Should Publishers Get Rid Of African-American Imprints?

I read an interesting article linked on this blog post. I've blogged about a simliar topic in the past here, here, here, and here, and wonder how the sales will be on my next novel since an African-American woman is on the cover and the book will be released into most major stores: including Walmart and most bookstores that carry Christian novels.

Last summer, when I was at the Romance Writers of America conference in Washington D.C., I was talking to my roommate, author Rachel Hauck. I told her about the stigma of African-American novels - some White people think the stories are for "us" not "them". Plus, if there are Black people on the cover, the book is sometimes automatically shelved in the African-American section - and some Whites don't search that section for reading material.

The flipside is, if my book is shelved with White books, therefore placing my title in front of White readers, they still might not buy my novel, but, then again, they might.

I told her that I hoped that my publisher would not place a person on the cover. I'd mentioned that I'd seen that some of the covers for the 3-in-1s had just scenery, no people. That's the way I wanted my novel to look. You see, I'd heard that Barbour's 3-in-1s sell really well, and I figured if I had a cover without people, like the other contemporary releases, then the sales figures that those books had would somewhat guarantee that I'd share the same sales numbers. (I know there are no guarantees at all, I was only speculating, hoping to increase my chances of getting some great sales.)

Rachel suggested that I let Barbour know what I wanted on my cover. Since I had not seen my cover yet, I figured there was still time to make my wishes known. I did contact them and gave them some samples of covers that I liked for other contemporary 3-in-1s.

I did get my cover a few weeks later. And here it is. If you're a regular reader of this blog, you've probably already seen this cover a gazillion times:


I love the cover, and felt it captures the essence of the stories and looks better than what I'd suggested. Upon further research, I did discover that Barbour changed their convention for designing the covers for the 3-in-1s for the contemporary series that will be released in 2010. Prior to the 2010 releases, the cover always had scenery, but starting in 2010, the covers now have a person (either man or woman) on the cover. For their historicals, it appears they were already using the convention of using a person on the cover of their 3-in-1s in 2009 - so no major changes for the historicals.

Here's some examples of the 3-in-1 covers for contemporary series for 2009:


















Here are some examples of the NEW 3-in-1 covers for contemporary series for 2010:


















I think the marketing department did a great job with the 2010 3-in-1 covers! They look beautiful and I think that having the people on the cover captures the power behind the story more than having just scenery.

HOWEVER, I'm wondering how my book will be shelved? For example, I visited Walmart over the Christmas holiday. Most Walmarts have the 3-in-1s shelved together, but since mine has an African-American woman on the cover, will it be shelved with the other 3-in-1s in the inspirational section, or will it be shelved in the African-American section? If somebody comes to Walmart each month to buy the 3-in-1s and mine is in the African-American section, instead of with the rest of the 3-in-1s, then I doubt they'll know my book exists and I might lose a sale. I did notice that there were some African-American inspirational titles shelved in the African-American section.

ON THE FLIP SIDE, if my book is shelved in the African-American section, I could capture those readers who only read African-American books. They might go to the AA section only, without browsing the rest of the sections, not knowing that my book could be shelved amongst other books.

I believe the ideal solution would be to shelve it both places, but I highly doubt that's going to happen!

I need to stop worrying about this because it's all in the Lord's hands. And before you say, "All of this shouldn't matter, a book is a book..." well, don't say that. It does matter. I've seen the way some African-Americans and some Whites read books. The sad fact is sometimes they do base or buy a book depending upon race. :-(

Do you think I'm worrying about nothing?

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Release Your Creativity!!!

I hope all of you had a Merry Christmas! On Christmas Eve, my husband and I were out shopping, looking for a gift for his grandfather. In the mall, I saw a Lego store, so I stopped and went in. Over the years, Legos have changed a lot! When I was a kid, they didn't have these small kits that only build one thing, like a car or a helicopter. We just had piles of bricks and we'd build houses and buildings, take them apart and put them together again!

Nostalgia swept through me when I saw those same colorful blocks, the way I remembered them, in the back of the store! They had piles of blocks, separated by color, in bins that were set in the wall! You'd see a bubble of color and you could select the bricks you wanted and pay about fifteen dollars for a whole large cup of blocks. I was walking around, looking at the different kits that contained lots of blocks. I finally said, "We should get this for CJ (our son) for Christmas." Hubby said, "That's a good idea."

I stood there looking at kits, blocks, talking about large base plates to build my house before hubby said..."Can we get out of here now?" I finally settled upon a set of Lego bricks in a large, bright blue plastic tub and a green base plate to set my house.

Anyway, on Christmas day, while everybody was opening presents, laughing, having a good time, I was sitting on the floor, playing with my "son's" gift. He said, "Mommy, I'm going to knock your house over with this car." (CJ'd gotten a remote control car for Christmas, actually he'd gotten 2 cars.) I was building a nice big house, but, alas, I ran out of bricks! The kit I'd gotten was only about half full of bricks, so there was room for more bricks in the bucket. When we got home from our Christmas trip, I went to Lego.com and ordered another set of bricks. I want to build, build, build...and CJ can help me if he wants too.

CJ did play with the Legos a little bit on Christmas day. You know, I hear about writers doing collages, coloring, painting, doing all sorts of things to release their creativity. I don't really do the above-mentioned activities very much...maybe building with Legos will help me release my creativity? It doesn't hurt to try... :-)

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas to all my blog readers! I'll be heading out of town today, and I won't be back until Monday! I doubt I'll be posting any blog entries while I'm away because the internet connection at the house where I'll be staying is kind of spotty!

I just baked my lemon pound cake early this morning and I still have a few gifts to wrap!

Be sure to enjoy your holiday! It's not about the gifts, but it's about the love of our Savior for us! Take some time to enjoy your family and friends and fellowship!

I think Christmas is too commercialized. Children see ads for new toys, and they want to add to the pile of toys that they already have in their home! Merchants are out to make money from the millions of shoppers (myself included) who need to buy Christmas gifts. I often wish Christmas was more like Thanksgiving...no gifts involved! Just food, fellowship and fun! But gifts are a part of most Christmas celebrations, so just remember not to focus on the commercial aspect of the holiday!

Merry Christmas! :-)

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Coach And Eclipse

I received my Coach items in the mail the other day. I'd take pictures to show them to you, but, I'm too lazy, plus, the items look exactly like the pics I borrowed from the Coach website in the above link.

Since I was snowed in most of Saturday and Sunday, I skimmed the third book in the Twilight series, Eclipse. I didn't care for it. I read about 80 pages of it word for word before I started skimming. It's a pretty large book, over six-hundred pages. Not sure why I didn't care for it, but I didn't. I enjoyed the first one, I also enjoyed about three quarters of the second book before I started skimming that one, the third one...well, I just felt there was something missing.

I have the last book in my to-be-read pile. Once I've read/skimmed that title, I'm giving them away on this blog. They take up too much space, and I don't have room for them in this messy, book-filled house!

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Christmas Snow!

Here are the pics I mentioned yesterday! I took these in the afternoon...we did continue to get snow after that. I woke up about a half hour ago and it looked like the snow has stopped! I didn't bother to open the door to take pics this AM, though!

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Christmas Snow! :-)

The images above are stock photos...but...I did take pics with my camera today, just haven't emailed them to myself yet!

Currently, we have 20" of snow on the ground and it's still snowing! It's rare for us in Maryland to get that much snow...let alone, that much snow during the Christmas season! Our neighbors across the street turned on their Christmas lights and they look beautiful against the white snow! If I feel like it, I'll post the pics tomorrow!

They've already closed most of the churches in the area tomorrow because of the high drifts outside! We received a phone call from our church, with an automated message from the pastor, stating that services will not be held tomorrow...

Hubby and I have lots of work to do tomorrow! Now we have to dig ourselves out! What a mess!

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Shopping And Snow

I did a little Christmas shopping today. I hate shopping, so I did not have a good time. It's supposed to snow tonight and continue snowing this weekend! We don't get much snow up here, so people have been talking about it a lot! When it snows, especially as much as they're predicting, things shut down...businesses, stores, etc. And, it's rare for it to snow, especially a predicted record-breaking snow, in December! If we get a sizeable amount of snow, it'll usually occur in February or maybe January!

It'll be interesting to see how the weekend pans out...getting so much snow around Christmastime in Maryland is a rare event, indeed!

Does it usually snow in your area during the Christmas season?

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Christmas Interview With Cecelia Dowdy

Come to Jenny's blog and read my interview about Christmas!

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Chesapeake Weddings And Coach

Chesapeake Weddings is about to go to press! I have to read through the galley and it's due back to Barbour Publishing by January 6th. And, if you've read any of my Heartsong Presents titles - John's Quest, Milk Money or Bittersweet Memories, feel free to leave a review on the link above! Chesapeake Weddings is a re-release of all three of those titles!

On another note, on this blog post, I wrote about the new Coach purse I'd received for my birthday. Since I carry the same purse around for years, I usually use a Coach since they are a high-quality handbag. Well, Coach comes with a life-time warranty. If your Coach purse becomes damaged from natural wear and tear, you can send it to the Coach factory and they'll fix it. This used to be free, but, in recent years, you have to send a check for $20.00 to cover postage.

Well, the reason why I wanted a new Coach purse is because my old one had a broken zipper. The zipper was worn, right where the teeth of the zipper are located. I didn't think they'd be able to fix my zipper because Coach zippers are stitched right into the leather. I couldn't imagine them taking the stiches out of the leather, removing the old zipper, and replacing it with a new zipper while allowing the purse to still look the same.

Well, awhile back, Coach sent me a letter, stating that they couldn't fix my purse, BUT they were offering me any item in their catalog for 40% off. I was telling my coworker about it, and I mentioned that I'd rather have a free small item, like a wallet or a change purse instead of getting a new item at 40% off. After all, I'd just gotten a new Coach purse, and I don't switch purses, thus I didn't really need another item just to use the 40% off offer. My coworker suggested I call Coach and explain that I already got a new purse and I didn't need another one, so, might they give me a small item for free instead?

So, almost a week ago, I called them, stating my dilemma - I was sure to let the Coach employee know that I'd recently gotten a new Coach purse and didn't need another. The lady put me on hold for a LONG TIME. She then asked for the reference number on my letter. She said that they were going to refund the $20.00 I'd paid for the repair, and they would send me a gift card for $107.20! I was excited! My coworker gave me a high five!

I just used my gift card a couple of days ago! I was able to get 3 small Coach items:
This wristlet was $58.00, and it matches the purse I received last summer!

This Skinny Mini was $38.00!

This pack of paper was $10.00

$58.00
$38.00
$10.00
$106.00 = total

With tax, I ended up spending only five or six bucks of my own money. The shipping was free since the order is over $75.00. And...my refund check from Coach for $20.00 came in the mail today!

Isn't that great?!

~Cecelia Dowdy~

New Heartsong Presents Author Blog

Check out the new Heartsong Presents Author Blog! Each week they'll feature an author! It's a great way to get acquainted with the ladies who pen those great romances!

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Thirsty By Tracey Bateman

Thirsty by Tracey Bateman

From the back cover:
There's no place like home, they say.

"Hello, I'm Nina Parker…and I'm an alcoholic."

For Nina, it's not the weighty admission but the first steps toward recovery that prove most difficult. She must face her ex-husband, Hunt, with little hope of making amends, and try to rebuild a relationship with her angry teenage daughter, Meagan. Hardest of all, she is forced to return to Abbey Hills, Missouri, the hometown she abruptly abandoned nearly two decades earlier–and her unexpected arrival in the sleepy Ozark town catches the attention of someone–or something–igniting a two-hundred-fifty-year-old desire that rages like a wildfire.

Unaware of the darkness stalking her, Nina is confronted with a series of events that threaten to unhinge her sobriety. Her daughter wants to spend time with the parents Nina left behind. A terrifying event that has haunted Nina for almost twenty years begins to surface. And an alluring neighbor initiates an unusual friendship with Nina, but is Markus truly a kindred spirit or a man guarding dangerous secrets?

As everything she loves hangs in the balance, will Nina's feeble grasp on her demons be broken, leaving her powerless against the thirst? The battle between redemption and obsession unfold to its startling, unforgettable end.

==
I purchased this novel because it was about two subjects that garner my interest: alcoholism and vampires. I've blogged about vampires a few times because of the Twilight series, and I've also included the subject of alcoholism in my own novels.

I thought Bateman did an excellent job of describing the difficult road to sobriety for an alcoholic. Nina has struggled with this addiction off and on for most of her adult life, and the addiction is in her blood - her father has suffered from alcoholism, too.

Thirsty also talks about familial disharmony: Nina's relationship with her daughter is strained because of Nina's abuse of alcohol. Nina's relationships with her parents are strained because of her troubled childhood. When she returns home, she's been gone for several years, and this is the first she's seen of her parents in a long while. Plus, she's recently divorced, although she still loves her husband.

Although two of the characters are vampires, I thought the story could have easily been re-written by portraying the two bloodsuckers as satanists or occultists or something?

Overall I thought the book was a good, suspenseful, intriguing read and it was a page turner.

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Cheap Stocking Stuffer Idea

If you want some cheap options to stuff your Christmas stocking, then you should consider purchasing some Heartsong Presents titles. They're only $2.97 each and you can order them directly from the publisher. I've ordered directly from Barbour myself, and I always received the books a few days after I ordered them.

You can find titles here - select the Books tab to get a full selection, and you can also order by calling (800) 847 8270. You can order up to twelve Heartsongs and still pay the same amount in postage. My titles are John's Quest, Milk Money, and Bittersweet Memories. But, you can find a whole slew of available titles, both contemporary and historical, for a reasonable price. If you order soon, you should receive your novels before Christmas, in plenty of time to stuff your stockings!

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Chesapeake Weddings

I removed Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer from The Christmas Box and placed it into the DVD player tonight for my four-year-old son to enjoy. He watched Rudolph for awhile and then came upstairs whining and upset. He was afraid of the Abominable Snowman! How could he be afraid of The Abominable? He watched the movie over and over last year, we almost had to force him to put it away once Christmas was over. Now, how is he going to watch it this year and be scared? Did the scariness kick into his brain sometime between three and four?

On another note, if you've read any of my three stories: John's Quest, Milk Money, or Bittersweet Memories and you enjoyed them, I'd appreciate it if you'd post a review for it on the Christianbook.com link for Chesapeake Weddings. Chesapeake Weddings is a re-released volume of all three stories, so, even if you've only read one of the three, you can still post your review for that story on this link under the Customer Reviews heading.

Hope the holiday season is going well for all of you!

~Cecelia Dowdy~

The Christmas Box!

I opened my closet last weekend and pulled out my Christmas box! What's in it? Christmas CDs and DVDs to enjoy for the holidays! Here are the selections in my Christmas box!

1. A Charlie Brown Christmas CD and DVD - this thing has been on TV for as long as I can remember! What a heartwarming story that's still a hit today!

Original Christmas Classics DVD set which includes:

2. Frosty The Snowman DVD
3. Santa Claus Is Coming To Town DVD
4. Rudolph The Red-nosed Reindeer DVD
I can remember seeing all three of these shows on TV every year since I was a kid!

5. The Polar Express DVD - this selection is what I consider "new". My hubby and I went to see this in the theater and this was before we had a child.

6. The Vanessa Williams Christmas Collection CD - I mostly listen to this while traveling in the car!







7. Jackson 5 Christmas Album - My four-year-old son LOVES listening to this! He especially enjoys Rudolph The Red-nosed Reindeer!

8.














The Nutcracker CD - my husband doesn't care for this, but I love the music! If I play it in the car, it's usually when I'm alone!

Do you have a Christmas box or Christmas music and DVDs that you enjoy every year? If you do, what are your selections? I'd love to know!

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Hershey's Soft And Chewy Cookies

You can use any kind of chip or baking piece in this recipe, but I used milk chocolate chips, and they are OH SO GOOD! :-)

What's different about this recipe is you use corn syrup in the dough. The corn syrup gives these cookies a nice texture! This recipe is a real keeper!

1 cup Butter (no substitutes)
¾ cup Packed light brown sugar
½ cup Granulated sugar
¼ cup Light corn syrup
1 Egg
2 teaspoons Vanilla extract
2½ cup All-purpose flour
1 teaspoon Baking soda
¼ teaspoon Salt
1 pack HERSHEY'S Chips or Baking Bits (any flavor; 10-12 oz) - I used milk chocolate chips!

Heat oven to 350'F. In large mixer bowl, beat butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar until light and fluffy. Add corn syrup, egg and vanilla; beat well. Stir together flour, baking soda and salt. Gradually add to butter mixture, beating well. Stir in chips or bits. Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 8-10 minutes or until lightly browned and almost set. Cool slightly; remove from cookie sheet to wire rack. Cool completely. Cookies will be softer the second day.

FOR CHOCOLATE COOKIES: Decrease flour to 2 1/4 cups and add 1/4 cup HERSHEY'S Cocoa or HERSHEY'S European Style Cocoa. For best results use HERSHEY'S/REESE'S Baking Chips and HERSHEY'S Cocoa.

So, pour yourself a nice, tall, cold glass of milk...

and ENJOY! :-)

~Cecelia Dowdy~

The Face By Angela Hunt

The Face by Angela Hunt

Mass Market Paperback: 368 pages
Publisher: Mira (November 1, 2008)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0778327272
ISBN-13: 978-0778327271

From the back cover:
Product Description
Orphaned and severely deformed, from her earliest moments Sarah Sims has been kept hidden away in a secret CIA facility—until an unexpected discovery gives her an opportunity to make a life for herself at last.
Now Sarah has an ally, a long-lost aunt who has discovered her true identity. Aided by this brave psychologist, twenty-year-old Sarah must find the courage to confront the forces that have confined her for so long. And the strength to be reborn into a world she has never known.

==
This book was a bit different than my usual reading. Born without a face, Sarah Sims has lived her life in captivity, on a remote island near Spain. Brilliant, she's a successful computer hacker working for the CIA. Orphaned, her contact with the outside world has been minimal, and she has no desire to set foot outside of her own little world due to her deformed appearance. However, when her beautiful Aunt Renee, a psychologist, shows up on the island to perform an analysis on her niece, Sarah soon learns that she longs to see the world, outside of her remote island.

Renee has just learned about her niece, believing Sarah was brought into the world as a still-born child. Renee's arrival on the island causes strife, turmoil, and joy, which makes this an exciting read. You also have interesting secondary characters on the island like Judson, the legless blind man who's maimed by working for the CIA, Dr. Kollman - a CIA plastic surgeon who's smitten with Renee, and Dr. Mewton - the CIA employee who has raised Sarah after she was orphaned.

The ending of this book was bittersweet, and something totally unexpected happens near the end.

This book reminded me a little bit about a secular novel I read several years ago. It was called Butterfly by Kathryn Harvey and I just looked on Amazon and it appears it was re-released through iUniverse a few years ago. In Butterfly, the main character, Rachel, was physically ugly. She wasn't deformed like Sarah, but she was obsessed with the beauty of others and she has plastic surgery to "fix her face." At least half of the novel deals with the struggles she endures from having a face that most do not consider attractive.

The Face reminds us about how we view physical appearance in society. I think the way that we look can have a huge impact on our lives.

~Cecelia Dowdy~