Thursday, May 12, 2016



Tending Your Money Garden: a book obituary

                I could write a book about my book, but you’ll have to settle for a chapter.
                In the spring of 1997 I started to rewrite and expand my one page tri-fold pamphlet that described Green Investing.  Sixteen months later, 3,000 copies of my 160 page book, “Tending Your Money Garden” (TYMG) were delivered to my office—eight days before my 50th birthday.
                I had been writing newsletters, financial columns and freelance articles, so I had plenty of material I could use for chapters.  I thought of myself as a writer, but NOW I was an author.  My daughter Sonya worked in my office the summer before she started college at UCLA.  She did a fabulous job of marketing my book and getting me interviews on local TV stations and in print media.  I received endorsements from Dave Berry and the Chicken Soup for the Soul guru, Jack Canfield. 
I did book signings and discovered how totally dysfunctional the book business is.  First you try to get your books into book stores, and then you try to make them leave.  That was back when there were a lot more book stores.
TYMG is not your typical money management book; it had some phony endorsements, amusing money quotes and a goofy glossary.  I experienced mild success.  Brisk sales rocketed TYMG to #1034 on Amazon one day, but my cover sucked.  Note:  People do judge and buy books by their cover.
                In 2001, with a fantastic new cover, Rossonya Books (my self-publishing company) printed 3,000 copies of “Tending Your Money Garden,” 2nd Edition.  Another lesson:  Despite a beautiful new cover and cool endorsements, second editions of financial books don’t sell unless you are my phantom nemesis Suzi Ormond.  But I’m not bitter. 
                Why am I talking about TYMG’s obituary now?  Starting in June I will not be able to sell or give my book away.  Long story.  It’s a compliance/regulatory issue. 
                Since I have fewer than 100 of my original 3,000 left, local landfills are not in jeopardy.  So, I am now offering to give these away to anyone you know who might benefit from an easy-to-read (high-school level), smart-ass money management book. It is slightly outdated.  At almost 18 years old, TYMG would be old enough to vote...if it weren’t a book. 
                So if you’d like a copy for a friend, relative or clients, please contact me BEFORE May 30.  I’d love to give away the rest of my babies to a good home.