Holy Cow it's 2017

Wow!

This morning I woke to a text with a link I was told I just had to read. So you know  I read it and was fired up too early in the morning, I hadn't even my first cup of coffee. This link snowballed and next thing I knew I wanted to comment on a blog written in reaction to this link, Gianna Simone. Without naming names he or she offended many people.

After a half hour of difficulty, first having to log into my own blog  hahahahahaha and figuring out user names and passwords I was finally able to respond to her post. Sadly, I haven't posted anything in almost three years.

This is me posting. Many people have asked when the next book is coming out. I don't have a date...yet, but I am working on it #getthisbookdone2017 while stomping down on the other characters fighting for page space.

Yes I am still here. Yes I am writing. Thank you to everyone who has expressed interest in book three. I promise it is coming.

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So you want to write a book Part XII

I know I have touched on this before....Self Promotion. Probably the bane of every writers existence unless they have a knack for it and the time to do it in between their day jobs and well...life in general. Remember Me? will be in print and hopeful a lot of stores :) in the fall of 2014. In the meantime, I have committed to two book signings. One in a winery in Highland Falls, NY- Palaia Vineyards October 4 (mark your calendars). Those who know me, know I can't and don't drink wine. They could probably fill you in on a story of a certain someone practically falling comatose from half glass. So without naming names....ahem....this author is hoping for a vat of Heineken to go with her Cheetos. But I digress. The second will commence at the NJRWA conference also in October.

In preparation for said signings I have started the process of printing Remember Me? My proof copy has departed from Summerville SC on its way to my doorstep. Now I haven't told my mother yet because I really do need to proof it and I might not see it again if she gets her hands on the book.

When you do signings and attend conferences you MUST self-promote. With the many swag options out there making the decision on what to give away that will keep readers interested is overwhelming. Personally I am a pen kind of girl because it is something useful....I mean who doesn't need a pen at one time or another. So what does one bring to a winery? Chocolate as Kat Attalla has said is the way to go....chocolate and wine....you probably can't go wrong. But what does the author of a edgy murder romantic suspense bring? Quite possibly bags of Cheetos and don't think a few six packs to offer a beer tasting hasn't crossed my mind. Now if you are reading this, you are probably asking yourself what is the deal with Cheetos? Other than they are a crunchy snack, they leave an orange mess on your fingers and we shouldn't eat them in mass quantities due to all the bad things in them that make them taste so good. Well the deal with Cheetos is......not going to tell you but Brody McKenna and Ryli Madigan can. Brody and Ryli can be reached in Remember Me?

Thanks for stopping by to read my blog. Comments?

So You Want To Write a Book Part XI

My book Remember Me? has been released for a week on Amazon. Amazon has a rating system that doesn't quite expain how their ratings equate to sales. I have found if you watch the ratings you will make yourself exceedingly crazy. Up down up down up down. Well no one said it would be easy. I am happy and gracious for the lovely reviews posted by a few readers and the fact that I was able to entertain them for a few hours with a plot that rattled around in my head until it finally found its way to paper....or rather hard drive. I have been told the best thing an author can do is write another book. So I did. Jain and Marcus' story is going through the second round of the editing process and now I am back to the 3rd installment starring Tim and Emma as well as the possibly 4 and 5 saying don't forget about us.

Thanks for taking the time to read my blog. Hope to hear from you. Comments

Remember Me? Has Been Released

My rollercoaster ride these past two weeks has come to fruition. Remember Me? my romantic suspense novel has been released on Amazon. I cannot begin to tell you how EXCITED I am. I could not have done this without the support of my family and friends including new ones I made when I joined HVRWA. The ladies of the Tuesday Night Critique group were and are an integral part of my writing endeavors and I can't thank them enough for their support and their feedback especially Kathy and Janet.

Thanks for taking the time to read my blog. Hope to hear from you. Comments?

So you want to write a book Part X

That final moment when you are three quarters of the way through of reading your manuscript for hopefully the last time for a long time is an awesome feeling until.....hold it....step on the brakes....you notice something is wrong. Something doesn't read write. Something's missing...an entire chapter. Holy crappity crap. So there I was at the end of chapter twenty five. My pile of papers decreasing as the hours go by (I find it easier to find mistakes in print then off a computer monitor). End of chapter...Brody McKenna finishes up with Ms. Delcott the head mistress of Ryli Madigan's girls school.  Next chapter...Ryli gets out of shower and forgets a friend spent the night in her apartment. Hold the phone. Cut. Stop. Flip back through the pages. And oh my God, something is definitely missing. My mind races. I start flying through emails. Questions form...did my editor chop out a scene? Did I chop out a scene? My fingers quickly pound out Kat Attalla's phone number. She answers and I frantically blurt out I'm missing a chapter. What's worse? I can't even find it....the bane of having one too many folders and drafts of my book. An hour later, I realize the chapter wasn't cut. Chapter Twenty-Six was technically challenged. Authors tend to feel they need every scene, every word written. Truth is, you don't. Some things are not needed. Chapter Twenty-Six was needed and is integral to the story. Good news is, I found it and it could have been a lot worse. Remeber Me? could have been published missing a chapter a perfect excuse for a person not to read my second book. Crisis averted. Finished my final review and whew....Sent. Time to offer my humble opinion on Liz Shore's Lady Smut blog.

Thanks for taking the time to read my blog. Hope to hear from you. Comments?

So you want to write a book Part IX

So I have been using FB as a tool to tell my journey and it is practically blog posts I have been creating, so why not do it here. That is what I am going to do going forward and will post the link on FB. Makes sense.....right?

I gave myself  "off" for over a week now enjoying the ride of being a newly contracted author. To recap--I created a FB author page, I set up new email accounts, I joined Twitter, launched a website and am blogging. There is nothing left to do right? Wrong. It's Friday and I really have to get back to untitled book # 3. As mentioned in yesterday's post a writer must write because I know I don't and I am sure authors feel the same, no one wants to be a one hit wonder.

This week I received my edits from Books We Love. As I already mentioned on the FB they weren't bad compared to stories I have heard from other authors. With any luck I will have the edits completed this weekend. Edits are done in word format using the track tool. This can be daunting to those who have never used it before. I have experience and use it myself when I judge writing contests. Some authors receive layer upon layer of changes in their edits or have them sent back multiple times. Though I am pleased with the amount of edits I need to review and decide whether or not to accept, I hope I do not fall into that category.

On another note, I think I will be updating my website photo this weekend. Is anyone else like me who feels they are photogenically challenged?

Thanks for taking the time to read my blog. Hope to hear from you. Comments?

- Kelly

Blogging

As new author I get tons of advice from other writers. One important thing any writer must do is self-promote. I don't know about anybody else but I find selling myself something very hard to do. It is almost as difficult as going on a job interview. The concept is the same, you are promoting yourself and your skills so an employer or in this case a reader is willing to invest their time and their money to take a chance on you and consider your work. As writers we want the public to more than consider us, we want them to follow us and read everything we publish.

How do writers self-promote? They keep writing books and utilize social media. Ten years ago social media was probably the wave of the future. Guess what....the future is here. People spend more time behind a computer than they ever have. Technology gives new meaning to anti-social. I am just as guilty but if I am to try and succeed I have to embrace our social media culture.

So here I am, blogging. Actually I am procrastinating at blogging. Even now as I type I am paying more attention to episode one in the final season of True Blood. Coming up with something interesting to write on a regular basis will be a challenge but one I am willing to take on if I want my voice or rather my words heard. So I hope if you are reading this you might stop by again and maybe even leave a comment.  Enjoy your Sunday evening. Monday morning and the start of a new week will be here before we know it.

Thanks for taking the time to read my blog. Hope to hear from you. Comments?

- Kelly