Misty Zaugg's Blog - Posts Tagged "litrpg"

Hi friends,

I'm in Vegas at a huge conference of independent authors and totally loving it!

There were so many presentations and workshops to go to that I'm overloaded on information with tons of new business ideas, not to mention the tips on how to improve my stories!

But the most fun part of the whole experience was meeting other authors! Some, I instantly clicked with and others, I've been enjoying their stories for quite a while, so I'm a bit of a fan-girl asking for a picture.

Here are just a few of the amazing people I met:



Left to right: Me :) , Kyla Stone, Boyd Craven, Franklin Horton, JJ Pike, and Jay Falconer.

An awesome line-up of post-apoc authors spoke to us about their careers, advice for writing and where they see the future of the genre going.

Apparently it's going to continue to grow as more people explore what it would be like and how characters could react to hard times ahead. :)

Here are: Dakota Krout, Ramon Meija, Michael Chatfield, Eric Ugland, Matt Dinniman, & James Hunter



I was so excited to meet a bunch of incredible litrpg authors as I begin writing in the genre. Dakota ran this panel of top authors like a game show, points and all. The winner? Eric Ugland! :)



And I finally met my FB post-apoc author friend, Barbara Gilbert, in real life. She was kind enough to always save me a seat and made me feel welcome!

I think authors are such a fun bunch of people, even if we occasionally get all geeky about things like story structure and Amazon ads.

And now . . . after over a month of being away from home, I'm really excited to get back and see the family!!!

I've never been away this long, which makes me think of all the sacrifices those in our armed services make. May God bless them and their families!

How about you? What's the longest you've been away from your family? Hopefully you'll be together for the holidays.

All the best!

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Misty's Writing Update:

Want to guess if I got any writing done while at the author conference in Vegas . . . ?

LOL.

Of course, not!

Some authors here did, but I figured this was an amazing chance to learn more about the business, and even better, get to meet other authors like me.

If you've ever had a hobby that isn't super common, you know what I'm talking about. You explain details to friends or family, and their eyes sort of glaze over as they make small nods, obviously being polite until you finish.

But when you find a fellow enthusiast, you both practically gush fountains of words, because you've finally found someone enthusiastic, who understands.

That's what it's like at this conference. "KDP Countdown deals, how to get a Bookbub, click-through rates, best blurb practices, pantsing vs. outlining" . . . we talk and talk about all kinds of author terms because we've finally found our 'tribe'.

Hopefully, this will help me become a better writer and business woman, so I can bring you even more awesome stories!

And without all of you, none of this would be possible, so thanks again for supporting me in this still new-feeling venture of being an author.

You're the best!

— Misty :)
Misty Zaugg Website

Hi friends,

First, thanks so much for all your responses and feedback on last week's question about the tortoise (slow and steady gains for a character) versus the hare (immediate rewards and fast action) types of stories.

The overwhelming preference by almost all of you was . . .

The tortoise!!

I totally didn't expect that. I thought you would split more evenly, but you all like characters who struggle to overcome obstacles before reaching the prize.

A few mentioned they also enjoyed "hare" stories but mostly as an addition to the "tortoise" stories.

I hope that bodes well for my newest story and Pax's struggles at the beginning.

Speaking of my latest book, I have an exciting announcement today:

I finally did it!

I got over my vacation hangover, did a bunch of editing and posted the first chapters of my latest book on the web serial site: Royal Road!

And check out the final cover! What do you think?



Awakening Horde - Shieldwall Academy Book 1

If you head over to Royal Road and are feeling generous enough to leave a rating, review, favorite or follow, it makes a huge difference when the story is brand new. You just need to register for a free account to post - so, thanks!!

Many of you probably haven't even heard of Royal Road, but if you read sci-fi, fantasy or litrpg, it's a goldmine of great stories to read . . . and all for free!

So, why would I post a story on a free website when I'm trying to turn this author gig into a livable income?

Well, this is an experiment in an alternative or addition to publishing with Amazon that I've been working toward for the last year or so.

How does it work?

The idea is to post chapters to Royal Road regularly for people to read for free. (I'll be releasing every T, Th and Sa once I'm done with the 35 chapters I'll be posting in the first two "launch" weeks.)

As readers enjoy the chapters, they comment, review, follow and favorite, which grows the number of people reading and following the story.

But where does the money comes from?

The answer is Patreon!

Patreon is a website that allows fans to support their favorite creatives so they can continue to write, draw, paint, etc.

You can explore my Patreon page here to see what I mean: M. Zaugg's Patreon

Generous readers chip in some monthly money on Patreon and in return, they usually get access to chapters ahead of time, bonus content, to interact with the author, make suggestions, etc.

Finally, authors can remove the beginning of the story from Royal Road in order to publish it on Amazon. Then the author could keep writing the newer books on Royal Road while pulling off enough of the earlier content to publish on Amazon too.

And that's the whole process, though I'm sure I'll learn a lot of new things as I get going.

If you're curious how this new venture is doing after just a couple of days, here are the Royal Road statistics for Awakening Horde as I'm writing this newsletter on Thursday (9/8):

• About 500 views of the various chapters of Awakening Horde.
• 21 readers are following it.
• 3 reader favorites.
• 2 reviews with a 5 star and 4.5 star.
• 1 - 5 star rating.
• ~10 or so comments.
• and 2 amazing and generous readers have joined Patreon at the $10 level!

I'm pretty excited by the initial success, and you can see by the numbers above that each follow, rating or review counts for a ton this early on - so thanks to any of you who help out!!

Did my explanation make sense? Ask me if you'd like more details on the process - I'm happy to get as nitty gritty as you'd like and keep you updated.

Plus, I'm excited to get back to the fun part - writing more!

As always, I'm so grateful for your support. You are the reason I keep writing stories, especially those of you who take the time to write back, post a review or send me kind feedback.

You're the best!

— Misty :)
Misty Zaugg Website

Hi friends,

Quick update: My latest book, Awakening Horde, has had an amazing first week on Royal Road!

Thanks a ton to those of you who went over and left a rating, review or comment. It's still new enough that each one makes a big splash.

It even made it on the top 50 "Rising Star" stories list. Can you tell I've got a big grin here? :D

Top 50 Rising Stars on Royal Road

If you missed it last week - here's the cover and link:



Awakening Horde - Shieldwall Academy Book 1

But lets move on from fantasy novels to real life.

Have you ever planted kale in the spring, intending to eat a little healthier, only to have a bumper crop you don't know what to do with?

I have a super easy way to not only save it all, but to make it painless to include in your diet.

Check out these pics and instructions:

Step 1: Pick it all and rinse it off. (you can leave the small center leaves on the plants, if you want more to grow)
Step 2: Pack it into the dehydrator and turn on low. It will shrink a lot.
Step 3: Once dry, crumble on a clean counter and remove any long stems. Hint: Should look like peppermint tea.
Step 4: Pack into a mason jar and store somewhere dark and cool

Step 5: Add a tablespoon or two to your next smoothie or a 1/4 - 1/2 c to your next pot of soup, stew or curry. (Here's a yummy vegan Garbanzo coconut milk curry I made this week)


There are a couple awesome points to this process:
1. You get all your leafy greens harvested and preserved in a day or two - depending on drying time.
2. Very easy to grab and add to dishes = easy nutritional boost.
3. YOU CAN HARDLY TASTE IT!!

Ok, I had to put that in all caps.

As long as you drink your smoothie relatively soon after blending it, the kale doesn't have enough time to completely rehydrate = no bitterness and very little "green" taste. The kids are very happy, once they get past the look of pepper-sized green flakes in the drink.

And while it has more time to rehydrate in soups and curries, it still is a much milder green flavor than when chopped and added fresh.

If you try this, I'd love to hear how it turned out.

Maybe try a green smoothie this week with your next enjoyable book.

— Misty :)
Misty Zaugg Website

Hi friends,

A bit of sad news hit our family this week. My husband's father passed away. He was an amazing man, father of nine who worked hard and always had time to help out when someone needed him.

I'm writing this early as we'll be headed to the funeral this weekend where we will celebrate his life with the rest of the family.

So, maybe take an extra moment today to show a little love to the important people in your life. :)

I also have a short writing: My new book is going crazy on Royal Road and already bringing in a nice chunk of income to support further writing:

First, thanks to any of you who popped over to check out my new book on Royal Road and leave a kind review.

So far, there are 550+ people following the story and 52,000+ views of all the chapters! Not only that, since last week I climbed up from the #40 slot to #10 on the Rising Stars list.



Awakening Horde - Shieldwall Academy Book 1

It's so fun to see readers commenting, giving me feedback and encouragement. Some are helping me find typos. Others are dissecting the magic system and giving me suggestions. I don't even mind the small number of critical comments because they all give me a peek into what readers want in their stories.

And the money, you ask? Is this going to be worth it from a business viewpoint?

Well, as of today, Wednesday, 42 generous readers have already pledged a monthly amount (the majority $10 each) on my Patreon Page to support my writing.

In return, they can read twenty chapters ahead of the free Royal Road website and have fun helping an author continue to write the story they're enjoying. Win-win!
Minus fees and Patreon's cut, it's already a very healthy income for a single book, and it doesn't look like it's going to slow down any time soon.

Ratings make the biggest impact on Royal Road, so feel free to hop over, binge read a few chapters for free, and share with others what you think of the story. I’m send you a virtual high-five! :D

I'll be back early next week, and I appreciate your condolences and kind words. Family is very important to all of us and it is always sad to lose someone who's had such a great influence.

However, I’m comforted by my belief that families can be together after this life and look forward to seeing my father-in-law again someday.

I hope you and your families are doing well!

All the best,

— Misty :)
Misty Zaugg Website

Hi friends,

Thank you for your kind words of condolences! The funeral was an amazing celebration of my father-in-law's life, his service in the military, to his church and most of all to his family. Beautiful!

I also have to say thanks for all the great support for my new story over on Royal Road. For those who are curious about the business side of it, there are already 80+ people supporting the story with a monthly payment on Patreon.com. Way more success that I ever expected after only three weeks!!



And finally, let talk about cinnamon!

You know how medicine is supposed to be nasty and bitter? Healthy vegetables are often the least liked? Well, now you can eat something totally yummy and extremely healthy.

Cinnamon - the yummy herb!

With just a half teaspoon or so of cinnamon a day, you can reap a bunch of the following benefits:

• Diabetes: Cinnamon slows down the amount of glucose that enters the bloodstream after a meal. It also is very effective at reducing insulin resistance. Plus, many studies show it lowering fasting blood sugar. These studies use between a half to two teaspoons a day.
• Heart Disease: In addition to helping diabetes (a big risk factor for heart disease), cinnamon also helps lower bad cholesterol and improve blood pressure.
• Anti-inflammatory: Helps reduce the body's inflammatory response that can lead to auto-immune illnesses.
• Anti-oxidant: Fights the oxidative damage caused by free radicals. It's pretty high on the list and even strong enough to be used as a natural food preservative.
• Other possibilities (with less evidence): May help with cancer, neuro-degenerative illnesses and infections.

Not all cinnamon is created equal:

Choose Ceylon (true cinnamon) versus Cassia (most common) if you can. It is readily available online if you can't find it in stores.

Ceylon has stronger health benefits and less of the dangerous coumarin content found in cinnamon (don't overdo the cinnamon!),

Ideas for adding to your diet
• Sprinkle on yogurt, cereal, trail mix, toast, smoothies, etc.
• Add a bit to Indian or other savory dishes as a flavor enhancer - pairs well with curries.
• It comes in capsules if you'd like to standardize your intake.

So, next time you open your spice cupboard, see if cinnamon would work with what you're fixing.

I'd love to hear what herbs you regularly use for health or medicinally so I can feature them in future newsletters. Let me know!

May you have a healthy week with something good to read!

— Misty :)
Misty Zaugg Website

Hi friends,

I got some fun ideas back from you about how to include cinnamon in a daily diet, including from Lynne who combines it with chocolate and pumpkin pie spices in her coffee machine.

I don't drink coffee, but chocolate with cinnamon and pie spices sounds delicious all on it's own or with a fruity herbal tea. Thanks for the suggestions!

In writing news, I have to say I'm pretty excited by how well this latest venture is going. Not only is it continuing to grow, but I hit two milestones on the same day this week.

Here are a couple of recent comments over on Royal Road about Awakening Horde:

"I like this story. It's got a great mix of ideas and is both fresh and familiar to me." - PumaDErik

"This is the best story on RR I've read in a while." - Nonalith

"Very excited to see what is next." - Winzzy

Cool, right?

My Royal Road experiment is chugging right along and gaining momentum!

And what are the two very encouraging milestones that both happened on Wednesday?

I reached 100 Patreons who have subscribed to support the new book!

Check out my Patreon Page

And the same day, my total income for the book since starting this experiment in early September reached $1500!

This is pretty amazing and quite the confidence booster to know that so many readers are willing to chip in a little toward keeping me writing.

I've been doing this writing gig for just over four years now and while it has brought in a bit of money here and there, it hasn't been super encouraging once I divide it out by how many hours I've put in.

So, more a labor of love, rather than a possible living wage.

But with this latest book going so well, it might just turn into something that could support full time writing.

So, for any of you who have taken the time to buy a book, write a review, or even just click a rating to boost visibility of one of my books, thanks!

May you enjoy a good book this week and support an author!

— Misty :)
Misty Zaugg Website

Hi friends,

I love fall, but winter . . . not so much.

I recently decided that the amazing colors of fall are like a last party before the cold and grey skies of winter settle in.

Check out these trees - one near my church parking lot and the second in a nearby neighborhood. Just gorgeous!





I hope you find time to enjoy nature regardless of the season in your neck of the woods!

Also, with the holidays coming soon and my writing time getting more and more scarce, I've decided to scale my newsletter back to the 1st and 3rd Fridays of the month instead of every Friday.

Please let me know your favorite types of articles and tips, and I'll make sure to do more of those.

Today's excerpt is from Deadly Lockdown, the first book in the completed Escaping the Virus trilogy:

"Kate's gaze moved to the bank of screens that had the crowd's attention. She wasn't close enough to see or hear details, but the grim-faced news anchors and numbers scrolling past on the bottom of the screen didn't bode well. She felt her pulse quicken."



Deadly Lockdown by Misty and Steph

Check out how Kate and Alyssa survive the fast-paced disease sweeping the US and find their way back to each other.

And finally, if you're curious about how much I've made in the first 6 weeks that Awakening Horde has been on Royal Road, read on!

Show me the Money:

Unlike someone like Brandon Sanderson or JK Rowling, most authors don't make a ton of money.

Plus, the new breed of independent authors wears a lot of hats. Their first goal (after finishing a book) is usually to earn enough to cover costs like editing, paying an illustrator for a cover, newsletter service fees, etc. The obvious final goal would be for writing to bring in a living wage and do it full time.

I'm somewhere in the middle of that. :)

My latest venture on Royal Road is still doing well, but the initial burst of interest has slowed by quite a lot. Now, I need to put on my marketing hat and work to get the word out more.

But is it worth it?

I'm happy to say that the 142 generous supporters over on Patreon have donated just over $1,800 so far, which has covered the expenses and made a big dent in the future $3k - $5k needed to produce an audiobook.

It's a pretty decent start, especially considering the book will still go up on for Amazon readers to purchase in the future.

If you're one of my fans who went over and commented, left a 5-star review or plunked down $10 on Patreon to help out - you're amazing! Every little bit helps!

I hope you enjoy seeing a bit of the inside life of an author. Let me know if you have any questions.

Enjoy a good book this week!

— Misty :)
Misty Zaugg Website

Hi friends,

Thanks for the brilliant responses to the mental health tip last week. I got some great ideas from your emails to add to my list for future newsletters. Keep them coming!

Also, I'm a bit sad to report that the amazing growth of my new story on Royal Road has slowed down considerably, now that it isn't new enough to be on the popular Rising Stars list anymore.

My next step for marketing is to learn how to use Discord. Some of you are going to laugh at me while others might be asking, "What's Discord?"

It's another way to communicate with people online, in a fashion similar to the old AOL chatrooms (for those of you old enough to remember - lol)

In any case, other Royal Roal authors hang out in Discord chats. So, if I can network with some of them, we can do a shout-out to each other's stories.

Just another day in learning the business of online marketing for authors. :)

In more exciting news, did you know about the amazing writing event that happens every November? Read all the details below:
____________________
But first, for today's excerpt - a taste of Awakening Horde, currently up to chapter 53 and free to read on Royal Road


Awakening Horde: Free to read on Royal Road!

"The sudden darkness felt better and worse at the same time. Without being able to see, Pax could imagine he was in a small room, safe and enclosed. Only he knew better, and his mind began imagining a variety of encroaching horrors sneaking toward them unseen from the vast cavern. The growing noises of a battle below them only made it worse."
____________________
And here’s a run down on NaNoWriMo:

NaNoWriMo: National Novel Writing Month

I know some of you are authors or may have always wanted to write a book.

Well, November is the time to do it!

This month, every year, aspiring authors across the world get together with a goal to write a 50k word novel in 30 days.

That's just under 2k words a day, which is my goal, since I don't write on Sundays. Not to mention that Thanksgiving is in November, so . . . :)

The fun part is, this event takes the often solitary process of writing and finds you a bunch of friends and tools to do it with. By signing up for free on the website, you can track your words, see your progress, read helpful forum posts, make friends to write with, get discounts and a lot more.

It's a great, supportive environment for a new author to push themselves. Also, a common hindrance for new authors is they get stuck rewriting that first chapter over and over, or spend hours tweaking the perfect plot or world. All of that keeps them from the most important part of being an author: writing more words.

NaNoWriMo helps with that.

So, jump in and give it a shot! Plus, feel free to add me as a writing "buddy". I'm listed under docmisty. I'd love to see some new friends write a book this month!

To more fun stories in the world!

— Misty :)
See all my books on Amazon here: Misty Zaugg Amazon Page

Misty Zaugg Website

Hi friends,

I'm out of town for a wedding and having a blast seeing family (my grandbaby!!) and helping out during this exciting time.

I have to admit, I'm a bit behind on my NaNoWriMo goal to write 50k this month, so I'll have to buckle down when I get back home next week.

However, I wrote 5 1/2 chapters last week, so that helps.

With Thanksgiving coming up next week, I hope all of you have a wonderful holiday and time with family!

My next newsletter will be Dec. 2nd since I've scaled back to the first and third Fridays of the month. As always, please email with any feedback, questions or just to say hi.

And for our prepping tip today, here are some ideas on stockpiling medication for emergencies:

Medications for Emergencies

Having plenty of food storage won't help someone who relies on a medication that runs out during an emergency.

So, here are a few ideas on how to get more than a 1-month supply to be more prepared.

1. Switch to a 90-day mail order supply. Most insurance companies offer 90 days at a time for long-term medications and this will give you a longer cushion should an emergency happen.
2. Ask for another 90-day prescription and pay for it yourself. With a cooperating physician, explain your plan to be prepared, perhaps a need to travel or other reason that you would like to have enough medication for a longer term emergency. Even if insurance won't cover the extra prescription, it might be worth it to you to get the prescription filled. (Note: You'll want to use a different pharmacy as the one who just filled the identical drug will usually balk at giving you another refill before it's due.
3. Save money: Try GoodRx - the app will give you a coupon and show discounted prices at local drug stores in the U.S. It's completely free and can often give you even better prices than your insurance does. I know it has for me!
4. Not super common, but: We recently changed medical insurances, and while going through the hassle of changing over all my medications from one 90-day supplier to another, I discovered a hidden benefit of the change:

I got all new 90-day bottles of my prescriptions, regardless of how much medication I had left from the previous supplier!!

So awesome! This gives me a much better cushion of medications should a long-term emergency happen.

I know that changing insurances isn't something that happens often, but if it does, make sure to get a refill of everything to add to your emergency storage.

5. Finally, I store medications long term by placing them in mason jars with oxygen absorbers and then in the back of my basement fridge. Freezing is usually not recommended.

How about you?

What plans do you have to help make sure you and your loved ones have the correct medications during an emergency?

Thanks for all your support and have an amazing holiday!

— Misty :)
See all my books on Amazon here: Misty Zaugg Amazon Page

Misty Zaugg Website