Spotlight Profile
March 2001
There's busy -- and then there's PJ "Patti" Nunn, this month's busy member in the Spotlight, who follows her own advice to "think outside the box." Where do we begin?
She's a writer. After years of writing non-fiction articles, procedure manuals, handbooks and training information for businesses, she turned her talents to fiction in 1995.
She's a consultant -- the moving force and guiding light at PJ N & Associates, a team of professionals offering assistance with query/synopsis development, manuscript evaluation, proofreading/editing and other services.
She's a publicist. BreakThrough Promotions, the largest division of PJN & Associates, has a network of associates across the U.S. and Canada. According to the list of services and options, BreakThrough staff do just about everything for an author except write the book.
In the planning stages are radio programming, Tidal Wave Publishing, workshops, an online store ... oh, by the way, when PJ wraps up her internship for a master of arts degree in psychology, she plans to pursue a doctorate in criminology ... and then there are her children ...
IC
You have five children? How do you juggle family and career?
PJ
I do indeed have five children. The oldest is 22 and my baby is 6. They're the joy of my life! My oldest has been ill since late 1998 with complications of diabetes and congenital heart problems. When he had a stroke, I had to curtail all of my outside work and make things work from home. Now that he's doing better and working himself, I could go back to teaching at the colleges, but I love what I do. The kids share chores and even do most of the cooking. It's good for them and good for me. (Smiling)
IC
Can you share a quote, a mantra, a motto, a bumper sticker ...?
PJ
Some version of "You can't do that." I don't believe it, and I don't accept it -- for myself or for my children. There are many things that aren't smart to do, and there are many things that might not be the best choice at a given time, but there are few things in this life that I can't do if I try hard enough. Maybe "Work smarter, not harder" is a good one.
IC
You thrive in the midst of chaos. What is your typical day like?
PJ
I spend probably eight hours in front of a computer, but you have to know that my office is in the corner of a large den that also houses a large screen television, an assortment of video games and three sofas. It's usually filled with kids, a dog and three cats. I have headphones and a CD rack beside my desk in case I need to drown out the chaos for awhile. It's a very comfortable place for me right in the heart of my house. It's never quiet, and one day can be very different from the next.
Once upon a time, I had an office in another room. I don't want to do that again. I don't like feeling cut off from the kids. Maybe when the little ones are grown. I do try to make most of my phone calls while they're in school, but, aside from that, things are pretty much the same any time from morning until night.
I get up and exercise and do some housework first thing, before my brain really wakes up. Then I sit down and spend an hour or so going through emails. Once that's done, I attack my day's list. I keep a list -- right now it goes through mid-2002, broken down by month, to show clients' release dates, etc., then broken into days as the months get closer.
Some days are focused on chasing freelancers who haven't checked in. Others are spent troubleshooting order delays and scheduling conflicts. Quiet days may be spent designing and mailing client flyers, etc., or scouting out new markets. Busy days are spent fielding phone calls and putting out brush fires.
Variety is the spice of life, right? I love it. I try to save evenings and weekends for my own writing. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't.
IC
You have a novel awaiting a publisher's decision. Is it your first? Is there another in progress?
PJ
Oh, there's always something in progress! My first novel is part of a series about a police psychologist, definitely hard-boiled. I got an agent with it right away. He sat on it for nearly a year before I fired him. I sent queries out and sold it myself within two months.
At the same time, I was referred by a friend, Evan Marshall, to a new agent to shop the first book in a second series -- more of a humorous book a la Stephanie Plum/Evanovich. She loved both series and asked me not to sign the contract offer I got on Angel Killer because she thought she could get me a better deal.
Consequently, it's under consideration at Berkley while the other series makes the rounds. Meanwhile, one of the publishers who rejected the second series liked my work so much, she's asked me to send a proposal for a more cozy series about an ice skater. I got the word this morning that she loved the synopsis and wants sample chapters. If she likes those, I've got a deal ...
IC
Heaven help us, you're an ice skater, too? Or will you be hanging around ice rinks in the interest of research?
PJ
If I were to strap on a pair of skates right now, it's likely I'd start a new trend called butt-skating. I doubt it would make the Olympics. (laughing) I did some skating in high school, but there's not much call for it in Dallas, so, yes, I guess it would be the latter. It's a cozy, too, and I'm not cozy, so go figure.
IC
You've said that reading Robert Crais was the turning point that took your writing from amateur to professional. Quoting:
"...I finished several manuscripts, tightly adhering to all the 'rules' and they were good enough to get some attention. But until I read and loved Robert Crais, I just never grasped the freedom to bend rules in order to make a statement."
How do you bend rules to make a difference in your writing?
PJ
Write. Without holding back. Without worrying whether it's the prescribed method. I just wrote, knowing I could edit it later, and knowing that if the writing was good enough, rules could be broken. I can't pin it to any one example, other than knowing it came at the right time and was just what I needed. Whatever happened, my writing has never been the same, and it's a very liberating feeling.
IC
You've been building PJN & Associates since 1990, and construction work is still going on. Another balancing act here -- balancing your own work with the work of others. How do you do it?
PJ
You do what you have to do. (smiling) Honestly, I started it when I worked for the local police department and did a lot of consultation work with child protective services, local schools and day care centers. At that point it was largely administrative evaluation, child safety seminars and in-service training to help workers learn to recognize symptoms of child sexual abuse.
I was also in grad school at the time. My own business let me manage my time better than working for someone else. It also formed the basis for my first novels.
When we moved to Dallas in '95, I was drafted to fill in for the CFO of a growing computer company owned by the son of a friend. It got big too fast, and they needed stability. It turned into a two- year run. I was also teaching a few classes for the Dallas Community College District at the time, but when Dave got seriously ill, I had to stop that.
Since I'd been immersed in the writing community in trying to finish my own book, I was aware of some of the problems writers face. I knew so many who had good work but not the first idea of what to do with it. I started doing favors in between freelance projects.
As it turned out, I liked the favors better than the non-fiction writing so I found a way to make it work. I love it.
IC
What was the worst experience you've had in promoting an author's work? What are the best experiences?
PJ
I'd have to say the worst is just the aggravation experienced promoting against the odds.
One client has a great book with political relevance and a senator to host the press conference launching the book. Yet because it was print-on-demand (POD), after all was set up, the Barnes & Noble store where the senator planned to host the conference backed out. We had to reschedule everything.
We got that in order with the help of a regional B. Dalton manager who loved the book. She set the client up to sign at 39 stores in a five-state region. No problem. About four weeks later, stores in Colorado were getting nervous because the orders weren't coming. They started canceling signings. The regional manager finally sent a memo releasing the stores from their obligations to host signings and they all started pulling out.
I got on the phone with iUniverse, ready to fly to Nebraska if I had to, only to find that the snafu was really with the BN Distribution Center and not iUniverse. Once I was able to tell them where the problem was, we got back a little more than half of the missed bookings, but it was a nightmare.
The author's still going strong today, though, and a very reputable agent is looking at the next book in hopes of placing him with another publisher. We're also actually talking to Oprah staff about a program (by 'talking' I mean other than "No! You've got to be kidding!").
My best experiences? They happen every day. Every time one of my staff does something they say can't be done. Another television or radio booking. Another signing event where they sell out and have to drag out whatever copies they have in the trunk of their cars. Every time I see a smile on a client's face or hear it in their voice -- knowing that I've made something happen for them that they didn't think would ever happen -- it's all good.
IC
Note: This segment is part background and part reprint.
The process known as print on demand, or POD, has created some confusion and controversy, and not a few horror stories from authors trying to get copies of their books. Lightning Print Inc. was an Ingram Book Group company when the POD business was established in 1997. Now known as Lightning Source Inc., it's a subsidiary of Ingram Industries Inc., with a suite of expanded services.
Lightning Source is said to be printing as fast as it can, but authors still hang by their thumbs waiting for books. This is a frequent topic on message boards. Recently, on one of those boards, PJ was asked to comment on her experience with POD booksignings. IC has her permission to reprint (with minimal editing) her response.
PJ
Booksellers have no clue. Unfortunately, the setup between Ingram and LSI requires that I have to tell them when I'm setting up appearances. Otherwise, they order the books, think all is well, then call me in a panic before the signing, at which point I scramble to pack a box of books (assuming I even have enough on hand) and chase down the UPS truck so I can pay overnight shipping to be sure my client isn't at an empty table somewhere with nothing to sign.
Why? I wish I knew. Most booksellers, especially the chains, have a computerized system that links them directly to Ingram's, and they order electronically. Alas, because of the former days of "back order" (meaning that Harper Collins hasn't finished the next print run yet), they try to avoid waiting for months by setting up those systems to automatically cancel any order that finds a particular title out of stock. And virtually all POD titles are out of stock. That's the point.
But, if you understand the process, you know that you call in the order and say, "Okay, back order it," and you'll have it in hand in 7-10 days. Unfortunately, if you do it the usual way, you don't get word that a particular title/order has been cancelled until the order arrives or doesn't.
I represent Burl Barer, the Edgar-winning author who was tapped by Leslie Charteris' estate to carry on The Saint. He also worked the set of "Maverick" with James Garner and Mel Gibson, and launched a true crime novel published by Pinnacle last August. As it happens, he also published a book by Deadly Alibi Press. Not self-pubbed, but POD.
We set him up for a tour in Palm Springs over the holidays that included some large stores, a newspaper spread and radio interview. We followed the situation closely, even warned them (as we do most who are hosting POD authors), but even so, they found out two days before the first signing that their order for the Deadly Alibi Press title had been automatically cancelled. Of course, he had other titles there, but it was too late to get copies of his POD book on site.
I deal with it every day. It's not just iUniverse, it's the process. It has a lot to offer, but it's still new and there are a lot of bugs to work out. It's true that if you can give better discounts, give better payment terms, pay shipping and accept returns, you've covered most of the obstacles that confront us today.
It's unbelievably time consuming, though, and with any new imprint, traditional or POD, you have to produce a high quality, competitively priced product, and spend enormous amounts of time marketing it. They won't sell themselves.
Booksellers are more leery today than even five years ago. Just because you present yourself as a new publisher, it doesn't mean they'll give you a try. You first have to get information in their hands that tells about your company and the titles you're publishing before they'll ever buy anything. It can easily consume your life.
IC
Do many publicists handle POD books?
PJ
As far as I know, there aren't many publicists at all doing POD. It was challenging for me to find a way to do it that would be affordable for the writer and still pay our bills. Most publicists charge by the hour. We charge a flat fee by the month, something between $100 and $400, plus expenses, depending on how busy the writer wants to be. It's like running a circus sometimes, but there are just enough quirky folks like me out there to keep things going. (End of reprint)
IC
What kind of book do you like to see coming through the door at BreakThrough Promotions?
PJ
I love it when they've been thoroughly proofed and edited, but that doesn't happen often. Essentially, what I look for is that raw, unrecognized talent. There's a special voice that sets a manuscript apart. We can help with editing and presentation, but the storytelling talent has to be there.
IC
Do you ever get one that you'd really like to take a blue pencil to?
PJ
Well, yeah. But I'm not sure if "like" is the right term. I most enjoy selling a manuscript for someone who fears it can't be sold, or polishing one up that I know has good potential, or even promoting one that's like an undiscovered jewel.
I don't like editing for the sake of editing. What I like is the finished product, and knowing that I've helped someone who might have otherwise given up, considering how hard it seems to get things done in this industry.
IC
What's the easiest type of book to promote, or is it a case of promoting the author and the book sales will follow?
PJ
Type? I'm not sure there is an easy "type." It makes our job easier if there's a hook we can use, and my team is pretty good at finding those, but the best is when we have an author who's realistic about their goals and fully prepared to cooperate with our efforts.
If someone wants to just pay us to do all the work, we probably can't do much, but if they want us to set the stage, we're ready and willing. As long as they know they're the ones who'll be performing when all is said and done. We're even willing to help with that -- coaching and finding the right props. But in the end, whatever we do, it's the author and their work that will keep things moving.
IC
BreakThrough Promotions will be sponsoring workshops in the future. Is there anything you can tell us about that at this time?
PJ
We're very excited about the potential here, but it's a big investment of our time and, initially, our money. The prototype, if that's a good word for this, is in a workshop we're planning now with the topic of "Going from Print to Screen." We have several clients with experience and know several more, including one who writes for "Nash Bridges."
What we want to do is host a weekend workshop, bring in several guest speakers, clients or not, charge reasonable fees, and cater to writing groups in all areas of the country -- especially smaller areas that don't ordinarily get the bigger names.
During that time, we'll also be videotaping interviews and individual sessions so we can sell tapes to those in other parts of the country. We plan to host a variety of topics, including one we're developing with the help of a couple of Dallas PD officers, about crime scene investigation and forensics for mystery writers.
We'll probably try each workshop in the Dallas area at first, to get a feel for the dynamics, then we'll venture out to other areas of the country. The proceeds from these workshops will then be used to help get our publishing venture, Tidal Wave Publishing, off the ground and our plans for sponsoring writing-oriented radio broadcasts across the country.
Large plans, I know, and I feel that pressure, but I believe it's viable if we work it right. I've already got CRMs across the country ready to distribute brochures and handle much of our advertising. Now we just have to finalize dates and guest speakers, and get the show on the road.
IC
How about Tidal Wave Publishing -- any advance word for us on that?
PJ
Tidal Wave is born of POD frustration. It comes from personal experience with trying to get good books on the bookstore shelves, despite monumental odds that are largely unneccessary. We've already done the groundwork with Lightning Source.
Our first books will be, surprisingly to some, ministry oriented. Without going into detail, I have several manuscripts waiting publication, for ministers who need them to carry with them and sell at their speaking engagements. The markets are already in place, so again, we'll get those finished and in their hands, then utilize the proceeds to help fund other non-fiction and fiction titles.
The plan is to continue to increase our PR force to the point of specialization, which is already in process. You'll notice our client roster changing in the next two months to include non-fiction, romance, historical and Christian fiction.
As we broaden our contacts in these fields, all will benefit. They'll probably be carried under different imprints, but all will be affordable, with reasonable bookseller discounts, and we'll accept returns, eliminating or minimizing the major obstacles.
Of course, the BreakThrough PR team will go full out to promote those titles, hopefully making it a win-win situation for all.
IC
How do you deal with rejection as it applies to your own writing career, and how do you help clients deal with plans and promotions that go awry?
PJ
Oh, I've mellowed considerably through the years. I'm nothing if not flexible. I've been unusually fortunate in my writing career. I've had comparatively few rejections. I don't pay much attention to them -- they don't mean my writing is bad -- just that it wasn't at the right place at the right time.
I think taking a job as an editor of a health magazine, then an online mystery e-zine, helped me with that. Everyone's taste is different, and we've all heard the stories of how many times some famous writer was rejected before they got famous.
Bottom line, you've got to believe in yourself and line yourself up with others who believe in you. Of course, if you can find professionals, that's even better, but rejections are so impersonal, and they may come from someone who can't write a good thank-you note. Let them go, eat the meat and throw away the bones, and move on.
IC
Look ahead ten years now. What do you see for yourself and your businesses?
PJ
Wow. There's a question. I can't see me at the end of the year some days, and you ask me that on a Monday. (laughing)
In ten years I hope I have several of my own books on shelves everywhere, but more than that, I hope to be on a big ranch somewhere near here, with a big office on the property that includes a recording studio and a small staff. I hope that PJN & Associates, BreakThrough Promotions and Tidal Wave are going strong and that a lot of my first clients are household names by then.
IC
Our thanks toPJ, who will probably make those predictions, and then some, come true. Please do take a look at her Website. There are even a few PR tips for writers who don't plan to enlist under the BreakThrough umbrella.
For instance: "If you're having trouble booking signing events with chain stores, remember - every store is different no matter what the name. Keep trying and don't be afraid to look to alternative venues. Is there a boat in your book? Try marine distributors. Your protagonist likes to play golf? Pro shops can sell books. Bottom line - think outside the box.".
This interview was conducted during the month of February 2001 for SinC-IC by Pat Browning.
Visit PJ's Site
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Read an earlier Spotlight Profile
