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New book release in October means, time for a goodreads giveaway! #free #giveaway #romance #historicals #books #chicklit #kindle #authors #indieauthors #amwriting #amreading

10/27/2014

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Well this fall is definitely going to be busy for me. I released the first book of the Deverell Series, When the Perfect Comes on October 6th, and I am so please it's in a second week on the Regency Bestsellers list. I wasn't sure my readers would embrace a historical romance after release 4 contemporary romances.


On November 3rd I'm releasing the second book of the Deverell Series, Face to Face. And then on December 1st, my oldest daughter's birthday, I'm releasing the final book of the Deverell Series, Love's Patient Fury. Then, I think I'll sleep for a week and prepare for my 8th release the second Half Shell book, The Girl of Tokens and Tears, scheduled for December 22nd!


I've had an amazing first five months of publishing, with the wonderful authors, readers and bloggers I've met along the way. Thank you all so much for being supportive and helpful and getting my feet firmly on the road to releasing my entire collection of work!

Goodreads Book Giveaway

When the Perfect Comes by Susan Ward

When the Perfect Comes

by Susan Ward

Giveaway ends November 27, 2014.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win
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I don't want another career. I'm old. How did I get here? #amwriting #romance #indieauthor #chicklit #kindle

10/18/2014

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I know how I got here. Flattery! When I started my Indie road 5 months ago, I also started my journey down the traditional publishing route. Everyone said you couldn't get a fair shake. That breaking through the wall is impossible for the unknown struggling writer. Well,  I started doing all those twitter contests in March, I did them for 2  months and that got me connected with a marvelous agent. A different agent went online and read one of my books and contacted me. So where did this crazy twist of faith get me... misery, hope, and exhaustion.

I was told by someone that The Girl on the Half Shell was brilliant. A brilliant coming of age novel. In fact, this is what the traditional world said about it: "You’ve written an extremely compelling and addictive story and the way you balance drama, the love, the sex and the brilliant elite money as a problem setting is brilliant. There is definitely something here and TGOTHS is such a commercially accomplished debut. There is a huge amount to love about your story and I was completely engrossed. You handle the sex parts brilliantly and they really echo the gentler yet raw and pure passion side of FIFTY SHADES OF GREY, but without pushing the sex too far and that’s great. Overall you have an incredibly dramatic story and I fell so easily into their world and loved being there as a reader."

That was right before sending me to earth with the cruelest of landings, called the edit/change list. All the things I need to change to make it in their opinion  a commercial success. So now I am rewriting and seeing where that gets me in the traditional world. It's hard, but I'm doing it. Every author, I believe, has one book that is special to them. Mine is Half Shell tucked inside the 31~~yes I have now completed 31 novels since I last updated my status~~something they share about themselves and a story with meaning they want to tell.

I'm already re-writing a series for someone else, but this particular endeavor is tough for me. I love Chrissie. I want to protect her in all her mess and inconsistency.  I want her to be loved for who she is and not who people want her to be. She is strong, she is weak. She is  innocent and seductive. She is naive and worldly. She is educated in much and unknowing in too many things that matter. She is a fool and she is a prize. She is nerdy and awkward and in command of her life in so many ways. She is who we were as women in the 80s, a confusing, paradoxical and conflicted time. She is how our daughters got to be who they are. The generation in between that I don't think most people see. It is my youth and history. Is it yours? Why can't a woman be messy and still likeable? Why can't we just let her be?

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Chrissie~THE GIRL ON THE HALF SHELL
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Well yesterday was my 5 month anniversary of releasing my books, I've released 5 of 26, and I was too tired to blog... #amreading #romance #author #indieauthor #chicklit

10/15/2014

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So here are my thoughts and here's what I've learned: Indie publishing is pretty much like the real world. You meet people who are wonderful, you meet people who are snarky, it's hard work, things still go wrong no matter how careful you are, there are days it makes you happy and days you want to hide under your bed!

I'm always joking to Cindy Tibbits that I never look at my Amazon author's page because I didn't want to see that no one likes me. Yesterday I saw that people had actually visited the darn thing and I had 237 likes! Big surprise.  I am still getting touching emails or direct messages from readers. I've gotten my first really blistering review(that comes from the category of no matter how careful things still go wrong. I uploaded a wrong file for my kindle release. Cut me some slack. I'm soon to be a granny). And overall, I'm feeling pretty darn good about the experience. 21 more books to release. A new release November 3rd with Face to Face the second in the Deverell Series, and will see if I can actually get all 26 out in 24 months. It's good to have a goal. It's good that it's grueling. And it's good however it works out. Life is good if you let it be.


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Well I've released 5 out of 26 books and the highlight of the past 5 months is...#author #indieauthor #romance #historicals #chicklit #kindle #kindleUK #kindleunlimited

10/9/2014

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The highlight is making it onto an Amazon Best Sellers list with Jane Austen for When the Perfect Comes.

I don't think my daughters get "the book thing." Maybe it's hard when you are young to understand that you can work like a demon for something that pays very little. Any of us self-publishing know, precious few make serious dollars. When my contemporary was selling enough to be on Amazon list it wasn't enough to buy a  Michael Kors bag, let alone Prada! My Regency making list, well it will have to sell well a few more days and maybe senior night at Sizzler. Nope not money. It's about raging against the dying of the light. It's having your work end up one day on a list with Jane Austen, Syvlia Day, Johanna Lindsey and Callie Hutton. It's about the hunt and the thrill of the game and knowing you can still try after 50.

Good times. Life is good if you let it be.
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Well five months into self-publishing and I'm hitting release on #5 out of 26 books...**smiles**...#amreading #newrelease #chicklit #romance #kindle

10/5/2014

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I've got that nervous feeling you get right before you hit release and it's fantastic. I've waited 16 years for Varian Deverell to come to life on the page and tomorrow he does. I don't know if readers will embrace a historical romance from me. A good friend, who reads all my books, says it's very different, like I have dual personalities when I write. Maybe because it was written during a difficult time in my life: after my father died. I couldn't write after his death. It took me a very long time to find my voice again. Then, my mother sent me his bible. He read the new testament every night and the book marker was clipped on 1 Corinthians 13. But I could write again after I got the bible. So, there is a 1 Corinthians theme woven through all three books: When the Perfect Comes, Face to Face, Love's Patient Fury.

16 years I have not moved my father's bible book mark. And 16 years later, I am releasing the books I wrote after his death. There is a special feel over these releases, a sense of completion and joy.
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I haven't blogged for a while. My site traffic went up. What up with that? Don't you guys love me? #blogging #authors #amwriting #amreading #romance #chicklit #kindle #cancer #charity

10/2/2014

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So I've been in that place I think all authors hate: editing hell. That's the place where you work like a dog and don't have any fun as you try to whip your book into shape for release. It pretty much sucks. But I'm free now, I'm in formatting, so I thought it time to drop in and say hello. There are plenty of exciting things happening the month of October.

First, I'm part of two great causes. For Cash Donations: The Susan G. Komen TouchStone Family Fund http://www.info-komen.org/goto/TouchStone_Family_Fund.   There is also a rafflecopter and you can win some great books there!

And the Leslie Jones Support Leukemia Foundaton.
24 hour Event in support of the Leukaemia Foundation. The Rafflecopter is going very well and we so appreciate all of the sharing that you've done on your pages.   Click here to visit the event.

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I do my part for these worthy causes. I donate. I promote. It isn't much, but remember everything counts when we're are trying to do good work. So help as you can. It is appreciated.

As for me I'm preparing to release 3 new books. Historical Romance. When the Perfect Comes, October 6th. Face to Face, the second book in the Deverell Series on November 3rd. This book goes on pre-order on sale Ocrober 6th. And the final book of the Deverell Series, Love's Patient Fury, is scheduled for release on December 1st and Pre-order on November 3rd. Should be fun, right?

And for those who wonder, the second Half Shell book is schedule for release December 22, 2014. And then I'm climbing into my hammock and sleeping for a while. It's hard for granny panties to keep up with the young dogs.

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    Here is a list of my available contemporary and historical romance books!

    The Girl on the Half Shell
    The Signature
    Rewind
    One Last kiss
    One More Kiss
    When the Perfect Comes
    Face to Face
    Love's Patient Fury