Jason J. Nugent's Blog, page 16
July 24, 2017
Author Spotlight: Myrod Byers
Today’s “Author Spotlight” is Myrod Byers, author of the memoir “The Literary Works of Me.”
Author Spotlight: Myrod Byers
Hi Myrod, thanks for agreeing to this interview. Tell us a little about yourself and your background?
Hello my name is Myrod Byers. I was born in 1968. Grew up in rural Indiana, Mt.Vernon, New Harmony. Was born into Islam. My father was a shoe repairman. Enlisted into the US Navy after High School where i served for 7 years. Went to USI to study Social Work. I have 3 brothers/3 Sisters. Have worked in manufacturing for the last 23 years. Have 4 children. 3 boys and 1 Girl.
How long have you been writing?
I actually have only been writing since 2013.
What inspired you to start writing?
I am not sure as to what inspired me to write. I woke up one morning and started to write. Maybe it was something spiritual, although I am not a spiritual person.
Tell us a little bit about your current project. Is it a novel, short story, or something else? Is it part of a series?
My current published project is a memoir. It is a collection of personal thoughts on a variety of different topics from life to death, success to failures, and from friendships to enemies.
What genre do you prefer to write in, if any?
I like to write memoirs. I like the aspect of inspiring people. Try to make a change for the better in one’s life for the better.
What authors influenced you?
I like Edgar Allan Poe, Emily Dickinson, Dan Brown, and Robert Ludlow.
What are you currently reading?
Dan Brown’s “Inferno.”
Do you write every day? A few days per week?
My writing comes in spurts. I have 2 completed memoirs and I am also working on my first novel.
Do you listen to music when you write? Does it influence how you write?
I actually don’t listen to music when I am writing. I just have a literary flow in my head. I write until it runs out.
How do you think your writing has changed from when you first started?
When I first started writing, I wrote about different topics. Now I have fine tuned my writing where I focus on 1-2 key topics.
How do you create the covers for your books?
[image error]I have only published one book. The publishing company designed my book cover for me.
Are there any non-literary influences for your writing (movies, actors, music, etc)?
Actually I like DL Hughley and Joey Zsa Zsa as they have personally supported my book.
What is your favorite book and why?
My favorite book is “Nightmares and Dreamscapes” by Stephen king. I like it because of the short story format. I loved “Dolan’s Cadillac.”
How do you market your books?
I mainly market my book through Facebook and through various local book signings.
Do you have an excerpt from your current work you’d like to share?
Sure.
Lots of people not only think within the box, But they live also live within the box. Therefore, they are limiting their own potential in dealing with life skills.
Where can we purchase your current book? What about previous books?
My current book can be purchased from me directly and also on my publishers website www.tatespublishing.com, Barnes & Noble, or Amazon.
Where can we find you online?
I am on Facebook as Myrod L Byers, also have a book page on Facebook titled The Literary Works of Me- Myrod L Byers. I am on Twitter as Slimboi68, also I am on Instagram as Nerdyauthor68.
If you’re an indie author, what made you choose that route?
I am not an indie author on this book, But I plan on being one on my upcoming books. I feel i have a great support team in place.
Any parting words for writers?
I can only say if you want to do it, do it. Don’t give up on your dreams. You may impact someone’s live in a way you never thought of.
July 19, 2017
“The Selection” – Mid-Summer Sale
Hey everyone, I wanted to alert you to a mid-summer sale on my young adult scifi adventure novel The Selection. From now until the end of July, you can get your copy from Amazon for only .99! That’s $2 off the normal price. Please take advantage of this special. Snag one of the images below and share with your friends, family, and frenemies. The easiest link to use is mybook.to/the-selection. It will take you to the Amazon store of your country.
THANK YOU!!
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Humans colonized the planet Kepler 186f after Earth’s near total global collapse. Soon after, supply missions ended leaving the colonists to themselves, renaming the planet Anastasia and building a new society far different than Earth’s.
As population imbalance threatened stability in the settlements, a horrific and brutal institution known as The Selection was created.
Centuries later, haunted by the screams of his dead older brother, eighteen year-old Eron fears the unknown terror waiting for him and all boys his age in The Selection. He has thirty days to survive to Victory Point and reunite with his crush Mina. He will have to endure brutal circumstances and forge unlikely alliances if he’s to survive The Selection.
Time is short. Threats are constant. Survival means life. Failure means death—or worse.
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mybook.to/the-selection
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July 17, 2017
Author Spotlight: J.S. Frankel
In my year long quest to bring you new and “new to you” authors, I’m please to present young adult fantasy author J.S. Frankel, author of The Titans of Ardana (and many other YA Fantasy novels).
Hi, J.S., thanks for agreeing to this interview. Tell us a little about yourself and your background?
My real name is Jesse Frankel, but I never cared for it, so I go by my initials most of the time. I was born in Toronto, Canada, a long time ago, and grew up there, attending university and graduating with an Arts Degree, which is about as useful these days as an empty beer bottle.
When I was twenty-six, I moved to Japan to teach ESL (English as a Second Language) and never really went back. I got married a long time ago, and my wife and two sons make our home in Osaka. I teach English and write when I have the time.
[image error]How long have you been writing?
Not very long, really. I started when I was forty-eight, and now I’m fifty-five, but I didn’t get into it until I was around fifty-two.
What inspired you to start writing?
Something my son said to me back in 2011. We’d been watching a cartoon, something about trees, and he said, “Papa, it would be great if the trees could talk.” It was a throwaway line, really, but that night—cliché time!—I had a dream, and later on I turned it into my first novel, The Tower. (That’s out of print, but I may self-pub it in the future).
Tell us a little bit about your current project. Is it a novel, short story, or something else? Is it part of a series?
I’m working on a number of projects right now. Actually, I’m waiting for the edits to Master Fantastic, a YA novel I have with my publisher. Then I have the third Titans novel to edit, and two more, and I’ve just completed the rough draft of Ether, a fantasy novel with a hard-edged twist. So, I’ve always got something going.
What genre do you prefer to write in, if any?
[image error]YA, as it is fresh and exciting and new. Teens always have something new happening in their lives, and I like to record those happenings, as it were.
Do you write every day? A few days per week?
Yes, every day, unless sick. If I don’t write, I get withdrawal symptoms. OCD, I know, but that’s how it is.
How do you think your writing has changed from when you first started?
When I first started, I was pretty decent with writing dialogue and action, but my narrative was poor. I knew it, the reviewers knew it, and they mentioned it to me—kindly. I went to work on it, and now my narrative has improved quite a bit, although I still feel there’s room for improvement. I like to keep things simple, no excess, no waste, just enough description to spice things up, and then let the action carry things along.
How do you create the covers for your books?
[image error]I don’t. I work with a cover artist who goes on basic ideas I put out and she carries them through. I’ve worked with a number of people, but two of them stand out: Carmen Waters and Martine Jardin. Both work for Devine Destinies. Carmen did most of my covers including those for Catnip, Picture (Im)perfect, and Mr. Taxi, while Martine did the Titans covers as well as Master Fantastic and a few others. Both are excellent artists!
Are there any non-literary influences for your writing (movies, actors, music, etc.)?
I’m a huge YouTube video watcher, and I can honestly say that music and music videos have provided me with the inspiration to pen my novels. Mr. Taxi, Twisted (a gender-switch action/comedy) Star Maps, and a couple of others all came about due to watching music vids. They gave me ideas and I ran with them.
Do you have an excerpt from your current work you’d like to share?
[image error]Excerpt from my novel, entitled The Titans of Ardana. This is from the end of Chapter One, where the main protagonist, Martin Calder, attempts to get an autograph from his favorite television action star, Dana. And…he finds out that things aren’t quite what they seem…
Peering inside, the brother-sister combo stood in the center of the room. Dressed in jeans and long-sleeved shirts, they stood ankle deep in a sea of empty candy bar wrappers and cookie boxes. Three assistants fussed around throwing garbage into a large trash bag.
In a lazy, idle motion, Dana lifted the front of her shirt to reveal a firm midriff. Yeah, she had the abs, along with a line of bumps that started from a triangular bellybutton and ran around her narrow waist. All of the bumps were a perfectly round shape, the size of pearls. Multiple bumps… that wasn’t a rash. Neither was the three-pointed navel.
Oh hell! My heart immediately accelerated to mega proportions and I flattened my back against the wall, breathing hard. Bumps, I’d seen bumps and…no…it had to be some kind of prosthetic. Sure, that was it. In a second, she’d peel it off, scratch her stomach, and I was an idiot for believing something had been wrong in the first place.
Risking another peek, the assistants turned around, and all of them were clones of Van. With a sudden, massive inhalation of breath from him, they melted into his body. “Holy crap, they’re…”
Reflexively, I put my hand over my mouth in order to stifle the gasp of surprise. This couldn’t be happening! People didn’t just split apart and reassemble, did they?
“Hey, what are you doing here?”
The voice—Dana’s—startled me. Damn it, I’d been busted. Hands on her hips, she wore a pissed off expression. “What did you see?” she demanded.
“Uh, nothing, I saw—”
“You saw nothing. Now what do you want?” That came from Van. He’d come outside to stand alongside Dana and I felt his eyes rake my form over as if searching for a spot to tear me a new one. At six feet and around two hundred pounds, the guy looked strong enough to lift a tank.
Put on the spot, trying desperately to hang onto the real and true, I sputtered out an excuse. “I, uh, was hoping I could get an autograph from Dana. And you, too,” I added. “I’m a big fan of the show.”
Dana visibly relaxed and a smile began to play around her lips. “You’re a fan, huh? If you are, tell me what happened in episode twelve, midway through the show.”
plit-second answer time and it was a no-brainer. “You were captured by the Shadow Agency. They tortured you, sent a rogue mutant agent named Saldar to kill your brother, and you busted in and saved him at the last moment.”
Yes, perfect response, and in an attempt to look cool, I crossed my arms over my scrawny chest. A second later, I dropped them to my sides. My chest was too small and my arms resembled sticks. Glancing at her brother, his reaction was to offer no reaction at all. Rocks showed more emotion.
“Great,” he said. “We got us a fanboy.”
He then took a step toward me, violence flashing from his eyes. Please don’t hammer me too hard. In a quick move, Dana put her hand on his arm to restrain him. She may have been shorter and lighter, but she had some grip. Van struggled, but couldn’t go anywhere. Finally, he jerked his arm away. “All right, sis, it’s cool.” Impaling me with a glare, he said, “Fine, you’re hardcore. So, what did you see?”
“N-nothing,” I stuttered. My confidence shattered and sweat poured down my face. After wiping it away and hoping not to appear too pathetic, I managed to say, “I just, uh, walked in and saw all the candy wrappers and—”
“And now you’re here because you wanted an autograph. That’s all, right?”
“Yeah, an autograph, and then I was going to leave.”
Unfortunate situations made people feel like total tools. Call me Tool Dude. Van grunted something unintelligible, and then pulled a piece of paper and a pen out of his pocket. He scribbled something on the paper and thrust it at me. Pivoting around on his heel, he walked inside, back turned to me.
Dana stayed a moment longer, long enough to give me that same curious smile, a faint curling of the corners of her mouth. Dawn purple glowed in her eyes, and the color seemed to leap out and swallow me up. Something was there, something I couldn’t figure out. Maybe it was interest or maybe not. “What’s your name?”
“It’s Martin, Martin Calder. I’m a student at Tacoma High.”
Dana didn’t bat an eyelash and then went over to the table to grab a sheet of paper and a pen. Following her brother’s lead, she wrote on the paper and handed it over. It read From Dana to my biggest fan.
Lifting my head, our eyes met once more. She was in the process of giving me that same curious look, and then the door closed. Well, mission successful and I’d achieved the impossible. I’d seen it as well. While exiting the building, a security guard confronted me. “Hey, how’d you get inside?”
“Uh… uh, well…”
The expression of mess with me and you’ll suffer major trauma was written all over his face. “The exit is over there.” He stabbed a thick forefinger at the gate. Message given—message received.
Once outside the entrance, the shakes began. What I’d just seen had rocked my world and shaken the very foundation of my grasp on reality. Two people I idolized weren’t people. Aliens lived here and I was the first one to know their secret. The only problem was no one would believe me.
Where can we purchase your current book? What about previous books?
Here are the links to where they can be bought.
Amazon
Devine Destinies
Finch Books
Smashwords
Barnes & Noble
Where can we find you online?
How do you market your books?
I use mainly Facebook and Twitter, and hope that word-of-mouth will carry my name around.
Any parting words for writers?
Don’t give up! I know that sounds like a cliché—and it is—but the most popular writers—not the best, maybe, but the most popular, are those who stayed the course and kept at it when others folded. You have to be persistent as well as consistent. If you have those traits, you have a good chance of getting published.
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July 14, 2017
Excerpt from The Cloud by Diane Morrison
Wow, awesome excerpt from author Diane Morrison’s unreleased scifi novel, “The Cloud.” I’m picking this up when it’s released!
I should have posted this hours ago, but I’m trying to make a deadline. Here’s an excerpt from my hard sci-fi project!
“I can’t believe we’re finally decelerating!” Bianca sighed over morning coffee in the lounge. Over the course of the three year journey this had become a regular custom for the crew.
“It seems like it’s been forever!” Albus said. He hardly looked more grown now than he had when he’d boarded the ship. If anything, the careless toss of his unattended hair, which he rarely cut, enhanced that impression. Or perhaps it was his youthful enthusiasm. To Terra’s eyes he had spent most of his time playing vidgames; though he did manage to rig up some system that allowed the lounge windows to double as display screens, showing what should be visible outside, were they not blasting along at thousands of kilometers an hour. Terra knew the gesture…
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July 10, 2017
Author Spotlight: Lucinda Moebius
In my ongoing “Author Spotlight” Series I’m pleased to present Lucinda Moebius.
Author Spotlight: Lucinda Moebius
[image error]Today I’m fortunate to present Lucinda Moebius author of a number of books published through Haven Novels Publishing.
Hi Lucinda. Thanks for agreeing to this interview. Tell us a little about yourself and your background?
Hi back and thank you for giving me the chance to talk about my journey as an author. I grew up in Idaho as part of a large family. I am the third out of eight children, putting me smack dab in the middle. As a middle child I was always torn between wanting to be included with the “big kids” and being responsible for the “little ones”. I never quite fit in with any of them and as a result ended up needing to find ways to entertain myself. When I was eight we lost a sister to SIDS and this loss sent our family into quite a tailspin. We found joy in the birth of another sister, but some wounds can never heal. I struggled and as a result found escapism in fictional worlds. There were never enough books out there for me to read so I started writing my own.
My family was poor. We always said we were lower middle class, but looking back on our situation I realize we could only be described as poor. At one point we actually lived in a cabin in the Idaho mountains. It was a tiny, two-roomed structure heated by a wood stove and lit using gas lanterns. Our running water consisted of running down to the creek and filling up the water buckets. My parents didn’t let us know we were living in the cabin because we were poor. For us it was a grand adventure. A year and a half long camping trip in which we learned to live off the land and entertain ourselves without the benefits of television (the home computer was only just becoming accessible to the general public not that it would have mattered much because the cabin didn’t have electricity). We moved from the mountains to a trailer park. Yes, I lived in a trailer park. In fact, the majority of the town was a trailer park. Even the church was a trailer. My class was held in the bathroom. Our chapel was built a few months after we moved into the town.
My parents gave us the best gift they could: the gift of the desire to gain knowledge. They pushed each of us to get an education. It worked. Five of their surviving children have bachelor’s degrees and a sixth will graduate with hers soon. Two have Master’s and one (me) has a Doctorate.
How long have you been writing?
I have been a storyteller for as long as I can remember. I started writing them down about the time we moved into the cabin. We moved the summer I turned eleven. My mom would always hit the back to school sales and stock up on spiral notebooks. It’s a habit I keep to this day. I always had a notebook handy for writing stories. Although I do most of my writing on a computer now, I still have a collection of notebooks full of story ideas and outlines.
Tell us a little bit about your current project. Is it a novel, short story, or something else? Is it part of a series?
I have so many stories bouncing around in my head at one time it’s difficult to tell you about one current project. I am writing two novels right now: Hunter: Book Two of Chronicles of the Soul Eaters and Lakota’s Strength: Book Three in the Haven Novels series.
My goal is to finish both books this year and send them off to editors and proofreaders. If I can stay on track with my writing Hunter should be out about mid-summer and Lakota’s Strength should be available in early 2018.
What genre do you prefer to write in, if any?
I write every genre. The Haven Novels series is Science Fiction and the Chronicles of the Soul Eaters is Paranormal. I have published books in the following genres: Science Fiction, Paranormal, Literary Fiction, Romance, Non-fiction, and Children’s books. I have a few Fantasy novels planned out. Once I have finished the two series I am currently working on I will get started on the Fantasy series.
What authors influenced you?
There are too many to name. I am a huge fan of the bard! William Shakespeare understands the true spectrum of the human experience. He wrote every genre even Fantasy and Paranormal (Witches, Spirits, Magic, Histories, Insanity, Love) He wrote it all.
My favorite book as a teenager was Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury. I was supposed to read it as an assigned book in High School. I found it under my bed one hot summer day between my Junior and Senior year. I think I read it in one night. I don’t know how many times I read it that summer and I don’t know how many times I read it since, but it is still one of my favorite books.
I think I read through every Science Fiction and Fantasy book in our school library as well as the ones I found in my brother’s bedroom (I might have also read a few of the letters I found from his girlfriend, too). He had quite a collection of comic books and I might have “borrowed” a few X-Men and ElfQuest comics from his collection. He used to steal my babysitting money to fund his collection so I don’t feel too guilty about it.
Do you write every day? A few days per week?
I try to write every day. I may not be able to write on my current WIP, but I at least try to get some kind of writing done.
Do you listen to music when you write? Does it influence how you write?
No, I watch TV. There are a few shows I binge watch: Star Trek, Grey’s Anatomy, Law and Order, CSI, Criminal Minds and although I don’t really pay attention to the shows the background noise allows me to concentrate. I like music, but my auditory perception of the world is different than the average persons. I had my hearing tested once and it was discovered my hearing is 10% above the average human beings so I don’t hear music the same way as most people. I can’t zone out and just let the sound wash over me and I become overstimulated easily.
How do you think your writing has changed from when you first started?
Every book I write allows me to improve. The most important skill I’ve developed is the art of Showing vs. Telling. Most importantly, I have learned I still have a lot to learn. I am not afraid to take critique and improve my writing.
How do you create the covers for your books?
[image error]I have some very talented friends who create covers for my novels. Amazon has a cover making template I use for my 30 Days Stream of Consciousness novels. I use my own photography for the images on these novels. I am going to continue exploring my cover options in the future.
Do you have an excerpt from your current work you’d like to share?
Excerpt from Hunter: Chronicles of the Soul Eaters book 2
I could feel the creature’s energy pushing at my back as I followed the Warrior out into the street. Her energy pulsed and grabbed deep in my core. Every ounce of my soul reached out to draw her in to my existence. I wanted her to be a part of me, to become intertwined with my being. The raw power in her soul called to me, pulling like the moon pulled on water. Since the first day I saw the creature in the graveyard so many months ago she consumed my thoughts and invaded my dreams. I couldn’t explain my desire to possess her, I just knew she belonged to me like nothing else in my past ever did.
The monster had a name, Maria Christine, but I couldn’t bring myself to call her by the name I had spent my entire life regarding the name as the most holy of holies. Even now, when I know I would never complete the path to the priesthood I still couldn’t see calling this creature the name I regarded most holy from my earliest memories.
We were moving fast. Buildings flashed by in streams of light. There were people on the sidewalk but we breezed past them as if they weren’t even there. We melted through the crowds, passing through their energy like a hot knife cuts through butter. I could see the bodies all around me. They were crowded in front of me and on all sides, pressing in as I made my way down the sidewalk. None of them moved out my way, but somehow I passed by all of them, keeping pace with the fast moving slayer ahead of me.
Where can we purchase your current book? What about previous books?
All of my books are available on Amazon.
Echoes of Savanna: Book One: The Parent Generation
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006RM66QM
Raven’s Song: Book One: T1 Generation
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006YJ92GO
Write Well Publish Right
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product
Feeder: Chronicles of the Soul Eaters Book 1
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0615968325
30 Days Stream of Consciousness V. 1
http://www.amazon.com/30-Days-Streams-Consciousness-1-ebook/dp/B01BW8JXBU
30 Days Streams of Consciousness Vol 2: A Haunting
http://www.amazon.com/30-Days-Stream-Consciousness-Haunting-ebook/dp/B01D7T9CFY
30 Days Streams of Consciousness Vol 3: Abduction
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01F1DMOBI
30 Days Stream of Consciousness: Fire and Ice A Love Story
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01GGL8QUM
Raising Grandpa
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OPP1FCI
I Know I am Awesome
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00QYAQBZI
Oh Brother!
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01A1PC5YM
How can we follow you online?
Lucinda Moebius Fan Page: https://www.facebook.com/Lucinda-Moebius-Fan-Page-136358979707547/
SFF Promo Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1132459036786385/
Twitter Handle https://twitter.com/?lang=en
GoodReads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4176363.Lucinda_Moebius
Blogs:
Your Next Favorite Author: http://mynextfavoriteauthor.blogspot.com/
30 days Stream of Consciousness: http://30daysofconsciousness.blogspot.com/
If you’re an indie author, what made you choose that route?
I was originally published through a small independent press. The owner made a lot of big promises and when it came time for follow through he quickly faded. I lost creative control and my work suffered for it. I paid for editing and proofreading and the quality or the work was sadly lacking. When I gained creative control back I decided to self-publish. I love the control self-publishing gave me. It’s a lot of work to promote and try to get my name out there, but I doubt I ever go the traditional publishing route again.
Any parting words for writers?
Write. Every day. Just write. People tell me all the time they want to write a book but they don’t know how. If you want to write a book you should just write the book. Then join writing groups and hire editors and proofreaders to fix the issues you have with story structure and grammar. Stop telling people you want to write a book and just do it. That is all.
July 3, 2017
Tiny Moments
Life’s fickle nature can change in an instant.
Recently, I had a pretty slow day at work. All through the morning and just after lunch, I barely had any sales to speak of. Then, in a window of 8 minutes, I received a few emails that changed the course of the day and the next. Just as quickly as those were opened, the rest of the day went back to the slow pace it started with.
Those brief moments made me think about how drastically our lives change in an instant.
We’re all aware of the high profile shootings around us. We know how a terrorist can alter an entire nation’s psyche in a matter of minutes. There are those terrible calls telling us something bad happened. We also have the good things which change us. As a writer, an email from a publisher can change the course of your career.
Tiny moments in life can have the greatest impact.
Sometimes I feel we lose sight of that. We don’t see how those butterfly wings can create a storm. We don’t see the thousands of tiny ants burrowing under a tree. We get wrapped in the big moments of life. They’re wonderful too, but all too often it’s a series of smaller events that have the greatest impact on us.
It’s also in those tiny moments we find what life is really all about. The grand gestures are great, but it’s the small things which make it all work. When you consider long term relationships, it’s not the great romantic gestures that bring the couple closer, it’s the thousands upon thousands of small daily events that strengthen the bond. And it’s also small moments that can weaken it, sometimes happening in a quick moment like with the emails I described above.
Things change quickly. We have to be ready for that. We have to be aware of the small events around us and how much of an impact they make. If we neglect those, we might be losing out on something special.
June 26, 2017
Indie Author Pricing: POD Books
The last time I wrote about book pricing, I focused on my ebook strategy. Now I’d like to supplement that with the addition of paperbacks.
A little background for you.
When I first decided to self-publish (Almost) Average Anthology, it was an experiment of sorts. So many people were publishing their own work and it seemed easy. Never having tried it before, I figured I’d give it a shot. I had four novels written but didn’t think I could edit them well enough to release them. However, I did have a nice back catalog of flash fiction stories I felt I could edit myself and release them as a book. I used this opportunity to find out what I could do on my own with little to no cost.
The process went smooth enough. But then days after the release of my ebook, a friend of mine said he’d buy a copy but not an ebook since he doesn’t read books digitally. I’d had previous experience with CreateSpace from a NaNoWriMo “win” where I won up to five free paperback copies that I figured, what the heck, why not. There’s no set-up charge. The only fee is the cost of the book and shipping. I spent an entire Saturday reformatting my ebook for a paperback and by the following Thursday I held the very first proof copy of my book.
I found some errors and fixed them, ordered another proof copy, and then approved my paperback print on demand (or POD) book. I had a physical copy of my book!
[image error]Now, there’s nothing greater than seeing your work in a physical form. To hold a book written by yourself with a custom cover is an awesome feeling. It also opened a ton of doors for me.
Because I had an actual book, people wanted to buy it from me so I could sign it. Family and friends showed a ton of support for me. I was also able to go to book signings and events. The first book event I attended was the St. Louis Indie Book Fair and later Con-Tamination, a sci-fi/horror/pop culture convention. I met other authors who’ve been super helpful to me and opened doors allowing me to attend other events with larger audiences.
All because I made a physical copy of my book.
Now to turn back to the pricing aspect of this, let me explain my process and conclusion.
[image error]By creating a higher priced POD book, it makes my ebook look much more attractive. Of course I’d love to sell a ton of paperback copies, but realistically, ebooks are by far the best selling versions. When a potential reader sees my book on Amazon, they see a box telling them how much they save by ordering the ebook. I’m good with that. Having a paperback copy allows the reader to feel like they’re saving money, which they are.
I also price my POD books slightly higher online than when I’m at a con or event. The reason is simple. I want potential readers to get a bargain from me in person and I’ll sign it for them. I want to give them some enticement for ordering from me right then and there.
As of this post, the paperback price online for my two collections of short stories are $10 each and my novel is $12. At events, I drop those to $8 and $10 respectively (with the added bonus of a free t-shirt if they buy all three!)
[image error]Compared to similar books, my prices are fair. I’d pay that for something like my books and as I mentioned in my last post, if I’m not willing to pay a certain price for something, I would never expect buyers to pay it. My costs have risen as I’ve added professional editing and custom art for my covers, but I’m already paying that for the ebooks, so why not add the paperback to the mix?
Paperback copies of your books are an excellent add-on to your overall strategy. They give readers buying choices and allows you to attend events, book signings, cons, and other opportunities where you can sell physical copies of your books to the reading public. With CreateSpace, you can also offer readers who buy your physical book online the opportunity to get the matching ebook for free, and who doesn’t like free?
I suggest you price them fairly with the end result of enticing readers to pick up the ebook. Of course, you may not want that in which case, disregard everything I’ve said!
What’s your strategy? Do you even offer POD books? Good luck and let me know your thoughts in the comments below.
June 19, 2017
Author Spotlight: Jay Shaw
Today I’m fortunate to present Jay Shaw, author of The Space Colonel’s Woman.
[image error]Hi Jay, thanks for agreeing to this interview. Tell us a little about yourself and your background?
Hi Jason, thanks for having me. I’m a New Zealand author, a mum of two teens, and a lover of books. I’m an incurable romantic who stays up early and sleeps in late, writes in bed, loves both action and romance movies, survives on a diet of M&Ms, bottled water, and steak with mushroom sauce. I have a passion for tall, dark-haired, military men in thigh holsters and combat boots, photography, baking, thunderstorms, bootleg jeans, and boots. My ultimate guest list for a dinner party would include: Queen Elizabeth I, Leonardo Da Vinci, JJ Abrams, Patty Jenkins, Jerry Bruckheimer, Jason Momoa, Ashton Kutcher, Michelle Obama, and Carrie Fisher.
How long have you been writing?
Five years now, though it wasn’t until last year that I published my first novel Wolfhaven – a paranormal action romance set in a world of feuding wolf-shifter packs.
What inspired you to start writing?
I’ve always been in love with the written word and the power it has to transport you to another world. It’s limitless, and the idea that with the turn of a page you can escape whatever life is throwing at you – even if it’s only for an hour or three – is intoxicating in the best way.
Tell us a little bit about your current project. Is it a novel, short story, or something else? Is it part of a series?
I have two current projects.
Limelight and Longing is the first of four movie star romance novellas in which Jenna Long meets actor Jacob Starr at a convention. The attraction is immediate and scorching, but neither is in a position to act upon it. It seems their connection will forever be chalked up to missed opportunity and fantasy. Until, eighteen months later when…
The Shifting Tide is the third full-length novel in the Dragonus Chronicles – my science fiction action romance series which hails the adventures, trials and tribulations, losses and loves of Brigadier General Mark Holden, Julia Holden, their family, and the inhabitants of Dragonus Galaxy. It follows on from The Space Colonel’s Woman, and The Hunted.
[image error]What genre do you prefer to write in, if any?
I prefer a mix of genres in my books, because I tend to get easily bored as both writer and reader. A story which has both action and romance within its pages has my full attention, be it on Earth, or set in another realm, universe, or dimension. I love the freedom of science fiction, the way my imagination has free rein to explore the endless possibilities.
What authors influenced you?
Wilbur Smith – his ability to plunge his readers into majestic sweeping vistas, while making us believe in the courage and determination of his characters.
Clive Cussler – all hail to his power of description, for his sexy rugged heroes and their taste for adventure, who allow readers to join the treasure hunt.
Diana Gabaldon – for proving a book doesn’t have to be just one genre.
Anna Hackett – at the top of my one-click-to-buy list. She writes action romance and sci-fi romance with such enviable skill and her characters live with you long after the story is finished.
What are you currently reading?
Diffraction – by Jess Anastasi
Brilliant, brilliant, brilliant! If you haven’t already you need to read her Atrophy series.
Do you write every day? A few days per week?
Yes, every day. The quality, however, isn’t always the best. But then you can edit a bad page, unlike a blank one. I keep pen and paper beside my bed and immediately on waking I’m writing. You know that space between sleeping and waking where all those fantastic perfect ideas and visualizations live? I can’t always decipher what I’ve scribbled, but it’s better to have it down than to forget forever.
Do you listen to music when you write? Does it influence how you write?
No. I listen to music while I’m editing. I don’t find it influences how I write, but after I’m finished I’ll notice the lyrics either reflect my story, or add extra depth; almost as if they’re the soundtrack.
How do you think your writing has changed from when you first started?
I love that our writing grows with our experiences. I’ve tightened it up. There are less ‘ly’ words, though I’m still fighting to eradicate ‘had’ and ‘that’, lol. I think the more we get to know our characters and the worlds they inhabit, the better we get at telling their story and crafting their journey. It becomes our journey as writers and I think that’s the most obvious when starting a series from the beginning. You travel with not only the characters but the author as well. And I think by the time you reach the end, you’re part of an enduring friendship.
[image error]How do you create the covers for your books?
I have a mental vision of what I want the covers to look like. Then I send a tonne of stock images to my designer and hope like hell she can translate them into gorgeousness using her artistic genius. Choosing a designer is the hard part. I recommend Googling and checking out their portfolios until you find someone who mirrors your own creativity, then having a chat to see if you’ll work well together.
Are there any non-literary influences for your writing (movies, actors, music, etc)?
Hell yes!
I grew up with such influences as Star Wars, Star Trek, Indiana Jones, MacGyver, Battlestar Galactica, Romancing the Stone, Wonder Woman, and Tour of Duty. Then along came Stargate Atlantis, Jupiter Ascending, and The Dresden Files. Everyday heroes standing up for what is right against intimidating odds, finding great love and fighting to keep hold of that love while their world around them heaped danger and adventure on them. An environment where they can prove themselves, can grow and learn who they are inside, and use that knowledge to gain victories. Without struggle there is no strength, without strength there can be no triumph.
Where can we purchase your current book? What about previous books?
All my books are available from:
Ebook: www.amazon.com/Jay-Shaw/e/B01CXLFUMG
Where can we find you online?
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JayShawAuthor/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/jayshawauthor
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/15094075.Jay_Shaw
Pronoun: https://books.pronoun.com/jayshaw/
Amazon Author Page: www.amazon.com/Jay-Shaw/e/B01CXLFUMG
What is your favorite book and why?
To write: is always the one I’m working on because I’m immersed in those characters and their story.
To read: is a much harder choice and I’d never be able to narrow it down to just one. Here’s my top five:
Valhalla Rising – by Clive Cussler
The Burning Shore – by Wilbur Smith
Pillars of the Earth – by Ken Follett
Voyager – by Diana Gabaldon
Plus anything by Anna Hackett, Jess Anatassi, Veronica Scott, and Sarah Madison.
Do you have an excerpt from your current work you’d like to share?
“Black Wing eight, clear and headed for uploaded coordinates.” She radioed while staring out the canopy at a squall of vibrant cobalt, lime, and fuchsia clouds, and the blink of golden stars, smeared across the vast ink-black ocean of uninhabited space. Julia understood the concept of a nebula, but to see one in reality; sheer brilliance and scale dwarfing anything that dared to challenge it, was awe-inspiring.
“Acknowledged, Black Wing eight.” Major Walker, Second Helmsman for Columbus, answered in her ear. “Initiate Flight Evasion Sequence one, under Subsection A.”
Julia accessed the menu on her display, loaded a program similar to the flight simulator Stephen and Lieutenant Colonel Dawson created for Phoenix City’s glider training program.
“Initiating Flight Evasion Sequence one, confirmed.” A red AIA icon waited at the base of her display while the F490’s radar matrix registered the outer rim of the Solaris asteroid belt with soft pings and a rash of white dots.
“Black Wing eight, you’re cleared for commencement. Black Wings four, seven, and twelve you’re on a sixty-second staggered start. Confirm.”
“Copy, Columbus Flight, Black Wing eight commencing simulation. Wings out.” Halo and the other pilots radioed their confirmations in her ear as Julia accelerated her AIA through the Heaven’s Arch.
It was breathtaking. Black Wing eight cut through the soaring cotton-candy clouds like a samurai sword through the finest silk. Julia’s wrist didn’t ache as it had after her teaser flight with Halo, proving Black Wing eight was born for space. The inertial regulators didn’t compensate for all the Gs as they cut swathes through Solaris’ luminescent layers of gas and dust, but the push-pull on her body sure added to the thrill. Static scratched in her ear, making Julia wince as Black Wing eight plunged from auroras of bright color into the midnight chaos and lightning storms of the asteroid zone.
Despite the lack of telepathic communication between her and her craft, Julia was lost to the addictive power and graceful beauty of a CobraF490 in her natural element. The two of them flew together in a symbiotic union of style and speed; an osmosis of motion. Black Wing eight translated Julia’s subtle stick-twitches into breakneck swoops, spiral-dives, arcs, and last minute wing-tip turns around, over, and between, the stately avalanche of colossal planetoids.
Lightning struck from on high in lethal stabs, one-two-three, and Julia gasped; blinked through the livewire echo on her retinas, to haul Black Wing eight into a vertical climb. Her display bleeping with virtual panic as rock debris the size of houses and aircraft carriers cascaded through their previous position, down into the abyss beyond. Bright gold stars streaked by as the excess Gs held her into the seat. Adrenalin licked cool and addictive over every inch of her skin, kick-started her heart and sent it racing. She whooped in delight; thighs tensing to contain the surge of heat pooling low in her belly. Only one other thing ever made her this hot, this primed. And stuck in his office, half a system away, her General was totally missing out. Julia crowed on a bubble of pleasure as she rolled before executing a smooth forty-degree sweep between two massive asteroids and streaking toward the co-ordinates where Columbus waited with her time score.
The Shifting Tide – Dragonus Chronicles III, Jay Shaw
Any parting words for writers?
Write what you want to read.
Pay for a professional cover.
For every story there is someone somewhere waiting to read and love it.
Go with your gut. If it feels wrong it usually is.
Enjoy the ride.
June 12, 2017
Indie Author Pricing: Ebooks
When you purchase books, what are you honestly willing to pay for an ebook?
Recently I had a lively discussion with fellow authors who participate in the Heggerwood Showcase (If you don’t know what that is, check it out here). The topic was ebook pricing. From that discussion comes the topic of this post.
Let me start off by saying I am not expert. I’m not a best-seller. Heck, I’m barely a seller at all! However I do have two qualifications that inform my thoughts on this topic.
First, I work in sales. I have for the last sixteen years. I’ve seen what works and what doesn’t. I know what a customer is willing to pay, what they’re willing to hand over their hard earned cash for. I understand they need value for their money. I get it.
Secondly, I’m a reader and consumer myself. I know what I’d pay for something. I have my limits. More on this in a moment.
As an author, especially an indie author who has total control over costs and pricing, how do you determine what to charge for your books? In particular, ebooks, though paperback POD books play a role in this as well.
Let me start with ebooks.
When I released my first book (Almost) Average Anthology, I decided the initial selling price was going to be $1.99. Did I feel it was worth more? Of course! We all think our work is worth more and it should be. We spent a lot of time and effort creating these worlds for others to enjoy. However, I had several things to consider.
What were other books like mine selling for? Would anyone plunk down more than $1.99 for a collection of odd stories from an author they don’t know? Would I? Obviously my answer was no, I wouldn’t pay more than that. I also chose the $1.99 price point so I had at least a little wiggle room to go down in price when the time was right or if I was going to run a promo. I could also run a discounted pre-sale enticing would be buyers to grab it for .99 while they could before the price went up. I did the same with my second collection of dark fiction short stories Moments of Darkness.
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Though neither book tops any charts or blazed new trails, I felt justified in my pricing strategy. I wasn’t scamming the buyer. I offered the books at what I felt were reasonable prices. Prices I would pay and felt comfortable with.
I’ve done the same with my novel The Selection. I offered it at a pre-sale price of .99 before going to it’s standard, and higher, price of $2.99. Because it was a longer piece, I felt comfortable with the higher price and it’s something I would pay for an ebook, especially by an unknown author.
I can hear you asking now “What about your costs? Don’t you want those covered so you can make a profit?” Ahh…good question. And this is where I differed from some of my fellow authors.
Let’s go back to (Almost) Average. My costs on that were almost nothing. I didn’t hire an editor. I created the cover myself, and I formatted the ebook myself. The programs I used to create the book were already on my computer. I didn’t buy anything special. So for that book, my expenses were pretty low.
For Moments of Darkness, I did hire an artist for the cover, but that was my only cost. I edited and formatted that one myself as well. In terms of cost/price, I should have charged more to recoup my costs. But I didn’t.
[image error]When I decided to release The Selection, I hired an artist for the cover and I hired an editor. There was no way I’d release a longer piece like that without having it edited. You may hate the story or think it’s bogus, but you won’t be able to crush me on the editing. So with this release, I had the most cost associated with releasing a book which seems to indicate I should charge a lot more.
But that’s not my line of thought.
Sure I want to recover my expenses, however there’s a threshold consumers are not willing to part with their money. I know, I’m one of them. I’d love to make tons money on my books, I mean that’s what selling is all about, right?
The approach I’m taking is different. I don’t want immediate repayment of my costs (well, yeah I do) but what I really want is a growing base of readers looking for my work as I continue my career. I want long term growth, long term success.
If I priced my novel at $4.99 and sold enough I’d get my costs covered, but how long will that take? How many people are willing to drop that much on an unproven commodity? I wouldn’t. I can’t expect others to just because I have expenses.
Book buyers are a weird lot (I say that with the utmost respect for my readers. You guys rock!) I’m one of you. I buy books too. There’s a line I won’t cross to buy a book. I have a difficult time spending more than $3.99 for an ebook by a big name author like Stephen King or Brandon Sanderson. Why would I spend that kind of money on an author I don’t know? I’m big on supporting indie authors, we’re in this together. But when I feel gouged with a $3.99 price point for something that’s maybe 100 pages long–nope, not gonna buy it. I understand you’ve got expenses but in sales, sometimes you have to go in the negative before the positive arrives. You have to be willing to spend money to make money.
For now, my thought on pricing strategy is this: Get as many readers interested in me as a writer for the long haul. I won’t price a book higher trying to recover all my costs as fast as possible. It’s a numbers game. If I can sell ten .99 ebooks to your one $3.99 ebook, my readership will dwarf yours. That’s what I’m going for–more readers. Do I feel it’s worth more than .99? Sure do! But to the reader willing to part with their money for a little known author, I have to make it enticing enough to earn their trust and deliver on that with the writing. If I’ve done my job well, they will stick with me.
In my next installment, I’m going to cover POD paperback pricing. Come on back for that.
Let me know your thoughts. Am I off base? Is my strategy wrong? What would you do? How do you price your books? I’m open for an honest and constructive discussion so we can all learn from each other.
June 11, 2017
Last Day for the Promos
Today’s the last day to get all three of my books at a discount.
So far, the promos have been working as The Selection peaked at number 30 in it’s main category and Moments of Darkness and (Almost) Average Anthology have both cracked the top 20 in their respective main categories! Woot woot!
Please share the word today, as these deals end tonight!
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I’m humbled by all the support I’ve received. So many bloggers and authors have shared my info and I want to thank each and every one of you!
To those who’ve picked up any of my books, I thank you. Having you read my stories is an amazing, terrifying, and crazy experience. I hope you enjoy your time in my worlds.
So…the deals end today! If you’ve yet to get your copies, please do so before the prices change. Feel free to share with anyone that might be interested.
Thanks again for everything! You guys rock!
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