Ya Gotta have faitha faitha faith!

After my first day at the International Auto Show at the CT Convention Center in Hartford, CT this past Saturday, I packed up and hopped on the shuttle bus to the parking garage across town. Since I pay $100 per month to park there for work, I figured I would use that garage and hop on the free shuttle for a ride to my book signing for “Strapped Into An American Dream.” I was happy to discover that I was the lone rider on the retreat. That all changed dramatically on the next stop. Apparently the Women of Faith Expo was going on at the nearby XL Center. Women began piling into the bus until every seat was taken. I even had to remove my heavy tote bag of books from the seat next to me to provide one more seat to the faithful. Some women had to stand. I thought about giving up my seat to one of the women standing, but not for long and the thought soon passed. The bus driver turned to me in the front seat and laughed. Then the women of faith began commenting on how I was the only guy on the bus. When I finally got off at my parking garage, I noticed the convention chaos continued. Women were everywhere, and I didn’t stand a chance. I joked with the women on the bus saying that they wouldn’t hear a peep out of me. I made it to the 5th floor via the elevator full of me and about 15 women. Again, comments about me being outnumbered came acallin’. When I made it to my car, I zipped around the 5th floor to the 4th and had to stop. I was in gridlock for the next 45 minutes. Two older ladies getting back to their car laughed when they saw me shaking my head. I rolled down my window and they proceeded to tell me that out of all that traffic, I was the only guy in the garage. I had faith that I would get out of that garage; so did the women of faith. After all, it was in their title. I was happy to see their cars finally head for the highway, and the next day I used the Convention Center parking garage. After the show, I didn’t have to rely on my faitha faitha faith!

5 Questions with Joey Pinkney

http://joeypinkney.com/amazoncom/5-minutes-5-questions-with-glenn-maynard-author-of-strapped-into-an-american-dream.php

Journal Inquirer article (Friday, October 16, 2009)

Seeing America – RV style

By Julie Sprengelmeyer  – Journal Inquirer— 

Glenn Maynard was 28, working at Travelers, and his then-girlfriend was toiling as an administrative assistant when the two decided to just chuck it all and hit the road, celebrating their honeymoon along the way.

The decision wasn’t exactly met with cheers.

The family “was more worried about what you are going to have when you get back,” Maynard recalls, “but we’re like, memories

Not that Maynard hadn’t suffered qualms of his own about quitting their respective jobs, selling their cars, and putting off saving. But, latching onto the idea that life’s too short, he got on board and the two were able to bring family members around.

What followed was a yearlong trip in a rebuilt 22-foot 1978 Dodge Rockwood with little to no money, a “really high-strung” miniature schnauzer named Molly in tow, and, finally, a book deal for Maynard’s “Strapped into an American Dream,” chronicling their adventures.

“It was just the perfect timing for us. We just always wanted to travel and see different states,” Maynard says. “So we got married, took the wedding money, and once we got the RV it was set in stone. … Seeing the RV sitting in the driveway was reality.”

Ah, the RV.

A foray inside was an 8-track lover’s dream, Maynard says

The two tied the knot April 25, 1992, and left the next month. The wedding was nothing compared to what would follow.

“We had a lot of nights where we didn’t know where we were. We broke down in a forest. We had problems with the tires. We didn’t know where we were going to sleep at night. We had a book of free campgrounds that sometimes didn’t work out,” Maynard says. “We were always lost and we never had a home, but it was just great. I mean, not always, but it was wild.”

Some of the “wild” was supplied by forest inhabitants.

Bad idea: Letting loose a 10-pound beloved dog to do her business in the dead of night in a high-bear-frequency area in Montana.

Option: Accompanying her outside.

Hmmmm …

“So I use a flashlight, shine it around from a crack in the door, let her out, see glowing eyes 30 feet away, and just yank back her leash,” Maynard says. “All I had was a big bear in my mind. It turned out to be a raccoon. That’s the way it was.”

While handling the road and the roadside, Maynard also penned their story as he, Tracy, and Molly traversed 35,000 miles through 48 states.

“I had been writing the whole time, and I said, ‘We’re going to make a book of this by the time it’s all done.’ I was doing a daily journal of what transpired during the day and was writing columns for Glastonbury Citizen and the Bristol Press. People were following us as we went along.”

The story of Maynard, who grew up in Glastonbury and graduated from the University of Connecticut, is a tale not only of adventure on the road, but also of travails in the world of publishing.

The trip ended in 1993 and the couple returned to the glare of television cameras as they were interviewed for the evening news. Then the real work began. Maynard spent a few years writing, rewriting, and hawking his book proposal. In 1997, he and Tracy divorced. “We had a great time, and then, after five years, we didn’t have a great time,” he explains.

Maynard kept on, seeing agent after agent, rewriting to “tone down” the honeymoon aspect following his divorce, then sending query letter after query letter.

He received rejection after rejection.

“I wasn’t going to let go of this one. I said, ‘I’m going to be working on this until I’m old and gray.’ I’m getting there,” he says.

In 2008 an agent told him he couldn’t help him, but knew of a small publishing company that might. At first the company, Strategic Book Publishing, offered Maynard a subsidy contract in which he would pay half of the publishing cost.

“I finally convinced them that the book was worthy of a traditional contract and sent them my book proposal. They agreed,” he says.

So how did Maynard score a book deal without having to take the self-publish route?

“Persistence,” he responds. “I was pulling my hair out, but I never gave up and I never was going to. There was so much to share about this trip.”

Area bookstores have hosted book-signings, and Maynard is hoping word will spread. He also hopes to catch that big break.

He, like many other authors, dedicates the book to the Oprah Winfrey Book of the Month Club as well as to “armchair travelers.” That’s Maynard’s next goal: Oprah.

“Maybe it will get to her. … What do I have to lose?” he asks.

Meanwhile, back home in Wethersfield, Maynard, now a business analyst at United Healthcare in Hartford, is just glad to have the book completed. His moonlighting as an author has gone down well at his regular job.

“They love it

And in case you were wondering, Maynard can’t resist saying it: “I quit Travelers to be a traveler,” he muses.

 

“Strapped into an American Dream” is available on Amazon, Borders.com, Barnes & Noble.com, and at area book signings.

The Obama plan for Strapped Into An American Dream

I spoke with the Manager of Cabela’s today about getting my book
in their stores and having a book signing.  Apparently getting a
book into their store takes an act of congress, so perhaps a note
to President Obama is in order. Perhaps I could get Oprah to ask
about them selling my book in their store.  Would they still
need a formal written request to Corporate?  Hmmm…methinks not.
As for the book signing at their store, I was told that they would
need another written request for that, and if they do approve, then
they would need to take a piece of the profits.  Ok, let’s see…if
I pay roughly $26-$27 per book at my author discount on the $32 cover price, and I sell the book at signings for $28…and they want a piece of the action…hmmmm once again.  I’m no math major, but sumpin’ doesn’t quite add up.  I need a venue for my booksigning so the Hartford Courant can do a feature story about me and my book in the Sunday Arts & Entertainment section.  I went into Cabelas thinking if they would just host this book signing then they would get free advertising.  Well, it’s not that easy.  It’s never that easy.  Life would be simpler if things were that easy.  Maybe we wouldn’t appreciate the things that we have as much. I guess I need to scrap Plan A.  I have thoughts of contacting Mr. & Mrs. Cabela personally and asking them directly.  I met the Cabelas and got their autographs during the Grand Opening.  Had I only devised Plan A then.  Although I haven’t abandoned the two ideas associated with Plan A, I need to realistically begin construction of Plan B.

WTIC 1080 A.M. Radio Interview

Here is a radio interview of Glenn Maynard’s travel book Strapped Into an American Dream which was aired on Tuesday, September 1st, 2009 and decribes how he was able to travel through 48 states, Canada and Mexico in an RV for one year. Diane Smith was the interviewer filling in for Ray Dunaway from the Ray Show which is a morning radio show in Hartford, CT. You can buy Strapped Into An American Dream at:
http://www.amazon.com/Strapped-American-Dream-Glenn-Mayna…

The book is also available at bn.com , borders.com , and many other online retailers.

Linking WordPress is NO easy task (like YouTube)

Linking blog posts from wordpress to facebook, MySpace, Twitter and other social media sites is not happening for me.  I suppose I can individually post on each site, but that would be time consuming.  However, when my Author Video appeared on YouTube, I was easily able to link to my other social media sites using the Share button which is prominently displayed on YouTube.  I am still desperately trying to figure this thing out, so one day I am going to sit down and figure it out.  Maintaining Facebook and MySpace alone is a full time job. My thinking is that if I touch one thing, then other things suffer.  Production on these sites is very important, but trying to do multiple tasks simultaneously can be counterproductive.  Ok.  tonight I am going to work on solving the mystery of this User Unfriendly WordPress.

Waiting on reviews – OUCH!

Waiting on reviews is a painful undertaking.  I have several copies of my book, “Strapped Into An American Dream” out there that were requested from my publisher, but weeks have passed.  Everyone is busy, too, especially with newspapers and all other media scaling back on staff.  USA Today and the Hartford Courant asked for review copies, then said they’re not sure if they can get to them because they’re too busy.  Reviews are too important to take lightly, so I will hound these media outlets until they finally just take care of business just to shut me up.  I can hear the wheel squeaking already.

Enfield Public Library booksigning

I received a call from the Enfield Public Library ‘Friends of the Library’ Program regarding a speaking engagement and book signing.  They read about my book, “Strapped Into An American Dream” in the Enfield Press and called me to speak about my book in the Library.  Bill ‘The Spaceman’ Lee, former pitcher for the Boston Red Sox had a speaking engagement there last summer.  I agreed to appear, and the Library will be scheduling me for September.  And i’m off…

Calling all bookstores!

I am in the process of trying to get my book in bookstores. Apparently this is not an automatic.  The POD’s are SOL.  I will get there.  The economy is not helping my uphill battle.  I could change my last name to Cyrus and see if I have an easier time of it.  They might even pursue ME. I wish to get my book in Barnes & Noble and Borders, and have signings at each venue.  That’s all I want!   Call me bookstores.  Call me soon.  I am available and my schedule is currently wide open…you caught me at a good time.   My publisher is  booking me now, so call them soon to schedule.  My story is about a dream that most Americans have and I want to share the details of my trip for all to enjoy.  Help me do it by spreading this blog around.  Calling all people.  Calling all bookstores!