Fun Friday: Frozen Reads

Yay! It's FUN FRIDAY. Today all us YA Storytellers are going to share some of our favorite winter reads.

I'm in the middle of winter right now and haven't really had the chance to snuggle up with many books yet. However, over Christmas I did manage to sneak in reading Freak of Nature by Julia Crane. That was awesome. I'm not usually into sci-fi, but this book broke the rules for me and I ended up really loving it.

I've also just started reading My Unexpected Forever by Heidi McLaughlin, which I'm really enjoying.

Next up, I'm going to take some time to read Self-Editing for Fiction Writers which is a fantastic book I've read numerous times. I want to do a little refresher before launching into my first big round of edits for I Know Lucy.

Not sure what's up after that. My kindle is stuffed full of goodies, so there is plenty of reading for me to still do.

How about you?
Do you have any favorite winter reads?

To find out what the other YA Storytellers recommend, check out the FUN FRIDAY posts on the YA Storytellers website.

Indie Life - It's All About the Sequel

I'm very excited to be part of The Indelibles Indie Life series. These posts run on the second Wednesday of every month and include ideas and articles from a wide variety of indie authors. Check out the links below to learn more about INDIE LIFE.

I have been published since 2011 and it has not taken me long to figure out that in this game, writing series and sequels is the way to go. I have seven books published now with another one due for release in August and looking back over my stats, my trilogy is the strongest seller by far.

It makes sense though, doesn't it? Readers invest their time in these characters, get to know them, fall in love with them. Of course they are more likely to buy another book involving these people. It's a great way to develop a lasting readership or build a fan base. Speaking as a reader, I don't like saying goodbye to characters I fall in love with and it's fun watching them grow throughout a series.

From a writers viewpoint, it's great business. You can put the first book on sale, or free, and this leads to subsequent sales for the rest of the series. I have found this to be hugely successful for me, which is why I decided to go for rapid fire releases with my second trilogy. The first two books are already out - Unknown in June and Unseen in July. The 3rd book - Unleashed - is due out in August. I am then going to spend my marketing budget in September. That's when I'll run some sales, pay for some advertising, do a blog tour, etc. Once the readers can access all three books quickly. I have never done this before and am really interested to analyze it all at the end and see how it's paid off.

If you're anything like me, you have a million stories in your database and new ideas constantly popping into your head. Writing series takes staying power. I am always tempted to keep releasing new stuff, stand alone stories, but I am curbing that desire for now. Sure, I'll still do the odd stand alone, but from the results I've seen in my own writing, they will never take off as well as my series.

Indie Life - It's All About Exposure

I'm very excited to be part of The Indelibles Indie Life series. These posts run on the second Wednesday of every month and include ideas and articles from a wide variety of indie authors. Check out the links below to learn more about INDIE LIFE.

I am doing a bit of a series with these posts. I've talked about balance, quality and attitude.

Today I want to talk about the importance of exposure.

There is no point writing all these amazing books if no one can find out about them. For me, marketing is the hardest part of this job, but I am learning as I go and here are a few things I've discovered that work really well for me.

These are all cases of: "You have to give a little to get a little."

- Giving out copies for review. I know this kind of goes without saying, but it's really important to get a bunch of solid reviews behind your book before you start really pushing the advertising. This is just my opinion, others may disagree here, but I think reviews give your book credit. Plus book bloggers rock - like mega rock - and if they like your stuff, will help you spread the word far and wide. Be nice to bloggers and they'll be nice to you ;-)

- Doing a freebie. I put my first novel, Golden Blood, online for free. It was the best decision I ever made. I have subsequently sold hundreds of copies of the other two books in my series, something I never would have done if it hadn't been for me being willing to lose the money on the sale of my first book.

- Paid advertising. I have paid for advertising twice so far and both times it has been worth every penny. I have made my money back really quickly and it's led to higher rankings, more exposure and continuing sales for the few weeks after. I have used Bookbub.com for my advertising so far, but I know there are plenty of sites out there.

- Group sales. If you can be a part of a group sale, this is a really great way to get your book some exposure. You want to open yourself up to as many readers as possible, so if you are part of a group sale, all the cross promotion can only do you a favour.

- It's the same with giveaways. What better way to score your fan page some likes, gain some more followers and generally get your name out there. It costs you nothing more than a few e-books. Better yet, if you go in with a group of authors, you can put together better prize packs for really low cost. I have an example going on at my YAlicious blog if you'd like to check it out.
Indie Inked Mother's Day Giveaway.

I know there are plenty of other ways to gain exposure for your work. I am learning new things all the time, but the ones above have been my most successful.

What have you done to gain yourself readers?

Indie Life - It's All About Attitude

I'm very excited to be part of The Indelibles Indie Life series. These posts run on the second Wednesday of every month and include ideas and articles from a wide variety of indie authors. Check out the links below to learn more about INDIE LIFE.

I have only been doing this a couple of months. So far I have touched on the aspects of balance and quality.

Today I want to talk about attitude.

Being an author, you need a really tough skin. Your work of fiction is a part of you. It's born in the heart and grows over the days and weeks as you put the story together. Finally you have this baby that you want to share with the world...and that's when you're the most vulnerable.

Readers are honest and they have every right to be. You have put yourself out there and they are free to respond to your work as they see fit. Unfortunately that can be a really painful experience. Getting those five star reviews puts you on cloud nine. You feel elated that someone out there thinks your work rocks. You have given them an escape from reality and they have enjoyed it. But then come the one and two star reviews and these sting. Your work is torn to shreds as readers find every mistake and reason not to like it. Ouch! It really hurts.

It's in moments like these that you have to decide what attitude you'll take. As a child I always loathed criticism. I didn't fight it or try to justify it, I just believed it. This whole writing experience has taught me that I don't have to do that anymore.

Reading is subjective. I don't like every piece of fiction I read, so why should everyone like my stuff. I know some authors say you shouldn't read reviews at all, but I feel that if someone has taken the time to write a review for me, then I should take the time to read it...even the bad ones. Yes, they sting, but sometimes I have learned things that I can tuck away for future projects. I have to remind myself that it is just someone's opinion. Sometimes I want to respond, to write to the reviewer and explain why I did something the way I did, but I don't feel like that will get my anywhere. If anything, it'll just make me look desperate for approval. I don't need their approval. I have it from various other places. I wouldn't have even published the book in the first place if my beta readers hadn't told me it was worth it. No matter what, I have to brush off the biting words and focus on the five star reviews. And then I keep writing. I keep working on my craft and I make sure to never let my attitude slump into a place that will stop me from doing what I love.

Writing is a tough job. It can be lonely, frustrating and it takes a lot of work, but if you love it enough, you'll stick with it.

How do you cope with negative reviews?

Goodreads - What's Good and What's Not

YA writers and bloggers unite each week to share their thoughts on what it's like going indie in today's publishing world.

As a reader and a writer, I am a big fan of Goodreads. 

From a reader's perspective, I love being able to add books to my reading list. I love being able rate books, tell people why I loved them and let people know what I'm reading. I love seeing what other readers think about books too. I have read some amazing stories thanks to recommendations on Goodreads.

From a writer's perspective, I really do love it. I think it is a great way to get exposure for my work. I love the Event feature, the Giveaway and the Listopia features. I have had many people add my books to their reading lists because of these. Unfortunately these do not always result in sales, but at least the interest is there. 

I know some authors do not like Goodreads. I think people are far more ready to leave their honest opinions on this site and they hold nothing back. Some authors have been badly burned by nasty comments and reviews. I don't have a problem with someone not liking my books. Reading is a very subjective thing and people have a right to their opinions. I do think people need to be careful how they word these opinions though. You can still be respectful in your dislike of something. 

All-in-all I will be forever grateful to my friend, T. G. Ayer, who put me onto Goodreads in the first place. It has been awesome for my writing career and it definitely motivates me to read more as well. 

What do you think of Goodreads?


Check out what the other YA Indie Carnival members think on their sites, which are listed below.

You can also check out the YA Author Club for the latest updates and news on what we're all up to.

1.	Laura A. H. Elliott	2.	Bryna Butler, author Midnight Guardian series
3.	T. R. Graves, Author of The Warrior Series	4.	Suzy Turner, author of The Raven Saga
5.	Rachel Coles, author of Into The Ruins, geek mom blog	6.	K. C. Blake, author of Vampires Rule and Crushed
7.	Gwenn Wright, author of Filter	8.	Liz Long | Just another writer on the loose.
9.	Ella James	10.	Maureen Murrish
11.	YA Sci Fi Author's Ramblings	12.	A Little Bit of R&R
13.	Melissa Pearl	14.	Terah Edun - YA Fantasy
15.	Heather Sutherlin - YA Fantasy

Do You Ever Read A Book More Then Once?

YA Indie Carnival is having this Friday off because of Labor Day Weekend. I'm currently in China so no Labor Day for me :)

Instead I thought I'd post about the kinds of books I read during my holidays.

When you know you're getting some time off and you can bury your nose in a book, guilt free, what do you go for?
Something by an author you've never read?
Something in a different genre than what you're used to?
Or do you stick with the familiar? A safe guarantee of a good read?

Me? I like to jump back into a story I've read before. It's fun to hang out with favourite characters again. Even though I know what's going to happen, I still enjoy it. I desperately wait to get up to favourite scenes or points of tension. If anything, re-reading books helps me get more out of them. I notice more the second, third, fourth time around.

Now I tend to have very long gaps between re-reading books so more often than not I've forgotten most of the details, bar those few special scenes that are burned into my brain. Even so, at least once a year, I like to read a book I've already enjoyed before.

My best re-reads are: The Mark of the Lion Trilogy by Francine Rivers and The O'Malley Series by Dee Henderson. Ooo - I also love Dee Henderson's series about the marines. That's awesome.
I must have re-read all those books at least three or four times.

So - how about you?
Are you a re-reader? And if you are, what are the books you always go back to?

What Would You Recommend?

I have to admit that I am a very selective and possibly quite narrow-minded reader. I like stories with a strong romantic element, but also filled with tension, drama and mystery.

I read other types of stories and do enjoy them, but I come back to the above criteria over and over.

So - when my sister-in-law asked me to recommend some books for her son, I was a little stumped!

It's quiet a lot of pressure recommending a book to be honest. Writing is so subjective. What I love you might find stupidly sappy, what you love I might find boring and lacking in emotion.

When you recommend a book to someone, what types of books do you go for?
What do you like to read?

By the way - I recommended the Alex Rider Books by Anthony Horowitz and the Gone Series by Michael Grant. Any other suggestions?

I love finding out what people are reading. I often ask in my blog posts. I have been recommended some great books over the past year. My reading list is getting a little ridiculous :)