Major Announcement

Big News!!

I am now officially an author with SAGA Egmont, the digital imprint of Danish publishing house Lindhardt and Ringhof.



via GIPHY

This is really exciting news, and I am frankly still a little shocked and amazed that it is happening.

"Glass Roses" is the novel SAGA has licensed, and it will be released as an audiobook later this year, probably sometime in September.

I am grateful for the opportunity SAGA has given me, and I hope our connection will prove to be a positive experience for everyone involved.

In the meantime, get excited! I'm working with a real publisher now!


via GIPHY

Let's Talk Twitter

My love for Twitter didn't happen overnight. It took a long time for me to realize just how amazing this platform is for budding authors. Once I did realize it, however, I was quick to take advantage of it. You really should too, which is why I am dedicating a post to talking about how I use Twitter to grow my audience.

Why I Love Twitter

1. Mobility: Using Twitter on my phone means I can publicize myself and my work from literally any location, any time I have a spare minute. As a mom of three very active little children, this is important.

2. Speed: Twitter is about the only publicity I have time for at the moment (without paying an arm and a leg for ads or some kind of help to get the word out), and I need it to be easy, quick, and pithy. 140 character tweets deliver on this big-time.

3. Social Networking: Do you know just how many opportunities there are for indie authors on Twitter right now? There are hashtags that everyone uses: #amwriting and #amediting are probably the biggest ones, but I also like to use #momlife, #momwrites (possibly my invention, lol), and #indieauthors. Lots of literary agencies and publishers are now hosting events called Pitch Days where agents and editors read through tweets tagged with their specific hashtag, looking at 140 characters story pitches. Many individual authors are hosting hashtag games where fellow authors tweet answers to questions or share information about their works-in-progress (WIPs), published works, or themselves. Some of the games I have participated in recently include #WIPjoy #PUBjoy #WIPRevelations #AuthorConfession #WIPTruthOrDare #WIPTunes, and my very own game #ShareWords. These games give authors a chance to find one another, connect, and share snippets of their work without being seen as obnoxious or obtrusive. It's fantastic! As if that wasn't enough, there are also whole accounts dedicated to sharing information about any and all free events where writers can enter contests (some with substantial prizes), pitch their work, and vie for the attention of those who can get us a coveted place in the publishing world we all dream of joining. My favorite account like this is Free Writings Events (or @writevent). And BONUS! The more things you participate in, the more visibility you gain, and the more followers you accrue. Since posting the graphic for my hashtag game, I have gone from 108 followers to 129! It's only been two days!

4. Image Sharing: Twitter is great for sharing pictures of your covers, GIFs that evoke the style of your story, or just using the myriad of digital graphics available to react to and interact with what other authors are tweeting about. It's a fun, colorful, emotive way to participate and show off your unique personality and style, giving people a sense for who you are as an author and an individual.

5. Writing Practice: Keeping my remarks to 140 characters is excellent practice in choosing which words are important to use, and which ones aren't. All writers struggle with superfluous words, and I am no exception. Making a point in a short amount of space is particularly important when it comes to pitch writing. Think that one-page query letter is impossible to actually make one page? Try pitching a 100k word novel with two main characters, two love interests, and two separate plots in a niche genre with only 140 characters. Yeah.

Basically, if you aren't on Twitter yet, get on it. You will be glad you did. There is a huge community that I think a lot of people have no idea exists, and it is a fabulous place for authors to engage with one another.