Guest Post

Hello Everyone,

Again, I've disappeared for a few months. I want to make some changes to my blog, such as appearance and posts. I'm still mulling it over, so until I figure this all out stop on by Jeri Walker-Bickett's blog and check out my guest blog post Newbie Publishing: The Highs and Lows. 

Hope you're all doing well.

Blogging and Publishing,
Bea

What’s happened to me?

Some people spend money on electronics, fast food, clothes, or shoes, but I spend my money on books. I love to have my own books, to flip through the pages, mark phrases I love, and then put a bookplate on the front for my top favorites. Before meeting my husband, I used to spend my Fridays browsing around Borders, looking at book covers, reading synopses along with the first few pages. Three hours later, I’d leave with a handful of books in my arms.

Nowadays, I buy my books through Amazon. I read the synopsis, a few 5, 3 and 1-star reviews, and decide whether or not to put it on my wish list. My wish list helps me keep track of what books I plan on buying in the future. But recently, I’ve been feeling angry by what’s being published, and a bit cheated. The past few years has left me disappointed in many of the books I’ve bought. Of course, this is only how I feel. The masses seem to love the books I wanted to throw across the room.

So what’s happened to me? Ever since I’ve started writing, learning the craft, reading, reading, and more reading to learn the craft, I see that the quality of books is diminishing. I don’t understand what’s being considered great writing by big publishing companies. Which made me ask myself, “Is it really the writing or the story the publishers are selling?” I’m a firm believer that a great story trumps great writing, although I don’t think this was the case years ago.

Sure, there are people out there who get aggravated with misspellings, poor grammar, and lack of character and plot development… but not enough. It’s the story they’re after. And maybe I was the same way before I started writing. In all honesty, I can’t remember if I felt connected to a character, or noticed the plot was too predictable or pooped out in the middle. I either liked the book or I didn’t. However, after years of reading, my taste in writing style and voice did change. 

So recently, my husband told me that I’ve been unhappy with recent publications, and that maybe I should return to a book I read years ago. He thought it would help me figure out if my writing has tainted my reading enjoyment, or if I see a difference in the quality of some popular books. The reason I say popular books is, to some extent, the popularity of the book is what made me buy it.

I took his advice, and picked up one of my favorite modern books that I read in 2005, The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon. You know what? From the first sentence, “I still remember the day my father took me to the Cemetery of Forgotten Books for the first time”, my mouth watered from the beauty of the words, the emotional attachment to the characters and the richness of the plot. Phrases I underlined like:

“Her voice was pure crystal … so fragile I feared that her words would break if I interrupted them.”

“But what destiny does not do is home visits. You have to go for it.”

Don’t get me wrong, I don’t expect all authors to write this way but these are words that help you picture a character, to understand them, and help you get a feel for the setting. Reading is all about the adventure. To be taken into a different life or world. The book I just finished had zero underlined phrases. It is void of showing. The author tells the entire story. The author tells how the character feels. There is no character or plot development. This can also be applied to the several other books I’ve recently read.

At this point, I can’t help but feel there is a difference in quality regarding some popular books. It’s so different to take an emotional flight and soar with the words as opposed to sauntering and yawning while the author tells the reader how the character feels, or tells the reader about the setting. It’s like the author doesn’t trust the reader enough to create the characters in their own mind, or visualize the setting.  

I’m not telling you I’m a great writer, but what I can tell you is that I work hard to make sure my books are good. That I’m proud of the characters, the plot, and most of all, my writing. This post probably sounds like a complaint from a disgruntled writer. It’s more like a complaint from a disgruntled reader. I miss books that make me feel like I know the characters and that I’m there with them. Books that make me wish I could write like that. I think it’s time I take a break from traditionally published books, and start reading the many self-published / indie books I have on my Kindle for PC.

What do you think as a reader? Has writing tainted your reading enjoyment? Do you think books have remained the same or have you noticed a shift in quality?

Writing and Publishing,

A Disappointed Bea

Authors of the Free World

I love blogging and LinkedIn because it allows me to meet some incredible people. One in particular is Nick LeVar—a writer and an ex-military soldier, who I thank for his service to our country, and for his writing talent. He is one of those people who writes from the heart. Through my group participation on LinkedIn, and Pay It Forward on my blog, I was able to get to know Nick. He has worked on creating a site, Authors of the Free World (AFW) for over a year and it has finally launched. The site assists authors with publishing needs while the authors focus on their creation. There are plenty of sites providing author services, and a lot of free information out there, but the most important thing is finding devoted, hardworking people—and this is the team you want on your side.

I am a member of AFW, and you will find information about me and what I offer under my Profile. Our team has experience with writing and publishing through trial and error, and years of working in the industry. When you get a chance, stop on over and subscribe so you can get all the free and discounted goodies offered. Hope to see you there.

Author Services and Writing,

Bea

What a Difference a Year Makes

Mother Nature decided to give us a taste of a wintery wonderland, although there are plenty of people out there saying there’s nothing wonderful about it. The Chicago area received anywhere between 5 to 8 inches. I keep looking out the window, my car piled high with snow, hoping the sun will come out and it will all melt away before I have to go out there and clean it up.

The way it snowed yesterday reminded me of how it snowed in November 2010 when we were stranded in Edinburgh, Scotland. Here’s the link to that post, http://bit.ly/ysBOhP (the beauty of blogging—collected memories), and here’s the link about what we DID get to enjoy while in Scotland-http://bit.ly/gOuoCz.  

It’s amazing how much can happen and change in one year. I spent the winter of 2010-2011 in Germany, traveling to wonderful places, and seeing the bigger picture of life. My favorite was sampling the German Christmas markets in different towns. Here’s a glimpse at a few of the Christmas market booths-http://bit.ly/baJBsK. I also got the opportunity to record a German tradition in the town of Hattingen-http://bit.ly/eVvVp8.

In my 2010 Christmas post, http://bit.ly/vYWRaj, I talked about the changes in my life including my mother and I having the best relationship we ever had. Fast forward a year, and my mother is no longer in my life. If only I could have one more conversation with her, I’d tell her all the things I feel in my heart right now.

A little over a year ago, I finished my first revision of my 2008 National Novel Writing Month novel http://bit.ly/bP4ONG. This revision had transformed into many more revisions until it was published in 2011-http://bit.ly/vAZuqw.

I’ve always been one for change—except for this past year. But with bad things in life, good things do come out of it. I’ve learned who is important in my life—who cares for me—who was there for me in my time of need. I ended some friendships and rekindled some great friendships. I've also connected with my cousins, and can’t thank them enough for their support (life is full of surprises). I’m hoping for a happier future—a ‘life uninterrupted’.

How about you? What good and bad changes happened to you this last year?

Changes and hope,

Bea

*Flips the Switch On*

It’s a New Year and I can finally say I’m a published author. Net Switch is available in paperback on Createspace (subsidiary of Amazon) and Amazon, and on Kindle and Nook.

Blogs, Amazon, Goodreads and Barnes & Noble have already received reviews and I’m excited and nervous because I know my novel will get good and bad reviews (hopefully more good). Criticism was my biggest fear of publishing, however, I knew I’d always wonder and regret it if I didn’t do it. This experience has also opened my eyes to all the liberal arts. How actors and actresses, musicians, painters, and writers must feel when they receive unflattering criticism. It hurts, plain and simple, and sometimes even makes us cry. Criticism of an author’s book is very personal. Our book is our baby, and any bad publicity is like saying our baby is ugly, stupid, and should never have been born. Yes, I know it sounds dramatic…and the feelings are just as dramatic. None of us like criticism; a boss putting negative comments on an evaluation, and family and friends letting us know what they don’t like about us. We cringe, get defensive, and usually no one walks away a winner.

But since I published, it means I accept the good with the bad. It’s part of the deal. It doesn’t mean I shouldn’t read about how to deal with it, so I actually researched how other authors go about handling negative reviews. Should you bother reading the reviews? Do you accept them like a grain of salt or do you learn from each one? Do you post a comment on a blog who has reviewed your book thanking them for reading it? There are so many questions and different ways authors handle negative reviews. A few have even gone a bit nuts online—berating the reviewer (You gotta read the comments). And there are even some authors out there that don’t read any reviews of their books. They feel it doesn’t matter at this point.

Literature is subjective. Some people will like my book and some won’t—there’s nothing I can do about it. What I can do is handle my reviews professionally. Everyone has a right, including me, to express how something makes them feel and that is something I need to remember about reviews. I don’t have to agree with every review, but it's how the reader felt and what they took away from the book (right or wrong). It isn’t debatable.

*raises beer*

A toast! To all the reviews I receive regarding my book, good and bad, and a heartfelt thank you to all who bought it (or will buy it) and took (or will take) the time to write a review.

*chugs beer, puts it on the counter and smiles*

Reading and reviews,

Bea

Versatile Blogger Award

I want to thank Belva Rae Staples at Mainley Mug Ups for nominating me for the Versatile Blogger Award.

Rules in accepting this award: Thank the person who nominated you. Tell 7 things about yourself and nominate 15 other newly discovered bloggers and let them know you nominated them.

7 Things about Me

1) I have a psychological suspense novel, Net Switch, coming out in early December.

2) I already published a poetry e-book, Sipping a Mix of Verse, with a blend of traditional poetry and free verse.

3) My favorite color is red.

4) My two favorite smells are brewing coffee and fresh popcorn.

5) Weekly Autumn Love: Food cooking in the crock pot, window open, popcorn and beer while watching football. Congrats! Da Bears won against the Buccaneers in Britain.

6) I lived in Germany for 5 months and MIGHT move back there for a year or two.

7) I love black licorice.

My 15 Versatile Bloggers are...

1)  (Victorious Secret) From Flab to Fab - http://www.flab-to-fab.com/

2)  Let go of the Past, live Today and create Tomorrow http://tomoveforwardlive.blogspot.com/

3)  Pat Newcombe, Thriller Writer’s blog, (aka Writing saved my life) - http://writingsavedmylife.blogspot.com

4)  Will Write for Cookies - http://peggyeddleman.blogspot.com/

5)  Encouragement in a Difficult World: Biddy Bytes Blog - http://biddybytes.com/

6)  The Quintessentially Questionable Query Experiment - http://theqqqe.blogspot.com/

7)  A Great Read - http://jessica-agreatread.blogspot.com/

8)  My Shelf Confessions - http://www.myshelfconfessions.com/

9)  Janet Beasley JLB Creatives – Creativity Imagination Dreams - http://jlbcreatives.blogspot.com 

10) The bitchy Waiter - http://thebitchywaiter.blogspot.com/

11)  Mr. London Street - http://mrlondonstreet.blogspot.com/

12)  Bourbon &  Pearls - http://bourbonandpearls.blogspot.com/

13)  What do you mean I should start a blog? http://whatdoyoumeanishouldstartablog.blogspot.com/

14)  La Belette Rouge - http://www.labeletterouge.com/

15)  A Beer for the Shower - http://www.abeerfortheshower.com/

Awards and audiences,
Bea

It Makes Cents

This weekend I read a blog post about book advances—about how they could hurt a writer. After reading it, I realized it makes sense, yet I never really thought about it before.

For those outside of the writing community, the publishing world has changed since the ’60s and ‘70s where authors became rich off their talent, and a household name. Traditional publishing houses began tightening their purse strings, and grew hesitant on taking chances with new writers as opposed to committing to high profile names. If you look at the books out there now, you’ll see more than ever, books published by celebrities (90% of them written by ghostwriters). Writers became frustrated with the way they were treated by agents and publishers, so when they saw a market in technology they went for it. Writers took the opportunity to self-publish by utilizing e-books. You can learn more about e-books and self-publishing on Joe Konrath’s blog.

As for the book advances, traditional publishing houses, Simon & Schuster, Random House to name a few, give authors advances with their signing contracts. These advances are given because the publisher believes they will make a large profit on the book. Let’s say Marsha gets a $25,000 advance on her book. She will not make any more money until she sells enough books to hit the $25,000. Nowadays, this is very difficult to do because of all the competition out there. If Marsha’s hard cover costs $25.00, she would need to sell 1000 copies to hit $25,000. If her soft cover costs $14.95, she would need to at least sell 1700 copies. This is very difficult to do for an up and coming author.

Book advances can also hurt a writer’s chance to publish again through traditional methods if they didn’t sell their first book as predicted. Fortunately, publishing houses haven’t requested the money back on advances. Yet.

Today’s times show that people want things at their fingertips. Unlike me, most people don’t enjoy browsing around a bookstore, looking at the covers, reading synopses and leaving with an armful of books. Believe it or not, it’s only a matter of time before e-books outsell print copies everywhere (here’s a link regarding Amazon sales). Unfortunately, this means our brick and mortar bookstores will slowly disappear. Majority of people do not want to waste their money on a hard cover book—they look for cheap and usually online. I’m not saying selling large quantities of print books is impossible, but as a new writer without an audience, you had better have a great book and a fabulous marketing/promotion strategy.

Writing a book is a small part of publishing. There’s so much more involved in getting it together and ultimately promoting it. I could say that most writers dislike the promoting part of publishing. We want to write, not research on how we’re going to get our name out there. But the fact is if we don’t promote and have people spread the word, then the titles of our books will fade away in a warehouse or in the virtual world. Promotion is key in getting your book in as many hands as possible. Those authors who get large advances should use it for promotional purposes, because like self-publishing, writers who go through the traditional methods are basically in charge of marketing their book, too. Some publicity is given, but not much. Writers are up against hundreds of books published each day either electronically or traditionally. It’s funny that most people think authors are rich. Unfortunately, majority of writers are lucky to sell 40 books a year.

One last thing I’d like to share is an article regarding Penny Marshall’s Memoir. “Amazon Publishing won the rights to the book and will issue both a traditional print and a digital edition.”

Promote and prosper (as best you can),

Bea

I Got Your Back

My friend, June made this t-shirt for me.

 

Happy New Year! I’m back! We finally arrived in Germany yesterday, but pretty much slept until noon today since our travels lasted 24 hours. During the holidays, I enjoyed my time with family and friends, and now I’m prepared to take on my list of good intentions and challenges this year.

First, I hope to shed weight like part of Germany had shed the snow. Over the past decade, weight seems to top my list, especially since I quit smoking. Hopefully this year it won’t just be an early year want and fade into an end of the year blues. Another challenge is to sell my condo. The real estate market is horrid, and unless I plan on waiting it out for a few years, I’ll be extremely lucky to break even. BUT—I decided to sell and move on. If you’re looking for a condo, or know someone else is looking, just shoot me an email and maybe we can work something out. *smiles and crosses fingers*

Two more huge challenges are for my Love to find a teaching job, or another type of job somewhere in the United States, and for me to get at least ONE of my writings published. We both already started pursuing these challenges, so with a bit of luck something might come out of it. *smiles and crosses toes*

What about you? Are there any big challenges you face this year?

*raises glass* I wish you all a great year. May you keep company with happiness and good health. Remember—when times get tough, there’s always someone out there who’s got your back.