Meradeth Houston's Blog, page 87

Post Book Release Marketing Tips, Tricks, and Help!

I wish this was one of those awesome informational posts that would spell out a hundred different ways in which to boost book sales after the release of your book. It's not. Really, what this is is me going "okay, people of the blogging world, tell me what you think works best." And I am really hoping I can get some good discussion going, and get some good points, so that I can do one of those super informational posts in the near future :)

Anyhow, here's the deal: for the release of my book, I felt like I had a pretty good handle on what most people do, what I could handle, and hopefully have it work pretty well. And that was all great. I know a ton of awesome bloggers and book people, and I had a blast! Now my books been out for a few months though and I'm trying to figure out how to get some momentum going. As in, ya know, selling more books without being totally obnoxious. I have a massive fear of being seriously annoying... Anyhow, what I'd love to hear from you all is what do you think works best for selling books once your book has been released?

I've been doing fun little guest pieces on other blogs (I love these!), and requesting lots of reviews from book bloggers (those are trickling in slowly but surely, and have been mostly incredibly nice). I have giveaways going on other sites (like here and here, if you're so inclined to go enter!). I know I can reach out to more people, but I guess I'm not sure where to start, of even if that's the right route to take.

What have you seen or done? What's been a great contest you've entered that caught your interest? Ideas welcome and very much sought!

After Reading: The Diviners

By Libba Bray


Evie O'Neill has been exiled from her boring old hometown and shipped off to the bustling streets of New York City--and she is pos-i-toot-ly thrilled. New York is the city of speakeasies, shopping, and movie palaces! Soon enough, Evie is running with glamorous Ziegfield girls and rakish pickpockets. The only catch is Evie has to live with her Uncle Will, curator of The Museum of American Folklore, Superstition, and the Occult--also known as "The Museum of the Creepy Crawlies."


When a rash of occult-based murders comes to light, Evie and her uncle are right in the thick of the investigation. And through it all, Evie has a secret: a mysterious power that could help catch the killer--if he doesn't catch her first.


I won a copy of this over on Karin's Book Nook, and was super excited to read it. I loved the Gemma Doyle trilogy, and while Bray's contemporary novels were fun and entertaining, she really nails the historicals. And 1920's New York? So fun! I'll admit, though, at the start I kind of wanted to kill Evie. She's exactly like some of the female students I get in my class from time to time that make me want to go "AHHH, you are not the center of the universe!" But, she really had such a strong character arc, and so much spunk, that I found myself loving her by the end of the (very long) book. There was plenty of adventure, murder, and intrigue to keep things going, and a nice open ending to allow for more books dealing with the characters. (I also have to add a note about the hundred side characters here--they were awesome, and several of them left me swooning...) So, yeah, mark this one as to-read when it comes out in September--it's not to be missed!

Anyone else enjoy the Gemma Doyle books? How about Bray's contemporaries? I'd love to hear your thoughts!
**Also, I feel compelled to add that I have a fun guest post up on The Romance Bookie (very much worth a swing-by), and there are two giveaways going on for copies of Colors Like Memories: at Behind a Million and One Pages, and Seeing Night Reviews. Both are super simple to enter--stop on by!**

Sunday is for Photos: the caption edition!

Today I was feeling all nostalgic and have spent a good deal of time going through photos. (Um, wow, do we have a lot!) Anyhow, I can't believe how many random ones we have of people on the street, or who are just randomly in our shots. Case in point, this photo, taken of two high school boys in Osaka, Japan :) Hubby took it, and it's pretty interesting I think.

So, here's what I'm asking: tell me what they're talking about. I'd love to hear what you're imagination is inserting here! No prizes or anything, just the glory of creating your own meme :)

(And I know commenting is sometimes a strain on this blog. I think it depends on which browser you're using, and you have to click on the blog entry title before IntenseDebate opens up. A pox on IntenseDebate, I swear!)

Cover Reveal for Uncontrollable by SR Johannes

The sequel to Untraceable is due out Sept. 24th, and here is its awesome cover! Beautiful, as always :)

As Grace recovers from tragedy, her science class is chosen by Agent Sweeney at the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service to help with research on the new "Red Wolf Reintroduction Program".

While she’s excited about helping with the conservation of the endangered wolves, Grace knows this means being outdoors in the worst winter recorded, in a place she no longer feels comfortable. It also means working closely with Wyn (her ex) and his annoying girlfriend (Skyler), a girl whose idea of getting close to nature is growing silk plants.

After a couple wolves show up dead, Grace almost quits. When a fellow project team member goes missing, Grace continues the assignment under a renewed suspicion that someone might be sabotaging the conservation program. She quietly begins to hunt for clues. 
Little does she know, she is being hunted too.

And possibly by more than one person.
===================

PRAISES FOR UNTRACEABLE

"Grace is a spunky, independent, nature girl who doesn't need a boy to save her. With wilderness survival, a juicy love triangle, and more twists and turns than a roller coaster, this fast-paced novel had me holding my breath until the very last page—and still begging for more!" -Kimberly Derting, author of the The Body Finder series (Harper Teen) and The Pledge series (S&S)

"This thrilling story is a dramatic entanglement of mystery, deception and teen romance. The action flows like a brisk mountain stream interspersed with rapids, holding suspense to last page." - Kirkus Reviews
"Johannes has done a marvelous job of creating a suspense-filled mystery with surprises that keep you guessing all the way to the end. Untraceable is a thoroughly engrossing and riveting page-turner." -IndieReader

Bio S.R. Johannes is the author of award-winning and Amazon bestselling Untraceable (a teen wilderness thriller) and new tween paranormal, On The Bright Side. She has also published short novelettes as well as a teen romance anthology with 16 other authors titled, In His Eyes.  Uncontrollable, the sequel to Untraceable, is scheduled for September 2012.
Shelli has a contest going on over at her website, too, which you should totally go check out :)
(AND, if you're looking for contests, there are two fun places you can win a copy of Colors Like Memories: Seeing Night Reviews, and Behind a Million and One Pages!)

Giveaway for Colors Like Memories on Seeing Night Reviews

Just a quick post here today to say that you can read most of the first chapter of Colors Like Memories, and enter to win a copy over on Seeing Night Reviews (a great book review blog, btw, totally worth a follow!).

Hope everyone's having a good Tuesday!!

After Reading: Fallen In Love, and Rapture

By Lauren Kate


Unexpected. Unrequited. Forbidden. Eternal. Everyone has their own love story.


And in a twist of fate, four extraordinary love stories combine over the course of a romantic Valentine's Day in Medieval England. Miles and Shelby find love where they 
least expect it. Roland learns a painful lesson about finding-and losing love. Arianne pays the price for a love so fierce it burns. And for the first -and last- time, Daniel and Luce will spend a night together like none other.



The sky is dark with wings . . . .


Like sand in an hourglass, time is running out for Luce and Daniel. To stop Lucifer from erasing the past they must find the place where the angels fell to earth. Dark forces are after them, and Daniel doesn’t know if he can do this—live only to lose Luce again and again.


Yet together they will face an epic battle that will end with lifeless bodies . . . and angel dust. Great sacrifices are made. Hearts are destroyed. And suddenly Luce knows what must happen.


For she was meant to be with someone other than Daniel. The curse they’ve borne has always and only been about her—and the love she cast aside. The choice she makes now will be the only one that truly matters.


In the fight for Luce, who will win?

(Before, I start, I have a really random but fun post about my book buy obsession up on The Midnight Book Thief, & some funny pics to go along with it, so check it out!)

Alrighty then, I'm just going to try and review both of these together today :) Starting off with Fallen In Love: the back-story for several of the characters. I did really enjoy getting to see how a few of the characters had had their own stories over the centuries--that was really interesting and unique. I felt like the story was a little forced in places, because it all takes place during a single time period (over the course of one day), but that's okay. I loved the characters enough to enjoy checking them out here, and it was a super quick read.

Honestly, I finished Rapture a couple of days ago and I'm *still* thinking about it. I know a lot of people really haven't been fond of this series--wow, just wow to the comments on Goodreads--but I've loved it. Read the series several times all the way through, that kind of loved it. It's fun and interesting, and yes it has angels so that probably helped spark my interest :) Anyhow, this was a good final book to the series. Lots of adventure and seeing new places, and Kate allowed some time for Luce and Daniel to actually be together, which was nice, because for the most part they haven't spent much time together, and that kind of annoys me. How do people fall in love when they haven't even held a conversation that doesn't involve arguing? Seriously. Anyhow, I'm not so sure about the ending. I won't get into spoilers here, but if anyone wants to shout out in the comment, I'd love to hear what you think! It was just, well, I don't know, unsatisfying to some degree.

I'd love to hear what you thought? Have you read anything from this series?

Sunday is for Photos x18

A couple of days ago, I agreed to let my little Mountain Man brother take me on a hike (and I'm *still* sore!). We decided to head up by Lake Berryessa, which is really close to where we live. I love this area, all its little creeks and golden grass with giant green oak trees. And the lake from the top of the giant mountain we climbed provided a spectacular view. These aren't great pics, but I thought I'd share. I was up there, totally getting in touch with my current WIP, which is set nearby :) Anyhow, a couple of photos of my pretty "backyard."
Oh, and I have an interview up over on The Cheap Reader--I'm talking about people watching & dead people's DNA, so stop on by and say hello. Also, there will be a giveaway for a copy of Colors Like Memories starting later this week. I'll be posting deets on that soon!

Pitch Contest with Agent Tricia Lawrence on Fresh as a Daisy

Holy moley, this contest is TOMORROW MORNING, as in June 29th, with a short submission window, so if you're interested, go forth and check it out! Super simple entry methods and a great way to get your query in front of an agent! (This is for kids books, just fyi :)

All the details here! Daisy is awesome, too, so you should check out the rest of her blog while you're at it :)

After Reading: Nightwatch

by Sergei Lukyanenko, Andrew Bromfield (Translator),

Set in modern day Moscow, Night Watch is a world as elaborate and imaginative as Tolkien or the best Asimov. Living among us are the "Others," an ancient race of humans with supernatural powers who swear allegiance to either the Dark or the Light. A thousand-year treaty has maintained the balance of power, and the two sides coexist in an uneasy truce. But an ancient prophecy decrees that one supreme "Other" will rise up and tip the balance, plunging the world into a catastrophic war between the Dark and the Light. When a young boy with extraordinary powers emerges, fulfilling the first half of the prophecy, will the forces of the Light be able to keep the Dark from corrupting the boy and destroying the world?

I was feeling the need to branch out into some more "adult" books, and I absolutely loved the movie of this book, so when I stumbled across it at the library book sale, I snapped it up!

First off, it's really, really different from the movie :) I was expecting that, so it's cool, and I still highly recommend checking out the movie. (It's on Netflix, and IMDB). I had a Russian friend tell me that she hated the movie because of all the product placement in it, but honestly I didn't notice that at all (her comment kind of cracked me up, really).

Anyhow, the book itself was really interesting. I particularly enjoyed the first of the three parts, as I felt like it had the smoothest storyline and plot. The second two halves spend a bit too much time philosophizing (it is a Russian novel, so I don't know why I thought it might not be so heavy in this area!), for my taste. That being said, the characters and world is amazingly imagined, and detailed to the point where it feels like you're falling into the the story (always my favorite kind of thing to have happen!). If you're up for a really interesting, different type of Urban Fantasy, this one is def one to check out. Also, if you're looking for something to catch on Netflix tonight, the movie was really pretty cool :)

Strange questions I get asked as an author: blood & gore

So, now that my book has been out for a while, and many of my friends have read it (which I still find incredibly random--kind of like I stripped down naked and wandered around my workplace for the day. That is a really gross comparison...), I've noticed a pattern in some of the questions that come up. One I've received a few times is that people are totally caught off guard by the bloody scene at the end of my book. (This is only mildly spoilery, I swear. I'm not going to tell you whose blood it is!)

Anyhow, some people seem to think that I wouldn't write about something like that. I guess this goes hand in hand with not using swear words. But, honestly, the story called for the scene that has the blood in it, and I wanted to make it as accurate as possible (I'm usually the one watching a film/show rolling my eyes at how inaccurate the way a wound or death is portrayed--that has always annoyed me for some reason). So, yeah, there's some blood (okay, lots of it), and I don't really feel bad about it. I really wanted to get across how much it freaked out my MC, and how really not pretty it is to die a particular way.

The thing that surprises me is that people are implying that they didn't think I had that kind of imagination. Which is kind of funny, in my opinion. I write about dead people who can fly. My twitter handle notes that I sequence dead people (for fun!). I'm a *tad* bit morbid. Maybe this doesn't come across in person quite so well. That's probably a good thing, lol!!

Okay, let me ask a question of you all: has anyone gotten questions about their writing that implies the reader didn't think your imagination could go a particular way? Did it make you laugh, or annoy you? I'd love to hear about it (and not feel like the only one in this boat!).