March 2018

Part Two in a four-part series leading up to the April launch of Kaylene’s first novel!

 

Today, I take a moment to honor readers. We, the writers, craft our work for you, and simply by being, you help to shape it.

But my recent journey into the deeper grooves of the publishing world – where the heavier discussions about marketing start to take place – have left me scratching my head. Yes, it’s true that many books will appeal to people with certain interests, those who have read work by writers with a similar voice, or those of a particular generation or gender. And I understand the need to focus advertising on one or two groups of people more than others so the writer or publishing team can try to sell as many copies as possible. Finally, I recognize that there are people out there who will only ever enjoy reading one type of book; anything outside of that and they say, “Thanks but no thanks!”

Yet, I believe no one really likes to be pigeon-holed. I think that every reader has a right to say, “I am open to reading a variety of things as long as they are _____ (well-written, intriguing, informative, entertaining, light-hearted, realistic, etc.).” Or “I think it’s okay to mix genres, and I like a good story that integrates a variety (adventure, mystery, romance, sci-fi, historical, fantasy, poetry, etc.) simply because it is a good story.” Or “Just because I usually read fiction, why can’t I also read some good non-fiction every now and then (or the other way around)?” Or “Isn’t it okay for me to read a certain book even though no one in marketing (or the general public) would think of me as the ‘typical’ reader for that kind of book?”

For the sake of business, my marketing plan includes a list of targeted types of readers and my novel has a sort of genre-based label (i.e. historical fiction with a literary, autobiographical flare). But I don’t want to pigeon-hole any of my potential readers. I already have great respect for each person who will read my book – both those who start it but decide to move on to read something else and those who read all the way to the end. And I know ultimately that my work will appeal to any given reader not based solely on what demographic they fit into but because it is a beautiful story about people navigating the journey of the human condition – a journey we can all relate to in one way or another.

 

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Part One in a four-part series leading up to the April launch of Kaylene’s first novel!

Is it fair to judge an actual book by its cover? Whether or not it’s really “fair” when we have never heard of a book or an author before, don’t we all do it?

Gone are the days of plainly-bound books with nothing but a few words embossed on the spine. The pressure is on. As they design a book’s cover, the choices the writer and any publishing team members make will have a definite effect on the answers to these questions:

  • Will a reader browsing books in a store or library or on a website be eager to give the book more than ten seconds of their time based on how the cover catches their eye?
  • Can the reader automatically understand something of what the book is about (style, genre, etc.) based on the cover art?
  • Can the colors, font size and style, pictorial contents, and other design elements convey both directly and subconsciously to the reader everything the writer is trying to communicate in the heartbeat of the story or the central concept of the book’s ideas? And can the expectations raised in the mind of the reader who judges that cover be met fully and honestly every time by what the writer includes on the inner pages?

It looks like a challenging – if not impossible – task. Therefore, during the cover design process for my forthcoming novel (a working concept pictured above), I am filled with gratitude. I am thankful for the team at Concierge Marketing and how they are helping me “say” a huge amount to my potential readers in a fairly simple cover design.

Stay tuned in coming weeks for more news about the availability of The Voice of Melody.

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After church today, both my parents and I were headed to our respective homes to make pots of soup. Later, while I produced mine, I giggled. I knew that when Mom and Dad saw a picture of my pot, they would smile. And that their pot was probably just as full.

You might ask, “Why don’t you all use bigger pots?” Knowing us, we’d fill the next bigger size just as full with more veggies, broth, and meat. This is a case where I can laugh at myself and say, “Well, I come by it naturally. I am my parents’ daughter. Must be in my genes!”

Thinking about how full my pot of soup ended up being reminded me of a verse from the Old Testament: “But if I say, ‘I will not mention his word or speak anymore in his name,’ his word is in my heart like a fire, a fire shut up in my bones. I am weary of holding it in; indeed, I cannot.” (Jeremiah 20:9)

Some days, I ache with the longing to tell others about the goodness of God: His love and His truth. The desire to do so is SO full inside of me. But I know this is not natural in me – it is a gift of God, reflecting the beauty of His saving grace that has made all the difference in my life. And when I remember this, I can smile and say, “Well, I come by it supernaturally. I am my Father’s daughter. It’s in my bones – and it will not be held there.”

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We all have multiple roles to play in life – and therefore multiple parts of what we think of as our own personal identity. Who or what are we? Son or daughter. Perhaps a parent or grandparent, a spouse or a significant other. Likely a boss, employee, student, or volunteer. Adult or child. Neighbor. Citizen of a particular country. And so on.

St. Paul, in the midst of his famous definition of love, reminded us that, “…Now we know in part, but then we will know fully – even as we are fully known” (1 Corinthians 13:12). The truth is, most days of living on this earth provide me with a very limited scope of who I really am, of the potential God has placed in me and how much He loves me, and of who He is making me to be so that I can love other people with His heart.

I have recently started studying the book of First John more fully and am blown away with the seemingly simple yet incredibly complex truths held there. Today, trying to wrap my mind around the lavish love God has for me and each one of His children while we grace the planet for a blip of eternity led me to write the following acrostic. I pray it will bless you and help you glimpse a fuller picture of your identity within this moment.

In cosmic finger-spinning was I woven,

Divine imagination’s product, made for a purpose both

Eternal and momentary,

Never – not for a moment –

Taken for granted, forgotten, purposeless, less than lavishly loved,

Intended to reach the end

Triumphant over fear and death while

Years of Heaven’s calendar spin on without end.

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