Finished Reading “Redshirts” and Questioning…things

So… Alien Desires isn’t doing so well. Ghostly Protector did better last year, but not by much. Making me wonder why I publish my books at all. But I continue writing, except…

I am at a crossroad in The Alien’s Change of Heart. I knew what I wanted to do with a certain character at the beginning of writing it, but now I don’t know if it’s the right choice or not.

This is why I don’t plot. I can’t even stick with what I have in my mind. Imagine if it were on paper??

I know I could just write it one way and see if that works. If it doesn’t, try writing it the other way. Right? But my mind is still thinking about which way to go first.

I need to tell it to shut up and just start writing. And I need to stop making other excuses, too. I now have a deadline to finish this book. Although, I’m beginning to doubt it’s reachable.

I will be in Columbia, SC on March 28^th for a book signing. No other details are known at this time. Just the city and date. It would be so nice if The Alien’s Change of Heart were available then. But that means I need to finish the book NOW.

Nothing like adding stress to the mix, huh? Especially when Alien Desires tanked. I will certainly not end book 2 with any kind of unresolved issues, just in case it’s the last of that series.

Which is sad. I had such high hopes… Might have helped if I marketed it better, but when your newsletter subscribers don’t even purchase it, makes me wonder if that would have helped.

Oh well… At least I’m still writing. Sort of. Hahahahaha.

Here’s what I read since my last update:

Book 22

Dates read: September 7-13, 2025
Title: Redshirts
Year of publication: 2012
Author: John Scalzi
Genre: Sci-fi comedy
Series: N/A
# of Pages: 302
Paper or plastic: Trade paperback
How obtained: Purchased
Blurb from book: Ensign Andrew Dahl has just been assigned to the Universal Union Capital Ship Intrepid, flagship of the Union since the year 2456. It’s a prestige posting, with the chance to serve on Away Missions alongside the starship’s famous senior officers.
    Life couldn’t be better…until Andrew begins to realize that (1) every Away Mission involves some kind of lethal confrontation with alien forces; (2) the ship’s senior officers always survive these confrontations; and (3) sadly, at least one low-ranking crew member is invariably killed.
    Unsurprisingly, the savvier crew members belowdecks avoid Away Missions at all costs. Then Andrew stumbles on information that transforms his and his colleagues’ understanding of what the starship Intrepid really is…and offers them a crazy, high-risk chance to save their own lives.
Recommend: Yes!
My thoughts: What a fun book! I loved it. Not at all heavy on the sci-fi. If you’ve ever watched “Star Trek” (especially the original series), you will get this. Sort of like how Galaxy Quest riffed on the series. Almost. It’s funny and totally whacky!

Just an FYI about Alien Desires. Yes, it’s listed as sci-fi romance. Or alien romance (if that genre is available at the vendor). But it’s as much sci-fi as “Mork & Mindy” (or even “My Favorite Martian”) was sci-fi. I just don’t know how to market that. Any suggestions would be highly appreciated.

Happy Reading!

Stacy

 

Reading Update and Selling the Next Book

However did a reader find books to read in the old days? The days before books went digital, I suppose is what I mean. I read about how I can optimize my sell-through by putting direct links to the next book in the back of the one the reader is currently reading. And how to do it for this retailer or this retailer or this… That it should be listed right after the end of the book, on the SAME PAGE as the ending—that that space is prime real estate. Have people really gotten that lazy? Am I wrong in thinking that if a person loved the book, they’ll look for the next one ON… THEIR… OWN…? It’s what I’ve always done.

I realize the competition out there is crowded, but the reader is already reading my book. If they didn’t like it, no amount of links will get them to click for the next one.

I just don’t get it.

That’s not to say I don’t put a link in for the next book, but it’s a link to my website (so I don’t have to have a zillion—yeah, sarcasm—different versions for each retailer) and it’s on the next page with other author notes and stuff (and before and after the first chapter to the next book teaser I share). So I do give them a short cut, but I just figured they’d keep scrolling to find them. Maybe I’m figuring wrong and people really are that lazy.

Here’s what I read since my last update:

Book 47

Dates read: September 18 – October 1, 2021
Title: Heartless
Year of publication: 2021
Author: Gena Showalter
Genre: Paranormal/Fantasy Romance
Series: Immortal Enemies #1
# of Pages: 398
Paper or plastic: Mass market paperback
How obtained: Purchased
Blurb from book: Vengeance is irresistible… Kaysar the Unhinged One, fae King of Midnight, can drive anyone to madness with his song. A ruthless warrior forged in hate, he lives to force his enemies to their knees. He will stop at nothing to succeed—even abducting and seducing his foe’s beloved bride to ensure his own child one day sits on the male’s throne. Except, his prize escapes to the mortal realm before the first kiss, her heart transplanted into a human beauty with dangerous secrets…
    Chantel “Cookie” Bardot is a professional gamer girl great at trash-talking, bad at peopling. After a long-awaited surgery, she begins to morph into a powerful fae princess. Catapulted into a strange land ruled by a cruel but seductive villain, she must battle flesh-and-blood monsters and navigate royal intrigues. But the true danger is Kaysar, whose every wicked touch tempts her beyond reason. Should she run…or descend into the darkness with him?
My thoughts: I don’t know that I would have read this book if a friend didn’t rave about how bizarre it is. And it is bizarre. Kaysar and Cookie are the STRANGEST romantic couple I’ve read about. Not exactly hero material, more like two villains put together. I did struggle to get through this (not so much about the bizarre behavior, but the fantasy aspect of it—it’s really not a paranormal romance as marketed), but ultimately, I wanted to know how it ended. Will I read book 2, which won’t be released until July 2022? Will I have remembered this book by then? I really don’t know the answer to either question except, maybe, we’ll see.

So… Do you read digital books? Do you click on the links at the end? I tend to read more paper books than digital ones. And clicking on my Nook doesn’t do much good as I keep the WiFi off most of the time (it drains the battery, and to be truthful, I usually only read from it when I’m on a trip and can’t get WiFi).

Happy Reading!

Stacy

Reading Update and Publishing Decisions

What do you do when a series isn’t selling? I have six books in my vampire series. The latest was released on April 1 to lackluster sales. I started advertising on Amazon (took a class in April that showed me how to create low bid ads). Sales have increased on book 1 (yay!), but unfortunately I’m spending more than I’m bringing in. It’s not a huge loss ($20-30/month), but not exactly the profit I had hoped for.

I was told that my series is probably perfect for Kindle Unlimited (vampire romance does well there, I guess). But I would make less per book based on what they pay for pages read vs the royalties I get on the selling price. Of course, I have to SELL the books, right?

I’m really wondering whether I should even bother writing more books in this series. If I decide to stop, then it might not matter if they’re sold wide. Right? Luckily, this isn’t a decision I need to make anytime soon. And I may wait at least until the last book has been out a year. If my advertising loss becomes too pricy, I can always stop the ads. Right now I’m still acting on hope. Hope that the series takes off. Thing is, it takes time to get recognized. And I have to advertise to get recognized.

This publishing business sure can be frustrating.

Here’s what I read since my last update:

Book #28

Dates read: July 12-19
Title: Cut and Run
Year of publication: 2020
Author: Allison Brennan
Genre: Suspense
Series: Lucy Kincaid #16
# of Pages: 432
Paper or plastic: Mass market paperback
How obtained: Purchased
Blurb from Book:. FBI Agent Lucy Kincaid is dead-set on solving a cold case—even if the original investigators stonewall her every step of the way. A violent storm has uncovered the remains of a family that authorities assumed fled the country years ago to avoid prosecution. But the boy of the youngest Albright son never turned up. If the child is dead, why wasn’t his body found with his parents? If he’s alive, where has he been…and what does he know? Now Lucy and her partner Nate must reconstruct an old crime to find a missing child in the present day.
    Meanwhile, investigative reporter Maxine Revere is called to San Antonio. A confessed killer of a young woman named Victoria has recanted his statement, which opens the door to a whole new world of secrets and betrayal. Max hires Sean Rogan, Lucy’s husband and seasoned PI, to help. The discovery that Victoria might be connected to the Albright family leads Max, Sean, and Lucy to the darkest corridors of corporate crime. But how can they untangle their complex web to find justice for the victims…and the killer in their midst?
My thoughts: This series is beyond being romantic suspense (but it is how Lucy and Sean started). Doesn’t matter much to me, though. I enjoy these characters so much.

It’s probably a good thing I stalled on writing the 7^th book in the vampire series. But I really need to work on something new (besides revising the next ghost book). Yesterday I might have gotten an idea for another ghost book. But I really need to get book 3 in the ghost series done and published. Apparently my ghost series is selling better than my vampire series. See? There’s still hope I’ll make a profit at this gig!

So... What are you reading? Anything good?

Happy Reading!

Stacy

It's a Lot of Little Things

Last Friday I talked about having to get with it. And then I do nothing. No writing. No reading. No blogging. And if it didn’t hurt so much to lie in bed, I’d probably stay in it a good portion of the day.

I’m beginning to wonder if my medication is starting to affect me. Of course, it could be the hot weather, too. I just don’t feel like doing anything. And I have way to much stuff to do!

I’m hosting Sizzle and Sass this week, which has kind of taken over my life, like it does every time I’m host. Thank goodness I only do this 3-4 times a year. But man, my time seems to come up quicker each time. But that’s a symptom of old age, right?

I’m still cleaning out the old house. Made two trips to Goodwill this week, today will mark a third and hopefully Saturday a fourth (and final) trip. Hubby is determined to finish cleaning out that house this weekend. And with the weather turning cooler (low 80s instead of mid 90s), that might actually happen. We might not feel so exhausted so soon.

I’m still putting stuff away in the new house. Got my white board up (yay!) and bought some new hangers for my sweatshirts and sweaters (I lost my shelves from our old closet, which we may remedy…some day). But there are still boxes to go through (have no idea where to put the stuff!) and then there’s still more stuff from the old house (if it doesn’t end up in the trash—I’m hoping trash). And we have all these pictures that need to go on the wall (instead of leaning up against it). I just have to figure out WHERE I want them to go.

And right now, my brain doesn’t want to cooperate. It’s like it’s going on strike, saying, “Enough!” Heck, even my body says that after a day at the old house.

Every little thing is piling up. That’s why I’m having trouble determining whether it’s just stuff going on or if my medication is making that stuff harder to deal with. Are my joints sore because I’m moving stuff or sore because of the medication? Am I slightly depressed because of the weather making moving more difficult or slightly depressed from the medication?

At least I haven’t wanted to chew anyone’s head off. But I’m not feeling myself and I don’t know why. Hopefully our upcoming vacation will fix what’s wrong. If it doesn’t, then I’ll know it’s the medication. And then I’ll probably cry. Because I really don’t want to try something else. It might be worse!

Fighting cancer sucks, you know?

So does getting old, but for some reason I can deal with that easier.

Hey, if you’re interested, Smashwords is currently having an e-book sale through July 31st. My Sunny Vampire and Ghostly Liaison are FREE there and the Bitten by Love Box Set is 25% off. You can find the buy links on the book tab (or click on the corresponding cover over on the side bar).

So… Did you have a nice 4th of July? We went to the Dragons game (they won!) and watched fireworks after. It was stinkin’ hot out there, though. I was drenched in sweat. But the fireworks were fun (and so was the game), so I guess it was worth it.

Happy Friday!

Stacy

Something Cool, Outdoor Hockey, and First in Series Sales

A friend showed me how I can add a “store” on my Facebook page, featuring my books (of course). The store is actually Amazon (for now). I think I’ll be able to add books so that it will also direct you to B&N. Won’t know that until I try it. But for now I’ve got the Kindle links on my Facebook page.

If they get seen, it might be a miracle, but hey, I’m ready! They’re there. And I was able to make my covers look kind of cool, too. Here's what one of them looked like:

 

I wanted the whole cover to show and Facebook’s photo allotment only allows 1024 x 1024 pixels, which meant it would chop off part of the cover. So I went to Canva and played around until I found templates that worked (which was a chore in itself, let me tell you). For fun (or maybe desperation—I wasn’t sure what was going to work), I used one of my moon shots for the background. Wow! I thought it turned out pretty cool. So I pretty much swapped out the covers for each picture so they all looked the same.

 

If you're on Facebook, you can check them out on my page here: https://www.facebook.com/StacyMcKitrickAuthor/. Just click on Shop over on the left hand side.

Tomorrow, Daughter and I will be headed to Pittsburgh to go see the Coors Light Stadium Series (Hockey!!) at Heinz Field where the Pittsburgh Penguins will take on the Philadelphia Flyers. Hoping for decent weather (like, no rain) and a big win! But just in case the weather decides to become wet, I’m taking my rain pants and boots (along with my jacket, of course!). I doubt I get too warm wearing them. Temps are supposed to start dropping once the sun sets.

Hmmm… I wonder if my jersey will fit OVER my jacket. And yes, I have a jersey. #87 Crosby, what else?

 

Looking for a deal in some romance reads? My author friend Kristi Rose has posted free or 99 cents first in series sales going on this weekend (or through the month). Yeah, my book is listed, and there are bunches of others. So if you like romance, this is something to go and check out.

Yesterday, Hubby and I met with the doctor who will conduct (?) the chemotherapy. We got some surprising news. Hubby won’t lose his hair. He’d been kind of prepping himself for that, so it was a nice surprise. All the other crap (nausea, fatigue, loss of taste) was expected and not something he’s looking forward to, but it’s only 8 weeks. 8 weeks is nothing. And then he’ll get better. We just want it over with (and for the cancer to never return).

So… Got any fun plans this weekend? Or has the weather kept you housebound? Have you ever played around with Canva? I’ve used it to make the headers on my newsletter and Facebook page. You might want to look into it if you do happen to be housebound this weekend. It’s not perfect, but so far it’s been free for me, so I can’t complain.

Happy Friday!

Stacy

Feeling Frustrated

My book, My Sunny Vampire, is currently on sale for 99 cents (e-book version, that is) during February. When I found out about the sale in early January, I looked into advertising.

Book Bub was too expensive, even if they would have accepted my book. I just couldn’t see a good ROI on that (because frankly, the book has gone on sale for FREE before AND was on Book Bub (via the publisher) and it didn’t do much for sales on the other books).

Other newsletter advertisements (i.e. E-Readers News Today and Fussy Librarian) were all booked up in February for me to even consider. Which probably meant so was Book Bub, but I hadn’t gotten that far to check.

Facebook seemed promising. I was basically boosting a post I had made earlier. Request was rejected. They deemed my cover too suggestive (or something to that nature). I’ve seen them reject covers that showed less skin than mine, so what can I say? Still, I didn’t think showing the back of a guy in an embrace was all that suggestive.

That pretty much left Goodreads. They at least accepted my ad. Unfortunately, it’s not getting seen by that many people. No clicks, either (and I’ve got it up to $1/click hoping it will be seen by more people). The one good thing about that is I can get my money back from them once the ad finishes running this month, basically running what little it ran for free.

The sad thing is, I was told my publisher would do some pushing on social media. If they’re doing that, it’s not happening on Facebook. I haven’t seen anything.

So here is a good book on sale and no one knows about it (or those people who DO know have already read it). It’s kind of frustrating.

In more interesting news… Last month I was talking to my son about movies and he said he wanted to borrow “Air Force One” because he didn’t have it. I went to my DVD case and couldn’t find it. What? I was sure we owned it. Well, Hubby has a birthday coming up (tomorrow, although we celebrated it on Saturday), so I went and got it for him. We watched it last night. You know what? It’s still a great movie! And it’s 20 years old this year. Yikes!

So… Have you ever looked for something you could have sworn you owned, but didn’t? Even my daughter thought she owned “Air Force One.” We must have just owned the VHS version before and never replaced it. It’s the only explanation I can think of!

Happy Monday!

Stacy

Ghostly Interlude Blurb and Other Important Stuff

Here I thought I would have problems posting on Friday for lack of information. Instead I get information overload!

First off, My Sunny Vampire is on sale! E-books are 99 cents during February. You can find all the buy links HERE.

FYI: the digital version of Ghostly Liaison is still for sale at 99 cents. Such bargains!

I entered A Vampire Wedding in the Judge a Book by Its Cover contest (paranormal category) and it is now up for reader votes (click HERE to start). So, if you have some spare time and are interested, I wouldn’t mind you giving my cover some stars (like, maybe, five??). Of course, don’t let me stop you from voting for other covers. Heck, you might find something interesting!

I wasn’t sure if I should enter the contest, but I really do LOVE that cover. Hopefully other people do, too. I wouldn’t mind finally winning a contest!

As promised on Wednesday, here’s the blurb I came up for Ghostly Interlude (book 2 in the Ghostly Encounter series):

Maggie Russell is a horror writer who works for lawyers to pay the bills. But she gets the scare of her life when she wakes up in a strange café without any idea of how she got there. She’s starting to think her sleep walking is getting out of hand.

Dean Parker is a private investigator whose business is next door to the lawyers. Ever since Maggie started working there he’d been eyeing the pretty brunette from afar. He’d rather not explain how he can see and communicate with ghosts. Or the fact he should never have been born.

When Maggie suspects her sleep problems could be caused by her sue-crazy, money-grubbing cousin, Dean steps in to help. Instead of finding evidence pointing to the cousin, Dean discovers something even worse: a ghost is living with Maggie and appears another may be possessing her.

As much as Dean despises ghosts, he’s determined to help Maggie rid her home of the pest. He just never figured that Maggie might actually find an interest in him, too. But keeping his distance is no longer an option. If he fails, Maggie could very well be possessed forever.

Does it sound intriguing? Granted, if you’re not into paranormal romance, it probably won’t do a thing for you. And if it does…Yay!

So… Watching any football this weekend? Or will you be too busy voting for covers? Hee hee.

Happy Friday!

Stacy

99-cent Sale

If you’ve been looking for an excuse to purchase/read Ghostly Liaison, how does 99 cents sound? That’s right. The ebook is on sale. I don’t know how long the sale will last, so don’t wait too long. You can find the buy links on the Ghostly Liaison page (tab, up top) or click on the cover over on the side bar.

I voted early. Wow. That was super easy and super nice. No lines! Just wish I didn’t have to go downtown to do it, but at least they validated the parking. But I’m done. My votes are in. Now, if I can only stop the commercials. Ugh.

More baffling discoveries regarding my iPhone calendar. I’ve taken the phone to AT&T, but they don’t know what’s wrong (apparently all my settings are correct). I was at the Apple Store yesterday, but couldn’t wait the hour to see someone (who knew they’d be so busy??). When I got home I decided to do an experiment. I created a test appointment on my laptop calendar (Yahoo).

It went over to my iPhone correctly.

What?????

I made an appointment on my iPhone. It went over to the laptop correctly.

Okay, apparently just my sports games are all screwed up. So… I deleted them all on the laptop calendar. Then I deleted the Yahoo calendar on my iPhone. Next I added all my sports games on the laptop calendar. Then I turned the Yahoo calendar back on.

All the sports game times show up an hour earlier on my iPhone, but my test appointments are correct!!

Ugh!

Guess I’ll be making that trip to the Apple store after all. It’s just doesn’t make sense.

YAWN!! I’ve been staying up way too late watching the Dodgers play in the NLCS. I’ve never EVER been a Cubs fan—blame WGN—so if they happen to win, I’ll be an Indians fan during the World Series. I really hope the Dodgers win, though. I grew up loving that team. I didn’t become a fan of the Reds until 1976 (loved Johnny Bench), long before I ever met my future husband or even thought we’d move to Ohio. Funny how that worked out, huh?

Hey, but at least the Penguins won last night. Yay!

So… Whatcha doing this weekend? I’m meeting some writer friends on Saturday. Should be fun.

Happy Friday!

Stacy

Writing and Marketing and Sales, Oh My!

• Hey, did I hit enough keywords in my title? Because that’s what helps get my blog noticed, don’t you know?

If you can’t tell by now, I don’t give much of a flying fig about hitting the proper keywords in my titles. I believe in trying to make them entertaining. Or at least reference what my post is about. I’m certainly not a popular blog. You can tell that by the number of comments I get for each post. Not that I’m knocking what I have. I love those of you who comment regularly. And I thank you for that. Without you guys, I’d feel like I was just talking to myself.

Heck, most of the time I probably am anyway (non-blogwise).

• Did I spend sufficient time on Facebook? Guest blogging? Because if I’m not everywhere, how will people find me?

I spend way too much time on Facebook and for what? It’s not like I’m posting anything worthwhile. Heck, it’d be nice if I posted anything at all. I just lurk and flounder. How is that helping me any except take time away from what I should be doing? And as luck would have it, I’m hosting the Sizzle and Sass Facebook page starting Sunday. What timing, huh? I am not prepared. I am never prepared.

I’m my own worst enemy.

• Did I sit my butt in chair and put my hands on keyboard? Because if I don’t get three books released in a year, I might as well give up. Right?

I have been writing (revising) more lately. But certainly not three books worth. I swear I wrote more when I had a job. Then again, I wasn’t published yet, either. I really think that has a lot to do with it.

Unfortunately, I’ve let the outside world intimidate me into thinking I need to do all this stuff to sell books and I need to STOP. I mean, I want to sell books. Actually, I just want people to read my books. Kind of hard for them to do that when they don’t know I exist. And they don’t know I exist because I’m not everywhere. But I can’t be everywhere and I’m not so sure I want to be.

Am I messed up or what?

And in other super FRUSTRATED news… My hard drive is failing. Again. UGH!! Spent an hour on the phone yesterday with a tech from Dell. Now they’re sending me a new hard drive (hubby can replace it—thank goodness!). If this next one goes out, we’re going to have to insist they replace the laptop, because SOMETHING must be going on to cause the hard drives to fail. In the meantime, I’m still using BigRed (when I can get it turned on, that is), but saving my files on a flash drive (luckily I was able to back up everything—whew!!).

Tonight, though, I’m going to have some fun. The Penguins are in Columbus to play the Blue Jackets and I’ll be there to watch. Can’t wait. Let’s go Pens!!!

Have a great weekend!

Stacy

Convention Prizes, My Laptop, and a Book Sale

Hey, look at this! I remembered Monday follows Sunday and got something posted! J

Woke up to snow yesterday. And wind. And cold. I hate winter, but have set 4 books in that season. Guess it makes good conflict for my characters. I certainly don’t mind tormenting them with lousy weather!

It’s official – I will be attending the Reader/Author Get Together (RAGT) this June in West Chester, Ohio. I’ll be co-sponsoring a Thursday pre-con boardroom with authors Teri Anne Stanley, Meg Cooper, and Eden Ashe. Of course, sponsoring means swag and prizes. I ordered these mugs to giveaway (one for the boardroom, one for the gift basket I’ll donate). Aren’t they the coolest?

 

I like them so much I’ll probably get some for RomCon (Denver convention 9/30-10/1). I need a basket to giveaway there, too.

I’m also crocheting some pot holders for RAGT that say READ MORE BOOKS (I’ll take a picture when I finish one). I’ll make as many as I can, they may come in handy for RomCon, too. Or any kind of giveaway! Especially if I can get my name on it easily. I’m hoping I can stich it on the back. Gotta have my name on them somewhere!

Since I had the camera out to take pics of my mugs, thought I’d take one of Big Red, too. Isn’t he pretty?

 

Dell kept bugging me to review my new laptop. Since I’m sure they couldn’t care less that I love the color the best (or maybe they do care), I only gave the laptop 4 out of 5 stars. There’s some goofy stuff happening and I don’t know if it’s the laptop or Windows 10. I do also love my back lit keyboard and made sure to mention that.

I also said I wasn’t a techy or gamer, that I was just a writer and it worked fine for that. And it does.

Hey—in case anyone is interested, the e-book of Bite Me, I’m Yours is on sale at Amazon, Kobo, and iBooks for $1.99 (you can find buy links on my website HERE). Don’t know how long the sale will last (or if B&N will eventually have it). I just stumbled across it.

Saturday night's football game was nerve wracking. I was so sure the Steelers were going to lose. So glad the Bengals played stupidly. Next up—Denver on Sunday. Whoo hoo!

So…Do you like being bugged to review (cause if you do, I can bug you—haha!)? Dell did it. Windows 10 did it. These weren’t e-mails, but pop ups on my screen. So annoying! I was tempted to review low. Oh wait… I did on Windows 10. Then again, I’m not a fan.

Have a great Monday. Hope no one or nothing bugs you!

Stacy

Christmas, My Laptop, A Movie, and Big Sales

Ho ho ho! If you celebrated Christmas, I hope it was a good one for you. I was able to spend it with my kids and friends, which made it a good one. The presents were just a bonus! J

Hubby got me the watch I wanted (it has the Pittsburgh Penguins logo on the face). I had been wearing his huge Steelers watch since my old watch crapped out on me. It’s nice to have a smaller watch on again. And it’s really great to see the Penguins logo!

I mentioned earlier that my laptop was due to be delivered on Dec 31. Well, it arrived on the 24th. So guess what I did all weekend?

I really hate setting up a new computer. I sure hope I don’t have to do this again. I’m doing my best to like Windows 10, but they make it hard. At least I found out how to use Internet Explorer instead of Edge. I really do not like Edge. I can’t see my favorites like I can on IE. Plus, the right column of blogspot blogs jiggles on Edge. That pretty much sealed Edge’s fate right there, since it wasn’t happening on IE. The jiggling was driving my eyes nuts!

But I do like my new computer. The keyboard lights up and is more responsive when I type, plus now I can use my printer without having to turn the sucker off and on (it kept going off line on my old computer, as little as 5 minutes after I used it, too!). And the monitor is sharper, too. So sharp, the images and print on my AOL software is teeny tiny. I’ve tried messing with several settings to make it bigger, but it ruins everything else, so I’ll just have to get used to it (or use a magnifying glass). Maybe I’ll get lucky and AOL will upgrade soon for newer computers/monitors! I can only hope.

Best news, though… Word and Excel 2003 work on Windows 10! You don’t know how relieved I am that I don’t have to go looking for new software to write with. Okay, maybe you do. I’m sure you’re glad I’m not ranting about that, huh? Whew!

On Saturday I went and saw the new Star Wars movie. I could easily watch it again (and again and again). Great movie. I haven’t enjoyed one this much in quite awhile. I really am shocked that I haven’t read any spoilers about it, and super glad, too. Now I just have to watch what I say!

Last week I received my royalty statement from Kensington and just about fainted in shock. The statement covered the time My Sunny Vampire was offered for free for 30 days. Approximately 30,000 people downloaded it! Sure, I didn’t get any money for that, but then a little over 1,000 people bought it after the sale. Those sales made it possible for me to move from Provisional PAN (in RWA) to General PAN, which means I can be a voting member now. I really didn’t think it would happen this soon. Heck, I wasn’t sure it would ever happen with that book. Whoo hoo! Yeah, I was doing some happy dancing last week.

Now, if those 31,000 people would buy my other books… Gee, wouldn’t THAT be something!

I gave my daughter A Vampire Wedding to read, so I guess you can say I’m done with it for now. That means I can watch last season’s Gotham (daughter got it from the library and it’s due back on the 2nd) without any guilt. I’ll be glad to get caught up to this season.

So… Did you get the present you wanted this year? What was it?

Have a great Monday!

Stacy

I Was Number ONE!

Like I do way too frequently (because I should be writing), I was over at Amazon Friday morning, checking on My Sunny Vampire. Since the Bookbub ad, I’ve been getting a lot more reviews and I’m curious to see what people have to say (good or bad). Plus I like to see the review number go up! It’s a sick obsession, I know, but I only take the positives out of it. I know not everyone is going to like my work, but it’s nice to see when I’ve reached my audience.

Anyway, while I was there I couldn’t help but ALSO check out at my ranking. It had been five days since the ad, so I figured I was dropping from my high of #2 in free paranormal romances. Well, much to my surprise, I rose.

 

To #1.

 

Here's proof:

 

Can you believe that? NUMBER. ONE. I couldn’t. Five days later and people were still downloading it? Yikes! It really is mind boggling.

It has since dropped, but for one whole day I got to see my book on top of the heap. What a nice view! J

Of course, it doesn’t mean a darn thing if I don’t gain some fans. And if I DO manage to get some, I certainly won’t KEEP them if I continue to procrastinate with my current WIP. So… here’s to working with the internet turned OFF this week (at least Mon-Thu, since the hubby is off Fri, and only between 10am-5pm). Think I can do it? I’m certainly going to try. I’ve got a job to do and it won’t get done if I’m hanging around Facebook, blogs, and Amazon. J Not that I don’t love you all. I do. But seriously, I’ve got to get crackin’!

Have a great Monday! Tonight in the comments, I’ll let you know if mine was great.

Stacy

Blind Temptation Buy Links

Blind Temptation is released! Yay!!! It’s currently on sale at an introductory price of $2.99. Eventually it will go up to $4.99. When? Well… I have submitted this book for a BookBub ad. If it gets selected (and I’m not holding my breath—I’d rather be pleasantly surprised), then the price will stay at $2.99 until 4 weeks after the ad airs. If it’s not selected, then the price will probably go up after June 1st (and seeing how long it took me to get all these sites to actually show the book, I’m assuming it will take awhile before they all show the higher price—Amazon going last, of course).

Anyway, here’s the blurb (in case you haven’t gotten sick of it yet!):

Dreading the prospect of losing her position on the Vampire Committee, Victoria is forced to integrate with the mortal population. She hasn’t stepped outside since her husband died over 40 years ago and the thought of being treated like the 17-year-old she resembles frustrates her. But when she discovers that Ben, her hot & sexy driver’s ed teacher, is blind, she gives into temptation and flirts. She never expects to fall in love.

Ben knows he shouldn’t get involved with Victoria—she’s his student. But something compels him toward her. She makes him feel young, alive, and more importantly, whole.

Victoria would love nothing better than to have Ben as a mate, but fears he wouldn’t want to be blind forever. As she struggles to keep her identity hidden from him, an old acquaintance of Victoria’s turns up and is willing to do anything to win her love, including disposing of her boyfriend.

And this is where you can purchase the digital version:

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

iTunes

Smashwords

 

Not a sale site, but if you want to add the book to Goodreads, click HERE

 

Eventually, it’ll show up on Kobo; it’s just being slow. Next I have to format it for print. Okay, I have to get my formatter (aka Enterprise Book Services, aka hubby) to format it for print.

In other news…. The Penguins made the playoffs! YAY!!! Talk about waiting until the last game to do it (and yes, it was the very last game of the season). Now they’ll face the Rangers in the first round. I’m hoping the games show on television here, because I really need to burn off some calories. How? From the stress (and I’m sure the games will stress me out, but I’m addicted and can’t give them up). Let’s go Pens!!!

So… When you buy books, what format do you buy and what store do you buy them from? I’m a Barnes & Noble on-line shopper and I prefer paper, but will buy the Nook version if it’s a new author. Then, if I really, REALLY like their books (like I’ve fallen in love with M.Q. Barber’s books), I’ll purchase the paper version. Just doesn’t feel like I OWN it if I can’t see it on an actual bookshelf.

Have a great day!

Stacy

The Popularity of Book Reviews

Before I became a writer, when I only read books, I never EVER left a review. It never even occurred to me to do such a thing. Now it seems like every author wants their book reviewed (which I can understand—I’d like that, too, but I’m certainly not going to beg for them). I can’t tell if this reviewing craze is a new thing or if I’m just learning about it because I have a book out now.

Kind of the same issue I had with Bruce Springsteen. I moved to NJ (close to his hometown) when “Born in the U.S.A.” was released. I had never heard of him before, so I figured he was popular there because he was local and it took me awhile to realize he had become popular everywhere.

So… what do you think? Has reviewing books (either on Amazon, B&N, or Goodreads) always been an issue (and I’m just noticing it because I’m an author) or is it a new thing because of the glut of self-publishing? This curious mind wants to know!

By the way, on Saturday I noticed a copy of My Sunny Vampire sold on Amazon (I follow the sales on novelrank.com). So of course I mentioned it on Facebook (I was happy!). On Sunday I went to see that #1 again (yeah, I'm a sap) and found it had become a 2. I sold another! Made for a super weekend.

Oh, and in case you were wondering, before the first sale, the ranking of MSV (on Amazon) was over the 1 million mark. That first sale brought it up to around 300,000 and that second sale around 130,000. Doesn’t take much, does it?

Have a great last day of June!

Stacy