IWSG - The Good, The Bad, and Everything Else

It’s the first Wednesday of the month, time for

Alex J. Cavanaugh’s Insecure Writer’s Support Group.

I’ve been quite remiss for the last month or so, only dropping in for the IWSG when I clearly announced my return from a much-prolonged hiatus.  Seems habits are hard to break.  It’s more than that though.  It’s been rough for me lately.  Personal stuff.  My dad.  He has Alzheimer’s and had to be admitted to a care facility.  It’s for the best, especially for my mom, and I thought, hey, he deserves it; he’s treated everyone in his life like crap for as long as I can remember.  But…yeah…easier said than done.  My heart isn’t quite as hard as I thought it was.  Then bad went to worse, and he was hospitalized yesterday.  They think it’s a stroke.  Whatever it is, just like everything else, it’s not a solvable problem.  There’s no happily ever after to this story. 

And yet, every nugget of misery seems accompanied by a hint of happiness.  While I struggled with with my dad, I had some really good news come in.  My debut dark romantic thriller, The Mistaken, became a three-category finalist (best hero-heroine, best thriller, and best audiobook) in the eFestival of Words 2014 Best of the Independent eBook Awards.  It had to pass the peer nominations stage to get there, but now that it’s a finalist, it’s all up to public voting. 

And while you might have never heard of these awards before, winning, or even coming in second, can be very impactful.  My BFF, Lisa Regan, won in 2013 for Best Heroine and was the runner-up for Best Novel for her debut, Finding Claire Fletcher, and it’s gone on to be very successful, and Lisa now has a contract with Amazon Publishing’s Thomas and Mercer imprint.  This year, Lisa’s follow-up, Aberration, is a multi-category finalist, including Best Thriller, Best Villain, and I’ve Been Shameylaned (best twist).  How’s that for impressive? 

So I’m hopeful. Maybe something will come of this for me.  I could really, really REALLY use your help though.  The registration is a tad convoluted, not too bad, but the voting is super easy.  I’ll leave easy-to-follow instructions at the end to assist you should you want to vote.  Either way, I have a LOT of friends who’ve also finaled, many of whom you’ve heard of, like…

Alex J. Cavanaugh, Best Science Fiction, CassaStorm

Cassie Mae, Best YA & The Harvey Award, Reasons I Fell for the Funny Fat friend

Michelle Kemper Brownlow, Best NA & Best Villain, In Too Deep

Michael Infinito, Best Horror, 12;19 & I’ve Been Shameylaned, In Blog We Trust

Carrie Butler, Best Series, The Nexus Series, & Best NA, Strength

And some you might not have heard of, but should definitely check out, like…

MK Harkins, Best NA, Best Sweet Romance, & Best Villain, Intentional

Julie A Richman, Best Romance, Searching for Moore

JB Hartnett, Best Erotica, Inky

Kristine Cayne, The Harvey Award, Deadly Addiction

Dana Mason, Best Romance & Best Mystery/Suspense, Dangerous Embrace & Best Hero, Precious Embrace

And before you think anyone has any category wrapped up, think again.  We’ve got two long months of public voting to endure, so each and every vote helps every single one of us.  I know I’d appreciate your vote if you have a moment.  Thanks in advance for your support!

Instructions to register and vote:

1. Go to: eFestival of Words.com

2. Click ‘Register’ and fill out the form.

3. Confirm your account: To pass validation, click on the survey question (typically a benign question about your car or income,) then type the revealed, easy CAPTCHA into ‘Your answer’.

4. Ignore the sponsor offers and click ‘Submit’. You are now registered and may login

5. After logging in, click best thriller  

6. Select 'The Mistaken, by Nancy S. Thompson’ then click 'Submit vote'. You’ll receive a confirmation.

7. Repeat for best audiobook & best hero-heroine

IWSG: OY!

It’s the first Wednesday of the month.

Time for Alex J. Cavanaugh’s Insecure Writer’s Support Group.

So, yeah, I forgot to post my IWSG piece.  Or almost forgot.  I remembered this morning.  But, UGH!  I just can’t seem to get with the program after a lengthy hiatus.  Now, in my defense, I did go through another health scare this week, just on Monday, in fact, but the biopsy came back clear yesterday afternoon, so I have no real excuse, except to say I was a bit preoccupied.  So here’s my problem…

How do you all do it?  How do you manage to write the great American novel, publish, market, work, attend your family, AND blog?  No matter how hard I try, I just can’t seem to fit it all in.  I keep reminders on my phone, but I usually end up just moving the reminder closer and closer to the actual event until I miss it altogether. 

I attended an event last night in Seattle with my dear friend, Jennifer Hillier.  It was a bust, basically a sales pitch by Amazon on self-publishing, which annoyed me since I knew it all already because I just self-pubbed my second book a month ago. But I didn’t mind.  I got to spend some quality girl time with my girl, Jenny.  I was supposed to write my IWSG post when I got home though.  And I didn’t.  It slipped through.  Again. 

My life has changed so much in the last year or so.  I’ve learned a lot and met many awesome people, but I really miss my homies in Bloggyland.  I’m trying hard to get back in the groove.  I’m hitting most of my targets.  And yet, I still missed this one.  It’s aggravating.  It’s disappointing.  It’s embarrassing.  And I apologize for not properly prioritizing.

By the way, my debut, The Mistaken, will be on sale for 99 cents starting tomorrow, June 5^th, and running through June 10^th.  So go pick yourself up a cheap thrill ride!

IWSG - I'm BAAA-AAAACK!

It’s the first Wednesday of the month, time for
Alex J. Cavanaugh’s Insecure Writer’s Support Group!

Wow, it’s been so long, and I’ve missed you all SO much during my rather lengthy hiatus, but it was unavoidable and proved to be very valuable time spent.  The biggest news to come out of my prolonged absence?  

I published my second novel!

Now, this was no easy feat. Once I signed with a small press for my first title, The Mistaken, I was excited to get started on the sequel. Unfortunately, the stars don’t often align and I was disappointed when my publisher closed to all submissions due to the tough economy. That sidetracked me on many levels. I had to take up ALL the slack on promoting my first book while trying to focus on finishing the second, another dark romantic thriller called Leverage. And since it’s a sequel, trying to sell it to another publisher seemed unlikely, so I jumped into the indie pool and self-published Leverage. 

Of course, that’s no easy task when you’re a novice with no extra money. At least, as an editor myself, I knew that aspect was pretty much under control, though I did have an editor friend of mine give it a once over. But I had to do all the formatting myself. Now, for the paperback, it was no problem, but the ebook was something else altogether. I didn’t want to just put my baby through a grinder. I wanted it properly indexed and validated across all venues, so doing all that code stuff was a tad daunting.

Next, the cover! I had commissioned original artwork, but the timing didn’t work out, so I went the stock photo route and prayed Carrie Butler at Forward Authority Design Services could help me out, and boy did she ever! Just look at this puppy! Obviously, this is the paperback cover. The ebook consists of the front portion only.

Isn't it Purty?!!

I seriously couldn’t be happier. Carrie Butler produced exactly what I asked for and in record time, which was important because, while I had said I would launch May 20^th so it would coincide with my first blog tour, I needed to release on Amazon Kindle by May 1^st if I wanted to enter Kindle Book Review’s 2014 Best Kindle Book Awards. And WHEW, I made it!

While I do have to spend some time this week listing it on Kobo and Barnes & Noble, I feel pretty good. The early reviews are outstanding and, so far, I have a perfect 5-star rating on Amazon.  Even The Mistaken still rates 4.6 stars on 115 reviews. I’m doing okay and look forward to my first tour in a few weeks. And hey, if you’re interested in joining the tour, Book Plug Promotions has prepared this Google Doc for sign-ups. I hope it’s still open, but I’m not entirely sure. I do have another coming up August, so if you’re interested in that one, contact Nazarea Andrews at Inkslinger PR. 

Okay, you might be wondering what my point is here. Well, as I’ve lamented here before, I find all this publishing stuff, especially the marketing, immensely intimidating, but, with the help of my, many of whom I’ve met here, I’ve more than just muddled through. I still have a long way to go, but, geez, if I can do it, anyone can!

IWSG: Success!

It’s the first…er…second Wednesday of the month.

Time for Alex J. Cavanaugh’s Insecure Writer’s Support Group.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

It’s been a very busy time for me lately.  I finally finished my second book, Leverage, the sequel to my first, The Mistaken, and I  must say, even though I haven’t gotten a whole lot back yet from my CPs (it’s only been a couple days after all), I do feel pretty good about it.  What they have said is they can’t put it down, so I’m feeling pretty solid.  No rookie mistakes this time around.  And where most of my reviewers called The Mistaken a rollercoaster, Leverage is  more of an amped-on-steroids rocket ride. 

Speaking of The Mistaken, November was a rather dreary month for sales.  Most all of my author friends had the same complaint, so I felt in good company.  But I decided it was time for a shot to the arm, so I placed it on sale for 99¢ for five days in early December to celebrate turning 50. 

Prior to that, I’d applied for a very expensive BookBub ad to run on the 4^th day of my sale and was accepted, but it was well worth the price.  The Mistaken went as low as #87 overall out of all Amazon Kindle ebooks.  I made several bestseller and top-rated lists and have managed to hold on to two of them so far.  And while it’s slowly creeping back up in rank, it’s still in a nice, comfortable range, so mission accomplished! 

Also very exciting, The Mistaken audiobook was finally released by Cherry Hill Publishing and can now be found on Amazon, Audible, and iTunes. 

My point to all this?  Well, in this rather sucky business of publishing, it’s always an uphill battle and can be downright depressing at times.  But don’t give up.  Figure out how to deal with it and move forward.  There are a lot people out there in the same boat or who’ve experienced the same thing and have managed to pull through it.  Ask them for advice.  I bet they’d be only too willing to help out.  That’s how I was able to experience success last month.  I’ve found that all of my author friends are very Pay-It-Forward people.  It’s how we stay sane in an industry that will eat you alive if you’re not willing to play. 

IWSG: Holding On

It’s the first Wednesday of the month.

Time for Alex J. Cavanaugh’s Insecure Writer’s Support Group.

When times get tough, I latch on to the smallest of things to help me through, to make me feel better until things actually get better.  That’s the way it’s been for the last three weeks or so.  Sales are sluggish to the point of being non-existent at times.  It’s hard to remain optimistic when I see that everyday.

But amidst it all, there is always something that seems to brighten even the darkest of my professional days.  Yes, sales are lagging recently, but I just got word that my audiobook will be launched the week of Christmas.  It will go on sale first at Cherry Hill Publishing then go live on Amazon right after that, then on to Audible and iTunes shortly thereafter.  Seriously, I can’t express how exciting that is for me.  In fact, you can sample the audiotrailer here if you’re interested.

And while, being traditionally published, I don’t have much control over my own book, my publisher has agreed to a 99¢ sale on The Mistaken from December 6^th through the 9th, so I’m optimistic things will improve on that front.

To top it all off, tomorrow, December 5^th, is my birthday, but not just any birthday.  It’s my 50^th.  A half century.  A whole new demographic.  I’m not sure if that’s good or bad, if I should party or cry, but I can tell you, my friends and family have already or are planning to make tomorrow a very special day.  What more could I possibly ask for?   

Oh, yeah, one last thing, if you're interested, I'll be over at Dauntless tomorrow, December 5th with a post on The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly of the publishing business, so stop on by and say hi!  

IWSG: In Loving Arms

It’s the first Wednesday of the month.

Time for Alex J. Cavanaugh’s Insecure Writer’s Support Group.

I’m gonna keep this relatively short and sweet today.  I learned a good lesson Monday.  You see, I went like five or six days straight without an ebook sale on Amazon, the one place where I can track my progress, or lack thereof.  I’ve learned over the last year not to get all bent out of shape when I get a bad review, and luckily, I haven’t had very many to react to.  But when my Amazon sales rank skyrockets, I get worried.  When it soared to the upper reaches of heaven on Monday, of all days, I downright panicked.

I reached out via Facebook, and many of my friends took my hand, offering support and a shoulder to lean on.  But I also encountered a few unexpected angels up there in heaven.  They rallied around me, told me how much they loved my book, how skilled they thought I was, but they went even a step farther.  They formed a street team, a group of loyal fans, friends, and followers who’ll spread their love of my book using various forms of social media.  Then they did, they spread.

And then today, I saw that my wicked streak had finally broken.  Now, I don’t know if they had anything to do with that shake-up, just like I don’t know what caused the slowdown in the first place, if it’s indicative of how things are going right now, which seems the case according to many of my author friends, or just an anomaly.  Either way, it doesn’t really matter.  What matters is, I had the loving arms of some amazing people to hold me together.

So that’s my message.  We authors are already a rather sensitive, insecure bunch, so if you’re putting yourself out there, make sure you surround yourself with folks who will catch you when you stumble, will bolster you up when your confidence sags, will nudge you when your afraid to go any further.  With a year already behind my launch, I’m usually the nudger to my lesser experienced friends, but I’m not too proud to acknowledge when I need help and to accept it when it’s offered.  Honestly, I’d never make it without that.  

KEEP YOUR FRIENDS CLOSE!

IWSG: Jaded

It’s the first Wednesday of the month, time for

Alex J. Cavanaugh’s Insecure Writer’s Support Group.  

First off, congrats and thanks to Alex and his admins—Joy Campbell, Michelle Wallace, Joylene Nowell Butler, Susan Gourley/Kelley, L. Diane Wolfe, and Lynda Young—for putting the new IWSG blog page together.  It looks great!  And it reminds me how grateful I am to have so many writer friends in the blogosphere, even if I haven’t been around much lately.

Truth is, I would never have enjoyed the success I’ve been gifted with had it not been for my many, many virtual friends.  More than anything, I love when I have the occasion to actually meet one of those who’ve previously been contained within the boundaries of my computer monitor. 

 Such was yesterday, when I finally met an author friend of mine, someone I’d connected with over the summer via Facebook.  And after much cajoling, she finally gave me permission to read her book.  Yeah, long story, but it comes down to…well…insecurity.  After reading my book, she’d put me on an absurdly high pedestal and feared I might not like her debut novel, a self-published contemporary romance and a step away from my usual go-to genre.

This got me thinking about how critical I’ve become lately.  It’s certainly not intentional, more like a hazard of my new professions, writing and editing, and something I’m working hard to rein in so I can just sit back and enjoy reading books like everyone else.  Granted, I’m still of the mind that every author, no matter how they find their way to publication, should do their research and work hard to hone their craft before hitting that final button.  But what’s most important—and what I’ve lost sight of—about any story is the…well…the story, not the grammar or punctuation or any of those things that have been distracting me lately.  It all goes back to the story.

 So I’m vowing to get back to my reader roots and just…you know…read!

What about you, my writer friends, have you found yourself more critical since venturing down the path toward publication?  If so, dontcha just hate that?!

 

Oh yeah, one last thing…  I was recently invited to join a remarkable group of authors on Facebook and here on Blogger, where we’ve launched a brand new blog.  We are called Dauntless, and I invite you all to drop on by and say hello.  I think you might recognize an old friend or two lurking about!

IWSG: It's a(n almost) Brave New World!

It’s the first Wednesday of the month.

Time for Alex J. Cavanaugh’s Insecure Writer’s Support Group.

I heard some terrible news today, that another small press has bit the dust.  Distressing since I’m friends with a few of their authors.  I’m sure they’re upset, angry, and confused.  I know this because I went through something sort of similar not too long ago.

No, my publisher hasn’t closed their doors, but they aren’t accepting any new submissions either, which means I can’t submit my follow-up novel, and since it’s a sequel, no other publisher will even consider it without having published the first book.  As you might imagine, I was a bit freaked out.  I was offered my rights back if I wanted them, but that freaked me out even more. 

So I sat back, pondered my situation, and determined my path.  I would see my contract out with my publisher, who, like me, was happy I chose to stay on, but I would go ahead and self-publish my second book, the sequel titled LEVERAGE.  And later, if necessary, I'll re-brand and self-pub my debut, as well.

Two years ago, I never would have considered self-publishing.  It still felt like the industry’s illegitimate child.  Sure, in some ways, it still is.  I mean, I’ve read a few self-pubbed titles lately that should never have seen the light of day in their current state of un-edited-ness, but still, even with all the errors, they're garnering tons of 5-star reviews.  Most readers don't seem to care as long as the story is good.  I’ve learned a lot about self-publishing this year, most of it from my many self-pubbed author friends, and most of them are doing phenomenally well.  It's incredibly encouraging and very exciting!

At this point, I’m not in it for the money.  I’m just looking to build an audience that will grow with me over time.  I’m gaining that audience with my first book, and they’re asking for a sequel, so self-pubbing is the way to go for now.

Does it scare me?  Hell, yes!  

I’m no Carrie Butler, writer/designer/marketing wiz extraordinaire, but I am a DIY gal, so, with a little help where I need it, I’m gonna get this bad boy out there. 

My point?  

Well, if I, the woman committed to traditional publishing, can muscle past the uncertainty and dive into self-publishing with excitement instead of dread and fear, then anyone can, including these authors who now find their books without a home. 

So many of the current bestsellers on Amazon are self-published titles.  That’s why the Big 6—er, I mean, the Big 5—are scrambling for survival.  Anyone with a good story can put it out there, and at a far cheaper price, which is appealing to the ferocious appetites of today’s readers. 

It’s a brave new world out there, or almost anyway.  And I’m going to grab it.  My fear is gone and my attitude adjusted.  I can do this.  So can you!  

__________

On a side note, after only two months, my Facebook author page has nearly 1000 likes, and so, to celebrate, I'm holding a 1000 Likes Giveaway, with dozens of prizes (ebooks, signed paperbacks, and swag) from 31 authors, including bestsellers.

Just go to my Facebook author page or click on the Rafflecopter below.
There are a ton of ways to enter!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

IWSG - Excuse Me While I Take Another Breath

It's the first Wednesday of the month.  Time for

Alex J. Cavanaugh's Insecure Writer's Support Group.

In addition to being on a blogging hiatus, I'm also on vacation, so no real IWSG post from me today.  But if I were to post on my newest insecurity, it would be that I have absolutely no time anymore.  

I want to blog, but I always seem to have some marketing project or chore to see to.  In between those pesky promo duties, I have to earn money.  I do that by editing, which is great, but also gets in the way of my critiques.  

That probably sounds like I have it backwards to you since the editing nets me money and critiques do not.  That's true, but critiquing is a very important part of being a writer.  It's how I learned most of what I now know.  And, more importantly, it's how I give back.  But I just can't seem to find the balance.  

I'm wondering how you all manage that. Any advice is greatly appreciated.  

And I promise to be back next month for a real IWSG post.

I actually have a lot to tell you guys!

IWSG - The Backlash of Plagiarism

It’s the first Wednesday of the month.

Time for Alex J. Cavanaugh’s Insecure Writer’s Support Group.

And this month, I’m one of Alex’s minions and

will be visiting as many ISWG posts in my assigned section as I can.

Sooooo…I had all these good things I wanted to share regarding my progress on Amazon.  With the assistance of a well-liked promoter who’s helping me spread the word of a forthcoming event, I was able to reach the attention of a particularly influential book blogger who then subsequently posted her intention to read my book on both her Facebook page and my book’s Goodreads page.  

As a result, I enjoyed a profusion of GR TBRs and Amazon sales, and my rank dropped to its lowest level ever in the mid 4-digit arena.  That was an amazing moment for me.

But then this thing exploded on the Internet at about the same time and kind of sucked the wind from my sails. 

Seems there was a new contemporary romance released on Amazon and Barnes & Noble called Amazingly Broken.  It was all the rage and immediately became an Amazon bestseller.  Shortly thereafter, romance book blogger,  Jane Litte of Dear Author, noticed some passages in this new book that sounded eerily similar to two other books she’d read, reviewed, and loved—Tammara Webber’s Easy and Jamie McGuire’s Beautiful Disaster.

Of course, the online book blogging community went ape over this revelation, with good reason, I imagine, as they take a great deal of their time to read and review books for many indie and small press authors who otherwise get very little publicity.  The trouble was, these bloggers, especially Jane Litte, who felt somehow betrayed even though they’d received the books for free and enjoyed it enough to give it 5 stars, immediately became suspicious of all indie and small press authors and proceeded to conduct a witch hunt of sorts, calling out authors who use pen names or don’t use headshots for their avatars as probable fakes and plagiarists. Funny thing is, Jane Litte is a pen name, too.  

While I understand their anger at feeling duped and am just as outraged by this brazen incident as they are, the backlash their reactions are having on indie and small press authors is significant.  Many are now being frozen out, or made to prove who they are and that they actually wrote what they’re claiming is their book.  So now these bloggers, who proudly proclaim to support and promote indie authors, are lashing out at them.  And just as word and reaction to this event has spread like wildfire among the blogging community, so has the fear this backlash has created spread among us hard-working, honest, and legitimate authors.

Compliments of GR user Candace

As if it wasn’t already hard enough to find and convince a highly respected and heavily followed book blogger to consider reading, reviewing, and promoting our books, now we have to prove we are legitimate, all because one wannabe “writer” decided to take the lazy way and steal the work of others.  While I am highly irritated at those bloggers who lashed out so hatefully, especially Jane Litte who continues her march on this witch hunt, I also have an issue with this fake author, Jordin Williams, who's making it hard on the rest of us.  But that’s as much time and effort I’m willing to give these thieves and haters.  Okay, rant over.