Heidi Angell's Blog, page 50

My Analysis of Lust, Money & Murder by Mike Wells

Hello all!~ Summer is over, kids are back in school, and I am getting back into a routine! I miss my routine!! I have not finished up with The Hunters yet (editing away!!!) but I will keep you posted. Something I want to start doing occasionally is looking at other author's work and analyzing it to help improve my writing (and hopefully yours as well!)

Today, we are going to take a look at a book I got on Amazon for free! It is Entitled Lust, Money & Murder by Mike Wells Book 1, Lust.

Now that right there is a mouthful, isn't it!!! I did a reader review for this  on my friend Linda's blog Books4Linda, and if you are not familiar with this book, then you might want to read the review there before you continue reading this post.

So, first thing I noticed when I picked out this book to do a review for my friend Linda, was that it was self-published. I was a little leery, but then I saw that the author is a creative writing professor at Oxford University. I had high hopes. But I only gave it a three out of five rating at the end.

His writing was sound, his imagery was nice, the tale was even believable. All great and important things to a story and worth mentioning. As a teacher, he has something that he can show is technically sound. Makes it worth reading for an author too! We indie- and self-pubbers can learn a lot from that, if we pay attention. I'm not gonna talk about all the things that made this a quality book, book though. What I want to talk about is why I thought it wasn't.

First thing, there is this movement out there to do serialized e-books and sell them at 99 cents to make some money. I have listened to arguments on both sides of the fence for a while and the biggest issue, or concern with this idea, that I have is that I know that I am not a short story/ serialized fiction writer. I am long-winded and I want to have 60,000 to 80,000 words to tell my story. But I know that serialized fiction was quite popular back in the day. Some folks used to buy the newspaper just for the serialized stories. I figured, if an author wants to do something like that, then let them. More power to them.

Then I took a step back and thought about it from a consumer's perspective. When you have new authors putting their work out there for 99 cents to get a following, there has become this expectation of gettting a full book from an unknown author for 99 cents. Then to get what is not a full book for that price? Hmmm... I see the potential for serious confusion in the industry.

Which leads me to the frustration I had with this story. This is sold as book one. I did not get a book. I got a cliff hanger. I got a longer version of a serial. I was left going WTF!!! Where as a typical book with a sequel (such as the Twilight series, The Ender series... ah hell, pretty much every series book worth it's grain of salt!) at the end of the story, the main arc point is concluded. There may be a couple of questions hanging out there; a larger, longer sense of doom to let you know that the story isn't quite over and you do want to get the next book. But at the end there is a sense of closure. You have most of the big answers. In the following books, new issues will create new plot points, etc. etc.

With this story, just as I was getting into the main plot, it ended. ARE YOU SERIOUS!!!!! I didn't like the main characters, I did not connect with them at all. Yet because I got NO RESOLUTION there is a part of me that wants to get the next book, just so I can see what all I was set up for. That is just cruel. It is kind of like getting a girl all worked up and then leaving her hanging so you can watch a game. (Especially since my husband pointed out to me that I was complaining yesterday about not really liking the story, so it would be stupid to go and buy the rest of the books. He is completely right. But I have this OCD need to finish things... grrr.....)

Which brings me to my next issue. And really this is not an issue with Mr. Wells. It is sort of an issue I have with society... and literature which insists on continuing this perpetuation... anyway... I give Mr. Wells mad props on writing a book almost exclusively from the female perspective. But you know what I despise about the female perspective in most adult literature? We are so damn cookie cutter about it. I cannot think of one adult female in literature that I can relate to, or that I like (Well, except for Riatha in Eye of the Hunter, but she was an adult Elf who lived in a time before time, so I don't think that technically counts.)

Can we please have a female character who does not have to talk about/ admire/ lament clothing, jewelry, nails, pink fluffy kitty shit. As strange as this may seem, not all women care about this crap. I am one of them. As a matter of fact, I have been so inundated by the expectation that I should/ do that when I see pink I immediately want to puke.(Can I just say, Breast Cancer Awareness?)

And on the few occasions where I have found a female character I can relate to, she ends up being gay. Given how much I dig dudes... the "being able to relate" thing ends right there.

I am not going on some feminist kick (their the ones who said "why can't she be badass and like pink!) I am simply saying that it would be nice to have a kick ass heroine chick who does not need to conform to checking labels, putting on make up,  being a "modern woman". (I realize this is really contradictory and now my head feels like it is going to explode. Ugghhh...)

I am a tough, kick ass kind of girl. You get an attitude with me and I am in your face. When the zombie apocalypse happens, my neighbors should be concerned because if I didn't like you before, I have no intentions of saving your sorry butt after! I don't wear make up (except when society makes me feel obligated), but I still look good. Unless it is something super important, my hair is lucky to get ten minutes of my time. I wear pithy shirts like "I'd rather be a ninja". I have never bought anything from the Banana Republic and wouldn't even know what the store was, if it hadn't been between Spencer's and Hot Topic when I was in my teens. Despite my theater director's assertions, I am not a lesbian. I am also not alone. I know lots of women who are, in their own unique way, not a part of the cookie cutter mold women are shoved into in books.

Fortunately if you like kick ass girls like me, I have three books coming out over the next year or two that feature such awesome ladies. If you know any books like these, please refer them to me because I would really like to read such books.

Really, those two things were the only problems I had with the book. Unfortunately, they were huge issues. If a person doesn't like your character (or at least like to hate them) then why would they waste their time reading them? If you set me up for a hot story, then leave me hanging at the climax  you won't be the guy I call next time I want a book.
*wink, wink, nudge, nudge, say no more!*

I give Mr. Wells credit, he tried something wild and potentially revolutionary. I am not faulting him for it. And based on his "best-selling author" status, maybe he is right. But I know that I have gotten so caught up in listening to the experts about how to be a good writer, that I forgot the most important experts. The readers.

They are the reasons that books like Hunger Games (which had SPELLING ERRORS, never mind the grammar nightmares) and I am Number 9 (which was written more simplistically than my genius 10 year old could have managed... which is weird, since the main character was supposed to be a 16 year old genius who wasn't even human!) became raving successes, despite some issues that most authors would thumb our noses at. But they had issues and characters that the masses cared about.

I'll be honest, 


Alright, those are all issues for another time.

Until next time,

Keep Writing!


P.S. If you do want to buy Lust, Money & Murder by Mike Wells (the full three-in-one e-book.) I have a link on the right to the full copy on Kindle. Can you let me know how it ends... that darn OCD!!!

Come Slay Vampires!

Welcome folks! I am pleased (and relieved) to announce that I have finished the rough draft of my next book tentatively entitled The Hunters. In celebration of this, I am sharing the first several pages to get your opinion. Keep in mind, this is the rough draft! I have done some minor editing (that is where I am right now!) and I want to get your opinion on it!  The storyline follows Chris and his friends, whose town has been invaded by vampires. They team up to fight against the onslaught and run into some strange people who have come to their town looking for a very specific vampire. These strangers, Fury and Havoc, are vampire hunters and find themselves working with these kids to meet a common goal: exterminating the vampires.  There are vampires, werewolves, elves and us boring old humans.


Warning: This book contains language and graphic violence. It is not geared for kids or people with sensitive dispositions. Sorry!

What do you think of the title?

What of the concept?

Do these first couple pages catch you?

I am very seriously thinking of self-publishing this one. Would you buy it?

Please let me know in the comments below.

Here is the opening of the book, hope you enjoy!


The clearing was dark and quiet, the full moon hidden behind a bank of clouds. Four youths sat in two vehicles at the edge of the clearing. At first glance it would appear that this was the local make-out area. Both vehicles contained two young people. However, there was more than meets the eye to these two vehicles. The first was a black Saturn. The driver, a young man just entering manhood, sat quietly; his eyes half closed, as if he were listening to some inner voice. He was oblivious of the young woman sitting next to him, clenching a knife in her tense fist. Every muscle in her body was strung as tight as a bow and she anxiously chewed on her lip.            The second vehicle was a 1974 ford pickup truck. The occupants of this vehicle weren’t much older. A man of twenty four with a marine cut, black hair and a tight cropped goatee sat listening to an mp3 player. One ear bud was tucked in his ear, the other dangled in his shirt. The platinum blond sitting next to him glowered at him.            “You know Chris would be pissed if he knew what you were doing. Lucas told us not to!” She  hissed, gesturing angrily at his mp3 player.            “Chill the fuck out. It helps me relax. I’ll hear anything coming, I only got one bud in.”            The blond put on a full pout, her pink lips glistening. “What if they hear it or something?”            “Hell, you’re making more noise than this is. For all we know they can hear us breathing, hear our heart beating. Fuck it! I’m tired of living in fear of them.”            “Why do I always have to get stuck with you!” she hissed then sat silently, holding her breath. Ricky knew it was in fear of what he had just said. He smirked. It really was the simple pleasures in life.            Suddenly the young man in the Saturn sat up, gesturing to the two in the truck to listen. The girl next to him tensed beyond what could be believed as humanly possible.            “What is it Chris?” She asked in a squeaky whisper.            “Shh… Listen.”            She strained her ears and her eyes went wide with the intense effort. After a moment she looked at him blankly. “I don’t hear anything.”            “Exactly.” He whispered back. Suddenly it dawned on her that the clearing only moments ago had sounded quiet, but had been full of the subtle sounds of the night; crickets, owls and other critters scurrying about. Now it was as silent as a tomb. Chris gestured to the others and slowly crawled out the window of the Saturn. The young woman with him suddenly felt terrified and scrambled to exit through the window as well, desperate to not be left alone. She stumbled on the uneven ground and fell. Moments later the platinum blond was silently beside her, offering a hand.            “ Thanks Bianca,” she mouthed silently, afraid to speak, so afraid she probably couldn’t speak even if she had to. Bianca nodded and they all crouched down next to Chris in the shadows of the Saturn. Another few agonizing moments were spent with all four pairs of ears straining to hear anything in the darkness.  Gradually the sounds of the night returned. Chris cocked his head.            “False alarm?” Ricky whispered.            “I don’t think so,” Chris shook his head.            They all sat quietly waiting for Chris. The young woman began crying silent tears.             “Please, let’s get out of here. I have a really bad feeling!” She was trembling uncontrollably. Chris held up a hand to silence her, and listened intently. Bianca patted the young woman’s hand reassuringly then crept forward to Chris’s side. She leaned in close to his ear and breathed, “We should go. She’s cracking up. We’re too vulnerable.”             “Too late.” Chris pointed across the clearing. Just as they all looked in the direction he was pointing the moon peaked out for a brief moment revealing clearly what he was indicating.Two beings were dragging a third across the far end of the clearing. They all could hear clearly now the shh…shhh sound of the body being dragged across the ground.            A gurgled scream suddenly erupted from across the clearing. They all shuddered at the sound. The young girl was frozen in perfect terror.            “Now!” Chris hissed, “while they’re distracted on their feeding.” He bolted low across the field. The others followed him, everyone except the young woman. She was still frozen in fear. She tried to move, but her muscles absolutely refused to respond.Chris was halfway across the field when he felt a strange sensation, a tingling in his spine; as if someone had just tap danced across his grave. He paused and an instant later was driven into new action. From behind them a howl ripped through the night. Without even looking he knew what had happened. Terah had been attacked. In front of him he saw two more creatures rise from where the other two were feeding. In that split second he knew.“Ambush!” he yelled, immediately veering to his left, moving in a zig-zag pattern. He could hear the other two following behind. More screams erupted from their fallen comrade and he was blinded with rage. “Scatter!” He shouted the order and immediately turned back the way they had come. If he was going to die tonight, he was going to kill at least one of these bastards! As the moon peeked out again, the scene before him became grotesquely animated. Terah’s body was pinned on the truck, her entire chest ripped wide open. He knew she was dead, but his body refused to stop this course of action. His mind exploded with fury as he watched the creature rip Terah’s heart out of her chest.The creature held the heart up savoring the blood as it poured into the awaiting mouth and splashed over its face. Chris could see in his peripheral that two of them were already halfway across the field, closing off any escape if he continued on his present course, but he didn’t care. He pulled a gun from his left pocket and a cross-hilted dagger from his right. As he dove at the creature devouring Terah, he shot blindly at the ones coming at him. As his blade embedded to the hilt in the monster’s back he prayed that Bianca and Ricky were getting the fuck out of here. Maybe his distraction would save their lives. The monster arched back trying to reach behind and dislodge Chris and the knife. Black blood oozed from its wound. It struggled to turn, but clearly the knife had hit the spine. Surprised that the other two weren’t upon him yet, Chris aimed the revolver into the creature’s face and pulled the trigger.At that same moment two other shots rang out in the clearing. Chris pulled his dagger free and leaped away from the body as it burst into flames. He turned, preparing for the attack that should have already been upon him. Looking out in the field he saw Ricky stand up about center point and fire at the vampire that was headed straight for him. “Run!” Ricky screamed, but it was too late. The woman dove at Chris, knocking him to the ground. He immediately recognized her as she pinned his arms over his head. It was Ms. Frost, his old high school teacher. She looked ten years younger and had the strength of a football player.“Hello Chris, so good to see you again,” she whispered in a sultry voice.“Wish I… could say… the same.” Chris groaned, trying to hold her back. Her breath was putrid!“Come, come Chris, you always were a difficult child.”“Gifted was the term you used back then.”“You know you want me,” she laughed evilly.“Of course.” Chris twisted his wrist and cut her fingers with a blade that was hooked on his cuff. She hissed and began lapping at the wound as it poured blood. She was obviously newly made. Too bad for her. Even with one hand occupied, she still managed to hold him down, but no more!“I want you dead!” Chris growled, ripping his crucifix from his neck and stabbing it into her throat. She gaped in shock and tried to physically force the blood back into the wound, causing it to widen. Suddenly her skull was obliterated before his eyes.Bianca stood there holding a small-caliber gun. Chris quickly shoved the body away and Bianca pulled him to his feet, yelping when the body suddenly burst into flames. Chris looked around the field for Ricky. He was running like a bat out of hell in the opposite direction with two vamps on his tail. “Bianca the car!” Chris yelled, tossing the keys and running after Ricky, hoping to get there in time. His legs were pumping as hard as they could, but he wasn’t catching up enough. Ricky was starting to waver and the two vampires were gaining ground. Chris didn’t dare shoot at them, for fear of hitting Ricky. He’d been lucky Bianca’s shot hadn’t gone right through Ms. Frost’s skull and into his own.Directly ahead of Ricky two figures rushed into the clearing. Ricky stopped short frozen like a rabbit, unsure where to go, then quickly made a ninety degree turn. In the moment he was clear of the two vampires, Chris pulled his gun up to line up a shot. He popped off two shots, hitting one. It went down, but Chris didn’t believe for one moment it was dead. The other continued to hurtle after Ricky. Just as Chris had lined up the next shot he felt a sudden gust of wind and smelled death. Whipping around he found himself face-to-face with another creature. He pulled the trigger and the creature’s shoulder exploded. It grabbed him around the throat with its other hand, laughing a high-pitched maniacal laugh.“So you are the one making all the trouble. Well, no more!” It lifted Chris clean off the ground squeezing hard.“Who the fuck are you?” Chris gasped, struggling against the grip, trying to find a foothold to help him breath, maybe gain some leverage.“One who is older and stronger than the others you’ve disposed of here.  I will be your executioner!” Chris clawed at the hand that now had a vice-like grip on his throat. He noticed that the shoulder wound hardly bled at all. He kicked out at the creature’s stomach and felt the inch long spikes he’d added to his boot tips embed itself there. The monster roared and threw him on the ground like a used-up rag doll. It flung itself forward, clawing him with its long nails in rage. He struggled to crawl away, but the creature continued to maul him. Searing pain tore through his chest and shoulders as the creature grappled with him. This was it. He knew he was going to die; but a part of him refused to go out alone. This bastard was going to be coming along for the ride, if Chris could help it.
Ricky was running as hard as he could, but his strength was quickly waning. He could hear one gaining on him and he knew the other two weren’t far behind. This wasn’t how it was supposed to end! He was about ready to give up when he saw the Saturn come barreling toward him. Bianca leaned out the front window, and Ricky saw the muzzle flashes exploding in the night as she fired on the vampires behind him. He veered toward her, hoping she wasn’t too late; praying he had the stamina to stay ahead until she got to him.He risked a glance back. There were only two pursuing him, the third had turned back toward Chris. Ricky looked back and realized he couldn’t see Chris. Bianca was closer, but Ricky couldn’t keep his speed up. He didn’t think he would have time to get in before they would be on him. In which case he would be risking Bianca’s life too, and he couldn’t do that!A howl erupted from behind him and he glanced back. What he saw stopped him in his tracks. The one nearest him, only five hundred feet away now, was frozen in its place with flames coming out of its chest and arms flailing at the sky. A powerful voice yelled, “Get down!”He dove to the ground and rolled over. A moment later a shock wave hit him. Rocks, sand and other debris scorched his skin. As soon as it passed he leaped back to his feet. The other figure was just rising as well. Where the vampire had stood was a burned out hole. Ricky prepared to dive back down so that the other didn’t see him, but realized that it wasn’t interested in him. It had turned and faced the other figures across the field. There were two running ahead of a third. Ricky was pretty sure that one of the two was Chris. What the hell? The one nearest him pulled up what looked like a cross bow and shot a flaming arrow at the third creature.  The third creature pulled up short and turned and fled. Ricky leaped in shock as Bianca pulled up in front of him and yelled at him, “Get in the fucking car! Chris needs our help!”Ricky was shaking. What the hell was going on? His brain couldn’t process everything it had just seen. He dove in the back of the car and Bianca revved the engines, pulling the small car around and heading toward Chris.  As they looked through the window another vampire rocketed up. The other figure with Chris leapt toward it, grabbing for its ankle. They hit the ground together and the vampire attempted to flee, but something pulled it back. Some kind of rope? It looked like the two mystery figures were on their side, but where did they come from?The vampire attempted to flee again and this time broke free. Ricky realized that Bianca had stopped the car and gotten out. She was heading toward a heap on the ground… Chris. Ricky started to get out too, but a woman’s deep voice shouted for him to get back in the car. He looked up and saw the figure coming toward them. How had she gotten so far so fast? Before he could even react she was shoving him back onto the car. The other rear door opened and a man got in pulling Chris with him. Bianca jumped in the front passenger seat as the woman climbed into the driver’s seat. Something slammed into the roof of the car, denting it.“Shit!” Ricky couldn’t help himself. The man fired a gun into the roof. The thunderous sound deafened him and as the car spun out a howl ripped through the air as a body flew off the roof of the car. Ricky looked back and saw the vampire standing behind them shaking his fist at them as they hauled ass.Ricky’s ears were ringing and his head was spinning. The woman shouted something, but Ricky was so disoriented that he couldn’t understand anything. The man next to him was leaning over Chris. Ricky sat back numb. What the fuck was going on?!
The car hurtled out of the woods and spun out onto the highway. The woman driving was tall and solidly built, clearly in control even though the car careened madly.“Is he alright?” she called to her partner in the back seat. Their eyes met in the rear-view mirror and he nodded once tersely. She glanced at Bianca in the front seat. The blue eyes burned into Bianca before passing on and looking out the window.“Are you alright?” the woman asked. There was no warmth or concern, merely evaluation. Bianca hesitated before nodding. “I… I think so. Ricky?” She looked back at Ricky. He was staring out the window dazedly. “Ricky!” He turned and stared at her dumbly. “Are you alright?” Bianca demanded. He finally seemed to focus looking at her, then at the woman driving and the man in the back seat. They were tall, dark and exotic looking.“I’m not hurt,” he finally responded. “What are you doing to Chris?” he asked, looking at the man.The woman answered from the front seat. “Your friend is badly hurt. He is healing him. Now, be quiet and watch the sky.” She was doing just that, only occasionally glancing at the road to keep the car on it. The speedometer crept past 85 mph and the engine began to whine.“Who are you?” Bianca whispered. The woman seemed to ignore her, continuing to scan the sky.“Why the sky?” Ricky asked angrily. “What are we looking for?” “That is where they are most likely going to come from,” the woman answered matter-of-factly.“They can fly?” Ricky gasped in shock. No answer seemed forthcoming“Chris said he thought they could,” Bianca whispered.The woman looked at her, clearly startled for the first time. Once again she and the man in the back exchanged glances in the mirror.“You know what they were?” she asked hesitantly.Suddenly Ricky exploded in anger.  He had been able to process part of what had happened and the realization he’d come to infuriated him.“We were fucking ambushed!” he yelled.“How could they have known we were coming?” Bianca asked wide-eyed.The woman’s eyes continued to roam, but she took yet another glance at Bianca and Ricky seeming to size them up.“You were hunting them?” she asked, not entirely expecting an answer. Ricky had come to another conclusion. He held the gun up to the woman’s head. She did not flinch, but the man next to him did. He did not stop whatever he was doing to Chris, though. “Who the fuck are you two and where in the hell did you come from?!” Ricky demanded.Bianca turned and saw the gun. “Ricky, stop it! They saved our lives!” she yelled at him.“Why? How!? What the fuck are you!!!”The woman replied frostily, “We’re hunters. We didn’t realize you… were… also.”“For God sakes, Ricky, put the gun down!” Bianca snapped.Suddenly the man next to him spoke. “He is healed.” He pulled Chris to a sitting position. Chris began gasping for breath, which sent him into a coughing fit and the man thumped his back as if he were burping a baby.Ricky hesitated, the gun wavering.“Fuck!” Chris gasped, holding his hand up to the man. “I thought for sure that was the end. How?” He looked at the man sitting next to him, then at the woman driving recklessly.
The silent tension continued for several minutes, the woman pushing the car as fast as it would go, taking hazardous turns. After a few more minutes she began to slow to a more normal speed.“I think we’re clear of trackers.”“Trackers?” Bianca asked.“There does not appear to be anything following us,” the man concurred, speaking past the three in the car. They seemed to be ignoring the three in the car, including the gun Ricky still held to the woman’s head.“Thank you for healing me,” Chris finally said.The man simply nodded. He was tall and lean, but muscular like a panther, with long black hair braided down his back. He looked Native American, but Chris couldn’t be sure.“I don’t know how you did it, but thanks. You saved us out there.” He watched carefully, but the woman didn’t react to his statement at all. “So, you guys are hunters too?” Chris asked casually.  He looked them both over carefully. They were both tall and muscularly built, wearing tight black tank tops and black cargos with black combat boots. Both wore seemingly matching silver pendants shaped like a dagger. The hilt had an amber liquid encased in a small vial.  It appeared that both the dagger and the vial could be detached. Interesting.“So, you’ve come to get rid of the vampires?” Chris asked nonchalantly. There was another exchange in the mirror. This exchange lasted quite some time; easily two or three minutes. Finally there was a subtle nod from the man and the woman sighed. “We came for one, but I suppose we’ll have to clean up his mess before we leave.”Chris tried to quell his excitement, but he could still hear it in his voice when he spoke. “That’s great. We could use the help. With all of us there is no way they stand a chance, especially if you can teach us…”“Woah!” The woman held up her hand. “Us? No. Havoc and I work alone.”Chris was numb with the sudden refusal. “But…but we could help you.” He hated the whine in his voice.“Nothing personal, kid,” she said matter-of-factly “but you guys would be more of a hindrance than a help. You should just lay low for a couple of days and we’ll take care of the problem for you.”Ricky burst out in derisive laughter, but an icy glare from the woman caught the rest of his laughter in his throat. “Sorry, but how do you expect to kill… what was the last estimate Chris? Fifty?”“Those are conservative estimates. We know of thirty for sure… sorry, twenty nine after tonight. Then there are at least twenty with strong suspicion and another thirty or so that are likely.”The woman seemed to mull this over for a moment. “You say you know for sure that thirty are vamps. How do you confirm?”Well, the first five died of seemingly natural causes and were buried, but I’ve seen them up and walking since then. We checked the graves. They’re empty. The others are people we’ve observed changes in. The thirty confirmed don’t go out during the day... ever.  We’re still working on the list. We follow those we suspect for several days, until we’re fairly sure.”“What is the population here?” “Around 5,000,” Ricky answered quickly.“That is an awfully high vamp count for such a small population,” Havoc said thoughtfully. Another meaningful exchange in the mirror.“When did you realize there were vamps among you?” The woman looked at Chris.“About a year ago,” Chris responded.The woman looked at him closely gauging his response. His whole body itched at the scrutiny, but he didn’t dare squirm. She was measuring him up and he would not be found wanting if he could help it.Seemingly satisfied, the woman continued her interrogation. “How long have you been hunting them?”“As a group?” Chris shrugged. “About six months, but that’s because it took some work convincing the others this was really happening.”“How many others?”“Nine, all together.”“Eight after tonight,” Bianca mumbled as she stared out the window and fingered her cross. Chris blushed. He’d forgotten about their fallen comrade. Poor Terah; they hadn’t even tried to turn her, they had simply butchered her. “How many have you killed?” the woman continued. Chris looked to the others, but both seemed to avoid his eye contact. The interrogation was exhausting him. “Five,” he muttered when the others didn’t volunteer.  The woman arched one perfectly shaped eyebrow at him. He knew five wasn’t impressive, but it was better than none at all. “That’s beside the point. We’ve learned a lot and are ready to learn more. Besides, we can show you which ones are vamps. It’ll save you a lot of time.”“We have our own methods of determining accurately who is a vamp and who is not.” The woman seemed to dismiss the conversation.Bianca, not able to bear the silence, quipped. “What do you do, dunk them in water and if they don’t drown stake them?”  She was clearly flustered.Chris rolled his eyes. “That’s the legend of witches!” he snapped.Bianca rolled her eyes back. “Whatever!”Chris turned back to the woman. “Listen, this is our town…”“Oh, by all means, then we’ll leave you to it!” the woman scoffed. “As I have already said, Havoc and I work alone. End of discussion.” She whipped the car into a motel on the highway.“What are we doing here?” Ricky asked, snapping out of his silence. He was always better at asking questions than at answering them.“Parting ways.” The woman jumped out of the car moving lithely towards the nearest door. She withdrew a hotel key card from her hip pocket. Chris scrambled out of the car and rushed to catch up with her long strides.“At least come back and meet the rest of our team before you write us off,” Chris pleaded. He sensed Havoc right behind him. The man moved swiftly and silently. Chris couldn’t help but think that he would hate to meet either of these two in a dark alley. Here in the empty motel parking lot he could sense that they were primal predators. “We aren’t just going to stop what we’ve been doing just because you’re here.  At least we should coordinate our moves. We’ve got a system set up already.”“What, kill a few a year ‘til you’re all dead?” The woman responded flippantly. “Look, just stay out of our way. We know how to handle these bad asses. Go home and pretend this was all a bad dream. In a week you’ll wake up and it will be almost as if it had never happened. Then you can go back to your normal life.” There was something in the way she said it that made Chris pause. All his life he’d never wanted to be normal. He wanted to be just like these people. Yet here this woman was practically pleading him to have a normal life. She reached out to open the door to room thirteen.As the door opened a shadow crossed the lamplight. Chris heard the woman gasp and as she slumped forward Chris got a glimpse of blood red eyes and a pale face. Even then he was only just beginning to understand what had happened. Suddenly her arm came up in an ark and the head of the ambusher rolled over her shoulder landing right between Chris’s feet. He recoiled in horror recognizing the face of his newspaper carrier. Fuck, he’d never have thought of him!He stared numbly and was unable to react as Havoc shoved him aside to grab the woman before she fell. “Move,” Havoc growled. “Move, get back in the car!” He shoved Chris toward the car where Ricky and Bianca were sitting oblivious of the violence that had just occurred as swiftly and silently as the wind.Even though he was carrying the woman, Havoc moved fast. Chris heard the sizzle and pop as the vampire’s body began to burn. Only then was it becoming clear to him what had just happened. He jumped in the front seat and could only shake his head to Bianca’s unspoken question. Havoc was already setting the woman down in the back seat.“Fury? Fury!” Havoc whispered hoarsely. There was no response.“Is she dead?” Chris asked, turning in the seat. She hadn’t even made a sound. Unbelievable!“What the hell is going on?!” Ricky snapped, the confusion making him angry.“Watch out the windows. They may attack again at any moment.” Havoc ordered. Chris was already on it. Every shadow seemed alive, yet when he looked closely it was only his imagination.

How to More Effectively Market on Twitter

Twitter is a great social media and marketing tool. The opportunity to reach thousands of people is remarkable. But it is easy to become just another voice yelling into the internet with nobody listening to a word you say.

As with any social media site, you need to be engaging. Make sure that you talk with other people on twitter, not just spam your followers with links to your books, blogs, articles, etc. Resist the urge to buy followers. It is better to have 2,000 followers who are truly interested in you than to have 15,000 followers who do not engage. Above all, follow the age-old adage "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." You want people to re-tweet your stuff? Re-tweet other peoples' stuff. You want people to read your blog? Read other peoples' blogs (make sure you comment so they know you are doing it! I frequently comment on the blog, and then comment on twitter.) You want people to click on your book links and buy? Do the same for others. Be honest, be fair, and play nice!

Now, some specific tips for marketing on twitter.

Don't just announce "Hey, I wrote a book, please check it out at i'manasshat.com"

That could appeal... to... your mom... maybe.

Find creative, attention-grabbing ways to engage the audience.

Ask them a question that your book can answer.
For example: "Looking 4 great Sunday activities? Discover your inner creative with Creative Exercises to Inspire, on the Nook at http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/creative-exercises-to-inspire-heidi-angell/1104881547"

Give a great teaser about your book, such as this one by author Monty Fowler " A # supernatural # war raging for millions of years follows man as he conquers our solar system & heads to the stars. http://amzn.to/twucradle"

Quote people/ interviews about your book, such as   "Royal Prince Vince; the best story you can read your child this year!" https://www.createspace.com/3700225 Wendy Sampson -- LCSW"

Find unique details that would appeal to your audience and set your book apart from other books in the same genre, such as Michelle Brookes clever line, which totally sold me! "Plz ReTweet: If you like girls that blush & bad guys that sparkle, best not to peek under the covers of Bone Dressing. http://goo.gl/blM9B"

And of course, capitalize on even the slightest holiday. For example, with Mother's Day coming up,  you should be using it to market your book. Ask Amazon! They have been rocking the holiday marketing!!


Now there are some cheats out to get your name out there, to get tweets referencing your book. I have not found that they have done me much good, but I haven't really seen any harm (other than possibly time wasted) so I will share it with you as well.

World Literary Cafe has a group of authors who  work in tweet teams as a systematic way to get your book out there. It is sort of a free version of cross marketing. And free is awesome right? Well, you get what you pay for with this one. I have found that a lot of folks who post their tweets, don't always return the favor. I suspect there are several reasons for this. The cynic in me says, "they want something for nothing". The struggling artist in me thinks that maybe because the rules of the chain are hazy, perhaps not everyone gets how you are supposed to do it. But here are some tips to keep that from biting you in the rear, should you decide to participate. I make sure to go in and follow anyone I am posting for. At the end of the day, I check to see if they have shared mine. (Two reasons, A. I can re-tweet their tweet and B. I can mark them on my bad Karma list if they have not!) Next time they are in my tweet chain, I will tweet, but am even more inclined to double-check them if they did not share the first time. Three strikes of not sharing, I don't do their tweets.

As I get more authors following me on twitter and I return the follow, I am developing my own sort of homegrown karma chain and this one seems to be much more effective. (Hint: if someone, like, say, me! RT something of yours on twitter, then you should go in and find something of theirs that you found interesting and RT it back. Karma... yup!!)

Managing twitter could be a full-time job, if you are not careful. Here are some tips to streamline the process and save you time:

1. Utilize Tweetdeck. It will allow you to pre-program messages to post at a certain time. This is great for your advertisement, and if you do tweet team, it is invaluable, so that you can post everyone's tweets in one short setting, without spamming the crap out of your followers!

2. Each and every creative tweet to get someone to market your book can be used again! I have a word doc with all of them from each of my books. Once a week I go in and program tweetdeck to post advertisements for my books. I try not to post more than three a day, and I mix them up so that they are not all from the same book. I also cycle through my ads to make sure I am not using the same ones too much. Ones that get RT get * next to them to be used more often because they obviously got peoples' attention, right?

3. Find some credible sources to pick up friends directly related to your profession. Linked, Goodreads and World Literary Cafe all have discussion threads for twitter follow backs. 

4. Whenever you follow someone, if you wait half a second suggestions pop up, follow those too! I get fifty e-mails a day (on average) for follows and follow backs. It is worth it.

5. There are a lot of folks on twitter who are... not honest and don't play fair. Early on I found my twitter followers fluctuating very drastically. One day I had 1,000 followers, the next I only had 800. A nifty new tool allows you to see who followed you back and who un-followed you after you followed them.  http://who.unfollowed.me/ There is nothing that will turn people off  faster than seeing the follow and follower numbers drastically different. Keep yours relatively balanced by getting rid of dead weight. I believe that it is important to be following more than are following you and as you gain more followers, then the distinction between those numbers can increase at a proper percentage. But if you are following 1,500 people and only 300 are following you back... that just looks bad. Conversely, unless you are already super famous, if you have 15,000 followers and only follow 1,000. Yeah....

 6. Last but not least, a nifty tool I only just recently found, is that in Facebook you can go in under settings and link your two accounts, allowing every status update on Facebook to also post to your twitter account. I love this tool, because bouncing from site to site re-posting the same message "Off to another day of exciting writing!" is exhausting.  It is also great, because it only links your status updates, so if you congratulate your girlfriend on her baby boy on Facebook, twitter folks aren't confused.

7. Do not rely too heavily on these time savers, as your authenticity will drop. For example, even though I have Facebook updating my status on twitter, and tweedeck posting several times a day, I still go in and post genuine twitter updates, taking advantage of Tweetspeak, hash tags and all that fun stuff. Without that, my twitter account would just be an extension of my Facebook account, and twitter users would feel it. It becomes disingenuous.


Well, those are my tips for twitter, over the course of a year and a half of working with it. Do you have any other tips? I would love for you to share in the comments below! Any questions about twitter? Post those as well.

Until next time,
Keep writing!

Are You Getting Lost in the Internet?

I have been busy, busy, busy; networking, connecting, sharing, and building my platform. One of the things I am running across are LOTS of authors, old and new, who are feeling like they don't know what to do to market their books. When engaging in these discussions, I always start with the traditional information "Have you built a platform?"

And I can relate to their pain. It doesn't matter how many people you friend on Facebook, follow on Twitter, or network with on LinkedIn, Google +, Yelp, Tumbler, Youtube, Stage 32, and all the other sites out there! That is not what gets you sales. (Ok, not completely true, especially as you become more established as a writer.) You can have a website, but unless somebody already knows who you are, they probably won't view it. (Unless, of course, you share a name with some pretty famous people, such as John Locke!)

The problem with trying to sell books on social networking sites is that people don't go to these places to buy books. They go to these places to meet people. If all you do is pitch your books (particularly in a straight out manner such as "Royal Prince Vince on sale, only $8.99) then people will not listen or pay any attention to you after awhile (especially if you get really spammy about it, posting 100 time a day! that is a good way to get un-followed.)

 I am going to link the crap out of you real quick. These are all articles and other resources that I have been abusing the crap out of to figure out how to market my books. Some of them, you have probably already looked at yourself, but some of them may be new. Some may share information you have already gotten from someone else, and a lot of them overlap one another (I know).


http://www.lifehack.org/articles/communication/ten-great-ways-to-promote-your-book.html

http://thebookmarketingnetwork.com/

http://www.worldliterarycafe.com/content/indie-kindle?page=7

http://www.kindlemojo.com

http://selfpublishingteam.com/start-your-media-kit-today-mini-workbook/


http://selfpublishingteam.com/get-noticed-5-steps-to-boosting-your-books-publicity/

http://wendylyoung.wordpress.com/2012/01/12/goodreads-are-you-using-every-resource-as-an-author/#comment-538

http://www.writing-world.com/children/reviewers.shtml


http://www.pumpupyourbook.com/

http://blog.speakersoffice.com/speakersoffice-blog/bid/54362/3-Ways-to-Strategically-Leverage-your-Book-Platform-by-Peter-Winick

Ok, I have about 100 more links to other resources that I use, am working my way to using, and still trying determine how effective they will be. The point is, there are tons of people out there giving marketing advice (FOR FREE) Yes, I know, a lot of these guys are asking you to pay for additional services... you know why? Because you get what you pay for. They are giving you vague tips, common sense information, stuff that they would have asked you to do to get them started on the paid product anyway. (I say this because that is what I would expect them to do... I have never actually used any of them, so maybe I'm wrong. If I were doing what they do, I would do it that way!)

Does this mean their advice is useless? By itself, it is not as effective as it could be. But without somewhere to start, you will have nowhere to go. So, read over all of these blogs, and find ways to make it work for you!

For example, Duolit tells you how to put together a media kit for quick reference. Do this. Submit to every local paper, magazine, news station you can find. You know what happened when I did that. Nothing. A week's worth of work, for nothing. After all, why would the newspaper care that I had published a book? Even my college paper did not publish that their alumni had published a book. It was depressing. But don't throw out your media kit, find creative ways to get their attention. I did a reading for a neighborhood program in my town, I let the press know. I did readings for my local schools... and would have let the press know, but the schools would not let me. Find community events to participate in and let the press know (after you get permission from the event coordinators, of course). Sometimes they will show, most of the time they will not. But it is still worth the extra time.  Each time you let them know, send that announcement from your media kit!


Writing World gives you a list of people who do book reviews for different genres. Great place to hit up, and most of them will do the review for the cost of the book, but a lot are generous enough to accept PDF copies (sent through e-mail, it is FREE!!) Are you on Twitter? Start following book reviewers that review books in your genre, share their stuff when you find it insightful. You are building a relationship with them. When you approach them to ask if they would review your book, they'll be more likely to say yes, accept a PDF, AND give you a positive review. After all, they like you for sharing their work! (WARNING: If your book is poorly edited, poorly executed and crap, no amount of niceness will get you a good review. But your kindness might get you bumped up a star in the ratings.)

Get involved in your local community.  Talk to your local library, see if you can get the distributor to buy a couple of copies, but if you can't then offer to donate some. Then ask them if maybe you could also do a reading. It works. You just put your book into the hands of everyone in your community. I know that a lot of the books that I checked out from the library and really enjoyed, I hunted down to buy! A lot of people do. At the very least, they will probably tell someone else that they read it and that person might buy it!

Look at these blogs as if you were reading the back of a book. Their just a teaser. You can pay for the service, or get creative (we are creatives after all!) and find a new angle in which you can plug in their advice!

Here is one "vague tip" to keep in mind when finding creative ways to try and market your books for free. Reciprocity is the key. If it isn't costing you some time and maybe even a little money, then it isn't going to do you much good.

Another thing to keep in mind (a crappy statistic I learned in college) which might help you keep trudging forward. Marketing, at best, is only effective 1/4 of the time. That means that when you go to an event, if you are lucky 1/4 of the people there will actually buy your book. When you tweet to 200 followers, if you are SUPER lucky only 1/4 will be motivated to buy your book. (I'll explain this oddity in a later post that I will devote to twitter.)

So, yeah, marketing is tough. But we gotta do it. I think I will address marketing tips in the next couple of posts, because it seems to be such a difficult topic that really deserves more time than this. If there are any marketing tips you would like to share, or if you have any specific questions about marketing, feel free to let me know in the comments below.

Until next time,

Keep Writing!

Paying it Forward, And Why You Shouldn't

I have been thinking about this one a lot. The idea of paying it forward is a good idea. So why would I suggest that you not do this? It is not that I don't think you should do random acts of kindness, I simply want us to look at the underlying issue of why we are doing the random acts of kindness. And of course, I will be relating this to writing ;)

The idea of paying it forward is the principle of doing something kind to someone in hopes that they will do something kind to someone else and so on and so forth and eventually it will come back to you. The danger with doing this is that you can get caught up in a numbers game of "I have done all these good things, so why is no one doing it for me?" Very psychologically damaging, I can assure you!

In my experience, the more you do for others, the less others do for you. I can only sit back and imagine the logic behind it, because I was raised to do for others. I don't have the experience to really understand why people operate this way, I only know that I have watched it happen. My guess is that people must think "Look at Joan always volunteering and helping out! She is amazing, like a super mom or something." And what superhero ever needs help, right? (As a super hero junkie, I scoff at this mentality. As a super mom, it makes me want to cry!)

My other guess is that people figure if you have all this time to be doing for others, then surely you have already taken care of you and yours right? Not in my house! Sadly, it is easier for me to do for others than for my own. Everyone needs help sometimes, even if they are taking time to help others.

My jaded guess is that most people are just selfish. Most people don't do for others unless they can see some kind of reward for them in the end. (My optimistic self is yelling at me that I am wrong! Most people are like me and enjoy helping others!!) That is why the paying forward principle doesn't work.

So how does this apply to writing? We are a community and as such, there are a lot of us out there trying to help one another. We offer free advice, we help read and improve each others' work, we share marketing tactics, have crying sessions about how tough our industry is, have follow backs on twitter, re-tweet each others' messages about books for sale, give our books away to a LOT of people. On the surface we look like an awesome community of paying it forward.

But then you get into threads and forums where authors are complaining about other authors not scratching each others' backs. Where authors sign up for a follow back, follow you and then sneakily un-follow you right after you followed them. These guys are in it for the numbers, they are takers, they ask for help, but never give it. They get angry when you give them critiques.

Then there are a lot who are not so brutal, but who don't do much more. They follow you, but don't re-tweet. They will ask for help, but rarely offer it. When they do "give tips" it is a sales pith for their book on marketing or whatever.

And if you are keeping track of all the good your giving and what little you are getting, then it becomes disheartening. You become resentful and angry, or you just give up doing good. What are you getting out of it, really?

I was raised to do good deeds just because it was the right thing to do. I was raised to make time to do a little good. Don't overwhelm yourself with good works to the point where you get burned out. Don't throw yourself into good deed hell where you are missing something, or someone, because you are always volunteering. But don't do it to get something out of it. That is self-promotion, not a good deed.

And when you are not expecting a return, then you can't get angry when you don't get it. But when you do get it, that return feels so much better because you weren't expecting it.

Here are some personal examples I have experienced in this when it comes to our fellow writers:

There is this guy on twitter. He asked me if I would read his story and give him a critique. I had just finished up with another person's project that took me WAY longer than I had expected and was feeling a little burnt out. I told him I would try and make time for it, but I would have to charge for editing or whatever other service. He said he'd be happy for a quick read. A MONTH LATER I finally got the story back to him (I had only been reading it while waiting in car line for my boys.) The story was a very rough draft and I gave him some general notes to get it to the next level. He didn't respond, so I figured I had really pissed him off.

Then all of a sudden someone is re-tweeting all of my book promos. Yup, he appreciated what I did for him. Two months later and he is still doing it! We've talked a bit back and forth about his book, and I am actually excited to see where this dude goes. He has the right mind set. He took my tips to heart and he showed gratitude for what I did for him. Did he have to? Nope, no skin off my nose. But it feels good I am much more likely to help the next guy or gal because the experience left me with a positive feeling. (A warm thank you would have achieved the same effect, but helping my promotions is awesome too!)

I love follow back threads on Linkedin and other writer sites. I don't follow people as a numbers game so much, as I like to connect with other authors and see what everyone is doing. The big name authors aren't fun to follow because they probably have bots posting for them, but us laymen working our way up are constantly talking about things we experience and I like to learn from others' experiences!

I frequently re-tweet books that I think look interesting, or that I add to my wish list. (I also participate in WLC's tweet teams on occasion, though I haven't found that it does me much good in sales.) Well, I hit this group of folks (can't really remember who all they are now) who I had re-tweeted because I actually found their stuff interesting and they re-tweeted me back! Now a couple of them obviously were doing it as a courtesy and didn't take a lot of time (since one re-tweeted a comment I made to someone else which would have made no sense to anyone not following that comment thread!) But a couple sent messages after telling me that they thought my book looked nice and couldn't wait to read it! I got a warm fuzzy feeling from that.

And if you know me, you know I'm not really a warm fuzzy feeling person! But if I had been expecting it all this time, then what little that I did get wouldn't have meant so much. I would have been thinking something like "I've re-tweeted for 270 other authors and only five have re-tweeted me back? Screw this!" (Actually, I probably would have stopped long before I hit those five if it was just a numbers game.)

So the point of this ramble is, rather than pay it forward, do good just because. Or if you need some cosmic motivation, look at Karma, and hope that somewhere somehow it will eventually catch up with you.

Don't do good to get something. Do it because it is the right, kind, and generous thing to do. But if you do get some good back, be grateful and share that gratitude with the one who did it!

Love to hear your thoughts on this in the comments below!


Until next time,
Keep writing!

How to Decide if Self-publishing is For You

     We are going to pretend that you have waited and waited and not gotten an agent, or got an agent who gave you nothing but crap contracts (which, in my case, is what happened). Now you have decided that you can no longer wait and it is time to self-publish. This is not a decision to make lightly, as I have previously mentioned. If you are the typical writer, self-publishing is going to take you WAY outside your comfort zone. Heck, even if you aren't the stereotypical writer (you know, major introvert who lives at their computer writing all the time because it is easier than interacting with the real world) self-publishing for the first time is really hard and will still take you way outside your comfort zone.
     I'm going to take a step back and tell you what led me to self-publish. It was something I had been researching for quite some time. I had looked at it probably a dozen or so times over the last six years. I started seriously researching it two weeks before Christmas last year, when my employer let me go. Then the second week of January I got a contract with a "real" agent and figured I had made it, so I let it slide. Around May I got my first contract from said agent and it was a relatively new "house" who was offering to put All is Well out in e-book format and if it did really well in the first couple of months would then go to physical copies. The company looked a little shady and the quality of their website was enough to make me politely decline their contract.
     A friend of mine, who is also a writer, had done some research after another friend of hers braved the self-publishing route. She had asked me to include this option and my opinions about it in my blog. I knew I hadn't given it proper research in some time and that there had been major changes, so I started researching. I kept telling myself that this was just to warn my blog readers against the idea. To be able to give you valid reasons why you should not self-publish. And some people are still touting the biggest one that kept scaring me off: Self-publishing is a death knell to any serious career in writing. Yet with people like John Locke and Amanda Hawking out there, I was beginning to doubt.
     I picked up a couple of self-published pieces (with really bad covers) and thought "I can totally do better than this!" I also couldn't help noticing that the quality of these self-pubbers wasn't much worse than the "publishing house" whose contract I had snubbed, only with better covers. I began making a mental list of the skill sets required to self-publish and the more I thought about it, the more I liked the idea of being in control of my own business. (For those of you who don't know me, I am a total control freak! I am not really ashamed of it. As a matter of fact, I see it as one of the qualities that will allow me to succeed in the self-pubber industry. That and my tenacity!)
     Let me preface this next part with the following statement. I have a Bachelor of Arts with a focus in Communication.  I took the broad scope for that degree, so I dabbled in several classes which sort of set me ahead of the curve for self-pubblishing. I have taken classes in advertising, writing for the public, graphic design, media presentation, public speaking, organizational communication and interpersonal communication.   When I looked at cover designs, I knew that I could create a better cover than a lot of other self-pubbers. I understand the rules of  formatting and the importance of having someone else look over your work. I had people I knew I could turn to, who would help me with any questions. The idea of a press release was not foreign and developing contacts in the media was sort of a given. I had lots of sales experience with products I hardly believed in, so I knew I could market something that I loved!
     When I said I knew I could do it, it was not this vague self-belief; I had experience to back this up. If you are starting with vague self-belief, just be prepared to do a lot of research before each step. It can be done. Make sure that every step you take is leading you to creating the best packaged product that you can create. Do the research to make it so and get ready to work some mad hours. As long as this hasn't scared you off, lets get you headed on the first step to self-publication. Getting it edited.
     You think that you have edited it to the hilt and it is ready. Stop. Trust me when I say this, get an editor. As writers we view our work with blinders. We don't see the mistakes that we make. Find someone else to edit your work. At this stage you are wanting a clean crisp edit, so having your best friend or even your mother is not enough. Ideally you would hire an editor (if you were Paris Hilton) but if money is an issue, see if you can get your college English professor to do it for you. Or really, any English professor you know. Short of that, we all have that one friend who is affectionately nicknamed the grammar Nazi. Yup, that was my choice! If you are worried about offending them by asking them to work for free, offer a 10% commission on your net sales. Don't forget to add them in your thank yous at the beginning of your book!  Now, while they are editing, you need to start planning your marketing strategy, so start researching and we'll get further into that next week.

Any specific questions worrying you about self-publishing or writing in general? Feel free to ask in the comments below!

Until next time,

Keep Writing!
   

How Long Must You Wait?!

     This is a really hard one to answer, let me tell you. I have warred with myself repeatedly on what advice to give you. I read this really great article last week Traditional Publishing and it's Suppliers  where it talks about how the publishing industry treats authors like vendors and that the publishing industry makes decisions based on what is best for their business, not on what is best for the author. Then I read another article, which sadly I forgot to bookmark, but it talks about how writers do not treat their work as a business and because of this, independent writers as a whole will fail.

     That being said, I decided to give you the advice I followed and charge you to make the decision for yourself and what you think is best for your business. Now, most traditional publishing agents out there insist that you should query one agent at a time, wait a minimum of six weeks or until you get a rejection letter, and then send your query to the next agent. It is a "professional courtesy" or some such nonsense. So, if you can wait three years to get an agent, and another one or two years for your agent to get a publisher and then another one or two years to get your book published, by all means, follow their advice. (For those of you doing the math, that is five to seven years to get published.)

     But if you want writing to be your business, if you need to make money on your investment, if you cannot put your dream on hold for the next five years then I say: submit to multiple agents at a time. Just don't submit to multiple agents in the same house at the same time. Agents talk. Whether or not you let the agent know that you are submitting to other agencies is up to you. Some people think that it will get them a more timely response, but many agents have intimated that it will simply get your letter tossed.

     Now, I know some of you are thinking "why should we listen to her? She is a self-pubber." That is cool. Here is an example: My first book All is Well, I shopped around for two years following the traditional wait-until-you-get-rejected philosophy. After two years, I started mass submissions because I was, quite frankly, getting desperate. A year of that and I finally got a contract offer. I was so excited that I didn't do a lot of research on the agency to which I had submitted. I took a cursory glance and saw that they had books published and signed my book away for another year. In that year, I got three publisher contracts from that agent. All were new companies that basically would provide me the same services that I could achieve myself as an independent publisher, so I passed. After my year contract was up, I did not bother trying to get it renewed and neither did my agent. I could have self-published a couple of years ago and be rolling in the dough. (At least, I would like to think!) And you are thinking "Well, maybe her book wasn't that good."

     Okay, it is possible,. I am personally invested and therefore biased, despite the fact that everyone who has read it has praised it. So, here is another example: My uncle, Mike Dunbar is a world-renowned writer and maker of Windsor chairs. His first book was published in 1976 and he has had six other books published, all on chair making. He has also written multiple magazine articles on chair making,  has been a contributing editor for three magazines and a columnist for two. In other words, the guy is a good writer.

     About four years ago he decided to follow in Rick Riordan's footsteps and write a mid-grade series with a sci-fi twist. As soon as he finished the first book, he began submitting and using his agency contacts to find someone to pick the series up. He just finished book seven and has had a couple of agents who played with being interested, but never followed through. He then shopped it around one at a time, per industry standards, still trying to work contacts. In the end he was submitting it to anyone he could find as fast as he could send the submissions out.

     Now, perhaps I am biased, but I have read them all and they are good! He has had them handed around at local schools and I have even shared it with my own cub scouts and every kid who has read one of the books has loved it! But he still hasn't gotten a contract. Why? Part of it, I suspect, has to do with the way the industry is going. If Mike wrote a book on wood crafting, it would get picked up in a heartbeat. The publishers know those books sell well. But they are afraid to take a risk on his new path. Mike is old-school and is only just coming around to the idea of self-publishing his books. If he is thinking about it, why shouldn't you?

     But the point of this article is not to convince you to self-publish. It is simply for you to be well-informed before you go off querying, so that you can make the best decisions for your business as possible. So here are some more statistics you should be aware of:

"A Wrinkle in Time"  by Madeleine L'Engle was rejected 29 times.

"Auntie Mame" by Patrick Dennis was rejected 15 times before it went on to be a major hit.

"Chicken Soup for the Soul" by Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen was rejected 140 times.

"Zen and the art of Motorcycle Maintenance" by Robert Pirsig was rejected 121 times.

"Carrie" by Stephen king was rejected 30 times.

C.S Lewis was rejected over 800 times before selling his first story.

Louis Lamour was rejected over 200 times before selling his first story.

Agatha Christie waited four years to finally publish her first book.

"A Time to Kill" by John Grisham  was rejected by sixteen publishers before an agent picked him up and then dropped it as well.

J.K Rowling submitted Harry Potter to 12 different publishing houses, who all rejected the work.

"Twilight" by Stephenie Myer was rejected 14 times before an agent landed on it.

     So, what is the point? The point is, even big authors got rejected. Google "authors who have been rejected" and you will see some CRAZY stuff! Agents aren't psychic. They judge books on their interests and some research on the way the industry is currently flowing. The industry is constantly changing. They will all have different opinions. The question you have to ask yourself, is how long are you going to wait on their fickle opinion? Again, only you can make this call. It is your book, your business, your style.

     I hope this was helpful and informative. If you have any questions about queries, feel free to ask in the comments section below!

Until next time,

Keep Writing!!

Quailing about a Query Letter?

What is it about query letters that terrifies author's so much? The same issues that plague people when they have to put together a resume! Most of us know how to put together a resume. As author's, you have probably already done all the research on how to write a query letter. You probably already read Agent Query's straightforward explanation on how to do it. You know the format thanks to them.

The niggling fear of writing the query led you to continue your research and read every other article out there (Some good ones are: Writing a Query Letter by Charlotte Dillon, The Complete Nobody's Guide to Query Letters by Lynn Flewelling, and How to Write a Successful Query by Moira Allen)

Armed with all the dos and don'ts, you sit down to write your query.... and your mind goes blank. You begin with Hi, my name is..., even though you know (because it said so in the research) that you are not supposed to start it this way. You freeze up. How to begin.... you can take it from the professionals and just copy and paste their lines and change just what you need, but then you feel like a cheat.

You skip the introduction and write up your synopsis of your book. It is only one paragraph and this should be easy, because you wrote the darn book you know what is important. When you finish, you look back and your synopsis is actually four paragraphs and still feels like you left things out.

Not ready to give up, you move to the closer. You can talk about your writing accomplishments to date. That is a really easy short paragraph. You worked for your school paper, had a poem published in an anthology, maybe even have an article in a magazine... It is not even a paragraph and you are beginning to feel really lame.

You look at it and think, "Why would anyone publish my book? This sucks!!" You berate the industry for asking you to pitch your work in only one page. You scowl at all the professional authors who have it so easy because they can point to their ten top sellers. Then you go drown yourself in coffee and start working on your next book. Waiting for inspiration to strike, so that you can get that stupid query done and make some money.

What is the problem? Why are queries so hard? When you understand what is preventing you from writing the query letter, you can get back on track. So let's break it down. The first issue that makes the whole query letter so difficult is the same issue that makes it hard for people to write a resume. It is awkward to try and sell yourself without sounding like an arrogant, egotistical prat. We are taught to be humble, and writing a query letter demands that we not be humble. No one has taught us how to display our best qualities without sounding cocky. It is something that must be learned.

The second big issue is that you are insecure, especially if this is your first book and first query letter. You are treading in new territory and you have these doubts that keep plaguing you. Is it good enough? How will I be received? Can I do this? What have I gotten myself into? New is scary. We have all felt these feelings when starting a new job, a new school, joining a new organization. It is perfectly natural to feel this way, but you have to get past it. If you don't, that uncertainty will show up in your query and it will not make the impact you want.

The third issue is that you are a book author. You are used to writing big. It is hard to say everything you want in one page. You are feeling the pressure that this simple little page is the culmination of hours and hours of writing, hundreds of pages, a life-time of love, passion, sweat, tears and sometimes even blood! How can you put all of that into one page? How can this one little page convey to the agent everything that matters?

It is hard. This simple one page is probably the hardest thing any author ever has to write and so much hangs on doing it right. There are no do-overs. The pressure for perfection nibbles at you and tears you apart. There is a reason that creative people have a much higher rate of depression and addictions. This is one example of why!

So how do you get past these issues? How do you get your mind in the right place to do this, and do it right?

Step one: Breathe

Yup, that simple. Take a deep breath and start again. When you get going and all of a sudden you are feeling the fear take over. Stop... BREATHE!

Step Two: It isn't About You

This is about your book. Yeah, you have to write about your accomplishments as an author, but you aren't selling you, you are selling your book. You believed in it enough to write it. You believed in it enough to edit it over and over and over. You do believe in this story. Remind yourself of that when you start feeling you are not worthy.   When you do get to the last paragraph where you have to pitch yourself, do not feel that being published in your school paper is lame. How many kids went to your school? How many wrote for the paper. And if you have never even been published before? Well, what have we been building our platform for? Yup, mention your platform statistics here. Let's be honest, which is more appealing: the fact that Jenny wrote for her high school newspaper 15 years ago; or that John has 13,000 followers on twitter, 2,000 friends on Facebook, has a blog that gets 10,000 hits a week.... and you are starting to get my point!

Step Three: Do Your Research

But I did, you exclaim indignantly! Are you having a hard time writing your hook? Are you feeling like you don't know how your book would compete in the market? Look at the sales in that genre, look at other work that has come out within the last year. Look at what inspired your idea in the first place. The more research you do on the market and on the publishing industry, the more you familiarize yourself with the process, the more confidence you will have in your pitch. I know you want to get it out there. There is so much research and you just want to write. Unfortunately, if you want writing to be your business, then you need to take a step back from your creative self and treat this letter like a business.

Step Four: Edit

Treat your query like a short story. Get one draft out there that conveys everything you need, then edit it, edit it, and edit it again. When you first write everything down, don't worry about length. Carve it up the way you did your book. Whittle it down to what you need to say. If you start with too many words, you can trim. If you don't have enough, it is hard to fluff.

Step Five: Remember, You Aren't the Only One

All authors do it this way. We all have the same problems. No one wants to admit it. If you've done your research, you must see that if it wasn't such a pervasive fear, then there would not be so many posts about it. Every famous author had to pitch their book. Even people who have been published a dozen times still have to pitch each book. Yeah, it gets easier the more you do it, just like anything new.  I guarantee you that every author labors over the query. You are not alone!

After you spent all that time and energy putting together your query letter do not forget that, just as you need to make little changes here and there to your resume to ensure that it fits the job, you will need to make little changes here and there with each submission to ensure that your query letter meets the standards of the agent to whom you are submitting.

So stop stressing and get working on that query letter. Refresh yourself on the great advice about structure from the links in this article and remember that your book is worth it! When you start feeling overwhelmed, read this article again. Follow the five steps and hit your query letter running!

Do you have any specific concerns or questions about query writing? Ask in the comments below.

Until next time,
 Keep Writing!!

Fun Information for Writers

Hey folks, I was in a car accident Wednesday and messed up my shoulder, so it is really hard to type with only one hand right now. I know we were gonna get started on the traditional publishing route today, but before we go into all of that I have some inspirational stuff to share.

Anyone know Jeff Goins? If not, you should. He is a great inspirational writer who runs a blog http://goinswriter.com/ and he recently published two very good e-books "Before Your First Book" and "Every Writer's Dream". You can buy them here and get $2.00 off by using this code: "stopstalling". The code is only good for this week! For me, a lot of the book was stuff I already knew and stuff I have been passing on to you guys, but it is nice to get that reinforcement of "I'm right!" Plus, there is something very eloquent and comforting about Jeff's writing. Even when he tells you that writing is hard and you won't make crap, you still feel inspired to do it anyway!

Another cool and inspiring thing (at least to me), I now have "Royal Prince Vince" available for Nook, Kindle and physical copies!! It has taken A LOT of work and A LOT of time, but it is here!! If you know someone who has kids, please tell them all about it! And let me tell you, it is worth it! I get so ridiculously excited when I see I've made another sale, even though the money I am getting isn't much per copy. It is a rush to see the reviews! It is this overwhelmingly amazing sense of accomplishment! And you can do this too!

Now, we are going to pretend that you have decided to go the traditional route and start there. Why, after last week I said that I think the new game will be to prove yourself as an indie author first? Because I think that will be the new game once the industry settles down. Right now both options are on the table and still highly debatable. Besides, it will take me less time to share this way with you and then we can get into the big scary world of self-publishing.

So here is how you start your own venture into traditional publishing: more research. Sorry, but it is true. You need to decide what genre your book is and then pitch to those agents who handle that product. If you are having a hard time classifying your book, then pitch to all agents in all the categories. For example: my novel "All is Well" is a psychic thriller/suspense/horror/romance/chick lit and I pitched to all the agents who covered any of those categories! It cannot hurt. Now you need to go find all the agents in your categories and find out their submission guidelines and tailor each query to each agent. Some of you are groaning about all that work. You are in the wrong business! Today's job market has become really tough and if people have to tailor their resumes to match the job, you can do the same. It will help you! Get started on your research with these great sites to find literary agents:

Association of Authors' Representatives
Writers Net
AgentQuery

THIS IS IMPORTANT!!! Research every single agent you submit to! Make sure before they offer you a contract that they would be a good fit for you. Look at what they have gotten published and who they have published through. If they do not have any books with any of the top six publishing houses, you might not want to go with them. These guys are your go between with the publishers. You want someone well-connected. Does that mean that they will get you a contract with the big six? On your first book, probably not. But at least you know that they could! They have done it before.

Remember, anywhere you have people with dreams you will find others wanting to take advantage of those dreams. If they charge for editing, line services, readings, anything DO NOT BOTHER! Real agents get paid when you get paid, and not before that. It is the industry standard. My shoulder is hurting, so I am going to wrap this up here. Get to researching, compile a list of agents who you think you want to submit to and next week we will talk about writing a query letter.
Until next time,
Keep Writing!!

Time to Talk Publishing

We have gone over every step of the process: getting an idea, forming a plan, building a platform, writing your story, editing your story and now you are ready to publish.... and here is where it gets hard. (I can hear all of you screaming right now "What?!?!?!?". I hear you, I do.)

Seriously, even though everything you did before now seems hard; it was all stuff you had direct control over. Now that you are looking at publishing, you have to go WAY OUTSIDE your comfort zone. To begin that process the first thing you have to decide is this: Get an agent or self-publish?

Most of you may be thinking "Duh, teach, get an agent!!" Yeah, because we have all been told self-publishing is bad, scammy, and you will never be accepted into the "real" publishing world if you do it. I was there three years ago. I know what you are thinking.

But the truth is that the publishing industry is in major fluctuation right now. No one really knows what is going to end up being the "standard" anymore. Technology has made it so much easier to publish for yourself and leaves a lot of that money in your pockets at the end of the day. If you are business savy, aren't afraid to market, and are technically inclined then you can publish your own work and make a pretty healthy sum. Ask John Locke or the hundreds of other self-publishers out there.

Then again, there are millions who never make much of anything. You see, self-publishing requires a much wider gamut of talent and skills than just being an awesome writer with a really great idea. You have to do editing, layout, artwork, proofing, marketing and distribution all by yourself. Or you have to put together a team of people who can help you (hopefully for little or no money). It is hard. But then writing a book is hard too!

So why not go the traditional route? Your book is good enough, right? Just keep in mind that pursuing a traditional publishing deal means you have to become expert at legaleze, get an agent who will help you get a publisher, go through the editing process, and still be prepared to assist in marketing your book to the hilt in hopes of making a blip on the barrage of entertainment options the world is currently offering. If you don't do well on your first book, it may become harder for you to get a contract the next time.

The reality is that very few authors getting published by the big houses today are first-time authors. Even if you have a perfect sales pitch, can demonstrate a desire for your product, and have the next best seller; you still might get bypassed. Be prepared to accept some harsh realities if you decide to go the traditional route: You will only get 15% (max) on all sales. (As opposed to 35-45% for self-publishing.) You will have to give up to 25% (National is typically 15% International can go as high as 25%) of your royalties to your agent as a finders fee. The day of an advance is fast becoming an antiquated ritual, especially for first-time authors. Once they pick up the rights to your book, you lose almost all control of when (or if) your book gets published, how much marketing they will provide, and what channels they will sell it on.

Before you make a decision, get out there and read all the literature you can find and decide what route is the best route for you. Think about the time you have to give to your work, and the time you can afford to wait to be published. Make sure that you are reading from both camps. Self-pubbers tend to be very biased against publishing with the big houses, and there are still a lot of agents and authors who insist that if you self-pub you are signing your own literary death certificate.

There are big changes in the industry and no one can know for sure where things will fall out, but in my humble opinion... I suspect that in the near future first-time authors will self-publish and based on their sales from their first book, (and all the other stuff publishers look at) will be able to get contracts with the big publishing houses on their next books.

So get on that research to decide what is the best decision for you and your book. To help get you started, here are some good resources:

Alan Moore-Advice to Unpublished AuthorsA Newbies Guide to Publishing Traditional Versus Self-publishing The Business Rusch: Traditional Publishers and their Suppliers

Mind you, this is just to get you started! Keep researching! Next week we will look at getting started on the traditional publishing route. 
Until next time, 
Keep Writing!