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| Mar 2011 |
First, I want to thank all of you who made the soft launch of Carnal Secrets such a success. I hadn't expected it to do as well as it did in February, given that I only announced the release on my personal social media sites. So thank you, thank you, thank you!
Second, thank you so much for making the launch of Magic and Mayhem Writers so fun and rewarding! You guys are awesome.
It's getting warmer in Japan, though figuring out what to wear every day can be a bit tricky. Sometimes it's warm, and sometimes it's very cold. But soon cherry blossoms will bloom, and it's going to be gorgeous!
Hero Material and I learned that our first baby is going to be a boy. We're thrilled. Yes, we're still debating the name. Maybe we should give the Boy multiple names to appease both of us. But then he might get upset when he has to learn how to spell all of them. Dilemma, dilemma!
This month, I'm doing five guest-blog posts relating to Carnal Secrets with some lovely and uber-talented ladies I was fortunate enough to meet via Twitter. (Social media rocks!) Each topic touches upon a step of my self-publication journey with Carnal Secrets.
- March 8: Read the Fine Print, hosted by Zoe Winters — The Importance of reading contracts carefully and why I ended up declining a publisher's offer to publish Carnal Secrets.
- March 9: Walking Away Can Be Hard, hosted by Kait Nolan — The emotional impact walking away can have on writers.
- March 10: Small Press v. Self-Publication, hosted by Love Romance Passion — The advantages and disadvantages of having a publisher versus doing it all on your own.
- March 14: Distribution, DRM and Geo Restrictions, hosted by Pearl's World of Romance — The thorny problem called distribution and how to reach as many readers as possible, no matter where they live!
- March 15: Creating a Cover Art with Non-White Characters, hosted by Monkey Bear Reviews — The nervousness I felt at creating a cover with non-white characters, given the controversies over white-washed covers, etc.
I hope you stop by. :)
Finally — I'm making some changes to Facebook. I had a personal profile there, and due to some situations (involving minors in my extended family, etc.), I've decided to create a page instead to communicate with my readers and writing friends. It has photos, events, discussion boards, and many more.
So, please “like” my profile by going to the new page.
Also I've created a Facebook profile page for each of my books, again with events, discussion boards, etc. They're really for you to use in any way you see fit, and I'll stop by to answer any questions if any and post news updates, etc. You can “like” them by going to the following pages:
Hope you have a wonderful March. Talk to you soon!
March 3rd, 2011 at 9:57 pm · Link
I’m glad to hear about all your good news. I’m getting my new ereader this weekend and I can’t wait to add Carnal Secrets to it!
March 3rd, 2011 at 11:08 pm · Link
Ooh, looking forward to those guest blogs!
March 4th, 2011 at 12:26 am · Link
Thank you! :)
March 3rd, 2011 at 10:03 pm · Link
Thank you so much! And enjoy Nook Color! I’m so envious since I don’t have a dedicated e-reader device yet. Still looking for one.
March 4th, 2011 at 8:47 am · Link
Ok first off, huge congrats on the boy..Woohoo
wow you are super busy…make sure to also take time to rest….
March 4th, 2011 at 3:41 pm · Link
Thank you, Savannah! :) I’m resting some, but not as much as I should probably as I’m often tired. After mid-March I should be able to get more rest.
March 29th, 2011 at 9:21 am · Link
Hi Nadia, is your formatting book only available on Smashwords? (I have no account there.) Also, my friend said it was .99, but the only one I’m seeing is 1.99 and I don’t want to buy the wrong one. Maybe this is the updated version of the original book with a new price? Thanks.
Are you still in Japan?
March 29th, 2011 at 10:20 am · Link
Hey Carly,
Yes, it’s on Smashwords only because the other vendors usually put either DRM on it or prevent copy/paste. I don’t want people to type stuff wrong because that’s really going to mess things up.
You don’t need an account to buy from Smashwords, but if you don’t have an account, it won’t let you download updates for free. Also if you plan to try self-pubbing, you have to have a Smashword account anyway.
The current one is 2nd edition. The guide was never $0.99, so maybe your friend misspoke? I raised the price a lil bit after I added a section on ARe, etc.
P.S. Yes, I’m still in Japan.
March 29th, 2011 at 9:33 pm · Link
Thanks, Nadia. I don’t know why I’m so reluctant to give my credit card info to Smashwords. But I shall overcome that paranoia.
March 29th, 2011 at 11:01 pm · Link
Carly,
You can use paypal with Smashwords IIRC. I put stuff on Smashwords because it’s geo res free and DRM-free. They’re both very important to me, esp. in reaching international authors.
I’ve not seen anything on Smashwords, etc. to believe that it’s a scammy site or something like that. :)