Sunday, October 23, 2016

To Panic or Not to Panic... that is the question in this cover delimma!

I've hit my first major road block that is about to be the cause of a stress ulcer!  Cover designs. I found out I cannot use my e-book cover design for my printed book. The reason being apparently e-book covers are designed differently - with bigger fonts. So that leaves me the option of contacting my cover creator, spending more money, and probably having a hard time making that money back OR venturing out to create my own cover.

Create Space (where I am getting my printed books) has a very easy to use Cover Creator tool. Granted, the cover designs are limited, but what do I expect when there is no cost involved. Beggars can't be choosers in my mind. I can utilize CS's stock photos or utilize someone else's. I have chosen to use Pixabay which has a very impressive collection of free stock photos.

E-book  cover (which rocks in my opinion)
I had thought I found the perfect cover design for Immortal Moonlight and had the proof sent. My husband took an immediate dislike to it and, for me, it is left me uninspired. So, hence my dilemma. I cannot find a design that speaks to me!  But I am on a time crunch and need to decide on something. So, stay tuned and we will see where my creative juices take me!!
Cover  design (without title/author) in question...



 

Tuesday, October 18, 2016

My first author fair!

Author Fair at Charlestown Public Library
Monday, November 14th
5:30 - 7:30pm

I will be at the Charlestown Library to sell and sign books on Monday, November 14th! I should have 3 novels available for sale in paperback form:  A Bequest of Blood, A Girl's Guide to Purgatory and Immortal Moonlight and a possibility of Immortal Crusade being ready. I can't really promise that, though. I will be there with other authors from our writers group in Sellersburg.

Sunday, October 16, 2016

Book Research or Vacation Planning?

To catch everyone up, I am in the process of writing my fifth paranormal/fantasy novel. It is a story about a girl that is tricked by Loki and transported (not unlike Star Trek!) into ancient Greece. There she meets a very handsome demigod and, oh, the fun they have! Okay, everything isn’t all fun and games. I am still in the process of figuring out exactly what’s going to happen.


Crete and Mitsis Laguna Resort


In my early research of Greece, I came across some very nice resorts where people go to get some sun and sand. My main character gets to stay at Mitsis Laguna Resort. I truly adore at this hotel. What would it be like walking through the hallways, swimming in the massive pool, or eating in the luxurious restaurant? I won’t lie, in the back of my mind, I thought if my book made it big I would go to a place like this! Wouldn’t it be great to go somewhere all in the name of research?

But for the rest of us, that have to work, keep track of kids, etc. we can’t go to a luxury resort. So, I get to live vicariously through Holland and her adventures. If I close my eyes, I almost can image feeling the white sand between my toes and hearing the waves wash on shore.

Other News:
 I just self-published A Bequest of Blood published in paperback form. It is now available on Create Space (and Amazon) for purchase or if you happen to meet me at an event, I will have some books with me! I am also working on Immortal Moonlight and prepping it to move to paperback! Stay tuned and I will post more about my new cover designs.

Sunday, October 9, 2016

Get It Down in Writing

I've been writing for more than twenty years, and I released my first book via e-book years ago. Three more followed. A month ago, I actually got to hold one of my manuscripts in printed form. I've read many articles that talked about how wonderful it felt, and I definitely agree. I also found the printed form a great way to edit further.

Granted, I could go poor if I am not careful, for every book that needed fixing, but if I have exhausted all my editing on the computer, this new format gives me another dimension to view any mistakes or areas of improvement. I have found formatting issues that didn't jump out at me on the computer and even a weird page numbering issue for 5 pages out of 245.

In other news, I am attempting to get my first beta reader for A Bequest of Blood. I have read, edited, re-read and re-edited this book a few times. My husband has vetted it and given the okay, but I haven't had any luck getting any reviews. So I am going to solicit a beta reader. I will report back on this process and hopefully get my other books reviewed in a similar format. Its very nerve racking because I feel like I am sending my child out in the world and I have no idea how she is going to fare. It's not a fun process, but I realize I need to do this if I want to comfortably sit in front of someone and entice them to buy more works.


I found this great article by Belinda Pollard on Beta Readers and thought I would share:
What makes a great beta reader.


Saturday, October 1, 2016

SKELETONS AND HOWARD DEAN FOR A SATURDAY NIGHT …

(** Spoilers! I will be talking about Miss Peregrine and her peculiar children!! So don’t read on if you plan on seeing the movie and hate spoilers.)

 I went to the movies alone today. I pretty much always go alone because my husband just can’t handle most of the movies that I want to see. This is just fine with me. I don’t have to worry if he’s going to like it. He will go see the superhero movies, so at least there’s that.

 Today, I saw Miss Peregrine’s School for Peculiar Children. I am a huge fan of Tim Burton and he didn’t disappoint! I found the story thoroughly enjoyable and it kept me on the edge of my seat. I must say the horrible long-legged, long-armed characters were quite terrifying. And if you are squeamish about eyeballs, well, good luck. This movie just took it to a whole new level.

One of my favorite scenes was the fighting skeletons. Who doesn’t love a good fighting dead sea-goer? It harkened me back to the 1989 classic, Sinbad of the Seven Seas. I remember this airing each year and my brother and I being so excited to see it. Okay, maybe not as excited as V, the best summer movie- EVER, but still a close second. Oh… unless you count Watership Downs, but we’ll not talk about that sad bunny movie.

Back to Sinbad… In a single photo (see below), they look pretty similar, but how far animation has come! Peregrine’s fighters barely missed a beat, unless you count the poor fellow that lost his head on a midway game. But I do remember as a little girl the creepy sensation of watching the Legion of Darkness step up to destroy Sinbad. I can still recall watching their eerie movements on the TV screen and getting that sick feeling in my stomach which now I call fear. (I was an impressionable young thing!)



Sinbad's enemies, the Legion of Darkness
Miss Peregrine's fine fighter










So kudos to Burton for bringing back the fighting skeletons. Bravo! At one point I was so excited I almost let out a Howard Dean scream. It would have been brilliant, but then I remembered I was a single movie goer and must act accordingly, which is to not draw any attention to myself. Peregrine was a refreshing Tim Burton thriller I was hoping it would be.