Conversations with Calliope- Writing and Marketing

(Weather Vane)

JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. I missed you yesterday.
JOE: I missed you too.
CALLIOPE: Where were you?
JOE: On the road.
CALLIOPE: To where?
JOE: Marketing my new CD. I visited some stores I thought might be interested in selling it.
CALLIOPE: How did that go?
JOE: I made some new contacts and renewed old ones.
CALLIOPE: Any success.
JOE: I found a few stores. What I found interesting was the great variety in arrangements.
CALLIOPE: Such as?
JOE: One bought CD's wholesale. One took copies on consignment. Two wanted review copies first. There was also quite a variety of percentages requested, some quite reasonable and some beyond what I could afford to do.
CALLIOPE: Sounds like you are getting to know the real world.
JOE: I am. It's a fascinating place. Talk with you tomorrow.

Conversations with Calliope- The Mailman and the Collie

(Beefeater- Tower of London)

JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. What's on your mind today?
JOE: I was just thinking of something I observed yesterday.
CALLIOPE: Tell me.
JOE: It's a short story with a simple moral.
CALLIOPE: Okay.
JOE: I was walking down Clay Street in LeRoy yesterday to deliver some muffins Carol made for her brother when I came across an empty parked mail truck.
CALLIOPE: Is that it?
JOE: Hardly. I saw the mailman leaving one house and entering the neighboring yard. An unchained collie waited for him at the edge of its property.
CALLIOPE: Collies can be very gentle but also fiercely protective.
JOE: My thoughts precisely.
CALLIOPE: And then?
JOE: The collie met the mailman, fell in alongside him and walked with him as if the two were fast friends. The mailman deposited the mail and left several bits of kibble on the porch step. The collie ate the kibble and the mailman proceeded on his way.
CALLIOPE: And the moral.
JOE: When you have messages to deliver, make sure you have something the gatekeepers want if you wish to be well received. Talk with you tomorrow.

Conversations with Calliope- All Systems Go

(Astoria Station)

JOE: Good m0rning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. How are you today?
JOE: Fine. Everything seems in order and I have no distractions facing me today.
CALLIOPE: Glad to hear it. What do you have planned?
JOE: Getting back to work.
CALLIOPE: Specifics please.
JOE: I have been gathering materials about search engine optimization and plan to start using them to my advantage.
CALLIOPE: Anything that still puzzles you?
JOE: I received a post from Ezine which listed search terms which their visitors used to find my articles.
CALLIOPE: Interesting.
JOE: I thought so. If I could find such a listing for terms visitors to my web site use, I would be quite grateful.
CALLIOPE: Where could you find such a list?
JOE: I'm not sure I could. So far I don't know how to look other than using a trial and error keyword program through Google keywords.
CALLIOPE: Something to explore.
JOE: There's always something. Talk with you tomorrow.

Conversations with Calliope- Directions

(Letchworth)

JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. How goes it today?
JOE: Other than a leaky faucet the day's off to a fairly good start.
CALLIOPE: Did you tend to the faucet?
JOE; I got it diagnosed. Next is surgery, but it's in the works.
CALLIOPE: How about literary matters?
JOE: I'm continuing to work through Guerrilla Marketing for Writers.
CALLIOPE: What do you think so far?
JOE: There's enough here to keep me busy for years.
CALLIOPE: But?
JOE: But I don't want to spend years marketing.
CALLIOPE: So?
JOE: My current thought is to make room for marketing efforts in my schedule but not let them take over my life.
CALLIOPE: Sounds sensible. Back to balance.
JOE: Indeed. Now to do it. Talk with you tomorrow.

Conversations with Calliope- Writing Adventures

(Searching for Coney Island)

JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. How are you today?
JOE: Ready for another week.
CALLIOPE: What's on your plate today?
JOE: Continuing to plan my future.
CALLIOPE: How much of that do you think you have?
JOE: Obviously none of us knows. My mother's ninetieth birthday yesterday reminded me that I don't have forever to live.
CALLIOPE: Unless you are a muse. Have you come to any decisions about marketing?
JOE: No, but I did find Levinson, Frishman and Larsen's book Guerrilla Marketing for Writers on my bookshelf as I was perusing it for something to help me.
CALLIOPE: Did it?
JOE: Yes. They present quite a few approaches which cost little or no money and don't involve spending your whole life in the pursuit.
CALLIOPE: Where does that leave you?
JOE: I'm still reading it but it suggests to me that I can incorporate marketing tasks while keeping my focus on writing.
CALLIOPE: Sounds like you're working toward a balance.
JOE: I am. I'll let you know how it's coming when we talk tomorrow.

Conversations with Calliope- George and the Pigeon

(George M. Cohan and the Pigeon)

JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. What's up today?
JOE: Packing.
CALLIOPE: For what?
JOE: I'm headed for Connecticut and New York City to visit friends and relatives.
CALLIOPE: Do you feel like you need a break?
JOE: I've been working pretty hard lately getting out Conversations with Calliope and tracking down information on marketing. Yes, I'm ready.
CALLIOPE: What have you discovered about marketing?
JOE: It quite complex. I have found endless information and now need to sort through it and settle on a plan.
CALLIOPE: How will you do that?
JOE: I am attending a workshop on business plans next Wednesday and expect that will be a chance for me to finally get focused.
CALLIOPE: Sounds good. What will you do in your travels?
JOE: Catch up with old friends, solve the world's problems and relax a little.
CALLIOPE: When will we talk again?
JOE: I will contact you on September 16 and tell you about my trip.

Conversations with Calliope- Online Book Marketing

(Vigo Herb Market)

JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. How are you today?
JOE: Fine. Yesterday I talked with you about getting serious about the business aspect of writing.
CALLIOPE: Was that just talk or did you do something about it?
JOE: I did something. First I signed up for two workshops through Score in Rochester on Writing a Business Plan and Marketing on the Internet.
CALLIOPE: Good start. anything else?
JOE: I started looking for what I could find on Internet marketing in the obvious place, the Internet.
CALLIOPE: What did you find?
JOE: Lots of things, mostly advertising for expensive programs. I started wading through some of the offerings.
CALLIOPE: Did you reach any conclusions?
JOE: No. I felt overwhelmed and had to take a break.
CALLIOPE: And then?
JOE: Then I looked through my bookshelf to see if I had anything useful.
CALLIOPE: What did you discover?
JOE: Steve Weber's book Plug Your Book: Online Book Marketing for Authors, which I read a while ago. I realized that most of what I have done so far to market my book was based on his excellent suggestions. I started reading it again and found a treasure trove of ideas I did not explore before. I'm excited about the find. Talk with you tomorrow.

Conversations with Calliope- Smokey Robinson's Lesson

(Eastman Theater Audience)

JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. How are you today?
JOE: Energized.
CALLIOPE: By what, may I ask?
JOE: You may. The Rochester International Jazz Festival began last night with Carol and me in attendance.
CALLIOPE: What did you see?
JOE: The Greece Olympia Jazz Band, the Eastman High School Jazz Band seniors and Faux Frenchman. And those were just the free street performances.
CALLIOPE: I take it from today's title that Smokey Robinson played a part somewhere.
JOE: Indeed he did. He was the evening's headliner and our main reason for going to the festival last night.
CALLIOPE: Which brings us to the question of his lesson.
JOE: It does. I saw clearly that his message was that he loves his audience. He said so several times and repeatedly showed it by his interaction with us throughout the concert.
CALLIOPE: What lesson did you take from that?
JOE: Give your audience what they want. This applies to writing and web marketing as well as performing. I will try to keep this in mind as I work in both areas.
CALLIOPE: Good idea.
JOE: Thanks. I thought so too. Talk with you tomorrow.

Conversations with Calliope- Website Choices

(Martin House Portico)


JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. Ready for another week?
JOE: Indeed. I started working yesterday learning the intricacies of Dreamweaver.
CALLIOPE: Have you thought about simpler approaches?
JOE: Several other writers mentioned the possibility of a hosted space under the umbrella of a general writers' site.
CALLIOPE: Have you considered that approach?
JOE: I think it would be a beginning if I knew nothing about websites and wanted a quick Internet presence.
CALLIOPE: You are beyond that?
JOE: Although my knowledge is rudimentary, I think I at least understand the basics and am prepared to continue with my own site.
CALLIOPE: Where will you start?
JOE: Reviewing the basics. I will reconsider the goals of my website, intended audience, what I would like my visitors to do.
CALLIOPE: And then?
JOE: I will design the structure, format and especially the content accordingly.
CALLIOPE: Sounds like you have a plan.
JOE: I do, at least the outline of one. Now it's time to fill in the details. Talk with you tomorrow.

Conversations with Calliope- Finding Balance

(Towel Swans)

JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. How are you today?
JOE: Not bad.
CALLIOPE: Not too talkative either I see. What's going on?
JOE: Not much. I guess I sometimes get a little discouraged.
CALLIOPE: On what account?
JOE: I spent quite a bit of time preparing the launch of my newsletter but have had very little early response.
CALLIOPE: What did you expect?
JOE: I guess more than I got.
CALLIOPE: Did you go all out in announcing it?
JOE: No. It was a rather modest presentation.
CALLIOPE: How do you expect to get attention that way?
JOE: Good point. I am annoyed by all the "in your face" ads I face everywhere and did not want to add to the barrage.
CALLIOPE: I understand but it looks you went to the opposite extreme.
JOE: I can't argue there. Like everything else, I guess I still need to work on moderation and balance. A remaining challenge. Talk with you tomorrow.

Conversations with Calliope- The Aging Purple Cow

(Original Wall- Tower of London)

JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. How are you today?
JOE: I'm fine other than being a little sore from shoveling mounds of snow.
CALLIOPE: That's what you get for living in Western New York. You have a rather intriguing title for our discussion today.
JOE: You noticed. I suppose you would like an explanation.
CALLIOPE: Indeed I would.
JOE: Okay. I have been reading two books recently, Seth Godin's Purple Cow and Joan Chittister's The Gift of Years.
CALLIOPE: What do the two have in common?
JOE: Not much on the surface. Godin's book is about marketing and how what works is being unique and appealing to those who appreciate your uniqueness. Chittister's book is about reevaluating aging, looking at as the freedom to be creative after the demands of earlier life are relaxed.
CALLIOPE: Got it. So what's the connection?
JOE: I'm working on marketing for my writing and also not getting any younger. Aging is an opportunity to let my uniqueness shine without worrying so much about what people will think about it. It's a freeing idea.
CALLIOPE: What do you plan to do about it?
JOE: Stop censoring my ideas so much and start making better use of the unique insights I have gained over the years.
CALLIOPE: Sounds good.
JOE: Stay tuned. Talk with you tomorrow.

Conversations with Calliope- Authentic Lies

(Wall sculpture- Santillana, Spain)
JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. How are things in the frozen north?
JOE: I'm making the best of it. I went cross country skiing yesterday. Fortunately, my brain isn't frozen.
CALLIOPE: Glad to hear it. What's rattling around there?
JOE: I keep thinking about what Seth Godin had to say about liars as marketing.
CALLIOPE: What are your current thoughts?
JOE: I think they are evolving. As I understood what him, he describes consumers as lying to themselves. Marketers do well when they resonate with consumers' lies.
CALLIOPE: How does that sit with you?
JOE: The word "lies" got my attention. But he also talks about being authentic in marketing. I am a little stuck with what looks to me like an oxymoron, authentic lying.
CALLIOPE: I see what you mean. Where are you going with it?
JOE: Toward the end of his book he admits he didn't quite mean lying. As I see it, people do have world views which they don't always put into words. I believe that people's world views are quite instrumental in shaping their response to marketing efforts and anything else which comes their way.
CALLIOPE: So where does that leave you?
JOE: I have come to realize that in order to be an effective in marketing my writing I need to understand the world views of my readers and how they relate to my writing.
CALLIOPE: Any specific thoughts on how to do this?
JOE: I'm still working on it. I'll tell you more tomorrow.

Conversations with Calliope- Authentic Marketing

(Marketplace- Marigot, St. Martin)
JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. Did you finish Seth Godin's book, All Marketers Are Liars?
JOE: I finished it this morning.
CALLIOPE: So what did you think?
JOE: It was a wake up call and challenged what I thought I knew about marketing.
CALLIOPE: How so?
JOE: I want to convey to my readers encouragement to live authentic lives by using their talents for good purposes.
CALLIOPE: So what's the problem?
JOE: I have been concerned that there are many people who don't care about living their lives this way but just want to grab what they can.
CALLIOPE: And?
JOE: Godin encourages marketers and by extension writers to address people with a worldview consistent with their message rather than trying to change people with entrenched worldviews not open to their message.
CALLIOPE: How does this change your approach?
JOE: My goal will now be to speak effectively to those who are willing to listen rather than beating my head against a wall trying to interest those who think I'm crazy.
CALLIOPE: Sounds good to me.
JOE: Me too. I will get working on it today. Talk with you tomorrow.

Conversations with Calliope- Marketing Lies

(Sculpture- Vigo, Spain)

JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. Ready for another week?
JOE: Yes. I'm ready to go.
CALLIOPE: Did you finish Seth Godin's book, All Marketers are Liars yet?
JOE: Not yet. I'm about half way through it.
CALLIOPE: What do you think so far?
JOE: The title intrigued me. So did the picture on the front cover of Seth with a pinnochio nose attached.
CALLIOPE: Is that what got you to buy the book?
JOE: Mostly. I looked inside and thought the approach looked interesting.
CALLIOPE: How so?
JOE: I have been trying to approach marketing my books in a scientific way as if there were a logical way to go about it.
CALLIOPE: We muses don't get too involved in marketing. So it's not a scientific endeavor?
JOE: It doesn't seem to be. Seth's writing indicates that it is more an appeal to the emotions.
CALLIOPE: In what way?
JOE: When people consider buying something, they concern themselves more with whether having it reinforces their world view (lies they tell themselves) and confirms what they already think rather than due to benefits, features or anything else logical.
CALLIOPE: I never looked at it that way before.
JOE: Neither did I. But the more I read the more sense it makes. Talk with you tomorrow.

Commonsense Wisdom- Good Fortune

(Cavorting with Carol at Mardi Gras World)

JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. How are you today?
JOE: Feeling good. I had a pleasant surprise yesterday. I received some scratch off lottery tickets for my birthday. One of them left me a hundred dollars richer.
CALLIOPE: What do you plan to do with the money?
JOE: I am inviting Carol and her brother and sister in law who gave me the tickets out to dinner.
CALLIOPE: Don 't you have something more practical you can do with the money such as invest it in your publishing efforts?
JOE: That would be a possibility. However I believe in sharing good fortune. I am trying to think of others besides myself.
CALLIOPE: Noble of you. Are you always that way?
JOE: This is a philosophy I try to share in all my writing. I don't think my words are worth much if I don't walk the walk as well.
CALLIOPE: I can't argue with you there. What's going on in your publishing world?
JOE: I'm working on contacts. I set up two lunch appointments for next week.
CALLIOPE: With whom?
JOE: One is with a local author. I would like to share ideas with him regarding local marketing which I have neglected so far. The other is with a former psychotherapist who now writes among other things. He contacted me and we seem to be kindred spirits.
CALLIOPE: Sounds like good progress.
JOE: I think so. I will be spending today with my brother who is visiting from Honolulu so I'm not sure how much work I'll get done today. Talk with you tomorrow.

Conversations with Calliope- A New Year

(St Mark's Church and Oatka Creek)


JOE: Happy new year Calliope.
CALLIOPE: And to you. How did you end the year?
JOE: With quite bit of socializing. A lot more than is usual for me. But I enjoyed every bit of it.
CALLIOPE: And now back to the keyboard?
JOE: Yes. I spent some time over the past couple days refining my publicity release and brochure.
CALLIOPE: So that's finished?
JOE: For now, but there's always room for improvement.
CALLIOPE: Now what?
JOE: I will keep working on marketing. I have been concentrating on the internet but have thought a little about local publicity.
CALLIOPE: In what regard?
JOE: I have not approached the local newspaper or radio yet but plan to.
CALLIOPE: Anything else?
JOE: I haven't done much by way of public appearance with my previous books.
CALLIOPE: Are there some opportunities?
JOE: I've been considering that. There are service groups like Kiwanis and Rotary as well as senior centers and perhaps religious groups. I have also considered a reading at the library.
CALLIOPE: Lots to explore.
JOE: There is. I'd better get working on it.

Conversations with Calliope- Dialogue with My Muse

(Aquinnah Lighthouse- Martha's Vineyard)

JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. How are you today?
JOE: A tad rushed.
CALLIOPE: How so? I thought you would be more relaxed with the book revisions submitted.
JOE: I am. But I have two places to go this morning and also have evening plans.
CALLIOPE: So it's hard to plan any marketing activities.
JOE: That doesn't mean I can't be thinking about them as I drive around. I decided on an approach to marketing Navigating Life this morning before I even got out of bed.
CALLIOPE: Which is?
JOE: Now that we have elected Obama and expect him to make some changes in the world, what are we going to do on our part?
CALLIOPE: Sounds like a good approach. How are you going to go about it?
JOE: I plan to list thirteen things we can do, one of them outlined in each of he chapters of Navigating Life.
CALLIOPE: I'd like to see it when it's done.
JOE: No Problem. I'll share it with you. Time to get going. Off to the races. Talk with you tomorrow.

Conversations with Calliope- Dialogue with My Muse

(Nineteenth Century Schoolroom- Genesee Country Village)

JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. How are you this morning?
JOE: Good. Ready to work on marketing.
CALLIOPE: What happened yesterday?
JOE: I spent most of my time traveling out of town to do some psychological evaluations. Then I had to work to get my computer willing to score them.
CALLIOPE: Did you get a chance to work on writing?
JOE: To some extent. I posted the guides I shared with you yesterday on one of the business community sites and plan to continue that today as well as posting them on my own site.
CALLIOPE: Anything else going on?
JOE: I am reviewing a new edition of H.L Mencken's Notes on Democracy.
CALLIOPE: What do you think so far?
JOE: He seems quite cynical about our society and as far as I can gather questions the wisdom of the proletariat. I do find it useful to have my assumptions challenged and to have to reconsider them.
CALLIOPE: So it is a useful project?
JOE: I think so.
CALLIOPE: What's up for today?
JOE: More marketing efforts and waiting for the printed galley of my book, Navigating Life. Talk with you tomorrow.

Conversations with Calliope- Dialogue with My Muse

(Geese on Oatka Creek)

JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. How are you today?
JOE: Fine. I'm in high gear today I also have a surprise for you.
CALLIOPE: I'm ready.
JOE: Here goes.

An Ode to Calliope
by
Joseph G. Langen

Back when I floundered in faint hope of finding my way in the forest
searching for ways to express what so grabbed me and spun my deep thinking,
you came along to shine light on what stirred in me, mindlessly musing,
waiting for me to start waking and know that I needed to write it.

You and not I could at last for once venture to speak through my writing.
Stirring to life I could now find a voice so long hidden in silence.
What has lain dormant inside me refusing to come to the foreground
daring to challenge my wordless and courageless way of not seeking?

Me as a spokesman for challenges forming to question life's torpor?
How could I finally find my weak voice and thus let it now free me,
daring to note my own carefully hidden, forgotten life message?
Can I now, must I now say what I thought must stay locked up inside me?

You have now found me and made me stop twiddling my thumbs as I notice
all of life's treasures and bounties which call me to finally voice them.
Help me now share them with readers who travel alongside my path stones seeking together some ways to make holy our journey in friendship.

CALLIOPE: Wow! I'm flattered. Thanks for the recognition. Did you write that in dactylic hexameter.
I did. I know it is a favorite meter in epic poetry which you champion.
I'm impressed.
JOE: You're welcome. It's only fair. Without inspiration I doubt I would have anything to write.
CALLIOPE: That's what muses are for. Did you spend the whole day yesterday writing this?
JOE: No. Phil Davis of Authors on the net suggested an amazon program called "So you want to...: I tried it and developed a list of readings regarding priest abuse, including my own of course. I also discovered a series of reader communities on a variety of topics and started posting there.
CALLIOPE: Do you think that will benefit your writing?

JOE: What better place to hang out than with readers already in an online bookstore?
CALLIOPE: I can't argue with you there. What do you have planned for today?
JOE: I'm recovering from a late night revision of the cover for my new book, Navigating Life. I hope it will be ready soon. I feel a need to relax today.
CALLIOPE: Sounds like you earned it.
JOE: I think so. Talk with you tomorrow.

Conversations with Calliope- Dialogue with My Muse

(Apple Umpkin Festival- Wyoming, NY)

JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. How are you today?
JOE: Fine. I negotiated our two seatings of company yesterday and enjoyed the experience. I like not being quite so isolated.
CALLIOPE: Do you find yourself isolating as a writer?
JOE: Yes. I spend more of my time in front of the computer than anywhere else.
CALLIOPE: Doing what?
JOE: Writing, editing, marketing, research.
CALLIOPE: How about interaction online?
JOE: I have gotten away from it. I joined a number of online writer and marketing communities but have not spent time there developing relationships.
CALLIOPE: What about spending more time interacting?
JOE: A good suggestion. I'll try to keep it in mind.
CALLIOPE: What's up for today?
JOE: I was just thinking about that. I think my chief goal is to explore and try to pin down a marketing approach for Navigating Life. I'll talk with you Friday after Thanksgiving is over.