Shortly before leaving for Malice Domestic, I received a snail mailed fan letter in my PO box. On the advice of other published authors, I had taken out the PO box over six years ago after I sold my first book. Back then, most social media was either non-existent or in its infancy, and most readers still contacted authors via snail mail, not email. My PO box address was included in the bio at the back of my book and on my website. By the time I’d sold my third book, email had replaced snail mailed fan letters, and I dropped the PO box address from both my book bio and website.
So you can imagine my surprise when a fan letter turned up in my PO box, not just any fan letter, though. This fan letter was mailed from a state correctional facility -- a PRISON!
Although ASSAULT WITH A DEADLY GLUE GUN, my current release, is an amateur sleuth mystery, I began my publishing career writing romance. I’d heard that prisoners liked to read romances and often contacted romance authors, but I’d never received a prison fan letter back in my romance days. Now that I have, I wish I hadn’t.
My prison fan started off by telling me that he’s finishing his violation of parole (through a bit of Googling, I discovered the parole violation was for illegal possession of a deadly weapon, but I wasn’t able to uncover the reason for his various previous incarcerations.) He then went on to compliment my writing and tell me how beautiful I am (I’m old enough to be his mother!) Then he finally got to the point: He’s going to take the time to give me a few free pointers!
My prison fan had come up with a plan for me and an example of a story line -- all for a percentage of my book sales! He even outlined a plot. Now keep in mind, he wanted me to write romance because “romance is the greatest escape.” Except in his story, a prisoner (I hesitate to use the term hero) kills the heroine “after she helps get him released. (ha ha)” It was that parenthetical “(ha ha)” that really creeped me out.
He also gave me all sorts of marketing advice, including promoting in towns where prisons are located because the female employees of these prisons are “prisoners of there (sic) own passion and fantacies (sic).” I should believe him on this point, he said, because he has first hand knowledge.
He concluded his letter by telling me if I have any business questions, he’ll be incarcerated until early next year (he gave an exact date.) Along with the letter, he included Forbidden Love, a two page short story. I haven’t read it and don’t plan to.
Come next year, I’ll be on the lookout for twenty-something males loitering around the post office lobby. If I spy any, I’ll keep walking. Luckily, my fan is out-of-state. I hope he stays out-of-state. Meanwhile, I’m really glad I’m now writing about murder and mayhem. I’ve never heard of mystery authors receiving business proposals and marketing advice from prisoners. Have you?
Lois Winston writes the Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mysteries. Visit her at http://www.loiswinston.com and Anastasia at http://www.anastasiapollack.blogspot.com
No comments:
Post a Comment