By The Numbers

I haven't started writing a new book yet, but I've been working on a lot of different things. Some of my work last week and this week is preparation for a board meeting of one of my writing groups. We only meet three time per year so there's a lot to cover. But there are other writing things I'm getting done before diving into a new WIP and looking back and forward to things happening and that have happened in my career.

By the numbers:

2 books I have a rough outlines and some plot completed.

3 online classes I've signed up to take over the next five months. Two have to do with marketing.

1 new contract for my most recent completed novel.

1 of my older titles available on KU for the first and limited time. The Marine's Queen was my first bestseller romance.

2,000 books on my TBR list. That's an estimate.

3 publishers who have closed their doors when they held my books under contract. Sigh.....

10.5 years since my very first book, The Greater Good was published. And it still earns some royalties every quarter.

23 books that I've written that have been published by various small presses. Still not rich or famous.

10 weeks until one of my favorite shows, The 100, returns to TV.

4 times I've re-watched season 7 of Game of Thrones. I embarrass myself.

This week I'm going to so some more plotting and next Sunday I'm going to start writing my next book.

Today is Abraham Lincoln's birthday. I remember when we used to have this day off of school and government offices would close. Then they made up that President's Day thing and robbed us of a day off.

Wednesday is Valentine's Day. Hope you have someone to share it with or at least, some great memories to warm the day.
"A good heart's worth gold." William Shakespeare

Do you have a good number to share this week? Do you celebrate Valentine's Day? Have you ever used KU? Good results for selling or reading?

First Friday

My mother always used to say the weather for a new month would follow whatever Mother Nature graced us with on the first Friday of the month. Sunny and mild here today with a few clouds later. I can live with that for October. I love the days when I don't need AC or heat on in the house. Windows open and fresh air throughout the abode.

Wisdom from The Old Farmer's Almanac related to the above. October breezy, November wheezy, December freezy. And another. To sleep well, kept the bedroom temperature no higher than 68 degrees.

The posts presented on Wednesday for the IWSG Guide to Publishing and Beyond were incredible. The members of our group have so much wisdom to share and they did. The book is going to be awesome.

After a stressful eight days when my daughter was out of touch as she toured Morocco we made contact on Monday. She had a fun adventure and shared some of it on her blog, The Open Roof.

Other excitement for me this week was the strange surge in sales of my Recon Marine Series. All three books climbed back up the Amazon rankings for some reason, even spending some time in the top 100 of multiple science fiction categories. Once again convincing me I know little about promotion but I'm grateful that more readers have found the series.

I'm excited about the meeting of my local writers' group, CPRW. It's election time for new officers and we have some wonderful people willing to take on the responsibilities. Then I have some writing to catch up on for my WIP. I've neglected it for most of the week.

Has your October been breezy? Do you keep your bedroom cool? Did you submit an article for the IWSG book? Ever ride a camel in the desert?

What Does It Mean?

The big news in the publishing industry so far this month is the sale of Harlequin Romance Publishing to News Corp where the romance giant will become a part of Harper Collins. Harlequin has shown disappointing sales in the past four years, citing the slowdown in paperback sales as part of their issue despite their strong showing in digital and international sales.

I write romance as Susan Kelley and have contracts with two different small presses. Both have been in business for a long time and I'm comfortable with them. What does this big publishing news mean for me? Not a lot at this point in my career. When I first starting writing, signing a contract with Harlequin was the ultimate symbol of having made it as a romance author. I've always written fantasy or science fiction romance so back in the day when I submitted those type of novels, Harlequin wasn't interested. Like so many other writers who wrote something a little different, I found a place that would take a chance on me and my writing.

With this sale, the 'big boy' publishers are becoming fewer in number. The smaller, independent presses are becoming more numerous. Will it be more difficult to 'make' it with a big publisher? Will readers search out those 'outside the box' stories put out by small presses?

Do you care about this publishing news? Do you as a reader purchase books put out by small presses? Do you have experience with Harlequin or Harper Collins? How will affect their current stable of authors? Should any of us care about this if we're not involved with those publishers?

And Then There Were Two

My first science fiction romance book, The Marine's Queen, amazed me last year with its bestseller status that it held onto for a few months. It really pumped me up and inspired my writing. My publisher is running a special sale this week on The Marine's Queen in anticipation of the release of the second book.

The Marine's Heiress, Book #2 of The Recon Marines, takes up the story of Vin. If you read the first book, you know who Vin is. At the end of the first book, Vin left his marine brothers, alone in his anger and need for revenge. The second book will delve further into the origins of the genetically enhanced soldiers and the people responsible for their creation and downfall. Can there be a happily ever after for a man who believes his one chance at a normal life has been lost? You can do some early purchasing here, getting the ebook at my publisher's special price.

How about a chance to score a great prize. Ninja Captain Alex J. Cavanaugh is closing in on the 2,000 follower mark on his blog. Can you imagine? In his usual generous way, Alex is going to celebrate by giving a prize to his followers. Check out the contest on his blog. The contest is open until the magic number is reached.

Also, check out Cate Master's latest release over at her blog. I wish I could write as quickly as Cate. How does her head not burst with all the unique ideas she comes up with?

My weekend will be tied up entertaining a special out of town guest, my lovely sister, and getting promo ready for The Marine's Heiress. What are you up to this weekend? Can you imagine 2K followers? Don't forget to sign up for A to Z on Monday.

Serious Series Staying Power

There are different ways to do series. Some suspense and mystery writers have central characters, detectives or investigators, who solve the crime of the particular novel. Some romance novelists base a series on a particular town and focus each novel on a different couple within the unique and attractive setting. When it comes to science fiction and fantasy, usually the series is bound together by a created world or universe. Sometimes the same characters appear in each novel though not always.

It's up to the writer to find the right technique to bring readers back for more. I read a lot of suspense and mystery. Jonathan Kellerman brings me back for more and more in his Alex Delaware series because the protagonists are so interesting and each novel has complex psychological mysteries. I can seldom figure out the twists when they come. Science fiction writer Alex J. Cavanaugh used a complex, interesting character as a continuing thread in his Casa... Series and drew readers back because they wanted to know the rest of the story about that central character.

Sometimes romance novelists introduce a secondary character in the first book of a series, making the character interesting enough for the reader to care about them. But then the writer sets the secondary's story aside, hoping the reader will want to know what happened to him or her and thus buy the next book. I used this technique in my most recent romance series. In The Marine's Queen, Vin, a secondary character suffers a tragic loss and goes off on his own. The book ends with his fate unknown. Much to my delight, a few readers of The Marine's Queen emailed me and asked me if I intended to write Vin's story.

In fantasy series and other suspense novels, though there might be a pause in the action at the end of each novel, the writer needs to leave unanswered questions or unresolved dangers. With each book, the stakes have to grow in importance and the road to solve the problems or the mystery has to grow steeper. The world can't be saved or the evil completely defeated until the last book in the series.

In my most recent fantasy series, The Morbunda Saga, the war is just getting started in First Dragon, the kickoff novel. Disasters and losses pile up as I introduce the reader to the Morbunda fantasy world. The complexities of the characters are revealed over the course of the novel. Hopefully readers will want to know what happens next.

What techniques work best for keeping you involved in a series? What tantalizing hooks do you use to keep a series successful? What series of books have you really enjoyed as a reader?

Dust Off the Oldies

In case you've been living under a rock this week, Alex J. Cavanaugh's third book, CassaStorm took off in a mach speed launch. You probably saw him everywhere. Each blog he visited had a unique bit of info on Alex or his books. Lynda R. Young shared a very interesting post for Alex yesterday. He shared his story about how he never intended to write novels. Read how he pulled an old story he wrote out of a drawl, dusted it off can created his first novel. Read it here.

How many writers have stories and even complete novels sitting on a shelf or on a zip drive somewhere? Probably all of us. We left them behind because they weren't good enough or another project took us away from them. But when we created them, their characters or their plot caught our imagination.

Last year around this time, I had just signed a contract for my latest fantasy novel with Crescent Moon Press. I always clean up my writing area when I finish a project and there it was. My next project. An old manuscript, perhaps five years old, that I'd finished and set aside. I decided I would polish it, fix the weak points and see what I could do with it. I'd always like the main characters but for some reason I had set it aside.

Viola! The Marine's Queen, my bestselling novel ever, was picked up by my romance publisher. Perhaps it was the timing, genetic engineering, near the same time Star Trek Into Darkness came out. But if I hadn't dusted off that old story...

Do you have a neglected work of art waiting to be rediscovered? Did you read Alex's story over on Lynda's blog?

Cloudy With a Chance of Cloudy

I'm busy working on edits on The Marine's Heiress. Actually it's a total rewrite using the rough first draft as an outline. I'm suffering a lot of uncertainty as I work through the middle third of the book. It's not a saggy middle. Lots is happening and the story is moving forward. I think my characters are interesting and worth investing in but....

This book is being written under my pen name, Susan Kelley, and is intended to be a science fiction romance like its predecessor, The Marine's Queen. My concern is the romance. Is there enough in the book? I hope to send this novel to my romance editor by this time next month, but I'm worried about it. Have I let the science fiction story overwhelm the love story?

I'm fortunate enough to have a lovely swimming pool. I vacuumed it one week ago and within two hours, it started to turn green. A very pretty, translucent green. Realizing I didn't shock it as recommended after vacuuming, I attended to that. It cleared up for a bout an hour and then turned green again. I double shocked it. Cleared up and then clouded again. I knew I was out of my league in pool diagnosis though I guessed the ph balance was upset. So I went to the pool store, ask the experts, and heard how all the recent rain, especially acid rain, would disrupt the pool balance. The nice man advised me to double-doubled shock and then bring in a sample of the pool water to them for analysis if that didn't work. They would be able to tell me exactly what I needed to add to clear the water. Today my pool is no longer cloudy.

Asking the experts was so much easier than stressing while I tried to figure it out on my own. The pool experts can tell me exactly what I need to fix the problem. Applying the same principal to my writing, I'm going to stop worrying about the balance of science fiction and romance in my new book and let my editor tell me if it needs something added or something deleted. I'm going to write the book as feels comfortable to me and wait for the test of the experts.

Who do you go to when you feel uncertain about your writing? What part of your writing do you most often question? What percentage of romance does a book need to have to be a romance?

Not Super All the Time

I'm busy with the last quarter of my second Recon Marine novel. If you haven't read the first book, the military men in this series are genetically enhanced men raised to be killing machines. With out going in to great detail, they're strong, fast, smart, nearly impervious to disease and trained to handle great amounts of pain and discomfort. They've also been taught nearly everything there is to know about battle strategies and tactics to be used in any situation. They also have access to and the knowledge of how to use the most up to date technology in weaponry and communications.

The Marines sound invincible. What fun is that? Even Superman has to have a weakness. Achilles had his heel. So what is my marines' weaknesses? That's the fun part of writing a new book. My main character can't be all powerful and unbeatable.

My poor hero is suffering right now, everything going wrong. None of his plans are going as he expected. Everything he cares about is in danger and people have been lost. The enemy pretty much has him surrounded. If I do this right, this will be the point in the book where the reader can't put it down. The dark moment when all seems lost and only great courage and extreme cleverness can save the day.

Do you enjoy writing the 'dark moment' part of the book? What was the last book you read that you just couldn't put down? For me it was Royce Prouty's Stoker's Manuscript. Ever read a book where the hero was too 'super?'

IWSG: Balance

Can it really be the July version of the Insecure Writers Support Group? Many thanks to the creator of this monthly blog fest, Alex Cavanaugh. Visit his website for more links to this informative and supportive group of writers.

This month I'd like to share something I'm struggling with in my current WIP. If you visit me here or know me on facebook, you know I've been thrilled with my most recent release, The Marine's Queen, and the sales it's generated. I've been surprised and happy with the categories on Kindle where it lingers in the top 100.

The book was published as a science fiction romance and spend nearly two months in the top 100 in that category but then a few weeks later it reached the top 100 in two different scifi areas. It's doing best in genetic engineering and remains as a best seller.

Some readers have criticized the books for too much romance, others for not enough and still others have written me letters to say it's just right. Now as I write the follow up book, should I put in more science since the first one is still doing well in those categories. So now what do I do in my WIP? I'm trying to keep it the same amount as the first book but am I balancing it correctly?

How do you know if you're getting the balance correct? What is more important to you when reading a book? The relationships between characters? The personal growth of characters? Exciting action in the plot line? Which parts are easiest for you to write?

Full Time !

Yes, the countdown clock is going. I'm officially retired after 34 years of teaching high school. Those last days were hectic and lots of fun. The four younger teachers in my department took my fellow retiree and me out to lunch one day, gave us wonderful cards and gifts. I have a stack of cards and letters from my students, many that choked me up but none that could wipe the grin from my face. On that last day I received lots of calls from my family, hugs from my peers, including the school superintendent, and walked out of that school building with no regrets and lots of plans.

During that last hectic week at school, I also received the (hopefully) last round of edits for First Dragon from my editor at Crescent Moon Press. So between all the smiling and hugging, I worked on those edits, tried to keep up on blogging, facebooking and get in a few new pages on The Queen's Heiress, the follow up book to The Marine's Queen. 

In fact, I spent the last week fulfilling one of my retirement intentions. Keeping multiple projects in the air. And I loved it. Writing easily could have captured more than forty hours during that time. It was wonderful. So edits are done and sent back, 5K done on WIP, and blogs are ready for the week. I have a lot of little things to accomplish but also time for the WIP.

Besides all the in person kindness I received on retirement, Alex Cavanaugh kindly congratulated me on his blog. It was like another hug just to make the day complete. Thanks, Alex.

I know many people will be taking holidays over the  next few months as will I. I'm looking forward to a quick, trip to the Jersey Shore next week. The second week of July, we're heading to Colorado. I'm not sure how much I'll be in touch. Now that I'm a full time writer, I have to wonder when exactly the days off are.

What are your plans for summer vacations? We did stay-cations last year, very cheap. Are you setting some writing goals for the summer months?

No Golden Ticket

In a recent online discussion, a hopeful writer shared her discouragement because an agent told her that she didn't want to represent her well-written book because it couldn't be sold. It was a 'niche' book and unlikely to fit into any needs of the 'big' publishing houses. Those rejection letters are disheartening and most writers have received them at one time or another. Some of us have a nice collection of them.

Of course, many people joined the discussion and described similar experiences and offered lots or suggestions on what step to take next. The discouraged writer also posed the question about there being a secret to getting published, a magic ticket to the world of being a published author. Again, many of us have heard amazing stories about people being in the right place at the right time. But even if we save the life of a grateful agent or editor, no one is going to publish our work if it isn't a good story, well-written and structurally ready for publication. There is no golden ticket into the publishing world (unless you're a celebrity just getting out of rehab or prison).

Hard work and persistence will help you write your own ticket. You're probably tired of hearing about my book, The Marine's Queen, that is remaining in the top 100's, even the top 10, in three different categories on Kindle. I pitched that book years ago in a face to face with an editor for one of the big houses. She rejected it, never asked for the full manuscript even. I kept working and contracted numerous books with other indie publishers. Last summer I dusted the Marine manuscript off and did some rewrites and contracted it to New Concepts Publishing. Now it's the best selling

book I've ever had. And NCP pays me better per book than any big pub company would.

Smaller indie presses take chances on niche books, new writers and books off the mainstream. They can help you design your own golden ticket.

Have you ever had someone ask you what the secret was to getting published? If you're with a small press, do you still dream of one of the NY biggies calling you? Can you guess where publishing might be in five or ten years?

Character Names

I'm very busy working on the second book in my Recon Marines science fiction series. The first book, The Marine's Queen, is still doing really well on Amazon. I hope I can create an even better novel with the second book.

When working on a new story, I have to come up with some new names for all those characters sticking their noses into the plot. When I read, I always cringe when I come across characters names that are really odd or unpronounceable. It won't make me put a book down, but it does make it more difficult to remember the character's names should I want to tell someone about the book. I tend to go with simple names though not necessarily common.

As a teacher, I encounter a lot of names and many strange spellings of said name. Or course, I don't want any of my students to think they're appearing in my books but how can I resist names like Vannie, Primo and Austyn?

On the other hand, my siblings may have noticed their names appearing in some of my books. They're always the good guys. I'm not crazy enough to make four sisters and two brothers angry at me.

Still I like keeping it simple. The main male character in The Marine's Queen is named Joe. Not as in GI Joe the toy but as in a genetically engineered soldier whose creators couldn't be bothered to even give him two names.

A brief shout out to my friend, Misty Simon, who has received a contract for another novel with TWRP. Her last novel, What's Life Without Sprinkles?, is now available and a really fun read.

So have you been using the names of friends or family in your novel? Anybody name a character after you? Would you be insulted if they did?

Best and Worse Movie Remake Blogfest

Today we have another great idea from a group of hosts to have some fun around the blogosphere. Today the participants in this blogfest will highlight the best and worse movie remakes. There are lots of them going on and many to chose from. For a full list and to meet our wonderful hosts, check out these famous bloggers.

Alex Cavanaugh
Stephen Tremp
Father Dragon Al
Livia Peterson

I'm dealing with my daughter's wisdom tooth surgery which didn't go as smoothly for her as it did for her five older brothers. No details but if you're a parent you've probably had that image of your child falling just out of your reach so you can't catch them. So I didn't catch her when she passed out right after we got home. Anyway, movies...

It's so easy to think of some good movies that have been remade lately and I'll have to go with Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, and The Dark Knight Rising for the best remakes compared to those yawning earlier attempts which never had any emotional depth or psychological examination of the Batman.  I just watched The Dark Knight Rising again with my daughter today while I tried to push fluids past her numb lips.

Worst remakes are more difficult though I'm sure I'll read about lots of them around the fest. Though I didn't hate it was the most recent remake of Pride and Prejudice. Kiera Knightly is very talented but the previous version that stared Colin Firth stayed very true to the book and the stiffness of the social interactions of the day. I can't come up with anything really, really bad that I have actually seen.

Do you wonder sometimes if they'll remake some of the movies we love so much like Batman Begins and do it even better? I kind of hope not.  So go visit some more movie lovers and not so much loves. I didn't do the music bonus. Do you see any of those old Batman movies? Remember Arnie as the freeze guy? Do you think yanking out wisdom teeth is somewhat barbaric?

And thanks to everyone keeping The Marine's Queen at the top of the lists in three categories now.

Liebster Award and Titles

I just came from updating my Goodreads list of books. I was adding Breaking Point by CJ Box to my TBR list since I have it sitting temptingly on the edge of my text. I'll probably start it later this week. When I searched for it on Goodreads, I just entered the title and was shocked to see around a dozen books with the same title pop up. Didn't anyone Google their book title before settling on it?

My romance publisher, New Concepts Publishing, changed the title of my last book during edits. The title I had selected was too close the title of another book. They asked me to come up with a few choices. I like The Queen's Marine. My publisher suggested The Marine's Queen instead. I won't go into their reasons but they must have been right. It's been my bestselling book ever and has spent the last two weeks in the top 100 for military romance and even had a short stint in science fiction military top 100 for a while. I guess the lesson here is to listen to your publisher if they suggest a title for your book. They know stuff.

I want to thank Barbara White Daille for giving me the Liebster Award. We met during the recent A to Z. As part of this, I'm supposed to answer the 11 questions she's provided. Instead of passing this award on, I'm going to just ask for you to share some of your own answers in the comments. That way I get to know a little about you.

1.  What’s your favorite ice cream flavor? It has to have peanut butter though I'm not a big ice cream fan.

2.  What type of book do you like best? Probably epic fantasy but I enjoy so many other things like scifi, romance, suspense, historical and just about anything except celebrity books.

3.  If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be? I really want to live a little closer to the equator. I love the heat and hate the cold. But if I have to be cold give me Ireland or Scotland.

4.  What would you do with the money if you’d won a million dollars? Mundane answer but I would make sure my children are taken care of and then I would fund some scholarships for deserving students because I know how expensive college is these days.

5.  Which actor would play you in the next blockbuster film? Sandra Bullock though she's younger and much more beautiful. I think she could capture my attitude.

6.  What’s your favorite book from childhood? The very first book I owned was the true story of Smokey the Bear. I still have it. The first books I read over and over again were The Black Stallion books by Walter Farley.

7.  Would you like to read about a cowboy or a CEO hero? Cowboys!!!

8.  What do you want your grandchildren (or friends, if you have no grandkids) to remember about you? That I lived up to the last and loved well.

9.  What’s your favorite quote? Kind of a joke in our family but...Plan your work and work your plan.

10.  What do you like best about yourself? I'm a good mother and an actually kind person.

11.  What’s the most important item in your bucket list Don't have a bucket list. Maybe I'll make one now that I'm retired.

Would you share some of your answers to the above questions. Has your publisher ever suggested you change the title for your book? Have you encountered books with the same title by different authors?

The Whole Shebang!!

Isn't that a great name for website. I've said it before, but I'll say it again. If you want to promote your art, literary, music, craft or physical art, please contact these generous ladies.

Today I'm promoting my latest release, The Marine's Queen at The Whole Shebang. Join me if you have a moment but I understand if those of you in A to Z are taking some time off before Monday starts. Enjoy Easter. I'll be enjoying it by sitting down and reading a book.

A to Z Theme and New Release

The days are counting down to April. I hope the month brings some warm weather with it but as long as the rain and cold keep us inside we may as well have fun with A to Z.

This will be my third year. The first one was very difficult for me and became serious work instead of fun. There was still a lot of work the second year but I prepared better and had a lot more fun. I intend to do better this year, continuing on the road to improvement. The first two years I had an unofficial writing theme behind my posts. This year I have a more specific theme, again related to writing. But I'm going to tie the writing into the theme I've been using in a lot of posts this past year. Retirement. I'm going to use each letter to talk about all the things I'm going to start doing or improve how I do them once I become a full time writer. Oh, I have some big plans. I've been taking notes and making lists. I'm looking forward to all the things commenters will add that will help me and others.

I had planned this for tomorrow but my romance publisher, New Concepts Publishing, surprised me by releasing my newest futuristic romance, The Marine's Queen, yesterday. Here's a short blurb:

Queen Callie Adell’s enemies want her for the secret elixir only her bloodline can produce. She flees an abduction attempt and lands in the arms of the most feared military man in the universe. Recon Marine Captain Joe, a genetically enhanced soldier, knows little of civilian life or of women. But his body knows what it wants from Callie even if his mind suffers mostly confusion in her presence.

Joe’s sense of honor and duty demands he protect the queen even if she can never overlook his unnatural origins and love him as a man. But neither of them can ever be safe if Callie doesn’t protect Joe from those who want to destroy him as much as her enemies wish to capture her. Only if she can civilize her marine will the world accept him as more than a living weapon. But can Callie convince Joe that he’s a man first, her man, and a marine second?

You can purchase the ebook at this location.

The paperback version is available at Amazon.

I'll be on The Whole Shebang again tomorrow promoting The Marine's Queen. Hope you'll stop by there.

So are you doing A to Z? Do you have a theme? Is spring coming to your town soon or did it already arrive?

Quote and The Whole Shebang

Today I have the fortune to be a guest on The Whole Shebang Site. TWS has dedicated itself to promoting not just writers but other fields of creativity like music and art. When you visit, check out their archives and meet some very interesting people. I'll be talking about reading across genres and how it helps my own writing. I would love to hear your apinion on it. See you over there where you can get a first peek at my newest book cover for The Marine's Queen.

Today is make up day Movie Quote. I would laugh at Alex Cavanaugh for forgetting the romantic quote from last week except I totally forgot it also and I had it written down. Searching for this quote made me realize how few romantic flicks we own or even watch. So I had to go back to teh movie that explains everything in life.

From The Princess Bride, Wesley: "As you wish."

Which if you watch the movie, you know those words mean 'I love you.' Is there anything more romantic than a couple that has their own secret communication? Do you have that with your significant other? Do you understand what is beneath his or her words?

Thanks Alex for running this fun quote day. Thanks, Misty, for having me at Shebang.