“There’s Room for Everyone’s Stories”

Over the weekend, I had the opportunity to travel to Torrington, Wyoming, for Wyoming Author Day. I may not live in the state anymore, but being born and raised there makes me a Wyoming author for life. I also get to claim whatever state I currently live in. It’s in the rules. Look it up.

Anyway, I debated for a while about whether or not I was actually going to go. It a long drive there (6.5 hours one way, to be exact), and there was no guarantee I would sell any books. Not that the only reason I would go is to sell books, there are other perks to these events, but it can be a deciding factor.

I hemmed and hawed for a long time trying to decide if I wanted to go. The organizer had asked me months in advance about participating, and at the time, it sounded like a great idea. As the date got closer and life became complicated, it didn’t sound like such a fabulous idea anymore.

Eventually, I decided to go. I had committed to being there, so I felt I needed to honor that. I wasn’t sad that I decided to go. I actually had a lot of fun and met some amazing people. The drive was awful, and on the way home I’m pretty sure I hit about a million bugs, but Wyoming Author Day was a success.
 

In addition to meeting some great people and selling a few books (yes, I sold some books), there was a panel discussion. One of the speakers was a representative from the Wyoming Poets Society, and she made a comment about the number of books and stories and poetry that are written and published every day. She also made an interesting comment when she said, “There’s room for everyone’s stories.”

This really struck me. It gave me a chill and inspiration. I loved it, and I thought that it encompassed the spirit of the event. Not only that, but it kinda felt like a good mantra.

If you think about it or look at statistics, there are millions of stories published every year. M-i-l-l-i-o-n-s. And that’s just on Amazon. Think of all the other ones that aren’t counted because people put them on other platforms or make them available on their websites or blogs.

As an author, getting noticed in this sea of reading choices, it can be downright impossible. But that doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t write. It doesn’t mean we should throw in the towel and say forget it just because we aren’t going to make millions of dollars or get a three-movie deal.

There’s room for everyone’s stories.

Put your thoughts and ideas down on paper. Get your story edited and published. Put your story out there. You have something valuable to say, and someone, somewhere wants to read it.

Who knows? Maybe you will get lucky and get the big fat paycheck and a blockbuster movie. The only way to know is to try.

Some Days You Can’t GIVE Your Books Away

It’s no secret that the publishing world is challenging. It’s hard to find an agent. It’s tough to find a publisher. It’s difficult to sell your book. It’s exhausting looking for readers to leave reviews.

There are, of course, options in the publishing world to get your book into the hands of readers, and that includes self-publishing. However, that avenue doesn’t guarantee sales or reviews. And some days, you’ll find that you can’t even give your books away.

For some, this can be an incredibly disheartening prospect. After all, the whole reason you wrote the book was for others to read and enjoy it. You also deserve to be compensated for your time and effort.

There are so many books available on the market—millions to be exact—and being found can be incredibly difficult. It’s like trying to find a book in a stack of books. But don’t be discouraged. There is more than one way to find a book in a book stack.

Keep plugging along and asking readers to read/review your book. Keep writing and putting more books out there. Have giveaways. Have contests. Be active at your local library. Be on panels at conventions and conferences. Donate books to schools (if that’s appropriate). Put your books on sale every now and again.

Even though you won’t be able to give your books away some days, that doesn’t mean you should throw in the towel. Find new ways to get your information out to the world. Keep trying. Keep putting yourself out there. Eventually, your efforts will pay off. Here’s to that day!

Is Developing a Marketing Plan Easy?

For all my friends out there who run their own business or do a hobby on the side that requires letting people know about your product, raise your hand if you enjoy marketing.

C’mon. Don’t be shy. We’re all friends here. Raise them high.

Yeah, marketing isn’t exactly the most fun thing to do in the world. In fact, it can be incredibly exhausting and frustrating. Marketing takes a lot of time and more often than not, you don’t see a return on your investment. That sucks.

Marketing is a necessary evil. It’s really the only way to get knowledge about your product to the buying public. There are a variety of ways to accomplish that goal, and you can spend no money or lots of money on the process. Either way, we should be doing something to market ourselves and our products.

One of the most important things to do before jumping into marketing is deciding what you want to accomplish. Form a plan. How many times have you heard this? How many of you know what it means? For me, it’s confusing. My “plan” basically boils down to wanting to sell books. So, to do that, I’ve followed all the guidelines, including having a blog, being on social media, sending out newsletters, and developing audiobooks. So why aren’t my sales drowning me in profits?

You can Google ways to develop a marketing plan, but the answers might not be as helpful as you want them to be. They weren’t for me. I’ve sat down before and looked at my goals, when I wanted to accomplish them by, and the different avenues I could venture down to accomplish my tasks, but it quickly became apparent I had no idea what I was getting myself into. I was just as lost as I had been before and even less inclined to attempt to market myself but not able to afford a PR company.

My goal for the next year is to become better at marketing and to take baby steps to get there. It’s not as easy as it sounds to develop a marketing plan, and it’s even more difficult to stick to it or follow through to the next stage. It’s also incredibly important to track your progress (if possible) during marketing campaigns. Analytics are so important, but they can be cumbersome to read. Still, I’m going to find a way to figure this all out.

Any of you out there have any good strategies or marketing hacks that have worked really well? How do you stay motivated and focused on your goal? Have you created a plan?

Maybe It’s Not All Doom and Gloom

Last week was one of those weeks that reminded me why I’m an author. All of my books were on sale for 99 cents, and some of them (ahem, Life After the Undead) fared better than some of the others. For several days, it was ranking back in the top 100 for its three categories. It’s since fallen out, but it’s not doing horribly. It’s still within the top 200 in its three categories.

It always amazes me when this happens. It boggles my mind that my book could make it so far up the list. But I love it. I love that readers are checking it out and (hopefully) enjoying the story. Readers are the whole reason I write, so it encourages me to continue on.

As I mentioned before, the books that have been already been published will continue to be available. I will self-publish them. As for what will happen in the future, that’s still uncertain. I told you last week that I was taking some baby steps, but I still need some time. I still have to set myself up mentally and emotionally for the slew of rejections I’m about to receive.

I’ve been spoiled—I know that. But that’s why I loved Booktrope so much. They were willing to take all of my stories and I didn’t have to go through the submission process. After hundreds of rejections, it was a breath of fresh air.

But that is no more, and there’s nothing I can do about it. Baby steps are good, but I still need to figure out what’s going to happen in the long run. I have finished Humanity’s Hope, the first book in another young adult zombie series I’m writing. Here’s what the book is about:

Seventeen-year-old Caleb survived the zombie uprising, but he’s scarred mentally and physically. Humanity is trying to rebuild, but after the loss of his family and friends, Caleb walks a path of self-doubt and self-harm. Caleb gets up every morning and goes to work at Zomtech, writing computer code so that the scientists can find a cure. Today, though, regulars—zombies—escape the ghetto and kill his neighbor, and the death is a message directed at him. He receives an email with a video of someone unleashing zombies onto her. The video says if Caleb doesn’t give them what they want, more people will die.

Then he and his friend Samuel are attacked by a hoard of undead in a park. These aren’t typical undead. In addition to regulars, there are mutants known as BZs and RBZs—Big Zombies and Really Big Zombies. A regular bites Caleb, and things only get worse when he discovers he’s immune to whatever turns a person into a zombie. Caleb has to make a choice: will he become humanity’s hope and save them from the undead menace, potentially becoming a pawn in a power struggle, or will he finish what he started long ago and end his own life?

If anyone has a burning desire to be a beta reader for me, I would entertain the idea. Shoot me a message and let me know!

Keep Your Eye Open for the Specials!

I love my publisher. They do such amazing thing to help promote our works and get them into the hands of readers. There are several things coming up later this year, but the first will be occurring in the next couple of weeks.

Involving 200 books, Booktrope is doing a special offer through Amazon and iTunes. It’s the best time to invest in authors that you love or finds some new ones. Life After the Undead will be part of this promotion, so if you’ve wanted to check out my young adult zombie novel without a lot of investment, now’s the time!

And it’s perfect timing too because the second one, Death to the Undead, is scheduled for rerelease on February 16th. This is your chance to get book 1 on sale! Here’s the schedule of pricing for the books:

Feb 8-10: books will be free on iTunes and 99 cents for Kindle versions

Feb 12-14: books will be $1.99 on iTunes and Amazon.

Don’t miss out on these amazing deals! You still have a week to wait, but mark your calendars now so you don’t forget!

If you’re interested in knowing what my zombie books are about, here’s their covers and descriptions.

"A must read for those looking for a fun and different read in the world of zombie fiction." --Eric S. Brown, author of Bigfoot War and Kaiju Apocalypse

Seventeen-year-old Krista must quickly figure out how she's going to survive in the zombie-destroyed world. The one advantage humans have is that the zombies hate humid environments, so they're migrating west to escape its deteriorating effects. The survivors plan to construct a wall at North Platte to keep the undead out, and Krista has come to Nebraska to start a new life.

Zombies aren't the only creatures she has to be cautious of--the other survivors have a dark side. Krista must fight not only to live but also to defend everything she holds dear--her country, her freedom, and ultimately, those she loves.

Join Krista in her quest to survive in this thrilling apocalyptic novel by Pembroke Sinclair.

Seventeen-year-old Krista has already proven she can survive the zombie hordes.

After moving to North Platte with her distant cousin General Liet to help build a wall that will keep the zombies in the West, it becomes apparent that the zombies aren’t the biggest threat—some survivors are far more dangerous than Krista had ever imagined.

With the help of Quinn, a survivor and fighter from the zombie-infested wildlands of the West, they free the garrison at North Platte from the power-hungry Liet. But there is a bigger battle to fight.

The Families who rule Florida and use intimidation and the threat of the zombie horde to coerce their territory want Krista and Quinn captured, the zombies want to devour them, and other survivors want them dead. Caught between powerful forces, will they survive long enough to devise a new plan and put it into action? Or will they self-destruct?

Find out in book two of this thrilling apocalyptic series by author Pembroke Sinclair.