Feeds:
Posts
Comments

Posts Tagged ‘first novel’

Marketing Options Pop Up When You Least Expect Them

Posted in Author Talk, Book Signing Events, Marketing, Published, tagged , , , , , , , on July 21, 2016| Leave a Comment »

fingers on keyboardYesterday, as I basked in the perfect summer weather of southeastern New England, I browsed the news app on my cell phone. At the bottom of the list, I found a section devoted to my town of Norton from various sources in the surrounding area.

When I clicked into the ‘Patch’ news article, I noticed an offer to send breaking local news to my cell phone or desktop, and registered my email address.

Upon receiving the first news-bite, another offer popped up to advertise an event electronically to all the surrounding towns who have their own version of the Patch.

Well, I submitted my registration request, received my log-in information this morning, and have posted my participation in Local Author Day at the Ugly Dog Books in Attleboro, MA, on July 30 at 4pm.

How easy! And FREE!

Check it out…you may have a similar marketing opportunity in your hometown.

Read Full Post »

Author Talk at Oak Point Active Adult Community

Posted in Author Talk, Book Cover, Book Signing Events, Marketing, Published, tagged , , , , , , on July 10, 2016| Leave a Comment »

TUG Front Cover OnlyOn Tuesday, July 12, at 6:30 pm, come join me in the clubhouse ballroom at the Oak Point Active Adult Community in Middleboro, MA.

The evening’s event is my author talk titled ‘The Ins and Outs of Writing My Debut Mystery’. I will share my writing adventure, from research to writing groups to publication.

I hope to make you laugh at the funny things that happened along the way.

After a short reading from my story ‘The Uninvited Guest’, I’ll answer questions from the audience, and gladly autograph copies of my book.

If you or any of your relatives live in this complex, please stop by, say hello, and stay a while!

 

Read Full Post »

Active Senior Complexes Love Authors!

Posted in Author Talk, Book Signing Events, Marketing, Published, tagged , , , , , on June 21, 2016| Leave a Comment »

audience-clipart-lecturer-3During the past few months, I’ve been presenting my author talk titled “The Ins and Outs of Writing My Debut Mystery’ to the libraries, garden clubs, and senior centers in my immediate area. And having a blast doing it!

Having exhausted those local venues, I broadened my search for new audiences. Finding the activities director at an active senior complex is not always easy, but persistence pays off. As a result, three have scheduled my presentation during the next few weeks. And there are many more to approach.

It’s quite possible that some of the attendees will have already read my story that they have obtained through Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, or from one of the local bookstores that carries ‘The Uninvited Guest’. Those readers will no doubt ask questions about the characters, the setting in an old village library, or the plot twists.  This exchange will enhance their experience and encourage others to ask questions as well.

Book signings will wrap up each event. When I ask the reader to choose the ink color for my autograph, a light sparkles in their eyes as they check the array of pens, putting a smile on my face as well.

You go, seniors!

 

 

 

Read Full Post »

You Just Never Know…

Posted in Author Talk, Book Cover, Book Signing Events, Cover Blurb, Marketing, Published, tagged , , , , , , on May 20, 2016| Leave a Comment »

images…when your next speaking engagement will pop up!

The past few months have been filled with author talks at libraries, senior centers, and retirement communities, both here in Massachusetts, plus my home state of Delaware, nearby Maryland and Pennsylvania.. As the schedule thins out, I’ve pulled out my file of venues contacted, but unresolved, to stir the pot for additional speaking opportunities.

What I’ve found as I’ve been regaling audiences about my journey as a first-time author, is that invariably, one of them approaches me afterwards, and suggests another group that might be interested in hearing about my writing adventure.

Just the other day, after speaking at the senior center one town over, a lady came up to me and mentioned that the Red Hats meet in that same room the last Tuesday of every month, and might be interested in hearing my author talk. This lady was reluctant to actively pursue the idea on my behalf, so I approached one of the COA administrators, and she has agreed to pass along my contact information to the Red Hats leader during their meeting at the end of this month.

To that end, I’ve created a new flyer with an image of my front cover plus author photo, a description of my author talk, plus both email address and cell phone number. I’ve printed off several to carry with me.

When the next person makes a suggestion for a new venue, I will hand her…or him…a copy of this flyer plus my bookmark that teases a potential reader about my story.

Who says marketing has to be a chore?

Read Full Post »

A Book in the Hand… Cape Cod

Posted in Author Talk, Book Signing Events, Cape Cod, tagged , , , , on May 3, 2016| Leave a Comment »

audience-clipart-lecturer-3For friends and mystery readers who live in southeastern Massachusetts and Cape Cod, join me next Monday evening, May 9 @7 pm, at the Jacob Sears Memorial Library, 23 Center Street, East Dennis, MA.

I’ll be sharing the ins and outs of writing my debut mystery ‘The Uninvited Guest’ with moderator Elizabeth Moisan during her monthly program ‘A Book in the Hand’.

An autographed copy of ‘The Uninvited Guest’ will be raffled off.

I hope to see you there!

Read Full Post »

More Author Talks & Book Signings

Posted in Book Signing Events, Marketing, Published, Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , on February 20, 2016| Leave a Comment »

book club at tableAfter the successful author talk and book signing with the local garden club, the Ugly Dog Bookstore, and a private Girls Night Out last month, I dove into chasing down additional events. Friends were anxious to advise their connections of who to ask and where to go to share my story! Most organizations need a speaker for an upcoming meeting, and have been glad that I dropped into their laps!

To entice the program director of non-bookstore organizations to schedule me into her events calendar,  I offered 15% of books sold during her event. Not only will I cost them nothing as a speaker, but they will receive a small donation as a result of their book sales!

Not every contact gets back to me on a timely basis, requiring a follow-up email or phone call. But the results have been quite satisfactory. Here’s a list of interviews/author talks/book signings scheduled for the coming weeks:

Feb 26… ‘Books and the World’ cable interview, Cape Cod, MA

March 16…Allentown Public Library, Allentown, PA

March 19…Brandywine Community Library, Topton, PA

March 22…Kutztown Community Library, Kutztown, PA

March 31…Ames Free Library, Easton, MA

 

Am I supposed to be having this much fun?

 

Happy reading and writing!

Debi

 

 

 

 

 

Read Full Post »

Published!!!

Posted in Book Signing Events, Marketing, Published, Publishers, tagged , , , , , , , , on January 2, 2016| 3 Comments »

 

Jan 12, 2016 updated to include complete Amazon address.

 

Well, after years of plotting & writing, conferences & writers groups, TUG Front Cover Onlymy story… ‘The Uninvited Guest’… has been published through Riverhaven Books in Whitman, Massachusetts. Such a thrill to see it listed on Amazon as a paperback and e-book!

For the purpose of book signing events, I opted to print 400 books locally.  What a thrill to pick up the ten boxes from the print shop! My trunk will hold a box of books at all times for those unplanned opportunities to place my story into the hands of an avid mystery reader, along with a 2-sided bookmark.

And now onto the task of marketing. Area bookstores, local libraries, senior centers, and women’s groups are on my list to contact. Some of them are bound to be interested in a debut local author to speak about writing a mystery with a book-signing event afterwards.

As it happens, my sister is involved with her local library in eastern Pennsylvania, and has already put me in contact with their Friends president, who is excited about planning an event. After we solidify her date in late March, I’ll approach the other libraries in the Berks County system for a possible event at their location while I’m in the area.

In addition, as a member of Sisters in Crime, I have joined their Speakers Bureau, and look forward to participating in author panels around New England during the coming months.

For all of you who have been following my progress over the past few years, I hope you’re as thrilled as I am!

Happy New Year to everyone!

Debi

 

 

 

Read Full Post »

Proof!

Posted in Book Cover, Cover Blurb, Editor, Publishers, revision, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on November 10, 2015| 4 Comments »

female-hand-writing-red-pen-white-background-35404047Well, the proof of my novel arrived, and for the past week, I’ve been combing through the pages to spot details that needed adjusting. Marked in red ink with the top corner of the page folded for easy locating, I noted missing punctuation, single-word changes, reversal of publisher line-editing efforts, and the return of several paragraphs dropped somewhere along the way.

This past Sunday morning, I drove the proof to my publisher’s home and we reviewed my editing requests, plus font size and format, possible reduction of pages by removing the space between lines, bookmark design, and adjustment of back cover blurb that currently gives away too much of the mystery.

So many details before making the commitment to print a supply of books for my personal sales at a local print shop! At some point in the near future, my novel will also be registered with Amazon as both an e-book and their print-on-demand version.  When that happens, I’ll provide the link for those of you who are interested in reading my story!

The road to first-novel publication has been long and educational, but eminently interesting along the way!

 

 

Read Full Post »

Publishing Delay

Posted in Editor, Publishers, revision, tagged , , , , , , , , , on October 8, 2015| 1 Comment »

A_Woman_Reading_Papers_At_Her_DeskIt’s no surprise that the lady helping me self-publish my first novel has gotten sidetracked with other projects and life itself.

We lost about three weeks in our timeline, but are now back on track. She provided me with the formatted manuscript, and included her own edits for the first half.

When I re-read my story, I found about a dozen places that needed to be returned to my own voice. She agreed to make the adjustments with very little resistance, but brought up two scenes that didn’t sit right with her. I saw her point, and have provided a revamp to take care of her concerns.

And so I’m waiting for her to get back to me with her second half edits, which I will then review and make further adjustments if needed.

In the meantime, I approached a recently-opened bookstore in a nearby town to ask about scheduling my book launch in their upstairs space. Before they will discuss that possibility, their buyer needs a ‘readers copy’ of my novel to determine if they will stock my novel in the local author section. If that decision is positive, then the events lady will discuss a possible book launch.

So many details, but I’m getting close!

Read Full Post »

Manuscript Submitted to Publisher

Posted in Editor, Publishers, tagged , , , , , , on August 20, 2015| 2 Comments »

red send buttonWell, a few minutes ago, I pulled on my big girl panties and hit the ‘send’ button.

After months of working with my editor to fine-tune the writing, firm up the plot, and deepen the characters, I’ve sent my story along for the final phase of preparation before publication.

Nothing to do now but watch for the galley proof to arrive. My final opportunity to make sure everything is in its proper place. That nothing has been dropped. That nothing has been added or duplicated. That all eyes are dotted. That all tees are crossed. Forgive my bastardization of those two letters.

While I wait, I guess I’ll turn my attentions to my next story…sigh.

 

 

 

 

Read Full Post »

« Newer Posts - Older Posts »