Terra Harmony's Blog, page 11
December 14, 2011
Interview with Alexia (aka Book Bully, Tech-Tard, and Bombshell)
I'm kicking off a weekly series where I interview another author or a book review blogger, or have them do a guest post. We'll start off with a bombshell – a blue-eyed, blond-haired bombshell to be exact. Meet Alexia from Alexia's Chronicles. She blogs paranormal romance and urban fantasy book reviews. Her reviews are as much fun to read as the books themselves!
I have to send my sincere thanks to Alexia for hosting a giveaway of my first eco-fantasy novel, 'Water' and for posting such a great review. I am a follower for life!
Q: Why don't you start out by telling us why you decided to start a blog?
Hmmm… starting a blog was never really on the top of my to-do list. I just love reading! I devour books! I went through a stage this year of feeling down and thinking there has to be something out there for me that is fun and fulfilling. I can remember having my 'brain fart' (that's what my friends and I call an epic idea) at work while daydreaming. I immediately jumped on the rollercoaster at full speed and everything just escalated from there. The design process hasn't been easy… I'm a total tech-tard and I have cursed Blogger so many times. My solution: a bottle of wine and working till early hours in the morning designing Alexia's Chronicles.
Q: Tell us more about your blog – why is it so damn cool? What do you offer readers?
My blog is cool??! *happy chicken dance* I think it's because it's very interactive with my readers / followers. To me it is very important to develop friendships with my blogger peeps. My reviews are super 'in your face' honest. I will always have something to say about the hottie male character in a book, and I will never reveal a plot or start a review by giving a summary of the book, that's what the synopsis is for. My reviews are basically just my thoughts of the book, my feelings towards characters (for example, if a character grated my cheese in a bad way – I'll say I want to give them a 'what for').
Q: Who are some of your all-time fave authors and why?
Kresley Cole! Immortals After Dark is my all time fave series – I think I've read those books about 6 times, I just never get tired of it. I love her writing style and the characters in her books. The storylines are original and freaking epic! Her books basically have everything in it that I enjoy, hotness monsters of note, steamy romantic scenes, kick-ass chicks and action.
Q: Coke or Pepsi?
Coke… with a shot of Southern Comfort 
Q: What would you like to see more of in books or in the publishing industry in general?
Like I said above, what makes a book fun for me to read is when there is an epic, original storyline with steamy romantic scenes, a dash of humour and is action packed. Books that are fast paced are right up my alley. As long as the authors keep churning out books like that I'll be a happy camper. I don't have much to say regarding the publishing industry. Right now I am supporting and promoting self published authors. I have also been known to be a 'book bully' – no really, it's true. I simply can't wait to read their next book. So… uhm… Terra, how are things going with your next installment, Air?
Q: What do you want to be when you grow up?
At the moment I work as a Personal Assistant and I've been doing that for about 5 years now, but it's time for a change. I love anything to do with books – so I'd like to go in that direction. I have a seriously overactive imagination and weird ass dreams so maybe I should think about writing my own book? You never know… I'm keeping an open mind and will see what is out there. It would be really cool if I could be a book review blogger 24/7 and get paid for it!
Q: What's next for you and your blog?
My blog: Well, I'd like to expand my blog. I started with it in August this year and I'd like to change it up a bit, you know… add extra awesome to it! So far I've only done reviews and one giveaway (which we rocked at, just by the way). Early next year I'll be doing another giveaway and be a host in a blog tour! Exciting stuff, right?!
Next for me: My saying for next year: "I'm about 3 miles from Crazy Town with my foot on the pedal". This past year has taught me to take life by the horns and live it to the fullest! I'll be figuring out where my career path is going to lead me and just having a blast. Always remember… Silence is golden but Shouting is fun!
***
Thank you for having me and a HUGE thank you for the giveaway! It has been fun working with you and I hope we will have many future endeavors. Much love, Alexia xx
December 12, 2011
Weekly Short – Oil Spill
Welcome to the first ever edition of my weekly short stories, based on characters from my books. I've yet to come up with a clever series name; so for now I'm sticking with Weekly Shorts. If you have any ideas for a better name – feel free to comment! I promise to keep them between 1,000 to 2,000 words each. These are samples of my raw, unedited writing – please excuse any grammar/spelling mistakes!
This week's short features Susan and Micah (brother and sister) at a younger age on one of their first missions for the Seven, an organization hell-bent on saving the Earth.
"Susan, Micah. Keep up." The Gaia snapped at the kids trailing her. The hired dog sled team had refused to take them further so they were forced to walk the last mile over rough, icy terrain to the shores of Prince William Sound. "And turn off that blasted headset."
Susan rolled her eyes, but obeyed anyway and slipped her walkman into her backpack. "It keeps my mind off the cold. It is freezing out here." Susan buried her head back under her parka's thick jacket hood and spared a sideways glance for her younger brother. The bite of an Alaskan winter didn't seem to be affecting him as much; his mind was elsewhere. Just one month ago, with the untimely passing of the Seven's Ardwyad, Micah had taken his place. Youngest ever Ardwyad, their adoptive father Cato had said, at least from what records the organization still had. The Gaia had reservations about an 11-year-old Ardwyad, several in fact, that she made known to Cato, to Susan and to Micah himself, especially during their tedious trek from Indonesia to Alaska to help with the oil spill.
Her rants did nothing for Micah's confidence. Since his job was basically to protect and train the Gaia, she really could have helped herself by helping him. Instead, she was making it worse for everyone. Susan couldn't blame the Gaia too much. Susan knew the Ardwyad's job was also to kill the Gaia once a stronger one was found. This wasn't always common knowledge with the Gaias that came through; although Susan was sure this Gaia knew. She has accepted her fate with grace; that is until she met her would-be assassin face to face.
There had been a short send-off ceremony for the trio. The Gaia had tolerated it with her arms crossed tight over her chest, Micah was hanging on every word spoken during the ceremony, and Susan had kept her walkman on the entire time. Cato blessed them with a prayer;
The Earth is my Mother
I shall not want.
Her breathe is the air that gives me life.
Her hand brings forth the green pastures.
Rivers run forth from her great breasts, remain close.
Fire is her gift, providing purity and warmth.
Her womb is the earth that will enfold me.
Surely, goodness and beauty will nurture me all the days of my life,
and I will become part of the earth forever.
"Here is good." The Gaia stopped so suddenly, Micah almost ran into the back of her.
"Sorry," he mumbled. Susan automatically wondered if he was aware of the 'other' part of his job; she sure as hell wasn't going to be the one to tell him. How would he do it anyway? Would they give him a gun? A poison syringe? Would they let her off herself just to spare an 11-year-old boy the trouble? She probably wouldn't, selfish –
"Susan! Snap out of it!" The Gaia had lost all patience with her charges. "I swear to God, I should've been doing this with Sian." Sian was the former Ardwyad, and had chosen to go with the previous Gaia when it was her time. Susan had only been there a few years, and she hadn't detected a love interest but what goes on between a Gaia and her Ardwyad mentor was largely private.
The three stood on an icy bank looking out into a sea of oil. Ribbons of gray and brown were strewn over the ocean water, turning almost shiny in the sunlight, and slowly spreading out like an infectious disease. They were told to help, but given very little direction as to how. Cato merely asked they bring as much oil ashore as they could; it would be easier for the Adanas, the earth elementals, to clean up from there.
"Ok, Susan. Do your thing," said the Gaia.
"My thing?"
"You are a Nerina, yes?"
"Yes," said Susan.
"A Nerina specializes in the element of water, yes?"
"Yes."
"This water is dirty, yes?"
"Yes." Susan grit her teeth together, barely able to hold back the string of curse words trying to force their way out.
"So clean it. I didn't know you needed someone to tell you how to do your job."
Susan wanted to scream out loud. Instead, she chose to be the adult, and turned to the oil. She had limited practice with Cato, but had more with her mother who was also a Nerina. She wished she could remember more of that training. She wished she could remember more of her mother. At least she has some memories; Micah had been too young to remember anything about their parents. All he had was Cato.
Susan shook off the depression that always set in when she thought of her parents, and concentrated on her task. Almost immediately, she felt herself connect with the water. The tide rushed in to meet her, then pulled a part of her back out with it. Normally she'd have to fight the pull. She would be fighting to stay on land when all she wanted to do is submerge herself in the life-giving liquid. Not this time. This time the water was tainted and sluggish. The dark slime permeated every small cell, leaking into the very essence of the water, the very essence of Susan.
Susan dry-heaved at the feeling, and felt the Gaia huff behind her. She took another deep breath, telling herself it wasn't really on her. But that was a lie – the water, Susan's lifeline, was almost beyond repair. All Susan could detect was death; molecules were corroded – and as a result phytoplankton, fish, mammals, and the eco-system as a whole were all dying.
Micah stepped up next to his sister. She looked down at him and smiled. His mere presence was calming. Susan attributed it to the fact that although they had an adoptive father, no one would really look out for Micah like she would. He was solely her responsibility. Believing this gave her strength.
She took Micah's hand in her own, squeezing to feel the ridges of his fingers through their thick gloves, and closed her eyes. The ocean opened itself up to her, revealing its composition, movement, and more importantly, the elemental forces within.
She experimented with those forces, delving into her work, cold forgotten along with time. It took her near three hours before the puzzle before her finally unfolded. Susan targeted the water molecules, charging them with energy. The trace amounts of metals found in the crude oil repelled from the charged molecules, and automatically pushed itself away like two wrong sides of a magnet.
The only problem was, if the oil were to separate from the water, it had to go somewhere, and the only somewhere around that wasn't water was the shore, which so happened to be where they were standing.
The oil gained momentum, propelled forward by a magnetism force. Within seconds the oil slick was several dozen feet high. Susan, shocked out of her connection with her element, was at a loss on how to stop it.
The Gaia immediately sent her own weaves into the water, trying to undo Susan's manipulation. But the Gaia's elemental strength, even with water, was double Susan's. The surge of her energy into the ecosystem further charged the molecules and caused the slick to pick up speed. Now they both were at a loss at how to stop it.
Micah, feeling largely inept until now, stepped in front of the Gaia. He ignored the oncoming wave of oil and faced her. His hands clenched, and his face had gone red in anticipation of what he thought he must do.
Rivers run forth from her great breasts, remain close. The prayer Cato's said before they departed was the only thing running through his head.
Suddenly, Micah buried his face square between the Gaia's breasts, which elicited a high-pitched squeak from the Gaia.
Susan's mouth dropped open. Micah pulled his head out, sucked in a badly needed breath, then looked back at the oil slick. It was still coming. He turned and did another face plant; only harder. Thinking perhaps she couldn't feel him under all those layers of clothes, he shook his head back and forth.
Just as the wall of crude oil crashed into the shoreline, it lost momentum. It slowed and rolled to a goopy stop right at the trio's feet. Micah's move had flustered the Gaia, causing her body to flood with adrenaline. Since her natural reaction of accumulating nearby energy during an adrenaline rush followed; she essentially discharged the molecules.
Susan looked at her brother in wonder. He couldn't have known the Gaia would have a bigger adrenaline rush with Micah's face plant than with a huge wall of oil coming at them. He couldn't have even known that Susan had charged the water in the first place. Nonetheless, Micah turned back to the Gaia, still wide-eyed, but also with a small smile of accomplishment.
He had done his job; he had finally proven himself worthy of his Ardwyad title. The Gaia slowly raised her hand and issued a neat slap to his face.
"When we get back to the Chakra, I am filing a sexual harassment suit."
Susan could no longer hold her snort of laughter back; as if the Seven had a human resources department. The Gaia turned on Susan, "Of which you will be included as an accomplice."
"How – "
" – for helping to fulfill the desires of your puberty-stricken brother!"
The Gaia turned on her heel, sliding in what oil had made it that far onto shore, and stomped away in the ice and snow; black boot prints trailing her.
Susan watched the Gaia go, then scooped up some clean snow and put it on her brother's reddening cheek. He held it in place.
"Well, how was your first time?" She asked.
"It was…" he started to walk after the Gaia, slowly, and Susan followed. "Liberating."
Susan cleared her throat.
Micah looked up, suddenly appalled, "Wait, did you mean using magic? I mean…I didn't use any magic. I thought you meant…her, um – "
"Don't say it. I don't even want to know what you call them." Susan spared a sideways glance for her brother, then punched him playfully in the arm. He punched back and missed.
She shouldn't be so hard on him. He had rougher times with women ahead. It was those handsome green eyes of his; they were going to get him into big trouble one day.
What did you think of my first short? Please comment or an e-mail directly to me at terra (dot) harmony11 (at) gmail (dot) com. Worth following? Please sign up to follow by e-mail!
Weekly Short 1 – Oil Spill
Welcome to the first ever edition of my weekly short stories, based on characters from my books. I've yet to come up with a clever series name; so for now I'm sticking with Weekly Shorts. If you have any ideas for a better name – feel free to comment! I promise to keep them between 1,000 to 2,000 words each. These are samples of my raw, unedited writing – please excuse any grammar/spelling mistakes!
This week's short features Susan and Micah (brother and sister) at a younger age on one of their first missions for the Seven, an organization hell-bent on saving the Earth.
"Susan, Micah. Keep up." The Gaia snapped at the kids trailing her. The hired dog sled team had refused to take them further so they were forced to walk the last mile over rough, icy terrain to the shores of Prince William Sound. "And turn off that blasted headset."
Susan rolled her eyes, but obeyed anyway and slipped her walkman into her backpack. "It keeps my mind off the cold. It is freezing out here." Susan buried her head back under her parka's thick jacket hood and spared a sideways glance for her younger brother. The bite of an Alaskan winter didn't seem to be affecting him as much; his mind was elsewhere. Just one month ago, with the untimely passing of the Seven's Ardwyad, Micah had taken his place. Youngest ever Ardwyad, their adoptive father Cato had said, at least from what records the organization still had. The Gaia had reservations about an 11-year-old Ardwyad, several in fact, that she made known to Cato, to Susan and to Micah himself, especially during their tedious trek from Indonesia to Alaska to help with the oil spill.
Her rants did nothing for Micah's confidence. Since his job was basically to protect and train the Gaia, she really could have helped herself by helping him. Instead, she was making it worse for everyone. Susan couldn't blame the Gaia too much. Susan knew the Ardwyad's job was also to kill the Gaia once a stronger one was found. This wasn't always common knowledge with the Gaias that came through; although Susan was sure this Gaia knew. She has accepted her fate with grace; that is until she met her would-be assassin face to face.
There had been a short send-off ceremony for the trio. The Gaia had tolerated it with her arms crossed tight over her chest, Micah was hanging on every word spoken during the ceremony, and Susan had kept her walkman on the entire time. Cato blessed them with a prayer;
The Earth is my Mother
I shall not want.
Her breathe is the air that gives me life.
Her hand brings forth the green pastures.
Rivers run forth from her great breasts, remain close.
Fire is her gift, providing purity and warmth.
Her womb is the earth that will enfold me.
Surely, goodness and beauty will nurture me all the days of my life,
and I will become part of the earth forever.
"Here is good." The Gaia stopped so suddenly, Micah almost ran into the back of her.
"Sorry," he mumbled. Susan automatically wondered if he was aware of the 'other' part of his job; she sure as hell wasn't going to be the one to tell him. How would he do it anyway? Would they give him a gun? A poison syringe? Would they let her off herself just to spare an 11-year-old boy the trouble? She probably wouldn't, selfish –
"Susan! Snap out of it!" The Gaia had lost all patience with her charges. "I swear to God, I should've been doing this with Sian." Sian was the former Ardwyad, and had chosen to go with the previous Gaia when it was her time. Susan had only been there a few years, and she hadn't detected a love interest but what goes on between a Gaia and her Ardwyad mentor was largely private.
The three stood on an icy bank looking out into a sea of oil. Ribbons of gray and brown were strewn over the ocean water, turning almost shiny in the sunlight, and slowly spreading out like an infectious disease. They were told to help, but given very little direction as to how. Cato merely asked they bring as much oil ashore as they could; it would be easier for the Adanas, the earth elementals, to clean up from there.
"Ok, Susan. Do your thing," said the Gaia.
"My thing?"
"You are a Nerina, yes?"
"Yes," said Susan.
"A Nerina specializes in the element of water, yes?"
"Yes."
"This water is dirty, yes?"
"Yes." Susan grit her teeth together, barely able to hold back the string of curse words trying to force their way out.
"So clean it. I didn't know you needed someone to tell you how to do your job."
Susan wanted to scream out loud. Instead, she chose to be the adult, and turned to the oil. She had limited practice with Cato, but had more with her mother who was also a Nerina. She wished she could remember more of that training. She wished she could remember more of her mother. At least she has some memories; Micah had been too young to remember anything about their parents. All he had was Cato.
Susan shook off the depression that always set in when she thought of her parents, and concentrated on her task. Almost immediately, she felt herself connect with the water. The tide rushed in to meet her, then pulled a part of her back out with it. Normally she'd have to fight the pull. She would be fighting to stay on land when all she wanted to do is submerge herself in the life-giving liquid. Not this time. This time the water was tainted and sluggish. The dark slime permeated every small cell, leaking into the very essence of the water, the very essence of Susan.
Susan dry-heaved at the feeling, and felt the Gaia huff behind her. She took another deep breath, telling herself it wasn't really on her. But that was a lie – the water, Susan's lifeline, was almost beyond repair. All Susan could detect was death; molecules were corroded – and as a result phytoplankton, fish, mammals, and the eco-system as a whole were all dying.
Micah stepped up next to his sister. She looked down at him and smiled. His mere presence was calming. Susan attributed it to the fact that although they had an adoptive father, no one would really look out for Micah like she would. He was solely her responsibility. Believing this gave her strength.
She took Micah's hand in her own, squeezing to feel the ridges of his fingers through their thick gloves, and closed her eyes. The ocean opened itself up to her, revealing its composition, movement, and more importantly, the elemental forces within.
She experimented with those forces, delving into her work, cold forgotten along with time. It took her near three hours before the puzzle before her finally unfolded. Susan targeted the water molecules, charging them with energy. The trace amounts of metals found in the crude oil repelled from the charged molecules, and automatically pushed itself away like two wrong sides of a magnet.
The only problem was, if the oil were to separate from the water, it had to go somewhere, and the only somewhere around that wasn't water was the shore, which so happened to be where they were standing.
The oil gained momentum, propelled forward by a magnetism force. Within seconds the oil slick was several dozen feet high. Susan, shocked out of her connection with her element, was at a loss on how to stop it.
The Gaia immediately sent her own weaves into the water, trying to undo Susan's manipulation. But the Gaia's elemental strength, even with water, was double Susan's. The surge of her energy into the ecosystem further charged the molecules and caused the slick to pick up speed. Now they both were at a loss at how to stop it.
Micah, feeling largely inept until now, stepped in front of the Gaia. He ignored the oncoming wave of oil and faced her. His hands clenched, and his face had gone red in anticipation of what he thought he must do.
Rivers run forth from her great breasts, remain close. The prayer Cato's said before they departed was the only thing running through his head.
Suddenly, Micah buried his face square between the Gaia's breasts, which elicited a high-pitched squeak from the Gaia.
Susan's mouth dropped open. Micah pulled his head out, sucked in a badly needed breath, then looked back at the oil slick. It was still coming. He turned and did another face plant; only harder. Thinking perhaps she couldn't feel him under all those layers of clothes, he shook his head back and forth.
Just as the wall of crude oil crashed into the shoreline, it lost momentum. It slowed and rolled to a goopy stop right at the trio's feet. Micah's move had flustered the Gaia, causing her body to flood with adrenaline. Since her natural reaction of accumulating nearby energy during an adrenaline rush followed; she essentially discharged the molecules.
Susan looked at her brother in wonder. He couldn't have known the Gaia would have a bigger adrenaline rush with Micah's face plant than with a huge wall of oil coming at them. He couldn't have even known that Susan had charged the water in the first place. Nonetheless, Micah turned back to the Gaia, still wide-eyed, but also with a small smile of accomplishment.
He had done his job; he had finally proven himself worthy of his Ardwyad title. The Gaia slowly raised her hand and issued a neat slap to his face.
"When we get back to the Chakra, I am filing a sexual harassment suit."
Susan could no longer hold her snort of laughter back; as if the Seven had a human resources department. The Gaia turned on Susan, "Of which you will be included as an accomplice."
"How – "
" – for helping to fulfill the desires of your puberty-stricken brother!"
The Gaia turned on her heel, sliding in what oil had made it that far onto shore, and stomped away in the ice and snow; black boot prints trailing her.
Susan watched the Gaia go, then scooped up some clean snow and put it on her brother's reddening cheek. He held it in place.
"Well, how was your first time?" She asked.
"It was…" he started to walk after the Gaia, slowly, and Susan followed. "Liberating."
Susan cleared her throat.
Micah looked up, suddenly appalled, "Wait, did you mean using magic? I mean…I didn't use any magic. I thought you meant…her, um – "
"Don't say it. I don't even want to know what you call them." Susan spared a sideways glance for her brother, then punched him playfully in the arm. He punched back and missed.
She shouldn't be so hard on him. He had rougher times with women ahead. It was those handsome green eyes of his; they were going to get him into big trouble one day.
What did you think of my first short? Please comment or an e-mail directly to me at terra (dot) harmony11 (at) gmail (dot) com. Worth following? Please sign up to follow by e-mail!
December 10, 2011
I'm on the move - and so are you. Buckle up.
Now for the hard part; I can transfer all my followers from Twain Wannabe to my author blog. Problem is, half of you joined for self-publishing tips, half to sign up for giveaways, and half because you are friends or family (ok - my math may be a little off). But I can't just move half of you; it is all or nothing. So off you go. I apologize in advance if you prefer to remain a member of Twain Wannabe. But honestly, my author blog is, well...prettier. I plan to make the move by the end of the weekend.
I also plan to continue posts on Twain Wannabe about book marketing and self-publishing, so please feel free to sign up - again. See you on the other side!
December 7, 2011
My Interviews, Guest Posts and Such
To catch y'all up – I've done a series of interviews and guest posts. These along with all future 'Terra' highlights can be found in the 'About Me' section. Now on to the fun:
Interview with Maria Violante
Q: There were a few, well, adult passages in here! Was that something you had to think about before including them in the novel?
A: For sure! In fact, I still debate taking them out and floating my book around the YA crowd. Maybe it would do better there. But the fact is, I'm not really sure I belong there as an author. I'm not sure it would be a sustainable career for me. So onward I go – sex scenes and all!
A.F. Stewart's Interview with Terra Harmony
Q: What's next for you?
A: An ice cream sandwich. And then maybe just a few more hundred words before bedtime…
Indie Author Spotlight on TNBBC
The publishing industry is about to go eco on y'all!
Guest Post on Indies Unlimited
Quality is Job #1 for Indie Authors
Books for Company: Cover Crazy
My super-awesome book cover by super-awesome graphic artist and indie author Keary Taylor is all the craze.
Pitch-Slapped
Not my finest moment, but probably not my worst either – so I don't mind sharing it.
Indie Snippets – Water
Fun way to find new Indie books. If you use it, be sure to send props to indie author Bryan Dennis.
Indie Snippets – Gleaming White
Fun way to find new Indie books. If you use it, be sure to send props to indie author Bryan Dennis.
Fan Page
On Facebook. Stop by and 'like' me, because I am all about the numbers.
Goodreads Author Page
By the way, if you are an author and not active on Goodreads – get going! Also if you are a reader and not on Goodreads, same applies to you.
Amazon Author Page
'Like' me here, too – I don't know, it may do something for my sales!
December 6, 2011
1st Post – Are you as excited as I am? Probably not.
Welcome, welcome! I am finally getting around to building my author website and I am excited for all the content I have planned for it! In addition to more info on my books (sample reads, where to buy, downloadable book group discussion points, etc.), I plan to post short stories (based on my book's characters) once a week, resources for readers and writers, and guest author posts and interviews.
I'd appreciate it if you would become a follower of the site – I won't disappoint!
Thanks for stopping by!
- Terra Harmony
December 3, 2011
The First 6.5 Steps for Self-Publishers
After the high of knowing I accomplished my goal, I hit avery low, well…low. I had just spent amonth doing nothing to market my books already published, and my sales numberssuffered – big time. I am finding ithard to get back into the whole sales aspect, not to mention one of the mostdifficult parts of writing (for me, anyway) – editing. And the crap I churned out in November needsa lot of it.
But in retrospect, November was good for me. I learned what writing habits work, and whatdon't, and most importantly, I was able to set a writing schedule and stick toit. Now, back to the daily grind. For all of you Twain Wannabes and new self-publishers,I want to share what your first steps should be:
1 – Write a good book: Already you're thinking I know, Iknow. But if your book hasn't beenedited, by a professional, or at least a critique group – it's not ready. My book has been through both, and peoplestill find a few mistakes here and there. Wow – did I just admit that? And don't forget to spare the expense forgood cover art – a note about my experience with cover art here.
2 – Get on Goodreads. This can be done even before you self-publish. Write reviews, join groups, make friends thatare interested in the same genre as you. These people will eventually be your followers and fans; some of yourfirst buyers, even. That is after yourgrandma and best friends bought all their copies. There is a great podcast by Freisen Pressintroducing you to the basics of Goodreads, and an awesome blog series aboutGoodreads by Robin Sullivan, small-press publisher.
3 – Follow some people. Twitter is a good place to do this. My favorite, most helpful tweeters for self-publishers include @tonyeldridge,@novelpublicity, @elizabethscraig, @annerallen, and @bookbuzzr.
4 – Do some giveaways. A good place to start is with I am a Reader, Not a Writer, who almostconstantly has a blog hop giveaway happening, and makes it very easy on you tosign up (quick note – you will need a blog or website to do this….ok sobacktrack – step 3.5 build a blog or website). Giveaways are a great way to get the word out and to get some reviewsunder your belt. My giveaways usuallypromise the second book in my series for free if the reader posts a review and sendme a link by a certain date. I have hadgreat responses to this tactic. Andeither I wrote a very, very awesome book – or the reviewers are kind becausethey are grateful they received a free copy – or both. Yes, Idid just admit that. Oh, by the way,Goodreads has an ebooks giveaway group run by the great Coral Russell.
5 – Send out review requests. See the post by yours truly about queryingbook bloggers. This is an all-importantstep to boosting the visibility of your product.
6 – Write another good book. Just remember: series sell, singles – not so well. Totally made that up just now. It probably won't seem so clever when Ire-read this post in the morning. But itis true. Multiple books out on themarket all promote each other.
7 - ??? If I couldfigure out how to insert a bigger question mark, I would, but it is gettinglate. This is the step in which Icurrently reside. Welcome. During the next few months, in addition tothe time I spend editing, of course, I plan on doing some research. Finding out what works with Amazonalgorithms, exploring Goodreads more in depth, strengthening my authorplatform, buzzword, buzzword, buzzword – and I will post all about it. Stay tuned!
November 24, 2011
Quit Watching Your Pot
What I have done in the way of marketing is plenty ofgiveaways. I've had one giveaway or another happening sincemid-October. So far, the giveaways haven't produced many new sales, andthey probably won't, at least not until I get the next books in each series published. But what they have produced are reviews, manyfrom book bloggers who aren't even accepting review requests, and alsofollowers.
I checked in with my numbers today. My facebook fan page has doubled in 'likes',as have my twitter followers and blog subscribers. I'm sure the experts will tell you this is anall important step in building a fan base (well, duh).
Still, I was amazed at what happened to my numbers. The old adage, 'a watched pot never boils'comes to mind here. But I am admittedly obsessedwith numbers, so I can't not watch my pot for too long.
Check out my latest guest post and giveaway at Alexia'sChronicles. My advice to all of you Twain Wannabe's? Give. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
November 15, 2011
NaNoWriMo - You are a fickle, fickle, whore. And so is your mother.
I was going to say bitch in the title but I'm trying to keepthis blog PG. Quick update on my writingthis month – it is sucking. Literally. It is sucking the life right out of me. Why is one hour in the morning and one hour inthe evening so hard? I'll tell you why –because if you don't accomplish it, you fall behind very quickly. Then you begin to question your very skillsas a writer, and motivation is fleeting. The first week went well, the second week –not so much. A few things I have definitelylearned:
1 – The month of October needs to be WAY busier than themonth of November. Meaning, Octobershould be filled with researching, planning and plotting. It is fine if you write well on a whim, butit is soooo, soooo necessary to have a plan for when your muse fails you. Additionally, if you already have books out,October should be spent pre-marketing for November. This means blog posts, interviews, giveawaysand blog hops all planned in advance so it is a quick copy and paste exercise inNovember, allowing you to return to your wonderful cocoon-like writing world.
2 – They should shut down Twitter AND Facebook for the monthof November. Unless you are countingyour tweets and posts toward your 50,000 word goal, which I do. The trick to writing is setting aside time,but the secret to productive writingis turning off all the gadgets during your time. I firmly believe there are little 'time'demons running around, that have some sort of agenda against NaNoWriMo, whocause your phone to buzz when someone @mentions you on Twitter or makes thelittle red circle next to the Goodreads mail icon to pop up. In fact, I may write a book about thesedemons. The nemesis of whom, will be theangels sending e-mail notifications alerting you someone has bought your bookon Smashwords. Those are interruptions Iwelcome.
3 – December is going to suck worse than November. I am not looking forward to the many hoursahead of reviewing, editing and revising the crap I am producing. But, I will march on, and at least turn itinto polished crap. Then my editor and critiquegroup will march on and turn it into the most wonderful piece of writingforever and ever. Well, maybe notforever. Forever is a long time and I justcan't be sure.
4 – Hate mail works! For some reason, giving myself an outlet to spew curse words atNaNoWriMo about how much this sucks, has allowed me to break though thatwriter's block. I was able to churn outthis post in less than 10 minutes. Ain'tblogs grand?
So my goals for the third week? Catch up on my goals for the secondweek. And for the fourth week? This will be the week I use writing as anexcuse to avoid holiday get-togethers with my in-laws as much as possible. I take what I said about you back, NaNoWriMo,perhaps you aren't so bad after all. Are we still friends? No? Fine - you take the bed tonight. I have writing to do anyway.
And now I can add another 558 words towardmy 50,000. Score!
November 9, 2011
More about You
Still can't get enough of me? I have a new page on my blog; just click on 'More of Me'. But enough about me - let's focus on you. YOU should check out the latest promotion on 'Water', found under 'My Books'. Enjoy!
