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25th
June
2004
Richard The Second
The tale of a financial adviser whose life is changed forever by a chilling series of events, A Fall of Stone quickly sold out locally, thanks mainly to the efforts of Paul & Lisa Harris of Harris Home Furnishings in Lower Gornal, who stocked and promoted the work. The book is now on sale in a number of local bookshops, as well as on-line at www.blackcountryshop.co.uk. It can also be ordered through any branch of Waterstones, although they do not have copies on the shelf - a continual headache for Richard who is personally handling the distribution as well as the publishing of the second edition. "I was initially encouraged to go the 'self-publishing' route by a small press who felt the book had potential" Richard told Yampy. "They were helpful at first but in the run up to the launch and following it, they were conspicuous by their absence. I soon decided that the second edition would be entirely my own work so sourced a new printer, ditched the publisher, drafted in the help of my brother in law and his desktop design programme and got stuck in. Then I began the hard work of trying to get shops to stock it on a more widespread, national level." Richard has found the step up from regional to national coverage for the novel to be a frustrating process at times. "Unfortunately, with the emphasis placed on maximum profit within the book-selling industry, most shops are unwilling to stock unless they know they can turn the novel over quickly" he explains. "I've been trying to get the book reviewed by a national paper for the last 3 months now, sending emails, letters and making telephone calls on a daily basis, but that same, profit biased theme continues with literary reviews also. National papers will often review a book and then offer it for sale through their own mail order business, so once again, they tend to review books they know will sell. Even without the consideration of mail order profit to consider, my book is just another one looking for review in amongst thousands every month - and I'm an unknown." It's a tough challenge, but Richard is far from dispirited: "I'm a stubborn devil so I'll keep plugging away." he grins. "I've started to contact major publishers now with a view to getting a publishing deal, it's got to be the way forward for the long term. I can't do everything and at the moment I'm author, editor, proof-reader, marketing manager, promotions department and distributor all rolled into one - and I make the tea!" It's good to see that Richard is maintaining his sense of humour and continuing to look forward in a positive manner. Having been on his website, I've seen the comments coming back from people who've read the book and feel certain that 'A Fall of Stone' is destined to be a great success. A real mix of emotions, the book takes its reader on a journey from Wolverhampton to the Isle of Skye via the turmoil of tragic loss, murder, great friendship, fraud and a night or two of whisky drinking. The major theme of the book is, as Richard recounts, friendship. "It wasn't really meant to turn out that way, but, as the book progressed through various stages of its writing, this overall general theme started to emerge. The friendships that develop, break down and become altered by the sequence of events run through the whole story from start to finish. What's life without friendship?" Richard is determined that 'A Fall of Stone' will be available in every bookshop, supermarket and department store across the UK within six months - plus a few copies at Harris HomeFurnishings in Gornal village of course! newsdesk@yampy.co.uk. --> |
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