Today Ann Arbor, tomorrow, THE WORLD (this is not a local book fair, obviously)

In spite of having authored or co-authored several books, a couple of optioned screenplays, and a lot of magazine and web articles, I’ve never thought of myself (and still don’t) as a writer. That’s why I recently decided to do more writerly things, like exploring some of the many writers’ groups Ann Arbor has to offer. On the other hand, I DO think of myself as a media content creator and publisher, which is why it’s a little odd that for some time now, I’ve loathed the idea of attending book fairs, festivals, and conventions. Hitting the book fair and convention circuits is a no-brainer if you actually want to market your books and create a presence as a publisher, but like many authors or indy publishers, I convince myself that I don’t have the time to attend book fairs and conventions, or make some other excuses. I’m a big fan of challenging my own comfort zone, so I’ve decided to change that. Continue reading Braving Ann Arbor Book Fairs

… and one We Hope You’ll Remember!

Are you into books the way we are?
Are you one of those odd people who checks to see not only who wrote a book, but where it was published?
Do you hope to get your own book published someday?

We won’t say we’re quite book-geekish enough to go around lifting the skirts of the latest fiction to see its knickers, but we do care about Ann Arbor publishers. You see, we’re not just authors, we also publish Ann Arbor books, and if your book fits our eclectic focus, we might even publish your book! Continue reading Five Ann Arbor Publishers You’ve Never Heard of!

[If you want to cut straight to the list, click here]

Okay, I surrender. After years of avoiding anything resembling an education about writing, I’ve decided to hunker down and subject myself to some workshops, training, and the scrutiny of others. It is noteworthy that I am doing this after having had dozens of articles and three books published, and after writing thousands of web articles. So why am I doing it now? I want to answer a simple question, which is: will attending writer’s workshops improve my skills and marketability? Or are other things more important to successful writing pursuits? I’ll share my plans and some information about writing workshops in Ann Arbor further on, but first a little background for perspective… Continue reading Exploring Ann Arbor Writers Workshops

We Tried to “Think Local” and You’ll Never Guess What We Found!

When we created Master & Fool, publishing books written by Ann Arbor authors, we started by researching the local author scene. No doubt you know that Ann Arbor is one of the most well-educated, “bookish” towns in the US, so you might be as surprised as we were at what we found. In spite of being a liberal/progressive community that focuses a lot of attention on “thinking local,” there’s a surprising shortage of venues specifically devoted to local authors. Continue reading Looking for Ann Arbor Authors?

 

If you live in the Ann Arbor area and you’re old enough, you may remember an Ann Arbor bookstore called “Follett’s”. That is my first memory of being in a bookstore, although I must confess it’s a dim memory; I was a wee one at the time. My love for bookstores came a little later, at the original downtown Ann Arbor Borders. As a youngster, and well into early adulthood, I spent countless hours there, perusing the incredible breadth of the store’s selection, and soaking up the expertise of the amazing staff that peopled that original location. If memory serves correctly, there was a grueling test attached to their interview process, and you were very unlikely to encounter a mere clerk when shopping there. Continue reading Ann Arbor Bookstores Without Borders: Physical vs. Online Retail