Many irons in the fire

       When I read this month’s topic - my current work-in-progress – I did one of those laughs that ends in a sob because it suggests a singular WIP. One of the many side effects I’ve experienced during the current world crisis (I’m sick [ha!] of writing the C-word and the P-word) is scattered thinking. When you-know-what hit our shores way, way back in February, I’d been roaring toward the finish line of Book 2 in my fledgling contemporary series, MacLeod’s Cove Romance. Amelia (graphic designer and the heroine’s sister in Book 1) and Nate (owner of a craft brewery) team up to help organize the annual Oktoberfest. Of course, nothing goes to plan, particularly since they can’t agree on anything.

But as I tried to come to terms with the upheaval, my thoughts and ideas went the way of the Dodo for about a month. Once I got over the initial panic (wash all the groceries!!!) and could concentrate in a creative way, I ignored Book 2 and started Book 3 because the characters were new, the plot was shiny, and the writing was fun! I lived vicariously in my simpler fictional world and churned out fifty thousand words in a month. Jinny (Nate’s sister in Book 2) starts working for Bill (former IT whiz) on his restaurant renovation. Unbeknownst to her, and everyone else in town, he’s got a couple of big secrets that end up messing with her mind, man.

And then summer arrived in my corner of the world and because it’s a short season here in Nova Scotia, I was distracted by wanting to be out enjoying the warm weather. I had chicks to tickle, a garden to tend, and some serious exploring of my home and native land (Oh, Canada!) to accomplish. 

So why not put away the current WIP, which was at the fiddly editing stage, and write something short and fun? So here I am with my third work-in-progress, a holiday novella in the MacLeod’s Cove series. Jill is part-owner of a car dealership but is dissatisfied with her life – something is missing. So she rents a cottage on the beach for the week between Christmas and New Year’s for some peace and solitude in which to map out her future, think deep thoughts, and complete an online course called Empowered You! Unfortunately, the reclusive writer living in the big house on the hill ends up being a huge, delicious distraction. Patrick is recovering from a personal tragedy and is unable to write. He’s annoyed by the world, especially that beautiful woman who keeps intruding into his self-imposed self-pity fest.

Three works-in-progress, all close to “the end”.

So…what new story will I start now?

Guess who’s moving in next door?

 

Nicole Bennett is used to bad luck—it’s kind of a family curse. She’s spent the past year stitching her life back together after losing her dream job. Well, it paid the rent. Now stuck working at her family’s grocery store while wrangling a demoralized dad and a spoiled-brat sister, the last thing she needs is for the man who wrecked her life to move in next door, even if it is for only three weeks. So what if he’s sexier than sin and makes her believe in fairy tale endings?

 

Ross Calvert’s life in the fast lane crashed when he lost his job and fiancée. All he’s got to show for years of hard work are a sleek sports car and a closet full of designer suits – minus the closet. Determined to salvage his relationship with his best friend, he trades in the corporate life for a brief stint as a caregiver. The decision was simple—until he discovers the tempting vixen he wronged lives next door. Maybe she’s what he needs to reboot his life.

 

What starts off as a no-strings fling soon veers into making promises that might be impossible to keep.

https://books2read.com/if-I-didnt-care

Luanna Stewart has been creating adventures for her imaginary friends since childhood. She spends her days writing spicy contemporary romance, romantic suspense, paranormal romance, and historical romance. When not torturing her heroes and heroines, she’s in her kitchen baking something delicious. She lives in Nova Scotia with her patient husband and two spoiled cats.

 

Website ~ Bookbub ~ Twitter ~ Instagram ~ Facebook ~ Goodreads ~ Amazon Author Page

Scouting for Good Books?

By Linda Lovely

Who doesn’t want to take advantage of something that’s free?

Readers who enjoy Kindle ebooks have tons of opportunities to download free books. Now they have one more—Amazon’s Kindle Scout program (https://kindlescout.amazon.com/).

Here’s how it works. Readers visit the site and peruse prospective titles in their favorite genres (romance, mystery, science fiction, general literature) by clicking on a book cover and reading a short blurb about the book. If it sounds interesting, they can read the book’s opening chapters. Then, if they think they’d like to read the whole book, they can “nominate” it for an Amazon publishing contract, and if Amazon elects to publish it, they’ll get their copy of the chosen title free. However, during any given time period, readers can only nominate three books. That keeps folks from clicking on every title in their preferred genres. In theory, this selection process provides a curator service. Only the best books of the lot gain publication.

Okay, what’s in it for authors? If Amazon chooses to publish their books, they get a $1,500 advance, 50% ebook royalty, and hopefully, a promotional boost from Amazon marketing. That’s why I’m considering offering my new book, LIES, to the Kindle Scout program. Of course, that doesn’t mean Amazon will choose LIES as one of its offerings. Who knows what criteria they use to select Kindle Scout titles, but I’m certain there are many factors unrelated to book quality (just like there are in traditional publishing) that go into decision making. For instance, if they’ve just put up two vampire related titles in the Sci Fi, Fantasy category, they might bypass an even better vampire book for the sake of variety.

Many authors, me included, are somewhat gun shy about programs like Kindle Scout because they are in essence popularity contests and we don’t like begging friends, family, and fellow authors to nominate our books to get the ball rolling. However, the potential promise of Amazon promotion is a powerful incentive. Plus, if your book doesn’t win an Amazon contract, you can go right ahead with your previous plans to independently publish the title. The only downside is that all those friends you begged to nominate you now know that your book “lost.” Will that influence their willingness to spend money to buy the book? Who knows?

Free books can be a curse or a bonanza for authors, who often offer books for free (or next to free) in the hope that if new readers sample one of their books and like it, they’ll buy their other books. It’s the age-old loss leader strategy. Authors even pay promotional bundlers for the privilege of offering their books free. The problem is that many readers have become so accustomed to downloading books for free that they no longer see a need to buy any books. In other instances, readers have downloaded so many free books it may be months—maybe years—before they actually read the free books they download today. In this case, the author “payback” of such readers buying their other books may take so long, they’ve given up on a writing career.

Nonetheless, we authors are a determined lot. I’m willing to give Kindle Scout a try. If they choose to put up LIES, you may well be hearing from me with a “Please consider nominating” plea.

So authors and readers, how do you feel about “free” ebooks?

2011 – What happened in the world of publishing…

Gosh it’s January 2012 already! I don’t know about you but I’m excited about the coming year. When I look back on 2011 I’m pleased it’s over. It wasn’t the best year for me personally, or for New Zealand. The earthquakes that destroyed Christchurch and killed so many rocked our little country. And don’t let’s forget the devastation in Japan, tornadoes in USA , and other natural disasters around the world.

Also, in 2011 the world of publishing changed.For the better if you ask me...

I’ve a feeling 2012 will be a great year. I’m not really one for New Year resolutions, but I do set myself goals. My 2012 goal is to gear up my writing so that my output doubles or triples even.  I’ve set myself weekly targets, realistic weekly targets, so that I can publish three novels and at least three novellas this year (and still work at my other job twenty hours per week). I know, it’s a big task, but if I work hard enough I may be able to give up the other day job.

The real driver is that I want to move to a rural part of New Zealand where jobs are not prevalent and will therefore have to rely on my writing income. I have bought a one acre section, with my sister, in the Hawke’s Bay wine region. Here’s a photo of my section – see the view. We want to build a huge house with swimming pool on the site, and move in Christmas 2012. Sigh – I need my writing career to take off to achieve that dream.My section is a huge incentive

That’s a lot of writing, I hear you gasp? I need this output because of the word SELF-PUBLISHING. I’m traditionally published at present, but I’ve decided I’m not sitting back and letting a traditional publishing house tell me when my books can be published. My current contract allows me one book a year. You can’t make a living off that. In fact, I have learned that to make money in publishing you have to publish at least 4-8 books a year.

So I’m going to self-publish this year. I’m not sure if I shall also traditionally publish, that will depend on my contract obligations. I have decided to look at the self-publishing model for several reasons:

1.       Book runs are diminishing. A new author is no longer building their brand through book-store distribution. If that is true, then why do you need a traditional publisher?

2.       Digital books are outselling print books about 4:1 in the romance genre and an author owns their online marketing space not a traditional publisher

3.       I can put books to market when I want, and when it’s right for me

4.       I can price the books competitively. Currently I’m a debut author with a book priced at $14 and an e-book at $8 – how do I compete and build my brand at that price? I can’t.  Ebooks are setting the price at around $4.99 (Avon’s new ebook price)

It also means I have to find time to do the marketing, but I had to do that anyway.

My first self-published book, a novella, I’m releasing in my favorite romance month, February – ready for Valentine’s Day. I love the whole concept of making time for romance. It’s the little things we do on Valentine's day to show someone how special they are to us. Breakfast in bed, romantic picnic lunches (remember it’s summer in NZ), the candlelit dinners, and romantic cards from anonymous admirers.

So, watch out for my first self-published novella, due out on Valentine’s day (14^th of February 2012). It’s a 35,000 word novella called, To Dare the Duke of Dangerfield. Here’s the blurb:

Caitlin Southall’s temper has finally got the better of her. She’s challenged Harlow Telford, the Duke of Dangerfield, the most notorious rake in all of England, to a wager. She wants her house back. The one her destitute father lost to Dangerfield in a card game. But if she doesn’t win their bet, she not only loses her home, she loses her dignity and pride and damn it all, maybe her heart... For the handsome Duke has decreed, when he wins, she must spend the night in his bed.

Harlow Telford is amused by his hellion neighbor, Caitlin, or Cate to her friends, who seem to encompass everyone on earth except him. When she bursts into one of his private gatherings, he mistakes her for the entertainment. Her slap across his face sets him straight and raises the absurd desire to seduce the unconventional beauty into his bed. When she issues her daft challenge to win back her father’s pile of rubble, the terms are set.  And he’ll do anything to win—except fall in love...

I’m looking for reviewers. If you’d like a free copy of To Dare the Duke of Dangerfield in exchange for a review on Amazon then contact me on romance at bronwenevans dot com.

Happy New Year! I hope you achieve your goals this year.

FAIR SALES--FOR THE BIRDS?

Fair Selling—For the Birds?

The three-day Holiday Fair in Greenville, SC, attracts substantial crowds, people who buy all manner of Christmas gifts, holiday decorations, foodstuffs and household gizmos. So having three authors split the $300+ cost of a booth to sell our books sounded like a grand idea. Out of the thousands of shoppers, surely hundreds would be eager to buy our traditionally-published trade paperbacks for avid readers on their Christmas lists.

At least that’s what two of my published friends—Kathleen Delaney and Ellis Vidler—and I thought. Were we right? No. Was it worthwhile? Yes. Would I do it again? Maybe.

Here’s a rundown on pros and cons for authors contemplating selling at a fair.

Dwindling Pool of Paperback Buyers—I’d estimate half the folks who stopped by our booth said they only buy e-books and/or anticipated receiving an e-reader for Christmas. We gave these folks bookmarks. Will they actually download our books after they unwrap new e-readers? Don’t know. I saw no instant surge in my e-book sales ranking. If I did this again, I’d investigate adding one of the new cell phone-scan barcodes to my bookmark to encourage immediate downloads.

Buyer Psychology—While the three of us write very different books, we all pen adult suspense/mystery with varying degrees of romance. Several potential buyers voiced reluctance to buy books from one or two of us as it might hurt the feelings of the passed-over author(s). A few years ago, Ellis shared a booth with a children’s author and this problem didn’t surface. So sharing a booth with authors who target very different audiences might improve sales. On the other hand, I had a delightful time chatting with my author friends during slow periods.

Do You Like To Read?—In an attempt to lure people to our booth, we’d call out to passersby. Do you like to read? I was astounded at how many people answered with a gruff “no.” At one point, we got the giggles thinking of follow-up questions to the naysayers like Can you read? or Are you a snake handler? On the pro side, we met and talked with many avid readers, librarians, and lovers of suspense and mystery. We tried to recommend books that fit their tastes even if we weren’t the authors, and we invited many of them to come to our local Sisters in Crime chapter. I have to believe there’s a long-term payoff in such interaction.

Book Covers/Geography—I attribute more than a third of my fair sales to the image of a lighthouse on the cover of DEAR KILLER and my ability to talk about my book’s South Carolina Lowcountry setting. These buyers purchased DEAR KILLER because they or their friends and family vacationed in the Lowcountry. If your setting has a strong tie to a popular vacation Mecca and/or the location of the fair, it will definitely help sales.

Books As Gifts—Most people bought our books for themselves rather than as gifts. This surprised me. I attribute it to uncertainty about whether or not a gift recipient would like the book. In contrast, they could make a judgment for themselves based on the back-of-the-book blurb, paging through the book and talking to the author. Our sales also may have been hindered by competition from a used book booth just down the aisle from us that was selling books by “big name” authors.

Time, Dollars and Sense—On the first two days, the fair ran from 10 a.m.-8 p.m., while the Saturday hours were 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Add booth setup/takedown, planning and travel time and you’re talking about investing the equivalent of a 40-hour work week. In my case, my “profit” would translate into an hourly rate well below the minimum wage. Actually, if I subtract the amount of money I spent at the concession stand and on gifts from other Fair vendors, I’m not sure I broke even. However, I did get all my Christmas shopping done, and I had fun.

For the Birds?—To raise money for an animal sanctuary, our neighboring booth let people photograph rescued birds of a feather including a Muscovy duck, a screech owl and a barn owl. There was always a crowd. Maybe next time I’ll bring a hawk to my booth and hint that it only attacks people who don’t read.