Why Sci-Fi?: Introducing J.A. Huss and T.J. Hudson

Welcome to the last day of Sci-Fi Spotlight week!  I've teamed up with a great group of indie authors of science fiction to run a promo that ends today.  You can snag 15 books for free and another 15 books for a mere 99 cents.

Last but not least, I'd like to introduce you to today's authors:

Why Sci-Fi for J.A. Huss?

"I write science fiction because I am a 100% science nerd. I enjoy everything about science, I have two science degrees, I write science textbooks for my main business, and I’m just an all-around nerd.  When I first started thinking about Junco as a character in my series she scared me.  She’s not anything like the girls I see in books today.  She’s bad, she’s got a filthy mouth, and she enjoys her job.  (Which happens to be killing.) I wrote this series because I like this kind of complex, slightly insane character. So basically, I write SF for me."

Be sure to get your copy of Clutch for 99 cents today!

For more on J.A., check out her trailer on YouTube, become a fan on Goodreads, like her on Facebook, follow her on Twitter, read her blog, and visit her website.

Why Sci-Fi for T.J. Hudson?

"I write science fiction (and fantasy) because my mind won't let me do anything else. You can blame my geeky background for that.

There are millions of fantastic stories out there. It does not matter what format; prose, film, theatre or any other, a good story is a good story. I do, however, find myself drawn to those that step out of the bounds of our world. This can be a step into the past, future or even a side step into an alternate reality. What these stories do is let characters address conventional problems from unconventional angles. Sometimes these will be pure flights of fancy, other times they fly very close to this world; and it is this speculative fiction where things get really interesting."

For more on T.J., like him on Facebook, follow him on Twitter, become a fan on Goodreads, and check out his website.

Why Sci-Fi?: Introducing C.E. Kilgore and Mark Whiteway

Welcome to day four of Sci-Fi Spotlight week!  I've teamed up with a great group of indie authors of science fiction, and we're running a promo from now until November 30.  You can snag 15 books for free and another 15 books for a mere 99 cents.

And now for today's authors:

Why Sci-Fi for C.E. Kilgore?

"I have always loved science-fiction, but I’m a true romantic at heart. The Science-Fiction Romance genre is still considered a fringe genre by many, but lately there has been new life breathed into it from many great writers. My hope is to contribute a well-written, fun and romantic take on science fiction through my Corwint Central Agent Files series. The first book in the series is Ghost in the Machine, and it explores one of my favorite science fiction themes: the development of emotions in artificial intelligence."

You can get a copy of Ghost in the Machine for free!

For more on C.E., like her on Facebook and follow her on Twitter.

Why Sci-Fi for Mark Whiteway?

"Writing Sci-Fi was a long held ambition of mine. As a kid, I read everything - Wells, Verne, Heinlein...At twelve years old, I wrote a novella with a pretty surreal ending. I still have it, hand-written in a huge ledger.

Following that, life intervened, and it was only in '09 that I determined to get back to writing. I had a lot of ideas running around in my head, but the Lodestone concept seemed the strongest. I soon realized there was no way to tell the story in a single book, and so the Lodestone Series was born."

You can get a copy of The Sea of Storms for free!

For more on Mark, follow him on Twitter and check out his website.

Why Sci-Fi?: Introducing T.S. Welti and Cate Dean

Welcome to day three of Sci-Fi Spotlight week!  I've teamed up with a great group of indie authors of science fiction, and we're running a promo from now until November 30.  You can snag 15 books for free and another 15 books for a mere 99 cents.

So, without further ado, here are today's authors:

Why Sci-Fi for T.S. Welti?

"Since I was very young, I've always loved sci-fi films and dystopian novels. Some of my favorites include Minority Report, The Matrix, The Giver, Brave New World, and 1984. More recently, some of my favorites have become Inception, Wool, and Delirium. However, I was never a big fan of high-tech science fiction. I often felt myself overwhelmed or bored with the technology. When I set out to write Darklandia, I set out to bridge the gap between a futuristic sci-fi film and dystopian fiction. I can't tell you how weird it feels, seven months later, to read the reviews and see my book being compared to so many of my favorite films and books."

You can pick up a copy of Darklandia for only 99 cents!

For more on T.S., like her on Facebook, follow her on Twitter, or check out her website.

Why Sci-Fi for Cate Dean?

"I grew up reading what is now called speculative fiction: fantasy, epic fantasy, sci-fi, the paranormal and the supernatural. So it was no surprise that I ended up writing that type of book. Though I head more in the direction of the paranormal and fantasy, I LOVE time travel stories. I consider those sci-fi, because they involve some kind of science, however farfetched. Choices is my first foray into time travel, originally written for a contest. It is a story of redemption, forgiveness, and making choices that change . . . well, you’ll have to read the story to find out. ;)  Thanks for hanging out with me, and until next time – read on."

You can pick up a copy of Choices for free!

For more on Cate, like her on Facebook, follow her on Twitter, become a fan on Goodreads, and check out her website.

Why Sci-Fi?: Introducing Saul Tanpepper and Anna Kyss

Welcome to day two of Sci-Fi Spotlight week!  I've teamed up with a great group of indie authors of science fiction, and we're running a promo from now until November 30.  You can snag 15 books for free and another 15 books for a mere 99 cents.

Today, it's my pleasure to introduce you to two other authors.

Why Sci-Fi for Saul Tanpepper?

"I love Stephen King’s works. So when a fan of mine asked why I write sci-fi, my natural response was to say I write horror.

“Computer codes, viruses, hacking,” she countered. “Hi-tech, biotech. Nope, GAMELAND is definitely sci-fi. Cyberpunk. Even biopunk.”

She was right. My past life in tech informs my writing. It’s therefore unsurprising that dystopias and the Undead populate my stories. Zombies are highly metaphoric of human overreaching. I guess I prove the old adage, “Write what you know.”

Which is horror science fiction."

You can get a copy of Failsafe for only 99 cents this week, and you can also pick up a copy of the first episode of the Gameland series, Deep Into the Game for free!

For more on Saul and his books, like him on Facebook, follow him on Twitter, become a fan on Goodreads, and check out his blog.

Why Sci-Fi for Anna Kyss?

"I never imagined myself a science fiction writer until I stumbled upon near-future novels. Dystopian literature fascinates me: the myriad of ways that we could destroy our world, the frightening extremes that governments could go to, the questions raised about existence itself. The vast majority of dystopic worlds depict stark, destroyed urbanscapes, which led me to wonder… What if the setting of the dystopian occurred in nature—a false utopia of sorts, in which the beauty of the location hid the secrets of the society? From that single question, Cerulean was developed. And another science fiction writer was born."

Cerulean is only 99 cents this week!

For more on Anna and her books,like her on Facebook, follow her on Twitter, and check out her website.

Why Sci-Fi?: Introducing Christine Pope and Tony Bertauski

Welcome to Sci-Fi Spotlight week!  I've teamed up with a great group of indie authors of science fiction, and we're running a promo from November 26-November 30.  You can snag 15 books for free and another 15 books for a mere 99 cents.

Each day this week, I'll feature some of the authors whose books are a part of the Sci-Fi Spotlight.  I hope this will help you, my readers, discover great new authors and books you'll love.

I'd like to kick this week's blog feature off with my own answer to the question:

Why Sci-Fi?

  

All good literature has the power to make us think, to shake the foundation of the things we believe, but I think good science fiction has a particular power to make us look ahead.  It forces us to consider the future impact of current events, and to think deeply about how those events will shape our future.  It makes us question how we want our world to look, and it makes us think about what we can do to ensure our world will look that way.

Contributor is only 99 cents this week!  You can also pick up a copy of Creators, the prequel novella, for free on Tuesday, 11/27, and Wednesday, 11/28!

Why Sci-Fi for Christine Pope?

"I grew up reading science fiction and fantasy. I adored those books, but even back then, when I probably wasn't the most analytical reader in the world, I noted a serious lack of strong female characters or interesting romantic relationships. So Blood Will Tell was inspired by the space opera I loved so much, but with a romance at the heart of the story. I guess I just wanted something with spaceships and explosions and kissing!"

You can grab a copy of Blood Will Tell for only 99 cents this week!

For more on Christine and her books, like her on Facebook, follow her on Twitter, or check out her website.

Why Sci-Fi for Tony Bertauski?

"Santa is not just about the presents. I wanted to get past that and see something deeper about this mythological figure. A story that’s more meaningful. For me, science fiction has always made me see life a little different. Perhaps a bit more clearly.

Claus: Legend of the Fat Man finds a cast of gritty, compassionate and courageous characters that make the journey to mythological fame despite their shortcomings and frailties. It pulls away the veil of magic, reveals the difficulties of love and loss and our struggle with life.

It’s not about the presents. It’s much more than that."

Get your copy of  Claus for only 99 cents this week, and you can also grab a copy of Tony's The Discovery of Socket Greeny for free!

For more on Tony and his books, like him on Facebook or check out his website.

Sci-Fi Spotlight: Win fabulous prizes

How would you like to win an Amazon gift card or autographed books and swag from some amazing indie authors?  Some of my fellow authors and I got together to put the spotlight on some amazing indie science fiction, and we're giving out prizes to celebrate!  Here's what's up for grabs:

• Grand Prize: $100 Amazon gift card
• First Prize: $50 Amazon gift card
• Second Prize: $25 Amazon gift card
• Third Prizes: Paperback copies of the following books:
• No Shelter Trilogy by T.S. Welt
• Autographed Clutch Trilogy by J.A. Huss + swag
• Blood Will Tell and Breath of Life by Christine Pope
• Lodestone Book One: The Sea of Storms (First Edition) by Mark Whiteway
• Night of the Purple Moon by Scott Cramer 
• Gameland: Episode One by Saul Tanpepper (three available) and one copy of Insomnia by Saul Tanpepper

Click here for your chance to enter, and good luck!

Feature Fridays: Close encounters of the Scarlett kind

I am officially done with the first round of edits to Phoning It In!  Methinks it's time to starting thinking about a cover reveal...

And, to celebrate, how about another taste of the novel?

*****

“This is hell,” Melinda groaned, as she pulled into her office parking lot.  The building loomed before her, the overcast sky lending it all the charm of a super max prison.  She half-expected lightning to fork through the air, completing the post-apocalyptic look.

A stroke of luck enabled her to find a parking space at what appeared to be a mere five miles away from the entrance to the office.  She slung her bag and purse over her shoulder, grabbed her frozen meal and can of Diet Coke, and made her way into the building.  Murmuring a curse, she realized she’d forgotten to extract her badge from her purse before picking up her load, and would now have to attempt to juggle her things while she dug for the badge.

“Well, I do declare!  My word, if it isn’t Melinda Majors,” a bright voice drawled behind her.  “Here.  Let me give you a hand.”

Melinda rolled her eyes before turning around, a sweet smile plastered over her face.  “Thank you so much, Scarlett.  You’re a real life saver.”

“Oh, darlin’, don’t even think of mentionin’ it.”

Melinda gritted her teeth.  It was much, much too early to deal with Scarlett.  Back when they had been in training together, Scarlett’s accent had been more Midwestern than Southern, but once Scarlett realized that men went wild over her Southern belle act, she had begun to play the role with relish. 

“After you,” Scarlett said, waving her through, just as the wind kicked up.  Melinda was surprised it didn’t blow Scarlett’s tiny frame away.

“Oh my, it is quite the gusty day outside, isn’t it?” Scarlett laughed.  Though the wind flung stinging strands of auburn hair in Melinda’s eyes, Scarlett’s voluminous blond hair didn’t budge, and Melinda couldn’t help but be impressed by the holding power of whatever industrial-strength product Scarlett used.

As they walked up the stairs, Melinda tugged self-consciously at her coat and oversize tunic and tried not to think of how her plus-sized figure looked in contrast to Scarlett’s.  It was hard not to feel like an elephant in contrast to the beautiful, delicate porcelain doll preceding her.

“How was your weekend?” Melinda asked reluctantly.  Scarlett was best taken in small doses, and initiating any sort of conversation with her ensured Melinda would soon find it very tempting to beat her head against the wall. 

“It was wonderful!” Scarlett exclaimed.  A couple of people heading down the stairs started and stared at them.  Melinda cringed.

“I’m glad to hear it.”

“I met the most wonderful man.”  Scarlett sighed and brought her clasped hands up to the side of her face, batting her eyelashes.  Melinda wondered if she ought to applaud the performance.

“Oh really?” she asked disinterestedly.  Scarlett was always meeting the most wonderful man.  Inevitably, he ended up committing an offense that obliged Scarlett to slap him across the face and throw a drink at him before storming away with an elegant toss of her head.

“Yes indeed.”

To Melinda’s relief, they reached the third floor.  Scarlett’s cubicle was on the opposite side of the building, and Melinda hurried toward her own side, calling a hasty farewell over her shoulder.  As she stepped into the corridor leading to her cubicle, she let out a groan of relief.

“Close encounters of the Scarlett kind?” asked an ominous voice just behind her left ear.

Melinda jumped, her hand flying to her chest in an attempt to prevent her hammering heart from leaping straight out of it.  “Jesus Christ,” she breathed.  “You scared the hell out of me, Blaine.”

A very tall, gangly figure materialized in front of her.  “Do not blame me.  Blame the evil forces of Scarlett Amberson,” he intoned.

“Out of my way, moron.”  She was unable to hide her smile.

Feature Fridays: Crippling insecurities

That awkward moment where your best friend makes you realize that the news you thought was so amazing is maybe a little less great than you suspected.

*****

“I promise.  Enough about my migraine. You called me to talk about Ben, so let’s talk about him,” Lou said.

“How do you know that?” Melinda asked, amazed.

“Hello, Melinda.  We’ve been friends for a gazillion years now.  I can read you like a book.  Did you two have a nice little chat last night?”

“Yes, as a matter of fact, we did.

“Well I’m glad to hear it.  I mean, Dem’s a nice guy and all, but I think I gave him the wrong idea by keeping him away from the table for that long.  I think he thinks I was trying to pick him up.”

Melinda gasped.  “You didn’t!  You did not!”

“Was that supposed to be a thank you?  If so, it sucked.  Try again.”

“So you don’t like Dem?”

“Like I said, he’s nice, but he’s not my type.  Quit changing the subject and get to it, would you?  I want to know every last thing you two said.  When will you be getting married, and can I be your maid of honor, and how many children are you going to have, and can I be godmother to one of them?”

“You’re insane,” Melinda said, blushing.  She squirmed uncomfortably.  “Now you’re the one who sounds like your mother.  What, do you think he’s going to dress up in a red coat, grab his rifle and bayonet, and come and carry me off?”

“Whatever.  You’re just being evasive again.  Spill it, now.  You owe me.  When is your first date?”

Melinda had not thought nothing could bring her down from her high, but she’d been wrong.  She had been perfectly content with what had happened between herself and Benoit the previous night, but Lou Lou’s question, however innocent, just reminded Melinda of her own inadequacies.  Had Lou been the one sitting with Benoit for hours, she probably would already have had a second, third, and fourth date scheduled with him.

“It wasn’t like that,” Melinda mumbled.  “We had a really good time, but he’s not interested in me like that.”

There was a silence on the other end.  “Look, Melinda—” Lou finally began, but Melinda cut her off.

“No, just don’t say anything.  He wants to be friends, that much is clear.  We talked about a lot of things, and I really think he genuinely enjoyed himself.  He’s a really nice guy, and I’m glad he wants to be friends.  I’m not looking for a boyfriend anyway.”

Monday Musings: Author Website

One thing that's important to know for those who are thinking of delving into the indie business is this: you're going to work a lot and you're going to make very little money.  See, the thing about going it alone is you have to go it alone; meaning, you're going to be responsible for all your own marketing, you're going to have to manage all of your social networks yourself, you're going to have to either make or find someone to make all of your cover art, you're going to have to edit...oh, and you're also going to need to write a book somewhere in the midst of all this.

My biggest frustration with being an indie is figuring out how to prioritize what money I do make.  There are so many things I'd like to do but, because I don't have unlimited fundage, I can't do them all.  I'm only now reaching the point where I may break even.  Up until now, I've been plowing all of my royalties into things like writing and business-related software, taking some classes, buying a few ads, and paying for cover art.  I'm certainly not complaining because I'm frankly thrilled with every penny I make, but it's incredible how quickly costs can add up, especially if you don't practice some restraint.

An expense I am starting to think seriously about taking on, however, is the expense of an author website.  I have this blog and am active on Twitter, Facebook, and Pinterest, but none of these things allow me to centralize information the way I'd like.  I'd love to have a bibliography so readers can see all of my available books at a glance, would love to have somewhere to run polls (such as having readers vote on which book I should work on next), would love to have a one-stop site for all info about me as an author, with my social media platforms as something extra. 

I also have some ideas I'd like to implement.  I've been kicking around the idea of doing a series but, if I do, I want there to be a central place where readers can post feedback and suggestions for future installment, and I really think a website would be the best solution for that because I can centralize all that on one page instead of readers having to click through multiple blog posts.  I'm even contemplating making a sort of "choose your own adventure" series in which I'd conduct regular polls and let the readers decide which direction the story will go.  Another thing I'm thinking about doing is writing free short stories periodically.  And, last but not least, I am the author of a certain fanfic that has been fairly popular over its somewhat lengthy existence, and I'm thinking about claiming it publicly and hopefully even finishing it, as that's something I've yet to do.  It's also the most epic thing I've ever written, which has quite a bit to do with why it's not yet done.

Really, the overall big picture here is that I want a central source I can use to interact with readers.  It's difficult to try to reach out to people over multiple platforms, and it would be more efficient for me and easier for my readers if I had a central site where all of my important information is housed.  Plus, I just think it would be fun.  I love the flexibility I have as an indie, particularly when it comes to things like collaborating with readers to help me shape stories.  While I'll still write more traditional novels, I am 100% in love with the idea of creating interactive narratives.  To me, it's a really exciting new form of literature, and I'm eager to explore it.

So there's an idea of what I'm looking at doing on the horizon.  My big goals for 2013 are to get an author website up and running and to make some of my books available via a print on demand service--most likely Createspace, as that will allow me to distribute on Amazon.  If you have any thoughts, opinions, or ideas, I would love to hear back from you. 

Feature Fridays: Sisterly affection

I am really late on this!  I had a crazy day and I almost forgot about my poor little blog.  However, I wanted to offer up another taste of Phoning It In, so how about a peek into Melinda's relationship with her sister, Susan?

*****

“Hello?” she said.

“Melinda, it’s Susan,” the voice on the other end replied.  Melinda grimaced and lightly banged her head against the wall.  “What was that noise?” Susan asked.

“Nothing,” Melinda told her.

“Whatever.  Look, I don’t have much time.  I’m absolutely swamped.  I’m due in court tomorrow for this huge case I’ve been working on and the firm has taken on three new important clients, so I am just tearing my hair out.  If my damn assistant wasn’t so incompetent, maybe I could actually get something accomplished, but the stupid girl forget to take my dry cleaning in and now I don’t have a single decent suit to wear, so I’m out shopping for a new one,” Susan said, her voice brisk.

“If you’re so busy, why are you calling to tell me this?” Melinda asked her.


“I didn’t call you for my own amusement, Melinda,” Susan snapped.  The way she said Melinda’s name grated like fingernails on a chalkboard.  How Melinda hated that tone.  It was one that Susan had perfected over the years.  Even when their mother had been truly furious with her, she had never been able to say Melinda’s name in as grating a tone as Susan’s.

“Right.  You just called me to remind me of how important you are,” Melinda retorted.  She smacked her forehead as the words left her mouth.  Her sister had the uncanny ability of effortlessly bringing out the worst in Melinda.

“I don’t have time for you and your childish games.”  Susan was now using her frostiest voice, and Melinda could feel the hairs on the back of her neck standing on end.  “I called to remind you that Mother’s birthday is on Sunday.  We’re supposed to take her out for dinner.  You were supposed to call me last night so that we could decide on a time.  I waited all night, you know.”

Melinda banged her head on the wall again.  “Right, sorry, I forgot.  So sue me.  Oh wait, I shouldn’t tempt you,” she said.

She could hear her sister take in a deep breath on the other side of the line.  Melinda could just picture her at Nordstrom’s, her cell phone pressed into her ear with such force that it would probably leave an indent.  She knew that her sister’s nostrils were probably flared in anger, and her mouth pressed into a thin line of disapproval.  This was the normal expression on Susan’s face whenever she spoke with her sister.

“I’m going to ignore that,” Susan said.  Melinda could hear the sound of metal hangers scraping and banging against one another as her sister thumbed furiously through the racks.  “Where are we going and what time?  Let’s get this over with so I can buy a suit and get home to review my case.”

Defeated, Melinda slumped her back against the wall and allowed herself to slide down onto the floor.  “Look, Suze, I really don’t care.  Whatever Mom wants.  But can we please make it reasonable this time?  Not all of us make six-figure salaries, you know.”

“Fine.  We’ll take her to Luciano’s.  That should be within your budget.  We’ll meet at Mom and Dad’s at six.  And don’t call me Suze!”  With that, the line went dead.

Melinda had the sudden urge to take the phone and bang it against the floor, but it was really Susan’s head and not the phone that Melinda wanted to beat against the floor.  Honest to God, her sister was just about the biggest bitch to ever walk the planet.  She appeared to have no warm, sisterly feelings of any kind.  In fact, she didn’t seem to have any warm feelings at all.  Susan was the consummate ice queen.  She was pure, unadulterated evil.

Announcement: I'm going to be a YA Indie contributor!

I'm very pleased to announce that I'll be contributing to the blog YA Indie.  If you haven't visited it yet, you should really check it out.  It's a collective of indie YA authors covering various topics related to writing and the world of YA.

I know, I can't believe they were crazy enough to add me as a contributor either.  I'm really looking forward to disrupting the order chiming in over there, and I hope it helps my readers to find some great new indie authors.

Feature Friday: Charismatic powers of persuasion

Way back when I was fresh out of college, I got my very first job working in a call center.  It was a horrible, horrible job.  Because the call center was open 24/7/365, I had to work weird hours, got Wednesdays and Thursdays off in lieu of weekends, and had to work pretty much every major holiday.  Seriously, it sucked.  There are not enough words to express how much I hated that job.  Anyone who's ever worked in a call center or who works in one now can tell you what a boring, soul-sucking grind it can be.

So how did I express my disappointment with my job?  Why, I started writing a novel, of course!  While the novel is not biographical in any way, Melinda's experiences in the call center are based on my own experiences in a call center.

And that is the origin story of this novel.  It languished on my hard drive for more than ten years before I unearthed it and saw that it had some potential.  The first chapters will require a lot of rewrites.  Let's just say, back in those days, I had a text pager and it was WAY high tech.  Most people didn't even have Internet access at home.  So, yeah, the technology in the novel is just a *wee* bit out of date.  But, still, what I really liked about it were Melinda's relationships with her friends and family, and her struggles with being in her twenties and trying to figure out what she really wants out of her adult life.  I can relate to that.

Now, without further ado, I bring you a first glimpse at Phoning It In, my forthcoming contemporary women's fiction novel.

*****

“So, what are we doing this weekend?” Blaine asked casually.  There was a lull in the calls and things were pretty quiet so they actually had a few minutes to spare chatting, unfortunately for Melinda.

“Nothing.  I have plans with my family.  My sister and I are taking my mom out for her birthday,” Melinda replied, equally as casually.

“Bull,” he said, cheerily.  “We are doing something.  You’re just hoping that I’ll let you worm your way out of it and that’s not going to happen this time.  When are you taking your mom out for dinner?”

“Sunday,” Melinda mumbled.

“Well, since we’re going out Saturday after work, that will be no problem at all.”

“I’d really rather not.  I don’t exactly want to be hung over when I’m out dining with my family.”

“You can be the designated driver.  You certainly won’t be hung over on Sunday then, will you?”

“Oh great,” Melinda groused.  “Not only are you making me go out against my will, you’re promising me a fun evening of sipping Diet Coke while all the rest of you get buzzed and happy.”

“Yep.  Won’t it be fun?” Blaine asked.

“No, Blaine, just never mind.  I’m not going to do it.”

“Yes you are,” he said, firmly.  “I meant it when I said that I would drag you kicking and screaming.  Melinda, you really do spend too much time moping around your condo.  You’ve been in a funk for a while and it’s time you snapped out of it.  You’re well on your way to being an old maid.  Do you want to be a friendless old maid while you’re at it?”

She knew he was teasing her about the old maid thing and she couldn’t help but laugh in spite of herself.  “Ass,” she said quietly, smacking him playfully.

“Hey, that’s workplace abuse and I’m not going to stand for it,” he told her.

“No, I don’t want to be friendless but is there any way for me to get rid of you?” she countered.

“”Fraid not, m’dear.  Once you’ve made friends with me, you’re stuck with me for life.  Just think, thirty years from now I’ll still be meddling in your life and pestering you into doing things that you’d really rather not do.”

“Wow.  What an appealing picture that is.”

He looked at her levelly and the expression on his face was serious.  “I’ve been kind of worried about you, kiddo.  You just haven’t been yourself for a while.  You just don’t seem satisfied anymore.”

“That’s because I’m not,” Melinda replied, with a sigh.  “And you’re right, I haven’t been myself lately and I’m sorry.  I know I’m not much fun.”

“Yes, you are, and that’s what I’m trying to tell you.  It’s time for you to get that back.  You can either enjoy life or you can sit around and wish that you did.”

“All right, all right.”  She held her hands up.  “I admit defeat.  If I don’t, you’ll never shut up.  I will go out with you after work Saturday and I will be the DD because I was serious about not wanting to be hung over on Sunday.”

“Ah, yes.  My charismatic powers of persuasion have done it once again,” he replied, rubbing his hands together in relish.

“More like your powers of annoying the hell out of people have done it once again,” she grumbled.

Monday Musings: What to write next?

One of the biggest challenges for me as an indie author is deciding what I'm going to work on next.  I have so many irons in the fire, so many ideas, that it's hard for me to decide which one to go with.  When you couple this with the business end of things, well, it really gets messy.

Of my three books, The Eye of the Beholder is my best performer.  It took off much more quickly than I'd expected.  Frankly, I didn't think anyone would want to read a fairy tale retelling.  I'm glad everyone who's purchased my book has proven me wrong!  Its success has inspired me to write a second fairy tale book, which will be my NaNoWriMo project for this year, and which I hope to publish early in 2013.  I love fairy tales, so I'm more than happy to write more now that I know there's a demand for them.

Creators and Contributor are proving much slower to take off.  This is so funny to me because I was convinced that the reverse would be true.  Just goes to show you that, when you do this self-publishing thing, you never really know how things are going to go.  Sometimes I feel like I spend 99% of my time flailing in the dark, angsting over what marketing (if any) I should do, what genre might prove to be the most reliable, etc.  I didn't go into this expecting to be a pro, but it is uncomfortable to feel like such an amateur at times.

My intention was to continue on with the Contributor trilogy, but now I'm really torn.  I resurrected an old partial manuscript for a contemporary women's fiction novel, and I'm strongly tempted to finish it first and then work on the next Contributor book once NaNoWriMo is over.  I'm very curious about how that book would perform, and having books across three different genres would probably also give me a better idea of what types of books are more successful.  Then again, another part of me feels like I need to stick to one thing and then branch out later.  I'm afraid if I'm spread out over multiple genres, I'll lose readers because, even if they liked one of my books, they might not necessarily care for the other genres I'm writing in.

Right now, I am leaning toward working on the contemporary novel.  I had some more ideas for it this morning, and I'm anxious to tackle it.  Maybe I need a little space from the Contributor saga.  Either way, I'll be in front of my keyboard again tomorrow morning, working on my next novel.  I've had a bit of a break and now it's time to get back to work.

I also want to announce that I'll be doing another free promo with Creators on Wednesday, September 19.  I was excited about how successful the last promo was, and I'm hoping to reach even more readers with this next promo!

Monday Musings: The importance of routine

It's everyone's favorite day of the week again!  While I don't hate Mondays like I did back in the days when I wasn't fulfilled by my job, I am sorry to see my husband go back to work.  The truth is, I kinda like to have that guy around.  But what I do like about Mondays now is they mean it's time for me to focus on my passion: writing.

However, there's not much writing going on here at the moment.  This is partially because I just published Contributor and, friends, I need a bit of a break once a book comes out.  It's hard to describe how completely it takes over my life, but suffice it to say that my brain needs a bit of a rest before I put my nose to the grindstone and start working on the next book.

What I have come to realize throughout this endeavor, though, is how important routine is.  Since I started staying at home with my kids, I admit that I pretty much hate routine.  I want to roll out of bed when I feel like it, drink some coffee, and ease into my day.  Granted, that's tough to do when you have kids, but I do get a chance to indulge in some of that during the summer and on the weekends.  But the fact of the matter is, when I do have a routine, I get more done.  Without routine, my attention is fragmented all over the place and, half the time, I can't even remember what I did all day long.

My intent for next week is to start settling into my routine.  I want to establish a regular schedule for when I write, when I blog, when I do social networking, etc.  My biggest challenge over the summer was finding the time for all of these things and, now that school is in session and I have someone coming to clean my house, I don't really have any valid excuses for not being more organized and productive.  Unfortunately for me.  I may be a perfectionist, but I'm also a procrastinator.  It's like the two sides of me are constantly battling, and it ain't pretty.

I want to take a second to thank everyone who downloaded a copy of Creators during its free run on the 7th.  At one point, it reached #69 on the top 100 list of free books in its subcategory, which frankly shocked me.  I felt like I was in one of those dumb movie scenes where the unattainable boy points at me, and I do that thing where I turn around to see if he's pointing at someone behind me, but find he's actually pointing at me.  OMG!  *squee*  Seriously.  Forgive me for being a super nerd here, but it really shocks me in a fantastically awesome way when I realize that people are buying my books.  Hopefully you're liking them too, because that's even more important to me.

I also want to give a big thanks to everyone who has purchased my books.  It's 100% the truth that I couldn't do this writing thing without your support.  So thank you very, very much for giving me a reason to sit in front of my PC all day angsting over each and every word I type.

Starting on Friday, I'm planning to post some tidbits from my latest work in progress, Infiltrator.  It's the second book in the Contributor trilogy, so there may well be some spoilerific moments if you read the excerpt without having read Contributor.  For that, I sincerely apologize, as I'm one of those people who really hates it when the surprises are spoiled for me.  I'll try to keep the giant revelations under wraps.  Happy Monday!

Contributor, Now available for purchase on Amazon!

I'm extremely happy to announce that Contributor is now available for purchase on Amazon!  If you're a Prime member, you can also borrow the book for free and, as always, my books are and forevermore will be DRM-free!

Don't forget--tomorrow, September 7, you can download a free copy of Creators from Amazon!

Woo Hoo Wednesday: It's finally done!

Right now, the temptation is strong in this one (10 points to Gryffindor if you get that reference!) to run around in circles pumping my fists in the air.  Why?  Because I just finished hitting the button to upload Contributor to Amazon!  For some reason, I feel like I've been working on that book for the last three hundred years.  Then again, I guess I get like that with all of my books, when I've spent months doing copyedits.  I reach a point where every last word in the book looks like it's made up or misspelled.

So, now that I've put the book to bed, I'm pretty sure I'll go about twenty-four hours before I start feeling like I need to chain myself to my desk and finish the next book.  That's the sad thing about me as a writer--and I don't think I'm alone in that.  With my old, traditional jobs, there was a clear line between when work started and when it ended.  Not so much with writing, where I feel this compulsion to be doing it almost constantly.  Or maybe I'm just the world's most exacting boss, who knows?

Another big woo hoo goes to the fact that school is in session and the cleaning company is coming to clean the house this week.  While I had a fun summer, it'll be nice to have some time to buckle down and do some serious writing, particularly with NaNoWriMo beginning to appear on the horizon.  Ah, I can hear the siren's call of the annual November insanity already!  Soon I'll be snarfing bites of turkey while banging away at the keyboard.  Who's with me this year?  I need some more people to share in the pain joy!

Last but certainly not least, an absolutely ginormous woo hoo shall be shouted from the rooftops because of my August sales.  Seriously, my readers are awesome.  I still can't believe you're paying actual, real money for something I wrote.  I'm not exactly making a living wage at this point, but August has been my best month yet, and my sales have increased every month by at least 25%, so I'm definitely not complaining.  It feels absolutely amazing to make ANY money doing something I love so much.  I mean, I'm getting paid to play around in my imagination all day long.  How cool is that?

I'm just going to leave this here while Amazon is in the process of publishing Contributor:

As they say in Contributor-land: Have a productive day!

(Psssst: Don't forget that Creators will be free on Friday, September 7.)

Woo Hoo Wednesday: Yay for less stress!

This week, I'm in a very good mood because I did something I've been wanting to do for some time: I hired a company to do some of my house cleaning so that I can have more time for writing!  This will give me the chance to finally designate a very good chunk of each weekday to devote solely to writing, and that makes me very happy.  It's been frustrating to have to try to cram writing in whenever I can, so freeing myself of the housework has really lightened my stress.

I'm also feeling happy, lucky, and grateful because I'm having a great month with regard to sales.  I'm just amazed by how The Eye has been taking off in a way that far exceeds my wildest dreams.  It's thrilling beyond belief that people are buying my book, and it makes me think that I just might be able to make a go of writing for a living, something I honestly never expected to be able to do.  It feels better than I can express to finally be able to pursue my passion rather than do something "practical".

Another big Woo Hoo is due to the fact that I've finished my final edits on Contributor.  Silly me--I once used to think that writing was the worst part, because there are days when I feel like I have to pry the words out of my brain with a crowbar.  However, those days are nothing compared to staring at my manuscript until I go cross-eyed and can't remember if I've already done a search to see how many times I've used the word "gently".  I've kind of developed an irrational hatred for that word now.  So Woo Hoo for being done with the pain of the editing process!  A few more finishing touches, and Contributor will be ready for publication.

Lastly, a big Woo Hoo for the mild weather we've been having for the last couple of weeks or so.  I am not a fan of searing summer heat, so I've been incredibly pumped because I've been able to turn off my A/C and enjoy fresh air blowing through the house.  On Monday, I sat outside enjoying the gorgeous weather while typing away on my laptop and it was bliss!

That sums it up for me this week.  Just a reminder, if you haven't entered yet, you can still seize your chance to win a copy of Reinventing Claire by the super sweet Darian Wilk.  See you for Feature Friday, where I just might post one last excerpt from Contributor!

Monday Musings: Writing is my business

I've been an aspiring writer pretty much ever since I learned how to write.  I've always had stories in my head, a notebook in hand, and have spent countless hours scribbling and typing away.  However, I also suffered from crippling insecurity that made me really loath to share anything other than papers I wrote for high school and college.  I poured so much of myself into my writing that I was terrified of someone criticizing it.

It took me a long time to get over that fear.  Along with that, I constantly reminded myself that writing wasn't practical, so I had a series of more practical jobs.  Of those, teaching was the only one that was fulfilling for me, because I loved working with students.  Still, there was something missing from the equation.  I felt like I wasn't really getting out of life what I wanted to get out of it.

After much research and agonizing, my husband finally helped convince me to self-publish.  I won't lie: a really strong voice in my head told me not to do it, to instead query agents and to try to find a publisher.  I wanted the sense of validation that I thought a publishing contract would bring, and I also wanted to realize my childhood dream of standing in a bookstore next to a copy of my book.  However, I had reached a point in my life where I knew I was going to need to start looking for another career, and I was tired of taking meaningless jobs just to pay the bills.  I didn't have years to devote to trying to get a publishing deal, so I decided to take the plunge and self-publish.  I wanted to see if I could make a go of writing as a career.

So far, the results of my self-publishing endeavor have exceeded my hopes and expectations.  I thought maybe I might be able to sell 100 copies of The Eye of the Beholder in a year, so imagine my surprise when I reached that goal less than three months after publishing.  Every time I see the book on someone's "to-read" shelf on Goodreads, or I look at my sales figures on Amazon, I have this sense of unreality.  People are actually reading my book.  They are actually spending their hard-earned cash on something I wrote, they are reading it, and they are taking the time to write reviews and/or rate it.  That truly blows my mind.  What's more, I wouldn't even have tried to shop The Eye because I'm pretty sure no publisher would have chosen to take a chance on it.  If it wasn't for self-publishing, The Eye would have remained a book that only a few people had ever seen.  Since it took me more than seven years to finish it (between the actual writing and the editing), it makes me really sad to think of it languishing on my hard drive.

The other thing I've realized about self-publishing is that I love having control over the process.  I love that I don't have to completely redo a manuscript with which I am happy.  I don't doubt that many editors can and do take works and make them better, but it hurts to think of being compelled to make changes to my story that I wouldn't really want to make. 

Another huge plus for me is having complete control over my cover art.  I can say quite confidently that I am the world's worst artist, so I've reached out to talented people to design my covers, and I love working with them and watching the cover take shape.  I love being able to pick which elements I want on the cover.  Had I been traditionally published, I would have had absolutely zero say in this part of the book's production.

But the real icing on the cake is my ability to write whatever I want.  I don't have to be confined to any one genre, and that's a good thing for me.  There's nothing wrong with being devoted to a single genre, but I want to dabble in several different ones.  I love that I can write some fantasy, then some science fiction, and then maybe a mystery, all without being under a contractual obligation to deliver one type of book and one type only.

I'm not trying to say that self-publishing is all fun and games.  It's also very stressful, and a ton of work.  I hate promoting my work but, then again, even if I'd been published by a traditional publisher, I'd likely have been responsible for doing a lot of my own promotion.  Still, I'd love to have experienced marketers on my side since I am seriously lacking in that area. 

At the end of the day, though, hitting that "publish" button on Amazon was one of the best things I've ever done.  Who knows if I'll ever reach a point where my writing provides a living wage.  I hope it does, but what really matters is that I am finally able to share my stories with others, which is what I've wanted all along.  Even if I do have to go out and get a practical job, I won't stop writing--and I won't have to.  I have my readers to thank for that.  There really aren't enough words to say how much I appreciate you.  With every sale I get on Amazon, I'm more and more inspired to sit down and write, write, write.  Thanks to you, I'm now a more productive writer than I've ever been in my life--and I'm also happier than I've ever been.  So thank you for giving me the chance to truly live my dream.

Darian Wilk Blog Tour: Reinventing Claire

I'm very pleased to be hosting Darian Wilk on my blog today.  She is the author of Love Unfinished, which has a 5-star rating on Amazon, and which Darian will be offering for FREE August 20-24, so be sure to get your copy!  Plus, one lucky reader of this blog will win a copy of Darian's new book, Reinventing Claire.  To enter, simply send an entry request to nicolecbooks@gmail.com by Saturday, August 25th.

In addition to all this, Darian is a fellow Michigander and an all-around sweet person.  So, without further ado, I give you my interview with Darian!

1. What made you decide to self-publish?
Like a lot of Indie authors, I started out on the traditional route.  I queried, revised, and queried some more.  It wasn’t until a friend asked me when my book would be available on Kindle that I ever even considered the idea.  I’m not a control freak, but I do like to be in charge of my own life, and the more I looked into being an Indie author the more I realized that it was a better fit for me than traditional publishing.

2. Where does your inspiration for your characters come from?

From everywhere really.  People I know, people I see around me throughout the day, and experiences in my life.  Writers write what they know, so inevitably every character is inspired by something I’ve seen or been through in life.

3. How do you write your books--do you outline, or do you just write with the flow?

I do a little bit of both.  I write best without restrictions, so a full outline, I guess you could say, cramps my style.  But, I feel stories flows best with a bit of guidance.  Typically what I’ll do is write a general outline, in thirds.  That way I don’t feel pressured to stick to an entire outline I wrote before I ever put a word on the page.  I can tweak it as the story progresses, but I still have my clear goals in sight.

4. Did you always picture yourself being a writer?  If not, what did you picture yourself doing?

Growing up, I loved writing, and toward the end of high school I did want to become a writer.  But, that idea didn’t fair well in my family.  It wasn’t practical, you see.  I ended up going a more practical route and went to college to become an RN.  That plan, however, was thrown off by becoming pregnant with my daughter.  It was the best detour I’ve ever taken!

5. What is your writing process like?  Do you have any habits you have to follow in order to feel ready to write?

Usually my writing is done while my son takes his nap, but this year both my kids will be in school.  So pretty soon, I’ll have more time to dedicate to writing.  First, I always get myself a can of Mountain Dew.  I prefer the house to be quiet, so I can focus on the words.  Then, I like to start out by re-reading the last few paragraphs I wrote the previous day, because it gets my mindset back to where I was, and where I was going.  My goal is always at least a chapter a day, or two-thousand words.  I can’t always meet that goal, but I come pretty darn close most days. 

6. What is your favorite thing about being a writer?  Your least favorite thing?

My favorite thing would be the freedom that comes in what I can write.  Being a writer gives me the chance to do, see, or explore new worlds and lives.  It’s the ultimate playground for my imagination. My least favorite, without a doubt, is promoting my work. I’m not one who feels comfortable trying to ease it into conversations to maybe get a sale out of the deal. Marketing makes me feel like a sleazy salesman.  I just don’t like it.

7. Are there any books that inspire your writing?  Which ones and why?

Anne Tyler has always been an inspiration for me.  She creates characters with such depth, yet does so in so few words.  I’ve always admired her talent, and aspire to create such realistic characters in my own work.  But there are no specific books that inspire my writing.  Books that make me feel, get me thinking, draw me in from the first page…that’s what inspires me.  Nothing will make you want to run to your laptop quicker, than reading an amazing book.

8. Where and when do you come up with your best ideas?

They always come to me at night, when I’m laying there trying to fall asleep.  That’s when my mind wanders the most in the day.  It goes from topic to topic, from one random question to the next.  Some nights it’s frustrating, because I’m exhausted and really want to sleep, but my mind has its own agenda then.  Eventually, my thoughts have wandered so far, I get a spark, and then the idea hits me.  And like a wave, it all comes at me.  I keep a notepad by my bed, because in those cases I have to jot down as much as I can because it comes so fast!

9. With which of your characters do you identify the most?

Quite honestly, although I can’t say I agree with everything she says or does, it would have to be Claire.  I identify with her the most I think because every woman, at some point, comes to a point in life when they feel lost.  We’re always someone’s mom, or wife, or sister, or daughter, or friend; we sometimes forget who we are on our own.  And I can relate to her vulnerability in her journey of trying to figure all that out.       

10. What vision do you have for writing?  Do you want to try other genres?

My vision, or goal, is and always has been to touch readers.  I want to give them stories and characters they can relate to, someone who becomes a friend they’re sharing a journey with.  And of course, that whole fame thing would be awesome.  I love this genre though, and frankly don’t think I would be a good fit for any other.  While I love reading other genres, my heart is in women’s fiction.  I think because every woman has a story within her, and I want to hear and write them all.

Reinventing Claire

 People get divorced, but that's what happens to other people. That's what Claire thought anyway, until her husband, Charlie, tells her he wants a divorce.

Claire has no choice but to take on the title of Divorced Woman, and face the question she has no idea how to answer. Who is Claire without Charlie? Her family believes her newly divorced woes can be cured by landing herself a boyfriend. With her dating dunce cap in hand, Claire stumbles her way through the foreign territory of online dating.

A teacher from hell, a softball coach, and a sap later, Claire proclaims herself the dating idiot she thought she was, and fears she's doomed to be a lonely, crazy cat lady. But an accidental run-in with an old acquaintance might change everything. What starts with comparing dating battle wounds over a cup of coffee, quickly turns into something Claire had given up on.

As Claire discovers maybe there is love after Charlie after all, Charlie realizes his mistake. He wants her back, and he'll do anything to prove it to her. Now Claire must choose who deserves her heart, and if she's really willing to give it away again.

About Darian

I'm a women's fiction writer, author of Love Unfinished and Reinventing Claire. I love the challenge and thrill of putting words onto paper, and forming it into a story. For me, the only thing better than that are my kids.

On the occasions I'm not engulfed in writing, you'll find me reading a book, either for fun or for review on my blog, Crazy Lady with a Pen. When I'm not reading, I'm spending time with my friends and family. Life is too short to pass those beautiful little moments life has to offer by, I want to soak up every moment I can.

For more information about me, my books, reviews, or my blog, please visit my website, www.DarianWilk.weebly.com.

Goodreads http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13127583-reinventing-claire
Book trailer http://youtu.be/Kkuz670PXCg
Website - http://darianwilk.weebly.com/
Twitter - https://twitter.com/DarianWilk
Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/pages/Darian-Wilk-Fan-Page/154692967912957

Most inconsistent blogger ever!

So I'll just come right out and say it: I suck at consistently using this blog.  There are a variety of reasons for this, but the bottom line is that I always start out with good intentions of keeping the blog going, but then become overwhelmed.

In order to try to remedy that, I've decided that I'm going to change up the format, which will make it easier for me to keep the blog updated regularly but won't place a lot of demands on my time because, frankly, as much as I sometimes enjoy blogging, I want to focus my writing time on creating that next book (because you have NO idea how many fun, fun plans I have for more books!).

To that end, here's the plan for the blog going forward:

Mondays will be Monday Musings in which I'll reflect on a random topic.  It could be something specific to writing, it could be related to an article I read, etc.

Wednesdays will be Woohoo Wednesdays.  Confession time: I have a tendency to be neurotic at times, so I think this feature is excellent because it helps me pause to think about all the awesome things in my life.

Fridays will be Feature Fridays in which I'll showcase whatever manuscript I'm working on.  This is where you'll find excerpts from upcoming works, juicy tidbits about where I'm taking it next, etc.

In addition to this, I'll do occasional features about other authors, book reviews, and any random things that strike my fancy.  But at least this way I'll be consistently updating my blog three times a week.

Be sure to check back on Sunday, when I'll be featuring an interview with author Darian Wilk as part of the blog tour she's doing to spread the word about her upcoming book, Reinventing Claire.  She is an awesome, sweet lady, so I hope you'll all show her some love!