Wednesday 23 September 2009

Superunknown in Denmark

The life of a writer is not always as glamorous as it seems ... I went to Denmark to meet my Danish publisher and that was pretty much it. No crowds waiting, no cameras flashing, nobody in the street stopping me to ask for an autograph ... Not that I'd expected such a big fuss, but one single interview would've been nice ...

But I must admit ... I've never imagined or visualised any success in Denmark, the thing about getting translated to another language just felt like a bonus ... Also I feel a bit left out as I don't know the language. In Sweden I made a lot of effort myself. First of all I organised a big launch party. Then I phoned loads of newspapers and magazines and asked them to interview me or to review my book. It worked. I even ended up on TV twice ... I also contacted schools and libraries and invited myself to do talks ... It really paid off as newspapers, schools and libraries now contact me instead of the other way around ... And half of the work was believing in it, visualsing interviews etc. etc. I haven't made any effort at all when it comes to Denmark. Mostly because I've been busy with my English novel and living in the U.K. So after all I was quite happy just to sit on the train back with my 15 free copies of Punkindustriel heavyrocker med attitude as the book is called in Danish.

I've also realised the importance of friends and networks. In Sweden and in the U.K. I know hundreds and hundreds of people through school, jobs, courses, parties, friends etc. In Denmark I don't know one single person apart from my publisher and some non-blood relatives that I'm not even friends with on Facebook ...

Well, time hasn't run out yet. The book won't actually be launched until the 29th of Sep. And reviews can turn up in papers up to 6 months after the launch itself. I'm also hoping that the title and cover will attract some attention without me having to market it like mad ... (Of course my publisher is doing some work, but it doesn't have the same effect as when the writer is there to help out.)

2 comments:

  1. Thanks for saying that "of course my publisher is doing some work". The publisher feels he's done what he possibly could. Denmark is a very small country. In many ways.

    With love

    The Publisher

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  2. I guess it is hard for you to promote the book if you are not in Denmark very much.

    It's good that the publisher is promoting. I hope he makes a successful book for you. Everyone benefits after all.

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