{Guest Post} Would Be Self-Publishers—Beware! by Kory M. Shrum

About Kory M. Shrum
Kory M. Shrum lives in Michigan with her partner and a ferocious guard pug. She has dabbled in everything from fortune telling to martial arts and when not reading or writing, she can be found teaching, traveling, or wearing a gi. 

She is author of four contemporary/dark humor fantasy novels in the Jesse Sullivan series. She also co-edited a fabulous charity anthology (Badass and the Beast) with fellow fantasy author Angela Roquet. She's an active member of both SFWA and HWA.

Her new book, Worth Dying For, releases today May 2!

Guest Post by Kory M. Shrum

As with anything, what is good for someone may be terrible for someone else. The same is true of self-publishing. Whether you already have an agent and want to break up, or you are simply reading to jump right into the self-publishing waters, there are three major considerations that you should ask yourself before you take the plunge.   

I might be a great fit for self-publishing if: 

1. I’m a hard worker. 
It requires a lot of work to produce your own book. Publishing houses have departments with little minions that handle one aspect individually to bring a book to completion. Sure, you can outsource much of it (i.e. hire freelancers), but if you are not made of money (as I am not), you will find yourself doing much of the work yourself.  So the best way to initially approach this is from the understanding that it will take a lot of time, patience (and some money) to do this right. 


2. I’m also willing to ask for help. 
Take an honest assessment of your own abilities (and of your nearest and dearest) before undertaking the self-publishing endeavor. If you need to freelance some tasks 
(from that growing to-do list of yours—and it will grow), then it is good to know about it upfront so you can incorporate it into your budget. After all, nothing will ruin your chances of success more than a poorly produced book.  

If you’re going to do this, commit to doing it right. This means if you can’t edit worth a damn, you’ll need an editor. If you can’t format a book or create ebook files then you’ll either have to learn how to do this yourself or be prepared to hire someone. 

After all, I assume that you are self-publishing because you want people to read your work and enjoy it enough that they keep reading you. This will only happen if you ensure that you create a pleasurable reading experience for them. 


3. I’ve got a great balancing act. 
There will come a point when you find yourself doing a lot more book work than actual writing. It may start as a simple imbalance during the day until months in you look up and realize you haven’t been writing for…wait…how long has it been? You will have to find a way to get back to the writing. 

It may take you longer that you’d like to do even relatively simple tasks. When this happens, and you find yourself frustrated and on the verge of going homicidal, (because killing people will definitely increase your chances of becoming an instant sensation)—just breathe. Don’t hurt anyone (including yourself). Eat a cookie. Drink a good cup of tea or coffee. Take a walk. Whatever works for you. Take a step back, take a break, and then return to your book with refreshed determination.  

And I don’t know about you but some days it is difficult for me just to get past all of my mental apprehensions and get down to the business of writing.  

If you don’t think you can strike this balance between marketing and writing, then self-publishing isn’t for you. Find a traditional publisher and make them (and your agent) handle all the business while you stick to making art. 


If after all of this, you find yourself thinking, yes! Yes!  I am a good fit for self-publishing. Then good news! There are numerous resources to help you get started on your way. I recommend Let’s Get Digital and Let’s Get Visual by David Gaughran. These two books handle much of the necessary nuts and bolts of self-publishing. 


And a final bit of advice—have fun! You should be writing because you love to do it and publishing because you love to write for people. Sure, it’s a challenge and a commitment. But when you get your first piece of fan mail praising your hard work, you’ll know it was worth it. 

Get Dying for a Living free on Kindle!

On the morning before her 67th death, it is business as usual for Jesse Sullivan: meet with the mortician, counsel soon-to-be-dead clients, and have coffee while reading the latest regeneration theory. Jesse dies for a living, literally. 

As a Necronite, she is one of the population's rare 2% who  can serve as a death replacement agent, dying so others don't have to. Although each death is different, the result is the same: a life is saved, and Jesse resurrects days later with sore muscles, new scars, and another hole in her memory. 

Digital Publishing: The Grinch Who Stole Christmas?

Guest Post Article by: Tony Viardo, CEO at Astor + Blue Editions

Astor + Blue Editions has put its entire first season’s list of e-book titles on a holiday promotional sale for $0.99 or $1.99.  The sale will continue through January 7, 2013.

So how many articles have we read about E-books and Digital Publishing this year? For anyone who generally follows the book world (rabid book-lover, book-blogger, industry pro, or casual reader), we’re literally inundated with the amazing numbers—“E-book sales up 125% (again) over the 175% they were up from last year’s 225% increase!”—and equally amazing technological announcements—“Next Fall, the new ZimWittyZoomDitty tablet not only updates your Facebook and Goodreads friends whenever you snort in disgust … it cooks dinner for you at the same time!”

This leads many to take at least casual stock of what’s going on/going to happen to the “Publishing World” as we know it.  And if your friends are like my friends (hardcore print book consumers), that stock is usually pretty morbid (sharp Greenwich Village angst not included): “Print books are doomed, so are brick-and-mortar stores.  Goodbye literary quality. Oh and some pajama-wearing techie living in a basement with a laptop is going to be the new Sulzburger; we’ll all have to bow down!”

 

If you (or that good friend of yours) fall into the mortified category, my take (for what it’s worth) may come as positive news:  E-books are not, and will not be, the Grinch Who Stole Christmas; in this case, the “Print World’s” bacon. Now, as the owner of a “Digital First” publishing house (Astor + Blue Editions) my opinions may easily be written off as self-serving and invalid.  But bear with me for a minute… these are fact-based observations and I might just make sense (Someone tell my mom and dad).

As someone who earns a living from publishing, I have to follow numbers and industry trends as closely as possible.  And while some see doom and gloom for Print, I see exciting developments for both Print and E-book formats.  What do the numbers show?  Digital book revenue is skyrocketing, print revenue is declining.  Natural conclusion?  E-books are killing print books. But not so fast.  Historically, Print revenue has always seemed to be declining (even before E-books were invented), but that doesn’t mean the book market is dying or shrinking.

We have to remember that in fact the book market is growing. Readership always grows because population always grows.  Every year, new readers enter the vast pool of the club that is “adult readership,” (despite Dancing with the Stars). And every year more readers are being born and theoretically being inspired by Ms. Crabtree’s elementary reading class.  **So why the decline?  Readership grows gradually, but the sheer number of books and book vendors grow exponentially, showing an investment loss almost every year. (Basic statistics: the widening universe makes it look like a shrinking pie when it isn’t).

So what does this mean? 

Guest Post-Movies and Books that Inspire by Juli D. Revezzo

Movies and books that inspire

By: Juli D. Revezzo

As writers, we take inspiration from everywhere. Be it an article we read in the paper or a sentence we overhead in a restaurant. Many take inspiration from books, from the classics and non-fiction tomes. Some of us squirrel little bits of inspiration away from movies we’ve loved.

I’ve seen a lot of movies in my life, from the old classics of the golden age of Hollywood to this year’s offerings. While it’s true some can be considered forgettable, some of them are very good. My list of ultimate favorites is long, but only a few inspire each individual book I’m working on at one time or another. It’s incredibly hard to choose just a few but Cassandra encouraged me to pare it down. ;) So let’s see…Herm…okay. For my new supernatural horror novel, The Artist’s Inheritance, a few gems come to mind.

For books, I’d say the influence of Anne Rice’s novel The Witching Hour comes first to mind.

Then for movies, the Dunwhich Horror’s a good one (though I think I prefer H.P. Lovecraft’s original story to the movie)

The Exorcist of course jumps to the top of the list, in some respects (can’t beat it for creep-factor, can you?).

Would you believe the god-awful Eddie Murphy movie Disney’s Haunted House?

And Ghostbusters? *nods* It’s true!

Oh, and who can forget this scene from Legend:

Yes, that one too.

And for my story House of Cards?

Hands down Clive Barker’s Nightbreed, as well as Johnny Depp’s performance in The Libertine.

Just call me a fangirl, I won’t mind! Have you seen any of these movies? What did you think of them?

Want to know a little more about my books? Okay:

The Artist's Inheritance
Trouble only a witch can solve...

Settling into a new home, Caitlin notices changes coming over her husband. When nightmares deepen and ghosts begin lurking—Caitlin knows something’s not right, and not just her newfound precognitive abilities. It’s the damned chair her husband's carving, she’s sure. Could it be just what it seems: a mundane piece of furniture? If so, why is it attracting dark forces—the forces she suspects drove Trevor’s siblings to insanity and suicide?

Armed with a handful of allies--a coven of helpful witches--she must proceed with caution against the hellish forces besieging her family. If she fails, she may lose forever the one thing she cares about most: her beloved Trevor.

Available at Amazon, and others

House of Cards

Can you gamble with Fate?

As a young nobleman, Sinjon escapes the Reign of Terror in 18th century France to find himself dragged into an even worse fate–a hellish underworld wherein he is put on trial by a demon tribunal for crimes he never committed. Can he answer their riddles and thwart his fate, one worse than the guillotine? 

Available at Amazon and Smashwords

Emotobooks: The Fusion of Written Fiction and Expressionism

by: Ron Gavalik

Thank you to Cassandra for allowing me to guest post.

As a writer and publisher, it’s always been a goal to bridge the gap between the cerebral gratifications of well-plotted fiction writing and the visual stimulation of illustrative art. The one day I had a mini-epiphany. Insert expressive, emotionally representative imagery in written stories, during moments of emotional consequence. By delivering a visual of what a character feels, the reader becomes more intensely immersed in the story.

Emotobooks are written fiction stories, not comics or graphic novels. The few emotional abstract images woven in the stories are the dream-like visuals each of us experience in the middle of the night.

The term Emotobook is a portmanteau word I conjured as a memorable label for the very first fiction medium for smartphones and tablets. For the first time, readers can now see actual representation of character emotions right on the page for a fun, interactive experience.

Author Guest Post/Giveaway of O'Dell's Top 10 Best Book to Movie Adaptations in The Weeping Book Tour

O'Dell's Top 10 Best Book to Movie Adaptations

just may be...

O'Dell Hutchison was born in a small rural town in Idaho. After attending college in the Pacific northwest, he found his way to the Houston area in 1997. He currently lives in Katy, TX with his dog, Gia. By day, he is a Business Systems Analyst. In his free time, he tries (and fails) to work out regularly and eat healthy. He also acts and directs at various theaters around Houston. 

How Hard is Character Development When Writing? Ask An Author!

By: Rachel Forde, Author of Lastborn

In writing, character development can be a tricky thing.  I've found that as a reader, I'm much more likely to overlook minor flaws in a book if I can relate to the characters and get emotionally invested in their struggles.  As I writer, I also know first hand how difficult it is to get character development right, and how you can learn some interesting things about yourself in the process.

One of the two protagonists in Lastborn is Nara-Ya, a sixteen year-old girl who recently escaped from a life of slavery under an evil sorceress.  I wrote the early drafts of the story in high school, and at that time, Nara-Ya was your typical "Mary Sue" stock protagonist that always pops up in bad fantasy.  She was heroic, invincible, brilliant for her age, and everyone loved her except for the bad guys, which, as I learned, made her incredibly boring.

Guest Review + Recommendation: Lucie @New Books On My Shelves on XVI BY JULIA KARR

Review by: Lucie @New Books On My Shelves blog

About the Book Blogger
Lucie has a desire to discover something different that took her from Paris to Miami. A new beginning, a new adventure ... it's not always easy to travel on a roller coaster, so to find a little serenity, she started to draw. And hasn't ever stop reading...




"XVI" BY JULIA KARR 

A dystopia close to "1984" by George Orwell, whose book is mentioned several times. A "Big Brother", able to track people through GPS implanted, listen to your private conversations and an obligation to tattooed women from 16 to guarantee their safety. A world where thinking and silence are prohibited. A state where the brains are appropriately handled through commercial advertising. 

 I love dystopias for the reassuring feelings they give you. You can always close the book by saying it's a fantasy straight out of the mind of the author, if reading bothers us.
Also a view of the world much scarier because the one offered to our reading is always much closer to the real world in which we live than you want to believe.

Read more about this book direcly at Lucie's blog: Review @New Books On My Shelves 

Guest Post: Kimber An

Middle Grade On My Mind
By
Kimber An

Author of CRUSHED SUGAR, SUGAR RUSH, and SWEET BYTES a romantic YA Paranormal series set in Alaska http://www.kimberan.com/
                                                                                        

The Cover is Out!

So, you ever wonder what’s going through the head of the random author you come across in cyberspace or real life?  Well, if she’s got tears in her eyes for no obvious reason, one of her favorite characters probably just sacrificed himself for someone he loved somewhere deep in her imagination.  You just never know.  One author’s spouse calls it ‘Book-Brain’ and advises the general population to simply keep a safe distance.  
Anyway, I’ve got this big release coming up of my third novel, Sweet Bytes, and I’ve got edits and cover art and guest posts and updating sites and figuring out what cool Alaskan things to give as my grand prize for the release blog hop and so on and so forth.
So, what am I thinking about while I’m falling to sleep at night?  Is it how I use the word ‘so’ too much?  Um, no.  And it’s not even Sweet Bytes.


It’s The Questing Prince, a space fantasy about a hyperactive redhead and the bad boy from the wrong side of the galaxy.  I cut it out of a huge epic space opera I’ve had tucked away in my imagination for well over a decade.  So, I was laying there falling asleep (“So?”  AGAIN? Where is my editor when I need her?) and it dawned on me.
The Hero and Heroine of The Questing Prince are only fourteen years old.
My publisher, Noble Young Adult, only does older YA, like 18 and up, probably 16 at the very youngest.


Also, there’s another story that’s been nagging me like crazy and it’s set in the same fictional universe as Sweet Bytes.  It’s all about how Matt, the fully human ancestor of Joseph, the Oldblood Elder from the Ophelia Dawson stories, comes to be adopted by him.  Matt never knew his birthfather and his birthmother died of a drug overdose, leaving Matt at the mercy of the foster care system.  Certain he’s going to be stuck there for the duration, he sinks into depression.  Then, a long-lost family member shows up to take him in.  He only finds out afterwards that Joseph, his new foster-dad, is also a vampire.


The trouble with this story is Matt is only thirteen years old.  Um, that’s Middle Grade.
I don’t know, but I’ve had a hard time finding YA publishers who do young YA and Middle Grade.
So, (nooooo!) what’s a good little ePublished YA author to do?
Well, the good news is I’m so busy with the Ophelia Dawson stories that I don’t need to figure that one out for another year, probably.
I guess the lesson to take away from this post is that you can have an awesome story stewing in your imagination for a long time.  And that’s okay.
Or, it can dump on you like a ton of bricks overnight and take of running, like the Ophelia Dawson stories.  You just never know.
So (ooooooh, noooo!) just go with what works at the time.
Sweet Bytes comes out October 17th.  Here’s the blurb!
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