Sally Ember's Blog, page 97
November 3, 2014
Free Holiday Promotional Opportunity for Authors (Read Tuesday Sale)
My “READ TUESDAY” post appears 12/8/14 with my Smashwords coupon and discount info! Stay tuned and check out all the rest of the deals starting on or around 12/9 and continuing through the holidays.
Originally posted on Chris The Story Reading Ape's Blog..... An Author Promotions Enterprise!:
Authors:
Wouldn’t it be great if you could find a free opportunity to promote your books for the holidays?
Readers:
Wouldn’t it be great to find a huge holiday book sale?
Well, there is. It’s called Read Tuesday.
It’s like Black Friday, but for books.
In 2014, Read Tuesday falls on Tuesday, December 9.
Mark your calendars.
What do you have to do?
Very little:
Authors:
Sign your book up for Read Tuesday at http://readtuesday.com. Click the authors page to learn more.
Readers :
Visit http://readtuesday.com on Tuesday, December 9. Browse the catalog of books on December 9, which will include links to Kindle pages at Amazon with amazing sale prices as well as Smashwords discount codes.
Gift-givers:
Send books for the holidays. You can gift an e-book, purchase CreateSpace paperbacks with discount codes, or give a paperback as a gift from Amazon and keep…
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Filed under: Writing
5 Ways for #Giving 1% to Offset the Splurging Inspired by the Holidays
Immediately after Halloween (and in some cases, even before it came), commercials in both print and video outlets began the holiday onslaught. Many people do begin shopping this early for their gifts, requesting/making lists for what they want and having/attending parties at which enormous amounts of alcohol and food are consumed.
To counterbalance the ridiculous indulging that occurs in many households in the West over the next two months, I offer 5 Ways for #Giving 1% to Offset the Splurging Inspired by the Holidays.
Post this on your refrigerator or visor in your vehicle and DO THESE THINGS. Please.
1. Donate 1% of what you spend in money For every gift you purchase online, from a vendor or in a store, make a point to put aside 1% of that amount paid for charity. 1%, for the math-challenged, is the amount you see when you move the decimal point over two places to the left: e.g., if it costs $100.00, you put aside $1.00; if it costs $5.00, you put aside 5 cents.
At the end of your holiday season, add that all up and use the 1% you set aside to benefit the charity of your choice. Remember: libraries, pet shelters, homeless and other social service organizations, youth centers, food banks, clothing drives.
image from http://getbookedin.com
2. Volunteer 1% of what you spend in time Keep a journal or online calendar/diary of all the time you spend (notating it in a minimum of fifteen-minute intervals, like a lawyer) celebrating, preparing for, decorating, creating or buying gifts, attending, preparing or cleaning up family meals for these holidays. The amount of time you devote to this “season” will probably amaze you, if you are honest and meticulous in your records. At the end of your holidays, add up all those quarter-hours and multiply by four: this equals how many hours, total, you gave to the holidays. Any time during or after your holiday season, schedule yourself to volunteer 1% (see above for math help) of those hours to benefit the charity, cause, family or event of your choice.
image from http://www.care2.com
3. Pass on 1% of what you received in gifts Keep a list of what you received from others. Include holiday cards, presents, food, nights out, alcohol, vacation time, clothing, and other gifts for these holidays. If you have/know any, get kids/teens to do this, also. Consider estimating what each of these costs the giver or is worth in actual dollars. The amount of stuff you acquired may add up to many pages for some of you. At the end of your holidays, add up all those estimated amounts to show the dollar value of what you received from this season’s holidays.
Find a way to pass on actual gifts (“re-gifting”) or gift cards in the amount of 1% (see No. 1 for math help) of that total value to benefit the charity, cause, family or individual of your choice.
image from http://blog.turbotax.intuit.com
4. Give up 1% of what you want Make or add to your growing list of what you want from others for the holidays. Include holiday cards, presents, food, nights out, alcohol, vacation time, clothing, and other gifts. Consider estimating what each of these would cost or is worth in actual dollars. The amount of stuff you want may add up to many pages for some of you. At the end of your holidays, add up all those estimated amounts to show the dollar value of what you wished to receive from this season’s holidays.
Whether or not you received all that you wanted, find a way to pass on actual gifts (“re-gifting”) or gift cards in the amount of 1% (see No. 1 for math help) of that total value to benefit the charity, cause, family or individual of your choice.
image from http://www.thisisamericanrugby.com
5. Demonstrate gratitude for at least 1% of what you have Count your blessings. Literally. Consider how to estimate what each of your privileges, benefits, friends, family, housing, employment, art, music, intelligence, abilities, skills, talents, knowledge, education, property and other possessions and all good fortune, including whatever health you enjoy, is worth in actual dollars. The number of ways you can be grateful should keep expanding. Be creative. Some blessings have no monetary value, but you can assign one, anyway. Make a list. Keep adding to it and placing dollar amounts next to each one that you can. At the end of your holidays, total all those estimated amounts to show the dollar value of what you already have this holiday season.
Find creative ways to demonstrate your gratitude for 1% of the total value of what you already have (see No. 1 for math help) to benefit the charity, cause, family or individual of your choice.
image from http://www.empowher.com
If you engage in these 5 offsetting actions, you will more thoroughly enjoy every part of the holiday season. I promise.
Happy Holidays, Everyone!
image from http://www.smashingmagazine.com
Filed under: Gratitude, Life lessons, Support for Good Causes Tagged: Charity, Donating, Donations, Gifts, Giving, Gratitude, holidays, Volunteering
November 2, 2014
Do Amazon and Createspace rip off Indie publishers with failure to correctly report sales?
It makes my heart sink. How on earth are indie (or any) authors supposed to be able to earn and receive the money we deserve from book sales when the publishers, distributors and other middle-vendors are dishonest, incompetent, untrustworthy, inaccurate and unwilling to make corrections? I despair. I am outraged. What to do?
Originally posted on jeanettevaughan:
Guest post by John. R. Clark, Managing Editor at AgeView Press
When AgeView Press Indie pubbed the book FLYING SOLO in May of 2012, the author, Jeanette Vaughan immediately began tracking sales. She heard from excited friends and family who immediately emailed when ordering their copies. The first sales were off of Createspace’s e-store with the title ID number given to the author. Then, through Amazon, a week later, when the book went live on the site. Finally on Kindle, when the ebook format was completed.
“Where, oh where are my royalties?”
Initially, things appeared kosher. People exclaiming that they had ordered the book, were showing up within a day or two on the electronic royalty reports with a reasaonable accuracy. But by June and July, sales descrepencies were noted by the author from customers claiming that they had purchased the book directly through Amazon, not an Amazon affiliate. Many of these sales…
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Filed under: Writing
More Love Somewhere: The unedited hymn
This is excellent. Thanks for your thoughts and for posting. I completely agree, and this is a beautiful, yearning song AS IT IS.
Originally posted on Held In The Light:
I have long been uneasy with a recent practice among Unitarian Universalists of singing changed words to a particular song in Singing the Living Tradition, the hymnal published by the Unitarian Universalist Association.
Granted, we are always changing words to make them more palatable and therefore singable in our congregations. We free original hymns of their sexism and God-talk, for example, in an effort for our worship to be more inclusive.
The changed lyrics I am thinking of are to the old African American song, “There Is More Love Somewhere.” I have heard it sung by UUs as “There is more love right here.”
And as much explaining as I have done from the pulpit about understanding and respecting the history and context of the song, I field questions from congregation members who protest the song’s words when we sing it as is.
There is much to be troubled…
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Filed under: Writing
October 31, 2014
NOT DOING #NaNoWriMo Writing Plans
People keep asking me: Are you doing NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month)?
I say, “No.”
They seem surprised.
I decided to explain.
Here are my NOT DOING #NaNoWriMo Writing Plans:
1. Job-hunting. Must do. Have to get some income besides the trickle of pennies my 2 ebooks currently provide. Hope to add GAINFUL EMPLOYMENT to my list of November activities by November 30, which is more important than adding thousands of words to my computer. For me. This involves writing: cover letters, emails, queries. Hundreds of words. To people (or ‘bots….).
image from http://www.nerdwallet.com
2. Marketing Ongoing. Trying to upgrade my trickle of ebooks’ sales’ pennies to a stream to a flow to a… .well, you get the idea. Includes blogging, tweeting, commenting on others’ blogs, guest blogging, reblogging with comments added, promoting my ebooks in The Spanners Series , begging for more reviews for my ebooks, writing reviews on Goodreads and posting them to Amazon of books I may get a chance to read and review, promoting my G+ HOA, *CHANGES*, and hosting the almost-weekly talk show on Wednesdays (10 AM EST USA).
This involves writing: blog posts, site posts, tweets, comments, reviews, promos, emails (mostly to *CHANGES* guests and reviewers). Hundreds and probably thousands of words. For social media.
image from http://www.rexrobotreviews.com
3. Writing novels Ongoing. I am about half-way through Volume III, This Is/Is Not the Way I Want Things to Change of The Spanners Series and wish to finish it this fall. I had planned to finish Vol III and work more on Vol IV, which I’ve barely started, by the end of August but a serious accident/concussion postponed achieving these goals by many months. I also have to finish collecting and reworking the researched bits that belong to these Volumes and perhaps future ones. This includes coming up with and agreeing on a cover design for Vol III with my cover artist, Aidana Willowraven.
This involves writing: For the rest of Vol III and I hope some of Vol IV, Changes in Attitude/Changes in Latitude, as well. Tens of thousands of words. For novels.
image from http://thenovelfactory.blogspot.com
4. Editing/Proofreading All of the above require both, and perhaps I will do some for hire (I hope). I’m available. Will negotiate: sallyember AT yahoo DOT com
This involves writing by rewriting, hundreds and thousands of words, many times. For improving all writing. Everywhere.
image from http://hsquiresnovels.com
(“edit” should have quotes around it…)
Why am I not doing NaNoWriMo? I’m BUSY writing!
I wish I could take a month and work only on ONE novel/project!
Good luck to all who are doing NaNoWriMo!
Filed under: All Volumes, Changes in Attitude, Changes in Latitude, Personal stories, Social Media, The Spanners, This Is/Is Not the Way I Thought Things Would Change, Volume I of The Spanners, Volume II of The Spanners, Volume IV, Writing Tagged: blogging, editing, job-hunting, marketing, NaNoWriMo, reviews, writing
October 28, 2014
Another Reason Why Reviews Are So Important
Authors ALWAYS appreciate #reviews! Especially this one, for Volume II, “This Changes My Family and My Life Forever,” of “The Spanners Series.” http://www.sallyember.com/SPANNERS for info
Originally posted on Author P.S. Bartlett:
Getting listed on book suggestion web sites.
I’d really love to be able to have The Blue Diamond – The Razor’s Edge included in the Fussy Librarian email book suggestions but unfortunately, I still only have 5 reviews on Amazon.
The Fussy Librarian requires 10 reviews and at least a 4.0 rating.
I’m crossing my fingers and toes this week that some of you wonderful folks who have either purchased the book or won it for free in a raffle or contest, will find a few minutes to post your reviews. Thank you so much!!!
*The Fussy Librarian emails you with the e-books matching your unique interests and content preferences.
Filed under: Writing
October 25, 2014
Misogyny: Every Little Bit Matters
Excellent insights and very timely. I especially like this part: “No more placing ‘heroic’ males athletes next to scantily clad, seen-but-not-heard women. No more objectification of women in ‘family-friendly’ venues and outlets. No more making excuses for abusers just because we’d rather not view them as such.”
Originally posted on The Melissaverse:
I have been forced, through sheer volume of Twitter exposure, to learn what #Gamergate is.
I’m not a gamer. Never have been. I have no reason to take any interest at all in the internal politics of the gaming community. But there’s this stupid hashtag peppering my Twitter feed, compelling me to find out what the hell it means.
Well, sort of. I know what some of its proponents say it means and I know what basically all of its opponents say it means. To be frank, I don’t care how it started (actually, given that the term was coined by Adam Baldwin, I’m actively bummed to know how it started) or whether the original accusation of bias has any merit (seems like it doesn’t, but I’m not going to do enough research to be able to speak with any authority on that). Here’s what I care about: Gamergate…
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Filed under: Writing
October 24, 2014
‘Into the Woods': Go behind the scenes with Meryl Streep, Johnny Depp, and more
I want to go NOW! “Into the Woods” is delightfully wickedly scarily amazing!
Originally posted on Inside Movies:
[ew_image url="http://img2.timeinc.net/ew/i/2014/10/..." credit="" align="left"]What’s that? You wish for even more inside dish from the most anticipated movie musical of the year? Wish: granted.
Into the Woods—the sprawling fairy tale epic gracing this week’s cover of Entertainment Weekly—promises to be one of the holiday season’s most magical films, thanks to its top-notch design team (featuring the folks behind Chicago) and an A-list cast that includes Meryl Streep, Johnny Depp, Emily Blunt, Anna Kendrick, Chris Pine, and James Corden.
But the beloved 1987 Stephen Sondheim-James Lapine musical didn’t translate easily to the screen, which meant a creative challenge for the designers and actors looking to reinvent the well-known story while also staying faithful to the original Broadway production.
In addition to picking up this week’s EW, check out an exclusive behind the scenes featurette with some of the talent involved in ushering the fantasy to its new home on the…
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Filed under: Writing
Love an Author Leave a Review
PLEASE leave reviews! THIS author especially needs them for Volume II, “This Changes My Family and My Life Forever,” of “The Spanners Series.”
Originally posted on Official Site of Alex Laybourne - Author:
I know that this is a drum much beaten, but there really is no better way of showing your support for an author than by leaving a review.
As the indie writing culture continues to develop, and strengthen its place in the writing structure (and in the term Indie I include self published writers, for the sake of not having to write it individually every time), the importance of effective advertising is becoming even more evident.
A lot of writers, myself included, do not have a big budget to operate on. Personally speaking, I don’t even have the disposable income to run a $5 Facebook promotion without seriously having to rebudget the family groceries for the week ahead.
Using Facebook groups and blogs is good. Social Media is a growing beast and has a reach that offers more than enough potential readers to justify the free postings and link shouts…
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Filed under: Writing
No Woman Wants to Have An Abortion, but We MUST Support EVERY Woman’s Right To Choose
No Woman Wants to Have An Abortion, but
We MUST Support EVERY Woman’s Right To Choose
Of course that is true. Books about women’s experiences in choosing to have an abortion, having it, living with the decision, have these titles:
In Necessity and Sorrow, Peace after an Abortion, Healing after an Abortion, Dealing with the Emotional Aftermath of an Abortion, and similar.
Why in 2014, DECADES AFTER after the clarity of the Supreme Court’s 1973 decision in Roe v Wade, is women’s right-to-choose to terminate a pregnancy in the USA even in question?
Here is one main reason: MEN. More than a few very loud, conservative/reactionary, unfeeling, uncaring, ignorant and idiotic men. I call these men names with great care: they deserve every one of these appellations.
image from http://msmagazine.com
Last winter, Republican Allan Rothlisberg (Junction City, CA) who serves on a major House Committee (Commerce, Labor and Economic Development), stated: “If I was a woman over 50, I wouldn’t need gynecological services” (1/14/14). Bad grammar aside, the guy is a moron when it comes to women’s health care requirements.
Unfortunately, he is TYPICAL of the men in leadership positions spouting garbage. Offensive ridiculousness comes regularly out of those such as Todd Akin (R-Missouri), who invented the delightful term “legitimate rape” and claimed that there is no need for abortion to be legal in the case of rape because “women can just shut that down,” meaning, decide not to become fertilized, when we are raped.
I am not making this up.
Here is the other reason: RELIGION. Or, rather, the co-optation of Christian religious tenets and beliefs, tailoring and lying about the original teachings to “support” their platform. Nevermind that the same people who call themselves “pro-life” vote down tax increases or any funding for FEEDING, HOUSING, EDUCATING, and MAINTAINING HEALTH for actual, living children and adults, and that these same politicians and their supporters also want to exclude immigrants all together from ALL services. So much for being “pro-life” or even following their own Christian precepts.
image from http://www.criminalizeconservatism.com
As we approach another election, one in which the entire House of Representatives is up for grabs (and this part of Congress is the most culpable when it comes to misappropriation of politics and abusing their power in the name of religion), some facts seem important to know regarding abortion, a key issue (again). Please share. Please talk about this. I know I’m probably “preaching to the choir,” but we all have friends and relatives who could be better informed, and we ALL need to VOTE!
Who gets abortions in the USA?
What are the ages of women having abortions?
Anti-choice marketers would have us believe that most abortion-seekers are “irresponsible teenagers” who need “counseling” and “guidance,” implying that ignorance, carelessness, selfishness and a wanton disregard for life are influencing circumstances and driving abortion decisions.
However (big shock), they are incorrect. Only a small percentage (0.4%) of females who obtained abortions in this time period were under 15 years old. Interestingly, almost equal percentages (7 – 8%) were for women ages 15 – 17 and also for women 35-39. What types of circumstances and emotional characteristics could these demographic groups have in common, besides having an unwanted pregnancy?
82% of the women who had abortions in the 11-year period, 1999-2010, were between the ages of 18 – 34, with 34% as the largest single group, and it was for women ages 20 – 24.
Unsurprisingly, “older” women (NOT “ignorant” or in need of “guidance”) also get pregnant and decided to terminate the pregnancy: about 3% were over 40 years old.
What the reasons women choose abortion?
The conservative, anti-choice movement wants us to believe that the “primary” reasons for women’s choosing abortion are “selfish” and therefore not to be supported by law or community attitude. Their pie chart tries to illustrate that “most” women who have abortions do so because a pregnancy comes at the “wrong time” and /or they are “not ready” to have a child at that time. Even so, by their own research (which is questionable), only about one-quarter (27%) of the women gave that as their “primary” reason.
However, look at what the other survey options were and you can understand how so many chose the “not ready” category:
“Lack of maturity” Who is going to self-select that reason? Very few: 8%
“Relationship Issues” This is so broad as to be almost useless as a survey option. Only 9% selected this.
“Fetal Health Concerns” and “Maternal Health Concerns” each received about the same, 3% – 4%, matching “School or Career Concerns” with 4% as well. These combined total about 12%, or one-eighth of the respondents.
“Can’t afford the baby” (whose wording is already emotionally loaded, labeling the fetus a “baby” and then impugning the woman’s financial status at the same time) still garnered an almost equal percentage to those who said they weren’t “ready,” at 25%.
“Finished childbearing” is fraught with judgment as well, but nonetheless, 20% selected this as their primary reason for terminating the pregnancy.
“Rape” unsurprisingly received less than any, at 0.1%, while “Incest” isn’t on this chart (one could argue that all incest is rape, but to exclude it as a reason is significant, since conservatives keep voting down the right to choose, even in the case of rape or incest….).
image from http://www.conservapedia.com
The actual facts about USA women and abortion
About half of all women experience at least one unintended pregnancy in our lifetimes. This occurs mostly due to the fact that ALL birth control, even when used correctly and consistently, has a failure rate of at least 1% and most are worse.
image from http://www.abovetopsecret.com
The “Pill,” which is usually thought of as “effective,” fails almost 9% of the time. That means almost 1 out of every 10 women who rely on the Pill for birth control will become pregnant while taking it. In addition to causing all kinds of problems for the women that they were not expecting (no pun intended), pregnant women do not know they are pregnant until many months into the pregnancy (usually when the baby moves), which means the mothers are taking these hormones throughout the crucial first trimester. Birth control pills can have adverse effects on developing fetuses which usually causes birth defects and/or problems for these people later in life because of hormonal imbalances while they were developing in utero. The risk of ectopic pregnancies is also higher in women taking oral contraceptives after conception (which shouldn’t have occurred, but does).
Even worse, women who conceive while using spermicidal forms of birth control are counseled to have abortions because babies born to women using spermicides have astronomical rates of birth defects, up to and including stillbirth. The lesser problems include dwarfism, muscles missing or non-functional (eyelids’ muscles do not work, for example, so the eyes can’t fully open, which, without surgery, leads to blindness in newborns), hip displasia, clubfoot, cleft palate, and worse (New England Journal of Medicine), most of which, if reparable, require one or more surgeries and expensive rehabilitation.
image from http://www.nejm.org
Despite these facts, only about one-third of women who unintentionally become pregnant choose to have an abortion. This could be due to the fact that, of those with unintended pregnancies, about 60% already have one child. As I mentioned at the start: NO woman WANTS to have an abortion, and those who have already carried a pregnancy to term, parented a child, are even less likely to terminate. Statistics bear this out: most mothers choose NOT to terminate.
Furthermore, to refute another of the conservatives’ most specious arguments: the majority (73%) of women who choose to terminate a pregnancy ARE “religiously affiliated,” which means we are not ALL “godless heathens” (although, as a Buddhist, I am proud to be “godless” and couldn’t care less about being called a “heathen”).
image from http://naralprochoicewashington.tumblr.com
I could, but I won’t, tell my entire personal story, here. Bare facts: I was “typical” in that I was in my middle-twenties, educated, and pro-child (I was teaching Kindergarten-First Grade at the time). I chose to terminate due to my having been financially and emotionally unready and unable to care for a child at the time I got pregnant, which occurred due to a birth control failure (diaphragm, which has a 4% failure rate).
Please, whatever your story or gender, VOTE in or keep in a pro-choice candidate this November. The right to choose to terminate a pregnancy is a HUMAN right and, unfortunately, sometimes a necessity. Even if the choices are often made in sorrow, they must be safe and legal to make.
image from http://www.kylelife.com
Filed under: Life lessons, Opinions, Personal stories, Statistics, Support for Good Causes Tagged: Abortion, Anti-choice, birth control, birth defects, Christians, conservatives, elections, feminism, oral contraceptives, Pro-choice, Right-to-choose, spermicides, terminate a pregnancy, the "Pill", voting
