Happy 2023
January 10, 2023 by Tari Jewett in category Charmed Writer by Tari Lynn Jewett, Writing tagged as new release, romantic comedyHappy 2023 Everyone!
This year promises major changes for Hunky Hubby and me. The first half of the year I’m watching our 21-month-old grandson full time, which, of course, means that little writing will be done! I’m okay with this…more than okay. I never expected this time with Milo, and I couldn’t have been given a better gift. My daughter-in-law is a preschool teacher, so once he turns two, he’ll head to school with her. It’ll be hard to let him go. Milo loves books, just like his grandmother, and my favorite part of the day is when he brings me a book to read to him.
Then, in July, about the time Milo goes off to preschool with his mom, Hunky Hubby retires. He’s worked hard as long as I’ve known him, and I’m excited for retirement, although he’s already talking about his next job, lol. Not sure how much of a retirement it will really be.
Speaking of hunks, I do have a little writing news. For those of you who have read the #HermosafortheHolidays series, I have a bonus story releasing in the Imperfect Date anthology. Many of you asked for a story for Rob, a fireman in #12DancingSantas. So, when the opportunity to write a romcom to be published in an anthology with this amazing group of authors, I jumped at the chance to tell Rob’s story. #DumpsterFireLove is one of the twenty-two stories, by fabulous romcom authors in this collection that drops on February 7th, just in time to curl up with a fire in the fireplace, and a glass of wine, or an electric blanket and a cup of cocoa, and get all of the romantic Valentine’s feels. I hope you’ll check it out! You can preorder now for just $2.99 at Amazon!
For more updates on my books, recipes from the stories, and more sign up for my newsletter!
In the meantime, what are your plans for 2023? I’d love to know!
You Can Go the Distance by Kitty Bucholtz
January 10, 2023 by Kitty Bucholtz in category It's Worth It by Kitty Bucholtz, Writing tagged as Classes, coaching, writingHappy New Year! The thing I love about mornings, Mondays, and January is that it’s a great time to start again. Today is the first full working week of the year for me and I’m excited. I’m making plans and figuring out, of the hundreds of things I want to do, how much I can get done this year and what things are most important to me.
Decades of experience shows me there’s no way I can accomplish everything, not even the most important things. 😀 So I’ve been telling myself — like when you get on or off a train in the city — to Mind the Gap. Be aware that, in addition to my Everything list, my Most Important list is too long to finish in a year. But I also want to keep training my brain to believe that I CAN do what’s necessary. Even if my conscious mind doesn’t know how to do that, my unconscious can figure out some things that will be nice surprises to me this year.
I want to help you and our other writer friends find ways to get more writing done in a less stressful way this year, too! One way I’ll do that is to reintroduce my online class, Going the Distance: Time and Project Management for Writers. Yay! I’ll post more information about it here. Let me know if you want to join us!
The other way I can help is to share a simple exercise I shared with some of my clients in December. Looking ahead at the whole year, what are the top three things you’d like to accomplish? And for each of those things, what are the top three things you can DO to achieve each item?
That’s it. Simple. Nine tasks to move you toward a satisfying conclusion to the year twelve months from now. 😀 I hope it helps you to have this simple but comprehensive view of the year, no stress, no pages and pages of detailed plans. Just nine tasks.
If you prefer a deeper dive into planning your whole year so that you get the most accomplished that you possibly can, look for details on my upcoming Going the Distance class on my blog over the next week or two! Have a fantastic day and year!
0 1 Read moreJANAURY RECAP
January 5, 2023 by Tracy Reed in category Pink Pad by Tracy Reed, Writing tagged as Marketing, publishing, Tracy Reed, writing, Year in review
Happy New Year…Bonne Année…
Let’s get right into it. It’s that time of year when people make a lot of empty promises to themselves in the form of resolutions. Then they berate themselves when they come up short around the three month mark. The other thing they do in January is recap.
I refuse to allow myself to feel guilty about not completing all of my goals. I take pleasure in the unexpected things that occurred.
So what did I set out to do last year?
Get my letters -Didn’t happen
Triple my income – Didn’t happen. In fact, I finished the year less than 2021
Triple my mailing list – Didn’t happen. I gained about a 600, taking my list to 4000. However, not all of them want to receive email.
Master Facebook Ads – This is one of those ongoing things because Facebook or Meta is always changing. I did learn that I need to upscale for better results.
Update covers – Still working on this one.
Learn how to write a sellable blurb – I’m going to take the easy way out and farm this out. I found a service I like. I’ll still work on getting better, but I’ve learned it’s okay to ask for help
Use Ingram Spark – I loaded one book.
Direct Distribution – Still loading books. Last month I set up my first ebook direct sale from website and Book Funnel.
Increase BookBub US followers to 1000 – I’m 400+ away from my magic number.
Increase my prices -Did this.
Release Three books – Did this. In fact, I also participated in two anthologies and started one of my books for 2023.
I came up short a few times, but I also did some things not on the list I’m proud of.
My first Google sale
My first Eden Books sale
Wrote my first rom con for an anthology for February
Increased the followers on my Facebook passion page.
(I’m shocked about this it’s at 2800+ followers in less than a year)
Wrote my biggest book, so far (107k words)
Started creating large print books
Hired a PA and she’s got me on a regular email schedule
Wrote 300k+ words
Completed NANO
I had one BookBub Featured Deal
(It landed me in the 100 free in the Amazon store. (This was huge.))
So what’s on tap for this year? Everything I didn’t do last year. SMILE. I’m serious. I put those things on my goal list because I had every intention of getting them done. I could easily blame my lack of goal completion on a lot of things, but I’m not. Although, having COVID and searching for a new editor are very legitimate reasons for a schedule interruption. Truth is, I could have put forth a little more effort, but I didn’t.
I’ve already started working on my list and it’s only the fifth day of the month. I really want to get my mailing list to 10k and my BookBub to 1000 US followers. To do so, I joined about five Book Funnel Newsletter promotions. So far, I’ve gained 110 followers. I’ve also joined a BookSweeps BookBub promotion for February. I tried one of these last year and gained a hundred plus new followers.
To sum up, 2022 may not have been the year I planned, but it was a very good year of firsts. There’s a scripture I like that says your latter days will be better. I’m counting on that to come true in 2023.
See you next month.
Rite of Fir
December 30, 2022 by Dianna Sinovic in category Quill and Moss by Dianna Sinovic, Writing tagged as Dianna Sinovic, flash Fiction, köknar, perspective, short story, Winter
Twig stood silent in the silver light of the full moon, listening to the rustle of mice or maybe voles in the dried grasses and brown leaves around her. No snow yet, but with the crystal clarity of the December night sky slowly being consumed by the advancing clouds, it was likely by morning.
Dipping into the deep shadows of the trees, she walked quickly back to the cabin. The stack of wood on the porch should be enough to last through the storm.
In the smaller of the two bedrooms, Kayla lay asleep, snoring softly. Twig closed the door to the room and brought in more wood from the porch for the fire.
It was nearly midnight, and Charlie had yet to show up. Just like him, to promise and not deliver.
Twig decided to wait up in case he texted that he was lost. From the cabinet near the kitchen, she took out twine, cloth ribbon and glue. She’d make a köknar, for the season, even if just for their short stay. Her grandmother had taught her how when she was nine, and Twig had made one every year since then. One day she would show Kayla how to make her own.
She set her supplies on the coffee table and sat cross-legged on the rag rug to begin her work. The bough of balsam fir she’d cut in the afternoon wasn’t exactly the right shape, but Grandma Pati said any shape would work if you looked at it from the right perspective. That was true for many things in life, Twig knew. Like her own situation.
Likewise, the story of the köknar could be appreciated from different angles, depending on the weaver of the tale. It was a talisman of good luck. Or it represented winter, with the needles and twine standing in for ice and the thread of family and friendship. Or the red cloth ribbon spoke of the new buds of spring, still months away. The version Twig preferred was that the köknar whispered an alluring call to the sun, inviting it to stay aloft a few minutes longer each day.
By the time she heard Charlie’s SUV outside, she had finished the form. When she opened the cabin door to welcome him, the clearing was covered in fresh snow, the flakes still falling thickly. She hung her creation on the nail she’d driven in last year, their first year in that place, free finally from a past that was better forgotten.
Charlie slipped a strap over his shoulder and grabbed the handle of another suitcase. The falling snow turned his head white and speckled his beard.
“You’re here,” she said. Her shoulders relaxed. The weekend would be good after all.
“The interstate’s a mess,” he said, reaching the porch and setting down his bags. “No cell service. I was afraid I’d have to pull off and spend the night and then come the rest of the way tomorrow. Kayla’s asleep?”
She nodded. His embrace pulled her tight and she felt him shiver slightly. “You’re cold. Get inside. I’ve kept the fire up, knowing you’d show up soon.”
He paused at the doorway, staring at the köknar. “You made one.” His voice held wonder, and Twig felt her eyes smart. He’d watched her fashion one last winter, asking questions, holding a knot in place while she glued.
“I did. Just this evening.”
Charlie picked up his bags and smiled at her. “Then we’re safe.”
As she shut the door after him, Twig briefly touched the woven bough. “Do your best,” she whispered.
Some of Dianna’s Books
Dipped in Chocolate: How I researched THE ORPHANS OF BERLIN and loved every minute by Jina Bacarr
December 11, 2022 by Jina Bacarr in category Jina’s Book Chat, Writing tagged as chocolate, historical fiction, historical romance, romance, World War 2Do you remember the hilarious scene in an episode of ‘I Love Lucy’ where Lucy and Ethel are working in a candy factory and the conveyor belt speeds up and they stuff their mouths with gourmet chocolates?
Pure heaven…
I didn’t have that experience, but I did have a blast researching the art of chocolate up close and personal for The Orphans of Berlin, tasting and munching on creams and caramels to my little heart’s content.
Then running on the treadmill for hours…
It was worth it.
I wanted to get a feel for what it was like to grow up in the world of chocolate like my debutante-heroine Kay Alexander and become familiar with how candy is made… as well as its importance during World War 2 when Ration D chocolate bars were loaded with vitamins and included in every soldier’s military ration kit.
It all started in 1868 when Kay’s candy-loving, Irish great-grandfather started a candy business called ‘Radwell’s French Chocolates’. Being a candy heiress gives Kay the opportunity to spare no expense getting Jewish children out of Nazi Germany.
I discovered a publication called the ‘Confectioners and Bakers Gazette’ which detailed the candy business from 1896 – 1930, including candy factories in Philadelphia (in 1908, there were twenty-five factories in the US manufacturing chocolate). I find it odd it ceased publication during the Depression since candy sales boomed during those lean years, including Radwell’s French chocolates.
‘Sorority Chocolates’ were a big seller reputed to reach seventy-five million customers, appealing to high school girls, their moms, aunts, and grandmas.
Other notable facts include the use of synthetic vanilla called vanillin even back then; but as any Christmas cookie baker will tell you, real vanilla in his cookies is what makes Santa smile.
I also read books on chocolates and searched the Internet for chocolatier’s ‘secrets’ and favorite recipes to come up with my own special chocolates for the Radwell’s brand.
Here are a few samples for your taste delight:
Renoir Dark Chocolate Bars
Hand-dipped, chocolate-covered squares
… topped with a swirl of buttercream
Caramels de Vendôme
Dark chocolate
… filled with honey caramel and vanilla ganache
Truffles à l’Opéra
Bittersweet chocolate
…filled with raspberry ganache
Montmartre Mints
Dark chocolate thin mints
… with flecks of almonds
Versailles Soft Creams
Dark chocolate hearts
… filled with raspberry buttercream
Notre-Dame Angels
White chocolate truffles
… filled with pecans and vanilla ganache
I invite you to give yourself a treat when you’re reading The Orphans of Berlin. Stock up on your favorite chocolates filled with creamy mousse, rich ganache… and decadent truffles.
I dip my fingers into the box of gourmet chocolates and grab the last piece. A raspberry dark chocolate truffle. Mm… delicious. A gift from the candy gods.
Ah, the travails of a writer’s research… a tough job.
But somebody’s got to do it, n’est-ce pas?
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