H.L. Reasby's Blog, page 12

The Walking Dead

I just finished watching the 90 minute premier of The Walking Dead on AMC.

I won't spoil anything for those of you who haven't watched it as yet, but it's an absolute MUST in my book. The acting is superb and the approach to the aftermath of a zombie apocalypse is brutally realistic. I can't wait to see what they're going to do with this show!

Another positive review

Another positive review:

Wow. I'm just humbled by the positive reviews that Akhet has been getting. Thank you!

Support your Independent Artists!

Support your Independent Artists!:

Are you looking for a unique and beautiful gift or something to liven up your living space? Check out my friend Jenny's etsy.com shop. She's not only beautiful and sweet, but wickedly talented as well!

Progress update

So, after talking with Garth regarding Peret, I've come to the conclusion that he's right about some things; first and foremost, that I'm pushing to rush through the writing of this second book. I'm afraid that I've let my competitive side get the better of me with regards to finishing this book and getting it out there. With that in mind, once I get the feedback from Garth and Ren, I'll be taking the time to sit down with this book and really do some major reworking to make some fixes.

I know that a lot of you out there are eager to read more of Nicole's adventures; believe me, I'm eager to get them to you. However, I've realized that in my eagerness I've started cutting corners and that is unacceptable. You, as my readers, deserve the very best I can put down on paper… even if that means having to wait a bit longer.

I want Peret to be my 'Empire Strikes Back'. It should be darker, more powerful, and should leave you with your heart in your throat. Now, the book as it stands right now… it's not bad. It's not, however, good enough.

In the interest of making the book better, I've been working on blurbs regarding Set's and Apep's factions: what do they want? What makes them tick? What are their goals? What are their methods? What type of person is in charge?

These are things that I had nebulous ideas of before, but which I need to be more concrete on if they're to be properly evil and enough of a challenge and a threat.

Also, at the same time, I'm putting together ideas for a collection of five short stories/novellas that will be called The Days upon the Year, in keeping with the calendar motif of the naming convention for these novels. These will be stories that will fill in some of the gaps of backstory so that the novels can focus on the current action more. I will likely work on these shorter works while waiting for editorial feedback from Peret and Shomu.

At any rate, that's my update for you. I feel that I owe it to you, as my readers who have supported me thus far, to be honest with you and to ask for your continued patience. You will get the rest of the story, I promise you. Just not yet.

PubIt!

As those of you who follow me on Facebook have seen, I recently received an invitation from Barnes & Noble to publish on their Nook format. For some reason, they appear to be doing an 'invitation' only situation where they're only allowing people who have previously expressed interest to sign up for their 'PubIt' service.

I found this to be rather ironic as a reader of mine had previously requested I put the book out for Nook, which I did… via Smashwords.com.

While I'm pleased to see that B&N has finally decided to jump into the deep end with indie publishing (please, do NOT call it 'vanity press' because that is a completely different animal), I do feel like they're missing some great opportunities.

The first problem is regarding the ability to associate print with ebook editions. The paperback edition of Akhet has been available on BN.com for about six months now and I have reviews for it that it would be nice to have show up on the Epub edition as well. With that in mind, I emailed the customer support division, asking if they could make that happen.

Here is the email I sent:

I've made my novel 'Akhet' available through PubIt and would like to

have the ebook associated with the paperback version on the website.

Please let me know what I need to do to make that happen.

Thank you.

H.L. Reasby

And here is the email I received back:

Dear Valued Customer,

  Thank you for your interest in PubIt!

  Currently, we are allowing access by invitation only.  If you want to

know about of all of the fabulous features we are offering, please take

a moment to review our FAQs by pasting this URL in your browser:

  http://pubit.barnesandnoble.com/pubit_app/bn?t=pi_reg_home

  On this page you can:

  ? Navigate to the link Learn More About PubIt! (our FAQs)

  ? Review our Terms & Conditions by clicking on the link in the lower

left corner.

  ? Want to join us?  Sign up under Invite Me to PubIt! and we?ll get

an invitation out to you.

  We are gratified that you are interested and hope you will decide to

join us in this exciting venture!

Sincerely,

Barnes & Noble

Sincerely,

Rachel

Customer Service Representative

Barnes & Noble

http://www.bn.com/

Unfortunately, as you can see, Rachel clearly did not take the time to read my email and ascertain what I was actually inquiring about, but sent out a robo-reply. After receiving such wonderful customer service from Amazon and Createspace when it comes to my publishing experience (the Createspace customer service rep even went so far as to give me her direct email and extension if I needed further help), this really leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

Perhaps the problem is that I've seen no indication that they have a PubIt-specific support group; at least, if they do, their contact information isn't listed anyplace logical on the website that I've seen.

The second issue that I can see with the PubIt service is the royalty they're offering. Depending on the price you set for your book, you'll receive either 40% or 65% of the proceeds. Compared to the 70% option that Amazon is offering, and the whopping 80% that I receive of each Epub copy through Smashwords, this just seems really chintzy. Yes, I know it's only 5-15% and that it only comes out to a few cents per copy, but really, this is my book that I've worked my ass off to finish and publish and I feel that I deserve those few cents!

Now, don't get me wrong. I love Barnes & Noble. I spent almost 6 years working in one of their retail outlets and I still consider it to be one of my favorite jobs ever. However, they're one of the largest retailers in the world and I know that they're struggling right now. The best way to rise to the occasion on this, in my opinion, is to really go above and beyond with the Ebooks. Right now, it feels like they're doing it as a token effort that they don't really have any belief or interest in.

Yes, my Ebook will appear on BN.com now, but without the positive reviews garnered by the paperback edition of the same novel. I'm not sure that it's truly worth it when I know that potential readers who have a Nook can always go to Smashwords and pick up a copy for the same price as BN.com or Amazon.

I really don't think I'm asking for too much here, to have the two editions linked as they are on Amazon. Reviews can really make or break your ability to sell a book and I really don't feel it's fair to ask someone who's already posted a review to go back and do it again on another edition.

I don't know. I'll have to mull it over. In the meantime, if you do have a Nook and would like to give 'Akhet' a read, please check it out; and if you like it, please leave a review!

NaNoWriMo Sponsorship!

NaNoWriMo Sponsorship!:

Dear Friends, Family, and Righteous Supporters,

This November, the nonprofit Office of Letters and Light will be bringing together the most mighty of endurance novelists for an event that will define our generation forever.

I'm speaking, of course, of National Novel Writing Month. It's a global writing challenge in which participants spend November (and portions of our sanity!) writing a 50,000-word book in just 30 days.

I will be among the participating authors this year. In addition to my writerly duties, I'm raising money to help the Office of Letters and Light continue to put on free creative writing programs for kids and adults in classrooms, communities, and libraries around the world.

Every dollar I raise will keep my spirits high as I write my way towards the realization of my creative goals. More importantly, your contribution will help National Novel Writing Month and its Young Writers Program create a more engaged and inspiring world.

Thank you so much for your support of my writing!

I'm officially participating in NaNoWriMo next month! Keep...

I'm officially participating in NaNoWriMo next month! Keep an eye on my progress, as well as my friend and fellow NaNo participant, Ren!

And the winners are....

Yes, that's right; the Akhet giveaway on Goodreads has concluded and the winners have been randomly selected from among the mind-boggling 641 people who entered!

And so, with no further ado… congratulations to Zoe Goulding of Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire and Sarah Page of beautiful Flagstaff, Arizona! I'll be sending out your packages by the end of the week.

I hope that you both enjoy the book very much!

Discussion Group!

Discussion Group!:

I've created a discussion group on Goodreads.com. If you're not a member of this fabulous social network especially for readers, you should be! Come join up and get in on the conversation.

Smashwords love!

Smashwords love!:

Thanks, Shannon, for such a great rating! You're an awesome little 'possum. :)