Self-Promotion on Facebook - Annoying or Necessary?

I just finished reading a heated discussion on one of my Facebook sites regarding promotion.  The chief complaint was that a site the reader/participator belonged to began as a place to hang out and chat about a specific genre of books had taken a turn for the worse.  The specific gripe was that lately it had become a place to post begging for those "likes" and "tags" everyone seems to covet.  There were over 100 responses and it was a mixed bag as far as how the responders felt.

My two cents: I am not one of those people who requests likes and tags.  Frankly, I don't even understand the tagging thing.  And more to the point, some people spend what must be an exhaustive period of time self-promoting on the social network sites.  Time I simply don't have.  I am a full-time working mother and wife, my life is very full, and when I have the free time, I'd much rather be writing than pounding the virtual pavement begging for someone to like me.  That being said, I do see the other side of this.

I have two publishers who are delighted to give me contracts for my work, and for that I am grateful.  But, I did try the self-published route and may again.  And trust me, I learned my lesson.  The main complaint about people who self-publish is that their books are not ready for the world, not edited or formatted correctly and as a result, are giving a bad name to those that are.  Well, I am not too proud to say, my first self-published piece was guilty of that.  TEETH AND TALONS was not formatted correctly.  I edited the crap out of it and am happy that no one reviewing me has mentioned bad editing.  But, I was SKEWERED on the formatting.  And they were right.  It was amateurish, poorly presented, and badly executed.  I deserved the criticism.  So, I understand why it's there.

Back to self-promotion.  If it wasn't for facebook and some of the genre-specific groups to which I belong, I would not have had anywhere to promote my book.  I tried to do it sparingly, and only in groups that I believed it would be well-received.  Happily, I got some good reviews in spite of my tragic formatting.  And I was rewarded with new followers on my blog and tons of new friends on my facebook sites.  (A disclaimer here: I rarely turn a friend down.  A great marketing director told me that any friend is a potential reader, and I remember that all the time.)

But I am annoyed by certain people who ONLY promote.  We are always being reminded of where their books are sold, for how much, and how little time we have to take advantage of the staggering discount they are offering.  I am also a bit tired of being told how many more likes they need to get to 100 or 500 or 3000.  But not enough to begrudge them the right to do so.  I just skim over their post and move on.  No harm done.  But I hope they know: next time I see their name I may be tempted to skip their post altogether.  And in my experience, alienating your potential readership is no way to garner more.

And lastly, you don't need to promote all the time to have friends, and tags and likes.  I've discovered the secret and am prepared to share it with you here, now.  Ready?  Here it is:  write a good book.  Then write another one.  And another one after that.  You'll be surprised how talent will beget readers.  I know I was.  Happy reading!

New Year's Resolves and Thanks

As 2011 draws to a close (and I have to be honest, for many reasons, I am not unhappy to see the back-ass of it!), I feel compelled to talk about the things that DID work in 2011.  Without a doubt, most of the great things that happened all had to do with some kind of social networking.

Now, I am not saying that my life without Facebook and Twitter and Linked In would have been empty and devoid of anything.  Indeed not.  I am a wife, mother of two amazing children and I feel incredibly certain that 2011 was my break-in year.  But, I would be remiss if I didn't give some credit to the aforementioned sites.  Let me elaborate.

I wrote and published two books in 2011.  I joined Facebook in June after my publishing company's marketing director advised it was an effective tool for getting the word out about my books.  I had much trepidation and was unsure of what I was doing.  I needn't have been.  Facebook embraced me like a long lost daughter.  I now have well over 650 people I am happy to call friends and even fans.  In 2011, I wrote three more manuscripts and am thrilled they will be the foundation for the successful 2012 I am predicting.  In the words of another author, I am going to work hard to make 2012 my BREAK-OUT year.

I then tackled Twitter.  Slow going at first, I have found that not only is it a great place to showcase my sharp and dry wit, but also a killer place to network for my books.  I have followers, which boggles my mind, and I follow the people and companies that are directly related to my writing.  And it is beginning to pay off in small ways.  I'm not afraid of it anymore and I can now count myself among the legions of people who understand the word "hashtag".

I had been blogging all along, but now I became more focused on the benefits of that as well.  And again, social networking rewarded me handsomely.  I saw my blog followers grow from 11 to over 90, and the "lurkers", those who don't officially follow but check you out every day, have grown the hits on my blog to well over 5000.  I consider that wildly successful.

And lastly, due to my hastily at first and then later more detailed profile on LinkedIn, I have landed what just may be the job of my dreams.  I wasn't looking, but was contacted by a recruiter who read some key things on my profile that matched the job he was trying to fill.  In short order, I sent in a resume, received an interview, conquered that, and landed the position.  It will increase my family's financial position considerably and give me a daily feeling of productivity while being rewarded for my expertise.  Simply put, I am over the moon.

So, I owe all social networking a big thanks and a huge hug.  I love my friends on facebook, I enjoy my contacts on Twitter and I am grateful for the ability to profile myself professionally on LinkedIn.  And I'm not done.  I have recently learned about Tumblr and intend to attack that as well.

So, for all of you who have questioned the value of internet networking, STOP IT!  Get on here, and get on here now!  I'll save you a place next to me!

Happy New Year!

The Beauty of Bloggers and a New Review of Ghostly

In the last few days I have been reminded of the single, largest marketing tool an author has in her arsenal right now.....Bloggers!  I want to take a quick moment to let you know how grateful I am that you exist.  I sent out a casual request for a review of Ghostly, to see if I can get the sales to match those of Spellbound.  The reviewer replied that she was regrettably booked (haha, a pun!) until June, but with my permission she would farm out my request to 20 (!) of her contributing reviewers to see if anyone might like to tackle one or the other of my books.

The response has been nothing short of amazing!

I have received, in the expanse of barely one full day, more than seven responses.  And they keep coming.  In fact, as I write this, two more have popped up.  I am so excited.  And the best thing of all, they all want to read BOTH of my books and review them for all the regular review sites: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Goodreads and my very own facebook page.  I am overwhelmed with delight.

So, it's important to take this time to fully and thoroughly thank Angie from Books4tomorrow.  I am eternally grateful that bloggers exist and that they share their talent for reviewing with the world.  I am also grateful to Mera Sampson from Meras's YA Book List.  She wrote the following review, for which I am still glowing:

Ghostly by Samantha Combs Review

I have been a fan of Samantha Combs’ work since reading her debut novel, Spellbound. So it suffices to say that I had high expectations for her second published work, Ghostly. Ghostly is the tale of a high school freshman, lovingly nicknamed Juice by her small group of friends. After meeting Shane, a teenage ghost stuck in our world, her life completely changes. But only the story can tell whether the changes in Juice’s life are for better or for worse.

              

           I think it is safe to say that I loved Ghostly just as much as I loved Spellbound, if not more. Samantha Combs’ writing style is somewhat indescribable, but it would be wrong of me not to try. I could see her sitting at the kitchen table or on a comfortable sofa, slowly thinking up and telling her romantic paranormal tales for teens with a captivated audience soaking in her every word. The way she writes is recognizable and refreshing. She seems to have created a niche for herself and she is solid with the way she chooses to portray her characters. During the time I spent reading the galley Samantha so graciously provided to me, I was torn between who was right for Juice. But as I delved further into the story, the right person for her became evident to me.

                The addition of her unique group of friends was awesome. The story slowly progressed and Samantha managed to put the climax closer to the end, which ultimately worked brilliantly. As I read of the events occurring, my heart leaped out of my chest. At one point, I was holding back tears, and as I finished reading I felt that tingly sensation that only occurs in me in three instances. The first instance being after I try a ride at an amusement park, which is not often due to my fear of heights. The second being after I’ve gone through a tidal wave of different emotions. And finally, the third occurs after I’ve read an amazing and emotional book. I have to applaud Miss Combs on her ability to entrance me with her writing and her characters. I would love to have friends like Jett, Sixx, Creepshow, and even Shane, and the story had an absolutely powerful and perfect ending.

Point blank: Samantha Combs is an author that you should definitely look out for. Ghostly, as well as her first book Spellbound (which is to be the first in a trilogy), is a great read I would recommend to anyone, but especially to tweens, teens, and young adults.

You won’t regret reading it. Her stories are like a refreshing walk in the park. Even if you’re tired or sleepy, you wish her words would go on. 

If you haven't done so yet, check out my interview with the fabulous author just a few posts below!

Also, look out for the sequel to Spellbound entitled Everspell in January, and her fourth work Waterdancer at the end of summer 2012!

So, to all the bloggers out there, and I am certain I speak for at least every author I know, THANK YOU!  You make getting out there easy and we appreciate you more than you can know.


Here are the links to the two bloggers I have highlighted here:
http://merasyabooklist.blogspot.com/
http://www.bookstomorrow.blogspot.com/

Talking Like A Writer - A List of Literary Terms For Those Afraid To Ask

I've been writing my whole life, but I only got serious about it last year.  That's when I began to write my first book, Spellbound, finished it and began to research the internet in hopes of selling it and publishing it.  I very quickly learned there is a whole different language for writers and authors that I had never known about before.  I soon found myself swimming around in terms like query letter, submission, WIP, blurb, log line, all kinds of terms that were alien to me.  It was like learning a foreign language.

Then I had to figure out facebook.  A whole new language there, too.  And I REALLY started to feel my age when all the lingo went clear over my head.  Good thing I'm not exactly what you would call the shy type.  So, I am making it easy here for those of you who might be.  I have made you a list of literary terms that I had to learn going into this crazy business that I think you will find handy.  Many of you will find it remedial.  But, if just one of you doesn't, then the list has served its purpose.  Hope it helps!

Top Literary Terms That Stumped Me and Their Definitions:

1. Query Letter:  the letter you write an agent or publisher in hopes of selling your book.  Best example I have is that it should be like a one-two punch: First paragraph, no more than six sentences, introduces your book's premise, characters, and sets up the scene.  Second paragraph, no more than five sentences, tells the conflict and what the characters will do to overcome it.  Last paragraph wraps up the letter, no more than three to four sentences, gives a little bio about you and your writing credits.  And ALWAYS end with "Thank you for your time."
2. WIP: your Work In Progress.  What you are currently working on, or what your current writing project is.
3. Blurb: this is usually the marketing point about your book that you would normally found on the back of the book jacket or on the inside flap.  An agent uses this to sell the book to a prospective publisher and  an online publisher uses this to post on site about your book.
4. Log line:  This can be either a one liner or a three liner, but the result is the same: it is designed to sell the  book's premise to an agent or publisher by giving them a taste of your book so delicious, so enticing, they must know more based solely on the log line.
5. SASE:  believe it or not, I did not know what this meant.  Self-addressed, stamped envelope.
6. Pantser v. Plotter:  This one came later but I had to lurk on a few blogs before I understood it.  Finally, I did.  I'm a pantser.  A pantser is a writer who flys by the seat of her pants by NOT plotting out her story arc in advance, and of course, a plotter does.  I was doing that all along, still do, and just didn't know they had a name for it. :-)

And here are a few facebook terms that threw me for a loop before I figured them out:

• IMHO: In my humble opinion
• SAHM: Stay at home Mom (lots of those on facebook!)
• PPL:  just short for people.  (Felt like an idiot when this finally registered)
• IDK: I don't know
• MUAH:  took me forever to figure out that was a kiss

So, all I can say is, don't be afraid to ask questions.  I wasn't.  I learned some very valuable terms I could have used much earlier had I not been chicken to ask.  One thing I have discovered is the writing community is, for the most part, so willing to share and help.  And so am I!

And I invite you to add your own!  Let me know if you want to add one to the list you think is important, I'd love to know about it.  I hope to hear from you! 

Are All the Ideas Already Taken?

I was having a discussion with a fellow author the other day and the question was posed: Are all the great ideas already taken and all we are seeing now are VERSIONS of those existing ideas?  I had several things to say on the subject and it occurred the topic would make a good blog post.  So here we are.

My friend made a good case.  Then today I had occasion to watch the movie "The Social Network".  Since I am going to be posting this blog on my facebook page, I'll make the obvious assumption that all readers of it are aware of the premise of the movie.  The deal is the founder of facebook is accused of stealing the idea and, in essence, expounding on the idea and making it better.  It made me think of the discussion I had with my author friend.  He maintained most novels now, save maybe for memoirs, were ideas that already existed, which had been expounded upon and just made better.  I was astounded by the idea.  Until he started coming up with examples.  I still don't entirely believe him, but I have to admit, the CONCEPT has some merit.

He suggested the Scott Westerfield novel, "The Uglies" as his example.  The idea, he contended, could have come from a Twilight Zone episode.  I googled it and found it was called "Number 12 Looks Just Like You" and comparisons HAVE been made.  But, that was a half hour television drama in the sixties.  No one has done a thing with it since and Westerfield developed a three book trilogy out of it.  I hardly think that qualified.

My brother is a musician and he thinks all the music in the world has been invented, but it's what you DO with it and how you ARRANGE it that is the genius of the artist.  I think writing is exactly the same way.  Maybe all the ideas ARE out there, but it is the way the writer, the artist, ARRANGES it, that is the true genius of the writing mind.

So at the end of the conversation with my author friend, I told him I agreed with him fundamentally, but not emotionally.  Yes, I said, all the ideas are already out there and what we are seeing is versions of those ideas, but those versions are limitless and the way they branch out exponential, so in a way, we will NEVER be out of ideas, since they practically procreate.  And as an author/writer/creator/artist, all I can say is....thank God.

The Detention Demon will be Published!

I am excited to share that The Detention Demon is going to be published!  Remember that I submitted the manuscript to a brand new imprint of Aspen Mountain Press called Aura Speculative Fiction after I asked them to friend me on Facebook?  I had been looking for a home for my little horror book for a while, I didn't think it was because it was not good, I hoped anyway, but because Middle Grade horror is very hard to place.  When I read about the new imprint I got quite excited.  They sounded perfect.  I asked them straight away if they were considering YA and for that matter, MG to YA and they said they would, on a case by case basis.  I queried immediately.

I was mildly surprised when they asked me for the full and totally had my socks knocked off when they offered me a contract this morning.  And I must say, I am more than impressed with how together and organized they are.  Already, I have been directed to a WIP website where I have registered as an author, have been assigned an editor and uploaded the information I would like to see on the cover, and had SEVERAL conversations with an art director in preparation for assigning an artist to me AND I already have a release date.....October 24, 2011....PERFECT FOR A HORROR BOOK!  Just a few days before Halloween.  And I didn't even plan it!

So, all I have to say is, if you are looking for a publisher that has it going on, I would so check out Aspen Mountain Press and their new imprint!  And look for me soon near Halloween!

Happy Day! Reviews Might Be Happening Soon!

So, I may not have understood how this whole shootin' match worked BEFORE I released Spellbound, but I think I am finally getting the hang of it.  I realize the optimal thing to do would have been to get all your reviews in before the book is released and them bang, zoom, they line up for miles to buy it.  Did I do it that way.....no.  What-ev.   But I am having a freakin' blast learning how NOT to do it the next time.  I am meeting some of the best people on Facebook and have the time of my life.  Hard to understand how I am not sitting in a bar sipping on a cocktail, because sometimes I am laughing clean out loud at some of the hilarious posts as answers.  I'll say it again......THIS IS FUN!

So, the business behind the bustin' up......I am asking my new friends if they might mind reviewing Spellbound, and to my great surprise, they are not only willing to, some are even excited to do it.  I have to say that I am experiencing a sense of excitement and even trepidation akin to the one I felt when I was accepted for publication.  What will I feel when I get the first review in?  I'm more than a little nervous.  For now, the jury is still out.  I'll check back about it soon.  For all my new friends and followers, I can only say.....stay tuned!

What a Difference a Day Makes

I started the day quite differently than it ended.  This morning, I was blow drying my hair when my hair dryer attacked.  The kids, who were eating cereal in the dining room actually called to me, asking "Mom, whats going on with the blow dryer?"  It made this cracking noise, then a guttural growl, then a snapping sound.  I threw it to the ground in terror, hoping not to rip out a large handful of my hair in the process.  A quick glance in the mirror told me my locks were intact.  But the dryer was a goner.  I ripped the plug out and hurled it across the vanity.  I never touched it again.  My 8 year old actually threw it in the trash outside.  I refused to handle the thing.

Later, I had a terrific job interview and the unemployment check finally arrived.  Two pretty good things, almost enough to cancel out the manic hair appliance.  But the best was surely yet to come.

I have blogged before about prepping another manuscript for submission.  This one is another YA paranormal romance with a ghost story twist.  The working title has always been The Girl, The Ghost and The Guys, but after polishing it up, I have retitled it JUICE AND THE HIGH SCHOOL GHOST.  I like this title because it identifies both the genre and the age group.  I submitted it to my new publisher and somewhat held my breath.  Then, the aforementioned great news....wait for it......they love it!

My publisher not only loves it, she said the same editor I was lucky to work with for SPELLBOUND really wants to work with me for this one.  And the best news of all?  It will be released tentatively in September!  The news is just sinking in and I am over the moon.   What this means to be is it not only validates that I am a good writer, it validates I am more than a one hit wonder.  I jokingly wrote on facebook that I now don't feel like a My Sharona!  (Get it?  The one song that made The Knack famous before they faded into obscurity).

I think the very most best thing about the news is that I am energized beyond comprehension and the ideas flowing through me are massive.  I can't write them down fast enough!  Thank goodness for Blackberrys and my fingers of lightning!  And also the fact that since not many people read this blog yet, being grammatically correct has never been a pressing issue!

So stay tuned, this blog will once again catalog a publishing journey, this one now for JUICE AND THE HIGH SCHOOL GHOST.  Buckle up babies, here we go again!

Release is Around the Corner...I Might Throw Up

Today is Saturday.  I did the invite thing on Facebook for the release on Tuesday, which is a scant 4 days away.  I'm not kidding.  I might throw up.  Not even virtually, either.  Spectacularly, and all over the living room.  I realize this is only a virtual release and this does not bode well if there is ever a real, live one, as my husband helpfully (NOT!) keeps saying (can't he shut up already and take the kids for a drive or something?), but my stomach is quite flip-floppy.

I wonder if other authors have this same feeling in the days before their releases?  When I did the online invite thing, of course, I screwed it up.  First go through had it timed from 12am to 2am in the morning.  What?  I know, right?  So, I figured out how to change it and made it start at 7am.  Again, not thinking.  I have kids and that's a school day.  I am still ripping through the house and slinging Cheerios around at 7am, for God's sake....no way can I be on the computer at 7am.  What was I thinking?  Clearly, I wasn't.  So, final time range has it at 9am till 1130pm.  *Sigh*  Better.  And....breathe.  Good.

Today I also ordered the bookmarks.  Got some great advice from my new friends, fellow authors who turned me on to a great site called Next Day Flyers.com.  Got a great deal of 1000 for under $56.  I hope I am this enthusiastic when I pick them up.  Yeah, isn't it great?  They are located right here in LA, barely 20 minutes from my house.  Saved myself $14 bucks in shipping.

I noticed I have a couple new followers, too.  Neat!  I still have no idea what I am doing on Facebook, but I will admit I am meeting some super neat people, authors mostly.  I love that aspect of it.  So, join me, my new friends, won't you, for my nerve-wracking countdown till the launch.  Ready?  Here we go!

Are all Writers Psychotic Like Me?

I was talking to a writer friend of mine last night and we got to the topic of our books. (Shocker, right?)  She was talking about how she never envisioned her 4 book series being a 4 book series in the beginning, but her main character just wouldn't shut up.  I totally understood.  I told her how when I sat down to write, I never outline.  In fact, I never know what I might write, except for the most vaguest of ideas, and when I come to three hours later, the story line is NOWHERE near where I thought it would go.  My characters take over and lead the story where THEY want it to go and all of a sudden there is a new character, a plot, a story arc I had no conscious knowledge of when I sat down three hours earlier.

She understood me completely and did not try to have me immediately and on the spot committed against my will.

It got me wondering....are all writers slightly psychotic?

I often feel that I have alters, individual beings that live inside of me that take me over as I write a la Tara from the United States of Tara.  If anyone ever read these posts I would love to take a survey if that happened to anyone else.  I am going to see if my new alleged "friends" on facebook might not wander over and take this challenge and answer me.  Lets see how effective facebook really is.  Standby, people.  The koolaid test is being administered.  Sip slowly.

Maybe I Don't Hate Facebook So Much

I don't think I'll ever love Facebook like some friends I know who do that farmville thing for way to many hours in the day, but maybe I don't hate it as much as before.  i still resent having to do it, but I will admit, I am understanding the appeal.  It is sort of neat to have friends from everywhere.  I mean, its only two days after I joined and somehow I already have 20 friends.  I have to thank a fellow author on Astraea Press, Crystal Ward, who was lovely to me.  I still am bumping around on there like a blind person and have no idea what I am doing, but she gave me some help.  And I am indebted to the marketing guru at Astraea for guiding me through the initial process of making my first page in the first place.  I am truly like a newborn baby learning to breathe on my own.  Thank you girls!

It is fun to learn about all my fellow authors at the publisher.  We all come from different places and have different backgrounds, but we have the one thing in common: we write.  And a really fun thing, one of my favorite authors, Sarah Dessen, just happened to me the featured interview in my copy of Writers Digest which came in the mail this week.  Besides my unemployment check (which has NOT arrived - pant, pant) this was the coolest thing to come in the mail in a long while.  Waay to many bills in that damn box recently.

The most amazing thing she said is that she didn't quit her day job until she had been publishing books for 9 years.  I'm sorry, excuse me, did you say nine years?  I thought so.  Pardon me for a moment while I freak out.  NINE YEARS!  That blew me whole three year plan.  I'm supposed to publish this first one, get super known, follow up with book two and three, get super duper well known, go mainstream with book four and at the end of year three, begin year four with a house I PAID CASH FOR, and start the year by writing full time for a living.  That's a three-year plan, not a NINE YEAR ONE!  *Insert dismayed look here.*  Look, I'm not looking for a Twilight kind of thing, but I really thought the 3-year plan was reasonable.  And stubbornly, I'm going to stick with it.  (Please don't keep these blogs longer than 2 years.  Thank you, whatever, move on.)

So, if anyone ever reads these blogs, do me a favor, go to my author fan page and my facebook page and friend me or like me or lick me or whatever you have to do to make me think the whole facebook thing wasnt just a huge timesuck.  And, thanks.  (shows all her teeth).

Finally joined Facebook

I have been against doing this for forever, but my publisher's marketing guru recommended that joining Facebook was a great thing to do before my book comes out.  And today is exactly two weeks from now when SPELLBOUND debuts.  So, I bit the bullet and did it.  I made what she called and author fan page.  It took me forever because I have absolutely NO IDEA what I was doing, but I have a page on Facebook now.  I swore I never would and now, please pass the ketchup, because I have to eat my words.

I refuse to post pictures.  I have friends who do this, literally, for several hours a day.  Like this could actually be a second job for them.  I just finished making the stupid page and I am so mad how long it took.  I barely got it going and family found me and kept trying to friend me.  I didn't even know that could be a verb.  And how behind in this I am is that I am sure that is a super old joke.

I used the cover art for my book as my profile picture.  Part of me thinks that is cheating and the other part of me thinks that is a friggin' brilliant idea.  Then another part of me (I come in thirds, apparently) thinks if I thought of it, someone else probably already did.  So, I want to research FB and see if someone already did.  Except I don't know jack about navigating the stupid site, so I can't.  Then I'm mad again.  I spent a lot of tonight mad.  In fact I'm even typing pretty hard right now.

Choppy and displaced segue:  TV show I'm watching right now that makes me mad every time an episode ends (which is one of it's marketing campaigns and is SO TRUE) is The Killing on AMC.  Taut, gripping, exceptionally cast and acted, I salivate at ten minutes till 7 every Sunday night.  Do. Not. Miss. It.  Very good advice.

Too mad and tired from posting on stupid Facebook to write anymore.  Good night.