Sunday, January 31, 2016

Contests and Contest Answer

     Count this as my February blog because there won't be another one until March. You see, I donated an e-copy of She's a Sinner to The Romance Reviews for their month long Valentine's Day party. I seldom donate to these affairs as giving away one book probably won't make a difference one way or the other, and I am asked so often for free copies. In the e-world , your publisher does not give you boxes of paperbacks to give away for promotion.  You have to buy them at about $10 a piece, so it can get expensive. I can, however, give an e-copy for free.  The Romance Reviews (TRR) has been good to me and put up three positive reviews of my books (no, not all five stars, but good), and so I am happy to contribute to their party. Now let me cheat a little and do a cut and paste of what other goodies they are offering.
     The Mega Anniversary and Valentine's Party starts on February 1 at 12:00am EST. 
 We have more than 300 participating authors and publishers.  There are more than 300 prizes up for grabs during the whole month of February. Grand prize is $200 Amazon Gift Certificate! Plus over $300 Gift Certificates and more than 300 book giveaways!
     Caveat: You do have to join their site to win a prize.
     To win She's a Sinner, you must answer the following question: In which Sinners Sport Romance does Xochi first appear.  You see, my sports books aren't just about sex and football, love and romance, but also about family and friendship as they follow for five books from Goals for a Sinner to Love Letter for a Sinner the career of Joe Dean Billodeaux, a quarterback, from his backup days to his retirement as a legendary player. The spin off Sinner's Legacy series is following the lives of his twelve children, the first two being Son of a Sinner and She's a Sinner which will be up for grabs on February first.  Xochi appears in both books, but first makes her appearance as a child in Kicks for a Sinner.  There's your answer.  Made you read a lot, huh?  But, I also hope I've encouraged you read the whole Sinner series.  Good luck.  May you win many prizes and not only mine. 

Monday, January 11, 2016

A Writer's Resolutions

     Yes, I confess every January I make resolutions regarding my writing career. I've long given up on losing weight and going to the gym more often. Last year worked out pretty much the same as dieting and exercise.  I did not get an agent or make more money on my writing and so have consigned them to resolutions I will never keep.  I did get three books out as I promised myself: Courir de Mardi Gras, Son of a Sinner, and She's a Sinner.  Not looking so good for this year, but I will try to do the same number.  I know I've got a start on publishing three since A Will of her Own comes out in April, I think.  But, my other two projects for this year, A Place Apart and The Courville Rose, have failed to find a publisher--yet.  It could still happen, so that is my number one resolution.
     Number two is to find new publishers offering a greater range of books.  I'm not at all unhappy with my current publisher, but they only do romance.  I'm a little tired of being told I can only have two POVs, his and hers.  I'm not talking about on the same page, but in a 100,000 word book. Some of my books are more mainstream fiction or women's fiction and don't always fit the romance template.  I need more elbow room.
     Number Three: enter the Rita Contest.  In fact, I've done this already.  I don't expect to win or even final, but I figure if five judges read my book, they might like it enough to read others or maybe drop me a review. I did this with one of the entries I read--because you have to be a judge to enter.  None of the five books in my box were bad.  I'd say they were all well-written, but when the contest was over, I did write a review for my favorite.  Also, I suspect those books are passed on to friends or library book sales, or in my case for raffle baskets for my RWA chapter and so reach more readers. Wish I could chip them like lost pets and see where they go. By the way if you are a PAN member of RWA, I highly recommend being a judge even if you don't enter.  Lots of good free reads, and you might discover a new favorite author.
     Number Four:  Find a home for my Regency series of a projected ten books, eight of which are written and languishing in a closet.  I never wrote the last two because the Sinners books and other projects took off and I simply haven't had the time do shop the series or do the research for the last two though I have plot ideas.  I'll have to get used to rejection again, and this slows me down.  This is when an agent would come in handy, but that's not on my list anymore.  Might as well get rejected directly by the publisher and save some time.
     Five: Get more reviews.  Not so easy anymore with floods of indie and e-published authors entering the fray. Prestigious review sources cleave to big New York publishers and don't have the time or inclination to sort through the piles of other authors. My two attempts to attract their attention resulted in, well, nothing. Sent two books out into the void, and they never showed up in reviews. I understand ten solid reviews is the magic number to get on Amazon's radar or attract publishers.  Many of my earlier books have exceeded this number, but lately I'm lucky to get one even on a new Sinners title, my most popular books.  I'd love to see Queen of the Mardi Gras Ball reach ten.  She's at nine now.  This is one of my best books.  If you've read and enjoyed it, please give her the boost of that tenth review.  Thanks in advance.
      Meanwhile, my publisher has invested in NetGalley, a very expensive proposition that exposes books to multiple review sources. Each author chipped in $40 for one title. I think the overall price is $500, pretty steep for most of us. I can verify that I've gotten one review for She's a Sinner from this effort, and it was a good one, five stars. There might have been another, but they didn't cite NetGalley so I'm not sure. I'd say if you have $500, might be worth a try.
     Five resolutions is enough for anyone. I'd better get back to finishing An Ashy Affair, or there won't be three books out this year.  When that is done, I might take a vacation some place my 2015 writing income will pay for--but my husband will have to pay his own way.