Thank you so much for your support for the publication of Doll God. I had no idea there is so much work involved with the birth of a book. I’m running on little sleep and learning everything from scratch.
I feel like I did when my son was a baby. Nearly headachey through the eyes, foggy, and sleepy. But definitely not crabby. Hahaha.
If you did or do order a copy of my book and you like it, please write a couple of nice sentences over at Amazon (and Goodreads if you’re on that site). Apparently this is very important to the sale of the book. It doesn’t have to take much time; it’s more important that it be heartfelt.
So what have I been doing? Too much and I’m too tired to make a list, I’m afraid, but I can tell you that at both Amazon and Goodreads I set up author profiles. I spent hours reading a book telling how to market a book on Amazon only to discover that the information was so old that it’s no longer applicable. Most of the bells and whistles the writer referred to are no longer available. I contacted friends by email about Doll God.
It’s also important for me to pay it forward by reading and reviewing other poetry books (along with my memoir and some fiction reviews).
With all this hubbub, I don’t have anything brilliant to say. But I do have a shot of the doll from my book cover cavorting in my flowers. Note that these flowers were saved from the freeze this year by lots of hard work by hubby and by me. We had to cover all the shrubs and flower beds and even the cacti and succulents when we had a freeze that lasted a week.
This doll has been through the mill, as my mother would say. She’s been face down in mud puddles and tide pools and traveled back and forth between Arizona and California several times (through the USPS). This photo is proof she has a face, too. In the book cover below, her face is hidden.
I think she needs a name. My daughter, who took the original photo for the book art and who took the photo of her in the flowers, as well, thought she needed a name, but we never settled on one.
Any ideas on a name for the doll?
“Scratch” – in homage to your having to learn everything from…. good to hear from you. Also good to hear that you are not crabby. 😉
Maggie, hah, you know what the first thing I thought of was? I used to love the Nathaniel Hawthorne short stories. He refers to the Devil as Old Scratch. So the thought of naming the doll from Doll GOD Scratch is pretty good! No, never crabby! The only person who ever thinks so is hubby so he must be wrong!
oh our poor hubbies. Of course he’s wrong! 😉
Book marketing is hard work! Would pop over to Amazon soon and order a copy. I love ‘violet’ for a doll’s name. Have a great week Luanne. 🙂
So hard and what drudgery for the most part, although there are some things that are better than others! Violet sounds so pretty and so old-fashioned, which is what this doll looks like. You have a lovely week, too, Seyi!
I’m no help with doll names. It would be good to relate to the book which I haven’t yet read. You are doing an amazing job working on the marketing aspect. As a writer, you probably just want to write and let all that nonsense to someone else. Today you have to do it all. Congrats!
Thanks, Kate. I am working very hard at it. Too bad I have to work, eat, sleep, etc.;) Isn’t it ridiculous that writers have to do all that stuff today? But then we’re lucky we live in an era where we are even able to do it. I know people who published before this era of internet and social media and some of their publishers dropped the ball and there was so little they could do.
And sometimes it was impossible to get a publisher no matter how good you were.
So true. And so sad.
Congrats on your new book! I wish you lots if sales! Love the photo too!
Thanks, Andy! I’m so glad you like the photo. Congrats to you on the new photography blog!
Rebecca was what popped into my mind.
You make crabby beautiful💕 Birthing is hard work with round, squishy beings or 4-cornered books 😋
Hah, thanks, Sammy. Yeah, I’m glad this book is paperback and not hardback ;)!
Rebecca is a beautiful name. Like Sunnybrook fame.
Good luck with your book marketing. I’m not good at it.
How have you had a doll for that long without giving her a name? I did like the Violet suggestion above though. She also kind of looks like a Katherine to me, but of course, I don’t know her, as you do. 🙂 (All of our daughters’ dolls and stuffed animals had names.)
Thanks for the luck–I think I need it. I find this process very migrainatious. Katherine. What a stately name. Yes, I can see some of that in her! I will add Katherine to the list and we’ll take a vote ;).
“Migrainatious!” Love it (the word, not the actuality). 🙂
For some reason, the first name that popped into my head was, Julia. You’re doing a great job with your marketing, Luanne! Enjoy the moment!
I’m throwing Julia into the voting pot, Jill! Thanks so much for your support :). xoxo
Flavia. No idea why.
Flavia. I have no preconceived ideas about that name. Interesting choice. She does sort of look like a Flavia!!
Great post. Love those flowers. Doll’s name? I don’t know. Little Lu? Lulita! Hahaha. I really like the cover image and of course I’m terribly envious of all the flowers in your yard. Right now we’re growing great moss and that’s about it.
Hahaha, Lulita! Love it. Yes, our flowers are beautiful. 78 degrees here yesterday. That won’t last, but maybe it still stay above 70 high from now on . . . . Fingers crossed.
As soon as it comes, I’ll begin reading and will definitely post kind words to both Amazon and Goodreads. As for doll names, I’m pretty useless, however, because she’s dressed in white and looks like a very old-fashioned kind of doll, how about Blanche?
That is an interesting name, considering that in high school I was Stella for Star (Stella opposite Blanche in A Streetcar Named Desire). And you are so sweet to post kind words. I hope the book lives up to them!
Adoris is a good doll name.
Adoris is a very unusual name. Did you have a Ginny doll named Adoris or were they all called Ginny? Adoris will be thrown into the pot!
I just thought it would be a good name for worshipper. Can’ t recall if my Ginnies had names. A friend suggested Pansy for your doll.
Congrats on the book publication, Luanne. My vote is for Aurora. No idea why.
Did you know that Aurora is one of my favorite names? I wanted to name my daughter Aurora and hubby said NO. Hah. I think it’s because Disney’s Sleeping Beauty made a big impression on me.
Perhaps, Rose? A “rose among thorns.” Congratulations on the book publication, Luanne! Or, perhaps, Lily. I think the doll needs a floral name, something beautiful and everlasting.
x
Rose or Lily! Those are lovely. Why don’t we use those names any more? Thanks, Lynne. I am putting all the names in a poll, I hope. I hope it will take all the names! Otherwise I’ll have to find a way to narrow it down!
or Flora, Fauna, I’m enjoying this name game! x
Don’t burn yourself to the ground with marketing, Luanne. I think there may be a law of diminishing returns with marketing. Slow and steady 😉 I’m not good with names, but I agree with many that a floral and/or old-fashioned name might be good for your doll. For some other ideas, check out this poem from my former major professor, Hunt Hawkins: http://news.wgcu.org/post/hunt-hawkins-mourning-dying-female-names. (Hunt helped me survive the last year of my graduate program in English, although I didn’t finish quite the way he thought I should.) What I love about this poem is many of my aunts’ names are included 🙂
I love that poem. It almost made me cry! Edna was my grandma’s name!!! Thank you so much for sharing this, Marie. I hope people read it here!
Busy but exciting time for you Luanne, you’re doing great 🙂 I know where to come when I need marketing advice, lol 😀 How about Genevieve? xoxo
I don’t know how good my advice will be, but I am more than willing to share. Let me know when you’re ready!! Genevieve is beautiful and reminds me utterly of the song in Camelot!!
MaryGold
What a great name! Marigold, MaryGold. Wonderful!