Christine M. Butler's Blog, page 6

Today in Quarantine...

If you've been on social media in the last several weeks, you too have witnessed the wide array of emotional reactions that people all around the world are having in response to the pandemic spread of the Corona-virus. Some are anxious, some are relieved to have time off of work/school, some are job-less and afraid of going hungry, some are angry with the sudden changes they've had to make to their plans, and some are even starting to feel bitterly inconvenienced by the government's stay at home orders. I've been feeling mostly tired. Exhausted is a better word, actually. I remember that in February, this was mostly a problem for Chinese citizens. I remember feeling sad about the loss of life, but I also remember thinking that it was just another illness, much like the flu. I remember feeling safe as a 24 year old, mostly healthy American citizen. I remember the first week or so in March, when the virus killing thousands in Italy. That was when I started to see warnings about the Corona-virus becoming a worldwide problem. Around that time, people started stock-piling supplies like hand sanitizer, toilet paper, meats, breads, canned goods, and cleaning products. Still, it was a worry that I compartmentalized away into the back of my mind. Maybe it would come to America, maybe it wouldn't. Did it matter? 24. Mostly Healthy. I'd be okay. I remember the seemingly overnight shift in my perspective on the virus after it made itself at home in America. I doubt I will ever forget how scared I was to realize that this virus was something that I would inevitably see close to home. I began to notice that the virus didn't really care how old or healthy you were. I learned that because I have Asthma and have had Pneumonia within the last 6 months, that I was considered "at risk." I suddenly began to fear for my sister, a Type 1 Diabetic. I was afraid for all of my loved ones over the age of 60. I was afraid for my friends who have newborn children. I began to hurt deeply for people I had never met. I thought about all of the students out there who could no longer go to school, even if it was their only safe place to go. I have had a few of them over the years in my classes, and I know there are so many more out there. I started to ache for the adults who had been furloughed, or would be without a job in the next several weeks. The sad truth of it all is that a staggering number of Americans live paycheck to paycheck, just trying to make ends meet. Someone living like that financially is always one small bump in the road away from losing everything, and the Corona-virus is one beast of a hill. Today, thousands of lives have been lost in the United States. This disease has even made its way to my small town in North Carolina, and it has changed almost everything about my daily life. That being said, I'm one of the lucky ones, for now. I am an Editor/Personal Assistant, which for me means that I work from home, and I am employed without being considered "essential." That being said, I still have my worries. I have suffered for years with Depression and Anxiety. Right now, I can no longer go to therapy in person, online therapy is just very expensive, and a lot of my coping mechanisms were built around my ability to leave my house and experience a change of scenery. Plus, I have more to be worried about now than before. I worry for my family, I worry for your families, I worry that people aren't staying home and that this will drag on forever, I'm worried that when this all finally does end, people won't be buying books or art as much anymore, and I'll lose my job. I'm worried about my fiance, who is considered essential, bringing home the virus. My heart hurts thinking about everyone in the world that is hurting worse than I am, and then it hurts even worse to feel like I can't really do much to help. Thus, I am exhausted mentally. I'm finding it harder than normal, even given my struggles with Depression, to focus or motivate myself to do things that are good for me. So today, I decided that I wanted to make this blog post to tell you that you're not alone! The entire world is experiencing the same tragedy all at once, and it is terrifying. It is okay if you are experiencing everything and processing everything going on around you differently than others. It is okay if you feel sad, angry, depressed, exhausted, unmotivated, bitter, or even hopeless from time to time. It is okay not to hold yourself to an unrealistic standard, given the current state of the world. It is more than okay for you to reach out and talk about what's going on and where your head is. Each day that I can, I will make a blog post about where my head is, and what I've been up to during quarantine. My hope is that maybe I can make at least one person feel less alone, and maybe, if I can share different things that I'm doing to cope and to keep my family happy and healthy during this time of crisis, one person who really needs the idea will see it. I hope that all of you are staying safe and healthy out there, and that if you can, you're staying home to help flatten the curve! For now, here is a picture of my dogs to help you through your day:

A New World #1

Day 1 of my video updates from quarantine/self isolation. This is day 11 of doctor ordered quarantine for us. This first video is just a quick hello and what's going on in my head right now.

Tomorrow (March 21st), I will be reading from Angel Girl (S.H.E. book 1). A female Motorcycle Club romance novel. Check that out, read along, and let's take our minds off of stuff for a while. Angel Girl is current free in e-book format for March 20th. It will only be $0.99 afterward, and is also available free via your Kindle Unlimited subscription if you have one!

Stuck at home, read a book

Since so many people are stuck at home right now, we wanted to remind you that there are things you can do to keep yourselves occupied. Here are some free (temporarily - at time of posting) books, books on sale, and a few books in subscription services that we are aware of. Feel free to add any that you know of (along with links when possible) in the comments! Yes, they can be books by other authors (obviously)! FREE Books:
Books by Christine Michelle: Dancing With Danger (through March 20) Angel Girl (through March 20) Proven (through March 20) SALE Books: Books by Christine Michelle:
Aces High MC Charleston Complete Series (all 5 books in 1) $5.99 (normally $9.99).
The Other Princess (Aces High MC - Charleston Book 1) $0.99 (normally $3.99).

Kindle Unlimited Books (subscription service):
Books by Christine Michelle: Dancing With Danger (Aces High MC - Dakotas Book 1) Whiskey Tango Foxtrot (Aces High MC - Dakotas Book 2)
Angel Girl (S.H.E. Book 1)
JoJo (S.H.E. Book 2)
The Infinite Something (T.I.E. Book 1)
The Infinite Beat (T.I.E. Book 2) Scribd Books (subscription service):
Books by Christine Michelle: The Aces High MC - Charleston Complete Series The Other Princess (Aces High MC - Charleston Book 1) A Love So Hard (Aces High MC - Charleston Book 2) The Princess and the Prospect (Aces High MC - Charleston Book 3) The Killing Ride (Aces High MC - Charleston Book 4) A Twist of Fate (Aces High MC - Charleston Book 5)

Transitioning from KU to Scribd Service in March/April: Books by Christine Michelle:
The Aces High MC - Cedar Falls Series
Redemption Weather
Proven
Smoke and the Flame
Redemption Duet

Passing for Human- A Review

While I love art and illustrations, graphic novels have never really been my thing. I've also never really gone out of my way to read a memoir. To be perfectly honest with you, I picked this book up at the Atticus Bookstore in New Haven because it had a beautiful cover (we all judge books by their covers, yeah?). I held it in my hand and flipped through the pages, only to fall in love with the artwork inside. The art style is passionate and beautiful, and I had to bring this book home with me. Passing for Human, written and illustrated by Liana Finck, is easily one of the best books I have ever read. It was out of my element, it was different, but it was marvelous. "A draw-er doesn't draw because she loves to draw. She doesn't draw because she draws well. She draws because once, she lost something. And by drawing, she will find it again." The illustrations take you on a visual journey through the life and inner workings of Liana Finck, who sees the world through a unique lens. Her story is filled with love and loss, the ups and downs of chasing your dreams, and battling the constant voice in your head that tells you that you're not enough, or maybe that you're too much. We've all been separated from our shadow selves at some point or another, and reading along as Liana forges her way through life on the lookout for her own is as inspirational as it is heartbreaking. Passing for Human is poignant. It has magic, humor, feminism, fear, self-doubt, neurodiversity, passion, failure and, of course, success. It may not be a book that you would typically pick up in a book store, but I highly recommend giving it a try. It is a book that I will be re-reading several times over. Hell, I even immediately went to Amazon and bought the other book that she wrote as soon as I finished this one. If you're interested, and you should be, Passing for Human is available in e-book or hardcover format.

Extremely Broke & Exceptionally Bored

A short story: Five days. Five excruciatingly long days have gone by since the last time I left my house. I'd managed to survive on leftover pizza and dry cereal for five days, without so much as an open curtain to view the outside world from. Fuck, I'm really going through it. I hate being watched. I always have, and it's only gotten worse since the implant. My implant was placed about six months ago, and now the only people without implants are on the run. Sometimes I wish I had run too when I had the chance, but I know its only a matter of time before someone sees you when you're on the run. And when someone sees you, everyone sees you. The government recently ruled that every citizen would be required to get a microscopic implant injected behind their eye. Once the implant is in place, the world can access a live stream of your life through your eyes. Crime has nearly come to an end because it's impossible not to get caught. Hell, people are no longer cheating on their significant others, no one liters anymore...in some ways, it's a good thing. Mostly, I fucking hate it. People see when you're taking a shit. People see when you're ignoring their texts. Hell, people can now physically see how lonely you are and how little you experience real social interaction. Worse than all of that, I am running out of money. I'd spent the last six months blowing through my savings just to make ends meet. No one really wants to call in a murder for hire when everyone is aware of your every move. All. The. Time. I know what you're thinking, I'm exactly the kind of person that the government was trying to stop with the implant in the first place. Well, kind of, but not really. See, I only took on a particular kind of client. My clients came to me when they were in danger. My clients were the ones suffering black eyes and broken arms from "walking into doorknobs" and "falling down the stairs again." Everyone hates domestic violence, but I really wanted to end it. Permanently. Now what the fuck am I going to do? I'm broke and depressed, and no one wants to hire me because I have no "legitimate" work experience. Plus, I miss feeling someone take their last breath. I miss being able to witness the last shred of hope leave the body right before the life force follows. I miss killing, and I'm going to have to figure out a way around the system because all of this pent up anger and tension needs a release, and soon. Really soon.

Romanticonn 2019: Our First Book Signing!

Romanticonn 2019 was a BLAST! Romanticonn took place at the Marriott in Trumbull, Connecticut on August 3, 2019. The pre-signing stress was very real because we had so many ideas for how we wanted the table to look and how the event should go. Being that this was our first signing event, we learned so much just from walking around the venue, talking with other authors and assistants, and checking out all of the amazing merchandise the other authors had at their tables. We took a lot of notes about things that we liked, things that we would like to change for our next signing event, and things that we would love to try in the future. We met so many amazing human beings that made it easy to forget how stressed we were leading up to the actual event. In addition to being there for the signing, I got to show Christine and Lexy (my mother and younger sister) around Connecticut, a state that I once called home. We were able to eat at my favorite restaurant, Wood-N-Tap in Vernon and, believe me, I have more than missed that creme brûlée. We were also able to head to New Haven for a day, where we walked around the Yale campus and toured the Yale Art Museum. I even got to take my mom and sister to my favorite bar: The Hop Knot in Middletown, where I was able to reconnect with my favorite bartender and friend, while chowing down on a soft pretzel sandwich and drinking their latest sour beer on tap. As an added bonus, since we were so close geographically, we also decided to head down to New York City for a day after the event was over. We got the best view of the city from the top of the World Trade Center before heading down and taking an embarrassingly long subway ride to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Of course, it wouldn't have been more than a 15 minute subway ride had I not put us on a subway headed in the wrong direction, but we don't have to talk about that, right? We had an amazing time, between attending a very successful event and meeting some wonderful people there, to touring NYC and Connecticut, and just enjoying being together as a family again. A huge thank you to Kitty Berry for putting together the first annual Romanticonn, and for allowing us to be a part of something truly awesome. We really enjoyed ourselves and we learned so much. To S. Massery, author of Something Special and Something Sacred: Thank you for letting us kidnap your idea for a table game ;) You have no idea how much you helped us out. I'm also incredibly excited to begin reading your books, especially the ARC of Blood Sky. To Sheena Hutchinson, S. Massery, Alicia Peek, Gianna Gabriella, Linny Lawless, Elizabeth Barone, Heather Anne, and Janine Bosco: We appreciate all of the signed books! Now that we're home, we can't wait to dive in to all of these stories. Finally, to everyone that stopped by our table and said "hello," picked up our free magnets or bookmarks, played our card game, or bought merchandise with us: We are honored and grateful beyond words for your continued support, without which, we could not continue to do what we love for a living. We hope that we will get to see you all again at another book event in the future. Next stop for us: Indie Romance Convention (IRC) in Lebanon, Tennessee: October 9-12, 2019. Grab yourself a ticket from the link below and come see us!

Motorcycle Club Romance Reading Order

With my Motorcycle Club Romance and Rock Star Romance books I have created worlds where several series exist that interact with one another. This sometimes causes confusion in reading order. I write all the books in such a way that you will not have to read any particular series within a world first. You can start anywhere. I will say, with the exception of the Aces High MC - Charleston Series, none of the series/books need to be read in a specific numbered order. Each series has its own book numbers based on publication/release dates. I am going to address those here. Within the MC World of Books there are three different motorcycle clubs (each with their own books/series). Aces High MC - with five series/ 27 books (two spin off series will follow for Permanent Marks Tattoo guys and the girls of Renegade Rosey's) S.H.E. MC - with 6 books (spin off will follow for the security guys of Redemption Inc. to add to this count at a later date) Stoneridge Raiders - with four books (currently planned) That will be 37 books total (that are either published or planned) for the MC World (not counting spin off books). The books also have what I call a lite to wild scale within the MC World. The scale runs as follows: MC Lite = family drama with a splash of the MC world in the mix. These are mostly internal stories without all the drama of clubs fighting with one another. These are about the families more than the MC. If you are just starting to explore the motorcycle club romance world, or if you have "triggers" that you don't want to read in books these are probably a good introductory place to start. MC Mild = the books in this mid-range portion of the scale are a good mix between the family drama of the MC Lite books to the Wild action-packed adventures of the MC Wild. You will see more "club business" here than in the MC Lite books, but they will still be focused more on the individuals rather than the overall club. MC Wild = The wild books are the ones that you may need trigger warnings for if you're a delicate reader. There will be more action, violence, sex, and twisted story lines than in the other two types of books. The ACES HIGH MC World: This world consists of five series. Three of those have been released and two more are still waiting in the wings for publication. They are named for the places where the specific chapter of the MC has established itself. Charleston Dakotas Tallahassee Cedar Falls Sierra High The reading order for these books (titles with links are currently published): Aces High MC - Charleston (MC Lite) (This is the only series within the Aces MC World that MUST be read in order) Book 1: The Other Princess Book 2: A Love So Hard Book 3: The Princess and the Prospect Book 4: The Killing Ride Book 5: A Twist of Fate Note: The rest of the books in the MC World can all be read as stand alone books, however for optimal enjoyment you can read them in their publication order within each series as listed: Aces High MC - Dakotas (MC Mild) Book 1: Dancing With Danger Book 2: Whiskey Tango Foxtrot Book 3: Cherries and Cream Book 4: The Restart and the Remedy Book 5: Learning to Bend Aces High MC - Cedar Falls (MC Lite-Mild) Book 1: Redemption Weather Book 2: Proven Book 3: Smoke and the Flame Book 4: Evermore Book 5: Wren's Wings Book 6: Through the Ashes Book 7: The Witchling Aces High MC - Tallahassee (MC Mild - Wild) Book 1: Crushed Book 2: Echoes of Everything Book 3: Court's Justice Book 4: Tricky Ride Aces High MC - Sierra High (MC Wild) Book 1: Bad Beat Book 2: Snake's Bite Book 3: Battle Plans Book 4: Stone Solid Book 5: Soulless Bastard Book 6: Twisted Tomorrow Sierra High Evermore MC S.H.E. MC (MC Mild) Book 1: Angel Girl Book 2: JoJo Book 3: Keys Book 4: MiMi Book 5: Tash Book 6: Legs Stoneridge Raiders MC Stoneridge Raiders MC (MC Wild) Book 1: Grave Mistake Book 2: Burning Bridges Book 3: Forgotten Soul Book 4: Harbinger's Fury *Note - The rock star romance world reading order will be posted in a separate blog. Thank you! **Order of titles not yet published is subject to change.

Make a book - it's easy!

Have an idea? Make a book - it's easy! That's what they say. I'm going to walk you through the process (my personal process) of how a book is made. If you're thinking of going the Indie route for writing books, or if you're just curious as to what goes into writing them - carry on, and get some answers. Just remember, everyone has their own way of doing things. Some of the things I do in this step-by-step process are skipped by other people. Those steps that are skipped are generally things they will have to pay more out-of-pocket costs for (formatting, cover and internal art design) because they hire other people to do them. Step one - an idea. This may seem obvious, but sometimes books are born at the oddest moments - like while I'm driving and daydreaming or in the shower. Then I have to try to remember the idea before it poofs away. Yes, even the best ideas poof away - though they usually come back to me, eventually. It could be a sight, sound, or smell that triggers a simple what-if scenario in my mind. Then my brain is off and running and before I know it there's a story to be told. Once in a while when I'm doing image searches for book covers and ads I will find a person (or thing) that intrigues me and a story forms around it/them. Other times, I write a secondary character in another book who decides to tell me their story, and they will not shut up until I write it down. What does this step cost? Time. Just time. Remember though, time is precious especially when you have kids, a day job, a pet, and need to remember to take care of yourself somewhere in there as well. ;) Step two - write it down. I take a moment (if I can) when an idea hits and I write everything down that comes to mind. Usually, looking back, it looks like a jumbled mass of crap. ;)
I then take that crap and form it into a little synopsis - a shortened Cliff's Notes version of the book it will become. Sometimes I pause and work on the book cover here. Other times that comes first or last. Honestly, book covers will get placed in this step-by-step process at a certain juncture, but in reality they sometimes happen at any point during the process. What does this step cost? Time, and usually very little of it. Step three - Outline. Not every author outlines a book. I have written books with zero outline, just flying by the seat of my pants the entire time. When I do it this way, it usually takes me a LOT longer to write a book, because I lose track of where I have been and where I'm supposed to go. Writer's block happens using this method, because at some point I will panic and go, "What's next? Oh my God, I don't know what's next!" The moment that happens I know I can just toss the manuscript aside and wait. Writer's block sucks! To combat that - I outline. My outlines can range from just naming the chapters (the names usually tell me what will happen in the chapter) or have a couple lines beneath each chapter head. When I'm really into certain things that will be happening I sometimes end up with pages of dialogue in my outline/notes too. Occasionally, I will realize that I need a backstory on certain things/people and I will add those in too. If I used a hand written outline (which I do most of the time) then I will type the outline into the word document as I set it up. Most of my books have images with chapter heads, I set all that in place in the word file then add the outline information. What does this step cost? Again, the cost is your time. Step Four - Document setup This helps me to not have as much to do on the backend when the writing is complete. I start with a Microsoft Word file template for the size book I plan on publishing. It already has all of my formatting in it. I'm lazy where I can be - why re-do that same stuff each time? There are other time consuming pieces to this book making puzzle, so save where you can. You can see in the image how the headers, chapter heads, POV images, and the paragraph formatting are all set, then I add in my outlines. As I write each chapter I will delete the outline information, and adjust the rest of my outline for any changes where I may have deviated from what I originally planned. It happens. The great thing about outlines is that they are guidelines for you. They don't have to be steadfast rules for your writing. What does this step cost? Time & Investment. I save time by using a template I snagged early on. This process is also involved in step six though with the internal art (Chapter heads/POV change images/ story break images). Investment for this is the money spent on MS Word program. $120 per year. Step Six - Book Cover and internal art I do this step myself nine out of ten times. I find images I like and sometimes lose hours to scrolling through looking for the best ones. Then I work in Photoshop and Lightroom to turn my idea into a functioning book cover. I have to make both paperback and ebook covers. For the audiobooks - another cover is made. What does this step cost? Time, Investment, and cost of fonts and images. Investment for programs = $120 per year. Cost for images = (depends on images) Some images I only spend a few dollars on others several hundred dollars. Total for images for this year will be somewhere in the ballpark of several thousand dollars due to the type of licensing I purchase for them, and the quantity. Cost of fonts = several hundred dollars Step Five - WRITE Once my outline is complete (or when I feel like it, if I have forgone the outline on a particular story) I start writing that story. This is pretty self explanatory. What does this step cost? Time. I can write a first draft, full-length novel in about one to two weeks time while working roughly 10-16 hour days. I CAN do that. I don't usually. It sucks to write that much in such a short time. I do it with some books because that's the way it pours out of me, and then I pay for it. My fingers, back, and eyes ache. My dog is giving me the side-eye because he held it too long and is about to burst, my kids start calling me "the weird lady in the corner" instead of mom because we haven't interacted. So, like I said, the 1-2 weeks is not the ideal. Generally, I like to have about a month to write each book. (You'll see from my writing schedule this year that I am sitting somewhere in between at about 2-3 weeks per book). Again - it costs time, health issues, and my family's distance in some cases to get through. TIME - if we work off of just the average US minimum wage for hours worked, it breaks down like this: (average US minimum wage is $7.25 per hour, by the way and time and a half is necessary for anything over 40 hours in a week). I work an average of 84 hours a week on books stuff (not counting chatting on FB). That equals: $768.28 per week that I need to make back in book sales for just my time at minimum wage standards. I don't know about you guys, but when I do work day jobs they are above min. wage thanks to experience. BUT - we'll stick with that number, so that you get the gist of what a person should be paid for the books they produce, or why they stop producing books because they aren't earning enough. Step Six - Read-through I re-read everything I've written. I do not look for mistakes/typos. I look for story flow, readability, and anything I may be lacking. This is generally where I fill in some blanks on things I left as I wrote out the big part of the story. Character detail, clothing descriptions, and settings get filled in better at this stage, because when I'm in writing mode with the story I sometimes skip past these things. It's easy for me to do that as I write the bulk of the story. What does this step cost? Time. Step Seven - First Edits This is me using basic spell/grammar check (they are not always right! If you are relying on them to be correct, you are a fool). I also use Grammarly to help out with this stage. Then once I've done a full sweep that way, I read through the manuscript again and fix anything that jumps out at me that wasn't caught by the basic tools. What does this step cost? TIME Step Eight - Editor The manuscript goes to the editor and I work on something else! This is generally 2-4 weeks worth of work (because I have a dedicated editor with no other clients at the moment). THIS is the part of the process that usually clogs up the works the worst. Some authors have to wait on this process for months. So, when you are stressing about why a book hasn't come out yet, this is probably the hold up. ;) What does this step cost? Investment & maybe frustration and life lessons. I personally pay about $600 for each step in the edits process per book. That number is usually higher depending on the level and type of editing a person is getting for their books. I get the family/experience discount, because I was tired of sending money to outside editors who either did a crap job, ran off with my money, or kept pushing deadlines after they accepted too much work from other authors. Step Nine - Applying edits and suggestions This is where I get edits back and apply or disregard edits and suggestions from the editor. This may take several rounds back and forth. Step Ten - Formatting As you all know, there are many versions of books. I have to format for the paperback (which is basically what I was doing in step four) and then I have to format for mobi files (kindle), epubs (pretty much all other e-readers), and then a pdf file will also be made from the word document. Each of these has extra steps that go on in the background beyond what you can see as well. They also each get different links set in them depending on where you will be purchasing them from. What does this step cost? Time and investment. I had to purchase special software to help format my books. This was a one time cost of about $60, but every couple years I update that software. I do not trust the places that "autoformat" for you, because I have internal art that tends to get messed up when they do that. Many authors pay anywhere from $50 to several hundred dollars for formatting from outside sources, especially if they have internal artwork. Step Eleven - Publishing (finally) This is the point where the completed book file gets uploaded to each place. I upload to Amazon, Smashwords (which sends the books to B&N, iBooks, Scribd, Overdrive, and a couple other places), Kobo, and Draft 2 Digital (Playster and somewhere else). What does this step cost? Time Step Twelve - Yes, there's more... Accuracy Check
This is the time when I have to make sure that all the other places that officially list my books are correct (Author Central - Amazon Author pages), being one. Unfortunately, Amazon doesn't automatically add our books to our author pages (which is stupid) and we have to go "claim" our books. I also have to check places like Goodreads, Library Thing, and Bookbub to make sure the books showed up there and everything is accurate. Then there are the social sites that need to be updated (Linked In, Facebook, Instagram, etc.). What does this step cost? Time Step Thirteen - Advertising Self-explanatory to a point. I have to post ads in places I think will best showcase my books to the people who would want to read them. I also do online book events and giveaways to help promote books. This involves not just the time online, but ordering books, packaging, mailing, etc. Then I work on setting up book tour stuff too so I get to meet people in person. Again, this is where I put on my travel planner hat, and get busy making travel plans, making sure I have promotional items made/purchased/ready. What does this step cost? Time and MONEY This year my advertising costs are well into the thousands of dollars so far. You have to find the advertising methods that work for you and your budget. As your sales increase, your ad budget should too. They feed off of one another. My costs for book events (especially those I'm traveling for) are ridiculous and we won't speak of them here. ;) Step Fourteen - The website and newsletter I'm still not done when all I want to do is write the next story. I have to update the website with information, then send out a newsletter (which I am horrible about remembering to do). Then I have to go promote the newsletter too. ;) What does this step cost? Time & Investment I own my URL so I pay for it. I pay for website efficiency and the storefront I use for sales, as well as the newsletters I send. Currently, I pay about $800 a year for all things involved with the website and newsletters. This amount varies depending on a person's skill level and what they want to offer. It can be lower or far higher. Step fifteen - Audiobook This is a new step for me as I only have one audiobook currently available and one in production. This is also an expensive step as each audiobook cost quite a lot to produce.
I do not hold up ebook and paperback releases for the audiobook, because you get the ebooks as soon as they are ready. I hate waiting for books too. If I made you wait for the audiobooks, I would only be releasing books every 4-6 months. That would suck. What does this step cost? $175 per finished hour per audiobook (average cost). This can also be much higher or a little lower depending on the voice actors/production team's costs/fees. Per finished hour = every 9,000 words written. So a 125,000 word novel would be 13.8 finished hours. $2,415 total for a book that size at the price suggested here (on top of original costs/time to produce the paper/ebook). Step fifteen - START ALL OVER In 2019 I have currently released 7 books (as of this post) with number 8 coming this week and number 9 not far behind that. I have about 10-15 more books planned to publish by the end of the year. I'm able to do this because I had the outlining process done for most (definitely not all) of them before the year started, and because I have that dedicated editor. Without the dedicated editor I would probably have only been able to publish maybe five books total this year due to time constraints. If you're thinking about getting into the publishing game, I have certainly given you plenty to think about. There are plenty of up-and-coming authors and groups out there who are willing to trade services with you to help lighten the financial burden since getting started in the business can be a huge gamble. Just remember, it still has a cost. Those services you are trading will still cost you time away from your own projects. If it works for you - go for it. Experiment a lot until you find what does work for you. Also, and I can't stress this enough, KNOW YOUR LIMITS and ABILITIES. If your book covers look like something a toddler could throw together, get help! And no, you absolutely cannot under any circumstance, edit your own book. It is not possible! Yes, you can work on edits. No, you will never catch what you need to just doing it solo. As an INDIE AUTHOR this is very important. I read traditionally published novels that are chalk full of editing mistakes that no one ever nitpicks in reviews because they came from a major publisher (and I guess people are afraid to call them out). They will not go lightly on you as an INDIE. We are expected to breed perfection in our work without the same resources or money to back us as traditionally published works have at their disposal. Even if your book is edited better than one of those books - you will hear about the mistakes they do find. No matter they pay half the price for your books as the traditional ones or that you crank out three times the volume it will happen. Which brings me to my last piece of advice for those of you considering traveling this road. Grow a thick skin and remember, people are very diverse and their reactions to your work will be too. One person may hate a specific thing about your book, but it will be the element that makes another person fall in love with it. Take the constructive hits and learn from them, but ignore the opinions. My dad once left me with this advice and it holds true to this day: "opinions are like assholes, everyone has one". I'm sure he received that advice from someone else too, but there you go. A rule to live by as you work on thickening your skin for a business where you are ALWAYS judged. On that note... HAPPY WRITING! For those of you who were just curious, happy reading! ;)

Credibility & Fiction

Wait! What? How in the heck do the two of those things go together? CREDIBILITY: noun the quality of being trusted and believed in. FICTION: noun literature in the form of prose, especially short stories and novels, that describes imaginary events and people. Well, they do seem a bit contradictory. The thing is that most fiction has an anchor in reality which means there are nuggets of truth that must exist in order for the untrue or made up parts to be believed. As an author I take those parts pretty seriously. When I was writing paranormal fantasy stories I still did my homework on magic and witchcraft. I wrote from a place of understanding how things might possibly be based on particular beliefs that were already in my "real" society. When Caislyn casts a circle in Birthrights and goes through the process of sending out her request to the beyond, it's all real, or as real as you believe it to be. Research went into those scenes. To Ride a Silver Broomstick by Silver Ravenwolf and many other books and resources (including going to coven meetings with a local Wiccan group) were a massive help when writing about a magical world that I wanted to feel absolutely real! That is one example of me being able to site my research sources. I don't always site them though, because they're not always for public consumption. When I started writing about certain lifestyles - the motorcycle club lifestyle especially - I also did my research about that. I don't always point my readers to the research I have done, because some of it frankly isn't your business! It's club business!

Audiobook Announcement

I've had people ask over the years when I was going to finally publish some books in audio format. Well, the time is now! I recently contracted with Sarah Puckett and D.C. Cole to bring The Other Princess to life in audiobook format. I'm looking forward to hearing it, and can't wait to be able to share it with everyone! I will update with links as soon as I have them, but I am hoping it will be released for audio this April. Audiobooks narrated by D.C. Cole Audiobooks narrated by Sarah Puckett Remember - The Other Princess is part of the Aces High MC World of Books, so 10% of every sale (book and audiobook in that world) will be donated to JDRF (Juvenile Diabetes Research Fund). For those who don't know, JDRF holds a special place in my heart. My youngest daughter was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes six years ago, and thanks to the information provided to us in the JDRF Bag of Hope, she has managed to stay very healthy! She actually still has her Rufus the Bear with Diabetes as well as all of the literature that came in that bag. We wanted to have a way to give back and be certain that every person diagnosed gets that same help, and hopefully, one day a cure! Thank you for helping us help others! March 1, 2019 will be the first anniversary of the first Aces High MC book published, and I will be posting how much money we raised and donated! This is an on-going annual event so you can look forward to seeing it every March!