Ava Fails's Blog, page 6

Napowrimo – Day 5

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Napowrimo – Day Four 2013

Well, you may notice that there are no Days 1 through 3 posts. I’m playing catch up because I didn’t even know about #napowrimo until yesterday! So, I crafted 4 poems to catch up in about an hour and a half. Definitely not my best work, but then, that’s not what #napowrimo is all about. So, you get 4 poems today, and then I will assume the proper position tomorrow. Enjoy.

# 1. Spring Comes. 4-4-13

#2. Gradients 4-4-13

#3. #napowrimo 4-4-13

Napowrimo from Ava Fails

#4. Incorrect Haiku 4-4-13

Today, I learned that…

Traditional haikus

Are hard to write right.

 

And this…is not one.

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Population Miniscule – The Official Release

The time is finally here! As of right….NOW…you can buy Population Miniscule Episode 1 by Yours Truly, and you don’t have to go far to do it.
First a Little Housekeeping

Make sure you purchase the right file for your device! I’ve tried to be descriptive, but your device may not be listed. For example, you need the file that will work in the Kindle app on your Android phone, you need the one on the far right above…the mobi file. If you are buying the file for the Alkido reader on your Android phone, you need the one on the far left. I can certainly understand where this might get confusing.

If You Purchased the Wrong File

You can Contact Me and I will email you the correct version for your device. Be sure to include the name of your device in the message!

If You Can’t Get the Book Into Your E-Reader or E-Reader App

Contact Me, and I will do my best to help you.

Without Further Ado
BUY IT HERE!

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Population Miniscule – Behind the Scenes of Grassroots Self-Publishing

The Possibly Boring Backstory

I submitted Population Miniscule to Amazon for their Kindle Serials program? Or whatever it is. After not hearing back from them for a couple months, I decided that I was done waiting. I’m not a very patient person when your two months is restricting my forward motion. It just dawned on me, last Friday to be exact, that I could do this myself. I have a website, I’ve self-published before,  have all the tools, and so why not distribute the book in serial format myself right here on ProWebWriter.com?

About Serial Format

Just in case you’re wondering…serial fiction is basically a normal length novel that is released in “episodes” like a TV show. It’s a forgotten genre that Amazon is seeking to revive. Charles Dickens wrote some of his works in serial format.

Evolution

Population Miniscule has gone through a minor evolution with the title. When I was naming the story, I wanted something cooler than The Tiny People. I love Latin, so I had initially selected a Latin title: Populous Minisculum which means “Tiny People”. My beta readers (that’s you, Tina and Lisa) decided that this title was ineffective since the average reader wouldn’t know what it meant and they don’t care if I like Latin or not. Consequently, I chose the English equivalent: Population Miniscule which may or may not be cooler than The Tiny People.

 

The Cover

I was at a loss when it came to what the cover should be. Even though I’m a dabbling artist (actually studied Art in college), I couldn’t for the life of me figure out how to creatively and effectively illustrate this book in a single cover image. It was Lisa (yes, beta reader Lisa) who suggested making the cover a photo of a room that would be in the tiny peoples’ home inside the wall.

Which Brings Me Behind the Scenes…

…of the home of a tiny people. The cover would have to be a photograph, and it would have to depict tiny things. Did you ever build a diorama as a project when you were in school? Who says you wouldn’t use those skills as an adult. Thus began a day’s work. I gathered my materials:

A cardboard box to build in
A pocket watch for a wall clock
An image for a magazine suitable to become a framed picture for the wall above the couch
Maxi pads – No, this post didn’t take a turn for the worst. I actually made the couch out of maxi pads wrapped with leather. Laughing is cool.
A nightlight for a lamp
My cell phone as a TV
Tacky wrapping paper

I painted the “floor” of the box to look like wood since the tiny people live inside the walls of our homes. I glued the wrapping paper to the “walls” since it talks about them using wrapping paper as wallpaper in the book. It all came together and I shot some still photographs…several actually using different filters and lighting.

Putting a New Idea Behind “Trailer Trash”

I’d read quite a while back that creating a trailer for your book to promote it with video isn’t a bad idea. Yeah, a trailer like a movie! Go figure. I watched a few examples on YouTube…just a few. They were professionally acted, and well, that’s not going to happen here. I can’t afford to outsource any aspect of this project, so everything is kind of limited by my skill set. I don’t feel this is bad…it’s been a fun experience.

You can see the trailer I created in THIS POST.

Sorry, no bloopers.

So This is How It’s Going Down

My next post will be announcing the official release. There will be a new Page on this site where you can purchase your copy of Episode 1 in the following digital formats:

.mobi for Kindle and Kindle Apps for Android
.ePub for Nook and iPad
PDF

ONE price will include ALL future episodes to THIS book. If I choose to write a sequel, this purchase will NOT include that content. A new episode will be released every two weeks until the story is completed. I’m using you all as my motivators to finish this novel.

Once it’s completed, I will compile all of the episodes into one book and publish it through Amazon in both digital AND paperback.

So, stay tuned. IT’S STILL COMING.

 

 

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The Population Miniscule – Trailer

Up next…

Got a little visual candy for you. Book cover at the end.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFOn98vdarw

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The Population Miniscule – Teaser

It’s coming…

That’s what been telling everyone on Facebook all day. I spent the entire evening working on the cover for my book. Yeah, I’m doing it ALL. I don’t have a dime to hire anyone, and why should I if I have the skills?

I’m actually writing this post at almost 2am, but I’m scheduling it to post automatically. Oh, the joys of WordPress.

I’m Such a Tease…

So, here goes…I’m looking for a response. So, comment below or “like” my post if you arrived from Facebook, so I know you want to read it. Without further ado…

Name, as promised, is in the title of this post. It’s coming…The Population Miniscule.

Dragons, wizards, zombies, and vampires, oh my! You’ll find none of them here. The concepts behind Population Miniscule are a little less traveled. Sure, this story has the usual dysfunction, as well as sufficient drama, but there’s a twist. Catherine is an average high school English teacher. She lives a comfortable single life with her cat in an average apartment in the city. Kendon is your basic office suit, well, minus the suit. He’s a Historian and his job is one of great responsibility. He’s got a wife and a few kids.

The problems between Kendon and Catherine are ones of race. It’s not just about skin color anymore. Look around. You are surrounded…they…surround you. In every wall lives a tiny population, a miniature city. Dodge the dangers with them. Enjoy this one of a kind episodic epic and fly white-knuckled through the titanic world of a multitude of tiny people…the Population, Miniscule.

There’s More…

Next, I will release the cover of the book with some behind the scenes stuff as well. There’s no better time to bookmark PWW and come back.

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Yoast SEO Plug In for WordPress

I run several websites besides ProWebWriter. Some are for clients, and some are mine; all WordPress. What else is there? I wanted to throw up a quick post about a recent change here at PWW. For YEARS, I have used the All in One SEO Pack plug in for Search Engine Optimization of this site. It was THE best. Was.

Last week, I migrated this site over to the Yoast WordPress SEO plug in. I tried it on another site and really liked the results. It makes do-it-yourself SEO on par with hiring an SEO firm which I think is a huge waste of money.  If your SEO needs tweaking, Yoast lets you know and suggests the changes you need to make.

Can You Say Traffic?

The thing I had no idea would happen, is why I’m writing about it now. When I tested on another site, it wasn’t one that I monitored traffic on very closely. Since I implemented it here on PWW (LAST WEEK!), I’ve noticed a significant jump in my traffic. Check it…

Yeah…significant as in more than 1,000 visitors, and the month isn’t over yet.

Was the Migration Difficult?

Not at all. I will have to touch EVERY post and do some minor updating, but Yoast imported much of the data from All in One SEO. Since PWW is still a relatively small site (only around 160 articles), it’s not too huge of an undertaking. Larger sites might be a bit of a chore, but they can probably afford to hire someone to update all the posts for SEO. If the content is well-written, it’s no biggie.

Yes, I Will…

…be writing a How To on Yoast. I’ll include the migration information. I just wanted to share and have a post to link to when that’s done. Hit me up if you can’t wait.

 

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Grassroots Self-Publishing or The Release of My Long-Awaited First Novel

Done Waiting?

I know I am. I’ve been talking about my debut novel here at PWW for probably 2 years now. There’s a few problems…

It’s not complete
Kindle Serials never responded to my submission
It’s not complete

I have found that writing a novel is EXTREMELY difficult. When Amazon started talking about Kindle Serials, I thought this might be a solution to my motivation and attention (read ADD) issues. I’m done waiting to hear back from them.

The Bottom of the Barrel Self-Publishing

More than a decade ago, I “self-published” a book of poetry as a Christmas gift for my family. It was…primitive to say the least. I printed off copies on my home printer, and bought those clear report covers from Walmart. Voila! My first book. It was called By Heart, and it’s something I might consider releasing in the future, but I will probably instead distribute a mutated and updated version under a new name through Amazon.

As for my novel…I am considering releasing it in serialized format for my friends right here at ProWebWriter. Once it is a completed work, then I will self-publish it through Amazon as well for the masses. Why self-publish? Why not go for the gusto and submit it to traditional publishers? Simply because I want it read…now. I’m not into putting in my time and effort for rejection letters. Everyone in the world who matters will read my work because *I* wrote it…not because I managed the New York Times Bestseller list. That is for the world. I write for myself and those close to me….or those who wander onto ProWebWriter.com and something I said struck a nerve with them.

I’m gonna do this my way instead of the way the world says I must. I’ll receive my acceptance or rejection my way.

Thro wing Open Every Door

That’s what I’m doing here. This image/quote showed up in my News Feed on Facebook, and while it is a positive message, I have negative feelings about it. I’ve been opening doors left and right trying to create my own opportunities for the better part of 5 years now, and they keep slamming in my face.

Opening the wrong doors? Maybe, but I’m opening up doors nonetheless. It doesn’t say which ones, so I’m going to open them ALL. I’m done waiting for me to finish my novel, or for Amazon to like it. There are people waiting to read it! I know because they ask me about it from time to time. Even people who aren’t avid readers. Why? Because *I* wrote it, and they want to read something I’ve written. Probably because I talk about writing all the time, and claim to *be* a writer, so they want to know what I got….if I’m any good.

So, it’s coming. This weekend, I will be working on this. Check back here at PWW, too, because I will post a sneak peek…a teaser, if you will. Then I will release the first Episode of my novel in Serial format. I’ll save the name, pricing,  and other such info, for that post, but know…IT IS COMING.

 

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ProWebWriter’s Pick Three Method for Most Anything

As I was putting together this post,  I realized that this “pick three” thing might be useful to others out there. So, let’s flesh it out a bit. There are a few things that I like to remember here at ProWebWriter:

I like FREE.
I’m not into selling helpful information.
People are pressed for time.

Thus begins my new Unguru series. This method is not unlike something a guru might wrap up and sell to you at 7 bucks a pop. Internet Marketers get rich doing that kinda thing every single day. It can be easy money if you know what you’re doing, but I’m not into a quick and easy buck that rips off someone trying to earn a living.

Another thing I like to emphasize is keeping things simple. This isn’t Congress, and I’m not trying to release a new bill into law that is so many pages long, no one person could read it all in this lifetime. That’s not how my mind works, and I’d venture to say it’s the same for you. Therefore, I present:

The Pick Three Method

Time is tight…for everyone. You don’t have time for big detailed lists of everything, but you do have time most any time to pick 3 things to work on. Am I right?

On the flip side, people don’t have a lot of time to invest in reading your endless yammering (kind of like I”m doing right now). Pick 3 main points and stick to them.

In my latest endeavor which led to the invention of the method for me, I chose 3 places to jumpstart my side job freelancing, and it worked beautifully.

What was great about it:

By only choosing 3 places, I didn’t invest TONS of time.
Because of the small time investment, the rewards were that much greater.
It didn’t waste others’ time.

The Results are Dually Beneficial

The Pick Three Method works as well on the receiving end. It’s much easier to make a decision with three options rather than five or ten, etc. If you’re offering a service, the Pick Three Method can help you keep things concise. Provide three packages, three types, three lengths, buy two get one FREE, three whatever. It doesn’t matter, because three is a manageable number.

Use It, Love It

Try it. Use the Pick Three Method in various areas of your life. Make 3 goals for the week, do 3 chores a day, write 3 paragraphs per day, etc., and see if you don’t become more productive and successful in all areas. If you adopted this method and it helped you, leave a comment. I’d love to hear about it!

 

Jumpstart Your Side Business

Enter the Banter

I don’t do a lot of personal writing here at PWW other than to relate personal stories and and experience here an there. In November of 2012, I decided on a career change in my “real” job based solely on compensation. More money, and more than that, some much needed health benefits. This proved to be a seemingly giant mistake that cost me a full-time job, a schedule that I enjoyed, a cut in pay, and 17 months of seniority…not to mention paid vacation and the other things I’d worked hard to obtain. I say “seemingly” because I think there was an underlying reason for all of this, and it hasn’t become fully apparent just yet.

I worked at this “new” job for just over a month before I caved. It nearly cost me my sanity. Not because it was a bad job, but because it was a terrible fit for me. My old job took me back on a part-time basis. For this, I am so grateful. I’m “getting by” on half a paycheck…meaning that I’m making about half what I was making before this debacle. So, I put out some feelers for freelance work.

What Does Not Work

PWW is working on what I can only call an anti-guru campaign. If you’ve looked into freelancing at all, you’ve read what the gurus have to say. It goes something like this:

Choose a niche
Charge what you’re worth
Buy my methods

Honestly, NONE of the above has ever worked for me…and I know for a fact it hasn’t worked for a good number of others…maybe even you.  I decided that I was going to run PWW MY way. I don’t listen to all that guru crap anymore, and I certainly don’t pay for any of it. That’s how the gurus become gurus. They find something that works for them and then they sell you their “method” which they’ve also sold to dozens of other people. They get some money behind their statements and suddenly, they have everyone’s attention….but what do they really have? What do they have to offer you…to help you meet YOUR goals? Nothing.

What Works

So, in light of my situation as described above, I decided to light a fire under my “side gig”. I mixed it up by using social media, some new sites, and some old sites to drum up some business. I ended up with nearly more than I can do. What I did:

I appealed to my Facebook friends. I posted a status on Facebook outlining in short what I said in the first section of this post. In return for the first 3 “likes”, I offered a choice of three free services they could choose from.
I posted a brief, but detailed outline of my services in an obscure place on the ‘net. By obscure, I mean NOT a widely known job board.
I created 4 listings on a gig site called Tenrr.com . Here, users are able to create listings for small jobs they would be willing to complete for $10.

The Results

I received one job from Facebook that’ll pay about 80 bucks. From the “obscure” site, I received 3 jobs. One of them is a weekly writing gig. From Tenrr…I’ve gotten one gig in less than a week.  These will not only compensate for the time I am not working, but also financially. The results were surprising.

My Best Suggestions

The Pick 3 Method. Pick three places or ways to promote your service at a time and implement them
Use places off the beaten path to promote yourself. I decided not to be a snob, and share my obscure place from above where I landed the 3 gigs: http://reddit.com/r/forhire/

Another place…check job profiles on Twitter and follow them.
Keep your eyes and ears open. There are always opportunities out there. Pay attention.
Tweet and Facebook your skills in a non-self-promotional sort of way. Post useful information. Post often enough that you’re not forgotten, but not so often everyone hates you. People just naturally began to ask me questions.
Never quit.