Wednesday Wisdom for Writers and Those Who Love Them

"Fiction is about stuff that's screwed up." —Nancy Kress


Someone commented recently that researching the dark things must be terrible. She was right. It is terrible when you consider that research is based on reality.

Red Tide's research taught me about Human Remains Detection dogs and the difficult but magnificent job they do every day. In The Missings I learned about the vast number of people waiting for an organ transplant, and the fact that many of those people are removed from the list not because they received an organ, but because they died while waiting.

In The Sacrifice I learned more about Santeria than I ever wanted to know and I certainly would never want to embrace it in my private life. The book I'm working on now, tentatively titled Trafficked, deals with the horror of human trafficking. While Santeria is a choice, being trafficked is most certainly not—which makes the research that much more oppressive, frustrating, thought-provoking, and infuriating.

But here's where fiction comes in: I can make the bad guys pay. I can create a satisfactory outcome that sadly, reality just can't achieve on a regular basis. I can help a character find his or her personal strength. They don't always have to be the victim.

In fiction, I can share information that might help open others eyes as it did mine, without making readers feel completely depressed and unequipped.

And no animals are ever killed.



Just sayin'.



It's all better with friends.

RED TIDE's New Cover

I've wanted to get a dog onto the cover of RED TIDE for a long time.

This is a great silhouette of Gretchen, the Human Remains Detection dog who has a nice role in the story.

If you haven't already read it, RED TIDE will be free for Kindle May 17th through May 19th.

***Edit*** Feel free to spread the word.



It's all better with friends.

Arson Dogs

I love doing research for my books.

For Red Tide, I learned about Human Remains Detection Dogs, sometimes referred to as Cadaver Dogs. I purchased a couple of reference books about training and techniques. 

I also learned about Karenia brevis, the name for saxitoxin, sometimes called harmful algal bloom (or HAB), but more commonly called red tide. Fascinating stuff.

With The Missings, I needed to know about organ donation: how it worked and why so many lives were at stake. It was a sad eye-opener.  I also needed to learn a little about undocumented people living in our country. Another sad eye-opener.

Learning more about police procedure was critical, and I will be forever grateful to the crime scene investigators and detectives who helped me make the details shine. And for the police chief of Aspen, Colorado, for helping me with a critical plot point.

In The Missings there's another possibility early in the book explaining deaths in the area, and I had to research cults. The little bit of information I obtained made me want to shut down. The normal presentation of some very dark material bothered me, and I was glad the story I was writing wouldn't be in that place very long. 

But because cults both fascinated and repelled me, I knew that The Sacrifice would have one front and center. I learned about Santeria. 

And I wanted to help bring depression out of the closet. To make depression both real and unashamed, my wonderful, strong, primary male character shows how he's living with it day in and day out without dwelling in it. To me, Mex Anderson and everyone who battles those demons, are heroes. I learned a lot.

And now, I'm writing Flame Game, with a wonderful new dog named Kaji, Japanese for fire.

Here's something I ran across this week. Check it out:

It's all better with friends.

NAME THAT DOG Contest

The new story I'm working on brings back Jamie Taylor and her working dogs in a big way.

In my first book, Red Tide, Jamie and her sister Jax were almost burned alive. Because of that horrific experience Jamie added an accelerant detection dog (sometimes incorrectly referred to as an arson dog) to her family.

Gretchen is the name of her human remains detection dog (sometimes referred to as a cadaver dog).
Socrates (or Socks) is her search and rescue dog.
McKenzie is her medical/therapy dog.

And now there's her accelerant detection dog. He's a golden-lab mix.

Right now I'm calling him Smokey, but that's just too darned predictable. So, I've decided to open up the naming process. Whoever submits the name I choose will win one of my books (your choice), either Kindle or paperback.

If two people suggest the same name (and it's selected), whoever submitted the name first will win their choice of books.

Thanks for your help!



It's all better with friends.

Reader Connection

First, I want to thank all of you for the tremendous reception you've shown for my new release. THE SACRIFICE scared me just a little because it was different from either of my earlier two books. Thank you for the warm reception.

To celebrate it going live, I put RED TIDE up for free for three days (ending Thursday, 10/24) and THE MISSINGS at a bargain price of only $1.99 which will end Friday.

And here's this odd little thing I'm working through… when I look at the numbers, the first thing that hits me is their scope. Through Amazon, my books are being read around the world. And then there's this: readers who I may never meet will read my words, and I will in some way be connected to them. Whether they like my books or not (and oh, I want them to like my books), I have connected to someone living in another country, another state, even down the street. It's a one-on-one, almost intimate connection. That's a little freaky.

It's a wonderful thing to work through.

And it's all good with friends.

I'm Late! I'm Late! For a Very Important Date!

The process of bringing out a new book can be painful.

The ebook version of THE MISSINGS has been doing very well since it's release October 15th. For those of you who have bought it and reviewed it, you have my humble thanks.

I really thought I'd have the paperback available within a week of that release.

Not.

This morning I ordered my second proof to make sure the cover works. The first one was far too dark and rather than red as an accent color, it was orange. Blick. It took several attempts on the part of my cover designer to come up with an alternative that looked good. If, and it's a big if, this cover is what I want, then paperback version will be out a full month later than I thought.

I don't know how other writer's paperback sales compare to their ebook sales, but for me it usually runs about 100:1. For every hundred downloads of a book, I'll sell one paperback. So, is it worth it? You bet.

It's important to me to have my books available in as many formats as reasonably possible. In our family, we read ebooks and paper books and we listen to audio books. Both RED TIDE and THE MISSINGS are currently posted with an audio production company for narration.

In some households, ebooks are not an option; and in still others, audio books are the only way people can "read" a good story. So I'll keep trying.

Are different formats important to you? Do you have a preference?


It's all better with friends.

The Long Run

A sprint requires a lot of skill. Speed. Leg muscles that respond quickly and a mindset that sees the goal right in front. The mental image is to be the first person to pull the tape away and win the game. Lean forward. Fracture the time by a few more hundredths of a second. You've got other able athletes on your heels. Push. Push…. Push.

A marathon is a different animal. It demands the runner take the long view. See the big picture. Acknowledge an awareness of strategy and a trust of the process. Develop muscles that can hang in there for the long run. 

Most new authors who elect the sprint strategy are doomed to fail. When their sales fall short of the goal they believe they should achieve at this very second, a certain level of panic sets in. Where the hell are their readers? Why aren't more people finding their book and once having found it, raving about it to the world? Without the answers (and the answers they seek don't exist), they decide their best course of action is to push.

A desperate person takes desperate measures. And most often, in real life, that's a terrible decision. No one I've ever met loves to be manipulated.

When I wrote my first manuscript (long before Red Tide), I began to understand that this was process. Even the 'overnight successes' authors had worked for years and formulated plans.

This is a marathon, and for that I'm grateful. I will hone my craft one book at a time and add to my base (whatever that is) one reader one at a time. I will appreciate each of them for the unique treasure they are. I won't push. (Well, I'll try not to push.) I don't want to be 'that person' who only communicates with others from a selling platform. I will not ever get so desperate I turn the marathon into a sprint.

A marathon makes me stronger. A marathon allows me to acquire skills and become a better writer. A marathon allows me to see more of the individuals who are cheering me on. A marathon not only lets me hear their voices, but see their faces.

I don't expect to be the next J.K. Rowling. I do expect to work at making Peg Brantley into an author her readers come to appreciate almost as much as she appreciates them. I'm in this for the long run.



It's all better with friends.

Sisters and Suspects

A Crime Wave in Blood

Two sisters. Two novelists. Two voices.

Peg Brantley, author of Red Tide and Lala Corriere, author of Widow's Row  and CoverBoy, are teaming together with Social Buzz Network to bring you free downloads of two books, and share insights into the world of a novelist.

Have you ever wanted to write a book? Have you ever wondered how it's done? Join us on Monday, August 13th at two o'clock Mountain Daylight Savings Time for a unique hour where we explore the minds of two authors who happen to be sisters. Genetics can be a very scary thing.

Should you be afraid?

Here's where you want to be for one hour on August 13th: Castle Rock Radio.

Call in? Make me feel important? Prove to them that they aren't backing a loser?

Heck, I might even give away a book.



It's all better with friends.

Feeling Angsty?

Today I'm at Patricia Stoltey's wonderful blog discussing author angst. AND, I'm giving away a copy of RED TIDE to one lucky commenter. It could be you!

It's all better with friends.

Colorado Fires

I am not in danger. I have family members who have been evacuated and may have lost their homes, but my home is safe.

Colorado author Terry Odell is not in danger. But she's close.

Over 32,000 people have been evacuated in Colorado Springs alone. There are many more people there and in other parts of our state who are on standby to evacuate.

Terry came up with the idea of donating 5% of her royalties for the sale of her book, Danger in Deer Ridge, set in the Colorado mountains between now and July 1st to the Red Cross. You can buy her book at this link:

http://terryodell.com/blog1/danger-in-deer-ridge/ 

I am adding Red Tide to that offer. You can buy it directly from Amazon right here.



It's all better with friends.

Mysterious Writers Interview

Today I'm being interviewed by Jean Henry Meade over at Mysterious Writers. I would love to feel your support on that blog. She's had some pretty heavy hitters in the past and I'd hate her to think she wasted her time with this brand new author no one knows.

Oh. You could also win a copy of RED TIDE if you leave a comment. (That's a bribe.)




It's all better with friends.

Freakin' Free Frenzy

Photo by Tomboy

Why in the world would a writer want to give away multiple copies of his or her book? There are probably as many reasons as there are authors, but here are a few based on my experiences and discussions. All of them make sense:

• A new release is coming up, so an older title is offered for free to create buzz;
• A new author (a la moi) who wants to give readers a reason to take a chance;
• Lagging sales. Sometimes a little goose will redirect attention to a good author;
• A strong desire to see their book(s) in as many hands as possible;
• A landmark celebration (ie: 1 million books or ten years or The Sinking of The Titanic);
• A poorly written and unedited book that wouldn't make it out in the world any other way.

Red Tide was officially published on March 28th. Between then and now, with a total four Free Days, I've been excited to see about 10,000 copies land in the hands of people who don't know me. My after-the-fact sales have encouraged me and I'm grateful for all of the people who took a chance then found they could support a fledgling author.

There is a lot of conflict among authors surrounding free ebooks. While everyone wants to find readers and give them a good read, there's the question of devaluing a creative work. One figure that's bandied around is that we actually work for about thirty-five cents an hour. I'm in the fortunate position of not really needing to care. I'm not independently wealthy, I simply have other resources. I have the luxury of focusing on doing what I love rather than fearing starvation.

A friend of mine who is a best-selling author recently had to seriously consider finding another job in order to pay the bills. Fortunately sales picked up and we're all better off because she can write another great book.

A huge concern that's bandied about in "Author Land" is that with all of the gazillions of free books, where do ours end up in the queue? When might we find some affirmation? It's tricky, if not downright impossible, to stand out in the crowd. And at about thirty-five cents an hour, it's not the money that drives us—at least not most of us. It's the verbal currency that counts.

In addition to the gazillions of books and the queue, the last reason I listed above, the one about poorly written books, becomes a concern. At least it was until I struck on an idea that sort of solves both worries with one concept.

Here's my working theory: free downloads are like sample downloads. Readers will be able to tell in a few minutes (if not seconds) whether or not they want to invest more time. Because they don't have a greater commitment, it's much easier to acknowledge a DNF (Did Not Finish) and move on. Almost all of those people who have my book would not have it had it not been for free. They would probably have not even bothered with the free sample. I'm trusting that many of the people who downloaded Red Tide and multiple other books will work their way through the poorly written and unedited ones and find their way to a pleasant surprise.

Will there be more free days for Red Tide? I don't have any planned at the moment. I'm hoping that with almost 10,000 copies working their way through the e-readers right now that I'll find a few people who will help spread the word.

Note: I'm hard at work in the initial stages of the editing process for my next book, and that first reason is looking pretty good to me right now.

What do you think about free ebooks? Good or bad or indifferent?



It's all better with friends.

Up, Up & Away—Way, Way Away

I seem to either write stripped down or over the top, and as embarrassing as it is, I think over the top is better. It's easier to tamp out the flames rather than fan cold embers to life. At least for me.

My editor called me on it a few times and he was right. Elizabeth George talks about going through her first draft and making note of the places where she's written over the top. She even uses the same shorthand I do—OTT.

This morning, I read my current book on craft and wouldn't you know it… the section was about OTT writing. It's like the cosmos are in collusion to knock it into my head.

I get it already.

Here's some of what Kenn Amdahl says in Joy Writing about OTT:

You can't transform emotion into art if you're conscious of the reader. Therefore, write the first draft as if no one will ever read it. When you revise, delete whatever's embarrassing, corny, graphic, or unnecessarily angry before anyone reads it. Emotions are the force that drives fine writing of any kind, but Colonel Klink (Colonel Klink is the name Amdahl gives his internal editor, who he keeps in the closet while the mudslinging creative Bart Simpson gleefully throws words on paper) pounds on the closet door every time you try to access them.


One of two bad things happen when you let someone read a first draft: they like it or they don't.




I think I'll get better as I begin writing my third book (the second is in the self-editing process now) but I'm not taking any bets.

What about you? Are you a "just the facts" kind of writer who needs to fan the embers or are you someone who emotes to the max?




On a personal note, thank you to everyone for all of your good wishes and support for Red Tide. During its debut weekend, when I offered it free to honor my mom's birthday and try and grab a little attention, it rose as high as number 8 on one of the Amazon lists. Pretty darned good for a brand new book by a brand new author who hasn't been tested. I know it happened because of people who want to help me succeed, and for that—and for you—I'm very grateful.



It's all better with friends.

RED TIDE Cover

Here's the cover for Red Tide. Patty did an amazing job. I knew it was the right one when I realized I smiled every time I opened the email.

I'm not sure what's next but I'm guessing as far as the cover is concerned, it's the back copy. I might let my husband chose the author photo. He has some very definite ideas. As long as it's not one from when I was twenty I'll probably let him make that selection.

CR: Darkness at the Edge of Town by J. Carson Black. (I'm such a slow reader.)


It's all better with friends.