Michelle Scott's Blog, page 16

The Ten Commandments of Book Marketing

I have a confession to make.  I love to write, but I hate to market.  It’s not that I dislike connecting with readers – that’s pure fun.  But at its worst, marketing can seem like selling cookies door to door.  (I was never any good at that!)

I’m always looking for advice on how to market more effectively, and today I found a great resource.  In my inbox was an e-mail from BookBuzzr that caught my attention – it offered a link to a .pdf file entitled The Ten Commandments of Book Marketing.

I spent the afternoon reading the guide and found it quite helpful.  While some of the commandments reiterate common sense ideas (such as write more books that people want to read), there were some good tidbits of information that I hadn’t considered before.  I was especially interested in tip #2 – know your positioning.

If you’re an author who’s looking to market a book, I highly recommend taking a look at the file.

Indoor Gardening in the Winter

It’s been freezing here in Detroit over the past several days.  In fact, it was so cold that the schools were closed on Thursday.  (I think it was in the neighborhood of twenty below zero!)

One of the things I miss most about the summer are my gardens.  I love sitting in the backyard looking at the flowers and butterflies with a good book in hand.

To make my winters more bearable, I bring plants (preferably flowering ones) indoors.  This petite rose bush caught my eye when I was grocery shopping at Trader Joe’s.  It’s so cute that I couldn’t resist bringing it home.  It may be winter outside, but it’s summer inside.

Stagecraft Cover Reveal

It’s here!  The beautiful, new cover for the next book in the Bit Parts series.  Cassandra and Isaiah are back battling the vampires, but there’s a new threat in town.

When a member of the local vampire grieve is murdered right under her nose, aspiring actress Cassandra Jaber becomes the prime suspect. Now every vampire in the city wants her blood. Luckily, Cassie’s got Isaiah Griffin, the hottest slayer in the city, watching her back. But when a rival grieve from out of town stirs up even more trouble, it may take more than a handful of wooden stakes to stop them.

Stagecraft is now available for pre-order at the Kindle store.  Order until January 26 and receive a discount.

Fun and Easy Holiday Ornaments (that smell good, too!)

First, let me tell you that I am not a domestic goddess.  When it comes to the holidays, I’m not one to bake or cook, and as for decorating…well, let’s just say I’m not too fussy about how the Christmas tree looks.  To me, it’s all about easy you know?

There is one recipe, however, that I’ve used many times to great success.  It’s the cinnamon ornament recipe, and over the years, my kids and I have greatly enjoyed it.

All it takes is cinnamon (a lot of cinnamon) and applesauce.  (Hint: it’s worth buying the Costco super-sized containers of both of these items.)  You combine the two ingredients, roll out the resulting dough, and then use cookie cutters to cut out your favorite holiday shapes.  Bake it in the oven and – voila! – you have pretty, sweet-smelling ornaments for your tree.  To add an extra sparkle, you can ‘frost’ them with white puffy paints (available in any craft store).

You can find the complete recipe at the .

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving

Christmas + Vampires = FREE Read

It’s not the holidays yet, but I’m already giving away a gift!

With a click of your mouse, you can download the novella A Christmas Peril for free in Kindle, Nook, or pdf format.

Happy Holidays everyone!

_______________________

Cassandra Jaber hadn’t planned on spending the holidays with a bunch of vampires who are all intent on stealing her soul. But when she gets a party invitation she can’t refuse, she realizes that vamps aren’t the only things she needs to beware of. (This short story is based on the books in the Bit Part series.)

Oh no! It’s Snow

It started out as a few flakes on the last remaining  leaves of my Japanese maple.  That morphed into temperatures that dipped into the low teens.  Today brought measurable amounts of the white stuff, and we’re not even into December yet!  I guess winter really is coming early this year.  Hmmm.  Does that mean that spring will come early, too?  I can only hope.

 

What about you all? Has winter hit you yet?

My Three Current Reads

That’s right.  I always read three books at a time.

First is my Kindle, take-everywhere book.  Since I have a Kindle app on my phone, I truly can travel everywhere with it.  This week the book is Wonder by R. J. Palacio.  Wonder tells the story of fifth-grade Augustine whose genetic disorder gives him a very disfigured face.  The book was recommended to me by a friend (an elementary school teacher), and so far it is an excellent read.

Next comes my read at night book.  This is the one I read on my I-Pad because I don’t have a light for my Kindle.  Right now, the read at night book is Winterlong by Elizabeth Hand.  It’s a sci-fi novel I read many years ago, and am currently re-reading in order to see if it makes any more sense to me now than it did twenty years ago.  The answer is no.  However, it doesn’t stop it from having a strange, ethereal vibe that really brings me into the story.

Book number three is a non-fiction pick.  I always like to mix my fiction with some non-fiction just for fun.  My NF book is an inspirational read that was also recommended to me by a friend.  It’s Love Wins by Rob Bell, a minister who used to live in nearby Grand Rapids, MI.  This is a very interesting book about God, the universe and the mysteries of death.  I’m enjoying it immensely, but I have to read it in small doses since there is a lot to take in.

So there you have it.  My three current reads.  What about you all?  What are you reading now?  I’m always looking for recommendations!

Love Wins

Eating Clean

It’s not easy eating green.

I know that I should, obviously, incorporate more veggies and whole grains into my diet.  Eating healthy is important.  But can I help the fact that I really don’t like zucchini, kale, or spaghetti squash?

My youngest daughter has challenged me to change the way I eat by starting the two of us on the Blogilates twelve-week #newbody makeover meal plan.   It’s a way to eat clean and gain a fit body besides.

So far, we’re just starting week number two.  Week one went okay (although, there was spaghetti squash on the menu.  Yuck.), but week two is more of a challenge because I am so missing my chocolate and chips.  But I’m hanging tough, and my bathroom scale is happy.  Also, there is a lot of fish in this week’s diet, and I’m a huge fan of fish.

Although, I don’t care how healthy it is for me – I’m never going to like eating spaghetti squash!

AMA (Ask Me Anything)

My favorite book site, GoodReads, has a new feature called Ask the Author.  It’s a chance for readers to ask writers questions about their work.  I’ve already used it for the book I’m currently reading – A Girl Called Malice by Aurelia Rowl, and I received a splendid answer to my question.

I love answering questions from readers (and writers!)  If you have a question you’d like to ask – about writing, reading, or even what I ate for breakfast – I’m happy to answer them.  Just stop by my GoodReads page!