Here finally is a wrap up of my book tour experience for Finn Fancy Necromancy — the good, the awesome, and some lessons learned — not only to say thank you to everyone who helped or attended, but also to maybe help those who are trying to plan their own book tour. This is way overdue, I know. And I’ll do a separate post about promotion in general.
Randy at Gatsby Books, LA
I figured I’d talk about how I set up the tour, how I promoted it, then share some pics, and a list of the bookstores.
I have an “Ask Me Anything” session on Reddit’s /r/Fantasy forum!
http://www.reddit.com/r/Fantasy/comments/32kpyr/look_its_fantasy_author_randy_henderson_ama_style/
Hey all! I’ll be at Norwescon this weekend, hope to see you there!
Here’s my scheduled events (not including individual workshops):
“Finn Fancy” Fun Time with Randy – Randy will read a bit from his new novel from TOR, titled FINN FANCY NECROMANCY, do a little dance (Q&A), make a little love (PRIZES!), and get down tonight (TREATS!). Finn Fancy is a dark and quirky contemporary fantasy set in Port Townsend, with sasquatch mercenaries, mobster gnomes, and more. Randy might also read something new, demonstrate miraculous powers, or at least juggle. It’s not just a reading, it’s Finn Fancy Fantastic Fun Time!. Rated PG
Knowing how your plot and characters change as the tale moves forward helps a writer to craft more powerful stories. What makes a great character arc, and how can you make your character’s internal change more compelling? What makes a great plot arc and how can you intertwine it with your character?
Nina Post (M), Randy Henderson, Craig English, Nancy Kress, Alex C. Renwick, Susan DeFreitas
On July 20th, Clarion West is holding an “Ask Me Anything” online streaming hangout with me, followed by a round robin reading by other authors: https://plus.google.com/events/cbu3p5961d144cric4stpiu07vo
Although only 10 persons can actually actively participate in the hangout, anyone can watch it being streamed. I’ll be taking questions, and you can send them ahead of time to: communications@clarionwest.org with the subject line “Questions for Randy Henderson”. Ask me anything about writing, writers of the future, my forthcoming novel or my experience (to date) with getting it published, or anything really. I can answer any question (even if I don’t know the answer).
So it was recently announced that Abigail Gibbs, an 18 year old, has received a six-figure deal for her Vampire romance series Dark Heroine.
Ugh. News like this can certainly be frustrating and demotivating to emerging and even established authors who have worked long and hard on their craft to little or modest success. And between this and 50 Shades, I expect to see a ton of
On this day, mine father, who was sent to earth from
his dying planet, did give virgin birth to a lotus flower, which did spring fully formed from his head, and out of which grew the Tree of Life, which was burned to ash, and that ash mixed with the blood of the Titans, and given the breath of life, and then dipped into the waters of Styx by mine mother, and then didst the wizard burn the sigil of Life upon my chest, and thus was I born. That’s my story, which though it grows by a sentence from year to year, I am sticking to it.
I will be performing a benefit reading tonight along with Cat Rambo, Keffy Rm Kehrli, Liz Argall, Kris Millering, Tod McCoy, Sandra Odell, Vicki Saunders, JM Sidorova, and Dallas Taylor, MC’d by Caren Gussof.
All donations, and profits from sales of chapbooks and merchandise, as well as profits from the cafe’, will all go towards Japan disaster relief.
Information (and the link to donate online) is here: http://horrificmiscueseattle.wordpress.com/benefictions/
On this day, mine father, who was sent to earth from
Wow. I had a pocket protector BUILT IN to the shirt. I didn't have a chance.
his dying planet, did give virgin birth to a lotus flower, which did spring fully formed from his head, and out of which grew the Tree of Life, which was burned to ash, and that ash mixed with the blood of the Titans, and given the breath of life, and then dipped into the waters of Styx by mine mother, and thus was I born. That’s still my story, and I’m sticking to it.
As of now I only have panels on Sunday (and am giving a critique on Friday), leaving me free to attend all my friends’ panels and readings and parties the rest of the weekend, which is kind of nice.
My Panels (drop on by):
Sunday 11am Cascade 5&6
What makes a piece of writing… bad? What makes it so bad it’s funny? (Think “Eye of Argon.”) What sort of stuff should you avoid in order to prevent your prose (inadvertently) becoming the next winner of the Bulwer-Lytton award? Can you write badly on purpose…and should you?
Cat Rambo, Alma Alexander, Caren Gussoff, Jordan Lapp, Randy Henderson
Sunday 3pm Cascade 4
Countless novels have been set in the intertwined worlds of monarchy and fantasy, often involving epic battles. Given that many fantasy novels are set in worlds drawn from medieval Europe, it’s no surprise to see so many stories based around monarchies – kings and queens, tyrannical emperors, and long-lost heirs to the throne. How much of fantasy’s appeal is grounded in this familiar setting, and how can this long-standing tradition be updated or refreshed; or should it be abandoned entirely?
Kris Millering, Randy Henderson, Kim Ritchie, Kevin Radthorne
Where’s Launchpad for the fantasy writer? Launchpad is where NASA gives scifi writers a free astronomy workshop. I want the government’s covert agency for the exploration and use of magic (oh come on, like we don’t know you exist) to have free workshops too, dammit.
Author, relapsed sarcasm addict, Clarion West graduate, milkshake connoisseur, winner of Writers of the Future, and member of Dungeon Scrawlers.
Randy’s humorous contemporary fantasy series from TOR (US) and Titan (UK) includes:
Bigfootloose and Finn Fancy Free,
now available for purchase, reading, and use in questionable acts.
In this sequel to Randy Henderson's acclaimed debut novel, Finn Fancy Necromancy, Randy Henderson spins another tale full of adventure, magic, and laughs, exploring in more depth the magical world and characters introduced in the first book.
More info →
“… it’s an urban fantasy, one that takes place in and around present-day Seattle. But even though it deals with sinister magic and family tragedy, it counterbalances that darkness with something that’s become increasingly rare in fantasy fiction: laughs, laughs, and more laughs.” -- NPR
More info → 
