September, Finally

We know that in September, we will wander through the warm winds of summer's wreckage. We will welcome summer's ghost. -Henry Rollins August sucked. I'm so freaking glad it's September I can barely see straight. I know that technically it's still summertime. It feels like summertime outside...though we did have a glorious "False Fall" a week or two …

Indie Author Marketing Still Sucks…Pt 1.

"Nobody counts the ads you run; they only remember the impression you make." -Bill Bernbach That's a massive title, yes? Let me explain. Two years ago, I wrote a post entitled Marketing Sucks. Guess what? It still does. I stand by pretty much everything in that post, the exception being...is writing a book a remarkable …

Tell v. Show

I hope you all forgave my absence. Just a short run down of what has been happening in my life: Two weeks ago I received a text message from my mom that she'd had to call an ambulance for my dad. This is, sadly, something I am used to. He's had health problems for my …

January Goals Review

Good morning and welcome to February! When I was trolling through Canva looking for an image for my review post title card, this one struck me as a far more accurate picture of what working towards goals feels like for me. It's uphill, but with a lot of little plateaus. I climb, I think I've …

DIY Book Cover Design, pt. 1

If you've been following this blog for a while, you may remember a post of mine from a while back discussing making your own book covers. If not, and you'd like to check it out, here it is. This is going to be a fairly lengthy blog series, and I hope you're in it until …

Character Basics

Happy Monday! (I say that just about every week, though I am still not convinced such a thing exists.) As I may have mentioned a half-dozen times, I am in the beginning stages of my next novel. I thought that while I am here, plucking along with the first steps of a new endeavor, that …

Guest Post: Foreshadowing for Pantsers

Happy Monday, guys and gals! I'm off again doing things for Alabama Rain, working, and actually meeting up with a friend for a slice of strawberry pie—something so important, it must be planned ahead. Never fear, my dear, as I've lined up another awesome author to guest post for you today. Are you a plotter? …

Shiny New Ideas

Ah, Monday. I both love and loathe them. I know there's some debate on what is the first day of the week. Some people say it's Saturday, some Sunday, and some believe it's Monday—and I'm one of them. I love the opportunity to start anew. Who doesn't? That's one of the reasons we celebrate our …

AMAZING DEAL: ProWritingAid

So, my amazing contact at ProWritingAid emailed me yesterday to say how glad she was that the giveaway went so well, and she wanted to thank all of you for participating with such enthusiasm so... She is hooking you up!! One of my goals when I started this whole indie journey was that I wanted to one …

Aila’s Day Out : Smoky Mountains

The mountains are calling, and I must go. -John Muir I have this terrible knack for saying I'm going to do something for myself and not doing it. I wind up feeling guilty for a multitude of reasons and can come up with more excuses than George RR Martin can come up with characters to kill. Tuesday …