A Sea Change and a new release by Felice Stevens
I remember when I received the release date from the publisher for my first novel. I was nervous, excited and scared. I was also clueless because back then, in the ancient years of 2014 the way to get yourself out there on social media was to send your books to bloggers. People didn't run Facebook or Amazon ads, reader groups were pretty much non-existent and there was no KU.
I recall getting my tour set and waiting to see if any blogs would sign up and then what my reviews would be. At that point there were quite a few MM blogs: Joyfully Jay, The Novel Approach, Rainbow Gold Reviews, MM Good Reads, and some whose names I honestly can't remember. But I knew, if I wanted to succeed, the blogs were the way to go.
Fast forward to 2018 and the publishing world is a different animal. Many publishing houses have closed, reader groups are all the rage, authors spend thousands of dollars on Facebook and Amazon ads and KU dominates in many genres. And sadly we have lost many of our blogs.
This past week The Novel Approach announced it was closing. It saddened me not because they reviewed my books but because I respect Lisa Horan so deeply and all she's given to this community and I'll miss it. Lisa promised she's going to be around so we are holding her to that. TNA was such a quality blog that gave us thoughtful and honest reviews. It is a loss we will truly feel.
The USA Today Happily Ever After blog also announced it was closing and that was bittersweet for me. I have had one book featured there—One Step Further. Again, it's a blow to romance in general.
Earlier in the year, Sinfully closed it's doors and that was a huge blow as well. They were a blog I checked daily and truly enjoyed reading their reviews and recommendations.
Other smaller blogs have faded away as well Running a blog is hard work. When I was still exclusively reading Historical Romance, I ran a blog. It had over five thousand followers and it was damn hard. Through it I met the top authors in the genre and became a reviewer for Avon books and an Avon Addict-someone given exclusive reviewing privileges. I always looked at reviewing books as an honor the author or publisher gave to me and took it very seriously. When I saw I could no longer give it the attention it deserved, I shut it down with regret.
I personally still get a thrill when I see blogs reviewing my books. Am I always happy with the reviews? Of course not. But the purpose of the blog isn't for the author, its for potential readers to see our books and maybe, hopefully pick them up. I remember my scariest moment when Rescued came out was waiting for Joyfully Jay's review. I don't even remember what the review was but I remember a reader telling me she saw it on that blog and decided to give it a try.
So I'm a little sadder that we are losing touch with readers in this fashion. Authors are now required to be social media experts for the most part and self-promote. Yes there are authors who don't have a large social media presence and are hugely successful but that isn't the norm. Readers want to connect with authors. I personally love it but still find myself needing to step away from the merry go round every once in a while as it can get exhausting. Blogs used to fill that void and I'm thankful Joyfully Jay, Love Bytes, Gay Book Reviews and the other LGBTQ blogs are still here to keep the genre informed.
In other news I have a Christmas release—Two Daddies for Christmas is a short story in the Breakfast club universe that also has glimpses of some other favorite characters. It si only 99 cents and answers the burning question: Will Marcus and Tyler ever get married?
Here is the blurb:
Two clueless men.
One determined little girl
A whole circle of friends who've grown tired of waiting.
You are hereby invited to the wedding of the king of New York City nightlife who's finally marrying his prince charming.
Too bad neither of them know it's happening.
It is available at all retailers:
AMAZON
APPLE BOOKS
KOBO
B&N
I recall getting my tour set and waiting to see if any blogs would sign up and then what my reviews would be. At that point there were quite a few MM blogs: Joyfully Jay, The Novel Approach, Rainbow Gold Reviews, MM Good Reads, and some whose names I honestly can't remember. But I knew, if I wanted to succeed, the blogs were the way to go.
Fast forward to 2018 and the publishing world is a different animal. Many publishing houses have closed, reader groups are all the rage, authors spend thousands of dollars on Facebook and Amazon ads and KU dominates in many genres. And sadly we have lost many of our blogs.
This past week The Novel Approach announced it was closing. It saddened me not because they reviewed my books but because I respect Lisa Horan so deeply and all she's given to this community and I'll miss it. Lisa promised she's going to be around so we are holding her to that. TNA was such a quality blog that gave us thoughtful and honest reviews. It is a loss we will truly feel.
The USA Today Happily Ever After blog also announced it was closing and that was bittersweet for me. I have had one book featured there—One Step Further. Again, it's a blow to romance in general.
Earlier in the year, Sinfully closed it's doors and that was a huge blow as well. They were a blog I checked daily and truly enjoyed reading their reviews and recommendations.
Other smaller blogs have faded away as well Running a blog is hard work. When I was still exclusively reading Historical Romance, I ran a blog. It had over five thousand followers and it was damn hard. Through it I met the top authors in the genre and became a reviewer for Avon books and an Avon Addict-someone given exclusive reviewing privileges. I always looked at reviewing books as an honor the author or publisher gave to me and took it very seriously. When I saw I could no longer give it the attention it deserved, I shut it down with regret.
I personally still get a thrill when I see blogs reviewing my books. Am I always happy with the reviews? Of course not. But the purpose of the blog isn't for the author, its for potential readers to see our books and maybe, hopefully pick them up. I remember my scariest moment when Rescued came out was waiting for Joyfully Jay's review. I don't even remember what the review was but I remember a reader telling me she saw it on that blog and decided to give it a try.
So I'm a little sadder that we are losing touch with readers in this fashion. Authors are now required to be social media experts for the most part and self-promote. Yes there are authors who don't have a large social media presence and are hugely successful but that isn't the norm. Readers want to connect with authors. I personally love it but still find myself needing to step away from the merry go round every once in a while as it can get exhausting. Blogs used to fill that void and I'm thankful Joyfully Jay, Love Bytes, Gay Book Reviews and the other LGBTQ blogs are still here to keep the genre informed.
In other news I have a Christmas release—Two Daddies for Christmas is a short story in the Breakfast club universe that also has glimpses of some other favorite characters. It si only 99 cents and answers the burning question: Will Marcus and Tyler ever get married?
Here is the blurb:
Two clueless men.
One determined little girl
A whole circle of friends who've grown tired of waiting.
You are hereby invited to the wedding of the king of New York City nightlife who's finally marrying his prince charming.
Too bad neither of them know it's happening.
It is available at all retailers:
AMAZON
APPLE BOOKS
KOBO
B&N
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