The small bookstores in my town are conspiring against me.

A week ago I saw the usual selection of Stephen Kings and Jeffrey Archers, and lusted over We Need To Talk About Kevin (which I had never thought of buying before). I returned two days ago, determined to purchase just that. Headed straight down the aisle, reached for an unblemished copy, stood up. And found myself face to face with this:

It was one of the nominated books for the 2007 Orange Prize for Fiction. And it was a debut novel, to boot.

I was petrified. Caught up between buying something I had wanted for a month and something … current.

And then, there! Another nominee for the Orange Prize! At the corner of a bookshelf, at that!

Oh no oh no oh no! I was trapped - only had enough money to buy one book. And all these books are so expensive!

What’s one litblogger to do when faced with such consummate strategy?

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Anybody writing a blook would know firsthand how hard it is to find and maintain loyal readers. We face quite a challenge - writing fiction in a merciless medium, where the screen resembles the scroll more than the book.

I was recently jolted at Derick’s blog, Reader Meet Author. I had left a comment in one of his posts, and in the space of a few short hours I received this email:

Dear Eli James,

I just wanted to thank you for taking the time to stop by Reader Meet Author. In particular, I wanted to say thanks for leaving me a comment. This is the first time you\’ve commented at RMA, right?

One of the things I\’ve always wanted from RMA was interaction and the sharing of ideas. I know you have other things you could probably be doing. So believe me when I say I really appreciate you taking time out of the day to interact with me and my readers.

Thanks again… and I hope to hear from you again!

Sincerely,

Derick
ReaderMeetAuthor.com

I was pleased. And surprised, yes, but pleasantly so.

The next time a reader comments on your blook - and takes the time to make it intelligent and helpful - show your appreciation. Reply to the comment immediately, and take it a step further … send him or her an email.

You see, in the few seconds it took me to read that email something changed within.

I liked Derick. I liked Reader Meet Author. And so I subscribed to it. It’s the little things that jump out at you, and this is one of them.

Appreciate your readers. Because in blooking each of them counts.

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Well now. Talk about wasting time. I spent the last 3 days browsing through the writing project lists for good litblogs to link to. Here are most of them (if I missed anyone out just leave a comment and I’ll append):

1. Benjamin Solah’s blog. He calls himself a ‘Marxist Horror Writer’. Apart from the fact that the word ‘Marxist’ conjures up images of Joseph Stalin in my mind’s eye (you don’t say?) I love the things he puts up. Take, for instance, this post, where he talks about writing backstories for characters. Or this one, which expounds on television’s influence on writing.

2. Textual Tangent. I’ll leave you ogling these lovely ladies, who are all completely engrossed in reading.

3. Confident Writing. Joanna Young submitted a piece called Beating Blogger’s Block. And then a quick spin through her posts made me subscribe to her feed - I can’t resist blogs on writing.

4. Reading Is My Superpower. Oh gosh. A green header, lots of book reviews, oodles of reading passion! And a How To Figure Out What To Read Next submission to boot!

5 . Reader Meet Author. Now I know this isn’t strictly a litblog, but Derick’s post on Identifying Bad Listeners was undeniably true. And a little uncomfortable - I could think of several instances where I’ve been more interested in talking rather than listening. Oh, and while you’re at it check out this narration on a stalker dove that’s been harassing him … hilarious, really it is.

6. Trevor’s Writing. Trevor left a comment over at Novelr the other day and I just had to agree with him: writer’s block is a joke when it’s not happening to you. When it does, however …

There. Six litblogs aren’t too bad, considering. I’ve got more content to slurp, and my Netvibes ‘Writing’ tab looks healthier. Long live the love of reading!

Psst: if you’ll excuse me now, ladies and gents, I’ve got Lionel Shriver’s We Need To Talk About Kevin to finish. Which I’ve been intending to get for ages. Ohh - ecstasy!

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Nick Cohen recently wrote about Colby Buzzell and blooking in general, and the article’s lit off a firestorm about - strangely enough - Lulu.

The NHS blog doctor asks: ‘Why is the main-stream media so sniffy about Lulu?’, and then gives an answer:

Because they are frightened. They are in the same position as the typewriter industry a generation ago, or as the Roman Catholic Church was when, for a few moments, it took its mind off protecting paedophiles to resist the move to the vernacular. Heaven forbid that the general public should be allowed to make up their own mind about novels and the Bible.

How long will it be before a successful established author decides to cut out the middlemen and takes the next manuscript directly to Lulu? Watch the agents and publishers sweat when that happens.

But really now, Nick Cohen wasn’t all out against Lulu! He merely admits that blooking is, at this moment, a strictly amateur medium. I’ve written about this before, and talked about how we have yet to see any work of significant literary merit make it to the web. Yes, there is hope yet for the medium, but by saying we are teeming with quality right now is a tad ridiculous.

One comment did strike me while I was reading the Guardian Unlimted article:

MichaelBulley writes: Google works, after a fashion, for info: if I want to find info about sackbuts I type “sackbut” and sift through the results to get what I want and it usually works OK, but how am I going to use Google to find a good novel or a good poem that I’m as yet unaware of? The current conventions of established publishing houses may have faults that prevent some good works from seeing the light, but if I type “a good poem” in Google and hit the Enter key, is that going to do me much good?

It hits the nail right on the head: how are new readers going to find new blooks? It is a phenomenon in the publishing industry, yet nobody knows where to find one. I may be highlighting blooks in my Bookmarked! posts, and the Lulu Blooker Prize may be generating buzz, but think about it: none of these blooks are likely to be seen or bought in a bricks and mortar bookstore.

Hush about online shopping and The Long Tail: the majority of books are bought in real world bookstores (and usually on a whim, I must add), not online.

Well, if ‘a successful established author decides to cut out the middlemen and takes the next manuscript directly to Lulu’, we’d see a lot of revolution indeed.

Let’s hope that happens.

Update: I can’t not link to this article. It is brilliant!

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I have writer’s block today.

Took a few minutes to get away from the computer; to smell the flowers in my garden, listen to the birds, watch my dog lolloping around. Then a rogue bee came and chased me back inside the house. The stark whiteness of the computer screen is biting at me now.

The writer’s block won’t go away, dammit.

I’ve been writing since I was 7, and I know the feeling well. You want to write something, anything, and yet your fingers freeze. The paper crinkles in your hands; its blankness a testament to your failure. I check back the archives in this blog: I’ve written about how computers don’t help me in being productive, I’ve also written on what I do to overcome writer’s block.

None of it is working now. The paper is laughing at me on my desk.

Top 5 Things To Do When Your Paper Begins To Laugh At You

1. Make a cup of coffee. I find this helps in the most dire of situations - the caffeine will then either: A) inspire you ; B) make the paper laugh louder. In case of B), prepare a bottle of vodka. If vodka doesn’t inspire you I don’t know what will.

2. Read a good book. One that explores themes relating to suffering, obstacles, sex and murder. Note: all these elements can be found in the Bible. I’ve always found it fascinating how Solomon could describe women:

Oh, you are beautiful, my darling! Oh, how beautiful! Your eyes behind your veil are like doves. Your hair is like a flock of female goats descending from Mount Gilead.
(Song of Songs 4:1)

Don’t ask.

3. Take a nap. And maybe when you wake up the page will be filled with words. You can hope. Pray. Fervently. Or at least dream about ideas descending Mount Gilead like a flock of female goats …

4. Play Desktop Tower Defense. I mean, seriously. This little game is addictive. And making sure the monsters don’t get through is sure a lot better than stressing over some lousy deadline you’re supposed to be working towards, right? Right?

5. The truth. Somedays you just can’t overcome your Writer’s Block, no matter what creative things you do. And when you get one of those days the best solution would be to force yourself to write - be it for a research paper or a blog or a newspaper article - just close everything down, bite your lip and tackle that topic head on!

There. I’ve completed this blog post as part of Darren Rowse’s group writing project. And my paper is still empty; it is still in front of me. “What are you going to do with me now?” it taunts.

I take up my pencil.

“I’m going to write.”

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