Douglas Dorow's Blog, page 3
October 25, 2011
Halloween blog hop >> Nina Perez
To celebrate the season and writing, I'm participating in a Halloween blog hop. You can win some books by following the tour and instructions >> Halloween Blog Hop
Today's guest at ThrillersRus is Nina Perez, author of The Twin Prophecies REBIRTH.
About The AuthorNina Perez is the authorof The Twin Prophecies: Rebirth, the first in a YA fantasy series. Thesecond, The Twin Prophecies: Origins will be released in the spring of 2012.She enjoys spending time with her husband Donny and their two children, Kaliand Jack, in their suburban Atlanta home. When she's not writing she's watchingmassive amounts of Doctor Who, and wishing she had her very own TARDIS.If you're an adult, you can follow her on Twitter (@AuthorNinaPerez). If you'rea fan of The Twin Prophecies, follow her at @TwinProphecies. You canalso find her on Facebook or by email: nina@blogitoutb.com
The Twin Prophecies: Rebirth – Special Edition is available atAmazon.com for the Kindle and in paperback:
BLURB
High school sophomores Jack Morrow and Violet Rossdon't know each other, but they have similar secrets: she can feel the emotionsof others and when he touches people, he can see their future. A tragicaccident thrusts them into a world where they learn an even bigger secret: allthe mythical beings they believed to be fictional are real.
Guided by prophecies predicting the end of the world,the mysterious Dr. Tesla - who leads an alliance of supernatural beings - helpsJack and Violet come to terms with this secret world, control the growingpowers within them, and face an unspeakable evil determined to possess theirvery souls.
Rebirth isthe first in a series that follows Violet Ross; sarcastic, smart, rebelliousand Jack Morrow; sensitive, brave and loyal, as they unlock the mysteriesbehind magic as old as time, team up with a centuries-old vampire, and exposethe corruption within the inner sanctum of a secret alliance - all while tryingto graduate from high school.
The Special Edition includes a bonus chapter, newchapter titles, a new cover, and an excerpt from The Twin Prophecies: Origins.
EXCERPTThe twobridges that crossed the Preston River, connecting Little City to South Rosemont,were the Sagaw and the Newton. The Newton went from the warehouse district ofLittle City into the west side of South Rosemont and the Sagaw started at thetip of the shopping district and deposited commuters on the east side.Residents joked that from the sky you could tell the annual income of each sideof South Rosemont simply by the make and model of the cars going across eitherbridge - the east side residents tending to be a bit more of the working-stiffvariety. Eitherway, it wasn't something spoken about too often or too loudly. Rosemontresidents liked to think that no matter their socioeconomic divisions, theywere still better off than people living in a city like Philadelphia or NewYork. They considered Rosemont one of the best truly all-American small townson the east coast. Likeall small towns, Rosemont had its traditions and stories, passed down fromgeneration to the next, losing a bit of detail and truth along the way. Therewere incidents the town would never forget, like the time a fire claimed thelives of ten nuns in a Catholic church in southwest Rosemont. That story wastold so many times in so many ways, that by the latest retelling, the nuns'screams could be heard for miles before the fire trucks arrived. In truth, thenuns had been long dead – suffocated on the smoke - before anyone knew to callfor help. Formany years people would talk about what happened on Maclean Road one evening inearly September. They'd talk about the bizarreness of the accident and thesadness of it all. And, one day, they'd talk about how that was the start ofeverything.` DianeMorrow and Marianne Ross thought nothing of it when their husbands each tookthe wrong bridge home. It would have made more sense for the Morrows to havetaken the Sagaw, and the Rosses the Newton, considering where they lived, butthe women were so content from a wonderful night of good food and conversationthat they welcomed the extra time the scenic routes provided. Dianerested her hand on Nick's thigh as he drove, looking out the window and smilingto herself. The Preston River was calm to their right and the nearly nakedtrees of the woods swayed to their left. Dinner with the Loebs had gone well.Joseph Loeb was building a community of condos outside of Philadelphia and Nickwanted in on the contract. He could use the work, and they could use themoney. Nick hummed as he drove, andDiane knew he thought the dinner had been a success as well. Headingwestward, the Rosses were also feeling good about life. They had no financial worries – their issuewas time. After all these years, Marianne's hours at the hospital still causedproblems. The couple could go days without seeing each other and family mealswere often Brad and Violet eating alone at the island in the kitchen, for itseemed a waste to set the table for only two. Date Night provided them with theopportunity to reconnect, recharge, and rekindle. Marianneleaned forward, looking past Brad to get a better view of the river. In themoonlight, the water looked as endless as the sky and shimmered like onyx. Itreminded her of the evening they'd had an anniversary dinner there; a nighttimepicnic under the stars. It would be the last happy thought she'd ever have. Sheopened her mouth to recall the memory aloud when Brad jerked the steering wheelof their mid-size SUV sharply to the left, into the other lane of traffic.Where it had seemed just a moment before that they were the only ones on theroad for a mile in either direction, Marianne was now staring in horror at twoheadlights, coming at them fast. Inthe other car, Diane screamed for Nick to look out, and briefly thought theywere going to avoid the accident. Nick stared straight ahead, but instead ofswerving or applying the brakes, he pressed down hard on the accelerator andpointed the nose of their sedan directly at the SUV. Henever stopped humming. Metalmet metal. The engine of the late-model sedan entered the front of the car,shredding Nick Morrow's lower half and killing him instantly. The Ross' SUVrose up from the rear, threatening to flip the whole vehicle upside down, atopthe sedan. Instead, as the sedan spun violently towards the river, the momentumcaused the SUV to spin too, and land on its side. Brad Ross died instantly aswell; his neck broken. Whenit was over, Marianne Ross lay pinned inside her car listening to the hiss ofsteam, the leaking of fluids and her own struggle to breathe as her lungsfilled with blood. She'd been a nurse long enough to know what was happening toher. A fewfeet away in the mangled sedan, stopped dangerously close to going into theriver by a guardrail, Diane Morrow was also dying. She thought about only onething: Jack. She knew he'd be taken care of, but it wouldn't be the same. Achild needs a mother. AsMarianne felt herself fading away, there was great sadness that she wouldn'tsee Violet graduate high school, get married and have children of her own. Agirl would need her mother for such things. Asboth women let go of the last threads of life, they prayed their children wouldhave a mother to care for them, somehow. And though they had never met, theirlast thoughts were of each other.
Today's guest at ThrillersRus is Nina Perez, author of The Twin Prophecies REBIRTH.
About The AuthorNina Perez is the authorof The Twin Prophecies: Rebirth, the first in a YA fantasy series. Thesecond, The Twin Prophecies: Origins will be released in the spring of 2012.She enjoys spending time with her husband Donny and their two children, Kaliand Jack, in their suburban Atlanta home. When she's not writing she's watchingmassive amounts of Doctor Who, and wishing she had her very own TARDIS.If you're an adult, you can follow her on Twitter (@AuthorNinaPerez). If you'rea fan of The Twin Prophecies, follow her at @TwinProphecies. You canalso find her on Facebook or by email: nina@blogitoutb.com
The Twin Prophecies: Rebirth – Special Edition is available atAmazon.com for the Kindle and in paperback:
BLURB
High school sophomores Jack Morrow and Violet Rossdon't know each other, but they have similar secrets: she can feel the emotionsof others and when he touches people, he can see their future. A tragicaccident thrusts them into a world where they learn an even bigger secret: allthe mythical beings they believed to be fictional are real.
Guided by prophecies predicting the end of the world,the mysterious Dr. Tesla - who leads an alliance of supernatural beings - helpsJack and Violet come to terms with this secret world, control the growingpowers within them, and face an unspeakable evil determined to possess theirvery souls.
Rebirth isthe first in a series that follows Violet Ross; sarcastic, smart, rebelliousand Jack Morrow; sensitive, brave and loyal, as they unlock the mysteriesbehind magic as old as time, team up with a centuries-old vampire, and exposethe corruption within the inner sanctum of a secret alliance - all while tryingto graduate from high school.
The Special Edition includes a bonus chapter, newchapter titles, a new cover, and an excerpt from The Twin Prophecies: Origins.
EXCERPTThe twobridges that crossed the Preston River, connecting Little City to South Rosemont,were the Sagaw and the Newton. The Newton went from the warehouse district ofLittle City into the west side of South Rosemont and the Sagaw started at thetip of the shopping district and deposited commuters on the east side.Residents joked that from the sky you could tell the annual income of each sideof South Rosemont simply by the make and model of the cars going across eitherbridge - the east side residents tending to be a bit more of the working-stiffvariety. Eitherway, it wasn't something spoken about too often or too loudly. Rosemontresidents liked to think that no matter their socioeconomic divisions, theywere still better off than people living in a city like Philadelphia or NewYork. They considered Rosemont one of the best truly all-American small townson the east coast. Likeall small towns, Rosemont had its traditions and stories, passed down fromgeneration to the next, losing a bit of detail and truth along the way. Therewere incidents the town would never forget, like the time a fire claimed thelives of ten nuns in a Catholic church in southwest Rosemont. That story wastold so many times in so many ways, that by the latest retelling, the nuns'screams could be heard for miles before the fire trucks arrived. In truth, thenuns had been long dead – suffocated on the smoke - before anyone knew to callfor help. Formany years people would talk about what happened on Maclean Road one evening inearly September. They'd talk about the bizarreness of the accident and thesadness of it all. And, one day, they'd talk about how that was the start ofeverything.` DianeMorrow and Marianne Ross thought nothing of it when their husbands each tookthe wrong bridge home. It would have made more sense for the Morrows to havetaken the Sagaw, and the Rosses the Newton, considering where they lived, butthe women were so content from a wonderful night of good food and conversationthat they welcomed the extra time the scenic routes provided. Dianerested her hand on Nick's thigh as he drove, looking out the window and smilingto herself. The Preston River was calm to their right and the nearly nakedtrees of the woods swayed to their left. Dinner with the Loebs had gone well.Joseph Loeb was building a community of condos outside of Philadelphia and Nickwanted in on the contract. He could use the work, and they could use themoney. Nick hummed as he drove, andDiane knew he thought the dinner had been a success as well. Headingwestward, the Rosses were also feeling good about life. They had no financial worries – their issuewas time. After all these years, Marianne's hours at the hospital still causedproblems. The couple could go days without seeing each other and family mealswere often Brad and Violet eating alone at the island in the kitchen, for itseemed a waste to set the table for only two. Date Night provided them with theopportunity to reconnect, recharge, and rekindle. Marianneleaned forward, looking past Brad to get a better view of the river. In themoonlight, the water looked as endless as the sky and shimmered like onyx. Itreminded her of the evening they'd had an anniversary dinner there; a nighttimepicnic under the stars. It would be the last happy thought she'd ever have. Sheopened her mouth to recall the memory aloud when Brad jerked the steering wheelof their mid-size SUV sharply to the left, into the other lane of traffic.Where it had seemed just a moment before that they were the only ones on theroad for a mile in either direction, Marianne was now staring in horror at twoheadlights, coming at them fast. Inthe other car, Diane screamed for Nick to look out, and briefly thought theywere going to avoid the accident. Nick stared straight ahead, but instead ofswerving or applying the brakes, he pressed down hard on the accelerator andpointed the nose of their sedan directly at the SUV. Henever stopped humming. Metalmet metal. The engine of the late-model sedan entered the front of the car,shredding Nick Morrow's lower half and killing him instantly. The Ross' SUVrose up from the rear, threatening to flip the whole vehicle upside down, atopthe sedan. Instead, as the sedan spun violently towards the river, the momentumcaused the SUV to spin too, and land on its side. Brad Ross died instantly aswell; his neck broken. Whenit was over, Marianne Ross lay pinned inside her car listening to the hiss ofsteam, the leaking of fluids and her own struggle to breathe as her lungsfilled with blood. She'd been a nurse long enough to know what was happening toher. A fewfeet away in the mangled sedan, stopped dangerously close to going into theriver by a guardrail, Diane Morrow was also dying. She thought about only onething: Jack. She knew he'd be taken care of, but it wouldn't be the same. Achild needs a mother. AsMarianne felt herself fading away, there was great sadness that she wouldn'tsee Violet graduate high school, get married and have children of her own. Agirl would need her mother for such things. Asboth women let go of the last threads of life, they prayed their children wouldhave a mother to care for them, somehow. And though they had never met, theirlast thoughts were of each other.
October 24, 2011
One book: Sales distribution by platform
I launched
The Ninth District
back in June on Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Smashwords (and to the other platforms they serve).
I thought I'd share the distribution of my sales for those who are already e-publishing or those who are thinking about it.
June through October
74.6% Kindle
22.8% Nook
1.8 % ibooks
0.8% Smashwords
At launch my sales on Nook started strong, but have quickly gone down. I launched The Ninth District at $0.99 and raised the price to $2.99 in August.
For the last two months (Sept & Oct) my sales distribution looks something like this
87.3% Kindle
9.1% Nook
3.6% ibooks
My unit sales numbers took an initial dip when I raised the price to $2.99, but they've rebounded to a steady state now.
Kindle is definitely the leader, while the others shouldn't be ignored for distribution and some additional sales.
Next, I may try raising the price to $3.99 or $4.99 and see what happens. With the upcoming holiday shopping and new ereaders under the tree people will be looking for books. The question is, does price drive sales? Do people equate $2.99 or less as lower quality? If I can maintain or increase sales by raising my price to $3.99 or $4.99 that will be the place to be.
I'd be interested to hear if others are seeing the same trends in their sales...
I thought I'd share the distribution of my sales for those who are already e-publishing or those who are thinking about it.
June through October
74.6% Kindle
22.8% Nook
1.8 % ibooks
0.8% Smashwords
At launch my sales on Nook started strong, but have quickly gone down. I launched The Ninth District at $0.99 and raised the price to $2.99 in August.
For the last two months (Sept & Oct) my sales distribution looks something like this
87.3% Kindle
9.1% Nook
3.6% ibooks
My unit sales numbers took an initial dip when I raised the price to $2.99, but they've rebounded to a steady state now.
Kindle is definitely the leader, while the others shouldn't be ignored for distribution and some additional sales.
Next, I may try raising the price to $3.99 or $4.99 and see what happens. With the upcoming holiday shopping and new ereaders under the tree people will be looking for books. The question is, does price drive sales? Do people equate $2.99 or less as lower quality? If I can maintain or increase sales by raising my price to $3.99 or $4.99 that will be the place to be.
I'd be interested to hear if others are seeing the same trends in their sales...
October 22, 2011
Observation from an author event at Once Upon a Crime
Once Upon a Crime is a small, independent mystery bookstore in Minneapolis. It's a great place for mystery/thriller/suspense enthusiasts because that's all you will find on the shelves. It's run by a couple, Pat and Gary, and they will be happy to talk with you about books, authors, etc. They recently were presented with The Raven Award by the Mystery Writers of America. If you're ever in Minneapolis, you should stop by and check it out.
Once Upon a Crime is a stop on any touring mystery writers agenda if they're coming through Minneapolis / St. Paul. I've attended many events there; CJ Box, John Sandford, Vince Flynn, Steve Hamilton, etc. I recently stopped in to listen to The Minnesota Crime Wave, a group of local mystery writers (Ellen Hart, Carl Brookins, William Kent Krueger).
I sat in the audience as a fan and as a curious author. Curious on the demographics of the audience, the readers and fans of these authors, and curious on how I felt as an author who has chosen the indie path and would probably not experience sitting in front of a group of my fans like these authors were and how I felt about the idea that my books would probably not be on the shelves of this great local bookstore.
The panel was great. They often go out together and you can tell they are good friends. Krueger said he was nearing the end of his tour for Northwest Angle. This was something like his 42nd stop. They hadn't been to Once Upon a Crime as a group in 9 years, back when Pat and Gary bought the place, though I know Krueger has been there solo for signings and book launches.
I've heard that authors are torn on these types of events. They enjoy meeting their readers, but there probably isn't the return on the investment of time and energy in sales that are generated. There were about 30 or 40 people at this event and I think it was held as much to support the store as it was to promote the authors.
The audience was made up of fans. They knew the authors work, were engaged with asking questions and most came in small groups. It was mostly people in their 60's or older and predominantly women. I think 90% bought the books and waited in line to talk to the authors and get their signatures.
Me? Sitting there I realized that since I received my kindle I'm a die hard ebook fan, I really have no desire to purchase a big hard cover. And I'm reading many of the authors I've discovered and connected with via Twitter. My To Be Read list is long. I left without buying a book and I'll probably wait for Krueger's Northwest Angle to come down in price before I buy it. Krueger's publisher is trying something interesting selling one of his early books as an ebook for 99 cents and his new book for $11.99.
I guess all in all, attending this event left me feeling a little verklempt thinking about the future of bookstores, this one in particular, and made me think about how I, as an indie author am going to find, build and reach readers/fans.
Like any writer, I think it's one reader at a time, word of mouth and persistence - writing the best stories you can for people to read. It's back to the keyboard to write and the internet to social media. Now to find the balance.
