LOS ANGELES - Coined “the Roots of her family, Monice Mitchell Simms – a screenwriter and award-winning filmmaker – quit her job as an executive assistant to pen "Address: House of Corrections," the first novel in a trilogy inspired by her mother, grandmother and great-grandmother.That was in 2005.
Now, six years later, Mitchell Simms has been rejected by a plethora of publishers, gained and lost an agent, created an imprint to self-publish her debut novel, enterprisingly utilized social networking sites to market said novel and produced a successful six-city national book tour to Chicago, Atlanta, Detroit, Washington, D.C., and New York - All on a dime.
“Until I recently celebrated my one year anniversary of the publication of 'Address: House of Corrections,' I hadn’t realized how far I’ve come and how long I’ve been living and breathing this story,” said Mitchell Simms of her novel based in 1940s/50s Detroit that examines the complicated and often times challenging connections between mothers and daughters.
“I had no idea really what I was getting into when I started down this path, but I honestly wouldn’t change a thing. The mistakes I’ve made, the people I’ve met…This entire experience has been invaluable.”
On sale since March 2010, Mitchell Simms has successfully been implementing an avant-garde marketing and distribution strategy using Amazon.com, Amazon.UK.com, Amazon-Kindle.com, Barnesandnoble.com, Facebook, Twitter and other social networking sites to promote and sell directly to a global audience of readers.
The result? A growing fan base stretching as far as Australia, China and Africa.
“I thought I was just telling a little old story about my family that would only appeal a niche group, ” Mitchell Simms said, “but you know what? Secrets and lies are universal. Family drama has no zip code. ”
Which is why the self-proclaimed “artistpreneur,” is taking her “niche” story one step further to reach an even wider audience.
On Thursday, March 17th, Mitchell Simms will launch “Address: House of Corrections – The Audio Mini Series.” Broadcasting episodes every Tuesday and Thursday through April, the series stars Joy DeMichelle Moore, Toby Smith, Quincy Lenear, Carl Gilliard, Cheryl Francis Harrington, Taji Coleman, Scott Peat and Tangie Ambrose. It also features the music of Jazzy Rita.
Beginning March 17th, readers will be able to download the series in written and audio form through Podbean.com and from the novel’s blog site, www.addresshouseofcorrections.com. Readers will also be able to continue purchasing hard or e-book copies of the entire novel from Amazon.com and Barnesandnoble.com. And plans are in the works to syndicate the series on iTunes.com.
“To borrow a popular catchphrase, I want people to think of 'Address: House of Corrections' like Burger King – You can have it your way,” said Mitchell Simms, a veteran screenwriter, who runs Flower Girl Productions in Los Angeles and is adapting her novel for the screen.
“A traditional book, an Ebook or audio book. However you want to receive your story, we can deliver.”