My friend and fellow freelance writer and author Destiny Blaine is giving a class on how to break into freelance writing and be able to make a full-time income at it. Destiny has been making a full-time freelance income since 2005, so I know she will have lots of good advice.
All you have to do is purchase one of Destiny's Books at fictionwise or one of her publishers Amira Press, or Resplendence Publishing to name two. Then forward your e-mail confirmation to susan@susanalvis.com and cc Destiny at destinyblaine@yahoo.com with the words SIGNING UP FOR NOVEMBER WORKSHOP 3 in the subject line. Then you will receive an e-mail from Destiny or Susan or both saying they received it and then later another e-mail with further information. The class will be held in a yahoo group forum and so if you cannot be there for the actual discussion the lessons will still be there.
I think this opportunity is well worth it, and even though I've been freelancing full-time for over a year, I'm still going to take her class. I figure there is always something new to learn! So, I hope you'll check this out!
Thursday, October 25, 2007
Monday, October 15, 2007
4 Cups from Coffee Time Romance Reviews....
Wow! Two in a matter of one day, how cool is that! I understandably am doing even more of the happy dance today than I was yesterday. Can't wait to see what today holds. Here's the review from Coffee Time Romance Reviews:
DESTINY’S CHOICES
REGINA PAUL
ISBN #978-1-934475-06-5
April 2007
Amira Press
www.amirapress.com
E-Book
$4.00
44 Pages
Suspense/Thriller
Rating: 4 cups
Tiana Slickpoo owns an art gallery and lives on the Indian reservation. She is also guarding a sacred object that her grandmother gave her and someone is determined to have the item. Six years earlier, when her boyfriend James chose to leave her for college, Tiana was heart broken. She has guarded her heart since then and is cold toward James when he returns to investigate the theft of some tribal objects.
James Waters, the son of the Tribal Chairman, was once Tiana’s boyfriend. He has returned to his home after a long absence to investigate thefts of tribal objects from the reservation museum and Tiana’s art gallery. He wants Tiana back, but it is going to be a hard journey for him considering how Tiana has put up a wall between them.
Thefts of tribal objects have brought James back to the reservation and to Tiana, the woman he loves. Six years of hurt and pain lie between them. James plans to do everything he can to bridge the gap, but he soon learns that Tiana has kept a secret from him all these years. Things really heat up when Tiana’s grandmother is attacked because of a sacred object. When the identity of the attacker and of who is behind the thefts is revealed, everyone is shocked. However, the time James and Tiana have spent together solving the mystery has allowed them to renew their relationship.
What an intense story. It is chock full of suspense and intrigue. Ms. Paul does a wonderful job leading her readers on an adventurous journey through this story. Watching James and Tiana unravel their complicated relationship brings an extra touch to the book. This story is vastly entertaining and kept me on the edge of my seat.
Candy Cay
Reviewer for Coffee Time Romance
Reviewer for Karen Find Out About New Books
DESTINY’S CHOICES
REGINA PAUL
ISBN #978-1-934475-06-5
April 2007
Amira Press
www.amirapress.com
E-Book
$4.00
44 Pages
Suspense/Thriller
Rating: 4 cups
Tiana Slickpoo owns an art gallery and lives on the Indian reservation. She is also guarding a sacred object that her grandmother gave her and someone is determined to have the item. Six years earlier, when her boyfriend James chose to leave her for college, Tiana was heart broken. She has guarded her heart since then and is cold toward James when he returns to investigate the theft of some tribal objects.
James Waters, the son of the Tribal Chairman, was once Tiana’s boyfriend. He has returned to his home after a long absence to investigate thefts of tribal objects from the reservation museum and Tiana’s art gallery. He wants Tiana back, but it is going to be a hard journey for him considering how Tiana has put up a wall between them.
Thefts of tribal objects have brought James back to the reservation and to Tiana, the woman he loves. Six years of hurt and pain lie between them. James plans to do everything he can to bridge the gap, but he soon learns that Tiana has kept a secret from him all these years. Things really heat up when Tiana’s grandmother is attacked because of a sacred object. When the identity of the attacker and of who is behind the thefts is revealed, everyone is shocked. However, the time James and Tiana have spent together solving the mystery has allowed them to renew their relationship.
What an intense story. It is chock full of suspense and intrigue. Ms. Paul does a wonderful job leading her readers on an adventurous journey through this story. Watching James and Tiana unravel their complicated relationship brings an extra touch to the book. This story is vastly entertaining and kept me on the edge of my seat.
Candy Cay
Reviewer for Coffee Time Romance
Reviewer for Karen Find Out About New Books
Sunday, October 14, 2007
Destiny's Choices gets 5 Champagne Flutes from Cocktail Reviews!
I am so doing the happy dance now! Destiny's Choices got 5 Champagne Flutes at Cocktail Reviews! I love it when my books get great reviews, while not so great reviews happen to all authors, after all it is a matter of taste what a reviewer is going to like and not like. I know that first hand as both a reviewer and an author, but it is just so cool when a great review comes in. I just had to share. Here's the review below:
Tiana owns an art gallery. Some thefts have taken place, and a man she’d rather not see again, James, has arrived to investigate. Tiana is less than pleased, and her abrupt way of greeting him made me giggle. She says it how it is. How I long to be like her!
Tiana and James knew each other six years ago, but he chose to attend an out of state college. Unable to go with him, Tiana was also unable to tell James why. They haven’t seen one another in all that time. He loved her then and loves her now. Her attitude towards him when he meets her again leaves him believing there is no chance of reconciliation.
Tiana has been holding a tribal object for the past six years. Someone found out she had it and trashed her cabin. Only a select few know who she is and why she would have the object. Somehow, her identity has leaked out. How will she tell James who she really is: a carrier of sacred objects? Will he understand why she couldn’t go with him out of state, or will he hold it against her?
Find out in Destiny’s Choices, a tale of two people brought back together by fate. Sometimes a man and a woman are just meant to be together! I must also say that the blurb doesn’t do this tale justice. It doesn’t even begin to touch on the excitement factor—and I’m not being derogatory by saying that, but urging readers to give it a read.
An exciting tale which propelled me to the edge of my seat at times, Destiny’s Choices is a keeper for this reader. Nice work, Ms. Paul! Also, Ms. Paul? I loved Tiana’s surname. Slickpoo. I mean, that is just so funny and so darn refreshing! Beats Jones or Brown any day!
---Black Orchid, Cocktail Reviews
Tiana owns an art gallery. Some thefts have taken place, and a man she’d rather not see again, James, has arrived to investigate. Tiana is less than pleased, and her abrupt way of greeting him made me giggle. She says it how it is. How I long to be like her!
Tiana and James knew each other six years ago, but he chose to attend an out of state college. Unable to go with him, Tiana was also unable to tell James why. They haven’t seen one another in all that time. He loved her then and loves her now. Her attitude towards him when he meets her again leaves him believing there is no chance of reconciliation.
Tiana has been holding a tribal object for the past six years. Someone found out she had it and trashed her cabin. Only a select few know who she is and why she would have the object. Somehow, her identity has leaked out. How will she tell James who she really is: a carrier of sacred objects? Will he understand why she couldn’t go with him out of state, or will he hold it against her?
Find out in Destiny’s Choices, a tale of two people brought back together by fate. Sometimes a man and a woman are just meant to be together! I must also say that the blurb doesn’t do this tale justice. It doesn’t even begin to touch on the excitement factor—and I’m not being derogatory by saying that, but urging readers to give it a read.
An exciting tale which propelled me to the edge of my seat at times, Destiny’s Choices is a keeper for this reader. Nice work, Ms. Paul! Also, Ms. Paul? I loved Tiana’s surname. Slickpoo. I mean, that is just so funny and so darn refreshing! Beats Jones or Brown any day!
---Black Orchid, Cocktail Reviews
Monday, October 8, 2007
New Chat...
I'll be chatting all day at Destiny's World on Exerpts on Tuesday October 9, 2007. To make it worth everyone's while, (and because I like to LOL) I'll be giving away at least one of my books during the day, so even if you like to lurk it's a good idea to drop in and see what to do to win. :-) Plus I'll be posting exerpts of Works in Progress as well as current works, and some other fun stuff.
You do have to sign up for Destiny's yahoo group but it is so worth it, lots and lots of good stuff there! Here's the addy: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/destinyblaine_romance/?yguid=52268
Hope to see you there!
You do have to sign up for Destiny's yahoo group but it is so worth it, lots and lots of good stuff there! Here's the addy: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/destinyblaine_romance/?yguid=52268
Hope to see you there!
Sunday, October 7, 2007
E-mail and Promo opps...
My e-mail was piling up something fierce over the last month or so. I'd get 100 or so e-mails read and get up the next morning and there'd be 200 more. Yikes! But I'm happy to say that today I finally got through it all and read everything and I'm excited to say that I found 3 free marketing opportunities in there. For those of you that have checking out the blog here, you know I'm running a contest right now and all you have to do to enter is come up with a unique marketing tip. Whoever has the most unique and useful tip will win a copy of my science fiction romance Getting Out Alive!
One author I ran across is putting up a Halloween page where authors can promo their book by having the cover art, blurb, and what they like best about Halloween. I thought that as far as unique ideas go, this one is great! Another one I noticed some other authors doing was that they having a Halloween part on October 30th on their yahoo groups where authors can post promo and exerpts and such. Again, a really unique and great idea.
Then I ran across another e-mail where Romance Junkies (they're a review site for those of you who don't know) will promote you, and one of your books if you give away a copy of one of your books and one other thing like a box of herbal tea as I'm doing, but it can be any other thing besides a book. They're offering both a Halloween and a Christmas promo opportunity. I of course jumped right on that.
All these ideas are really fantastic, and best of all FREE! I hope you find them as helpful as I did.
One author I ran across is putting up a Halloween page where authors can promo their book by having the cover art, blurb, and what they like best about Halloween. I thought that as far as unique ideas go, this one is great! Another one I noticed some other authors doing was that they having a Halloween part on October 30th on their yahoo groups where authors can post promo and exerpts and such. Again, a really unique and great idea.
Then I ran across another e-mail where Romance Junkies (they're a review site for those of you who don't know) will promote you, and one of your books if you give away a copy of one of your books and one other thing like a box of herbal tea as I'm doing, but it can be any other thing besides a book. They're offering both a Halloween and a Christmas promo opportunity. I of course jumped right on that.
All these ideas are really fantastic, and best of all FREE! I hope you find them as helpful as I did.
Tuesday, October 2, 2007
Romance Galleria Chat...
Sadly no one appeared for my Romance Galleria Chat so it is being rescheduled. Hopefully for the 22nd of this month, but we'll see. As much as I posted online about this event, and told others I'm very surprised that I had no one attend, other than my brother. I began letting people know a month in advance and sent out reminders the evening before the event to the same people. Maybe everyone was busy, I know that happens sometimes, or maybe it was the idea of having to download some software in order to participate. I know that sometimes people get scared off by this idea because there is so much freeware out there with spyware attached. Although I can attest to the fact that there is no spyware attached to the Romance Galleria software.
Here's what I did to let people know:
1. Posted an announcement to as many of my writer/reader yahoo groups as I could both a month in advance and reminders the night before the event.
2. Posted to my newsletter and discussion group again a month in advance and then the night before.
3. Posted a bulletin to my myspace friends.
4. Told my family and friends about the event so they could participate.
Now at this point I only do free advertising for my books, and events because my budget is quite small for marketing, in fact pretty much non-existant for the most part.
I'd like to know if my readers can come up with some better ideas for getting the word out about events such as these. In fact I'd like to run a little contest here for that.
Here's how the contest will work, whoever posts what I think is the best no-cost marketing idea for getting the word out about an event such as this will win an e-book copy of my science fiction romance Getting Out Alive.
So, post your ideas in the comments. I'll choose a winner on November 1, 2007.
Good Luck!
Here's what I did to let people know:
1. Posted an announcement to as many of my writer/reader yahoo groups as I could both a month in advance and reminders the night before the event.
2. Posted to my newsletter and discussion group again a month in advance and then the night before.
3. Posted a bulletin to my myspace friends.
4. Told my family and friends about the event so they could participate.
Now at this point I only do free advertising for my books, and events because my budget is quite small for marketing, in fact pretty much non-existant for the most part.
I'd like to know if my readers can come up with some better ideas for getting the word out about events such as these. In fact I'd like to run a little contest here for that.
Here's how the contest will work, whoever posts what I think is the best no-cost marketing idea for getting the word out about an event such as this will win an e-book copy of my science fiction romance Getting Out Alive.
So, post your ideas in the comments. I'll choose a winner on November 1, 2007.
Good Luck!
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