Publishers Comments – Page 16 – Rosepoint Publishing

Many Thanks for the Support!

Many Thanks!

This blog has now achieved 10,000 hits! The blog has been a labor of love, lots of work, and I’ve learned a LOT. I’ve appreciated each and every one who has tuned in, liked, and followed! Thank You, TY!

Okay, if I were honest with myself, I’d have to admit not all are human views (some perhaps attributable to bots?), however, maybe that’s not a bad thing. (I’m getting more referrals.) Still I’m pretty excited that this means two things:

I’ve achieved my first goal
I’ve stuck with it (and it’s taken awhile!)

I must admit that I began the blog as a way to connect via social media after I’d published my grandfather’s manuscripts. (Yes, I know that was actually backwards. I should have started the blog first–then published!) Like I said–I’ve learned–a lot.

As my “About Us” page notes, I discovered after a couple years of posting reviews for fellow authors (shout out to Idaho Authors Community and Phoenix Publishing and Book Promotion that I was beginning to receive requests for read and reviews. Finally–a niche of my own!

The continued push on social media now has me posting on Instagram (and Bookstagram). I’ve gone back and linked my social media, so most posts will now hit Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn when I publish on this platform. (I’m not sure if that is a good idea or not, but I’m all linked up anyway. And I always need more followers there as well!)

Now confronting SEO and hash tags. Heaven only knows if I’m doing any of those right, but something must be happening. I have 10,000 hits.

Next goal–**1,000 true subscribers**, (or in my case, followers) since I’ve agreed with fellow blogger and author Joynell Schultz all along. 1,000 true subscribers (followers) is a good goal. ©2017 Virginia Williams

#AmReading – Outside the Wire by Patricia Smiley

Welcome to my #AmReading feature! I am highlighting an author and their book currently visible in the “Fair Weather” widget promoting blue skies, following seas, and the Goodreads (currently reading) list.

This week I am presenting Patricia Smiley and her sophomore A Pacific Homicide Series novel Outside the Wire . I received an ARC from the publisher Midnight Ink and Net Galley. The book will be released on November 8, 2017. Amazon classifies the novel as a mystery, thriller, suspense, and police procedural and at 288 pages will be a snap for most of you bibliophiles!

I will be presenting my review shortly, but in the meantime (from Amazon), here is the

Book Blurb: Homicide detective Davie Richards is called to an airport parking garage to investigate the shooting of a retired U.S. Army Ranger. Missing personal items point to a robbery, but Davie suspects a more sinister motive when she notices only one military dog tag around the Ranger’s neck. Could the murderer have taken the other as a memento of the kill? As Davie unravels baffling clues, one murder becomes two and a pattern begins to emerge. Racing to save the killer’s next victim, Davie is led to a shocking twist that challenges her physical and emotional endurance and tests the bonds of brotherhood and friendship.

Author: (Goodreads) Patricia Smiley is the author of four novels, featuring amateur sleuth Tucker Sinclair. PACIFIC HOMICIDE is the first in a new series about Los Angeles Police Department homicide detective Davie Richards and is based on her 15-year stint as a volunteer for the LAPD. The second book in the series OUTSIDE THE WIRE will debut on November 8, 2017. Patty’s short fiction has appeared in Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine and Two of the Deadliest, an anthology edited by Elizabeth George. She has taught writing classes at various conferences in the U.S. and Canada and served as the vice president of the Southern California chapter of Mystery Writers of America and as president of Sisters in Crime/Los Angeles. Patty lives in Los Angeles where she is working on the third book in the Pacific Homicide series. Check out her book here. ©2017 Virginia Williams

#AmReading – Shark Eater by K D McNiven

Welcome to the first of a feature I hope to present on Fridays, as a way to promote authors and their books currently languishing in my “Fair Weather” blue skies, following seas, and Goodreads (currently reading) list.

This week I am presenting K. D. McNiven and her sophomore novel Shark Eater. It is a Decker and Callie Adventure published on September 24, 2017. Amazon classifies the novel as action and adventure and at 337 pages should be a quick read for most of you bibliophiles! Ms. McNiven contacted me recently about her book and described it as a treasure hunt, which, as most of you must know, I can hardly resist! Are there black-hearted pirates afloat? C’mon–it’s a treasure hunt!

I will be presenting my review shortly, but in the meantime (from Amazon), here is the

Book Blurb: Archaeologists, Decker and Callie Hayden, pair up with salvager, Dax Drake, to investigate what appears to be one of the Galleons from the Spanish fleet that was shipwrecked after the 1539 hurricane off the Bahama shores. In their search, they discover more than what they had bargained for and ultimately puts the entire crew of the Shark Eater’s lives in jeopardy. Filled with action-packed adventure on the high seas, the Shark Eater will keep you turning pages.

K D McNiven K.D. McNiven is a Goodreads author. Check out her book here.

#CoverLove – In With the New – Or Maybe Not

#Cover Love – we do love our colorful, eye-catching book covers! It’s the first, all-important impression of any book. A yea or nay. Pick up and investigate further or lay down and look for something else. Unfortunately, we are a “judge the book by the cover” sort of people. As with any artistic endeavor–we know what we like or don’t like.

And if you’ve been reading and reviewing for any length of time, you’ve seen the evolution of covers as they have progressed, usually denoting a new edition of the book. What sparked the change in cover? Colors? Fonts? That sense of “branding?” Continue reading “#CoverLove – In With the New – Or Maybe Not”

Are You a Kinetic or Digital-Driven Reader?

Is a generation growing up in a high-tech, electronic world, spelling the end of print books? Are we beating this horse long after it’s last breath? Maybe so, but we’ve tested this digital medium for years now, and print books are still the favorite and not likely to gallop into the sunset any time soon.

Ivana Kottasová of CNN Media revealed on April 27, 2017 that the Association of American Publishers reported a 20% drop in eBook sales whereas print books rose 7.5% during the first nine months of 2016. There are just some books that do not work as well digitally (and never will)–think the current fad of coloring books for adults. And print books have always been the go-to for children’s books.

Print books vs ebooks — Photo attribution from CNN Media article

Please participate in my Print or Digital Survey at the end of this post!

Continue reading “Are You a Kinetic or Digital-Driven Reader?”

2016 Goodreads Choice Book Awards-Did You See the Book Trailers?

Book Trailers!

I’ve written about them before, including those trailers I published for my grandfather’s books, as well as one I created for Jean Grainger, an Irish author. Ms. Grainger published “So Much Owed – An Irish World War 2 Story” on December 1, 2013. I enjoyed the book so much that I felt compelled to create a short book trailer, which I uploaded to YouTube on March 6, 2017.

Given that I’m a member of the Book Trailer Group on Goodreads, I keep bumping up against book trailers; fascinated with most. Some amateur trailers are amazing good, some professionally produced piss-poor. But everyone sees a trailer, whether movie or book, in their own eyes. So I got to wondering about the 2016 Goodreads Choice Book Awards. How many winners had book trailers? Continue reading “2016 Goodreads Choice Book Awards-Did You See the Book Trailers?”

The True Nature of “I Can’t.”

I met Shanan Winters when I was a member of the Phoenix Publishing and Book Promotion Meetup in Phoenix, Arizona where she was working on her first novel. She recently published her book, “Rising,” part of the Adept Cycle series and changed direction in her professional life to freelancing and content writing. She writes a blog she calls “Interpreter of Inspiration.” This particular article caught my eye the afternoon following a spirited discussion in the morning with my hubby regarding the direction my own blog was going. If you are in the market for an editor or copywriter, check out her website @ http://shananwinters.wordpress.com

Feeling All Of It

I’ve followed Nancy Roman’s blog for some time, “notquiteold” and tho she is younger than I see she is struggling with much the same questions at this age. Every now and then she posts a column that particularly touches me. This one did–perhaps it will you also.

notquiteold

This week a friend posted the following quote on her Facebook page:

bestforme#1

And I thought –

Yeah! That’s Me! That’s Totally Me!

And I started to reflect on all those decisions I made that were difficult, but were best for me. Like dropping out of school years ago (I did go back later), changing jobs, and most recently, retiring.

And looking over those decisions, I see that I might have to change that little epigram a bit:

bestforme#2 Yeah! That’s Me! That’s Totally Me!

The sentence didn’t quite work with “I never feel bad”. “

I always feel bad” – well, that’s probably a little closer to the truth.

Difficult decisions are difficult BECAUSE you are not just choosing to go on to something wonderful. You are also leaving something behind. Changing jobs means leaving friends, and leaving behind the known for the unknown. As much as you think the…

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