Sally Clements's Blog, page 7

Something free for Valentine's Day!

Blaze is free from today until the 16th!
Here's a little bit about it...

Coombethwaite, the lakeside town where passions run deep, is the setting for the stories in Blaze, the first anthology from The Minxes of Romance.
8 scorching tales from The Minxes of Romance.
Romance is in the air for Coombethwaite’s retained firefighters, and none of them will escape its heat unscorched!

MEMORY’S FLAME by Maya Blake
A fiery reunion – when Ellie returns after twelve long years to bury her grandfather, the last person she expects to see is her first love, Jake Spencer. One look, one touch and they know memory's flame is as sizzling as ever!
THE FIRE INSIDE by Romy Sommer
Fire fighter Sam Redfern is used to being seen as just one of the boys. Until TV talent scout and celebrity Ryan Morgan shows up in Coombethwaite and starts to make her feel very much like a woman. A woman with needs.
A SMOULDERING ATTRACTION by Suzanna Ross
Shelley Fox is finished with all things romantic. So is Harrison Reid - until he meets Shelley and realises he might easily be persuaded otherwise.
LOCKED INTO LOVE by Catherine Coles
Journalist Cassie Parker returns to Coombethwaite with her dream in tatters—the last thing she needs is to rely on her ex for anything but on her second day back she needs hunky fireman Ben Spencer to release her from handcuffs!
HOT, BOTHERED AND BEWITCHED by Jodie James
All alone on her birthday, Wiccan vet Seraphine conjures up more than she bargained for when she casts a Halloween love spell. Five minutes later a knock on the door heralds the arrival of handsome fireman Isaac Quinn, complete with a stray black cat. Is it just coincidence, or has Mother Nature answered Seraphine's request with lightning speed?
LIGHTING LOVE’S SPARK by Sally Clements
Primary school teacher Annabel Jackson knows flirting with the parents is a no-no, but when single father Daniel Walker arrives at Coombethwaite Primary in full fire fighter garb clutching an axe, how can she resist?
WORTH THE RISK by Tara Pammi
Baker Annie Bennett has always stood on the sidelines while life passed her by. And it has brought Annie nothing but loneliness. With the New Year coming in, Annie decides it's time to come back home, risk her heart with the man she's always loved. Will her risk pay off or will Marcus never see her as anything but his best friend?
A KINDLING ROMANCE by Lorraine Wilson
Stressed out lawyer Polly Minton felt trapped in her city job and now she's trapped again, this time in a Lake District chimney; hunky fire fighter and local landowner Drew Reynolds has problems of his own but will he be the one to set her free in more ways than one? Available on Amazon .com and .co.uk

Kobo Writing Life

Kobo Writing Life : http://www.kobobooks.com/KoboWritingLIfe
The Canadian company Kobo has dedicated e-readers and these are my notes from the Cracking Kobo seminar given by Mark Lefebvre on 23 January 2013. The biggest player in the self-publishing market is Amazon, but I am interested to see Kobo’s growth in the marketplace, and they have some interesting strategies which may propel them more into the limelight in 2013 and 2014, so I thought it was useful to attend the video seminar. Here are my notes from the session - it's a long post, but I also left out a lot of stuff, and probably really useful stuff, so do check through the links if you're interested, where others have detailed more!
I haven’t self-published anything with Kobo to date, but have 2 novels published by The Wild Rose Press on Kobo, and also a collection of short stories (which is free).
Kobo uses the epub format, and their policy is any ebook, any device, any time.
My self-published collection of short stories went up on Kobo via Smashwords, which allows self-publishers to distribute their titles to a variety of different ebook retailers. It is possible to choose which retailers to distribute to via Smashwords – at the moment I turn Amazon off, because I upload directly to Amazon using KDP, and now that I have learned more about Kobo Writing Life, I am keen to try to publish there directly too. Like Amazon’s KDP, this gives the publisher access to a dashboard where they can have better control, including live sales data.
Mark’s slides from the presentation are here, and I found an interesting you tube from Hugh Howey talking about Kobo Writing Life here.  
Here are some of the main points I gleaned from the seminar – any mistakes are mine!
Kobo uses epub format.
You can buy your own isbn, or use internally generated ‘dummy’ isbns.
70% royalty rate for books priced $1.99-$12.99 – with the ability to specify different sales prices for different territories. An interesting point that Mark made was that rather than allow the automatic readjustment for currencies, setting the price for individual currencies can earn you a few more pennies in each market…
The rate is 45% for all other price points.
Payment is 45 days after end of period once $100 threshold reached, and this is paid into your bank account in whatever currency you choose. They also do a twice annual purge (next on Feb 15 2013) to clear down the books, so if you’ve made below the threshold, you will at least see the royalties at some stage.
They create an invoice for you, and pay you against that, and don’t withhold taxes, it is the authors job to make sure that they are compliant in whatever country they live in.
Flexibility on hybrid files – so if you have sold the UK rights (for example) but hold the rights to different territories, you can make the ebook available for sale in just the territories that you hold the rights to.
The author dashboard has a lot of graphs and sales crunching info, including a global snapshot of sales.
You can upload in a variety of formats including word, mobi or epub, and a converter will convert to mobi, although the best way to do it seems to be to convert your file to epub, check and tweak, and then upload the final epub version for best results.
You can set a date in the future for publication, so can have preorders.
You can set the price and change it anytime. Including FREE.
And a dedicated Kobo Learning Centre is full of information about how to do things. Here’s the FAQ’s section.
Kobo is in 190 countries, and has localised rankings and bestsellers lists. Interestingly, they rank the author, not the books, so if for example your books Fabulous Romance one, Fabulous Romance two and Fabulous Romance three are the top three bestsellers on Kobo (dream on!) instead of taking up the top three spots, you are featured ONCE, which allows more authors to be featured in the top 20, which is not something that is likely to be useful for me, but interesting nonetheless. Mark also talked about a system that will notify you if you’re ranking high in a particular territory.
One point I found most interesting is the partnership options that Kobo has entered into. I became aware of this when I visited the UK in December, and kept seeing Kobo e-readers for sale in WH Smith, a major bookseller in the UK.  Here’s a report about the WH Smith partnership. Here in Ireland, Kindle is everywhere, but in the UK, I saw Kobo everywhere. This report states that Kobo doubled its sales in 2012, and continues to experience rapid growth, and this report from The Bookseller, states that they achieved 7 fold growth in sales in December alone.
As well as the UK WH Smith partnership, they have partnered with the ABA in the US as well as others, In short, their approach to the marketplace is strong and aggressive. Mark spoke about the possibility of authors doing promotion in their local stores, promoted by Kobo.
There was talk about Kobo’s facebook, and also about the ability to have ratings and reviews transfer automatically from Goodreads. I found this to be a very significant feature, and here is the link about how to get that to work. Eric Kent Edstrom has written a great tutorial on how to do this, which is here. I tried this yesterday for one of my books, but it hasn’t transferred my goodreads stuff over yet. For a new user of the Kobo Writing Life platform who has a strong goodreads community interested in their books, having the reviews port across could be fantastic.  Of course, if you have some horrid goodreads reviews, you might decide against it!
Also of interest? That the people who own Pinterest also own Kobo… more.
Here’s Kobo’s pinterest board.
So, in conclusion:
I’m a hybrid author, in that I am self-published and published by publishers. For self-publishing, I have found Amazon’s kdp select program (for which I have to be exclusive to Amazon) to be great for driving sales and increasing my visibility. I’m doing okay, always want to do better, but at this stage I’m selling hundreds every month. My traditionally published titles are selling better due to the halo effect from my self-published works. I like the look and drive of Kobo, and think that their rapid growth is something to be aware of and to inform myself about. I was impressed by the presentation, and found much to like in Kobo Writing Life. But looking at my sales reports, I’ve sold really miserably at Kobo for my traditionally published work. Like, really miserably.
I’d like to try out the Kobo Writing Life self-publishing platform, but have read much about the difficulties in gaining traction and getting visibility there – there’s no point in having a platform to sell if no-one can find me! And right now, leaving the kdp select program feels like killing a golden goose in a vague hope of attaining visibility elsewhere, so I’m reticent to try it.
For now.
But the one thing you can be sure of in publishing, is that things change quickly, and being informed is the best policy for making future decisions.
Thanks to Markand Orna Ross of the Alliance for Independent Authorsfor the Cracking Kobo seminar, you can check them out on the links embedded above. Here are my Kobo titles!
I’d be very interested to hear from anyone currently using Kobo Writing Life – is it working for you?

Reasons to be cheerful...

One - The 'keeping a record of new words written' resolution is showing results. Bum on seat, fingers on keyboard, means my new words written wordcount is looking good for January.

Two - I've signed a contract with Entangled Publishing for a 'flirt' length romance, titled Under Wraps.

Three - I've finished and submitted another book, and yesterday started a new one.

Keeping a record

This year, I decided to take a leaf out of Suzanne Ross Jones' book (not literally, that would be plagerism!). Suzanne minx does a post on her blog most years which I always enjoy and look forward to, which is a summary of her year, and every year she posts it, I'm impressed by her output during the year, and her successes.

So here's my plan for 2013.

To record my wordcount on new words generated throughout the year. Every week, and adding it all up at the end of each month. I've never done this before. Normally, I keep an eye on sales, but whether or not people buy my books is an element mostly out of my control. Yes, I can run giveaways, do guest blogs, and do advertising, but this takes up a lot of my time and distracts me from the only thing that I can control - my output!

I love writing. I enjoy the challenge of making my writing better. I read a ton of writing related books, and read a lot of fiction for enjoyment and also because I appreciate my favorite authors' skill and mastery of language. But to become a better writer, I need to put words on the page, and if I don't keep a record of just how many new words I am producing, it is easy to fool myself that I'm being productive, when really I'm not.

Re-writing, polishing, editing and launching new works is part of my everyday, but the magic element, for me, is to create something new. I've set myself a weekly, monthly and yearly goal.
Only time will tell if I achieve it, but breaking my writing goals down like this into mini goals, means that I can be happy each and every time I achieve one. And happiness is important - if I'm unhappy or stressed, I find writing hard.

New Year. New strategy. Let go of stressing about things that I can't influence directly, and focus my attention on things that I can. Celebrate every teeny tiny milestone along the way, and grow the happy!

#samplesunday Love on the Vine

This morning Catch Me A Catch is #5 in the free kindle list in the .com kindle store, and is still free, so please if you'd like a free read, do pick it up! .com http://amzn.to/PegguS .co.uk http://amzn.to/UbGFbI

And for #samplesunday here's some skinnydipping from the beginning of Love On the Vine...
 
Chapter One   Anaked woman swam in his lake. She  floated on  her  back, offeringher  lissome body to the sky, silver shards of light reflecting from her pale skin. Long blonde hair drifted like an exotic water plant around her head. Etienne Durand stilled at the lakeside, leaned against one of the huge redwoods circling the hidden paradise, and watched. He should be angry to find a strangewoman taking advantage. The lake hidden in the forest was his property,after all. Prominent notices posted everywhere proclaimed the landsas private. But somehow the sight of the woman luxuriating in the clear water soothed his rotten mood rather than exacerbatedit. He breathed in the scent of damp woodland and let his mind wander free. Inthis hidden idyll, she looked like a nymph, a truly beautiful creature at one with the magical surroundings. Dry  leaves crackled underfoot as  Etienne pushed  away  from  the  tree.  A  creature  who’d invaded his land. Withoutpermission. Whatever her motives, she must have climbed the fence into the forest from the vineyard. His  shoulders  tensed  as  he  stepped  forward. “Get out of the water,”he called. Inan instant, the nymph jackknifed. Herarms flailed as she swallowed a deep mouthful of lake water. She came to the surfacespluttering. “I…” “Get out.” Etienne pointed to the lake shore. “You’re trespassing.” “I’m not,” the female shouted back. “And there’s no way I’m getting out, not while you’re watching.” Etienne pulled in a deep breath.“You are trespassing. And I’m serious. Either get out of the wateror I’ll come in and drag you out.” Theblonde blushed beet-red. “I can’t. I’m not…I’m not wearing anything.” Holding back his amusement, Etienne crossed both arms across his chest. “I know.” She trod water, watching. “Well, which is it?” He undid the top button of hisshirt. Her eyes widened. “Are you coming out on your own, or…” Etienne smothered a grin at her horrified expression. He slowly undid another. “All right.” She swam closer. “My clothes are overthere.” A wet hand, index finger extended, pointed to the lake shore. Glancing to his left, he spotteda small bundle of discarded clothing. “You need to turn around.” Etienne crossed his arms and glared. “I don’t need to do any such thing.” No one dictated to him. As new owner of the St. Clair Durand Vineyard on the outskirts of the Californian town of Almendra, hewas the master of all he surveyed. Shesmoothed back her hair with a wet hand. “Please.” The word hung in the air betweenthem. Some women would play the situation for all it was worth—walking out of the lake naked, with swaying hips and a knowing look in their eyes. He’d met plenty of those. Or pretend modesty in an attempt to manipulate. Bitter experience had educated Etienne in the wiles of women. “Ican’t get out until you turnaround.” The flush crept down her neck.She rolled in her bottomlip andworried it with her teeth.Etienne shoved a hand through his hair. The flushcouldn’t be faked. Maybe the innocent act was real. If so…He paused for a long moment, then, with a curt nod,turned his back.A rustling noise behind him indicated she had picked up her clothes.Etienne hadn’t noticed a towel in the little bundle, which meant she’d have to climb into her clothes with her skin still wet from the cool water.  Passion  stirred  at  the  thought  of  her  wet body, and he silently cursed the inappropriate response.“I’m dressed,” she said in a voice no louder than a whisper.He swung back to catch his first close-up look of the stranger standingan arm’s length away. She was tall for a woman, thetop of her head just about level with his nose. Long wet strands ofdark blonde hair hung to just below her breasts, and her eyes were clear vibrant green, like new grass after rain. Like the shoulders he’d glimpsed, her face was pale, witha light dusting of freckles across the bridge of her nose. Whatever makeup she might have been wearing had long washed away, and yet she still looked…   Etienne   blinked.   She   was   the   most beautiful woman he’d ever seen. And he’d seen plenty.His gaze swept her head to toe. High small breasts,  slender  hips,  and  legs  which  went  on forever. Soft lakeshore sand stuckto her toes, and cherry red polish painted her toenails.Mon Dieu, what was he doing, gazing at her toenails? Etienne cleared his throat. His gaze flicked to her face. “So, who the hell are you?” Love on the Vine buy links US http://amzn.to/RogWOD UK http://amzn.to/10zKU60

Merry Christmas. everyone.

I wish everyone a happy, healthy and relaxing Christmas...
and a Happy New Year.

Fantastic new book of short stories by Suzanne Ross Jones!!

I'm delighted to tell you all about a brand new release on Amazon this week - my friend and fellow minx, Suzanne Ross Jones (who also writes under Suzanna Ross) has a collection of her short stories, previously published in People's Friend, out, called The Baby of the Family and Other Stories.

I've been priviliged over the past few years to read much of Suz's work - she's a very talented (and very modest) author and her stories are real, often with a dash of her trademark humour, and really tug at the heartstrings. Her novel Trust in Me written as Suzanna Ross has also just been released, and she also has a fantastic story in the new minx anthology, Blaze just out.

Here's a little about The Baby of the Family and Other Stories:

 The Baby of the Family and Other Stories is a collection of twelve short stories previously published in the UK by the very popular British magazine, The People's Friend.The Baby of the Family: Teenage Emma is determined to be taken seriously as an adult - despite her family's attempts to baby her.
The Accidental Smile: When a woman whose natural resting expression is a smile meets a man with the grumpiest face in history, nobody expects romance to be the result.Football Crazy: Young Polly's love of football is at odds with her ability to kick a ball. Mum, Faith, is determined to find out why.
The Cantankerous Mr Christie: Nurse Sandra meets a variety of patients on her rounds, but Mr Christie has to be the grumpiest.
Loving Mark: When Heather marries a man with a teenage daughter, an awkward moment or two was expected, but she hadn't thought the difficulties would be caused by his mother.
A Taste of Home: When they have to relocate, Alexander is worried Flora isn't happy in their new home.Domesticating Edward: 50-year-old Edward has resisted domesticity all his life - until he meets Mary.Snowbound: Unable to get home for Christmas, Sylvie has to make other plans.
Arachnophobia: Penny moves into her dream home and is horrified to find she's not alone - an invasion of eight-legged guests are determined to keep her company.Cake Worth Coming Home For: Her mother's chocolate cake is definitely that, but Sarah finds it's not the only attraction when she moves home to the village where she grew up.
A Blossoming Friendship: Widowed Rachel misses her husband and the neighbours who have moved away. Can she overcome her worries and make new friends?
Building Dreams: Annie's married to a builder, so surely she won't have to wait long for a new house on the plot of land her father gave them as a wedding present? Find out more about Suz at her blog here, the Minxes of Romance blog here Here are some links: The Baby of the Family and Other Stories on Amazon UK/USTrust in Me ( a novel) on Amazon UK/USBlaze Amazon UK/US Congratulations again, Suzanne!  

Love-Triangles - I love 'em!

So far, I've written mostly Romance novels which are pretty traditional. Boy - girl - struggle - love.
But what I love to watch on tv and in film are love-triangles. I have a triangle with a twist in my Christmas Read, Angel All Year, which has my angel Angela torn between two men, one alive and one with her as an angel.

Here are some of my favorite love-triangles....

Haven - Will Audrey go for Nathan or Duke?
Grey's Anatomy - well there are loads of complications in Grey's, but the Mark/Lexie/Jackson combo was great - until recently, obviously! and when they added in a serious girlfriend for Mark, that made it even more watchable!
The Vampire Diaries - I'm getting slowly sucked into VD, and am starting from Season One over Christmas to find out what I've missed-jumping in mid-stream. The Elena/Damon/Stefan triangle is just delicious!
Revenge - The question Will Emily choose Daniel or Jack kept me glued to the screen.
The Good Wife - Alicia's torment choosing whether to stay with her cheating husband, Peter, or to embrace a new, enduring romance with Will...
True Blood - Sookie - Bill - Eric...Heck, she should just go Alcide!
Twilight - Bella-Jake-Edward? Did she make the right choice?

I could go on and on. Because everything I watch seems to have compelling triangles in it.

I guess the love-triangle addresses a fundamental issue. Does the heroine want the steady, good-for-her man who's in the wings, or will she choose the wilder love interest, that she just can't resist? What makes it even more interesting is when she starts with one, moves on to the other, and then the first love moves on, and she wants him back! Or the scenario when she catches the wild one, he becomes devoted, and in true human-nature fashion, the other lover (who doesn't need/want her any more) becomes the human equivalent of catnip!

I love love-triangles. I think I'd like to write some. But the only way to write love-triangles is to give enough space to show all the relationships, and conflicts, so instead of a stand-alone book, I reckon a series would be the way to go, to show all the different permutations and love affairs that make up a complex life with love lost, love found, love rediscovered.

Surprises are the icing on the cake, the cherry on the top, the element that makes ordinary extraordinary.

Now, tell me what love-triangles you've loved that I've missed?

Christmas Reads with added firemen!

More updates for my Christmas Reads page.
Sally Clements, Suzanna Ross, Rae Summers, Rachel Lyndhurst, Maya Blake, Talli Roland, Diane Alberts, Stacey Joy Netzel, Jennifer Probst and Kitty French all have books on the Christmas Reads page - and now I'm pleased to announce they've been joined by a whole station house of firefighters!

Blaze by the Minxes of Romance is available now-
Pop on over, and have a look!

Have you checked out the Christmas Reads page yet?

I've just updated my Christmas Reads page.

On there are some great new ebooks just out from me, Suzanna Ross, Rae Summers, Rachel Lyndhurst, Maya Blake, Talli Roland, Diane Alberts, Stacey Joy Netzel, Jennifer Probst and Kitty French.

Pop on over, and have a look!