The big moment’s here!!!!!!!!!!111
The actual, printed copies of my chapbook, Eikaiwa Bums, got to Japan this week and are ready to order. I’m not going to lie—opening that envelope and seeing them stacked up was all kinds of exciting, and it was something I’ve been looking forward to for a long time :-)
Quick catchup in case you’re just joining in: Eikaiwa Bums is a 20-ish page short story about life at a for-profit English conversation school in Japan. It’s based on some themes from my Japan novel that I pitched to the good folks at Blue Cubicle Press and that they published last month as part of their Overtime series of chapbooks about work. (If you’re interested in how the story went from novel draft to Blue Cubicle chapbook you can read all about it here.)
I’m sure a lot of you out there are asking the same question: How can I get a copy of this fine piece of writing? Well fear not! Check out my brand-spanking new webstore to pick up your very own SIGNED copy directly from Japan—I’ll even write something cool in it if you choose the personalized option.
Signed copies are 4 bucks each plus shipping, which covers the cost of the book plus a little extra for my efforts in a support-the-hardworking-artist kind of way. If you’ve been following this blog for a while and are wondering how you can support it, now’s your chance—plus, you’ll also get a cool piece of indie lit signed by yours truly.
Alternately, if you want to read the story but need to save some $$$, you can get a PDF copy for only a buck or pick up a non-signed paper copy directly from Blue Cubicle over at their webstore and in the process support a hardworking small press.
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Why’d You Open Your Own Webstore Anyway?
As many of you know, my ultimate goal is to transition away from doing Day Job type-work so I can spend more time on creative projects that matter to me—chiefly, my novels and fiction writing. The catch is that I also have to keep the bills paid while I work towards that goal, and if the creative work can help me pay those bills in even a tiny, tiny way, I’ll be that much closer to my goal.
This transition to actual, for-serious Writing as a Career doesn’t happen overnight, since book deals that pay writers living wages are hard to come by—plus, you’ve still got to pay your bills while you’re writing the book! I’m almost ready to start pitching my novel about the grad school writing world, but in the meantime I wanted to try a smaller step using the resources I have available now.
When people pay money for things they find meaningful, it gives the creative people who made those meaningful things income to support themselves while they make more meaningful things. When you buy a copy of James Patterson’s latest book at Barnes and Noble, for example, a portion of that goes to James Patterson himself in the form of a big fat royalty check from the publisher—at least, that’s the way it works for bestselling authors who have a place in the massive book distribution market!
With a lot of indie projects, though, there’s no set-in-stone way for you to give the creators your money and for the creators to get their work to you—everybody does it a little differently depending on their audience, what they’re making, and their personal preferences. Since I’m basically a rookie at this, I’m still figuring out how to get my work to supportive readers and for readers to provide me with some kind of income.
Support My Work and Get Something Cool in Return
I’ve always loved signed books—a few years ago I had the chance to meet one of my writing heroes Nicholson Baker at a writing seminar, and afterward I asked him to sign my crinkled, dog-eared ‘90s Vintage copy of The Mezzanine. He seemed to appreciate getting an older copy of his first book to sign, and on the inside cover he wrote, “To Ian, who asks interesting questions,” a reference to a thought I’d posed during the seminar. That moment meant a lot to me, and I’d rank that book among the most valuable things I own.
I’ve also got signed copies of books by David Sedaris (who was so tired after his reading that he wrote “You can’t spell “brains” without you!” on the inside cover before realizing he’d confused the I-A in “Ian” with the “A-I” in “brains”), books by my Bennington teachers whose work influenced and inspired me, and books by my other writing heroes Salman Rushdie and Kevin Smith (albeit ones I bought already signed).
For me, it feels worthwhile to have a copy of a book that the author for serious touched and wrote in, but it’s even more special to have a story about getting it, like I’ve got for David Sedaris and Nicholson Baker. It also doesn’t matter to me how famous the person is—as long as I have some personal connection to their work.
In offering a very, VERY small version of that experience with signed copies of this chapbook, I’m hoping people will find them meaningful enough to read, enjoy, and hold on to, more than they would for a blog entry or an e-book. And that’s what you’ll get for four bucks plus shipping.
I’m also hoping some people who’ve just plain enjoyed this blog and the other stuff I’ve put out over the years (My Boss Was Crooked, anyone?) might be willing to throw a few bucks my way to show their support. I once read an anecdote about bands who’d play live shows and set up their merch tables only to have fans come up to them, thrust thirty dollars into their hands, and explain that they’d been listening to pirated copies of their albums for years and finally had the opportunity to show their support in a “Shut up and take my money!” kind of way. Again, if you’re in that boat, I hope you’ll consider throwing some bucks my way too.
Finally, since this is my first attempt to make any money from my creative work on my own, how well this goes will influence what other things I’ll try the future, and on what scale. Basically, if the Eikaiwa Bums sales go well, then I’ll be more likely to offer more cool stuff, but if not, I’ll focus my efforts elsewhere.
So if you want to see more stuff like this, vote with your money!
How About the Mechanics of the Webstore?
Setting up the webstore was pretty easy, and took barely a day. I’m using Big Cartel, a webstore service geared toward indie creators, since they came recommended by poet and small press guru Paul Hanson Clark who uses them to sell zines through his Merrily Merrily Merrily press. They also offer a free option with no monthly fee, which made me feel super-safe signing up knowing that I wasn’t committing to paying money every month for a project whose outcome was uncertain.
Design-wise, I chose a simple layout that matched the BIAHADJ site as closely as possible to suggest that the store was still something I put together on my own. Fortunately Big Cartel offers a decent number of store options with some ability to customize, so I was able to play around a bit and find something I wanted without getting too far into the coding weeds (like I had to with this site…).
I first announced the store a few days ago with a Facebook post that got a lot of attention, though the grand opening was marred by problems with the credit card and Paypal payment systems that I had to rush home from work and iron out so people could actually place their orders. (Fortunately, though, credit card payments are fixed now, and Paypal’s not far behind!)
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I’m also offering some leftover copies of zines I’ve made for the last two Art Swaps, one that offers a tongue-in-cheek look at people who talk condescendingly to others, and another making fun of the ridiculous things people write in office emails. I was happy with how both came out, so I’m glad to have the chance to offer them now.
For those of you keeping track, the E-mail guide is just $2 and the Passive-Aggressive guide is just $3, or you can order both together with Eikaiwa Bums for $8 and also save on shipping. I like seeing all three books lined up together, and they’ve helped round out the webstore while staying under Big Cartel’s five-item limit for the free option ;-)
So What’s Next?
I’ve got a few more ideas up my sleeve for the future, plus another project I’ll be posting about in a few weeks, so there’s plenty more to come! Like I said, the success of the webstore opening will determine what direction I go from here, so if you’re interested in supporting my work or just want to get some cool indie lit, here’s the link one more time.
And as always, thanks to everyone who’s shared, commented, and bought copies already—at the end of the day, it really means a lot.
Keep in touch—there’s more to come!
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