Today, I'm a guest on the Get Lost In A Story blog, run by my chapter mate, Angi Morgan.
Check me and the blog out!
Wednesday, January 31, 2018
Get Lost In A Story
Today, I'm a guest on the Get Lost In A Story blog, run by my chapter mate, Angi Morgan.
Check me and the blog out!
Monday, January 29, 2018
Revenue Streams... and Why Am I Working On This Now...?
One of the keys to making money in publishing, as well as in life in general, is to have multiple revenue streams.
As an author/publisher, my revenue streams include, but are not limited to: e-book, trade paperback, hardcover, audio books, and foreign translations of all of the above. Right now, I have one. E-books. Eventually, I'll branch out to print and maybe audio, but we'll see what happens when I get there.
In general, I have my day job income, but I also have my little proofreading / website-updating / series-bible-creating side job. I have an ongoing website-updating client, but everything else is hit or miss. I had some proofing feelers, but everyone's gone dark for whatever reason. It's not like I don't have enough on my plate at the moment, so I'm not worrying about it overmuch.
On the other hand, I have enough on my plate to worry about at the moment, so why am I fussing around with cross stitch patterns to upload to my Etsy Shop?? Yes, that's another revenue stream I'd like to pump a little bit. I have one pattern up there at the moment--my BBC Sherlock sampler. I do have a pattern for my Harry Potter Spells sampler (which I apparently haven't posted about???), but it's not on Etsy as of yet.
And now I'm working on some small hockey related projects...
They're not very big, slightly larger than a coaster, but they are kinda tedious to stitch. I started #14 as a trial and discovered some flaws in my pattern, so I tweaked. Then I started #91 as the second trial run and ran into a few more issues needing resolution. So I tweaked the pattern a little more.
I also want to offer patterns for teams other than the Stars...but I sure as heck don't want to stitch one of everything, so I'm not sure how to resolve that just yet.
Anyway...as to why now... Well, because I can't be writer & publisher all the time. I need time to do the other things I enjoy and to feed my creative side from a different angle. But to be honest, a) I started this project last year and b) I'm not spending excessive amounts of time on it. It's just nice to work on something different every now and then.
But, after a hockey-filled weekend, It's time to get back to the writing/publishing related things on my plate.
Hope you had a great weekend.
Friday, January 26, 2018
First World Author Problems
One thing that a lot of my author friends complain about is all the ideas they have that they may or may not ever get to turn into books.
I've never really had that problem. In fact, I'd worried that once I'd finished with the nine Ten Rigs Texas books, that I'd be S-O-L. But then a new series idea came to me. It was a relief because I'm thinking it'll be another nine-book series. Of course, I have to finish the last three Ten Rigs books, but it's good to know I have something new in the pipes.
I've created a file and I've been adding plot and character ideas as they occur to me. I'm not banking on my memory here. Scrivener, the writing program I use, is wonderful in this regard. I can import files and web pages too.
So that new series has been floating around in the back of my brain for a good seven months and it's comforting to have it there. It's not a ton of ideas like some people I know, but it's good for a few books at least, right?
But then...when I was working on my writing groups' contest the other day, I processed a Highlander book, and I thought to myself : "I want to write a Highlander series." Highlanders are always popular and I enjoy the heck out of them myself
So now I have two series ideas and, while it's still nowhere the number of ideas a lot of my writer colleagues have, I'm excited to have a second idea rolling around the old noggin.
Might have to start another Scrivener file...
Have a great weekend!
Wednesday, January 24, 2018
The importance of good dental care...
I went to the dentist on Monday for an abscess. Luckily it was in the gum and not in the tooth and the tooth was spared pulling. For now.
Unfortunately, most of my dental problems could have been avoided if I had just been more diligent about dental care way way way back in the day. But money was tight for a while and so I just didn't. And now, well, my mouth is not in great shape.
I might have to give up a couple of those Stars hockey games and re-route those funds into the dental bucket because I do not want to lose anymore teeth. (I had two pulled 3.5 years ago.) While there may come a time when the back molar I went to the dentist to have looked at, or other teeth, will need to be pulled, I want to keep what teeth I have in my mouth as long as possible.
So... time for diligence in brushing, flossing, water picking, and mouth-washing, as well as in dental visits.
My 50th birthday is coming up. I still have a good chunk of life left to live. I want my teeth to be and stay in the best shape I can get them in for as long as possible.
So PSA for the day, the week, the month--take care of your teeth!!
Monday, January 22, 2018
Wheee...!
Lookie what I got this weekend! As I mentioned Friday, I had writers group on Saturday. After close to a dozen years, I'm finally a published author and, as per our little incentive program, I received a jumbo pencil with each book's info written on it. I took four home because those were birthed last year. Book 5's pencil stays in the boots until next December. It's sort of a visual as the year goes on to see how prolific the group is a whole. Here are my pencils!!
Okay so they're not that exciting to look at, but I finally have them.
In addition to pencils, I also received charms. In honor of our group's 35th anniversary, we've been doing a charm program. Whoever writes at least 25 pages or edits 50 pages each month earns the charm of the month. Since I finished a book somewhere in there last year, I was able to get an additional charm.
Here's my book charm, which I chose more for the series as a whole than for the specific book itself.
Yep, it's rainbow cake. :0)
Here are the other charms and my full bracelet...
...four of them because it's been a while since I was at a meeting to receive them.
Most importantly, I saw all my lovely dear writer friends and had a fantastic time not only at the meeting, but at the post-meeting meeting with my closest writer friends who are the most wonderful women in all the world.
Also, my beloved Stars kicked much Buffalo ass on Saturday. :0)
Great weekend all around. How was yours??
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