Catherine Bybee's Blog, page 30

Michael Rivers and his Amazing Cover Art

Have I told you how much I'm loving Twitter? I met the wonder woman, Shannon Mayer, and she decided last month to do an impromptu cover art poll of Indie authors on her blog.

Wife by Wednesday was in the mix this month and I had some great support, but Wife didn't win... but that is totally okay with me. I just love it when people get together to admire each others efforts in this crazy-ass world.

The winner of the cover art poll was Michael Rivers and man this is some amazing cover art. ~

You can learn more about Moonlight on Natahala by clicking HERE.

Here is Michael's links so you can follow him on twitter and facebook.

http://www.michealrivers.com/

The Black Witch
Moonlight on the Nantahala
Ghosts of the North Carolina Shores

Michael Rivers and her Amazing Cover Art

Have I told you how much I'm loving Twitter? I met the wonder woman, Shannon Mayer, and she decided last month to do an impromptu cover art poll of Indie authors on her blog.

Wife by Wednesday was in the mix this month and I had some great support, but Wife didn't win... but that is totally okay with me. I just love it when people get together to admire each others efforts in this crazy-ass world.

The winner of the cover art poll was Michael Rivers and man this is some amazing cover art. ~

You can learn more about Moonlight on Natahala by clicking HERE.

Here is Michael's links so you can follow him on twitter and facebook.

http://www.michealrivers.com/

The Black Witch
Moonlight on the Nantahala
Ghosts of the North Carolina Shores

Please Welcome Beth Trissel

Please Welcome Award Winning, Beth Thrissel

Today she's going to talk a little about the importance of dreams and how a dream can become a book. She is graciously giving away a copy of her latest release to one lucky winner. All you have to do is leave a comment below to be entered to win. If you tweet about this post, and tell us about it, we'll enter your name in twice to the drawing.

Take it away, Beth...

Years ago I had a dream on New Year's Eve, a highly propitious time for dreamsand the second instance when one on that particular eve led to my writing a story.  The first book resulting from this source of inspiration was historical romance novel Red Bird's Song.  The second instance eventually evolved into myrecent release, vintage American Christmas ghost story romance Somewhere the Bells Ring.  The dream that inspired this story took place in the beautiful Virginia home place where my father grew up and I often visited over the years, a graciousGeorgian style brick home, circa 1816.
In my dream a young lady dressed in a long gown for a holiday party entered the room without a name.  All the rooms in this big old house have names except for this one.  Instead of the room appearing as it did in my day, it had transformed into an old-fashioned gentleman's bedchamber with a fireplace, bookshelves lined with leather-bound volumes, high-backed armchairs, and an antiquated bed. I later learned from my father that this is much how that room used to be in his grandfather's time.  But I didn't consciously know that.
In the room, slumped on his knees before the crackling hearth, was a handsome dark-haired young gentleman attired in a suit that struck me as early 20th century style, but what impacted me most about him was his sadness.  The young woman, a guest in the house and in far better spirits than he, had unwittingly intruded on his grief. aIn her hands she held a dusty champagne bottle with a note affixed to it, seemingly left for him by his late wife.  The newcomer had discovered it tucked among bottles in the wine cellar and thought it might cheer him.  It didn't—at least, not at first.  But he read the note and took some comfort from that.  If I tell you what the missive said I might spoil the story so I won't.  But his profound grief, the note, andthe vividness of this dream, affected me so deeply I pondered what story might come of it for a very long time before undertaking the writing of Somewhere the Bells Ring.
The other greatest influence on this story is my nostalgia for the late 1960'sand fond memories of Christmas's spentin that home.  The story is set there in 1968 with flashbacks to an even earlier era, 1918 and the end of World War 1.  As to the ghost, well, I always wondered if that house was haunted.

Blurb:
Caught with pot in her dorm room, Bailey Randolph is exiled to a relative's ancestral home in Virginia to straighten herself out. Banishment to Maple Hill is dismal, until a ghost appears requesting her help. Bailey is frightened but intrigued. Then her girlhood crush, Eric Burke, arrives and suddenly Maple Hill isn't so bad.


To Eric, wounded in Vietnam, his military career shattered, this homecoming feels no less like exile. But when he finds Bailey at Maple Hill, her fairy-like beauty gives him reason to hope––until she tells him about the ghost haunting the house. Then he wonders if her one experiment with pot has made her crazy.
As Bailey and Eric draw closer, he agrees to help her find a long-forgotten Christmas gift the ghost wants. But will the magic of Christmas be enough to make Eric believe––

Excerpt:

"Bailey." He spoke softly, so as not to startle her.

She turned toward him. In her long, white nightgown, hair tumbled down around her, wearing that lost look, she bore an unnerving resemblance to the mysterious woman in Wilkie Collins' classic mystery, The Woman in White. Eric fervently hoped the similarity ended there. As he recalled from the novel, that unfortunate lady had been unhinged.

Leaving the door ajar, he stepped inside. "We missed you at breakfast."

She answered distractedly. "I wasn't hungry."

He limped to where she stood, the hitch in his leg a little less pronounced today. Maybe he was getting stronger. "Why are you here, looking for ghosts?"

"Or a door to the past."

He tried to coax a smile to her trembling lips. "Did you check inside the wardrobe?"

"Eric, I'm being serious."

"That's what worries me." Leaning on his cane with one arm, he closed his other around her shoulders and drew her against him. Such a natural act, and she accepted his embrace without pulling back. She smelled of flowers from her perfume and wood smoke. "Mercy, child," he said in his best imitation of Ella, "it's as cold as a tomb in here."

"It wasn't last night."~




Somewhere the Bells Ring is available in various eBook formats at The Wild Rose Press,Amazon Kindle, Barnes & Noble's Nookbook, and other online booksellers.

Follow Beth on
Twitter
Facebook
or check out her website

The Hunger Games

Sadly, my kids have read this book and I have not.
Must.
Fix.
That.

How... Why... What are you doing?

Today when I climbed out of bed... before I even started that pot of coffee... I jumped online to see where my numbers stood with Amazon for Wife by Wednesday . I know, I'm a total geek and completely obsessed. Wife is my 10th published title and never before have I seen an audience gobble up a book faster than I can hit {refresh} on my computer. Binding Vows / Silent Vows and Redeeming Vows have done amazing... but I never went under #1,000 in the ranks of Amazon with them. Now maybe when Highland Shifter comes out that will change... but that's for a different blog.

Today my lowest rank on Amazon has been #602 - the lowest that I've seen anyway. I had another 5 star review posted and just a ton of hits on this blog.

And... to top that off I've had two complete strangers send me an email seeking advice.Hence the title of this blog - How... Why... What are you doing?

Simple answer - How the {F} do I know. No, wait... I do know a few things, and I don't think my sudden popularity is completely by chance.

1.)  Wife by Wednesday is $0.99.  Believe me, that was a hard decision to make. See, Amazon likes a little more money from authors selling their books for .99 - So in turn, I don't make that much. I started out a $2.99 and after almost two weeks and a ton of research I decided to lower the price. (not something you can do unless you're self publishing) -  I now needed to sell 6 books to make up the money for 1 book with my new price.

But you see, reaching readers is my goal here. Wife is my first contemporary romance where no one travels back to the 16th century or sprouts fur on a full moon. So $0.99 it is.

2.)  And this is going to be a self answered tip - Dear Blog Reader {[ YOU ]} Glance over to the right side of this blog and take a look at the poll question. Take a half a second to answer the question. And if I didn't put your answer in the multiple choice answers, take a second and answer the question bellow. HOW DID YOU HEAR ABOUT ME?

Twitter
Facebook
Previous Fan of my Work
Writer Forum (HQN - CTR)

or

Saw me on a blog
Loops

If you google 'Catherine Bybee' you are going to come up with nearly 100 pages of me. Sad, it means i have NO life off the Internet (not true but it seems that way) - My readers are e-book readers. E-readers are online.

3.) Product - Yeah, that's right... I think the last reason people pick up my work is because of the product. Don't get me wrong... I work hard to put out stellar stories that entertain you and help you escape into someone elses world for a short time... or in terms of the time travels, capture and makes you read book after book until you're finished with the series.

However, even with a stellar book cover (thank you Crystal) and wonderfully edited content (thank you Sandra aka, the best CP ever) - And then lil' ole' me... A decent storyteller who has a voice lots of readers relate to. But before you glanced at the first few pages of my book to decide if you liked my work I had to get your attention.

So dear weekend blog reader... Take a half a second to answer that poll. If you make a comment here I'll be happy to put your name in the cyber hat and at the end of the day I'll draw a name and give away one PDF copy of Wife by Wednesday . If you've already read Wife - I'll sweeten the pot and give away a PDF of Binding Vows .

Top 100 Baby!

It's official... Wife by Wednesday made it to the top #100 in Contemporary Romance on Amazon yesterday. Exactly 35 days after her release.


o    #100 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Fiction > Genre Fiction > Romance > Contemporary

I'm bopping in and off the list right now, but with any luck I'll get in and stick there over the next week. Even if that doesn't happen, I'm super jazzed at how many people want to read my first contemporary romance.

Thanks so much to all of you who have bought Wife, and who have taken that extra minute to rate it or give it a review.

A video tip from 2 years ago

On Tuesday S.G Robers was here talking about social networking for the new author. Two years ago I set up a series of vlogs on the subject and I think it's time to sprinkle them into the blogging mix - So here is one of my favorites. 

Where is Catherine today?

Blake is being interviewed over at I Just Wanna Sit Here and Read today... not to mention there is an amazing review of Wife by Wednesday for you to take a look at.

Check it out.

Make Welcome S.G. Rogers

Today I'd like all of you to welcome S. G. Rogers. I've met Suzanne on Twitter and invited her here today to offer a Tuesday tip.

Suzanne is graciously offering a free download of her YA Fantasy novel to one lucky winner. All you have to do to be entered into the drawing is post a comment and answer one question. 
Are you ready for the question...
Wait for it...

What was your favorite YA novel you read growing up?

Now, for Suzanne's words of wisdom.
Pass It On – A Word to the Wise
"I always pass on good advice. It is the only thing to do with it. It is never of any use to oneself."
- Oscar Wilde
I wish someone had told me when I decided to be a writer that there was more to being an author than a skillful turn of a phrase.  I was so laser-focused on improving my craft I didn't think about building an audience for my work beforehand.  You DO have to focus on your craft, and there are many classes, books, workshops and critique groups that will help you with that.  But I've discovered that the publishing industry is a business—a terribly competitive one.  Getting published is only the beginning of promoting your work as an author…and promote you must.  "You can make more friends in two months by becoming interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to get other people interested in you." - Dale Carnegie

To advance your writing career you have to be willing to join groups and be genuinely supportive of others.  Find quality places to lend your time and talent and you'll make the kind of friends who will be there for you when your book comes out.   I've seen people use a Facebook page or their blog to build a following—by offering recipes, book reviews or a forum of some sort.  Writers' groups, online or otherwise, are always great places to give and receive support.  If you are already a member of a group, let everyone know about your goals, and be prepared to help them with theirs.  Twitter can be a very useful tool, particularly when you give fellow authors a pat on the back or retweet their links.  When you support your fellow twits, they will tend to repay the favor.

"By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail."
- Benjamin Franklin Keep in mind the end goal is not just to get published…it's to sell books.  A publisher, particularly a small one, can only do so much to push your title.  Although they may have a list of reviewers they usually send advance reading copies (ARCs), do your own research and compile a list of your own.  You should plan to send review requests out ahead of time—sometimes months before the book is released.  It's optimum to have book reviews come out to coincide with the publication of your book.  Keep strict records on these reviewers and their policies (some won't review e-books, for example).  Send polite thank you emails to each one who reviews your book (good or bad).  Remember, you're building relationships with these 'gatekeepers' and you want to stay positive.  You should also plan to have a blog tour set up ahead of time.   

Although I'll be in a much better position with my next title, I was caught somewhat flat-footed when "The Last Great Wizard of Yden" was released.  I've quickly learned some hard lessons, and for better or worse I can now give good advice.  Pass it on. 

~S.G. Rogers

OMG, S.G. I completely agree with everything you've said. I think an author needs to build a platform long before they finish their first book. Here is a blurb of The Last Great Wizard of YdenAfter his father is kidnapped, sixteen-year-old Jon stumbles across a closely guarded family secret--one that will challenge everything he has ever believed about his father and himself. A magical ring his father leaves behind unlocks a portal to another dimension, but in using it, Jon unwittingly unchains the forces of evil. A crisis develops when a malevolent wizard transports to Earth to kidnap one of Jon's friends. With the help of some unlikely schoolmates, and a warrior princess from Yden, Jon embarks on a dangerous quest to free his friend and his father from the most vicious wizard the magical world has ever known. In the end, Jon will be forced to fight for his life as he attempts to rescue the last great wizard of Yden. Be sure and follow Suzanne on twitter @suzannegrogersand her Facebook page by clicking hereRemember to leave a comment and answer the question.

A little eye candy and info.

Oh, Henry... how I want to... *sigh*

I'm very excited to be blogging over at Cocktails and Books today. So come on over and meet some new peeps online.

Be sure and join me here next week on November 8th. I have the lovely and talented S.G. Rogers giving a Tuesday Tip to authors... and she's giving away a copy of her YA Fantasy novel to one lucky winner.