The Adoption Writers Voice

Facebook Fairytales by Emily Liebert

Q & A with Author:

Tapestry: Why did you write Facebook Fairytales?

Emily Liebert: My inspiration for writing this book was my fascination with Facebook and how it’s revolutionizing modern society. I joined in the summer of 2008 and, at first, my intentions were purely voyeuristic. I read other people’s posts but never updated my own status. Then, like everyone else, I got sucked in and really started thinking about the cultural impact of social networking. And, in doing so, it occurred to me that there had to be some amazing stories evolving from these hundreds of millions of connections. So, one night, I went on Amazon.com to see if there had been any books already written along these lines. I found books on Facebook etiquette, how to use the site, and the history of its incarnation, but there was nothing on the effect that Facebook was having on our society. I decided someone needed to write that book and who better than me?

Tapestry: From what you learned about how people are using Facebook, describe how adoptive parents or adoptees might use Facebook related to adoption themes.

Emily Liebert: There are three stories in Facebook Fairytales that demonstrate how Facebook can be used by adoptive parents and adoptees. The first is the story of Seth and Melissa Edlavitch. Seth and Melissa had been trying to conceive for years, had experienced a tragic stillbirth of twins, and had undergone multiple cycles of IVF. Melissa’s sister had even acted as a surrogate, being implanted with Seth and Melissa’s genetic material. But nothing had worked, so they decided to pursue adoption, which can be a very long process, not to mention expensive. One night, Seth posted an adoption flyer they’d made to his Facebook wall and through a social networking domino effect, two months later, they took home a healthy baby boy.

The second story is about a young man named Jordan Luft who was able to track down his birth father, Heath, via Facebook. Heath then connected him to his birth mother, whom he was no longer involved with, and—since then—Jordan has developed a wonderful relationship with both of them.

And, finally, the third story is about a charitable organization called Love Without Boundaries which helps heal ill babies in China and place them with loving adoptive families. They used Facebook (and still do) to garner visibility for their amazing organization. Through Facebook, they’ve been able to find adoptive parents for these beautiful infants in need.

Tapestry: Who uses Facebook?

Emily Liebert: Everyone! There are currently 400 million members worldwide and that number is growing exponentially by the second. It’s no longer reserved for high school and college students. Facebook users span generations—from teenagers, to their older siblings, to their parents, and even grandparents. Three generations of my family are on Facebook regularly. And people use it for both professional and personal purposes, so it’s really an indispensible tool. In the foreword to Facebook Fairytales, Facebook CEO/Founder Mark Zuckerberg says that, within the next decade, he expects that Facebook will be as ubiquitous as email or a Web browser, such as Google. And I couldn’t agree more.

Tapestry: How do you think the social networks are changing the way people communicate, better or worse?

Emily Liebert: Without a doubt, social networks are changing the way people communicate for the better. If you want to pick up the phone and call someone or meet up in person, you’ll still do that. But, via social networks like Facebook, you have the ability to correspond with all of your friends and colleagues in a controlled, private setting without having to take up too much of anyone’s time. Also, I think people are far more likely to maintain relationships via Facebook than they are via regular e-mail or by telephone. Facebook makes everything very personal. For example, you wouldn’t likely send photos of your newborn baby to three hundred friends. But if you post them on Facebook, it facilitates that personal connection with loved ones near and far.

Emily Liebert is an award-winning, internationally published author, writer, and editor. Her first book Facebook Fairytales: Modern-Day Miracles to Inspire the Human Spirit will be published on April 6, 2010. She is also hard at work finishing final edits on her debut novel, Conversations with Friends.

Facebook Fairytales: Modern-Day Miracles to Inspire the Human Spirit

Author: Emily Liebert

Description:
Facebook Fairytales features three adoption stories: search and reunion, adopting a baby, and a small charitable organization able to raise money to heal orphans in China and place them with loving adoptive families.

Trends in Adoption Publishing

Tapestry Books owner, Shepard Morrow, was invited to speak about adoption books and the trends in adoption book publishing by the Families for Russian and Ukranian Adoption (FRUA).  You can read some of the interview here:

How many adoption titles were published last year? Did the economic downturn have an impact on this number and if so how?

Hard to say, there is no way to quantify strictly adoption related titles. The literature that adoptive families read related to adoption is a range of purely adoption topics, to the genre of parenting books that deals with raising children and building families. Tapestry carries both, and even with the economic downturn we add about 30 new titles per month to our online catalog.  

What trends in adoption publishing have you seen in the last 5 years, and why?

The trends affecting adoption publishing are complex but closely parallel changes in the publishing industry in general. Technology is having a broad effect on the cost of creating content and distributing it. The traditional publishing business, and more specifically book publishing, was historically based on concepts and organizational structure from the era of industrial production and economies of scale. Book publishers achieved lower unit costs by larger production runs, as so much of the cost was creation and set up. Today that is no longer the case, as fixed costs have plummeted with digital content. Then there is the cost of distribution and marketing that has similarly changed.  

The effect of all this is that it is easier today to get published, but the costs or risk of publishing have shifted away from traditional publishers to the authors themselves. Publishers are mostly struggling as they try to figure out how to make money and gain some advantage other than controlling the presses, and the distribution. They are no longer willing to take the same type of risk, and publish books because of the increasing uncertainty of sales. The traditional ways that they have sold and marketed books is no longer working.  

You might be wondering why I say it is easier today to get published when publishers are taking on fewer author projects. The growth of self publishing options has become a popular and proactive solution for many authors. There are many options for self publishing, and there has been an increase in books being published this way. Unfortunately getting a book printed is not the same as getting it published, marketed, and sold. Most self-publishing printers offer very generic publicity on an a-la-carte basis, but it often follows more traditional models of marketing. Tapestry Books offers an “indie” publishing solution for authors that are interested. Where we specialize, and offer a unique solution, is that we are strong in the adoption book marketing and distribution side of the process. If you are an author wanting to get published learn more HERE. 

Regarding the trends specific to adoption book publishing - it is the trends in topics of interest that have changed, and always will. So yes increases in the number of self-published titles, more titles about newer forms of medical treatment of infertility, more titles on managing difficult behaviors with children that have been in orphanages or foster care, more books for parents raising older children as a cohort of international adoptees tween, and more books discussing communication with birth mothers as domestic and open adoptions increase. But, and many of you are probably aware of this, as international adoptions have recently been declining there are also fewer professionals specializing on the area, and fewer writing carefully researched books on the topic as compared with the increase in self-published books. This is, in part, why it is important to consider the selection of books in the more general parenting categories that focus on similar issues around child development and parenting as might be relevant to an adoption situation. Additionally, why not all books that get published are as helpful or relevant as others.  

Do you have any guidelines for readers to choosing from all the titles out there?

There are indeed many choices for readers, more all the time. Not just many book choices, but many other choices for sources of helpful and relevant information such as blogs, online news, online forums, membership organizations, support groups, workshops, magazines… and every individual’s situation are unique. With all those choices come both “good” helpful information and an onslaught of overly personal recommendations.  

When it comes to suggesting books, our model is that one size does not fit all. As a starting point we do offer carefully and caringly considered topic specific lists on our website, but we do not stop there. If asked, we offer individualized suggestions based on gaining an understanding of a situation, and trying to determine what indeed will be most helpful and relevant to that person’s inquiry. It is the human factor that has gone missing at most online bookstores, and certainly matching books to adoption specific situations is hard to find. Our suggestions are like what one used to get from a local independent bookstore. We carry over 1,500 titles, review reports regarding what people are buying, which products they are looking at on our website and most importantly how they are voting for the books on our proprietary rating system. This coupled with reviewing much of the available adoption literature, and listening carefully, helps us to match people with books that can be helpful and relevant.