This was my first book by this author, but I can promise it won’t be my last. I went in completely blind, and I was thrilled when it blew me away. There were a lot of moments when I really, really, really wanted to stop reading… but I couldn’t. I read it a few sittings over a long cruise with several consecutive sea days, so I had a lot of dedicated time to focus on the story and really feel it. And feel it, I did… feel it, you must.
The Pros & Cons
Quinn and Graham meet under unusual circumstances, both as victims of cheating, and find themselves together later down the line as fated partners, but their relationship is threatened by the daunting sorrow of infertility. The chapters jump from “Then” and “Now” tracing back the couple’s origin story, and it’s a doozy of a heartwarming rollercoaster that — unfortunately — plummets into the darkest depths of despair in their marriage.
I do love “real-life romance” — hell, I’ve got to love it, because I write it! — but this one was a gut-punch I didn’t expect. The writer accurately captures some of the nuances of marital intimacy, familial relationships and so much more — the tiny moments that can pivot everything, and that are often missed in films, books, and just about any other form of representation.
Thank God for the “origin” moments of levity, because honestly it’s a difficult read if not for those. You love the young couple because they’re simply awesome, and they’re meant to be. Graham is knee-bucklingly adorable in his over-the-top moments, and Quinn is a female character you actually enjoy reading about because she’s not “too much” of anything. She feels real. They are easy to love, and it’s heartbreaking when it flashes to the present-time when they’re both so awful.
Still, you can connect with them even in the bad times, and the story is so intricately woven between the two extremes that you feel like you are there with them. The steamy/sexy scenes — both now and then — are perfectly done (even perfect in its awfulness for the “now” moments), and I always appreciate writing that successfully straddles this fine balance with taste and grace.
My only tiny niggle was the ending. I don’t want to have a huge spoiler, but I think the supposed “solution” they found minimalises all they’ve been through in their journey to this point. It felt like something was added on that just didn’t belong there. It almost, almost, almost made me dock from my rating, but I eventually forgave it and gave the story the full five stars because it stayed with me so vividly as I write this weeks later, and I’m sure it’s not a book I’m likely to forget anytime soon.
Conclusion
Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this read, particularly the writing style that jerks at your organs at times, the symbolism — “Category 5 hurricane” as a marriage, and the entire journey this book took me on. It was a fresh, tough look at real life that leaves a lasting message about who we are, how we can be better partners to our loved ones, and most importantly the overarching truth in all relationships: you are your own worst enemy.
This is my second book by this author, and I only wish I’d read it first (as it was written first) rather than going backwards. The more recent one I read — “Easy” — stopped my world to such an extent that I don’t think I can even objectively judge another book by her. But I’ll try! Here goes:
The Pros & Cons
“Chasing Stars” was awesome. I love love love love love how you really feel like you’re in these characters’ heads, feeling every conversation and every doubt and every sorrow. The sentences ramble the way my mind does sometimes, and it’s so refreshing to read something that feels like the way you think. When the scenes get sexy, your entire body twinges and ripples with the character’s.
A couple of my faves:
“I need man smell and man arms and man skin and sweat. I just need someone to hold me together and make me feel like nightmares are just nightmares and I’ll be okay.”
“Oh my God. Ares kissed me. I am so happy my insides are coated in glitter and confetti. But I’m also on the edge of tears because it doesn’t change anything. I can’t have him. He’s not mine.”
Nikki’s friendship with Persephone feels so much like one of mine from my past that it’s scary. The supportive, silent friend bolstering the other who clearly has a much better life; the sacrifices we make as young women; and that seesaw of love/hate that make you wonder how you were ever even friends with this person in the first place… yup. Bang on.
Also, Ares’ male stupidity at times was just awesome. Yes, he was a complete clunkhead, but unfortunately that’s kind of how young guys (or any guys, if we’re being entirely honest) can be at times! Both he and Persephone won your hearts by the end though, never mind the up and downs along the way when you want to knock them down.
I also really appreciated all the adult relationships interwoven into the story — Nikki’s mother is terrifying, but is well balanced with Persephone’s and Ares’ mother who treats Nikki like one of her own and even takes on her younger brother as well. The father characters also bring a nice balance to round out the story, showing that past negativity does not necessarily always need to permeate the present and the future, and there is room for growth and change and maturity from both sides of the generational gap.
Conclusion
There were a couple of moments that I was hoping for a *wee* bit more to push me over the top, but overall this was a stellar read and a fabulous debut novel, and I would recommend to anyone needing something that grabs at your emotions and doesn’t let you go until the end.
Now that my third book is LIVE, I can take a little time to reflect on the journey thus far.
In my launch day post for “Book 2: Pandora’s Poison”, I mentioned that I’d learnt a lot since becoming a published writer, and the book length issue was a huge part of what I’d learnt.
It continues to plague me to this day…
Back to the Beginning…
Usually, once readers start in on the book, it doesn’t feel nearly as long as it really is. There is a lot — a LOT — of dialogue, so it’s easy to flip through scenes.
I know my writing style is on point when it comes to DIALOGUE. My characters feel real because of it. And there’s a lot of it, so it helps you to dive right in.
The problem is, when you’re a reader used to 200-300 page books, and you see a new author clocking in at 500+………. yeah, it’s a hard sell.
While I think my story is worth the long read, and most readers did enjoy it, quite a few harped on the length.
Some said they read every word, some said it discouraged them at first but then they didn’t care, some said it was long but kept their interest throughout, and there was the odd one or two that mentioned skipping ahead or that marked it down primarily for that, calling it “long-winded” despite being such a good story.
“Fabulous story, but it just takes so long to get there!”
The thing was… whether in a good or bad light… it was MENTIONED. It was a TOPIC. And THAT might be the issue here.
I’d love to ignore it and hope I’m one day famous enough to not care. After all, Stephen King can afford to suck his teeth at short-attention-span readers, but even he noted that he went way overboard at times and lamented some of his longer works as he grew as a writer.
You see, sometimes… you’ve just got to kill those darlings!
Length as a Hindrance for Reader Interest
The problem is getting readers in the first place.
My book is already outside the genre norms as my characters aren’t “heroes and heroines” — fair enough. So, adding a super-long length on top of that… yeah, I’m just asking for trouble.
I recently ran a couple of marketing promo services and realised that bloggers preferred to simply promo the book rather than write a review… probably because of the length. So it feels like an uphill battle.
The thing is, I believe in the core of my soul that “published” means “published” and despite the ABILITY to do so, there’s only a small margin of what you really should “edit” once you hit that button.
So I’m still on the fence about cutting down Book 1.
It took me awhile to decide to “cut” my story into Books 2 & 3 and do some rewriting, but at least those weren’t published yet. Making a major change (like cutting 150 pages!) will require a LOT more effort.
I also have to consider what it would mean for future stories — as Book 1 had loads of minor characters with back stories since I knew I had plans for them later on. Sigh.
I don’t know if I have what it takes to “slim down” my first fat book baby. I’m glad that it is POSSIBLE, since I’m a self-published writer. And I know other indies do this ALL THE TIME.
But… still… sigh.
I guess part of it feels like… I’m a bit of a failure, if I have to go backwards and “FIX” my debut.
But… is taking this hit to my ego worth it, in the long run?
Planning for the long (book) trip
I myself don’t always look at book length before diving in. Most times, I just start reading and stop if my interest wanes. Usually, by 10% of whatever the length is, I’ll know.
But readers don’t all think like me. And some are voracious readers and have a very specific idea of what they’re looking for in a book.
Maybe I can’t hit ALL of their “wish list” items, but length can be a deterrent from the jump.
I guess it’s a little like thinking about planning a trip to Australia.
It looks great, I’m sure it’s great. Everyone who went tells me it’ll be great. But it’ll take me over an entire day to get there. So… I haven’t gone yet.
It’s not that I’ll NEVER go. I still WANT to go. I just don’t know when I’ll be prepared to make the trip. And in the meanwhile, I’m popping over to everywhere that’ll take me 12 hours or less…
And, if I’ve ALREADY gone to Australia or somewhere nearby (i.e. read another book by the same author) and I’m familiar with the journey, I’ll settle in and enjoy the 24+ hour trip, as I know exactly what’s coming.
Maybe I’m waffling on about “journeying” because my vacation is coming up and I’m excited! 🙂 But… well, you get the point.
A book is a journey. An unknown author is an unknown destination. So if the destination seems too far in the distance…
Yeah. You see where I’m going with this.
Going backward to go forward
If it were a single one-off standalone, then I would be more comfortable just leaving it in its chubby unwieldiness.
But I’m writing a SERIES. And while you CAN go straight to Book 2, I don’t recommend it.
Most readers will want to start at Book 1. Yep: the fat book baby.
So if it’s an issue that’s going to plague me and all future books in the series… yeah. I have to give it some serious thought.
In the meanwhile, I’ll hold off on promo-ing Book 1 again until I’ve made a decision either way… but in the meanwhile…
Sigh.
A book isn’t a piece of software. I shouldn’t need to do “patches”. It’s a piece of art. It should exist, intact, once revealed to the public.
And I’m an overachiever perfectionist. I don’t do “failure” well. And going back feels like failure. Republishing feels like failure. Needing to have a “Version 2” feels like failure.
But is “failure” worth it, to succeed in the long run?
Just a reminder — myfirst published book was released July 28-29, 2018. My second published book was released on January 22, 2019. So there was a good six-month window between Book 1 and Book 2, but only a couple of months until Book 3!
Yikes! So it’s been a helluva couple of months…
Publishing vs. “Net New” Writing
I set a high bar for myself with that two-month window between books, and I don’t recommend this to anyone!
I was cutting it VERY close to the deadline, made a crazy dash to do last-minute edits, and hardly had time to promote both the recently-released Book 2 and the upcoming Book 3! So both books suffered from the short timeline.
BUT I had my reasons. I have a semi-cliffhanger in between Books 2 & 3, so I didn’t want toooooo long of a wait, and I also really wanted to get those books out there as they’ve been around forever!
I needed to get those books out there so I could focus on NEW stories, NEW characters!
I haven’t done much “net new” writing in YEARS, because these books occupied SO MUCH of my head space! I’ve revised and re-read and edited and WORKED so much on what I had, that I didn’t even feel possessed to work on stories that aren’t fully there yet.
So I’m really glad to have Book 3 PUBLISHED, LIVE, AVAILABLE, and most importantly — all its “production” is now OVER.
Now… I can actually, really WRITE.
Book 3: Wrapping Up The Series (for now)
Book 3 wraps up the first chunk of this series. I still have at least two more stories in me for this series — Bryan’s & Stacey’s which will be told in Book 4, and Gianni’s & Vicki’s which will be in Book 5 (not yet titled!). I haven’t figured out how it all ends yet, but I know that the MAIN story is done. Thank God.
The main story was Darren and Luisa… the affair that rocked EVERYTHING. It deserved two books, and I made sure it was PROPERLY told. It’s there. It’s out.
My Book 2 & Book 3 couple is a lot more complicated than Book 1’s. With Darren and Luisa, there’s SO much more. It is SO deep and was SO painful to write.
I’m really glad I ended up leaving it on a cliffhanger so readers could BREATHE between books. Because Book 3 moves SO FAST. There’s a natural break while the two main characters barely speak, but when Book 3 starts back up, it is RAW and goes DARK very, very fast. I repeat:
I did spend way more time FEELING my Books 2 & 3 characters, reliving scenes and retooling them. My writing is so, so, so much better by Book 3. I see myself. I am all over the place.
I am Luisa and her indecisive heart.
I am Darren and his desperate redemption.
I am Gianni and his quivering soul.
I am Kris and his eternal regret.
I am Nicole and her volatile seduction.
I am “Hart & Cole”.
They are all a part of me. I am a part of them.
They’re out there. All of them.
And this book is their culmination, for now. Their stories are told. FINALLY.
It’s today. It’s out there. It’s published. Woo-hoo!
Three published books, y’all. I’m a frickin’ WRITER, y’all!
(Now I need to stop boasting and hide in a corner and beg my Book 4 couple to talk to me!)
Get both parts of Darren’s & Luisa’s story now on Amazon:
Recently I had the honour of receiving one of my first blogger reviews, and it was SO awesome and I was SO thrilled and thankful she enjoyed my book and had such deep thoughts on it. Blogger reviews really are the holy grail of reviews!
Today, I’m so excited to be this blogger’s first author to do an Author Q&A!
People often ask me about the origins of my tales — particularly as I was always writing topics seemingly far removed from my own maturity and life experiences!
But perhaps they are all parts of lives lived before.
I can’t explain what happened in my past to bring my characters to live inside of me, but I try to sound eloquent about it.
It’s rare that I read a book from beginning to end without a single break, and even more rare that I award a trope-filled book with such a high rating.
That’s just some context so you’ll know I mean it when I say — I LOVED this book. It ticks all the “trope” boxes without anything really “different”… but OOH! It does it so, so well.
The Pros & Cons
Despite the hot millionaire man-whore-seeming boss and quasi-virginal assistant trope that has been done to death in modern romance literature, these characters actually bring something fresh and genuine to the genre. You want to love them, and root for them. You feel their dilemmas. You fall into them so easily, and revel in the slightest flash of fire in their dialogue and interaction.
Yes, this story’s been told before… but usually not quite so well. In this case there’s not TOO MUCH domination from the boss angle, and ENOUGH feistiness and reservations from the assistant angle so that you’re not rolling your eyes in annoyance from chapter to chapter (I admit, I tend to do that a lot — and I didn’t, at all, with this one!).
There’s also JUST the right measure of steamy scenes at JUST the right time with JUST the right pacing so it’s not too tame, too soon, or too needlessly pornographic. For once, for ONCE… there is enough F*%$%#$#%KING STORY amongst the sex scenes, to actually enjoy them when you get there! I’m a picky reader — and an even pickier ROMANCE reader — and for once… for ONCE… I approve!
Oh, and no spoilers, but… the flower thing… EPIC!!!
The friendships on both sides also brought a lot of colour and life and laughter to the tale — Zoey’s best friend is believably proudly slutty and yet fiercely protective, and Easton’s crew is believably a bunch of d%&kheads with good hearts! And in both cases their command of dialogue when they meet each other’s friends made me smile. You feel like you know these people. They’re not overdone or overwhelming, but just the right measure of camaraderie and coercion and cockiness to enjoy their scenes in between focusing on the main squeeze! I can see the other books in the series being fleshed out quite easily, and would love to read more.
I do have to be balanced in my reviews, and I’ve gushed to this point, so let me see… my only real niggle that prevented the full 5 stars was that a “significant event” happened pretty late in the last few chapters… so, in terms of pacing it felt like it should have happened earlier, or there should have been a bit more story before the eventual resolution, because the ending felt a *wee* bit rushed.
Conclusion
I wanted just a little more squirming of “will-they-won’t-they-what’s-going-to-happen” before the eventual sigh of relief as it slid into its happily-ever-after. Maybe I was just enjoying it too much for it to end so soon! Nevertheless, I was thrilled for the entire joyride of this book and highly, highly, highly recommend to anyone… and particularly if you are a picky reader who needs something in the romance genre to rock your world!
This book is by a popular bestselling author and has loads of fabulous reviews, so I was pleased to dive in and looked forward to it. It’s a good enough read that I can easily recommend… but it just didn’t take me nearly as far into a “romance reader high” as I hoped it would.
The Pros & Cons
First, my likes: stylistically, it’s written very well. It opens with a catchy first few lines, and I was hooked! OMG, what an enticing open! I settled in for the story, thinking I was guaranteed the entire range of emotions from swoons to hair-pulling frustrations to emotional highs to crushing lows.
…But it just didn’t happen.
Notably, the sexy parts are sizzling, and if you’re looking for a sexy read that’s minimal on the story, this is perfect for you! But as it dealt with such a heavy, serious topic… the sexy bits seemed oddly placed at times.
Other readers noted (and I agree) that the dark-past-flashback moment shifted WAY too fast into the wild-sex… but that wasn’t even my main sticking point. For me, it was the more subtle things that stood out. Verbal self-deprecation in front of your boss prior to a business event??? Making the first move — on your boss — in public, after insistently turning him down prior to that? Er, okay. It felt like the character had done a complete 180-degree shift from independent-hard-worker to insecure-girl-in-lust. I expected more control… as she kept *saying* she was so controlled, so reserved, so cautious… but really, she wasn’t.
Also, based on the title, I thought there would be some “player” behaviour in the present, but he’s already reformed for awhile by the time he meets her… and her initial “hard to get” persona (which piqued my interest from the blurb) disintegrated disappointingly fast. I like saucy girls with swagger, so I was hoping for more frostiness before they actually get together… more drama, more verbal barbs… more something (their initial meeting was so awesome!). Also, the “mystery” of her dark past was revealed so soon… I had hoped for more build-up to this point!
So overall, though I was enjoying it and kept reading, I didn’t really feel the gut-wrenching drama I’d been looking forward to. The dark past was barely a blip of a shadow in their relationship, as they seemed to be falling over themselves in lusty love despite that. The “action” parts of the plot were subdued, her run-in with the guy from her past was over so quickly, and her parents’ re-entrance into her life was just too simple. There was POTENTIAL here to get me more involved emotionally, but there were parts where I felt like I was having the story told to me, rather than 100% feeling it myself.
Conclusion
I did, however, love the overall message of how love can redeem damage if you find your soulmate. I also really enjoyed the rhythm of the writing, the relationships we glimpse through friends and family, and the general premise of the story. There were also laughable moments (I loved her meeting of the other Walker brother!), and the dialogue throughout was engaging. And ooh… did I mention the sizzling sex? I think I did. So again, if that’s what you need… it’s here for you!
Overall, I enjoyed the book, and it was easy to read in its entirety in a short space of time. It also piques the interest for the other stories in the series, which seem intriguing and I’d be happy to pick up. I liked this one, but I just expected and wanted more drama… more “kaboom”!
*Side note… her panties are WAY too easy to rip off. What kind of cloth are they made of?????*
I need 20 more lifetimes to ever get around to half of these that I already have.
…And I get 20+ emails per day offering even more freebies. I don’t even remember signing up to half of these newsletter subscriber sites. So… yeah.
Honestly, I’m not surprised authors are complaining about “no/low sales”.
We’re not “part of” the problem. We ARE the problem.
The Path to Freebie Addiction
First of all, I should probably mention how I became the not-so-proud owner of this RIDICULOUS amount of freebies.
Less than a year ago, I had literally zero idea that free ebooks could come to you almost automatically. I either bought books I wanted in a bookshop, or online… simple as that.
Then in July 2018, I decided to finally push the button and become a published author. Once I did that, I realised I was way behind in understanding the indie author life, so I joined a bunch of author groups and Googled the hell out of everything I could devour online in terms of resources.
POST-publishing my own book was the first time I even heard about the term “reader magnet”.
I used to think if it was free, it was a pirated copy. I had no idea you could even give your book away freely in any way, shape or form. Legitimately. Like, on an Amazon page where “$0.00” shows up and you just click on it and BOOM! Free book on your Kindle, like magic.
I repeat… NO IDEA.
But once I heard about it, I figured everyone’s doing it… so I tried it myself. So far, I’ve given away 3315 copies of Book 1 of my series through two freebie promos (the first, more successful promo is documented here: I hit #1-#3 in my categories, and #87 overall on the Free Kindle list).
Despite those great results, I’m pretty sure only one of my reviews came from this freebie promotion. And *maybe* a handful of sales, if I’m lucky.
And my book (Book 1, that is) was well received, with mostly stellar reviews. So I figure — okay, surely if someone reads and loves Book 1, they’ll rush for Book 2.
…Nope.
That’s just not how it works, you see…
The Magnet vs. The Fickle Reader
I took a step back and decided to look at it from my own viewpoint as a reader.
In the writing community, there’s this notion of “the ideal reader” who will lap up everything you produce on the spot, with no question. An ideal reader who will BUY your books.
And here’s the thing: I am no one’s ideal reader.
I love reading, but I read a lot. I’m not genre-monogamous, so I also hop around a lot, and I generally don’t read the same “type” of book continuously. In the past month alone, I’ve read 20+ authors from at least 5 genres — as you’ll note from my Book Reviews Reader Blog.
I should mention — I’m also a foodie who loves a little of everything and gets excited by new restaurants, tastes and fusions. And I’m also a traveller, who prefers to go to a new place rather than back to the same spots all the time.
So, yep, you’ve guessed it… I love — love — love VARIETY. That’s just who I am as a PERSON. So as a reader, yep… the same applies.
I’ve signed up to newsletters for at least 20 individual authors, and I still open their emails, and I don’t unsubscribe (that’s just rude). I love hearing what they’re up to, and getting those lovely sneak previews and behind-the-scenes moments. But at the same time, I’m fickle.
Even if I enjoy a freebie, I may still hesitate to click “purchase” on another book, the moment I’m done. I’m in the mood for a different flavour, so I may wait awhile before I go back to that author. And, sometimes by that time I’m “in the mood”, I might have forgotten how to find them or their books! (This is actually why I started following some authors… so I could “bookmark” them for later!!!)
So, as a reader… I’ve gotten something for free (the magnet), and I’m unlikely to ever be in a position to always be giving something back (actually sticking onto the damn fridge).
“Tough Sell” or “Grazing Consumer Culture”?
Now, I’m a tough sell, because I read a lot. And I’m a super-picky reader. The amazing books ARE out there. I know they are. I’ve found some of them!
And I HAVE purchased books that rocked my world, after reading the author’s freebie first. It just doesn’t happen often enough.
Sometimes, part of my hesitation is that I’m actually afraid it WON’T be as awesome. I’m scared to risk NOT getting that “reader high” again. I’m wary that it might have been a fluke, and I’ll be crushed. (*Sigh* I’ve been burnt by this before.)
But usually it’s a much more basic reason: I’ll be hovering over the “Buy” button, knowing the book will probably be just as awesome, and then remember — oh F##!@#!@K! Do I really NEED this book? What about the others I still have to read???!!!!!
Sigh. It’s a bleak outlook, but there you have it.
This is me as a reader. And I know I’m not alone in this.
We’ve cultivated a culture of “grazing” that celebrates low attention spans. And cheapness. Nope. Scratch that. FREENESS.
In my non-writer life, as a marketing professional, we’re encouraged to “get our message” across in the first 5-10 seconds of video content. Our applications are chock full of ads that we mindlessly close off, to get to the free stuff.
Netflix throws the entire world of entertainment at you, and the abundance of choice can be crippling. Flick, flick, flick… nothing to watch!
And, in the book world, there’s Kindle Unlimited, where the “pagereads” concept expects you to never have to necessarily finish a book. And the scary part is that unlike Netflix, you don’t even need a Kindle Unlimited subscription to get “free” books!
Authors throw them at you. All the time. We even PAY to GIVE AWAY our books. Yes. That is crazy. The even sadder part… is that it’s also NECESSARY.
Volume vs. Validity of Work
So if I’m a fickle reader, what about the flipside?
As I writer, I don’t write nearly fast enough, I barely market myself, and I work a full-time job on top of my sideline writing “hobby”. So…
How can I expect my “ideal reader” to be patiently waiting on me?
No wonder authors are pumping books out like it’s going out of style!
The indie author life is a numbers game… the more you have, the more money you make, even if you hardly sell anything.
The trick is VOLUME. After all, if you have 20 kids, you have a higher probability that ONE of them will do something important with its life, right? That’s how authors seem to be operating. More books, more writing… if you want even a trickle of money.
And I’m not saying that having a huge backlist necessarily means the writing is bad. (This is a HUGE point of contention on a well-known Facebook author group that has almost 30,000 members to date, and even holds writing conventions and everything. I repeat: a HUGE point of contention! So I’m not going to touch that one with a ten-foot pole!)
There are AWESOME writers with FABULOUS books, and LOTS of them. They’re just doing it wayyyyyyy faster than I am, or ever could!
I can put my best foot forward, with each book… but I just can’t compete, volume-wise. At least not anytime soon.
Many authors can afford to give away one or two “freebie” magnet book babies, with 10-100+ other book babies to pick up the slack. What about those that only have a few… or maybe even just one?
It’s an uphill battle.
Notably, I recently made a concerted effort to:
BUY BOOKS FOR MYSELF
BUY BOOKS FOR OTHERS
TELL FRIENDS & FAMILY TO GIFT ME BOOKS
So I’m trying to be a little less fickle.
But these days, “freeness” is so easy to come by, that I myself am always going to be WAY more of a “consumer” than I am an actual “buyer”. So, like I mentioned earlier:
I am no one’s “ideal reader”.
…What if I’m also no reader’s “ideal author”?
Fellow authors, feel free to share your thoughts in the comments!
This book was awesome and awful and beautiful and ugly at the same time. I finished it in one sitting. And I have feelings. I’m just not entirely sure what these feelings are. I felt schizophrenic reading it, because I teeter-tottered throughout the book. But a review has to convey more than utter confusion, so let me try to be eloquent.
***First I should mention… there is cheating. I’m cool with that (in books!), but just a heads-up if you’re not.***
The Pros & Cons
My likes: I loved that both characters are difficult to love. I hate run-of-the-mill heroes and heroines… that’s just not real life. And sure, we often read for escapism, but I write “real-life romance” so I appreciated reading one as well. But this one is painfully real at times.
Missed chances, mixed signals, hot moments, emotional outbursts, a loooooooonggg drawn out torturous friendship, and frustrating memories of a dead “hero” who was far from the ideal hubby. It had me in an emotional twist, and I wanted to fling my phone at the wall sometimes. But I kept on reading.
There are sweet elements here similar to Ahern’s “P.S. I Love You” with the instructions from beyond the grave… but then the notes reveal awful characteristics. There are elements here of sweet romance… but then it gets really filthy. Oh, and there’s a shocking twist that was a true WTF????? moment. The book cover and blurb led me to believe it would be a sweet romance with maybe a racy moment or two, so as I read on, I was like “OMG, what am I reading?”… But I kept on reading.
From a stylistic point of view, it’s worthwhile to note a lot of the key moments happen in the past before the actual story starts, and the jumps were jarring sometimes. I can see some readers having an issue with it, but I’m a trooper who can roll with the punches… so I kept on reading.
What I didn’t much care for were the overly-heavy FSOG comparisons. The writing, the storyline, and the author’s talent — all great on its own merit, and so it all would have easily survived without that FSOG shadow. Sure, most erotica these days would get compared to that, but in this case it was just *too* on the nose… still, I kept on reading.
And eventually, finally, I finished it.
Conclusion
I must say I loved that the book was unpredictable, that it was unique, and needs to be in its own category. That’s high praise. And I must mention here again that I don’t mind tropes (in this case “friends-to-lovers” & “best-friend’s-ex”)… once there’s something different about it, and this one definitely brings “different” to the table. Dollops of different.
But I must also admit it was a difficult read at times. There’s a LOT to unpack here. You need to prepare yourself before you go in. You will be frustrated. You will have feelings. I’ll let you decide exactly what those feelings are.
Overall, I did enjoy it, and rated it highly (for me) BUT I don’t know if I can handle another by the author anytime soon. This romance was RAW… I think I need to read about murder and crime after this! 🙂
I flew through this book in record time. It felt much shorter than its actual length due to the short, choppy chapters and fast-paced writing. It starts off a little slow but quickly picks up pace and strength as the writing flows. It begins as a simple tale: a weirdo seeking justice, and then when he picks the wrong guy to mess with… it goes dark, and fast. I didn’t expect it to get that dark, but it was a welcome surprise!
I’ve read other reviews mentioning the main character’s poor judgement and actions, and I agree… but characters aren’t there to be perfect or knowledgeable or (to put it bluntly) that bright. They’re just people, and people can be misguided, foolish and rash. Which he is. Case in point: it’s one thing to overshare to just about everyone about his “hobby”… but it’s another thing entirely to announce himself to the predators he targets.
I’d hoped he’d remain anonymous and that the “bad guy” would track him down in spite of that… but it was far too easy for him to wind up paying the price for his stupidity. This was my only sticking point… but still, I put it into perspective as I read. This is a twenty-something-year-old guy with serious emotional damage from his past. He’s not going to be the most eloquent, thoughtful or forward-thinking, so he’s not likely to be the most sympathetic character. Readers… deal with it! 😛
Kyle is NOT the typical hero figure, and for half of the book I was wondering if he’d been mistaken about his father, or if his motives were cloudier than his own concept of himself as a vigilante hero. The writer leaves you guessing right up until the end. There are head-spinning twists and turns that leave you breathless, and thankfully the payoff is a satisfactory ending despite the journey that had its gut-wrenching moments.
From the way it was going, I was actually expecting a darker end (and that could have easily worked in this instance) but there was a blossoming emotion of levity after all that heavy darkness — a bit *too* saccharine-sweet maybe, given the emotional thrill of a rollercoaster that preceded it. That’s a really, really tiny gripe though.
Conclusion
This was overall a stellar read, with a refreshing writing style and a plot with enough of a punch to keep the reader intrigued from beginning to end. I’ll recommend to anyone that can stomach a darker tale.
My first MMF romance/erotica, better than expected
The Pros & Cons
As my first time reading this type of book, I went into this expecting the worst, but was pleasantly surprised.
I did get a free copy, and I admit that I likely wouldn’t have read this otherwise, as I’m not familiar with the sub-genre. But the opening page drew me in, and the writing style is eloquent, steady and easy to follow.
Despite the three viewpoints, I did not get lost figuring out who was speaking at any given time. The story was well rounded with enough background and nuance to have a solid story beyond just being all about sex.
The main characters communicated well and I liked that the conflict was resolved quickly without dragging it out over half the book. I also loved the portrayal of modern religion: that you can be observant of your religion, but allow for adaptation rather than extremism.
My only peeve was that it seemed unlikely that a gay couple adding a woman for procreation would jump into sex without even a doctor’s visit… especially as Shahid worked as a nurse in a hospital. If he had ANY other job, yeh, okay. Seems silly to nitpick, but it did bother me!
Conclusion
Nevertheless, I enjoyed the book overall, and it’s a nice story. I look forward to read more by this author.
I enjoyed this book for the most part, and again — it’s one of those I really wish I could have rated higher. Clearly I’m in the minority because it’s by a bestselling author, and most of the reviews are stellar. There’s a lot to love in it, but as I’m a writer, I am an even more picky reader! I want more. I demand more. And this one had so much potential to blow my mind, but just fell short.
The dialogue is engaging and the writing is really good, easily flowing between the past and present and allowing you to get involved with the characters. I love the interaction between the two main characters, but there were parts of it that just felt choppy.
The tragic event at the beginning was a shock — and a well-written one that had me riveted to the screen. But then, it was quickly followed by a lot of bad behaviour on all parts. An engagement fizzles into nothingness, with little remorse it seems, and everyone seemed far too okay with it. I forgave that, as I did love the main pair, who clearly had a lot more history and love between them.
But then there was a great build-up that crescendoed into… well, not much. He couldn’t stay; she couldn’t leave. But then she did. And that apparently fixed the entire conflict. The ending just happened way, way, way too fast. They jumped ahead two years. What????? No. I waited through this entire rollercoaster for more than this! I wanted more. I needed more.
Conclusion
It continues into Dean’s story, and I would be happy to read on in the series. The preview of his story is just stunning. So I just hope that there’s redemption somewhere down the line because I felt like I didn’t get the time, energy and effort I invested into this book.
I’ll admit this isn’t my typical genre to read. While I often watch crime movies or TV shows, it’s rare that I’ll pick up a book to read on the subject. This is because I find it’s difficult to translate the action of the criminality of “hood life” to paper. That said — WOW. This knocked that notion out of the park.
The Pros & Cons
I had this book for awhile (received a free copy upon sign-up to author’s newsletter) and finally delved into it today. I breezed through the entire novella in a couple of hours.
It was raw, gritty, and felt so real. The small touches were so detailed: the description of a chicken box blowing, dust coating a room, the smell of weed, the sounds and vibrations of music pumping, the colours and textures of the sheets on the king-sized bed. The undercurrent of danger is palpable from beginning to end. It’s rare that you stumble across writing so vivid that it seems seamless to transpose to film.
Conclusion
This was a fast-paced and powerful read, and I highly recommend. I only wish it was a little longer. The ending was a gut-punch.
But it leads into the “Target” series (and introduces the main “Target” character in this one), so I can see a lot more happening in this world — and look forward to it the next time I’m feeling up for a gritty read like this.
I think the genre of this was supposed to be adult romance, but I call it like I see it. Which is fine, if that’s what you’re looking for. I was hoping for more story than sex with this one, so I was disappointed.
The Pros & Cons
The tropes were predictable — best friend’s sister, stalker mystery (which wasn’t really mysterious), bad boy, virginal girl — who suddenly turns into not-so-virginal girl the moment he enters the picture. The “best friend” was nowhere around for most of it, so the title and overall premise left me wondering if parts of the story were tossed in JUST to hit the tropes.
I don’t mind a trope or two, if there’s something different in it. The “different” in here only seemed to be that despite “needing” a bodyguard (the whole premise of the plot) — woop! woman power!… and possible *spoiler alert* — she ends up having to save herself.
…Which is probably because her “bodyguard” seemed to only be popping in for the sexy times, for the most part. He was off doing a zillion other things, leaving her unprotected a lot. So plot-wise, it had some bits lacking there. I kept hoping for more story, but all I got was more sex.
Like I said — GREAT… if that’s what you’re looking for. And sometimes it IS what I’m looking for. Just not with this book, as there was potential to have a LOT more drama and conflict. For instance, I hoped that the relationship would have been discovered by accident by their friends and families… rather than it just being TOLD over the phone. I could see many more moments like this where I needed MORE STORY… I could see MORE happening… but… it just didn’t. The folks who love the sexy bits have a lot to enjoy — and it is sizzling — but it was a bit much for me.
Conclusion
Nevertheless, the writing itself is quite good, the story is easy to follow and keep turning the pages, and there are punches of humour and laugh-out-loud moments, so I did enjoy the book overall. I may pick up another in the series, but I just hope it has a bit more story than this one.
I liked the overall premise of this book, so I’ll give it a solid 3 stars for effort… but honestly, I felt like the story just ran out of steam. Literally and figuratively.
The Pros & Cons
It’s a women’s fiction, so I took that in stride and set my expectations accordingly in terms of how much “relationship” to expect. In this case, not much. I’ve read various levels of “relationship” and “sex” in this genre (and I write both into my own “women’s fiction/romance” series), but the point of the genre is the development of women, so I’ll be fair in judging on that basis.
Here’s what I DID like: I loved the characters of the village — they each seemed to have their own story from the glimpses we see through Ava’s story. I liked how Ava evolved from the beginning of the story as a self-centred trophy widow to a caring, nurturing person that even went the extra mile to help someone she barely knew who reminded her of herself, and then to make an effort to smooth things over with her late husband’s daughter.
The female relationships are strong, sweet, and caring — from the elderly Lady Stokeley in her 80s to the young Alice in her early 20s. All of this was beautifully done, and I could just imagine the maternity-clothes parade, the giggling ladies, the tea party; all of these — truly lovely. This was all nicely done and brought a lot of colour and life to the reader’s imagination.
My problem was the love interest, Jace. I liked that he had a dark past, and that he was not the typical “hero” — this was AWESOME. More books need to have characters like this that aren’t perfect. I was happy with him as a character, mind you. My issue was the relationship between him and Ava. Relationships need not be the focus in a women’s fiction, sure. But the problem with this one was that it seemed like it would be… but then this didn’t pay off.
If there was no guy at all, I’d have been okay with that. But having him there seemed like he was tossed in last-minute, at times, to fill some “there must be a man” quota. I’ve complained about books with way too much sex (to the level of gratuitous!) but I really wish this one had a *bit* more steam. Not sex, necessarily. Just steam. Something. Anything beyond friendship that blooms into a sudden love declaration from seemingly nowhere!
Conclusion
Sigh. There was potential for this book to do more for me, but I did enjoy it for the most part. I would perhaps read on to learn more about the other women of Willoughby — I just prefer if the men were kept out of it entirely so the focus wouldn’t stray from the beauty of the female relationships.
Unfortunately for the book’s genre, the comparison to the Harry Potter series is inevitable, which is perhaps its downfall. Preteen children coming into powers — check. Family legacies and elderly know-it-alls with lots of powers — check. Magical castle-house and environs — check. Evil antagonists wanting to steal powers — check.
The plot twist was a doozy, and I expected something totally different! But then, after the plot twist, the ending felt rushed. I know it’s meant to continue into another book, but I wish there was a bit more writing in this one to tie things up.
That said, there were parts of the story that were fresh, the descriptions of the house were imaginative, the brotherly relationship was sweet, the pacing was good, the dashes of humour were interwoven nicely, and the writing style clearly shows talent.
Overall, it was an easy and enjoyable read. I just expected too much. I admit I may not be the ideal target for this book, but I would highly recommend it to preteen children, as they may not be quite as picky as older HP fans.
I don’t mind a series, or books that end in a cliffhanger — I do, however, mind “piecemeal” stories that don’t even give you enough in the first installment to really want to bite into the larger story and continue reading. So that was my major problem here.
The Pros & Cons
The pacing of these first 158 pages is my main issue — it is PACED for a much longer story. The inner day-to-day flow, the dialogue, the events that unfold — it needed at least 30% more pages to feel somewhat complete as a full story arc. Anyway, let’s focus on what WAS here.
The characters were great, and the dialogue was punchy and on point. I loved the elderly Aunt as well as Blake’s teenage daughter, and even Addison’s friends — these scenes were quite sweet. The development of her career as a baker was beautiful — just to imagine being able to start your life over and do something you actually love… I liked reading about that. I also appreciated that both of the main characters were mature and able to understand where the other was coming from — he has a child who he must put first, and she’s coming out of a bad marriage with emotional baggage. Despite there being an instant attraction, it did take awhile to bubble into something, and I was grateful it didn’t go TOO fast with that, as it would have felt unrealistic given their circumstances.
It’s just, well… honestly, not much really happened.
Conclusion
At only 158 pages, I didn’t and couldn’t have expected too much, but I have read even shorter novels that had more story. In fact, I just reviewed a crime novella that blew me away — and in just 144 pages! So it IS possible to write a story in a short form.
…This, however, wasn’t that. This is a well-written INTRODUCTION to a story. It just wasn’t enough of a story in its own right.
I read this book easily in a few hours over two days, and enjoyed it.
The Pros & Cons
The background of the pilgrimage provided a nice context for the reader to imagine, as did the description of the luxury hotel. The steamy moments were not overdone, and had the right level of heat that I actually read through them rather than skipping through as I often do (I’m not a prude — I just think some writers WAY overdo it for no reason at all, and what’s meant to be sexy just turns out to be repetitive).
The characters were believable and (THANK GOD) both mature, and their connection felt genuine and deep. I appreciated that there was no stupidness keeping them apart — just the direction life sometimes takes. The sibling interaction was also great, and I have no doubt that all the other books in this series will also be rich with these family relationships.
The only reason I docked a star was that the the storyline’s overall conflict seemed too simple. Like, all along I thought something would HAPPEN… there was a build-up. But no real “action” or “event” led to the eventual resolution, so the ending felt rushed.
Conclusion
Nevertheless, overall the writing style is strong, the pacing is nicely done, and it was a good weekend read. I look forward to more by this author.
Definitely not my usual cup of tea… but I got a free copy and thought, why not?
I finished it in half a day while at the office (not much work got done!)……
If you are someone who offends easily, this is not the book for you. I’m not, so I’ll be fair.
Writing : It rambles on at times, and could use a closer eye at editing. Slight distraction but nothing *too* glaring. I enjoyed the rollicking adventure of scene-jumping.
Storyline : not the best, but the writing is hilarious and makes up for it. Some of the best sex scenes I’ve read (and better than many F/M scenes I’ve read).
Overall, there’s something very unique and special in this book.
I accepted a review copy with NO time on my hands to read, and figured I’d get around to it in a couple of weeks… but then I started browsing the first few pages and found myself caught up in the story. (There went my plans for the day!)
The Pros & Cons
This was an easy one-sit read with fast-paced writing — sometimes a little TOO fast, which was the only reason I docked a star. It seemed like some parts zipped by so quickly that the reader learns in past tense but didn’t get a chance to experience it. I love stories like this, and I could feel the POTENTIAL to get me 100% emotionally involved, so these “passive” moments became its only drawback… as I wanted more!
When the couple finally gets together, the pace seems to shift drastically, and takes you along for the ride. The relationship feels real (all of the relationships, actually), and it’s touching and emotional. The steamy scenes are tastefully written, which I appreciate thoroughly as it manages the delicate balance before tipping off into the deep end of “gratuitous” as so often happens when writing about older/younger couples.
One more thing (nothing lacking re: the writer or the story; just my own thoughts!): Given Casey’s *swoon-worthy* involvement with her kids and the couple’s age disparity, I’m surprised the topic never came up about any plans to have kids of his own. But hey, maybe their story isn’t done yet, or maybe we can just imagine they’ll figure that part out in time.
Conclusion
Anyway, all in all this was a good women’s fiction story, tastefully done and well written. Totally worth chucking all your plans for the day!
I really, really, really wanted to like this book more — and thought I would, as it’s by a popular bestselling author. It was good, and the writing itself was excellent, but the storyline had the potential to be great and just fell short for me.
The Pros & Cons
I’m grateful that the male character Jaime wasn’t unnecessarily super-alpha as many male leads seems to be these days, and loved his character. He was just the right mix of cocky and cute to stay with you long after the book was over.
…But I struggled with the female character Quinn. Mind you, I LOVE having characters that are difficult to love, so I have to explain this properly. She seems to be all over the place, getting what she wants but wanting it her way, and having what she needs and pushing it away. No problem; I can be like that sometimes, so I was happy reading about a messed-up chick for no evident reason. It was refreshing and I was going along for the ride. It’s just… well, I thought it was all going to lead to one big reveal… but it just didn’t. I kept waiting for that part of the plot… and it didn’t happen. She figures out her past led to how she is today, but her past was so banal that is isn’t even a spoiler for me to mention it here. It went from “Let me try therapy” to “Hey, I’m cured”… and the reader is like “OK… WHAT JUST HAPPENED?”
So an entire star fell off for me, because of that. It was going SO, SO, SO GOOD… until that point. It’s a shame, as I wanted to give this a higher rating.
Conclusion
Apart from that major plot point in my mind, I thoroughly enjoyed this read. The writing is fast-paced, the characters are easy to fall into, the sexy scenes are just the right mix of naughty and sweet, the supporting characters fill it out nicely, and it ticked a lot — a lot — a lot — of boxes for me. The author is talented, I understand how she’s so popular, and I would love to read more by her.
Among relationships, random sex, budding parenthood, runaways, drug addicts, kiddie porn, and incest and molestation so casual and commonplace it is its own character in the book, Ezra “Easy” and his best friend Jake “Love” both endure their first real loves and turn from boys to men in this novel.
The fresh, resplendently rambling narration hops from one thing to the next, and still flows so beautifully to weave a story that is original and heart-wrenching and darkly funny all at once. All of the main characters are physically visible to the reader, practically leaping off the page.
I don’t even know how to categorise this book — it’s part Young Adult, part Erotica, part Action, part Drama. I can’t remember the last time I read a book cover to cover in one sitting, nor can I remember the last time I gave a 5 star rating. I thoroughly enjoyed it, and feel like my life has shifted somewhat, by the time I was finished. This is exactly what a novel is supposed to do. Can’t wait to read more from this author.
Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review. However, I have zero obligation to say nice things, as I do not know the author personally!
I’ve been fortunate enough to have snagged the attention of a couple of bloggers recently with my debut novel “Climbing The Walls“.
Mind you, to date I must’ve emailed over 100 bloggers, with about a .0000000001% response rate, and then after sending my book to the few who DID respond… ***crickets***!!!
So I’m eternally humbled and grateful, and so thrilled that these two bloggers took the time and attention to lovingly describe aspects of my book that I myself couldn’t have written better.
I’ll share a few snippets here from my two recent reviews from:
While there are more verbose reviewers who write quite a bit, a typical review usually ranges anywhere from a one-liner to a few paragraphs and focuses on what the reader “liked” and “didn’t like” about the book.
A blogger’s review may do the same, but I’ve found most bloggers would go deeper and unpack the themes and issues they experienced while reading.
As a past Literature student who spent hours ripping apart themes of the books I studied, it’s such a weird and warm feeling to have that done to your own works, by bloggers who in their own right are writers themselves!
I love how Debjani’s review opens, with the line:
“We’re Kris and Nicole. We’re supposed to fit.”
This goes straight to the essence of the story — Kris and Nicole intended to defy all the nay-sayers by having the best relationship possible, and that quote from Nicole shows her insecurity in that moment of doubt where she feels so out of sync with Kris.
Similarly, Eileen also goes straight to the heart of the story:
“How much is too little, enough, or too much sex?”
Kris and Nicole, and their friends with whom they interact, are often talking about sex — which Kris and Nicole have loads of, sure, but it doesn’t make their marriage perfect. Behind closed doors, sex becomes a weapon or a mind game, and it’s the reason Kris has often buckled and gave in, against his better judgement.
The Theme of “Friendship”
Eileen brought up the important theme of friendship, and she was the first reader to zero in on that in her review:
“Are friendships outside of marriage ‘real’, or limited to what the other partner allows?”
Friendship is a key undercurrent theme of the series. Nicole, a sexy and promiscuous waitress prior to marrying Kris, has always struggled with female friendships, and finds more in common with her career-driven boss Darren. But male-female relationships get complicated fast, particularly when his own marriage is on shaky ground.
Kris is close to both men and women, primarily his coworkers Bryan and Vicki, and he also has a close friend from his past, J.J. His world and Nicole’s world don’t often collide in terms of friendships.
Notably, when they are struggling in their relationship, neither Nicole nor Kris initially reach out to confide in these “friends” — even Nicole, who has been hearing Darren’s marriage woes for months.
As these relationships all intertwine inextricably, it brings to the fore whether “friendship” is as important to either party, once their “relationship”/”marriage” begins, and which should take precedence.
Children’s Role in a Marriage
I love that Eileen brings up the topic:
“Would marriages of the various couples in the book survive if they did not have young children to raise?”
This is a question I ask myself when writing, all the time.
When you first fall for someone — chemistry, fireworks, explosion — it’s not the same relationship you will have years down the line, when you have children and your days are preoccupied with school runs, dirty diapers, and chores.
For Darren and Luisa especially, the fact that they already had two kids surely would have impacted their decision to stay together despite her infidelity.
Those kinds of questions are at the heart of my genre I like to call “real-life” romance.
In my series, children are important, yes. And they get the best, cutest scenes! Debjani mentions:
“Fortuné’s writing is vividly descriptive. I could picture Kris planting a sloppy kiss on Kiki, his five-year-old precocious daughter’s forehead. I could also picture him kissing the two-year-old Khai’s chubby cheeks. Lastly, I could also picture Nicole watching all of them… from afar.”
It takes a lot for Nicole to eventually come to a point where she is really ready to surmount her own damaged past and make her family a priority.
Adultery & Forgiveness
And finally, we come to the overriding crux of the “Hart & Cole” series. As Eileen asks:
“What is forgiveness? Is adultery the worst crime in marriage, how do couples deal with it whenever one or both of them commit adultery?”
Adultery is everywhere throughout the book — Nicole’s parents’ relationship was fraught with it, Darren’s and Luisa’s marriage is tainted by it, and there are dashes of it everywhere you turn with other minor individuals and couples.
At the end of the day, a relationship isn’t often what it looks like on the outside, and it can be a daily battle just to maintain that façade among friends and family.
Eileen notes:
“Reading the book kept me reflective on issues of friendships in and out of marriage, parenthood, work and employment, and what it takes to live with another adult.”
And Debjani states:
“If you want to read a gritty, real, and raw romance novel, then pick up Climbing the Walls by Sacha T. Y. Fortuné. If you are married, then you are bound to glimpse a slice of your marriage in this book.”
It isn’t all hearts and rainbows, but there is a lot to unpack here, and a lot of love. Overall, the story of “Climbing The Walls” aims to show that adultery doesn’t happen in isolation, and there are no easy answers to how to cope with it.
I hope you’ve enjoyed my recap here. Be sure to read the two full blogger reviews, and check out their other book reviews on their sites:
So I’m six months into this writer journey, with two books under my belt, and had a recent experience I thought worth sharing.
My friend agreed to let me share this once she read it first and once I kept her nameless, so here goes:
Confession: “I didn’t plan to read your book”
“So… this is really awkward, but I just read your book (the first one)… and I think I owe you an apology.”
Huh?
(I was lost.)
“I know you’ve been talking about this book and this writer thing for months now…”
Yeah, I’ve been a bit of a pain, I know — but as an indie author, if we don’t shout about our books, no one will read them…
“Right. So like, when you first published, I told you congrats…”
Yeah, I remember. Thanks, I appreciate your support!
“And I told you I’d buy it, which I did…”
Oh, great. Thanks again…
“But at the time I figured: okay it’s a few bucks, what the hell… though I didn’t really plan to read it.”
Ah, okay…
(Now I get the “awkward” part)
“I do read, but not that much, and I’m busy with work and my kids…”
Sure, I get it. Totally understand…
“And then, the other day, I was in a waiting room at the hospital for about six hours.”
(*We chatted for a bit on her personal family matter – this part I won’t share*)
“So I had my phone, and literally nothing to do for a long time, and I saw someone reading a book next to me, and I remembered I had downloaded your book months ago, so I hunted on my phone to see if I still had it… I don’t really understand this app thing, not sure if it disappears after awhile…”
Okay…
(This is getting to be the weirdest “apology” and most awkward long-winded convo ever)
“So yeah… I started reading it…”
Oh, great. Let me know how it turns out. Hope you like it.
“…And I finished reading it that same day.”
Bless your soul. Amazon says it takes 14+ hours on average…
“Yeah, that sounds about right. The six hours in the waiting room… then another hour on my journey home… then four more hours… took a break to organise my kids for bed and to get ready for school the next day… then the remainder of it I read well into the early hours of the morning… and I had work the next day!”
Oh, dear.
“In fact, I think I might have given myself a bladder infection coming down to the end, because I put off STOPPING for quite awhile.”
YIKES! Okay… ah, sorry?
“So… right. The apology part. Well… like, I always knew you were into writing, but somehow it just… wasn’t what I expected.”
What did you expect…?
“Honestly, I don’t know. Maybe that it was going to be too ‘high-brow’ for me to ‘get’ (like I said, I don’t read a lot) since I know you’re like, smart and stuff… or maybe that it was going to be bad or just kind of ‘meh’ and I didn’t want to feel awkward talking to you if I didn’t like it…”
Ah, okay…
“I just didn’t expect it to be like… like… I don’t know. You know when you binge-watch shows you stream because you just can’t stop? I’m not a big reader, and I just never felt that way from a BOOK.”
Ah, okay…
“Like I could PICTURE all these characters, Like I could FEEL everything. Like I wanted to BAWL and SCREAM and fling the book when I got to Chapter…”
(*spoiler – not sharing that part*)
(And now, I’m laughing — and noting who to keep in touch with, to one day help me write my Netflix pitch!)
“So… yeah. I just wanted to say — I’m so sorry I took so long to read it. And so sorry I didn’t even originally plan to read it. I promise I will now, for anything else you write.”
Thanks, I appreciate it. I really do.
Why are “friends” the last to believe?
So that conversation led me to think a lot about how isolating it can be as an author, particularly an independent/self-published or “indie” author.
I just did my first couple of “Author Takeovers” recently, where you “take over” a Facebook group and chat with its members for awhile in real-time. (To get an idea of what this entails, read this post.)
It was AWESOME to know that people tuned in just to say hi and that they appreciated your book.
And here’s the thing I realised, while doing it:
My biggest fans are people I’ve never met, and likely never will.
Ironically, “supportive” friends can sometimes be the last to appreciate your work.
In many cases, it goes a little something like this:
They’ll say “congrats” a million times and tell everyone you’re awesome… but never buy the book
They’ll share your post and/or tell others you wrote a book, and pretend they’ve read it
They’ll browse reviews and then tell you they’ve read the book, when you absolutely 100% know they haven’t
They’ll buy the book with no intention of ever reading it, and tell you “I’m supporting you with a sale”
…Yeah. And this is the supportive friend, which many authors are not even lucky enough to have!
Somewhat salty support…?
Nothing against these types of friends, by the way. ANY tiny nudge of support is appreciated! As an indie author, we take EVERYTHING we can get!
…And I’m not saying my book is the best thing ever, or that it will change your life.
Some people loved it, and they GOT it. Others… simply… won’t.
So, I reiterate: I’m not screaming “READ MY BOOK” to everyone. Obviously, it’s not going to be everyone’s cup of tea!
But I’d much rather you pass along the info to someone you know who DOES read and might actually buy it AND read it.
It’s a little insulting to tell a writer “I’m supporting you with a sale” (woo-hoo! I get a buck and some cents), with absolutely ZERO intention of ever reading it.
While a sale is always nice, I’m not in dire need of the pennies. I’m writing to share a story, not to make a mint off of my closest friends!
So I’m not baring my soul in my writing just for empty admiration.
If you DON’T plan to read it, be upfront about that, and find other ways to support!
If you DO plan to read it, then give your friend the benefit of the doubt, and go in blindly with the faith that there’s something of merit in their work.
And remember, there are several ways you can support your writer friend — even if you don’t read, or don’t read their genre.
We live in a shareable world driven by social media influencers, and amidst the cacophony of noise, any little nudge will help.
Or, if you’re not on social media, no prob… you can do the old-school version of this. Drop it into a convo: “Hey, so my friend published a novel…” Yeah, it’s that simple.
Like I said, there are LOADS of ways to support your writer friends, without giving an empty promise about reading/buying their books. If you want to help but don’t know how, just ask!
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.
“…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.
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.
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.
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.
Now, myfirst 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)!
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!
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.
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.
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!
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! ?????
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!
Never mind the fact that you’re still at the point where you’re jumping for joy when you see even ONE sale pop up on your dashboard.
Never mind the fact that one measly sale only makes you like US$1-2, if you’re lucky.
None of that matters.
If you want to get your name out there (and I do)… if you want the world to meet your characters (and I do)… you have to bite the bullet and start flinging your goodies — for FREE! — at the universe.
KDP & Newbie Authors
First, a little about me.
I’m a newbie self-published author, with my first book “Climbing The Walls (Hart & Cole Book 1)” being on the market for about five months now (published July 28th, 2018).
So far, it’s gotten great reviews (5 & 4 star only) from anyone who made it through (check the Book 1 reviews here).
If you use ‘KDP Select”, you are exclusive to Amazon
I must thank every single reader who read and reviewed, because I know that picking up a book by a new author (especially one 500+ pages) can be a bit daunting!
My book has always been in KDP Select / Kindle Unlimited — which allows users who pay a subscription to read all eligible books year-round at no extra cost.
One of the benefits of having your book in KDP Select is that you get to list your book for free, for up to 5 days within your 3-month KDP Select period.
KDP Select simply means you’re selling on Amazon only. It’s not for everyone, and some authors have good reasons not to do it.
I’m not a full-time writer, I’m new to the game, and I would hate to have to maintain multiple copies of my manuscript at different retailers (I don’t even know the number of times I’ve re-uploaded after noticing a typo!).
Also, I’m not looking to become a millionaire overnight, and just having my book published is huge for me!
So, all in all… KDP works for me.
And the “free” days are a nice bonus, but only really worthwhile if you’re writing a series.
My book pre-promo: some background
My book was promoted for two days Dec 22-23, 2018
First of all, I should mention I’m not “killing it” by any means. A few sales here and there, and I’m a happy camper.
The most I’ve sold so far in one day was 6 books. Many days are 0. I’m cool with that.
It doesn’t upset me, because literally every single sale means that my cover design, my blurb, my writing (the Amazon “Look Inside” excerpt) are on point — and a few hard-earned dollars were spent by someone!
To my best knowledge (as I don’t religiously check this every day), for the Paid lists, my best stats have been in the top 1,000 in my three main categories (Romance, Family Life, Literary Fiction) and in the top 100,000 overall.
So like I said — not “killing it” by any means!
My book is a super-full-length 555-page 200,000+ word opus of a woman’s fiction/romance novel, the first in a series.
I added an excerpt and a pre-order link for Book 2 at the end of it, to promote sell-through if readers want more.
Book 2 “Pandora’s Poison” launches a month from my free promo (Jan 22, 2019). So, there you go — that was my purpose for making it free!
Preparing for KDP free days: Promotion stacking
In late November and early December, I scheduled my free promo through KDP on Dec 22-23, and then got cracking on the marketing strategy.
There’s no point in making a book free if no one knows to go get it!
I made teasers to be used on social media. Here are some samples:
Now, onto the websites/newsletters to mention the freebie!
First things first, I applied to Bookbub. I was declined. No surprise there. (It’s normal to be denied for a Bookbub deal – especially as a newbie!)
I wasn’t daunted, however. Onto other sites!
I put the promo up on BookSprout, which resulted in 43 opens and 14 clicks — not bad, considering this didn’t cost me anything.
Then, I did some research to find out which sites let you announce your freebie for free.
This. Takes. Time. Lots. Of. Time. Loads. Of. Time. It. Is. The. Most. Tedious. Thing. Ever.
Of these, less than 10 posted my book (that I’m aware of, because they emailed me. There is a chance it was posted elsewhere but no one told me!)
Of the ones that DID post it, it was often buried at the bottom of the page/newsletter.
One site had a great post for the book, but the “Buy” button didn’t work! I reported it, but by the time they got it fixed, half the day was gone, so I’m sure I missed out on some sales.
…So, yeah. You get what you pay for!
Then, I booked a couple of paid promotions.
Now, I’m super cheap, and it physically hurts to PAY to give away your own book, so this was VERY minimal.
There are loads of newsletter options that have a small cover charge.
The thing is, if you want to crack the Bestseller lists, you need to stack your promos and run several at a time.
The BookRaid newsletter
Unfortunately, that approach means that I have zero idea which ones paid off in the end between the free ones and the (cheap) paid ones.
Their customer service is good, and you only pay per click — $0.05 per click, up to a max. of $20 for free books.
(For paid books, it’s $0.08 — and I’ve used them before, and only paid like $2. So, not bad!)
They also have a dashboard, so you know how many clicks you got — for this promo, I got 794 (about 720 of this came during the promo, others trickled in slowly after — as the book is offered via Kindle Unlimited, this extra amount may still count as readers).
As the book is free, and the blurb is in the newsletter, I’d like to assume that most of those clicks turned into purchases!
Plus – it’s purple.
And yeah, I’m into purple (in case you couldn’t tell).
…But that’s not a helpful measure of success! 🙂
Anyway, I digress…
The Big Day – FREE promo begins!
Okay, so December 22nd reached, it was 12:00 a.m. — then 1:00 a.m. (I catered for the time difference between USA/Caribbean) — and my book WASN’T free on Amazon. I panicked.
A couple of sites were already advertising it, and it wasn’t free! OMG!
I contacted Amazon support but the KDP team wasn’t available. I emailed some of the sites to tell them to hold off, and I thought the end of the world was coming.
Nothing else could be done.
I went to bed and when I woke up, my book was free… and had already sold over 100 copies.
Because here’s the thing — the promo is in PST. Pacific Time. As in, four hours behind my own time. Yep. I felt like a nincompoop.
Anyway, I posted on Instagram, Twitter, and multiple Facebook groups. I have no idea how effective these were, but they can’t hurt!
A huge THANK YOU to any and everyone who saw my post and downloaded the book!!!
Results – Short Term Ranking Boosts
At any given time, there are hundred of authors running their own KDP free days, and I’m sure at least half of them know MUCH more than I do, and can spend WAY more money than I can to push their book.
So I’m super-thrilled with my results.
I’m also happy that I was able to hit the top 3 in my categories — and the top 100 overall — three days before Christmas with a book that ISN’T Christmas-themed. I was worried. I needn’t have been.
I stayed at #1 in my two main categories for most of the 22nd. Not bad at all. Romance was a tougher nut to crack. Romance is a TOUGH category to crack the top 3! And then I sat in the top 100 overall (#87) for a few hours, which is AWESOME!
So overall, I’ve had almost 2300 downloads with minimal investment — at least 8-10 sites/newsletters/social feeds posted my promo for free, and I forked out the cash to be in a couple of (very cheap) newsletters.
I also sent out my own newsletter to subscribers — my list is tiny, under 200 — with the simple tagline “Here’s your free copy of Climbing The Walls“.
I got my best success rate yet, 41.5% opens and 27.7% clicks. (People seem to like the word ‘free’!)
I also spammed what seemed like a zillion Facebook groups. I doubt that did much. If I got one ‘like’ or comment on a post, that was a lot. But again, it can’t hurt.
Synopsis of my KDP free experiment
I don’t know how the Amazon algorithms work, but putting your book free helps it to get sold!
I’ve climbed the charts in the Paid listing (I’m in top 50,000 overall as I write this, and top 500-1000 in my main categories). It won’t last, but still… it’s the highest my book has ever been!
I also saw a couple sales come in, the day after the promo. Woohoo!
AND I’ve also seen a trickle of newsletter sign-ups and Bookbub & Goodreads followers. Nice! Be a dear and follow:
If I had to do it again (and I will sometime soon), I’ll connect with other writers to help push my book in their newsletters, groups and social media. That’s the only thing I didn’t really focus on this time, because I wanted to see how well I could do on my own.
If any other writers are reading this, feel free to reach out to drop me a line and see how we can connect to help each other out!
A lot of TIME, EFFORT and ENERGY go into giving away your book!
It seems counterproductive that you end up paying people to buy your book, but that’s the life of a newbie indie writer.
I’m thrilled with the results. I was hoping to get around 500! At almost 2300, I’m hoping at least 5%-10% of that turns into a review of Book 1, a sale of Book 2, or both.
And now, almost 2300 people have the chance to meet my characters!
Of course, free books often end up sitting around on your e-reader for some time, since it costs you nothing to download it and you can download loads at a time.
BUT I have faith that the book cover will lure you in, while you swipe past others. I have faith that the first few lines will hook you. I have faith that by the end of Chapter 1 or 2, you’ll be invested in my characters.
Most of all, I have faith that if anyone makes it through my book and liked it, they’ll want to buy Book 2! And they should, because Book 2 is going to be SOOOOO much better.
Now, it’s just to sit back… and wait!
Feel free to grab up Book 1 (back to its regular $3.99 price now, BUT it’s still available on Kindle Unlimited), and to pre-order Book 2 – coming January 22, 2019!
Today we are officially 6 weeks away from the launch of Book 2 of my Hart & Cole series!
I wish I could release it NOW, but I know I need to be thorough with my editing — plus, I also need to be patient and have an actual marketing plan this time around! LOL.
First on this plan is putting it up for pre-order, which I just did today.
It’s a little scary to commit to a date when you know you’re still FRICKING EDITING THE DAMN THING, but I did it!
Jan 22nd is my birthday — so publishing Book 2 will be my birthday gift to myself.
I started writing Darren’s and Luisa’s story (Book 2 & Book 3) at least 12 or 13 years ago, and finally finished writing the first draft in 2016 after my beta reader friend read the first half and SCREAMED at me to finish it!
…And I have just been sitting on the damn thing ever since.
Now, it’s almost time to release it to the world.
I’ve spent the last 5-6 months learning from my own mistakes, learning from others, and absorbing all the info I possibly can from the amazing network of fellow Indie writers.
And I’m ready this time. I’m ready for Darren & Luisa to meet you all. ??
But for all intents and purposes, my Hart & Cole seriesis about love. It’s a lot MORE than romance, and it covers all KINDS of love, but the relationship is a driving force here.
And there is a huge aspect of ‘romance’ though I classify it more as a ‘Women’s Fiction’ genre since it doesn’t follow the usual trends of a romance.
Anyway, I’m getting off-topic! Romance or not, my concern is the fact that
(1) there is a love story of some kind, and
(2) there is a cliffhanger at the end of the book…
Chopping into bite-sized chunks
The reason I’m even worrying about this, is that it took me a LONG while to make up my mind, but I finally decided to make “Book 2” into Book 2and Book 3.
In fact, everything is general is getting smaller and shorter and is now available in a “digestible” format, so it’s understandable that books would be, too.
Problem is, I simply can’t cut my book down to such bare bones.
My characters have a LOT to say, and my story is long because it simply has to be.
…But while I can’t cut down, I CAN however cut it into smaller pieces.
And… well, yeah. In this case, I think I have to. I’ve been as stringent as I can with editing… and Darren’s and Luisa’s story still comes up to over 300,000 words and 775+ pages!
Yeah. No one’s ever going to buy the print version of that, unless they want a giant brick to prop open a door!
And honestly, after living in their heads for 350+ pages, I myself need a breather!
So… I made the big decision to CHOP, baby, CHOP.
Where & How to Chop?
Fortunately, there is a somewhat “natural” point of their story, where it made sense to chop, and it does happen near to the mid-mark — Chapter 30 out of 55, so it was nice to round those up and make it “Chapter 30” for Book 2 and “Chapter 25” for Book 3.
Also, for some reason I had always naturally provided somewhat of a mental recap in Chapter 31 (now Chapter 1 of Book 3). So it wasn’t *too* bad of a change, to split them.
It did call for some rewriting, though. I had to rewrite the last scene of “Book 2” so it seems like it’s somewhat of a conclusion-for-now, of sorts.
And as Book 3 was shorter than Book 2, for balance I made a few chapters in Book 3 a bit longer — which was fun, actually.
I threw in a MUCH longer scene for a convo with Luisa & new gal-pal Vicki (because OMG I just love Vicki, and she’s been begging me to fluff her up a bit since I’m making her wait SO long for her own story!)…
And I also did a MUCHHHH longer final scene with Darren and Nicole that made my toes curl! *eh-ehrm, a bit too much info there*…
So objectively speaking (or as objective as I can be, given that I’ve written the damn thing myself!) I don’t think the chop is HORRIBLE.
And I think it’ll benefit me in the long run, to have two books instead of one giant brick.
Yay, me.
…But what about the readers?
Angering the readers…?
I guess it’s fortunate that I’m not super-famous yet, and chances are that Book 3 (planned for 2 months after Book 2) might actually be released before most readers even get the chance to read Book 2.
So maybe I’m overthinking this, and it won’t matter. I haven’t sold enough books yet to have a throng of fans chasing me with pitchforks because they don’t know who ends up together!
But I did throw the question out to a few writer groups, and came back with responses at both ends of the spectrum.
My first response (which made me regret even posting it!) was…
“By ending with a cliff-hanger, you’d have pissed me off enough not to care, because I wouldn’t purchase the next one.”
Ouch.
Fortunately, he (and others like him) were in the minority and others quickly jumped in to point out:
Cliffhangers are the norm these days, not the exception.
Once you DO warn readers in the blurb, it’s generally acceptable.
You may not sell as much for the series until ALL the books are out, as readers have been burnt before.
It works fabulously if you have a short time period and a pre-order link for the next book, so you reassure them they just have to hang on a little longer.
You may get bad reviews if you have a cliffhanger (especially if you DIDN’T warn them), but you’ll sell better overall in the long run.
Once you DON’T wait TOO long, your readers will forgive you and will gladly hold on patiently and remain loyal when your next book comes out.
Phew. Okay.
Which brings me to the heart of what I was actually asking…
What’s “too long” for a romantic cliffhanger?
That question got responses everywhere from 6 months to a year (on the long side), 1-3 weeks (on the short side), 1-3 months (on the average side), and a few jokesters who said:
Two hours!
And…
3 days! Did anyone say 3 days yet? Is this like “The Price Is Right”?
Ha, ha. You can always trust writers to come up with the best responses! 🙂
My foray into reaching out to other writers did bring me to ‘Zon’ (the equivalent of “Google” but on Amazon Kindle) a few of them, and get an idea of their success with cliffhangers. Generally, there were negative reviews but they were more than balanced out with high ratings and gushing reviews.
So despite its iffy bad-boy rep, readers do tolerate — and some even love — that pesky cliffhanger.
Will my story survive the “Big Chop”?
So… I’m going with the cliffhanger. I’m going with two books, two separate entities, though I originally wrote it as one story.
I’m going with a story that feels half-baked when it winds to a close, and as a reader I’d be ripping my hair out and flinging the book at the wall.
Because, you see…
I personally hate cliffhangers, romantic or not, and prefer to have all the words available if I choose to read on.
I personally hate short books with cliffhangers, as it feels like I’ve been cheated into buying another one. (Bitch, I’m cheap!)
…But does it change things, if each book is long, like mine are? Hmmm…
…And does it change things, if I throw in a preview of what’s coming up? (I do)
…And does it change things, if I make it VERY clear in the blurb that this IS a cliffhanger?
…And does it change things, if I have the preorder link with a two-month gap in between?
Sigh.
I’m still doing, as a writer, what I would hate to have done to me, as a reader!
My proof of what’s now going to be “Book 2”
I personally still see Darren’s and Luisa’s story (and oh lordie, it’s a doozy!) as one holistic entity.
But no sane person needs that giant brick 775+ page opus; that might scare everyone away from the jump!
There are far too many good reasons to split it, than there are NOT to!
Plus… my 385-page print of what’s now going to be Book 2 is such a cute size to hold 🙂 …
*Deep breath*…
Cliffhanger, this could be the beginning of a beautiful friendship…
“I am not typically a fan of first person viewpoint writing but for this book, it works very well. The author managed to create two individual people within the story and tell a first person view from each of them and they did not get lost in each other, nor did one overpower the other.” (Red – see full review here.)
This is perhaps one of the best compliments I’ve gotten so far on my debut published novel Climbing The Walls (Hart & Cole Book 1) – one I didn’t even think of, when writing.
Because, of COURSE my characters don’t get lost in each other – to me, they never will; they never can. They are each so individual, so unique, to me… so I’m thrilled my readers are also able to GET that.
Because here’s the thing:
Kris and Nicole – they’re both fully (and individually!) formed in my head. I’ve only just barely edited them.
Plotter vs. Pantser
In writers’ circles you have to be one or the other – either you have a plan and you outline everything, or you just write and see where it takes you. So, which am I?
I revealed my own secret through the character of Nicole, a part-time writer:
That’s rule number one about writing a novel. Never tell your agent, publisher, husband, or anyone even remotely involved with your book that you don’t know jack shit about what your book’s gonna be like.
Have faith that if you start somewhere, one night the words will grip you and you’ll be typing like a possessed creature and you’ll fall asleep slumped over the computer and wake up in the morning to discover what you’ve written.
It’s rare that ideas are going to come if you sit calmly day after day in front the machine with slotted times to work on the book. It’s whenever you’re haunted, whenever you want to get away from your own life, whenever you’re possessed. That’s when the inspiration hits. That’s when you grin on the inside and think, JACKPOT.
Writing’s a lot like sex –– when you’re not getting any it can be the worst thing in the world, but then when it comes and it’s good it’s great and worth all the nights you weren’t getting any.
Yep, that was my cheeky nod to the writing process.
If you’ve got a keen eye for detail, you’d have noticed that Nicole’s writer’s block happens on Chapter 6 of her novel (and it happens in Chapter 6 of mine!).
“Chapter 6”
In law, in business, “Chapter 11” connotes bankruptcy. For me, Chapter 6 is the tipping point – just past the halfway mark between throwing in the towel and deciding to make it work.
Kris and Nicole have been married for 6 years before all hell breaks loose – beginning with the aftermath of their nasty fight that opens Chapter 1.
6 is the magic number here.
Chapter 6 of Nicole’s novel is the point when she decides to scrap everything and start over. It was also my point when the story fully took hold – when Nicole grabbed ahold of me and didn’t let go.
Hopefully Chapter 6 of their marriage is Nicole’s and Kris’ turning point, as well. God, I hope so. I hope I ended on a positive note, despite the journey getting there, despite the journey Nicole took me on.
Yes… Nicole. Sure Kris, was there too, but he was along for the ride.
Nicole was the one that pushed me, scrabbling at my brain and speeding those possessed fingers over the keyboard in the wee hours of the morning.
You see, Nicole is NOT necessarily a protagonist. You’re not supposed to love her.
Yes, I had trouble connecting with her at first. (And readers have said the same.) Everyone loves Kris – he’s easy to love.
He’s railing against himself to fight off the forces struggling to bury him… and he succeeds for a moment, only to plunge right afterward – self-destructing, seeking salvation, and susceptible; for the first time: susceptible.
But even in his darkest, weakest moment when he ultimately completely sh*ts the bed, you still feel sorry for him; you feel disappointed, sure, but you still feel compassion.
Nicole… not so much.
Zero to a Hundred
…But from Chapter 6, she was under my skin. She scraps her novel, and starts writing a story based on a memory of her childhood – and that’s when she became fully real to me.
The memory is about sex, which has always been easy for her to give away. Sex is easy. Everything else is the problem.
But you don’t – you can’t – “become” Nicole overnight… so how did she get there?
Where does she come from; what does she come from; who does she come from?
How does a girl turn into this monster bitch that can’t stop herself from making the wrong decisions?
How does a girl turn into a woman that goes from zero to a hundred – lashing out, vicious sexual seduction, profound intimacy – in a split second?
She’s scraped a piece of herself into everything she’s written. She’s all over the place. She was broken from the jump. That’s how.
She’s NOT a protagonist. Hell, I hated her, half the time. But that didn’t mean I had permission to stop telling her story. She wouldn’t let me stop telling it.
I’m working on Book 4 now, and I’m not even remotely done with her yet.
She’s already had her moments with Darren – coming up in Book 2&Book 3 [and OH MY GOD, I LOVE WRITING SCENES FOR THOSE TWO!…] and still, for the life of me… I can’t stop.
She’s flowing out of me, this mongrel-mulatto journalist/writer b*tch.
I’m a pantser, oh baby I’m such a pantser, but only because she’s already been hard at work, plotting.
She’s eating me alive… she’s devouring all the other imaginary friends in my head, pushing ahead of everyone else to stamp her way through everything.
…And for the life of me… for the life of Nicole, God help me… I can’t stop.
Motherhood is a HUGE theme in my Hart & Coleseries, and I thought it would be worthwhile to focus on this theme for discussion.
In our society, a woman’s worth is often conflated with her ability to not only bear children, but to then selflessly raise them without a thought for herself.
This is the crux of the drama for the first couple in my series, Kris and Nicole.
Nicole: “I could do that whole… mom… thing”
Nicole can do the “dutiful wife” part; that’s easy – she’s always wanted Kris; the problem is that for him, the “mothering” part is also a major part of the wife role, and that’s where she struggles.
They’ve always talked about kids; she never saw herself as NOT having kids. I mean, it’s what you do, right?… whether or not you ever seriously thought about what it meant to have them or what you needed to sacrifice to do so; whether or not you yourself had a good relationship with your own mother; whether or not you ever really saw yourself as a mother.
Both Kris and Nicole come from dysfunctional families, despite the fact that they each had both parents around.
Kris’ background included a working-class home with parents that just couldn’t get it together to be home and actually parent their two kids; Nicole also came from a working-class home and was an only child, but her own parents were a hot mess as well.
For Kris, NOT having the kind of parents he would have wanted, made him even more desirous of the kind of home he wants to build with his own kids.
For Nicole, she just can’t figure out what’s missing in her, that motherhood didn’t come naturally. She’s going through the motions. She’s doing the pick-ups and drop-offs and dinner trade-offs and the natural order of splitting parenthood. She’s trying. But she’s faltering at every step of the way — and she knows it.
She sees how Kris is with the kids, and she envies it — how the kids crawl all over him, how he always stoops to talk to the kids at eye level, how he stops what he’s doing immediately to attend to something his kids want him to do.
She’s just… not like that. She doesn’t know how to be.
Luisa: “Stay-at-home mom”
Luisa, on the other hand, we only get to know in Book 1through what Darren says about her, but it’s enough to realise she is Nicole’s polar opposite. I’ll focus on Book 1 only for now.
Darren describes her family in passing, and in the little he does say, it’s evident she’s nothing like Nicole. “Worldly” and “amazing” — he originally thought she was out of his reach.
To him, she was the epitome of what he needed on his arm — a trophy, the perfect wife and mother… “warm, loving, but composed“.
She also comes from a upper-middle-class background with both parents and brothers that love her, particularly Alejandro (Lee).
For Luisa, motherhood came naturally.
She’s a mother to her three kids, and even a mother-figure to her younger brother. Since her youngest child was born, she’s stayed at home with her.
As a stay-at-home mom, however, she doesn’t have what Nicole has — the career, the security of self-pride, the knowledge of her own awesomeness as a woman outside of the “mother” label. That’s where she falters.
Darren’s friendship with Nicole centres on his admiration of her talent — the raw talent he helped to develop out of her; and Luisa can sense that connection a mile away.
It’s what eventually leads her into the arms of another man.
Overprotective & Underwhelming Mothers
We also see some minor characters — Carrina, who is only 23 and raising her young son on her own; and Stacey, who dominates every aspect of her children’s lives, hovering to make sure they are mothered enough.
Carrina makes it look easy, and she’s good at it — Nicole sees her with her son and is jealous about how natural she makes it all seem, just like Kris does.
Stacey makes it seem like a job, but she’s also good at it — Nicole sees her as overprotective and overbearing, and rolls her eyes every time Stacey branches off into ‘baby-talk’ with kids.
We also get snippets of Kris’ and Nicole’s childhood memories…
Nicole’s mother constantly berated her husband; Nicole says:
“She made her throat sore from the yelling, the screaming, the squabbling… I remember her with her mouth open, always; the woman never shut up.”
And Kris says:
“Her mamma… was a dragon. Spat fire, that one.”
Kris’ own mother preferred to stay quietly on the peripheries of conflict, rather than getting involved. Even as an adult, she cowers to her husband’s raging temper, and leaves the room when he and Kris start to fight:
“Typical of her. Extracts herself from a situation that she doesn’t want to exist in. I’m surprised it took her this long to resign herself. She did it for twenty-two years while I lived under her roof.”
Give Mamas a Chance
…So there’s a lot here, to unpack, when it comes to motherhood. I think it’s an important theme to focus on, because motherhood doesn’t come naturally; we are fools to believe it does, or that it would, or that it should.
The redeeming quality of motherhood, in Nicole’s case, is that when you DO give her half a chance, she rises to the occasion.
Usually, with Kris being around all the time, being the super-parent, Nicole hasn’t had to try too hard. Kris has always doubted her, and never really gave her a chance to become the type of mom he wants her to be.
When tragedy strikes with their daughter, Nicole doubts her powers as a parent once more:
“I really wish Kris was here. He – he knows her better than I do.”
But, even though Kris does return, it’s Nicole who saves the day and triumphs in her newfound bond with her daughter to understand her and think like her.
Nicole is inherently selfish (as most of us would be, if we let ourselves be!); but while fathers can “get away with it” if they’re “half-arsing” it as a parent, mothers just can’t. Everyone down to her daughter’s teacher – down to her daughter, in fact! – can tell.
Nicole has to go through a journey to see herself as a parent – and it takes a good bit of soul-searching for her to get there, and for her little mini-me (her daughter Nikita) to lead the way.
So, that’s it, for the “Motherhood” theme, for the moment at least! 🙂
I’ll pick another theme to delve into for another post.
“Tell me all of the things that you couldn’t before Don’t walk away, don’t roll your eyes They say love is pain, well darling, let’s hurt tonight…”
— One Republic: “Let’s Hurt Tonight”
Every time I hear this song, I think of my Book 2 main characters Darren and Luisa.
My beta readers already know the scene I’m talking about!!!
It happens about midway through their full story — when they each come to their explosive point and all the trauma of their relationship — all the elephants in the room, all the pain of the last four years, rise up as they finally TALK to each other.
In any marriage, in any relationship, communication is key.
This “Pandora’s Poison” of their marriage became that way because they didn’t talk to each other.
Darren had suspicions but no proof, and waited too long to confront her.
Luisa left her lover in the lurch, the moment it seemed like it was too much for her. She crawled back to her husband, begging him not to turn her away.
But he didn’t ask questions then. He didn’t want to know.
Now, he does.
The Truth is a Monster…
Darren didn’t leave her after her affair, but it took a heavy toll on him to do so.
Luisa never got her head sorted out, about what she felt for Gianni, when she left him and went back to Darren.
Darren can’t understand why his wife became this different person, with her lover, that she never was with him.
Luisa is positive she wasn’t the only one with a wandering eye, in their marriage.
In Book 1, Luisa tells Darren that he loves Nicole…
Darren hates the fact that she betrayed him, worse than he even thought she did.
Luisa despises the fact that she loves her husband.
Darren has gambled everything for love — which Luisa doesn’t know — and he’s determined to get her to speak.
Luisa wants to walk away and just leave — but he won’t let her, until he knows the truth.
The truth is a monster, sitting in the room with them, finally unleashed.
My characters wrote this scene…
They are at their absolute worst.
They’re loud. They’re angry. They’re upset.
It’s… intense. It’s… WOW.
I’ve rewritten this scene so many times, and cried so many times!
Yes! My characters whispered me this scene, over and over, changing which way it went, lengthening it, changing the ending, adding in pieces… WHEW!
They were so adamant about it being precise. They did a good job.
I didn’t write that scene. They did. It’s my best piece of writing, ever, I think — but THEY wrote it.
Phew! I can’t wait to share that scene, with my readers.
For any business — and, make no joke about it, being an author (particularly a self-published one) is a BUSINESS! — you need to have a website.
Don’t be at the mercy of other platforms
The poster’s logic was that — “Well, I have a Bookbub profile, a Goodreads profile, a Facebook page, an Instagram account… just so many things to manage! And I’m so not techy…”
Yeah, honey, I hear you… but you need to buckle up and get techy, and fast — or pay someone to do it for you.
Another argument from other posters was: “Well, I’VE never sought out an author website, not even for my favourite authors. Who goes to these things anymore, when there’s social media?”
But, even if you yourself don’t visit author websites, how do you know readers don’t? What about reviewers, filmmakers, a magazine writer looking for new talent, or even other bloggers that may be interested in linking to your site?
Sure, you have an ideal “reader” in mind, but you’re only limiting yourself.
You can’t just only put yourself where you THINK people will be. You need to put yourself in a good position for them to find you, whichever way they want to.
Ask yourself this: if Facebook or Instagram were to go belly-up tomorrow, what would happen to the following you’ve built up there?
Or, even more common lately: what if they change their algorithm (a seemingly daily habit by Facebook) and your fans can’t see your posts anymore?
Yep. A very scary, and very real possibility.
When you leave your following at the mercy of a company that has no interest in your personal success, anything can happen.
A website is your soapbox, your foundation
A website should be your key point of reference as a professional of any kind.
As a writer, a website should be your home on the web where your online presence can shine. It is the first assurance to your reader or possible reviewer that your work is of a high quality.
Think of your website like the foundation to a house.
It’s where all roads should lead back to, regardless of the digital footprints you’ve stamped around all over the internet.
When you post a blog to your website, you can share that on your Facebook or Instagram page. When you add a chapter excerpt, you can send your fans there to collect it.
When you publish your book, a new reader that stumbled upon your website should be able to hop across to yourpurchase page on Amazon.
When you want to share your frustration, or give out advice to other aspiring writers, you can write something on your website and then drop a link to it on LinkedIn or your other social media sites.
A website is the one place you won’t have to categorise your book and choose where it should go.
It’s your soapbox. It’s where you stand and tell the world who you are, what you write, and why they should buy your book.
It’s the one place you get to tell your FULL story, with no limitations, the way you want it to be told.
Writers just want to write…
Okay, so now that we’ve established you DO need to have a website, it’s important to note that, as pointed out by this fellow blogger:
An author website has a lofty goal: it needs to not just be, but also needs to perform and respond.
It can feel like a HUGE time-suck to build all the content across a myriad of platforms, but if there’s one thing you shouldn’t sacrifice, it’s your author website.
Of course, writers just want to write.
But in today’s world, you can’t just write and put work out and hope someone buys it. You need to hone your craft — and a key part of honing your craft is ORGANISING the honing of your craft.
That’s what an author website does.
Since authors spend most of their time fine-tuning their masterpieces, they may not always put a lot of thought into their websites, which is a shame.
A website needs to fulfill your needs as a writer… you can’t just throw anything up there and hope it sticks!
Maximise your website potential
Outline what your goals are for your site. A few key goals for authors should be:
Newsletter sign-ups — I can’t stress this enough. If you launched a book to people who’ve already shown interest in your writing, your chance of them buying it will be much higher.
Reader magnet — this can be tied into your newsletter. Basically, when the visitor signs up, they automatically receive a free book, short story, or chapter excerpt. By giving them a reason to sign up, you’ve hooked them with a freebie and also shown them a taste of your writing so they know what to expect.
Author Blog — you don’t need to write an opus every day, but a few hundred words on a weekly or biweekly basis just to let people know what you’re up to and keep you top of mind. If you can’t think of anything to write yourself, here’s a handy list of ideas.
Work In Progress plugs — set up a page and start talking about your Work in Progress — even if it’s light years away from completion. Start talking about it from now! (I’ve been telling y’all about my Book 2,Book 3and Book 4, even before I published Book 1!)
Character Platforms — these are especially useful if you have a series. Let readers know who your characters are. (You can check out all my Hart & Cole characters here.)
Author Interviews — useful no matter what you’ve written. Answer some FAQs and let readers know your thoughts on the book you’ve written. Why did you write it? What’s it about? (You can check out my Hart & Cole interview here.)
Contact info — make yourself available to your readers. Add links or buttons to any social media sites or sites where you have an author profile. Let them know you want reviews, input, discussion, comments, anything. Just ask! (Here’s mine – feel free to connect!)
Your personality — who are you? You need to show yourself a bit, whether through your “About Me” or the voice of your blog. Readers want to connect with you, and establish trust before they click on “Buy”.
Tell Your Story — before you Sell Your Story.
Finally… the best part of your website is that you get to track its success.
Pop some analytics code on it, and see what pages your visitors are flocking to. Are they interested in chapter excerpts, newsletter sign-ups, video trailers?
They’re your readers. They’re your future fans.
A website lets you find out what they want — and give it to them. So, get cracking!
…And if you do need some techy help to crank out your website, just drop me a line here.
But if you’re a traveller, you have to bear with the means of transport to get there. Yep… airplanes.
I began writing this post while on an airplane kicking off my mega-vacation — Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, U.S.A. and my old stomping ground of London, England. 4 flights and 3 weeks later, I’m now back home — and yep, I’m still not a fan of flying!
I could tell you a zillion things I don’t like about flying. Off the top of my head:
Getting to the airport early and waiting forever
Getting to the airport late (or being in the wrong place in the airport) and dashing to get to where you need to go
Uncertainty about if you’ll end up with the worst seat-mate ever, on a long flight
Cramped spaces — I’ve never flown first/business class; maybe one day!
Loss of control — having to leave your safety completely in the hands of a stranger you haven’t met and perhaps haven’t even seen when you boarded
Turbulence — that moment when you are 100% positive you ARE going to die!
Packing — I usually start too early, and I always always overpack
Repacking on the way back and going crazy trying to make everything fit
Airplane bathrooms. Nothing further needed.
Airport bathrooms. Yep. Same here.
That moment when the customs agent is scoping you out, and you and all start wondering if you’re a criminal!
So yeah… not a fan of flying!
But once you get land, once you get there… there’s relief.
Taking Flight with Writing
I guess that’s what the writing process is, sometimes.
Just like with flying, I could name more than a zillion things I don’t like about the post-publication phase of being a writer.
Chilling with my book in Wandsworth Common, London
I’m not a fan of marketing myself. Everything seems to be stacking up against me as I swim in this vacuum of knowledge I didn’t realise I didn’t have, until it’s called for and I realise I don’t!
Actually getting your name out there takes hard work and a LOT of legwork.
You’re trying to be friendly and approachable [social media], not offend anyone [author groups], be a technical wizard [the bajillion websites to sign up and social media specs to follow], a marketing guru and queen of promotion [Amazon/Facebook ads] — all while shopping your soul around to strangers!
I’ve been stomping around in cyberspace for about two months now, accumulating quite the Digital Author footprinton what seems like a zillion sites.
I’ve been creating content like a mofo, spending far too long debating what to post and what not to post and what to reveal and what to hold back.
I’ve been cross-pollinating my social media and wondering — would I be pissed off if I followed someone on three forums who posted the same thing I’m tired of seeing?
So… yeah… make no joke, being a self-published writer is EXHAUSTING.
…BUT, I’m loving it.
Gimme more of that Author Crack!
Just like travelling, I can’t get enough of this writing journey, this author crack that I’ve been bingeing on for the past 2 months.
Just like travelling, I have to bear with the “flying” part and the “fear” part, to get to the good stuff.
Because despite the *awful* moments of self-doubt that are almost as bad as airplane toilets and turbulence, there’s also the great moments…
When you finally DO publish (a huge, HUGE accomplishment! — don’t let anyone dampen your spirits as to how HUGE this is!)
When you finally DO sell some books (even just a trickle — every one counts!)
Making awesome writer friends and knowing you’re not alone
When a new reader reaches out saying he/she can’t get enough of my characters!
Day 7 and final day of the #BAWritingLife challenge is to say who you follow for Book recommendations.
Day 7 also falls on a timely moment — my “Climbing The Walls” ebookwent live on July 28th, closely followed by thepaperback version on July 29th — so today marks my 6-week anniversary as a newly published author!
Honestly, I’m still a newbie to Instagram, having been here just a little over a month! So I am still getting the hang of it and discovering AWESOME people to follow every day, one of them being Bethany Atazadeh who posted this challenge!
I have been following mostly Indie Authors, at all ends of the spectrum between super-successful with a full-time career (for inspiration) as well as newbie just-published or about-to-publish authors (so I know I’m not alone)!
There is so much awesome talent out there just waiting to be discovered by readers *eh-erhm, myself included!*
A few I’ve liked in terms of book recommendations so far:
“Easy” was a rollicking adventure from the opening line to the end.
*SPOILERS*
Among relationships, random sex, budding parenthood, runaways, drug addicts, kiddie porn, and incest and molestation so casual and commonplace it is its own character in the book, Ezra “Easy” and his best friend Jake “Love” both endure their first real loves and turn from boys to men in this novel.
The fresh, resplendently rambling narration hops from one thing to the next, and still flows so beautifully to weave a story that is original and heart-wrenching and darkly funny all at once. I thoroughly enjoyed it, and feel like my life has shifted somewhat, by the time I was finished.
I’m a culture/race/music mongrel [I listen to EVERYTHING!] but when I’m actively plotting my scenes to write Contemporary Romance, a few songs are WIP-Worthy…
1. One Republic: “Let’s Hurt Tonight” ???
My Hart & Cole “Darren & Luisa” song from their most climactic moment, when all the relationship trauma rises up as they finally TALK to each other.
Fave lyric: ? Tell me all of the things that you couldn’t before / They say love is pain, well darling, let’s hurt tonight! ?
2. X-Ambassadors: “Unsteady” ??
Possibly the best “relationship crisis” song ever. I love their video where it juxtaposes how the woman’s mouth changes from words of love to words of hatred.
Fave lyric: ? I know you’re trying to fight when you feel like flying / If you love me, don’t let go! ?
3. Kaleo: “Way Down We Go” – ?
Such a powerfully-sung song, and the graphic backdrop always gets me.
Fave lyric: ? Do you dare to look him right in the eyes? ?
4. Metallica: “Nothing Else Matters” – ??
One of the best love songs ever, PERIOD. I’ve said before that ‘Everyone’s story is not the same’ & this displays that perfectly.
Fave lyric: ? Forever trusting who we are, and nothing else matters ?
5. Childish Gambino: “Redbone” – ???
One of the sexiest songs ever, and it helps that the girl in the (Erica Reign – popular, fanmade) video reminds me of my character “Nicole”– mixed race, long curly hair & with the flower! Fave lyric: ? My peanut butter chocolate cake with Kool-Aid ?
…So that’s my top 5 on repeat to get into Work In Progress mode. What about you guys?
Day 4 of the #BAWritingLife challenge by Bethany Atazadeh is to say what rituals/habits get you “In The Zone” or the mood to write.
An important part of my journey to writing — especially in the end stages towards the PUBLISH button — was to set the lock screen & background on my phone to the book cover. I did it with Book 1 (left) and recently changed it to Book 2 (right)! So now I’ve got my book boyfriend to look at all day! ?
I look at my phone constantly — and every time I see it, I am reminded to WRITE! ?
To get me in the mood to write, I also try to get in the heads of my characters. I’ve created a Hart & Cole board on IStock, where I save photos that *could* be my characters (the way I picture them). This helps me with descriptions.
It works both ways — sometimes I have an idea of my character and then spot the person who matches it, or sometimes I use the person I find to create or elaborate on the character I’m describing. Sometimes I also search through to find random photos I can use to inspire a scene!
So that’s a little bit of my behind-the-scenes process to get “In The Zone”! What about you guys?
Mainly I write in my bedroom, sometimes I’ll jot some notes down in an app on my phone when I’m out and about, and sometimes I write on my front porch (though I do have to put up with some SERIOUS *cattitude*! — pictured above!).
Yes, like many other writers (or so it seems from Instagram!), I have some feline help from time to time!
A lady doesn’t reveal her age, but let’s just say this cat, Samba, has been around almost as long as my characters! And I already shared yesterday how long these characters have been with me… so yeah! ?
I have oldddddd photos of her draped over my computer when I had one of those HUGE big-back monitors!… so this little *young* lady has been around a while! ?
Samba was one of my first writing companions [Mauby was THE first – RIP Maubs!] and beta readers for my Hart & Cole Romance series!
I just did an Author Interview with a fabulous online platform for readers and writers to connect: check out Qwerty Thoughts on their website, Facebook page or Instagram feed.
She has a lot of works-in-progress and her series is based on what she believes “A marriage is not a happy ending; it’s a beginning of so much more to come.”
In the interview, I talk about my Hart & Cole series, my favourite writers, my journey as a writer, challenges as a writer, and my advice for budding writing talent!
I’m participating in the Instagram #BAWritingLife challenge by author Bethany Atazadeh and also posting to my blog. Now we’re onto Day 2: Say what your WIP (Work in Progress) ??? is about.
Darren is a serious ALPHA MALE who can control any situation and anyone he comes across… EXCEPT his wife Luisa.
?[BOOK 1 SPOILER ALERT]?…
Luisa cheated on him years ago with Gianni, and they wound up with some serious *baggage* from that affair. Baggage that’s now walking around calling Darren “Daddy”. Yup.
After an ?? EXPLOSIVE ?? scene when Darren first finds out Gianni’s back, he’s now trying to come to terms with co-parenting the child he loves with his wife’s former lover.
Luisa had no closure when she broke it off abruptly with Gianni years ago, and now she’s struggling to hold onto her heartstrings while she is forced to spend time with him so he can see his daughter.
And Gianni… oh, yeah, I love him too. But I love Darren more. Luisa may be conflicted, but I’m the writer so I get to choose who I love! …Even if he’s a righteous dick sometimes! (And oh… he IS!) ?
I can’t WAIT to share him with my readers! C’mon… don’t we all need a righteous dick in our lives? ???
I’ve lived in the UK, travelled throughout Europe and the Caribbean (with SO many locations on my “to go” list!), and now operate my business (Writing, Editing, Print & Web Design Services) for both local and international clients.
Beyond my professional skills, I WRITE. IT’S WHAT I DO.
For me, writing is an identity. A writer is just as distinct as a sexuality; a gender; a religion; a nationality. Writing is a state of being.
My first published novel “Climbing The Walls” is part 1 of my Hart & Cole Book series — Parts 2 & 3 are already written, I’m halfway through Part 4, and Part 5 has its seeds in my mind already! So WATCH THIS SPACE.
For me, writing is my journey into myself, to pull something out — something I’ve created; something no one else can create, ever. If it one day it becomes a key source of income, I’ll be thrilled — but not just for the money; but because it means I’ve shared my characters with a wide audience.
“Right now, this is not the type of book I am looking to read… mostly due to the page count.”
Er… ok. It’s not an epic 2000+ page book I’ve written… but 500+ pages — most of which is dialogue, so there’s a lot of white space.
But the page count alone was my potential blogger-reviewer’s hard “no” from the jump.
…And unfortunately, it’s not something I can change at this point. 🙁
Fair enough, when I myself saw the physical proof copy I was like — yikes, that’s a little on the large side. But I’ve got larger books in my own library — both in height/width and length in terms of pages, so it didn’t scare me TOO much.
But this particular person wasn’t even looking at the physical book. She had no idea of trim size, or font size. She just saw the page number, and took a pass.
I’m wondering — worrying, rather — now, if that’s what readers may do, too.
Have I marketed myself out of the range of the average reader’s tolerance level for a novel length?
…And let’s not go into the epic novels such as the Game of Thrones, where Book 1: A Song of Ice and Fire clocks in at a whopping 864 pages.
Of course, these were all traditionally published novels where the publishing house would have had a say in the final product… and thank God no one told any of these authors, “Yeah… er, pal… you really need to just chop your story down…”
When you’ve already got a major engine running your show, you don’t have to worry too much about length.
Size is just a number, as they say. Or at the very least — you the author won’t need to worry; someone else will do that for you!
However, when it comes to the independent self-published authors, and ebooks, it’s a whole different story.
The cold fact is, ebooks by definition are cheap, and however many words you write, you will only be able to charge a small amount for it online. There is little point in writing a door-stopping 200,000-word opus, if you can only charge $2.99 for it.
Rather than spending a year or more producing one full-length title, it may be better to spend that time writing a sequence of three or four shorter eBooks of, say, 20,000 words each. In marketing terms, publishing four times in a year is better than publishing just once.
So if you do want to dive head-first into self-publishing your work as an e-book, it’s in your best interest to “think small”.
In fact, “thinking small” is precisely how Amazon pushes it, as the printing cost gets astronomical if your book is thick. Check Kindle Direct Publishing costs here.
…But my stories didn’t have ebooks or the millennial generation in mind, when I started writing them…
The longer your book, the more expensive it is to produce. A book that costs more to produce must sell more copies before it becomes profitable.
So, while a larger book justifies a larger retail price, as an indie author/publisher, that’s unfortunately not how it works. You have to consider your reader’s attention span and willingness to:
(1) Read a long book
(2) Pay a buck or two extra for a longer book
Unfortunately, this is the one time that it pays to be smaller.
I tossed out the question to some of my new comrades on various Facebook writer groups, and got a range of responses.
While, of course, in theory the number of pages doesn’t really matter; it should be more about the content… in reality, some of them admitted that most of the books they’ve read as ebooks were about 150-200 pages.
Yikes… I’m still getting a feel of the characters by then! Nothing’s happened yet!
In terms of pacing, I myself prefer to feel like I’m invested in these characters I’m reading about, before their entire life changes in Chapter 2!
Write till the muse says stop!
Generally, I write until the story feels finished, then tighten up where I can, but apparently that’s just not the way to do it in today’s world.
A fellow author admitted she started each book as an independent work, and ended up with two trilogies! She felt “forced” by modern-day guidelines to chop her work up for the best market-ready approach.
Hmm… should I do this too?
Okay, I’m not in this for the money. I know this.
I’m in this to share my stories, to share my characters, and to fall in love with them all over again when others get to know them.
I don’t expect to become a huge success overnight. Maybe that may not happen at all. And that’s okay.
But if my readers — some of which, of course, will be millennials (and I myself am one!) — don’t want to even read the book because it’s too long… Houston, I think we have a problem.
Well, the cat’s out of the bag with Book 1, and I don’t want to cry over that split milk.
BUT… does that mean I get to rebuild/re-flesh-out Lee? ***YAY!!!***
(But then I’ll end up with two long books for “Book 2″… lol…)
…And I’ll need to stop calling it “Book 2″… it’ll be Book 2 & 3… though to ME it’s still one story, Darren and Luisa’s story. But to everyone else, it’ll be separate entities…
Oh, and I’ll need another book cover. And another name. OMG!
For now, it’s just a thought. But having all these thoughts means… back to the editorial board… 🙁
There’s a line in Pandora’s Poison (Hart & Cole Book 2), that if a certain person from my past reads it, he will burst out laughing… or at least, I hope so!
Thankfully, I’ll most likely never have to find out. I don’t think he reads much, and if he does, my book won’t be his “cup of tea”.
…And then, there’s an another event in my past that I would love to write about. But I can’t, so I don’t…
There are stories I’ve published on my Creative Writing website, The Writink that were inspired by particular individuals; and quite a few items of Poetry that were inspired by crumbling friendships; a few of these I’ll willingly reveal:
And there’s snippets everywhere, from just about everything that I’ve experienced, that may one day slip into a piece of writing.
…But some things, some things that happen to you… never make it to print. Some things, need to die with you.
Because, as a writer, you are a keeper of everyone’s secrets.
But how do you decide which you should keep, and which can be revamped into your “fiction” piece?
…Who would recognise it?
I remember I once posted a status on Facebook that upset someone close to me, who assumed it was a direct personal target. Maybe it was, maybe it wasn’t.
The wonderful thing about being a writer is you’re also an escape artist — you get to hide behind that film of “creative license”. And boy, do some of us just love THAT.
In my case, with that flaming one-liner inBook 2, even if the individual in question does perchance stumble on it one day, I don’t think he’d mind. He might even be flattered.
That’s a rarity.
Not everyone appreciates your/their personal history being “fictionalised” for mass consumption and perhaps even ridicule.
I’m sure everyone remembers a couple of pop culture incidents with a similar theme. Let’s just look at rap music:
Pitbull was sued for using the lyric “locked up like Lindsay Lohan“; he supposedly meant it as flattery but she took it as an insult. He eventually won the case.
Of course, as writers most of us are not celebrities, so while EVERYONE knew exactly what the reference was in those incidents, it’s unlikely readers will know if you use something from your past.
But… the person it’s about, will. So does that mean you can use it?
My rule of thumb, is to first ask yourself: “Who would recognise this?”
Have you shared the incident with your friends, has the other person perhaps done so as well?
If not, you’re on the right track so far. Hopefully, the person may smile at the reference and be thrilled to be in on the inside joke.
The next question, should be: “How much damage could this do?”
Be honest with yourself. You DO know what’s potentially inflammatory, and what’s likely to be harmless.
And finally, “How would the person feel about this?”
You may have an idea. But if you are really not sure, and particularly if it’s a potentially sensitive person, ASK.
Creative License Be Damned
Of course, you may not always get it right.
The person you think would be amused, may be pissed off when they learn you’ve lifted from your shared personal experience for your own gain.
And yes, as a writer, you do have some personal creative license.
Inspiration has to come from somewhere, after all!
My own personal preference is to use inspiration lightly — so that the person in question may WONDER, but not necessarily KNOW.
It may not be the best choice… thankfully, so far I’ve survived with this method virtually unscathed.
I know many situations, however, where this wasn’t the case.
So, be careful. As a writer, you have a responsibility to use your craft for good, not evil.
“I’m so, so, so sorry, Lee…” I’m almost in tears, as I delete an entire scene with one of my favourite characters.
But I’m down 50 pages already (woohoo!), and all the nips and tucks in the world won’t get me to where I need to go. I need to edit. I need to CUT.
“Climbing The Walls” (Book 1), was already a bit longer than it needed to be (a criticism I’ve received, and taken in stride).
I felt it myself, during the million-and-one edits, but I justified it: for the first book, you need to take a little time to introduce characters and “drop in” snippets of back stories, little kernels of jewels that you can fully pop and allow to bloom in a later installment.
But enough of Book 1.
For now, my mind and heart and soul are buried deep in Book 2…
…Of which, the first draft was already 200 pages longer than Book 1!!!
So… it’s chopping time!
What (Who?) to Cut
Lee — Alejandro Galeota — who is mentioned briefly in passing in Book 1 of Hart & Cole, and becomes a somewhat central character in Book 2 of Hart & Cole… Lee is awesome.
At 21, Lee is a big kid and brings some comic relief and support to both Darren & Luisa
He’s Luisa’s little brother, and fiercest advocate. He’s Darren’s new protégé and business partner. He’s the children’s favourite uncle; and at only 21, he’s also a big kid himself. He’s dynamic, he’s supportive, he’s sweet, he’s lovable, he’s funny, and he has some of the best one-liners.
He’s also… well, not the point.
He’s there because he needs to be; he’s the reason certain plot points can move forward, and I’ve been thrilled to build his character out as fully as I can… but now, I can’t. I just can’t.
Editing a book is similar to a film or a TV show. I remember when I watched the Behind-the-Scenes/Making Of one of my favourite teen soaps, the iconic early-2000s One Tree Hill.
There was supposed to be an entire story arc of Peyton helping a troubled young girl, and… when it came time to cut… there just wasn’t. As they explained it, in the end…
You have a certain running time, and instead of tweaking every other scene to chip off bits and pieces to string together a story that still makes sense, you go with the easier option: just CHOP one section out entirely.
And, hard luck for the poor actor/actress who was about to make their debut!
After all, I’m sure we all remember the funny scene on Friends, “Joey’s Big Scene” where Joey faked a scene for his grandma, when his character got cut entirely, after he had invited all his friends and family to watch!
When to Cut: White Spaces
Every writer has a process.
I write in Microsoft Word, on a regular 8″ by 11″ letter-sized layout. I do this because I want to have a concept of pages and flow, and in terms of content I know what my chapters should look like, in that layout.
I write EVERYTHING, to start. The story happens in my head in its entirety — every single word of dialogue, every pause, every action, every look between the characters.
Better to have a half-page blank than a few orphan lines of text
Then, I bring it into the template sized for publication (I’ve chosen 6″ by 9″ for Hart & Cole — you can download a sample template here). Here, I see where all the words actually fall, all the orphaned one-words dangling unnecessarily on a line by itself, or the very short page at the end of a chapter.
That’s where my cutting starts — tightening the white spaces.
Yes, you need to leave some of them, to be easy on the eyes, but it’s better to have a half-page or quarter that is blank, than a single line or maybe two on a page by itself!
So, some of the lengthy first draft, thankfully, gets tightened up naturally, once your goal is just to reduce white space.
How to Cut: Dialogue
I also write a lot, I repeat a LOT of dialogue. And there’s only so many times you need to write “he says/she asks”.
Yes, you need enough, so that the reader can follow who is speaking, but I focus on using their actions in between their words rather than identifying the speaker with “he/she says”.
“I am just saying… we used to be friends, Luisianna.”
“No, Gianni.” I uncross my legs and pull my feet up, hugging my knees. “We’re just two people who used to f**k, a lot, a long time ago.”
And, a little later down, when Darren and Nicole see each other for the first time in weeks:
Nicole sighs. Her eyes drop to the box at her feet. “So I’m really fired?”
“You wanted to be fired, baby girl. Be careful what you ask for.” I smile ruefully, chucking my index finger in her direction.
Not once did I use the actual words of “speech”, but you know who’s talking. That way, you can get away with getting rid of about 50% of “he said/she said”.
So… dialogue, white spaces… woohoo! You get a few pages knocked off the top that way.
The real problem comes when you realise you’ve invested 20% into a secondary character, who really only needs 10% or less — no matter how much you love every single word you’ve written for him in every scene.
…So, I’m sorry Lee. I’ll try to do justice to you sometime later on!
I don’t want to give away spoilers — particularly when I’m not entirely sure when Book 2 will be polished and ready for mass consumption, but basically:
A very, very good man [despite his flaws] did a very, very bad thing.
It’s easy to look at a character like Luisa and label her “weak”, and wonder why on earth she even makes an effort to forgive him, as she does at the start of Book 2. But you have to remember that everyone’s story is not the same.
This a man who loves his mama, and his two girls; and is raising his precocious son to be a good man.
This is a man who did the unthinkable, years ago, to try to save his marriage.
This is a woman who has always loved strong, imposing men.
This is a woman who broke THIS strong, imposing man, time and time again… and she knows this.
So, I repeat: everyone’s story is not the same.
My character is my longest relationship…
So, yes, up to the end of Book 1, I’m on board with my beta reader friend. I myself, as many women have, have been at the receiving end of a man that crossed the line.
Despite the outcome (and fortunately mine was a “good” outcome), there is that momentof fear, when you’re in an intimate setting… and you’re not 100% sure if your words are going to be enough.
So, like I was saying… there’s no excuse for Darren’s behaviour. And I wholeheartedly agree.
But, you see, here’s the thing: I LOVE Darren.
I’ve loved Darren for 15 years. He’s the longest relationship I’ve ever had.
He’s my favourite character I’ve ever created.
He’s kept me up at night. I’ve rewritten every one of his crucial scenes dozens of times over the years.
He is my Book 2 and Book 3 man, and he’s been the most fully formed character since long before Book 1even had a title.
Though we meet him throughout Book 1, he doesn’t get to spread his wings until Book 2 and Book 3.
I can’t wait to share him, in his full glory, to the world.
He may be in my imagination, but he’s my muse.
…So I’m determined to make her love him, too. I’m determined to make everyone love him.
…Which means, I’ve got my work cut out for me.
The Journey & The Lessons Learnt
That aside, our ongoing squabble about my character led me to think of how we, as writers, develop our characters.
Is it okay to just let them unfold onto a blank page?
Do we have a list of actions they need to get in, before the story’s climax?
I wish I had such an intricate plan — it would help if I had a bullet point list I could plan around.
For me, my characters control me. I have to wait till they tell me.
They tell me their strengths, their weaknesses, what they can do, what they will do in a situation.
I like to make sure that all my characters learn something and go through something to get them somewhere important in their relationship by the end of each novel.
For Book 1‘s Kris and Nicole, their tumultuous 3-4 months was their relationship’s breaking point… when they were each at their worst.
So how do you keep that in mind, while setting up all the scenes that led them there?
Start with a Premise: 4 to 5 lines
I use a premise-based approach.
My Hart & Cole series overall has a simple premise: RELATIONSHIPS. MARRIAGE. PARENTHOOD. INFIDELITY. INSECURITY. There’s a lot you can do with all of that, without writing an elaborate tale. These are things we all go through at some point in time. These are things we all understand.
Assuming you’re a writer worth even a sprinkle of your salt, once you have the smallest kernel of a story, you can build from that into so much more.
Once you’ve got the premise, you just need to mesh the premise with the characters.
I try to break my premise down to 5 lines or less, and make sure that my characters’ motivation (even though it’s never SAID directly) will trace back to the 5-line character premise.
So, here’s my Book Bible for Book 1:
First of all, you need to know that Kris always wanted kids.
…And Nicole always wanted Kris.
But here’s the thing: you can’t half-ass motherhood and still expect to keep your “perfect” husband.
Second of all, you need to remember:
Mommy forgets everything.
I Command You To Love My Anti-hero
Once you keep that clear 5-line thought in your mind as you write, it’s a lot easier to build scenes around your characters.
If you finish Book 1 of my Hart & Cole series, and then go back to the beginning two chapters (available here), you’ll realise the entire plot is covered in the first two chapters.
Everything that happens, was alluded to there.
All the themes were mentioned; the upcoming “breaking point” event (for *both* of the main relationships)… was right there.
I began with the premise, and I used the premise to help with the foreshadowing of events to come.
By the time Book 2rolls around, you soon realise Darren’s bad behaviour (from Book 1) was inevitable. Events led him to that point; he didn’t get there on his own.
Then Luisa… I had fun with her, because there’s so much about her character to dislike; she may be the least sympathetic to some readers!
But Luisa’s a good girl. That’s important to remember.
What’s more important to remember is that good girls do bad things.
And the bad girls; the bad boys… sometimes, they are the best of all.
“You’re one of the good ones, Darren Hart,” Nicole says to Darren, in Book 3.
And he is… oh gosh. I promise you, he is.
So like I was saying, I need to make everyone love Darren.
I’ve got my work cut out for me. Let me get back to it…
The question was eating me alive. So, I posted it on several of the Writers’ groups I had recently joined.
Within minutes, my phone was plinging like it was having a seizure.
Responses poured in from all corners of the globe — across the many groups, members amount to 90,000+ writers, and 2000+ of them were leaping and squabbling over each other to share their opinions!
Mind you, this isn’t a “Work In Progress” and no one specifically asked you to be a “beta reader”. Maybe Amazon just gave you a nudge and said “Hey, what did you think of this book?”
You’re a writer. You hated it. Should you tell the world?
If you can’t say anything nice…
One recurring theme, and one I wholeheartedly agree with, is:
Acts of creation take such courage, that by and large, I am hesitant to be publicly critical.
Of course, as a wise member pointed out:
If someone wants to be an author, they can’t be all…. ‘Oh here’s my baby. You need to pay your hard-earned money to read it. But if it’s awful, don’t hurt my feeeelings. Waaaa!’
And another guy was taking no prisoners:
I sharpen my blades and charge in with a lunge to the jugular and leave them bleeding in a pool of hard love.
448 comments — and this was just one group, out of several! And such a wide range of responses…
He was adamant he would want the criticism himself; after all: how can a writer expect to improve their craft if they aren’t given honest feedback?
However, is a public forum, such as the official Amazon book page, the right place for it?
Some opted for trying to get in touch with the writer to share their thoughts.
Others said there was no point: unsolicited peer feedback may rub some writers the wrong way; and also the story is done, there’s no putting the cat back into the bag.
The dilemma is… as a writer, you know what it takes to bleed a story out of you; so is it really necessary to plop a hot mess on your fellow man’s/woman’s parade?
As one member, who runs a book review blog, said:
I have to kiss a dozen frogs before I get a princess… but I just prefer not to kiss and tell.
Was it unreadable… or just unlikable, for me?
Almost everyone seemed to agree that you must separate the physical and emotional.
Physically, a book needs to have a plot, sentences that make sense, good grammar and spelling, and something to work with…
Being boring is one thing; being unreadable is another.
Emotionally, quite simply — not everyone is going to connect with every story.
So, while most would holler (whether privately or publicly) — “Hey, straighten up and fly right!” to ensure this writer doesn’t give the profession a bad name, it’s a different story when it comes to the gut reaction of a fairly-written piece of work you just didn’t like.
As one writer pointed out, reading is a “to each his own” situation:
Reviewers are like witnesses to a murder; it has been scientifically documented that they don’t know what they’re talking about because they don’t know what they saw (read).
This writer soon gained many insta-fans AND insta-haters!
I wasn’t surprised to see the many, MANY references to the “Twilight” series, and to what one member called “50 Shades of Stockholm Syndrome” 🙂 ??? “I honestly couldn’t get past the first 10 pages, and I tried. I really, really tried.”
Still, these polarising texts made shitloads of money, despite being critically panned by readers and fellow writers alike.
So somebody — lots of somebodies, in fact! — were insta-fans.
Just because you don’t like it, it doesn’t mean others won’t.
So yes, as writers, we all have to have a thick skin; but as the saying goes, opinions are like a**holes — we all have one.
And then, there’s the valid point that in this instance you put on your “Reader” hat, not your “Writer” hat.
One writer argues: “Me being an author shouldn’t come into my review. I am reviewing as someone who has read the book and is a consumer. It is not unprofessional at all.”
It’s understood that as a writer, critical reviews are part of the deal.
You can’t be a writer if you refuse to listen to your audience.
And, here’s the thing: there are also WRITERS in your audience.
At the same time, writing can be a very singular, isolating profession.
“Author” simply doesn’t have the same rules as almost every other profession whereby it’s understood the mud-slinging will come back to hit you in the face (rapper-beefs, anyone?!).
Your bottom line isn’t affected by this writer’s novel that didn’t move you. If you’re not a fan, you can quietly be “not a fan”!
As a writer, you see…
…All we have are our words.
We can, but should we really attack our own?
Weigh the nasty vs. the popularity…?
Another theme that popped up in response to my hot-button topic was the popularity of the writer, and the stage at which negative feedback is given.
It’s one thing to review someone who already has a huge following. Your nasty review isn’t taking a penny away from E. L. James or Stephenie Meyer.
You can be a terrible writer… and still be successful.
But what about the newbie independent self-published authors, who work a million times harder to scrape their soul into their work and then painstakingly shop it around?
Stephen King was NOT a fan… but, so what?
For an emerging author, your bad review — however “constructive” you think it is — can discourage them entirely, not to mention massively daunt their sales.
It seems that a lot of writers, especially indie writers, are uncomfortable messing with another indie writer’s money. Karma’s a bitch, right? Better safe than sorry…
Still, reviews are a form of social proof, and we’re more likely to buy something with a ton of reviews — even bad reviews — than we are to try something no one else has bothered to try.
It just remains to be seen whether writers think they have an objective place where they can wear both hats, or if being a writer himself/herself has tainted the lens when they read a book.
As one writer argues:
“I’m not saying NOBODY should give bad reviews; I’m just saying: as writers ourselves, maybe we should just stay out of it.”
Or, as someone compared it:
Would you yell at a co-worker in front of a client?
If you do it, do it with love…
At the end of the day, a book isn’t like a regular consumer product on Amazon; it is more opinion-based, so you don’t always need to be purposefully cruel under the guise of being kind (at least not in public)!
Saying nothing at all may be your choice so as not to hurt anyone, but it also means you are choosing to not help anyone.
So, writers, if you do decide to switch hats and bang out a review for something that ruffled you the wrong way…
Be honest, but kind and constructive.
Think:
How would you like someone to phrase it if it was a review for your book? What can you commend, instead of just rip apart? How would their phrasing it help you to improve?
If the author is worthy of the label, he or she should be able to spin that bitter lemonade into something amazing, later on.
And assuming the writer hasn’t produced UTTER trash, his/her fan base will rise up one day and outweigh the negative reviews.
I don’t want to give away spoilers — particularly when I’m not entirely sure when 
I began with the premise, and I used the premise to help with the foreshadowing of events to come.
