What do authors REALLY do on release day?

This is a FUN week for me!! My FIRST ever boxed set released on Tuesday! I teamed up with 7 other authors to put together a Christmas set of novellas (I chatted about that trend in my last post!)

Release days are an interesting thing! There is SO much hype and emphasis going up to the day -- but what happens on the ACTUAL day?!?

I thought for fun, I'd ask a few published authors how they typically spend their release days!

My question:

What does your release day look like? Do you have a party, do you sit around in your pajamas and eat chocolate all day as a reward? Do you go out to a special celebratory dinner? Or do you spend all day on Facebook/twitter???

Answers: 

Kristy Cambron - Author of The Butterfly and the Violin - 
I don't check sales rankings that closely on launch day. I monitor regularly, but don't spend too much time watching. First book, I had to work 12 hours at my other job, so kind of lost that day. LOL! With my second book, I had an awards luncheon and spent time with friends at a coffee shop. Next book... Not sure! Guess I'll be wherever God wants me that day. It's a blessing of a day for sure and I love we get each one!

Carol Moncado - Author of Hand-Me-Down Princess
I obsessively check the KDP Dashboard while sitting around in my PJs pretending to work on the next book. Unless I'm at work. Then I'm dressed in nice jeans and a nice shirt and check as often as I can.

Janice Thompson - Author of Every Bride Needs a Groom
What she (Carol) said ^^^

(pretty sure Janice didn't think I'd use her ditto comment --- but little did she know.... :-) :-))

Pepper Basham (RESIDENT ALLEYCAT!) - Author of The Thornbearer
I work on release days HOWEVER, I make sure I am taken to my fav restaurant for dinner so I can have my fav meal and dessert (mass amounts of chocolate). I don't check sales that day much because I'm usually at work, but I celebrate with my AlleyCats - who also help promote the release and make me feel special!

Reba Stanley - Author of A Promise Kept
I exhale....then breathe in the air of sweet relief. And when that fifteen minutes is over, I am busy scheduling and marketing. I'm always looking for new ways and places to market my books.

Jody Hedlund - Author of Luther and Katharina
Release day is always a special day! On a personal level, it's the culmination of a lot of hard work, and I enjoy being able to have the moment of celebrating the accomplishment. But on another level the release day is a way to officially launch the book to readers and start lots of buzz about the book. So, while I don't have a party in literal sense, I do try celebrate online with my readers. Every release is a little different but usually involves giveaways and chatting with readers on Facebook. For example last week with the release of Luther and Katharina I did a giveaway each day on FB and had trivia questions about Katharina and graphics with Martin Luther quotes that readers could share. (I may or may not eat extra chocolate cake to celebrate too!)

For me?

Let's see. I spent this release day on Facebook WAY too much. I splurged and went and got me some lunch instead of eating a sandwich at home. (I KNOW! WILD GIRL!) I may-or-may-not have sneaked a few pieces of candy out of the for-halloween-only candy stash. I stressed a little too much so ended up with a headache and so--- TOOK A NAP --- on release day. I think that was God's way of trying to get me to give it to him.

Which was fantastic because when I woke up this morning I was greeted with THIS!

Yup. That little ol' novella collection made #1 best seller of Christian fiction collections on Amazon -- and in the top 500's of the OVERALL Kindle-paid list! My FIRST book to get that coveted little orange flag under its reviews and to break top 1000 on Kindle!

No clue how long it will stay that way.

But I'm calling this release day a rousing success and giving ALL thanks to God!

I'd LOVE for you to go check out the collection if you get a chance! It's only 99 cents!!

Let's Chat!!

PUBBED authors -- I'd love for you to share how YOU spend your release days!!!
PREPUBBED authors -- Close your eyes and imagine your PERFECT release day. Come on. I KNOW you wanna dream about it. What does it look like??

*************************************************

Krista is a follower of Jesus, a wife, a mother, and author of Sandwich, With a Side of Romance, A Side of Faith and A Side of Hope. She blogs about finding JOY in the journey of LIFE at http://www.kristaphillips.com. She is represented by Sarah Freese of Wordserve Literary.

On Being a Timothy with Carol Moncado

On Being a Timothy

Jason

This is a blog post that's been floating around my head - rather nebulously - for quite some time. I'd planned to put it on my personal blog, but when Pepper approached me about guest blogging here on the Writer's Alley, I said yes and, well, then, I sorta freaked out. What on God's green earth could I possibly have to contribute to a group such as this? And then in the weekly preview post, Casey said I was "always fun". I don't know that this post truly qualifies as fun, but I will include this picture of my friend Jason, because it'll make all y'all smile even if you don't know him.

Because this is the look he gave me when I asked him about this topic when our families had lunch on Sunday. The topic? Being a Timothy. I asked if he'd ever preached on it (he's currently a youth pastor) and he hasn't, but he talks about it all. the. time. (as attested to by my husband) That's not to say we talked about it much that day, but at least there's a pic to make us all smile ;).

So who's Timothy?

Alley Cat Casey Herringshaw with the fabulous Julie Lessman; Me then Pepper with Ruth Logan Herne; Casey with Tina Russo Radcliffe

Being a Timothy? Who's Timothy? The guy in the Bible. He's got two books named for him, you know.* But those aren't just books. They're letters, written to Timothy by Paul. Surely you've heard of Paul. Paul-the-apostle-formerly-known-as-Saul-the-killer-and-persecutor-of-Christians**

See, Paul is Timothy's mentor. That makes Timothy the mentee (but not, however, the Mento) or disciple. Paul was put in Timothy's life to teach him. To train him. So that one day Timothy could train others. So Timothy could become Paul.*** One day, Timothy would become the mentor and train others. Okay so. Paul. Timothy. They've got a good relationship going on. Paul is sharing his wisdom, the things he's learned throughout his years spreading the Gospel and communicating with God with the next generation. Timothy is soaking it all up. But then who's Barnabas?**** Barnabas is the guy who worked with Paul. His contemporary. In many ways, Paul's equal. But he is very appropriately named. Barnabas means "son of encouragement". He was the one who encouraged Paul, helped Paul, traveled the road with Paul.

Application to writers

One of my favorite Barnabases

Okay - so what does all of that have to do with you? A writer? Most of the blogs out there on being a Paul/Barnabas/Timothy seem to have to do with discipleship/ministry/etc. (see links at the end of the blog) but the theory applies across so many more areas than that. Parenting. Music. Computers.***** And writing.

At some point, all of us start out as a Timothy. We don't know much of anything about how to properly format for contests. Or which agencies you can query multiple agents and which ones you can't. Or where the best blogs are to find this stuff out. We all need a Paul (or two or three or seventeen) to help us figure that stuff out. Sometimes those relationships turn into something long term.

Sometimes it's a simple email from a favorite author saying "Check out ACFW. They rock and can help you from here." Sometimes it's for a season (for instance, just one manuscript). Pauls will read through manuscripts or parts of manuscripts or contest entries and help you figure out how to tone down the dialect or point out where you're telling when you should be showing - and maybe, just maybe, when an adverb really is the way to go. And we also need a Barnabas. Someone who's right where we are - or who has been recently. That person who is struggling through poor contest showings on that manuscript you - and they - thought was going to be the big breakthrough. Who cry with you when you accidentally kick an editor out of his/her seat at dinner (don't ask). Who convince you that hiding out in the hotel room for the next three days *isn't* the answer. Who know just what to say when you cry the following: Why am I wasting my time? And everyone else's? And the money that goes into contests and conferences and web hosting and everything else?

How it applies to YOU

Me with two of my favorite Pauls - Candy Calvert and Beth K. Vogt

We all go through seasons. Most of us spend a lot of time being a Timothy. I know I sure do (just ask Pepper). There's *lots* of times when I need hand holding or to cry on the phone to my long-lost-literary-twin (that's Pepper, btw) about how this isn't gonna happen. Or lament to Joanna that I didn't final (again) and could she please look at the score sheets for me because after that rejection from (insert major publishing house here) last week, I just don't think I can take it and may have to delete everything in my Dropbox.



Me and my Pepper - a Paul and a Barnabas (and I'd like to think sometimes I have something to help her so maybe a Timothy, too) wrapped up in one pretty package

Many of us (yeah, I mean me - someone please tell me I'm not alone!) walk around afraid that one day we're going to call one too many times. That the Paul in our lives is going to be like "Grow up and get over it" then change their number/email address/Facebook settings so we can't get to them. A lot of times, though (and this realization came to me as I wrote this blog), we're in mutual Barnabas relationships. Relationships that exist for the purposes of encouraging each other. Not really one mentoring the other. Neither is necessarily a "Paul". But that person who loves you enough to look at you and say, "Sweetie, I love you to pieces and that's why I won't let you go on American Idol.

Because you can't sing and I'd hate to see you humiliated on national television." One day you might be the Paul (because, believe it or not, if you've been doing this for any amount of time, you know SOMETHING you can use to help someone else). The next day you might be the Timothy. And another day, you're the Barnabas. All in the same relationship.

I struggle almost daily with feeling too much like a Timothy. Always taking. Never giving enough back. Always needing that extra support. Wondering when my friends are going to turn their backs. Or ignore their phones/emails because it's "that Carol again." I do what I can. Give back what I can, but maybe it's something inherent in all writers, not just me. That feeling that no matter what we do, the relationship isn't symbiotic******. That we're the parasites and our friends, the hosts, will eventually walk away.



Me with Jessica, Kristy and Joanna - three of my Pauls, Barnabases and Timothys

But I think it's time for all of us (and by that I mean me) to take a deep breath, do what we can, don't try to overwhelm our Pauls and Barnabases and trust that they love us. That we go through seasons. That our needy season will be followed by their needy season. That Paul and Barnabas, even though they eventually went separate ways, remained friends. Sometimes that happens. God brings people into our lives for seasons. To be Pauls. To be Barnabases. To be Timothys. Our goals should be the same. To become a Paul. To encourage like a Barnabas. To not be afraid to admit that, sometimes, we're a Timothy.

*Appropriately and creatively named I Timothy and II Timothy **Not his real name ***No one thinks I mean that literally, right? ****Not to be confused with Barabbas - the guy who was released so Jesus would be crucified. *****I do hope all y'all have a Paul when it comes to computers. Someone who knows more than you and is willing to help. ******A fancy word meaning mutually beneficial. But you knew that.

Setting the Mood With Your First Lines - Part TWO

Hi all. Pepper here and I’m talking about first lines and genres again today because….

I get to brag about some of our Alley Pals and their work.

Two weeks ago I posted about first lines and genres using some of our very own AlleyCats’ work as fodder. Today, it’s time to show off more talent from a few of our subscribers.

If you remember from my last post, first lines ‘set the stage’ for the rest of your novel. By the end of the first page, even the first paragraph, a readers should know what sort of book their getting themselves into J

Your first few lines are your biggest hooks and can even be a tool for some of your very first foreshadowing. Let's look at a few examples from published authors.

I love Julie Lessman’s books and she has a FABULOUS first line in her debut (award winning) novel, A Passion Most Pure.

Boston, Massachusetts, late summer, 1916

Sisters are overrated, she decided. Not all of them, of course, only the beautiful ones who never let you forget it.

What do we know about this novel already?

1.       It’s historical (and because we know it’s Julie Lessman we KNOW romance is burning at the seams of the novel)

2.       There’s going to be a bit of dry humor in it just from the first lines

3.       Sibling rivalry is inevitable (and that’s an example of some foreshadowing in the VERY first line) isn’t that GREAT!

We’re already setup for the story.

Or what about Beth Pattillo’s wonderful Jane Austen rewrites. Here’s the first few sentences from Mr. Darcy Ruined My Life.

I pulled the well-worn copy of Pride and Prejudice from my tote bag and stowed the bag under the seat in front of me. Last time I flew to England, I’d been in first class with Edward, my ex. First class, where they insist that you accept hot towels and champagne along with extra blankets and pillows. Now I was in coach with my knees pressed up against the seat in front of me and the Battery Kind of Seattle at my left elbow. As it turned out, the only thing worse than having the man snore was having him wake up and start talking to me again.

What do we know?
1.       It’s contemporary

2.       There’s some sarcasm going on here too

3.       Heartbreak in the past and a trip to England in the present. Romance is DEFINITELY in the future.

Fabulous, the expectation has been set and the novel WILL deliver.

Speaking of Jane Austen – how did the classic novelist do it?

Pride and Prejudice’s well-loved beginning is this: It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife.However little known the feelings or views of such a man may be on his first entering a neighborhood, this truth is so well fixed in the minds of the surrounding families, that he is considered as the rightful property of someone or other of their daughters.

What do we know?

1.       Contemporary for Austen’s time – historical for ours.

2.       Romance? Well, if she’s chatting about husbands and wives within the first line, it’s a good sign.

3.       Witty humor? You betcha!

So now it’s your turn. Let’s look at a few NEW lines from friends of the Alley and see if we can draw conclusions about genre and ‘feel’ based on those.

From Joanne Sher:

Thirteen years old. An adult in Hebrew society.

But Michal's actions showed the opposite. She was remarkably helpless. Remarkably stubborn. Remarkably spoiled. Ashia's job was not, it seemed, to serve a young lady, but a toddler in a woman's body. And today promised to be full of tantrums.

Ooo, great start. So what can we guess from this?

1.      Biblical fiction.

2.      A little more serious, but a definite hook of interest.

3.      How will Michal change? And what will this tantrum look like? Curiosity forces me to want to read the next paragraph.

Julie Hilton Steele sent this one in:

“The key works best if you turn it.” Anna Newman froze at the sound of the deep, warm voice cascading down from somewhere behind her”

1.       I have an inside scoop to this. She’s probably begin the chapter with a ‘hint’ of a date, which would be some time during WWII. So it’s a historical piece.

2.       It certainly has a flare of mystery within the first two lines.

3.       Why is she using a key? Who is coming up behind her? Inquiring minds want to know. Good sign.

 From the computer of Mary Curry (and she tells us a lot with only ONE sentence)

There was nothing like a week-long vacation to make you need a month off.

1.       Most likely contemporary from the references
2.       A hint of humor (and a whole lot of truth J

3.       What kind of vacation would make the main character respond this way?

How about this one by Mary:

Mental illness ran in my mother’s family, or so my dad always claimed. You can see why I didn’t really think I could go to him for help when the visions started.

Hmm…. What can we guess?

1.     Contemporary
2.     Hint at spec fiction or fantasy with the whole ‘visions’ idea
3.     What sort of visions?

Carol Moncado sent in this one.

She was wearing an eye patch.
At church.
On Easter.

What do we know?

1.      Most likely contemporary

2.      Humor…without a doubt

3.      How on earth did she get an eyepatch? Curiosity pushes us to read more!

How about something a little 'different'? :-)
Ben Erlichman, 2011 Genesis Finalist and NEW DAD, sent this one:

Blood oozed from a bullet hole in Tommy Roebuck's chest, saturating the dust under his body.

AND yet another one:

Hunger drove Raven Worth to the big tent revival that night, but it wasn't what made him stay. Usually in such a public gathering he'd have lurked just beyond the edge of the crowd to scan the fringes for stragglers. In other settings he'd often harvest the ones who looked the most destitute or lonely. He could relate to them. He knew their pain.

(Isn't that a great protagonist's name...love it)

1. Contemporary
2. Darker flare, maybe murder mystery or thriller
3. Okay - so who shot Tommy Roebuck and who is this dark and creepy 'lurker' named Raven Worth?

How do you set the stage?

It’s Alley Pals show off day so bring your first few lines and let us guess. Are you setting up the reader in the way you want? Does the genre match what we guess?

Some are going to be harder to guess than others, but let’s give it a try.
********************************************************************

Pepper Basham is a Blue Ridge Mountains’ native, mom of five, pastor’s wife, and university instructor. She writes in various fictional genres but spices them all with grace and humor. She can be found at The Writers Alley, www.pepperbasham.wordpress.com, or in her imaginary world. Company always welcome.

What's Up the Street Next Week?

Thanks to the fabulous Lisa Jordan we have a PARTY going on this weekend.
499 followers!! (with the BIG hope that after today, we'll be up to 500)

In celebration, on lucky commenter will receive Rachel Hauck's wonderful contemporary romance, Dining With Joy.  So make sure you leave a comment today or tomorrow for your chance to be in the drawing!

But not ONLY are we celebrating 500 (I walk by faith) - we are celebrating EVEN MORE!

We are thrilled to welcome Women's Fiction author, 2011 Genesis Finalist, and beautiful Aussie, Karen Schravemade to our crew at The Writers Alley. (Isn't she beautiful?) You'll get a chance to get to know her a little better on April 25th with an interview post. Until then, go check out her fabulous website at www.karenschravemade.com

Now...what ELSE can we possibly celebrate?
Courage.

By the end of February, many aspiring authors sent their precious manuscripts on the unpredictable journey of ACFW's Genesis contest. The competition was fierce - and the biggest number of entries ACFW had ever seen. Regardless of semi-finaling or not, winners are people who press the 'send' button...and that means all those who entered.




Genesis semi-finalists were announced on Wednesday and we are so happy to announce Alley Cats and Alley Pals who are part of the list.

Alley Pals:
Susan Anne Mason
Melissa Tagg
Melissa Jagears
Michelle Massarro
Carol Moncado
Heidi Chiavaroli
Karen Barnett
Christina Rich
Lyndee Henderson
(and many others from our 500 list of readers)

Alley Cats:
Casey Herringshaw (Contemporary Fiction)
Cindy Wilson  (Contemporary Romance)
Pepper Basham  (Contemporary Romance)

So....get out the chocolate, balloons, and dancin' shoes.
IT'S. TIME. TO. PARTY!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What's Up the Street For Next Week? Post- CONFERENCE EDITION

Since a lot of us are still recovering from Post Excited Conference Exhaustion, I thought I'd just take an opportunity to share some pics from the conference and some fun things that happened.
As many of you know, this was the first time most of the Alley Cats got to meet in person. Wendy, Sarah, Angie, Casey, Mary, and Pepper were in St. Louis- leaving Sherrinda, Krista, Cindy, and Julia to man the Alley on their own.
They did a fabulous job, btw.

Pepper, Mary, and Casey roomed together - with their new friend, Carol Moncado. The 11th floor would never be the same again.

And Casey was the Belle of the Ball. Everyone seemed to know our little blond-headed cutie. If you doubt it, check out her FB page and see all her pictures. Yep, she was Miss Popular - but no wonder. Cute and Sweet (except in the mornings....whew.... ;-)

It's a good things she dealt so well with middle-aged women like Pepper, Mary, and Carol.

Carol came prepared with SEVEN batches of cookies. SEVEN - and she handed them out to  people (bribed them and such...you know, free internet access, book proposals...) Here she is with Ruth Logan Herne from Seekerville.

The banquet was wonderful. Opportunities to celebrate with fabulous authors like Laura Frantz, Janice Thompson, Brandylin Collins, Mary Connealy, Liz Curtis Higgs...and so many more.

Here's Rachel Hauck with Casey.

Here's Pepper with Janice Thompson.

Here is a pic of a group of us with the Seekers! YAY!!

Here is Casey, Angie, and Mary during one of our meals. They are such lovely ladies inside and out!!!

Then we have a pic of the tallest and smallest Alley Cat - Wendy and Casey :-)

Make sure to stop by this week at the Alley for more tips on writing, talks about conference, and fabulous fun. We hope you are inspired this week.

Any conference questions or fun experiences you'd like to ask or share?
Blessings,

The Pitch & Blurb

Jesus was really great at being direct - to the point. Breaking down a big idea, like God’s grace, and putting it into a concise form. For example, in only a few paragraphs he gives the entire beauty of God’s grace in the story of the Prodigal Son. A BIG idea summed up in a way we can understand.

That’s HARD. To. DO. 

Pitch and Blurb are ways writers do the same thing. (Hmm… Pitch and Blurb - sounds like the name of a pub in the U.K J

Lots of times as writers, we’re expected to create elevator pitches and book blurbs (compressing 95K words into a 50 word summary....AHHHHHH!). It can be a stress inducing activity - especially for those of us are particularly 'talky'.

In fact, last week Casey and I exchanged pitches and blurbs with our good pals, Carol Moncado and Michelle Massaro  It was a great learning experience. I came out with some wonderful tips and ideas. (Thanks so much, ladies).

Casey’s a much better pitch & blurb writer than I am. I think it has to do with my propensity toward long-windedness, but making it short is a key factor in pitch & blurb writing.

Here are a few general tips:

Pitch:

-          Usually 25-30 words

-          Basically sets up the conflict/motivation of the story

-          Strong verbs

-          Power words

-          No names necessary

Here are a few examples I’ve written about famous books/movies.

After a Kansas tornado traps her in a magical land, a young girl must find her way back home before a wicked witch kills her. (25)

An orphaned boy discovers he’s the only wizard who can rid the world of an unnamed evil before it destroys everything he loves. (23)

A disrespected historian seeks to save the Declaration of Independence from international thieves and in the process discover a thousand-year old Templar treasure that will restore his family’s reputation. (29)

Now, what is a blurb?

It’s one of the most important selling features of a book. We walk into a bookstore, pick up a book off the shelf, maybe notice the pretty cover, and…then what do we do?

Flip the book over and read the back blurb.

Blurb

-          Typically run between 100-250 words.

-          Intrigue is usually increased through questions.

-          Spoiler free.

-          A first sentence hook to GRAB the reader’s attention.

-          Try to exhibit the voice and uniqueness of the book.

-           Keep it simple, no complex storyline at this point.

-           Direct.

-          Your main goal is to ‘hook the reader’.

-          Some people pull out a great line from the book and place it here.

Janalyn Voigt has some great tips at Author Haven about pitch/blurb writing.

• “Desire -- What does your main character want? This desire drives the plot toward a specific goal.
• Problem -- A shift or change in your protagonist's life causes a problem.
• Cost or risk -- What will the solution cost? What are the risks?
• Solution -- How will your story resolve? Will your main character realize his or her goal -- or not?

Use your story problem and theme to create a pitch sentence. Be sure and add a hook -- something that sparks interest in learning more. Examples:

Story Problem: A grieving widow longs to find happiness again (desire). When a suitor presses her with his attentions (problem), she must let go of the past (cost or risk) in order to realize her goal (solution).

Theme: Is it possible to find happiness by letting go of the past?Pitch Sentence: A young widow wants to take a chance on a new suitor but what will it cost her to let go of the past?”

Isn’t that a great summary? I thought it might be helpful for getting our minds in ‘concise’ writing mode J

Another FANTASTIC site for pitch & blurb help is on CamyTang’s Story Sensei.

Here’s Camy’s example:

Character--Sydney Bristow, secret agent
Situation--Discovers she's been tricked into thinking she's working for the CIA when in truth it's a terrorist agency
Objective-- To topple the powerful organization called the Alliance by working as a double agent
Opponent--her boss Arvin Sloan, who has been a family friend for years, who lied to her about her job
Disaster--Sloane suspects her because she told her fiancé, and he had him killed.
Summary:
After discovering she was tricked into thinking she's working for the CIA, agent Sydney Bristow becomes a double agent, determined to take down the terrorist group called the Alliance. But can she fool her boss Arvin Sloane when he kills her fiancé and suspects her enough to kill her?

Here’s another great link to read related to pitch & blurb:

http://www.writethatnovel.com/novel-step2.htm

OKAY now it’s your turn!!

Any brave people out there?

I’m not great at these, but here are my examples (and you’re welcome to pick them apart to your heart’s content. I’m a lifelong learner ;-):

25-ish word pitch: A speech therapist determined to leave Appalachia must reform a cattle farmer and develop a new speech pathology program without losing her heart in the process. (25)

or

To escape her bruised past and a professional dead end, a speech therapist must transform an Appalachian cattle farmer into corporate-world material by Christmas. (24)

50-ish word pitch: To escape Appalachia, Dr. Adelina Roseland makes a daring wager to transform a rustic cattle farmer into corporate-world material before Christmas. But getting involved with this single-dad thrusts Dee into a world she’s spent fifteen years trying to forget, which may change not only her mind, but her heart. (49)

Blurb (100-200 words):

 The language of love doesn’t have an accent…
To escape Appalachia, speech pathologist Dr. Adelina Roseland makes a daring wager to transform a rustic cattle farmer into corporate-world material before Christmas. If she succeeds she can present her research at the national convention, launching her career beyond her bruised past and the professional dead-end of a small town.

But Adelina didn’t plan for the faith and friction of single-dad, Reece Mitchell. Drawn into a culture she’d been trying to forget for fifteen years, Adelina finds the warmth of faith and family healing the wounds of her heart. When Reece discovers that he’s been a mere pawn in her step up the corporate ladder, will he forgive her deceit or will their miscommunication end in two broken lives? (128)
(It's My Fair Lady meets Andy Griffith) :-)

YOUR TURN!