Smashwords and Indie publishing

This is a topic I don’t think I have ever mentioned in this blog and that is publishing, tradional or self publishing. A bit of background, after I got my Nook I spent a lot of time reading the free books, usually they were self published on Smashwords and the first book of a series. There were quite a few gems, JD Nixon and both of her series, Heller and Little Big Town. And then there were some books that were good, however I didn’t continue the series. Then there was one book that I loved and I bought the second book and the author started strong like the first book, but then character names and other important details started getting tangled up. This book wasn’t ready for public consumption, it needed a thorough editing and proofreading. I never finished the book much less the series. It wasn’t the only time I got burned by an author trying to push a book too fast, but it was one of the more disappointing. I felt a strong connection to the story and the characters. 

So the question becomes when do you know your baby is ready to be published? I rarely think this far since my own writing is still firmly in the first draft stage. However in my more busy writing times I can feel it whisper in my head. “Now? Is it time yet?” and I have to pull on the reins, not yet. 

In those moments when I do think about my stories the tradional publishing scene doesn’t really appeal to me. Maybe I am more of a control freak than I care to admit, but turning my babies loose in the hands of the major publishers gives me chills. I like the way Smashwords works, as an author have complete control over my books from setting the format to the price. I haven’t thoroughly delved into how they make their money and that is okay for right now. 

I am still working thru about 4 first draft projects. Crazy I know but when the idea hits you strike while the iron is hot. Each project has different strengths and weaknesses. I feel what I learn working on one story applies when I work on the other ones. 
Cheers, james

Writing Break to Knitting

I have a tiny little confession to make: I haven’t been writing this month on my works in process. I’ve been knitting and reading, lots of reading. I can’t seem to pull my stories out of a blue funk. Owl is stuck, actually I am stuck on how to move the story forward. I need two of my characters to get out of their sickbeds but I need them to be there to train the youngest member. I have sent one team member out and he is running but I haven’t a clue as to what he is running from or running to. Emilsa is battling my skittishness on writing about certain topics i.e. rape, sexual slavery, nasty, nasty stuff. That is where the story is taking me. I just don’t know if I have the stomach to write it.

So to let matters rest and meld, I have picked up my knitting needles. Currently I am working on a small for lack of a better term worry rag. It will be as big I need it to be. It started out life as a ball of yarn for nephew’s blanket. However lovely aunt that I am, I didn’t buy enough yarn and they don’t sell that color anymore. I am slowly learning when you buy yarn and you think you have enough, buy extra cause you’ll need it.  And should you find yourself with excess then it might come in handy  for another project. And you could trade it for other yarn or stuff if you find a willing partner.

However I did find my nook needles and my nook keyboard two wholly different nooks there. One is a knitting crochet hook with a string attachment. The other is my Barnes and Noble Nook e-reader keyboard. Love this little keyboard, perfect size and works with both my Nook HD+ (Thank you Mom) and the Toshiba Encore Mini ( Thank You Hubby). Tonight I am writing on the Toshiba to see if they would play nice together. The answer is mostly, there seems to be a short delay between my typing and the words appearing on the screen. Sokay, it doesn’t seem to bother my typing. I must say it sure beats typing on my phone. Boy, have I rambled on tonight, not exactly the post I was thinking I would write but an accurate mindset for me right now. Cheers on this raining Friday night, james

WordPress app

Too cool for school. I don’t think I have mentioned that I downloaded the wordpress app. It is so easy to keep up with blogs I follow and even better posting to my own blog since my phone is my primary blogging tool. Yes, I have a laptop or I could borrow the hubby’s nook, but here on my phone the internet connection is always ready to go. So call me lazy, I am sure lots of folks blog via their phones.

Anyway, I was having some trouble with saving a post and I finally got it unfroze. Unhappily I lost the post but realized there was an update. So I have updated and trying it out again. Hopefully the update will cure the earlier hicupp I had.

Here’s to you on this pleasant first day of October, blog via any and all means at your disposal. Cheers, james

Rainy Sunday Night

I am ashamed to admit it but Friday night I had the whole house to myself excepting my dog and my sister’s dog that I was dogsitting. I set up my writing desk with my nook and niffty nook keyboard, ( if you have a nook and you write get a nook keyboard they are awesome) turned on smooth jazz, pulled out my legal pad with my story and started typing. I hit a passage that I had marked for expanding and leaned my head back to plot and I fell asleep. I don’t know for how long I was asleep, pretty good to judge my companions snoring at my feet. 

So moral of the story is if you are tired and the house is quiet and the rain is gently tapping on the roof and windows, don’t be suprised to find you fall asleep when you should be typing. So tonight I can hear the wind blowing the rain around and no jazz music is playig and I am playing on the internet typing confessions instead of writing. However I must have needed the rest because my mind is alive with ideas for future stories, future story plots, and some wicked twists to the current story I am working on. 

So what do you like to do on a rainy Sunday night when you have the house to yourself and the music is just right?

Dear Readers have a great week.