Of Press Kits, Photo Shoots, Sell Sheets & Sequels

This week has been exciting and at the same time confusing and exhausting. Over the last several days my partner S.K. Waller and I have been learning some of the ins and outs of marketing a book and we've been trying to implement some of the things we've learned. One of the most important things we've discovered is that a Press Kit is absolutely essential for the successful marketing of a book and without one, an author can never hope for their work to take off. So, with that in mind, and realizing that it could cost thousands of dollars to put together a professional Press Kit, Steph, (who has done this kind of thing before with her own music career), put together both of our Press Kits in less than a week complete with professional quality photos, Press Releases, Sell Sheets, Title Sheets, and all the other things that are needed for a successful press kit. She is now offering her services professionally at Alla Breve Books for any author (or soon-to-be author) in need of a professional Press Kit, at very reasonable rates.

In the meantime, I've been working on the sequel to So Faithful a Heart: The Love Story of Nancy Storace & Wolfgang Mozart, which is entitled So Faithful a Heart: When Love Won't Die. I've finished the outline and am now writing the synopsis and doing a little more background research. This novel covers the period between 1791 and 1817, and encompasses a different time in history than the first book, most importantly, the French Revolution and the rise of Napoleon, so the setting has changed just a bit. Mozart is every bit as much a part of this story as in the first book, but his presence is felt as a "ghost" (figuratively speaking), that haunts Nancy's memories and her life and threatens to come between her and her other relationships. It promises to be every bit as compelling a story as the first and I'm extremely excited about it!