Heather Marie Adkins's Blog, page 16
July 27, 2011
Smashwords Formatting for the Lazy, Pt 4
***Part 1***Part 2***Part 3***Part 4***Part 5***
Do you want end matter? I do. I want my readers to have fingertip access to my other novels right as they're finishing the book they're reading and are riding the high of absolutely loving it (come on, we're being optimistic here).
So, if you'd like end matter in yours, take a look at what I've put in mine, the two free short stories you might have glimpsed back in part 1. Look good to you? It's just as easy as chapter headings.
Here's what I have at the back of my upcoming novel, Abigail:
Acknowledgments
Big thanks go to my beta readers Katy and Dymphna for their time and effort in helping make "Abigail" better. Another shout-out to my little sister Sheridan for the cover artwork. Many thanks to Julia Crane, author of YA novel "Coexist" who has been my pal and confidante through the first months of this business. As always, a shameless plug for Guido Henkel, author of the Jason Dark series. His series of blogs on formatting e-books made this one possible. Finally, big hugs to all my peeps at Indie Writers Unite!—you dudes rock.
If you liked "Abigail"…
Check out Heather's other published works!
*********
Underneath, a free ebook short story
An ancient city, entombed beneath a museum that seeks to understand the brutal race that once inhabited the underground world.
A young woman with special empathic powers offered a job to create an exhibit of the city's artifacts.
Underneath, they wait for her.
Available at Smashwords and Barnes and Noble for FREE
Also at Amazon for 99 cents
*********
The House, a free ebook short story
Susan is appalled when she moves back home after college to find her parents are packing the family off to Florida—to her Gran's empty ancestral home.
The place is a mess, but it goes beyond the aesthetic—something is even more wrong with the house than they ever thought possible, and it's deeply intertwined in their family's past.
Some of her ancestors aren't quite gone, and they're determined to play out their anger to the bitter end, despite the home's new inhabitants.
She can only hope her family will make it out alive.
Available for free at a Smashwords and Barnes and Noble
Also available at Amazon for 99 cents.
*********
The Temple, a paranormal mystery novel for 99 cents at Amazon and Barnes and Noble
Vale Avari has a mysterious past and a laundry list of super-powers, but that's nothing compared to what she finds upon moving from small town U.S.A to jolly-good England.
A chance dart throw lands her in Quicksilver, an off-the-map place with a big problem—people are dying, and word is, it's supernatural.
At her new place of employment, a temple dedicated to the ancient Mother Goddess, Vale learns something even more shocking—women guards are disappearing at an alarmingly patterned rate; women who possess special gifts like her own.
Supernatural powers aside, Vale isn't ready to believe in the Wild Hunt as the culprit, and she's determined to prove the deaths are acts of human violence.
Plagued by a brute with a history of domestic violence and lusting after a dark-eyed man with a secret, Vale has a limited amount of time to discover the killer before he strikes again. In the process, she'll learn things aren't always what they seem and the supernatural might not be so extraordinary after all.
The Hunt could ride for her.
Available at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Smashwords
If you're an international reader, please consider purchasing my work from Smashwords due to the $2 unfair surcharge Amazon charges you. You can read more about it at author David Gaughran's blog.
About the Author
Heather Marie Adkins is an independent fiction novelist and avid bibliophile with the library to prove it. She is the author of The Temple, as well as Chick lit novel Constant State of Disaster and a collection of Paranormal romance short stories titled Love and All Its Dimensions, both due out this fall. She is currently working on numerous projects, including a thriller with a ghostly protagonist and the first in a new witchcraft series. A practicing Witch, Heather lives in North Central Kentucky with a house full of animals and the love of her life—all of whom drive her crazy. She can be found daily (mostly) at http://heather.bishoffs.com.
Coming Soon…
Constant State of Disaster
A Chick Lit novel
Anne Marie has issues and they all stem from her mother.
On top of losing the genetic lottery, she's also dealing with an unexpected breakup from the man she thought she would marry. When the depression sends her spiraling into a self-destructive party phase that rivals the old adage Sex-Drugs-Rock'n'Roll, her parents decide to get her out before she destroys herself.
AnnRee's best friend lives and works abroad where she's just become engaged; Anne Marie is on the next flight out of New York and thankful to be rid of the negativity. A whirlwind bachelorette trip to Ireland introduces her to a gorgeous man who is too good for her, and puts another one of her friends in the hospital, leaving her just as bereft as before.
AnnRee realizes that in order to be happy, she has to create her own way, and it's not going to be easy.
Sometimes, you have to accept life as it is to get where you want to be.
*********
Interested in receiving updates on Heather's books? Visit her website at http://heather.bishoffs.com for instructions on how to sign up for her newsletter!
It looks like a lot, yep. Acknowledgements; my other published books with hyperlinks; About the Author; and a look at what's coming next in my world. Your own end matter can be as elaborate or tiny as you wish.
How do we make it mesh with the whole document? Same way we did the chapters. Highlight "Acknowledgments" and choose SWChapter. Highlight "If You Liked "Abigail"…" (or whatever title you put on your published works page), and click SWchapter. Do the same for "About the Author" and "Coming Soon".
Voila. End Matter.
To make your book titles stand out, particularly if you're like me and you want to list more than one, highlight your title and choose your SWBooktitle style. There you go, instant eye catcher.
As for adding the hyperlinks to your book, oh so simple. Highlight the word you're using, in this case, I'll have to do each Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Smashwords individually. So, you highlight, say, Amazon. Right click. Choose "Hyperlink". It brings up a box for you to enter the URL to the webpage. Click OK. Always verify that your links will click through to the right webpage. It would suck ears of corn if your reader clicked to view your next book on Amazon and ended up on someone else's. Bye, bye Sale, hello promo for another author. I also add the hyperlink to my website in both instances where it appears, as well as adding a link to the words "David Gaughran's blog".
Now, the HARD PART. But, it's only one more part to get through, hang in there, you're nearly done. Pick yourself up off the floor and prepare to celebrate, because it's going to be beautiful.
As always, if you have any questions or comments, please feel free to leave them and I will attempt to respond promptly with either an answer or perfectly crafted bullsh**. I'm not an expert!
If you're looking for ebook formatting tips for files OTHER than those used at Smashwords, let me refer you to ebook god Guido Henkel and his nine part series on crafting the perfect ebook.
Smashwords Formatting for the Lazy, Pt 3.
***Part 1***Part 2***Part 3***Part 4***Part 5***
You've got yer Styles, you've put Word put firmly in its place, and your document has been nuclearized within an inch of its life. Now, for the heavy stuff.
Make sure your entire Word document is currently under the "Normal" style setting. If you turned off alllllll your Autocorrect options like I told you too, it should be. If it's not, you didn't do what I told you and a pox upon your house.
But if you were my precious little angel and did what I asked, you're ready to start formatting!
First, we deal with front matter. Smashwords requires you to have a title page and license/copyright information. Here's what I'm using today for the novel I'm formatting:
Abigail
Heather Marie Adkins
(3 returns)
Copyright 2011 by Heather Marie Adkins
Smashwords Edition
(return)
Smashwords Edition, License Notes
This book is protected under the copyright laws of the United States of America. Any reproduction or other unauthorized use of the material or artwork herein is prohibited.
This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you're reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.
(return)
Disclaimer: The persons, places, things, and otherwise animate or inanimate objects mentioned in this novel are figments of the author's imagination. Any resemblance to anything or anyone living (or dead) is unintentional. The author humbly begs your pardon. This is fiction, people.
And after my disclaimer, I usually add my dedication. For this book I'm formatting, it's this:
For my Granny,
who absolutely loved romances.
She's probably still reading them
wherever she may be.
The way you word your front matter is up to you, but your copyright statement must remain professional sounding to guarantee premium status. I like my quirky little disclaimer, so you're welcome to use it, but a disclaimer isn't necessary—neither is a dedication. Gather all your front matter together the way you want it for the next step.
To make all this matter look nice and purty, just follow my instructions.
Highlight your title. You should have clicked "More" under your style drop down box so you're looking at the Style box on the right side of the screen. With your title highlighted, click once on "SWTitle". It formats automatically to the specifications you set.
See how easy??
Do the same thing for your name. Highlight it and click "SWName".
There is your lovely title "page".
There's no easy way I've found to make your title page separate from your copyright matter. I, for one, don't particularly care if it's separate or not. But one thing that you MUST remember is you can NEVER have more than FIVE consecutive returns between lines in your book. If you want to utilize those five returns between your title/name and the copyright in the hope it will push the copyright to the next page, so be it—but remember, not everyone has he same style font, same size font, etc. on their ereaders. It may just end up looking silly, like some five year old attempted to paint the Mona Lisa.
You've got your name and title centered. Now, put your cursor in front of your "Copyright" line and push return until there are THREE spaces between your name and the copyright. Fabulous, you're beautiful. Now, be careful not to push enter when you're at the end of your "Name" line—you'll transfer the wrong size to those empty lines and end up with issues. You never want the style from one line to bleed over into the next line when it should be a new style.
I like to put a return between the two "Smashwords Edition" lines, just to make it look nice, and I also add a return after the license notes before the disclaimer. Now, highlight all that nonsense and click your "SWCentered" style.
Finished front matter
If you have a dedication, put two or three lines between your disclaimer and it, then highlight your dedication and click your SWdedication style.
I add three returns between the dedication and the first chapter.
Now, your chapter heading. Easy, of course; highlight and click your SWchapter style. You'll have to do this for every chapter in the book. Go ahead and do that now, making sure you've added whatever consistent amount of returns you'd like between chapters (BEFORE you add the chapter style, remember). I usually like to add three returns because I'm a Witch and 3 is my special number.
When you're done, we'll move on to the next part, fur flying and teeth bared. We are conquering Smashwords formatting.
As always, if you have any questions or comments, please feel free to leave them and I will attempt to respond promptly with either an answer or perfectly crafted bullsh**. I'm not an expert!
If you're looking for ebook formatting tips for files OTHER than those used at Smashwords, let me refer you to ebook god Guido Henkel and his nine part series on crafting the perfect ebook.
Smashwords Formatting for the Lazy, Pt 2.
***Part 1***Part 2***Part 3***Part 4***Part 5***
Smashwords' Meatgrinder doesn't recognize a lot of stuff that you may use in Word. Do you center your chapter headings? Your **** breaks? They aren't going to be centered when Meatgrinder gets through with it. That baby just spits it right out all Left Justified and stuff.
For everything you need to do in your document, you have to create a corresponding style. This is a bit time consuming, but you only have to do it ONCE and your styles will be there for one-click access for every formatting thereafter. Spend some time creating them now, less work later…I think it's a valid playtoy.
See that bar at the top of the screen, left hand side, that says "Normal"? Click your little arrow to drop down the box. At the end of the list of predetermined, Word-created styles, you'll see "More"—click it. It brings up a neat little box on the right-hand side of your screen where you can create your styles.
As you can see in the picture, I have 7 styles.
SWBookTitles
SWCentered
SWChapter
SWItalics
SWName
SWdedication
That's it. Just 7. Now, let me show you what to do.
In your style box there is a button for "New Style" near the top. When you click it, it brings up a new gray box where you're going to build each style.
I'm only going to go in depth on one style, then give you a quick look at what you'll do for the other six.
SWTitle
This will be the Title on the first page of your book.
In the Based On: box, choose "Heading 1".
Make your font Times New Roman, Size 16, Click the "Bold" button, and Center your text (justification buttons are found under font box).
At the bottom left hand side of the Style box, you see "Format"—click it. Go to "Font". Make sure you have the right specifications at the top, matching those mentioned above, and you will have to manually fix the "Complex Scripts" beneath to match. Times New Roman, Bold, 16 pt. Click Ok.
You're back at your New Style screen. Check the little box above your "Format" button that says "Add to Template". Click Ok.
Tada! You have a new style.
Quick View of the other styles I use:
SWName
This will be your name on the title page.
Based on: Normal
Times New Roman
Size 14
Centered justification
Make your corresponding TNR and Size 14 changes under "Format:Font". Be sure to check your "Add to Template" box and click Ok.
SWItalics
This will be used to put italicized words and phrases in your book. If you just use the Italics button up top, it won't handle the Meatgrinder.
Based On: Normal
Times New Roman
Size 12
Click "Italics" box
Do your corresponding changes under "Format:Font". Check your "Add to Template" and click OK.
SWChapter
Duh. Obviously.
Based on: Heading 1
Times New Roman
Size 16
Bold
My preference is Left Justification but you could very well Center it.
Make corresponding changes in "Format:Font"
Click "Add to Template" and OK
SWCentered
I use this for my section breaks (*****)
Based On: Normal
Times New Roman
Size 12
Centered
Make corresponding changes under "Format:Font", check "Add to Template" and Click Ok.
SWBookTitles
I use this in the back matter for promoting my other novels so the titles stand out.
Based on: Normal
Times New Roman
Size 14
Left Justification
Double check your correspondences in "Format:Font" and add the "Underline Style" ______. Check "Add to Template" and click OK.
SWDedication
This is used to italicize and center your dedication at the beginning of your ebook.
Based On: Normal
Times New Roman
Size 12
Italics
Centered
Check corresponding "Format:Font" make sure they match. Don't forget to "Add to Template" and Click OK.
There you have it. All of your styles are ready to go. Now that you know how to create styles, you can easily create any more that would be useful for your book. Make one that is regular text but has underline to underline the titles of your books in your biography, etc.
Please proceed to Part 3; don't forget any of your baggage and for the gods' sake, pick up your damn trash.
As always, if you have any questions or comments, please feel free to leave them and I will attempt to respond promptly with either an answer or perfectly crafted bullsh**. I'm not an expert!
If you're looking for ebook formatting tips for files OTHER than those used at Smashwords, let me refer you to ebook god Guido Henkel and his nine part series on crafting the perfect ebook.
Smashwords Formatting for the Lazy, Pt 1.
***Part 1***Part 2***Part 3***Part 4***Part 5***
Does the Smashwords formatting guide make you want to pull ALL of your hair out while you run around the house screaming curses in Mark Coker's name? (Don't do that, he's a fantastic, helpful guy and offers a wonderful service through Smashwords—we're talking killer customer service, here.)
Well, the feeling is mutual across the board. How many times have you submitted your book for premium status only for it to be denied because of a formatting error? How many times have you NOT read the formatting guide because it's a million pages long and consists of a lot of information that has nothing to do with your fluffy little fiction novel?
Here's the deal—I've never been denied. I can format my ten thousand word short stories in less than 20 minutes, and my novels in less than an hour. I don't do anything fancy in my books, so if you're a fancifier, this may not be the place for you. If you're a nonfictioner, again, I can't help you. But, if you want a simple, quick, and easy look at how to format your fiction book for Smashwords premium distribution, then you've come to the right place.
Go take a look at either of my short stories (they're free, you don't have to read them if you aren't inclined, just go check out the formatting and see what you think). If you've got the capabilities, take a look at the Epub format, because that's the format that makes premium distribution. You'll see the page breaks, etc. Make sure to check out the front matter and end matter.
Like what you see? They look good, huh? Simple and non-fancy; that's what we're aiming for here. You want your Smashwords book to look good, and by formatting this way your Epub will look professional—and that's the one format that hangs out in premium distribution so all those iHeads and Kobodroids can download your book.
These posts are going to be broken up for purposes of space on my poor, overused blog, but you'll find links to all posts at the top and bottom 
Without further ado, I present Smashwords Formatting for Indies Part 1!
(SIDE NOTE: I am old school. I use the old Word. I freaking hate the new Word. If you have the new Word, you'll have some issues trying to follow my stuff. Probably possible, but will require use of your brain. Good luck, may the gods go with you.)
You have your finished story. It's chilling in whatever word processor you usually use and it's all sparkly and new. You have to (HAVE to, no ifs, ands, or buts, people) use Microsoft Word for your upload document at Smashwords; there's no way around it. Just go with it.
We have two important, can't-be-skipped parts of the formatting process to discuss in this post.
You have ONE INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT thing to do right now before you go any further. We're going to turn off those nasty autocorrect options. Mark Coker says they're awful; Heather Adkins agrees. They don't help you, I promise. They are a hindrance and a bother when it comes to writing. Ebooks don't support half of what the autocorrect does, anyway! Bet ya didn't know that.
How do we turn off Autocorrect? Super easy. In Microsoft Word, go to "Tools" and scroll down to "Autocorrect" options. Under the three tabs labeled "Autocorrect", "Autoformat", and "Autoformat as You Type" uncheck EVERYTHING. Don't leave any little check marks hanging around in those boxes or else you're going to issues with the Smashwords Autovetter and they will come break your windows. Or something.
Didja do it? Good. If not, you are beyond my help and you should hire someone.
Second on the task list today is something wonderful called the Nuclear Method. You know that beautiful, shiny manuscript that you spent so long on and worked so hard to create? You gotta take that bad boy and drop it in to a program to strip all that awful formatting away.
It's terrifying, I'll admit it. The idea of all your lovely tabs and italics disappearing could definitely make you break out into a cold sweat. But this step is just as crucial in the process of making sure your Smashwords manuscript is perfect.
Don't know what kinda program I'm talking about? Let me recommend the one I use—JEdit. Go download it now.
All set? Copy and paste your entire manuscript into JEdit. You'll see you've lost all your paragraphs and various formatting shenanigans. This is GOOD. Iz GOOD. Copy this brand new baby document and paste it into Microsoft Word and save your new document. I usually label it BookName_SW.doc, it's easier to keep track of my numerous formats this way.
You are now ready to move on to part 2. Be excited.
If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to leave them and I will attempt to respond promptly with either an answer or perfectly crafted bullsh**. I'm not an expert!
If you're looking for ebook formatting tips for files OTHER than those used at Smashwords, let me refer you to ebook god Guido Henkel and his nine part series on crafting the perfect ebook.
Indie Author Spotlight 2 – More Talia Jager
The Ultimate Sacrifice
by Talia Jager (Goodreads Author)
4.33 · rating details · 9 ratings · 8 reviews Within our world exists a much darker world only known to a select few. Some are identified as "gifted" and brought to a special institute where they develop their own unique talent and understanding of this world within our world.
It is here Kassia finds out her talent is both dangerous and difficult to control. She has the ability to inflict pain on an individual within her sight. It is only after a friend is being attacked that she realizes her talent is much more powerful when she brings death to the attackers. Little did she know that use of such a powerful talent alerted demons to her existence.
Suddenly she is on the run with her best friend, who ironically is immune to her power, and a new kid at school she was falling for. Realizing she can't outrun the demons, she seeks the guidance of a local shaman. The shaman explains the only escape is through her own death. In order to protect her friends and institute, she sets out to do just that.
I'm sick of hearing about vampires and werewolves. Now, the thing is zombies. But, I'll admit it, I have a soft spot for heroines with superpowers (I may be biased, dur, The Temple), which is Jager's fresh take on the young adult paranormal genre in "The Ultimate Sacrifice".
This book struck me at the core and I don't usually read YA. It's intense nearly from beginning and all the way to the end. It is hard, fast, and brought tears to my eyes several times. Her protagonist, Kassia, is infinitely likeable, particularly for anyone who understands what its like to be outcast (and to have a temper you can't control!) I fell in love with the love interest and Kassia's best friend reminded me of my own. I highly recommend this book to anyone who adores young adult and the paranormal.
Five stars from me
IWU Blog Tour – J M Harrison
Today, I'm hosting the lovely and kind JM Harrison! Her debut, Chosen, is FREE at the Smashwords Summer Sale until July 31st. I'm looking forward to reading it! Have you picked it up, yet? She could use some reviews….hint hint 
Do you pull from your own life for your writing?
My main characters lose their mother at a very young age and that loss colors their lives. While I wasn't so young, my mother died when I was 20. There have been many times in the years since that I've wished I could ask her about things going on in my life. I have teenagers too, so some of their behaviors have found their way into Dynan and Dain.
How often do you write? Do you set word count goals? Do you reward yourself if you meet them?
I write whenever I can, whenever there's time, even if it's a minute or two – if the muse is there. I don't set word goals so much as scene goals, or event goals, and I write to complete the battle scene or the love scene or the running the transport pod into the cliff wall scene. I might have a bite of chocolate or a scoop of ice cream.
What jumpstarted the idea for "Chosen"?
It evolved. I stumbled into a scene while writing the last book of the series. In a quiet moment, two of my characters were talking about all the things that had happened to them, and as the scene progressed the thought came in that I was really writing the end of a story I hadn't yet told, and that's when I 'found' the beginning. It was fairly unexpected.
What's it about?
On an epic level, Chosen is about society's loss of connection with its past through mistakes of censorship and secrecy that have kept the truth from the light. It's about one family and their connection to a massive struggle between good and evil and how their survival is paramount to the stability of the entire universe. At its heart, Chosen is about facing tremendous hardship and finding the courage to get through it. It's a story of perseverance, doing the right thing and standing up for what you believe in. My characters are tested to an extreme degree, and it's about how they handle themselves, good and bad.
How do you market your work? Have you noticed any pay-offs at specific outlets?
Chosen was epublished June 28. The paperback is coming out soon. So I'm really at the very start of promoting. I'm on twitter. I have a blog. I'm on the Indie Writes Unite blog tour. I'm doing the summer sale on Smashwords and offering Chosen for free (so run and get it!). Free has really boosted the downloads, so that's good. I promote when I can and don't sweat it too much.
Who is your favorite character in your book and why?
There are six versions of my protagonist, Adiem, who have six distinct personalities that even have disagreements with one another. One is maniacal-crazy. One is kind of pleasant who seems at first blush as completely reasonable even when he's talking about imminent death. One is cruel; suck the soul out of you evil. Sounds weird maybe, but it was fun to write them.
What's coming up next in your world?
Right now, I'm working on Myth, book two of the series, which only needs a couple of chapters reconfigured for continuity. I'm really hoping to get it out the door by the end of August, but that might be completely unrealistic since August is right around the corner. I just started grad school, so my time is much more severely limited now. And then this fall, I'll hopefully be getting a position as a special education teacher. That's all from my world! Thanks for the opportunity to appear on your blog!
Here are the links to all things Chosen! -
Jolea's Website
July 26, 2011
Indie Author Spotlight – Talia Jager
There are some people who just, well, ROCK. They're kind, giving, caring, and funny, and they go out of their way to be friendly and offer support. During my time as an indie author, however short it has been so far, I've met some pretty awesome writers.
Author Talia Jager is one of those people.
Talia has four books out currently and is receiving amazing reviews for her work.
Damaged: Natalie's Story
Natalie Jarrett is a seventeen-year-old girl who falls in love with the wrong boy. When she finds herself in the hospital after one of his violent attacks, she can no longer turn a blind eye. Suffering from severe injuries, her doctor tells her she will never be the same again. Although injured and feeling guilty, alone, scared and most of all, damaged, everyone seems to expect her to return quickly to her normal life – but how can she bounce back when she blames herself for all that's gone wrong?
Damaged has EIGHT 5-star reviews on Amazon!
If I Die Young
When Caelyn Noel was diagnosed with asthma five years ago, it put a damper on things. Now, she's sixteen and things are finally going her way. She has loving parents, the best friend ever, and the boy she has had a crush on since elementary school has finally noticed her. Then, she collapses in school one day. To her horror, she finds out her heart is failing and she must have a heart transplant to live. Caelyn struggles with her fear of dying and worries of having someone else's heart.
Teagan's Story
Teagan Kavanagh's life is shattered when her parents are killed in a car accident. She must move in with her brother and is forced to attend public school for the first time in her life. As if starting a new school her junior year wasn't hard enough, she continues to battle epilepsy and the constant unknown of when and where her next seizure will occur. As this new chapter in her life opens, she gets more than she bargained for. Torn between playing it safe and risking her life to be normal, Teagan must make a life changing decision.
The Ultimate Sacrifice
Within our world exists a much darker world only known to a select few. Some are identified as "gifted" and brought to a special institute where they develop their own unique talent and understanding of this world within our world.
It is here Kassia finds out her talent is both dangerous and difficult to control. She has the ability to inflict pain on an individual within her sight. It is only after a friend is being attacked that she realizes her talent is much more powerful when she brings death to the attackers. Little did she know that use of such a powerful talent alerted demons to her existence.
Suddenly she is on the run with her best friend, who ironically is immune to her power, and a new kid at school she was falling for. Realizing she can't outrun the demons, she seeks the guidance of a local shaman. The shaman explains the only escape is through her own death. In order to protect her friends and institute, she sets out to do just that.
Talia can be found online at her blog and on Facebook.
July 21, 2011
Indie Author Spotlight–Larry Marshall
Her Book of Shadows
by Larry Marshall
From Goodreads:
Retired Arizona cop, Scott Riker, lives with his wife and daughter in Quebec City where he heads a group of interventionists. Directed by Quebec business mogul and philanthropist, Luc Duchesne, the group uses their talents and resources to stand between people in trouble and the criminal elements who would do them harm.
In Her Book of Shadows, Riker agrees to find Jodie Burke, a teenage girl whose parents say ran away to Quebec City from Connecticut. But when Jodie's friend turns up murdered on the Plains of Abraham, it becomes clear that Riker faces something more than just a runaway girl. Time is running out and he must find Jodie and prevent whoever is trying to kill her from succeeding.
Riker struggles with his emotional involvement in the case, caused by the similarities between his daughter and Jodie Burke. This, and his attempts to reconcile his risky business with his role as father and husband add to his internal conflicts but maybe the two roles can be compatible.
Count it– SEVEN five star reviews at Amazon!
And a well deserved bunch of reviews. Marshall is a delight. His MC Scott Riker is a magnificent character. Because I'm lazy and it's been a couple weeks since I read it, here's my Goodreads review:
What an intense read! This mystery hooked me from the beginning and sucked me in. The characters are well-drawn and the protagonist has a great personality–I love a man that can be tough and love his family all at once The author obviously put time and effort into making sure his research was correct; it was refreshing to read a book that references Wicca in the right way that isn't actually written by a witch for witches. The mystery flows perfectly, you certainly don't see it coming.
I hope this is going to be the first of many books in a series and I'll be in line to read the next
Larry is on my list of indies to follow. He's going to be a success.
Five stars from me.
Find Larry's book:
July 20, 2011
IWU Blog Tour – Lizzy Ford
This week I am honored to host indie author Lizzy Ford who is seeing tremendous success with her work. Reading the comments on her blog gives me goose bumps…it's that kind of readership success I would love to have one day. She is funny, smart, and an inspiration to me as proof that it's possible to make it in this business. Everybody say "hi"!
So, I know about your "free" project, but give me a quick and dirty version of it.
I have a two part marketing strategy: the first part entails me giving away all my books for free for 12 months. The second part entails keeping the initial books free then charging for all future books. My goal was to e-publish 12 books this year, but it looks like I'll make 10! I'm also looking at adding a Lizzy loyalty service for my mailing list where I'll offer my books to them for steep discounts or even free during stage two.
What kind of numbers have you seen with the freebies?
From what we can verify and/or estimate, between 10,000-17,000 free books a month are downloaded. It depends on the site and the popularity of the book. Katie's Hellion is free on Amazon UK and has had about 7,000 downloads in July so far. My books are free in all other major ereader libraries. I also post my books on other websites dedicated to free ebooks, some of which don't have any way to track downloads, and readers post them random places, too.
How has this translated at Amazon where your books aren't free?
Very well, so far! From January – April, I had about 30-40 Amazon purchases a month. In May, that leapt to 468 books sold. In June, 805 books sold. So far in July, I'm over 900 and on track to sell about 1400-1500 by the end of the month. I also have 5 of my books free on Amazon (2 in the UK and 3 in the US.)
Tell me a bit about what promotions you do for your books.
Mainly, I use word of mouth and easy access to my work. I use Twitter, Facebook, and my blog for announcements and connecting with my fans; Goodreads giveaways; send out emails to my mailing list; post my book to multiple websites (where the readers are!); respond personally to comments/fan mail; host a Goodreads group; participate in the Neverending Blog Tour, things like that. My husband does SEO work for me, like feeding my site map to Google every day so we're indexed regularly and therefore easier to find. I don't pay for advertising or marketing.
Like me, you stated in comments at your site that you don't have a long attention span. I've got ten active projects at the moment. What about you? Tell me about a few of them.
I have about 60-65 projects. About 50 are started in some form, even if it's a page to remind me what I want to write down the road. The rest are one-liner reminders or floating around in my very cluttered mental storage bin. Haha! I have a few more books I plan on writing and releasing this year, to include:
Late July/early August: Kiera's Moon, contemporary sci-fi/fantasy
August: Katie's Hope (Book Two, Rhyn Trilogy)
September: Rebel Heart, futuristic romance
October: A Demon's Desire; contemporary paranormal
December: Damian's Immortal (ebook version)
I may be able to eke out another one in November, but I wanted some time to spend on Damian's Immortal, which is the third book in the really popular Damian series. I'm also having my first two novels, Damian's Oracle and Damian's Assassin, revised with new covers made for re-release this fall, September and November, respectively, prior to the release of Damian's Immortal.
After bouncing around your site, I really just want to know who Lizzy Ford is. Who are you?
I have no idea how to answer that question! I guess I can break it down like this:
As a professional writer: The Lizzy Ford team consists of: myself, my hubby, my cover artist, and my editor. I've added a Spanish translator, Toni, to the team. We're experimenting this fall with tapping into the Spanish book market with my most popular book. My team is made up of people who work either for free or near-free compared to what they could command on the open market.
Every book I've released since April has been a team effort.
Me: I write
Editor: Christine grumbles about my overuse of the word 'then' while managing my monthly spaz attacks and repairing my abuse of the English language
Cover artist: Dafeenah rightfully ignores my awful ideas for covers and creates beautiful cover art using fairy dust and raw talent
Hubby: Matt does magic SEO and IT work to make sure anyone out there interested in my books or me can find me.
As for me personally: I'm just a writer who knows failure isn't an option.
(Heather sez: Joe Konrath sez a successful author is one who never gives up! Failure is NOT an option, I agree, Lizzy.)
You have some killer fan "mail" at your site. How did it feel when the love started flowing in?
I thought they'd made a mistake and meant to leave comments on some other author's site. I've always been that little girl with mis-matched socks sitting in the back of the classroom playing with imaginary unicorns while everyone else learned the alphabet. It was neat to have people join me in my world – and appreciate it as much as I do.
(Heather sez: Best answer EVER.)
Who are your favorite authors?
My favorite contemporary author: Lynn Kurland
My favorite all-time author: Jane Austen
Heather sez: I am addicted to Lynn Kurland's time travel/ghost story romances!)
What do you do when you're feeling unmotivated?
I remind myself that the alternative to succeeding as a writer is retiring from my full-time job in 20 years.
I think what we all are striving for is to give up that ridiculous day job and enjoy success doing what we love. Lizzy, I wish you all the best!
Find Lizzy Online:
Guerilla Wordfare (her website/blog)
Check out her guest posts at David Gaughran's site and Jack Wallen's site (both great posts about Lizzy's endeavors).
Find Lizzy's books listed here at her site.
July 15, 2011
IWU Blog Tour – Athanasios Galanis
Hellllo, blogworld! Today I have Tom over to visit. Me like Tom–he's quite funny and smart. Have a gander at our interview
Tell me a little about the book you're promoting.
Mad Gods is a complex book. Sometimes I wish it wasn't because one reviewer went to the point of calling it dense mythology, a backhanded compliment if I ever heard one.
As such it's not for everyone. It's not for the quick reader who wants an entertaining romp with overly clever quips. It is rooted in pervasive universal themes religion has always tried to explain. Why do we live the way we do, how we perceive reality and how our perceptions shape reality. You see not really complex at all. LOL
Do you pull from your own life for your writing?
In characterization I do. Many of the people populating my stories are based on various acquaintances, friends and family. The themes are based on long held and explored beliefs I've expanded on through investigation and research. Plots is just me saying what if and wouldn't it be cool if.
What jumpstarted the idea for this book?
There were a few jumps throughout my life. It started when I was 10 and I saw the Omen. I couldn't believe the Antichrist who was a human being would want to destroy the world and willfully be evil. It evolved over the years into him refusing to do what he's fated to do and with this refusal becoming both Antichrist and Christ, which brings the inherent duality of man to a final evolution. Through my long research into all things religious I saw that much of ancient myths throughout the world had a duality to their divinity that was split with Judeo-Christian beliefs. With the mythology in Mad Gods I try to present it all and amalgamate it.
How often do you write? Do you set word count goals? Do you reward yourself if you meet them?
I write every day. I don't have word count goals; I reward myself for nothing, yet I indulge myself everything.
(Note from Heather: I LOVE this answer!)
Can you write with background noise (like music) or do you prefer quiet?
I hate background music to write with. I would hurt anyone who would try to make me. I cannot concentrate on writing if there's music or any distraction.
What's coming up next in your world?
Commitment is the sequel to Mad Gods, and second installment in Predatory Ethics.
Tell us about your marketing strategies.
Do anything and everything that comes in my path.
(Heather sez: Sounds like a good plan to me!)
Did you attempt the traditional publishing route? What made you choose Indie?
I attempted traditional publishing, but it rejected me. Now I'm a spurned suitor who mumbles sour grapes under my breath every second breath.
Who is your favorite character in the book and why?
I will answer my own version of the above question; with I have two favorite characters, the main two. They are Kostadino Paleologos and the Antichrist who Kosta names Adam. Kosta is a descendant of Byzantine Emperors and for most of his life he has done what was expected of him.
He was born with unique psychic, paranormal abilities to control and manipulate the dead and the paranormal, occult forces in the world. Those were put to use in returning to Istanbul every year to release trapped souls of the defenders of the city when it was known as Kostadinoupoli and conquered by the Ottoman Turks. He is told by the last soul he releases, his direct ancestor Emperor Kostadino XI that he must find a unique book, called the Idammah-Gan Codex. This book leads him to find and kidnap the Antichrist from his original parents. He takes him because he wants this innocent make his own choice of whether he will destroy the world as his destiny in Revelation demands or if he instead will live an ordinary life. Kostadino is in a rare position to empathize with the Antichrist, with Adam. He spent his life following his destiny and it left him alone and wishing for a life without the terrors he lived through and had to combat. Adam learns from Kostadino that he can control his own destiny and not be a slave to it. Adam realizes controlling your own destiny is not easy, it is one of the most difficult tasks anybody can attempt, because you must fight every force known and unknown trying to wrest this control back. Kostadino's and Adam's decision puts them at odds with everybody from Luciferians, Templars, Illuminati, Catholic Church and Free Masons.
Thanks for stopping by the cottage, Tom
Find him online:
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/athanos1964
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/#!/mad_gods
Website: http://www.mad-gods.com
Blog: http://www.mad-gods.com/blog.html
Find h
is work:
Book links: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004QOA768
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004TSIV0U
http://www.a mazon.com/dp/B004TSCH2I
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004ULWSAK
http: //www.amazon.com/dp/B004V51D24
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004W3FX76
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004V51D24
http://cgi.ebay.ca/ws/120639133859
