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Kind words for ‘Condemned for Love’
Perhaps I should hire Jane Keller as publicist. Jane works at the Barnes & Noble in Fredericksburg and wrote this paragraph for the store’s website in anticipation of my book signing there. I’ll be at the B&N this Saturday, Feb. 17, beginning at 1 p.m. Please join me. We have a very special author with
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B&N book signing scheduled for Feb. 17
One of my vanities is to stop at the Barnes & Noble store in Central Park in Fredericksburg. I visit to see if they still have my books for sale. Usually they do. Last month, I searched in their Local Interest section. Last Lynching, my first book, was there, but Condemned for Love, my second,
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Wait list at library is reason to be happy
Amazon produces a sales ranking that some authors enjoy following. Not me. It’s too discouraging. This morning, Aug. 15, for example, my new book, Condemned for Love in Old Virginia, ranked No. 792,776 on the Amazon site. The rankings were better in their African American History category (No. 1,095) and True Crime category (No. 8,408).
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It feels different this time
I can’t help but compare what has happened this time with what happened last time, after publication of my first book. When The Last Lynching in Northern Virginia came out in the fall of 2016, it met with indifference, even hostility, in parts of Fauquier County. The book told a story some did not want
Jim Hall
Alison Zak, Barnes & Noble, Cammie Fuller, Central Rappahannock Regional Library, Condemned for Love in Old Virginia, Fauquier County, John Owens, Karen Hughes White, Laurel Ridge Community College, Margaret Sullivan, Old Jail Museum, Shedrick Thompson, The Last Lynching in Northern Virginia, The Open Book, The Washington Post -
On the hunt for a good title
I did a Google search on the title of my new book and learned two surprising things: There’s another book on the market with a similar title, and Amazon may be the online sales giant, but it has more competition than I realized. The folks at History Press came up with the title for my
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Reflections of a first-time author-Part 2
Andi Russell, who does the Books page at the Free Lance-Star, where I used to work, invited me to participate in a new feature called the Local Author Spotlight. The Spotlight asks 17 questions of the writer. Here’s a preview of two of my answers: What I learned from the writing/publishing process: I was surprised
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Where is Mr. Jennings when you need him?
When my friend said he didn’t do online shopping and asked where he could buy my book, I didn’t know how to answer. History Press said it was going to place the book with the national chains. Was it available in the stores here? The answer, I discovered, was yes and no. At the local
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Preparing to launch
A sales specialist from History Press sent me an email yesterday titled “Getting your book into the market.” It’s the type of correspondence that I’ve been receiving from the company lately and an indication that it’s time to resume posting here about my book. Publication of The Last Lynching in Northern Virginia is still scheduled for Sept.
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Launch date will be Sept. 12
The notice I received last week reminded me of the “save-the-date” card that I got for my colleague’s wedding. This time, however, it was an email from one of the sales managers at History Press. It said: “I am very pleased to inform you that we have scheduled the publication of The Last Lynching in Northern
Author & Lecturer
Jim Hall 