Elise’s Comments (group member since Jul 14, 2014)

Elise’s comments from the Net Work Book Club group.

Orinoco Womble (tidy bag and all) wrote: "Jazzy wrote: "How come Barbie never gets pregnant?

Because Ken comes in a different box."

Actually they did a pregnant Barbie doll, caused quite a scandal when it came out. It had a detachable f..."

Barbie is actually the pediatrician... it's her friend, Midge, who gets preggers and has a baby. How do I know? Because I own it. :) I'm sick that way.

Orinoco Womble (tidy bag and all) wrote: "This one cracks me up every. single. time.

Q. What sound does a cat make, going 200 MPH down the motorway?
A. Mmmmmmmeeeeeeeeeeeoooooooowwww!"

This cracked me up too!

Edith, Mabel and Wilma, best friends since grade school, died in a car crash while on vacation.

St. Peter greeted them at the Pearly Gates and immediately began explaining the "rules."

"You are welcome to go anywhere you please, visit anyone you want but whatever you do, please don't step on the ducks. If you do, there will be consequences."

The three friends glanced around. Heaven was overrun with ducks of all shapes and sizes. They were EVERYWHERE. It seemed impossible to not step on one!

Vowing to look out for each other and the ducks, the three friends began exploring their new home in Heaven.

After three days, Edith stepped on a duck. Immediately, St. Peter arrived and handcuffed the ugliest man she'd ever seen to her wrist. "There," he proclaimed. "Edith, since you so carelessly stepped on one of God's ducks, you shall be shackled to this man for eternity." And then he disappeared.

Edith cried and her friends promised that it would be alright but the man was delighted to be shackled to her.

Two days later, Mabel stepped on a duck. Again, St. Peter appeared and handcuffed a withered, toothless man to her wrist proclaiming that they would be tied together for eternity. Mabel cried.

Wilma, not wanting to suffer the same fate as her dear friends, began walking slowly, keeping her head down so as to be careful not to step on a blasted duck.

Two weeks went by and Wilma had not stepped on a duck. She seemed to get the hang of it and the ducks were actually cooperating with her, sidestepping out of her way as she walked gently around Heaven.

One beautiful afternoon (all afternoons were beautiful in heaven) St. Peter appeared in front of Wilma. Without saying a word, he handcuffed a handsome man to her wrist. He was tall, with dark gently curling hair, brooding eyes and a body so fine she wanted to weep.

She began to cry and thank God for her good fortune. "Lord, thank you for this wonderful gift. I don't know what I've done to be so blessed."

Her gorgeous Eternity man turned to her and said, "I don't know about you, lady, but I stepped on a duck."

Okay, this is fun! Let's see...

1. I'd have to pick the Weasley twins, Fred and George. Their antics and dialogue are hysterical.

2. Luna, because there wasn't a mean bone in her body.

3. Thestral because eventually everyone would see one.

4. Hagrid

5. Mrs. Weasley

6. Lucius Malfoy

:)

Wishing everyone in the GoodReads community very Merry Christmas and a blessed New Year!

Sincerely,
Elise Manion :)

Ashleigh, I couldn't agree more. The satisfaction of holding your own, completed work is so powerful. I'm sorry to hear of your bad experience with a publisher but happy it turned out well. Sounds like the merger was a blessing in disguise.

My recent conversation with Blue Harvest Creative was very encouraging and I have opted to give them a shot. They aren't a publisher, but a full service self-publishing group (the best description I can come up with). Their rates are reasonable and interaction so far has been very personable. I'll keep this thread updated as I go.

One thing they said is that few publishers are issuing advances these days, unless you're a celebrity or politician. There are stories out there regarding contracts that require the author to pay for a publicist, editors and graphic designers.

If that is the case, I'd rather keep my rights as well, and work with a company that will offer author and writing services, especially if I'll have to pay for those services anyway.

Don't give up on your work, Angel. You are right in that withholding your story from the masses is doing yourself and your book an injustice. I believe that the best critics are the actual readers, the people who are engaged in the story, not publishers.

Please know that I am not bashing publishers, agents or the industry. My personal belief is that a bad review by someone not employed in the book business is more valid to me than from a person who is, if that makes sense.

I, too, have written two books. I completed my first this summer and launched it digitally in May and then through CreateSpace.com in July, and I am currently working the second book in the series. I recently engaged in a GoodReads Giveaway. You should look into it, it's one of the things that GR does for its authors. It's a free service that they do for us; we are responsible for giving the winners their books. I set mine up for 30 days (readers can enter their names and addresses for thirty days) then GR picks the winners and sends me their addresses. I then sign my book and send them their copies. I plan to include a personal thank you for their participation.

In return, it is free advertising for me (I have over 200 entries and it's only been 48 hours). It's exposure. And yes, it is genre specific that you define. For example, I used Romance, Romantic Thriller, YA and Contemporary. GR advertises the giveaway to readers of those genres.

I am also thinking of using GR's Ad program. It seems simple. Once I set it up, I will update my experience this thread.

Another thing, you mention that you are having your family proofread. That's great and I use my mother as well, but my past experience with my first book leads me to the conclusion that hiring an editor is very important. I am currently pricing them. when I find one I like, I will recommend them here, as well.

On a final note, I recently sent another manuscript to a couple of literary agents. One never responded and the second gave me the standard, "Love your work but unfortunately..." letter. She claimed that because it was the second book of a series, that publishers wouldn't be interested unless the first book sole over 100,000 units. I was gracious with you response and thanked her; but my internal response was that if I had sold 100,000 units on my own, why would I need a publisher or agent in the first place? I queried because I need to know about marketing my book. I have decided to continue to self-publish for now.
A dear family friend, who is in marketing, advised me that authors are rarely successful on their first completed works. It usually takes three more books to get the name recognition you need to make a living.

Good luck and congratulations on completing that first book. Keep writing!

And to Philip: Thank you for all of your information as well. I plan on checking out indigo dreams.co.uk and fast-print.net. I'm always shopping for the right fit. I recently came across blueharvestcreations.com for book covers. I will be speaking with someone from their company today. I will report back here when I know more.

"That's going to be $3.75.", said the sales clerk.
My response, "It's going to be $3.75 tomorrow? What's the price right now?"
They always look at me like I'm crazy. ;)

Thanks Linda, I will. I am currently at my day job counting down the hours (three left) for my weekend to begin ;)

Linda wrote: "Good morning everyone. Have a good day :-)


Linda, I love your pictures! Unfortunately, I am just now seeing your "good morning" picture (It's almost 2pm, my time) I hope everyone had a terrific day!

My first book, a contemporary romance, "Jason's Princess" became available in e-book at the end of May. You can find it on my website at www.elisemanion.com
You can follow me on Facebook.com/elisemanionbooks and on Twitter @elisemanion
Here's a short synopsis:
Julie gave up on happily-ever-after when her parents died, the event when she became her little brother's guardian. After Billy broke her heart, pursuit of a husband just wasn't a priority. But, when her life is suddenly turned upside down, and danger makes a rare appearance in her small town, she's forced to deal with the last man she'd ever expect to be nice to her.
Jason had given up on a life with Julie after Billy stole her away. Unfortunately, trouble has come back to town, so he has to make sure that both Julie and her little brother are safe. But now that the past is hitting them both head on, Jason will have to convince Julie that he's the man she's been looking for all along.
I hope you enjoy it!
Sincerely, Elise