The Story behind the Book: The Musings of a Carolina Yankee by Wally Amidon

 

Today's book back story is about The Musings of a Carolina Yankee by Wally Amidon.

From the publisher:

Wally's book did not land at my doorstep in the traditional way--not as a proposal in any form either via mail or email. Rather, it showed up as a self-published book literally on my doorstep, sent as a gift by childhood friend, Wally, who had moved from Yankee territory (the Maine-New Hampshire border) to redneck country (rural South Carolina).

I was aghast at the production, and I often use it as a sample of the difference between self-publication (especially when authors are taken in by a vanity press that does no extra work) and a professional publication. Certainly, self-published authors can produce quality books, but that was not the case with Wally's. The vanity press had just published it exactly the way he had written it. It looked like they had just scanned typewritten pages. The content was good, and the humor could prompt out-loud laughing, but the presentation was off-putting.

Wally had paid a lot of money per book (something like $20), buying a stack of them and getting local businesses to sell them. As a pastor, he had a bit of access to help with marketing, but nothing like the real thing. To this day, I have the image of Wally, not a small guy, lugging stacks of books around to businesses, with a big smile and sense of accomplishment.

There was a better way! I contacted Wally and offered to re-publish the book as a professional product. We added graphics, copyedited the book, and typeset it properly. Then, we added it to our marketing activities, and it began to get some good reviews.

Unfortunately, just a few months after the book was released, Wally wrote that the VA Hospital had diagnosed him with esophageal cancer. We all hoped for the best, but Wally died three weeks later. 

At least, though, he got to see his book in print, for real. I know he was proud of it, and I can also still see that smile getting bigger. 

We still sell Wally's book. The stories are still good. And the book still brings a smile to readers' faces.

Read more posts about Wally and his book HERE. 

For more book back stories, click HERE.

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