Blondie and the #BookCover #Podcast

KJ Waters and Jody Smyers — Episode 78 — Blondie and the Book Cover Suzanne's original book cover designed by Blondie's Custom Book Covers featuring photo's we orchestrated for Suzanne. I'm excited to bring you this podcast featuring Suzanne Kelman, Jody Smyers, and I where we discuss the elements that make a great book cover. My expertise comes from our book cover business, Blondie's Custom Book Covers where Jody is my book cover designer and professional photographer, and Blondie's secret weapon for our amazing cover designs. In this episode we discuss Suzanne's first book cover that we designed, as an example of what elements to consider when hiring someone to create a book cover for you. As the very first thing your readers will see, your cover is a crucial part of packaging your book.   For Suzanne's cover, we went above and beyond your typical design strategy by providing a custom photo shoot with six models and numerous props all orchestrated by Suzanne's cover vision.  You can see the new cover designed by the publisher that picked her up after her book was released, Lake Union Press, an arm of Amazon publishing here.  Since being picked up my Lake Union, the world has embraced her novel and she has become an international best selling novelist. If you haven't already, you should check out The Rejected Writer's Book Club.

Terry Person part 2

Terry Persun -- Episode 46 -- Doublesight into Kindle Worlds

This week on Blondie and the Brit we bring you Terry Persun and the second half of his podcast we aired in January. Terry is an award-winning Amazon bestselling author who writes multiple genres and teaches, among other things, an entire day course on Amazon at his writing conferences.

In this interview he shares with us his tips on becoming an Amazon best seller and how to best organize your book launch for success. He also introduces us to Kindle Worlds with his fantasy novel Doublesight. You definitely do not want to miss this episode. 

Here is the first half of the interview. This is really one of the most informative interviews we've had. Terry presents his information is such a humble and interesting way it's a joy to listen. There is something for everyone in this week's podcast with seasoned author Terry Persun from tips on writing romantic scenes to learning to turn off your inner critic to boost the writing process. He encourages writers to engage in other endeavors like poetry, acting, or jewelry making to inspire your craft. Terry shares so many insights that we couldn't resist keeping him on the phone for longer for part two of the interview to air later in the year. You won't want to miss this one.

Jody Smyers and KJ Waters -- Episode 18 -- Blondie and the Book Cover

My book cover business partner, Jody Smyers, and I spent a little time chatting with Suzanne Kelman on our very first podcast recording. It wasn't our first podcast aired but it was the first one we recorded when we were just setting up the podcast last summer. We've improved a lot, but it is still an interesting look at how Jody and I work together in my book cover business, Blondie's Custom Book Covers.

Jody Smyers and KJ Waters -- Episode 18 -- Blondie and the Book Cover:

Jody Smyers and KJ Waters — Episode 18 — Blondie and the Book Cover

January 16, 2016

Ever wonder what it takes to create the perfect book cover? In this week's podcast Suzanne Kelman (the Brit) interviews photographer Jody Smyers and our very own KJ Waters (Blondie) about their company Blondie's Customs Book Covers. In this special podcast we explore all the elements that make up the perfect cover and how important first impressions are. If you are an Indie published author or considering going Indie with your book, you don't want to miss this episode

Connect with me:

Website: http://www.kjwaters.com http://www.blondieandbrit.com/ http://www.blondiebooks.com/ 
Twitter: kamajowa 
Facebook: Facebook profile 
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=217401576&trk
Blog: http://kjwatersauthor.blogspot.com

Instagram: @kamajowa

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/kamajowa/

iTunes:

Other Twitter: @BlondieandBrit @Blondiebookcov

BLOW -- A SHORT STORY

Linker link: myBook.to/BlowbyKjWaters

Amazon link: http://www.amazon.com/Blow----Short-Story-Waters-ebook/dp/B01DYDFO6Y/

Barnes and Noble:BN

iTunes: iTunes

BLURB:

Caught between a hurricane and a deadly secret, Rick Harris struggles against a ticking clock when the wrong people show up at his door looking for shelter. As the storm closes in wreaking havoc on Pensacola, Florida, he has to make a choice between saving their lives and exposing a secret that could cost him everything.

  

STEALING TIME

Book Linker: myBook.to/StealingTimebyKJWaters

Barnes and Noble: BN

iTunes: iTunes

Blurb:

Stealing Time is a "Breathtakingly original" time travel adventure that will keep you on the edge of your seat. As Hurricane Charley churns a path of destruction towards Orlando, Florida, Ronnie Andrews and her best friend, Stephanie McKay, scramble to prepare for the storm. Ronnie seeks shelter at her boyfriend’s weather lab while Steph heads back to her house.

During the peak of the storm Ronnie is hurtled back in time to eighteenth-century London where she is caught in a web of superstition, deception, and lies in a life and death struggle to return to her own time.

Steph is thrust into the middle of the hurricane, but it quickly turns into a living nightmare as she is faced with losing everything. Stealing Time: Book 1 in the Stealing Time Trilogy. 

4 Invaluable Tips for #Indie Authors

4 Invaluable Tips for Indie Authors

This is a re post from a guest blog I did on Word Bank Writing and Editing, Jeri Walker's Blog last September. To see the article on her site click here. There are loads of great comments that came along with the post. 

I began my indie author career as a creative outlet after I quit my job to raise my family.  In 2005 the only legitimate option an author had to get their book in a reader’s hands was to spend two years chasing a publisher and hoping against hope that someone would pick up your book. Rather daunting prospect after writing the book, right? I ignored that fact and kept plugging away at my novel, Stealing Time, until 2012 when I discovered the wonderful world of self-publishing as an indie (independent) author. Thank goodness times have changed.

  

I have learned many lessons as an indie author. Here are some of my top tips:

1.  Build Your Social Media Presence Well in Advance of Your Book Release

When I started on Twitter my lofty ambitions were to connect with celebrities in some odd pipe dream that out of the thousands of tweets they received in day, mine would magically glow and they’d respond to me. My life would be transformed. Now I couldn’t give a rat’s patootey about celebrity tweets.

Obviously, I hadn’t considered social media as a tool for selling my novel, in fact, I hadn’t even heard of an indie author at that point. Now three years later I have built a decent social media platform with over 18,000 followers across four platforms (2 Twitter accounts, 3 Facebooks, Pinterest, and Instagram) and will continue to grow it.

Why is this so important? Let me tell you what happens when you don’t. I have an author friend who spent a year writing his book. When he finished he published on Amazon and began promoting to his 100 followers on twitter.  The first week he sold 20 copies and that was that. He had a few people re-tweet, but he’d tapped out his potential readership in a week. If he’d taken that year to grow his following by adding 20 people a day he’d have 7300 followers as a potential customer base. When growing your presence find other authors and promote their work by sharing their links and striking up conversations. They will be invaluable when you want to get your work into as many hands as possible because, if you have chosen well, you will have a large number of readers and other authors who will promote your work in their circles.

How do you know which platforms to use? You need to pick a few and do them well. It’s easy to get overwhelmed and spread too thin. For me the most interactive have been Facebook and Twitter. But don’t just push your agenda! Social media is exactly that–social. You have to invest some time talking to people about their interests and lives. There are writers out there who just tweet their books and never connect with people. This is not the venue for your typical marketing push. Your social media empire is built on your personality and charm, so use it and create a following that will find your posts worthy of more than a sales pitch to be ignored. Interact and have some fun.

I would love to know what social media platforms you use and what have you found the most helpful to market your work.

2. Continually Perfect Your Writing

I look back at what I wrote 8 years ago and have to laugh at the clumsiness of it all. To make it as a writer you have to work at improving in all areas of your writing. I am always reading helpful blogs, like Jeri’s, and other articles on writing, social media, and marketing, and strive to learn as much as I can to improve my skills as a writer and promoter of my work.

Every writer has a bag of tricks they use to create the magic of their craft. I’d love to know what you have used in your writing. Along my journey I found two books extremely helpful. One of the first things I did when I decided to write my novel was find a book to help me organize the storyline. I used The Marshall Plan for Novel Writing by Evan Marshall throughout the story development and writing stages. It also has a workbook you can buy separately that helps you finish each section with a bang, adding to the tension and pace of the novel.

The other book that has been a huge help to me in the editing stage is Self-Editing for Fiction Writers by Renni Brown and Dave King. Written by professional editors it teaches you how to fix the most common mistakes made by new authors including, exposition, point of view, interior monologue and dialog.

3.  Pay For An Editor

If you want to be taken seriously as a writer you must have your work edited by a professional.   Unless you’re amazing, magical AND a good editor you can’t possibly see all the issues with grammar, punctuation, spelling, keep track of your characters, their dialog, and their story lines. There are just too many things to sort through. A fresh set of eyes on your manuscript will make a world of difference, and I don’t mean your fabulous auntie who was an English major.

The very first indie author book I picked up was a time travel story I found at a bookstore “meet the author” event. I was so excited to meet a local self-published novel in my genre until I read the darned thing. The story caught my attention but Jeeze-Louise she should have edited it, if not only for her sake but to preserve the broader reputation of the indie author. It made me pause and think about what I was getting into. Did I want to be associated with the likes of  this indie author and her badly written drivel?

Indie authors have come a long way since then, but don’t be that putz that makes it hard for the rest of us by putting out low-quality work with simple typos and storyline problems. Any editor worth their salt can clean up your work and help you sell a lot more books. I have two author friends who have pulled their first novels off the Amazon shelves to re-edit their books. You simply can’t undo the damage to your reputation as an author by putting out sloppy work. Just like making a great book cover, why not put forth your very best professional work and keep that high standard as you move through your writing career? It is so much easier to start right than it is to try to fix it after a poor product is already out there. Yes, it is not cheap, but as an author don’t you owe it to yourself to put out your very best work and build a positive relationship with your readers and fans?

4.  Create a Professional Looking Cover

You’ve finished that amazing novel, poured your heart and soul into it, and now you’re ready to release it! Don’t make the mistake of a lot of indie authors and create what looks like a homemade cover.  You are competing with the rest of the publishing industry and the first thing a reader will know about your book will be what you’ve given them on the cover. If it is lame an unprofessional how do you expect someone to buy your book when they have James Patterson a few clicks away? Your book cover should capture the reader’s attention, evoke emotion, hint at the story without being cluttered, be visually pleasing, and be simple. I address these five book cover tips in my last guest blog that you can read here.

You can get a professional cover made for a few hundred dollars. There is no better return on your investment to get your book noticed and into the hands of your readers. Think of it as an investment for your social media sites as well because it is the perfect background photo to help promote your work. If you're not sure where to start, please check out my cover business, Blondie's Custom Book Covers on facebook and at www.blondiesbooks.com.

I hope these tips have been helpful to you. Jeri, thank you so much for allowing me to guest blog on your site again. I’m still in awe of your massive following of intelligent and talented writers. Great job on your social media strategy, too, because blogging is another important tool to reach readers and conspiring writers.

What additional pointers can you share regarding tips for indie authors and bloggers alike? I’m eager to learn from you!

Here are the book links for my novel STEALING TIME

Paperback:

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Stealing-Time-Book-K-Waters-ebook/dp/B00PJMWD6S/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1429544342&sr=1-2&keywords=stealing+time

Createspace: http://createspace.com/5265254

Ebook: 

Amazon:  http://bookgoodies.com/a/B00PJMWD6S

Barnes and Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/stealing-time-kj-waters/1121455699?ean=2940151669672

iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/id977501005

inktera and Page Foundry: http://www.inktera.com/store/title/6ba521d5-da57-4598-b71b-d8d75925408c

kobo: https://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/stealing-time-12

scrbid: https://www.scribd.com/book/258981760/Stealing-Time

When I'm not working on the Stealing Time series you can find me on my social media at the links below. My novel is out on amazon here.

I am also the CEO of Blondie's Custom Book Covers, a company that helps authors and publishers create stunning book covers. Please follow our links here.

• Check out my website: www.kjwaters.com

• Follow me on twitter at @kamajowa

• I'm on facebook at 

• http://www.facebook.com/pages/KJ-Waters/206720056103502 for my author site, or my 'jury-rigged work around so I can like you back' facebook page here: http://www.facebook.com/kj.waters.39

• I have some photographs up on Fine Arts America at: http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/kj-waters.html for sale, check it out!

• Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/kamajowa/

• Audioboo voice messages:  http://audioboo.fm/KJWaters 

• All About Me page: http://about.me/kjwaters

• Brand Yourself Profile: http://brandyourself.com/

• Check out our website here.

• We are on twitter here.

• Facebook link here.

Blondies' Book Cover Artwork -- Stealing Time

Blondie's Book Cover
Artwork for Stealing Time

listen to ‘Stealing Time Novel Cover Voting’ on Audioboo

I've been working across the Internet with a professional photographer, Jody Smyers*, to create the cover for my first novel -- Stealing Time. I've narrowed it down to seven choices and would love for you to take a minute to vote for your favorite. I'll reveal the final version in a future blog. I'm new to this whole thing so any advice or constructive comments are welcome! Please let me know what you think. 

Synopsis of Stealing Time: 

Ronnie Andrews, a 28 year old blonde, finds herself inexplicably thrown back in time during Charley, the first hurricane to hit Central Florida in over forty years. 

She finds herself hopelessly entangled in the life of Jack Ingram, a Londoner, whose world is crumbling at the hands of an unprecedented shift in time. Join Ronnie on her adventures in my debut novel -- Stealing Time -- out this summer. Be sure to watch for the release of book two and three.

#1

#2

#3

#4

#5

#6

#7

Thank you for stopping by "Blondie in the Water." I hope you took a minute to vote and comment. Voting is in the upper right corner of the blog. Comments are below. Would love to hear what you think of the cover designs! Did you like the choices? Which one did you choose?

Connect With Me

When I'm not working on Stealing Time you can find me on my social media at the links below. I hope to have my novel completed by spring 2013 with book two close behind.

• Check out my website: www.kjwaters.com
• Follow me on twitter at @kamajowa
• I'm on facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/KJ-Waters/206720056103502 for my author site, or my 'jury-rigged work around so I can like you back' facebook page here: http://www.facebook.com/kj.waters.39
• I have some photographs up on Fine Arts America at: http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/kj-waters.html for sale, check it out!
• Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/kamajowa/
• Audioboo voice messages:  http://audioboo.fm/KJWaters 
• All About Me page: http://about.me/kjwaters
• Brand Yourself Profile: http://kjwaters.brandyourself.com/

*If you like the artwork drop Jody Smyers a line at @JoJo_Photo on twitter or check out his website at http://www.JodySmyersPhotography.com. Amazing photographer!