What do you do when you’ve written a contemporary novel, but then it takes you 15 years before you’re ready to publish it? Do you update the manuscript for current events, technology, etc.? Leave it as-is, despite the fact that it’s now dated? Make everything as vague as possible and hope no one notices when exactly it’s supposed to be set?
This is the issue I faced with my first novel, Even Heroes. Although the initial draft was completed around 2007, the editing took place in spurts over more than a decade. All throughout the process, I flip-flopped between updating the time period and keeping it the way I originally had it.
At various points during revisions, my main character was listening to music on either a Walkman, a Discman, an mp3 player, or a smartphone. Social media platforms changed as they went in and out of style, seemingly with the direction of the wind. Current events were mentioned, taken out, then added back in again.
As I came close to a blessed final draft, the setting dilemma got settled once and for all, much to my relief.
Here’s where I landed:
The original 2004-2005 time period stayed put, however, many of the more dated references to technology were eliminated.
In the end, I hoped for something that would feel almost timeless, like a kid could pick the book up in 5-10 years and understand that it was set in the past, but not be stumbling over outdated references every five minutes.
I decided not to update the setting for several reasons.
1) Technology changes too fast! Even if I made all the references current at the time of publication, it would be outdated within a year or two anyway.
2) Political climate. Parts of my book take place in Detroit, which was going through a really hard era when I was writing the book. Some of the issues the citizens were struggling with back then fit with the story I needed to tell, so it made sense to stick with that very corrupt, dark period in the Big D’s history.
3) Social climate. This is just a purely personal opinion, but I feel like we, as a society, have fundamentally changed in the last 20 years. We are harder, we are meaner, and there is no longer any such thing as “sacred” or “off limits.”
Remember when The Sixth Sense came out back in 1999? There is a twist at the end of that movie, and there seemed to be a conscious effort by most viewers to preserve that secret for others, rather than spoil it. We wanted other people to have that same moment of surprise that we felt.
There was something magic about that–the unified effort to keep a secret, the basic consideration people were showing for their fellow man.
I think that magic is gone now. If The Sixth Sense came out today, people would be vying to be the first to spoil it for as many viewers as they could in the splashiest possible way.
In my book, the main character is a superhero. Despite his precautions, someone could manage to follow him home one night and blab his secret to the whole world. Back in 2004, in that kinder world where “good” secrets were still something precious, someone would be much less likely to do this.
There is one element of my book that I actually wish had become outdated, but sadly it hasn’t come to pass.
I began writing Even Heroes in 2004, a mere 5 years after the tragic events at Columbine High School. My book deals with a similar tragedy, aiming to look at bullying, school shootings, and youth in crisis through the lens of a superhero story–something I didn’t think had been done before.
At the time of writing, I could never have even imagined that school shootings and mass shootings would become so commonplace over the next two decades that many are not even deemed newsworthy.
Four months before my publication date, we had the worst school shooting in our state’s history.
As much as I want my book to be timeless, this is one way that I would absolutely love for it to become a relic of the past. I want kids in ten years to read it and wonder how such a thing could’ve been possible–a phenomenon so heinous, it’s shocking that it was ever allowed to happen.
If we ever get to that point with school shootings in America, where kids are reading about it in history books, rather than living it in the form of practice drills (or worse), I will gladly welcome in that new era.
In the meantime, if my book–even with its slightly dated references–provides hope for even one kid out there who’s struggling, then it has more than fulfilled its intended purpose.
Hey all! Long time, no blog! My apologies for the extended absence. Some big life changes, including a sick cat and a brand new job, have kept me very busy and struggling to find my new “normal.”
I’m happy to report that the cat is doing better, and I’m starting to find small windows where I can squeeze in some writing time. Lately I’ve been writing on my phone when outside with one of my special needs cats, as well on my lunch breaks at work (that’s where I am right now!).
My new writing partner!
It reminds me a lot of the old days when I first started writing. I just couldn’t find a good time to sit down at the computer and write. And I realized if I waited until I could find time to do that, I’d be waiting forever. If I really wanted to write my book, I’d have to find another way – so I did. I handwrote my first book in 15 numbered notebooks while outside watching our dogs and doing other animal-related chores.
If you want something badly enough, you will find a way, and I guess I needed life to teach me that lesson again.
One thing I wanted really badly was to release my paranormal romance novelette, Scars, before starting my new job. I am thrilled to report that I got this done, and Scars is available on Amazon and can be read for free on Kindle Unlimited:
For all those who have self published a novel or are considering doing so, there’s one very important thing you should know: your book has a superpower. Sounds awesome, right? Until you realize what that superpower actually is: invisibility.
That’s right. Your book is invisible. No one can see it except you. So…not as awesome as what you were imagining (admit it – you thought your book could fly or shoot lasers from its title page). And let’s face it – invisibility is definitely not what any author wants for their precious newborn novel.
But that’s not the end of the story: YOU, the author, have a special power too. You are the only one on earth who can make your book visible to others. And that is an amazing power, if you can just figure out how to use it.
Below is a chronicle of my efforts thus far to make my debut novel appear in the eyes of the world.
After some initial sales to kindhearted friends and family members – and three wonderfully detailed reviews from book bloggers – my YA novel quickly returned to its original state of invisibility, where I sadly left it for several months. I didn’t really know what to do or how to move forward, so I just let it stagnate.
Eventually, I pulled myself together and made some kind of effort by enrolling the book in Kindle Select (This is what it’s called on the author side of things. On the reader side, it’s known as Kindle Unlimited.)
Enrollment has several perks. Readers with a KU subscription can read the book for free, and authors are paid a certain amount per page read (typically about half a cent). The program also allows authors to give their ebooks away for a certain number of days per enrollment period, or reduce the price for special, short-term sales called Kindle Countdown Deals.
The one main downside is that you can’t have your ebook available anywhere else – it must be an Amazon exclusive (not a dealbreaker for me, since my ebook wasn’t published elsewhere).
With much excitement, I arranged my first giveaway. I posted on this blog that my book would be free, and promoted it on Twitter (is anyone actually calling it X?) as well. All told, eight people downloaded the book during its free days. In my mind, that was pretty good – eight more people had discovered my book and might actually read it.
A few months later I tried another giveaway, this time promoting only on Twitter. Zero people downloaded the book. It was a definite low moment for me. Apparently, I couldn’t even give my book away. Then there was the fact that my one and only KU reader made it through 158 pages, then abandoned the book, never to pick it up again, and I would never know why.
After these glaring failures, I slumped into despair for a while, and my book sales were at zero for a good 5-6 months. Eventually, I picked myself up, dusted the self-pity particles off the butt of my jeans, and got back to work fighting for my book.
The first thing I did was spend weeks researching proper categories and keywords for my novel – something that should have been done prior to publication. I’ll try to do a separate post on this because it’s vitally important.
Bargain Booksy
Once my book was as well-categorized and keyworded as possible, I decided to try pairing a Kindle Countdown Deal with a paid promotion on Bargain Booksy. Bargain Booksy sends out emails to subscribers about discounted books ($4.99 or less) in each reader’s chosen categories. The discounted books are also listed on BB’s website.
In my case, I paid $25 for my book to be emailed out to the 150,000+ subscribers in their “Young Adult” category. My book was already priced low enough that I didn’t have to reduce it further, but I dropped it to $0.99 just to sweeten the deal.
My Bargain Booksy promo email went out on a Monday (the first day of my countdown deal). One person bought the book that day. I made another two sales the following day, and one later that week. Four sales, in all, and though I didn’t make back anywhere near what I spent, it still felt better having people buy my book than giving it away for free and having no one even take it.
Despite not selling oodles of copies, I will say that Bargain Booksy was very easy to work with, and gave clear instructions on how to set the timing of the Countdown Deal so that it would match up perfectly with the promotional email.
Also, I signed up for their newsletter (they strongly encourage all authors to do so) and while I enjoy getting the daily emails featuring bargain YA books, I do wonder how many of their subscribers are actually fellow authors who signed up in the process of advertising their books.
Amazon Ads
Having gotten a taste of people actually buying my book, I didn’t want to turn back. My next foray into paid advertising was through Amazon Ads. I found an awesome tutorial which simplified the process of setting up different kinds of ads, and got to work.
My first campaign was a sponsored product ad with automatic keyword targeting and a small amount of custom text. In this model, Amazon would choose my keywords for me, I would get impressions (views) if my bid was competitive enough against other advertisers, and I would only pay if someone clicked on my ad.
I set my bid at $0.40 per click, sat back, and waited. Not much happened. My impressions were at zero, and I got impatient, so I upped my bid by five cents every day until I started getting impressions.
I think my bid was at $0.65 or $0.70 by this point, and I was getting about ten impressions per day – very low, but at the time I had no idea ten was a bad number (FYI: if you get one click per 1,000 impressions, and one sale for every ten clicks, that’s pretty good). I left it alone for a month, got no clicks (and therefore paid nothing), but felt good that at least a few people were seeing my book. It was no longer invisible.
The next month, I tried a manual targeting campaign (i.e. I chose my own keywords). This was fun because I had researched the heck out of keywords several months prior, and since you can only choose seven for your book’s metadata, a lot of really good ones didn’t make the cut. This gave me a chance to use them all and then some.
I unwisely set my default bid at $0.60, allowing it to go up to $0.90 for prime advertising real estate (e.g. the top of the search results page). Right away my impressions were in the upper hundreds/low thousands, and I started getting clicks. Sometime during that month, one of those clicks resulted in a sale. I was ecstatic – someone had discovered my book, read the description, and decided the novel was worth spending money on.
The next few months ran in a similar vein, though the spend gradually increased from $15 a month, to $20, to $25. I typically sold between 1-3 books per month through ad clicks, and was definitely in the red, but still feeling good about investing in my novel.
Things went both right and badly wrong in January. About a third of the way through the month, my sales jumped to $111.92. I thought it was a mistake. It turned out not to be.
Apparently, I had sold eight paperbacks from a single $0.75 click. This was really cool, but also confusing. Why would someone buy eight? I felt like I was missing something, something bad, but couldn’t figure out what it was. Part of me wondered if Amazon periodically buys books from its own advertisers, then resells them, all the while keeping authors addicted to ads via the sweet taste of making the occasional sale. I doubt this is the case, but wouldn’t it be a massive scandal?
No matter what the reason for the weird eight-book click, my impressions soared, as did my clicks, yet I failed to make another sale that month, landing me deeper in the red than ever before. In the end, I spent over fifty dollars on ads in January, and only made ten of it back in royalties.
Being on a very tight budget, I couldn’t afford to continue at this rate, and after a panicky and disastrous effort to quickly lower my bids, I ended up having to pause both my campaigns (the manual, and the automatic, which I had left running because it occasionally came alive and generated a few clicks, though never any sales).
I am not done with Amazon Ads, but I do need to regroup and figure out how to do it on a budget that works for me (i.e. much lower default bids). I also need to view it as a long-term investment and let things grow and build momentum slowly, rather than jacking up the bids in the first few days just to see some results.
Voracious Readers Only
Even though I sold some books through paid advertising, I felt that I could have sold more if readers had more than 3 or 4 reviews to peruse for info and opinions about my novel. In an effort to gain reviews and new readership, I did a free twenty-book giveaway on a site called Voracious Readers Only. This site focuses on connecting readers with fledgling authors, in hopes of the experience being beneficial for both parties.
Authors gain new readers (who are encouraged by the site to leave reviews), and also get to add those readers’ email addresses to their mailing lists. Readers get a steady stream of free books and the chance to help authors out by joining their mailing lists and leaving reviews.
To get the most out of my giveaway, I decided to first set up a mailing list. I signed up for a free account on MailerLite.com. They quickly informed me that sending out my newsletter from a free email address (e.g. yahoo, gmail, etc) was very bad and likely to go to spam instead of my readers’ inboxes. They recommended that I purchase my own domain and a professional email address to go with it.
Thus, what started off as a free venture ended up costing me $$$$$. When all was said and done, I owned my own website, and had a pro email address. Later, I got to thinking and decided to check the sender addresses of the author newsletters I am subscribed to. They were ALL free emails. **facepalm**
On the bright side, since I upgraded my WordPress site, you won’t have to look at those gross adds for reducing belly fat anymore. So, you’re welcome. 🙂
My experience with VRO was…interesting. Unlike Bargain Booksy, I didn’t find VRO’s interface to be user friendly. I was confused several times while setting up my giveaway, had no idea what information was going out to readers, and began to wonder whether it was even okay to put anyone’s email on my list, should I be lucky enough to get any requests.
Also, when entering info about my book, there was apparently a word count limit in the “reviews” section…however, the site didn’t let me know that. I included the three reviews I’d gotten from book bloggers (VRO asked for 3-5 reviews), but one of my reviews got cut off in the middle and there was no way to see this until after the form was already sent. I thought my form looked like a pile of crap, and worried that this was what readers were going to see.
The day of my giveaway arrived, and requests began to trickle in before the one-hour window opened, and continued all the way until the next morning, until I accumulated the promised total of 20 opt-ins. Thankfully, the communication from VRO on that day was clearer, and I at least understood that everyone who opted in had voluntarily signed up for my mailing list.
Time to get to work! I dutifully sent out copies of my ebook to everyone who asked for one, thanked them profusely, and signed them up for my newsletter. The automated Welcome message I’d set up on MailerLite seemed to go out exactly as planned. Roughly half of the readers opened the newsletter, while the rest ignored it or it got lost in their spam traps. One person immediately unsubscribed, which didn’t feel great, but I tried not to take it personally.
Still, I had a few subscribers, and that felt good. Roughly a month later, a new review popped up on Amazon from one of the VRO readers. Just a single word – “Stunning” – accompanied by a five star rating. It was definitely one of the better days I’ve had in a while. 🙂
Takeaways
Investing in my novel feels so much better than giving up on it.
Paid advertising DOES sell books, but so far not enough to cover the cost of the ads.
Giving my book away in exchange for subscriber email addresses seems more beneficial than just giving it away for nothing.
In case you missed that big purple button up there, I have a newsletter now! Here’s where you can sign up: https://subscribepage.io/gabassier_newsletter (if you’re on the fence about clicking, there’s a REALLY cute pic of my cat Black Canary on there).
I can’t wait to save up a bit of $$ and try more adventures in advertising!
Are you an indie author trying to market your books? What have you tried so far? What works for you and what doesn’t?
For a REALLY long time, I didn’t have a Twitter account. I had no idea what I’d even do with one. Then my favorite TV show got cancelled, and Twitter seemed to be the main avenue for fans to protest this development and try to bring the show back. Being the devoted fangirl that I am, of course I had to fight against the unjust cancellation of something great (#SaveForever!), so I signed up for Twitter. And even though our campaign eventually failed (cue the heartbroken sobbing), I did have tons of fun connecting with other diehard fans of the show. Just knowing how many people loved Forever helped ease the pain of its loss.
In the years since then, I’ve continued to use Twitter to fight the good fangirl fight. Sometimes we won (#SaveLucifer, yeah baby!!!), other times we lost (I’m so sorry, Limitless – I tried!), but it was always amazing to have a voice and join forces with other fans in support of a common goal.
Having a Twitter account came in handy for other purposes, too. For example, I linked my Twitter to this blog, so whenever a new post goes up on here, my Twitter followers (all twelve of them!!) can see it. Being on Twitter also allowed me to participate in several Chicken Soup for the Soul book release parties, where I made some awesome connections with fellow CSS authors.
But the best was yet to come. In the process of trying to get some much-needed reviews for my novel, I contacted Crowvus Book Blog (https://crowvusbookblog.blogspot.com). To my delight, one of the authors, Judith Crow, agreed to read and review my book (you can read Judith’s review of Even Heroes here: https://crowvusbookblog.blogspot.com/2022/02/book-review-even-heroes-by-g-bassier.html). A few weeks later, Judith contacted me about a new program initiated by Crowvus: a Twitter account that would be curated by a different author each week. It would be a chance to get more exposure for my book, and network with other authors and readers. How could a girl say no to that? 🙂
Thus, for one crazy week back in the spring, I was the curator of the @WeeklyScribe Twitter account. To say it was an amazing experience would be an understatement. At first, I was putting a lot of pressure on myself to really do a great job and provide top-notch content. I was, after all, the first American to curate the account, the first person not associated with Crowvus to curate the account, and I think basically the second person to do it ever. So I wanted to really represent their brand in a respectable way and not do anything to horribly embarrass or offend anyone.
Initially I had a very strict schedule of Tweets laid out. I was going to do two or three posts on a specific topic each day. They were all pre-written. Once I dove in, however, I started to remember what Twitter immersion really feels like. My rigid plans quickly started to loosen up, and I really began to interact organically with other authors. I noticed that polls got a nice response, so I added a few more than I planned. And, while I made sure to post new content every day, I ended up finding more pleasure in reading other people’s Tweets and commenting, liking, following, and sometimes even Re-Tweeting.
I dove happily down the rabbit hole, responding to Tweets about plot, characterization, favorite books, indie publishing vs. traditional, editing habits, etc. I shared quotes and details about my novel, and eagerly read passages posted by other authors – their opening lines, banter between their characters, even silly things, like their main character’s favorite brand of soap.
This may not seem like a big deal to you, but as a writer, I’ve basically been wandering alone in the desert for three years. And suddenly, I was swimming in a lake of writing advice, shared experiences, and jokes about the dreaded synopsis that only other authors would understand. It was heaven! It reminded me just how much of a geek I am about writing. How I could talk about it all day long and well into the night. How it keeps my heart pumping in a world that sometimes feels dead.
I really, really needed that reminder.
In the months since my time as @WeeklyScribe, I have mostly crawled back into my cave, content to be a Twitter hermit. However, I do actually come out into the sunshine once in a while, and when I do, I enthusiastically start checking every hashtag to do with writing (my faves are #WritingCommunity and #writingquestion). And then I start reading those Tweets, and liking, and commenting, and following. I don’t want to lose that lifeline to people who “get” me, now that I’ve finally got it back.
Also, maybe even more significantly, this experience inspired me to start writing again. I am happy to report that I have completed the first chapter of a brand new novel, and Chapter Two is in progress. Slow progress, but progress nonetheless.
So, that was my week as @WeeklyScribe. If you are an author interested in curating the @WeeklyScribe account, I have three words for you: GO FOR IT!! You’ll be so glad you did. I know I was.
I may not have gotten much writing done during the pandemic. Or much reading. Or much exercising. But I do have ONE claim to productivity over the last year and a half: I’ve been slowly, quietly getting my first novel ready for publication.
The idea of publishing independently has been knocking around in my brain since I attended a workshop on the subject roughly ten years ago. Since then, I’ve participated in several more workshops, read numerous indie-published books, and even interviewed an indie author. The more I learned, the more I liked what I heard:
Complete control over your content. Publishing at your own pace. Earning higher royalties. The freedom that comes with being your own boss. And, probably most important for me: the opportunity to share unique stories that traditional publishing doesn’t want to take a chance on.
One thing that has struck me about most of the indie books I’ve read: They’re special. They’re different. They’re not cardboard cutouts of every other book in their genre. Some of these books experiment with style, structure, or just explore a topic so different from anything I’ve read before that I doubt the authors could come up with a comp title even if someone offered them $50K. As a reader, I find this stimulating, exciting. I like different.
I am different.
Of course, traditional publishing had always been the dream, and letting go wasn’t easy. There will be no advance on royalties, no prestige of having my work get “chosen” by an agent, no NYT Bestseller List bragging rights.
But maybe, just maybe, with a TON of hard work, I’ll earn a small readership who appreciates quality writing that doesn’t quite fit the mold. And maybe, just maybe, one day I’ll get to have an even greater honor than being chosen by any agent or editor:
The honor of being chosen by YOU, the reader.
Best wishes to all, keep writing, and stay tuned for more posts about my publishing journey!
I wish I could say that I’ve been one of those people who used the downtime of quarantine to become massively productive. I wish I could say I holed up and penned five epic novels, got completely ripped, and launched a successful business or two. I tip my imaginary hat to the people who can say that – you have my respect, my awe, and my envy.
I could give a list of excuses for why I’m not a pandemic wunderkind. I have many legitimate ones. Like the fourteen cats and kittens someone dumped on our property back in April, when all the vets and shelters were closed. (You can read all about this crazy event here.) I could point out that I have extra responsibilities helping to care for a family member suffering from a debilitating illness. I could complain about how draining and complicated a simple trip to the grocery store has become.
Like I said, I have many valid excuses. But the truth is, I have struggled just to get normal daily tasks done. Tasks that were hardly a burden before this all happened suddenly seem exhausting after so many grueling months of fear and uncertainty. I turned forty last month. I felt sixty-five. This situation has aged all of us, I think. When I wake up each day, I try very hard to be happy. Once in a while, it dawns on me that I didn’t used to have to try.
I’ve had a few pandemic-induced nightmares, all of them variations on same theme: I’m out in public, walking around shopping or whatever, and suddenly I realize I’m not wearing my mask. It’s horrifying. I quickly grab the collar of my shirt or coat and try vainly to cover up my nose and mouth but it’s never enough. Everyone around me is wearing their masks like good citizens, and here I am, completely naked – and not in a fun, nude beach kind of way. Oddly, no one appears to be judging me. But I am judging myself. I am judging myself sohard. I wake up feeling relieved the event never actually occurred, and grateful, because to date I haven’t lost anyone to COVID. The shadow creeps ever closer as more of my community members begin to fall victim, but for the moment I am lucky. The people who’ve watched their loved ones die via iPad screens, those are the folks who have real nightmares.
As this pandemic has dragged on, many things have slipped through the cracks in my life. This blog is one. Writing is another. Exercise would also have to be included on that list. I tried to put on my aerobics DVD one time during the lockdown, only to discover the disc was broken and wouldn’t play. Months of sloth-like inactivity later, I mustered the energy to hunt down a thirty-minute workout on YouTube. I barely survived the ordeal and for days afterward hobbled around with every muscle screaming like I’d been in a serious car accident.
I miss blogging. I miss connecting with other writers and fans. I miss being in some form of decent physical shape. I really, really miss writing on a regular basis.
It is time, slowly and with many faltering steps, to rectify all of these things. There is reason to hope, even under this oppressive cloud of darkness. The scent of spring is in the air, faint but undeniable: promising new vaccines, a new American President, more people doing the right thing and wearing their masks. The end is still a long way off, no question, but it is in sight. And in the meantime, like Luna Lovegood says in the final Harry Potter book, “We’re still here. We’re still fighting.”
Apologies for the loooong absence! I’ve been busy dealing with life’s little curve balls (see picture below) but I am alive and well and gearing up for my favorite time of year: FALL! (New TV shows, chilly weather perfect for sipping hot soup, pretty neon leaves on the trees, HALLOWEEN, NaNoWriMo–what’s not to love? 🙂 )
This lovely little princess is Diana, an extremely shy feral kitten who showed up on our property several weeks ago. Taming her has basically taken over my life, but it is paying off–she will now let me pet her and even pick her up…sometimes!
Now that I’m finally back, I wanted to say a HUGE, economy-sized THANK YOU to everyone who came out to the storytelling event at The Raven on August 1st. Thank you for listening to our words, supporting us, and being a wonderful audience!
Me, reading a short story (and trying not to faint from stage fright). Many thanks to R. Churchill for snapping this photo!
I am especially grateful to my folks (who ALWAYS have my back), my AMAZING writing partner (and her awesome family!), my buddy Churchill (who drove an hour to get there!), S.K. Mabry (who first suggested the idea and shared the opportunity with our writing group), Jody (who organized this great event to showcase local authors and their work), Katrina (who did a lot of the publicity) and the rest of The Raven’s super-cool staff–they treated us like royalty and wouldn’t even accept payment for our drinks.
And of course, thank you to my fellow authors for sharing your incredible stories with us!
I didn’t realize until the end of the night that I was sitting directly underneath this creepy fellow! In case you can’t read the script, it says “LUST.” The rest of the seven deadly sins were scattered about the establishment. The Raven = coolest venue EVER.
I do believe it was my first time reading one of my stories out loud for an audience. Outside of my writing group, at least. Totally nerve-wracking (my heart was RACING) but also SOOO much fun.
There may actually be a video of it somewhere around here:
Also, a little birdie told me (actually it was Jody) that The Raven plans to host this event again, maybe around twice a year, so if you missed it the first time, keep checking The Raven Cafe’s blog for updates about when the next one might be taking place:
If you’re a local writer, think about participating next time! If you’re not local, consider approaching a business in your area to see if they’d be interested in hosting something like this.
Even if you’re not a writer, it is SO great to sit in an awesome venue like this and just let someone’s voice and words flow around you. I have attended numerous poetry readings over the years, and there is always something magical about being in an environment where you’re surrounded by people who love words and want to celebrate that love with others.
So go forth! Find a poetry reading or book signing in your area! Team up with other authors and local businesses to create an event like this. Share your words, and rediscover why you love writing and reading so much!
Those of you who know me know that I’m into werewolves. Like REALLY into werewolves. Like, when someone comes over to visit, my standard greeting is, “Do you want to watch a movie? I have The Wolfman!” (In case you were wondering, yes I get weird looks in response to this.)
I’m not exactly sure how I turned out this way (it might have something to do with how many times I watched The Shaggy Dog and Ladyhawke when I was a kid), but at some point in my life I blossomed into a full-fledged lover of all things shapeshifter and never looked back.
Which is why I could not be more excited to have one of my stories included in Pen and Kink’s upcoming anthology, Transformed. This book, which is the third in their Triskaidekaphilia series, features romantic relationships involving (you guessed it) shapeshifters. (The first two books focused on romances related to urban legends and vampires. The next one, called Haunted, will feature female ghosts – go check out the submission guidelines here: http://www.penandkinkpub.com/home/books/triskaidekaphilia/4-haunted-female-ghosts/ )
For me, the most exciting thing about being included in a collection like this is getting to read everyone else’s stories. (I mean, I already read mine – that’s old news.) So, as soon as I got my advance review copy (and did a quick check to make sure I hadn’t done anything cringe-worthy, like spell my own name wrong in the byline (don’t laugh, it’s possible)), I joyfully dove into my fellow authors’ works.
And I just have to say: Holy crap! These writers are so talented! I am so not worthy to be in their midst! I loved every single story in the book. Like seriously, I keep trying to pick a favorite, and I just CAN’T. I think what impressed me the most, aside from just the quality of the writing, was the variety. This book features many different cultures, different interpretations of what it means to be a shapeshifter (whether it’s a blessing or a curse, whether it’s something to be carefully controlled or something that should be encouraged to run rampant), and different types of romantic relationships.
And that’s not even mentioning all the different kinds of creatures! I mean, there are werewolves, yes – but they’re actually in the minority here. Beneath the beautiful cover designed by Amanda C. Davis, I discovered weresnakes, werefoxes, werehawks, werecats, werejackals, wereseals (yes, seals!). Heck, there’s even a weredragon in there!
In addition to the menagerie of shapeshifters, there are characters of all colors and backgrounds. There are straight characters, gay characters, bisexual characters. There is sex, and sometimes it’s described in great detail – however, it’s never the sole point of the story, but rather just one element that only adds to the richness of the overall plot.
Speaking of plots, there are some really complex ones involving spy games, intrigue, stolen goods and kidnapping, as well as simple plots focusing on a single moment of significance in a character’s life. There are cursed lovers. There are characters who meet for the first time, and characters who’ve known each other across the ages.
All I can say is, hats off to my fellow authors for their skills and creativity, as well as to the editor, Charlie Watson, for putting together such a diverse book.
As one reviewer already mentioned, there really is something for everyone in Transformed. (You can find more early reviews here: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/38262542-transformed ) If this sounds like something you’d be into, the books comes out on July 13th. (Yes, that’s Friday the 13th – it ties in with Triskaidekaphilia, which means love of the number thirteen). Check out the pre-order link here:
Oh, and if you’re a reviewer who’d like an ARC of the book, I believe they are still giving a few copies away on LibraryThing. You just have to scroll down until you see the pretty cover with the lady and the tiger and the title Transformed by Charlie Watson:
Being a novelist is many things. Easy isn’t one of them. On this long and difficult journey, we need as much help and support as we can possibly get. So, as a belated Valentine’s Day gift to my fellow aspiring novelists, here are some cool opportunities, programs and resources just for you!
Critique Giveaway: YA and MG novelists can enter to have their query letter and the first page of their manuscript critiqued by a mentee from the previous round of Author Mentor Match. This is taking place NOW through the end of February. Lucky winners are chosen via random drawing and matched to a mentee in their category and genre. Find out more and enter here:
Author Mentor Match, Round 4: Program that pairs aspiring YA and MG novelists with more experienced authors who have already signed with agents. In order to apply, you need to have a completed YA or MG manuscript, a query letter, and a synopsis. You can apply to up to four mentors. If you get selected, your mentor will give you notes on your manuscript and other parts of your submission package! Round 4 submissions run from March 16-21. Find out all about this awesome opportunity and how to apply here:
Pitch Wars: Okay, I know the folks who write adult novels were starting to feel left out, so here’s one for EVERYBODY! This program is similar in some ways to Author Mentor Match. In this case the mentors are agented/published writers, editors, or industry interns. They each choose one applicant to work with, and help that person polish his/her manuscript and submission package. After two months of intense revisions, each mentee’s pitch/first page is posted for agents to view in the agent showcase. In order to apply for this program, you need a finished manuscript, a synopsis, a query letter and a pitch. Submission windows are as follows: Adult: July 16th, YA: July 17th, MG: July 18th. Some mentors may accept memoirs and graphic novels. Find out all about this amazing program and other related events, such as #PitMad, here:
Other goodies for novelists getting ready to submit for the first time:
AgentQuery Connect: A great site with a community of writers who help and support one another. These folks know their stuff and are always willing to lend a hand, whether it’s critiquing a synopsis/first page/query letter, or simply answering a question about agents and the submission process.
Query Shark: Must-see blog for anyone crafting a query letter. Be sure to read every single example and all the comments. Invaluable info given with snarky humor by literary agent Janet Reid, who hopes to help new writers survive the query trenches.
Query Tracker: Very useful site – people share when they sent their queries to specific agents, what response they got, and how quickly it arrived. Some folks even post their rejection letters (so you can see what a particular agent’s form letter looks like) and other super-helpful info.
I hope these resources make your journey toward publication just a little bit easier. Remember: no matter how hard it seems sometimes, you’re not alone!
It all started with a simple dream: to complete my first novel. It took about three years – plus another two to type up the handwritten manuscript – but I did it. By the time I was finished transcribing, my heart was crowded with more dreams: write some short stories, get published digitally, get published in print, learn to write a screenplay, pen a piece of fanfiction (and have the guts to actually post it). One by one, all of these dreams came true…save #3.
I love getting published in e-zines for many reasons: your story is free for anyone to read, you can link to it on your website, and it’s just a great thing to have a sample of your work in such an easily accessible format – not to mention the awesomeness of instant reader feedback! But I must admit there’s something magical about being published in print. Just seeing your story in the pages of a book, being able to hold it in your hands and run your fingertips over the words…I wanted that. I think a lot of writers do.
And, for one reason or another, the dream just kept drifting out of reach. My very first acceptance was for a print newspaper in the city where I attended college. I was thrilled. Then it didn’t happen. No explanation, never heard from the editor again. I spent long months feeling baffled and hurt, then eventually moved on.
My next acceptance – or, as I like to call it, my first real acceptance – came from Every Day Fiction. One of the many things that drew me to them was that they were a digital market, but they also put out an annual print anthology of their best stories. Sadly, they stopped doing this shortly after I started submitting to them. As far as I know, they’ve never restarted. I think it was just too expensive. Completely understandable, but once again, I had to put the dream on hold.
Then, just last year, I got the acceptance I’d been waiting for: one of my stories had been selected for a print children’s collection. Cloud Nine, here I come…right? Wrong. In December, I received an email from the publisher that they were no longer doing multi-author children’s collections and there was no guarantee they would ever publish my story.
I started to think I might be cursed. I started to think this particular dream would have to stay just that: a dream. I started to think maybe it was time to let it go.
Thankfully, I didn’t listen to those little whispering cockroaches of doubt. I kept submitting to print markets, and finally, it paid off. A few months ago, as I shared right here on ATHF, I received notification that my story “The Greatest Gift” would be published in Chicken Soup for the Soul: The Cat Did What?
But the awesomeness didn’t stop there. A few weeks after that, I got another email from Chicken Soup for the Soul: my dog story, “Legacy,” had been selected to appear inChicken Soup for the Soul: The Dog Did What?
A few weeks after that, the unimaginable happened: my werewolf story, “Burn,” was accepted to appear in the August 2014 issue of Trysts of Fate, a dark paranormal romance magazine presented by Alban Lake Publishing. A print magazine.
After all those times the dream had slipped away, it seemed just too good to be true. When the hyper excitement wore off, I began to worry that maybe it was too good to be true. Both of these publishers were very reputable, but still, I’d been burned in the past – multiple times. I couldn’t truly let myself believe – not until I could hold the books in my hands. Like, for real.
In mid-July, I got my wish: the first batch of contributor’s copies arrived, and I ran my fingers over the glossy cover of Chicken Soup for the Soul: The Dog Did What? for the very first time. I touched my name on the page, saw my words in print at long last. Less than a week later, I was holding a contributor’s copy of Chicken Soup for the Soul: The Cat Did What?, caressing the pages, smelling the crispness of fresh ink on paper. Then, about a month after that, my third baby arrived. Trysts of Fate was just as glossy as the other two, the striking cover art looking even better in person than it had on the publisher’s website. There was even something special about just knowing that they were advance copies – something most people weren’t able to read or touch just yet.
Nowadays, of course, anyone can hold my babies. Anyone can read them. The Chicken Soup books officially came out on August 19th, and can be purchased in bookstores and online. The August 2014 issue of Trysts of Fate is available in Alban Lake Publishing’s online store.
The dream has finally, officially come true. And in the process, two other dreams got fulfilled, as well: 1.) I got a non-fiction story published for the first time, and 2.) I got published in a book with one of my absolute favorite authors: Beth Cato. (Her wonderful stories “Welcome to the Navy” and “All About the Balloon” also appear in Chicken Soup for the Soul: The Cat Did What?)
So, now that I’ve had a month or so to bask in the glory, what’s next?
More dreams, of course! I have so many waiting in the wings: do a non-profit book signing, run a workshop with my writing group, finish my nano novel (yeah, still working on that…I think it’s become a trilogy at this point), have one of my stories illustrated, write a TV pilot, write a spec script for Castle, write a movie script, attend the Austin Film Festival, and of course the biggie – become a published novelist!
But that’s just me – what about you? What are your writing dreams, and how are you pursuing them? Maybe the only difference between a dream and a goal is doing something to make it happen…or simply not giving up the hope that it actually could.
Whatever your dream is, don’t give up on it. Even when Fate seems to be telling you, in a firm and convincing voice, that things are simply not going to work out for you. Sometimes there’s a nice surprise – or three – waiting just around the corner. 🙂
as the HERO flies... 