Kay Iscah's Blog, page 12
June 3, 2013
Embarassing mistake #1
Okay, so since there were some weird issues with my first book that I couldn't see from my end before it was uploaded to Kindle, I thought I'd be clever and include an e-mail address so people could report any lingering issues with the novella.
The first mistake I discover post release is that I've missed typed the e-mail address for reporting typos.
This is very funny and very sad at the same time. Egads I hope no one has tried to use it yet...
Here's the correct one: fixthis@amoebaink.com
I'll try to get the file fixed tomorrow...Oy!
The first mistake I discover post release is that I've missed typed the e-mail address for reporting typos.
This is very funny and very sad at the same time. Egads I hope no one has tried to use it yet...
Here's the correct one: fixthis@amoebaink.com
I'll try to get the file fixed tomorrow...Oy!
June 2, 2013
First Review on Amazon!
Four stars is pretty respectable. Read the review by scrolling down.
June 1, 2013
Unexpected Income - Windfall
Article: Six Tips on How to Avoid Squandering a Financial Windfall
We discuss in the book how to make best use of unexpected income. This article deals with not squandering larger amounts. While your chances of winning a lottery are still slim, it's still nice to arm yourself with information. It is more likely at some point you'll get an inheritance or new job and not impossible that $5 flee market find will turn out to be worth $5000. While this article focuses on very large amounts, much of the advice works for smaller amounts too.
Key points from the article:
- Make yourself aware of any tax implications
- For large amounts, professional advice is probably a good investment
- Take time to think
- Set aside 5%-10% simply for fun/enjoyment but be practical with the rest
- Get Perspective and Set Goals
- Put a Buffer between you and friends/family... (nothing wrong with sharing, but having someone neutral to consult can help you decide what requests are reasonable and/or should take priority)
We discuss in the book how to make best use of unexpected income. This article deals with not squandering larger amounts. While your chances of winning a lottery are still slim, it's still nice to arm yourself with information. It is more likely at some point you'll get an inheritance or new job and not impossible that $5 flee market find will turn out to be worth $5000. While this article focuses on very large amounts, much of the advice works for smaller amounts too.
Key points from the article:
- Make yourself aware of any tax implications
- For large amounts, professional advice is probably a good investment
- Take time to think
- Set aside 5%-10% simply for fun/enjoyment but be practical with the rest
- Get Perspective and Set Goals
- Put a Buffer between you and friends/family... (nothing wrong with sharing, but having someone neutral to consult can help you decide what requests are reasonable and/or should take priority)
May 31, 2013
Horse Feathers Chapter 10 and Free Downloads Today!
Today is the first free download day for The Girl With No Name.
Link: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00D3RI4PK
Also Horse Feathers Chapter 10 is up.
Link: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00D3RI4PK
Also Horse Feathers Chapter 10 is up.
May 30, 2013
Before the Fairytale: The Girl With No Name is live on Kindle!
Go here to see the listing on Amazon.
If you can't click the link, you can do an Amazon search on
Title: Before the Fairytale: The Girl With No Name
Author: Iscah (I drop the "Kay" for fiction)
ISBN: 978-098355-191-1
As part of the KDP Select program, I'm offering 5 free download days. Dates:
Friday, May 31st (tomorrow!)
Friday, June 7th
Friday, June 14th
Friday, June 21st
Friday, June 28th
Spread the word!
If you can't click the link, you can do an Amazon search on
Title: Before the Fairytale: The Girl With No Name
Author: Iscah (I drop the "Kay" for fiction)
ISBN: 978-098355-191-1
As part of the KDP Select program, I'm offering 5 free download days. Dates:
Friday, May 31st (tomorrow!)
Friday, June 7th
Friday, June 14th
Friday, June 21st
Friday, June 28th
Spread the word!
Uploaded to Kindle and Oops...
Okay, so I uploaded the files for "The Girl With No Name" today, but I forgot about Amazon's processing time. So it may be tomorrow before the story is actually available for download. It's just as well. I did another read through this morning and caught a couple mistakes. Hoping I got everything.
My plan is to offer a free download for the first 5 Fridays that the book is available, but it hasn't let me into the KDP select controls yet. So I'm not sure how much control I really have over it.
If all goes well, I'll take another whack at fixing "Living Single on Minimum Wage". My computer is being problematic, so if I vanish suddenly, it's probably because I'm reloading my system. Yuck.
My plan is to offer a free download for the first 5 Fridays that the book is available, but it hasn't let me into the KDP select controls yet. So I'm not sure how much control I really have over it.
If all goes well, I'll take another whack at fixing "Living Single on Minimum Wage". My computer is being problematic, so if I vanish suddenly, it's probably because I'm reloading my system. Yuck.
May 27, 2013
Cleaning House on YouTube
Just an FYI. I've taken down all the old videos on YouTube related to this book. There were parts of them I Iiked, but over all, they just weren't up to par.
I took down the GMX video too. Nothing wrong with that one, except I think they moved to a new hotel this year, so no longer relevant.
I have a new book coming out this week, so I'm just sort of cleaning up my web presence in general. May not have time to update the old posts with video links in them this week, but I'll get to them soon.
On the upside, I think I may have figured out what was wrong with the table of contents, etc. So after this book release, I'm going to take another crack at fixing the Kindle edition issues. If I succeed, there will be free download days and much rejoicing.
I took down the GMX video too. Nothing wrong with that one, except I think they moved to a new hotel this year, so no longer relevant.
I have a new book coming out this week, so I'm just sort of cleaning up my web presence in general. May not have time to update the old posts with video links in them this week, but I'll get to them soon.
On the upside, I think I may have figured out what was wrong with the table of contents, etc. So after this book release, I'm going to take another crack at fixing the Kindle edition issues. If I succeed, there will be free download days and much rejoicing.
May 24, 2013
May 21, 2013
May 30th release date
Why, yes, I have an official release date for "The Girl With No Name". The title will probably be expanding to "Before the Fairytale: The Girl With No Name" to help distinguish it from the book about the girl raised by monkeys and connect it to Horse Feathers.
I can tell it's summer because my brain has started shutting down, but I'm hoping I can keep it active until the 30th.
No exciting new designs to show. I've been doing grunt work on cafepress...apparently the site decided to re-select all colors when it added some new ones. I really like the new T-shirt colors, but the problem is some of the colors I had unselected clash horribly with certain designs... so I'm having to inspect each item with more than one color option. ... the shop has over 100 designs with dozens of items for each so it's taking a while...
Thankfully, it's giving me a chance to update text as well. I was still telling people Ashley had never had an art class...which was true, years ago, before she enrolled in art college...
I can tell it's summer because my brain has started shutting down, but I'm hoping I can keep it active until the 30th.
No exciting new designs to show. I've been doing grunt work on cafepress...apparently the site decided to re-select all colors when it added some new ones. I really like the new T-shirt colors, but the problem is some of the colors I had unselected clash horribly with certain designs... so I'm having to inspect each item with more than one color option. ... the shop has over 100 designs with dozens of items for each so it's taking a while...
Thankfully, it's giving me a chance to update text as well. I was still telling people Ashley had never had an art class...which was true, years ago, before she enrolled in art college...
May 17, 2013
Getting creative with leftovers...
I bought an avacado to make sushi, but sushi making the way I do it can take up to two hours (I tend to make big batches). And I've been busy/lazy. I noticed my avacado was starting to get soft in the fridge, so I went through my other leftovers to try to put together an on the fly recipe.
Guacamole is the easiest thing to do with an avocado, and there are a thousand variations. I had some imitation crab meat leftover (about six leg-style pieces), and about two tablespoons of hummus left.
I mashed the avocado with fork (instant, if bland guacamole), added a 1/2 tbsp of lemon juice, minced the imitation crab, and stirred in the hummus. Then I seasoned it generously with pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder. Everything had been in the fridge, so I popped it into the microwave (partially covered) for 30 secs, stirred, then popped it in for another 45 sec.
It turned out really good, and it was pretty quick and easy. Someone had given us a bag of Tostito Scoops, so I filled the little corn chip shells with my guacamole mixture. They would make nice party appetizers, but I just ate them for dinner.
The thrifty tip here is to keep tabs on what food you have and take steps so it doesn't go to waste. If you don't have every ingredient for a particular recipe, it's ok to experiment a little.
P.S. Given feedback, I'll make the new edition a separate file, but there will probably be some "free download" days. If/when that happens, I'll announce them on this blog as well as my general writing blog.
Guacamole is the easiest thing to do with an avocado, and there are a thousand variations. I had some imitation crab meat leftover (about six leg-style pieces), and about two tablespoons of hummus left.
I mashed the avocado with fork (instant, if bland guacamole), added a 1/2 tbsp of lemon juice, minced the imitation crab, and stirred in the hummus. Then I seasoned it generously with pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder. Everything had been in the fridge, so I popped it into the microwave (partially covered) for 30 secs, stirred, then popped it in for another 45 sec.
It turned out really good, and it was pretty quick and easy. Someone had given us a bag of Tostito Scoops, so I filled the little corn chip shells with my guacamole mixture. They would make nice party appetizers, but I just ate them for dinner.
The thrifty tip here is to keep tabs on what food you have and take steps so it doesn't go to waste. If you don't have every ingredient for a particular recipe, it's ok to experiment a little.
P.S. Given feedback, I'll make the new edition a separate file, but there will probably be some "free download" days. If/when that happens, I'll announce them on this blog as well as my general writing blog.
