Things have been pretty crazy around here. I (nearly) finished up my blog tour for Viral Blues this week. The big climax was the Something Wicked tour with all my Story Empire friends. I like to reblog my appearances in hopes of sending the host a bit of traffic. For that leg of the tour, I had my own guest that day and could not post over the top of them. They deserved the spotlight, and brought us some wonderful options for Halloween reading.
I say almost finished, because I have one interview that will post on Halloween. It promises to be a good interview, and I’ll share it here. Then, that’s it for Viral Blues. I’ll watch for reviews, and if they’re on BookBub I can tweet them out. BookBub is starting to warm on me. I need more followers there, and am willing to follow back.
This is where I come to a rift between heart and head. My heart wants to return to drafting of new material. I still have two projects in the works, and one of them is near conclusion. I also have some fun ideas for the Lanternfish sequel, but it is lagging a bit behind. I may have a little maneuvering room here this coming week.
My head is telling me to release Serang. This one is a supporting story to Lanternfish, and not part of the main trilogy. I made big strides toward publishing today, and expect to publish it next week.
This may actually be a cover reveal. I don’t recall sharing the image before. With Serang, I’ll need to do a bit of promotion. I’ll do a blog tour, but I don’t think it will be as extensive. I only have two specific pieces of Lisa Burton art, plus I can recycle the one from Lanternfish. I haven’t even started writing posts yet, so that’s going to eat into my time.
I have my concerns about this story, but I freak out about all my releases. Lanternfish had comedy bits, and they were well received. Serang was one of the more serious pirates, and her origin story will be serious, too. (Sorry to disappoint those comedy fans.) I have some neat settings and situations in the story, so we’ll all find out together. The few coming-of-age stories I’ve written were well received, so fingers crossed. A lot of things about Serang are explained in this story.
My wiggle room is in the form of vacation, paid vacation. I’m getting paid to be an author. (Don’t laugh, I’m counting it as a win.) I don’t have to return to work until Halloween. Old What’s Her Face is out of town for a couple of days, and that helps, too.
I’ll spend the next few days dabbling with blurb ideas, maybe cobble together some promotional posts. I’ll check my list of potential hosts, and see who I haven’t put the touch on lately. I really have no idea who I’m going to ask.
I may even pull up that nearly finished draft and add a chapter to it. It’s science fiction, so it won’t tangle with any fantasy ideas I’m working on.
No matter what, I’m breaking for the World Series. I still have a few remaining pumpkin beers and can’t be expected to work all the time. I don’t have a favorite team, and nobody this year has me cheering against them either. So far the games have been great, and I hope they continue on that path.
Let me hear from you. Are you watching the Series? Do you have a favorite team? Am I crazy for releasing another book on the heels of Viral Blues? Do you like or hate the cover? Are you sick of all this book promo?
Well, now that you ask, promotion has been a little intense lately. Hope you have a super writing weekend.
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I agree. It’s time to get back to sourdough and maybe some word metrics. I want this one out the door in 2019, so I’m forging ahead. The funny part is, until last week, it was about one per week.
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I thought the World Series was over. Then again, I’m in New York, so people stopped talking about it once the Yankees lost. I like the cover and do see how releasing another book right after ‘Viral Blues’ can be tough, especially if they aren’t connected. On the plus side, you did a bunch of promos already and people are looking in your direction now. It could help the new book. On the down side, they can get tangled in each other because you can’t do a lot of promo work with ‘Serang’ without repeating locations you were just at with ‘Viral Blues’. Not sure if this helps, but have you considered releasing ‘Serang’ around the same time as the ‘Lanternfish’ sequel since they are connected?
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I can see that about New York. I would do a double release if Serang were a 99¢ special. It’s a full sized novel, so it deserves some kind of promo. Maybe I can find places I didn’t visit on the first tour. I’m not going to make as many stops, though.
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Good idea since it’s a full-sized book.
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I love that you’re releasing another book! Damn the torpedoes, full steam ahead! 🙂 But seriously, it’s wonderful and exciting. So happy for you!
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I want to clear the deck, so I can forge ahead with writing.
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This is always a good plan. 🙂
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If it’s ready to go, send it out in to the world. Then you know you’re free to work on the next one. Plus, it’s an excuse to get your name mentioned in a couple of other spots without having to start repeating yourself too much with post content.
Enjoy your potential writing days, and some relaxation time with your pumpkin beer.
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Thanks. I’d love to have a clear slate for the winter months. Nothing to worry about but new material.
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I’m not sick of the promos, I’m taking notes. ☺
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Ha ha! I may have to start releasing two at once, then touring them together.
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Well, I have my next novella coming out next month, so the information is useful right away.
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I have enjoyed the Viral Blues posts you have shared, Craig. I think if you have interesting content in the post, it doesn’t matter if it is linked to a particular book.
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I try to make them all unique and interesting. Glad you enjoyed them.
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I haven’t watched baseball in a coon’s age (is that still an expression?) but I get an update on Sirius Radio’s the Mashup on my way to work. Ryan and Stan are particularly good at letting me know what’s going on.
When you release a book you have to promo. No two ways about it, and if you release two books close together, that’s part of the program. You also had the SE Something Wicked tour in there, so it probably seems like there has been no break at all from promo.
I won’t be haunting the blogosphere during November due to NaNo, but I will be happy to make an exception for you and Serang. Just let me know!
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Promo is what we have to do, Craig, anytime we have a new release. I opened “Viral Blues” last night and so far, I’m hooked! A review will be forthcoming. As for launching two close together. Who the heck knows? Just go for it. One thing about our books, we can continue to promote them forever, so it’s not just a one-shot deal. Serang’s cover is interesting and intense, as I have a feeling the story will be too! Congrats!
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I’ve been waiting for Serang for a long time, so the sooner, the better. I have rewrites to do all next week and I’m critiquing a friend’s manuscript all next week in the evenings, so no fun reading for me for a minute. But I’ve volunteered and I’m volunteering again to host Serang whenever you’re ready!
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I’ll take you up on it. I think it came out well and am excited about it. Think about whether you want me or Lisa to visit and I’ll email you in a couple of days.
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World Series… is that baseball?
Ah, you know how I feel about book promotion; a necessary evil and one I’m not looking forward to. That said, I’m happy to help any way I can 🤗
Love the cover. Very cool, very evocative.
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It’s baseball. Usually only important to Americans, but it is popular around the Pacific Rim. I’ll keep you in mind when the time comes. If nothing else, the cover ought to stand out on a sea of thumbnails. Sean used some bright colors this time.
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🤗
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The only way I know it’s World Series time is when hubby is flipping channels and pauses on it long enough to complain. I really like the vibrant colors in the cover – and if you need help with promo, you’re always welcome at my place.
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Thanks, Teri. Those colors ought to stand out in a sea of thumbnails.
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Look at the big time off on Craig! 😀 That’s fantastic! And some solitude, too. Release away. I think releases are exciting. Why not have more excitement while you have time to enjoy it? Sounds like a plan.
I do like the cover, because I could look at it and know it’s yours without your name on it.
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That’s really interesting. Maybe Sean (artist) and I have been hanging out too much. It’s coming, and I’m doing another damned blog tour. There are some people who I didn’t hit up for Viral Blues, so it will be in new places. One day I’ll think up something so amazing my crater becomes a tourist attraction. Until then, I’ll keep doing what worked in the past.
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Always nice to clear out what is ready to go so that you can work on new stuff without thinking about the stuff that is ready, but not out yet.
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