What I Am Learning From Interviews

There is no such thing as doing too many of them!

I've done some radio (which still make me nervous) and some with newspaper journalists (which are much more relaxed).  Both kinds are fun, because I get to talk about a subject that I really believe in, and the response I have gotten has been amazing.

http://www.macon.com/news/local/article211164589.html 

This is what I posted on the book's Facebook page today.  It's a wonderful article from the Macon Telegraph with a video with a local Macon historian to provide some visual context.  This kind of exposure will give LeRoy's story more prominence, and bring the book to new audiences.

I think a part of our hard work -- and the staff at Savas Beatie has been so creative in thinking of new ways to get this book coverage and exposure! -- has begun to really pay off! 

The hardcover version is the #1 new release in the "U.S. Civil War Confederate History" category!  This version releases in less than a week, and you can still pre-order.  Just follow the directions in the previous post.

The Kindle version is the #1 new release in "19th Century World History"!  This version is available now!

Also new to the market is Dr. Dennis Rasbach's ebook I Am Perhaps Dying, which goes into the medical aspect of LeRoy's story.  It is FREE on Kindle right now and will be also available in paperback in October.  His contribution to LeRoy's story is pivotal, as he used his extensive medical background to clearly identify the terminal illness from which LeRoy suffered throughout his journal writing. 

I am so grateful for all of the amazing support I have gotten during this journey!  In one year, Ted Savas, Dr. Rasbach, and I have gone from concept to published book.  I'm now learning about the process of marketing -- something I've never done before, if you exclude selling Girl Scout cookies! -- and will soon begin my first book tour.  In the background of the photograph above, you can see the interior of the 1842 Inn, the former home of the Gresham family, and where our national debut will take place. 

Keep reading for more updates, schedules, announcements, and my insights into this journey!

Purchasing A Signed Copy

Thank you all for your support. As a first time author, I really appreciate it more than you know. 

First, I will have only about 100 or so of the first edition hardcovers (surely one day a collector's item) to sign/inscribe for you. 

Purchasing a copy of “The War Outside My Window” directly from me (the editor, Janet Elizabeth Croon), is easy. The cost is $34.95, plus $5.00 shipping for the first book, and FREE shipping on more than one copy! (well packed, signed, and in a bubble envelope). You can send me a check, or you use PayPal (and anyone with a credit card or bank account can use PayPal!)

BY CHECK

Make the check out to Janet Croon, and mail it to:

Savas-Beatie

c/o Janet E. Croon

989 Governor Drive, suite 102

El Dorado Hills, CA 95762

Be sure you tell me if you want a specific type of inscription!

BY PAYPAL

1. Go to your PayPal account or create one at www.paypal.com – it’s free and easy!
2. Once you are in PayPal, there will be a blue banner at the top of the page.  Click on the “Send & Request” link.
3. In the box for “Send money to” enter jan@thewaroutsidemywindow.com. This is the email set up exclusively for ordering the book!
4. The amount to enter will be $39.95 -- $34.95 for the book and $5.00 for shipping.  Make sure it shows up underneath as USD.
5. In the “Add a note” box, please put the name and address where you want the book to go. Underneath and in “quotation marks” add any specific message with which you would like me to inscribe the book.  If there is no specific message that you want, leave that blank.  I will write something nice!
6. Make sure the “Your shipping address” is correct!  We want the book to go where it is supposed to!
7. Click on “Continue” and double-check the information.
8. Click “Send payment” and the book will be on its way to you!

Thank you again. I really appreciate the support, and any reviews you can post, as soon as you can(!) please do so!

The Georgia Book Tour

The beginning of my book tour is not far off... only FOUR weeks to go! 

I can't tell you how excited I am by all of this!  Literally, this amazing book has gone from a contract with nothing yet written to a book currently at the printer.  And in less than a month, I will be sharing LeRoy's inspiring story to audiences in many different parts of Georgia.

This is a state I will admit to not having visited too often, at least not unless I was just passing through.  Usually, I spent the night in a hotel off I-95 outside of Savannah on my way down to visit my mother in Florida.  Being a former Girl Scout leader for both of my daughters, we have been to the lovely city of Savannah a number of times and I am not allowed to come home without salt water taffy from the candy store on the waterfront!  This time, my trip there will have much more meaning due to the new understanding I have of Savannah's role in the Civil War, long before Sherman made it his target in his "March to the Sea."

                           So here it is! 

Saturday, June 9 (1pm & 2:30pm) - 1842 Inn in Macon

Sunday, June 10 at 1pm - Rosemary Inn Bed and Breakfast in North Augusta 

Monday, June 11 at 7pm - Central Georgia Genealogical Society in Warner Robins 

Tuesday, June 12 at 12pm - National Civil War Navy Museum in Columbus 

Tuesday, June 12 at 7pm - Blue & Grey Museum in Fitzgerald 

Wednesday, June 13 at 7pm - Jimmy Carter Presidential Library in Atlanta 

Thursday, June 14 at 7pm - Bartow History Museum 

Friday, June 15 from 5:30 to 8:00 pm - Acworth Bookstore

Saturday, June 16 - Chickamauga Chattanooga 1p-5p in Fort Oglethorpe

Sunday, June 17 from 1:30 to 3:30 pm - Walker County Historical Society in Lafayette 

Another Interview and Blog Post

Since I started working on my research for both LeRoy's story and the other work I have in progress, I have found Facbook to be an amazing resource.  I've gotten to know others who are just really interested in the topic of the American Civil War, men and women who both are involved in the hobby of Civil War reenactment, and several authors and teachers. 

One very interesting author I have met is Ann Marie Ackermann, who is an American with an impressive legal background who now lives in a small town in Germany.  Having lived in a small town in the Rheingau myself, I think it was one more common thread that allowed us to get to know each other a bit more.

Ann Marie recently did an interview with me, which she has just posted today!  You can find it at https://www.annmarieackermann.com/leroy-wiley-gresham/.  Being a lawyer, she asks wonderful, insightful questions that really allowed me to bring out the depth and the importance of LeRoy's journals.  I am so grateful that she chose to include me in her blog!


 When her book came out, I ordered it:

    If you like murder mysteries, this is a book you will like.  Ann Marie has solved a very long cold murder case in her book -- one that remained unsolved for 146 years!  I am very much looking forward to meeting her in person at the Gaithersburg, Maryland Book Festival on May 19, 2018 when she and the mayor of Boenningen will pay the descendents of the man who solved the case their long deserved reward.

Facebook and Blogger

They each have their own purposes.  Facebook is for shorter items, while these blog pages just scream to be filled in.

Like with this post.  I put this up when I was first playing around with the FB page for the book.  And you can go here -- https://www.facebook.com/LeRoyWileyGresham/ -- to read the Buzzfeed article!  Just scroll down until you find it.

It made me smile at the linkage.  LeRoy does talk about the other boys playing "town ball" and you can just hear him longing to be playing with them, too.  They do find a role for him, but I won't spoil it by telling you what it is... although if you want to guess, go to the post and let's see if you're right!

Here on Blogger, I'll be able to ramble on a bit more than I do on Facebook posts.  I guess it's just the writer in me, or maybe the tendency I had as a teacher to expound while kids were taking notes from the PowerPoint on the screen.  So when I see things like this, I'll post them!  I think all the connections that we can make between our lives and the lives of people in the past, the less distant they seem.

So check out the very bottom of the frame of this page, and you'll see a link to "Amazon" and to "Facebook."  Yes, I have an author page on Amazon and go there and check that out too!  And be sure to let others who might be interested in this unique look at the Civil War know about LeRoy and his story.  Readers don't have to know all about the battles or the leaders, because LeRoy will tell you all about them, so it's a good book for people who aren't as well-versed in this era as others are. 

That's the beauty of LeRoy's journals -- they are accessible to everyone!

Another First: A Radio Interview

One thing that has made this entire process of publishing a first book easier and enjoyable is the team at Savas-Beatie that Ted has collected.  They are ALL uniformly awesome, and they really know what they are doing.

Now, I have never had to do any kind of marketing before.  Ever.  Not unless you include Girl Scout cookies, but that was easy because they sell themselves and my girls were selling them anyhow.  So I am moving into really new realms... to include radio.

I will be posting news and items of interest that relate to LeRoy and his era -- there's a fun post on a Civil War baseball already there -- and provide more in-depth thoughts and experiences here.

So make sure you keep up with this new adventure!  And don't hesitate to log in to hear me talk about the project on https://wdbfradio.com on Saturday, May 5 at 12:25pm EDT!