Rita Sawyer's Blog, page 13

Good, Bad, and Really Boring!

Good is knowing that despite a few rough spots Shit Kickers & Stilettoes is out, and soon to be available in print. Anyone who says self-pub or Indie publishing is easy LIES! I've always respected my publishers, but that respect has only grown with me taking on this challenge. When I was recently asked why I did it, a question I was fully expecting, I had to laugh.

I released Shit Kickers & Stilettoes on my own for two reasons and they're linked. First was I wanted complete control of the Heiresses In Apron Series. Second, and this may not make sense to anyone else sine I suck at promotion, I'm hoping that being in charge from the get go will force me to push me into doing more than I have in the past.

Bad is dealing with all the technical, and formatting stuff that came with doing this myself. What the hell was I thinking. Also how much I suck at promoting is becoming evident to those around me, though I think they're laughing when I'm not looking.

It can be Really Boring clicking on buttons  to check sales stats. Granted everytime I see the number change I get a little excited, but I know I should be focused on writing. Or worse the dreaded promoting. So on that front I'm going to start planning a couple of contest and hopefully getting a few people to review all my books not just Shit Kickers & Stilettos. If anyone who reads this wants to review one of my boks on Amazon or BN let me know. 

Start Of Something New

OMG! I've dipped my toes into the Indie author pool. I know the only way I see any results is to dunk myself and get acclimated, but I'm nervous. I've got books out there and people read them not as many as I'd like, but that's the point of this right? NO? Then why am I doing this? I have a bunch of reasons and over the next month or so I'll try to explain them all. Right now I just want to tell everyone about my new release.

Shit Kickers & Stilettos is the 1st book in a 4 book series Heiresses In Aprons.

Blurb:
Rosie’s uncle Teddy may not have been able to be around all the time, but he was always there when Rosie needed a dose of reality. Unlike her parents he believed that she needed to keep her feet on the ground even though she spent most of her time running charity and social events mingling with people who had their heads stuck in the clouds. When he dies she’s lost. Her friends try to be there for her, but her uncle does the unbelievable and leaves her part of his business. The other half he leaves to his sexy right hand man. He requests that the two of them move into his house for six months and find a way to make things work together, but since all she can do is stare at his ass and find ways to push his buttons Rosie’s not sure if this is going to work out.
Dade Sebastian would do his best to honor his boss’s last wish, but just looking at his niece he knew it was going to be as simple as it sounded like it would be. Then the lawyer throws him a curve ball by announcing he’s not just going to help Rosie learn to run the business. Instead he’s is named as co-owner with the company being split equally between the two of them. Together they’re supposed to make things work, but that’s hard to do when all he wants is for her to stay in the kitchen, or better yet in his bed.Right now it's available atBN Amazon Smashwords

What do I write and who with.

I've had 2 reader emails this week that asked why I don't write for someone like Harlequin? Well the answer is simple and complicated at the same time.

 
This isn't the first time this has come up. The two books in question are usually The Millionaire's Fake Fiancée   and Tempted By The Tycoon.

The simple answer is because I chose other venues. Was this a good choice? I think it was I've learned a lot about the publishing business since The Millionaire's Fake Fiancée came out in 2009. I'm still learning.

The complicated answer comes in a few parts.

Part 1: Publishers have to decide what's right for their lines. You may not have the voice or style of writing that they are looking for. If something's not good for them that doesn't mean you just give up. What I mean is just because you write the same types of stories they publish that doesn't mean they are your only option for publishing. You can try somewhere else.

Which brings me to
Part 2: Publishers decide what to do with your book once they accept it. They choose the category and how to market your books. I write contemporary romance, but that term seems pretty broad at times. One of my publishers had decided that a few of my stories were Romantic Comedies, another decided they were Erotic Romances. Why?




Jump to 

Part 3: I'm what I like to think of as an author walking a line (or bouncing on a trampoline). My erotic romances The Brazen Sister Series or What Are Friends For Series have fallen into that category, but I'm the first to admit they just barely made it. In my opinion Tempted By The Tycoon and Love Me Or Lose Me are more traditional romances and stay on the other side of the line in Mainstream romance, since they are written in the same voice and heat level. How do publishers decide where a book should go?

Heat level or intesity of the sex scenes is a major factor. Also (this is something that I didn't catch right away) swearing, foul language, using descriptive words for body parts can push you in a certain direction with some publishers.
 
My books range from steamy to sizzling(though hubby would like me to try my hand at something really raunchy)
I would like my books to all be considered fun hot contemporary romances. Why can't that be a category at the online book vendors?

Okay so since I've figured out a few things doing this post I'm off to get some work done.
 
 Rita Sawyer Giving You It AllRomance Passion Laughter http://www.RitaSawyer.com  

Progress Makes Me Happy

It's been a few weeks since I posted anything, which means I haven't been pushing myself to get on here like I said I would. I'm making a schedule so I can be more prepared to just hop pn and bore you all with my thoughts. (That was a joke. I hope everyone's laughing with me, not at me!)

Now in my own defense I have been working damn hard. I finished 2 projects.

Blackridges 2 is done and submitted to editor at Pink Petal Books. Just waiting to hear back on it. If you haven't checked out Book 1 Love Me Or Lose Me you should.


Now I'm working on the last 2 books in the What Are Friends For Series with Siren Publishing. The good thing about waiting to write these last 2 books is Sadie and Jillian have had plenty of time to grow and find trouble I hadn't even thought about when I planned the series.


I do need to squeeze in some promo time for mainstream contemporary romance Tempted By The Tycoon with Siren Publishing. And work on the project I hope to announce within the next few weeks (if all goes well).

I'm Not Obsessed!

Really I'm not. I just have things I like.


 One thing I don't think I could live without. BOOKS! Print or ebook I love them. Okay when some people see my bookselves they might think I'm obessive. (yes I have more than 1. Try 3 here in MA and 1 massive one at our house in Maine.) Today I picked up these 3. I torture myself by only reading 1 chapter for every 2 I write.




Tuesday in my house is movie day. Whether we go to the theater, choose something on TV, or pick up a new DVD we try to watch something together. Today was the hubby's choice. He took me and the kiddo to see the movie Promised Land. Matt Damon and Frances McDormand were good. It started of good, but slowed toward the end. Still a good movie.


Hubby's Chicken Salad grinder Chazz's Pastrami with mustard cheese
and onions.After the movie we went to my first choice in restaruants. Steve's Pizza in West Boylston Mass. This is the place to go for lunch or dinner. For taste, price, and huge meals this is it. I have two 6' 2" sons and I've only seen them finish their meals two or three times the portions are that big.
    This is my spaghetti and meatballs with the loaf of garlic bread. Trust me the picture from my phone doesn't do it justice. The meatballs are the size of softballs. I have failed to finish even half of this, but I keep trying. My hubby has come closer. Basically you  can order anything and come out full and have something for later. Or do what we do, SHARE. I split a spaghetti and meatball with my niece and neither of us finished our half.




So in all today I got three of my favorite things and I managed to hobble around pretty damn good. The back is feeling better. Still sore, but managable.

Aches and Pains

The new year is starting of quite the way I wanted. I tweaked my back and instead of taking it easy I pushed it and now am paying the price. Today I'm down for the count. Hubby has me in the recliner with heating pad. What sucks is niece and nephew missed bowling today.

I should get a lot of words written today since I can't do much else. So today I'm aiming for a lofty goal of 5 thousand words.

2013 A Positive Start

Well as the day is officially over I wanted to stop in and say a few things I meant to say earlier.

First I wanted to wish everyone a  Happy New Year.

Second a quick rundown of last year.
 I attended AAD in New Orleans and RomFest in Tennessee. Both events were utterly fabulous. Sadly I released the last in the Brazen Sister Series. (Turns out there may be a spin off and revisists to come from this series.) I had a few other releases too.
Tempted By The Tycoon was the latest. You can check out my booklist to see what the others were.

Third and lastly plans for 2013:
I've broken this into 3 catagories.

Work wise:
I'm going to release a new series I hope everyone will love.
I hope to have book 5 & 6 of the What Are Friends For Series with Siren Publishing.
There's more Blackridge's to come from Pink Petal Books.
I"m going to be at AAD in Savannah.
                                     Promotion, I need to work on getting the word about my release out there more.

On the personal side:
I want to get my blood sugars under control again.
Going to make an effort eat healthier.
I'm going to just enjoy things more.

As for this blog:
I'm going to try and post almost daily. About what? I have no frigging idea. So beware it could be about you. Just kidding, well for some people maybe not!

Thursday 13: Go Get' em Goals Pre-NaNo

Well it's that time of year. The countdown to NaNo has begun. I know not everyone does this crazed writer thing, but since I'm always up for a challenge I work it into my schedule. So here's 13 goals I need to accomplish before November 1st so  I can throw myself into my NaNo project.
1.) Finish current WIP. (Book 2 in my Blackridges Series.) I need about 13 thousand words to reach my goal. This wip has been moving slow, but it's good.2.) Clean and organize my office. (This is a must do! If my kids or husband don't know what to do with something it ends up on my desk.) 3.) Clean pantry and fridge.4.) Plan a months worth of dinners so I don't have to keep running to the store.5.) Stock pantry and fridge. (Going for healthy snacks for me and easy fixings for the kids.)6.) Work out a firm writing schedule, especially for Friday and Saturdays. (I have my nieces and nephew for bowling.) And let everyone know what it is. 7.) Make a mock cover for inspiration. (Well, I'm going to ask my daughter to do this for me.) 8.) Have promo ready for Book releasing on October 24th. (Pic to the right.)
9.) Get Christmas contest ready for launch on November 15th-ish.
10.) Make a playlist for my NaNo story.11.)Write out basic chapter points for NaNo story12.)Get my blog post topics picked for the month so I can be ready for quick post.13.) Read 2 books not in my genres to clear my head. I think I'm going to go for an action and a mystery.


So who is doing NaNo? When are you going to start prepping? Am I alone in my craziness?

Seekonk Speedway Pumpkin Smashing Race

Okay loaded the pictures from Sunday October 14th's race on my facebook page go check them out. Here's  a quick break down of how it went. Rainy morning turned into fabulous day. They had all the cars and trucks decorated for Halloween, including David's, on the track and let everyone go down and walk around to check them out. Dave's was a big hit, especially with the kids. They also had the kids go around and trick or treat to track workers and concession stands. Sugar rush to fuel the day. David got his truck there and on the track for judging, but when they came off to go to the drivers meeting his fuel pump went. So unfortunately he didn't get to race. Everyone was bummed, but we all still managed to have a great day. Good news truck will be ready for the first race in spring 2013. Of course it'll have a new paint job.

My Newest Release is Available Now.

To Protect the Heart of a Brazen Woman (MF)

Brazen Sisters 6
Is available now, and it's being offered at a 15% discount. Offer ends midnight CST, October 2nd.

Sheriff Jake Gurion has been fighting his attraction to Bobbie Brazen since she started teasing him six years ago. She’s young and beautiful and way too tempting, so he’s careful not to spend too much time alone with her.
Now, a criminal Jake put away has escaped. No one knows where she is, but she’s left messages saying Jake would pay, starting with his pretty little plaything. He’s not about to let anyone he loves get hurt, including Bobbie. Now he can’t avoid being alone with Bobbie any more than he can stop breathing.
Bobbie’s furious that Jake had used her age as a reason for them not to get involved for years, but while she was out of town he dated a woman only two years older than her. He expects her to just go hide away with him alone until the madwoman making threats is caught. Bobbie plans to use this time to teach him a few lessons.
Other books in the Brazen Sisters Series

A Brazen Love Worth Fighting For- Brazen Sisters 1Jessie Brazen fell hard for Victor Weatherly, hard enough to marry him during a short whirlwind romance. Then everything fell apart and he left. Now, after a three year separation, Jessie decides the best thing for everyone involved is to let him go... MORE
To Unleash a Brazen Desire- Brazen Sisters 2Samantha Brazen’s world is spinning out of control. She’d finally dumped her cheating boyfriend. Then her brother-in-law, Trent, blows into town sweeping her off her feet. Trent tears out of town just as quickly, leaving her to wonder what, if anything... MORE



Stroking a Brazen Lust- Brazen Sisters 3
Francesca Brazen is working the night shift when her brother-in-law’s sexy foreman checks into the lodge. She has trouble hiding her interest in him. Can she get involved with a man she doesn’t know? After finding him naked in the hall, she’s will... MORE




Uncommonly Brazen- Brazen Sisters 4

Josephine Brazen is the best CPA around, but even she may not be able to help Cameron Elwood out of the mess he’s in. Reluctantly, she takes him on as a client. Cameron pushes her buttons, driving her to distraction. He makes her want to do things she... MORE



Deliberately Brazen (MF)- Brazen Sisters 5
Georgina Brazen is hiking along a trail that skirts the lake and finds a man staring out over the water. He’s tall and ruggedly handsome, and she finds herself compelled to introduce herself. After all, she figures if you’re wondering what a man... MORE