K. Rowe's Blog, page 10
February 5, 2013
What Pigs Can Teach Us
OK, I know the title sounds a bit silly, and this post might seem a bit tongue-in-cheek, but there is some merit to it. So stay with me. I'm going to tell you about my adventure in pig ownership.
Back in October, we were at Flea Land- the local flea market. This place is cool. You can buy just about everything: clothes, cast iron cookware, pictures, car parts, guns, jams and jellies, depression era glass, dogs, cats, and even livestock.
Something possessed me that day. My dear hubby will dispute if I was even in my right mind. But as we were leaving, I saw some kids with piglets. Oh, they were sssssssooooooo cute! (The pigs, not the kids) Did I know a darn thing about pigs? Nope! But I wanted one. Mind you, I'm not an impulse buyer. I tend to research, weigh various products, and then make as sound of a decision as I can based on the facts. Not that day. I saw this cute little piggy and had to have him.
Against much protesting from my hubby, I whipped out $30 and bought my little Vietnamese Potbelly piglet. He was so small I could slide him into the big front pocket of a hoodie. We still had some shopping in town to do, so I had to be creative with the little guy. I hadn't thought of a name for him, and when we went to Tractor Supply, I brought him in. One of the girls there fell in love with him, so I asked her what should I call him? She gave him some cuddles and fussed over him, then pronounced him Sherman. I was cool with that name. So Sherman came home.
The first few weeks, he slept a lot. His home is the guest bathroom. He has a cozy cat bed, litter box, and plenty of space to run around. Life is good for the little porker. I soon realized having a piglet was like having a child. Pigs are very intelligent- far too smart for their less-than-attractive bodies. Sherman soon figured out how to push my buttons. If he wanted something and I could not immediately give it to him, he broke into a raucous outpouring of evil sounds. Hence he was christened the Demon Pig. And if he was bored, he started destroying things. Not cool. My vanity in that bathroom has some serious chew marks.
I bought a pig book off Amazon and read it immediately on arrival. I didn't realize what I'd gotten myself into. Yes, pigs are a lot of work. Sherman has his redeeming qualities- he's got a good sense of humor and a work ethic that would impress most bosses. I had to teach him tricks! I needed to get that 3rd grade mind of his engaged in something to keep him happy. And so far, that has worked, he hasn't destroyed anything lately.
Wellie, my Pitbull mix, was a good playmate. As Sherman has grown up, they aren't such good friends anymore, but in the beginning, they were a great source of amusement. There were times I got very little writing done in favor of watching them play. Now Sherman is over 40 pounds and thinks he's the king of the house. The dogs aren't taking kindly to that. We have occasional scuffles when he pushes his limits with the dogs. And he can be darned pig-headed when he doesn't want to do something.
So what can this pleasantly plump porker teach us? Well, he can teach you about determination. If he wants something, he won't give up until he either has it, or has exhausted himself trying. He uses his brain all the time, and it amazes me how he learns so fast. I can teach him a new trick every 3-4 days, and he remembers every trick I've taught him. Most of us humans don't have memory recall like that! Despite pigs having poor eyesight, this guy won't miss a morsel of dropped food. And just like a human child, he needs love, belly scratches, and playtime.
There have been a few times I've regretted my impulse buy of a pig, but for the most part, he's brought me joy, and a definite sense of responsibility for an animal so intelligent. I look forward to teaching him more tricks. So far, he knows nearly a dozen individual tricks- more than all our dogs combined.
Here are some things to consider before bringing home a pig:
1. Potbellies can get from 90-200 pounds. If you don't want the furniture in your house rearranged, don't get a pig.2. Their little snouts are cold, wet, and extremely tough. They can tear up a lawn in no time. And don't think carpet is immune to their attentions!3. Pigs are 4-legged porcine poop-producing, methane making machines. If you can't stand poop or farts, don't get a pig.4. Pigs need outdoor time- make sure they have a safe place to play. Preferably not on the good lawn!5. Pigs can live up to 18+ years. They are part of the family.6. Pigs eat a lot! And as they grow, they shed their skin and are constantly itchy. My coffee table in the living room will never be the same.7. Don't expect them to be perfectly potty trained- they are livestock. Pigs are inherently neat animals, but accidents happen.8. Pigs crave attention. Make sure you have enough time in your day for them.
Well, that's about all, my creatively obsessed friends. Next blog I hope to have a guest- a really cool one!
Cheers,Kathy
P.S.- you can see Sherman's antics on my YouTube channel:
http://www.youtube.com/user/sturgeon3736
Back in October, we were at Flea Land- the local flea market. This place is cool. You can buy just about everything: clothes, cast iron cookware, pictures, car parts, guns, jams and jellies, depression era glass, dogs, cats, and even livestock.
Something possessed me that day. My dear hubby will dispute if I was even in my right mind. But as we were leaving, I saw some kids with piglets. Oh, they were sssssssooooooo cute! (The pigs, not the kids) Did I know a darn thing about pigs? Nope! But I wanted one. Mind you, I'm not an impulse buyer. I tend to research, weigh various products, and then make as sound of a decision as I can based on the facts. Not that day. I saw this cute little piggy and had to have him.
Against much protesting from my hubby, I whipped out $30 and bought my little Vietnamese Potbelly piglet. He was so small I could slide him into the big front pocket of a hoodie. We still had some shopping in town to do, so I had to be creative with the little guy. I hadn't thought of a name for him, and when we went to Tractor Supply, I brought him in. One of the girls there fell in love with him, so I asked her what should I call him? She gave him some cuddles and fussed over him, then pronounced him Sherman. I was cool with that name. So Sherman came home.
The first few weeks, he slept a lot. His home is the guest bathroom. He has a cozy cat bed, litter box, and plenty of space to run around. Life is good for the little porker. I soon realized having a piglet was like having a child. Pigs are very intelligent- far too smart for their less-than-attractive bodies. Sherman soon figured out how to push my buttons. If he wanted something and I could not immediately give it to him, he broke into a raucous outpouring of evil sounds. Hence he was christened the Demon Pig. And if he was bored, he started destroying things. Not cool. My vanity in that bathroom has some serious chew marks.
I bought a pig book off Amazon and read it immediately on arrival. I didn't realize what I'd gotten myself into. Yes, pigs are a lot of work. Sherman has his redeeming qualities- he's got a good sense of humor and a work ethic that would impress most bosses. I had to teach him tricks! I needed to get that 3rd grade mind of his engaged in something to keep him happy. And so far, that has worked, he hasn't destroyed anything lately.
Wellie, my Pitbull mix, was a good playmate. As Sherman has grown up, they aren't such good friends anymore, but in the beginning, they were a great source of amusement. There were times I got very little writing done in favor of watching them play. Now Sherman is over 40 pounds and thinks he's the king of the house. The dogs aren't taking kindly to that. We have occasional scuffles when he pushes his limits with the dogs. And he can be darned pig-headed when he doesn't want to do something.
So what can this pleasantly plump porker teach us? Well, he can teach you about determination. If he wants something, he won't give up until he either has it, or has exhausted himself trying. He uses his brain all the time, and it amazes me how he learns so fast. I can teach him a new trick every 3-4 days, and he remembers every trick I've taught him. Most of us humans don't have memory recall like that! Despite pigs having poor eyesight, this guy won't miss a morsel of dropped food. And just like a human child, he needs love, belly scratches, and playtime.
There have been a few times I've regretted my impulse buy of a pig, but for the most part, he's brought me joy, and a definite sense of responsibility for an animal so intelligent. I look forward to teaching him more tricks. So far, he knows nearly a dozen individual tricks- more than all our dogs combined.
Here are some things to consider before bringing home a pig:
1. Potbellies can get from 90-200 pounds. If you don't want the furniture in your house rearranged, don't get a pig.2. Their little snouts are cold, wet, and extremely tough. They can tear up a lawn in no time. And don't think carpet is immune to their attentions!3. Pigs are 4-legged porcine poop-producing, methane making machines. If you can't stand poop or farts, don't get a pig.4. Pigs need outdoor time- make sure they have a safe place to play. Preferably not on the good lawn!5. Pigs can live up to 18+ years. They are part of the family.6. Pigs eat a lot! And as they grow, they shed their skin and are constantly itchy. My coffee table in the living room will never be the same.7. Don't expect them to be perfectly potty trained- they are livestock. Pigs are inherently neat animals, but accidents happen.8. Pigs crave attention. Make sure you have enough time in your day for them.
Well, that's about all, my creatively obsessed friends. Next blog I hope to have a guest- a really cool one!
Cheers,Kathy
P.S.- you can see Sherman's antics on my YouTube channel:
http://www.youtube.com/user/sturgeon3736
January 3, 2013
I'm cheating today
OK, I wrote this for another blog site, but it's good info, so I'm going to post the link. Indies Unlimited is a great place for authors to find information about the writing and publishing world. I feel honored to have been asked to be a contributing member of staff. No, don't get paid, but I do get to hang out with some pretty awesome folks.
So please, without further adieu, here's my post for IU:
http://www.indiesunlimited.com/2013/01/02/my-kdp-debacle/
Until next time, my creatively obsessed friends,
Kathy
So please, without further adieu, here's my post for IU:
http://www.indiesunlimited.com/2013/01/02/my-kdp-debacle/
Until next time, my creatively obsessed friends,
Kathy
December 26, 2012
The Next Big Thing Blog
Holy cow, I almost blew it! Oh, maybe I did. Well, better to be late than never. My good buddy, Blaze McRob talked me into doing this Next Big Thing blog post. It's supposed to be part of a series from various authors in various genres. What the heck, I said, I'll give it a try. You are given a set of 10 questions about a recently released book or a current work in progress. I decided on The Hall, since it was my newest release, and I'm kind of in between things right now.
So, without further adieu, here are the 10 questions and my answers below.
1) What is the working title of your next book? (or it can be your latest release): My most recent book release was “The Hall,” about a wealthy Memphis book publisher buys an old castle-like mansion and ends up doing battle with a love-struck ghost he doesn’t believe exists.
2) Where did the idea come from for the book? I lived in Memphis for a little while and used to pass Ashlar Hall on the way to work. I always thought it would make a great setting for a horror novel.
3) What genre does your book fall under? Supernatural thriller/horror
4) What actors would you choose to play the part of your characters in a movie rendition? Oh God, you had to ask that one! I guess for the lead of Marcus Bishop, my heart would lean toward Karl Urban. Despite being a Kiwi, he’s got just the right look and personality for the part. And after seeing him in RED and Star Trek, I know he can lose the accent. Not to mention he looks dashing in a suit!As for Prince Mongo, he can play himself- no one could do it any better! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8MLSznhbuBw
5) What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book? A man’s home is his castle, or could it be his crypt?
6) Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?100% self-published. I only employed my editor and an artist to do some work for me.
7) How long did it take you to write the first draft of the manuscript? About 6 months.
8) What other books would you compare this story to within your genre? I'm not exactly sure. It really is a very different kind of book, and I’m proud of that.
9) Who or what inspired you to write this book?Ashlar Hall which is located at the juncture of Lamar and Central Avenues in Memphis. The old building is built like a castle. It even has gargoyles jutting from the roof.
10) What else about the book might pique the reader's interest?It is unique in that there are several threads in the story, and I also have Prince Mongo, who is a very REAL person involved. I asked permission to use him as a character, and he gladly agreed. Each chapter I wrote, I sent to him for approval. He was extremely pleased with the finished product and how his character came across. The Prince is a fantastic person all on his own, and it has been a real pleasure to work with him.
Right, I've said my peace, and I hoped you enjoyed the glimpse into my contorted little mind.
Until next time, my creatively obsessed friends,
Kathy
The North Porch
Inspiration for Khyripzhus
Prince Mongo, the one and only!
You can find The Hall at the following links:
Ebook: http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/... (Smashwords supports ALL ereader platforms!)
Print:
https://www.createspace.com/3540203
So, without further adieu, here are the 10 questions and my answers below.
1) What is the working title of your next book? (or it can be your latest release): My most recent book release was “The Hall,” about a wealthy Memphis book publisher buys an old castle-like mansion and ends up doing battle with a love-struck ghost he doesn’t believe exists.
2) Where did the idea come from for the book? I lived in Memphis for a little while and used to pass Ashlar Hall on the way to work. I always thought it would make a great setting for a horror novel.
3) What genre does your book fall under? Supernatural thriller/horror
4) What actors would you choose to play the part of your characters in a movie rendition? Oh God, you had to ask that one! I guess for the lead of Marcus Bishop, my heart would lean toward Karl Urban. Despite being a Kiwi, he’s got just the right look and personality for the part. And after seeing him in RED and Star Trek, I know he can lose the accent. Not to mention he looks dashing in a suit!As for Prince Mongo, he can play himself- no one could do it any better! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8MLSznhbuBw
5) What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book? A man’s home is his castle, or could it be his crypt?
6) Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?100% self-published. I only employed my editor and an artist to do some work for me.
7) How long did it take you to write the first draft of the manuscript? About 6 months.
8) What other books would you compare this story to within your genre? I'm not exactly sure. It really is a very different kind of book, and I’m proud of that.
9) Who or what inspired you to write this book?Ashlar Hall which is located at the juncture of Lamar and Central Avenues in Memphis. The old building is built like a castle. It even has gargoyles jutting from the roof.
10) What else about the book might pique the reader's interest?It is unique in that there are several threads in the story, and I also have Prince Mongo, who is a very REAL person involved. I asked permission to use him as a character, and he gladly agreed. Each chapter I wrote, I sent to him for approval. He was extremely pleased with the finished product and how his character came across. The Prince is a fantastic person all on his own, and it has been a real pleasure to work with him.
Right, I've said my peace, and I hoped you enjoyed the glimpse into my contorted little mind.
Until next time, my creatively obsessed friends,
Kathy
The North Porch
Inspiration for Khyripzhus
Prince Mongo, the one and only!
You can find The Hall at the following links:
Ebook: http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/... (Smashwords supports ALL ereader platforms!)
Print:
https://www.createspace.com/3540203
December 9, 2012
How "Breaking Bad" made me a better writer
This post originally appeared on Indies Unlimited website.
As I’ve said before, I live in the middle of nowhere. We don’t even have cable TV. In order to get any TV, you need satellite. Well, our phone company about a year or so ago promisedus we would have cable this year (2012). Umm, yeah, didn’t happen. So, since we have lovely DSL internet, we decided to do Netflix. I normally don’t like shows like Breaking Bad, it’s not my normal viewing fare. My hubby got me into watching it—we watch 1 episode every morning as we eat breakfast. At first I didn’t like it, it was drama, drug-related, and in general, rather crude. But something happened after the first few episodes: I found myself looking forward to the next episode. Why? Suspense. Each episode starts with a short trailer before the credits. You get a glimpse of things to come. My writer’s mind immediately clicked into this teaser. I wanted to solve the mystery of the trailer. And you know what? Those wonderfully sneaky writers usually threw me for a loop. I became intrigued. I wanted to watch more. Breaking Bad became my writer’s meth. I was addicted. I had to find out what happened to Walt and Jesse.How did this make me a better writer? I began to understand how they manipulated time and scenes to increase the level of tension. Most episodes ended with a “cliff hanger,” making you tune in to see what happens. There are so many “that was close” moments, and “wow, those guys are idiots, and somehow they lucked out.” You can’t help but get tangled up in the story. Even the little things like Walt being related to a DEA agent (by marriage) adds to the tension of the story. Will Hank catch him? Can Walt pull this off?My current WIP is a contemporary romance. It centers around a horse racing dynasty in the Lexington, KY area. As I re-read my initial draft, I realized there wasn’t enough drama. Not enough “OMG” situations that readers would get sucked into. There had to be more to the story. Despite it being a romance, there needed to be a serious ramping up of the events in the book. Horse racing is a dangerous business; I needed to make that more of a part of the story. The characters needed to better understand the consequences of their choices.We’ve just finished season 2 of Breaking Bad, and I finally got to see how the charred pink teddy bear ended up in Walt’s pool. Oh, that was driving me crazy! And how it got there was a total shock—nope, didn’t see that coming. The writers have skillfully woven the characters together and events that change their lives. I don’t consider myself a TV junkie, but this show has taught me some of the finer points of building tension, creating chaos, and bringing characters to the brink and back all while comfortably seated on my sofa. Now I need to apply what I’ve learned and fix up this romance so it will be like riding a wild race horse down the home stretch in a huge stakes race. I want you to wince, squirm, and cheer for the characters. And of course, I want a happy ending!
Until next time my creatively obsessed friends,
Kathy
As I’ve said before, I live in the middle of nowhere. We don’t even have cable TV. In order to get any TV, you need satellite. Well, our phone company about a year or so ago promisedus we would have cable this year (2012). Umm, yeah, didn’t happen. So, since we have lovely DSL internet, we decided to do Netflix. I normally don’t like shows like Breaking Bad, it’s not my normal viewing fare. My hubby got me into watching it—we watch 1 episode every morning as we eat breakfast. At first I didn’t like it, it was drama, drug-related, and in general, rather crude. But something happened after the first few episodes: I found myself looking forward to the next episode. Why? Suspense. Each episode starts with a short trailer before the credits. You get a glimpse of things to come. My writer’s mind immediately clicked into this teaser. I wanted to solve the mystery of the trailer. And you know what? Those wonderfully sneaky writers usually threw me for a loop. I became intrigued. I wanted to watch more. Breaking Bad became my writer’s meth. I was addicted. I had to find out what happened to Walt and Jesse.How did this make me a better writer? I began to understand how they manipulated time and scenes to increase the level of tension. Most episodes ended with a “cliff hanger,” making you tune in to see what happens. There are so many “that was close” moments, and “wow, those guys are idiots, and somehow they lucked out.” You can’t help but get tangled up in the story. Even the little things like Walt being related to a DEA agent (by marriage) adds to the tension of the story. Will Hank catch him? Can Walt pull this off?My current WIP is a contemporary romance. It centers around a horse racing dynasty in the Lexington, KY area. As I re-read my initial draft, I realized there wasn’t enough drama. Not enough “OMG” situations that readers would get sucked into. There had to be more to the story. Despite it being a romance, there needed to be a serious ramping up of the events in the book. Horse racing is a dangerous business; I needed to make that more of a part of the story. The characters needed to better understand the consequences of their choices.We’ve just finished season 2 of Breaking Bad, and I finally got to see how the charred pink teddy bear ended up in Walt’s pool. Oh, that was driving me crazy! And how it got there was a total shock—nope, didn’t see that coming. The writers have skillfully woven the characters together and events that change their lives. I don’t consider myself a TV junkie, but this show has taught me some of the finer points of building tension, creating chaos, and bringing characters to the brink and back all while comfortably seated on my sofa. Now I need to apply what I’ve learned and fix up this romance so it will be like riding a wild race horse down the home stretch in a huge stakes race. I want you to wince, squirm, and cheer for the characters. And of course, I want a happy ending!
Until next time my creatively obsessed friends,
Kathy
October 31, 2012
Autograph your Kindle? Sure!
An author friend of mine, Jack London—no, not the dead guy— Jack Woodville London came up with a unique idea: if you can show him that you have his books your Kindle, he’ll autograph a cute little cotton bag silkscreened with his books on it. Adorable, and just the right size for a Kindle or smaller tablet. But I asked him what he did when someone in another part of the country or world wanted his autograph. His reply: “Come see me!”
Not all of us can afford to hop a private jet somewhere to do a signing. So for those of us who can’t just be everywhere at once, here’s a neat idea: Kindlegraph. It’s a FREE service offered that allows readers to connect with their favorite authors and get an “autograph” for their Kindle books. How does this work?
1. Go to http://www.kindlegraph.com/and get an account. If you have Twitter, it’s dirt easy. Once you do that, go in and list all your books (must be on Amazon.com and have an AISN) There’s a link at the bottom of the page for: “Authors sign up here.”
[image error]2. Once your page is done, you can broadcast the link to the world through social media and the what-not.
3. Once a reader finds you and wants a Kindlegraph, all they have to do is click on the “Request Kindlegraph” button. Oh, By the way, the book icons are also buy links directly to Amazon. How nice is that?4. They will fill out the required information on the shaded form below.
5. An email will be generated to you for the request.
6. There is a link in the email that takes you to your login page and then right to your “Dashboard” of pending requests.
[image error]7. Just click on the Kindlegraph It! Button and away you go. The next screen you see will be like this:
8. You can select “Handwriting” or “Typewriter” for your font. 9. Then you get a blank area to do the inscription. Type away!
10. Once done, just hit the “Send Kindlegraph” button at the bottom, and you’re done! An email will be sent to the reader informing them that they have a PDF sent to their Kindle. 11. The only possible tiny downside: Amazon can charge a small “delivery” fee for sending the Kindlegraph. If it is along their normal delivery fees, it’s maybe less than 10 cents. When asking my #1 fan (who willingly agreed to help me on this article) if Amazon charged him for the Kindlegraph, he said they didn’t. So in most cases, it’s FREE to authors and readers!
So there you have it. Now you can autograph a Kindle anywhere in the world. Cool huh?
August 29, 2012
Lessons Learned About Screen Writing
OK, I blame my best friend, Jessica, for getting me hooked on the notion that I could write a screenplay. We were kids—high-schoolers, and we liked to write. Fast forward over 20 years and here I am, still writing. Although I changed my goals from screenplays to novels and short stories, but the thought of seeing something I wrote on the big screen still hung in the back of my mind. So I decided to adapt a novel I'd published and give it a try.
First of all, if you have any aspirations of playing in Hollywood, you have to go by THEIR rules. They are picky—very picky. I did some research and found that the software most commonly used was Final Draft (version 8 right now). I ponied up the $$ and bought it, $250 of download—ouch! Then I played around with it until I felt reasonably comfortable using it.
Second, you need books—several books on screen writing. The two best are: Screenplayby Syd Field, and The Screenwriter'sBible by David Trottier. I also picked up Making a Good Script Great by Linda Seger, and How to Adapt Anything Into a Screenplay by Richard Krevolin. You MUST be armed and ready to do battle. Hollywood is unforgiving.
Once armed, it was off and running to write the script. Yeah, that’s not so simple. As I learned more about adapting novels to screenplays, I realized I may have created a monster. My novel was only 148 pages printed (8.5 x 11, 1.5 line spacing) but to now have to take all those words—over 81K, and turn them into a 120 page screenplay that must be mostly white on the page; that was a challenge.
I like challenges, so after nearly a year, I had my 120 pages—actually 119—I was very pleased with myself. I was ready to send it to Hollywood—or was I? Now the lessons really began. I submitted it to a screenplay contest and didn't even make it to the quarterfinals. I submitted to another, same thing. And two more competitions later, I wasn't getting anywhere. Why? I had a darn good story, the length, format, plot arc, characters, and pretty much everything I could think of was by the book. So what was I doing wrong?
At one of the competitions, they offered 100% feedback on every script they got. The cost of the competition was reasonable, so I entered. I got feedback, all right. Some of it was good, some of it was bad. I didn't let that stop me. I now realized I had some problems to correct. Unfortunately it had cost me well over $150 to find this out. It was recommended that I seek coverage for my script so that I could fine tune it and hopefully have a chance later on.
Script coverage is a fancy name for someone who takes the script (normally someone who has experience in the movie business) and reads over it and makes suggestions on where to fix things. Is coverage cheap? Nope! I opted for the regular package and then added on some additional services which brought the total up to $250. Some coverage agencies will, if they like your script, get it in front of agents and producers—another plus to consider.
How could I have done this differently? Well, I'd still have to get the software, since it is industry standard. I'd write my screenplay, have my editor check for spelling/grammar/punctuation, and then send it off to a coverage service before I sent it off to any competitions. I'd have saved myself close to $200 and would have had a more marketable script to put in front of the judges. Yes, lesson learned. But, the good thing about coverage services: you can take what they said and apply it to subsequent screenplays, and hopefully in time, not require their services anymore.
Writing is an ever evolving, ever growing art form. If you're smart enough to learn from your mistakes, in time, you should know success. I am still learning...
Until next time, my creatively obsessed friends,
Kathy
First of all, if you have any aspirations of playing in Hollywood, you have to go by THEIR rules. They are picky—very picky. I did some research and found that the software most commonly used was Final Draft (version 8 right now). I ponied up the $$ and bought it, $250 of download—ouch! Then I played around with it until I felt reasonably comfortable using it.
Second, you need books—several books on screen writing. The two best are: Screenplayby Syd Field, and The Screenwriter'sBible by David Trottier. I also picked up Making a Good Script Great by Linda Seger, and How to Adapt Anything Into a Screenplay by Richard Krevolin. You MUST be armed and ready to do battle. Hollywood is unforgiving.
Once armed, it was off and running to write the script. Yeah, that’s not so simple. As I learned more about adapting novels to screenplays, I realized I may have created a monster. My novel was only 148 pages printed (8.5 x 11, 1.5 line spacing) but to now have to take all those words—over 81K, and turn them into a 120 page screenplay that must be mostly white on the page; that was a challenge.
I like challenges, so after nearly a year, I had my 120 pages—actually 119—I was very pleased with myself. I was ready to send it to Hollywood—or was I? Now the lessons really began. I submitted it to a screenplay contest and didn't even make it to the quarterfinals. I submitted to another, same thing. And two more competitions later, I wasn't getting anywhere. Why? I had a darn good story, the length, format, plot arc, characters, and pretty much everything I could think of was by the book. So what was I doing wrong?
At one of the competitions, they offered 100% feedback on every script they got. The cost of the competition was reasonable, so I entered. I got feedback, all right. Some of it was good, some of it was bad. I didn't let that stop me. I now realized I had some problems to correct. Unfortunately it had cost me well over $150 to find this out. It was recommended that I seek coverage for my script so that I could fine tune it and hopefully have a chance later on.
Script coverage is a fancy name for someone who takes the script (normally someone who has experience in the movie business) and reads over it and makes suggestions on where to fix things. Is coverage cheap? Nope! I opted for the regular package and then added on some additional services which brought the total up to $250. Some coverage agencies will, if they like your script, get it in front of agents and producers—another plus to consider.
How could I have done this differently? Well, I'd still have to get the software, since it is industry standard. I'd write my screenplay, have my editor check for spelling/grammar/punctuation, and then send it off to a coverage service before I sent it off to any competitions. I'd have saved myself close to $200 and would have had a more marketable script to put in front of the judges. Yes, lesson learned. But, the good thing about coverage services: you can take what they said and apply it to subsequent screenplays, and hopefully in time, not require their services anymore.
Writing is an ever evolving, ever growing art form. If you're smart enough to learn from your mistakes, in time, you should know success. I am still learning...
Until next time, my creatively obsessed friends,
Kathy
July 6, 2012
The triumphs and headaches of a book launch
OK, yes, I've been amiss about blogging again lately. Bite me! June was basically insane. I had to get the final edits done on Space Junk for a 4 July release, and we had 700 bales of hay that were harvested from our fields. Not to mention record breaking heat that left us all wilted after only a few hours in the sun. It was a rough month. July has only been slightly better. Case in point- launching a book.
Some folks are superstitious, some are sentimental. I'm a little of both. If you read any of my books, you will always see I end on an even numbered chapter. It's not superstition, just a personal quirk. I also like to occasionally publish on relevant days- like Christmas, my birthday, and my latest attempt was 4 July. Good intentions never seem to work, especially when you are working with other companies in this venture. There are also the time zone issues- where are the company servers?
After deciding that I wanted to launch Space Junk on the 4th, I set in motion everything I needed to do in order to make that possible. I loaded everything into my accounts on Amazon and Barnes and Noble. I knew Smashwords was an immediate upload and would be done as soon as I hit the publish button and it ran through the "meat grinder." But I didn't take into consideration that SW is a west coat company. I stayed up well past midnight (EST) to get all my books with a 4 July publication date. Yeah, right! I guess I should've stuck to my other plan: getting up about 4 a.m. to do the deed on the 4th.
Each company has different time lags to publish your book. If you upload at Amazon KDP or BN, your title may take 12-24 hours to go live. CreateSpace is supposed to be instant upon approving your proof copy (digital or hard copy) But the paper copy showed up a day later. And SW is live ASAP, so I knew I needed to wait. Everything was a crap-shoot, and I rolled a 7.
The result of this whole well-thought plan: I ended up with having all versions (except BN) with a 3 July publication date. Was I mad? Yup. Email to the companies didn't produce anything, and I didn't have the time to be able to unpublish and fix everything and have it come out right. Lesson learned.
My next book, The Hall, I'm aiming for a release on Halloween. Therein lies another problem. If I want to release the book on 31 Oct, and I actually might be holding a signing event, then I need some copies beforehand to have available. Now I'm asking myself how can I pull that one off? Maybe I'll just have to suck up the fact that maybe the print version will come out a little earlier so I can get copies. It's always something!
Enough of my grumbling. Here's an update on the farm: Flynn (the wayward Weimariner) is now living with us. If you haven't seen my FB posts, the injured bunny was released with no problems. My baby bat is getting quite enthusiastic about eating--just wish it would be more enthusiastic about flying! My corn is about knee-high and has 20+ more days before we're supposed to be eating it--if the deer don't get to it first. All the baby barn swallows died- mites drove them crazy and they jumped out of the nest and mommy wouldn't care for them anymore. Plans are to put cedar chips under the hay loft stairs for next year and hope that keeps the mites down. Have another nest of some small birds in the wash stall. They seem to be doing fine.
Farm life and self-publishing both have their headaches and heartaches. Neither of them pay particularly well. But I love both and keep at them.
Until next time, my creatively obsessed friends,
Kathy
http://www.amazon.com/Space-Junk-Dars-Adventures-ebook/dp/B008HAK4VA/ref=la_B003H2UCNI_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1341600665&sr=1-1
Flynn
Bales waiting to be picked up
The wood rabbit that got caught in a fence
"Bitey" having a mealworm for dinner
Some folks are superstitious, some are sentimental. I'm a little of both. If you read any of my books, you will always see I end on an even numbered chapter. It's not superstition, just a personal quirk. I also like to occasionally publish on relevant days- like Christmas, my birthday, and my latest attempt was 4 July. Good intentions never seem to work, especially when you are working with other companies in this venture. There are also the time zone issues- where are the company servers?
After deciding that I wanted to launch Space Junk on the 4th, I set in motion everything I needed to do in order to make that possible. I loaded everything into my accounts on Amazon and Barnes and Noble. I knew Smashwords was an immediate upload and would be done as soon as I hit the publish button and it ran through the "meat grinder." But I didn't take into consideration that SW is a west coat company. I stayed up well past midnight (EST) to get all my books with a 4 July publication date. Yeah, right! I guess I should've stuck to my other plan: getting up about 4 a.m. to do the deed on the 4th.
Each company has different time lags to publish your book. If you upload at Amazon KDP or BN, your title may take 12-24 hours to go live. CreateSpace is supposed to be instant upon approving your proof copy (digital or hard copy) But the paper copy showed up a day later. And SW is live ASAP, so I knew I needed to wait. Everything was a crap-shoot, and I rolled a 7.
The result of this whole well-thought plan: I ended up with having all versions (except BN) with a 3 July publication date. Was I mad? Yup. Email to the companies didn't produce anything, and I didn't have the time to be able to unpublish and fix everything and have it come out right. Lesson learned.
My next book, The Hall, I'm aiming for a release on Halloween. Therein lies another problem. If I want to release the book on 31 Oct, and I actually might be holding a signing event, then I need some copies beforehand to have available. Now I'm asking myself how can I pull that one off? Maybe I'll just have to suck up the fact that maybe the print version will come out a little earlier so I can get copies. It's always something!
Enough of my grumbling. Here's an update on the farm: Flynn (the wayward Weimariner) is now living with us. If you haven't seen my FB posts, the injured bunny was released with no problems. My baby bat is getting quite enthusiastic about eating--just wish it would be more enthusiastic about flying! My corn is about knee-high and has 20+ more days before we're supposed to be eating it--if the deer don't get to it first. All the baby barn swallows died- mites drove them crazy and they jumped out of the nest and mommy wouldn't care for them anymore. Plans are to put cedar chips under the hay loft stairs for next year and hope that keeps the mites down. Have another nest of some small birds in the wash stall. They seem to be doing fine.
Farm life and self-publishing both have their headaches and heartaches. Neither of them pay particularly well. But I love both and keep at them.
Until next time, my creatively obsessed friends,
Kathy
http://www.amazon.com/Space-Junk-Dars-Adventures-ebook/dp/B008HAK4VA/ref=la_B003H2UCNI_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1341600665&sr=1-1
Flynn
Bales waiting to be picked up
The wood rabbit that got caught in a fence
"Bitey" having a mealworm for dinner
May 1, 2012
The Weekday Weimariner
I guess it's a trend: dogs that decide they aren't happy where they are and go find a new place to live. At least that's what a young Weimariner named Flynn has done. He lives about a mile or so down the road from us. His family is busy, they have kids, and a new baby. So he doesn't get much love at home. They have another dog, but she's much older and not a playmate.
One cold morning during March, my husband saw something in the bushes next to the house. He went out to investigate and found a sorry, bony looking Weimariner. Of course, both of us are animal lovers. We couldn't just let him suffer. So we fed him, bathed him, and the next day took him to the vet. His collar had writing on it, but it was too faded to read. The vet said that despite being very underweight, the dog was in good shape. He said to hold onto him for a week and see if anyone came by to claim him. If not, he would probably be ours.
The next day, "Bones" we'd started calling him, was out in the yard around the farm house playing with Wellie and Lola. A car pulled up and a lady got out and said he was her dog. His real name is Flynn and he's about 3 years old now. She explained that he was usually good and stayed home, but since she was due to deliver a baby soon, that she'd been in and out of hospital for quite some time. We explained that we didn't know and tried to find out who the owner was. He went home with her, and we didn't see him for a couple of weeks.
Thinking we'd seen the last of Flynn, we thought about getting another younger dog to play with Wellie. He's part American bulldog and has tons of energy. He needs someone to play with. Well, one morning I went out to go feed the horses and there's Flynn on the front porch to greet me. Of course this made Wellie happy. Flynn stayed around for probably 4 days before disappearing back home. We'd see him laying in the sun outside his house as we drove by.
Flynn seems to have a schedule. Usually Monday or Tuesday he shows up on our doorstep. He must sleep in one of our nearby barns because he's always up early to greet me. On the days he "lives" with us, he gets fed twice a day and can play with Wellie anytime he's out. On Friday nights (like clockwork) he goes home. He must know that his family and the kids are home from work and school so they will play with him. Once Monday rolls around again, he's usually heading back to us. I guess you can't say animals are stupid (for the most part) because he knows where he can get the most love, food, and playtime.
I'm not sure how long this will continue on. I do worry when he's out on the road that a car or truck will hit him. When he's with us, I do my best to keep him safe and out of trouble, but in the end, he's not really our dog. Part of me hopes the owner will realize he's happier elsewhere. But until that happens, we're just happy to have the weekday Weimariner.
Until next time my creatively obsessed friends.
Kathy
Flynn when we first saw him.
Getting a nap in a warm house.
Flynn and Wellie, best buds.
Flynn checking out our waterfall.
Lola, Flynn, and Wellie.
Flynn watching me muck out stalls.
Wellie and Flynn in the Gator ready to go.
One cold morning during March, my husband saw something in the bushes next to the house. He went out to investigate and found a sorry, bony looking Weimariner. Of course, both of us are animal lovers. We couldn't just let him suffer. So we fed him, bathed him, and the next day took him to the vet. His collar had writing on it, but it was too faded to read. The vet said that despite being very underweight, the dog was in good shape. He said to hold onto him for a week and see if anyone came by to claim him. If not, he would probably be ours.
The next day, "Bones" we'd started calling him, was out in the yard around the farm house playing with Wellie and Lola. A car pulled up and a lady got out and said he was her dog. His real name is Flynn and he's about 3 years old now. She explained that he was usually good and stayed home, but since she was due to deliver a baby soon, that she'd been in and out of hospital for quite some time. We explained that we didn't know and tried to find out who the owner was. He went home with her, and we didn't see him for a couple of weeks.
Thinking we'd seen the last of Flynn, we thought about getting another younger dog to play with Wellie. He's part American bulldog and has tons of energy. He needs someone to play with. Well, one morning I went out to go feed the horses and there's Flynn on the front porch to greet me. Of course this made Wellie happy. Flynn stayed around for probably 4 days before disappearing back home. We'd see him laying in the sun outside his house as we drove by.
Flynn seems to have a schedule. Usually Monday or Tuesday he shows up on our doorstep. He must sleep in one of our nearby barns because he's always up early to greet me. On the days he "lives" with us, he gets fed twice a day and can play with Wellie anytime he's out. On Friday nights (like clockwork) he goes home. He must know that his family and the kids are home from work and school so they will play with him. Once Monday rolls around again, he's usually heading back to us. I guess you can't say animals are stupid (for the most part) because he knows where he can get the most love, food, and playtime.
I'm not sure how long this will continue on. I do worry when he's out on the road that a car or truck will hit him. When he's with us, I do my best to keep him safe and out of trouble, but in the end, he's not really our dog. Part of me hopes the owner will realize he's happier elsewhere. But until that happens, we're just happy to have the weekday Weimariner.
Until next time my creatively obsessed friends.
Kathy
Flynn when we first saw him.
Getting a nap in a warm house.
Flynn and Wellie, best buds.
Flynn checking out our waterfall.
Lola, Flynn, and Wellie.
Flynn watching me muck out stalls.
Wellie and Flynn in the Gator ready to go.
April 4, 2012
That Spring Time Thing
Oh, yes, spring is in the air! Everything is in the mood for love. The birds, bees, horses, dogs, cats, fish, EVERYTHING! And with this flurry of love going on, I've yet to get another erotica story published. It's not for lack of effort; I have 3 parts of a story written, it's just finding the time between editing, formatting for clients, and running a 100 acre farm that seems to get in the way. And worst of all, on a daily basis I get ideas for fantastic stories in which I have no time to write. As you can see, this is my latest blog post in about a month. There just aren't enough hours in the day to get everything done. I'm sure you're all sitting here reading this and nodding.
Plus, I'm working on getting another installment of the "Space" series out by July. I have a beta reader going over it giving me great pointers, and will hopefully be on track with everything to have it out. I also need to make a trip to Memphis to meet with Prince Mongo and get the final details for The Hall- which I wrote last year and have yet to get it in print. Nope, not enough hours in the day, or days in the year. Time flies! I thought retiring from the Air Force would leave me more time--nope! It just got taken up by other things. Once in a while hubby is nice and mucks out the barn for me so I can write or do other work.
Folks joke about time management; yes, it's preached from the highest mountains, but can we really make it work? I laugh and joke too, but when you're running your own farm and publishing company, you need every second of time on your side. Because of everything on my plate, I have very little down time. It's probably a good thing, I'd go crazy with nothing to do. Even trying to relax and watch a movie has my mind going a mile a minute. I am a writer, and I think about it all the time. Insomnia sucks by the way! You lay in bed, wide awake, thinking and thinking. You don't want to get up, it's far too early for that. So you lie there and think and watch the hours tick by.
The best advice I can offer is set goals and keep a list. By setting goals I mean to pick something within reach and work on it until you have completed it. Right now I'm in the process of getting my first book ready to be republished. It's over 200K words and was total insanity to make that my first published work. But after 2 years, I have my rights back from the vanity press, and plan on releasing it the way it should've been done. At 38 chapters long, the task has been daunting. I made a goal of editing 1 chapter a day. So far, I've managed to keep up, and in a couple of days I will be printing it out to send to my editor. I'd like to have it published by the end of the year (on top of everything else I'm doing) and if all goes well, I should.
So as I sit here in my office, looking out the window at the grass that needs to me mowed--again, I'm making a mental list of everything I need to get done that day. Some days the list is long, others, I get to have a little "grown-up play time"- which usually equates to something fun that still requires work.
If at times you feel discouraged because you have a lot on your plate, take a deep breath and try to relax. Sit down and organize your priorities-bills must get paid, the house must get cleaned, and the lawn begs to be mowed. And make sure you have time to feed your passion. Set aside time to write- even if you don't get much done, you will feel better knowing you put some words down. Even if it's just a sentence or two, it was something.
Spring is a lovely season for love. But it can be a busy season all the same. We writers must keep our chins up and soldier on in our offices while we watch the grass grow and the birds chirp. There will be time for all of that. Thank heavens the days are getting longer; now we need 36 hours in a day to get everything done! And not to mention time to handle life's emergencies.
Until next time, my creatively obsessed friends,
Kathy
Oh, yes, and spring brings the nesting birds. This one was #3 removed from my stove pipe! I wish they would decide to nest somewhere else. I need to add putting mesh around the chimney to the honey-do list.
One way to get some of the lawns mowed.
My newest "toy" is Bitsy- a 1953 Ferguson tractor. Sure, she's cute, but she's here for work.
Finally, some grown-up play time!
Meet Prince Mongo...The Hall will be an interesting book.
Ashlar Hall- where the story is set.
Plus, I'm working on getting another installment of the "Space" series out by July. I have a beta reader going over it giving me great pointers, and will hopefully be on track with everything to have it out. I also need to make a trip to Memphis to meet with Prince Mongo and get the final details for The Hall- which I wrote last year and have yet to get it in print. Nope, not enough hours in the day, or days in the year. Time flies! I thought retiring from the Air Force would leave me more time--nope! It just got taken up by other things. Once in a while hubby is nice and mucks out the barn for me so I can write or do other work.
Folks joke about time management; yes, it's preached from the highest mountains, but can we really make it work? I laugh and joke too, but when you're running your own farm and publishing company, you need every second of time on your side. Because of everything on my plate, I have very little down time. It's probably a good thing, I'd go crazy with nothing to do. Even trying to relax and watch a movie has my mind going a mile a minute. I am a writer, and I think about it all the time. Insomnia sucks by the way! You lay in bed, wide awake, thinking and thinking. You don't want to get up, it's far too early for that. So you lie there and think and watch the hours tick by.
The best advice I can offer is set goals and keep a list. By setting goals I mean to pick something within reach and work on it until you have completed it. Right now I'm in the process of getting my first book ready to be republished. It's over 200K words and was total insanity to make that my first published work. But after 2 years, I have my rights back from the vanity press, and plan on releasing it the way it should've been done. At 38 chapters long, the task has been daunting. I made a goal of editing 1 chapter a day. So far, I've managed to keep up, and in a couple of days I will be printing it out to send to my editor. I'd like to have it published by the end of the year (on top of everything else I'm doing) and if all goes well, I should.
So as I sit here in my office, looking out the window at the grass that needs to me mowed--again, I'm making a mental list of everything I need to get done that day. Some days the list is long, others, I get to have a little "grown-up play time"- which usually equates to something fun that still requires work.
If at times you feel discouraged because you have a lot on your plate, take a deep breath and try to relax. Sit down and organize your priorities-bills must get paid, the house must get cleaned, and the lawn begs to be mowed. And make sure you have time to feed your passion. Set aside time to write- even if you don't get much done, you will feel better knowing you put some words down. Even if it's just a sentence or two, it was something.
Spring is a lovely season for love. But it can be a busy season all the same. We writers must keep our chins up and soldier on in our offices while we watch the grass grow and the birds chirp. There will be time for all of that. Thank heavens the days are getting longer; now we need 36 hours in a day to get everything done! And not to mention time to handle life's emergencies.
Until next time, my creatively obsessed friends,
Kathy
Oh, yes, and spring brings the nesting birds. This one was #3 removed from my stove pipe! I wish they would decide to nest somewhere else. I need to add putting mesh around the chimney to the honey-do list.
One way to get some of the lawns mowed.
My newest "toy" is Bitsy- a 1953 Ferguson tractor. Sure, she's cute, but she's here for work.
Finally, some grown-up play time!
Meet Prince Mongo...The Hall will be an interesting book.
Ashlar Hall- where the story is set.
March 8, 2012
Marketing by the (e)book
This was also posted on another blog.
Another follow-up article to the one I did a while back. As authors, most of us detest the "M" word. I'm no exception. But, if you play your cards right, marketing opportunities can literally fall in your lap- FREE ones at that!
So, now you're wondering what stupendous things I'm going to tell you. This works very well if you're a prolific author. The reason being, the tactic is to draw folks to you, and your hopefully healthy backcatalog. This is pretty much a no-cost option to getting ebooks in people's hands. And you know what? I didn't think this up. I owe all the credit to one of my Indie author peers. He suggested this to me, simply because it worked for him—so well, he finally got to quit his day job and become a writer full time. How did he do it? He wrote a "free" ebook.
By free, he explained to me that I was to write either a novella or a full length novel. Even better, make it the first book in a series to get readers hooked and wanting more. Once completed, I got beta readers to go over it, and made any corrections. Since I have the know-how, I formatted and did the cover—all for little to no cost. The less money I put into it, the better. It didn't mean I was to cut corners, no, that book had probably 12 editing passes by me. Was it perfect? No! In fact I've had to make corrections and upload new versions. But I did the best I could for the lack of money.
Once you have this free ebook done, now you need to get it up on the internet for the entire world to see. This is where it can get a little tricky. We all know Amazon is the best place to get exposure. BUT, they won't let you put a book up there for free (unless you do the KDP Select with it). So, how do you get Az to price your book for free if you don't want to do Select? It requires a little patience, but in the end, it's worth it.
First: publish the book on Smashwords.com. You can list it there for free. Cool, tell folks about it. SW isn't as well known and the mighty Az, but, they also have a deal with Az that involves price matching. So, once your book is showing up free on SW, go to Az and publish there (just slap a .99 price on it for now) then get your friends, fellow authors, whomever, to log onto Az and use the price matching feature. They will need the link to your book for both sites. It took me just over a month and Az dropped the price to free.
Second: the media blitz. Facebook is a wealth of information, if you know where to look—or like me, just have dumb luck and stumble upon it. I started noticing my "friends" showing links to eReader News Daily and Pixel of Ink. Both are sites that post free Kindle books on a daily basis. I went to the eReader News website, found a contact email, and sent them a very polite email letting them know I had a free ebook on Amazon (and it was totally free, not KDP Select) and gave them the link. They sent me a nice email back and informed me of the day they would post my book (it was a Friday, I think). Up until now, my book had seen good movement in the free sci-fi-adventure category on Az but nothing fantastic. After eReader News posted that link, I could sit and watch my downloads going up by the very minute! I had over 1,000 downloads in ONE DAY!!! I was absolutely amazed! At the peak of the downloading frenzy, my book was #4 on the list.
Third: don't sit back on your laurels. Yes, I had a "bestseller" on my hands, but that didn't mean I stopped. I did my best to politely post on as many Facebook pages as I could— being mindful not to be spammy about it. I used Twitter and finally figured out how those hashtags worked. By using #free #ebook #Kindle #sci-fi in my tweets, folks searching those words might stumble over my link for the book. It must've worked; I've picked up quite a few new followers on Twitter. Which leads me to:
Fourth: steering them to you! We're all just minnows in this giant sea of publishing. So how do you get someone to find you? Well, simple, tell them! When posting on Facebook or Twitter, don't be afraid to insert your Amazon author's page link. Yes, you're tooting your own horn, but in case you haven't noticed, no one else is there to do it for you. And make sure that page is as compelling as you can get it. Have the best picture you can of yourself, a bio that's interesting, perhaps a bit funny, and engages your audience to want to know more about you and your books. Basically, you're pimping yourself.
Okay, so now you've done all this, what to expect? I have the book posted on SW, Az, and Barnes and Noble—all for free. What I've seen is a gradual increase in my backcatalog sales- especially on Az. I went from making $4/mo in royalties on Az to making $20-30/mo. No, it's not a huge jump, but the good thing is I'm selling a book or two every day from my backcatalog. The free ebook is still getting downloads (it has fallen in the ranking but is still in the top 100) and now folks have hopefully read their free sample and are looking at what else I have to offer; or looking forward to part two.
Now, what next? More marketing! What? What? You say? More??!! Yes, this is the easiest of all. When you are formatting your books, don't forget to either put in the front or back matter any links you have: website, Facebook page, Twitter handle, anyway you would want your adoring fans to have access to you. ---A word of caution: DO NOT put your Az author page, or your SW author page—you will run into problems with conflicts of interest between the sellers and they may dump your book. Just use non-company related sites. If the book is part one of a series, don't forget to put: "Watch for Part 2 of ________" so they know there is more to come. And list any of your backcatalog along with your bio at the end, so they know you offer something else to read.
This strategy worked well for me. Will it work for you? You never know until you try. There are so many ways to get your book out there, but for many of us, we can't afford to fork out loads of dough for advertising. So use what's freely available and make it work. Don't be afraid to be creative—we're writers for Pete's sake—we're supposed to be creative! Until next time, my creatively obsessed friends,
Kathy
Helpful links:http://ereadernewstoday.com/http://www.pixelofink.com/
https://authorcentral.amazon.com/
My Az author page: (yes, that photo is just about a year old now)http://www.amazon.com/K.-Rowe/e/B003H2UCNI/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1
And the link to my free ebook:http://www.amazon.com/Space-Crazy-Dars-Adventures-ebook/dp/B006Q9M6CE/ref=ntt_at_ep_edition_2_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2
Here's a few inspirational pictures of the world I live in: these are literally in my backyard.
Another follow-up article to the one I did a while back. As authors, most of us detest the "M" word. I'm no exception. But, if you play your cards right, marketing opportunities can literally fall in your lap- FREE ones at that!
So, now you're wondering what stupendous things I'm going to tell you. This works very well if you're a prolific author. The reason being, the tactic is to draw folks to you, and your hopefully healthy backcatalog. This is pretty much a no-cost option to getting ebooks in people's hands. And you know what? I didn't think this up. I owe all the credit to one of my Indie author peers. He suggested this to me, simply because it worked for him—so well, he finally got to quit his day job and become a writer full time. How did he do it? He wrote a "free" ebook.
By free, he explained to me that I was to write either a novella or a full length novel. Even better, make it the first book in a series to get readers hooked and wanting more. Once completed, I got beta readers to go over it, and made any corrections. Since I have the know-how, I formatted and did the cover—all for little to no cost. The less money I put into it, the better. It didn't mean I was to cut corners, no, that book had probably 12 editing passes by me. Was it perfect? No! In fact I've had to make corrections and upload new versions. But I did the best I could for the lack of money.
Once you have this free ebook done, now you need to get it up on the internet for the entire world to see. This is where it can get a little tricky. We all know Amazon is the best place to get exposure. BUT, they won't let you put a book up there for free (unless you do the KDP Select with it). So, how do you get Az to price your book for free if you don't want to do Select? It requires a little patience, but in the end, it's worth it.
First: publish the book on Smashwords.com. You can list it there for free. Cool, tell folks about it. SW isn't as well known and the mighty Az, but, they also have a deal with Az that involves price matching. So, once your book is showing up free on SW, go to Az and publish there (just slap a .99 price on it for now) then get your friends, fellow authors, whomever, to log onto Az and use the price matching feature. They will need the link to your book for both sites. It took me just over a month and Az dropped the price to free.
Second: the media blitz. Facebook is a wealth of information, if you know where to look—or like me, just have dumb luck and stumble upon it. I started noticing my "friends" showing links to eReader News Daily and Pixel of Ink. Both are sites that post free Kindle books on a daily basis. I went to the eReader News website, found a contact email, and sent them a very polite email letting them know I had a free ebook on Amazon (and it was totally free, not KDP Select) and gave them the link. They sent me a nice email back and informed me of the day they would post my book (it was a Friday, I think). Up until now, my book had seen good movement in the free sci-fi-adventure category on Az but nothing fantastic. After eReader News posted that link, I could sit and watch my downloads going up by the very minute! I had over 1,000 downloads in ONE DAY!!! I was absolutely amazed! At the peak of the downloading frenzy, my book was #4 on the list.
Third: don't sit back on your laurels. Yes, I had a "bestseller" on my hands, but that didn't mean I stopped. I did my best to politely post on as many Facebook pages as I could— being mindful not to be spammy about it. I used Twitter and finally figured out how those hashtags worked. By using #free #ebook #Kindle #sci-fi in my tweets, folks searching those words might stumble over my link for the book. It must've worked; I've picked up quite a few new followers on Twitter. Which leads me to:
Fourth: steering them to you! We're all just minnows in this giant sea of publishing. So how do you get someone to find you? Well, simple, tell them! When posting on Facebook or Twitter, don't be afraid to insert your Amazon author's page link. Yes, you're tooting your own horn, but in case you haven't noticed, no one else is there to do it for you. And make sure that page is as compelling as you can get it. Have the best picture you can of yourself, a bio that's interesting, perhaps a bit funny, and engages your audience to want to know more about you and your books. Basically, you're pimping yourself.
Okay, so now you've done all this, what to expect? I have the book posted on SW, Az, and Barnes and Noble—all for free. What I've seen is a gradual increase in my backcatalog sales- especially on Az. I went from making $4/mo in royalties on Az to making $20-30/mo. No, it's not a huge jump, but the good thing is I'm selling a book or two every day from my backcatalog. The free ebook is still getting downloads (it has fallen in the ranking but is still in the top 100) and now folks have hopefully read their free sample and are looking at what else I have to offer; or looking forward to part two.
Now, what next? More marketing! What? What? You say? More??!! Yes, this is the easiest of all. When you are formatting your books, don't forget to either put in the front or back matter any links you have: website, Facebook page, Twitter handle, anyway you would want your adoring fans to have access to you. ---A word of caution: DO NOT put your Az author page, or your SW author page—you will run into problems with conflicts of interest between the sellers and they may dump your book. Just use non-company related sites. If the book is part one of a series, don't forget to put: "Watch for Part 2 of ________" so they know there is more to come. And list any of your backcatalog along with your bio at the end, so they know you offer something else to read.
This strategy worked well for me. Will it work for you? You never know until you try. There are so many ways to get your book out there, but for many of us, we can't afford to fork out loads of dough for advertising. So use what's freely available and make it work. Don't be afraid to be creative—we're writers for Pete's sake—we're supposed to be creative! Until next time, my creatively obsessed friends,
Kathy
Helpful links:http://ereadernewstoday.com/http://www.pixelofink.com/
https://authorcentral.amazon.com/
My Az author page: (yes, that photo is just about a year old now)http://www.amazon.com/K.-Rowe/e/B003H2UCNI/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1
And the link to my free ebook:http://www.amazon.com/Space-Crazy-Dars-Adventures-ebook/dp/B006Q9M6CE/ref=ntt_at_ep_edition_2_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2
Here's a few inspirational pictures of the world I live in: these are literally in my backyard.
