Kids in the Biz

It’s always a good feeling when you receive an unexpected check in the mail, no matter how small.  Yesterday I received one of my semi-annual royalty checks from my book, Kids in the Biz.   All my visions of making millions of dollars were shattered a long time ago, so I was very content to deposit a much, much, much smaller but nice incidental-money check.

Now all I need is about oh… 20-30X that amount and I’d be good.

From my publisher records, it appears as though I have now sold…

2004 copies of my book Kids in the Biz.

Which leaves less than 1000 copies available.  Act fast, buy it by clicking on the link over on the right.  Cmon, I know you want to.

There is a feeling of loss this morning, as I was informed that someone I had never met has passed away. In 2002 I sent a small query letter to Heinemann, and within a day received a response from Lisa wanting more. Fast forward almost a year…

Dear Troy -

I’m cleaning up files and such, and cannot remember if you have already
found a publisher for your book, or if you were going to send me additional
material, or what. Could you just drop me a line to let me know? I’m happy
to still consider it for our list, if you haven’t already placed it…

All good wishes -

–Lisa

I let the book project sit for over a year, and she wrote me back saying they were still interested. The rest as they say is history. The book turned out wonderfully, has been submitted for several design awards, and continues to sell in good numbers every month.

Lisa died this morning surrounded by her family, another bright light that cancer took from us. Fortunately, I found a message board where I was able to write my thanks to Lisa yesterday and those were read to her before she passed. For someone whom I never talked to on the phone – and never met face-to-face, she has had a tremendous impact on my life.

I now have a reason to finish editing my NaNoWriMo novel.

I’ll miss you, Lisa.

I received an envelope from my publisher, and I furiously opened it up. Last time I received a statement, in September, I was very close to the “break even” point where my book had almost made me back my royalty amount. In other words, soon I was going to get paid again for the book! Yippee!

I opened it up and read it… $34.

Ok, so I made it over the limit by about 34 books, no problem. Then at the bottom of the statement…

“Balances under $100 carry over to next statement.”

Sigh. Oh well, so now I need more people to buy the book so I can get my first check. Cmon, you know you want to buy the book. Just click on the book over there on the right hand side of the page and then click on “Order Online” to order through Amazon, Barnes & Noble or even Walmart.

Every home needs the book. Really! Your bookshelf told me so.

Dunno why, but I find this really cool.

Library of Congress Listing for Kids in the Biz

I redesigned the web site for my book last weekend. I used tables temporarilly until I fix the css… but it is still perty.

http://www.kidsinthebiz.com

I grew up watching Dick Van Patten on “Eight is Enough” and so when I moved to Los Angeles and started working with young actors and actresses, I snagged a copy of his book at the store and read it fairly quickly. While a critical review of his book is not really the place here, I found it rather disappointing, since the book’s photos and examples related to his own experiences as a child actor and really were not relevant to what young performers are going through today.

Naturally when I heard his name on Good Morning America today I was intrigued and sat down to see what he was up to. Well, he is up to no good in my opinion.

We have all heard the horror stories of over-zealous parents at youth sports activities, and I saw it firsthand at the Iowa Games this summer. However, Mr. Patten has taken this to an extreme high by sponsoring a 9-year-old baseball team in Thousand Oaks, California.

Not only is Mr. Patten buying sponsoring the team with his new “Natural Balance” pet food company, but he has gone overboard in terms of outfitting the team. According to an article in the LA Daily News, Patten has bought not one but two sets of uniforms for the team (home vs visitors I guess) and has also purchased over $10,000 in pitching machines, fly ball machines and other contraptions designed to help the youngsters win more games. He also hired a professional baseball coach to coach the team to victory.

Today on Good Morning America, Patten exclaimed that baseball is “a war” and he is helping the “men” be the best they can be.

A war? Men? These are 9-year-old boys Mr. Patten.

Patten should know, both from his own experience as a young actor, and from his book, that youth in sports have some of the same concerns as those in the entertainment industry – the requirement to perform. The kids seem to love it because they are learning more, but is this teaching kids the right thing – that money buys success? One of the parents on the Pony league team is none other than Lenny Dykstra (former Mets star who happens to have a kick-ass car wash in my former home of Simi Valley).

Its a shame that Mr. Patten is using these boys as publicity for his pet food company, and is obviously enjoying all the media attention he is getting. His attitude in the interviews I have seen are disgusting – he loves it.

Some of us, though, Mr. Patten are NOT amused. And I certainly will not be purchasing any product you recommend.