Tag Archives: promotion

It’s here! My new romance novel has been published today

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I’m thrilled to introduce my latest book to the world!

DLW thumbnail

In the dark heart of the city, a dirty little war is about to begin

Evie Baedeker knows her place in the world. Born into a life of organised crime in the gritty East End of London, she has endured nothing but hardship and disappointment. Then one night, in a sleazy bar, fate sends a dangerous opportunity her way.

Carmen Trogan, daughter and heir apparent to a rival business, has no idea who Evie is when their eyes meet across the dance floor. But Evie knows all about her. The chance to bring the rich and beautiful woman to her knees – both figuratively and literally – is too good to pass up.

Sparks fly from their first kiss, but Evie is playing a dangerous game. There are consequences that come with spending the night with a woman like Carmen.

Will she be able to walk away from the best night of her life, or will she risk it all to see Carmen one more time?

A standalone lesbian romance novel, this has all the bittersweet joy that comes with forbidden love. You can pick up a copy over at Amazon now!

Big changes ahead

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As I’ve indicated a couple of times this year, I’ve been in a crazy place when it comes to work and life. The good news is, a few key projects that have been consuming so many of those projects have finally begun to wrap up.

What does this mean? It means that after a year of not publishing any fiction, I will be in a position to begin putting my time and effort into this again to a much greater degree. I still intend to work on other projects, but my C. K. Martin fiction is some of my favourite. I love to spend the hours creating these women and their lives, so the prospect of being able to indulge myself is really very exciting.

It has been a year since my last book, which in independent author terms is sometimes seen as the equivalent of being dead. My current goal is to get back to the publishing rate of three books per year, which I was on course to do until the last twelve months hit. I spent a significant amount of time over the past weekend working out how I get to schedule my time in a way that works for me and helps me to achieve a higher quality output. September to December will be the real test of this. If it doesn’t work, then I may have to go back, tweak the approach and continue to push forwards.

Dirty Little War

The most exciting thing now is the thought of finally being able to share characters and stories with you that have been more neglected over this past year than I would like. So there are exciting times ahead. Next week, I’ll be publishing my first lesbian romantic standalone novel and I’m a mixed bag of nervous and excited about the response. Regardless, I’ll be opening a bottle of wine when it appears on the kindle store, as a way of marking a new chapter in my life if nothing else.

Kindle Royalties (Part Two) – still the enemy?

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A while ago, when Amazon announced a new way of paying royalties based on read page counts, authors and publishers threw their arms up in despair. The reality was, it was most likely to affect self-published authors and only with the books ‘borrowed’ rather than purchased, which I discussed in my first blog post on the subject.

It’s been happening now for several months and we finally have some data on the subject. For those of you sensible enough to just enjoy reading rather than killing yourself writing, monthly royalties are broken down by territory and then again by purchased and the amount you’ve earned by total pages read.

The other me works with data to fund the writer me, so this little method, no matter how crude, fascinates me. I’m all about data driven decisions and it would be foolish for someone not to analyse the data they have available and use it to inform their strategies. At this time of year, when I’m planning for 2016, it will certainly influence things.

So, what do I know?

  • The United States is my highest paying market
  • The UK is my second highest paying market
  • In the US, I don’t sell many more books, but my ‘borrowed, total read pages’ payments are three times that of sales, bumping it into the lead
  • In the UK, this is just above total sales by little more than a couple of quid each month
  • My other markets are Canada and New Zealand and I’m happy to just have people buying books from there given how damn expensive it was when I’ve lived/travelled there

Borrowing with Kindle Prime has clearly taken off more in the States than the UK and other countries, that’s for sure. The good news for me is that when people borrow my first book The Crochet Killer (shameless plug) they read more than just the first few pages and give up. They tend to read the whole book, which is fantastic news for me. And I completely understand not shelling out the cold hard cash for an author you don’t know if you have an alternative, it’s essentially the same as using a library.

So there you have it. Borrowing a book and reading it can still make an author happy. None of the figures I’ve talked about above have been massive, certainly not enough to be a full time writer and that whole private island thing is still a million miles away. But enough to let me know that people are reading and enjoying my writing, which is what we all do it for in the first place.

 

Goodreads: where the brave fear to tread

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Believe it or not, I’ve never been a member of goodreads. Now I’m signing up at last.

So many of my author friends absolutely loathe the site. I mean they hate it so much, they actually rank it lower than going to Amazon to look at your reviews, which for popular authors is a very special kind of torture. That alone was enough to put me off.

Now I’m increasingly hearing that it is the best way for Indie authors to connect with their readers, as well as finding cool people who are writing the same things you are. My reading list is undergoing something of a review at the moment (too many books in the same genre for far too long) so this seems like a pretty good idea.

I guess I’ll find out in the next few weeks whether or not I’ve been missing out by listening to others. Or it could be a damp squib of a place that is on the decline. I’m going to hold out for the best case scenario: it’s full of awesome people to meet who are passionate about books and can teach me a thing or two.

If you see me on there, feel free to say hi and forgive me if I mess things up (I invariably do) whilst working it out.

Promo Time! The Crochet Killer

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To celebrate A Taste To Die For being released and still feeling flush with the joys of vacation, The Crochet Killer is now on offer.

I’m running an Amazon kindle promotion so you can get the first book in the Teddie McKay series at a nicely reduced price. If you’ve noticed A Taste To Die For but haven’t wanted to jump in at the second book, now is the perfect chance to try before you buy!

Crochet Killer CoverStill not convinced? Remember you can download a free sample, but be sure to buy before the price goes back up (I hate forgetting and then ending up with a significantly higher credit card bill than I thought, but even at full price, this is only a couple of dollars for now. Regular pricing resumes in October!)

 

Finishing touches of A Taste To Die For

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There is something quite exciting about knowing something is finished. Today, all the final touches of the next Teddie McKay Novel are in place, ready for August 27th release. I’m so excited!

I’m not sure (because the past month has been a bit of a blur between this and several other projects) whether I have mentioned the title yet. If not, I can reveal that it will be called A Taste To Die For. That is not, in case you were wondering, some bad lesbian joke based around Teddie’s sexuality.

Until the book actually goes on sale in 7 days, I know I will be a bit of a wreck. It is an excited kind of wreck, but still a bit wobbly regardless. There is something quite terrifying about sending a novel out there for people to read. Even though everything so far has been positive, that doesn’t mean I will ever get complacent about people’s reviews and opinions. All I can do is put the best book I can out there, and hope that people enjoy it.

Despite the fear, it is a hugely rewarding experience too. My life revolves around writing and that goes beyond C K Martin and her books. Yet the Teddie McKay series and the Lazarus Hunter series are some of my favourite things. Why?

Because I can write them as I want.

I don’t have a publishing house or editor telling me how to make them more saleable on a mass market scale. I don’t have to make the characters thinner, fatter, straighter, gayer, more of this gender, less of that, or anything else. The characters are the people I am interested in and the stories are the ones I want to tell.

For example, since Twilight, vampires have been a hard sell in traditional publishing. Yet Indie publishing shows that there is still a significant market for them. The only thing the Lazarus Hunter series has in common with the significantly more popular one is the vampire theme. Therefore, I don’t feel like I should hide it away just because someone else did something similar once. That’s insane.

With Teddie, I wanted the book equivalent of cheesey cop shows. I love to watch them on TV but there are so few gay characters and not in a leading role. Most of the lesbians I know are cops. Just saying. So I wanted her to be identifiable. But the main point is that she’s a detective. A flawed but capable detective. She doesn’t solve the crime with her gay magic powers. She solves it the same way as anyone else would. Which should be the point, really, shouldn’t it?

Anyway, that turned into a post slightly different from the one I had intended. Which was *squee*. It’s done. Now, we wait.

If you haven’t yet read the first book in the series and the sequel sounds interesting to you, then you can buy The Crochet Killer on Amazon.

(Cover reveal on Monday!!)

Kindle Promo: Blood Inheritance

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Just a reminder folks that we’re moving into the last chance to grab Blood Inheritance while it is on promo.

For those of you who haven’t yet seen anything about this novel, it is the first in my supernatural urban fantasy series focusing on Elizabeth, the daughter of an authority of vampires and Monica, the unwilling head of a vampire family. The two women, who should by all accounts be sworn enemies, discover that actually they can trust each other more than some of the people who should be on their side.

Of course, there are fights, blood and sex, because you would expect nothing more from an urban fantasy novel. However, I’ve tried to stay away from implausible high heels and tight leather fighting outfits. I wanted likeable, relatable female protagonists, who don’t go to pieces over their love lives or lack thereof. Mostly, I wanted a book where women don’t automatically have to be bitches/unsupportive/crazy/fighting over the same man/woman etc etc just because there are two of them. Enough with that already.

The second book in the series is currently in the editing phase and is planned for publication in early 2016. The series is already going to be a long one and in terms of many of the plot points, we’re in for a slow burn. There is an undeniable chemistry between our two lead ladies, but where this will go and when remains to be seen (I know, of course, but you don’t get to). Even though I am currently heavily into the release of the second Teddie McKay book, life at author HQ is never just about a single project. I love these ladies and it is always fun writing about them.

So go grab it from Amazon while it’s on offer and let me know what you think. Amazon seems to have a tendency to lose customer ratings if it thinks you know me, so feel free to wear a fake moustache, look anonymous and leave a 5* review…

 

Q and A With Teddie McKay

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Sometimes, the bits that don’t go into the final edits of a book are some of the best parts. This is something that secretly infuriates most writers at some point. It is the essence of killing your darlings. If it doesn’t further the plot, it doesn’t go in, no matter how much you love it.

The same can be said for some of the pre-writing and planning stages. It’s always useful to get into the minds of your characters by doing something different with them. So here is a little piece which is a lot of fun, but obviously would never make it into the book. It starts with a simple premise:

What would it be like if the tables were turned on Detective Teddie McKay..?

CKM: Thanks for joining me here today. I’ve just got a few questions for you, then you can go.

TM: Hey, I’m the one who asks the questions around here.

CKM: Not tonight you don’t. Tonight you’re going to sit there and answer a couple of simple questions. Nothing too dangerous. I’m not placing you under arrest here.

TM: Like you could. Go on, ask whatever you want. Don’t be too hurt if I plead the Fifth.

CKM: I’m hoping that you won’t have to do that. There is nothing too damaging in here.

TM: Okay, okay. Just get on with it will you? I have places to be.

CKM: Places to be? As in a date?

TM: Was that one of the questions? You’re using up your time here lady.

CKM: It wasn’t going to be one of the questions, but it is now. I can tell when you’re stalling.

TM: You don’t know me.

CKM: Yes I do. Better than you think. So spill. Do you have a date? Is that why you’re in such a rush to get out of here?

TM: That’s two questions. Which do you want me to answer?

CKM: Both. quit stalling.

TM: I might be meeting someone. An old friend.

CKM: With you, that’s the safe word for romantic. Who is she?

TM: Hey, I never said it was romantic. Your words, not mine. This would never hold up in court.

CKM: We’re not in court. Nor are we likely to be. So either answer the question or I’ll get some of the other characters in here as well. They’ll make you talk. I’ve never seen you get away with not answering a question when it’s coming from Kathryn Greene.

TM: That’s a low blow there, author lady. Alright, I’ll answer your damn questions. Yes, it used to be romantic. If you count more than a couple of dates as romantic. But it’s not any more. We’re just friends.

CKM: With benefits?

TM: Maybe a handful of occasional benefits.

CKM: Is that because you don’t like to commit?

TM: Everyone make it sound like some huge thing. I’m not scared to commit. I just have chosen not to so far, that’s all. No one should have to commit until they’re at least forty.

CKM: Why do I get the feeling that when you get to forty, you’ll decide to up that to fifty to be on the safe side?

TM: Is that another question? You’re running out of time now. It’s like three wishes. You gotta choose wisely.

CKM: I never specified how many questions.

TM: And I never specified how long I’d stick around for. And don’t even think about bringing Kat into this again. Now she’s the one who you should be asking about dates. Underneath that prim and proper skirt, I reckon she’s all kinds of interesting.

CKM: Do you often think about what is under Kat’s skirt?

TM: You’re sick, you know that? That’s my friend you’re talking about.

CKM: Calm down. I’m just messing with you, that’s all. We can make that a question. No attraction at all between you and Kat? You just see yourself as friends?

TM: No attraction at all. I mean, she’s got a pretty face and her IQ is probably off the charts, but she’s never really done it for me, you know? But there’s something about her… me and her we just clicked. Right from the day I met her. I thought she was going to bust my ass when they brought her in to help out on The Crochet Killer case. That was what we were calling him back then. Seems crazy to think of him like that now. Now that… But yeah, anyway, she’s one of my closest friends. You want commitment? I’d walk to the ends of the earth for that woman. Just because I don’t want to live with someone doesn’t mean I have commitment problems.

CKM: Speaking of The Crochet Killer, do you still have nightmares about him?

TM: We don’t need to go there.

CKM: We do. Enquiring minds need to know.

TM: I don’t have any choice in this, do I? In that case, yes. Sometimes, I still have nightmares about him. Jolanta says it’s completely normal to still get freaked out sometimes. It doesn’t mean I need therapy or anything. He’s just there sometimes. Hell, for all I know, he’ll be haunting my dreams for the rest of my goddamn life. Too many women died on my watch. I should have got to him sooner. If the only price I have to pay is a few bad dreams, then I’ll take it.

CKM: That case made the news. What was your toughest case before that?

TM: Man, that’s a tough one. There’s no such thing as an easy case when you work Robbery-Homicide. Even when catching the perp is a slam dunk, then you’ve still got to deal with a victim. But if I had to pick just one, I’d go with my a homicide in my first year. I was pretty fresh back then and I didn’t catch break. It was a kid. Turned out his step-father had been beating him for awhile. Mother to drunk and beaten down herself to do anything other than throw back another fifth of Wild Turkey and look the other way. That was the first autopsy that made me want to cry and walk out the room. I’ve toughened up a lot since then. But cases with kids? They never get any easier.

CKM: Okay, let’s move onto something a bit easier. Doughnuts.

TM: Now those are my kind of questions.

CKM: People want to know, do you really eat doughnuts all the time? Or is that just a police stereotype?

TM: That’s a brush we’ve been tarnished with for a long time. Doughnut Friday, that was a thing for a while. Day to day cases, they don’t really need a doughnut quota. Now a big case, that’ll have Gary reaching straight for a party box, you know what I mean? And I care about the man. He’s my partner. It would be dereliction of duty if I let him do that to his heart. I need to take a bear claw for the team every now and again, right?

CKM: I suppose that makes sense. In a weird calorie-justifying kind of way. Okay, so flipping that over into fitness, how do you keep in shape for when you have to chase down bad guys?

TM: Contrary to popular belief, I don’t get to do much chasing these days. But I’m a swimmer. Not much else really. Most people already know that about me.

CKM: I didn’t know if you were also a secret gym bunny or anything like that.

TM: *snort*

CKM: I’ll take that as a no then. So, if we’re being open about your swimming, it’s no secret either that you nearly drowned when you were longer. So how many metres can you swim underwater these days?

TM: Never nearly as many as I’d need to feel safe. I can do about twenty metres. Enough to get me out of a tight spot, but nothing crazy. If I had to do more than that, I probably could. I just never want to find out. I love to swim, but I hate to swim. That’s never gonna change.

CKM: Okay, final question, then you can go on your not-a-date date.

TM: About time. Go on. Hit me.

CKM: Shake Shack or In-n-Out burger?

TM: Are you kidding me? How is that even a question? Shake Shack all the way baby, all the way…

You can buy the first instalment of the Teddie McKay series The Crochet Killer on Amazon, currently on offer at $3.69 (was $4.99). This is because the second book in the series A Taste To Die For will be available for download from August 27th.

Crochet Killer Cover

Finishing – It’s Always The Hard Part

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This is no ‘how to’ post. You won’t find any handy tips and tricks here. This is just me talking about how finishing is always the most important part of a novel, and that probably makes it the hardest.

As with writing, the same applies with life. The best things are the hardest won. The sense of satisfaction is the most rewarding. Yadda eider eider. Right now, the words ‘The End’ seem to be a moving target. Moving, apparently, further and further into the distance.

Writing is my hobby, my passion, my love. It is also my business. Therefore, it has schedules and deadlines and project plans, just like everything else. True, it may be rooted in creativity and dreams, but as anyone will tell you, it’s hard work that gets you over the line. There is no fantasy lottery win that will free me up to write in that luxury beach villa. Or the cabin on the lake. Insert your location of choice here, alongside whatever your dreams and goals are.

So, logic tells me it will be worth it. However, the child in me wants to stamp my feet and demand to know why my characters are refusing to play ball and be written according to the ideas I had originally. I knew what I needed to write to create the follow up to The Crochet Killer. While I know the new direction will all work out better in the end, it doesn’t stop things from being as frustrating as hell now!

So, when you’re reading this, I sincerely hope you’re having better luck than I am on finishing your dream project! If not, then we can carry on battling through it together!

Blood Inheritance

And if you want to read something I did manage to complete, then Blood Inheritance has been released on Amazon. Go grab yourself a copy and make me feel like this is all worthwhile!*

 

 

 

*shameless plug and plea. A writer’s first draft despair knows no bounds.

Writing and motivation: keeping the momentum going

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I find the long weekend has been perfect for a little bit of extra introspection time.

I’ve spent the past few months building up to publishing Blood Inheritance, with the crazy planning and scheduling that goes with such a big endeavour. I say that because we should not belittle our achievements. I am terrible at taking time out to celebrate when I hit my goals. I’ve been talking about getting this book out there for the best part of two years, so I’m allowed to high five myself for being brave and letting one of my babies fly the nest.

The downside in achieving something that has taken up so much of your time and attention for months is that after the excitement fades, then there is a moment when you realise the enormity of the void it has left behind. Instead of breathing a sigh of relief that you have now got so many hours of your life back each week, you sense the loss. There is only one thing to do.

You have to keep going.

There will always be another book brewing on the horizon. There will always be an idea to be captured and the seed of the idea planted so it can grow. Writing tasks will never disappear completely, but neither will the joy of those first moments of creation. So when the sigh of relief wears off and I begin to think about that sudden free time, it’s always good to know that I have several projects I can dip into.

It is good to take a break. It is good to allow yourself to recharge. It is not good to allow that to turn into sloppiness and complacency. So how do you avoid it? It’s quite simple really.

fieldnotes1. Keep a notebook. Capture your ideas somewhere safe so you don’t have to keep them in your head. Then they’ll always be there waiting for you when you need them.

2. Plan your next project before you finish your current one. In those quiet times, those moments when you find yourself twiddling your thumbs, think about what you want your next project to be and outline what next actions you’ll be taking on it. That removes the panic of having to come up with something spur of the moment.

3. Be realistic with your scheduling. Each project will be different, but each one will also take a lot of hard work. Be kind to yourself and allow yourself adequate time when planning your project. Don’t be too generous though. You want to have enough tension there to motivate you to do something, rather than having the psychological freedom to continually defer it until next week. Be sensible, but also give yourself a deadline. Even self-imposed ones carry a punch when you keep a reminder of them where you can see them.

So that’s what I’ll be doing. The first draft of the next Teddie McKay novel is nearly complete and I’m going to be working through that for the next few months. My goal is to publish it in September, so that is the deadline keeping me on track. Whilst Blood Inheritance may be published, everyone knows that is not the point at which marketing and reader engagement stops. Of course, I’ve already got the next book I’m editing decided and set up to make it easy to start.

So the void of time was relatively short; I’m back to writing again.