White Lies only 99c

For a limited time, today through Monday, White Lies is on sale for 99c.

If you haven't tried that series, now's a good time to take a chance. It's a traditional murder mystery set in Los Angeles with a down and out actor as the amateur sleuth. Click HERE to choose a retailer.

I have finally finished messing about with the family history and gotten back to proper writing. Even though allergy season is in full swing for me, my brain isn't half as foggy as it has been. I'll credit that to being more careful with my diet. Or maybe it's that fact that it's been raining for two weeks straight...

The next big hurdle for me is getting Lethal Seasons into audio. So many things have changed since I first stuck my toe in the audio book pool. I've been reading up on what I need to do and how much this might ultimately cost me. I want to go into this more knowledgeable than I was with the first two.

I can't blame the lack of audio sales on anyone but myself. Both books, White Lies and Unintended Consequences suffered from my lack of experience in marketing. They stumbled coming out of the gate and haven't really recovered. I'm working on that. As you can see from the sale going on right now. I'm not quite ready to plunge, but pretty soon.

Planning for 2019

I'm excited about starting a new year. I don't really believe in resolutions, but I do believe in goals. What's the difference? Intent.

In my mind, people set resolutions to try to change some sort of behavior. They resolve to lose weight, get fit, stop drinking, do their chores... Those are all good things, but a resolution feels more like a punishment. I must stop eating chocolate. Like that's ever going to happen.

Goals are something you aim for. A healthier lifestyle is a great goal, but it doesn't include giving up chocolate. My choice is for good quality chocolate in small doses that I can savor. So it's a change. A step in the right direction, but it isn't a punishment.

Staying healthy is a goal I have every year, so that's a given.

Sticking to my writing schedule is a fairly new goal, but one I hope to achieve this year. Even though I'm already a little behind because of a side project.

Now the harder one - learning new things about marketing. I've finally accepted the fact that marketing is required for one's business to succeed. However, I've also realized that my brain doesn't really work that way, so I need to figure out some habits or routines to make that work. I set up a schedule for 2019 and we'll see if sticking to it actually works. The industry is constantly changing, so I need to stay flexible.

I might even try poking around in social media again. The first time I did it, my attempts were luke warm and scattershot. I know I need a plan, so that will need to come before I start wildly posting cat photos across the internet again.

So that's my plan. We'll see how it goes.

Looking Back on a Wonderful Year

I don't think I knew it while I was in it, but this has been a pretty good year for me.

I took a look back on my calendar and was very surprised to see how much I've gotten done. Part of that is probably because I've been very healthy this year. You can't believe the difference in your energy level when you are healthy.

I released 4 books this year. That amazes me. I planned it, stuck to my schedule and got them out on time. And a lot of that happened because I stopped buzzing around the forums trying to figure out what I should be doing. I put my head down and got to work. And that turned out to be easier and more enjoyable than debating the next steps an author should take.

Lessons Learned, book 4 of A Changed World post-apocalyptic series came out in January. High Barrens, the first book of the Tales of Haroon fantasy series came out in March. Blood Relations, the third book of the Asher Blaine Mysteries series came out in August, and Desperate Measures, book 5 of A Changed World came out in December. I don't know if I will be as prolific next year, but I am sure going to try.

Through trial and error, I sort of got a handle on the art of marketing. Then in June, I got the golden ticket - a Bookbub. Books flew off the shelf for a week, then marched, then strolled and it slowly worked its way down to a number of sales much higher than all the previous months. I made a lot of money and that feels amazing, too.

I cracked 10,000 sales. Lethal Seasons has over 100 reviews. I took my books wide and starting selling them in new markets like Kobo, Google Play and Apple.

And I still managed to do a little traveling, visit with family, work in the garden and start on a family history that I've been thinking about.

In the fall, we started work on turning a shed into an office for me. It took a little longer than expected, but the outcome is fabulous. I have all my things in one place. There are big windows to let in natural light and a ton of storage space for all my odds and ends.

This has been a wonderful year, and I hope you've had a good one, too.

Here's hoping for a great 2019 for everyone!

And Now... A Blog Off Sale!

Some of the authors in the 2018 Self Published Fantasy Blog Off have come together for a sale. Click HERE to go see the books.

All ebooks are 99c (or the equivalent per country) from Nov 15th - 19th.

Check them out! You can load up on some great Fantasy ebooks for the holidays.

Time for a Little Break

I've sent the first draft of A Changed World book 5 to my first reader. The working title right now is Desperate Measures. I think it's in pretty good shape, so there shouldn't be too much of a rewrite on it. Which means it is still on schedule for a December 13th release. I actually started planning out the promotions for a discount on Lethal Seasons (book 1) in the run up to the release. I might just be getting the hang of it all. (Fingers crossed!)

As mentioned in my last blog, I was creeping up on having sold 10,000 books this year. I passed that milestone this week. Woo hoo!

My new office is finished and I'm in the process of moving in. Another big Woo Hoo there! It's great to get all of my stuff in one place...but there is a lot of it. There will be sorting and purging for some time to come.

Next week I will have a house full of relatives and a busy schedule of visiting and playtime. Can't wait. But a week off always comes with it's own repercussions. I'm sure I will need a whole 'nother week to catch up with myself. So I might not be back to the blog for a couple weeks.

Post-apocalyptic Rebuilding only 99c

Book 1 of A Changed World series will be only 99c through June 23rd. Grab a copy at your favorite retailer by clicking HERE.

High Barrens Map Reveal!

My first attempts at map making. This is probably the 3rd or 4th version.

This is the map of High Barrens in the world of Haroon. This covers most of the journey in the book.

____________________________________________________________________

Here's a look at the other countries where a bit of the action takes place. I will be adding these to the website soon.

High Barrens is on track for release on March 29th. It will probably go up for preorder the week before.

As usual, Alex has made a gorgeous cover for it. I'll be doing a cover reveal soon. Stay tuned!

Lessons Learned in Print

It only took 2 proofs this time around.

Since I only do this a few times a year and several months apart, I am always relearning the process. I was also a little sleep deprived due to another bout of insomnia. So when I realized I'd left a couple pages out, it took me over a day to figure out how to get them back in there. Sigh.

Print copies should be available all over, if not now, then in a day or two.

Sales for the series didn't blast off as they had when Gleanings came out. At first, I was disappointed. Then the trickle of sales continued through the rest of the month, making January the best month ever. Woohoo! I'll take that over a pop and fizzle any day.

Thanks to everyone who has invest in this series. I hope you enjoy book 4!

A Changed World Updates

First of all, for all of you who have asked - book 4, Lessons Learned, will be out January 18th. I will be having a cover reveal the week before - probably on January 10 if I can get all my ducks in a row.

The series is going wide. Scattered Seeds came out of Kindle Select earlier this month. My apologies to anyone that leaves in the lurch. Unfortunately, they all have different exit dates. Lethal Seasons comes out the 30th. A couple days after that, I hope to have both books available at all retailers. Gleanings comes out January 11th. Lessons Learned will go wide immediately.

So by the end of January, all of my books will be available all over. This is my most successful series so I have high hopes that sales will do well on other retailers.

I didn't do very well in the marketing department this year. As a result, December sales are looking rather grim. It's an ongoing experiment with a bumpy learning curve. I actually plotted out a game plan for next year. It will be interesting to see if I can stick to it. Having more books to work with makes it easier. And if I can stick to my writing plan as well, I should have 3 more by the end of 2018.

Fingers crossed!

Now on Google Play!

In my transition to getting all my books with all the retailers, I have conquered Google Play. For a look at all of my books now available there, click here. I will be loading individual links into the website today.

A Changed World series is still exclusive to Amazon through mid-January. As soon as the term runs out on all the books, I will be loading them into other retailers. Which will be just in time for the release of book 4 - Lessons Learned - which is coming out on January 18th.

This year has been a peculiar one with a lot of writing and only 1 book published. That leaves me with a lot of work in the hopper. I hope to get at least 3 books published next year, but I won't make promises. Sometimes life just gets in the way.

The Dreaded Typo

It wasn't so much a typo as it was the entirely wrong word.

When I set up Charade to publish on Amazon, I put the wrong word in the series name. Sheesh. Instead of Transmutation, I put Transformation. And off it went, book 2 in a series that didn't exist. I didn't even notice until a friend alerted me. (Thanks, Alex!) I scurried out there to change it, but most of the promos for book 1 had already occurred. Argh.

Hmmm. I wonder if that hurt the sales at all? (Where's that satirical emoji?)

I was wondering why the "Books in the Series" didn't pop up on the product page. Sigh.

Live and learn, I suppose. This book has had its issues. I don't know why it's been so hard to get this one out the gate. I'm a little disappointed with how poorly this series is doing. Maybe I just need to wait until book 3 is out. Or I have to get a little more imaginative with my marketing.

Ah, the ever changing marketing game. I tried the same system that worked so well on the release of Gleanings. Crickets. I guess it's a different audience. Just because I read both genres doesn't mean readers of one series will cross over to the other.

There is always something new to learn.

Charade Release Day!

Here's a great trailer that Alex made for me.

But I'm a little late using it because Charade is available today! For a limited time, Charade will be 99c. So snag yours now.

This series is going wide, which means it will be available at all ebooks retailers. Click here for links to your favorite retailer.

Facade, book 1, will be discounted to 99c thru November 13th. Click here for links to your favorite retailer.

If you want to be alerted to my future book releases, please sign up for my newsletter in the sidebar. I only send it out for discounts and releases.

Reading Out of the Comfort Zone

Every now and then I try to pick up new authors / stories / series.

As an author, looking for new readers, I hope this gives me some karma points. But it's also a way to expand my personal horizons.

As an experiment, sometimes it works out and sometimes meh. Since the explosion of Indies on the market, there are a lot more niches out there. Back in the stone age, when books were curated by publishers, the oddball niches were weeded out. Now there are so many I can't keep up.

I recently fell into a pile of magic/science fiction books. Wow. And very cool. I plan to work my way through them as Facade sort of falls into that category. I was trying to figure out some marketing when I discovered them. And as a treat, I get to read  all my competition. Although, not all of them are true comparables.

Having all these niches and sub-sub-categories can get very confusing. I look at the books listed and sometimes they don't fit at all. That could be authors squeezing their book into a more popular category for better discovery. But that's a bad idea, because if I want a magic / science fiction book and they give me space marines, I'm not going to be happy.

So I am still experimenting with the marketing. Still learning new things all the time. And this time, I get to enjoy myself along the way.

A New Look

I've cleaned up the blog a little because I will soon have the new website up and running.

I am still having a little technical kerfuffle with the website. It's done. It looks great - Thanks, Alex! BUT somehow I just haven't clicked the right boxes or pushed the right buttons because it isn't working. Soon...maybe.

That means the blog has reverted to its blogger address. So reset those bookmarks. Alicesabo.com will now go to the website (whenever the dang thing sorts itself out).

I've spent hours playing with Wizards - the setup kind, not the magical fun kind. There's a whole jargon that goes with this stuff that I have to keep looking up, and even when I find the definition, I'm not sure if it applies to me. Especially when the instructions are written for someone who probably knows what they're doing. And I most assuredly don't! Sigh.

I can't say it's been a learning curve because I haven't mastered anything.

I really do feel like a dinosaur today.

A Busy Month

February is a busy month. Lots of promotions going on.

Starting this weekend! Here's a great place to grab a bunch of great books:


If you're looking for some space opera with aliens and a lost civilization, hop over to  Patty's website to get Facade for 99c.

If you haven't yet started my post-apocalyptic series - A Changed World - you're in luck. Lethal Seasons, book 1 will be free on Amazon from 2/15 - 2/19. (Regular price until 2/14 and after 2/19) Book 4 is coming out this fall.

And if you're looking for a good mystery, White Lies is still 99c through the end of the month.

Whew.

In the mean time, I am still working hard on the sequel to Facade. As is the way with these things, the story is not coming out as originally intended, but in a much better way. Some random events have come together in a surprising serendipity of plot lines. I need to follow it down a bit more before I commit to it entirely, but it's looking good.

I'm jotting down notes for the 4th book in A Changed World. Fear not, Angus, Tillie, Wisp and Nick will be back this fall.

And the fantasy book is on back burner while I think about how much more needs to go into it.

So I'd better get back to work!

Gleanings in Print

It's taken me awhile, but I finally finished proofing the print book for Gleanings. It will be on sale at Amazon soon.

I have to admit that once I'm done with the writing part, it's hard for me to keep going back to it. Eventually, I will look into an audiobook for this series, but that is a whole lot of work. Right now I am in the full-out writing mode and I want to take advantage of it.

Even though I have been writing every day, I think I may have been a little over-ambitious with my publication schedule. It made sense when I laid it out a few months ago. When I saw the note on this week's goals I was a little surprised. It might happen. I will proceed as if I expect it to happen, and maybe it will.

Planning 3 books for next year is a big step up for me. If I didn't have the first one half-written, I don't think it could happen. Setting big goals is a good incentive. The calendar for 2017 is all filled out. I hope I can keep up with it.

And with that in mind, I'm off to write.

It Worked! Now What?

The third in a series magic must have worked for me because...the books are selling!

(Happy Dance!)

I feel like there's a party going on in the other room, but I'm not sure if I'm invited. Although I am super excited about the number of people reading the books. I'm not sure what I should be doing. Except maybe just writing.

On one hand, I am glad to put all my attention on writing. But on the other, I have a sinking feeling there is some special task that is now required that I don't know about. It's making me antsy. I keep checking the reports and checking the various forums I follow to see if there is a clue. When I should be focusing on the next book.

I am easily distracted. I find myself paging, paging, paging through Facebook looking for...haven't the foggiest. At my core, I am a planner. Give me some graph paper and a calendar and I'm a happy camper. But I don't know the next steps.

So I am just going to keep my head down and write.

October is a Busy Month

I feel like I am finally getting a handle on this marketing thing. And I think October is going to tell me whether or not I've got it right. I've planned a lot of promotion. Fingers crossed that it all works out.

October 3 - cover reveal for Gleanings. You will get to see the fabulous cover that Alex created at SFFWorld and then here on the blog.

October 2 - 8 Facade ebook will be discounted to 99cents.

A map reveal for A Changed World is still in the works.

October 14 - 18 Lethal Seasons will be free in the run up to Gleanings ebook release.

October 19 Gleanings, A Changed World #3 ebook release date.

October 19 - 25 Gleanings ebook available at a discounted price of 99cents.

The paperback for Gleanings will be out late in the month.

Whew.

And now I need to get back to outlining book 2 for the Transmutation series and a flash that I promised to a Christmas anthology.

A Lot Going On!

I am not quite in panic mode because of all the great stuff going on right now, but it's close!

Alex Storer is working on a cover for Gleanings. I've seen the drafts and it is amazing! I can't wait to do the reveal for it. I'm working on setting up the reveal with SFFWorld. More exciting news. I don't have a date yet. But as soon as they get back to me I will post it here.

James at Curious Cartography is working on a map. It's just in the preliminary stages, but I am super excited about that, too. I have wanted a good map for this world since the first book. And I have had plenty of requests for one. Really looking forward to seeing how this turns out.

Lethal Seasons will be included in the Apocalyptic Fears III boxed set, slated to be out October 1. David Van Dyke/Reaper Press has been very easy to work with. This is a new adventure for me. Fingers crossed that it brings in new readers.

In addition to the usual box set of novels, David is putting together an anthology of short stories for Apocalyptic Fears 6. It's in the works now. I submitted a short story that hints at the beginning of the disaster that turned into A Changed World.

I hadn't looked at that story in a long time. When I wrote it, I was very proud of it and shopped it around. It racked up one rejection after another. I couldn't understand their comments and just took it to mean that it wasn't right for those editors. Looking at it, with a few novels under my belt, I saw lots of problems. Most of which stemmed from not getting all the information out of my head and onto the paper. It only took a few tweaks to make it a much better story...I hope.

In October I will be dropping the price on Facade and doing a limited run of free for Lethal Seasons. Sign up to my newsletter and I'll let you know when it happens.

A Changed World Update

Good news - I just got Gleanings back from the 2nd round beta reader. She gave me some great feedback.

Bad news - it's going to need more rewriting.

Not sure what's up with this one, I'm just having a hard time with it. But I think I can see where the fixes need to go.

More good news - Curious Cartography will be doing a map of the world. I am really excited to see what he does with it. I'll post pictures as soon as I've got them.

As usual, I will have a cover by Alex Storer. We have just started talking about it. I'll be doing a reveal as soon as it's done.

That's it for today. I need to go spend time on writing!