Peggy Jaeger's Blog, page 8

#tuesdaytease

Okay, so Tuesday teases are supposed to be little snippets of the books or stories you are currently writing, editing, or working on.

Today, I want to do something a little different for my “tease” and tease a workshop I was just notified I will be giving at the National Romance Writers of America conference this July in Ontario, Canada.

I am so honored to be able to present at a national conference of romance writers.

So stinking honored!

So the title of my workshop is ENTERING CONTESTS AS A MARKETING TOOL.

I first gave this workshop a few years ago to my local chapter and I am also presenting it at the Maine Writers Retreat in May. Here’s the description….

As writers, we know finding new readers can be difficult. The advent of the pandemic shutdown made it next to impossible for writers to meet new readers face-to-face at places like book signings, library events, or conferences.  Social media only gets you so far, and let’s be honest: wouldn’t we all rather be writing than marketing our books?

Have you ever considered entering a contest to find new readers? It’s a unique mindset because most people enter contests to, well, win them!

Come hear why I believe entering writing contests is an effective marketing strategy and tool for getting your books into the hands of new-to-you readers.

This workshop explores the ins and outs of contest submissions, the ones that are right for you, where to find them, and the things you should consider before entering one.

If you are a member of RWA ( yay!) I hope you will consider attending the national conference this year. It will be at Niagra Falls on the Canadian side, someplace I have never been. I’m looking forward to being a tourist and exploring Canada while I’m there.

When things like this happen to me it really validates that what I am doing with my life – writing romance – is what I AM supposed to be doing with my life.

That’s just a little mental health thought for my day…

Be well, kids. ~ Peg

Monday musings…

Or just one musing, really. Is that a proper phrase? One musing? Or should it be one thought?

These are the things that drive me insane some days.

Who am I kidding- MOST days! LOL

Anyway. Today’s musing ( singular) is this…I was thinking yesterday while writing that I haven’t done much of anything aside from write for almost three weeks. Granted, I’m on a deadline and have to finish my current WIP in order for it to be out this year, but I’ve been pretty much chained to my desk and my bed ( my favorite place to write) for 21 solid days.

That can’t be healthy, right?

I need an outlet other than writing for my mental health and physical well-being.

Sure, I cook for hubby, do laundry, iron, clean the house, grocery shop, do all my social media marketing daily, but those are more chores than things that give me true pleasure and take my mind away from the business of writing.

I need an outlet. Something I do just for me. Something that will give me a respite from the stress and angst my writing causes me some days.

I need a hobby.

I used to repair and refurbish old steamer trunks and then give them as gifts to people for storage or as faux coffee tables, but I haven’t done one in a few years.

I used to scrapbook. Haven’t touched the one I started for my daughter when she got married – almost 5 years ago.

Back in the day, I was a gym rat. Back when I had good knees and no arthritis, that is.

I studied karate for 10 years. Daily. 7 days a week. Again… back before my body decided it hated me and rebelled.

There was a time I embroidered. I made blankets, wall hangings, lots of things for Christmas presents and baby showers. That was back when I could actually sit down and watch TV or a movie for more than a half hour at a clip. And when my eyesight was oodles better than it is now. And my hands could hold both the needle and the circular frame without screaming in cramping pain.

Same with knitting and crocheting. I loved doing those things back when my hands cooperated, that is.

Le sigh….

I was painting last year. I needed some new swag to give out to readers at book signings, so I spent a few weeks increasing my stock of painted note cards. But my brushes haven’t touched any paints in a while now.

Basically, all I do now is read – books I want to and those that need reviews for Netgalley.

And I write.

Every single day.

8-12 hours a day most days.

You really can’t call what I do a hobby, like my hubby tries to classify it. It’s more like a full-time job.

No. It is a full-time job.

I need a hobby.

Any ideas? They’d be appreciated, for sure.

It can’t be anything physical, though, because…arthritis. Or that requires me to leave the house because…it’s frigging frigid here and I hibernate in the winter. And it can’t be anything that requires close up vision because…double vision and prism glasses rule my life.

And it shouldn’t be anything that needs to be done with a partner or other people because…well, I’m an introvert.

Le sigh…

I guess I’ll just go write some more.

Or maybe read something…

#sundayshare…

PERFECT MATCH ( HEAVEN’s MATCHMAKER book 2) releases in just 6 weeks, so, of course, I’ve got to start the pre-promo blitz for it.

This is the part of being a writer I hate – all the marketing. I swear, if I ever hit Powerball, I’m hiring a PR and marketing firm to do all this for me!

Anyhoo…

So, Perfect Match is book 3 in the series, and it’s the story of matchmaker Olivia Joyner and Hunter Reinhardt, one of the .01% of clients she can’t find a match for. Since she has 99% success rate, she figures finding him a wife should be easy peasy. After all, he’s handsome, successful, rich, and actually wants to get married again. Shouldn’t be a problem, right?

Yeah…no. So far, none of the dates she’s set him on have worked out and for the life of her, she can’t understand why the women think he’s boring and reserved and no fun, since she finds him none of those things.

Liv devises a plan to find out just what’s happening on those get-to-know-you-dates. What ensues, is a story filled with acceptance, caring, and a slow burn love awareness of one another. I loved writing this book and was so happy I could give Liv her HEA.

Here’s a little sumthin; sumthin‘ from the book to ( hopefully) whet your appetite to preorder it.

“You are the most capable woman I’ve ever met,” he said, simply, because it was the truth.  Without knowing why, he rose and crossed to her side of the table. Squatting in front of her, he was fascinated when her eyes went wide as he took her hands and squeezed them. “But even the most capable people need someone they can just,” he shook his head, once, “let loose with. Unburden to. Discuss and digest everything with.”

“I-I’m…okay,” she managed, her gaze never leaving his. Her eyes were huge, wet pools of emotions. His insides quaked when he found her eyelashes spikey with unshed tears. The urge to kiss her, yank her into his arms, and calm away all those fears he knew she carried about inside her, hidden from everyone, was so strong, he physically had to pull his head from leaning down and sliding his lips across her beautiful mouth. He’d give anything to just spend the day with her. Just her. No fake date attached to it all.

He swallowed.

“I know you are Olivia, but please know, please realize, it’s okay not to be okay at times.”

Wonder crossed her gaze as one wet, fat tear cascaded down her cheek. Hunter released one of her hands and swiped at it with his index finger.

“And,” he added his voice hushed, “there’s no shame in asking for help. Especially from people who care about you. Please believe and know that.”

“I- I…do.” She managed to say. Her voice was raw and raspy, like she’d given fifty public speeches that day and now her vocal cords were revolting.

He squeezed her hands again, the rest of what he wanted to say going unspoken as his pager blared from his belt buckle.

With an unsaid oath, he stood and pulled the device from its holder, simultaneously taking his phone from his pocket.

“Excuse me,” he said, seeing fear jump to her face. Gentling his voice, he said, “It’s the Arms, not the hospital.”

the truth as I know it…

I’m just going to put this out there and let it settle for a bit.

I am not a multimillion-dollar romance book seller.

Didn’t see that coming, did ya? LOL

In all honesty, if I’ve sold 1000 books in my 10 years of writing full-time, I would be surprised. My royalties certainly validate the thought.

I’m writing this today to dispel a myth I hear perpetuated all too frequently about indie writers – of which I am almost exclusively one these days. I still have a few publishers with my books on their lists, but nothing new to or from them in the past 3 years.

I posted a Tiktok the other day about handing my 2024 receipts and expenses over to my husband to prepare our taxes and how pitiful I felt doing so. You can view it here: TAXTIME. Honestly, I am not getting rich doing this. If my husband didn’t still work outside the home I would be forced to get a job just to be able to live. Being an indie author is a money pit of a career.

If you are indie, you have to pay for your editors, cover designers, copy editors. If you don’t know how to do it, you need to pay formatters, you need to pay for ISBN numbers so you can have a copyright of your work. You need to purchase your own books from your distributor if you want to sell them at booksignings, or on your website. You need to go to said book signings and they always involve hotels/table fees/gas/food so the ROI ( return on investment) is always nil for me. Case in point: I attended a booksigning in Salem, MA in 2023. The entire cost of the signing ( hotel/sponsorship/swag/books/gas, etc) was $ 1000.00

I didn’t sell 1 book.

I don’t know about you, but I don’t have $1000.00 to lose from my bank account.

As an indie you need to find your own arc readers, beta readers, influencers who will talk your book up so you can get sales. You need to do all your own marketing ( which is a full time job in itself) and pay for things like fb ads, instagram boosts or ads, etc. Again, the outlay cost is ridiculous.

Recently, I tried to get a bookbub deal, the holy grail – supposedly – of book sales. My category, contemporary romance, would clost $950 for a one day ad placement in their daily newsletter. My book was marked at .99cents. I would have needed to sell 2714 books at .35 cents royalties a piece ( the Amazon split) to break even. Remember when i said I don’t think I’ve sold a 1000 books total in my career? Yeah, wasn’t gonna happen.

BTW, Bookbub rejected me ad. Saved me that $950 I didn’t have anyway.

The next time you buy an indie book from an author remember these points.

The next time you pirate a book from an indie book, remember these points ( and do a little soul searching on why you are basically stealing from the author)

The next time you read an indie book from a library, remember these points.

The next time you read an ARC from an indie author, remember these points and that the author is giving you something for free when she probably can’t afford to, just so she can – hopefully – get a review. and some word of mouth traction.

The life on an indie author is not all yachts and fabulous parties and hobnobbing with celebs.

It isn’t even fun a lot of the time.

But we do it because we love the art of writing and the stories we tell and we hope other people love what we write as well.

We certainly don’t do it to get rich.

30k word challenge…

Starting on February 1, I joined the members of the New Jersey Romance Writers and participated in their February 30K for 28 days challenge.

To those of you who aren’t writers, this is a challenge where by you write a minimum of 30,000 words in whatever you are working on during the 28 days of this month. The goal is to write to 30K, but in my mind, it was really to get into the mood and habit of writing something every single day.

Many days I had over 3000 words to show for my efforts of sitting down at my desk and not moving my butt for hours.

Many days I had less than 1000 words to show for the same efforts.

Yesteray, Febraury 17, I hit my 30,000 word goal. Not bad. A little over 2 and half weeks and I nailed it.

And since I haven’t finished the book I’ve been working on, I’m continuing with the challenge until the end of the month or I finish the book – whatever comes first!

This was just what I needed to get me motivated and going, so a big thank you to the New Jersey Romance writers for the impetus, all the daily love and praise, and the challenge itself!

This is the book I’m working on:

Her job as an assistant wedding planner means everything to Charity Quinn. She’s got a bullet-point plan for her future, and she’s not about to let anything get in the way of her goals. But a drunken hookup with a coworker – a guy she’s had a hate/hate relationship with from the get-go – may put her plan in jeopardy.  Charity has to ensure her boss never finds out about her indiscretion. But every day it’s getting harder to hide how much she wants a repeat of that amazing night.

Or at least she thinks it was amazing. Seems Charity can’t quite remember the details.

His life is a series of one-night stands and Kolby O’Brian’s not about to change his status for anyone – not even the little fireball who’s been the bane of his existence since the first day they met. Why, then, are his eyes always straying to Charity when he should be concentrating on work? And why does being around her suddenly make him want to be a different kind of man? A better one? One who thinks about…the future?

These two polar opposites need to decide if they want a future together or a life without the other in it, because an emotional volcano is churning and it’s about to erupt.

A cool interview…

A week or so ago, I was honored to be interviewed along with Clair Brett, romance writer and former President of RWA, on Turning Pages by host, Margaret Porter.

I forgot to post the interview here, so since I just remembered…here ya go.

(I swear this menopause brain is killing me!)

Also, note to self: the next time you are interviewed for television, wear something that shows off your 70-pound weight loss and not something that makes you look bigger than you are!

It’s snowmageddon here…cuddle up with a book!

Preferably, one of mine, lol.

Just a reminder, kids, that I’ve got 2 books on sale right now for just 99cents. And they couldn’t be more different, so…

If you like suspense, serial killers, and a kick-ass heroine, RETRIBUTION is available on Amazon and in wide distribution right now for #99cents, but the sale is only on until 2/17, so get your copy downloaded today!

And, of course, if you like sweet with heat, romcom novellas, 3 WISHES is available on kindle, in print, and on ku right now. The ecopy is only #99cents.

If you’re snowbound like I am right now, take advantage of the free time and cuddle up with some hot cocoa, some snacks, and some romance books.

Happy reading, kids ~ Peg

A nice thing to wake up to…

So, yesterday, my Valentine’s Day Novella 3 WISHES was released, and today, I’m running my sales stats and checking all my social sites to see if there’s any buzz about it.

Yeah, it’s just something writers have to do, lIke actors check their acting reviews, writers do the same with the added check of social media and book sales.

For social stuff, one of my favorite Instagram Influencers, The Sebrero Sisters, added me to their daily shoutout of new releases – which, believe me , is HUGE!

This is free advertising at its finest, and these influencers are top-notch!

As for sales, well in the new releases category over on Amazon, this morning I am # 17 in sales in kindle romance>medical books..

and # 70 in the category Short reads (90mins-2 hrs) because it’s a novella…

To rank so high in both of these categories is, to use the same words again, HUGE!

No, by the time you read this post, those numbers may have changed because Amazon updates sales hourly. But right now, at 330 a.m. on Saturday, 2.15.25, these are accurate.

Have you gotten your copy yet? 3 WISHES is only 99cents on kindle and 5.99 in print.

Happy reading, kids. Hope your Valentine’s day was filled with love, laughter, and a good book! ( preferably mine! LOL)

Happy Valentine’s Day and Happy release day…to me!

When two extraordinary events occur on the same day, you’ve just got to celebrate!

HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY, kids! I hope you and your significant other enjoy the day. And if you’re celebrating Galentine’s Day – power to you, and have a blast with your gal friends!!!

Part 2 of this lovely day – and the part I love best(!) – is that it is rerelease day for 3 WISHES, the San Valentino Family Romance that started it all for my favorite Italian Family.

If you’re looking for a book about love to read on this day devoted to love, here ya go! 3 WISHES is just for you!

Valentine’s Day is chocolatier Chloe San Valentino’s favorite day of the year. Not only is it the busiest day in her candy shop, Caramelle de Chloe, but it’s also her birthday.

Chloe’s got a birthday wish list for the perfect man she pulls out every year: he’d fall in love with her in a heartbeat, he’d be someone who cares about people, and he’d have one blue eye and one green eye, just like her. So far, Chloe’s fantasy man hasn’t materialized, despite the matchmaking efforts of her big, close-knit Italian family.

But this year, for her 30th birthday, she just might get her 3 Wishes.

Available in print, kindle, and on KU!

a #99cent sale you should take advantage of if…

you like:

~FBI profiles

~serial killer fiction

~fast paced writing

~lots of suspense and red herrings

What am I talking about? RETRIBUTION of course, my FBI profiler/serial killer/suspense novel.

For a limited time ( like 4 days!) it’ll be just 99 cents for the ecopy and that’s everywhere digital media is offered. I recently released the book into wide distribution and not just available on the ‘Zon.

Here are the links:

RETRIBUTION on Amazon kindle

Universal link which includes Apple Books, Kobo, Smashwords, Hoopla and many more!

4.8 star average on Amazon. 4.73 on Goodreads