Welcome to my World: Writing Life
I love November! Sure, it’s my birthday, but there’s more to it than that. Family gatherings with delicious-tasting food are high on my list of living a good life. November is a prime month for giving thanks for our good health, many blessings, and sharing time with friends and family.
As the clock ticks off, the time spiraling into a new year, I want to invite you to become a member of my ARC (Advance Readers Group). You’ll receive a PDF of my new novels before they’re published. Your feedback is welcomed and will play an important role in the final copy.
Joining this group is easy. Click the link below to learn more. The first ten people to signup will receive a Kindle version of my latest thriller: The Death of Me, book 1, Legacy Series.
Wishing each of you a safe and happy November 2022, Carolyn Bowen
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Charge of The Light Brigade and E-Books Pricing
Quote of the Day: “Conformity is the jailer of freedom and the enemy of growth.” – John F. Kennedy, 35th president of the United States of America
The Writing Life
Writers are creative in placing words on the page one after another. The logical next step is publishing if you want your work to be read by the masses. This is when a writer become a publisher or an entrepreneur regardless of whether an indie writer or represented by a large publishing company. Today’s publishing world requires the author to have a huge stake in the promotion and sale of their books.
There are many aspects that play a role in the sale of a book. Here are a few of my thoughts about book production and promotions.
- Great writing and production of work
- Professional editing and formatting
- Outstanding professional book cover
- Marketing strategy – business plan
- Book Pricing
Book World
A good portion of the books in today’s market are priced according to the competition. The scale hasn’t moved in years. However, the price for producing and marketing has skyrocketed. From advertising on major social platforms and search engines, websites, apps, books reviews, to the basics for creating your book and marketing. For example, keywords used for advertising are sometimes greater than the overall pricing of one book.
I’m reminded of the poem: The Charge of the Light Brigade by Lord Alfred Tennyson. The poem tells the story of six-hundred men who followed their leader to certain death. A clip with dialog from the poem as seen in the movie, Blindside is below.
What I’ve Learned
We can continue to follow the leader into a certain death of writing careers or make changes. Isn’t it about time pricing and selling books be measured by the costs to produce the product AND relative competition? How many businesses do you know would charge pennies for an item they’d spend several hundred/thousands of dollars to produce? The results would be a disaster and certain death for the business. There are lessons to be learned from The Charge of The Light Brigade. Treat your writing career as a business and use sound practices to measure your success.
Note: The e-book pricing suggested is created by a mathematical calculation, and research of comparable books in your genre. This is not an arbitrary number pulled out of the sky. Remember: Pricing is not set in stone; you can always change it as do most book marketers.
There’s fear involved in making any changes and I’m not immune. However, if you’re tired of feeding the beast, it’s time to make changes. Here are a few things I do to promote my books. Let me know what’s working for you.
- Provide FREE copies for book reviewers/bloggers
- Develop an advance readers group to be first reviewers
- Offer FREE books through sweepstakes on major social platforms and through booksellers
- Run ad campaign with reduced pricing/or FREE Days
To learn about my writing life, click here. I wish you tremendous success as you develop your creative business. Carolyn Bowen
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Book Review: Livia Lone by Barry Eisler
Quote for Today: “Believe in yourself! Have faith in your abilities! Without a humble but reasonable confidence in your own powers, you cannot be successful or happy.” —Norman Vincent Peale
Spring 2019
Spring is in the air and I’m enjoying my writing life – reading and working on book 2 of the Sydney Jones Series. As you know, I rotate my reading from craft, marketing, to the mystery-thriller genre. This is my latest read. Hope you’ll give this gripping fiction a shot!
Livia Lone by Barry Eisler
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Livia Lone opens the dialog for talking about human trafficking. It’s a worldwide criminal operation partnering for taking and fulfilling orders for people, against their will, to be distributed worldwide. This fictional account shows the political corruption and horrors associated with this heinous crime.
The psychological effects of abuse take on many forms and we get a front row seat to seeing Livia deal with years of childhood and early adulthood abuse. The suspense of not knowing if her sister is dead or alive after both were sold by their parents in Thailand haunts her.
The love for her sister keeps her going. Learning how to defend them both was her objective. She excelled at martial arts, studied criminal justice and became a cop with one purpose in mind – find and free her sister. What she did with her new found knowledge crosses the line, but it fit her agenda – vendetta against those who caused their suffering.
Barry Eisler weaves a tale of deceit that’ll keep you turning pages. In the end, you’ll be ready for the next in the series.
I look forward to this new season and connecting with mystery lovers here and on social media. Carolyn Bowen
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Meet & Greet: Author Event
Quote of the Day: “Just write every day of your life. Read intensely. Then see what happens. Most of my friends who are put on that diet have very pleasant careers.” Ray Bradbury, WD
Meet & Greet!
Join me May 3rd, 7-9 p.m. for a meet and greet at FoxTale Book Shoppe in Woodstock, GA. I’m tickled to participate in their Emerging Author’s Program. I hope to see you there. Be ready for some fun and games with giveaways. Hint: What is your favorite scene or quote from any of my novels?
As many of you know, my latest mystery-thriller is celebrating an April birthday. Primed For Revenge, the first in the Sydney Jones Series is available now at your favorite bookstores. I look forward to your comments and reviews. Thank you, Carolyn Bowen
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Author to Author: The Writing Life
Quote of the Day: You see, I am trying in all my stories to get the feeling of the actual life across – not to just depict life – or criticize it – but to actually make it alive. So that when you have read something by me, you actually experience the thing. You can’t do this without putting in the bad and the ugly as well as what is beautiful. Ernest Hemingway
One thing I think we can all agree on is the road to discovery for authors is challenging. We write and hope for the best reception for our stories. Most times it seems as though our stories come from a place of inspiration rather than a rational decision to write and plot around a specific topic. I’m speaking for myself here. If you have a writing method that works for you, good!
I’m going to skip right to reviews and reviewers for this is the pressure point for deciding the fate of your novel.
- The shoot-gun approach to seeking reviews thinking everyone will want to read and leave a great review is a journey filled with perils and one you’ll most likely regret.
What to do!
Find your niche, your tribe, or following many say. Don’t send out review copies or place your work on websites that are not friendly to your genre. For example, you may ask why in the world someone would download and read or attempt to read about murder mystery if they find it appalling?
They do and are subject to leaving crass reviews making it difficult for real mystery lovers to find your novel. It doesn’t matter if you’ve written in Agatha Christie’s style or the most eloquent presentation of your story. Your novel and some readers just do not match. And, Lord help you if you get an overly zealous reviewer that goes to every site your novel is published on and shares their distaste. Please beware this is cyber-stalking!
You may ask, “Didn’t they read the novel’s description, clearly stating what it was about?”
I’m with you there. If a novel is crime fiction or in similar categories, you can expect a story line with gritty details about happenings that some may find offensive. That’s why their different genres for novels on all the platforms selling books.
What to do
- Clearly identify the genre/s your novel falls into.
- Write an accurate book description about your novel.
- Find where the readers hang-out who would enjoy reading your story.
- Think about groups on social media seeking books of your genre.
- Your website is a goldmine and where true readers will navigate to keep up with your writing. Also, your website is the real estate that you own unlike the social platforms where you may post. Think back to social sites now dissolved and the followers that you no longer have access to.
- Become a developer and up your game by engaging your fans on your website and where they hangout.
- Find professional reviewers in your genre. You can post their reviews to your online book platforms.
- Don’t give-up! There are readers who will enjoy your novels and give positive reviews. An interesting part of the writer’s journey is finding your base support. Once you do that, the sky is the limit. Go create!
If you’d like a sample of my new psychological thriller, Primed For Revenge, the 1st in the Sydney Jones Series, follow my blog using your email address and I’ll forward you a PDF of the first 25 pages. Note: Crime fiction, murder mystery, psychological thriller, adult rated!
I look forward to this new season and connecting with mystery lovers here and on social media. Carolyn Bowen
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Today’s Inspiration: Book Blog Tour
Quote of the Day: “It isn’t what you have or who you are or where you are or what you are doing that makes you happy or unhappy. It is what you think about it.”
Today, I want to pay tribute to Win Kelly Charles who gives hope and inspiration to everyone she meets. Her latest book, She is CP, Butterflies of Wisdom is now up for votes on Something or OTHER publishing site. Go here and vote for her book idea.
Check out her blog, A Diary of a Fashionista and her podcasts on itunes.
Win Kelly Charles is an inspiration. She is an author, blogger, podcaster, designer, and more. One of her endearing qualities, is her passion for life and love of people. Whether in her business outlets or social platforms, she brings positive vibes to the table.
Check out Win’s latest release January 2019 – Smile with Dictation
Where to find Win Kelly Charles books on Amazon.
About Win Kelly Charles (Amazon bio excerpt)
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Hello Spring 2019
Quote for Today: “When spring came, even the false spring, there were no problems except where to be happiest. The only thing that could spoil a day was people and if you could keep from making engagements, each day had no limits. People were always the limiters of happiness except for the very few that were as good as spring itself.”
― Ernest Hemingway, A Moveable Feast
I am excited about the new season and the delightful activities available during Spring. What are some of your favorite things to do when the weather feels just right outside?
You’ve probably noticed I haven’t been posting on my blog lately. It’s not because I didn’t want to! My computer had a hiccup and off to the repair shop we went. A week later, I’m proud to announce I’ve got a new laptop. A much-needed reprieve for my writing life.
Here’s an inside look of my writing life when my computer stalls and I’m left to figure a way to continue with my creative ventures.
I’d talked about getting a blackboard in a previous blog. The idea was to use it for creating a visual of my plots. The timing was perfect. The plotting and writing of scenes on the board kept my writing moving forward. I also used a handy composition book to record my thoughts and ideas. The show must go on!
New Release – April 2nd
The countdown to the release of my new mystery-thriller, Primed For Revenge, Sydney Jones Series Book 1 is ticking down daily. You can preorder your copy today and be one of the first to read and review this new novel.
If you’d like a sample of this new thriller, follow my blog using your email address and I’ll forward you a PDF of the first 25 pages.
I look forward to this new season and connecting with mystery lovers here and on social media. Carolyn Bowen
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Interview with ASK WIN
Quote for Today: “There is no exercise better for the heart than reaching down and lifting people up.” John Holmes
Yesterday, I had an interview with ASK WIN and it was fun! Of course, Win promoted my latest mystery-thriller, Primed For Revenge, Sydney Jones Series, Book 1. And, I’ve included the interview for your enjoyment. Listen on iTunes.
Also, Win made an announcement about a new upcoming novel. So, follow Win Kelly Charles on Amazon so you’ll know when it’s released. I know I have!
Thanks again, Win, for having me on your podcast – ASK WIN. It was a blast!
Counting down to the official release of Primed For Revenge, Sydney Jones Series, Book 1. April 2nd, 2019 Preorder Now!
For more information about my novels, see my About Page. Follow my blog for the latest news about new releases, my writing life, and giveaways. I appreciate your support. Carolyn Bowen
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Cover Reveal – Primed For Revenge
Quote of the Day: “One day I will find the right words, and they will be simple.” Jack Kerouac, The Dharma Bums
I believe every writer’s dream is to find the right words to connect with readers. I know that’s my mission and feedback/reviews from you make a difference for connecting the dots.
I’ve been busy preparing the launch for my new mystery-thriller, Primed For Revenge, Sydney Jones Series Book 1. The Kindle version is available for preorder ONLY on Amazon and will be added to other sites upon the official release date of April 2, 2019.
At that time bookstores across the world will have the paperback in stock and available for purchase. There are NO official online options for purchasing the paperback until April 2nd. Just in case you’ve seen some – not official!
Here’s a short book trailer announcing the book. I hope you will preorder at this low early bird offering. You can thank me later! Keep reading for a giveaway now in progress.
Goodreads Giveaway
Goodreads Book Giveaway
Primed For Revenge
by Carolyn Bowen
Giveaway ends February 21, 2019.
See the giveaway details
at Goodreads.
https://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/widget/289379
Thank you for being an important part of my author’s journey. I’m continuing to make changes to my website and social sites. Stay tuned for the best is yet to come! Thank you, Carolyn Bowen
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Carolyn M. Bowen, Author 