Hey Gang-
Thanksgiving is just around the corner, so with the leaves changing and some gobble gobble in the air, here’s the latest tasty meal I’ve got to report about my adventures in publishing:
* About a month ago I went through a three-day span that had me super high, super low and then pretty jazzed up again. The short version is that I received an email from USA Best Books 2011 announcing that I was a “finalist” in their book of the year contest in the new fiction category. Sweet! But …. the next day I discovered that it was actually a bogus “contest,” and that unsuspecting authors such as myself sent in a $65 “entrance” fee to compete for their “awards.” Needless to say, I was pretty freakin’ miffed.
But with the Universe unfolding as it does, a few days later …
Ruled By Books reviewer Jaime Chambers said the following about me: Comedy writing in any form is hard to do well. The intangible stuff that makes people laugh can be hard to grasp and even harder to deliver. There are only a handful of comedic authors that I enjoy, tops among them being [best-selling authors] Douglas Adams and Christopher Moore. After reading Finders Keepers, I was happy to add Russ Colchamiro to that list.”
So now I’m being spoken about — in some circles at least — as one of the best comedy authors … of all time! Um … overall I’d say I agree with Jaime’s assessment! Ha!
Here’s a link to the full interview: http://www.ruledbybooks.com/author-interview-with-russ-colchamiro/
* Keeping up with the Finders Keepers mojo, last weekend I hung out with the gang at PhilCon, an annual sci-fi convention that has since relocated to Cherry Hill, NJ. Sales were a little on the slow side, but I signed books, hung out with returning and new fans, caught up with my fellow authors and made some initial inquiries about a possible Crossline publishing deal. Very early stages, nothing concrete to report, but progress nonetheless.
For my full PhilCon blog: https://russcolchamiro.com/2011/11/philcon-2012-fans-authors-and-the-bupkis-effect/
* On the family front, Nate and Abby are happy little monkeys, racing around and generally loving life. More and more Nate is developing into that Bill Murray/John Belushi-type rascal with the Jack Nicholson raised eye brow thing, who is also so darn cute you just can’t get mad at him no matter what kind of mischief he gets into. Meanwhile, Abby seems pretty intent on ruling all of Metropolis, which, at the rate she’s going, should happen any day now.
* And for this month’s shout-out, give up some big props to my good pals in powerpop band The Turnback, whose video for their single “Celophane Sky” went over the 100,000 view mark. Their album — in support of lead guitarist and film director Todd Gilio’s great little movie DRAWING WITH CHALK — is now available: www.theturnback.com
* And with the holiday season in full swing, here’s a joyous invitation to pick up your very own copy of Finders Keepers! It is readily available at many Barnes & Noble locations, and of course you can buy it online through Barnes & Noble as well:
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/colchamiro?keyword=colchamiro&store=allproducts
That’s all she wrote for this edition. I hope everyone has a festive Thanksgiving, and I’ll be back at the end of December to wrap up with some final 2011 thoughts and well wishes into the New Year.
All the Best!
Russ
