My 200th Post!

Today is my 200^th post!

I remember when I started blogging 2 years ago, how I had no followers, no one who was interested in a thing I had to say, nobody I’d connected with.  I was just a newbie writer with an untidy manuscript, big dreams, and very little knowledge.

Today, I’ve achieved my dream of being traditionally published and  have managed to learn way more than I thought possible, I have 1000 folks a week who are interested enough to drop by (though I’ve no idea why), I have a combined 572 followers but have connected with thousands of others, mostly writers and authors. 

I definitely feel like I’ve accomplished something.  And if nothing else, I’ve made some meaningful friendships, some which go beyond this blog.

Still, after the Re-introduce Myself Blogfest, I had quite a few people say they wished I’d shared more personal information.  Well, I’m not adverse to that, so here are a few tidbits you might not know:

• I just had my first live radio interview last Saturday on LA Talk Radio.  You can listen to it using the tab at the top of my blog or by clicking here.  I had a good time and no one could ever accuse me of not having anything to say!

• I love to watch TV (Revenge, Scandal, Suits.)  My guilty pleasure is Spartacus.  I hate all sitcoms except Modern Family.

• I play classical piano.

• I’ve spent the last 25 years raising sled dogs (Siberian Huskies and Alaskan Malamutes.)

• I first met my husband 31 years ago when he was 15 and I was 17.  When we got together a year later, it was a huge scandal. 

• We have a 28-year-old daughter who was adopted privately (you can read more about that here,) and an 18-year-old son, now in college. 

• I taught my son to read before he turned 3 years old.

• I’ve lived all over the US:  Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Jacksonville, Indianapolis, Colorado Springs, Waikiki, the Bay Area, and Seattle’s Eastside.

• I’m an interior designer, but I don’t decorate.  I work on the technical side, using CADD to produce working drawings and construction documents.  I’m also an architect.

• I used to sing competitively.

• I’m the classic Catholic combination of half Irish and half Italian, so don’t piss me off!

• I have OCD with “pathologic grooming behaviors” and an obsession with even numbers.

• I love fast high-performance sports cars, BMWs mostly

• I seem to get along with men much better than with women.

• I love to ski but am too afraid after busting my ankle up years ago.

• The Mistaken just listed at #79 on Amazon’s Top Rated in Romantic Suspense based on customer reviews!   Check it out!  

After 5+ years, I’m finally starting to get back on my feet financially, but, with a kid in college, I still don’t have the disposable income to give away Amazon gift cards.  I can, however, give away free copies of my ebook as a way of celebrating my 200^th post. 

So, if you’re interested, let me know in the comments below before midnight 2/25, and I’ll enter your name into a raffle. Using Random.org, I’ll pick 5 interested winners and post their names next week.

And thanks for your support over the last 2+ years and 200 posts!

Two more quick notes:

I’m always looking for bloggers to review The Mistaken. If you’re a blogger or book reviewer, there are still a few slots open at the end of March for my Partners In Crime Book Tour.  This is a popular book tour company, so if you’re looking for a little exposure for your blog, feel free to sign up using the link above or by emailing Gina@PartnersInCrimeTours.net.  She’ll send you a free copy of my book and ask you to choose a date to post a review. 

Lastly, it’s time for another W4WS (Writers for Writers) campaign.  This month’s featured authors are Gwen Gardner and Melissa Bradley.  Drop by their blogs today or tomorrow, grab a tweet or two, and post them to your Twitter account with the #W4WS hashtag, and help make readers aware of their books by sharing their links.    

  

The Writers4Writers Debut Campaign & More!

The big day is finally here!  Well, actually, I'm a few hours early, but I have friends on the other side of the world, so I thought I'd get started.  And really, it's a two-fer, at least for me, so before I get started on the Writers4Writers campaign, I wanted to remind you that Thursday December 6th is launch day for Lisa Regan’s debut novel, Finding Claire Fletcher I’ll be conducting an interview with Lisa on Monday 12/10, but head on over to her place for details on her tour, giveaway, and prizes!  Don’t miss it!

Now, for my big news…

Today marks the debut campaign of Writers4Writers.

Hosted by Stephen Tremp, Mary Pax, C.M. Brown, and Christine Rains, this group’s mission is to:

• Help writers bring awareness of their book(s) to tens of thousands of new people
• Help writers reach Amazon Top 100 in at least one category (i.e., suspense, free, whatever)
• Increase sales of their book(s) after the promo is over
• Drive new traffic to their blog and increase following
• Create verbal and viral buzz

In a nut shell, the spotlighted author—this week it’s me and my book, The Mistaken—will be promoted via Twitter and Facebook.  I’ve posted pre-written Tweets below. At your convenience, simply copy and paste whichever Tweets you prefer into Twitter.

Or go to #W4WS and Retweet other Tweets.

Imagine, a hundred bloggers over a few days, Tweeting and sharing links for the featured books, reaching potentially tens of thousands of new people!  I know I’m excited, and goodness knows, I can use the help. 

So choose your Tweet below and have at it.

I’ve arranged them by categories:

Stephen’s Tweets:

• The Mistaken is a first-rate thriller ~Kevin O’Brien, New York Times Bestselling Author http://ow.ly/fMJ12 #W4WS #Download #read Please RT

• The Mistaken is a fast-paced and emotionally gripping thriller http://ow.ly/fMJdD #W4WS #book #ebook #story #amreading Please RT!

• The Mistaken is a deliciously slow burn that builds to a ferocious crescendo http://ow.ly/fMJsX #W4WS #fiction #thriller Please RT!

• Nancy S. Thompson’s The Mistaken: the hell of revenge, the hope of redemption http://ow.ly/fMJDQ #W4WS #novel #Kindle #ebook Please RT!

Tweets from reviews:

• Amazon review for @NancySThompson's The Mistaken: “Fast-paced & wildly entertaining” http://ow.ly/fKeC3 #W4WS #ebook #amreading Please RT!

• Amazon review 4 @NancySThompson's The Mistaken:“Wow! I was completely hooked from page one!” http://ow.ly/fKfcw #W4W  #amreading Please RT

• Amazon review 4 @NancySThompson's The Mistaken: “Total excitement from start to finish.” http://ow.ly/fKeMO #W4WS #Kindle #ebook Please RT

• Amazon review 4 @NancySThompson's The Mistaken:“Wow! I was completely hooked from page 1!” http://ow.ly/fKfcw #W4WS  #amreading Please RT!

• Amazon review 4 The Mistaken: “A dark & twisty plot. Great first book by this new author. More please!" http://ow.ly/fRDEz #W4WS Please RT

Tweets with quotes:

• "I was no longer a man simply broken. I was destroyed."The Mistaken http://ow.ly/fKeg6 #W4WS #thriller #Kindle #ebook #amreading Please RT

• “It was the saddest look I’d ever seen in a man’s eyes & I knew I was the cause.” The Mistaken http://ow.ly/fKeuL #W4WS #ebook Please RT!

• “At the sight of her, months of rage & bitter loneliness blazed to fiery life.” The Mistaken http://ow.ly/fKfX8 #W4WS #Kindle Please RT!

• “I faced down every facet of the monster I’d become & vanquished him forever.” The Mistaken http://ow.ly/fKeAN #W4WS #Kindle Please RT!

Bonus Tweets:

• He doesn’t know her, but he’ll find her & when he does, he will make her pay ~The Mistaken http://ow.ly/fKe8X #W4WS  #Kindle Please RT!

• The Mistaken by @NancySThompson A psych-thriller w/ great reviews, fast-paced page-turning action http://ow.ly/fKe2D #W4WS #ebook Pls. RT

Thank you all so very, very much for your support!

I absolutely could not do this without you! 

If you're viewing this in its web version, click on the Goodreads Book Giveaway on the right sidebar to enter to win a signed copy of The Mistaken or click here if you're on a mobile device

And don't forget to head on over to Lisa Regan’s place for details on her tour, giveaway, and prizes!

Finding Claire Fletcher:

Amazon (Paperback)

Barnes & Noble (Paperback)

Amazon (e-book)

Barnes & Noble (e-book)

IWSG: Reflections, Frustrations, Gratitude, & Advice

It’s the first Wednesday of the month.

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

Today is my birthday, the last before I hit the cringe-worthy half-century mark, and here I sit, six weeks passed  The Mistaken’s debut, and I’m feeling a little…oh, I don’t know… deflated, perhaps.  I know, this is a marathon, but still, the momentum has eased and I’m working hard to regain it.

Honestly, I didn’t know what to expect following the launch of my book, either from me, or from the book itself.  What I’ve learned is something I’ve heard many times but never truly took to heart: 

An author needs to connect with readers.

That probably seems fairly obvious, but I’ve spent most of my time connecting with other writers.  This was done out of necessity, you see, to learn all I needed to someday get published.  But that journey went a bit faster than I anticipated, and I didn’t take the proper time to make more connections, the kind I should’ve made in order to help sell my book.  Writers make great friends and give wonderful support and advice, but, for the most part, they're not really buyers.  Readers are buyers.

I could blame it on my genre, talk about how hard it is to break into anything that’s not romance or YA, but that’s only partly true and, frankly, comes off as whiny.  And I’m tired of whining.  It doesn't help a dream come true.  So now it’s time to buckle down and make those reader connections. 

I’m not quite sure how to do that, but tomorrow, Writers4Writers, the group led by Stephen Tremp, Mary Pax, C.M. Brown, and Christine Raines, will be lending me a hand and featuring me and The Mistaken on its debut campaign.  Participants will join in and help bring awareness to my novel and hopefully increase sales, as well as drive new traffic to my blog, increase my following, and create a verbal and viral buzz.  

Besides that, and in addition to those my publisher has arranged, I’m lining up my own regiment of book reviewers to read, rate, and review The Mistaken on their blogs, Goodreads, Amazon, and the myriad of other reader resources, because...

Reviews and ratings are the fuel that drives sales, so authors, like me, crave them.  

I’ve been learning all about Amazon algorithms and what it takes for a book to make an Amazon list and how beneficial that is to future sales. It’s quite a science, it seems, but what it comes down to is…I need readers, those willing to shell out $3.99 for the ebook, who will rate and hopefully review on it Amazon. 

So let my naïveté be a lesson to all you pre-published writers out there.  While difficult, the hardest part is not writing the book, or landing an agent, or signing a book deal.  It’s finding those readers who will hopefully be interested in your book.  So while connecting with other writers is beneficial and extremely gratifying, connecting with your potential reader before you even launch is downright critical.

    

Do any of you have words of advice or wisdom for this anxious author?

I sure could use it!

If you’re interested in the Writere4Writers promotion tomorrow,

please feel fee to sign up using the Linky Tool.

I could use that, too!!

Big, BIG News is a Comin'! I Think...

Hey, I had this whole raving-lunatic-post written and ready to go for today, ‘cause you guys are like, you know, awesome and always ready and willing to rally around a writer in need, but there’s some big, BIG news coming down the pipeline and it just doesn’t feel appropriate right now.

Sooooo… there goes my post. 

Now I got nothing because I can’t, or shouldn’t, really, say what’s coming.  And to be frank, I’m a bit confused.  I mean, I thought I knew what it was, and, for once, I felt like one of the super cool kids included in on the secret, however inadvertent.

A hint, it has a little sumpm sumpm to do with this bad boy:

Then another little birdie whispered something in my ear and now I’m not so sure.  But I can’t say.  I guess by the time this hits the press, you’ll all know, or at least have an inkling, even while I’m still snoring away in ignorance out here on the west coast.

*sigh*

Well, at the very least, I have this to report:  In case you forgot, or I forgot to remind you, I’m guest posting today over at Arlee Bird’s Tossing It Out.  Check it out and tell me what you think.

Also, in case you missed it on Friday, here’s the awesome new book trailer for Lisa Regan’s debut novel, Finding Claire Fletcher, launching December 6^th.  I’m reading this book again, for the 4^th time, this time in paperback, and it is even better than I remembered.  Easily one of my favorite books of all time!  Check out the trailer and see for yourself…

And lastly, you might have heard that I will be working with Stephen Tremp, Mary Pax, C.M. Brown, and Christine Raines and their new support group, Writere4Writers, which will feature my book, The Mistaken, on the W4Ws December 6^th debut campaign.  Participants will join in and help bring awareness to newly released novels and hopefully increase sales.

If you’re interested in the Writere4Writers promotion,

please feel fee to sign up using the Linky Tool.

I could really, REALLY use your help!!

In the News Today...

Although today is my regular day to post, I’m gonna hold off on anything major until Friday,

when three of my favorite guys,

Alex J. Cavanaugh, Matthew MacNish, and Andrew Leon, host the 

I Miss You Blogfest.

The bloggers we really miss…
and the ones we would really miss!

Do you have a couple blogger buddies who aren’t posting as often? Those who’ve pulled back and seem absent from the blogging world? Do you have blogger buddies you are grateful they are still around and would miss if they vanished? Now is your chance to show your appreciation and spotlight them!

On November 16, list one to three bloggers you really miss and one to three bloggers you would miss if they stopped blogging. Then go leave a comment on those blogs.

Our blogger friends are special – time to let them know! 

So drop by and sign up if you haven’t already.

Also in the news...

Blogging buddies Stephen Tremp, Mary Pax, C. M. Brown, and Christine Rains have put together a new group called Writers4Writers.  This group is all about promoting authors and their books.  Here’s their mission:

• Help writers bring awareness of their book(s) to tens of thousands of new people

• Help writers reach Amazon Top 100 in at least one category (suspense, free, whatever)

• Increase sales of their book(s) after the promo is over

• Drive new traffic to their blog and increase following

• Create verbal and viral buzz.

Every month, one to three spotlighted authors will choose a social media avenue such as Twitter or Facebook (or both).  On the selected day, the authors will post pre-written Tweets on their blogs.  At your convenience, simply copy and paste Tweets into Twitter. Or go to #W4WS on Twitter and Retweet other Tweets. 

And for Facebook, the authors will also post an image of their book along with a short blurb and a link to Kindle on their blog. Visitors simply click the Facebook page then share the link with their FB friends and Writers Groups.

That’s an incredibly large new audiences the author could not reach on their own.  Imagine, a hundred bloggers over a few days Tweeting and sharing links for new books and reaching potentially tens of thousands of new people!

As an author with a new release, this is super exciting.  But what’s even more thrilling is that I am their first featured author!  Can you imagine how delighted I was to be asked to kick-off such an amazing new project?  

If you’re interested, go to the hosts’ websites and signup using the Linky Tools.  And if you're on Facebook, click here to like their page.  I’d love to have your help in not only promoting my new novel, but many others, as well.  And when the time comes, you may be asked to be a featured author, too. 

Talk about paying it forward!

And last, but not least, one of my five blog tour runner-up winners of an ebook copy of The Mistaken asked that I award it to someone who actually owns an e-reader.  So, on behalf of Gary Pennick at Klahanie, the winner chosen by Random.org is #33...

Rachel Morgan  

Rachel, if you’re interested, please email me at acadia1997@msn.com.  I’ll also email you directly.         

Interested in the I Miss You Blogfest?

Wanna join Writers4Writers and help promote other authors?

Have any other news to share?