How is your new year coming so far?
One thing about January, you have made all those resolutions and you have set new goals. You are on your way to becoming the best author on the planet and you’ve written above and beyond your quota for the month.
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| Start of nine mile hike Picos de Europa National Park, Spain |
Is anyone raising their hand?
Yes! We are smiling just as I’m sure you are smiling.
But let me ask this question--at what cost?
The end of the month is coming up. SpeedBo is on its way. And we’re running at full speed.
But have we forgotten something?
My fervent wish for you is that you haven’t forgotten your first love.
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| The cross at Fatima, Portugal |
And this thought seems to be the club I’m getting hit over the head with lately.
Seek HIM FIRST. Then all else will fall into place. You know I have heard that so many times, but this month it seems to finally be sinking down from my head and into my heart.
I can write lists, check them off and keep on truckin’ but to be honest, I don’t see results unless I SIT QUIET and LISTEN and WAIT. Which seems so opposite of what I think I must do. And the amazing thing is, when I do SIT QUIET and LISTEN and WAIT things go so smooth that it takes my breath away. And things happen that I don’t even plan for. Does the story of Martha and Mary resonate with you?
So the wisdom I’m hoping to impart here is to go for your goals, but remember to stop and sit quiet and listen. This is the time to pray and meditate.
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| Beach at Matacanas National Preserve, Spain |
“So God Blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work he had done.” Genesis 2:3 New American Bible
Now if God needs a day of rest--so do you.
And if you leave a comment relevant to this subject you can be included into a drawing for a copy of JESUS CALLS by Sarah Young. This is a daily devotional that really helps me stay grounded.
Okay, now for the next topic of discussion.
Audible.com and Audible CX.
I am on such a learning curve with the audio books. I just finished listening to Mary Connealy’s SWEPT AWAY and loved it. I have discovered that I really love the audio books. Mind you, they don’t replace that good time feeling you get when you have a real book in your hand, but I rarely have time for that anymore. And when I do sit down to read, I fall asleep. Now there’s my age telling on me. chuckle
So audio books are a wonderful solution. And as you read in an earlier post of mine, I have been in the process of putting my books into audio format.
If anyone is thinking of doing this, you will want this information I recently learned.
Typical of me, I have been learning some aspects of the program the hard way. For example, every time I go into audible.com and look up my first audio book, LOVE’S MIRACLES, it shows for sale for $1.99. I’m thinking, wow, what a screaming deal. But I don’t know why it is at that price. Unlike KDP (ebook indie pubbing) I don’t set the price to sell my audio. AudioCX sets the price. So I have been afraid to advertise that price because I have no idea how long they are going to offer at that price. I did put it on Facebook once. And thankfully only once. So I thought I better call audio and find out the scoop. Thankfully I did because the reason I can buy the audio for $1.99 is because I have the ebook. So any of you who bought or downloaded for free the Kindle version of LOVE’S MIRACLES can get it for that price. Actually you can get bargain prices on any audio title that you already have the ebook copy as long as you have an audible.com account.
Am I the only dummy out here or is this news to any of you?
The other information I learned is that when an audio book is published, the reviews you have for the ebook or print book do not roll into audible.com. Audible.com wants their own reviews because not only are you getting a review for the story, but also for the narrator. In other words the narrator is an equally important element of an audio book as the author’s story. And this is true. I have heard some audio books that might have been great books, but the narrator was so annoying I couldn’t even finish listening to the whole selection.
So when I asked the the support technician (his name was Justin and he, like the rest of his staff, was wonderful) why the reviews weren’t there and he explained the above rationale, he asked me why I didn’t get reviews. Evidently I was supposed to get 25 free copies to send to reviewers. Because I was in Spain when my audio version came out, I didn’t get them.
Guess what? I now have 25 codes to give away 25 free audio copies of LOVE’S MIRACLES if anyone wants to commit to writing a review.
And another exciting bit of news. LOVE’S REFUGE just came out in audible.com. Now it will take a couple weeks for the pricing to sync up with Amazon so you won’t see the reduced price yet. But all of you who downloaded a free copy of LOVE’S REFUGE will soon be able to get the audio at the reduced price also.
And since LOVE’S REFUGE is now available in audio, I have 25 free audio copies to give away to anyone who wants to commit to writing a review of it. If you didn’t obtain a free download of the kindle version of LOVE’S REFUGE on Christmas or New Year’s it is available for free tomorrow--January 29th. (Sorry, it was supposed to be free today but there was a glitch so it will be tomorrow-hopefully)
Just for your information, if you’ve already written a review you won’t have to rewrite the review of the story. You can use the same information, but they do want your opinion of the narrator.
Rachel Fuginiti narrated both versions. We interviewed her on Seekerville in October in the article The World of Audio CX. So we are both interested in those reviews.
If you would be willing to listen and write a review contact me and I will send you the promo code to obtain the free audio.
- Go to my website contact page
- Fill in Name and email (No need to fill out all the other info)
- In the comment section put down which ebook you want to review.
- I will email you instructions and promo code to obtain free audio
Now for the last topic of discussion.
What wonderful romantic holiday is on the horizon?
VALENTINE’S DAY
But I have another idea.
What better gift than to give a romance novel? Well an autographed romance novel is better.
The advantages of giving that special someone a romance novel:
- It is romantic and filled with love
- It costs less than a greeting card and stamp (stamps just went up in price again)
- It lasts longer than a greeting card and stamp
- It isn’t fattening like chocolate
- It doesn’t fade away like flowers
- It puts your special someone in a good mood
- It supports your fellow authors
- It supports your industry
If you comment on this topic you will be in for a drawing of a Seeker book of your choice. I have some print copies on hand or you can choose an ebook.
The city of Glendale really knows how to celebrate this holiday. The weekend before Valentine's Day, they put on a wonderful fair called the Chocolate Affair. The Carerra Chocolate Factory is located in Glendale and they sponsor booths and pass out chocolate. The Valley of the Sun RWA romance writers provide a booth to sell books and feature authors to sign them. They also provide workshops for aspiring authors. Tina and I will be giving workshops and signing books. So if you are in the area, please stop by and pick up an autographed book for that special friend.
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| The Glendale Chocolate Affair |
Happy writing. And happy resting.
