Alexis’s Comments (group member since Jan 04, 2017)

Alexis’s comments from the Navigating Indieworld Discussing All Things Indie group.

Carole wrote: "Alexis wrote: "Oohh fun!
The park close to my house.
https://images.app.goo.gl/WVBM2WZRjWz..."

So pretty- not at all what I expected. It looks like it could be in Miami."

Thanks Carole, but it’s a lot more quiet than anything in Miami. Lots of treehouses, boats and a few watermills. I used to jog there but I’ve been lazy lately lol.

Oohh fun!
The park close to my house.
https://images.app.goo.gl/WVBM2WZRjWz...

Alex wrote: "Anna Faversham wrote: "And Alex, your "Where There's a Will" is a raging success. Shouldn't you be posting on this 'Something Good..." thread?"

I thought I had posted when my promotion with BookBu..."

65000 downloads; I can’t wrap my head around it. Tons of people have read your book now, Alex. That must feel amazing.

Was it hard to get BookBub to accept your submission?

Carole wrote: "Aww, you make me feel so good. Really Alexis, writing and completing a book is a real reflection of your own determination and stick-with-it-ness. I wish you the best of luck and may a series follo..."

:D

Now, I’m in polishing mode. Getting the second draft ready to share with a few people. I am worried they might not GET it though. =/

Carole wrote: "Yay!! The crowd roars!!! So happy for you, Alexis!!"

Thanks, Carole! Couldn’t have done it without you.

Bought my old domain again. Created a new author website that works perfectly on firefox but requires work for internet explorer. Anyways THIS IS REALLY HAPPENING PEOPLE! *sighs in utter contentment*

I have a huge respect for everyone here who has written a book from start to finish. Especially any foreigners who don't speak English in their daily lives. Godd#mn, this is hard.

But also fun. Very fun.

Dale wrote: "Alexis,

Not to rain on the parade, but I kinda wonder if making it "I am [whoever]" might not be viewed as very derivative (causing readers' eyes to roll) and maybe even borderline infringement (c..."

Thanks Dale, but Alex kind of beat you to it a few comments above: we're going with Dorothy Mai Ferg. So, just an anagram.

I think I could have gotten away with "I am.." too though, under fair use. And I LIVE for nastygrams from lawyers. :)

David wrote: "Hi, Alexis. It is the editor's responsibility to provide a service agreement or contract for the author. As a freelance editor, I make sure to have a clear and cogent contract that defines the type..."

Hi David, thank you for the information!

When hiring an editor, is it standard for them to provide us -- their clients -- with a service agreement, or do you present them with your own contract? If you are signing their, what are some things you pay attention to before signing?

Also doing some research on this but any personal experiences are welcome!

Alex wrote: "Not quite perfect,

I am should be changed to Mai

Dorothy Mai Ferg

You don't want the I am at the front. Bit of a d'oh moment from me there.

Glad I could help. I thought I was going to fail y..."

So good. Thank you!

Alex wrote: "I can come up with a few alternatives for first names, but I'm struggling to make anything out of the remaining letters. Sorry I can't help more.

Mira
Mary
Dorota

Wait a minute, hold the panic, I..."

YEEEEEEEEES! Perfect! Thank you so much Alex! Woohoo!!!

p.s. I am completely sober but so happy!

So, as you probably know, in one of J.K Rowling's books she reveal that Voldemort's real name Tom Marvolo Riddle, when Riddle rearranges the letters in his name to write "I am Lord Voldemort".

I want to do something similar. As in, I want to create a normal name out of the words "Fairy Godmother".

So far I get to Mira and then I draw a blank.
Anyone else got any ideas?

Anna Faversham wrote: "I feel for you, Alexis, for the loss - so young - of your cousin and others have said what I too would say.

What comes through most of all to me from what has happened to you is what you said - l..."

Thank you, Anna.

Carole wrote: "Alexis wrote: "Carole wrote: "Profound, Alexis. You are so right, just because you love a genre, that doesn't mean you should write in it.
I never read a horror book in my life, don't go to horror ..."

I hope it's more like the first two!!

How's the writing going, Sam?

Alex wrote: "I'm sorry for your loss, Alexis, it's hard enough to lose someone who has lived a long life, to lose someone whose life had barely started must be really tough.

I am glad that you are taking somet..."

Thanks Alex! The same thing happened to one of my favorite writers; Kresley Cole. She started off writing historical romance and then stumbled into paranormal. Her paranormal series contains of more than 20 bestsellers lol.

So, personally, I'd encourage everyone to try a different genre once in a while. :)

Carole wrote: "Profound, Alexis. You are so right, just because you love a genre, that doesn't mean you should write in it.
I never read a horror book in my life, don't go to horror movies and I have to say when ..."

Thanks Carole, honestly I think I would have been stuck in my grief for much longer if not for you. I was trying to be strong for my family members, and it felt just, heaven sent, to have you there. I never went back to how I was feeling. And I was feeling whew, it was bad.

YESS, I don't usually read YA but I've been reading tons of popular YA lately just so that I'm sure that my book is giving YA readers what they love. My book is not following a trend or anything like that, but I do think it's important to give lovers a genre the thing they love most about that particular genre.

Stephanie wrote: "My condolences on the loss of your cousin. Life is short, and I wish you well on your writing path. May the words flow."

Thank you Stephanie!

I’ve been trying to publish a book for over two years now. Some friends I met back then already have over 10 titles under their belt. I still have zero.

At first, I struggled because I’m a perfectionist and because I know when a book is bad, just okay or great. I wanted to write a book that was if not great, was at least really fucking good. But I kept struggling and just couldn’t manage to create something good. Now, I know what went wrong. First, the genre I chose was wrong: erotic romance suspense. The lesson I learned was that just because you love a genre doesn’t mean you will also be good at writing it.

Secondly, my legal career took off in the middle of my writing career. Combining being legal counsel for a big company and writing proved hard as hell. So, I gave up on the whole writing thing. My websites expired, and I suddenly wasn’t as involved with planning promotional events.

Then I found an image.(My writing always starts with a visual aid). Of two teens. One of them is kissing the other on the cheek. I, just heard them in my head. It was nothing like I’d ever written before. A young adult novel. A paranormal, shifter, YA story that was sillier than anything else I’ve put on paper. I loved the first few chapters. But alas, work was insane. Mergers, takeovers. So, I quit the book. Again.

I love my regular, corporate job. I love it. I didn’t think I’d need to go back to writing, my life felt full as it is.

And then my cousin died. He was 25.
And I felt angry. And broken. And just sad. I didn’t understand why he had to die so young and so violently.

But his passing made me realize that life is short. And that it’s important to pursue your dreams. That it is IMPORTANT to make time for your dreams.

So, I took a few days off from the job this week. And I’m going to spend them finishing this book. For my cousin but mostly for me. Wish me luck. :)