Jo Ellen's Blog, page 5
August 24, 2013
I like being an Indie
I like the control. Yes, I have to wear different hats, writer, editor, proofreader, cover, formatting, and promotion. I'll admit, I didn't promote my books before I published. Luckily, I was blessed with readers who found my books and left reviews. Not all were good reviews, which is a good thing, or my ego would have been unbearable. If you didn't know it, bad reviews are helpful, but I'll write about reviews another time.
Would I take a trade publisher if they came knocking? I couldn't say without knowing what they would offer. I certainly would not give my ebook rights away. Paperback? Maybe... The nice part about a traditional publisher would be that they handle all those details that go with getting your book out to the public. Having a professional editor without having to sell my firstborn would be nice.
Doing the work yourself means you decide what you will write about, which characters story are yelling for his or her own book. Your timeline is whenever you're ready to publish, not dictated by a publishers deadline. I've never liked having to wait a year on any of my favorite authors books. I want it now!
Yes, my first two books were a year apart, but, I had breast cancer, dang it! No, I'm not going for the sympathy vote here, just saying my 'excuse' is relevant. Enough of that, moving on.
I'm sure many of you have seen the rants about indies, I've read several. Just like anything else, there are good and bad books out there. Indie and traditional alike. But being an independent, we have to work very hard to make our books stand out. Good writing, cover, editing, let me repeat that, editing, and making sure the format doesn't look like crap on different e-readers, is very important to the majority of us. Sure, there are some who think they can throw out an e-book and make a quick buck. I believe they soon find out that readers will not accept mediocre work.
I do make mistakes, believe it or not. I uploaded my manuscript last night to correct a few errors, rode instead of road, etc... I absolutely hate those stupid mistakes! Add to the fact that they weren't caught, grrr, my proofreaders and I need to do better.
So, you've read your own work until you're sick to death of it. Now it's formatted properly and you have a great cover, and blurb. That blurb is as important as your cover, another good subject for a later blog.
Now you're published. Take a break. Okay, that's long enough. Time to start that second book. You don't have to wait a year, you are your own boss. Get busy!
Would I take a trade publisher if they came knocking? I couldn't say without knowing what they would offer. I certainly would not give my ebook rights away. Paperback? Maybe... The nice part about a traditional publisher would be that they handle all those details that go with getting your book out to the public. Having a professional editor without having to sell my firstborn would be nice.
Doing the work yourself means you decide what you will write about, which characters story are yelling for his or her own book. Your timeline is whenever you're ready to publish, not dictated by a publishers deadline. I've never liked having to wait a year on any of my favorite authors books. I want it now!
Yes, my first two books were a year apart, but, I had breast cancer, dang it! No, I'm not going for the sympathy vote here, just saying my 'excuse' is relevant. Enough of that, moving on.
I'm sure many of you have seen the rants about indies, I've read several. Just like anything else, there are good and bad books out there. Indie and traditional alike. But being an independent, we have to work very hard to make our books stand out. Good writing, cover, editing, let me repeat that, editing, and making sure the format doesn't look like crap on different e-readers, is very important to the majority of us. Sure, there are some who think they can throw out an e-book and make a quick buck. I believe they soon find out that readers will not accept mediocre work.
I do make mistakes, believe it or not. I uploaded my manuscript last night to correct a few errors, rode instead of road, etc... I absolutely hate those stupid mistakes! Add to the fact that they weren't caught, grrr, my proofreaders and I need to do better.
So, you've read your own work until you're sick to death of it. Now it's formatted properly and you have a great cover, and blurb. That blurb is as important as your cover, another good subject for a later blog.
Now you're published. Take a break. Okay, that's long enough. Time to start that second book. You don't have to wait a year, you are your own boss. Get busy!
August 21, 2013
So, I'm starting a blog like the rest of the world
So, I'm starting a blog like the rest of the world. First, I'll spam my books, so sorry, can't help myself. My genre is Romance, of course...Paranormal/Fantasy. Wolves, shifters, magic, druids, mates, witches, and all with a little bit of humor. Oh yeah, sex too but not erotica. Did I just lose you? Lol Wolf Creek Alpha and Wolf Creek Enforcer, Texas Pack. You can find them on Amazon, Kobo, Nook and i-Tunes. There, I'm done. Moving on.
Lets get the boring part over with.
About me: Mother of a daughter finishing her last year of college and two boys. Boys, one in college, the other a senior in high school. Yay! I'm almost done raising them! Right? I've been a stay at home mom, (someone have a better title?) for the last twenty-one years. Before that, I worked in Trademarks. Now, I write, well, after guiding my children with my infinite wisdom. So, in my household we have me and my husband, three kids, one dog, two cats, one bearded dragon, and one koi in the backyard pond.
My plans are to write about everyday things, whatever interest me. Today will be, "Going back to school." I cannot wait! My house is the gathering place for all my kids friends. On the one hand, I've always known what they're up to. On the other, ever have five to ten boys age 17 to 21 at your house EVERY DAY? My kids toy room, which is now transforming into the game room, imagine NASA's mission control, has three computers and four monitors. Not counting the friends that show up with their own laptop. I am soooo looking forward to Monday when they all go back to school and I may once again write in peace. Lovely...
Forgot to add, the picture is of my dog, Lola, since she has more hair than I do. Breast cancer, chemo, yeah, yeah. Finished treatment but no pix of me, no way!
Lets get the boring part over with.
About me: Mother of a daughter finishing her last year of college and two boys. Boys, one in college, the other a senior in high school. Yay! I'm almost done raising them! Right? I've been a stay at home mom, (someone have a better title?) for the last twenty-one years. Before that, I worked in Trademarks. Now, I write, well, after guiding my children with my infinite wisdom. So, in my household we have me and my husband, three kids, one dog, two cats, one bearded dragon, and one koi in the backyard pond.
My plans are to write about everyday things, whatever interest me. Today will be, "Going back to school." I cannot wait! My house is the gathering place for all my kids friends. On the one hand, I've always known what they're up to. On the other, ever have five to ten boys age 17 to 21 at your house EVERY DAY? My kids toy room, which is now transforming into the game room, imagine NASA's mission control, has three computers and four monitors. Not counting the friends that show up with their own laptop. I am soooo looking forward to Monday when they all go back to school and I may once again write in peace. Lovely...
Forgot to add, the picture is of my dog, Lola, since she has more hair than I do. Breast cancer, chemo, yeah, yeah. Finished treatment but no pix of me, no way!
