Barbara G. Tarn's Blog, page 129
July 2, 2014
Writer Wednesday
*SALES* Smashwords July Summer/Winter Sale! My books are all 50% off, so some titles have gone FREE!!! Only until the end of July… Make haste! ;)
This weekend I’ll upload another title, but it will be full price… My month on Goodreads is over, but you can still check the wonderful conversation here. Now it’s the turn of fellow Wyrd Worlder Ubiquitous Bubba, so fire away your questions to the next Douglas Adams! :)
Writing-wise, I’m completing a couple of stories (one of the Assassins’ Guild and one of the Amazons) and then will move on with the translation. I will try to use a part of the Assassins’ Guild novella as short story – if it stands on its own at less than 6K, I will submit it to a magazine, if not, I’ll just publish the whole novella in the fall. And the Amazons story… if I like it, I’ll add it to my Wyrd Worlds 2 submissions, if not, maybe I’ll just leave it in the drawer! :)
Careful of how you behave online. See how you can lose a gig because you had a meltdown on social media… Even if you’re a fiction writer, this applies. Don’t make a fool of yourself in public – I wouldn’t buy a book by an author who whines constantly on social media…
Wonderful post by Hugh Howey on the state of self-publishing. And if you have time (but wouldn’t you be better off writing?!), you can check the latest Konrant (I admit I quit halfway, since I know Joe’s opinion and can’t be bothered to hear him fisking someone else – I’m sick of hearing there are still writers out there who keep their head in the sand and don’t want to think for themselves) or David Gaughran’s analysis of media bias and Amazon.
And since the heat is on, I’m going back to writing and hybernating (in case you’re new to this blog, yes, I hybernate in the summer – and I can’t stand the AC). Have a great week! :)
June 29, 2014
Sunday Surprise
And it’s a character interview! I’ve come up with some questions, and I’m ready to send them out to anyone who wants his/her character(s) interviewed. There’s even two sets of slightly different questions, one for protagonists and the other for sideckicks/love interest/villains. So, if you’re an author and want either to be interviewed or have one of your characters answer a few questions, leave a comment or drop me a line!
In the meantime, I’ll start with one of my characters. Second set of questions – so no, you’re not going to learn much about the hero…
Tell me a little about yourself (name, age…)
My name is Pareevash and I’m a dressmaker. I was apprenticed to my uncle when my brother refused to become a blacksmith like my father, so my cousin stepped in his place, switching places with me. Being over twenty and unmarried is a shame to my family, but I don’t feel like finding a husband anytime soon.
Describe your appearance in ten words or less.
Petite, curvy and with a dimpled smile.
What is your role in the story?
My friend Hrithikesh came back after fifteen years to marry me…
What is your relationship with the protagonist(s)?
We grew up together. He’s my brother’s age, but he always got along better with me and my cousin. When he left, he promised to come back – but that was fifteen years ago, and life goes on, you know?
Where do you live(world/town/whatever)?
I live in Leland, northern province of the Kingdom of Akkora. Hrithikesh moved with his family to the capital, Agharek, but came back to this rat-hole – for my eyes only, or so he says.
Are you involved in a relationship? If so, with who and what is it about them that you find appealing?
Not since my brother got rid of my first love. Then Lord Kibriya became governor, and he has the right to sleep with any bride before her husband. So that’s another reason to stay away from marriage in this town. The hooded man saved me from his lust, though, and I find him fascinating…
What is the biggest challenge you face in the story?
Avoid being raped by Lord Kibriya… basically staying alive. The city badly needs a new governor, let’s hope the hooded man brings some justice to Leland!
Please give me an interesting and unusual fact about yourself.
I once dated Hrithikesh’s courin Kiran, but it didn’t work out and we remained friends. Maybe I hoped Kiran would be like the lost childhood friend – but then, even Hrithikesh was changed when he came back…
***
Pareevash is a character of The Hooded Man. You can read it on Amazon, Kobo, Smashwords, B&N, DriveThruFiction and Apple! This Silvery Earth novella got a honorable mention at Writers of the Future.
June 27, 2014
Random Friday
Today total randomness was sparkled by this post and I’m going to elaborate on both the reader and writer side of it.
Like I said, I’ve been buying on Amazon since 2004 – much like this guy. I even got myself a Kindle Keyboard way back in 2011 because it had no touch screen (something I hate, and that’s why I don’t have a smartphone nor any other kind of tablet). Except I don’t buy all my ebooks on Amazon. Quite the opposite. I go on Amazon only for those darn KDP Select authors. Like my friends who own Kobo e-readers and buy from everywhere but Kobo.
So I totally relate with him. As a reader. But also as a writer. I’m not KDP Select. Yes, most of my sales these days come from Amazon ITALIA – because there is less competition, since Italy is way behind in indie publishing and my books are obviously cheaper than the ones put out by Italian trad-pubbers. But I still don’t put all my eggs in Amazon’s basket.
Now I can’t comment on the guy’s blog post since I had such a hard time deleting myself from Google+ (losing my YouTube channel in the process, hence the book trailers have vanished from this blog), but I wonder if he knows of XinXii. If he ever buys anything from there. Because XinXii is still expanding its distribution channel, but still doesn’t allow sampling, unless the author uploads a separate file for the sample. So the European Smashwords is fundamentally flawed – and its distribution doesn’t really take me to places I don’t already go myself.
Plus, I got their free ISBN in December (special offer), and now those 2 titles are locked, I can’t change the file and update it or anything. I will have to unpublish them if I want to put up the revision. So I stopped putting stuff on there, also because I haven’t sold ONE book in two years there. Even DriveThru is better! I keep uploading there because there is the free sampling and sometimes I do get a sale.
Oh, and I got a couple of reads on Scribd through Smashwords. And one tip on NoiseTrade. So that’s a lot more than what I got from XinXii. Although I’m not sure samples really help sales. See this marketing survey – where I also gave my answers. So I don’t know what’s wrong with XinXii. I don’t think adding titles would help my visibility there…
So, what do you say? Do you use samples or not? Do you browse just an online retailer or do you shop many places? How do you find your next book to read?
June 25, 2014
Writer Wednesday
And a new title is up! Remember the hooded man? I sent it to Writers of the Future, and got a honorable mention! And now you can read it on Amazon, Kobo, Smashwords, B&N and DriveThruFiction – and then Apple! :) I’m aware it’s not a very original title (in fact while I was waiting for Kobo to actually show it on my page lots of other titles came up in the search – and my own has #3 after the title), but it is a very original story, so check it out! :)
As for the writing – I’ve put aside the Amazons for now. The assassins’ guild is much more interesting! Besides, during last week’s offline writers meeting, a comment sparkled a brand new idea, so… A new character is introduced in the sequel and I will explore him in the third instalment and finish the story in the fourth – with the birth of the Varian Empire (seen in BoI – Fire) from the other side of the peaceful invasion! :)
And I’m writing another prequel, set in the same monastery you see in the opening of The Hooded Man – two centuries later… I think I’m going to spend the summer with these honorable assassins (well, next month I will have to translate Male Lovers, but then, there’s Saif’s Legacy in there as well, so… not completely away from it! ;) Can’t get away from those brass wheels and pole-arms…)! :)
Kilig&Saif is currently with Dear Beta who requested a sequel, and then I’ll send her Kilig’s Heart (if I stop tinkering with it because I come up with more ideas – being a pantser doesn’t help sometimes!). I plan to finish that other prequel with the new character this week and maybe start outlining Hakeem’s Rival. Then I’ll take a translation break and get back to it in August…
When I’ll have a week off anyway, both for Loncon and because I’ll stay in London afterward. I have that one panel and if I don’t feel comfortable with it, they’re going to take me off the programme altogether, so I better try to find something to say. Apparently “At the moment it is very unlikely we will be able to allocate different panels – there are over 1000 people in our database“, so… we’ll see. I’ll brush up my fanziner hat and find something to say anyway, LOL!
Now, if only I could get back to drawing SKYBAND instead of wasting time with unused covers and portraits that don’t add anything to my publishing schedule (but they’re good to relax and brainstorm ideas with myself, LOL)… Except I find it easier to write at DayJob than draw at the moment, so I’ll keep writing… sorry for my only SKYBAND reader, I know you haven’t given up on me! ;)
Some writerly links! :) Think there is only one way to publish a book? Wrong! Check the latest instalment of Killing the Sacred Cows of Indie Publishing! I’m still mostly in option #1, but don’t despair to eventually have some sort of co-op with other indies (and I do hire some stuff done already – some covers and the proof-reading/editing). As for selling books cheaply… I base the price on wordcount, and then sometimes I can offer a bundle for a discounted price – limited time offer (like the BoI on Amazon, Kobo, Apple and B&N)…
Just remember the basic rule: the money flows to the writer! Now I’m going to study what is Google Authorship… hoping it won’t take too much time! Since, much like fellow indie author Jonathan Gould, I’m anti-social and would rather be off writing than touting my horn on social media! :) Have a great week! :D
June 22, 2014
Sunday Surprise
Since I’m still mulling about those character interviews, I give you a WoW Sunday – words of wisdom or writers on writing, not that role-playing game! :D
Perhaps that’s the best part of this new world. There is no longer one way to have a writing career. There are as many ways as there are writers.
I wish more writers would realize that, and understand the freedom that awaits them, if only they’d stop believing the myths, looking for rules, and trying to find the one true path. There is only one path: It’s your path. You just have to build it, one step at a time.
I follow a simple motto when it comes to my writing, one that I actually have taped to my monitor as a daily reminder: Write your own favorite book.
What I mean is, I try not to pigeonhole myself as a young adult writer or a children’s writer or a mystery writer or a science fiction writer or literary writer, though in my short career, you could already make the case that any one of those labels applies. I just try to write my own favorite book. I’m not saying I always succeed, but that’s the goal. I write stories that I want to read, hopefully ones that will stick with me long after the final page is written/read.
-
The artist has an obligation to be en route, to be going somewhere. There’s a journey involved here, and you don’t know where it is, and that’s the fun. So you’re always going to be seeking and looking and going and trying to challenge yourself.
- George Carlin
I love being a writer. What I can’t stand is the paperwork.
- Peter De Vries
I congratulate Kevin on his success, and am glad he’s worked things out. But I also encourage him, and all authors, to unplug once and a while. Your books will continue to sell without you checking on them constantly.
It’s also worth noting that sales rise and fall depending on too many factors to count, but there usually is a gradual decline in sales over time. This decline can be countered by doing promotions (BookBub and ebookbooster) and releasing more titles. Tweeting constantly about the one book you have for sale isn’t going to make it go viral. And lapsing into panic and depression because you fell out of the Top 100 in your genre is silly. My titles have bounced around quite a bit in ranking, and have been doing so for years.
You don’t have control over your ranking, or your sales, and worrying is a useless emotion. Instead, focus on what you do control. Any other path leads to madness…
June 21, 2014
Author Interview Number Fifty-Two – Barbara G. Tarn
Barb:
check this out! :)
Originally posted on Library of Erana:
Welcome to Barbara G.Tarn
Where are you from and where do you live now? I’m Italian and I’m still stuck in this third world country, hoping to move to a saner place soon.
Please tell us a little about your writing – for example genre, title, etc. I write mostly SFF, but I label my fantasy “adult unconventional” since I don’t follow the usual tropes of the genre. It’s not a BISAC category, so I usually choose the Fantasy – General category when I publish, since it’s not Epic, Paranormal nor Urban and I can never find a specific sub-category for my stories. Is it High Fantasy because it’s set on a secondary world? I have no idea…
Are your characters based on real people? They have real people’s faces (I call it my “virtual cast”), but I use them as actors (in fact my muses are both actors, I…
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June 20, 2014
Random Friday
Some art – click on the link to view it, since there’s no watermark otherwise, and I don’t want to clutter my WordPress media library. I did both muses, but only one ended up on DeviantART. Except usually it’s the other who comes out better! ;) So yay for muse #1! :D
– not like those ladies in chainmail bikini depicted in many fantasy illustrations. If only I could learn to properly use my replica sword… *big sigh*
Aaand! The first character interview with a fantasy character! I’ve had Star Minds characters hopping around blogs giving interviews, but this is a first evah! With special thanks to the Library of Erana, please meet Kilig the Sword!
Now, I should really come up with some character interviews myself… I could have Samantha the Witch do the questioning… like Katelina does the interviews on Amaranthine… will Joleene Naylor mind? Would you like that? Would you want it to be a steady feature of the blog? Would you like to meet other authors’ characters as well?
And next thing I’ll ask is a list of questions, LOL! No, that would be really copying Joleene who had us ask questions to her characters… Just a thought, though – but if I start doing character interviews, I might never stop! :)
That’s all for today’s randomness… Have a great weekend! :)
June 18, 2014
Writer Wednesday
I have uploaded another title to Noise Trade – Allan de Sayek. Since downloads on the previous one have stopped, I’m trying to add a title. Conall’s sons will be taken down at the end of the month, like I had in mind. And this title will stay until the end of July. Maybe mid-July I’ll add the August title – but mid-August I’ll be at Loncon, so I won’t have time to upload anything! :) As usual, tip is welcome, but not mandatory…
I had my schedule for Loncon, but it might change, since the panel they gave me I don’t think I have much to say. So I’ll wait and see if they find me something else before announcing what panels I will be on! :)
There is still time if you would like to submit a story to Wyrd Worlds II. Here are the guidelines – deadline is being postponed to July, so dust off those SFF short stories and send them along! :) I might add an Amazon short story, since I have another month to submit! ;)
I got some money from Kobo – royalties since November 2012 to (I think) May 2014 finally meeting the minimum treshold for the payment. Not that they give any description of what the transfer refers to… and there’s nothing on the dashboard, so… I’ll just add the money on the royalty sheet, shrug and go back to writing. Another bill paid…
And I had another unexpected happiness yesterday – maybe my real job is trying to distract me from dreadful DayJob – but I will tell you more about it later… I’ll just put the new vignette here for now.
Writing-wise, I’m done with Kilig’s Heart and I’ve rewritten the body switch, so now I’m going to try that Amazon short before I write the third part of Kilig&Hakeem. Giving what’s done to betas right now, including offline beta who is finally back in Rome! :) Busy today and tomorrow with the offline writers group meeting and Dear Nephew, I’ll get back to serious writing on Friday… if I don’t take a bus to the town center and see if I can do something about darn DayJob.
Now, some writerly links: This is the single biggest mistake indie authors make while promoting their work and I’m not doing it, mostly because I’m not on Twitter. But then, I’m not doing it on Facebook either! ;) It’s true, though – 20000 followers don’t equal 20000 sales. I’d be much better off if all the people who follow this blog or like my author page also bought my books (even only half of them).
If you’re wondering if you’ve missed the boat of indie publishing, no, you haven’t. Check Dean Wesley Smith’s blog and learn why. If I can get some peace of mind at DayJob, I really should try one of his online workshops as well. But until my mornings are clouded with uncertainty and bad mood, I don’t think I can concentrate on anything…
Sometime this summer I’ll have to prepare the new POD versions of the CVE. I’ve got the low-res files of the new covers, and they look better than mine – especially for POD. So I’ll do the CreateSpace version in my free time this summer, and order the proofs in September (useless doing it during the summer, they’d never get here). I’ll decide later if leaving the e-book cover as is or change it with the new cover. I’ll make a poll when I’m ready! ;) Have a great week!
