Tuesday, December 29, 2015
Monday, December 28, 2015
Quirky Comedy with January Jones
I had the pleasure of doing some Quirky Comedy with January Jones on her successful radio show. In addition to Blog Talk Radio, January Jones Sharing Success Stories can also be heard on iHeart Radio. Give it a listen: http://www.iheart.com/show/53-January-Jones-Sharing-Succ/?episode_id=27414045
Wednesday, December 23, 2015
The Legend of Mistletoe
Have you ever wondered why people kiss under the mistletoe? First and foremost, people do it because they can! And why not? Who
couldn't use a good smack-a-roo to celebrate the season? The Greeks
were on to this idea back in the days when they used to celebrate
Saturnalia and then later as part of some primitive marriage rites.
The thinking was that
mistletoe might have the power to bestow fertility.
In Scandinavia, mistletoe
was considered a plant of peace, underwhich enemies could declare a
truce or bickering spouses could kiss and make-up. Either way, these
people had more great ideas than just Swedish Fish and Ikea, although
they rank right up there.
The English kicked it up a
notch in the 18th century, creating a kissing ball made up
of mistletoe, evergreens, ribbons and ornaments. This created what I
can only imagine was truly a sticky wicket. If a woman dared to
stand under the ball, she couldn't refuse to be kissed, no matter
what toad might rush in to take advantage of the situation. And if
no one took her up on the offer, it was believed that she couldn't
expect to marry during the following year. That only stands to
reason if you think about it. If no one wants a free kiss during the
Christmas season, they're probably not thinking of laying on on at
Easter.
The Brits were no dummies,
building an escape clause into the whole kissing ball phenomena. In
some parts of England, mistletoe was burned on the twelfth night in
hopes that certain boys and girls who kissed under it will never
marry. The lesson here would be not to kiss in front of your
parents!
Things may have changed, but one thing remains true: now is the best time of year to kiss someone under the mistletoe! Merry Christmas one and all!
Tuesday, December 22, 2015
Tuesday, December 15, 2015
Q & A with Author Alison Perry
Today I have the pleasure of sharing a little information about Alison Perry, the author of the Hell's Belles series of stories. I listened to the series as an audiobook and was curious about some of the formatting choices for presenting this material. I applaud Alison for trying something different. One of the great things about being an "indie" author is that you have more choice in how to deliver stories to readers and listeners. I hope you enjoy learning more about Alison Perry and the Hell's Belles series, available for sale on Amazon and Audible.com
http://www.amazon.com/Alison-Perry/e/B00YYK0GC4
Your
first three audiobooks average around two hours with an on-going
plot. Why did you choose to go this route as opposed to having one
longer audiobook?
Honestly,
if I could go back I would probably bundle them into one audiobook. I
was just hoping to offer my readers another way to hear the story of
Hell's Belles. I do like that they're short because I feel like
they're perfect for a commute or part of a long drive. But I also get
that it's not very economical for readers. So for that reason, I wish
I had done it differently. And I probably will end up bundling them
once Books 4 and 5 are out.
How
do you get listeners/readers to come back for each new book?
Well,
I love a cliffhanger. Which is evident with these books! I try to
leave the listener hanging a little bit, just like the episodic radio
shows I used to listen to as a kid.
Is
there a Hell's Belles Four in the making? If so, when is the expected
release date?
There
is a Hell's Belles Four release coming out! I am publishing it in
January so the audiobook should be available sometime in February,
depending on my narrator's schedule.
Your
books are also available in Kindle and paperback. Which format has
been most successful for you?
By
far eBook has been more successful for me, but audio is definitely in
second!
Rebecca
Schwab does a very nice job of narrating your books. How did you find
out about Rebecca?
Rebecca
is so awesome. I completely found her by pure luck. I was listening
to many narrators on ACX and I stumbled upon her audition for another
book and I could just hear my main character's voice when she read. I
emailed her praying she would agree to do the project, and she did! I
am so lucky to have found her.She has her own home studio and the
sound is so impressive. Just as great as any professional studio.
How
do you market your projects?
I
use promotional sites and I depend a lot on my social media
followings to get the word out. I am slowly building a mailing list
as well. I have found audiobookblast.com
was awesome for getting the word out on my audiobooks.
Do you have any advice for aspiring writers?
Wednesday, December 9, 2015
Tuesday, December 8, 2015
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