Promos and Motivation

I've read a few books lately on Indie publishing, and it seems the thing they stress the most is social networking - promo, promo, promo.

Being a naturally reclusive type, that is a bit hard for me.  However, it did occur to me that while I might have a hard time self-promoting, I don't mind at all to promote other people's work when I like it.  In fact, I started to wonder why I'd never invited any of the authors whose cover art I did to come by my blog and talk about their books.  Seems a natural thing to do, right?  And why haven't I done more book reviews?  I've read tons of books this past year - many by my blogging pals.  I could have been active in promoting them - I have no problem pumping up other writers on my blog, facebook, and twitter.

So, to those of you I've overlooked:  My deepest apologies; I'll remedy that situation very soon.

To myself... maybe I need to create an alter ego to peddle my own stuff? lol

Meanwhile, I've got three - count 'em three - WIPS I want to finish this year, but I'm finding it hard to stay focused and motivated.  However, I did narrow it down to two to focus on, but I still need to choose one to finish first, and decided to ask for you help in choosing by posting two excerpts to vote on.  You can find the candidates in the header tabs above.

With that in mind, I also decided to take a page from the awesomely talented Avery DeBow and try a Mad Lib (or, as she called it, Bad Lib) approach to finish the chosen story. Avery had posted a bit of a story each week, and asked for people to supply words which she had to include in the next week's excerpt. Her end story was incredible, and while I don't have the same amount of talent as Avery, the utter horror and shame should I fail to produce something might just be motivation enough to keep me going.

Mind you, both of those ideas fill me with utter terror.  You might not bother to show up.  You might hate both excerpts and refuse to vote.  You might hate the mad lib and not participate.  You might hate me.

And worst of all, I might be incapable of producing anything usable in such a manner on a weekly basis.

Oh, well.  All I can do is try.  If you don't want to play along and torture me even more senseless than I already am, I suppose I could just randomly pick words out of the dictionary.  It does lack that motivating, public humiliation factor, though.

UPDATE 6/30: By the way, if you participate, I'll promote your book across facebook, twitter, amazon, etc., and you'll be entered to win a free cover art package should you wish to receive one.  Just let me know.

Coming Out and Shouting Out

Notice anything different about this blog?  I'm working on a new website and updating my blog in preparation.  Since I've been writing under one name, and doing book covers and other art under a different name, I decided to "come out" and combine the two.  (I figure if Steve Malley can do it, why shouldn't I?) :) 

(Quick shout out, Go Steve!)

As for the title, I can't decide if it should be "creatively squared" or "creativity squared" and would be interested in hearing your opinion. Or do you think something else altogether?  All opinions are welcome - even if they are half-baked, cracked, and not worth listening to. :)

Meanwhile, I also want to congratulate Amber Scott and Edie Ramer on their Kindle success. (The crowd goes wild....Yaayyyyyyyyyy)

Some others with new books and exciting projects coming down the pike (in alphabetical order) are:

Avery Debow
Charles Gramlich
Michelle Diener
Natasha Fondren
Rick Moore
Stewart Sternberg

Any news you want to share, whether your own or about someone you know?

Waiting for January

I received an email from a Publisher's Weekly the other day with the subject line: "Best First Chapter You'll Ever Read."

 Ok, I thought.  I'll bite.  I downloaded the PDF and read the first chapter of the YA book, "Across the Universe" by Beth Revis.  Wow. 

 This won't be coming out until 1/11/11, darn it.  I'm looking forward to it.

I've attached it for your convenience.

Now, whether that's REALLY the best first chapter you'll ever read is debatable.  But it was pretty darn good, in my humble opinion.

Conflicted

Well, I just put the finishing touches tonight on a short story I've had kicking around for a while. As I read it one last time, something kept bothering me, but I couldn't put my finger on it at first. The writing was clean. The dialogue was cute. The characters were fairly engaging. I smiled in parts... but... but... still, somehow... overall it was BORING.

It took me a few minutes to figure out what should have been blazingly obvious from the start: there was NO conflict. None, whatsoever. Attractive girl and attractive guy meet and are attracted to each other. They hook up. The end.

Gaack!!!!!!!! How did I miss that while writing and editing almost 7000 words? Now, do I go back and torture them? Throw in a time bomb and a runaway freight train? Give one of them amnesia or sudden desire for a sex change operation?

Now *I* have conflict. It's a Christmas story, so I have plenty of time to revise it. Yet part of me just wants to leave it as is and forget about it. I'm tired of looking at it. I could also just put it up on Smashwords as a free download. Yet... that's probably not the best idea if I'm trying to build readership. The other option is to forget it completely and pretend it never existed.

Sigh...

I'm also in the middle of trying to pack up my place to be ready to move by the end of next month, which means I really have to be ready by the end of this month, since I have to give my landlady notice and she'll want to bring people through. I really don't have time to worry about a story with no conflict. I have enough conflict of my own, right? Because I've also been in the process of interviewing for a job in Maine, and they're pretty interested in me right now. And moving across country (again!) is a huge undertaking.

Regardless of where I end up, I still have to move out of my current place so I can afford to pay college tuition for my daughter. And maybe one thing that would help with that tuition might be selling more books... hmm.... I think I see two tortured heroes coming up.

How are you doing? Any editing woes or victories to report?

Shiver me timbers...

For those of you who enjoy a little tingle of fear, let me present Charles Gramlich's "Chimes".

For those of you who may not be familiar with Charles, he's a psychology professor and writer who lives in Louisiana with his equally talented wife--photographer and artist Lana Gramlich. Both of their blogs are worth following. Charles posts thought provoking blogs about writing and has quite a following; Lana's photographs are incredibly beautiful. Apart from that, they're just so darn cute. ;) (And now probably hate me, lol) But seriously, they're so supportive of one another that it always makes me smile to read their comments.

However, this post is about Charles's short thriller, Chimes. I thought this was going to be a horror story, and it was - but more in a Hitchcock horror kind of way. That is, more buildup of mental and emotional tension rather than a string of gory monster scenes.

I've read Charles's work before and one thing that I always take away from them is how deftly he creates a mood using scenery, sounds, and "average Joe" characters to build tension.

In Chimes, the protagonist, a woman, is alone in the house except for her sleeping baby, when she realizes there's an intruder. In one scene, she has to search for a flashlight in the dark and must reach into a closet, not really knowing where the intruder might be hiding.

"She wanted to run. Instead, she forced herself to open the closet and reach in for the Maglite, her skin crawling as the sleeves of raincoats and old sweaters brushed against her hands like the shed husks of monstrous insects."

That made MY skin crawl. And every time I thought I had this all figured out, he'd surprise me with a new twist. All in all, very creepy and enjoyable.

Charles has also written a number of other horror and fantasy fiction novels and short stories, as well as non-fiction work on writing. You can also listen to one of his short horror works, Thief of Eyes, in Sidney Williams podcasts, Fear on Demand. The line from that which hooked me was right from the start:

"She had lips that Satan dreamed of in his long fall to hell."

Loved that. :)

So, have you read anything lately, other than the daily news, which made your skin crawl?

Hey, who knew?!

I just went to Cobblestone Press's new site, Cobblestone After Dark, and look what I found on the front page! I had no idea! Big, big hugs and thanks to everyone who purchased. :)

Now I can call myself a "Best Selling Author", LOL.

Welcome Jude Liebermann!

Today's guest is fellow Cobblestone Press author, Jude Leiberman. She's graciously agreed to answer some questions about her new book, Drew's Awakening, available today at Cobblestone.

I understand you have a new release out called Drew's Awakening. Can you tell us a little bit about it?

Sure, and I'm really excited about this book. It is the follow up to my A Modern Myth trilogy, which I self published. Drew is a very special man, with a very special destiny. He is my all time favorite character and hero.

Is this a departure from the stories you normally write, or is this genre a favorite?

Yes, I had never written paranormal before this trilogy, but it was so much fun to write. I fell in love with the characters, and they became very real to me. I couldn't imagine writing four novels about the same characters, but I can see so many continuing adventures for them now. Romance will always be my favorite genre, and I always vary the sub genre. I guess you can say that paranormal is my favorite one.

If you could choose actors to play your characters in this story, who would you pick and why?

Though the cover depicts Drew looking a lot like Orlando Bloom, I don't know if he would be fitting for the character. I actually can't think of anyone in Hollywood good enough. He would probably need to be played by an unknown that was found through an extensive casting call. I have always thought that Jessica Alba would play Nada, Drew's mother, and Orlando could actually play Grady, Drew's father. Sara, the heroine, would be the tough one. I don't know the actress' name, but she played the blind woman in the Fantastic 4. She has the look of Sara, though she is probably older than 21.

Please describe a little of your favorite scene in this book.

The first one that came to mind is when Sara and Drew almost have sex for the first time in his hotel room, but one of his newly acquired gifts intrudes (without going into too much detail). I enjoyed writing his surprised reaction to it, and how he handled Sara being in the room with him. I chuckled a few times as I wrote that scene.

I know this isn't your first story with Cobblestone Press. How long had you been writing before you got your first "call"? And can you tell us a little about what it was like when you received that first publisher acceptance of one of your stories? How did you celebrate?

I've been writing most of my life but first self published in 1997, after getting tired of the rejections from the NY publishers. It's been a tough but rewarding journey. I had always written sensual romances before submitting to Cobblestone, and the editor asked if I would be willing to spice it up. My first novella with them was published last August. I was very excited to be accepted. I think my husband bought some champagne, and we toasted my first contact.

What can we expect next from you?

I recently finished my first short story erotic fantasy, which I have submitted to Cobblestone for their Wicked line. Wish me luck on it getting accepted.

Is there anything else you'd like to say to your readers, something you'd like them to know?

I have a forum where I've posted a lot of free stories and novellas for my active members. So if they'd like to read a bit of my stuff before paying for it, they should join. They can find it at judesplace.com/forum.

Thanks for being here, Jude!

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About Drew's Awakening:

Drew’s Awakening is a sequel to the self-published A Modern Myth trilogy. Drew Duncan was born at the end of that trilogy. He is now almost 21 and coming into his own. He is more special than he realizes, as powers he was born into begin to emerge. As he deals with these new abilities, he finds his soul mate, Sara. She was hidden when she was a little girl to save her from Kyros, an enemy from his family’s past. She doesn’t remember Drew but immediately feels a connection with him when they are reunited. Even though his family has told him to avoid looking for her, Drew cannot stay away. As they rediscover each other in mental and physical ways, Kyros finds them and abducts Sara. With his mother’s help, Drew follows and finds them. Kyros knows he must kill Drew before he can rein destruction upon the Earth. He uses Sara as bait to try to trap his nemesis. Drew must remember his destiny and awaken the slumbering power within him to destroy this ancient evil, so he and Sara can live happily ever after.

Click here to read an excerpt.

http://www.cobblestone-press.com/catalog/author/judeliebermann.htm

Release Day!

It’s finally here! MANAGING MAGGIE is now available at Cobblestone Press: http://www.cobblestone-press.com/catalog/books/maggie.htm

While I can’t tell you how happy that makes me, I’d also like to tell you about some friends of mine who were instrumental in my journey to publication.

About four years ago, three shy, unpublished writers met online and agreed to meet in person. Clutching their precious manuscript babies to their chests, they gathered around a table at their local Barnes and Nobles in Mesa, Arizona and began to introduce themselves. They were: a widowed travel agent who was writing the book of her heart; a young wife and mother writing her way through various genres in between diapers and naps; and a divorced, single mom who was taking up writing again after a 14 year absence. At that time, none of their work was available to the public, but they had dreams and determination. And if you look for their work today, you'll find them published under the names of Devin McKee, Amber Scott and Kate Sterling.

In a nice turn of fate, Devin and I have books that are being released on the same day: today! Amber just released PlayFling on her own at Smashwords.com while she's waiting to hear back from editors and agents, and you can find more of her work (also under the name Amber Dayne) at Liquid Silver Books and New Concepts Publishing. She has previously had work published by Cobblestone Press – there is no stopping this woman! This weekend she’ll join six of her local romance authors for a panel discussion at the Mesa Library Red Mountain branch at 1pm. If you are nearby in Arizona, be sure check them out.

You can find Devin McKee's book, Dangerous Magic at the Wild Rose Press. On Wednesday, February 10, the Montpelier Friends of the Library will be hosting her first book signing. If you’re in Ohio and nearby, be sure to drop by – she’s great. :)

In the upcoming week or so, I'll be interviewing Devin and Amber so they can tell you more about their journey in their own words. I'll also be appearing on Amber's blog in the near future as well. I'll post the details as soon as I have them. Really, these are great gals - talented and a lot of fun. I think you'll like them, so please check them out. :)

I have a release date!

This Friday, 2/5, "Managing Maggie" will be available from Cobblestone Press. :)

Writing Goals and Promotion

Okay, I've been given a lot to think about this evening. I was checking out Cobblestone's Main Street Forum, and there was a great workshop on promotion that Sable Grey gave (which, I unfortunately missed, but I recommend reading the archives.)

After reading some of the posts in the various archives, I decided to do a quick search of the bestsellers from various e-book sellers. (You can find a list of commercial distributors here: http://users.california.com/~parvin/ebooks.html#commercial)

It seems that M/M, and menage erotica (M/F/M) are big sellers, but so are sexy historicals. (Who said historicals were dead? I saw several of them on the bestseller lists.) Paranormals are still selling well. (Especially paranormal menage; it seems anything with two guys getting it on--with or without a female participant--is almost guaranteed a good run.) Books with some form of bondage or light BDSM also seem to sell well.

Does that mean your sweet, straight, one-woman man, cowboy romance is not going to go anywhere? Not necessarily. I noticed that Bookstrand seems to sell a lot of westerns (though again, the hotter the better.) Of course, this was based on my thumbnail sketch and not any in -depth research. Yet even with that quick glance, I could see the trends.

Feeling a little discouraged since I don't write gay erotica, I remembered this interesting blog by Leslie Richardson that I read the other day. (I particularly like points # 3 and # 19 as encouragement for e-book pubs) She has a no-nonsense, take no prisoners approach to writing for a living that I really liked. (There is also a worth reading, follow up to her earlier blog here.)

Anyhoodles... all this has made me realize that A.) I need to get busy and get back to those WIPs languishing over there on my side bar (poor little things... so neglected) and B.) I need to give more thought to promoting the book I do have coming out. In self-defense, I haven't done it yet because I'm still waiting for the release date, but I haven't even said what the story is about. Sheesh.

So... in case you were wondering.... MANAGING MAGGIE is about taming the cougar. :)

Jason and Maggie are business partners, but he wants to carry their partnership into the bedroom and beyond. At thirteen years his senior, Maggie believes she's old enough to know better than to get involved with a younger man -- no matter how sexy he is.

But Jason is determined to prove he's man enough to handle a woman like Maggie. He'll overcome her objections -- even if he has to tie her down to make her listen.

So... I'm resolving to do more writing and promoting in the next 6 months and try to have at least 3 more novellas and one novel out for publication this year. What are your goals?