Mia Castile's Blog, page 4
October 5, 2012
My Friday Five Fave: 80′s Teen Movies
These are the movies that I watched repeatedly on the USA Network. They were movies that I wasn’t allowed to watch either, but boy did I LOVE them.
5. License to Drive
4. Heathers
3. Adventures in Babysitting
2. 16 Candles
1. Breakfast Club
That being said I wouldn’t mind snuggling in this weekend and having an movie marathon, who’s with me? What are your five fave 80′s teen movies?
September 28, 2012
Introducing My Friday Five Fave
Was that too many F’s?
Today I would like to spotlight five songs that I can’t seem to live with out these days. So much so that it might drive everyone around me crazy, but when the playlist shuffles to any of these tunes, I have no choice but to turn it up, and sing along at the top of my lungs like nothing else exists but that song and me.
These are this week’s 5, what’s your to 5?
5. MGMT – Kids
4. Chris Wallace – Remember When (Push Rewind)
3. Brand New – The Boy Who Blocked His Own Shot
2. Artist Vs Poet – Stay
1. Fun. – Some Nights
September 11, 2012
I will never forget.
**I originally published this on my other blog. But since I moved over to wordpress, I wanted to share it again. I know I’ve made new friends along the way, and would love for you to tell me how you will never forget**
September 11, 2001
I remember. . .
that I was eight months pregnant with my beautiful daughter, and on bed rest. nothing fit me, I waddled when I walked, was in my first year of marriage, and saving to purchase a home. I woke up that Tuesday morning preparing for a day of soap operas and day time talk shows, but only found I was coming into the Today show just after the first plane had crashed into the the tower. (I usually caught the last hour of the today show.) I watched the second crash and frantically tried to reach my husband, or my sister, my dad, or my grandmother. No one answered the phone and I was panicked. I lived thirty minutes away from my family and I wasn’t allowed to drive, so instead of driving over to their house, I blew up their phones. I cried, I freaked out, I questioned what kind of world was I bringing my daughter into? What kind of world did I live in? I prayed, for all the souls lost, and the souls left behind in shambles.
that the silence in the sky that followed was like nothing I had ever seen before or since. It was surreal, almost as if we lived in a parallel universe where America really had enemies. Before the attacks it was just a story on the news. After the attacks it was real, the victims had faces, names, stories, and then we heard about the people, who were stuck in traffic, overslept, missed their flight, and the expressions on their face of disbelief, that “that could have been me.”
that it was a different world, we had a different outlook, and it changed us. We grew up fast, and learned that the world can change in an instance. I’m proud to be an american, and will honor those who have passed on.
I will never forget…
August 27, 2012
Analogy Of My Heart
Analogy Of My Heart is poetry that I wrote over the years. Most of it was written in high school and college.
I would find myself doodling in the corners of my pages while taking notes in class, as my mind wandered instead of paying attention. It was my escape from reality. It was my coping mechanism for dealing with emotions and relationships. It was my release. I don’t write poetry as often as I used to, but completely enjoy any opportunity to explore my feelings in rhyming words.
August 25, 2012
Exclusive World Premier
It’s official. The Butterfly Kisses Book Trailer had its world Premier last night. Until Monday August 27, 2012, the only way to see it is by following the link or viewing it here. Butterfly Kisses will be released October 23, 2012. It is the second in The Butterfly Chronicles. It follows Lacey, who we met in Becoming a Butterfly and her sister Lana as they recover from the aftermaths of their actions last spring. This series approaches social and emotional issues that many teens find themselves facing today. I’m proud of this addition as it has stretched the boundaries of what I ever expected when I began this series.
Get Becoming A Butterfly at Barnes and Nobel or Amazon today.
So without further ado, I present to you Butterfly Kisses
Be sure to add it to your to read list on GoodReads
Everything changed for the Baxter sisters last spring. Lacey blew it with Henry her lifelong crush, only to discover a blooming relationship with her best friend, Chase. While he picked her up and put her back together, they grew closer over the summer. Now that school has started, he’s found popularity thanks to his band Cate’s Ashes, and he’s hiding secret phone calls and text messages. Plus, did his ex-girlfriend just appear out of the blue at his show? Forcing Lacey to wonder if he’s over the feelings he pronounced for her at the beginning of summer. Add to the tension, a realization and secret of her own to keep about her worse enemy. Lacey vows to be the bigger person and keep Byron’s revelation, but what will it cost?
Meanwhile, as Lana tries to find herself again after her suicide attempt, she’s befriended by the school’s resident bad girl, Britt, and new chicano boy, Tomas, in the same week. Britt offers unconditional acceptance that Lana didn’t realize she craved, while Tomas brings out the best in her, and makes her feel alive again. Britt is dangerous and daring, while Tomas exudes security and safety. Vices come easily when you are already addicted to something you crave, and Lana muddles through figuring out who she wants to be.
With their parents constantly arguing, and their dad moving into the guest bedroom, the pressure on the girls may explode destroying them all. Is there a place for happiness when their world is crumbling around them?
August 8, 2012
Question and Answer Vlog
You asked and I answered.
Make sure you check out Entwined Publishing’s Youtube page. There you will find all of our author’s book trailers.
July 26, 2012
The Ocean
I’m excited to announce The Ocean, has a new cover. I’ve been thinking about re-doing it for a while. The hardest part of coming up with a cover is finding the image that will express the feeling it invokes in the author. That is one of the reasons, too, that I love, so much, being an independent author and publisher. The freedom to find those images, and the satisfaction when you do. The thing I really like about the new cover, is that I incorporated the original cover in the new one. Being my first release, and a story that is close to my heart, every decision I’ve made with this book has been obsessed over. This story was in my heart before I took my writing serious, and it’s catapulted my journey of becoming a published author. I’ve learned so much and I still have a lot more to learn, but I’m so proud of the product my company provides.
I’m very please to present the new electronic cover for The Ocean.
If you haven’t had a chance to read it yet, I would love for you to consider it, and let me know what you think. I enjoy reading reviews, and connecting with readers. If you have already read it, what was your favorite part?
July 9, 2012
Vs
**OK so I know I haven’t blogged in a while. Truth is, I haven’t felt like I had anything to say that I wasn’t already putting out there on Facebook and Twitter. This post however is more for the tiny presses like my company and self publishers, not necessarily for readers who read my novels. Although, if you are one of those readers who follows my blog, then by all means, read away, and comment below. I welcome all comments and opinions.**
I’ve been thinking a lot about marketing. As an independent, marketing usually falls heavily on our shoulders. We don’t work with Ad agencies or market Analysis companies, we don’t have a team of interns running our social media, and some of us don’t have degrees in marketing. I know I don’t. But here are a few conclusions I’ve come to on my own, that I thought I would share. The only analytic data I used were from my own website. But food for thought.
Facebook Vs Twitter
I’m sure most everyone one knows the pique time to post on social media from a marketing standpoint is either just before 7am, or 9am, or Noon or after 7pm. Before every single seminar I attended said to post then. If you want your message to be seen that is the time to do it.
What I’ve figured out: Facebook automatically sets your news feed to top stories. This will be where paying for your page’s post to be viewed will come in handy, because not everyone is like me and remembers to reset that to most recent. In fact the time may come where you post gets lost in the mix completely because you don’t pay to advertise it. (My and only my opinion, I have no facts on this) With Facebook, I feel that I have more of a personal relationship with the people I’m connected with. Because we are allowed to be wordy, and follow specific conversations.
Twitter is great for contests. I find more of my links are clicked, and more tweets are retweeted when I’m offering things. In January I ran a point contest where I gave points for tweets. I recieved over a thousand tweets in a two week period. I was afraid that i’d only get 15-20 tweets total. It was unbelievable the response I got. I find it hard to keep up on interactions on Twitter. I love being there and hanging out, sometimes I just don’t get any response, so what do I do? I go back to Facebook.
For me, neither one is the clear winner here, I get something from each media outlet. But don’t even get me started on Pinterest. I may post a blog just about that, and how much I love it. Facebook does win if we’re counting my hours logged in that website, though.
Blogger Vs WordPress
“Blogger is owned by google so it will show up first in google searches.” EUEUEURRRR Wrong. (That was my wrong buzzer sound) WordPress shows up first in all the search engines, sure Blogger lets you be a bit more creative, but WordPress looks and acts more professional. Blogger is like the teenager, to WordPress’ adulthood. Blogger about the bells and whistles where as WordPress is about essential. Of course, it depends on what you want to get out of your blog. In my opinion, WordPress wins hands down. Guess what I’m using to write this post. 
Amazon Vs BN Vs Smashwords
I’m talking strictly sales of my books. Amazon is everywhere. Amazon’s report page seems to be in real time. Amazon allows you to put a sale anytime, any price. My sales on Amazon are OK, I guess. BN report page is 3 days behind. that’s ok, because I know they are accurate. BN’s website for Pubit is easy to navigate to find my books. I am selling a lot of books on BN. Whatever they are doing to sell my books, their algorithms are working. BN, is my favorite.
I hate smashword. leave it at that.
So that’s my VS post. Maybe next time I’ll do a VS for my readers only. Characters, or settings or something. Let me know what you want.
These again, are strictly my opinions, no mathematic numbers or internet coding were harmed in the making of this blog. So, do you share my opinion or think I’m way off?
June 3, 2012
So you want to be a writer
There are a few things that you should know first. The glamorous life of a writer is not always so glamorous.
1. You can not write a novel in a 9 days like your favorite New York Times Best Selling Author on your first try. Like she said, she didn’t sleep in that period and ignored her family holed up in a room. I imagine she also had a detailed outline that she followed closely that was already plotted out, and most likely she’s been doing it longer than you have. Making the decision to write is easy, actually writing takes time, dicipline, and dedication. (And more than likely that wasn’t what she sent to her editor. first drafts are never best drafts)
2. You must determine your style. are you a plotter or a pantser? Do you outline every character, chapter, and arc of the story? Or do you know the main points and fly by the seat of your pants? Do you need everything in an organized fashion, with time lines, post it notes and detailed flow charts? Or do you have rumpled pieces of paper with scattered notes all over your desk? The only style that is right, is the one that works for you. Because we are human, we are all unique, don’t let someone else tell you how you should write, listen to their advice, see if it works for you, but ultimately you must determine what makes you productive.
3. Be passionate about what you write about. Believe in you subject, yourself, and your words. When you put your heart on the line it’s OK to listen to the critique of those who might not understand it. Ultimately you decide whether they are right or not. You decide to heed their words or stand by your own. Don’t apologize for following your heart, and don’t regret if someone changes your mind. All it is, is perspective.
4. Do NOT be afraid to take chances or risks. I’m not saying to jump in blindly, but don’t let fear or rejection hold you back. I’ve heard aspiring authors say that they would never give their books away. This philosophy to me is nieve. When you are an artist and especially just beginning you should want as many people to experience your creation. Not everyone is going to get rich off of their first novel. Not everyone’s story is Amanda Hocking or Stephanie Meyer. You have to work every day and even though some may consider them over night successes, it took them a while to get there. And they took a few chances and risks.
5. No matter now hard it gets don’t quit. This is what separates the say-ers from the do-ers. It’s easy to come up with a concept; it’s hard to implement it and fill in the points from the beginning to the arc, to the end. Sure, step away from it if it becomes too much; I stepped away from The Ocean for sixteen years, but I regretted how long it took me to come back to it. There are enough things in your life that you will regret, don’t regret chasing your dream.
So go out, write and create, good luck and I look forward to reading your words.
May 9, 2012
Becoming A Butterfly Blog Tour
May 20th @ The Reading Nook http://thereadingnook123.blogspot.com/
May 21st @ Colorimetry http://burgandyice.blogspot.com/
May 22nd @ A Diary of a Book Addict http://adiaryofabookaddict.blogspot.com/
May 23rd @ Chapter by Chapter http://www.chapter-by-chapter.com/
May 24th @ Alluring Reads http://www.alluringreads.com/
May 25th @ Melissa’s Eclectic Bookshelf http://melissaseclecticbookshelf.blogspot.com/
May 26th @ I Read Indie http://twimom101bookblog.blogspot.com/
May 27th @ Forget the Housework, I’m Reading http://forgetthehouseworkimreading.blogspot.com/
May 28th @ Lady Reader’s Bookstuff http://ladysbookstuff.blogspot.com/
Hope to see you there.
