Author needs your help

[mortalcoils]

Sorry if this is the wrong place (or, indeed, thing) to post, but I'm after some advice. I'm perhaps best known as an author of slightly edgy/very edgy teenage novels, e.g. Hellbent, Henry Tumour and The Knife That Killed Me. Over the last couple of years I've also written 4 books for younger children, beginning with The Bare Bum Gang and The Football Face-Off. All 4 books are about the same group of children, and are aimed at 7-10 year olds. They are published by Random House, and got really nice reviews from all of the broadsheets. However, they haven't exactly set the world on fire, commercially, and I've been told it's because the titles, which all feature the dreaded words 'Bare bum Gang', have been putting people off. I've been told as a fact that book clubs won't have them because of the 'bum'. The books are really quite sweet, albeit rather rude, in a fart/poo kind of way. So, what do you reckon - should I ditch the bum, or keep on trying?
Regards
Anthony McGowan
(apologies again if this isn;'t the kind of thing that belongs here.)

OK Anthony I will take you up on your challenge - will go to library with DSs who are 8 and 10 (and both good readers) later this week to see if they've got any of yours.

Mortacoils - I'm sure MNHQ will delete this thread for you if you ask nicely - they are a very reasonable bunch. Perhaps you could offer to do something for Mumsnet at some point in the future, in return for the good advice you have had on this thread?

Good luck with your books.

Swedesy - I don't understand, why would I want them to delete this thread? As I keep saying, I've found it all very interesting and instructive, not to say amusing. And I'll happily do something for mumsnet if they like - it's a great site. However, I suspect they have bigger fish to fry ...
Katisha - if they haven't I'll send you something.

Mortalcoils
Is your wife a MNetter?

themildmanneredjanitor - Lucky kids - their grammar and language anything like yours?

Oh my, what a passive aggressive so and so this one turned out to be! Certainly will be avoiding EVERYTHING by OP, and given that 6yo ds1 is just starting to read everything in front of him that is a shame...some of it might have been quite good.

Goodbye, Mr McGowan.

How can we feed back to you?

DS2 would enjoy being a product tester He will take it very seriously.

TMJ I had a feeling it might go this way.

i can understand him being offended by the homo erotic comments etc, I think anyone would, and obv his intentions with the books weren't in that vein at all - but when someone requests free critique I think it's apt that initial impressions of the work in question are politely shared...which they were.
He already KNEW the word 'bum' had put people off.

I think the reaction in the face of these criticisms was really inadequate.

Perhaps he was just having a bad day, but honestly, it has not been handled at all well.

I think he has really done his books, reputation and general affability a huge disservice with his comments on this thread.

Oh, dear. I was starting to warm to you for a moment there. I overlooked your rather snarky comment to my (polite) request about paragraphs. I even emailed MNHQ to ask if we could have you on for a webchat as I think that it could be an interesting discussion (or great bun fight, perhaps even both).

Then you insulted TMMJ.

This is where you are not going to get on well on MN.

We appreciate intelligent and feisty debate. We thrive on it.

Cheap shots, criticising grammar/punctuation or being generally patronising is not going to enamour you to MNetters.

politicians win or lose elections on MNers say-so, are you not quaking that we hold your professional success in our collective hands??

Flight - Passive aggressive? Which was the passive bit? As I keep saying, I've been trying to be interesting and amusing, but I keep seeming to strike unexpected areas of tenderness. Or counterfeit outrage. Actually, a bit embarrassed about responding to themildmannered as I did - I'm sure she's a wonderful mother, and perfectly capable of writing grammatical English, but I haven't been called a wanker for a while now - weeks at least - and it took me by surprise.

As for getting hold of me - try a personal message via twitter- anthony_mcgowan. Don't really want to post my email here, as even I get bored with spam. Anyone lives in North London and wants a copy of one of my books, just ring the bell at 7 Marlborough Mansions, Cannon Hill.

OK will send you a tweet once ds2 has read the book. Actually I'll get ds2 to write it (so don't be rude back!)

Do post that last one without your address in it and ask MNHQ to delete your post. Click Report in the blue box at the top of the post MNHQ.

We are rather robust here, and do tend to use swear words a bit.

MmeLindt - hang on, did you glance through the exchange with TMMJ? Her (his?) first post was to call me a wanker (which I promise I don't mind - it's almost a term of endearment), and my response was to mildly criticise her grammar. Cheap, I know but ... but, but nothing, which is why I retracted it. And who got things out of proportion?
Shame, because I'd love a web chat with you lot. But we're obviously like cats and dogs - the friendly bodily language of one corresponds to the threat posture of the other. Ho hum.

I do think that it got a bit out of hand there.

Why don't we all sit down, have a cup of tea (we are British, if we were French we would be drinking red wine and smoking gaulouises) and start again.

Is this your first time on MN or have you lurked before?

I got a flaming not long after I joined and left for a couple of months to lick my wounds and sulk before being dragged back in.

MmeLindt - No never lurked. I only came here because I thought it was one of those dating sites where you could get off with a North London yummy mummy, hence my flirtatious tone.

(For the sake of the mildmanneredjanitor, that was joke.)

I've just finished a book and had some time to kill and was curious. But I genuinely don't understand why people got upset about the elasticated polyester trousers. Did you think it was a genuine attack on your sartorial sense? Wasn't it obvious that it was just a bit of silliness? Or perhaps I've just read too much Restoration comedy, in which friendliness is expressed through raillery, and hatred through excessive politeness.

Right, that cup of tea!

:adjusts elasticated polyester trousers:

mine's milk no sugar please.