Clean Reader

Wow. I recently learned of an app called, "Clean Reader". I have read several opinions from many different folks and I will say that both sides have a point. As unusual as this may sound, I agree with both sides. It really is a very opinionated argument, and those looking for a winner, I am so sorry to disappoint, there will be no winner.

For those who don’t know what "Clean Reader" is, let me explain. It is an app that filters "dirty" words from a book that someone may want to read. The books come into the app as pure as the author wrote them, however if someone decides that they want to "clean up" what the author wrote, they can. Basically replacing the authors words with something the reader would prefer to read.

Author J.K. Rowlings, famous for her Harry Potter series is a perfect example of this. Harry was clean. Even though the books grew with Harry's more grown up situations, it still did not offend those who chose to read about Harry.

J.K. decides that she wants to venture into something else. Something totally different. Something that drops the "F" bomb a few times within the first few chapters, and her fans are suddenly disappointed in her work.

Well, we all know that the human being is a huge creature of habit. We do and react to what is comfortable to us. Change is also hard for the average human. This is why I am on both sides of the fence with this "Clean Reader" app.

Continuing to use J.K. as my example, we got used to Harry and his friends being the kids who always got into minor trouble and always forgiven. This is how the average human life is. Harry and his friends are young, curious, and well at times brilliant. We loved it.

This would be the example of comfortable. This is what we were used to seeing from J.K.

So the Harry Potter series ends, and she wants to do something different.

OMG! Change! This is something as humans we usually have to grow into. How will change ultimately affect us? I could go on about change, but that is a subject for a different time. Well maybe a little bit. Change is as human as comfort. One being more acceptable depending on the situation, but the same none the less.

Bottom line, there is no way that you can criticize her for being herself. Perhaps she wanted some change in her life. Perhaps there was something in her that she wanted to write and pursue. Oh the insanity!

Let's get back on "Clean Reader". Okay let's just say that I am writing books, good or bad ones (and yes there is some garbage out there), my goal is to become the best author that has ever lived, but I don’t care what I put out. As long as I have sales, I am successful in my eyes. In this case, "Clean Reader" does not matter to me. I am the author, and you have purchased my book. What you do after that is your business, because I already have your money.

Oh! I can't believe I just said that, because I happen to lean toward the other end, though what I said is way too true.

I once had someone say to me, "I would read your books if the curse words weren't in it." Well hell (and yes I said, hell), there is no way that me sitting at my desk alone can appease everyone in the world, so you get what you get. My edited words. And yes, the raw version may be a bit more offensive, but it is what it is.

In closing, I will say, "Clean Reader" is for those who want to pretend. If you choose to pick up a book that would normally be offensive to you, well then don't read it. Don’t be pressured into reading something because all of your friends are reading it, stick to your beliefs.

If vamps, cursing, and sex are not your thing, well don’t buy it. These days electronic books are cheap. If you spend three bucks on a book and it is not your cup of tea, then hey, you lost the cost of a cup of Starbucks coffee. I'm almost sure you will forget about your purchase the next day. We do it all the time. Do your thing as long as you have already purchased the book. No one can tell you what to do with your property after you already own it.

On the back side of that, authors do not appreciate their words being changed after they have worked months, and even years perfecting their work. I'm one of them.

So perhaps the app goes away? I'm not sure what the solution is, but in the meantime, we are losing precious time arguing about this. Authors, don't you have work to do?

Until next time,

Kayresia

Marketing

Blast!  Free.  Ninety-nine cents or more.  How do I price my book?  Mark Coker, founder of Smashwords.com says the median price for your book is ideal at 2.99, up to 5.99.  I will not disagree.  I have had mediocre success at 2.99.

From simple emails, to flyers and business cards, I have spent way more money than my books have yielded.  But I still know marketing is important, and I press.

You can pay marketing folks a butt load to do this for you, but can’t really appreciate what they do for you unless you give it a go yourself.

This blog is one of my marketing tools.  I started this because I didn’t have one, and well now, I’m glad I did.  I now have somewhere to share with the world my successes.  Facebook, Twitter, Linked In, and others are awesome just to drive people to your book page.  The hardest part of Marketing (for me anyway), is trying to find the time to get it done.  I have committed to writing in this blog at least once a month, and that’s a start, but I could be doing so much more if I had the time.

Since I am on the subject, I am deeming today, “Self-promote Day”.  Maybe you should to.  Get out there and talk about your work.  Reach out and touch someone with your shining personality.  I am definitely going to give it a shot.

Until Next Time,
Kayresia

Reviews over Revenue

Holy smokes. I have been in the indie business for a little over four years. I think the usual sweet spot for fame is about seven years after publication if you are a new author, so yes…I wait.

I wait for fame; I wait for me to have a summer home in New York and a winter home in Miami. I wait for my guest spot on Oprah's latest talk show; I wait for my book to be plastered all over Barnes and Noble when you walk in the door. I wait to be the executive producer of my novel when it becomes a movie. I wait for my name to be spoken and the person listening knows who I am, even though they haven't read a thing I have written.

Fame, so insanely awesome. What comes from this? Insane revenue. If you are successful in the "biz", you will make enough money that you will never have to work again. Well at least work for anyone else again. You will be in the business for yourself, and I think that is a lot harder. I have read enough posts on various self-publishing sites to see that is what most folks think about.

Okay, you may not be in the book biz to become famous. Perhaps you are looking to supplement your income? Good luck. With the invention of the internet, everyone can be an author, good work or not. If you don't have a good marketing plan, you will be lost amongst the substandard works, and at times that will become extremely frustrating. You know that you have written a book that is worth reading, but you have become lumped in with books that are in the same genre, and well, not so good. You have minimal control over that, so you wait.

How does your book rise above all the others? Reviews.

People buy books based on what they like. I have a friend who reads like a fiend and will not buy one of my books because it is not something that she reads. Yes she told me this to my face. I didn't bother her anymore, because there was no point. So again, peeps read what they like and are comfortable with. Write a novel that will have your readers clamoring for more. So much that they have to talk about it. Reviews are huge with new authors. They can make or break someone very easily.

My first published novel had such bad reviews; I pulled the book and sought out an editor quickly. I did not want to die on the electronic shelves an unknown. No human being on the planet wants to be talked about by a stranger. So I worked.

Now, nine novels in, it is not the revenue I look for the review. My initial thought was, "I have your money, and I don't care what you say." But after my first book, I quickly changed my mind. People's thoughts written for all to see, do matter. Without a good review, I will never achieve fame.

So what is more important to you? Selling books or entertaining your readers? You decide. But take away something from this post, and think about why you do what you do.

In the end, I think you will be happy on both fronts if you write an awesome story.

Until Next Time,

Kayresia.

Revisions

How many times do we need to revise our books before it gets published? That is a question no one can really answer.

When I first wrote Gift of Life, I put it away for about a month or so then re-read it, making note to save the file as GOL2. That’s what we all do right? I mean naming our files. I made some changes to the story itself, and put it away again. The next time I opened it, I read some things and thought, “Ew. What was I thinking?” And made more changes. Throughout all of this, I wasn’t keeping a timeline of what was going on in my story, yet the revisions continued. It took a while to straighten my timeline out, and almost two years later, thinking I was ready to go on and have someone edit for me, I sat down and read it again. After eighteen (Yes that many) revisions, I was still not 100 percent happy with it, but it was at least ready for an editor to take a look at it.
Five months and two more revisions, it was ready. Yay! I thought. It was just published three months later, and I bet if I sat down and read it again, I would find more things I don’t like about it.

So, there is not a real answer to this question. So my advice is, do not rush to publish. Take at least a year on your manuscript (If it is a full length novel anyway) and make sure you don’t hate what you’ve written after someone has downloaded it. Then it is too late.

I read my novels all the time and find things that were missed even after a third or fourth edit. Of course by this time, the errors are minor. A missed end quote, period or comma (Boo! Hiss!). But because I publish electronically I can fix those without any real damage to my story (Yay!)

Well, until next time,
Kayresia

Real Writers

I have been writing since I was fourteen years old. My imagination has been going almost non-stop for years. Yeah, I’m not a kid anymore, but writing novels has always been a dream of mine. Now that I am here (Thanks to the internet), I’m not gonna turn back.

I’ve learned a lot about myself and my bad habits over the last two years, and I still yearn for greatness. I dreamed of being Stephenie Meyer, and J.K. Rowlings before either of them even appeared on the scene.  Yes, I would love my Baby Farm Series to be the next Twilight or Harry Potter, but I lack the money to hire an agent, and the self publishing packages offered by anyone other than Smashwords are just out of reach.

Okay on to my topic. What is a “Real Writer?” I am one, or so I presume myself to be. I work like a dog on my stories, and spend what I can afford on marketing and editing. But people still have a hard time believing I’m actually published.

“Oh you write?” “Do you have any published books?” I say yes, hand them my business card, and give them the coupon code for a free copy of any one of my books, and it seems to end there. My normal response to the doubters is, “Google me.” People only seem to believe what they read on the internet or what the media says, so why not? Google me.

We all have been there at one point or another. My own mother didn’t believe in me, and I wish she was here to see me now. My father is just now trying to understand. Ugh! Sorry. Personal feelings coming out. I digress.

So all of you other indie authors out there besides me, I just have to say one thing. We are all Real Writers. Not everyone will like what we write, nor will they always accept what we do. But don’t give up. Live your own dream. Who knows, one day one of us (many Smashwords authors already have) will achieve the dream whatever it may be.

Monetary is not what I’m speaking about. I’m talking about every other person you meet on the street will ask “Hey, have you read the latest book by…?” That is where we all really want to be right? We want to know that we have entertained someone through our craft. Real Writers. We all are.
Question remains, are we really that good?

Until Next Time,
Kayresia

Book Covers

Once me and would be partner argued over something as simple as a book cover. We were working on a book together. (Which I don’t recommend doing with your friends. Lot’s of drama and extreme creative differences can occur.) She had her own opinion about what goes on a cover, so did I. I won’t tell you hers, but I will tell you mine.
People. And I’m not taking anything away from those whose opinion is different from mine. But I feel that people on the cover of your book convey a certain feel. I mean if you are writing romance, erotica or anything that has to do with human emotion, well people or persons most definitely should have a presence on the cover.
Flowers or any other object can say many things. Not saying that it doesn’t say romance, it just doesn’t say feelings to me. I mean really. Everyone is just not that deep.
Your cover should reach out to your target audience without them having to analyze what the story is about. Take my “Gift of Life” cover for instance. There is no doubt in your mind that it is about a man and a woman. A single object could mean several things. I, being the lover of romance, would have to take extra time to read the back of the book to find out if I really wanted to read the book.
I started reading a series about post apocalyptic earth. E.E. Knight. Very good series which I have yet to finish. But looking at the cover of the first book, I felt it was about a kid out for justice, watching his back the whole time. I picked it up and was instantly in love. Adventure, excitement and the kid with guts fought his way through to the next novel.
So, book covers. What do you think? Should your cover tell your story? Or should it be something obscure? If you are out to sell books, tell the story on the cover, for sure. It won’t hurt in the least.

Until next time,
Kayresia

Novellas

I have read many. What exactly are they? Are they ideas that fizzle out? Are they the “Stay tuned, the rest of the story coming soon?” I wonder.

This week, I downloaded a book that I had in my library for a very long time. I was extremely disappointed when my nooK opened the book it was only 130 pages. “Ugh,” I thought. “I’ll be done with this in an hour, and then what am I going to read?”

However, this one was quite good (where a lot of them are not). My only complaint is that it left me wanting more, as lots of novellas often do. The story moved way too fast, and me being an author myself, I felt that there was way more story to be told. I was compelled to “fill in” the missing parts. The couple in the story went from wanting each other, to having mad crazy relations, to planning a life together all within an hour. Frustration set in and I wonder why people do this.

Personally, I try to give my readers the whole story. Ups, downs and everything between. Giving them time to get to know and love (or hate) my characters.

Needing Nita by Norah Wilson was a fantastic read. She pulled me in from the first page, and like I said, I finished it within an hour or so. And I wanted to know more about Craig and Nita. I would have loved to read about the courtroom flirting. The chase. So, maybe Norah’s novella was to introduce herself to new readers.

Laurel K. Hamilton has a couple of novellas in her Anita Blake series. In Micah, she fills us in on the back story of one of her already well known characters. I appreciated that. After I read it, I had a better understanding of why Micah was the way he was. Yay!

But I still would love to know why people tease us with novellas. Help me out.

Until next time,
Kayresia