Jacquie Rogers, Author

by Jacquie Rogers Copyright © 2009 Jacquie Rogers Reprinted from 1st Turning Point

Your book is out, waiting to be purchased by eager readers, and you’re on the promotion circuit.  In a flash of genius, you signed up for a [...]]]>

Jacquie Rogers, Author

by Jacquie Rogers
Copyright © 2009 Jacquie Rogers
Reprinted from 1st Turning Point

Your book is out, waiting to be purchased by eager readers, and you’re on the promotion circuit.  In a flash of genius, you signed up for a featured-author day on a readers’ email group.  Let’s call it BookLoversWorld on Yahoo Groups.  (I just made that name up-don’t know if there really is a group named that!)  So now there’s a whole day dedicated to you and your book.

Now what?

Make sure your day is a success, that’s what.  Be proactive.  Here are a few pointers.

First, confirm that you’re subscribed to the group and can post.  Send two or three test posts.  I know, this seems obvious, but I’ve seen several authors fall into this trap, and when their time to shine comes . . . nada.  If the list owner isn’t Johnny-on-the-spot and helps rectify the situation, you could miss your own day.  Not good.

Make sure there are at least two other people subscribed to the group who will interact with you, even if you have to drag your critique partners in and subscribe them.  Nothing is more bewildering than posting and not receiving any response at all.  Lots of times, if a few people respond, some of the list lurkers will come out from hiding.  Otherwise, you can end up singing to an empty room, which is not what you want.

Always have plenty of material prepared ahead of time.  What material, you ask?

• An introduction, preferably a bio that relates to your audience. If the list members are more scholarly, then tailor your bio to fit academia. If they are rowdy, tailor for that. Always remember who your audience is and try to give them what they want.
• An outline of what you have planned for the day.
• A listing of all your social networks in one post.
• A couple messages containing excerpts from your featured book. Prepare excerpts from other books you have available, too, just in case someone asks. Make sure you always put the rating (G, PG, etc.) and a buy link in every excerpt post. A cover image is a necessity. Learn how to do it. If you don’t know how, I wrote an article with detailed instructions: Effective Email Promotion.
• Sponsor a contest or five. Give away your friends’ books, or a CD, or a T-shirt. Make it fun. Hint: chocolate is always a hit.

Have a game plan:

• Maintain activity on the list. Yes, a day is a long time and you do have other things to do, but check in frequently. Don’t let questions go unanswered for long; otherwise, that reader will think you don’t deem his/her comment important. Bad juju!!! All readers should feel like they’re important to you.  And of course they are.
• Have a contest schedule and stick to it, whether you get enough entries or not. And speaking of contests, the more you force the readers to do, the less participation you’ll get.
• Post recipes, or funny pictures, or jokes (but make sure they fit your audience, and stay away from politics and religion). Think about what will stir the list members into action.
• If someone is snarky or mean-spirited, ignore them. Policing is the list owner’s job, not yours.
• This is your special day, so take advantage of it.

Create the time to make your day a success.  You’re the star, so don’t give yourself short shrift.  This is not the day to write a 50-page RFP, weed the garden, and make a gourmet dinner for 30 people.  Try not to have anything scheduled.  All too often, there are must-do’s such as picking the kiddos up from school.  You can work around those things, but try to keep them to a minimum.

Most of all . . . Have fun!

Faery Merry Christmas

by Jacquie Rogers
(Kindle only at this time, but did you know you can download a Kindle reader on your PC?)

Romance has gone awry in Faeryshire.

Who would’ve thought Mr. and Mrs. Claus’s daughter would be “on the shelf”?  Yep, Cheshya’s all a’flutter because her 2,000th birthday, the last day she’s eligible to take a mate, is on Christmas, only four days away, but Liam of the Red Clan, the only man she has ever wanted is otherwise occupied . . .

Terra Humanus in 1956: carhops on roller skates, the submarine races, a pink Nash Metropolitan, Lucky Strikes, Little Richard, and the Shoreline Sharks Baseball Club starring ace pitcher Liam Stone.

For the past five years, Liam of the Red Clan has lived in Terra Humanus, pitching for the Shoreline Sharks and obsessed with signing as a major league pitcher with the Cincinnati Reds.   The faery queen sends Cheshya to help him achieve his goal, but in signing with the Reds, will he lose out on his true heart’s desire?

What will it take to make a Faery Merry Christmas?

“What faery fun!  A winsome sprite’s barely still-ticking time clock.  Mayhem in the land of Claus.  And the man who could wave just the right magic wand obsessed with baseball.  A Christmas story to cuddle up with–and keep you really warm.” Stella Cameron, NYT Best-selling Author

Every once in a while, a friend and I go out of the area for a writers’ retreat.  This isn’t sponsored by anyone or anything–it’s just us–Judith Laik and I, and sometimes our two other friends can make it if we’re lucky.  We pack up our clothes, food, and writing materials [...]]]>

Every once in a while, a friend and I go out of the area for a writers’ retreat.  This isn’t sponsored by anyone or anything–it’s just us–Judith Laik and I, and sometimes our two other friends can make it if we’re lucky.  We pack up our clothes, food, and writing materials . . . oh, and an itty bit of wine . . . and off we go.

This time we left Monday morning and came home Friday night.  Believe me, every minute is useful.  The drive to the condo is our planning time.  We decide what books each of us will work on, and how much time we require for actual writing versus brainstorming.

We discuss new techniques for either brainstorming or craft, and we decide which ones we’ll try and how much time we’ll give each to produce results.  After all, we do have tried-and-true methods, but we’re always on the hunt for something new.  We learned a long time ago that every story evolves in its own way, no matter how we try to force it.

Some techniques we used this time:
April Kihlstrom’s BIAW class
Discovering Story Magic
Debra Dixon’s Goal, Motivation, and Conflict
A deck of cards with story ideas (can’t remember where Judith bought these)

After we arrive, the first item on the agenda is to unpack as quickly as possible and go to the grocery store for fresh foods.  We plan it so we can get everything we need for the week, because we didn’t drive all this way to shop.  We hurry with life’s mundane chores so we can get down to business.  Even during our chores, we’re still discussing our stories.

Yay!  Dinner is done, the dishes are in the dishwasher, the wine is poured, the chips and salsa are on the coffee table, our AlphaSmarts have new batteries–we’re set!  After spending several hours in the car, as well as discussing our stories’ needs during our chorse, we have a good idea what needs to happen.

This time, we both needed the same things: 1) gaining confidence that we could write our stories; and 2) analyzing our stories’ weaknesses and brainstorming how to fix them.

We took turns, working first on my book, then on hers.  We started using April Kihlstrom’s technique for preparing for a Book In A Week challenge.  Wow, she has some great stuff and I highly encourage anyone to take her classes.  I immediately identified the flaw in my story (the conflict wasn’t sustainable), and we proceeded to figure out how to fix the problem, which took a while, but we did it.

Then we had to work on Judith’s book.  Her first priority was to decide what the ending will be so she can plot toward it.  That took a while, but we managed to brainstorm a rather clever ending–clever in its simplicity.  Off to our beds with  only our AlphaSmarts for companionship (Judy has a laptop, too, so not quite true).  We wrote until we were either stuck or asleep.

Each day is pretty much the same: discuss our stories, plot out the next scene, then go our separate ways and write.  We think about our stories in the shower, we discuss our plot problems over meals, and we even try our best to dream stories and remember them when we wake up.

We also take a break mid-afternoon and go for a walk.  A little exercise stimulates the brain and we find we get more done if we schedule a walk.  What do we talk about?  Yep, our books.

These writers’ retreats aren’t holidays–they’re working trips and we get a lot done.  This time, I didn’t burn up the pages with words, but I certainly made significant progress so that now I can burn up the pages with words, which I plan to start doing today.

It’s wonderful to jumpstart my Muse a few times a year, and I wish everyone could plan their own writing retreats.  If you do, here are a few things to keep in mind:

• Not every writer needs the same thing.  Some might need actual plot brainstorming, some might want to discuss theme or the philosophy of their story, some might need to go write after minimal discussion.
• Whether a writer takes it or not, each person should be allotted the same amount of discussion time.  It’s vital that everyone leave the retreat knowing they’ve accomplished significant progress.
• Be careful not to get off on tangents or gossip.  It’s too easy to fritter away valuable retreat time.  Believe me, even five days (three full days and two packing/driving days) is too short.
• Decide ahead of time how you’re going to share expenses.

This would have been a great prelude to NaNoWriMo.  Maybe we can schedule it for the last week of October next year.

Speaking of NaNoWriMo, how’s everyone doing?

Faery Merry Christmas

Faery Merry Christmas: A Heartwarming Novella

by Jacquie Rogers
(Kindle only at this time)

Romance has gone awry in Faeryshire.

Who would’ve thought Mr. and Mrs. Claus’s daughter would be “on the shelf”?  Yep, Cheshya’s all a’flutter because her 2,000th birthday, the last day she’s eligible to take a mate, is on Christmas, only four days away, but Liam of the Red Clan, the only man she has ever wanted is otherwise occupied . . .

Terra Humanus in 1956: carhops on roller skates, the submarine races, a pink Nash Metropolitan, Lucky Strikes, Little Richard, and the Shoreline Sharks Baseball Club starring ace pitcher Liam Stone.

For the past five years, Liam of the Red Clan has lived in Terra Humanus, pitching for the Shoreline Sharks and obsessed with signing as a major league pitcher with the Cincinnati Reds.   The faery queen sends Cheshya to help him achieve his goal, but in signing with the Reds, will he lose out on his true heart’s desire?

What will it take to make a Faery Merry Christmas?

“What faery fun!  A winsome sprite’s barely still-ticking time clock.  Mayhem in the land of Claus.  And the man who could wave just the right magic wand obsessed with baseball.  A Christmas story to cuddle up with–and keep you really warm.” Stella Cameron, NYT Best-selling Author

Hi everybody,

I have no prompts today, but I wanted to let you know that next week, I’m interviewing a writer named Diamond Taylor. Be sure to come by for that. She’s going to be giving out some posters and bookmarks, too. That’s Tuesday the 10th! I hope you’ll visit and say hello. [...]]]>

Hi everybody,

I have no prompts today, but I wanted to let you know that next week, I’m interviewing a writer named Diamond Taylor. Be sure to come by for that. She’s going to be giving out some posters and bookmarks, too. That’s Tuesday the 10th! I hope you’ll visit and say hello.

I’m doing NaNo this year, so if any of you have joined up, feel free to add me to your buddy list, or just come by to check out info about the new NaNo book, Strange Familiar. I can’t believe it’s been an entire year since last NaNo!

Also, I’ve submitted four books to three different publishers, and when I hear back from them I’ll let you know. If you’d like to check out my other books, please visit my website for information, links, news, my blog, my Cassidy Hunter website, links to my Etsy shop, a link to my free (erotic) read, and more. I’d love to see you!

Jane E. Jones

Things happen.

A few weeks ago, I wrote about my experience with publishing a novella on the Kindle, called Faery Merry Christmas. Publishing is one thing–selling books is something else altogether.  It requires time, effort, a little (lot of)  money, and a boatload of luck (which [...]]]>

Things happen.

A few weeks ago, I wrote about my experience with publishing a novella on the Kindle, called Faery Merry Christmas. Publishing is one thing–selling books is something else altogether.  It requires time, effort, a little (lot of)  money, and a boatload of luck (which you get only if you invest the time, effort and money so luck can come around). That’s how it works.

But sometimes it’s not to be.  I haven’t had any chance at all to publicize this book. There are about three of us who know it exists and only one of us owns a Kindle.

Like I said, things happen. My father-in-law passed away two weeks ago (not unexpected, but death is always a shock), and his funeral was last Monday. My husband and I had to travel out of state, and of course several things needed to be handled before we could return. Why am I mentioning my personal affairs in a writing column? Because we’re writers, and things do happen that sometimes puts the kibosh on our best-laid plans.

Faery Merry Christmas is a Christmas story (of course). When do you sell Christmas stories? You’ve got it–Halloween!!! Yep, all marketing for Christmas publications need to have the reviews done, the web pages finished, the book video done, and probably a contest laid out, ready to roll the first of November.

Faery Merry Christmas

Not going to happen. But since my novella is set in 1956, it can be sold next year just as well. I’ll prepare a marketing campaign for autumn of 2010, but meantime I’ll do what I can this year.

I guess the moral of the story is to not procrastinate — get everything done before you think it’s necessary. In this case, I hadn’t decided to publish the book until a friend urged me to, and it seemed like a good idea at the time. Yes, I knew it was late to start publicity,  then Kindle took 3 days to go live so I was late to start with.  So the timing went awry in a major way right from the get-go.

I fully intend to carry on, pretending as if I didn’t lose the prime two weeks of promo and writing time–after all, being with family was time well-spent.  First priority is to get some writing done.  My critique partner and I are heading to her resort condo for a five-day writing retreat.  My AlphaSmart has eight empty files and my goal is to fill all eight of them by the time I return home on Friday evening.

While this article is about promotion and the timing gone south, it’s always good to remember that if you don’t finish new stories, you have nothing else to sell.

Speaking of which, who’s doing NaNoWriMo? Again, the timing is terrible for me, but I can still give it a whirl. November is the month where we can put our heads down and write, write, write!

And you know, things don’t always go the way we wrote it down in our Daily Planners. Sometimes we just have to go with the flow.

Next week, I’ll let you know all about the writers’ retreat I’m attending this week.  I’m really excited to spend five days doing nothing but brainstorming, writing, or drinking wine.  Oh, did I say that?  No wine.  Okay, not much wine.  Or cheese.  I’ll have brie, please.

Jacquie

Down Home Ever Lovin’ Mule Blues (See the Book Video featuring Justin Saragueta)
Jacquie’s Website * 1st Turning Point * Myspace * Twitter * Facebook
Faery Special Romances * Book Video Royalties go to Children’s Tumor Foundation, ending Neurofibromatosis through Research

Our modern sensibilities tell us certain aspects of our lives have “always been that way.”  Not so.  When we write historicals, we need to research the attitudes and mores of that particular time period, and incorporate that richness into our stories.

Take drugs, in the 19th Century, for instance.  At one [...]]]>

Our modern sensibilities tell us certain aspects of our lives have “always been that way.”  Not so.  When we write historicals, we need to research the attitudes and mores of that particular time period, and incorporate that richness into our stories.

Take drugs, in the 19th Century, for instance.  At one time, snake oil salesmen had a clear playing field, and their incredible claims went unchallenged.   Our own opinions on drugs and laws that govern them are moot.

The labels carried wild promises but no list of ingredients. Patent medicines were ubiquitous in the 1800s, partly because medical science had made advances and partly because the search for health exceeded medical science’s capabilities.

These elixirs, creams, and compresses were made from any number of ingredients, ranging from vegetable juice to narcotics. Remember, there were no drug laws in the USA until after the turn of the 20th Century. When a patient took a dose of patent medicine, he or she could be taking opium, alcohol, mandrake, belladonna, marijuana, or extracts from hellebore, henbane, datura, and hemlock.

The term “patent medicine” refers to a product with a proprietary list of ingredients and sold directly to the public, not that the medicine was patented. Some of these products originated as old family recipes, but some manufacturers were a bit more mercenary in the development of their tonics. The quest for the almighty dollar soon surpassed any anecdotal or scientific basis for these medicines, and the patent medicine business became a huge economic force.

Tired of Viagra ads? Believe me, these ads certainly aren’t new. Here’s one of my favorite patent medicine ads, taken from The Owyhee Avalanche in the 1880s:

…and it goes on and on!

The patent medicine industry was brought to its knees shortly after the turn of the 20th Century. From the Food and Drug Administration:

A few muckraking journalists helped expose the red clauses, the false testimonials, the nostrums laden with harmful ingredients, the unfounded cures for cancer, tuberculosis, syphilis, narcotic addiction, and a host of other serious as well as self-limited diseases. The most influential work in this genre was the series by Samuel Hopkins Adams that appeared in Collier’s on October 7, 1905, entitled “The Great American Fraud.” Adams published ten articles in the series, which concluded in February 1906; he followed it up with another series on doctors who advertised fake clinics. The shocking stories of the patent medicine menace were accompanied by startling images, such as “Death’s Laboratory.”

Good health to you!

Any day now!!!

Faery Merry Christmas will be released as a Kindle novella.  Here’s the cover:

Faery Merry Christmas

Human World in 1956: carhops on roller skates, the submarine races, a pink Metropolitan, Lucky Strikes, Little Richard, and the Shoreline Sharks Baseball Club, starring ace pitcher Liam Stone.  Elsewhere . . .

Romance has gone awry in Faery Realm.

Who would’ve thought Mr. and Mrs. Claus’s daughter would be “on the shelf”?  Yep, Cheshya’s all a’flutter because her 2,000^th birthday, the last day she’s eligible to take a mate, is on Christmas, only four days away, but the only man she has ever wanted is otherwise occupied . . .

Liam of the Red Clan is obsessed with succeeding as a major league pitcher with the Cincinnati Reds.  He has stayed away from Faery Realm to concentrate on achieving his heart’s desire.  But in signing with the Reds, will he lose out on his true heart’s desire?

What will it take to make a Faery Merry Christmas?

The cover model? I spent two days looking for a redhead with shoulders, then I remembered I’d made one!  So I bribed my son with potatoes au gratin and now he’s on the cover.  Yay!

The winner of Justin Saragueta’s debut CD???

Lisa Alexander-Griffin!!!

Please send your snail mail address to jacquierogers@gmail.com, subject: GUETA CD.

Jacquie
Down Home Ever Lovin’ Mule Blues (See the Book Video featuring Justin Saragueta)
Jacquie Rogers * 1st Turning Point * Myspace * Twitter * Facebook

Faery Special Romances * Book Video Royalties go to Children’s Tumor Foundation, ending Neurofibromatosis through Research