. Sometimes, the problems are so profound it’s almost like starting from scratch. Even so, it has its moments. That’s the rollercoaster:

tragic losses of whole passages and chapters that don’t fit the new plan
thrilling new chunks that arise from sharpening your theme and goals
tricky changes that raise the stakes but threaten continuity
troubling suspicions that this was never meant to be a book

For a couple of weeks, I was drowning in confusion. But now things are falling into place! The rest is going to be my summer fun.

That dilemma

Last month I noted that I was chewing over a decision, hoping to find clarity during my vacation. And I did: I decided to back away from work-related social media. After nearly 15 years of posting and tweeting, I want a reset.

So I put up “Gone Fishing” notes (not literally), took the apps off my phone, and that’s that. My archives are still online, but I’m no longer adding content. It feels great!

My new plan isn’t less work, but it’s local and personal: Write the best books I can and participate in the local scene. Such as

organizing a Chicago launch of The Time-Jinx Twins
reading to children at my local branch library
attending other writers’ book readings and launches
querying school visits, book fairs, and other kidlit events
having coffee or lunch with writer friends
joining a monthly “write-in” with other children’s book writers

Other writers have always done those things, while I’ve tended to hide behind my computer. No more!

New reads & rereads

Book cover, Smithy and Me, by Darcy Day Zoells

Smithy and Me, by Darcy Day Zoells (2025)

The Making of the Atom Bomb, by Richard Rhodes (1986)

Living in Data, by Jer Thorp (2021)

David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens (1850)

Share Carol Fisher Saller

Barbara Gregorich, 2025 Midland Authors Award Finalist, for Adult Fiction, for Exit Velocity. A book about social justice, donuts, and a highly evolved parrot from another plant here to help save the Earth. This book has it all!

Joseph G. Peterson’s newest novel is The Perturbation of O. I haven’t read it yet, but it was a hoot listening to him talk about it, and I’m a longtime fan of his other novels, so I’ll stick my neck out and recommend it to you right now.

Epiphany

And a blast of activity

Carol Fisher Saller

May 14, 2025

Ever since I began using a word processor to write (long ago), I’ve scoffed at the idea that writing on paper has superior cognitive benefits. Please don’t send me links to all the scientific proof. I simply don’t care. I never write anything by hand if a keyboard is handy. I wouldn’t be able to read it anyway.

I don’t scoff at people who write on paper. Maybe they feel pressure watching a blinking cursor, or are flummoxed by tech, or don’t like to type. Maybe they’re romantics with a fetish for the touch and feel of paper. Maybe they love walking around with all their superior comprehension and retention.

But my job required expertise in MS Word, and it long ago became automatic to me. Writing, rewriting, editing, organizing, formatting, exporting - I can’t even remember how we used to do all that on paper. When I’m feeling blocked, a walk or workout gets me back on track.

Until last week, that is. After weeks of staring at the computer and failing to work out a major plot problem, I was desperate, so I went to a room away from the screen and sat down with paper and pencil. Within a half hour, all became clear!

I don’t mind if you gloat. I’m not giving up my primary MO, but I’m keeping this weird little miracle in my pocket for next time.

Recent Doings

In April after months of inactivity, suddenly I was all over the internet and radio! Some high-profile newsletter writers have a list like this every month, but I promise you: I do not.

Most of this happened only because I frantically pitched stuff for weeks ahead of launching The Time-Jinx Twins. I would be happy never to do that again, even though it resulted in some good publicity and enjoyable experiences.

Short, fun appearance on “WEFT Weekender” 90.1 FM talking about music and writing with Vicki and Mike Niswander. (14:38 min.)
Long, twisty conversation with Suki Wessling at The Babblery, “Writing into the Future of Kidlit with Carol Fisher Saller,” on transitioning from traditional to indie/hybrid publishing, writing diverse characters in fiction, why we write, and more. (56:57 min.) Short excerpt, courtesy Public Radio Exchange (PRX): “Minibabble: Carol Fisher Saller on Inclusivity in Children's Fiction.” (14:45 min.) [NB: This appearance came about via Varia, the two-woman marketing company I hired to help with the book launch.]
“UI Alum Publishes New Novel ‘The Time-Jinx Twins,’ Explores Limits of Children’s Fiction” [Ahem - their words, not mine], by Sam Gregerman, The Daily Illini, April 25, 2025.
On the faculty at “Me Publishing Me,” a one-day intensive by the Midwest Writers Workshop. I highly recommend the MWW’s Summer Conference (July 10-12). As always, it will focus on craft.
My book launch at The Literary Bookbar in Champaign, Illinois! A perfect bookstore, lovely staff, ideal book-talk space. I chose it because a good part of The Time-Jinx Twins is set on the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign campus.

Photo by Dania De La Hoya Rojas (University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign)

Books I Enjoyed (in random order)

James, by Percival Everett (2024).
Milkman, by Anna Burns (2018).
Abzuglutely!: Battling, Bellowing Bella Abzug, by Sarah Aronson, illustrated by Andrea D’Aquino (2024).
Guide to Writing the Mystery Novel: Lots of Examples, Plus Dead Bodies, by Barbara Gregorich (2014).

May-June Goals

Go on vacation without my laptop.
Wrestle with a big dilemma. (More on that next time, depending on who wins.)

Throwing Spaghetti at the Wall

And the thrill when it sticks ...

Carol Fisher Saller

Apr 10, 2025

Anyone who’s ever googled “How to market a book” knows that one of the first things the experts tell us not to do is to just throw spaghetti at the wall and see what sticks. Instead, we’re supposed to find one or two effective tactics and concentrate on those. Otherwise you just waste time and money, get nowhere, and exhaust yourself.

But - obviously - the only way to learn what works is to try a lot of different things!

My current challenge is to get people to my April 30 book launch in Champaign IL, where I don’t know a soul. Why there? The most exciting parts of The Time-Jinx Twins are set on the University of Illinois campus, and that’s my alma mater. Even I know those are good marketing hooks. Surely more effective than shouting “Yet Another Book Launch!” in Chicago.1

So months ago, I started scrambling to find a venue and figure out how to promote the event.2 I’ve basically been flinging pasta with both fists, and guess what? It’s gradually happening.

I’ve been learning a lot.

Having your book cover design a year ahead of publication is ideal. You need it for everything. Those ugly placeholders don’t look professional or convincing.
Little quotes from professional review sources (rather than from your friends) give you credibility when you start asking for venues, interviews, and spots on events calendars. Six months in advance of publication isn’t too early to send ARCs to the journals.
Bookstores fill up their slots way in advance, especially weekends. I started querying in early February for a late-April spot and had to settle for a Wednesday night, but I’m thrilled The Literary Bookpub agreed to host me.
“Local interest” is priceless when it comes to PR. I didn’t give it a thought while writing, but it’s proving so effective I’m having to resist the idea of dumping more local stuff into books 2 and 3 of The Time-Jinx Twins. (Sort of kidding.)
Throwing spaghetti at a wall suggests sending out a hundred press releases and seeing if anyone bites. But I research each recipient and tailor the email or message for them. It’s terribly time-consuming, but I believe it’s more effective. It also allows me to add any new credibility-builders that came along since I wrote to the last person.
If social media is good for anything, it’s for reaching people when there’s no other way. Often, there’s only a single general email address for a newspaper or library, even if they list the names of all the staffers and their positions. I google the individuals until I find someone who seems simpatico, then I find them on LinkedIn, Instagram, or wherever and message them directly. An added advantage is that they can check out my own profile with a click.3
AI is an excellent marketing tool. It will give you lists and plans and advice that would take hours to research.4

So let’s trade our pasta for a snowball. One success can lead to another, bigger one. Once you get a break - a great blurb, a venue agreement, an interview - you can leverage it into subsequent pitches. After I nailed down an interview with the Daily Illini campus newspaper, I felt more confident querying WILL radio.

I’m still waiting on that one. [Update: I haven’t heard back from them, but WEFT Weekender at 90.1 FM gave me 10 minutes on their morning show!]

By the way: Are you from the Champaign-Urbana area? What are you doing on April 30? I’d love to see your smiling face at my book launch! If you bring a child, they can make a tiny personal time machine like the ones that get Ellie and Kat into so much trouble.

I’m also planning a celebration in Chicago, probably in the fall. Champaign is kind of like my off-Broadway tryout run.

The Time-Jinx Twins is actually available on April 15, but I can celebrate any time I want, right? At least for the first few months. I was feeling rushed, so I gave myself more time.

Every time I do this, I make sure my profile is up to date and relevant to that query.

For instance, I asked Gemini AI, “If I’m pitching a local radio show about my upcoming book launch, should I mention that a local newspaper has already agreed to do a feature?” It replied with an emphatic YES and several suggestions for how to pitch it. Gemini also checked my press release for Associated Press style (two errors), and told me what information traditionally goes at the top of a release. Claude AI gave me a list of Champaign-Urbana radio and TV stations and their email addresses.

Like NASA without the tech or know-how

Countdown to April 15! Launching a book is harder than launching a rocket.

Carol Fisher Saller

Mar 05, 2025

*The Time-Jinx Twins* cover by Darcy Day Zoells

You would think I’d know how to get a book off the ground by now. After all, The Time-Jinx Twins is my fourth indie project. But I’m biting my nails as April 15 draws nearer.

So what’s the problem? There are several:

I’m just one person. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration has whole buildings filled with smart specialists. I have to do everything myself. This time I hired a small marketing company to advise on the launch. They’ve given me some terrific guidance, but every tip somehow ends up meaning a day or two of work for me.

It’s a long time between projects. When you do something complicated only once every other year, you forget how! I do write stuff down, but evidently not the stuff I’m going to forget. Formatting for both print and ebook, uploading the files at platforms like KDP Amazon, IngramSpark, and Draft2Digital, wrangling the metadata, getting ISBN and Library of Congress numbers. There are many, many steps.

Things change. This is the first time I formatted my book using Atticus, a brilliant application that saves an unbelievable amount of time and trouble. When all goes well, Atticus takes your Word files and makes nice pages. It also occasionally makes me want to kill someone.

Every book project is different. Maddie’s Ghost was stand-alone middle-grade psychological suspense, while The Time-Jinx Twins is book 1 of a time-travel trilogy. That means different readers, different strategies. Here’s one example: I thought Maddie might be “literary” enough to win an award (and it did!), but my time-traveling twins are more just for fun, so I’m skipping award submissions. (And saving money.)

I’m trying to learn from mistakes. Most of the publishing advice for indie publishers doesn’t really work for children’s books. For instance, everyone told me not to bother setting up pre-orders, that they were mainly for writers who already had a big following just waiting for their next book. (In other words, not me.)

However, my marketers told me that by failing to set up pre-orders for Maddie’s Ghost, I failed to get the book into some of the databases librarians use, and that library sales are critical for children’s books.

Hence: The Time-Jinx Twins is also now available for pre-order. If you have a child or grandchild who would be intrigued by a “The Parent Trap meets Back to the Future” type read, I highly recommend it!

Pre-Order THE TIME-JINX TWINS

There’s more! The Time-Jinx Twins is now available for request on NetGalley. If you're a reader interested in middle-grade (ages 8-12), time travel, or long-separated identical twins, head over to NetGalley for a digital ARC and share your thoughts.

Request ARC at NetGalley