Shelli R. Johannes's Blog, page 19

A Spy Like Me (Laura Pauling)

In celebration of the official release of A
Spy Like Me , Laura Pauling is hosting a three-week blog series: A
Spies, Murder and Mystery Marathon. Woot! Woot!








Authors galore, guest posts and book giveaways
almost every day!

Gemma Halliday, Cindy M. Hogan, Elizabeth Spann
Craig,
Nova Ren Suma, Elisa Ludwig, and Anne R. Allen....Just
to name a few!

And here's why she's celebrating!





Stripping your date down to his underwear has
never been so dangerous.

After dodging bullets on a first date, Savvy must
sneak, deceive and spy to save her family and friends and figure out if Malcolm
is one of the bad guys before she completely falls for him.

Amazon ~ Barnes & Noble ~ Smashwords

Head on over to Laura’s blog
for the start of the Spies, Murder and Mystery Marathon. You won’t
want to miss this sizzling series as we head into summer. Stock up on some
great thrilling reads! If you dare…






http://feeds.feedburner.com/Faerialit...

Bookanistas: Elle Strauss (Author of Clockwise & Clockwiser)

Last year, Elle Strauss stopped by to talk about Clockwise and It's a Little Haywire.





Today, we get a peek into Book 2, Clockwiser .














The last year has been smooth sailing for Casey Donovan. She and her boyfriend Nate are doing better than ever, and things at home are good, too. Everything’s been so calm, she hasn’t “tripped” back to the nineteenth century in ages.




Then the unthinkable happens and she accidentally takes her rebellious brother Tim back in time. It’s 1862 with the Civil War brewing, and for Tim this spells adventure and excitement. Finding himself stuck in the past, he enlists in the Union army, but it doesn’t take long before he discovers real life war is no fun and games.




Casey and Nate race against the clock to find Tim, but the strain wears on their relationship. It doesn’t help that the intriguing new boy next door has his sights on Casey, and isn’t shy to let her know it.




Can Nate and Casey find Tim in time to save him? And is it too late to save their love?




Here is the first chapter:




CASEY

Beginning of Summer Holidays




Sometimes I wished I were an only child. But then I’d be walking or taking transit instead of getting a lift from my brother Tim in his Cavalier beater. He didn’t have air conditioning either, and the wind blowing in from our open windows was hot and moist. The humidity made me feel like I was wearing a warm, wet washcloth for a shirt.




“Can’t you drop me off first?” I said, fanning myself with my hand. I was meeting my best friend Lucinda at the mall, and she only had a thirty minute break from her job at Forever21. Plus, the mall was air conditioned. Bonus.




“I gotta get some cash first. Besides, I’m not your personal taxi service, Casey.” Tim snarled, turning the volume up on his stereo. The bass beat was so loud it rattled the trunk. “Get off your lazy butt and get your license already.”




I gave him a dirty look and reached over to turn the music down. I had a very good reason for not getting my license, but I could never tell Tim or any member of my family what it was. There were only three people currently living who knew the reason. One of them was my boyfriend Nate Mackenzie.

My heart still fluttered a bit when I thought of him in those terms. My boyfriend. Not just some out-of-reach guy I crushed hard on my whole sophomore year, but my boyfriend.




We’d already been an official couple for an entire year, totally blowing all the doomsday predictions that we’d never make it. No one thought a college boy would stick it out with a junior in high school--especially Nate’s evil former girlfriend!




But he did, and we were still going strong. I’d be starting my senior year in a few weeks and then I’d join him at Boston University, too.




“If you dropped me off first, you wouldn’t have to deal with me,” I tried to reason.




“If I didn’t shuttle you around at all I wouldn’t have to deal with you.”




The only reason he did was because my parents were putting the screws in. Tim’s bad attitude, questionable choice of friends and poor grades put him in their bad books. Driving me around was penance.




He pulled into the parking lot of the bank and hopped out, leaving the car running. I reached over and turned it off. Idling the car was bad for the environment for one, and a waste of Tim’s hard-earned minimum-wage job gas money for another. You’d think he’d know better.




I checked the time on my phone and grew anxious as Lucinda’s break time grew nearer. Tim had his back to me as he stood in line at the ATM window. I looked at my reflection in the visor mirror. Since I’d grown out of my skinny awkwardness last year (and snagged a hot boyfriend), I was more mindful of my looks. Instead of trying to hide behind a bush of dark, curly hair, I used better hair products and found a great stylist, and I liked the way my curls framed my face now. I took a tube of lip gloss out of my purse and rolled it onto my lips.




I tugged on my shorts and rubbed my bare legs. They were so long, my knees almost touched the glove compartment. Height had its advantages, but getting comfortable in a small car wasn’t one of them.

I turned the radio on and hummed along. I daydreamed about me and Nate and how we could relax for the rest of the summer, hopefully stretching the lazy days out as long as possible.




I checked the time on my phone again and immediately started stressing about being late to meet Lucinda. C’mon, Tim! He was second in line now. I texted Lucinda to let her know I might be a little late.

I heard sirens and I perked up. This wasn’t the best neighborhood. The bank wasn’t huge, just tucked into a strip mall along with a nail place, a dollar store, and a thrift shop. Litter overflowed from the bin and a good amount had been blown up against the cement foundation.




I checked on Tim. He’d finally made it to the front, the last one in line. If I’d known it was going to take him this long, I would’ve run into the dollar store and picked up cheap nail polish.




The siren noise grew increasingly louder and suddenly three cop cars pulled into the parking lot beside me. My heart jumped, and I thought fleetingly that maybe Tim was in trouble with the law again. Only, he was getting money out of the ATM, not robbing the bank.




But someone was.




Everything happened so fast.




A guy with a ski mask pushed past Tim as he ran out the bank doors. A cop shouted, “Stop or I’ll shoot,” and another masked man followed. Guns went off. Tim stood there, stunned and frozen.




I heard myself shout, “Tim!” He was right in the middle of the cross-fire!




A police officer ran to him, pushing him to the ground just as the second armed man shot in their direction. The officer fell to the ground, taking the bullet instead of Tim.




The robbers ran around the corner and out of sight, chased by police officers on foot and a cruiser down the back ally.




I sprinted to Tim where he was on the ground by the fallen cop.




“Are you okay?” I asked, my voice tight.




His face was white, and he motioned to the woman beside him. “Yeah, but I don’t think she is.”




The officer moaned, holding her hand on her chest.




“Oh, ma’am, are you okay?” I searched for blood but couldn’t see any.




“I will be,” she said gasping for breath. “I have a vest on.”




Another officer kneeled beside her. “Ambulance is on its way.”




The woman had dark hair pulled back in a low bun. Her eyes stayed pinched together and her pale face glistened with sweat. The impact of the bullet was enough to do some damage. I picked up her police hat that had fallen off her head and handed it to her.




“Thank you,” I said.




“Just doing my duty.”




The ambulance arrived. The paramedics pushed us aside and lifted the woman onto a gurney. The cop who’d checked her pulse stepped forward from his open door cruiser. Radio dispatch noises leaked out.




I watched the ambulance pull away, siren blasting, and realized I didn’t know her name. I asked the officer standing beside me.




“That’s Officer Clarice Porter,” he said. “Now, would you two mind coming with me to the station to file a report?”




We agreed, and I took my first ride in a police car. It was Tim’s second, but his first was not for noble reasons. He still claimed it was his friend Alex, and not him, who’d stolen the cigarettes from the convenience store.




A thought like a loud banner ran through my mind as the doors of the police cruiser slammed shut and we drove away.




Clarice Porter saved my brother’s life.




============================




If you want to hook up with Elle, you can follow her blog



Amazon

Smashwords




============================
















Check out other Bookanista posts:



Christine Fonseca  revels in TO RIDE A PUCA
Stasia Ward Kehoe gushes over GILT
Katy Upperman adores UNDER THE NEVER SKY
Tracy Banghart delights in THE DISENCHANTMENTS
Gennifer Albin  celebrates SHADOW AND BONE
Jessica Love is wowed by YOU’RE THE ONE THAT I WANT
Shelli Johannes-Wells is crazy for CLOCKWISER















http://feeds.feedburner.com/Faerialit...

Updates from the Indie Front

My Indie Sales Update




I've gotten a few emails asking about my book progress. How it is doing? If I can share stats.






Sorry I haven't been connecting as much. With spring break and Rt convention (which was amaz-balls) and a tummy virus in my family - a good month has gone by.






I realize I haven't done one in a while and anything I have accomplished, I owe to you. It's always a bit awkward posting numbers because you don't want people to judge you for being arrogant or for having sucky numbers. So it takes a while for me to build up my nerve. The traditional side doesn't talk number as freely as the indie side so it's just awkward. :)




So here goes:




Sales to date




Untraceable almost 6,200 copies in 6 months. I would say 85% are ebook sales and 15% are paperback. 65% have been sold on Amazon, 30% on B&N, and 5% other
On the Bright Side - 500 copies in 3 months. (80% amazon, 20% B&N. 90% ebooks, 10% paperbacks)
The Indelibles Anthology - about 15,000 downloads.



I have broken even so I have more than earned out in my mind. :)




Not too shabby for an experiment but it's been a tough and hard road for many reasons.






As expected On the Bright Side (being MG) is not selling as well as I'd hoped. I knew it was ahead of indie pubbing curve and most self pubbed books tend to reach a different audience (more ebooks) than traditionally published books. I'm hoping MG will get bigger in ebooks in the future.






What's Next?




Unspeakable - a Grace eshort releasing outside of Anthology in May
New Sci Fi eShort called "Suffocate" releases in June.
Uncontrollable, Book 2, releases in aug/sept (I am taking requests for blog tour and review copies now. Sign up here.
Unstoppable (Book 3) is scheduled for Dec 2012 just in time for xmas :)


Lessons Learned Along the Way







Thought I would break down some lessons learned along the way over the last 6 months.






First, let me say that everyone has a different strategy so it doesn't mean it will work for me. But I will share with you everything I have done so it can maybe help you to - some will help




Things that did not do as well as I planned:




I paid 199$ to drop a press release - waste-o-money. I was not happy and was surprised at lack of results. I've done press releases for clients in the past with great results.
Paperback. I love the paperback but it has not been a huge seller. 90% of my sales are ebooks. But I love having it. As soon as I get my distribution set up - maybe I will focus on that.
Giveaways are nice but they don't necessarily drive up sales. But they do drive up word of mouth.
The stigma is real and gets me every time. I have had some wins but also some hard rejection. It's part of the road. I'm less sensitive to it now b/c I feel I am proving myself but it was hard in the beginning.



Things that worked well:




I priced my book lower to capture impulse buys. I must say - I hate it when my book is priced at 99 cents - b/c I think my book is worth more. But being a new author it got me noticed. 
I have totally done grass roots effort - bloggers. I LOVE them and they have been very supportive. I bet you I have contacted about 500 bloggers and have been featured in some way on 1/2 of those.
I have not scrimped with my free ebook copies to bloggers or giveaways - I'm hoping for word of mouth
My focus was not money. My focus was/is rankings and buzz to get noticed. 
My ad and cover investments have helped. Especially my cover - it was worth every penny and more.
Starting The Indelibles - it has been a huge support system when things get tough and the stigma kicks in. It has also been a great cross promotional group.
The Indelibles Anthology - it definitely got me sales and teased people on my book. IT was a great marketing tool.



Various advertisements:




The Kirkus review was very good for me. Not necessarily in sales but opened doors by adding credibility. Maybe it just gave mt the confidence to know I was good enough. It was what kicked me off on the right foot in my mind.
Blurbs from traditional authors helped to open doors as well. I think Kimberly Derting's blurb opened up many - especially with bloggers who normally didn't review indie books.
Kind Nation sponsorship was a great return and I probably broke even on the ad vs copies sold. But it got my rankings up. (made money back). I think when you do ads, it helps to mark your book on sale to grab some people who might not normally pick up your book.
POI - Love Pixel. They are the best yet! (made money back plus some). It pushed me over the top and got me noticed in rankings and kickstarted big sales for me.
efrugal reader - I saw no difference :(
Kindle Fire Department - definitely saw an uptick in sales and ranking but I dont think I made my money back.



Channels that are best:




BLOGGERS! They are #1 in my eyes. Invaluable and I <3 them.
Email ads seems to be the best - whenever I do an ad that includes an email distribution to subscribers, I see an uptick. More so than if it is just Facebook or twitter.
Twitter ads are great for click throughs and in building awareness about my book but it does not translate to direct sales.
Facebook - I have not used this yet. But I hear it can be effective. It can just get costly.
Goodreads giveaways - I can't measure it in sales but the giveaways definitely get my book added to shelves which to me is awareness. Since it takes 7 times for someone to see something before they buy it - this helped.
Conferences/conventions -  These don't seem to pay off in sales vs cost. (Though I did sell tons of copies at RT. But the networking and building awareness is invaluable. Plus the more you speak, the better you are. In addition, I have gotten asked to 2 additional places because they heard my talk was good. So never underestimate word of mouth. I also use these reference when approaching larger ones about speaking. It gives credibility that you can do it.
Social Networking - I will say I think my platform helped. I started building relationships three years ago and I had so must support from everyone. Just know if you start building your platform, you may not see immediate returns or a sales impact. But the support and friendships have been priceless.
Contests - I have entered contests and gotten nominations which has been great for PR and media interest.



What I would do differently:




Send out review copies much sooner. At least 3 months in advance.
Submit to places like Kirkus, PW, ALA much earlier. They require a huge advance time in doing reviews.
Would not play with price so much. Be more strategic about when book is on sale vs when it is not.
Roll out paperback and ebook in separate releases. It's hard to do it all at once.
Spend more time up front creating detailed plan and making sure all channels of distribution were ready to go.
Spend more time targeting some micro markets that my book would be of interest too. I have focused on larger markets and have probably missed opportunity.
Gotten an intern sooner. I have an intern helping me with stuff now and I already adore her.


Any Questions or suggestions? Maybe things that you heard work well? I'm all ears :)http://feeds.feedburner.com/Faerialit...

Cover Love for Closed Hearts

Eek!! Look at Susan Quinn's cover for Closed Hearts (Book Two of the Mindjack Trilogy) - coming May 23rd.




Isn't it Gorge!











When you control minds, only your heart can be used against you.




Eight months ago, Kira Moore revealed to the mindreading world that mindjackers like herself were hidden in their midst. Now she wonders if telling the truth was the right choice after all. As wild rumors spread, a powerful anti-jacker politician capitalizes on mindreaders’ fears and strips jackers of their rights. While some jackers flee to Jackertown—a slum rife with jackworkers who trade mind control favors for cash—Kira and her family hide from the readers who fear her and jackers who hate her. But when a jacker Clan member makes Kira’s boyfriend Raf collapse in her arms, Kira is forced to save the people she loves by facing the thing she fears most: FBI agent Kestrel and his experimental torture chamber for jackers.








Click
Here to sign up for the Virtual Launch
Party on May 23rd! There will be prizes, reviews, and bonus content!




PRAISE FOR Open
Minds (Book One of the Mindjack Trilogy)




“Susan
plunges readers into a compelling and frightening world where nearly everyone
can read minds when they come of age. The very idea makes me shudder. This is
easily one of the best books I've read not only this year, but in recent
years.”

— Heather McCorkle, author of The
Secret of Spruce Knoll




"Susan Kaye Quinn's Open
Minds is an edge-of-the-seat YA sci-fi, where 16 year-old Kira dodges
psychological bullets from all sides."  — Catherine Stine, author of Fireseed
One




You can get caught up by purchasing Open Minds for $2.99 on Amazon, Amazon UK, Barnes&Noble, and iTunes






Susan Kaye
Quinn, Author




Susan
Kaye Quinn grew up in California, where she wrote snippets of stories and
passed them to her friends during class. She pursued a bunch of engineering
degrees and worked a lot of geeky jobs, including turns at GE Aircraft Engines,
NASA, and NCAR. Now that she writes novels, her business card says "Author
and Rocket Scientist" and she doesn't have to sneak her notes anymore. All that engineering comes in handy
when dreaming up paranormal powers in future worlds or mixing science with
fantasy to conjure slightly plausible inventions. Susan writes from the Chicago suburbs
with her three boys, two cats, and one husband. Which, it turns out, is exactly
as much as she can handle.




Way too often, you can find Susan on her blog, facebook, and twitter.




You can also read a prequel to Open Minds in the  In His Eyes Anthology  - all short stories from a hot boy's perspective. Currently free!













http://feeds.feedburner.com/Faerialit...

IndieView with Shannon Duffy (author of Spectral)

[image error]

Today Shannon Duffy has stopped by to talk about her new book, SPECTRAL.







Convinced she’s a part of the witness protection program, sixteen-year-old Jewel Rose is shuffled around the globe with her family like a pack of traveling gypsies. After arriving at lucky home twenty-seven, she stumbles upon a mysterious boy with magical powers claiming to be her guardian . . . and warning of imminent danger. Despite the obvious sparks between them, Jewel discovers a relationship is forbidden, and the more she learns about dark, brooding Roman, she begins to question who she can even believe — the family who raised her, or the supposed sworn protector who claims they’ve been lying to her all along.




As she struggles to uncover who her family has really been running from, she is forced to hide her birthmark that reveals who she is. With new realities surfacing, unexplained powers appearing, and two tempting boys vying for her heart, Jewel battles to learn who she can trust in an ever growing sea of lies, hoping she’ll make it through her seventeenth birthday alive.




============






Thanks for inviting me to spend a little
time on your blog, Shelli. You’ve asked about my journey to publication for my
new YA Paranormal Romance, SPECTRAL, so here it is:




On a dark and stormy night… okay, no
really, Spectral all came about with an idea for the book over Christmas of
2010. I couldn’t sleep one night, which is a great time to come up with story
ideas—at least for me—and an idea came to me for Jewel’s story. It was the
basics of the storyline, but one that got me pumped up. The next day I spilled
my story idea to my husband and visiting family members, tumbling over my words
at rapid speed and excitement.




I started writing Spectral in January 2011.
Two of my amazing critique partners, Rachel Harris and Trisha Wolfe both
critiqued chapter by chapter being the rock stars they are. When I got their
notes back, I’d incorporate any changes that made sense—which they usually
did—because as mentioned, they are truly rock star writers. It took me about
seven months to write Spectral…I know I won’t get any speed awards for that. Some
authors can cough out books every couple months—I’m just not one of them.

Once I finally typed the proverbial THE END,
I sent it off to a great freelance editor (Enter Georgia McBride), for
edits/critique. And then, I revised some more. After that, I sent Spectral to my
fantabulous agent, Lauren Hammond. I was relieved when she loved it, and after
a few more edits from her, ta da! It was time to send it out on submissions to
publishers. Eeks! I was excited and nervous all wrapped up into one. Sending my
story out into the world for the first time to be judged was surreal. I prayed
someone would love it enough to want to publish it, and not hate it so much
that they’d laugh. J




I was very lucky with Spectral as it wasn’t
out on submission too long when I got an offer for publication from the amazing
Tribute Books! (Insert happy dance here) It was one of those…Where were you when moments. I happened
to be in San Francisco on the way home from a writer’s retreat in Big Sur,
California. Lauren called me with the fab news in my hotel room and after a
moment, of OMG and seriously? ...I began calling everyone close to me while
pacing my room and panting the good news into the phone. I can’t tell you how
good it felt to tell my loved ones, and in particular, my parents, who believed
in me from day one. *Sigh.*




After “meeting” Nicole at Tribute, I was
even happier that I’d have someone sweet and down to earth to work with. Then
the fun began with the cover design, book trailer, and finding out the release
date. All moments of excitement and worry, hoping those things would turn out
just right.

Then finally, after a few more
edit/revisions (Yup, they keep on coming), my little story was ready to meet
the world. (Insert moment of panic.) I can only hope people will enjoy the
story…and maybe even fall in love with my characters along the way.

Special thanks to everyone who shared in my
journey to publication, and thank you, Shelli for having me here today.




==============
















Shannon Duffy's Bio




Shannon Duffy writes young adult and middle grade fiction. She grew up on the beautiful east coast of Canada and now lives in Ontario, Canada. She is the mom of one boy, Gabriel, her angel. She loves writing, reading, working out, soccer, and the sport of champions-shopping. She is the author of the young adult paranormal romance, SPECTRAL. Her upcoming middle grade fantasy novel, GABRIEL STONE AND THE DIVINITY OF VALTA is scheduled for a January 2013 release.






Find Shannon online













Spectral web site
Spectral Twitter hashtag: #Spectral
Spectral GoodReads page
Shannon Duffy's Facebook
Shannon Duffy's Twitter
Shannon Duffy's Website
Shannon Duffy's Blog
Shannon Duffy's GoodReads


Tribute Books

Tribute Books website
Tribute Books Facebook
Tribute Books Twitter
Tribute Books Blog Tours Facebook



























Purchase Links



Kindle buy link - $2.99
Nook buy link - $4.95
iBookstore buy link - $4.99
Google buy link - $3.79
Smashwords buy link - $4.99
PDF buy link - $4.95






























                  
http://feeds.feedburner.com/Faerialit...

Earth Day Reads

Check out my recommended Earth Day reads over on The Indelibles!http://feeds.feedburner.com/Faerialit...

Uncontrollable Sneak Peek

Here is a sneak peek at the first chapter of Uncontrollable scheduled for late summer.



Hope you like it!





Open publication - Free publishing - More teen

To catch up on The Nature of Grace series, you can purchase Untraceable at all major booksellers including your local indie bookstore, B&N, and Amazon.



More to come later!http://feeds.feedburner.com/Faerialit...

Guest Post: Link Sharing in Publiciy (Imogen Reed)

Whether you’re an aspiring author or you’re launching a new business, publicity is all important. Finding a means of promoting your ventures in an efficient and cost-effective way is paramount – and the web has given us all new ways of achieving this goal. From social media to banner ads, the internet is full of different ways to advertise and promote, but how are you to know what works and what doesn’t? Take link sharing sites, for example. A lot of people claim that sites such as Reddit, Digg and Delicous are invaluable resources for aspiring business people. They allow users to post their own content for review by the community, who can then ‘vote’ on or recommend it to the whole site. But are link sharing sites a good means of promotion, and should you sign up and try to reach the wider audience they can offer?





Beware of looking like a ‘spammer’





If you’ve ever visited a link sharing site – especially the new or upcoming sections – you’ll have seen just how many other people there are trying to push their services. And, unfortunately, a good proportion of these people can’t really be described as reputable. In fact, the word ‘spammer’ would be a much more appropriate moniker. The reason that sites like Reddit attract spammers is that they offer anyone the ability to share content and get instant traffic. There will always be someone who clicks every link, no matter how spammy it is. But that doesn’t mean this traffic is reliable. In fact, you can almost be guaranteed that these people will never visit again. It’s a false economy. What you need to do as a promoter is prepare something that’s valuable to the community – and that’s an art form in itself.





Don’t be too pushy





In order to take advantage of the thousands of people that use social link sharing sites, you need to be able to offer them something. If you’re an author, for example, you can’t come off as simply trying to sell your books. Instead, you need to solve a problem or offer some insight for free, and offer the book on the side. This will help the community feel like you’re actively contributing and not just marketing at them. If you simply post a link to buy your book, you’ll quickly see how much of a bad idea that can be. Traffic will spike then bottom out, and none of the links you post again will gain much traction. It’s a slippery slope.





Bide your time and do things properly





By rushing in and posting poorly thought out content to sites like Digg, you may get a quick shot in the arm in terms of traffic, but it’s very unlikely that this will convert to sales. Instead, you want to craft something of value to the community, and only post it once. If the community sees that you’re posting your link over and over again, you’ll end up doing more damage than good to your reputation. It’s hard enough to make a positive impact without shooting yourself in the foot. As mentioned above, the best thing you can do to make a splash on link sharing websites is to post something that offers the community something, and offer the option to buy something too. For example, as an author you may want to post an insightful article that will be of interest to the community, then include a link to your eBook in your sidebar. It’s a more subtle, and generally more effective, means of self-promotion.





The bottom line





So can link sharing sites be a good form of publicity? Yes they can, but they can quickly become a double edged sword. It’s easy to get swept away by the numbers than can be driven to your website to see your offerings, but if you’re viewed as ‘spammy’ for even a moment, these communities can quickly turn on you. There have been numerous horror stories about companies that have acted unscrupulously, been found out trying to ‘game’ sites like Reddit, and then suffered a serious PR nightmare. The bottom line is: be careful. They’re a great tool, but need to be used in the right way to make the best impact. 





Good luck!





Contributor Bio





Imogen Reed is a full time freelance writer and researcher who specialises in marketing and branding. In her spare time she likes to spend time with her young family exploring the great outdoors, making use of her all-terrain mountain buggy and enjoying all things natural and organic. http://feeds.feedburner.com/Faerialit...

Guest Post: Marketing 1 book with 1,662 Postcards (Caroline Rose)

In the last eight months, I've written, labeled, and mailed 1,662 May B. postcards. Yes, really.

Much of marketing a book is like throwing darts, but as I've learned, a personalized, audience-focused dart has more potential to hit the board than those thrown willy-nilly.

I can't take credit for what I've done  -- that goes to Saundra Mitchell and her bossy self-marketing plan. Using her suggested wording, I determined my audience and tweaked what I wrote for each.  My audience:

Kansas schools and libraries Why? May B. takes place in Kansas and is primarily a school and library market title. Also, Kansas Day is 1/29. Teachers are required to teach KS history on or around this day -- perfect for an early January release date!

Plains state/frontier/pioneer museumsWhy? May B.'s focus on the frontier era will ideally interest museums that focus on the plains and pioneer history.

Dyslexia schools and campsWhy? May B. (the character) struggles with dyslexia. While her story is one of a specific time period, ideally her feelings of isolation, shame, confusion -- and ultimately hope -- will resonate with children with disabilities now.

NM schools and librariesWhy? This is where I live! Hopefully that alone will be a start in drawing local interest, library purchases, or speaking opportunities.

My postcards:

For KS schools and libraries:My historical verse novel, May B., is set on the Kansas frontier. It releases 1/10/12, just in time for Kansas Day! I hope you'll consider it for the students of ________ school / for the _______ library's children's collection. I'm available for Skype visits.

For plains state/frontier/pioneer museums and historical societies:My historical verse novel, May B., is set on the frontier. I hope you will consider it for __________. It's a great way to introduce young visitors to the pioneer era.

For dyslexia schools and camps:My historical verse novel, May B., focuses on a child with dyslexia in an era when such struggles were misunderstood. I hope you'll consider it for the students and families of _________ school. I'm available for Skype visits.

For NM schools and libraries:I'm a NM author. My historical verse novel, May B., will appeal to fans of Hatchet and Laura Ingalls Wilder as well as reluctant readers. I hope you'll consider it for the students of ________ school / for the _______ library's children's collection. I'm available for Skype visits.

Results:Roughly 50 postcards have come back to me (incorrect address, no drop box at this address, and -- sadly -- vacant buildings).

Hits to my website increased with each batch I mailed, coming from the locations where postcards were sent.

Roughly 20 people have reached out to me -- teachers, camp directors, directors of learning disability organizations, librarians, and a museum or two.

•   My publicist has sent on ARCs to several responders or contacted marketing to set up direct sales for gift shops. •   One teacher is using May in her classroom this year. •   One NM librarian scheduled an author program. •   Several librarians contacted me to let me know they'd already ordered or planned on ordering my book. •   One camp director would like to share May B. with campers this upcoming summer.

Most postcards probably went straight to the trash. But I have to think that even that brief exposure counted for one of those 3-7 times on average that marketers say a person needs to be shown a product before they respond. My cover in front of new eyes = never a bad thing. Besides, maybe a docent in a prairie museum somewhere took my postcard home to a granddaughter or a local teacher. I'll never know for sure, but thinking this way was enough to keep me motivated.

Will I do it again?

Yes, though I'll probably not send as many. The last five hundred weren't as exciting as the first thousand. In some small way, though, I've taken hold of my book's success by spreading the word, one postcard at a time.

Contributor Bio:

Caroline Starr Rose spent her childhood in the deserts of Saudi Arabia and New Mexico, camping at the Red Sea in one and eating red chile in the other. As a girl she danced ballet, raced through books, composed poetry on an ancient typewriter, and put on magic shows in a homemade cape. She's taught both social studies and English in New Mexico, Florida, Virginia, and Louisiana and is the author of the historical verse novel, May B., and the forthcoming picture book, Over in the Wetlands. 



Visit her at her blog and website.

Have you used Postcards? Do you think they are effective? http://feeds.feedburner.com/Faerialit...

Protected Blog Tour - Cindy Hogan

[image error]

If you haven't heard about Cindy M. Hogan's novels, today's your lucky day. Her first novel, Watched was featured on Jessie's blog here with a "dream cast" for that novel.



Today we will be highlighting her dream cast for her second book, Protected.





First, a little about Protected

[image error]

Christy has the guy. The terrorists have been taken care of and she has a shot at becoming popular. Life is great!

Until they find her.

Now she must run and leave behind everything she knows, including herself.

If you love suspense with a dash of romance, you'll love this novel.







Now for the DREAM CAST- are you ready to drool? [image error] John (Paul Walker) Intolerable, pompous trainer we all love to hate, who just happens to be Alex's dad [image error] Mrs. John(Mila Kunis) Alex's mom who has it in for Christy [image error] Christy's mom (Sian Williams) Overprotective mother who believes so much in her daughter that she overlooks her.

[image error] Christy's dad (Clive Owen) Overprotective dad that overlooks his obedient, quiet child, Christy [image error] Katie Lee (Christina Ricci) Head Bully of the high school. Mean to her core.

[image error] Marion (Lauren Graham) John's facilitator. Makes Christy's life a tad bit better under John's reign [image error] Katy (Sian Williams) Federal Marshall and nanny extraordinaire [image error] Wendy (Lela Rochon) Christy's closest friend on the cheer team

[image error] Lillian (Bella Thorne) Cheer captain who makes sure all the cheerleaders follow "the rules" [image error] Matthew (Logan Lerman) The perfect trainable nerdy boyfriend

[image error] Cort ( Josh Lucas) Agent who teaches Christy to be a master of disguise



What do you think of that cast? Do you agree with Cindy? If you want a peek at the dream cast from her first novel, Watched, go  to Jessie's blog . Of course Christy, Alex and Rick are there.To celebrate the release of Protected(3/24)WATCHED, the first book in the series is only $.99!!  You can get them both at Amazon or Barnes & Noble.  You can also find Cindy online on her blog, here, on Facebook or on Twitter.

To continue on with Cindy's blog tour, please check out She's Got the Write Stuff  blog.



Here's what a few people are saying about Protected:

"A suspenseful, romantic, and intriguing novel. Protected is a riveting novel that I couldn't put down until the very last word." Miriam Barton, author 

"This is one of the very best YA series I have ever read and it's definitely worth picking up."Kitty Bullard- GMTA Reviewer

"From bullies to terrorists, Christy faces challenge after challenge in this stunning sequel that raises the stakes, both for her safety, and her love-life. A fantastic addition to a series that is sure to catch the hearts of readers." ~Heather McCorkle, author of the Channeler series  Here's author Cindy M. Hogan's mug[image error]





http://feeds.feedburner.com/Faerialit...