Getting Tired of Politics Sometimes Leads to Politics!

 Sometimes I have to revert back to my former political self just to get it out of my system. Have a wonderful 4th everyone!

Books and More...

 Before 'Slime' was finished I had 'Sleuths' in my head.  I actually began writing it before 'Slime' was on the market.  My writing gurus assured me that the second book would help sales of the first book and I loved where the story was going and wanted to keep the story going.

That it helped sales for a time was true. However, I ran up against a brick wall with marketing efforts for both books because I hadn't figured the high cost into my budget. Some things you lean the hard way.  When folks were asking for $100 to review my book, I balked.  I did double down on social media, saturating Facebook and Instagram with Slobbers and his books.  I also set up a store on Etsy to sell Slobbers branded products but ran into some brick walls there, too.  I'll explain that aspect as we go along.

Shortly before 'Sleuths' was released I happened across a very popular Saint site on Facebook because the administrator of that site began sharing more and more of my posts on her several sites.  It was a huge boon. I also had set up a page for Slobbers and a group and people were getting on board.

A little back story here before I continue.  During this time a very good friend lost her Saint.  I had grown old with her Harley because we met just before we lost Bacchus, some 12 years earlier.  When chatting about our boys we laughed that perhaps in the next book Harley could be Slobbers' dad.  After all, Slobbers' had parents and it would be interesting to tell how he happened to become a shelter dog.

Back to my Facebook friend.  During this same time frame, she, too, lost her Saint. The iconic Brenda Lee. I was stunned for I had been thinking of asking if she could be Slobbers' mom.  After allowing my friend some time to grieve, I asked her what she thought. Maybe it was fine that all the dogs had crossed the Rainbow Bridge. Slobbers, after all, was the composite of all my Saints. Fortunately for me she was thrilled with the idea.  As with Harley, Brenda Lee would live on.

I began doing little stories on social media telling Harley and Brenda Lee's story and people liked them so much they began clamoring for them to become a book of their own. I asked my publishing gurus if I should do it and if I chose to, could it be a prequel. The answer was yes.

How all that went coming up...

We're Havin' A Heatwave!

It was over 100 in our backyard by 10 this morning.  I was watering our plants, hoping to keep them alive for the next week to ten days as temperatures are expected to soar into the 100s consistently. Whew!

Fortunately, even though not air conditioned, our office stays quite comfortable with a fan. What's lacking is a whole lot of motivation on my part. 

I think, though,  over the next several posts I'll meander on and tell you how I went from one book to three in very short order. 

I probably would have done a lot of things differently, hindsight being 20/20, if I had had more experience.  So how do you get experience?  I think pretty much the same way I do. Try it out.  If it doesn't work, try something else. 

All things considered, it's working out.  To take advantage of an overused term these days, I think I'm flattening the (learning) curve. Stick with me!

The Reason There is a Lag Between Books

 When last we talked I had finally gotten my first book published.  Then the hard part began.  Marketing. It's much different today than when I was actively working in the field.  So once again I listened to my managers at SPS.

Find my niche market and go for it.  I figured it was the Saint Bernard communities on social media.  I was partially correct. They've been wonderful to Slobbers, but they aren't enough.  Go for all the hashtags that apply to dog lovers of all ilks.

Then go for the outliers. Parents and grandparents, teachers, home schoolers, librarians, book stores.  I've had varying success with many of these and have been surprised where there was more lack of than support. Another learning curve. I studied the demographics to see who buys dog stories for kids, adventure/mystery stories for kids, and so on.

Parents, mostly mothers, from the mid-twenties to late thirties.  Those who would have youngsters in the appropriate age group of 7 to 12.  And grandparents, especially those who love dogs.

You can see from the illustration, there are now three books in the series.  Why is that considering all the difficulties, growing pains and less than spectacular return on investment? I'll get to it all plus the story behind what has become the prequel.

I did want to let you know if I disappear from time to time it's because real life gets in the way. I live in Slobbers world a lot, but every once in awhile my husband would like a tidied house, weeded flower beds and a day away every now and then now that we can do it again.

Hang with me.  The story is ongoing.

So Now We Have a Book

 My first self-publishing venture didn't go nearly as smoothly as I had hoped.  

Additional costs  can nickel and dime you to death so beware and ask in advance what would be required beyond the initial service fees. 

The costs can also run up long after your book is actually available. You  can buy book reviews. My readers did a good job for me but they're not in the 100s, that's for sure.  There are all kinds of services out there which may or may not be worth the money.  Determining which is no easy task because like with most things hyped on social media, who do you believe?  I was lucky and had a niche market with dog lovers, especially the Saint Bernard community.

Another thing I was naive about was marketing.  It's all on you and I'm told that's true with traditional publishers too. Unless you have celebrity or work for a news channel where everyone and their pet dogs (ahem) are writing books and all the network programs cross promote them. It seems like every news anchor and contributor in the world always has a new book coming out.  When do they find the time or do they have ghost writers?

The delays were no doubt partially my fault because I had a vision in my head and expected it to be met.  Re-doing got to be frustrating.  I kept telling myself I was not the sole client, but I still got frustrated.

I had writers tell me not to do it if I expected to make money.  I wondered why would you go to all the effort required if you didn't want to get your story out there and have people actually read it.  That to me meant making money - a return on investment at least.

But they were right.  At least with self-publishing you start getting royalties immediately. Not so with traditional publishing. The royalties, however, are pennies on the dollar and the number of books you need to sell to break even can be astronomical. It's also possible you'll meet resistance from book stores and your local newspaper reviewers. I can't begin to tell you how often I was told they didn't review self-published books.  Their loss and the writer's frustration.

Be vigilant when choosing your service.  My people go through Ingram Spark for one reason and one reason only - their distribution. They get their lists of books to nearly all bookstores that have an online presence - like Barnes and Noble as well as Amazon and notable local stores like Powells in Portland or Aunties in Spokane. That means those stores can order them for you.  You won't find them on the bookshelves anywhere unless your local store is self-publisher friendly or you are willing to pay for the privilege - or your a "somebody" who for some obscure reason decided to self-publish.

Considering I claim to be a writer, this overview of self-publishing may seem a bit muddled to those reading it, but so is the process.

Would I do it again?  I did.  Twice, and now there is a fourth book underway.  Why? I so love and believe in my characters I just can't let them go.  And like anyone with a dream, I try to remind myself it will take time.  Be patient. We'll see.