Jennifer Apodaca's Blog, page 160

Happy Friday!

I’m working, closing in on the end of CAGED MAGIC! Then I have to get it in shape to send to the editor next week. But I wanted to stop in here and wish you all a Happy Friday! Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Wednesday Worthy

Hey guys, I ended up spending time at the dentist learning that my baby tooth no longer is happy with me Long story short–I have a consolidation with an oral surgeon in a week or two. But I’m not thinking about that (except when it wakes me up at 2:30 am every freaking night, LOL). Instead I’m thinking about this book, CAGED MAGIC, and these final scenes. Plus today I have to see my regular RA doc and discuss the tooth issues with him. But I just want to get this book DONE.

Okay the whiny portion of this blog is over! Let’s move onto Wednesday Worthy:

 

Okay sure, he does seem to get tangled up in his shirt, but other than that, is he worthy?

Weekend Roundup

I’m alive! But still in my writing cave. Not talking about the book right now,  just writing, hoping and praying. But yesterday, I got out for a while to hang out with author-friend Karin Tabke. I met her years ago through the Murder She Writes blog and it was so freaking awesome to see her again. We spent three hours just talking and I could have gone on forever.  I hope we can get together again soon.

So otherwise, I’m mostly working, but at night when I stop, my eyes have been tired so I don’t read. Instead, I’ve been watching tons of episodes of Dog Whisper with Caesar Milan. I’m pretty much overdosing on this because A) I love dogs, and B) It’s easy watching on my Kindle Fire and I can wind down. I don’t really have to think.

So…yesterday morning Wizard and I were talking about going to see his brother up north this year, and I said, “I heard you tell your brother on teh phone yesterday, ‘Yeah Jen works a lot but she enjoys it.'”

He gave me a confused look. “And the problem? You do enjoy it.”

“Not always, I can’t wait to be done. In fact, I’m going to quit.” I warmed up the idea so I could quit worrying about how I’m going to end this book, get it edited and to the editor in just a few days. Plus I have my next Once A Marine book to do line edits on one second after I send in CAGED MAGIC. Projects are stacking up and I’m feeling the pressure.

“Quit and do what?” Wizard asked. “Let’s face it, you don’t sit around and do nothing very well.”

That’s not true. I am fantastic at being lazy and unproductive.  However I had a backup plan. “I’m going to quit and start a new career training dogs.” For which I am completely unqualified but I hate letting details ruin my fantasy.

Without missing a beat, Wizard said, “Go right ahead. Set up your business online.”

“How am I going to train dogs online?” That’s just stupid. And I know he’s just humoring me so I started up the stairs to do something or other, done with the conversation.

Wizard used his oh-so-patient voice.”You set up your business online to get clients.”

I stopped at the top of the stairs and stared down at him. “Oh, that makes more sense.” It’s almost like he’s taking me seriously.

“You can call it Cleopatra.”

“What?” I mean has he been thinking about this? I was kidding about training dogs, I don’t even have a dog. But I was curious. “Why would I call it Cleopatra?”

“Because the name Caesar is taken.” (Caesar Milan from Dog Whisperer)

I walked right into that one. Sigh.

So how was your weekend?

Wednesday Worthy and Wizard’s Commentary on 50 Shades

So…Wizard and I saw Fifty Shade of Grey. I’m not going to give my opinion again because I’ve said it in a few places, and who really cares what I think? I just support writers hitting mega success. But I know you all care what Wizard thinks, right? No worries I asked him for you!

We’ll just skip over his opinion of Dakota Johnson because I think you all can guess that I mean come on, hot, cute naked girl? Last time I checked, Wizard had red blood laced with testosterone running in his veins.

So I asked Wizard, “What did you think of Christian Grey in the movie?” I SWEAR I’M NOT MAKING THIS UP.

He looked at me and said, “I’m Batman.”

Only he said it like this audio clip:

batman (1)

Okay, now I’ve heard a ton of commentary abut Fifty Shades but this is new.  Confused, I’m asked the obvious,  “WHAT????”

Wizard explained, “That Christian guy just kept showing up out of nowhere rescuing Ana. Every time I was waiting for him to say,  “I’m Batman.”

I laughed so hard. Where the heck does he come up with this stuff? BATMAN??? Now all I can hear is “I’m Batman” over and over and I laughed the rest of the day. Every time Wizard walked by me, I was like, “Say it again!”

So that is Wizard’s rather unique commentary on Fifty Shades of Grey.

And now, of course, Batman is on my mind, which naturally makes me think of Christian Bale. So guess who is our hunk candidate today?

What do you think, is he worthy?

Weekend Roundup

Busy weekend! Valentine’s Day was okay, we went to breakfast and then made a lobster dinner together, but Wizard had a cold and I hate it when he doesn’t feel great. I sent him to bed early.  I also released the cover for CAGED MAGIC on FB. I f you haven’t seen it, here it is:

Sunday we celebrated BLB’s (youngest son) birthday, although his actual birthday is today. Here’s his traditional candy cake:

This year, I kept it simple since I’m a fiend working on CAGED MAGIC.  Plus juggling a gazillion things including uploading the new covers and files for Plus One Chronicles which took hours.

But you know what I did for myself this weekend? No it wasn’t see FIFTY SHADES OF GREY, darn it! Although I want to see it and we’ll probably go today. Speaking of Fifty Shades of Grey movie (yes I’m digressing because my brain is fried and stewing panic juice), I asked BLB’s girl friend if she’d seen the movie?

Girlfriend said, “No. But I want too.”

I’m like, “Wizard and I are probably going Monday.” Then I studied her for a second (and dang, she’s so cute! Seriously adorable, but I love her anyway) and then grinned. “So how weird would it be for you to go with your boyfriend’s parents?”

We all laughed hysterically.  She said she’d only go with us if Wizard and I sat in the front and she sat waayyyy in the back by an exit. So…probably not (And no, none of us are particularly skittish, it’s just crossing that weird line of OMG my boyfriend’s parents!)

So what did I do for myself? I bought this book!

DYING EMBERS by our very own B. E. Sanderson! I’m excited to read this as soon as I turn in the book I’m writing to my editor! I’m thrilled and please that after a a lot of hard work and worry, B.E. has published her first book! HUGE CONGRATULATIONS B.E.! I always knew this day would come for you and I’m proud of you!

So that was my weekend, how was yours?

Happy Friday and Valentine’s Day!

I’m fine, no really, I’m fine. Wait is that Wizard standing behind me, shaking his head no and laughing? Okay, maybe I’m a tad…crazed Wednesday night, I was so upset I told Wizard I refused to discuss the book. I worked till eight oclock, then came downstairs and tried not to think about it.

Thursday morning, I was getting some coffee and Wizard was heating some water for tea and asked me something stupid like, “How’s it going?” I launched into a description of the hybrid half-demon half-human that spawned his demon side in a fiery explosion in Vegas but now he’s hibernating and they all know he’s going to wake, they have to find him before that happens. Oh and by the way humans think this is a terrorist attack because human’s can’t porcess what really happened.

Wizard nodded although I think his eye was twitching. But I didn’t want to bug him about it, so I went on with, “And they have to find the baby, but the heroine, Risa’s a witch so she can do it right?”

“Right?” He started eyeing the wine on the counter which is odd because it was only about 10 in the morning. Kind of early, doncha think? But I didn’t want to nag. “So,” I continued, “she can see her daughter.”

“She can? Isn’t she missing?”

“Of course, with her third eye.”

“Of course.” Wizard is now holding the bottle of wine. Hello? It’s still only 10 am. Okay closer to 10:15 now because maybe I’ve been talking for a few minutes. But Wizard’s retired, maybe I shouldn’t judge? I decide to distract him and go on,  “But the hybrid will wake and when he does, it’s going to be hellish. They must find where he’s hibernating before that…REALLY?” I snap as I see him reach into the cupboard where the wine glasses are. “Are you really going to drink wine at 10 am?”

Slowly, Wizard turned around holding a mug. “I’m making tea. Remember? That’s why I’m standing here at the stove with the kettle of boiling water?”

“Oh.” I um…

After pouring his water over the tea bag, Wizard peered at me. “When was the last time you slept?”

“I slept.” For a couple hours. “But we’re not talking about sleeping, we’re talking about CAGED MAGIC. This all makes sense right?”

“Perfectly.”

I gaped at him. “You really followed that? Honestly?”

He laughed. “I’ve between married to you long enough to know the right answer.”

True, he has. And he spent a good couple hours researching possible vacations. He swears if he books something it’ll be for both of us, not just him. I want to believe that…and also believe that I can really get this book written in some coherent fashion.

So…if you read all that, you deserve a little Valentine’s gift, so here you go!

Have a great weekend and Happy Valentine’s Day!

 

Wednesday Worthy

I’m pretty much AWOL right now, trying to chase down this story. I do read every comment even if I don’t answer. But let’s not talk about me or the book, let’s talk about this candidate:

What do you think, is he worthy?

Weekend Roundup

I’m trying so hard to write this book. I will get it done and into the editor by March first, but between now and then…it’s crazytown here.

So, my weekend was good. We saw a really cool two-legged Chihuahua mix on the news, and looked into maybe adopting him. BUT…apparently a lot of people saw the same story and were going to line up to adopt him Sunday morning for the chance to adopt him. Saturday at lunch I explained I’d called the shelter and they’d explained the Sunday Morning Lottery plan. Wizard asked me, “Well why don’t you go to that animal shelter today and just see the dog?”

I stared at him in shock. Usually he’s the one saying don’t do it. But this time, apparently, I was going to have to be the voice of reason. I hate having to be the grown up, but I stepped up. “Because if I go, I’ll fall in love with him. Then they’ll do a lottery for him, and I’ll be an emotional mess if I don’t get him.”

The reality finally dawned on Wizard. “Dang, you’re right.”

I laughed. “Hey, it happens.” So I stayed away. My promise to myself is to finish this book (Please, God, let me finished and don’t let it suck because right now…I just don’t know), and then I’ll THINK about adopting a dog. But of course, there’ll be another reason not to do it then too.

So how was your weekend?

New Covers for The Plus One Chronicles Series

As promised, I’m going to talk about why I’m doing new covers for The Plus One Chronicles Series. If you want to skip all this, you can scroll down to the bottom and see the covers. Or you can read on to see my reasoning/explanation. Okay, for those of you still reading, I debated doing this for a long time. This is a risk, I’m investing a good chunk of money in the covers—I need five of them.

–A new cover for each book: The Proposition, Possession and Obsession.

–I need a new 3D cover for The Plus One Chronicles boxed set

–And because not all vendors take 3D I also need a flat cover.

And then I need to reformat the files with the new covers and do some promo. All told, once I’m done, I’m going to spend a thousand or more on this.

So why am I doing it? There are several reasons, so let me start with some background. Last year alone, at iBooks, I sold 103,000 copies of The Plus One Chronicles Series. That’s my biggest vendor, but I’m giving you an idea of what kind of sales I had at one vendor.

By the end of last year and into this year, it’s dropped dramatically (down to hundreds and tapering off) as is the natural course of things. It’s the law of diminishing returns. Let’s not get into a bunch of economics here, the basic premise is simple: Buying excitement and motivation is high in the beginning and sales track up, and if all things remain the same, sales then plateau and fall. (A simplified explanation for MY purposes).

So basically, with all things being the same, I’ve reached the audience I’m going to reach for the most part. Sure I’ll get a few more, but not a lot. But if I change things up, I’m hoping to reach a NEW audience for this series. This means rebranding the series to go outside the reach I currently have. And part of that reach is the covers.

Covers mean a LOT in sales. They are one of our strongest tools to catch reader’s eyes. Story blubs, tag lines, and other promotional tools are useful too. But covers, particularly in this social media world where readers are scrolling through life and we only have one to three seconds to catch their attention, covers are key. As the old adage goes: A picture is worth a thousand words. A cover will, I believe, stop a scrolling reader to take a second look.

And a second look can add up to more sales.

So I decided it was time for new covers to see if I can breathe new life into the series. So here are the things I was looking for with a new cover.

1) Branding. The old covers, I think, were beautiful but they were very different. The first one showed a dessert, the second one showed a sensual woman, and the third a couple. They lacked cohesion and didn’t quite tell the story of the series. One could easily believe it was three DIFFERENT stories, not one over-arching story told in three segments. The new covers show the same couple on each book. And shows the progression of their relationship: First they are looking at each other in The Proposition which shows the beginning. In Possession they’re turned toward each other, clearly growling closer, and in Obsession they are intimately together, clearly in love. This gives a stronger concept an emotionally erotic love story.

2) My name and bestseller status. I am an international bestseller, and my name has become my brand. I had to get over my resistance and put that on the very top of my covers like a smart businesswoman.

3) All the titles and cupcake emblems are in the same, creating a more uniform brand.

4) The older cover for Possession was in the “dungeon” at Amazon. What that means is that it was suppressed in the search engines with an adult only tag due to the cover. Amazon has tightened their cover restrictions. I’m hoping the newer covers will be okay, however I want to say that I’m not complaining. Amazon has the right to make their rules, and I can choose to use them as a vendor or not. I choose to use them, and if these covers get tagged, that’s life. A side note: I’ve been in long discussion with another vendor, and so far we have not agreed on terms. I’d never bad mouth that vendor either—they have the prefect right to set their terms. This is business, not personal.

5) Late this year (or possibly early next year if things don’t go as I hope) I want to launch a new series that will be very loosely tied to the Sloane’s world in The Plus One Chronicles. Freshening up the covers could possibly bring new interest. It keeps my name alive while I get new books ready to release. And having The Plus One Chronicles more clearly branded will separate it from the Shattered Illusions series, but my name and bestseller statues will connect the two. So if someone reads the new series the Jennifer Lyon, International Bestselling Author, and search for more books by me, they’ll find The Plus One Chronicles.

6) THE ONE THING I DON’T WANT TO DO—trick readers who’ve already bought the books into buying the new ones. The titles, release dates and blurbs will all be the same. I’m openly discussing this to get the word out and will probably put both covers labeled “original” and “new” on my website.

So to wrap it up, I basically felt that the covers I was using had gotten a little stale, and freshening up the series with new updated ones might breathe new life into the series and reach an untapped readership.

It’s a risk. I have no way of knowing if it will pay off, but that’s the beauty of self-publishing—I’m in control, and I can try new things as long as I determine that I can afford the risk if it doesn’t pay off.

I expect the new covers will go up in most places in a week or two. After a month or so I’ll report back with the best numbers I can to let you know how it’s working.

And now…here are the covers!

The Proposition, Possession and Obsession designed by Patricia Schmitt

The Plus One Chronicles Boxed Set; 3-D version

The Plus One Chronicles Boxed Set, flat version

Wednesday Worthy

Ok guys, you know the drill…do you think this guy is worthy?

Aye or Nay?

Hope everyone is having a good week! On Friday, if I have time, I’ll talk about why I’m redoing all the covers on The Plus One Chronicles Series