Posts Tagged With: ebooks

Guest Post: Charles Yallowitz on Sequel Writing

Posted on July 16, 2013 by Michelle Proulx

Tips on Writing a Sequel

First, a big thank you to Michelle Proulx for letting me write a guest blog in honor of the July 31^st debut of my second book, Legends of Windemere: Prodigy of Rainbow Tower. I think that covers the shameless self-promotion part of the program. Wait. Feel free to buy and read Legends of Windemere: Beginning of a Hero, so you’re ready for the sequel. There. That should do it.

So, you want to write a sequel. It’s a common malady for fiction authors. You love your characters and you have subplots that need more time to run their course. You have a new villain that you want to use. That infomercial at 3AM gave you the best idea for another story with the same characters. There’s also the chance that you had a series planned all along and this is the natural progression of your career. In the end, the sequel is there and you’re ready to write it.

My story is that my books are based on a college Dungeons & Dragons game. I knew from the beginning that a series would have to happen. Each semester had a different quest as the heroes moved through the dice rolls. Then I realized I had to put some work in and altered a lot before I sat down to write. The big difference is that characters don’t evolve too much over the course of a single adventure in a game. In fact, many players have their characters stay the same in terms of mentality and emotions. I had to shake things up and put growth into the story, which is why I take sequels very seriously. You need all of your main characters to change in every book even if it’s minor. For example, one character might go through a life-changing event while another learns a new skill. Both are growth, but one is definitely heavier than the other.

I would say one of the most difficult parts of writing a sequel (and I’m writing the 5^th book of the series here) is balance of characters. Specifically, your old characters versus your new characters. You have your original heroes that you need to keep some focus on and retain what they had in the first book. You must also put them in situations that test their strength and develop them beyond their original forms. This takes a lot of work because you don’t want to go too far or spend all of your time on it. Yes, these are the characters you started with and they have seniority, but they also have fans and reputations that your new characters are setting out the gain.

The balance with new characters is that you need to highlight them without overshadowing your old characters. They need to merge into the preexisting group, but not so flawlessly that it’s unbelievable. Think about how you make new friends and try to work off that. You might even want to go with a new character that the old ones have trouble getting along with. I introduce a very powerful spellcaster named Nyx in my new book. She is temperamental, rude, and difficult to get along with at first. It makes for an interesting story because she butts heads with the main hero of the first book, Luke Callindor. This gave me the opportunity to delve into the tolerance and friendship making ability of these two characters. In the end, I create a very tight and clear dynamic between them.

Here are some simple tips about writing a sequel:

Change is good and necessary in terms of characters. Yet, you must always stay true to the character. If one of them goes evil then it has to make sense that they do it. The noble Paladin going evil on a whim won’t win you any sales.
Reference past books, but don’t harp on it. You need to find a way for the new characters to learn about past events. I write in present tense, so this is done through dialogue. I also use the occasional ‘told off-camera’ trick when it can be used.
Never be afraid to check back to your first book to make sure you have your facts straight. If you mention that a city has a specific symbol in the first book then double check when the characters actually go there.
Give the villains a reason to hate or fear the new characters. You need your villains to acknowledge your new character instead of holding onto the old grudge. Otherwise, your new hero becomes a secondary character.
Spell the series name correctly. You think I’m joking here? Well, I am, but better safe than sorry.
Don’t be afraid to shake up the foundation. The fun of a second book is that you can change things in the overall world. A city can be wiped out or a secondary character from the first book can be killed. The fun of a sequel, which can lead to a series, is that you now have the reach and time to do world-changing events.
Most important!!! Have fun. Don’t look at writing the sequel as a stressful situation where you need to outdo the first. Have fun with the writing and exploring your beloved characters. You’ve given them more than a spotlight, but a life path that can go on for a few books if you wish it to.

Those are the big points about writing a sequel. If this inspired you to write a sequel or plan a series then I’ve done my job. Again, have fun and enjoy yourself!

You can check out Charles Yallowitz’s debut novel, Beginning of a Hero, by clicking here.

And you can check out the sequel (release date: July 31, 2013), Prodigy of Rainbow Tower, by clicking here.

Categories: Guest Post | Tags: books, charles yallowitz, ebooks, fantasy, Legend of Windemere, Reading, self-publish, sequel, writing | 29 Comments

Presenting … Chapter 2 of “Imminent Danger And How to Fly Straight into It”

Posted on July 11, 2013 by Michelle Proulx

As the title of this post suggests, I am psyched to share with you today CHAPTER 2 of my book, Imminent Danger And How to Fly Straight into It. If you missed CHAPTER 1, click here to give it a read.

Onwards, dear friends, unto the breach!

2

When Eris came to, her first thought was blue. It took her a few groggy seconds to figure out why. The spongy, curved walls of the small, spherical room in which she found herself were a vibrant shade of aquamarine and glowing softly. There were no obvious doors or windows. Where on Earth am I? In a giant blue gum ball?

After several minutes of panicked hyperventilation, Eris forced herself to calm down and try to make some sense of her situation.

Someone—or multiple someones—attacked me, she thought. They were wearing scaly gloves, for some weird reason. A prank gone way too far? I wouldn’t put it past some of my classmates. But Eris found the paralysis liquid more difficult to rationalize. Professional kidnappers? Barlow Collegiate has its fair share of trust-fund babies—they must have mistaken me for one, although my duct-taped book bag really should have given me away as a scholarship student. This must be just a colossal mistake.

Feeling slightly calmer, Eris examined her surroundings more closely. The only item of interest was a circular groove in the wall about six feet in diameter. She guessed it was the door, since the rest of the room was seamless and unmarked. Although it doesn’t look like any door I’ve ever seen. Eris decided to bang on it to see what would happen.

THUNK.

Just as her fist was about to thunk down again, the groove glowed a bright white. The door spiraled open like a camera’s shutter. Eris was caught off balance and tumbled forward, straight into a pair of scaly blue arms.

Gasping, Eris pushed herself away and staggered back. The creature before her was like something straight out of a sci-fi movie. Jagged blue scales covered its entire body, and it stood easily eight feet tall. It had six hands, each with webbed fingers and inch-long claws. A milky white gem on its forehead was glowing softly, and its slitted, purple eyes peered intelligently at her. The eyes were like nothing Eris had ever seen. Otherworldly eyes. In that instant, she came to a jarring realization.

“Alien,” she whispered.

Then she fainted.

* * *

When Eris regained consciousness, she found herself staring into slitted purple eyes. The creature was crouched over her, flicking its tri-forked tongue in and out from between scaly blue lips.

This isn’t a dream, she realized, starting to hyperventilate again. This is real. This … thing is real.

The creature made a phhh sound, splattering Eris’s face with moist, foul-smelling spittle. She screamed hysterically and scrambled away from the monster, pressing herself against the far wall.

The alien stood up, towering over her. Eris screamed again, holding her hands in front of her. “Leave me alone! Please! Go away!”

Flicking out its tongue again, the creature looked down at her and then abruptly turned and left.

As the door spiraled shut, Eris’s knees collapsed. She sank to the curved floor in shock. “I can’t believe it,” she whispered. “Aliens exist?”

Eris had always been skeptical of the existence of extraterrestrials. In her mind, they fell into the same category as dragons and vampires—fun to imagine but not real. For a few minutes, she tried to cling to the belief that this was just an elaborate hoax by some crazy group of people who enjoyed dressing up as scaly blue reptiles. But those eyes!

The memory of her captor’s otherworldly eyes made Eris feel certain that somehow, for reasons she could not possibly begin to fathom, she had been abducted by aliens. This terrifying prospect was so far outside her range of experience that Eris could do little more than sit silently, frozen with shock.

* * *

As the hours dragged by, alone in the gum ball cell, Eris’s initial terror was slowly replaced by bewilderment. She began to wonder why, of all the people on Earth, she was the one who had been abducted. She wasn’t the president of some country. She wasn’t the daughter of anyone important. She wasn’t particularly popular. To her knowledge, she had never done anything to offend anyone in any way. And she didn’t do drugs, or she would have attributed the whole thing to a really bad trip.

Maybe I’m actually their long-lost princess and they’ve come to bring me back to their planet, where I’ll be cherished and adored by my true people. Eris briefly entertained the notion and then discarded it as ridiculous. Could this really just be a case of being in the wrong place at the wrong time?

The more Eris thought about her predicament, the more it began to infuriate her. Jumping to her feet, she shouted, “This is insane! Aliens shouldn’t even exist, let alone fly around kidnapping random people for the fun of it! Let me out of here, you scaly psychos!”

When she ran out of rage, Eris collapsed to her knees on the spongy floor. Cradling her head in her hands, she whispered, “Please, just let me go,” even though she knew no one could hear her plea.

* * *

A short time later, the door spiraled open. A reptilian arm shot into the room, grabbed Eris by the hood of her sweater, and yanked her out.

As she struggled to gain her footing, Eris saw she was in a large, blue room with curved walls. A second blue alien was standing outside the cell. With no warning or explanation, Eris found herself pinioned between the two huge creatures. She wanted to ask what they intended to do with her, but the words died in her throat.

Eris held back her tears as the aliens frog-marched her around the edge of the room. Twenty or so small doors like the one through which she had just been pulled were set into the outer wall. In the center of the room was a large platform with a circular console covered with glowing buttons and small screens. Am I in an alien prison?

Her two escorts stopped at a large portal on the far side of the room. Beside the door, a shallow basin filled with a blue, jellylike substance was attached to the wall. One of the aliens, still keeping a painful grip on Eris’s arm, plunged its hand into the jelly. The portal opened, and they dragged her through.

The creatures marched Eris through a series of blue curved hallways. They stopped on a circular groove set into the floor. The floor glowed, and then the elevator column shot upward. As they rose, Eris caught brief glimpses of space through portholes in the wall. Oh my God. I really am in space!

When the elevator stopped, Eris was facing a huge, circular portal. It was fifteen feet high and encircled by bones—large bones and small bones of strange shapes and forms. She shuddered when she noticed a few bones near the top that looked uncomfortably familiar. God, I hope those aren’t human.

The door itself was carved with creatures that resembled Eris’s abductors. The alien figures were arranged around a central figure with dozens of wavering tentacles, three eyes, and a gaping mouth ringed by razor-sharp teeth. I’m going to die, Eris thought. This is the end. I am going to be devoured by six-armed aliens with a curious fondness for blue, and my bones will be strung up to serve as a door-frame decoration for their chieftain’s lair.

Before Eris could panic, one of her guards placed a clawed hand into the bowl of jelly protruding from the wall, and the door slid open. The guards dragged her into a large room. The outer wall was lined with more aliens, all seated in front of sleek computer stations. Above each station were circular screens, some showing complex-looking charts, others views of space. If I’m on a spaceship, Eris thought, this must be the bridge.

There was a raised platform in the center of the room on which was perched a monstrous chair that looked like it was made of some distant cousin of coral. Sitting in the chair was a reptilian creature somewhat larger than the aliens Eris had seen so far. The tips of its scales were a yellow-green color. The captain?

The creature swiveled in its chair and locked its glittering purple eyes onto Eris’s green ones. After a moment, it half-warbled, half-roared what sounded like a command. Her two guards shoved her forward, and she tumbled to her knees. She was so scared that she could barely think. Her eyes welled with tears.

The alien hissed loudly at her.

“What do you want from me?” Eris asked helplessly.

The shorter of her two guards cuffed her soundly across the head. Whimpering with pain as the big reptiles dragged her back to her feet, Eris decided it would be safer to keep her mouth shut.

As Eris cowered silently, the alien captain leaned forward as if to study its captive more intently. Then it hissed again, and a tri-forked purple tongue snaked out from its mouth and shot close to Eris’s face. When she flinched and tried to jump back, her guards held her immobile.

The captain’s tongue slid sinuously over Eris’s face, coating her skin with a thin layer of foul-smelling slime. She found the experience not only disgusting but also degrading as the three tips of the tongue traced paths across her cheek, over her lips, and up her nose. Teardrops started to trickle down her face, and the alien lapped them up. She squeezed her eyes shut and tried not to scream.

Apparently satisfied, the creature’s tongue slurped back into its mouth. Maybe it will let me go now that it’s finished its tongue bath, Eris prayed. Then the captain pulled out a long, bone-colored knife and began to stroke it.

Or maybe, she thought, I’m going to die after all.

Categories: My Works | Tags: aliens, blue, books, ebooks, imminent danger, sci-fi, self-publish, space, teen, writing, ya | 6 Comments

My crazy new idea for a book series

Posted on July 6, 2013 by Michelle Proulx

I have a crazy new idea for a book series. I’m not talking about the story or characters or anything (although they will be epic!). I’m talking about the structure of the series itself.

Here’s my idea. Ready?

So I was watching The Avengers a while back, and I thought the concept of having a handful of origin stories followed by an ensemble film, followed by more individual hero stories, followed by another ensemble film, etc. etc., was a really cool idea. And then I thought, “Has this been done with books? Could it be done with books? Why is cheesy popcorn so delicious, and yet none of my local theaters sells it?”

Existential popcorn question aside, I took this idea and have been running with it. What I currently have planned (everything is still in the outlining stage at this point), is a series of books which will be comprised of four “origin” stories, followed by an “ensemble” story, and then potentially splitting back off again to the individual characters for more adventures.

Here’s a terrible line-drawing of vaguely how the series would work:

Now, when I suggested this idea to the gentleman who critiqued Imminent Danger a few weeks ago, he said that the idea would never work. According to him, this sort of series has never been attempted because it just plain won’t sell. He suggested that instead I fit those four “origin” stories into one novel, and have the climax of that novel be whatever climax I was planning to use in the first ensemble story.

I think part of the reason it could actually work really well is because I would be self-publishing it. Meaning I could price the origin stories very low (or some of them, at least), in order to garner attention and gain fans. Or have free giveaways, set one of the origin stories permanently free, bundle them all up in an anthology once they’ve all been released, etc. etc. I’m more focused on writing them than marketing them at the moment, but still … important things to think about!

So … what’s everyone’s thoughts on this? Do you think a book series modeled in the “Avengers ensemble” style could possibly work? I’m hoping some of you will say “yes”, because I think it’s a really fun idea! But if you think it’s doomed to failure, don’t hesitate to tell me why. All information is good information!

Update: I thought you guys might be amused to know that the working title for this project is “SWAG RAVEN” — as in, a raven with lots of swag.

Unrelated media of the day:

Categories: Self Publishing, Writing | Tags: avengers, Book series, books, ebooks, fantasy, fiction, tarzan | 67 Comments

iUniverse Royalty Report (Jan-Mar 2013)

Posted on June 9, 2013 by Michelle Proulx

Ladies and gentleman, I’m pleased to announce that I have officially received my royalty report from iUniverse for the months of January-March. The report came in on June 7th … a full week after it was supposed to … but still, it’s here! Huzzah!

After cross-checking my meticulous book sales records (a Word doc bullet list), I have determined that the royalties they’ve reported are correct. So props to iUniverse for their accurate accounting department!

I shall now divulge the sales stats for my first three months of sales under iUniverse:

Softcovers sold = 68
Hardcovers sold = 56
Ebooks:
- Amazon = 33
- B&N = 3
- Kobo = 6

Tada! My sub-par yet inspiring stats for January-March. I’m pretty sure I have you guys to thank for those ebook sales, so thank you!!!

As for the softcovers/hardcovers, I know what you’re thinking — Gosh, Michelle, over 100 sold! That’s pretty darn good! Maybe print books aren’t dead after all! Now, that would be true, except that 100 of those were bought by me, for the purposes of re-sale/giving away. On the plus side, that leaves 24 print books unaccounted for — which I think is pretty darn cool!

Are these sales amazing? Goodness, no. Compared to some of my fellow bloggers, who complain when their sales drop under 50 a day, these stats are just pathetic. But hey, that’s cool! First book, crazy fluctuating ebook prices, wrong genre classification, questionably genre-appropriate cover, overpriced print copies, no up-to-date sales records for marketing analysis … I’m quite satisfied with the results thus far. Huzzah!

It does make me wonder how my sales would be if I’d not gone with iUniverse, and instead done something like KDP through Amazon. I suppose I’ll find out soon enough, though — now that Chasing Nonconformity, the sequel to Imminent Danger, is well into the editing stages, I’m starting to make plans to self-publish the sequel, as well as re-release Imminent Danger through KDP. This will likely necessitate splitting from iUniverse, something which I’m trying to feel sad about, but … somehow the emotion just isn’t there. Hehehe …

Anyway, for anyone wondering how I was doing, sales-wise, above is all the information I have. This info can also serve as a benchmark to my fellow self-published writers — if you’re selling better than me, clearly you’re doing something right! And if you feel like letting me in on what that something is, please, by all means, feel free. Live long and prosper, blogosphere!

Semi-related image of the day:

Source: http://www.virtualadagency.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/comic-getrich.gif

Semi-related video of the day:

I present to you now, “Dirty Cash” by BigBang, who are arguably the most popular boy band in South Korea. (To KPOP fans — I said arguably! Put away your weapons!) As you will gather when they sing the chorus, they don’t want your dirty cash. They’re quite firm on this point.

Categories: iUniverse, Self Publishing | Tags: Amazon Kindle, author, bigbang, books, Bookselling, E-book, ebooks, imminent danger, iuniverse, Publishing, sales, self-publish, writing | 53 Comments

Goodreads Giveaway Results + New VLOG!

Posted on May 31, 2013 by Michelle Proulx

Happy Friday, everyone! May your day be filled with lots of sunny goodness, preferably the non-sunburn-inducing sort.

Moving right along to my first topic: Goodreads Giveaways. There are mixed feelings about Goodreads Giveaways amongst the self-publishing community, because apparently a lot of authors who send out free copies of their books via the giveaway never hear from the winners again, or get the reviews they’re hoping for.

That wasn’t my experience at all, I’m pleased to say. I held the giveaway back in April, and the two ladies who won the contest were very sweet. They responded promptly to my messages querying them about their addresses, and how they wanted the books signed to them, and they’ve both now posted reviews up on Goodreads and Amazon. Maybe I just hit the jackpot with these winners, but I’d definitely say it was a good experience overall.

The giveaway also resulted in approximately 463 people adding Imminent Danger to their to-read list. Now, this might not translate into sales (I still haven’t received my first sales report from iUniverse, lol), but it at least puts my book on the radar, which is pretty decent. I can only hope that one day, in the distant fog of the future, someone will look at the their to-read list, see Imminent Danger, think “Heck with it”, and download that puppy so fast it grows up into an adult dog and starts barking at everyone with wild abandon.

Oh yes, and I’m going to be holding another Goodreads Giveaway starting tomorrow, so keep an eye out for that! Only one book up for grabs this time, but I did open up the competition to include Australia, so … yeah. Woo!

Once more unto the vlog …

One of the aforementioned ladies who won the Goodreads Giveaway mentioned that I should post some sort of pronunciation guide on my website for my book. The problem, of course, is that Imminent Danger is sci-fi, so there are assorted silly-named aliens and planets and technology and whatnot parading around. I’ve decided to one-up her request and create a vlog about pronunciation, partially because it’s a lot easier to figure out pronunciation if you hear it, rather than trying to sound it out phonetically, and partially because it was recently brought to my attention that I haven’t done a vlog in ages.

On with the show! (Note: If the lighting fluctuates wildly, blame Youtube — they decided to “fix” my video.)

Unrelated image of the day:

Source: http://i.imgur.com/uyfMvxD.jpg

Categories: My Works | Tags: author, book, books, ebooks, Goodreads Giveaway, imminent danger, pronunciation, self-publish, star wars, vlog, writing | 38 Comments

Guest Post: The Point of No Return (Maria Diaz)

Posted on May 21, 2013 by Michelle Proulx

Onwards with the guest posts! Today we have Maria Diaz with us from The Owl, Book & Candle, chatting with us about the difference between an author, and an author-entrepreneur.

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The Point of No Return

As writers, many times we think of ourselves as authors when we become published, whether self-published or via traditional publishing. I have read of indie authors expressing the desire of being recognized by traditional publishers by obtaining a contract. Traditional publishing is still a goal or dream for some indie authors. I guess it is a personal issue, and how an author feels “fulfilled in the craft.” To each their own – everyone must follow their own journey. However, there is another area that seems to be of less concern to some writers/authors, and this is what I want to write about in this post: At what point does an author/writer cross the point of no return to become an entrepreneur/business owner?

I thought about it many times (as I am in the journey), and I think that the answer is different for everyone. It is more of a process, one that requires growth, acceptance (from yourself), and a mind shift. It takes the writer from a position of “I write because I love to write” or “I want to be published”, to a mind frame that sounds more like this – “I am in the business of writing; it is what I love to do, and how I make a living (or plan to)” or “I am an author; I write stories and this is my business …”

We all start as writers. Many cross to become authors (defined traditionally), but many of us neglect or do not cross into the entrepreneurial/business side of the deal. We do not see ourselves as business owners, and we prefer to stick to “the writing side,” forgetting to nourish the other side of our craft. I have heard many times that no matter if you self-publish or publish traditionally, you are still responsible for promoting and marketing your novels/books. No matter how you enter the publishing world, it stops where you are – the responsibility is ultimately yours. Granted, you have tons of help via the traditional way; however, you are the “entity” behind and in front of your work, and it is up to you to take it to the next level.

How do you know when, or if, you have crossed the point of no return? It is a matter of how you see yourself and your craft. For the purpose of this post, let’s call the writer who has not crossed to the entrepreneurial side Author, and the other, Author Entrepreneur (Author-E). Both, Author and Author-E have passion, purpose, and love what they do. Both love to write and they have fun doing it. They love to socialize and interact with readers, whether in person or via social media. Both may have built a platform, and may have published one or more novels/books. The number of books is not important here. You can have an Author with many novels published and an Author-E with one or two novels published so far; however, Author-E probably has more books in the making, as Author-E sees and focuses on the business part.

For Author-E, consistency is important. Author might not have developed that part yet. Author-E tries to achieve consistency by building a brand (across the websites/blogs/book covers …). Author might be struggling with building a platform or blog, and does not quite have figured out the branding part yet, or is just in the process of doing it. Author-E has created a persona and transferred it into a business structure by taking the steps of legalizing this brand, and growing/developing a physical image of it (logos, business cards, business ID registration, business entity …). For Author-E, mostly every step he/she takes is oriented to business growth, promotion, and marketing. For Author, this area is still new, in the development stage, or simply not one of his/her goals. Author-E continues to work on it every single day knowing that this will take time and tons of effort, and recognizes it as a lifestyle, since the business persona that he/she has created is real. Steady growth is more important to Author-E than quantity or buzz, since success is tied to not only profits, but also lifestyle. Author may want to see profits fast and becomes discouraged if the sales don’t happen, while Author-E knows that many times it will take working “for free” before he/she sees any profits, and is less likely to become discouraged because he/she is aware of the journey. Author may want to achieve the same balance, but he/she still needs to find a balance between these components, as well as decide how to put the pieces together, implement, and even consider if he/she wants to step up to the process.

Author and Author-E may start the same in the writing/publishing journey, but eventually the road will split and each must decide on following their own path (what is right for you). This is why it is so important to gauge your own process, and discover “the persona” throughout the journey, because at one point, you may reach the point of no return.

Maria Antonia Diaz is the author of Moonlit Valley and The Dinorah Chronicles – Ramblings of the Spirit, Book 1 in the trilogy. She is a freelance writer, blogger, and artist. She is the founder of The Owl, Book & Candle. She resides in New Jersey with her husband, Eddie, and six felines. She describes herself as a student of this Universe, and a Master of none.

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Unrelated media of the day:

The following delightful examples of Engrish came from here: http://imgur.com/a/CuH8k

Categories: Guest Post | Tags: author, books, ebooks, engrish, Entrepreneur, Maria Diaz, Publishing, writing | 5 Comments

Guest Post: Looking for New Authors? (Chris Graham)

Posted on May 11, 2013 by Michelle Proulx

Moving day today! Getting my mom out of the apartment and off on her way to sunny, French-speaking Montreal! Huzzah! But before the moving shenanigans begin, let’s hear from Chris Graham, who has a blog dedicated to promoting awareness of up and coming indie authors!

Looking for New Authors?

Firstly, I’d like to thank Michelle for this opportunity to contribute to her great blog. I hope I can do even half as well with mine.

The Story Reading Ape’s Blog introduces the new (to me) authors whose books I’ve read and enjoyed, covering most genres from Historical Fiction & Poetry to Sci-Fi & Fantasy across all age ranges.

It has really taken off since 4^th April 2013 (over 1000 hits and 100 followers on 29^th April) with people looking for new authors and books to read and it’s rapidly gaining popularity, judging by the increasing number of followers and return visits. Due to popular request I have introduced two new pages:

YOUR New Authors, where everyone can share information about THEIR newly found authors and favourite books,

NEWSFLASH, where authors are invited to promote their latest published book FREE for a maximum of 7 days.

As you will see from my ‘About‘ page, to me, an author is a story telling ape who has the overpowering urge to not only tell a story, but write it, publish it, and sweat buckets waiting for other people to say how much they enjoyed it.

For an author, there can be nothing worse than getting no reaction, no feedback, no recognition for the hours, days, weeks, months, or even years they’ve spent on their labour of love, their dream, their baby. I hope that my blog goes, even a little way, towards giving these story telling apes, the recognition they seek and deserve.

I have already introduced over 20 new (to me) authors, complete with links to their websites, so you can get more details directly from them if you become their fan.

If you follow my blog, you can keep fully up to date by receiving new posts in your email Inbox as they happen.

Why not pay a visit to http://thestoryreadingapeblog.com/ and decide for yourselves.

I’d be delighted if you leave a comment there, letting me know what you think.

Don’t forget to come back here to Michelle and let her know what you think of it as well.

The Story Reading Ape

Unrelated media of the day:

Source: http://i.imgur.com/8ywgKpV.jpg

Categories: Guest Post | Tags: ape, author, books, chris graham, ebooks, guest post, self-publish, writing | 10 Comments

Guest Post: My Journey as a New Author (Christina Channelle)

Posted on May 7, 2013 by Michelle Proulx

Continuing the guest post series, today I’m pleased to feature Miss Christina Channelle, who will ruminate with us on the wondrous journey of a self-published author. Read on!

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My Journey as a New Author

Hello! Christina Channelle here.

This is my first time doing a guest post so bear with me. Thanks, Michelle for allowing me to share my words today on your blog. 🙂

What I wanted to discuss was my journey since taking the plunge to self-publish my first book. I first discovered my love for reading one summer long, long ago. I was ten years old and bored out of my mind for some reason or another. I decided to open up a book stashed somewhere in my room, yet never had the urge to read until that very moment.

That single action of turning that first page changed my life forever. I realized that words thrown together could create another world unlike my own; with ghosts, vampires, and things that go bump in the night the main attraction. I read every book that I could get my hands on until I practically read every young adult novel in my public library. I was a fiend, let me tell you. Then as I fell asleep at night, or daydreamed while in class, stories would conjure up in my mind that I just had to write down. The first story that I wrote was back in high school and is now my first self-published book, Dahlia. Simply, it’s about a normal girl who realizes she’s not quite so normal.

Here’s the prologue below:

I was five when I knew something was different about me.

My first memory.

I had no recollection of who my parents were or what they even looked like. All I knew was that I was alone at the orphanage, disconnected from the outside world. I picture it even now, almost like an oil painting: the thick bristles of the paintbrush created the bright blue sky as it connected to the shockingly white snow. The snow blanketed everything around me, as if protecting me, the green forest displayed at every angle.

The orphanage was out of place in such a nature-infused environment. A large, two-story building, its windows seemed to cover almost every surface. I remembered the brightness of the sun as it hit my sleepy face through one of those many windows. It would instantly warm my body, greeting me to yet another day.

Vines covered old gray bricks as they coursed over the external surface of the orphanage. I had nightmares about those same vines making their way into my room as I slept. They’d appear ominously as their shadows pounded against the walls, taunting me as a storm brewed on outside. Venturing toward my bed, the vines would slither across my body, trapping me in place. One would wrap around my neck, squeezing tightly, as I struggled for air. Rendered frozen, the feeling of fear would take hold, bubbling up deep inside my chest. And as I felt the burning pain in my throat, a thought would flash through my mind of this moment being my last. It never was, though, as I would instantly wake up.

I always did have a wild imagination.

To chase away the terror, I would stand before my windowpane the morning after. Sighing in relief, my eyes would be drawn to the vast forest off in the distance. It surrounded the orphanage, like a gatekeeper, the leaves of the trees bristling in irritation. The wind blew right through those tall structures, whistling, as my ears picked up the all too familiar sound.

I somehow found myself standing directly in front of that very forest. My memory was hazy on exactly how I got there but I recalled waking up, after one of my many dreams, to the feeling of immense hunger as my body stirred in discomfort.

Then suddenly I was at the foot of the forest.

I would not describe the sensation as simple hunger. I would almost describe it as a feeling of starvation, like there was some essential component my body was missing. Whatever it was, this need was so powerful I was weak in the knees with the pain; my belly contracted and released, contracted and released, continually. Food provided temporary relief for me, but there was always this presence in the corner of my mind as my brain searched for the one thing my body craved.

I ignored that nagging voice in my head, the one whispering for the one thing I needed. It was something unfathomable yet inherent. I paid it no attention and just openly stared at the forest beckoning me. Taking shallow breaths, the cool air blew in and out between my cold, chapped lips.

It was at that exact moment I realized the forest isolated me from everything and everyone outside of its confines—almost like a hungry bird circling its prey. Even young, my instincts picked up on that, immediately telling me something.

Eyes were watching me.

Excerpt from Dahlia (Blood Crave Series, #1) Copyright © 2012

Dahlia was supposed to be a standalone book, but then the character, Rowan, came to me and, poof, a series was born. More than ten years later, the first two books in the series (along with a novella) are complete. Although I love the story and characters of the Blood Crave Series, I find it difficult when I get other story ideas that I want to focus on instead. So here I am, juggling writing numerous stories at once, going through the editing process, formatting, figuring out marketing strategies … it does get quite overwhelming at times. And then I end up spending my time on everything except writing, the very thing that I love to do. It’s especially hard when, like many indie authors, you’re juggling work and/or school in the process.

Do I find self-publishing hard? Yes.

And no.

The hardest thing for me was learning everything on your own: formatting an ebook, formatting the print book, creating a book cover, marketing, etcetera, etcetera, etcetera. Once you do it the first time, creating a book is actually quite simple. I think the hardest thing about writing and self-publishing is making the time to write when you have to do everything on your own.

But I never regret taking this path, not for a second.

My journey as a new author? Well, I’m still travelling. It’s hard at times, there are bumps along the road, but I’m having a blast. I’ve met other great indie authors, discovered awesome reads, and essentially have grown as a writer. This is all a learning experience for me. I don’t know exactly where my journey will lead too but I might as well enjoy the ride. Because that, in itself, will make me happy.

And that’s all everyone wants to be, right?

If you wish to read up on my ramblings as a new author, check out my blog at www.channellewrites.wordpress.com. You can also like me on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ChristinaChannelle and/or follow me on Twitter @channellewrites.

Thanks for reading!

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Unrelated media of the day:

What if Disney villains were young and beautiful?

Source: http://imgur.com/DY6DTxn

Categories: Guest Post | Tags: author, blood crave, books, Christina Channelle, Dahlia, disney, ebooks, guest post, self-publish, writing | 12 Comments

Guest Post: Formatting An E-Book Is Not Rocket Science

Posted on April 18, 2013 by Michelle Proulx

Today’s guest post comes from Misha Burnett, fellow WordPress blogger and author of the sci-fi/urban fantasy novel Catskinner’s Book. Take it away, Mr. Burnett!

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Formatting an e-book is not rocket science. Seriously, it isn’t. You may have heard that e-book conversion is a highly technical process requiring specialized software and trained professionals, and if it is done wrong your years of work on your book will be absolutely ruined.

Well, odds are you heard that from someone who wants to sell you an e-book conversion package starting at the low, low, price of 199$ (plus extra charges if your book contains specialized elements such as words). People who make money from e-book conversion aren’t going to tell you that it’s a simple process that most people can learn in an afternoon.

I will tell you that. In fact, I am telling you precisely that.

E-book conversion is a simple process that most people can learn in an afternoon.

What’s more, you have absolutely nothing to lose by attempting to do it yourself. All of the software that I recommend is free. Make sure that you make a clean backup copy of your manuscript before you try anything, and then, no matter what happens, you’re not risking the book itself. Even if you decide that you don’t want to keep messing with it and pay someone else to do the conversion, all you’ve spent is time. (Unfortunately, your wasted time will not be refunded.)

Okay, let’s get started. I’m assuming that you have a clean, proofed and edited copy of the manuscript that you want to convert? Good. Now the very first step is to make a new copy of it—that’s what you play with. If you totally mess it up, it’s no big deal, just delete it and make another copy and start over. Never experiment with the original copy of your manuscript. (Yeah, that sounds obvious, but it can be easy to forget.)

Next, let’s get some software. I have collected links to some of the more important ones on my E-Reader Apps Page, because I live to serve. Calibre is the most important one, but I also advise getting the desktop apps for Kindle and Nook in order to see how it will look on different devices. (You’ll also want to see your book on any handheld devices you own—yes, you can do that, too.)

I also recommend getting Open Office, because it does everything that MSOffice does and it’s free. Furthermore, because MicroSoft has some serious control issues, people who write open source applications find it easier to start with .odt files rather than the propitiatory .doc format.

I am not going to tell you how to use these programs. All of them have plentiful documentation, and they explain how to work them much better than I could. What I will do is encourage you to try things out. Calibre has a huge number of buttons and switches to fiddle with, so much so that it looks a little intimidating, but the basic concept is simple.

Convert the file in Calibre, load the converted file into your e-reader and e-reader apps, read through it and see how it looks. Make notes on what you think could be changed, then look up how to make those changes in the documentation.

Then do it again. It’s a lot like the editing process—wait, actually it is an editing process. Unlike the strictly mechanical process that a text converter like the one Smashwords uses, Calibre allows you a great deal of input into the process. Take some time figuring out what looks good to you, what makes your text easy and fun to read, because that’s the bottom line, making sure that none of the mechanical issues get between you and your readers.

Yes, it’s time consuming, and it can be frustrating. It took me a number of tries to get the table of contents, for example, to work right. There was, in fact, no small amount of cussing involved.

However, when I was done, not only did I save myself money, I had a product that I could feel proud of, and I knew how it was done. When it came time to format sample chapters from my new book for Kindle, Nook, and pdf for my beta readers, it took no time at all.

Granted, I have a lot of experience playing with different computer programs and tweaking them to get the results I want. You may decide that it’s worth it to you, personally, to pay to have your book converted.

However, I think that it’s a good idea for authors to get a feel for the process and to understand how it’s done and what can be done. That way, if you do decide to pay for a service you know exactly what you are paying for, and what it’s worth to you. To be honest, I have seen “professionally” formatted books that have glaring mechanical errors—extra spaces, broken lines, bad links in tables of contents. I’ve seen e-books put out by major publishing houses that were all but unreadable. So I would also advise anyone who uses an e-book conversion service to make sure you have the chance to examine the file before it goes live, and don’t pay for it until it is done right.

Got questions? Feel free to hop on over to my blog and drop me a line. I may not know the answer, but I might be able to point you in the right direction.

Semi-related media of the day (courtesy of Misha Burnett!):

Categories: Guest Post | Tags: Calibre, catskinner's book, conversion, ebooks, formatting, guest post, misha burnett, self-publish, smashwords, writing | 17 Comments

Camp NaNo + assorted updates

Posted on April 6, 2013 by Michelle Proulx

In a somewhat suspicious turn of events, my Camp NaNoWriMo attempts are going extremely well this year. As of thirty seconds ago, I am officially at 8,666 words — 43% of my goal for the month. And it’s only the 6th! Huzzah! I suppose it helps that I actually have a plan for what I’m writing — not an outline, of course, but more of a general “This happens, then this, then this.” I’m really excited, guys. Chasing Nonconformity is going to be epic. Well, as soon as I finish writing the darn thing, that is.

And I have new pictures for you! But first, let’s do a brief iUniverse update …

iUniverse update

Remember the pricing issue I was talking about? According to iUniverse, it is impossible to solve it. iUniverse sent out their recommended sales price, and now apparently the online retailers (Amazon, Kobo, etc.) have complete freedom over how much they want to sell the books for. Grrrr. So I said, “Dear iUniverse, if you can’t control the eBook price, can you at least make the physical books less expensive?” To which iUniverse responded that they used a base print-on-demand algorithm to determine the price, blah blah blah, and that the softcover price is fixed at $21.95, and there’s nothing they can do about it. Like heck they can’t.

Chapters update

On the other hand, my book is now in Chapters! Check it out:

HOW COOL IS THAT???

The Chapters people have been absolutely awesome, as you can see from the above image! The only thing they were obligated to do as part of my publishing package was put the book on the shelf, so the fact that they stuck it at the front of the store, on the top shelf, is beyond fantastic. Huge shout-out to the staff up at Chapters North, London!

I’ve also contacted their general manager about doing a book signing — no word back yet, but I have high hopes!

Other update

The lovely and talented Ms. Tania L Ramos is currently rocking Las Vegas on a writer’s getaway. She brought along Imminent Danger, and took this adorable, alien-themed photo: