Archive for February, 2008

The Hon. Elinor Caplan and TBLP

Friday, February 29th, 2008

elinorcaplan.jpgThe Honourable Elinor Caplan has had a distinguished career in public service in both the Ontario Legislature and the federal House of Commons. She was Ontario Health Minister in the government of Premier David Peterson, and eventually was elected federally and sat in Prime Minister Jean Chretien‘s cabinet as Minister of Citizenship and Immigration.

She also read TBLP. Having big names read, like, and support your novel is important in building buzz and establishing credibility. Here’s what Elinor Caplan had to say about TBLP:

“Terry Fallis weaves a funny yet tender tale that gives us all hope for the future of democracy. Hilarious and thought-provoking, I literally could not put this book down. I finished it in one sitting, with a full heart and sore sides. With an insider’s knowledge of politics, beautifully developed characters, and a page-turning plot, Terry Fallis has written a winner. Get it, read it, now!”

The Hon. Elinor Caplan, former Minister of Citizenship and Immigration

I’m grateful for the kind words. You just may see this quotation gracing the back cover of the sequel to TBLP (whenever it’s done).

TBLP interview taped for CPAC

Wednesday, February 27th, 2008

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I was in Ottawa earlier today for a client meeting. Man it was cold but at least the sun was shining. Before my meeting, I did a 20 minute studio interview on Talk Politics, a leading talk show on CPAC (Cable Public Affairs Channel or Canada’s answer to CSPAN in the U.S.). I’d contacted Ken Rockburn, the respected host of the program, last fall and had sent him a copy of TBLP. Thankfully, he really enjoyed the novel and invited me up to Ottawa to do an interview about it. Every little bit helps!

The interview seemed to go reasonably well and Ken’s easy-going conversational style made it feel like a chat at Starbucks, despite the make-up, cameras, and lights. He was a true professional. The interview should air sometime in March in the prime 7:00 p.m. Sunday evening slot. It’ll then be repeated several times during the week. When it does hit the airwaves, I’ll post the link.

TBLP podcast keeps on chuggin’

Tuesday, February 12th, 2008

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The audience for the podcast version of TBLP continues to grow daily. I just happened to check my stats on Libsyn, my podcast hosting service, and noticed that we’ve cracked a thousand listeners. I had no expectations when the podcast launched in January 2007. I really had no idea whether anyone would listen. Well, it seems there was an appetite for the story of Angus, Daniel and a federal election. The idea was to drive interest in, and sales of, the printed version of the novel through first whetting their appetites with the podcast. It seems to be working. Sales are going very well. So here’s to the first one thousand listeners to the TBLP podcast. Here’s hoping they like the story and characters enough to hit the Amazon or Indigo order button on the side of the blog. Sales so far suggest that many podcast listeners have done just that. Thanks for all the support…

Great Hamilton bookstore picks up TBLP

Wednesday, February 6th, 2008

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I was on my way to McMaster University this past Monday evening to give a social media talk to a group of bright young MBA students, and I arrived a little early. With a bit of extra time on my hands, I stopped in at my favourite off-campus bookstore in Hamilton, Bryan Prince Bookseller, just a few blocks from the beautiful campus of my alma mater, McMaster University. (Any bookstore with rolling library ladders on every bookcase is bound to be a hit with me.) I left 20 minutes later having purchased Howard Frank Mosher‘s newest novel, On Kingdom Mountain. But more importantly, I also left three copies of TBLP with Bryan.  They’re now resting among the other “F” authors in the wonderful Fiction collection of his store. So there are at least two bookstores in Hamilton stocking TBLP (Bryan Prince Bookseller, and Titles, McMaster’s bookstore.)  The slow road to bookstore shelves continues…