E.A. Copen's Blog, page 8
April 1, 2016
Another One Bites the Dust: My Publishing Journey
A long time ago, I wrote a book and it sucked. All first drafts do, of course, but this one…This one was terrible. It was full of backwards letters, misspelled words and really bad crayon art. But it was mine. It was something that I created and could hold in my hand. It was my…
March 24, 2016
Top 10 Facts You Didn’t Know
Because it’s exactly a week before Guilty by Association releases, I figured I’d do a fun blog post talking about the book itself. After a few attempts, I decided on a top ten list. I’m a big fan of such lists and when I’m bored, that’s often the corner of YouTube I get stuck…
March 17, 2016
Constructing Two Sentence Plots
Has this ever happened to you? You’ve had a great idea for a new book. Over the last few weeks, months or maybe even years, you’ve sat day after day pounding away at the keyboard, trying to get the story out. But something’s not quite right. The story seems aimless. Your protagonist and antagonist just…
March 12, 2016
Marketing and Book Swag
Book swag. Marketing material. Promo items. They’re all basically the same thing: ways of advertising without putting up a giant “BUY MY BOOK” sign. For authors and readers alike, it’s a win-win situation. When done right, the reader gets something really cool that they can enjoy and use repeatedly. Meanwhile, the author gets some passive…
March 3, 2016
You Are Not Your Book’s Bitch Either
I’ve had the flu for the last few days which means I didn’t get to write as much as usual. Forced to lie in bed, utterly useless to my family, friends and clients, I was left alone for long periods of time with nothing to entertain me except my thoughts. You know what I thought…
February 26, 2016
Fever Dreams
I’ve been afraid of zombies ever since I was a kid. I’m not sure why but they’ve always been my brain’s go-to monster of choice when it wants to express something dangerous or scary in my dreams. I’d say the number one thing I have nightmares about is my inability to protect my children from…
February 18, 2016
Grave Beginnings Review
Vincent Graves is a problem solver with a problem. He’s a spirit who hops bodies and solves cases assigned to him by the mysterious Church but he doesn’t remember anything about who he is. While he’s been on many cases before, he knows this one is different from the beginning. A short time limit, a…
How to Find an Editor
I’ve mentioned before that wonderful group of online writers I belong to. That group is on Facebook and is an unofficial community for participants in the annual November writing event, NaNoWriMo. During the month of November, thousands of novelists around the globe plant their butts in chairs and try to bang out 50,000 words or…
February 17, 2016
How to Edit Your Manuscript on a Budget
Since I’ve started telling people that I was publishing a book, one of the most common questions I get is how I did it. People want to know what steps I took to get where I am. It’s like it’s a big secret. No one knows how to get from finished product to market. A…
February 16, 2016
Author Interview
So I had the privilege of being interviewed by Mercedes Fox. It was pretty fun and should be insightful. My book isn’t technically out until April 1st but I do have a few wonderful people reading through it right now. Just in case you’re on the fence about reading it or not, you should check…
