Over the years, I’ve discovered most creatives feel like a round peg in a world of square holes. We’re the ones that chase rabbits in meetings trying to improve systems that have been in place for years. We’re the outliers who are challenged by the idea of a “status quo.” We’d rather fail trying to be extraordinary than succeed in … Read More
The Power of Purging
If you follow me on social media, you may have noticed a post or two about my newsletter trials and tribulations. Long story short, I didn’t send newsletters during the pandemic, and because of that, most of my followers had become “inactive.” When I overrode those protocols to reach out to readers on the original list, my mail service sent … Read More
Mother’s Day Giveaway
Mother’s Day Giveaway! Enter to win $230 in prizes!! $50 Amazon Gift Card, Deluxe Rosy Bouquet & Belgium Chocolate Covered Strawberries. To enter follow each participating author on Bookbub. One lucky winner will be spoiled by all of us on Mother’s Day. Giveaway ends at midnight on 5/7. One lovely winner will be contacted via email on 5/8. *If … Read More
We’re now on Bloglovin
Follow my blog with Bloglovin I’m trying to check off all the things on my writer’s to-do list before we start the new decade. It’s a long list, full of things that should have been taken care of months (*cough* years) ago. But hey, let’s celebrate that I’m giving it the old college try. At any rate, one box that’s … Read More
Through the Eyes of an Editor
Before manuscripts morph into books, they go through several stages of development, which involves three or four different edits, depending on the work. If you’re new to the publishing world or you’ve never understood the editing process, I highly recommend watching this introductory video by the incredible Joanna Penn. The first, and, for me, the most important, is developmental editing, which … Read More
Wanna Win a Hundred Bucks?
I’m so honored to be participating in an incredible giveaway that features fantasy/paranormal authors. If you’d like to expand you TBR, just click on the link and like the BookBub author pages. What’s great about this is BookBub only emails you when the authors you follow get ready to release a new book or make a book suggestion. It’s a … Read More
Five Things Every Pantser Should Plan
The idiom “Flying by the seat of your pants” was originated in the 1930s when pilots had to rely on instinct instead of navigational devices. Most viewed these gutsy pioneers as heroes who thumbed their noses at danger and took fate into their own hands. Much like the first pilots, writing pantsers have that same larger-than-life view of storytelling. They … Read More
Understanding Narrative Distance
Recently, I’ve been doing a slew of content editing, which is difficult for me at best. There are two reasons for this. One, as a writer, it’s my natural tendency to interject my voice into anything. I struggle to assess a story, the characters, the pacing, the voicing, the plot and any holes there might be, without changing the style … Read More
Running a Lean Mean Marketing Machine
I did a post on Facebook’s latest changes regarding groups and pages last month, but even authors that had prepared for the switch were shell shocked at the results, both in sales and in reader interaction. Algorithms have destroyed any hope of reaching new readers without paying for an ad or running a sponsored post. My friend LK Griffie has been saying for … Read More
IPA–It’s Not Just for Beer
This past week, I was discussing with a marketing friend about not having enough time in the day to do everything that needs to be done and still find time to write. She suggested I start thinking in terms of IPA. Now, living in a state where there are more barrels of bourbon than people, I know a thing or … Read More