Why Author Giveaways Are Great for Writers and Readers Alike

I am so happy! I have won five books this month from author giveaways. The good news is that I’ve got lots of great reading ahead. And I will do a review for each one on this blog and on other sites as well, along with a review of A Luminous Future by Teodor Flonta (which I didn’t win). Watch to find out what I say about each one, and if you would like me to do a review of your book, post a comment here or on one of the review posts. I will be honest, but know that I am a generally positive person and I only offer constructive criticism if any.

At first, giving away my book for free seemed counterproductive. Then, I remembered why I wrote it. I had an important and interesting story to tell, and I wanted others to read it. It is exciting when my friends and family read the book. So far, they have all been very enthusiastic about it. And let me tell you, this is not an enthusiastic bunch on most days.

It is fun to hear them telling me the story as if I don’t know what’s in it. They tell me what they thought and felt when they were reading the book, and they seem quite fascinated and moved. Just what I wanted! It builds my confidence more than ever.

I have also done other giveaways as well. All but one person has reviewed it. The ones who posted on Amazon gave me five stars, seemed very happy to have read it and excited to tell other people about it. That’s not just good publicity, but it is also good will. Now, they are looking forward to my next book. I can’t wait to finish it and make it available for them to read.

I got two reviews on GoodReads as well. Both readers only gave me three out of five stars. But, face it: GoodReads members tend to be tough. Most of them have read many, many books, and are sometimes comparing my books to the greats of literature. Well, this is my first book, after all, and I don’t expect to measure up to those standards.

Even though the two GoodReads author giveaway winners didn’t give me five stars, they were very positive in their reviews. In addition, they pointed out a few things that they would have liked to see more of in the book. Their advice was very helpful for the most part. And in the end, both of them recommended my book.

If you are a first time author, I would suggest that you do author giveaways too. You don’t have to give a signed print copy, either. All of the books I won were either PDF files or Kindle downloads. So, it doesn’t have to be any great cost for you, if any at all.

Giving away your book to just a few readers is a great way to connect with your audience and get people reading and talking about your book. I give author giveaways five stars, and I would recommend them to authors and readers alike!

I am doing several giveaways in September as a part of my blog tour. I will add a post with all my blog dates and URL’s so you can enter if you wish. Each winner will get a signed copy of my first novel, Loving the Missing Link.

In the meantime, check out this great giveaway by another author. She is giving away several Kindle Fire ereaders. That’s right, I said Kindle Fire! What a great way to thank readers and expose her work to people on social media. Here’s the Link: http://bit.ly/17aF9ji

Best of Luck on all your giveaways, both the ones you enter and the ones you sponsor.

And, as always, happy reading to all of you!

I Finally Found My Genre!

Not being up on all the latest publishing trends, I struggled to categorize my novel, Loving the Missing Link. I did want to put it into a category so people would have some idea of what they were getting. Yet, it seemed to be its own unique entity – I had never read a book quite like it. When I wrote it, I wasn’t thinking about these things. I was only writing what was in my mind and in my heart. Here’s why it didn’t seem to fit into the old categories.

Young Adult (YA)

It dealt with issues that young adults are not ready to tackle. Like leaving home, exploring sexuality, struggling with career choices, making your own home. By putting the label of YA on it, I would be telling the world that children could read it. Certainly, some midgrade and teens would be able to get it, but I think the parents would need to be involved to make that call. It is not an obscene book, but it does imply sex and sometimes puts a positive spin on things parents might want to talk to their child about – like teen marriage and infidelity. So, YA didn’t seem quite right.

Coming of Age

It is a coming of age story, but it is about the coming of age that happens not only in your teens, but also in your 20’s. It is sort of a crossbreed. By saying it’s a coming of age novel, I would imply that it is about the teen years. Cheryl, my protagonist goes through a coming of age gone wrong in her teen years. It is only in her 20’s that she finds herself, as well as exploring all those grownup issues. I listed it as coming of age on Amazon simply because I didn’t see a category that fit better. Yet, that wasn’t quite right either.

Literary

I was told by a writer who has been published multiple times by traditional publishers that it should be in the literary genre. However, I felt that my story was too simple for that. I have taken as many college classes as I could squeeze into my life – figuring out to be about midway through the Junior year of college. But I don’t want to give readers the wrong idea. I don’t want to claim to be a master of fiction, but that is what I think the literary genre implies. I am still learning, and have a lot more to learn. I think my story is a good one, and every reader who has reviewed it or contacted me has recommended it to others. I would love to think it is high art, but I feel presumptuous making that claim.

Finally Found It!

Just this month, I discovered the New Adult category. It is not listed on CreateSpace as a category yet, so I couldn’t label it as such there. But, the gist of it is that a New Adult book is supposed to cover issues like…leaving home, exploring sexuality and making career choices. Sound familiar? It did to me too.

Many people have maligned this new category. Some see it as a marketing scheme, but don’t all writers need to market their books? Anyway, I didn’t write it with marketing in mind. I just realized after it was written that it needed to be set apart in some way so readers would immediately say, “Oh, that’s what it is!” I understand that not everyone is familiar with the new genre of New Adult. After all, I just found out about it this month myself. But as the genre gains momentum, my book will already be on the shelves, one of the trailblazers that helped define the genre.

If you don’t know much about the New Adult category, just do a Google search. There is lots of information about it. Some of it is negative and other articles and blogs are positive about it. I encourage you to learn about both sides of the issue.

And read my previous blog post called “Coming of Age – What Is It, Really?” You’ll know why it makes sense to me to call Loving the Missing Link a New Adult novel.

“Loving the Missing Link” Begins

To say my novel is just beginning is certainly stretching it a bit. It started out as a short story a long time ago. Since then, the story has grown and blossomed. I am busy writing again, building on the original story to create fuller lives for my characters. I hope you will follow along as I go through the process of writing, editing and publishing “Loving the Missing Link.”

Right now, I am roughly 1/3rd of the way through my first draft. Although I am a full-time writer, I spend a lot of time working for other people to pay the bills and to save for ePublishing services. No matter what kind of writing I am doing at the moment, I enjoy it and find it incredibly exciting.

I have been networking with some other writers, too. One piece of advice that I really needed was: “Finish your first draft before you do your edits. Never, never do a major rewrite before you get through it once.”

It makes sense the more I think about it. Without knowing where I am going with the story, I do not know how to edit effectively. Once I do, though, I will tear it to shreds if I have to in order to make the most of my ideas. Besides, rules may be meant to be broken, but I think you have to be dead familiar with the rules before you understand when to break them. But only time will tell…

With my early draft of “Loving the Missing Link,” I am telling the story of a young woman who finds it hard to find hope in the world. Her mother, on the other hand, is brimming with exciting plans. The trouble is, the mother’s plans never seem to work out. My protagonist, Cheryl, feels even more hopeless every time her mother fails.

It is a sad story, in a way, but Cheryl has a wry sense of humor. She is a little sarcastic at times, I have to admit. I am using the first-person narrative to show how she assesses her life and how she feels prone to react.

At the current point in my writing, Cheryl has finally made it our of her tiny town and into a bigger little town. She shuns hope, but I believe she will ultimately find it. The story is in its infancy really, even though a part of it was written over a decade ago. It is a big, whiny baby, waiting for me to spend time with it and nurture it into full-fledged reality. I am ready to spend those extra hours. As I do, I will be checking back in with updates on my book and my writing experience. Stay with me to the end, and I will give you a story that will touch you deeply. Along the way, I hope to add a bit of Cheryl’s sense of humor to the mix. Come along and enjoy the ride!