Wonderful Curious Peoples

For several weeks, I’ve been asked variations of a particular question by curious peoples: how many books have you sold?

People ask it a little hesitantly, as if they shouldn’t be prying. I truly don’t mind, but I don’t have an answer for them, because I don’t know.

Yep. I don’t know how many books I’ve sold.

It’s quite pathetic really, for this girl who chose a major that does little more than make graphs of data. {Just kidding.} {Not really.} You can blame the major, if you like. Or perhaps my cynicism is at fault. When all this started, I think I expected to be able to keep track of it--more or less--in my head. I’m usually pretty good at that.

I wasn’t taking into account the fact that my books are sold through three different outlets in about a dozen different countries. Keep track of that in your head, I dare you.

But two things recently forced me to put some numbers on paper. First, April 15 is arriving swiftly, and, second, I recently bought glasses after 5+ years of an old prescription {when your eyes are as bad as mine, this matters}.

Thanks to tax preparation, I had to figure out how many books I sold in 2013. The book came out in August, so I had over four months of data to wade through. And I am here to tell you, all you people who want to know, that Those Who Trespass was purchased over 100 times in 2013. I don’t know if I’m supposed to tell you that or not; for authors with a publishing house, this is a bit taboo. But I am my own publishing house, and one of my favorite things about being an indie-author is the utter control I have over things like this. You’re welcome, wonderful curious peoples.

And because you are so curious, I know you’re now wondering what that translates to in dollars. I’ll let you do the estimation yourself {and good luck, because it's so varying that I can't even estimate it accurately}, but I can tell you that I recently went to the optometrist and paid for my own exam, like a grown-up person. And I bought glasses.

Such things are expensive, especially when you have to have your lenses smashed to socially acceptable thinness.

Yes, my face whitened a considerably when I heard the number. And yes, I know about online glasses places. {Wasn’t my cup of tea this time around.} But seriously, do you want to know something cool? The entire cost was covered exactly to the dollar by my book profits.

That was cool.

So. I hope your curiosity is slightly satisfied. If it’s still bothering you, I suggest physics.

Manuscripts That Didn't Happen

Well hello! Long time no see!

My break was...interesting. I returned home for Christmas, not with visions of sugarplums, but visions of manuscripts.

Manuscripts that didn't happen.

I could blame a lot of things--busiest Christmas schedule in quite a while--but it boils down to to one thing:

It's really hard to write, when you know that any momentum you create will be shattered in just four short weeks--three short weeks--two short weeks--tomorrow.

Oh, I did my share of dabbling. I worked on the post-NaNo-novel {working title: EXOGESIS}. I abandoned that for the NaNo novel. It was all very inefficient and convoluted.

 New Year's Day, I sat down to make my goals. I'm not big on resolutions, but I like laying out a plan at the beginning of each year, something to hold myself to so that I don't drift aimlessly through life. For as long as I can remember, writing goals have been a huge part of these plans. They usually involve finishing drafts, sending out queries, or entering contests.

This year, I stared at a blank page. Not because I didn't have ideas or dreams, but because accomplishing them was not feasible. I'm starting my fourth semester in college, and I've learned something about writing and physics-majoring: they don't mix well. In fact, they don't mix at all, and it's always writing that gets put on the backest of burners, because it's the one that won't be graded.

Last year, I didn't let it bother me. After all, I thought, I have the summer. But I shall have no such thing this summer; I'm going overseas from semester's end to semester's beginning, and writing times will be few and far between.

Thus, New Year's Day found me in tears because of a realization that broke my heart: twenty-fourteen was to be a year of no serious writing and no writing goals.

I don't even know what that looks like. I know that after I came to that conclusion, I became a chronic moper. "It is like I have shoved my writing into a box inside my heart," I told my dad. "And I cannot let it out because I cannot give it what it needs." He understands as much as anyone can; he is a musician.

It got so bad that I had to come to terms with it again {I had thought I was through}. Where I had formerly sworn off writing for the greater good, I now relented. And I think I have found the compromise:

1. I'm returning to my writing roots. Those minutes stolen away to imagine a scene, the carelessness of creativity, because no one's ever going to actually read this {don't laugh--that's how I wrote Those Who Trespass}, the utter ignorance of market trends and genres and what is acceptable and what is not. When I was in high school, I allowed myself to write anything I wanted, just to get better through practice. I need to get back to that place.
2. This year is an adventure. Writers need stimulation. They need to meet people and see new places and endure hardship and feel the wind on their face. Life is an exercise for the creative brain, and this shall be a year of triathalons.

So yes, you're reading this correctly: there is no forthcoming book. The wrong words, I know, for someone who just published. They are words that both crush me with disappointment and give me the wings of relief. Any words I write this year will be because I want to, not because I have to. This was not an easy decision. But it was the right one.

No, this is not goodbye! The blog will remain, don't worry. I'll still be here. I'll even still be writing! But I'm having to apply my epic overachievement skills to other things right now, so it will just be different. I'm not writing this blog post as an announcement, either. It's just another chronicle in the story. Because life is as much--more--of a story than words on a page, and it was meant to be lived to the full.

{And just so you know I'm not completely repressing myself, I've actually got something in the works right now. Will I finish it? Who knows. But I like it.}

What To Expect

Over Thanksgiving break, Those Who Trespass was available for free on Amazon Kindle. It was my first time to do such a thing, and I didn't know what to expect. I was ready to be happy with, you know, 5 or 10 downloads.

5 Days Later: 2298 free downloads

That in itself blew my mind. Then my {small} number of Amazon reviews doubled, including one five-star from lov2readinNC that almost made me cry from happiness:

"Lean, clean, well written and well edited. I read around 7 - 10 books a week and I slog through a lot of free kindle books that need extensive work. This isn't one of them. I prefer books that have well developed characters, a good and hopefully unpredictable plot, a little romance and that also avoid profanity and explicit sex. That can be a tough combination. This book acheives all that and more. While not explicitly Christian, themes of forgiveness in the face of seemingly unforgivable sins dominate. No pat or easy answers are given and the pain and grief of loss is poignantly portrayed. The author is a master of showing not telling. The dialogue flows smoothly. This book is a bargain for free. Snap it up and go along for the ride with Jenn and Clayton as they search for her missing brother and the truth. If you like Dee Henderson, DiAnn Mills or Kristen Heitzman, you will love this book. I sincerely look forward to more by this author."

Is. That. Not. The. Best. Thing. Ever? Way to make my day, luv2readinNC. Seriously.

After the promotion, I lowered the Kindle price to $2.99, just to see what would happen. It has good reviews from people who don't know me, I thought. Maybe good things will happen. Again, I had low expectations.

And once again, my low expectations were blown out of the water. Not in the thousands range, not close, but December's income is already significant to a poor, unemployed college student like myself. {It doesn't take much at all to be significant to a poor, unemployed college student, for the record.}

The goal of this blog has always been to be open and honest, a record of what to expect for those who follow in my footsteps. Since I'm self-published, I can do what I want, reveal what I want, say what I want. It's glorious, actually. {There's a huge part of me that has no desire to return to the whole traditional publishing race.}

So here is what to expect:

• A good book + free Kindle downloads =  good reviews
• Good reviews = paid downloads
• Lower prices + good reviews = more downloads
• More downloads = more money
• For what it's worth, in December Those Who Trespass has made more money with $2.99 downloads than it did in November with $4.99 downloads.
• Also, I have heard from various sources that the number of downloads fluctuates sometimes with no apparent reason. You are responsible for playing around with the price of your own book and analyzing your numbers yourself.

My life right now consists of switching between school websites, where my grades depress me, to the Kindle Direct Publishing site where I can see how many people have downloaded Those Who Trespass today. Also, the actual Amazon site, where reviews pop up at random. Reviews make me so happy, star count matters not! {If you've read TWT, you should leave an honest review, just so that I'll have something to bring a smile to my face during all this studying for finals, yeah?}

Excuses Are Well-Planned Lies

Today is Cyber Monday! You know, that day when all of us smart people who did NOT get trampled on Friday go shopping...from our laptops. It is a great idea, and now you can be a part of it! There are a ton of indie-books on SALE right now, ready for Cyber Monday wonderfulness! Those Who Trespass is one of them, yours for 20% the regular price (with code). Not to mention a terrifically nerdy giveaway that you do not want to miss. Check it all out right here!

note the weekend/weekday difference

Also, it's December. Which means it's not November. And no, I did not win National Novel Writing Month this year. I was eleven thousand words short. :( My pride was injured, but there is nothing else wrong with me. I wanted to so dearly to prove it could be won while in college! And I still think that's true, if I'd given it just a little more attention over the course of the month and not left the poor thing dormant during the weekdays.

But I did learn something very important: I do too have time to write while in college. Maybe I'm not up to NaNo speed, but I'm definitely not incapable.

"Excuses are well-planned lies." -- Dani Johnson

I remember what I thought the first time I heard that quote. "Not true!" I said. "I know excuses are wrong and not worth it, but they are, at least, true!

"Aren't they?"

Turns out, they are false. They are false statements that you agree with in order to live a comfortable life right now and cheat yourself of the life you want later. I used to think they were true, denoting a fact I would have to hurdle. You know, like, "I don't have time, so I must work to make time." But even that isn't quite right. The truth is: "I do have time, I'm just spending it on other things." Ouch.

I have NaNo to thank that I finally realized how not true my excuse was. And my thanks is genuine. Now I can return to writing, knowing that it is possible. Knowing that I can accomplish it. Knowing that the time I thought I didn't have actually did exist and was simply spent on other things.

Bam.

For You, For Others

FOR YOU:

• Those Who Trespass is currently FREE on Kindle (limited time, so download it now)!
• A super nerdy goodie giveaway right here: a wonderful Rafflecopter giveaway!

FOR FRIENDS & FAMILY: The paperback version of Those Who Trespass is 20% off!

Welcome to the Holiday Indie Book Sale, where all of your reading dreams become a reality. Or rather, your holiday shopping spree! You don’t have to look any further than these awesome books by awesome self-published authors for gifts to stuff your stockings. From Black Friday through the day after Cyber Monday, fill your shelves with paperbacks! And if the romantic/YA/suspense of Those Who Trespass isn't the right read for someone on your list, there are many other awesome books to choose from!

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Wonderful Experiences

Well, I decided to do something crazy.

I'm doing NaNoWriMo, also known as National Novel Writing Month. {What is it? An attempt to write a 50,000 word novel in 30 days.} I've done it before {twice}, but that wasn't while I was in college.

Reasons why:

• I had already been thinking that I needed to start writing again making time for it. {There's always time for something if you make time.}
• A young friend of mine emailed me for advice as she began her first NaNo foray.
• I had a story in mind that was shorter than most {most being 80K words}. A story I've actually been formulating for years. A story that was coming into its own.
• A school friend of mine was NaNo-ing, and I knew I was going to be jealous all month long.

And so I am NaNo-ing. I'm already a bit behind, but nothing that can't be fixed {especially after tomorrow's test}. I'm excited. Slowly, the passion that equals good writing is returning to me. {Especially after watching the film, Now You See Me. So brilliant of a script, that. So worth the watch. I am inspired.}

One of the curiously fun things about this is that I'm writing a new couple: Anne and Isaiah. I was surprised yesterday by a simple fact: they're not Jenn and Clayton. And it's awesome. I love Jenn. I love Clayton. But getting to slowly sink into another world {kind of}, with different characters that interact...differently...is a wonderful experience after spending what amounts to four years with Jenn and Clayton.

AND SPEAKING OF WONDERFUL EXPERIENCES: Aimee L. Salter {the critique partner brain behind my book and an amazing person all around} is releasing her book, BREAKABLE, today! I have read this book {twice} {and I will again when I hold the finished paperback in my hands}, and it is full of high stakes and mystery and romance and deep thoughts and absolute marvelousness {not to mention a stellar plot that twists and turns and leaves you guessing until the very end}. GO HERE NOW for all the awesome!

No Longer Totally Obscure

I already knew it was the sign of a great communicator to engage the opposite person in conversation. A "great conversationalist" is usually the person who just asks questions. But I have more incentive than ever, these days. What I do has become increasingly private.

When someone asks what I do, there are three possible answers and reactions, all accurate.

• I major in physics. Reaction: Oh, wow, you must be so smart. {Please inform my professors of this apparent fact.}
• I'm a worship leader. Reaction: Oh, wow, you must be so holy. {Well, yes, but only because Jesus gave me His holiness for free because He's awesome like that. Has nothing to do with anything I ever did.}
• I'm a writer, and I just published a book. Reaction: Oh, wow, you must be a person worth knowing. {Well, yes, but...I was worth knowing before.}

The third thing is what has me most perturbed. I've been writing since I was 11. I've been telling people that I write since I was at least 18, maybe even longer. And it's always been received with something more or less akin to, "That's nice, dear." People have gone on to like me for me. Sometimes they wanted to read my books. Sometimes they didn't. I didn't mind either way. People didn't take my writing seriously, and I didn't blame them, because I had nothing to show for it.

Now that I've self-published, they take it seriously. I am now someone who has done something, someone who was one of those "I write" people that has actually written. Suddenly, I am cool and important and worth knowing. It's a subtle shift, but it's there.

I'm not saying I'm Miley Cyrus famous or anything like that. I'm not even University of Texas famous. I'm not even famous. But I'm no longer totally obscure, and I kinda miss obscurity. There is something to be said for being...nobody. {Not really. God didn't make anyone to be nobody. Everyone is intentional.}

It's odd, adjusting to this new way of life. I tend not to mention the book when I meet people for the first time. Instead, I go the physics major route, am told how smart I must be, and wonder why my grades don't reflect the compliments. And whichever route I take, I am still meeting great friends, friends who see beyond what I've done and see who I am. There truly are many wonderful people in this world, many more than this cynical blog post would make it seem.

I am learning to embrace the spotlight that occasionally sweeps across my face. I am learning to steward the influence {the coolness} that this book has brought me. If I can continue to be myself, to grasp tightly to humility, to lead toward Jesus and be nothing but love, then I have succeeded. It's a difficult task, but one I'm honored to accept.

The Possible Answers

I take it back. I blog only on Mondays. I could write a long paragraph about why I thought Thursdays would work, but the end result is...Mondays alone.

I've been getting an interesting question lately. A question I don't in the least know how to answer.

"How's your book doing?"

Does no one realize the sheer number of possible answers to this question?

• {sassy i} Well, technically, I don't own a final-copy book of my own, so...the question is irrelevant.
• {sassy ii} The copy of my book belonging to my family is sitting on a shelf now that my mother has read it. So...getting dusty.
• {sassy iii} Last I heard, Jenn and Clayton's story had ended.

Of course, I know what people mean. They want to know if I'm on my way to becoming an author millionaire. I had not realized until now that normal people--people who don't feast on writing blogs--assume that a published book results in a significant income. News flash: it doesn't. Even if I had been published by a real publisher and not myself, the money wouldn't be all that much to write home about, so I hear.

But just because I know what they're really asking doesn't make the question any easier to answer.

• Rate of purchases/downloads has significantly declined since most of my family and friends have bought and loved it.
• I've sold ~50 books. Not exactly up to the expectations of most people.

The numbers don't surprise me {well, they do, but only in a positive I-have-such-amazing-friends-and-family sense}. I didn't promote Those Who Trespass much outside of my friends/family circle. Part of that was intentional, part of it was just because I frankly just didn't have time.

But just because the numbers don't concern me doesn't make it any easier to tell people how my book is doing. Because what they're really asking is, "How close are you to becoming a millionaire?" And my answer is sure to disappoint. I'm not disappointed, but I hate giving disappointing answers.

I'm honored that people ask and are interested. It truly makes my day to know that other people care about my writing journey. I'm just at a loss in how I should answer. If anyone has any advice or tips, feel free to share.

My Type of Fiction

Guess what! Today I am guest posting over at J. Grace Pennington's blog! I'm talking about my type of Christian fiction {not exactly "normal" Christian fiction}, and why I write it when I once swore I never would. So what are you waiting for? Go read it!

The Book Signing

they spelled my name right! win!

So. The book signing!

It's still hard to believe that it happened. I had a book signing. People have bought Those Who Trespass. People will read it.

So for those of you who couldn't attend, here was the order of events:

please ignore the odd expression
on my face :-/

it's a book!

• I talked. I think my talk went a little long, but maybe we can chalk it down to me having to start from the beginning? Future books won't have such a requirement...
• We ate cake. My insistence on a cake was mainly the fact that, ever since the technology came out, I've wanted a photo cake. This was a stellar opportunity...plus, this way, no one was eating my face.



concentrating...

• I signed. The best part about this was that I was signing my own name in my own books. I never dreamed...well, actually I did. But still. {The worst part is the fact that I wrote personal messages in each one. Please. Don't write personal messages when you're in a hurry and can't think straight due to ecstasy+stress. Bad idea. Those messages are the most uneloquent I've ever been. To those who have such a note, I apologize. But think of it this way, you have something incredibly unique, the like of which shall never be seen again.} 

my grandparents and florist aunt sent me
this lovely bouquet for the special day!
so pretty!

At the end of the day, I have run out of books in my possession. {I didn't run out of any at the signing, but there were just enough afterward to fulfill some other orders/intended gifts.}

And now it's over. I have bared my soul to the world.

And today, it's back to class. Oh, life...

Take A Sabbath

If you haven't heard yet, the paperback of Those Who Trespass is finally available on Amazon! And you can still get the Kindle version, as well.

In other news, I wrote over 2000 words yesterday. Not on the TWT sequel {it's a standalone novel, most definitely, but I have ideas for what comes afterward} some-other-super-secret-thing else. :) It's still so hard to get into the rough draft game again. I guess that difficulty never really went away while I worked on TWT revisions.

The reason I was able to write those words while being bludgeoned by college {three tests this week, yay!} was because I've made a diehard decision this semester to "take a Sabbath." I didn't do this in the spring, and the end-result was that I was exhausted spiritually and emotionally...and my grades didn't even show all the life I poured into them. So I thought I'd try something different this semester. Trial and error, right?

Every Saturday evening, sometime after 4pm, I stop. No more homework. No more studying. No more logistics of book signings. No more emails. And I keep it that way for 24 hours. A weird time for a Sabbath, I know, but it worked with my schedule. {I wanted to have a late evening as part of it, which nixes the "day off" idea.}

During those 24 hours, I relax. I turn on worship albums like this and tell my God how good He is. I get all the empty dishes out of my room and into the dishwasher where they belong. I watch Doctor Who {still trying to get myself into that show, but I'm trying} until I get tired of the dark and creepy side of it. I read {I finished Shadow and Bone this weekend; loved it}.

And sometimes, if I feel like it, I write. The kind of writing I do when I want to, not when I have deadlines looming. The writing that was why I fell in love with writing in the first place.

What about you? Do you make yourself stop to rest during the week? What do you do then?

The Long-Awaited Paperback

It's happened! It's here! The paperback is finally available!!!

Shelley Sly has all the details--and an interview including a host of with Those Who Trespass references--right here: http://bit.ly/16LStsu!

Good Thing I Don't Have Stage Fright

Last night, I had my first "speaking engagement." Wow. It feels so grown up to say that.

When I was in high school, I spent a year as a founding member of the a 4H club centered around backyard/egg-laying {as opposed to meat} chickens. It was a great experience for me, branching out to try new things, though at the end of the day, I realized that agriculture and chickens were not my strongest gifts. Anyway, when I was in it, there were 6 members plus me.

Last night, when I stood before them to tell my story of how I wrote Those Who Trespass, there were 23 members. {And I had only brought 18 book signing bookmarks.} It's a good thing I don't have stage fright.

In fact, I like being in front of people. Blame it on my firstborn status. I got over any and all stage-fright when I was in theater, and being a worship leader means that the stage is a natural extension of the rest of the room for me.

I wrote a rough draft of my speech, but I didn't bring it. Instead, I honed the points I had wanted to make and practiced as I drove the hour to my hometown. I sketched out the points, but, in the end, I did it noteless. Not because I don't like notes {who doesn't like notes?!}, but because notes and I have a complicated past. They tend to make me talk fast and keep referring to the paper. Which actually gets worse the more I practice, especially the talking fast part.

I spoke about writing and about the work it takes to pursue a dream. I talked about how I chose to work on my writing instead of spending those hours on Netflix. I invited questions. {First question: What's the title? Me: mental #facepalm}

It was an overall great experience. I enjoyed it, and it definitely solidified my suspicion that I love speaking in front of people. Hopefully I get to do that more in the future. :)

Book Signing

I'd like to take this blog post to officially announce my

BOOK RELEASE & SIGNING

Wimberley Village Library {Wimberley, TX}

October 5, 2013 {that's a Saturday} at 3 p.m.
More Information/RSVP on Facebook

{And yes, paperbacks will be available!}

Cool, yeah? I know a lot {most?} of you lovely readers don't even live in Texas, but I wanted you to know you're invited anyway. Because, you know, without you this book wouldn't exist.

I'm still trying to wrap my head around this whole idea. I don't have stage-fright {thank goodness}. In fact, I actually like being in front of people. But this whole 'what to say' thing has me a little bit stymied. Not to mention...how long do I say it?

Have you ever attended a book release or signing? What did you like best about it? What did you like least?

Things Are Now In Motion

Good news! I got my third-and-a-half proof early!!!! {You can read all about that drama in my last post. Was the pink hue my fault? Nope. But the shift was mostly my problem. Which I fixed.} Which means that something major happened yesterday.

I pressed the 'approve' button.

Super scary, actually. My book is in the works of being for sale. Now I just wait for it to be available on Amazon so that the world can buy it. My book. A book they can hold in their hands.

In fact, I'm already able to buy my own copies. I'm trying to figure out how many to purchase for my book release/signing. I don't want to buy too many to have extras...but I don't want people to leave empty-handed if I run out of books {best problem ever, though, I must admit}. Does anyone have experience with this? I'm looking at numbers between 20 and 50, and I...I just don't know.

Okay, it's 1:30 a.m. as I write this {thank you, college}, and I really, really need to go to sleep now. Sorry for the short post. Suffice it to say, Things are now in motion that cannot be undone.

Proofs & Paperbacks

As we go into the weekend, I thought it was about time for a Those Who Trespass paperback update. Not...that there's anything remarkable to update about.

A quick, 'How This Works' for those not familiar with the CreateSpace process:

1. Upload your interior {pdf} and exterior {graphic in pdf form}. Submit. 10 mins--10 hours {submitting is painless, but nailing down your files for submission can take some time, especially early on}
2. CreateSpace approves your interior and exterior. ~15 hours of waiting
3. Order a physical proof copy. 3-7 business days of waiting
4. Proof the physical copy. Make changes. ~varies, but should get shorter with each copy
5. Repeat process until you're happy with your proof.
6. Approve. Wait for book to be sale-able on Amazon. 2-7 days of waiting

I received my first proof copy on 8/21, my second on 8/30, and my third on 9/10. That third one was supposed to be the last. I received it and happily noted that my previous changes had turned out well. There were a few super-minor things I wanted to change to the cover {things so minor that I did not intend to order a proof copy to proof them}. Except...the cover...was pink. Not pink pink. But with a definite pink hue. And the cover graphic was shifted 1/8" to the right.

My worry was that these new errors were my fault. So I called CreateSpace, because I knew from all my research that manufacturing errors do happen. They were very nice. I'm impressed. They're sending me a second proof free of charge, so that I can verify whether or not it was a random manufacturing error. It's supposed to get here by Monday. It's very nice of them indeed.

But I'm still not done. And I'm looking at my watch and tapping my toe and thinking, I told people mid-September! Of course, it could be live next week, it's true. But it just feels like it's taking way too long.

So, the short answer to the great paperback question: it is coming. I promise. I promise, I promise, I promise. The best I can tell you: the official release date is October 5. Of course, it will be available on the Internet before then. {It better be. If it's not, there probably won't be any copies to buy at the release party, and that would be terribly inconvenient.} And when will it be available for purchase online? If I receive the third-and-a-half proof copy by Monday, and if the pink/shift was a manufacturing error, and if it shows up on Amazon within a week like it's supposed to, then it will be available to order on September 24. You're welcome. {That's almost harder to figure out than my physics homework.}

Comments, Messages, and Moments

Hi there! It's me again! Not that it hasn't been me as we've experienced the How To E-Book series, but you know how I like to chatter on, and it's all been a bit formal. Although I do remember some prouschetta. Anyway, it's time to chatter.

I HAVE A BOOK OUT! And it's...the weirdest thing! I mean, it's awesome, definitely, but people are now talking to me about my book. I don't bring it up. I mean, I didn't really bring up my writing much anyway to begin with {conversations usually go something like this: "I, uh, I write. I'm not published." Other people: "Oh. Okay."}, but now other people are bringing it up.

• So, I saw you wrote a book. Well, yes, I did, well, technically it's my 6th, but, yes. Yes, I did. {Don't worry. I stopped mentioning the '6' thing a long time ago.}
• I need help downloading your book! Absolutely, I will help you!
• Note for all you thinking of publishing to Kindle: People who aren't familiar with Kindle will download the sample and think they're downloading the book. I'm not really sure why. But you may want to make it clear in your family/friends emails that there is the 'Buy' button and the 'Sample' button.
• How's the book doing? I do not know how to answer this. {Are we discussing sales? The upcoming paperback? Its, um, health?} But I always come up with something.

And I get Facebook messages from friends! They tell me that they'll definitely be reading it again. They make my day by saying things like,

"OMG Clayton Ford #swoon."

And I just can't contain this happiness that people are joining me in the world of Jenn Alistor...not to mention enjoying themselves.

The comment that surprised me most was from a couple of college friends who noted that the book "looked dark." It's an absolutely true statement, and I've been waiting for it for some time, but I was 100% expecting it from church friends. Nope, no church friend has mentioned the subject matter {teenage murderer, come on!}. College friends get first prize on that one.

The best moment? When I was at a physics picnic--the Physnic, get it? Isn't it awesome?--and someone comes up and says, "I'm reading your book."

There is something about that statement that shocks a person, even when they technically know they have a book out. The person in question is a friend and a Facebook friend, but he's not someone I communicate with regularly. He hadn't commented on any of my book-ish things on FB before. I hadn't put him on my list of "friends who are dying to read this book and have told me so twenty times."

And he walks up and says, "I'm reading your book."

I couldn't stop smiling. In retrospect, I probably seemed more awkward than usual. Grinning and stammering like an idiot. I probably said, "Thank you," and "that's awesome" about twenty times. Each.

He said, "If somebody I know writes a book, I'm d**n well gonna read it."

None of my stammerings were going to match up to that, so I stopped talking and just kept smiling. Nobody smiles that wide for that long. Nobody except authors, I guess.

Author. That's going to take some getting used to. {I put it on my email signatures now, which means I see it half a dozen times a day. Still not used to it.}

How To E-Book: Kindle Resources

Now that the e-book of Those Who Trespass is out, I can give you a little insight into the process of creating an e-book for Kindle! I wish I could do long, drawn-out posts, but those are a bit dull to read...and I don't exactly have the time to write them. So instead of meals, we're going to have snacks. :) Good, appetizer snacky snacks. Brie and grapes and crackers today. And if wine is your thing, I hear it adds great things to the combination.




{Sorry for skipping out on you yesterday. I stayed up until 2am doing homework and the blog slipped my mind. :/ Yay, college.}

Kindle Resources

• Building Your Book for Kindle*
•  This is a free Kindle e-book, published by Kindle. It has, if not everything, then almost everything you need to know. Paragraph indents, table of contents, how to save your file, cover design tips, and answers to all your other niggling questions. Get it. Read it {it's not too long}. This is not an option.
• The Kindle Direct Publishing Support Forum 
• This is where you can go to get answers to the random questions that come up, as well as trouble-shooting. It's maintained by authors just like you, and many of them have been around the block a few times.
• Kindle Direct Publishing: Getting Started*
• Once you've read the e-book, come here and read everything. This is an overview of the entire process, from start to finish.

* Read these before you start! They're not optional. They're not something to skim. They're not already covered in this How To E-Book series. They're necessary. Take the time to read.

With that, the How To E-Book series is complete. I'm looking forward to the coming days, where I can talk about how it feels to have a book out, about authors, how this paperback would probably lose a race to a snail, my upcoming book release and signing, and how CreateSpace customer service rocks. But that will have to wait. 'Til next time!

Posts in the How-To E-Book Series
Kindle Resources {this post}
What Not To Do: Timing/Scheduling, Previewer, Pre-Ordering
Things You Didn't Think About: Pricing, Percentages, Descriptions, Sample Pages
Formatting Tips: Hard Returns, Paragraph Indentions, More Paragraph Spacing
Formatting Tips: Margins, Fonts, Justification, Paragraph Spacing, Tabs 
Formatting Tips: Heading Styles

How To E-Book: What Not To Do

Now that the e-book of Those Who Trespass is out, I can give you a little insight into the process of creating an e-book for Kindle! I wish I could do long, drawn-out posts, but those are a bit dull to read...and I don't exactly have the time to write them. So instead of meals, we're going to have snacks. :) Good, appetizer snacks. Cold cocktail shrimps with tangy-spicy cocktail sauce. Yum. {If seafood isn't your thing, we have little pizza bites, too.}

What Not To Do

• Upload your final Kindle version before formatting your print version.
• Why not? Because in the course of your final formatting for print, you'll end up doing editing, especially if you order proofs {which you should}. Which means that you'll have to go back into your formatted Kindle version to change things. You think you can keep track of all these changes, but you can't.
• Don't panic: Uploading doesn't take more than ten minutes, and you can upload a thousand of times before you actually submit the thing. But those "less than ten minutes" add up when you keep changing minor things because of the print version editing.
  
• Ignore the downloadable previewer. Once you've uploaded your formatted Kindle version to Kindle, you're given the option to use the online previewer and/or the downloadable previewer.
• Why not? The online previewer does some weird formatting things that make it difficult to pinpoint the reason. But you want to make sure you take the time to use the downloadable previewer because it gives more accurate results for more devices and has more options.
• How To: Download the previewer and install it like you would any other program/follow the directions. Then download the new book file from the Kindle page. It will be .mobi. Then open it in {downloadable} Kindle Previewer.
• Decide to do it in a week.
• Why not? Because things this important shouldn't and can't be done in a week, not well. And well is what makes you money.
• Exceptions: You have your story in its most final of versions. You have a cover. You have a description. Then, okay, maybe you can think about doing this over a few days. But I don't recommend it, especially if you haven't written your description yet. You want to give that thing some time!
• Halfway related: YOU CANNOT DO A PRINT VERSION IN A WEEK. PLAN A MONTH IN ADDITION TO YOUR KINDLE VERSION. {Some of the work will overlap. It's not a couple weeks of Kindle and then a month of print. Print takes time because of the proof copy shuffle...and the formatting is more painstaking.}
•   Worry about pre-orders.
• Why not? There is no such thing. There is no Amazon page for your book before you click 'submit.' There is a page {less than 24 hours} after. And that page is live and sell-able.

I'm watching my list of How To E-Book grow shorter and shorter. Sad, but good. I have so many more ideas for blog posts, so we'll be busy as the semester progresses! {So weird...I think in semesters now.} Once the paperback is out, we can do a series for that, too!

Oh! Quick announcement! Book Release & Signing: October 5, 2013. More info to follow.

Posts in the How-To E-Book Series
What Not To Do: Timing/Scheduling, Previewer, Pre-Ordering {this post}
Things You Didn't Think About: Pricing, Percentages, Descriptions, Sample Pages
Formatting Tips: Hard Returns, Paragraph Indentions, More Paragraph Spacing
Formatting Tips: Margins, Fonts, Justification, Paragraph Spacing, Tabs
Formatting Tips: Heading Styles

How To E-Book: Things You Didn't Think About

Now that the e-book of Those Who Trespass is out, I can give you a little insight into the process of creating an e-book for Kindle! I wish I could do long, drawn-out posts, but those are a bit dull to read...and I don't exactly have the time to write them. So instead of meals, we're going to have snacks. :) Good, appetizer snacks. I thought about having something fancy today, but then Aimee mentioned cheesy goodness in a comment, and I thought: Cheetos {don't judge me}. You know how they have bottomless ice tea at some restaurants? We have a never-ending bowl of Cheetos.

Things To Do {That You Didn't Think About}
You wrote your book. You formatted your book for Kindle. You're done, right?

Well, you could be. But I doubt you'd have many sales. Because there's a few things to do and think about that aren't actually part of the book writing process.

• How much of a percentage do you want from your e-book? 70% or 35%? There are benefits to the 35% choice, but none of them seemed worth it for fledgling authors. {But that's just me, though. You are responsible for your own money-making research and decisions.}
• What's your e-book's price? Kindle requires you to pick something within $2.99 and $9.99 {that may be specific to the 70% choice, I'm not sure}. Too little, and you lose value. Too much, and you lose customers. Good luck.
• The description. You need a blurb. {See this post for more on blurb creation.} Which is to say, you need to weave less than 150 words together to tell people what your book is about...and entice them to read it.
• But wait, you're not done! Got any reviews or accolades or contest winnings? You need to gather those together and put them in the same piece of text! {I recommend having at least one--but please, no more than 3 or 4--review. Get a friend to do it if you don't know anyone with "titles" that has read your book. It just feels better for a reader if someone else has read the story.}
• You may or may not want to take this opportunity to HTML format this piece of text {summary, accolades, etc...}. Find an online "html generator" {those are your Google search keywords, you're welcome} that will do it for you, if you can't. I can't say that the Kindle version will be formatted like this, but the CreateSpace version will, so you'll have to do it sometime.
• One more thing: if you plan on having an age limit disclaimer sort of thing, this is where that goes.
• Cover. Make sure it's legible in thumbnail size and comparable to other books in your genre.

What about sample pages/Look Inside? Do I have to plan those? No. Amazon does that on its own without your input.
What about an ISBN? This deserves its own post, and will probably get one, but the short answer is that for Kindle {this is Kindle-specific advice, not for Smashwords or anything else like that}, you don't necessarily need an ISBN and can get away without one.

Whew! That's a lot! I'm trying to keep these brief, for my own sake as well as yours, haha. Expect more on covers and the ISBN dilemma soon.

Oh, look, Cheetos!! {My fingers are orange...}

Posts in the How-To E-Book Series
Things You Didn't Think About: Pricing, Percentages, Descriptions, Sample Pages {this post}
Formatting Tips: Hard Returns, Paragraph Indentions, More Paragraph Spacing
Formatting Tips: Margins, Fonts, Justification, Paragraph Spacing, Tabs
Formatting Tips: Heading Styles