#TuesdayBookBlog Random Musings & Word of the Day #caffbition #AmReading

I realize I don't blog regularly. I manage to post book reviews and spotlights for friends, and occasionally I'll have a cover reveal or event update/followup. Posting more consistently has been on my caffbition list for some time now.

I think being a novelist can make blogging a challenge. I'm used to several rounds of editing before sending my words off into the world. Also, I prefer a resting phase where I let words ferment and then revisit them to make sure they still sound as good as they did when I first wrote them. By then, anything dealing with current events is not longer relevant... which usually prompts me to discard rather than post outdated content, even if it does survive editing and self-scrutiny. This practice does not make for successful blogging.

So here I am today, long after the coffee has worn off, blogging without editing or clicking "save for later". I'm not saying that this will become a regular thing, but I gotta start somewhere. Okay. That's enough random musing. Let's move on to the bookish part of the blog this fine Tuesday...

This weekend, I'll be at Planet Comicon in Kansas City, MO. Squeee!!! It's my first time, which seems odd, since it's in my home state and full of awesomeness. I've traveled to New Orleans and Dallas and Denver for conventions, and this is somehow the first one I've attended close to home. If it's half as much fun as I expect it will be, it may become a regular event we attend every year. *fingers crossed and gas card clutched close to my heart* If you're attending, be sure to stop by my table on Artist Alley and say hello! And if you're a writer (or aspiring writer) come check out the Writing with Momentum panel I'm moderating on Saturday at 5:30pm.

I'm really psyched to meet everyone attending! And even though I mostly read ebooks these days, I do have a copy of Point of Divergence (Star Trek Seekers book 2) that I'm hoping to get signed by Dayton and Kevin. : ) I'm also stupid excited about the Kevin Smith Q&A Friday night, and the fact that my friend Alice is going too! I'm bringing my set of Cards Against Humanity, which I recently updated with all the latest expansions, so I'm planning for massive fun in the off-hours of the convention as well. ; )

I have a mountain of books to read when we return next week, and I'm determined to write blog reviews for them all. I might even record a BookTube video or two. After the amazing Bookish Babe did a video review for my first Lana novel, I've been inspired to give it a try! (That could just be the caffbition talking again...also, I hate myself on film. Totes awkward.)

Here are the reads I'll be devouring in the weeks to come...

The Darkest Part of the Forest by Holly Black
(I adored Black's Modern Faerie Tale series and the Spiderwick Chronicles, and I'm actually 70 pages into this book already and enjoying it immensely. I checked this one out from the library when I was there for a signing last month, but I've been caught up with the release of Ghost Market and reading novels for my critique group, the Four Horsemen of the Bookocalypse.)



 

Descended from Dragons by Tricia Owens
(Tricia is a fellow indie author. She sent me a review copy of her new book, but it's only 99¢ on Amazon--and FREE through Kindle Unlimited. I intended to have my review ready in time for release day, but I'm behind as usual. T-T )






Okay. I guess I better get back to the writing and editing and packing and--oh, did I mention that I'm completely recoding my website? Yeah, that too. I haven't updated it in some time, and now that everyone prefers to surf the web on their phone, I find that my site isn't as mobile friendly as it ought to be. : /  Just one more task to add to the caffbition list.

xoxo

Leaps of Faith and Busted Buns

My New Year’s resolutions have not been going well. They started out great. Seriously! I made it to the gym a few times. I was writing consistently. I ate some kale. I posted a few videos on YouTube…

But it all fell apart around the beginning of week 3. My day job is designing a monthly real estate guide. It’s usually 64-72 pages, and it takes up a solid week every month. In that week, I fall behind on everything. EVERYTHING. The house work piles up, my writing lags, I sleep an average of 5 hours a night, and I start to smell. My husband and son aren’t thrilled about the lack of attention either.

I’ve been at this for 5 years now. If I wasn’t a full-time writer, it probably wouldn’t be so bad. But I AM a full-time writer. Don’t get me wrong. I love design work, and I have a great boss. Also, it is only 1 week a month. This job has allowed me to work from home—through being pregnant with my son, and through 2 years of breast-feeding. The thing is, when I took this job 5 years ago, I’d only been a published author for a few months. I was in no position to make it as a full-time writer. Even 4 years later, I was only making enough in royalties to claim writing as a hobby.

This past year has left me in a perpetual state of disbelief. 2014 was very good to me. It started in January, when I made the first book in my Lana Harvey series available for free. I know a lot of indie authors who are horrified by this concept, but it’s one of the best things I ever did for my writing career. I understand how some might see this as demeaning—almost like an admission that their hard work is worthless. I admit, it took me a while to get over that hump as well. The thing is, when you’re a relatively unknown indie author without a big publishing house to back you, it’s hard to get your name out there. It’s hard to get readers to take a chance on you. Obviously, it’s much easier to get readers to take a chance when you offer them a free book. When you have a decent backlist, that free book equals multiple sales you would have undoubtedly never seen. I regret nothing.

In April, I saw my first royalty check that was more than what my day job paid. Amazeballs! I allowed myself a few days to be giddy and celebrate, and then I reeled it in. One month of awesome sales does not equal a good enough reason to quit a job with a steady paycheck. In June, I was fortunate enough to be accepted by BookBub for a promo feature in their newsletter. I didn’t really understand what this meant until the actual day of the promo in July. Graveyard Shift, my free book, was downloaded over 25,000 times that day. It topped a few Amazon lists. Then sales on my other books took off. More readers began to email, asking when my next book would be out. My job as an author went into overdrive.

Squeeee!

 

My day job has since become harder and harder to manage. I end the work week feeling like an apocalypse survivor, and it takes me a good week to catch up on life in general. Now that I’m financially comfortable enough to make a living as an author, I really don’t need the day job anymore. I haven’t for a while, but when you work for good people, it’s even harder to make that leap. But I finally did. Last week, I put in my 3 month notice. I know that sounds like a lot of time, but like I said, I work for good people. It will take time to find the right person to take on this job.

So… back to those resolutions. It’s been almost 2 weeks since I posted a video. I’ll get back on that this week. And to be honest, it’s not just the day job that’s set me back recently.

Last week, in front of my son’s preschool, I tripped backwards over the curb as I was taking my son out of the backseat. The mommy instincts kicked in, so instead of trying to break my fall, I lifted my kiddo up as high as I could, and fell flat on my ass. The kiddo is fine. He thought we were playing. I, on the other hand, have a bruised tailbone and it hurts to sit down. Which means the gym was a no-go for a while. I don’t even want to think about how painful doing crunches would be right now. Also, kale was not going to cut it for a boo-boo of this magnitude. That required ice cream. If I was going to jump off the resolution wagon, why not do a somersault through a flaming hoop while I was at it?

Tomorrow’s the first of February. A good time to hit the reset button, yeah? Anyway, I hope you all are accomplishing all you’ve set out to do this year! If you need me, I’ll be furiously typing, folding mountains of laundry, and icing my ass.

♥♥♥