January, 2019 - Sacha T. Y. Fortuné

Month: January 2019

On Writing

Shock Value Writing and “Trigger Warnings”

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I gave out ARCs (Advanced Reader Copies), and a user took both Books 1 & 2 — then sent me a message saying she preferred not to review.

…Not that she didn’t like my writing. She was explicit about this. But it seems she didn’t want the book on her record of having reviewed on her accounts, since it contains a particular scene that she wasn’t 100% comfortable with.

I respect her decision, and thanked her for letting me know.

But now I’m wondering — should I have had a trigger warning? Or any “warning” at all?

 

Setting expectations for the reader

I’ve seen loads of writers literally stating in the blurb:

  • “This has a brutal rape with a minor“
  • “This has a graphic suicide“
  • “This has a sexual scene with dubious consent“

There’s also the other side of the spectrum, where the blurb gives a reassurance:

  • “This has no cheating!”
  • “Guaranteed HEA!” (Happily Ever After)

…So other writers are doing it.

This is a totally brand new concept to the world of self-publishing and online sales.

To date, to my knowledge at least (fellow writers & readers, correct me if I’m wrong), I’ve never picked up a traditionally published book that gives a massive warning like that right on the cover.

And I understand that some readers prefer not to read certain things.

But I think I’ve been fair in creating the final book product. I’ve selected 18+ (mature audiences only), in the Amazon KDP back-end settings.

And I think I’ve been fair in packaging my series — the covers are NOT happy-go-lucky. It’s clearly NOT a romantic comedy. I’ve used grayscale for a reason.

I’ve set the expectation of adult content.

And I think I’ve been fair in my blurbs:

Book 1: Climbing The Walls

“…damaged bitch who became his power-woman sex-goddess wife” and “…the earth-shattering sex that will not be denied.”

Book 2: Pandora’s Poison

“…a dangerous attraction for a less complicated man than the granite bastard she married” and “the question faced in one’s darkest hour: Can you trust yourself?”

Not to mention the overall series statement:

“A marriage is not a happy ending; it’s a beginning of so much more to come.”

And, within the first few pages (which can be read via the “Look Inside” preview on Amazon for “Climbing The Walls“), there’s sex and cursing. Enough sex and cursing to make the reader think — “Okay, maybe this isn’t for me…” and move on, if necessary.

In fact, something that someone *might* consider a “trigger warning required” moment is actually close to the front of “Pandora’s Poison” and can be read in the “Look Inside” preview!

So it’s clear (at least to me), with all of THAT I outlined, that this is the darker side of “romance”, and as a reader I would bear all of this in mind before I click to purchase.

 

Should a writer spoil the shock?

I did think about the “trigger warning” issue, and I did shop around for examples on writer groups before making my decision to NOT use any… so I did do my homework.

You see, the whole point of my entire Hart & Cole series is to get 100% invested in the characters, to LIVE their lives as if it’s happening to you.

That’s my writing style. It’s the FUNDAMENTAL part of my writing style.

Some readers have appreciated it. REALLY appreciated it.

My favourite Book 2 review (to date) even said:

Everything felt so so real.

It isn’t a storybook; it is a real life book where no matter what you have experienced in your life, you can actually feel the emotions seeping in, and that is what I’ve come to realize with this author.

When I pick her books up, I need to be prepared to face reality and feel the emotions because that’s what she gives me.

So when something shocking happens in the plot, I want the reader to be JUST as shocked as the character was.

For that to happen… I can’t have a trigger warning. I just can’t.

 

My muse doesn’t come with a trigger warning…

I’m sorry that my reviewer didn’t have a warning, and I appreciate that she shared her reasons with me instead of giving me a terrible review, or explicitly detailing the “shock” moment in the review and spoiling it for other readers.

That was AWESOME of her, and I do appreciate that.

And please note, I do carefully consider the plots of my novels, as I write.

My characters are not performing anything “shocking” for gratuitous purposes. It’s all essential to the plot, and even so I’m still ensuring that anything “shocking” has consequences.

I’ve read a LOT of books where there’s ZERO warning and ZERO retribution for deplorable acts.

I’ve had my own personal experiences, so now as a writer, I am as careful as I can be, about the “shock value” moments.

…But they still exist.

That’s the whole point.

You see… my muse doesn’t come with a trigger warning.

The “shock” moment, in my mind, was just as painful for me to write as it was for the reader to read.

Sometimes, I feel like I’m just the conduit to share my characters’ stories.

And, as that conduit… as that middle-man between the story and the reader… I’m sorry. I just can’t censor my characters. I’ve made it clear to expect adult content, but readers… I just can’t give you a giant, neon-sign heads-up as to the details on this content.

My goal as a writer is to make you feel.

…Even if, sometimes, what you feel is pain.

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Hart & Cole Series

Launch Day! Book 2 “Pandora’s Poison” is LIVE!

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Finally, the day is here!

It’s my birthday today, but that’s the least of my concerns.

Today is the day BOOK 2 LAUNCHES!

Now, my first published book was a whole six months ago (July 28-29, 2018). So it’s been quite some time bunkering down and absorbing all I can before my second book!

The first (book) pancake

The first book was kind of like the first pancake. Not that it needed to be “thrown out” per se; just that it was the guinea pig.

I’ve grown so much as writer, as a marketing strategist — hell, as a human being! — since.

I didn’t know much at the time. I just knew that I had to PUBLISH THE DAMN THING, so maybe I rushed it a little.

Bear in mind, the draft existed for 15+ years. So the “rush” was really just to “publish” once I’d made up my mind to do it.

And I’m a perfectionist by nature, so even my “rushing it” probably isn’t everyone else’s “rushing it”.

Mind you, Book 1 was edited several times, had a great cover and a good blurb. Which is much more than I can say for many self-published books, so I’m proud I got at least that right (I hope)!

It looked professional, and I got great reviews so far.

Now, I know Book 1 is far from perfect. I love it, and readers did as well, but I personally wish it were significantly shorter — in fact, I managed to dock about 5 pages and re-upload it, post-publication!

But after doing that, I’ve told myself to just leave it alone. It’s out. It’s published. It survived. Move on.

It’ll never be perfect. And there’s no way I can realistically cut 100-200 pages and still tell the same story. There’s also no good point to chop that story in half, and then I’d need to rewrite and “fluff” far too much.

I need to accept that some books fall “outside” of genre norms, and my book just needs to be one of those.

So I’m moving on now, to Darren’s & Luisa’s story.

Books 2 & 3: Moving On

Book 2‘s & Book 3‘s couple is a lot more complicated than Book 1’s.

In Book 1, Kris and Nicole have one major issue in between them: she’s a workaholic, and he picks up the slack far too much with the kids; something’s got to give. With Darren and Luisa, there’s SO much more.

I loved writing their “early” scenes, when they were first falling in love.

I loved writing their “present – bad” scenes, when they’re sniping at each other.

I loved writing their “present – good” scenes, when they’re so tender.

…And that final scene (which bridges Book 2 & 3… OH MY GOD). Wait for it. Just wait for it.

Darren is a VERY difficult guy to love, but still Luisa can’t help herself. She also can’t help herself from feeling caught up in Gianni, who is the guy, as she says, that she “wants to want”.

The thing with Darren is that, as her friend Vicki puts it, early in Book 3:

“Darren Hart isn’t the rainbows and butterflies guy. He’s the one you call when you’re standing over the dead body with the murder weapon in your hand. You’re ridiculously lucky to have that guy. You can’t expect him to be the other kind.”

Even Luisa acknowledges this about him, many times. She’ll get the small-picture stuff from Gianni, but Darren is the big-picture guy. He’s always saving her, rescuing her, taking care of their family in the major ways that count.

That’s love.

When the chips are down, Gianni’s not the one who’s there. It’s Darren. It was always Darren.

You see, love doesn’t always look the way you expect it to look. That’s the lesson Luisa has to learn. And of course, she’s got to learn it the hard way!

So that’s Books 2 & 3 in a nutshell.

Writer Reflection: Gradual Growth

I should mention… Books 2 & 3 are way more emotional, way more steamy, way more provocative, way more profanity-laced, way more EVERYTHING than Book 1! I hope readers are ready!

I’m a little nervous that readers have to wait awhile for the HEA or HFN (Happily Ever After or Happy For Now), and that the semi-cliffhanger may leave them flinging Book 2 (physical copy or their device) at the wall!

But I’ve thought about it long and hard, and I KNOW it’s necessary. Apart from the obvious reason that the length is WAY too long for a single book (seriously — it would only be used as a doorstop!), you also need to take a break from this couple.

There’s a natural “break” between the two books because Darren and Luisa  barely speak to each other for awhile. And a couple of months will be sufficient time to BREATHE before all the Book 3 action kicks off.

Book 3 is SWIFT. I’m warning you.

But anyway, I realise, as I look back at these three books, that I’ve matured as a writer.

Book 1‘s first draft was written when I was in my late teens, on the cusp of adulthood. I knew so little about relationships then! And still, I was writing such a story!

But Book 2 & even more so Book 3… yeah, I was a lot older and more mature by the time those rolled around.

My writing is better. I see myself in these books, more than Book 1.

And I’m ready to rip off the band-aid and expose Book 2 to the world.

It’s happening. It’s today.

It’s out there. It’s published.

I’m a little scared. *Deep breath*… here goes nothing.

Buy Now (ebook)

Buy Now (paperback)

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Hart & Cole Series

Bits Of Me: Characters & Alter-egos

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I’m not kidding when I say, in my official Author Bio, that there’s a little bit of me in all the ‘Hart & Cole‘ women.

The photo — which I recently stumbled upon while looking for something else on an old, massive hard drive — was taken circa 2005, when I’d gotten a white rose at a party because I’d been voted best dressed.

I was studying in Lancaster, England at the time. It was one of the best nights I’d had since I got there. I remember the experience was the bright spot of my existence, for a moment.

I’d completely forgotten about that photo, which I took when I got back to my dorm room that day.

Now, seeing it so many years later — and realising the similarities between my own photo and my main character Nicole, it’s uncanny!

A memory of a girl…

I remember when my mom first read the book, eons ago, she commented that I’d written my dream job for my character: a novelist, who was also a journalist.

Here’s the thing… I’m now a published novelist (not quite as accomplished as Nicole, however!). I also have an International Journalism Master’s degree (which is collecting dust as we speak!).

…So my character’s actually done much better than me!

She’s also slim-bodied, super-talented and fashionable and oh-so-sexy. Ha. If only I could be! I’m also totally envious of her main physical characteristic: the huge curly hair. Sigh. I’ve got scanty of this myself, and not for lack of trying.

But the point is, I guess we have to get inspiration from somewhere. Nicole was the first character to POSSESS me like that, to write her story. Like I’ve said before, I’m a pantser; she’s the plotter! I swear, there are parts of the story that I don’t even feel I wrote; I think she did!

So maybe Nicole is my elevated version of myself. Everything to the extreme!

She’s also hella crazy to the extreme, and thankfully I am not. She’s all fiction, of course, and so is her story… but sometimes I wonder if part of her was always rooted in fact.

Writing What You Know…

It’s no wonder I feel her like a presence, like a real person sometimes.

She’s a part of me. I didn’t even realise it consciously while writing her, all those years ago.

Now, when I spot this old photo of myself, after publishing and re-tooling my novel so many times, it feels so concrete that I’ve had this girl in me all along.

So strange, to realise that even back then — 14 years ago, which would’ve been about a year or so after I’d finished my first draft of Climbing The Walls, I knew exactly what Nicole looked like.

I’m glad to learn, in retrospect, that I stayed true to her 15 years later, when putting her likeness on the book cover.

Like I said, there’s parts of me in all the ‘Hart & Cole‘ women, who have been pleading with me for over a decade to do them justice.

My second novel — Book 2: Pandora’s Poison — is almost here (it will be live on Jan 22, 2019), and it focuses on a new female character, Luisa. But Nicole was my first girl, and parts of Nicole’s story are intertwined here in Book 2, and also in Book 3: Pandora’s Price.

Nicole’s not done yet.

…Sometimes, I wonder if she ever will be.

Get Book 1 now on Amazon – free on Kindle Unlimited! And pre-order Book 2 – coming January 22, 2019!

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On Writing

Self-publishing & the Learning Curve

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There’s less than a week to go for Book 2 of my series, so I’m doing a million things at once. So please forgive the mini-rant!

I took some time to reflect on parts of the journey that have been the hugest learning curve for me.

Super-solid Photoshop skills

I appreciate that my Photoshop skills have definitely improved over the past six months!

This certainly wouldn’t have happened if I had loads of money to spend on graphic design for teasers and promos, so this journey has been well worth the ride!

Some things I figured out on my own, others I YouTube’d to learn how to do!

So now I feel like I can easily slap together a teaser, or create the book jacket, without panicking! Woop!

Algorithm Appreciation

Yeah. I still don’t understand algorithms. Like, at all.

I do, however, appreciate that it’s a numbers game — the more freebies you give away, the more people see your book and then may purchase or read on Kindle Unlimited beyond the promo.

The more reviews you have, the more people may be seeing your book (I think).

Not sure how this entire tangle of algorithm mess actually works, but I appreciate that any tips fellow authors offer may be valuable. WORSHIP the algorithms!

Patience & Know-How

I have gotten more organised. Thank God. I needed to.

I now have three book file folders. In each of them there’s:

  • The raw master Word file
  • The PDF export of that Word file
  • A raw master Pages document [I no longer use Kindle Create; I had those files earlier before I moved to Pages because Kindle Create was awful!]
  • The EPUB export of that Pages document
  • The MOBI version from that EPUB file (I use Calibre for the conversion)

Then I have:

  • The book cover for the print version
  • The book cover for the ebook version
  • The book jacket (PSD editable file)
  • The book jacket (PDF file ready for upload)
  • The book cover with the 3D mockup
  • Smaller version of the book cover (for web use)

Then there are the “preview/sample” files :

  • A raw Pages document of the Chapter 1 & 2 excerpt with cover
  • The PDF & EPUB & MOBI files for this (for my Prolific Works giveaways)
  • Another version with no cover (for use on my website) and its corresponding PDF & EPUB & MOBI files

PHEW.

That’s for EACH BOOK. AND I HAVE THREE! So, every time I find a typo, it’s like F@$#$@#$#$#$#@$#@$##$@!K — because I have to update things 20 times!

Yeah. Being a self-published author is AWESOME on some days, and on other days, a TYPO can ruin your life!

To all the fellow folks out there proud to be a self-published author, hang in there! I feel your pain, and you’re not alone.

Anyone else want to share their major learning curve items, feel free to do so in the comments! I’m sure #3 resonates with us all! ?????

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On Writing

Faulty Freebies & My Book Characteristics Wish-List

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One of my goals for 2019 is to read more. And review more — especially indie authors!

After all, it’s not fair to be begging for reviews when you’re not passing it forward yourself.

So over the last couple of weeks, I’ve given myself a huge kick in the pants to get this goal underway…

Hunting for Freebie Gems

I downloaded at least 50 books running free promos (to add to the at least 30 “TBR” pile already on my Kindle).

My strategy to stick to the freebies is a situational thing. I’m poor, but if I love the first one I get for free, I’ll happily shell out the dough to get the next one! So I figured: there are loads of worthwhile freebies out there.

After all, my own book (which I think is pretty good — I may be biased, but hey!) was offered as a freebie in December to promote sell-through of the rest of the series, and I’ll soon be running another free promo again from January 22-24, 2019.

So if mine is a worthwhile freebie-starter, there MUST be others like it: freebie gems.

So, 80+ books, yay me! Goals! And I settled in to tackle some reading.

Just one problem.

I just realised I am a picky reader.

Like, super-picky. Super, super picky.

Sorry, but out of 80 I didn’t make it past 10% for more than 8!

Raving, Resplendent Review Requirements

The thing is, I don’t want to write half-assed reviews.

I need to feel MOVED to spend time banging out a review.

Like writing a novel, I need to put my soul into it!

And I haven’t been MOVED since last September, which is when I wrote the review for Mercedes Siler’s “Easy” — which I’ve also promo’d across my website, blog, social media accounts etc. without her even asking me to!

Mercedes loved the review I wrote, and I loved writing it. I love writing reviews for books that blow me away.

…Because you see, when I love a book, I LOVE a book.

I’ll scream it from the mountaintops.

And I WANT to love all these books I’ve downloaded.

I want to make a fellow author weep or jump for joy the way I do when I get a great review.

I want to make someone’s day.

But authors, you need to write me something to take me there.

Something that, when I close the book (or swipe the final screen), my heart’s straining out of my chest and my entire soul is pouring into the review.

…Something that ticks all the boxes.

Here’s what I’m looking for:

  • A believable storyline.
  • Drama that pulls you in without rushing things.
  • Writing that has an element of artistry to it.
  • Description that assaults your senses.
  • Diverse [and aptly described!] characters.
  • Main characters that you both love & hate.
  • Supporting characters NOT just for comic relief.
  • A steamy scene that isn’t laughable or gross.
  • An element of surprise.
  • Something symbolic.
  • Something sweet.
  • Something shocking.
  • Something raw.
  • Something emotional.
  • A story that comes full circle.

Yep. I’m a picky reader! I think my Hart & Cole series has all of these. I worked hard to bring all of these elements together to create my own story.

My own story may not be everyone’s cup of tea, and maybe it’s not what everyone’s looking for — but I can go through that list and find moments that connect with each and every point. There’s a lot to unpack there.

Now, I’m looking for something similar in books I read.

…And I’m just not seeing enough of those elements from other writers I have read recently.

The market is oversaturated with “tropes” and just plain annoying one-dimensional characters. Girls that show up on page 1 wet and ready, and alpha guys that are growling and broody for no reason at all. Books that are about literally nothing — just a dollop of angst and hormones.

Writers writing to make money rather than to actually move the reader.

Do better. Please, please, DO BETTER, writers.

I want to write rave reviews. As a writer, when I read, it’s tough for me to write bad reviews, and I WANT to write those reviews that make the author’s heart sing.

I need to get out of this reading slump. If you write in these genres, and you think you’ve got one of those books that ticks all my boxes, let me know in the comments or via my Contact page!

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