Check Those Details

January 11, 20231 Comment

Last week was…interesting.

Mostly due to the exorbitant amounts of slobber, and the unintentional slip-n-slide we had going in the kitchen. But I like to think that kept us on our toes. And maybe…in some weird way…mopping the tile floor as well? No? Guess I still have to do that, then.

Appa went to the neurologist on Wednesday. According to the doctor, he didn’t see signs that pointed to anything “nefarious” (actually used the word nefarious) so I’m taking that as a win. He’s still having trouble closing his mouth, but we’re giving him anti-inflammatory medicine to combat that, so he doesn’t continue through life as a slack-jaw motherfuker. It seems to be getting a little better, but he’s still follows me around like a canine Darth Vadar, reminding me of his medical issues. At least he’s not one with the dark-side, unless you count his flatulence, which kills us all daily.

Our washing machine is still broken. The attendant came out—tried to schedule the legit same time as Appa’s appointment, so that was fun—and when he finally did arrive, he wasn’t able to fix it. He was missing a part and it would have to be this week. So…we still have giant piles of absolutely everything needing to be cleaned since, again, I made the intelligent, executive decision to put it all off until the last moment last weekend. This is the kind of CEO brain working behind writing and selling books, guys. MUAHAHA. Welcome to the funny farm, bitches.

That brings us to the writing updates—and the mistake I made because I didn’t check the details. (Guys—check the details. Just do it. It may take only a moment but it’s worth it. Trust me.) So, what didn’t I check the details on and basically, created a huge clusterfuck for myself? It was my last scheduled advertising for In The Moment Before—a paid, promotional newsletter that went out on Sunday. How did I screw it up? Well…without getting too into it, there are two basic ways to sell books:

Through Amazon ONLY. You enroll in KU (Kindle Unlimited) which is a program that readers pay to be a part of, and they get every book in the program. Kind of like signing up for a streaming service.
Through Amazon AND OTHER RETAILERS. This is called going “wide.” Readers are able to buy through Amazon (but must pay) and they can also buy through other retailers as well like Barnes & Noble, Apple, Google Play, ect.

Because I want absolutely anyone able to read my stuff (and I don’t believe in putting all my eggs in one basket) I’m a WIDE author. However, someone forgot to check her details and the promo listed In The Moment Before available as being in KU (it’s not.) Why is this such a big deal/goof up:

I paid $115. You have to spend money to make money, right? (If you find a way around this, please tell me)
All readers in KU who went looking for ITMB probably got pissed that it’s actually 2.99
All WIDE readers saw it was in KU and probably didn’t think about it again.

This is what we call an *epic fail*. But we also call it—and repeat after me—a learning experience. Check those details. They could be really frigging important.

I also discovered that my scheduled blog posts aren’t posting as should be (hence the last two weeks they’ve gone up in the afternoon when I discovered they never posted in the morning). I contacted their help service who advised my website theme/appearance has been retired. Of course it has. Now that I’m working on my website and got it to the way I like. Of course.

All I can say is I’m tired, but at least these are champagne problems. Everyone is still here, healthy, and happy. That’s literally the only thing that matters.

I have another promotion running this Friday (the 13^th – MUAHAHAHA!) for Escape from Harrizel, and you best believe me I’m checking the details. Last month I featured my BTT series and put it on sale. This month I’m focusing on promoting Arizal Wars, so…let’s see how this goes.

One last thing…it dawned on me that this is my tenth year of publishing. Yeah. I officially published Escape from Harrizel in 2013…a whole decade ago. Clearly, I’ve barely made any progress, but I wouldn’t change a thing. This is my journey, and I may be taking the real business steps a decade later, but I’m doing it. And I’m proud of myself for not quitting. And I’m proud of you too.

Okay, that’s all I got. I hope you have a fabulous week and weekend. First official 2023 Newsletter is going out on Sunday to the VIPers 😊

~ LC

Goals and Things

December 27, 20174 Comments

First off, let me start by wishing you a Merry Christmas! /Happy Hanukah! /Happy Festivus! /Merry Kwanza! /Happy Holidays! (Did I cover everyone? I hope so.)

How were the holidays for you? I hope you didn’t kill anybody and that you had plenty of excuses to escape from your relatives. I won the lottery by catching the plague a day before my four-day break, so it’s been lots of drugs, coughing all night, a full body ache and a constant battle with an evil sea-bitch to use my voice. (I totally won, but it hurt like a mother every time). Other than that, I had a marvelous time 😊 I hope you had a good time with your family or friends or whomever you chose to share your holiday with, even if it was just yourself. 😊

Okay, so apparently 2018 is already knocking which is good because Januarys are typically a great time for new beginnings (although October also seems to work) and I’d like to make some changes. Some of them are health wise: not be such an Oreo fatty and be more active with Appa. Like, actually exercise with him and Batman instead of watching Appa exercise while Batman and I eat junk-food. So, big one right there. Other things I want to change include my bank account and the email Bank of America sends me every week to make sure—in case I somehow missed it—that I’m pretty much broke from Sunday to Thursday. But, I’d also like to take positive strives in my writing.

So, here we go, 2018 writing thing I’d like to change:

Main Goal:

Maybe not be so terrible at marketing

That’s right. ‘Not Be So Terrible At Marketing’ shall be the numero uno goal of 2018. I’m fully expecting to still suck at it, but I’m hoping to have more failures under my belt which means more things I’ve tried which is more than I’m doing now (which is nothing.) Aiming for *slightly* more ripples than the still water I’m standing in. Goals!

How do I do that?

Realistic (and more specific) Goals:

Keep up with the Wednesday posts. Seems reasonable.
Maybe put up a video once or twice a month. Not sure what the content would consist of other than me being my wonderful fabulous self and talking about writing and life and things (oh, and promoting my new series—obvi) That could work. I hear people like vlogs and I’m not totally Quasimoding-it, so maybe I’ll try that.
Start a newsletter. I probably should’ve had one of these for a while now, but I haven’t. I have no excuse other than I just haven’t. Like the vlog, I’m not sure what I would say other than talk about the series, my work and maybe something to do with the craft of writing. I’m just weird with commitments, but I guess by this point, I’m pretty committed (but shouldn’t be committed. Big difference.)
Make friends with/support other Indies. I’ve kind of backed off a bit for no other reason than that I’m using the time to write. Or to not be on my phone. But I did enjoy meeting other indie authors (shout out to BookBorn and IWSG!) and I need to get back into it. It’s mutually beneficial and there’s so much to learn from each other.

There are other things I could/should probably list here, but I’m being realistic with myself. If I pack too much on, it’ll seem unattainable and scary and I’ll look the other way and grab Oreos and cry. Because that’s what I do. So. Yeah. Small steps equate to large steps equate to things actually happening.

P.S. I sent BTT to a few BETAs! Yay! Would you like to BETA read my latest YA contemporary romance featuring a musician (the answer is yes)? If so, please reach out to me! I’d love to get a few more opinions 🙂

P. P. S. My books are free on Smashwords until January 1st. This is another me doing something. Telling you I enrolled in a giveaway. So, if you’re at all curious about my books but can’t afford the monetary risk (which hey—I get! Ms. Betty Broke over here) you can check them out for totally free (use coupon EY100. And there are *bunches* of other good books to discover as well!

P.P. P. S. I have to share some pictures of Appa because I don’t think people realize the CUTENESS level of my baby 😊 And I haven’t posted lots of pictures of him recently… so here you go.

Loves the window down car ride.

Who’s handsome?

I’m a sexy bitch.

My view from the computer.

P.P.P.P.S. Reasons I love Batman: he knows things like what P.S. stands for so I know which letter to multiply. (Does that make me stupid that I didn’t know that? I don’t care. I love that he’s so smart.)

Hello Online Media. Now I’ve got an Instagram

January 3, 20167 Comments

It must be the twilight zone because I now have an Instagram.

Me.

The not-really-a-social media-person-person.

This blog was like, a big step. Two years (I think?) and I’m still wary about what I put up, how much content to share and if there really are people hiding in the bushes. Not because I think I’m like *totally* stalkable (even though I am, and have been) but it’s the personal information thing. The, “oh she posted that one picture of her window and using my dope techie skills, I now know where she lives” thing. It’s shit like that that really freaks me out, especially since I’m pretty sure the government watches me through the television. Batman thinks I’m paranoid. I’m not paranoid. I’m cautious. The less people know, the less they can use against you and all that. But when you’re trying not to fade into the shadows, it’s difficult to keep up with others since it’s sort of a necessity in today’s society.

I didn’t want to get a blog when I did. But everything I read said I should engage in some form of social media if I want to make it. I’ve got to have an online presence or I don’t exist. There went my sitting in the back of the class, hoping the teacher didn’t call on me. And now you’re saying I HAVE TO ENGAGE WITH PEOPLE? TO LIKE, BE SUCCESSFUL? Damn. Damn, damn, damn. It’s not been terrible, I admit. But still. Damn.

Anyway, Batman and I had Appa at the vet Saturday and I took (what I think) was the cutest picture of him (the dog—not Batman) and had to share it with someone, so I sent it to my sister and mom. Ahem:

Look at that face. How is that face not to be shared? It is obviously *totes* sharable. Wanting everyone else to fall in love with him like I have, I broke down and joined Instagram. So far, Appa dominates the photos but I feel I’ve slipped another toe into the rest of modern society. I’m not a full blown social-median, but at least I’ve poked my head a little further out from behind this rock. I get points for that, right? The answer is yes, I get points for that.

And since everyone’s writing their yearly goals—and apparently I’ve succumbed to a sharing mood—I’ll join the convo:

Goal 1: Publish Crusade Across Worlds, Book 4 of Arizal Wars.

Goal 2: Market/learn to market/pay someone to market/rent a blimp with the book’s title and fly it around book conventions. Or do all four.

Goal 3: Enter more competitions/anthologies/ get my writing out there.

Goal 4: Go to another writing/reading convention and make friends/connections. Either will do.

Goal 5: Actually reach my Goodreads reading goal of 25 books (I’m feeling more optimistic about this one).

Goal 6: Learn to play Hallelujah on the keyboard I’ve been neglecting. (Dad, I’m finally making use of this gift. Only three years late!)

Goal 7: Keep up the positivity / continue to say no to stress and worry. They solve nothing.

I’m sure there are more goals I want to achieve but I’ll figure them out as I go. Plus, seven seems like an attainable number and as I’d like to reach each finish line, I’ll start with these. What about you guys? Anything you want to accomplish in 2016? Are you going to join modern society with social media a bit more like me? What do you visualize for yourself for the next twelve months?

Not Quite a Flying Bison

December 30, 2015December 30, 20155 Comments

I couldn’t decide which picture would best sum up Appa.

I think this one of him sleeping is it:

Ladies and gentlemen, I have a puppy. And after four weeks he is STILL ALIVE.

Does this mean I might be able do to the same with a baby one day? Nope, not likely. But at least there’s some hope now.

I meant to write this post about the world’s most adorable (and amazing) puppy like, three weeks ago, but the problem with having the world’s most adorable (and amazing) puppy is finding time to blog about said dog. Thank God I took pictures. Lots and lots of pictures. Pretty sure I scored an eye roll from Batman every time I whipped out the phone but come on, man, dog’s only going to stay a pup for so long. Besides, it’s my responsibility as a new puppy-mommy to share adorable pics with people who like looking at cute photos of dogs they don’t have to take care of.

So, without further ado, say hello to Appa:

“I want to cuddle up next to you. Is that alright?”

“I wasn’t the one who chewed on the blanket. I promise.”

“Lady, get the f****** phone out of my face.”

No, I'm not trying to write or anything.

“I know you’re trying to write but…”

“What do you mean ‘bad dog?'”

“Ssshh, mom. I see something.”

“I’m sexy and I know it.”

“Hmm, wonder where we’re going next.”

“I f****** love car rides.”

“…and sleeping on daddy.”

“Get away from my paws, mom. That’s weird.”

“Remember my name.”

Totes adorbs. Totes in love.

*sigh*

He may not be a flying pet bison (The Last Airbender anyone?) but he’s the best German Short Haired Pointer EVER. And I love him. And you should too. And I will try not to let him keep me from writing but a new puppy-mom’s got to do what a new puppy-mom’s got to do.

And that’s loving the shit out of this little fucker.

Waiting for Appa

March 5, 20142 Comments

We almost got a puppy.

I mean, not really because it was never an option—money, you know?—but I came this close to convincing Batman that what our new apartment really needed, besides being able to pay for itself, was the *adorable* brown and beige Rottweiler we were holding.

He.was.too.cute.

The kind of puppy that just melted into your arms and even though you know you shouldn’t, you’re already trying out names for him.

“Are you Appa? Or Zero?” I kept rubbing my nose against his while Batman scratched behind his big brown ears.

Yes, we already know the name of our future dog and yes, you did read that correct. It will either be Appa (from the Last Airbender—my choice) or Zero, (from The Nightmare Before Christmas—his choice.) I don’t see why we need to pick between them; we could solve this dilemma quite easily simply be getting two puppies. Batman does not agree.

He was swayed there for a moment, though. I could tell—I knew that look. Like he was trying to put all the factors in place and maybe, somehow convince himself that a new Rottweiler puppy could make sense even though we have no money to buy it or cage it or feed it or keep it healthy. Also, there’s the space issue and of course, the poor dog would be left alone most of the day leaving our new, totally awesome apartment in shambles. So many cons and yet… such an adorable little blue-eyed face.

It was tough.

Alas, we’re too responsible (damn it!)We left little Appa or Zero with his litter of siblings and instead came home with this fine character:

I know. Not as cute as the dog but way more affordable. We had to come home from the arts and crafts fair with something and this little dude just hangs on the wall waiting for a hug. I suspect it would pinch and there wouldn’t be any warm snuggling but… at least I can leave the apartment and know its keeping itself company. I’d feel bad for the puppy.

But I do want one. Maybe a corgi. Or a Cocker spaniel. Or one of the shepherd breeds. Preferably something that’s lazy like me and enjoys the couch; something soft and cozy that would outlast all dog expectations and never die and go to Heaven because that movie made me cry. But getting a dog is a big, big deal. You’re adopting a new member into your family and for so long it’s just been Batman and me. And at the beginning of our relationship, a chunky guinea pig named Abner.

Okay, fine. Abner was obese (probably led to the massive heart attack he endured) but I still miss the little guy. Miss his squeaking and jumping with excitement (when he still could) whenever I’d come home. But I’d have to be home a lot more for a dog—otherwise I wouldn’t feel right. Darn society and the way it works!

Someday I’ll get Appa and/or Zero and my llamas and the pen of ostriches for the monthly races. I’ll probably have some penguins and rabbits and in my “China Exhibit,” a big panda I can go and snuggle with whenever Batman’s off fighting crime (he doesn’t think having a panda is a good idea. Well he can suck it because I’m getting one.)

I just have to wait for the day I go to a fair or a pound or a show and find Appa. And because I’ll be a fabulously wealthy stay-at-home author, I’ll nod at Fartswell and he’ll pay the man while I’m scooping up our newest family member. And I’ll snuggle with her and Batman will nod and I’ll finally be able to say:

“You’re coming home with me, Appa. I’ve been waiting for you.”

In case you’re wondering what Abner looked like: