Tuesday Tumbling Term ~ Giveaway

It's time for the Tuesday Tumbling Term for the indie author. Today's term is GIVEAWAYS.

give·a·way
[giv-uh-wey]
noun
1. an act or instance of giving something away.
2. something that is given away, especially as a gift or premium: A pocket calculator was offered as a giveaway with every new subscription to the magazine.
3. a radio or television program on which prizes are given away to contestants in a question-and-answer game.
4. a tax law or other legislation designed to benefit one segment of the population, one area or state, etc.: a giveaway that benefited only the very rich.

To me, this is a under utilized option by indie published authors and it shouldn't be. It's been used for decades to draw prospective buyers in. I've participated in many over my past decades as both a consumer and producer.

I once told a fellow author that you couldn't do book signings with e-versions of your book that's why paperbacks are so important. After I said that, I started producing e-pub and PDF files of my books to sell at various events and signed the label or CD it was copied on. I also gave away signed bookmarks, but soon realized that e-readers had no use for bookmarks.

The concept of take away value is important in all aspects of selling your wares. A "thank you" for stopping by my table even if you don't buy right now. Would you give away a copy of your book if it produced one sale, how about five, ten, a hundred? Yep, I would too even if it was for one sale I didn't have before. It may sound like small stuff, but in reality it equals to exponential growth because that one person will tell ten, those ten will tell ten people each and so on.

Is it a gimmick? Oh yeah, it is. It is also a good way of getting the word out that you have a book available. The average consumer/reader has to see your title twenty times before they will purchase your book. This could take six months or so depending on when and where you promote your book, and I don't mean buy-my-book blurbs. I'm taking about quality context, but more on that tomorrow.

Do you participate in giveaways? Why not?
Keep writing and loving the Lord.

Tuesday Tumbling Term ~ Kernel

Today's term is kernel.
ker·nel
noun
1. the softer, usually edible part contained in the shell of a nut or the stone of a fruit.
2. the body of a seed within its husk or integuments.
3. a whole seed grain, as of wheat or corn.
4. South Atlantic States. the pit or seed of a peach, cherry, plum, etc.
5. the central or most important part of anything; essence; gist; core: His leadership is the kernel of the organization.

Most writers know what a kernel is as it pertains to writing. The definition is #5. The central or most part of writing- the base idea or premise. It's that light bulb lighting up in your head for a story. And it seems to be a stumbling block for quite a few authors. It really hasn't been a problem for me. To readers, it is the most asked question to an author...where do you get the idea for a story.

For me it is everywhere. It's something I see on television. Some bum on the street. Something I read on the internet. Sometimes it's a song or news report on the radio. It provokes questions in my mind. The almighty...WHAT IF?

A case in point. On television I saw an ad for a new show on AMC for The Walking Dead. I was really a wimp. I'd seen more blood and gore in real life than another person would see in a lifetime so I usually stayed away from shows like that, unless it's a medical show like E.R. (my all time favorite). In a way I justified that television watching to Michael Crichton because I was a huge fans of his books.

I was never really into zombie flicks because they were always "B" movies with stupid actors and plots. They were more horror and gore than art to me. I mean really most them had a buxom beauty, scantily clad, opening a door where the killer might be or running away from the killer, looking back, tripping and falling before being killed. I couldn't suspend my disbelief long enough to watch them without yelling, "Oh, you stupid idiot!" If it was me, I'd be running so fast the killer would eat my dust. Looking back? I'd assume he was still back there and keep running. "B" movies were no-brainers.

I'd never write horror, I told myself. As a writer, I'm above such nonsense. My momma always told me that there was no such thing as never. As soon as you say it, you will and such is the case with me.

But I'm getting away from my point of the kernel. What's this all leading to? My kernel for Zombie Apocalypse: Redemption.

I was watching the Fox News one night and heard something that jerked into full alertness. The CDC (Center of Disease Control) had issued a Zombie Preparedness Alert. Nah, this couldn't be real, I thought and went to the CDC website and sure enough there it was. Of course it was the same as hurricane preparedness. They just wanted to get everyone's attention.

Later that evening, my husband was talking to me about converted missile silos and FEMA camps over dinner. He is an amateur conspiracy buff. Whatever floats his boat, I thought, only half listening, or so I thought.

Later before bed, the What-ifs started rolling around in my head while I was watching the movie 2012. Nah, I thought, it's horror. I don't write horror just horrific scenes in my novels to make the reader's heart beat quicken. But the idea would not leave me alone. The What-ifs fueled my dreams into a raging bonfire that night.

By morning, I had an outline and raced to my computer to jot it down. Not that I intended on writing about zombies but maybe I could include some of the details in a future suspense novel. Not all kernels are enough to sustain a full length novel. I've hundreds of these that won't and can't be full novels. I don't write horror!

By afternoon I started typing the character study, research was complete, and a more detailed outline of the kernel, What-if the zombie apocalypse was real? How would the CDC handle it? What would it take not to be infected?

By early evening, I started typing the story off the outline. It flowed smoother than any story that I had ever written. You gotta love when that happens as a writer.Within two weeks, I had over a 50K-word novel. But you don't write horror my brain feebly  protested. Apparently I did have it in me to write horror. Without the zombies, it could have been a medical suspense novel, I placated my brain.

But would there be a market? This is one of the first time I've written a whole book not researching the market first. I went into GoodReads and did a search for zombie books. This was a market I never thought I would search for. Boy, was there a market! Then I researched zombie websites. It was amazing. There were thousands of them I could promote my book on or get book reviews on. On top of this Max Brook's novel, World War Z, was being made into a film. Not a "B" movie either but starring Brad Pitt and a star studded cast. I could ride the wave. There was a market.

I edited the book and sent it off to two of my beta readers. Neither of them were horror fans, but they loved it.

Although only published in October 2012, Zombie Apocalypse: Redemption has out sold all of my fiction and nonfiction.

So do all your kernels have to become stories no matter what?

Keep writing and loving the Lord.

Tuesday Tumbling Term~ Frustration and Fixes

The word for today is frustration. This is a carry over from my pastor's blog, but it fits very nicely here too. I can't plagiarize myself only repeat what I've already written. :o)

frus·tra·tion
noun
1. act of frustrating; state of being frustrated: the frustration of the president's efforts.
2. an instance of being frustrated: to experience a series of frustrations before completing a project.
3. something that frustrates, as an unresolved problem.
4. a feeling of dissatisfaction, often accompanied by anxiety or depression, resulting from unfulfilled needs or unresolved problems.

We all experience it at some time in our lives. That feeling that no matter what you do or try it just isn't working. The want to pull your hair out, want to runaway and hide until its all over. You know that feeling, right?

You can get frustrated with things like your job, your writing, your life, your situation, your finances, you're not succeeding, and people around you (some you don't even know). There are a thousand things in this world to frustrate you and trip you up. I know I do periodically like my rant last Saturday.

Notice one thing that is repeated in the above paragraph? It's Y-O-U or a variation of it. It's your frustration. It's all about you and things not going the way you want it to. How you feel about things. How you interact with situations around you. The only one who can change that is Y-O-U.

Isn't that the same thing as self pity? No, it's different. No, it's the same thing. So get off the pity pot already somebody else wants to use it!

I hear you. I've spent considerable amount of time on the pity pot myself with trying to get a handle on the feelings accompanied by my stroke and life in general. I've had a pretty hard reality setback with my stroke, but there are stroke survivors who have it much worse than me out there. My grandmother was stricken with seven strokes throughout her life. It gradually took everything away from her until she was almost in a vegetative state before she died with the seventh over five years in the progression.

Now for the fix, or some ways to stop frustration. This worked for me and it was years in the learning. God is teaching me patience with this added malady.

• Step away from what is frustrating you. Even if it is going into another room.
• Do something else not related to what you were doing. Continuing to punish yourself by keeping at it just makes the frustration worse.
• Remember it can always be worse. For me when I feel myself slipping into a rut I'll remember a friend who is in worse financial, physical or emotional straits than me. You'll smaller after feeling frustrated by such petty things that frustrated you in the first place.
• Find the root cause of why you are feelings frustrated. It may be something deeper than what you are frustrated with at the moment.
• Make your expectations smaller. As a writer after a stroke, my mind is not functioning right. I couldn't figure out a way of combining all the experiences into a chapter book like I previously wrote. Solution- simplify the book into a collection of short stories.
• Focus Smaller. As a writer with a goal of a 100K word novel in front of you and staring at a blank page, focus on a sentence, a scene, or a chapter end instead of 100K words.
• Simplify. Don't try something that takes fifty gazillion steps, if you've never done it before. Think of a jigsaw puzzle. When you were putting one together for the first time you didn't start out with a 1000 piece puzzle or a 3-D. You worked up to it.
• Allow yourself to fail attempts. Recognize that the first ten times you are not going to get it perfect. Learn from the failed attempts and make all new ones.
• You are not alone. Take a look around you. There will be others.
• Be kinder to yourself. Think of all the muscles it takes to frown, and how blotchy your face looks after a crying jag. How your screaming and yelling scares the neighbors, and how you will have to replace whatever you break.

I've just given you ten ways to stop frustration in its tracks. I don't expect you to do all of them at one time. Make a conscious effort to do one a week. In ten weeks you will be frustration free. Well maybe not totally, but you will be better armed against those feelings when you feel it start to well up inside you.

So are you feeling frustrated now?

Keep Writing and loving the Lord.

Tuesday Tumbling Term

re·view  (r-vy)
v. re·viewed, re·view·ing, re·views
v.tr.
1. To look over, study, or examine again.
2. To consider retrospectively; look back on.
3. To examine with an eye to criticism or correction: reviewed the research findings.
4. To write or give a critical report on (a new work or performance, for example).
5. Law To reexamine (an action or determination) judicially, especially in a higher court, in order to correct possible errors.
6. To subject to a formal inspection, especially a military inspection.
v.intr.
7. Law A judicial reexamination, especially by a higher court, of an action or determination.
8. A musical show consisting of often satirical skits, songs, and dances; a revue.

Now as a writer and author, we are mostly concerned with 1-4 definitions of this word.

Which is better no review or a bad review? We all want reviewer to say wonderful things about our baby, don't we? Any review is free publicity, right? Wrong. But what if it isn't good? I've been an indie author for almost two years now and I can say, to me, a bad review is worse sometimes. As my momma used to say, "Opinions are like a$$hole. Everyone has one."  Some things to think about when leaving a review or comment...

 

The Reviewer
While most people are hesitant about writing a review of any kind, they are not opposed to reading them. People tend to look at stars or symbols when choosing books. Personally, I tend to read the reviews, and then review the reviewer. If they consistently write bad reviews, then why are they reviewing in the first place? What it boils down to is attention. What does it say about someone who leaves consistent bad reviews...they have a really sad life when they have to cut someone down to feel better.

If the reviewer has given a mixture of review, I tend to pay more attention. They know their own mind and they are a fair judge of what is right. So in short, grade the reviewer or source.

What Does It All Mean
So what do bad reviews say about you as a writer? Possibly nothing and possibly everything. If the review is about formatting, you may want to redo it. If the review focuses on what is wrong with the book, they probably do it consistently. So take these with a grain of salt and consider the source.

If they are known for balanced in their reviews. I'll consider these more heavily weighted reviews than those that are not. If they say it's bad then it probably is and needs more editing.

My Way
I prefer the tempered approach of reviewing that isn't always given. I learned this method with customer service auditing. Everything is not all bad nor all good. Everything has strong and weak points. For example, if the story is good but the grammar is bad, then I'll say so. By the same token, God forbid, the story is bad and the grammar is excellent my review will be balanced. Although that's the main reason I read is for the story. Now if is totally stinky, I won't review it. Personally, I hate the star rating system. It's too confining and an easy out for laziness.

I always make a point of writing a review of what I read, that's just me. I don't expect everyone to have this standard. Though, it would be nice from a writer's stand point. It's an affirmation and acknowledgement of someone's effort. If writing was easy everyone would do it. Some writers slave at their writing for decades before they publish, or at least a couple months of sweat and furrowed brow to produce a book. Comments would be nice, but the fact is many don't. From over 1,000 book sales I might receive 1 review. So if everyone goes by my standard, my novels must be really stinky or only read by non-reviewers.

So what do you think of reviews and reviewers?

Keep writing and loving the Lord.