I'm really geeked about today's post. I always like presenting you with cool information and exciting new sites for writers. You've all heard of Clash of the Titans, right? Of course you have. Well, let me introduce you to the brand new site, CLASH OF THE TITLES. (Is that clever, or what?) Clash of the Titles is the ultimate literary challenge, where authors battle and readers judge. Curiosity piqued? Mine, too!
It's my pleasure to introduce you to Michelle Massaro, a new homeschooling parent, a member of her church's worship team, and an aspiring author of Contemporary Christian fiction. Above all, she is a follower of Christ Jesus, unashamed to stand upon the Word of God from beginning to end! Michelle is on-staff at Clash of the Titles (otherwise referred to as COTT) and is here to answer a few questions about this brand new site.
Take a moment to visit Michelle's blog at: www.michellemassaro.blogspot.com
Also connect with her on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/editapps.php?ref=mb#!/group.php?gid=142201822468664&v=info&ref=ts
What is Clash of the Titles all about?
Clash of the Titles, or COTT, is the brain-child of April Gardner. The idea is to have a weekly showdown between two authors/novels in which readers judge and decide on the “worthiest” excerpt in a given category. For example, our first week will focus on Best Hook—Opening Pages and readers will vote on which one best leaves them “intrigued, breathless, and begging for more”.
What excites you most about COTT?What excites me most about COTT is the chance to connect with so many book-lovers who are also Christ-lovers. Being a part of something new and different is always a thrill, and the anticipation of wondering what lies ahead is exhilarating. I’m looking forward to forming new relationships with Christian authors I may have never heard of before- just like all the other readers out there will be able to do!
How do you see COTT expanding the Christian fiction market?
The opportunity to go to the COTT website each week and be able to read a couple pages of new novels in all kinds of genres, all in one place, is going to do a lot to expose readers to books they otherwise might never come across. Often you can find a sample chapter up on an author’s webpage, but unless you are already familiar with that author (or at least with their genre), you aren’t going to find yourself on their site reading their excerpt. COTT will appeal to the widest audience possible, cast a large net, and bring those readers to those writers. I guess you could say that COTT is like the kitchen – it’s the hub of activity, the place everyone congregates within the home. There is a lot to feast on, and plenty of new things to try! So of course the market is going to see the results as readers break their mold and buy more books outside their “norm” and begin recommending these new books to friends. Isn’t that what we always do when we discover something new we love? We want to share it!
How can COTT generate a buzz for an author's book?
When an author is featured on COTT, the sparring nature of the site is going to generate a distinctive buzz in that good-natured “Go, team!” kind of way. Readers will be rooting for their favorite to win, and often those readers will be brand-new to that author and/or genre. COTT is so new and different that it stands out from the usual blog-tours and announcements. We are unique. And that always garners extra attention and buzz.
How can COTT help increase sales of older titles?
What I think is going to happen, is many readers are going to discover a love for an author and a genre they’d previously not known, and that is going to whet their appetite. Once a new reader becomes a fan, they will of course want to read other books by the same author, easily increasing sales of previous titles. It’s a no-brainer.
Are all the featured books published?
No, actually. Most of the time, the featured excerpts are from published books immediately available for purchase. But occasionally, about every 6 weeks or so, we give unpublished authors the opportunity to put their work out there and see what happens. We want to encourage new authors and new talent and watch the Christian fiction market expand all the more.
What cost is there to participating authors?
The only cost is one copy of the participating author's book, and the shipping to send it to the winner. That’s it!
How do authors go about getting their excerpts onto COTT?
First, they check our submission page and look at our upcoming schedule for your genre and theme. Then they should prepare their excerpt according to our guidelines and email it to us. We will notify them if your excerpt is chosen. Please be sure to read all the guidelines! To keep things fair, we do take steps to ensure the author's identity is secret during the submission process.
How can we keep up-to-date on what is going on over at COTT?
We’ve set up a Facebook page and Twitter account, in addition to our main website, so keeping up-to-date is easy!
SO COOL! Thanks so much for the information, Michelle, and much success to you in this venture!
Ready to check it out? Me, too! See you there!
6 comments:
That is a pretty clever name and a very cool idea!
This sounds SOOOOOO cool! Can't wait for ya to go live! Thanks, Lynda!
It sounds like a great idea. I'll be sure to check it out.
Enjoyed the interview, Michelle.
Lynda, thanks for being excited about COTT and helping spread the word!
Lynda, this looks wonderful! Thanks so much for posting it. I'll mention it on my blog, too!
Thanks for having me, Lynda! It was a pleasure visiting your blog and sharing about the exciting things going on over at COTT.
@Jenee: The awesome name was all April's idea! Isn't it clever?
@Joanne: Just 2 more weeks left! Our first contenders are already getting set to face off! =)
@Sally: Stop by and say hello! I'll keep an eye out for you.
@April: Thanks!
@Becky: Let us know if you blog about us so we can be sure to stop by and say "hello"!
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