I made it to the end!

I just wrote "END" on the Totem series!

This final book was 8,000 words longer than the others. A whole lot went on, and wow, as a pantser, I just kept surprising myself over and over. My muse is clever, though. It all made sense. She has a way of making things work even when I have no idea what she's doing.

I'm so excited to finally be finished. It was an exciting journey, but I'm eager to start something new.

Of course, there's revising, editing, formatting, and publishing these last three books left to do. Books will do that themselves, right? ... RIGHT?!!

Word Witch Wednesday - the final ad's results

I'm throwing them right out there, so I can scream cry discuss my promoting experiment.

This final ad was with Bargain Booksy. It was my most expensive one at $70. I sold 7 books that day.

Here's what I learned from using book ads:

- They are unlikely to have a great affect on sales unless you're offering your book for free. There is so much free content out there right now, and good free content, readers won't even consider dropping 99c for an author new to them.

- They may have a decent affect on sales if you're offering a novel for over 75% off its normal price. This won't attract any attention if it's a short work. Novels do sell better.

- Ads work best for books that are part of a series. If readers pick up something and they like it, they will want more.

From my experience, I can conclude:
a) Readers who might enjoy my books don't read ads, or don't subscribe to those venues I had ads with.
b) The indie publishing world is going through a major slump.
c) My cover and/or blurb aren't strong enough to draw readers in.
OR
d) I suck.

Some days, I just want to quit. I'm not a marketing-minded person. I'm a writer. That's all I want to do! But authors have several hats they must wear these days, and it's depressing at times.

Don't worry. I won't give up. I'll keep on trying new things, and maybe one day, I'll find out what works for me. (What I think would really work is if Joss Whedon made my books into a TV series!)

Have you tried anything new with promotions recently?

Word Witch Wednesday - the first ad's results

I ventured into the world of book ads recently. My first one came out last week for my Of Blood and Sorrow sale. The novel is usually $2.99, and I put it on sale for 99c. It's highly rated. It has a professionally done cover. And it has vampires.

The sale was five days (12th-16th). I bought an ad with Ereader News Today (ENT) which went out on the 13th. Here's the link to that day's books. It was in the Paranormal section on the site. It cost $35.

I shouted out about the sale on all my social media, and some wonderful friends shared it too. It was easy to keep track of the sales because I've had zero sales with the book in the past two months. I did not make enough to pay the cost of the ad. Perhaps if I get some reviews, it will make it worthwhile.

Here are the numbers:
Amazon - 57
B&N - 4
Smashwords - 2
Kobo - 1

The great majority of the sales came the night of the 13th after the ad went out. Very few came after that.

Would I use ENT again? Perhaps if I had a book that was part of a series and it was free.

And yes, I do think if Of Blood and Sorrow were part of a series, it would have gotten more sales.

Next year (or the year after!) when the next two books in the trilogy come out, I will put the novel on sale again. Oh, yes! There are two more books in the works. Don't worry, Abdiel fans. He will be back!

Next week, I have an ad on the 25th with The Fussy Librarian for Dark Dawning. And a second one with Bargain Booksy on the 31st. This book is part of a series. So we'll see if that makes a difference.

Have you ever used book ads? If yes, what has your experience been like?

Word Witch Wednesday - the mad science of book covers (part 5)

Slip on your labcoats and adjust your goggles. It's time for another session of the mad science of book covers!

Here's a quick review:
Part 1 - knowing the book cover elements of your genre.
Part 2 - the basic elements.
Part 3 - image shopping and backgrounds.
Part 4 - cover models.

I'm going to cover the rest of the base elements, and I'll do my best not to rattle on. Though I think I could do a whole series about choosing fonts for the covers. Fonts haunted me for weeks while I designed the Totem series.

For my urban fantasy series, the basic elements for the covers are: mood creating background, silhouetted villain, unsmiling protagonist, and something to tie all covers together for the series. Possibly the shifter's animal.

We've covered backgrounds and the unsmiling protagonist, and I'm leaving out the silhouetted villain. Instead of featuring the shifters' animals, I'm adding in a different totem animal on each cover which they'll be hunting in each book. These I'll blend into the background, and truly, if you don't have the Photoshop skills to do it, this is something that can be skipped. Something I have battled with myself and remain undecided about.

The next vital element is something to tie all the covers together for the series. I knew what I wanted to do ever since I came up with the concept. I wanted frost creeping up over the edges of the covers. Just a touch. It will be the same on every book. Easy, right?

Nope. I tried so many different types of frost. I wanted it to look icy, but it wasn't working. Why wasn't it working?

Instead, I stepped back and looked at it as if it were a puzzle. I ended up piecing together bits from a frosted pane of glass. This is what the original image looks like:

Pretty on its own. Plus, it's a good way to make sure my Totem bear logo is clearly seen on the bottom corner of each cover. The logo will contain the number of the book.

Now you've seen all my bare images. But just as important as the pictures are the fonts you choose. Check out my post about finicky fonts for tips on how to choose yours.

Fonts are difficult for me. I tend to lean toward plain types. That can be a good thing. You want your readers to be able to read your title and name after all.

Seeing the title for my first book and my name, you're probably wondering why did I stress so much over it? It looks simple. And that's good. It's my job to make it attractive and easy for people to read.

If you click on the image, you'll see the title is textured. Like cracked ice or birch bark. It's subtle, but it adds a lot of character to it. I used the craquelure effect in Photoshop.

Choosing colors for the fonts was difficult too. Each of my covers have different backgrounds. There's a wide array of colors going on which make it hard to see fonts of most shades. I hadn't intended to go with white, but it works with everything. The light gold of my name stands out enough but doesn't draw all your attention.

Whew. I didn't blow anything up. I call that a successful mad science session.

Next week, I'll show you the completed versions of the first three covers of the Totem series.

Feel free to ask any questions. Or share your cookies. Cookies would be much appreciated.

The 13th Floor collection tour continues

Have you been having fun on the tour?

Ten days in and I've got so much more to come!

 

Today I'm over at the wonderful Gwen Gardner's blog where I answer the big question:

Will I write more books in the 13th Floor series?

 

Don't forget this week's giveaway on Cherie's blog!

You can still enter to win a signed copy of the collection.

1303 - The Dragonslayer cover reveal

Title: 1303 - The Dragonslayer
The 13th Floor series, #3
Genre: paranormal romance
Release date: February 13th, 2013

Blurb:

On the rooftop of neighboring building, dragonslayer Xanthus Ehrensvard fires at his target, Governor Whittaker. How he missed the shot, he doesn't know, but fleeing the scene, he picks up an unwanted passenger. Gorgeous reporter Lois King saw Xan's face, and she believes it's the story to make her career. Except he can't let her walk away knowing what he looks like. Xan has to show her the Governor is a bigger threat to the world than he is.

Xan knows dragons never went extinct. They evolved with human society, taking on mortal forms, and slithered their way into positions of great influence and power, just like the Governor. But it's no easy chore proving to someone that dragons still exist, and even more so, they're disguised as famous people. Xan must convince Lois or find another way to silence her. An option, as he gets to know her, he likes less and less.

After all, dragonslayers are no longer celebrated heroes but outlaws. Just as the dragons wish it. But this outlaw must make a plan to slay the dragon or risk its retribution.

Mark The Dragonslayer "to read" on Goodreads.

I do realize it's not exactly like the previous two covers. The model isn't staring forward, but I saw this picture and I was mesmerized. That is Xan. That's my dragonslayer! The fact he's shirtless is just a bonus. Heh.

Now who wants to be a part of my tour next month?!

I also have a bonus guest post over at Livia Peterson's blog. I'm talking about writing a series. What do you have to think about when planning to write a series?

Don't forget to enter the giveaway on Cherie Reich's blog for your chance to win the first ebooks in the 13th Floor series and an ARC of The Dragonslayer.

Wicked Wednesday - most popular paranormal romances

I've been checking out lists with the top paranormal romances. What do these books have that make them so popular? I see big authors like J.R. Ward, L.K. Hamilton, Christine Feehan, and Sherrilyn Kenyon. Each of them are different, but they've managed to sell millions.

Here are a few things that I picked out:

1) Every book in the most popular lists is part of a series. There are no stand alone novels. I think it's reasonable to conclude paranormal romance fans love series.

2) A lot of the books feature vampires. Yes, we're told that people are getting tired of vamps, but they still remain the main characters in several best selling paranormal romances. Am I suggesting you write about vampires? No, but if you are, there's still a big fan base for them.

3) Comparing the lists from the last five years, there are more YA books on it now. The YA paranormal romance genre is growing. Readers from all age groups love them.

4) The majority of the books are slow romances. The readers want to experience the build up of tension. Again, this is a change from five years ago where we had more fast romances.

5) The authors have definite formulas. While I enjoy reading books by those big authors, each of their books have similar plots. They've discovered what works for them and they can quickly write new novels.

6) There's still a lot of broad male chests and curvy women on the covers. Not so many couples in an intimate pose, though. I've seen a rise in covers that feature symbols or an object, but the most popular books still have a person or people on them.

What else do you see in popular paranormal romances these days?

Wicked Wednesday - writing a series

Many paranormal romances these days are series. They're the most popular. The fans are hungry for them, like ravenous vampires. Goodness knows I love them. I read them and write them. Yet it's important to remember a few things when starting to write a series.

First off, does your idea need more than one book? It has to be a pretty dang big idea. Don't stretch out something that could fit into one book. You'll bore your readers. Examples: each book in the series could have different narrators, or you could follow the protagonist through vampire slaying school going year by year.

Every book must be able to stand-alone. It must have a story that is unto itself, but then make a strong connection to the overall story of the series. It can get tricky, because you want to have an amazing story within each book but you want to take away from the overall story.

Give yourself a lot of wiggle room. This is in case you carry on the series longer than expected or if you have to end it sooner than you thought.

You don't have to do all your world building in the first book. That's the nice thing about writing series. You can start small and expand on your world as you go along.

Finally, make sure you're ready for the commitment. Writing a series can take years. Are you willing to devote that much time to one world? To a couple of characters? Know yourself. Know what kind of writer you are. IF you jump from idea to idea, a series isn't for you.

Do you enjoy reading series? Do you write stand-alone novels or series?