Marta Szemik's Blog, page 18
November 29, 2011
Liebster Award
A big Thank You to Annalisa Crawford for my Liebster Award. I feel honored and humbled. Check out her cool blog at the link above!
The good, the bad and the ugly...
No word for this post - I'm sorry, but I'm in a little bit of a hurry typing as I'm in the hospital with my daughter (see the 'ugly')
The Good:
My vacation was great! The flight as expected, full of knots and tight spots in my stomach, but all right. We had a wonderful time and great weather. Thank you to everyone for all the nice comments regarding the flight. The trip back home, not so good (see the bad). I apologize for not posting earlier, but 'the ugly' in my personal life was very 'ugly' and had to deal with family first.
The good is that I was able to upload Two Halves on Sunday to Smashwords successfully. It is now availailable in HTML, PDF, EPUB and more on that site. Distribution to B&N and Apple etc... pending approval. I also uploaded it to Amazon, but have not been able to check the status yet. Nevertheless, I'm very excited that the novel is out there for people to see. You can preveiw the first few chapters, see if you like it, and if so buy it. If not, don't buy it. I love that feature.
The Bad:
I have limited access to the computer over the next few days due to my kids illness. They got sick on the way home and we're still trying to figure out what bug they have. The good news is that they're better, but there's nothing worse than sick kids. I honestly wish I could take their illness away and put it on me. I think more parents are liket that.
The Ugly:
A little combination of bad and ugly here. We got home Sunday morning, I uploaded the book, kids got the runnies and vomiting, ended up at the hospital on Monday morning with one of their kidneys almost shutting down. They're both better now. One at home with hubby and one at hospital. Things are improving which makes me excited and eager. I promise to be back in full force in answering questions and connecting once they're both home.
Until then, I hope you enjoy Two Halves :) I can't believe the time is actually here and Two Halves is out there for everyone to see. I should also have some cool news about "Marked: A Two Halves Novella" by next week. I love this novella! Written from a male POV - A character I fell in love with while writing Two Halves.
The Good:
My vacation was great! The flight as expected, full of knots and tight spots in my stomach, but all right. We had a wonderful time and great weather. Thank you to everyone for all the nice comments regarding the flight. The trip back home, not so good (see the bad). I apologize for not posting earlier, but 'the ugly' in my personal life was very 'ugly' and had to deal with family first.
The good is that I was able to upload Two Halves on Sunday to Smashwords successfully. It is now availailable in HTML, PDF, EPUB and more on that site. Distribution to B&N and Apple etc... pending approval. I also uploaded it to Amazon, but have not been able to check the status yet. Nevertheless, I'm very excited that the novel is out there for people to see. You can preveiw the first few chapters, see if you like it, and if so buy it. If not, don't buy it. I love that feature.
The Bad:
I have limited access to the computer over the next few days due to my kids illness. They got sick on the way home and we're still trying to figure out what bug they have. The good news is that they're better, but there's nothing worse than sick kids. I honestly wish I could take their illness away and put it on me. I think more parents are liket that.
The Ugly:
A little combination of bad and ugly here. We got home Sunday morning, I uploaded the book, kids got the runnies and vomiting, ended up at the hospital on Monday morning with one of their kidneys almost shutting down. They're both better now. One at home with hubby and one at hospital. Things are improving which makes me excited and eager. I promise to be back in full force in answering questions and connecting once they're both home.
Until then, I hope you enjoy Two Halves :) I can't believe the time is actually here and Two Halves is out there for everyone to see. I should also have some cool news about "Marked: A Two Halves Novella" by next week. I love this novella! Written from a male POV - A character I fell in love with while writing Two Halves.
November 18, 2011
I hate flying...
WORD FOR THIS POST:
Aerobe (n): A microorganism that can live and grow only where free oxygen is present.
I am almost ready for my vacation. Very excited, but I hate flying. I've flown so many times, and I hate flying. I will say my Hail Mary's and still hate flying. Did I mention I hate flying? I'm one of those people you don't want to sit beside on a plane. I will not take off my seat belt. I will not go to the bathroom, I will grip the handles on the takeoff and landing until my knuckles are white. I hate flying and I'm only doing it because of my family and because I need a vacation more than hate flying.
I have to take a good few shots at the airport's bar before going on an airplane, just so I can get on. I always sit at the back of the plane, because studies show that's the part that get's left behind should you crash on takeoff or landing. Just writing about this makes me think I'm jinxing myself. There's nothing in the world I hate more than flying.
Yes, the probability of getting into a car accident is much higher than being in a plane crash, but tell that to the people who survived a plane crash. Plus, you're in control of your own vehicle and can't control the plane and we all know I have control issues :)
And, it's not like you can stop in the air to pull over. I wish we could just teleport like in Star Treck. Ok, I think I can start drinking now...
So, having said that, here are the blogs for this Friday.
1. Smashwords: useful updates for writers, agents, publishers w.r.t. ebook publishing.
2. Trac Changes: I only discovered this blog this week. There's a great post on the trends in YA cover design.
3. JA Konrath: I know I've mentioned Joe before, but I had to mention his blog again, specifically the latest post. Newbie writers beware! There are many changes going on in the publishing industry. Get all of your information before making decisions or signing contracts, paying for things you can get done for free or cheaper.
Okay, time to go zip up the suitcases. I will be away all week next week, and unless I'm able to find a computer where I'm at, I won't be able to blog (and I think my husband would kill me if I blogged on a family vacation). We'll see if I can get enough beer into him, perhaps he won't notice, but I'm not promising anything. Worst case scenario, my next post will be up on Nov 28th, with an update.
Aerobe (n): A microorganism that can live and grow only where free oxygen is present.
I am almost ready for my vacation. Very excited, but I hate flying. I've flown so many times, and I hate flying. I will say my Hail Mary's and still hate flying. Did I mention I hate flying? I'm one of those people you don't want to sit beside on a plane. I will not take off my seat belt. I will not go to the bathroom, I will grip the handles on the takeoff and landing until my knuckles are white. I hate flying and I'm only doing it because of my family and because I need a vacation more than hate flying.
I have to take a good few shots at the airport's bar before going on an airplane, just so I can get on. I always sit at the back of the plane, because studies show that's the part that get's left behind should you crash on takeoff or landing. Just writing about this makes me think I'm jinxing myself. There's nothing in the world I hate more than flying.
Yes, the probability of getting into a car accident is much higher than being in a plane crash, but tell that to the people who survived a plane crash. Plus, you're in control of your own vehicle and can't control the plane and we all know I have control issues :)
And, it's not like you can stop in the air to pull over. I wish we could just teleport like in Star Treck. Ok, I think I can start drinking now...
So, having said that, here are the blogs for this Friday.
1. Smashwords: useful updates for writers, agents, publishers w.r.t. ebook publishing.
2. Trac Changes: I only discovered this blog this week. There's a great post on the trends in YA cover design.
3. JA Konrath: I know I've mentioned Joe before, but I had to mention his blog again, specifically the latest post. Newbie writers beware! There are many changes going on in the publishing industry. Get all of your information before making decisions or signing contracts, paying for things you can get done for free or cheaper.
Okay, time to go zip up the suitcases. I will be away all week next week, and unless I'm able to find a computer where I'm at, I won't be able to blog (and I think my husband would kill me if I blogged on a family vacation). We'll see if I can get enough beer into him, perhaps he won't notice, but I'm not promising anything. Worst case scenario, my next post will be up on Nov 28th, with an update.
November 15, 2011
Timing is Everything
WORD FOR THIS POST:
Whoop-de-do: lively and noisy festivities; merrymaking.
Let's address the Word for this post first. This is one of three definitions, but that's not the reason I put it up today, The reason is that I never thought "whoop-de-do" was an actual word in the Webster's dictionary and that it had a definition. I knew what it meant, but found it funny that's it's actually a word. I found some other ones as well, but I'll keep them for other posts.
Timing is Everything. How? Well, I decided to upload Two Halves "earlier" than Dec.1st. just to make sure everything is working and I'm glad I did, because it didn't work. Couple of reasons:
1. My document had a double extension of .docx.doc instead of .doc which I didn't see until someone who knows files and computers better than I do "diagnosed" it for me. But, the upload fail was a blessing in disguise, because...
2.... of ISBNs. I know we get free ones from Smashwords, but never really understood the meaning behind them until I did more digging. As Canadian Authors we get them for free from Canadian ISBN Service System: Library and Archives Canada. Well, since I am publishing under my company MyLit Publishing, that's who I want listed as my publisher when sales are tracked. In order to do that, I need my own ISBNs. So, that's what I'm waiting for now. Ordered on Nov 10th, I expect to have them sometime this week (5-10 bussiness days). Which means, thank goodness I didn't upload the original file. (Hence the Timing is Everything title for this post) But...
3.... this puts me on a tighter deadline. Since I will be away for a week and will not return until Nov 27th, I have to upload the book that day so that it can "flow through" all the appropriate channels in time for the release. I'm pretty sure I'm still fine, because everything was formatted according to instructions and is ready to go. It's just a matter of attaching the ISBN to the title.
Ideally, I'd get the ISBNs this week, upload before I leave and have a peaceful vacation - but we all know that's not how life works.
Another note to any Canadian's publishing through Smashwords or Amazon: get your EIN (Employer ID Number) from the IRS to qualify for the 0% tax rate due to the treaty US has with Canada. Otherwise I think a 30% tax rate will be applied to your earnings. Get more info on the IRS website. At first it scared me to go through the information, but it's not as hard as it seems. I ended up 50 minutes on hold, then after a 5 minute conversation I had my EIN.
Disclaimer: always check your country's rules and regulations re: taxation and learn how to comply with other countries.
So, I just thought I'd share this info with those planning to go the route I have. This was the first challenge I really faced so far. Now it's wait time... I'll let you know if I'm able to load it before I go away for the weekend.
Have a great day everyone!
Whoop-de-do: lively and noisy festivities; merrymaking.
Let's address the Word for this post first. This is one of three definitions, but that's not the reason I put it up today, The reason is that I never thought "whoop-de-do" was an actual word in the Webster's dictionary and that it had a definition. I knew what it meant, but found it funny that's it's actually a word. I found some other ones as well, but I'll keep them for other posts.
Timing is Everything. How? Well, I decided to upload Two Halves "earlier" than Dec.1st. just to make sure everything is working and I'm glad I did, because it didn't work. Couple of reasons:
1. My document had a double extension of .docx.doc instead of .doc which I didn't see until someone who knows files and computers better than I do "diagnosed" it for me. But, the upload fail was a blessing in disguise, because...
2.... of ISBNs. I know we get free ones from Smashwords, but never really understood the meaning behind them until I did more digging. As Canadian Authors we get them for free from Canadian ISBN Service System: Library and Archives Canada. Well, since I am publishing under my company MyLit Publishing, that's who I want listed as my publisher when sales are tracked. In order to do that, I need my own ISBNs. So, that's what I'm waiting for now. Ordered on Nov 10th, I expect to have them sometime this week (5-10 bussiness days). Which means, thank goodness I didn't upload the original file. (Hence the Timing is Everything title for this post) But...
3.... this puts me on a tighter deadline. Since I will be away for a week and will not return until Nov 27th, I have to upload the book that day so that it can "flow through" all the appropriate channels in time for the release. I'm pretty sure I'm still fine, because everything was formatted according to instructions and is ready to go. It's just a matter of attaching the ISBN to the title.
Ideally, I'd get the ISBNs this week, upload before I leave and have a peaceful vacation - but we all know that's not how life works.
Another note to any Canadian's publishing through Smashwords or Amazon: get your EIN (Employer ID Number) from the IRS to qualify for the 0% tax rate due to the treaty US has with Canada. Otherwise I think a 30% tax rate will be applied to your earnings. Get more info on the IRS website. At first it scared me to go through the information, but it's not as hard as it seems. I ended up 50 minutes on hold, then after a 5 minute conversation I had my EIN.
Disclaimer: always check your country's rules and regulations re: taxation and learn how to comply with other countries.
So, I just thought I'd share this info with those planning to go the route I have. This was the first challenge I really faced so far. Now it's wait time... I'll let you know if I'm able to load it before I go away for the weekend.
Have a great day everyone!
