Since Gnome Con, I haven't gotten a lot of writing done. Why? Because I'm working a new job within the job I've been working for several years. I now get up at 5:30 in the morning in order to be to work by 6:30 so I can work until 4 or 5 in the afternoon. It doesn't give me a lot of time left where my brain is not mush and I have to get up the next day and do it all over again. As a consequence, my writing is suffering. In a way, I expected this and perhaps it is for the better because it means I only write when I'm mentally together enough to do so. However, that means there is no way I'm going to be putting out more than maybe three books this year, if I'm lucky, and one of them is already out.
The first draft of Blades of Fate is written, but in need of edits and probably some additions. It is, however, already done. I can, with some effort, get it done by June which was my original plan. Unfortunately, the other three She Becomes Death books: Wielding his Scythe, Winning his Kingdom, and Matchmaker, Matchmaker are going to be delayed with this current writing schedule. Will they still get done? Of course. It will just take me longer than initially planned. As the saying goes, it will happen, I'm not dead yet.
Currently, I am working on Wielding His Scythe at an Arctic slow pace. The good news is: I'm still working on it.
In other news, I've started planning a wedding that isn't for another year and a half. I might be rushing things just a bit trying to get it all done before I have to worry about it too much, but then again, maybe not. Still many questions to answer, but I've answered a couple.
Showing posts with label Wearing His Ring. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Wearing His Ring. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 22, 2016
Tuesday, March 15, 2016
Gnome Con 2016, so that happened!
Amazing that it's already been more than a week since I went to Gnome Con and rocked out my first ever vending opportunity. So here's the essential breakdown. Gnome Con ran from March the 4th through the 6th: half-day Friday, full day Saturday, 2/3 of a day Sunday. I got there on Friday not long after they opened for set up and got myself all ready to go. I bought 15 copies each of my first two books. Though the third book was ready for downloadables that weekend, I didn't have any physical copies. That made me a little sad, but the good news was that it was done in time to be put on sale. On Friday, I sold about half of my physical copies. I was offering them for 2 for $20, in hopes this would help them move. I also included download cards, which I got from a blog post on Magical Words. They are super easy to make and they can be sold for a couple dollars a piece. I sold each of the three for $2 and then a pack of three for $5. All in all, a good deal to get my books in the hands of new readers. So far, I've only gotten one email about someone being unable to download the books that I put up through Google Drive, so hopefully that means everyone else has been getting them easily enough. I also, for the first time, used a Square reader. This was a little daunting as I learned how to make it work, but after a couple tries, I got the hang of it. Worked out pretty well.
I know, I know, you want to know how much I made at this shindig. Was it worth it for me to do? Yes, I have never vended before and having a chance to do so at a small convention in my hometown was priceless experience. Nothing like it. Monetarily, was it worth it? I made about $200 after taxes, in GA you have to pay sales tax even on things like convention sales. That is a hundred dollars more than I spent on the table, but didn't completely cover the amount of the merchandise. So did I break even? No. Would I still do this again? Yes. I'm actually currently in talks to take part in another public venue and perhaps sell more books. The chance to interact with new possible fans is something I simply can't pass up. My best seller was Dark King Rising though I sold a copy of Chains of Fate to, Bill Blair, one of the guests there at the convention through my boyfriend.
In other, not less important news, my boyfriend has become my fiance. He decided it would be a fabulous thing to do to propose to me at Gnome Con on that Friday after I got set up. I was surprised, pleased, and a little miffed because here I was trying to be a professional author and he was going to make me cry in front of a bunch of people I didn't know. Over all though, it turned out quite well. We're now planning a wedding, even though neither of us has some much as ever planned a party. Here's hoping we'll get the wedding of our dreams in a year or so.
So Gnome Con is gone for another year. I don't think I'll ever have another one as eventful as this one, but I don't need it to be. I look forward to do it again next year and doing even better.
I know, I know, you want to know how much I made at this shindig. Was it worth it for me to do? Yes, I have never vended before and having a chance to do so at a small convention in my hometown was priceless experience. Nothing like it. Monetarily, was it worth it? I made about $200 after taxes, in GA you have to pay sales tax even on things like convention sales. That is a hundred dollars more than I spent on the table, but didn't completely cover the amount of the merchandise. So did I break even? No. Would I still do this again? Yes. I'm actually currently in talks to take part in another public venue and perhaps sell more books. The chance to interact with new possible fans is something I simply can't pass up. My best seller was Dark King Rising though I sold a copy of Chains of Fate to, Bill Blair, one of the guests there at the convention through my boyfriend.
In other, not less important news, my boyfriend has become my fiance. He decided it would be a fabulous thing to do to propose to me at Gnome Con on that Friday after I got set up. I was surprised, pleased, and a little miffed because here I was trying to be a professional author and he was going to make me cry in front of a bunch of people I didn't know. Over all though, it turned out quite well. We're now planning a wedding, even though neither of us has some much as ever planned a party. Here's hoping we'll get the wedding of our dreams in a year or so.
So Gnome Con is gone for another year. I don't think I'll ever have another one as eventful as this one, but I don't need it to be. I look forward to do it again next year and doing even better.
Sunday, January 17, 2016
Big Big News!
Hello again, ladies and gents. Of course, there are many lovely things I could talk about but I want to talk about one thing in particular: Handselling books. I never thought I would get the chance, but this year, I will be handselling at Gnome Con 2016. Gnome Con is a small convention held here in Savannah, GA, which is for gamers, comic book geeks, and readers. I am extremely pleased that this is going to be a part of my life. By the time this happens in March of 2016, I will have my third book out, Wearing His Ring. Dark King Rising and Chains of Fate will also be there and I will be taking preorders for the second book in the She Becomes Death series, Wielding His Scythe. It will be amazing.
On top of getting to vend at the convention, I will be joining friends of mine who always attend. This will make it a wonderful experience for me because I rarely get to share my professional happenings with my friends. One or the other at times, but not both.
What else is there to say? I'm in the second draft of She Becomes Death book one, Wearing His Ring. About 25k in with a little over a month left to write. So 50k due in 30 days. That sounds about like NaNoWriMo. With eleven years of that under my belt, I'm fairly certain I can manage.
Looking around the blog, I need to spend some time on what I've been reading lately. Lots of professional development books (Lots of craft and business books) thanks to the StoryBundle from November. I paid $30 for 25 ebooks including titles like Million Dollar Productivity. Writing about them should give me a better perspective on what I want to learn from each book. I also recently read Level Up Your Life by Nerd Fitness founder, Steve Kamb. Another book I learned something from, so want to talk about that too. Look for that review coming up soon.
On top of getting to vend at the convention, I will be joining friends of mine who always attend. This will make it a wonderful experience for me because I rarely get to share my professional happenings with my friends. One or the other at times, but not both.
What else is there to say? I'm in the second draft of She Becomes Death book one, Wearing His Ring. About 25k in with a little over a month left to write. So 50k due in 30 days. That sounds about like NaNoWriMo. With eleven years of that under my belt, I'm fairly certain I can manage.
Looking around the blog, I need to spend some time on what I've been reading lately. Lots of professional development books (Lots of craft and business books) thanks to the StoryBundle from November. I paid $30 for 25 ebooks including titles like Million Dollar Productivity. Writing about them should give me a better perspective on what I want to learn from each book. I also recently read Level Up Your Life by Nerd Fitness founder, Steve Kamb. Another book I learned something from, so want to talk about that too. Look for that review coming up soon.
Tuesday, January 5, 2016
New Year! Forward ho!
It's the fifth, we are firmly in the year of 2016. Huzzah! Well done all. Now to see what happened last year worthy of note versus what we have possibly planned for this year already. Truthfully, I can't say that I put out my first publication last year. If you've been around a while, you might remember a little project called Objects that I put out in September of 2014. That little book of short stories holds the honor of being my first real publication. However, that doesn't mean last year wasn't a year for milestones. I put out my first novel last year in June, Chains of Fate. So far all the feedback I have received has been good. There are a few nitpicky details I will be fixing before the anniversary of the book and the publication of book 2. I followed that up with a second book in December, Dark King Rising, for a total of two books out in the year 2015. I'm trying something a little different with Dark King Rising as I started out offering it on multiple platforms while I went with Kindle Direct Publishing Select on Chains of Fate. As much as I enjoyed running the free promotions on KDP Select, I didn't really see myself getting a lot out of it. These days, free books just don't move like they used to. Glut in the market, I more than suppose. In short, last year was a good year for my writing career. I started it off running. I know, I know, the big question is: Did anything sell? Well, technically, no. I'm not doing well in the sales department. I am not, however, worrying about it. The books are good. Word of mouth is moving slowly. It will take some time for it to gain the appropriate momentum.
What's on the board for this year, 2016? Well, first I have a third book coming out which will be the first in a trilogy, Wearing His Ring. The trilogy title is: She Becomes Death. The other two books are slated to come out this year as well, as soon as I can get them out of my hot little hands and into the hands of readers. The sooner, the better. Not rushing though. I must say that, I am not rushing. I'm giving myself 2-3 months at a stretch to work on the manuscripts because I think that's the best thing to do. Enjoying the process.
I get to make my first public appearance as an author with a table at Gnome Con 2016 down here in Savannah, GA. For those who don't know, Gnome Con is a small convention, still growing, that is put on over a weekend. This year, it's the beginning of March. I'm looking forward to that and trying to have my third book ready to go by then. Selling actual physical copies will be quite interesting, I'm certain. Who knows, if I do well, I might get asked to be a guest at some point in the future. That would be ace.
So here's the rundown:
Wearing his Ring: February 26, 2016
Wielding his Scythe: March 2016
Winning his Kingdom: April 2016
Blades of Fate (The second Chains of Fate book): June 2016
That gets me to the middle of the year with an entire trilogy completed. I think that's thinking far enough in the future for right now. I'm sure more new things will happen that I feel the need to post about. Until then, ta-ta.
What's on the board for this year, 2016? Well, first I have a third book coming out which will be the first in a trilogy, Wearing His Ring. The trilogy title is: She Becomes Death. The other two books are slated to come out this year as well, as soon as I can get them out of my hot little hands and into the hands of readers. The sooner, the better. Not rushing though. I must say that, I am not rushing. I'm giving myself 2-3 months at a stretch to work on the manuscripts because I think that's the best thing to do. Enjoying the process.
I get to make my first public appearance as an author with a table at Gnome Con 2016 down here in Savannah, GA. For those who don't know, Gnome Con is a small convention, still growing, that is put on over a weekend. This year, it's the beginning of March. I'm looking forward to that and trying to have my third book ready to go by then. Selling actual physical copies will be quite interesting, I'm certain. Who knows, if I do well, I might get asked to be a guest at some point in the future. That would be ace.
So here's the rundown:
Wearing his Ring: February 26, 2016
Wielding his Scythe: March 2016
Winning his Kingdom: April 2016
Blades of Fate (The second Chains of Fate book): June 2016
That gets me to the middle of the year with an entire trilogy completed. I think that's thinking far enough in the future for right now. I'm sure more new things will happen that I feel the need to post about. Until then, ta-ta.
Wednesday, October 22, 2014
Editing 'was' and 'that'
I admit to have a serious distaste for editing. As a portion of things I have to do to get my books ready for publication, it is my least favorite part of the process. However, it has to be done, so it does get done. I tend to edit in stages because trying to tackle everything that's wrong with a novel at one time is crazy-making.
I just recently ran across a writing article, which I cannot put my hands on right now, that posited doing something called a 'was' edit. I pulled up my current novel in editing "Wearing His Ring" and the word 'was' appeared 932 times throughout the manuscript. That's almost a thousand words out of a 60,000 word manuscript. That's only .6% of the manuscript, but it feels like a lot more. Especially once I started to go back and look at where I used all those 'was's.
Combing through the manuscript I realized I was in love with the past progressive form. It's not wrong, but it robs some strength from sentences where it isn't necessary.
My other favorite overuse word is 'that'. I often use it in place of 'it' which would probably make more sense. I also use it as a filler word. "I have found that when one wants to know things directly from other beings questioning is generally required." (Yes, this is dialogue. Yes, this character actually talks like that.) I've gotten a little better about it over the years. I remember when 'that' appeared in nearly every other sentence in an older work.
Overall, keeping an eye on both of these words will, I hope, improve my writing. If nothing else, it gives me something to focus on while I work my way through the manuscript.
I just recently ran across a writing article, which I cannot put my hands on right now, that posited doing something called a 'was' edit. I pulled up my current novel in editing "Wearing His Ring" and the word 'was' appeared 932 times throughout the manuscript. That's almost a thousand words out of a 60,000 word manuscript. That's only .6% of the manuscript, but it feels like a lot more. Especially once I started to go back and look at where I used all those 'was's.
Combing through the manuscript I realized I was in love with the past progressive form. It's not wrong, but it robs some strength from sentences where it isn't necessary.
My other favorite overuse word is 'that'. I often use it in place of 'it' which would probably make more sense. I also use it as a filler word. "I have found that when one wants to know things directly from other beings questioning is generally required." (Yes, this is dialogue. Yes, this character actually talks like that.) I've gotten a little better about it over the years. I remember when 'that' appeared in nearly every other sentence in an older work.
Overall, keeping an eye on both of these words will, I hope, improve my writing. If nothing else, it gives me something to focus on while I work my way through the manuscript.
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