Maegan Provan's Blog, page 9

You Really Should be a Part of the Next Blog Tour

Facebook Group

 

The tour is only a few months away and we are looking for as many authors and bloggers that are willing to volunteer their time as possible. This is not a paid/ pay for gig, so no one will be making money. We are also looking for ideas. If you have something to share, please join us on our Facebook group (click the image for the link.)

Twitter Wars: #AskELJames

I understand that I tend to go against popular opinion, but I was so tired of seeing all of the “poor EL James” blog posts. This is all I am going to say about it.

Everyone seems to have an opinion about the explosion of anti-50 Shades tweets following a failed public AMA for EL James on Twitter under the hastag #AskELJames. While most people felt sorry for EL, I have to say that I honestly don’t. While a few questions were a bit outlandish, hundreds of those questions were completely legitimate. Questions about her feelings on condoning abuse; what she really feels about domestic violence; does she even view what she “wrote” as domestic violence? The list goes on and on. I understand that we as authors need to stand together, but don’t those that are victims of abuse, harassment, stalking, (etc), and those against it deserve to speak their mind as much as those who love the 50 Shades “saga”?

I was discussing the fiasco with a co-worker a couple of days ago and her reply was that she was still going to watch the movie (maybe not read the “books”, but that’s because she doesn’t have a lot of time). When I spoke to her about the abuse disguised as romance as well as the poor writing, her only response was that there had to be something to it, the books have sold millions of copies. That honestly stopped me. She had a point. EL James is laughing all the way to the bank because people are buying her “work”. But are people wrong for speaking out against her simply because she is making that kind of money and getting that kind of attention for a Twilight fan-fiction?

Here is what I will concede to: Yes, EL James put herself and her “work” out there and she got published. She did something that most people only dream of. No matter what the real quality of the “work”, or the desperation level of the reader, she truly did gain fame for her “writing”. It takes a lot to even attempt to present something to a publisher, so that is a big deal. And yes, she got a movie deal and was able to get even more people on board the 50 Shades wagon.

I am honestly tired of reading people calling the nay-sayers “jealous” or whatever because they have spoke their mind. And quite frankly, I’m tired of seeing the same people who were bashing her just a week ago, going around telling everyone to have sympathy and be kind to her. EL James has misrepresented the BDSM culture; she has skewed what a relationship really is; she has furthered the idea that you can change a man if you do everything that he says because he will eventually come around. Because that’s healthy and rational thinking. Teaching women that they should submit themselves to torture, stalking, harassment, and other forms of abuse all in the name of love it the right thing to teach them… Seriously?

Again, I understand that we are authors should stick together, and harassment (no matter what form) is not fair to anyone. We should never bully or troll because it’s wrong to treat people that way. Honestly, I didn’t see that many authors participated in the #AskELJames thing to begin with. If I were to meet EL James I would commend her on her success, as we all should because she did “work hard”, but I would be very honest about the fact that I think what she has “written” is the absolute wrong thing to be teaching anyone. I think that I would be willing to take her seriously if she were to write something of substance. Something with analogies that made sense, descriptions that weren’t completely outlandish and ridiculous, and physically possible expressions. Something with strong characters that didn’t have to cowtow to oversexualized, misrepresented classes and speak out against rape, and violence towards women. Why can’t someone just speak up and say “If you really think you can change a man with your love, then you need to reevaluate how you feel about yourself.”

I don’t think I’m a feminist ((because I haven’t thought about it one way or another. I am not informed enough about feminism to legitimately claim that I am. This is not a comment on feminism itself)), but women deserve happiness and relationships that aren’t like Christian and Anastasia’s. If you truly think you want a Christian Grey in your life, then you really need to take a good long look in the mirror. You are not defined by your relationship with a man, you are defined by your character. If you find the idea of being a doormat romantic, then you need some serious counselling. Nothing makes me walk away from a book faster than the Mary-Sue, do-it-for-your-man attitude more and more female characters that are developing because of the pseudo-protagonists 50 Shades is breeding.

So, in close, I do think that some of the crap people asked her was stupid and pointless, but the majority of it was valid. If a man had written a book like that, he would have been pushed out of the market before anyone knew his name. 50 Shades is not romantic, it is not ideal, it is sick and twisted. How about, instead of condemning the people that asked legitimate questions, and defending a woman from things she probably could do to answer for, we admit to what that “series” is, admit that we all thought about asking the same questions that many people did ask, and go on about our day. Those that are calling for pity on EL James need to get off of their high horses because we have all had those same comments, we just never said anything about it. I am not saying we take to the streets and beat the woman senseless. Nor am I saying that we should harass or bully her. I am simply saying we all need to move on. It is what it is. Part of being an author is living with criticism, accepting it, and trying to better ourselves. I know that if this has happened to a self-pub author, we would be telling them “stiff upper lip, it’s all part of the business.”

 

How to Write a Book You’ll Hate

Maegan Provan:

#sarcasm! (not sarcasm->) This is absolutely amazing. Every author can relate to these feelings, I’m sure. Post perfection from Tricia Drammeh

Originally posted on Tricia Drammeh:

Most authors worry about how their book will be received by others. What if people hate it? What if they leave a scathing review? Well, writing a book everyone will like is easy! Anyone can do it, right? Wrong!

If you want to write a book everyone will hate (including you), here’s how to do it:

Don’t settle for one genre. Add a mixture of all of them! Try writing a romantic-mystery-thriller with horror elements and a feel-good ending. Or an erotic-Christian-epic fantasy book that appeals to readers of all ages.
Be original. If you write about magic, people will accuse you of copying Harry Potter. Same with erotica. You don’t want anyone to compare your work to 50 Shades. Write something so unique, readers won’t have any idea what it is.
Follow the latest trends. It’s silly and self-indulgent to write what you like. Your book is for the readers…

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Why I am Currently More Concerned with Writing

Self-publishing 101 is an intense push on the importance of marketing yourself and social media. I have a Youtube, this blog, my website, a Facebook Page, AND a Twitter. This time last year I was more concerned about how important growing my platforms was and growing my book sales than actually writing. I, like every other author on the planet (whether they admit it or not), want to be noticed. I want my books to be successful and I want everyone to read everything I’ve written. That was all fine and dandy until the progress on completing my second book ground to a screeching halt. It took me almost two years to complete Jeremy and I learned a lot about myself and my writing process during that time. I wanted to share with you a bit more insight into my hiatuses, my social presence, and why I’ve changed my point of view.

I like to think that I am telling an interesting story about vampires. That I’m telling a different type of story about vampires. I mean, how many stories are out there from a vampire’s perspective of their situation? Turns out there are quite a few. I figured that the only way to boost the sales of my one  novel were to go social media crazy. I joined like-for-like groups and pages. I hosted an ungodly amount of freebie days. I promised that my second novel was on it’s way. Never mind that I was working a full time job and barely spending any time writing. If I just got people to notice me, I could build my audience and then work on my writing.

It turns out that people don’t want to start a series that only has one book out and then have to wait almost two years for the next one. All that time I spent perfecting and redesigning my website, all of the like-for-like, advertisements, and what not were not getting me any where. I mean, all of those like-for-like groups are authors liking other author’s pages. Other authors are concerned with getting their own books out there and typically don’t go out and buy every book the authors that they’ve liked have written. I thought that I just needed a schedule. If I built up my readership on my blog, and gave myself a schedule, then I could figure out a time to write and everything would be good. And there I was wrong again.

I know that I mentioned my move last year multiple times. There was a time there that I thought I would build my Youtube channel and get a viewership going and that was going to be the key to getting readers. I replicated my schedule to my Youtube and did most of my posts via video. I took the Youtube Partner Academy courses and bought a new camera. I really thought that that was going to be the key to my success.

Surprise! It didn’t happen.

I wondered and wondered what I was doing wrong. I was stressing myself about about building this blog and my channel. I finally realized that the one thing I wasn’t doing was writing. I wasn’t actually doing the thing that I wanted to be successful at. I was spending all of my time and energy on everything else that I seemed to be losing sight of my work. I felt like an idiot.

So I went on hiatus. I didn’t write here as much, my Facebook posts were limited without much information, my only Tweets pertained to things on television, I hardly vlogged at all, and I wrote. Mind you, writing short stories and a novel at the same time is not easy. It took me a long time to get to a point where I thought I would be comfortable doing it all again. Except when I went off of hiatus, things didn’t go according to plan. I still had work to do on the novel and responsibilities at home and at my full time job.

That’s when I made the decision to do away with the schedule. I still do participate with stuff on social media, and I clearly still blog, but I don’t stress myself out. Heck, I even organized a blog tour (and a second one is in the works). This time I am doing things on my own terms. Success is not measured in the number of Facebook followers you have, or the amount of people you can annoy with your over abundance of self-promotion. Success is being able to take your life and work into your own hands and creating something that you love. I wish I had learned this lesson earlier, I might have more books out.

I will say that your books are never going to sell if people don’t know that they exist, but I think that we should all spend more time on doing what we love. I have no idea how my books sales will look in the future. All I have is my characters and Microsoft Word… and I’m pretty happy.

The rating binge

I think we’ve all been guilty of this from time to time. You love books and you don’t really think about reviewing the book you just finished before picking up the next. Before you know it, you’ve gone through 10 books and you really need to get your reviews done. I know plenty of people that have blogs devoted to book reviews, or are professional reviewers, and even more people that just take reviewing books seriously. Regardless of where you fall on that list, you like to share your opinion about books, which is awesome.

Something that I find myself doing on the traditionally published books, when I’m on a roll and I don’t have any new opinion about the book or the author, is that I will just do a star rating. Anyone that visits my Goodreads reviews can see which books I have done this with. I also do this with books that I read when I was much younger and sites like Goodreads weren’t even a thing yet. I will say, however, that at most I’ve found myself rating no more than 5-15 books at a time. This is my preference and not to be mistaken for me “laying down the law” but it got me thinking.

Bookworms tend to read more than the average person. We’re never with out our Kindle, Nook, or a good old book in our hands. We have hundreds of reviews under our belt and no qualms about who knows it. Some of us do our due diligence by sharing our opinions (either by reviews or rating) because we want other people to know what we may or may not have liked. But when is rating a lot of books too much rating?

This is a question I found myself asking when I came across a person on Goodreads that had a couple thousand ratings on her account (which isn’t unheard of) but she had just recently gone on a rating binge and had rated 500 books in a day. My first thought was that she had a serious back log to catch up on. My second thought was whether some of those ratings were legitimate or not. I value the reviews I read for certain books because I am interested but I legitimately want to know what people think. Should I take a rating at face value, even though it could be a binge rating?

I would sincerely love to hear your comments on this (for lack of a better term) “phenomena.” Please know that I am not trying to bash anyone’s methodology, I am just trying to get some insight. All views welcome!

The bad with the good: Kindle Unlimited’s new algorithm

**I want to preface this whole thing by saying that I do think the new algorithm is a lot more self-published author friendly and a great way for more authors to get more out of their published works.**

People have the notion that self-publishing is easy. You just write whatever you want, scarcely edit, and throw it up on Amazon for the world to buy and love. That idea has driven people to use self-publishing as a get rich quick scheme. Haphazard covers and poor story lines have overrun an already saturated market. It makes it hard for those stories that have true merit to gain any forward momentum.

With Kindle Unlimited being less than a year old, it has already established itself among the truly subscription based systems that people are really into now days. Commonly referred to as “Netflix for books” Kindle Unlimited allows readers to pay a measly $9.99 a month and they have access to every registered book in the KU catalog. This saves readers (especially those that can’t go 5 minutes without a book) hundreds of dollars. Originally, authors that had books enrolled in the KU program got their royalty payment if the reader got through 10% of the book. Not bad, I mean, a person doesn’t even have to finish your book for you to get something.

The new algorithm was easily and well explained by Susan Wylie Wilson:

 This is the math: They are counting the total number of pages read. So if your book is 146 pages, and they read only 145 pages, you get paid for that 145 pages. They will add up all the pages read total by all the readers who read your work. So if 200 people download and READ your 146 page book all the way through, they will do the math. That would be 29,000 pages read. Then they would take that number and multiply it by the total fund for the month, in their scenario that’s $10 million, which is 290 billion. Then they divide that by the total number of pages read that month by all of their readers, in this scenario that is 100 million pages. Which gives you a profit of $2,900. In that same vein, lets say that your book is 146 pages long, and 150 people read it all the way through, 40 people read to page 144, and 10 people read only to page 20, then you would have 27,860 pages read, then in that same scenario, you would make a profit of $2, 786

Author added Just saw this for clarification: “A little clarification: A 100-page book will only pay 10x as much as a 10-page book assuming both are read completely through to the end. Page counts also are determined based on where “Chapter 1″ starts, so front matter isn’t counted. A 100-page book read to page 10 will garner the same royalty as a 10-page book read to completion.”

So how can someone look at these amazing new figures with any kind of hesitation? The author looking to get rich quick could throw together a few short, poorly constructed pieces, make them KU exclusive, and wait. If a book is part of KU, the reader isn’t paying anything for books so they are more likely to download anything and everything. Now I am not certain if there are limitations to the number of pages that must be read (which there must be) but someone can crank out a 10 page novella, and with a little puppetry work, they can be making a decent amount of money. It’s frustrating to see.

All in all, I hope this doesn’t discourage short story authors from continuing to make their works KU exclusive if they so choose, but I do hope that this weeds out the schemers. This is a step forward for self-publishing authors and allows them to get the funding they deserve. This may also help further reduce piracy because people won’t have to wait for a book torrent to be available for them to get it for free. I don’t mean to poo poo on the KU service because this truly is a great thing. I just hope those deserving of success see it.

Uma Thurman- Fall Out Boy

 

My most recent obsession. I shared just the song on this one because the video is really stupid IMO (I do not own the rights to this song in any way shape or form. No copyright infringement intended. )

Writing Goals- Better Late than Never

So the year is already half over and I have only just committed to my writing goals. After a conversation with the always inspiring Joleene Naylor and Tricia Drammeh, I actually spoke the goals that I had been keeping quietly locked away in my head. I had figured that if I told anyone what they were, I would have to commit. Well, I’ve told my two closest writing companions and now I have to commit. I could choose not to admit them to you; I could have kept it in locked away. The conversation was private, so no one would know. But as I’ve said before, I want to be completely open and honest with all of you. You are my readers, my followers, some of the most valued people in my life. If I am honest with you, I always hope that you’re honest with me. So… without further delay.

 

1. Finish Becoming Jeremy.

While my first goal is to complete a short story, it’s obtainable and easy enough to reach. I just have to do it.

2. Release the Becoming Night Touched collection.

Again, an easy enough goal. This is just putting all of the short stories together, formatting, creating a cover, and make it available for print. Easy enough in theory.

3. Release the “new” version of Celine.

The story line is going to remain the same, but as I said before I want the books to match more than they currently do. There are also some small bits that I need to change in Jeremy but nothing to the same degree.

 

So there you have it; my writing goals for the year. Do you have any goals that you just now adding to your list of things to do? Please share them in the comments below!

Sweet Sorrow by Tricia Drammeh

Click here to buy the book

“Rowan achieves her greatest desire when she earns the part of Juliet in the school play, but it’s impossible to concentrate on her lines when her secret crush is cast as Romeo. Eddie is a fallen football hero and the subject of widespread gossip. Not only has he lost the respect of his peers, he’s also earned the open animosity of Rowan’s father, the high school’s football coach. Eddie isn’t the only one with a tarnished past—Rowan has secrets of her own. When the truth is revealed, will Rowan replace Eddie as the most hated student in school, or will Rowan and Eddie share the stage together?

Note from the author: This book deals with subject matter that might be upsetting to some readers. Though it is NOT graphic or descriptive, sexual assault is discussed in this book. Please be aware before reading.” (Blurb by Tricia Drammeh)

Sweet Sorrow has been in the works for a while now, and I have to say that I am so glad that Tricia has finished it. Rowan, the main character, is a damaged young woman. Daughter of the head football coach at her school, she hides a dark secret about her ex, who happens to be the former star of the team in her dad’s eyes. After a summer of hiding under her covers as a result of her tragedy, Rowan decides that she has to attempt to go back to some kind of routine in her life. This comes in the form of auditioning for the senior play. She finds out that her new crush is also auditioning, she worries that she’ll not be able to concentrate enough to land the part.

Eddie is a troubled player that gets kicked off of the football team after some property damage at a party lands him and a few other players in jail. With all hopes of his sports scholarship dashed, Eddie turns to his secret talent of acting in an attempt to earn a scholarship that way.

The two form an instant connection after being cast in the roles of Romeo and Juliet. Their love builds quickly, but Rowan continues to hide her secret. It’s only a matter of time before Eddie finds out.

Tricia Drammeh has a knack for contemporary fiction. She understands people on a level that seems to fail so many authors. There is a sort of honesty behind how each character speaks and behaves within her stories, it seems like the cast of her novels are just plucked off of the street. Sweet Sorrow touches on victim mentality in a way that very few have been able to honestly capture. The way that she coveys Rowan is wonderful. I don’t think that I have ever personally that was actively dealing with PTSD, but the way she has written it makes it very believable without being over the top. I wouldn’t say Rowan is my favorite character that she’s ever written, but definitely top 5. The way that Rowan’s growing strength and inner turmoil are presented drew me in. I will say that the subject of rape is covered in this book and if you’re easily offended by it, or are concerned about a “trigger,” this book might not be for you. Otherwise, an absolutely stunning novel by Tricia Drammeh that you have to read.

Thank you, Tricia, for moving forward with this book. You are truly amazing.

 

Clash of Legends (Amaranthine Book #7) by Joleene Naylor

Click here for buy link

“After the battle in Indonesia. Katelina wakes in Samael’s domain. Though her memories are tattered, she knows someone is missing: Jorick.

Her vampire lover gathers an army to save her from the ancient, but his master Malick interferes. For five hundred years Malick has manipulated and ruined Jorick’s life. When he leaves Katelina broken and bleeding in the bowels of his oasis, it’s the final straw.

While Malick sets up his glorious war with a living legend, Jorick plans the ultimate taboo: to kill his master. He’s tried before and failed. Will this be different, or will he and Katelina be crushed in the carnage of a greater battle, between two whose blood goes back millennia?” (Blurb by Joleene Naylor)

 

Everything comes to a head in this action packed 7th novel of the Amaranthine series. After being kidnapped by the ancient vampire Samael, Katelina finds herself unable to remember anyone or anything. Elsewhere, while Jorick searches for his lost love, a battle is brewing. Malick’s determination to take over the world is as strong as ever. Can Jorick save Katelina and end his master’s reign of terror?

Clash of Legends is the seventh installment in the Amaranthine series and this has got to be Joleene’s best work yet. Where most series struggle to remain consistent and attention grabbing, Joleene has continued this series effortlessly. I am having a hard time trying to properly write this review because there were so many amazing things that happened in this book and I don’t want to spoil them for anyone.

I enjoy Katelina’s strength in this book. She has to deal with some very dramatic things very suddenly, and while she initially struggles, she is able to conquer her hesitation with grace and become the most kick ass she’s been thus far.

Another masterpiece and I cannot wait for more. You have simply got to read this book!