Ruth Ann Nordin's Blog, page 20

Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff (A Post for Writers)

Don’t let others steal your joy by baiting you to pursue things that ultimately don’t matter.
Photo credit: ID 184622111 © Iryna Kuznetsova | Dreamstime.com

Over the twelve years I’ve been publishing ebooks, I’ve gotten a lot of feedback on my books. And most of the time, I’ve noticed the things one person hated, another person loved.

For example, I’ve submitted a few books to contests in the past, and the judges offered conflicting feedback. One person said that it would be better if I went with simple dialogue tags like “said” and “replied” because readers will focus on what is actually being said in the dialogue rather than the tags that come with the dialogue. But then, I’ve had another person say that using the dialogue tags “said” and “replied” are juvenile.

Another example is my humor. Some people say they laughed their way through the entire book and that it was a great read. Then other people say my humor is immature and stupid, and the book sucked because of it.

I’ll give one more example. I had a heroine in a story who wasn’t a virgin. She regretted her past, and she hated the fact that she couldn’t change it. Through the hero’s love, she learned that her past didn’t have to define her future. While this book is a romance, my message in it was that we can overcome any mistake we’ve made in the past. Some people loved this message since it gave them hope for their own situation. Some people didn’t like this book because they thought the hero was a wimp since he so easily accepted her as she was. One person even said she’d never read another book I ever wrote because my heroine should have been a virgin.

I have yet to write a book that pleases everyone. At the time of writing this, I have 103 books and 6 short stories available. The biggest lesson I’ve learned in all of this time is that there will never be a perfect book. There will always be something that will turn someone off from your writing.

So, what do you do?

In my opinion, the best person to make the final call on what happens in your story is you. That goes for anything. Whether to use dialogue tags or not, whether to use weird humor or not, whether to go in a certain direction with a character or not, or anything else that goes into the writing of your story. Sure, check your grammar and remove as many inconsistencies and typos that you find. When it comes to the other stuff, however, there’s nothing you can do to satisfy everyone. You’re going to have to make decisions on what to do and how to do it.

I guess if you’re writing to market, then what you can do is take a person or two you trust from the pool of readers in your market and get their opinion. Writing to market is not about the author writing the story according to what the author wants; writing to market is writing the book according to what the reader of that market wants. If you get the help of too many readers, you’ll find that they disagree on something in your story. That’s why I think it’s best to limit how many readers you listen to. This has to be a reader who understands what your market wants. Advice coming from a reader who prefers a different genre isn’t going to help you.

But if you’re writing for passion, you are the final authority on everything. You don’t need to consult anyone. Your biggest struggle will be keeping all of the criticisms out of your head, which is hard. Sometimes I have to step away from the computer and take a walk in order to silence the inner critic. I also find it helpful to ask myself who my character is, what the character wants, and what the character is willing to do (or not willing to do) to get it. Then I use this information to advance the plot. I don’t insert myself into my characters. My characters might share traits in common with me, but they are not me. That’s why a lot of them do things I wouldn’t do. We need to think of our characters as real people and let them tell us who they are instead of us injecting ourselves into them. That’s how the story will work best.

Some readers will like the course of the story, and some won’t. Some readers will love your voice (the way you tell the story), and some won’t. Some readers will love your character for any number of reasons, and some won’t. Some readers will love the nuts and bolts of your writing (past vs present tense, dialogue tag usage, character point of view, etc), and some won’t. No matter how small the item is, you will find someone who doesn’t like it if you get enough readers.

That’s why it’s a pointless endeavor to try to write a book that will satisfy everyone. Don’t sweat the small stuff. Just sit down and write the best book you can. If you’re writing to market, write it for the reader of that market. If you’re writing for passion, write it for yourself, knowing that others who enjoy your vision will enjoy it, too. The main thing is you finish the book and get it out there.

Good and Bad Luck

While writing The Cursed Earl, I have had to research quite a bit into the topic of good and bad luck. My hero is a firm believer in good and bad luck, and this affects him and the other characters in this story. Since I found some of the stuff I learned to be interesting, I thought I’d make a post about it.

The stuff applies specifically to European concepts of good and bad luck since the hero is in Regency England. I also couldn’t include everything I came across. There is a lot of superstitions out there. The stuff I mention below is what ended up in the book.

Good luck:

If a bird poops on you, it’s transferring its prosperity to you.

You wear a garment inside out for good luck, but it’s only good luck if you keep it on that way all day. If you do it by accident, it’s even better (but still remember to keep it that way all day).

A horseshoe over the entryway is luck if it’s turned the right way up. (If the horseshoe is the wrong way, it brings bad luck.)

If the bride and groom don’t see each other before the wedding, then it’s good luck. This goes back to a time of arranged marriages. The idea was that if the bride and groom saw each other before the ceremony, then they’d get cold feet and bolt for the door.

Wedding bells were considered to bring abundance and prosperity. Ringing the bells in a church was believed to ward off evil spirits.

Throwing birdseed at a wedding is said to bring fertility to the married couple. This tradition actually goes back to the ancient Assyrians and Egyptians. The Romans later used this tradition, too. They didn’t throw birdseed. Usually, they’d throw wheat or rice. Somewhere along the way, a myth came about that when birds ate rice, the rice absorbed all the water inside the birds and caused the birds to explode. Birdseed was encouraged for this reason.

It’s good luck for the husband to carry his wife over the threshold. There are a couple of reasons for this. One is that the groom didn’t want his wife to trip and fall. But in Medieval Europe, it was believed that evil spirits tried to go with the bride into the house. When the groom carried her over the threshold, the evil spirits couldn’t latch onto her shoes. Also, in ancient times, men would abduct women and take them into their homes. Since the women fought them, they had to carry the women over the threshold. (In the book, our hero carries the heroine over the threshold so she doesn’t trip or fall.)

Oddly enough, black cats are good luck in England. Such isn’t the case in the US.

A clover with four leaves is good luck because the four sides stand for faith, hope, luck, and love.

If you carry an acorn with you, it’s said to protect you from illnesses, aches, and pains. If you are sick, it’s said to speed up the recovery process and relieve pain.

A rabbit’s foot is lucky, but it has to be the left hind foot. Rabbits are seen as symbols of fertility and abundance. Now I know why my mom used to use the phrase “multiply like rabbits” when someone had a lot of kids.

Absentmindedly rocking an empty cradle means a baby is on the way.

Planting a leek in the house prevents the house from catching on fire.

Bad luck:

If you come across a funeral procession, it’s both bad luck and hastens death. The only way out of this is to hold onto your button. If you can avoid the procession altogether, that’s even better.

If you don’t hold your breath while passing a graveyard, you could breathe in the spirit of someone who recently died. (As a side note, if you don’t cover your mouth when you yawn, you risk an evil spirit entering you.)

Seeing an owl in the daytime means there will be a death.

Dreaming of a baby being born means someone is going to die. I had a friend in college who believed this.

A horseshoe without nails is considered bad luck. This goes back to Irish folklore involving Saint Dunstan. He was a blacksmith. Legend goes that the devil came to him looking for a horseshoe. Dunstan used iron nails to secure the red-hot horseshoe to one of his hooves, and it caused the devil so much pain, he begged Dunstan to remove it. Dunstan agreed to remove it so long as the devil promised to never enter a place where a horseshoe hangs above the door. The devil agreed and left. So that’s why iron is important in good luck with horseshoes. (As an aside, iron is also said to ward off fairies in Irish folklore. I learned that while writing An Earl In Time.)

Ravens aren’t lucky, per se, but if you see two or three together, things are going to get really bad.

Feathers of a peacock in the home is bad luck. The Evil-Eye on the feather is associated with wickedness.

Green is good luck UNLESS it’s Scheele’s Green. Back in the 1770s, a Sweedish chemist by the name of Carl Scheele created a greenish-yellow color that became known as Scheele’s Green. It was pretty popular in Europe. Unfortunately, this color had copper arsenite in it. This color was used in wallpaper, clothes, candles, and even children’s toys. When these items got damp and were allowed to mold, the arsenic was vaporized and released into the air. This ended up killing people, and many think Napoleon died from it.

Had to Move Back Publishing Months on My Books

This has been one heck of a summer. It started in the spring when we found out a family member had terminal cancer. There were visits, of course. The funeral was in July. During this time, I was taking the kids in for eye exams and dental exams to get them ready for school. I enrolled my youngest back into school since he misses being with his friends. Then for the past two weeks, I’ve been sick.

As much as I tried to keep up with The Cursed Earl, I wasn’t able to do it. I’m almost 60,000 words into the book, and usually I would be close to the end, but this story line is longer than what I usually do. I’d rather not rush the ending just so I can have it out in November. I want to make sure I give this story everything it deserves.

I don’t know when I’ll be up to writing again. Because of that, I have decided to push back all of the books in my writing schedule. That way, I don’t stress out over trying to resume my writing schedule before I’m physically up for it. Below is the new plan.

Interview for a Wife (Nebraska Prairie Series: Book 3) will be out September 25

Thankfully, before I got sick, I was able to get this all finished up. This is the last book I’ll be able to publish this year.

The Cursed Earl (Marriage by Necessity Series: Book 2) has been moved to January

At the moment, I have January 9 down for it. I really hope this is the last time I move this book back.

The Loner’s Bride (Wyoming Series: Book 4) has been moved to March

I put this in for March 13.

Suitable for Marriage (Husbands for the Larson Sisters: Book 3) has been moved to May

I have this set for May 15.

Heiress of Misfortune (Marriage by Necessity Series: Book 3) has been moved to July

This is now set for July 17.

Secret Admirer (Marriage by Obligation Series: Book 1) will be moved back to September

At the moment, this is set for July, but I’ll move it to September next month. On the Smashwords dashboard, I can’t post a pre-order longer than one year out.

I want to have a historical western out next November.

My hope is to write Daisy Larson’s book in this slot, but I haven’t come up with the idea for her story yet. I might have to put something else in this slot.

What an Author’s Life is Really Like

I saw an article from a celebrity who was talking about what being a celebrity is really like, and it inspired me to write this post.

1. Most people don’t recognize an author in real life.

No one in my town knows that I write until they ask me what I do for a living and I tell them. They’ve never heard my name. They haven’t seen me on social media. They haven’t seen me on online book retailers even though some are avid romance readers. Authors don’t have to worry about being approached in public to have someone autograph their book. I mean, it would be fun if this happened, but so far it’s never happened to me. And I’ve sat at tables at events where I have my books on display and most people aren’t interested in my autograph then, either. I can even offer a paperback for $5 (which costs me $12.99 to buy) or offer a “buy one get one free” option. For anyone wondering, I did originally set the price at $12.99. I wasn’t looking to make a profit off of those books. I was looking to get more exposure in the local community. It was a total wash. Very few people (even romance readers) show any interest. This is why I no longer waste my time at these events. If you’re not a well-known name like Stephen King or Nora Roberts, most people don’t care about you.

The best place to engage with people is online because those people are more likely to give the average run-of-the-mill author a try. Most authors aren’t household names. Most fall into the land of obscurity. Even authors who make a “six-figure income” are largely unknown since even I had no idea they existed until another person brought them to my attention. It’s just the nature of the business. With the amount of books available, it’s easy to get lost in the crowd. That’s both a good and a bad thing. It’s good because you are given privacy, but it’s bad because it’s harder to find an audience.

2. Most authors aren’t making a “six-figure income”.

This is the myth that annoys me the most because it’s the one touted the most in the author community. Authors have a tendency to act like if you’re not bringing in six figures, your advice isn’t worth listening to. A lot of people out there don’t make six figures at their jobs, but they aren’t shamed the same way authors in the indie author community are. Can you imagine us telling teachers that their views on education is not important because they aren’t making a “six-figure income”? Or would you tell a mechanic he has no right to give you auto advice if he makes anything less than “six figures”? But we do this to authors all the time.

Not everyone needs to make six figures in order to be happy or to make a living. If you don’t have debt, if you can live below your means, and if you are in an inexpensive area, you can easily make it on less than six figures. It’s all about maintaining a modest lifestyle. You do need to mindful of taxes, of course. (I didn’t realize this early on and had to sell a truck to pay my taxes. To this day, I still miss that truck.) An average rule of thumb I go with is about half of your income should be set aside for taxes, but it’s not really that high. You have to talk with a qualified accountant to get an idea of the exact percentage you need to pay. This percentage will change based on new tax policies that are implemented in any given year. But once you factor in your taxes and if you keep your expenses low, you can make it on five figures.

Also, you don’t need to be a New York Times or USA Today bestselling author to “make it”. Is it a nice perk? Sure. Any achievement is nice. I’m just saying that hitting a bestselling list isn’t a requirement to make a living with your writing. I’ve never made either list, and I’ve been making a living writing since 2012. There were a couple of people who said that they would never buy my books unless I did hit one of those lists, but fortunately, most people don’t think this way. So if you’re afraid you need to hit the list in order to be seen as a “real” author, don’t be. Writing a book people want to read is the most important thing you can do.

3. Authors aren’t always as confident in their books as they appear to be.

Around 2008, traditionally published authors in my romance group said, “You’re only as good as your next book.” In other words, all it takes is for one bad book to ruin the enthusiasm people have for your work. I think most people will forgive one dud, but if you continue to write “meh” books, you’re going to end up losing readers.

This is why every book comes with a great deal of pressure. It’s also why I end up thinking of the market even though I strive to write for passion. With every book I write, I end up asking myself, “How will people perceive this scene? Will people like this character? Should I go back and change something? Maybe I should go in an alternate direction with this story.” It’s hard to stick with passion. Like really hard.

Every author wants everyone who reads their book to enjoy it. We know it’s not a realistic expectation, but there’s a part of us that still tries. When the book is published, there’s often that sense of dread that says this is going to be the book that completely tanks the writing career. This is why reviews can hit us so hard when they point out a book’s flaws. The only way I can think of to combat this is to keep reviews and emails on hand from people who said positive things about our books. Go to those as often as you need to.

4. Most of the conflict an author will encounter comes from the writing community.

When I got started with publishing my books, I had this naive belief that all authors would support each other. I thought that our love of writing would trump everything else. I thought the biggest obstacle would be readers not liking our books. I expected the negative emails and negative reviews. I figured that was par for the course. What I didn’t realize was how much negativity would come from other authors. My biggest critics are writers. My biggest supporters are readers. Writers read to find errors. Readers read to enjoy the book. Every time a writer says they’re going to read one of my books, I want to run and hide.

Probably the biggest source of conflict, however, comes from writing groups. I love being in writing groups because I learn about the publishing world and get marketing ideas from them. So the writing community can be resourceful. But some of the groups are hotbeds for arguments. The problem comes in when you decide to engage in debates within the author community. Stuff like writing to market vs writing for passion or KU vs wide can spark an argument that will go on for days. Some writers end up resorting to putting down others they don’t agree with. There are also smaller things that can cause surprising arguments, like “white or cream” paper for one’s paperback or uploading books to individual retailers vs letting a distributor like Smashwords or D2D take care of that for you. Then there’s the hypocrisy I’ve noticed. For example, if a relatively unknown author in the indie community does something wrong, it gets blasted all over the place, and that author is heavily criticized. However, if a well-known author in that community does the exact same thing, most authors will run to defend the action. So the authors making the most money can get away with anything simply because they’re “more important” in the community.

My advice is to tread lightly when arguments pop up. Some writing groups I once enjoyed descended into an atmosphere of toxicity. I had to end up leaving them. There’s enough negativity already going on in the world. I don’t need to taint my enjoyment of writing along with everything else. That’s why I ignore the drama unless it’s something that poses a threat to the future of indie publishing, such as if an author tries to trademark a commonly used word or if an author is stealing other people’s work. Stuff like that should be addressed in order to keep things fair for all authors. But getting caught in things that ultimately don’t matter aren’t worth it. Sometimes it’s best to let things pass through.

5. An author’s family and friends are not always their biggest fans.

For the most part, my family and friends never read my books. I had a father-in-law and uncle-in-law who read some of my books, but they’re dead now. My family and real life friends have no interest in romance. Now, I did acquire some real life friends who like my books, but I met them after they became interested in my books.

So this idea that an author’s family and friends are buying their books, leaving lots of glowing reviews about those books on Amazon, and are sneaking into reader groups to promote those books isn’t true. I see this myth getting circulated quite a bit. I have yet to come across an author whose family and friends are their most ardent supporters. The authors I know are in the same position I’m in.

The truth is, we have to slowly develop a readership. We can run ads, but we have no idea who sees the ads or who buys our books because of them. We can set up websites, blogs, and social media accounts to develop on online presence, but we have no way of knowing who is seeing any of it. Ultimately, the best form of marketing is word-of-mouth by people who love our books, and that’s something we have no control over. We depend on the kindness of strangers.

6. To get books out on a consistent basis, authors have to write even when they don’t feel like it.

This idea that authors get to wait around for their muse to inspire them before they write is a myth. This is a challenging job. It’s not easy to put words down when your mind just isn’t in it that day. I don’t put out as many books as some, but I do have a routine that I adhere to as much as possible. This isn’t easy when unexpected things pop up or when a spouse/kid wants your attention. A lot of people seem to think that when you’re at the computer, you’re just playing around. Unfortunately, for every interruption I get, it takes 5-15 minutes to get back into the story I’m working on, and no matter how many times I explain this to my family, they don’t care.

The biggest challenge in an author’s life is getting the book done. I’m in the mood to write about 50% of the time. On the other days, I trudge through it. Usually, when I get past the first 500 words, things get easier, but there are those days when every single sentence is like pulling teeth. There are days when I want to walk away and never write again. To better your chances of making a living with your writing income, you have to be consistent. I aim to get a book out every other month. I’ve seen too many authors take a year off only to realize they can’t pick up where they left off. They were once making a living, but they don’t anymore. There seems to be something that happens in extended breaks that ruins their career. Maybe readers got impatient and stopped following them. Maybe retailers shifted algorithms in a way that made them a lot harder to discover. I know a new book gets more attention at a retailer than an old book does. There are authors who get one book out a year and manage fine, but they’re doing other things to bring money in, such as offering courses, making You Tube videos, or running a lot of ads. They have other venues of making money. For authors like me, who don’t have other venues, the next book is extremely important, and you can’t go too long between book releases.

That’s why I have learned strategies to write while feeling exhausted, to push through times when the story isn’t coming easily, and to finish my current book when I’m itching to start the next. I think people assume writers are always typing away with a lot of enthusiasm, but the truth is, we’re often fighting the urge to hop online to do something else. Discipline is key. The routine is not easy to stick with. But it’s like exercise. You don’t get in shape by waiting to feel like working out. You get in shape because you work out even when you’d rather stay in bed. Routine is extremely important.

****

That’s all I can think of for what an author’s life is really like. Are there any authors out there that have something to add that I missed?

Updates on What I’m Doing

Lord Edon pulled it off! I won’t spoil how he did it, but he managed to keep his membership at White’s and get even more respect from the other gentlemen. I honestly didn’t think it would go the way it did. I thought this would have to go into the next book in the series, but as it turns out, he said a couple of sentences that got him out of trouble. As Lord Clement told him, I don’t think anyone else could have pulled it off.

As for Charles Duff, he is convinced that a certain side character is going to murder Algernon (our hero). I was chuckling through the scene today as Charles was telling Eris his plans to rescue Algernon. She had the good sense to insist he includes her brother (Byron who is a Runner) in his plan. That will minimize the “trouble” Charles will cause.

Meanwhile, things are going well for our hero and heroine for the time being. That’s going to change in a bit, but in the end, we’ll get to our happy ending

It turns out as soon as Katie decided she’s going to marry Jeremiah, he never had a chance. It’s just a matter of time before he gives in. She’s subtle about it. He has no idea she’s already picked him. Today, Katie told one of the older children at the orphanage she’s going to marry Jeremiah. She made the child promise not to tell anyone, and this particular child won’t.

As a side note, the child is Pearl. Does anyone remember the baby Jeremiah found in The Rancher’s Bride as he was searching for Abby? This is the same Pearl. I thought it would be fun to show how things turned out for her.

Erin is finally coming around to falling in love with our hero. She just doesn’t realize it yet. Alex realized that following her all over the place like a lovesick puppy wasn’t working in his favor. As they say, the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result. Thankfully, he figured out he had to change tactics, and it’s been working in his favor. I like Alex. It’s hard not to root for him. The book is turning into a cute romantic comedy.

I don’t think Erin is going to come out and admit her feelings. I think she’s going to have to be forced into a marriage somehow. But I could be wrong. I’ll just have to keep writing to figure this one out.

In case anyone wants to put this on pre-order, I have it up across all retailers. It’s due out September 25, and, as usual, I’ll announce this book’s release on the day it comes out.

This finishes up the Nebraska Prairie Series.

   

This is the book about the widower with two children who is in a wheelchair. I didn’t go heavily into this for the bulk of the book, but the hero doesn’t feel like a complete man so there is a little difficulty he has when it comes to the bedroom. The heroine’s first husband died, but he blamed her for their bad marriage since she was barren. I’d say of all the books I’ve done so far, this one has a tone similar to Eye of the Beholder, except both the hero and heroine are dealing with insecurities.

Here are the links if you’re interested in it:

Amazon US

Amazon UK

Barnes & Noble

Kobo

Apple

Google Play

Smashwords

I Will Never Have a Single Book in KU

I’m in a bad mood at the moment, so this is a rant I need to do in order to get something off of my chest.

This morning, I decided to put one of my books at free across multiple retailers because, as the author and publisher of my books, I have the right to do that. One thing that I love about Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple, Google Play, Payhip, and Smashwords is that if I want to do something with my book, they never ever give me any grief about it. They are so easy to work with.

Amazon, on the other hand, is a nightmare. I hate Amazon. Amazon is great if you’re a customer, but if you’re an author, it totally sucks.

I can’t help it if Amazon won’t let authors who aren’t in KU price their books to free. The lowest I can put the books at is $0.99. It’s up to Amazon to price match. That, in itself, is a source of frustration since it hinders my rights as author and publisher to effectively price my own books.

But what really grinds my gears is that Amazon consistently sends me the “prove you’re the copyright holder of your own book” email even though the book has been over in that KDP dashboards for years. For YEARS. Some books they’ve made me prove ownership of copyright have gone as far back as a whole decade.

So anyway, this morning I got an email from Amazon, and in this email, they threatened to remove the book I just priced to $0.99 (since I put it free everywhere else). Why? Because they noticed similar content already out there on the internet.

Well, duh. It’s NOT a KU book. This is a book that is wide. That means I can take the book and publish it wherever I want. I don’t have to be beholden to the Amazon gods who have the right to demand exclusivity.

I get that this is an automated email I received. Something flagged the book in the system. So no human actually looked at this thing. The email came to me within an hour of changing the price.

But really, how difficult would it be to have someone over at Amazon to look through this stuff BEFORE sending an email demanding proof of copyright? I mean, Amazon’s had record profits over the past year. They’re getting bigger, not smaller. They have the money to pay people to check things over before threatening an author over something.

I am sick and tired of being harassed by Amazon. These types of emails where they demand I prove copyright pop up 1-2 times a year. Meanwhile, the same company is so lenient when it comes to allowing so much theft to flourish over there. Between ebooks, paperbacks, and audiobooks, I’ve had to battle thieves about 5 or 6 times now. This is why I spend money to register my copyright with the US Copyright Office. About twice a year, I’m having to pull out the copyright letter to give them my registration number in order to get the thief’s book removed or to prove I have the right to change the price or description or even the content of my own work.

The book they’re currently demanding that I prove that I own the rights to has been out for three years. In the email, they demanded to know the publication date, along with other proof. All someone at Amazon has to do is look in my dashboard to see when the book was uploaded. Since I do pre-orders, the dashboard shows when I uploaded it for pre-order. It was before the book was released. Who but the actual copyright holder would have the entire book uploaded before the book was released? Then they can also check the actual file to see if it’s the same book that is on other retailers out there.

In the email I just sent them, I was professional. I answered their questions and presented my copyright registration number. But I was tempted to get really snarky with them because I’m tired of being branded as a criminal when I’ve done nothing wrong. And I’ve been targeted multiple times. I guess someone could argue they target me since I’ve reported theft several times in the past. But before they jump the gun, they could at least check my dashboard to see if there’s a valid reason to threaten to remove my book from their site.

I don’t care how much money I’m leaving on the table by not being in KU. Being exclusive with this company is not worth any amount of money. I’ve lost $100K a year in Amazon income by staying wide, but it’s been worth it. Some things are more important than money, and freedom and peace of mind are two of them. I’ve been steadily working over the years to put myself in a financial position where I don’t have to give a flip about how much Amazon brings in for me. I never want to be dependent on Amazon for anything.

That is why staying wide this entire time has paid off. When Amazon launched their exclusive KDP Select program back in 2012, I didn’t go in. I stayed wide. When Amazon launched KU, I stayed wide. In my gut, I had this feeling that I would be glad I stuck it out. That feeling paid off today. I am so glad I learned to be content with making less money with my books. I’m living proof you don’t need a “six figure income” to be happy.

When that email came in this morning, I wasn’t scared they might remove the book. I wasn’t scared because my financial security doesn’t depend on Amazon. I will stop writing before I let Amazon have any power over my writing career. Thank God for places like Smashwords and D2D that make it easy to distribute books wide. (Retailers like Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Google Play, and Apple allow authors to publish books directly to their site, and I do use Kobo and Google Play for this, but it’s been easier for me to use Smashwords and D2D for most of it.) I am grateful to Mark Coker at Smashwords for leading the way in true author independence. I think Smashwords launched in 2008, but I didn’t publish anything over there until 2009. Smashwords is what opened the door to being on sites like Barnes & Noble and Apple without having a traditional publisher. They paved the way for authors like me to be on multiple retailers, so we’re not all dependent on Amazon.

If you’re an author who wants to be in KU, that’s fine with me. All I’m saying is that it’ll be a cold day in hell before I go into that program. If people don’t want to read my books because they aren’t in KU, that’s their right. If you’re a reader who is hoping I’ll eventually go into the program so you can read my books, then you should find authors who are in there because I’ll never be there. I can’t stomach Amazon. They make me want to vomit. I’m staying wide with every single one of my books forever.

When You Might Want to Plot a Book (A Post for Writers)

While I write by the seat of my pants, I realize this technique doesn’t work for everyone. So, today while I was browsing possible things to learn on Skillshare, I thought of the possible things a person might teach about storytelling. From there, I remembered a conversation I had years ago with a new writer who was stuck in her story. It happened so long ago, I don’t remember the details, but I did wonder if I recommended plotting.

Below I’m going to discuss reasons why you might want to plot your book.

1. You can’t complete the story you’re writing.

At some point, you might get stuck somewhere in the story you’re writing. This is normal. It happens to every writer who’s written enough books. Often, we know how things begin, and sometimes we know how they end. But the middle part is what leaves us scratching our heads, wondering how we’re ever going to finish the story.

This is a good time to sit down and outline everything you’ve done so far. If you know the end, go ahead and put that down. After you’ve done all of that, determine if you’re happy with the progression of the story up to the part where you got stuck. Are you happy with it? Then keep it. If something feels “off”, go back through each scene and see if you can pinpoint the scene where things got less exciting for you. Usually, this is your trouble area. Most of the time, when I get stuck, it’s because I had the characters do something that seemed good at the time but ended up taking the story in a direction that sucked. Going through each scene is an excellent way to find the trouble area. Then you can change the scene and see if that puts you on the right track. Sometimes it helps to brainstorm multiple changes and outline how the rest of the story goes with each change you make. Compare the changes and pick the one that gets you excited.

But let’s say you are very happy with everything in the story up to the point where you got stuck. What then? I recommend writing down a list of choices available to your characters. Think of every possible action available to them and how those actions will impact what happens next in the story. When you exhaust all of your ideas, I suggest taking a break. Take a walk. Watch a movie. Talk to a friend. Give your mind time away from the story to rest. Since the goal is to finish the book, you don’t want to take a long break. I would recommend no longer than a week. Too many books go unfinished because authors never get back to them. When you come back, look at your ideas. If you’re still stuck, pick Choice A (the option that appeals to you most) and see what happens. If it turns out you don’t like what happens in the story, go back and pick Choice B. Then Choice C. Etc.

If you are still truly stuck, talk to someone you trust (preferably someone who likes your genre) and get their opinion. This should be someone who is willing to sit down and brainstorm ideas with you. The key is to pick just one or two people. If you ask for too many people, you’ll get too many opposing viewpoints which will leave you frustrated. As much as it sucks, you might end up finishing a story that just isn’t going to be your favorite. I’ve done a little over 100 books in all, and I’m not thrilled with how every single one went. I’m 100% satisfied with most of them, but there are those that I just tuck away and never read. Thankfully, my core reading groups enjoys them. If you can’t please yourself, at least look to please your readers.

2. You’re afraid you’ll forget to add something later that you think will impact the story in a meaningful way.

This doesn’t require a plot for the entire book. I think this is more like notes you’re putting down so you remember what to add later when the right scene comes up. I do this all the time. It works very well with a panster. I have a writing journal where I’ll just mark down small things (action or dialogue) that I want to add later. When the right part comes up, I slip it in. This technique works great and doesn’t spoil the fun of discovering the story while you’re writing, so it can work with pansters and plotters.

3. You won’t be writing this story for a while, and you don’t want to forget it.

You can’t finish your current work in progress if you start writing the new shiny idea you just had. You will need to keep devoting your time to the current story. But if you’re afraid you’ll forget all of the fun and exciting stuff that makes you eager to write the next story, then you can give yourself a couple of days to plot out this next book. That way when you finish up the current one you’re writing, you haven’t forgotten all of the stuff you want to do with that next book.

This one doesn’t necessary require a thorough outline. It could be a basic statement about the book or even a book description. Maybe you’ll want to add some notes of what you’d like to see happen in the story. But if you feel let to make an outline, run with it. Go on and let it all work out on the page. Then when you’re done, put it aside and go back to the current book. I know it’s hard to get back to the other book. Whenever I hit the mid-point in about 90% of my books, I get bored and want to do something new. This is why I write three books at a time. But you have to push through the “this is no longer exciting to me” phase. I’ve found that when I stick to the story and keep writing it, I’ll get my enthusiasm back. It’s just a matter of discipline.

The downside is that when you do finish the current work, you might not be as excited about that shiny new idea. (I’ve been there, too.) But usually once you start the story, your enthusiasm starts to pick up for it. You just have to be consistent.

4. You want to make sure you have no loose ends when the story is done.

In this case, you’re outlining the story as you write it. You may want to add notes of different plot points you want to resolve by the end of the story. Once you resolve that particular plot point, you can put a check mark so you know you’re done with it. That leaves you free to concentrate on the other loose ends you need to wrap up. I’ve done this a couple of times in the past. Even pansters can find this one helpful.

Of course, you can always write out a full outline of the book with as many details as you want. If that helps you process the plot points better, you should do it. Some people think better when they list everything out.

5. You need to work backwards.

Sometimes you know the end of the story before you know the beginning. In this case, try plotting backwards. You can go from the end to the climax of the story then the scene that leads to the climax and the scene that comes before that.

Basically, you’re forcing your mind to consider what logical steps lead to the ending of your book. Ask yourself, “How do these characters end up in this particular situation?” As you keep working your way back, you have to constantly ask how your characters ended up where they did in each scene you develop. And on and on you go until you’re at the beginning.

You can always fill in blank spots if the answer doesn’t come to you right away. Say you know that at some point in the story, the villain revealed some particular information that makes a character do something during the climax of the story. Mark down what the villain said then look for the right place in the book where this villain gave the information. Making notes of something you need to put into an earlier scene somewhere in the book might help you get more ideas to get you to the beginning. When you’re done, go from the beginning and see if the outline makes sense. If the progression through the story flows naturally, you’re ready to write the story. If the progression is “off”, then look for how you can make the progression flow better. This is a time when you can brainstorm different ideas and play them through like I mentioned in point #1.

***

That’s all I can think of for reasons to plot a book.

Is there anything I missed? If you plot, what is your strategy? Are there any tips you’d like to share in case someone who wants to plot reads through the comments on this post? Feel free to share anything that’s on your mind.

Updates on What I’m Doing

Interview for a Wife (Nebraska Prairie Series: Book 3)

This will wrap up the books in the Nebraska Prairie Series:

   

I’m currently debating whether to leave in a particular scene or cut it out before I finalize this book. What I think I’ll do is edit the scene out and read it over to see if I like it better or not. My goal is to get this finished by August 1.

I’ll have this ready by September 25.

The Cursed Earl (Marriage by Necessity Series: Book 2)

These are the books in the Marriage by Necessity Series:

I originally thought I might make a Book 4 to add in this series, but I would rather have Lord Quinton, whom I introduced in this book, as the hero for the next Regency series I’m going to do. His story will be much better there. So Heiress of Misfortune will finish up this series.

The plan is to get The Cursed Earl out in November. I was hoping to bump that up to October, but there’s been so much going on around here that it’s not going to be possible. The good news is that I hit the 40,000 word mark today, and I know where I’m going in the story. That helps to make things move along.

The Loner’s Bride (Wyoming Series: Book 4)

Books in the Wyoming Series:

I am steadily moving along in this one. I got to 22,000 words in this today. That means I’m probably only 1/4 of the way in. This one is due out in January. I have to admit that I was intimidated as I got started in this book. I wasn’t sure how I was going to get Jeremiah and Katie to be attracted to each other, but I’m happy to say that this turned out to be easier than I expected. Katie was attracted to him right away, and after watching him teach some of the orphans how to set traps, she got to see how much he knows about survival and how well he works with kids. Now she’s determined to marry him. (And if you read The Rancher’s Bride, you know Katie is the kind of character who keeps going after what she wants until she gets it.)

Now I just need to get an idea of how I can get Jeremiah to overcome his reluctance to be with her because of their age difference. He’s convinced that Katie is better off with someone close to her age, so even though it’s bothering him, he is acting as her chaperone while she meets the bachelors in town.

On another note, the widows, who are helping with the orphans, are a hoot in this story. I think they might provide some comedy along the way. And who knows if they’ll help “nudge” Jeremiah toward Katie? That would be a lot of fun.

Suitable for Marriage (Husbands for the Larson Sisters Series: Book 3)

Books in the Husbands for the Larson Sisters Series:

  Book 4 To Be Placed Here

I finally got to the point where Erin is starting to like Alex, although she doesn’t realize it yet. I have some things to do before she’s ready to admit it. But in the meantime, things have been pretty funny. The humor in this one is more subtle than it was in Perfectly Matched.

I suspect Daisy (the youngest sister of this bunch) is going to end up helping Alex get Erin, which would be a fun since her goal at first is to help Erin get Alex to find someone else so he’ll leave Erin alone. Though Daisy isn’t a main character in either this book or Perfectly Matched, she’s turning into one of my favorite characters. She just says whatever is on her mind, and it cracks me up. I have no idea if she’ll be this fun as a main character when it’s her turn to have a romance, but she’s been great as a secondary character, even if she is a little conceited.

My plan is to have this out in March. At the moment I’m 26,000 words into this book. I figure that I’m nearing the halfway point. Things are going to start turning in Alex’s favor pretty soon.

An Earl In Time is Now Available!

This is a standalone romance.

I typically do series, but I thought for this one, I’d stay within one book because I’m not sure if I’ll end up doing more fairytale romances or not. Part of it depends on whether people like this type of romance or not. As much as I believe in writing for passion, I do take people’s wishes into consideration.

Willow Knudson just inherited an English estate that she intends to sell. There are two problems. One, she’s unable to sign the contract, and two, she can’t even leave the property. She’s not superstitious by nature, but common sense tells her something strange is going on.

In 1817, Julian Azazel, the Earl of Blackwell, went to his country estate to tend to his father’s funeral. That evening a missive came from a stranger warning him that when the clock struck midnight, he was going to be cursed to relive the same day. He laughed it off and threw the missive in the fire. Two centuries later, he’s no longer laughing. The curse is real.

From before they were born, Willow and Julian were destined to meet on June 17, 1817.

Willow had assumed wealthy and titled gentlemen would be snobs, but Julian turns out to be the kindest person she’s ever met. And even better, he’s more attractive in person than he was in his portrait. It’s enough of a temptation to convince her to stay in the past forever.

At long last, the aching loneliness that has plagued Julian’s life for centuries is at an end. Not only is there someone who understands what he has been going through, but she’s far lovelier than he recalls any of the ladies in London being. But isn’t it selfish to ask a lady from another time to give up everything to live under a curse with him?

The path to happy endings can get complicated, especially when magic is involved.

This fairytale romance features a dark villain, a curse, fairies, a hero who is an earl from the Regency era, and a heroine from modern times. People who enjoy Grimm’s fairy tales and romance will enjoy this tale of true love conquering the darkest of curses.

If this sounds interesting, here are the places you can find it:

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

Kobo

Apple

Google Play

Smashwords

I Figured Out the Missing Piece for The Cursed Earl!

Marriage by Necessity Series:

   

I’m not going to post any spoilers, but I just figured out how this whole curse came to be.

I was originally thinking the story was going to head in a certain direction, but as I was writing a scene, I thought, “You know, instead of going this way, what about doing this other thing?” The other option is way better. I’m excited about it. I don’t know how many people will see it coming. Since it would spoil the book, I won’t give it away. I’m just hoping someone out there will be surprised. I’m sure some will figure it out before the “big reveal” moment.

One thing that has been a challenge about this book is working with a superstitious character who is obsessed with good and bad luck. I’ve been tying in the Regency and Victorian superstitions in with the plot. I’ve had to let quite a few ideas go because they didn’t fit with the superstitious stuff, and that has helped to shape the story. It’s why I had some trouble coming up with the origin of the curse and how things will play out. It’s not a fairy tale or fantasy, so I have to go with a logical explanation for everything. I think I got it all smoothed out.

I should issue a warning. I originally thought this book might be on the comedic side since the hero sees good and bad luck in just about everything. I had Don Knotts “The Ghost and Mr. Chicken” humor in mind when I started this book. But things didn’t go in that direction. This is actually turning into a more serious kind of story. It’s tone is similar to A Perilous Marriage. I have a feeling that Heiress of Misfortune will be the same way, even though I thought that was going to be funny, too. The more I think on the plot for Heiress of Misfortune, the less funny it gets. I don’t think these books are dark, but some people don’t like it when murder is involved in a romance, so I thought I’d just give everyone a heads up.

There is a secondary plot that I’m not sure will find an adequate resolution in The Cursed Earl. This is Book 2 in a series, and there are times when it takes more than one book to resolve a secondary plot. In this case, the secondary plot is the truth of Lord Edon’s past coming out. (Everyone is going to find out he wasn’t ever a rake.) Mr. Christopher Robinson tried to stop the truth from getting out, but it’s all over White’s. At the moment, the gentlemen in White’s are debating whether or not to revoke Lord Edon’s membership.

During the course of the debate, I was able to bring up the wager between Davenport and Pennella in His Reluctant Lady (Marriage by Scandal Series: Book 3). I later wrote about this wager in The Earl’s Secret Bargain (Marriage by Deceit Series: Book 1). Christopher was the one who blabbed it to Agatha in order to get into her good graces. She, in turn, reported it in the Tittletattle. That’s how London found out about it. It also caused a lot of trouble at White’s since the wager became null and voice. No one successfully pinned down who blabbed the wager (though we all know). I suspect Lord Edon might end up taking the blame for the wager being exposed, and as a result, he’ll be thrown out of White’s. In all of this, I see an unlikely ally coming to Lord Edon’s defense, and if that happens the way I think it will, that will be a lot of fun.

It’s possible that things won’t get resolved in Lord Edon’s favor in The Cursed Earl. We might have to wait until Heiress of Misfortune to resolve everything. What I do know is that everything will eventually work out for Lord Edon. I love Lord Edon. He and Christopher Robinson are my two favorite Regency characters. I can’t leave Lord Edon in a bad spot forever. Part of the happy ending of my books are making sure my favorite characters continue living their happily ever afters, and this includes their reputations. So even if things are not looking good for Lord Edon at the end of The Cursed Earl, it will by the end of Heiress of Misfortune.