Pre-thanks & November Update

It’s the end of November, which means it’s time for another LDYWT update. We’re about two months and change away from the launch, but who’s counting? My promo video was released earlier in November (check it out below!), and I’ve locked up some tour dates, started an email newsletter, and designed a little pre-order incentive. I’ve also been happily plugging away on a new project, but that’s a different update…  

By the way, here's the final cover with the blurb from Mr. Matthew Quick.

Reading/Tour Dates

Many of you have asked me when and where I’ll be reading, and I’m happy to finally pass along some dates. The schedule is still a work in progress, but all the readings, signings, and venues are listed on my events page. I hope you’ll join me at one or more of these readings (and for a beer afterward). The January 26 launch event will be at Northshire Bookstore in Saratoga with an after party situation at Caffe Lena. Saratoga will be followed by my Washington County kickoff at Battenkill Books on January 28, before I head to Brooklyn, Cambridge (MA), Troy, Oneonta, Glens Falls, and so on. Again, this is just the beginning, so check back often.   

Book Trailer

Email Newsletter

A couple weeks ago, at the urging of several people far and wide, I started an email list, which seems to me to be a good reason for a giveaway. So, sign up between now and December 5 and be entered to win an advance reader copy (ARC) of Lay Down Your Weary Tune. The two winners will be announced on Facebook and Twitter on December 5, and they receive their copies in mid-December, which is 6-7 weeks before the pub date. Sign up here.

Pre-order Postcard Extravaganza

Lastly, I’ll be running a little pre-order incentive. Whether you order signed and personalized copies from Battenkill Books, or you order from your local indie or online, send me (belcherw@hotmail.com) an image of your receipt (and a mailing address) and I’ll send you a special Galesville / Batten Kill-related postcard with a hand-plucked line from the book scratched on it (and my personal thanks). Wait. What? Yes, it’s a postcard with a quotation, but it’s some old school fun before the book hits the shelves.   

Thanks for following along. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving.

My best,

WBB

Apr/May Update

Friends and future readers,

Several people has asked for an update on Lay Down Your Weary Tune (LDYWT). Although from the outside it seems very quiet at this point, there is a lot of work going on behind the scenes. Here are a few of the highlights:

• In April, Other Press released their Fall/Winter catalog, which listed LDYWT with some important info including format(s), the summary, an excerpt, and the official pub date of January 26, 2016. It also marked the unveiling of a very cool cover design, which I’ve splashed all over this site and everywhere else I hang out. The release of the catalog also kicked off the digital listing of the novel in a bunch of places, from Amazon to Indiebound to Booktopia in Australia and beyond. Since Other is distributed by Penguin Random House, LDYWT also appeared in PRH’s catalog. As we get closer, I’m be running some pre-order incentives, but I’ve provided the links so you can see LDYWT out in the web-world if you’re so inclined. After all these years, it is definitely strange to start to see it take on a life of its own.

• In other exciting news, a few weeks ago I met with Beehive Productions and M.R. Poulopoulos at Caffe Lena to work on a promotional video for the book. It was fun day of filming and music and drunken noodle from Sushi Thai Garden, and I cannot thank Jeff and Sue from Beehive, Mike P., or the Caffe enough for their generosity of time and talent. Be sure to keep an eye on this website and my social networks / situations for the finished product, which should hit around the end of July.

• Lastly, as you know by now, I’ve overhauled the website to focus on the book. Hope you like it! I think it’s much improved from the clunky site that I’d ignored for a few months. This will serve as a hub of sorts with the spokes stretching to FB and Twitter and Tumblr and so on. Important stuff will be posted here, but if you’re looking for my more regular postings or what-have-you, follow me on Twitter or Facebook.  

When I first started this process, I didn’t know what to expect. That said, the editorial process felt like a natural extension of the work I’d been doing for a couple years (just more rigorous + with a brilliant editorial team), but now I’m headed into new territory. The promotion, publicity, marketing piece of the puzzle is way outside of my element, but I have a great team of players from Other Press to Christopher Rhodes to all of you fine folks who have expressed interest in LDYWT. So, here’s to the run-up to the release. More updates to come.

All my best,

WBB