Month: March 2014

This morning I’m participating in the Baton Blog Hop, a blog relay which is jumping around the writing-related portions of the Internet. I was tagged  by the fabulous Kerry Schafer, author of the BETWEEN series (the second novel, WAKEWORLD, released in February, and if you haven’t read Kerry’s novels, you really should). My part in the hop is to answer four questions about my writing style, and then tag another author who will answer the same four questions on her blog next Monday (and no, I’m not being sexist here–the author I’ve chosen to tag is actually female). And now, on with the

Today, the Wednesday blog feature introduces a new series on author marketing – but this isn’t your typical marketing “seminar.” Like all of my publishing legal and business blog series, this one will address not only marketing techniques, but legal and business issues that go with them. This new series will cover multiple aspects of author marketing, business planning, and “public voice,” with an eye to helping authors at all points on the publishing spectrum. Unlike the previous series, Publishing 101, which targeted mostly traditionally-published authors, this series is designed for authors on any publishing path. The threshold question for authors

The trip to Monterey is over, but the memories (and the photographs) remain. On Friday morning, I joined a lineup of 44 debut authors to introduce ourselves and our novels to a lovely crowd at the debut author breakfast. While there, I met August McLaughlin, whose debut thriller also came out this past year. Our actual meeting was funny: I recognized August in the buffet line, because we’d just become Facebook friends the night before – thanks to mutual friend Jenny Hansen, who introduced us in the virtual realm.   August is every bit as lovely in person as she

I’m off to the Left Coast Crime Conference in Monterey this week, so the blog may be quiet from now until next Monday. I’ll try to post updates when I can, because Left Coast Crime is a fabulous readers’  conference filled with fun people and mystery-related shenanigans, and I’d love to share them with you! If YOU are at Left Coast Crime this weekend, I hope you’ll find me and say hello. I’m speaking on a panel Thursday morning called “Unusual Sleuths: Your Day Job is What?” and also at the Debut Authors’ Breakfast on Friday morning. You’ll also find me

I’ve heard it said that everyone can be Irish on St. Patrick’s Day. All it takes is a love for the  Emerald Isle. I hope that’s true, because I’ve always loved Ireland. It’s an enchanting country, where myths seem closer to real than elsewhere. Ireland is a wonderful place for authors, regardless of experience level, genre, or style. When it comes to inspiring landscapes, it can’t be beat. Which is why, this morning, I’m giving another mention to Ireland Writer Tours – a tour company offering three great writing tour/retreats in Ireland this summer, featuring published authors, fabulous tours, writing

Please welcome author and independent editor Tammy Salyer, for the sixth in her ongoing series of guest posts:  Treat your writing like a passion, but treat your novel like a business. Week Six: Learn how to market and promote your novels You’ve done it. You have achieved a dream—maybe one that was lifelong, or perhaps more spur-of-the-moment, but an achievement to be commended for. Take a minute and think about that. Thousands of people want to write a novel. Of those, only hundreds begin, and of those, fewer still ever get beyond crafting a very long, wordy file that pulses