R.L. Geer-Robbins's Blog, page 14

Big Annoucment

 Day 14 of 365 days. 351 days left to go.

I feel like I have lived a year in the last two weeks. 2024 has been exhausting.

But here is my big announcement. After a lot of self-reflection, I have decided to pursue the traditional publishing route.

Why, you ask if I am getting traction in the self-publishing world?

One has to acknowledge and accept their strengths and weaknesses.

I cannot be flawless in the publishing world because I don’t know the publishing world. It is a daunting beast with a multitude of arms. And I don’t have the experience or knowledge to do it all, along with writing, having a family, and promoting myself.

I want experts to make my books great.

So there we have it. The Raven Society will continue to be available. I will tweak it to make it better, but I’ll take my shot and try to find a publishing company and agent who will represent me.

Thoughts? Concerns? Encouragement?

Never regret taking a chance, even if you fall on your face; It’s better to know you tried and failed than to wonder the great ‘what if?’

Devin Frye

Until tomorrow my friends, Keep Reading and Stay Caffeinated.

If tales of legend, myth, and fantasy topped with a cup of coffee interest you, I suggest checking out my book, The Writer and the Librarian. It’s a historical fantasy about a middle-aged woman faced with a decision: accept what is written in the history books or find out for herself the truth behind the stories. Limited edition copies are now available on my website (Shop – R.L. Geer-Robbins / Author (rlgeerrobbins.com) or at

Amazon: https://a.co/d/flQhakX

Barnes and Noble: The Writer and the Librarian by Rose Geer-Robbins, Paperback | Barnes & Noble® (barnesandnoble.com)

Target: The Writer And The Librarian – (the Raven Society) By R L Geer-robbins (paperback) : Target

And on any of your favorite Indie Book Store websites!

Current sales as of today= 31/1500

The post Big Annoucment appeared first on R.L. Geer-Robbins / Author.

Snippet from my upcoming book.

 Day 13 of 365 days. 352 days left to go.

Nothing profound or inspirational today. Just wanted to share one of my favorite parts of my upcoming book- The Witch and the Prophet. Sometimes, writing fantasy allows us to say what we shouldn’t say.

I joyfully await the exit- and I hope never to return.

Frida Kahlo

Until tomorrow my friends, Keep Reading and Stay Caffeniated.

If tales of legend, myth, and fantasy topped with a cup of coffee interest you, I suggest checking out my book, The Writer and the Librarian. It’s a historical fantasy about a middle-aged woman faced with a decision: accept what is written in the history books or find out for herself the truth behind the stories. Limited edition copies are now available on my website (Shop – R.L. Geer-Robbins / Author (rlgeerrobbins.com) or at

Amazon: https://a.co/d/flQhakX

Barnes and Noble: The Writer and the Librarian by Rose Geer-Robbins, Paperback | Barnes & Noble® (barnesandnoble.com)

Target: The Writer And The Librarian – (the Raven Society) By R L Geer-robbins (paperback) : Target

And on any of your favorite Indie Book Store websites!

Current sales as of today= 27/1500

The post Snippet from my upcoming book. appeared first on R.L. Geer-Robbins / Author.

Learning how to make t-shirts. What could go wrong?

 Day 12 of 365 days. 353 days left to go.

Real quick. I have something to tell you. You’re going to laugh.

My husband and I decided to make T-shirts for his company. As you all know, when you are part of a ‘world,’ t-shirts, stickers, and hats come with it. It doesn’t matter what your hobby or passion is, there will be a T-shirt.

Hell, half the time, I sign up for a 5k because I like the t-shirts.

So we took the plunge and designed t-shirts for his company. I was happy to let him take on the investment because I knew, at some point- I could use the equipment for my own company. Win-win.

Last night, as I was prepping three orders of limited edition copies of my books, he decided to ‘practice’ making t-shirts with our new state-of-the-art set-up.

In other words, we ordered a cricket.

Now we both watched the videos, read the blogs, and Googled the hell out of how to use it. And everyone made it look so easy. As long as you had a printer, a cricket, t-shirts, and a design- you too could become a profitable company.

They LIED!

Four hours later, we realized we didn’t have half the material we needed. He ended up duck-tapping the mock-up to his t-shirt to model what it ‘may’ look like.

It reminded me that nothing in life is flawless the first time around. I’m still tweaking The Writer and the Librarian because it’s not perfect. My youngest spends hours perfecting one eye in his latest painting. The snake breeding process is constantly tweaked by my hubby, who cares about making the process as efficient as possible.

And, of course, we always add another project to all of our passions. Even though we have zero time to add ‘one more thing.’

So wish us luck. We spent a hour last night in bed coming up with a schedule and a plan on how to prep the t-shirts for when the last needed part comes in.

I am going to have to hire someone to come in and clean the house for me soon….

I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.

Thomas Edison

Until tomorrow my friends, Keep Reading and Stay Caffeniated.

If tales of legend, myth, and fantasy topped with a cup of coffee interest you, I suggest checking out my book, The Writer and the Librarian. It’s a historical fantasy about a middle-aged woman faced with a decision: accept what is written in the history books or find out for herself the truth behind the stories. Limited edition copies are now available on my website (Shop – R.L. Geer-Robbins / Author (rlgeerrobbins.com) or at

Amazon: https://a.co/d/flQhakX

Barnes and Noble: The Writer and the Librarian by Rose Geer-Robbins, Paperback | Barnes & Noble® (barnesandnoble.com)

Target: The Writer And The Librarian – (the Raven Society) By R L Geer-robbins (paperback) : Target

And on any of your favorite Indie Book Store websites!

Current sales as of today= 27/1500

The post Learning how to make t-shirts. What could go wrong? appeared first on R.L. Geer-Robbins / Author.

My first Book Club meeting…

 Day 11 of 365 days. 354 days left to go.

I went to my first in-person book club meeting a couple of days ago. After work. In person. At night.

I think that alone should qualify me for some type of award.

I have never been to a book club meeting before. This is ironic because I have been invited to join this club every year for the last 10 years.

But I finally got the nerve to go and interact.

Here are my thoughts….

These women were friends; like friends-friends. They knew each other’s kids, husbands’ names, favorite food, jobs, and if they traveled somewhere for vacation.

I just found out my bestie was in San Diego over the holidays through social media.

Second- some of them didn’t read the book. That cracked me up. And they were unapologetic. They had found something else that sparked their attention and decided to forgo the book of the month. And no one cared.

Third- there were snacks. Every month, someone volunteers to make a dessert that matches the book and then shares it with the group. At snack time. Because there is an intermission during book club. Or what I affectionately call a potty break.

It reminded me of my childhood. Remember back in the days when if you read a certain amount of books every month, you got a free personal-size pizza? I loved those days. So yes, if you’re going to feed me, I will read any book you set before me.

Now on to the biggest surprise. They were brutal in their assessment of the book. I watched in horror as they gave their thoughts about the writing, the author, the plot, the words, the beginning, the middle, and the end.

They weren’t mean about it. It’s just that they’re brutal in their honesty. Even my mother said that if she could go back, she probably wouldn’t have selected the book. These lovely women picked apart the book with the hunger of a puppy at dinner time. And nothing they said was wrong.

All those times, I thought the reader wouldn’t catch a minor mistake; boy, was I wrong.

Am I going back next month? Hell, yes. It was so much fun. I wish that I hadn’t been surviving off of seven hours of sleep in six days, but I’ll make up for it next time.

So if you’re invited to a book club meeting, I think you should go! My only recommendation is that if you’re a writer- don’t submit your book.

Books are the plane, and the train, and the road. They are the destination, and the journey. They are home.

Anna Quindlen

Until tomorrow my friends, Keep Reading and Stay Caffeniated.

If tales of legend, myth, and fantasy topped with a cup of coffee interest you, I suggest checking out my book, The Writer and the Librarian. It’s a historical fantasy about a middle-aged woman faced with a decision: accept what is written in the history books or find out for herself the truth behind the stories. Limited edition copies are now available on my website (Shop – R.L. Geer-Robbins / Author (rlgeerrobbins.com) or at

Amazon: https://a.co/d/flQhakX

Barnes and Noble: The Writer and the Librarian by Rose Geer-Robbins, Paperback | Barnes & Noble® (barnesandnoble.com)

Target: The Writer And The Librarian – (the Raven Society) By R L Geer-robbins (paperback) : Target

And on any of your favorite Indie Book Store websites!

Current sales as of today= 21/1500

The post My first Book Club meeting… appeared first on R.L. Geer-Robbins / Author.

Indie Bookstore does not mean it supports Indie Authors

 Day 10 of 365 days. 355 days left to go.

I have seen an increase in support small business and down with major corporations, and I want to give my two cents on this topic as it pertains to Indie Authors.

First I need to say- supporting small businesses is great! I love family-owned restaurants. I love supporting local artists and vendors at pop-up art festivals. I enjoy getting to know other passionate people who are trying to make their goals a reality. I will go out of my way to order books from an Indie Author directly if that is their preference.

BUT…..

There is also the pesky issue that most authors are working to get their books into ‘big business.’ We want the support of agents and publishing companies to take our books to a new level and to the masses. And in most cases, Amazon buys and reviews are needed to prove with data that we wrote a good book.

Indie Bookstores rarely feature Indie Authors!

An Indie Bookstore will stock books that they know will sell because they want to make a profit. Like all good businesses should try to do. Which means they order books from the Top 5 Publishing Companies. I am not hating on them at all. I hope that the good Indie Bookstores succeed and become permanent features in their neighborhoods.

BUT until an Indie Author can prove their books sell, Indie Bookstores will only accept them on consignment. If they even do that. It takes an act of god to get your book on their shelves.

Personally, I lost money with one independent bookstore. And with the other, they owe me $194.00 and have not paid me yet. (Yes, I am keeping all email traffic and will escalate the situation shortly.)

This means that Indie Bookstores have not been good for my business. So what I am asking is that if your local favorite author is not featured in your local Indie Bookstore, please find another way to support them. Amazon, Barnes & Noble (online), or on their personal websites.

I promise it helps! Oh, and don’t forget to tell your friends if you liked the book!

Anyhoo, I had to get that off my chest… thanks for listening to me.

Speaking of artists! Did you know my 16-year-old is an artist? We are building his website for his paintings to sell. Stay tuned or check him out on @ Kekoa Paki Arts. He would love the follows and likes!

Writing a book is a horrible, exhausting struggle, like a long bout of some painful illness. One would never undertake such a thing if one were not driven on by some demon whom one can neither resist nor understand.

George Orwell

Until tomorrow my friends, Keep Reading and Stay Caffeniated.

If tales of legend, myth, and fantasy topped with a cup of coffee interest you, I suggest checking out my book, The Writer and the Librarian. It’s a historical fantasy about a middle-aged woman faced with a decision: accept what is written in the history books or find out for herself the truth behind the stories. Limited edition copies are now available on my website (Shop – R.L. Geer-Robbins / Author (rlgeerrobbins.com) or at

Amazon: https://a.co/d/flQhakX

Barnes and Noble: The Writer and the Librarian by Rose Geer-Robbins, Paperback | Barnes & Noble® (barnesandnoble.com)

Target: The Writer And The Librarian – (the Raven Society) By R L Geer-robbins (paperback) : Target

And on any of your favorite Indie Book Store websites!

Current sales as of today= 21/1500

The post Indie Bookstore does not mean it supports Indie Authors appeared first on R.L. Geer-Robbins / Author.

Doing things after work…

 Day 9 of 365 days. 356 days left to go.

Just recently, I decided to change my ways. I have always been a creature of continuity. I also wake up before 4:30 a.m. I have the same routine every morning. Coffee, animals, smoke, write, social media.

Every morning without fail.

After work? You would be lucky if I made it to the grocery store. Which is most likely what I am doing because the animals or the teenager ALWAYS need something.

Dinner would be made, more animal care, and a bath. Then I would tuck myself away for the evening with a book and wait impatiently for 9:30 p.m. when I could go to sleep.

I NEVER went anywhere. I would never schedule anything, but it wouldn’t fit in with my schedule of doing nothing.

Recently this has changed. I have joined an organization that meets once a month at a local restaurant, AND I am finally joining a book club.

A book club that I have been a silent member of for years. And when I say years, I mean years. I was still in the military when I started stalking my mother’s book club from the shadows. And I finally got the nerve to go to a meeting!

Now, did I read January’s book of the month? Nope. I thought the first meeting was when we got the book – so that’s a bit of a fail.

Do I know what time it starts? Another no. I should text my mother and ask.

But I am going. And I will read the Feb book. And I will engage in conversation and be merry. I even heard they serve food- which is honestly what I am excited about. Books and food are in the top three of my favorite things to do, right behind coffee.

Wish me luck. I hope they like me.

In the case of good books, the point is not to see how many of them you can get through, but rather how many can get through you.

Mortimer J. Adler

Until tomorrow my friends, Keep Reading and Stay Caffeniated.

If tales of legend, myth, and fantasy topped with a cup of coffee interest you, I suggest checking out my book, The Writer and the Librarian. It’s a historical fantasy about a middle-aged woman faced with a decision: accept what is written in the history books or find out for herself the truth behind the stories. Limited edition copies are now available on my website (Shop – R.L. Geer-Robbins / Author (rlgeerrobbins.com) or at

Amazon: https://a.co/d/flQhakX

Barnes and Noble: The Writer and the Librarian by Rose Geer-Robbins, Paperback | Barnes & Noble® (barnesandnoble.com)

Target: The Writer And The Librarian – (the Raven Society) By R L Geer-robbins (paperback) : Target

And on any of your favorite Indie Book Store websites!

Current sales as of today= 16/1500

The post Doing things after work… appeared first on R.L. Geer-Robbins / Author.

I almost had it….

 Day 8 of 365 days. 357 days left to go.

I woke up sweating. Why, you ask? Because I rewrote the ending to The Witch and the Prophet yesterday.

And then at 2 a.m. I decided I didn’t like it.

Maybe because it was too clean? Is it possible that it answered too many questions? Maybe the bad guy becomes too good? It could be because I am killing off a main charcter that people like.

I don’t know. I am rereading it for the fourth time, and I can’t put my finger on why I am not loving it anymore.

I need to figure this out in my head. I’m down to the last nine days, and I need to lock in the last chapter. Oh, the joys of indie publishing. You have tooooo much control.

Self-discipline begins with the mastery of your thoughts. If you don’t control what you think, you can’t control what you do.

Unknown

Until tomorrow my friends, Keep Reading and Stay Caffeniated.

If tales of legend, myth, and fantasy topped with a cup of coffee interest you, I suggest checking out my book, The Writer and the Librarian. It’s a historical fantasy about a middle-aged woman faced with a decision: accept what is written in the history books or find out for herself the truth behind the stories. Limited edition copies are now available on my website (Shop – R.L. Geer-Robbins / Author (rlgeerrobbins.com) or at

Amazon: https://a.co/d/flQhakX

Barnes and Noble: The Writer and the Librarian by Rose Geer-Robbins, Paperback | Barnes & Noble® (barnesandnoble.com)

Target: The Writer And The Librarian – (the Raven Society) By R L Geer-robbins (paperback) : Target

And on any of your favorite Indie Book Store websites!

Current sales as of today= 10/1500

The post I almost had it…. appeared first on R.L. Geer-Robbins / Author.

It takes only one moment to make a difference

 Day 7 of 365 days. 358 days left to go.

I may have freaked out yesterday about my upcoming release. Small. Tiny really.

Only one coffee mug was in danger.

But then something magical happened.

The editing process went smoothly. The words flowed. The story came alive. The excitement for my book was rekindled.

Shit! It’s a really entertaining book, in my humble opinion, of course.

And then this morning I woke up to see this little nuggest of encouragement:

How awesome is this? I couldn’t have asked for a better show of support as I approach the finish line.

What do we live for, if not to make life less difficult for each other?

George Eliot

Until tomorrow my friends, Keep Reading and Stay Caffeniated.

If tales of legend, myth, and fantasy topped with a cup of coffee interest you, I suggest checking out my book, The Writer and the Librarian. It’s a historical fantasy about a middle-aged woman faced with a decision: accept what is written in the history books or find out for herself the truth behind the stories. Limited edition copies are now available on my website (Shop – R.L. Geer-Robbins / Author (rlgeerrobbins.com) or at

Amazon: https://a.co/d/flQhakX

Barnes and Noble: The Writer and the Librarian by Rose Geer-Robbins, Paperback | Barnes & Noble® (barnesandnoble.com)

Target: The Writer And The Librarian – (the Raven Society) By R L Geer-robbins (paperback) : Target

And on any of your favorite Indie Book Store websites!

Current sales as of today= 9/1500

The post It takes only one moment to make a difference appeared first on R.L. Geer-Robbins / Author.

One week to go… and I’m not ready

 Day 6 of 365 days. 359 days left to go.

Yesterday was a milestone in my writing career. It was a day of celebration and cake.

Did I celebrate and get cake?

Nope.

I got notified that my book, The Writer and the Librarian, had a glitch in the ebook version. Over 200 people had a book that wasn’t formatted correctly.

I pulled the book and begged Amazon to push out my release date for The Witch and the Prophet for another 30 days. You know- so I had time to go over each book. Seems logical.

Amazon said no.

So now here I am with seven days, 10 hours, and 37 minutes to make the deadline.

So here’s to us, my friends, and looming deadlines. May my attention to detail be on point. May my writing be flawless. And may my sanity stay in check.

The difference between a dream and a goal is a deadline.

Gina Paimondo

Until tomorrow my friends, Keep Reading and Stay Caffeniated.

If tales of legend, myth, and fantasy topped with a cup of coffee interest you, I suggest checking out my book, The Writer and the Librarian. It’s a historical fantasy about a middle-aged woman faced with a decision: accept what is written in the history books or find out for herself the truth behind the stories. Limited addition copies are now available on my website (Shop – R.L. Geer-Robbins / Author (rlgeerrobbins.com) or at

Amazon: https://a.co/d/flQhakX

Barnes and Noble: The Writer and the Librarian by Rose Geer-Robbins, Paperback | Barnes & Noble® (barnesandnoble.com)

Target: The Writer And The Librarian – (the Raven Society) By R L Geer-robbins (paperback) : Target

And on any of your favorite Indie Book Store websites!

Current sales as of today= 9/1500

The post One week to go… and I’m not ready appeared first on R.L. Geer-Robbins / Author.

Happy Birthday- The Writer and the Librarian

 Day 5 of 365 days. 360 days left to go.

Today is a milestone, friends!

It has been a year since The Writer and the Librarian was released! What a milestone! What an accomplishment. What a year!

I have aged so much in the past 365 days, lol.

Let’s talk about this because I am reflecting on the good and the bad of learning about the self-publishing world.

I have made some wonderful friends through social media. I have watched their wins and failures. They cheered me on when life threw rotten lemons and jagged rocks at me. They have shared my book, reviewed it, and called me an ‘author.’

I have grown more confident in my voice and who I am. Publishing a book and putting myself out there for all the negativity has inspired me to do things I might not have done otherwise.

I have learned that healthy competition keeps me motivated. Whether or not the other person knows I am competing with them is irrelevant. I am now watching other authors and learning what works and what doesn’t, and I have picked a few to serve as my role models. Now granted, they don’t know I have. But when I get my first interview, I will give them a shout-out.

I can’t spell simple words for shit. That’s a little annoying.

I have learned to accept what I like and what I don’t.

And I have learned that failure is okay to share. I’m not hiding behind it anymore to present a fake version of myself.

I have learned how to be annoyingly persistent. I don’t take ‘no’ for an answer anymore. If I hear the word ‘no,’ I follow it up with an ‘okay, then what do I need to do for a yes?’

In other words, I have grown as a person.

Where do I start?

I learned that no matter how many YouTube videos or Google searches you spend hours researching and reading, you will not know everything. The publishing world is a closely guarded secret, and you have to work HARD to figure it out. And you will make soooo many mistakes. And spend way too much money on those mistakes. And you still don’t know a quarter of what you should.

Book covers are not for the faint of heart. The difference between my first cover, which I proudly showed everyone, and the cover I currently have is night and day. The first cover was so blah that it literally blended in with a beige wall. A bookstore had it sitting on the top shelf, and I couldn’t find it. It was horrible.

Editors are critical. The read-back function is more crucial. I made the mistake of publishing a book that wasn’t edited correctly by myself or anyone else. And you could tell, I lost a lot of readers because I wrote how I thought- not how people read.

Spell check doesn’t catch the wrong word version. That was a big surprise. LOL.

Libraries are the 7th layer of hell. Trying to get your book into a library is like begging for a drop of rain in the middle of a desert. It’s going to be a miracle if it happens. I’ll post more about this another day.

Indie bookstores, or any bookstores, are not willing to take a chance on you until AFTER you prove that your book sold 5,236,030 copies. Of course, you have a hard time selling books if they’re NOT in a bookstore- so that’s like being between a rock and a mountain. This too will be another post for another day.

Your biggest supporters will be people you don’t know. And I am not talking about my family or friends. They have told their friends and co-workers about me. They have given me the time and space to do my thing. They don’t always understand. They don’t always care. But that is okay- because it’s not their world. They don’t have to. But they still support me!

Strangers on the other hand. They will share your posts. Hype your book to their friends. Take it to book clubs. Go to the library and demand that they carry it. They will buy every single version of your book no matter what and brag about it.

People will lie to you. Do you know how many people told me that my book’s first round was amazing? They just skipped right over the glaring plot holes, misspelled words, and run-on sentences. Bless their hearts. And I believed them.

And finally- I still spell ‘Librarian’ and ‘Society’ wrong! Every. Single. Time.

It’s been a year! I wouldn’t change it for the world. So here is to another 365 days and selling enough copies that Barnes and Noble will finally put it on their shelves. Or Walmart!

Until tomorrow my friends, Keep Reading and Stay Caffeniated. (spelled wrong on purpose :))

If you’re going to publish a book, you probably are going to make a fool of yourself.

-Annie Dillard

If tales of legend, myth, and fantasy topped with a cup of coffee interest you, I suggest checking out my book, The Writer and the Librarian. It’s a historical fantasy about a middle-aged woman faced with a decision: accept what is written in the history books or find out for herself the truth behind the stories. Limited addition copies are now available on my website (Shop – R.L. Geer-Robbins / Author (rlgeerrobbins.com) or at

Amazon: https://a.co/d/flQhakX

Barnes and Noble: The Writer and the Librarian by Rose Geer-Robbins, Paperback | Barnes & Noble® (barnesandnoble.com)

Target: The Writer And The Librarian – (the Raven Society) By R L Geer-robbins (paperback) : Target

And on any of your favorite Indie Book Store websites!

Current sales as of today= 9/1500

The post Happy Birthday- The Writer and the Librarian appeared first on R.L. Geer-Robbins / Author.