Writing... Um... what's the end result?

In the olden days (read three years ago), you shopped this manuscript around to agents and publishers and crossed your fingers that it sold.  If it didn't... um... #crap  That manuscript was dead in the water.  You might as well stash it in a drawer, weep softly then start writing the next one (whose fate more than likely would be the same).

Oh sure, you could VANITY PRESS.  But, um, with a name like that and the stigma attached to it, who wanted to do that?

Then the digital revolution happened.  Amazon.com opened wide its 'doors,' inviting anyone to publish.

At the same time readers began flocking to digital books and avoiding the traditional brick and mortar stores (hence why Borders is practically out of business and Barnes and Noble is being sold).

The shift in the publishing world cannot be overstated.

And the biggest beneficiary. beyond the reader who know can shop from the comfort of their living room and start reading within moments of purchase?  The indie author.

Me.  You.  All of us.

Now I know there are a lot of stiff backs right now and hackles up, and sure last year we could have argued the merit of self-publishing, but now?  Now that the houses are clamping down on purchasing ANY books by new authors?  Now self-publishing is nearly your only option.

The Big 6 and every small publishers is hemorrhaging right now. Privately they talk about "catastrophic" declines in sales.

There has never been a worse time to try and sell a book.  And try to get a house to fork out any advertising money?  Darlin', they just don't have it.

So indie it is... or... you know... store your manuscript's file on your harddrive and start writing the next one.

Luckily many have gone before us though and shown the way and I have had a pretty good run of sales the last year (far better than the VAST majority of published (even mid-list authors) I know ($20,000 and counting this year so far).

And this week the book I wrote with my fellow Indie Book Collective's Co-founders, Amber Scott and Rachel Thompson...
"Dollars & Sense: The Definitive Guide to Self-Publishing" is launching.

"Dollars &  Sense" can take the indie publishing neo-phyte from manuscript to publication, using a step-by-step method.  The book walks you through making sure your work is in publishable shape, to formatting, to learning social media, to how to potentate your book sales.

And the best part?  Thru June 29th it is just 99 cents!  Crazy right?  A total blue-print for indie publishing success for less than a buck!

So if you have any hopes and dreams about publishing (even if you go traditional publishing, you are going to need to know all this info since your house EXPECTS you to know how to use social media etc to gain name recognition), hop on over to Amazon and pick up your copy! #now #Imeanit :-)

Summer Break has arrived...

Darn it!

I usually LOVE living at the beach.  I mean, who wouldn't?  It sounds so beautiful and idyllic.  Which it normally is until...

Summer Break. #godhelpme

You know all those kids cheering that they are getting out of school?  Do you know exactly where they are going to head? Um... #myhouse

Ok, maybe not all of them, but LOTS and LOTS and LOTS of them.

And it isn't even like when people visit the beach they act safe and sane.  They GO CRAZY.

Behavior they would NEVER do, they do... right in front of my bedroom window!

Um... you do realize I can see you making out/taking your bikini top off/beating up your little brother? Right?

And the trash #oy

I bet you that this summer... at least once someone will...
Pee on my car tires
Have sex under my window
Try to climb into my yard, drunkingly trying to find their car
Shoot off fireworks... for no good reason
Shout at 2am "WAHOO" for no good reason (waking the whole house up)
Walking around naked on the beach as if my windows are not facing directly at them

Oh wait.  That is a safe bet.  Why?
Because they have ALL ALREADY HAPPENED.  Yep, one week in and my checklist if complete
#helpme #pleasehelpme

So yes, this is going to be a short blog... because I have to go outside and clean up ice cream containers, sippy cups, and used prophylactics #ah #summer

Eternal Optimist...

Yes, strangely that turns out to be me. #Iknow #weird

How did I come to be called this? (well, to be honest the person said "you are either an eternal optimist or a masochist, but I chose to go with the former).

It involved Craig's List #ofcourseitdidyousay

You see it all started when I got my 'super-geeky-you-love-Lord-of-the-rings-way-too-much' newsletter from Warner Bros.  They KNOW if they put something out, I will buy it, so I get all their super secret special deals.

And low and behold I opened this email with bated breath.  I mean LOTR was so long ago.  How could they possibly have something NEW to sell me? #yetIhadmycreditcardready #becausewhateveritwas #itwasmine

I find that they are putting out the extended editions onto Blu-Ray.  Awesome, of course I pre-order them #duh

But wait...  They are putting the EXTENDED versions of the LOTR movies BACK into the THEATERS (and yes, I know I just CAPITALIZED a lot of words, but you must understand my sheer joy and lack of abandon) for 1 night each.

DEAR GOD, MY PRAYERS HAVE BEEN ANSWERED #no #seriously #alifesdreamofmine

So I rush over to the site and scoop up 2 tickets each for each showing.

I am so happy and so content to know that I will be seeing these films... alone. #oh #crap

Yes, you see while I have such an amazing set of friends, they either live far away (Twitter is great, but gives you a bunch of long distance relationships) or they live nearby but aren't insanely in love with LOTR #weirdIknow And I wanted to go with someone INSANELY in love with LOTR so we could talk each and every delicious detail of the films.

So I automatically reach out to an on-line source.

Without thinking I write an ad on CraigsList... because clearly I confused it with Twitter and all of those nice folks.  But I knew I needed something local so I went with CL. And figured, how could I run afoul with a sweet, nice, "do you want to see LOTR with me" ad. #hencetheeternaloptomist

Um.... clearly A LOT.
I love men, but the men on CL are... um let's just say... uncouth (you can substitute, weird, gross, or horny here as well).

How an ad that mentions the term gentlemen THREE times can get you a picture of a penis, I will never know. But get them I did.  Now, I must give a few of these credit since they did name their appendages from characters from LOTR.  I have a few Legolas, Aragorn and one Gimli. #sigh

So yes, I hope to have my hope spring eternal, I may just not want to have us swimming over in the CL cesspool! :-) LOL #stillcantwaittogo #evenifalone #woot