Tag: cover reveal

I Must Do All The Things

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Well, I’ve hit a dry spell.

With selling books. For a little bit there, I was moving one to two units a day! (Although they were usually free. But still. Movement is movement and hopefully leads to more movement…) But now that’s stopped and I’m staring at my phone wondering if it’s broken because the same ugly zero has been staring aggressively at me for the last few days.

Mean, angry zero.

Okay, yes—I’ve taken a break with tiktock, and with marketing in general. I know. I know. But I’m tired and really need to focus on editing ITMD and working the next draft of AROG. I mean, product is just as important as advertising product, right? No? I don’t know.

ALSO, I HAVE A BOX OF IN THE MOMENT BEFORE BOOKS SITTING IN MY OFFICE.

I got them Friday. I really want to open the box and see my books but opening them is a “thing” now apparently. You read that right. Unboxing personal indie author books is a “thing” so I need to do this “thing” and I keep forgetting because the house needed ridiculous amounts of cleaning and I got the edits for ITMD and the doggies needed playing. So…the box is still sitting there. Waiting to get unboxed. Because that’s a thing. And I’m an author and I must do all the things.

Guess what I’m saying is…keep an eye out for that spectacular video 😉

Think that’s all for now. If not, I’m sure I’ll be popping into the FB group for an update. That, or it will wait until next week. Either way, still be on the lookout for my unboxing video.

~ LC

Enter: tiktok & First Cover Reveal

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I guess (part of) the big news is I’ve joked tiktok.

WHAT? YES. ME.

I KNOW.

Why is that so surprising? Only because I’ve been incredibly tentative about getting involved in the social media craze because it doesn’t feel natural. Nothing about posting feels natural because I’ve eaten enough humble pie to think no one wants/needs my updates. But I’m also trying to like, survive off my writing, so I need to eat some conceited/prideful pie to balance the scales.

I want to sell stories, so I need a platform to do that: enter tiktok.

I feel like I don’t need to explain what this platform is, so I won’t, but just know I’m on it AND have already posted. So, if you just can’t get enough of me through this totally amazing blog, then friend me on tt and you’ll get daily posts from me. Stalkers, unite!

@authorcgcoppola

What else is going on? Let’s see…I showed an amazing beta reader the cover I previously had designed for ITMB and like the other responses: it was nice…but didn’t fit the story. I kind of had the same thought, but I’d worked with the designer for a little bit trying to pin down the perfect cover, and whereas I liked it…it just didn’t…fit. But I’d already paid for it and figured it would be fine (I can always change it in the future). But after the last beta made the same comment I thought, hmm, maybe I should change it. So, I did:

This is my first official cover reveal for In The Moment Before. What do you guys think?

I hate Grayson Knight with a passion. Ever since he pulled a prank on me as kids, I’ve kept him in the mortal-enemy category, and we both prefer it that way. Now we’re seniors in high-school and he’s still the same immature jerk. I avoid him as much as possible, but when an argument turns ugly and lands us in detention together, I know my life is over—especially when my dad, the city’s police sergeant, finds out.

I have no idea how we’ll get through this, so I’m surprised when Grayson comes to my rescue after I’m cornered by a sleazy basketball player. Suddenly, the boy I’ve always hated isn’t the enemy. If seeing him with new eyes isn’t confusing enough, a secret kiss sends everything scrambling, leaving me to figure out what I want, and if I can even have it. Because Grayson isn’t like other boys—and I’m starting to find out why.

I’m getting excited about releasing this one, guys. I feel the tidal wave of six books coming (ITMB being the first) and I can’t wait to share it all with you. In case you’ve been silly and haven’t signed up for my newsletter yet, you can sign up HERE. You’ll get all the extra info like these very important dates you should remember (as should I)

Pre-order 11/11/2022

ARCs available 12/6/2022

Release Date 12/16/2022

Speaking of newsletters, I’ve got another one to send out this Saturday, 10/15/2022, soooo I should probably go work on it. Literally what I’m off to do, so keep an eye on your email this Saturday. I’ll likely be sitting in your spam box. BUT AT LEAST YOU GOT IT.

~LC

Cover Reveal Time

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Here we are, folks. Cover reveal time.

I thought about putting it in the newsletter, but then I’d have to wait until at least 4/15, and I’m pretty sure I said last week I’d do it this week and I don’t want to make a liar of past-Caitlin. Besides, there’s no reason to wait anymore. I got to get this thing going, and it all starts with peeling back the curtain so you can see it first.

Here we are, the cover for APIP, the first book in The Coyote & The Claw series, an urban romantic fantasy featuring superheroes:

Ay? Ay?

You like it? Hope so, because I’m not changing it. Haha—but seriously. This is it. I went back and forth with the original purple, but I think this version captures the D.C. mood I’m attempting to replicate (Detective Comics. Not the capital…) I wanted it to have a darker, noir-feel, and between the two options, I really think this one is it.

Whew.

Cover reveal DONE! Checkmark and thank you. Wow. Okay, well that feels good. Now I can move forward with the next phase of this thing since any sort of marketing seemed quite impossible without a cover. But no more worries on that front. They can all shift to the marketing and the advertisements I need to work on now. That, and still editing the book…

Yep. I’m cheating on myself…with myself. I’m supposed to be editing ARPIP. I need to, and I know this. This should be my primary focus and goal, and it is…but so is writing AROG. Every time I block off time to edit, I sneak a peek at the other WIP and figure writing one to two more paragraphs won’t hurt. That turns into five or six, and then half a page, and then I’m reviewing previous chapters to check something, and then Appa is nudging me to come to bed and all my time is gone. It’s not great since I’m literally the only one who can edit this thing. And with each passing day, my window is getting smaller and smaller if I still want to make my June release date. And I do. I’m just saying it’d be great if I had a clone, because I’d use her strictly to edit. That way, I could just write. We’d get so much done.

First part: write the book – check

Second part: edit the book—meh, still working on it

Third part: create a cover—check

Two out of three ain’t bad. I’m working on the last one, and I PROMISE I will get it done. I’ll hit a road-bump in my WIP, and will switch back to editing. But whatever works, right?

~ Lady Caitlin

The Final Countdown

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Here we are again, folks. I’m writing this at the last minute, so please forgive any missing words or typos or any stranger than usual content because I haven’t gone through it like, 1,000,000 times before posting like usual. Probably only two look-throughs and that’s it. Let’s see what we get.

For those lucky newsletter subscribers, and even the more select out of that narrow group that actually reads them…what did you think?? Did you choose a cover you like more? Which was it? TELL ME.

As mentioned previously, I haven’t revealed my cover yet because I’m down to two options, one with the original purple I’d requested, and another with a tint or something cool done to it. I don’t know. But, I don’t want to show you either until I’m a BILLION percent sure that’s the one I’m going with, so I’m only including a small section of each. A snippet. And here these mofos are:

Option 1
Option 2

It’s just a peek, but I’m sure you get the picture. So…which one do you like? Which one catches your eye more and would maybe make you want to buy based off that little bit of an image? I have one I’m slightly leaning toward, but apparently, I can’t make decisions on my own. So, I need your help again. The goal is to have this picked by next week. NEXT WEEK. I’ve got to commit because the longer I stall, the less time I have to advertise. Or pay other people to advertise. Something. I’ll figure out something about advertising later but I need a book cover to do that. So…

Other than this, I got my edits back! Woot! Now I’m putting a hold on writing book two and switching back to the first. With a great cover needs to come a great book, and editing probably helps with that.

Alright, can’t wait to hear which tiny piece of a possible book cover image you like more. Let’s call this the final countdown, shall we? By next week, it’ll be one of these two, so do your part:

Let’s do this.

~ Lady Caitlin

Better Than You Cover Reveal

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Here’s another reason you should like, plan ahead and be smart with your business decisions: I had my heart set on yellow for the Better Than You font, but the background color that I LOVE for my first and second book does not support the bright yellow I’d had in mind for this one. Orange looked a little better…but no. No. No. No.

☹

I went with purple, because, you know, it was kinda of the only color left (there are reasons) and even though I really, really like it—and although this in NO WAY affects anything that I had in motion—it’s not what I wanted. But, cry me a river, right? Seriously, people. Not the end of the world here, but maybe if I’d put a bit more into planning, and not made a split-second decision to publish three months apart without any sort of marketing plan in place, I wouldn’t be slightly disappointed. But again, all good. I’m announcing this cover reveal to the special few of you who 1) read this blog 2) actually care 3) stumbled upon this post: (welcome. 😊)

So, I guess without further ado, the cover of Better Than You, Book 3 in the Better Than This series:

 

Looks just like 1 & 2 right? Yup 😊 But, there are different words, and behind the front cover lies an entirely new adventure EIGHT YEARS AFTER THE LAST BOOK ENDS!!!

Alright, so I’ve got the book cover done. Check. I’ve got the release date announcement on my sidebar done. Check. Now I’ve got to do the thing every writer dreads: write the blurb.

::shudder::

There’s a rough first paragraph started….and that’s about it.

I should probably get on it so y’all know what this book is actually about…

November 16th, folks (same day as Crimes of Grindelwald releases)  😊

P.S. Oh, and Happy Halloween! What’re you being? I’m Janet Snakehole and Batman is Burt Macklin from Parks & Rec. If you haven’t seen it, do it now! Or the ghost of whatever scares you will haunt you! Muahahahaha!

Cover Reveal: Better Than Now

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I’ve actually taken a few days off from writing, so this feels a little weird. I’m in that limbo stage between having passed my MS to the editor and sitting here twiddling my thumbs, waiting for her to get back to me. Believe me—there’s plenty I could be doing, but sometimes a little break really does a creative mind good.

It’s said (by many, many authors) that to write well is to write every day. I strongly mostly agree with this. It’s a craft, so, yes, you have to keep up and practice to get better, however, a nice reset button with fresh eyes does wonders. It’s how I started writing book 3. I was obsessing over the ending of book 2 and had to put it away. Then, like magic, a coupe of days later—poof! Instant access to door number 3, which then helped me finish book 2.

No writing-break epiphanies here, but it feels good to be back at the keyboard and talking about book stuff 😊 Since it’s technically mid-July, the gears have *officially* been switched to Better Than Now (woop!) which means promotion needs to start soon-ish. And to get that done, I need to be broadcasting the cover.

So…without any more stalling…I’m excited/nervous to present to you the cover of Better Than Now:

Yep! Looks pretty much like the previous one except for title and cover. Two reasons for this:

  1. I am broke. When I say broke, I mean broke. It’s a skill to get a book published (editing, cover design, formatting) on a tiny little budget, but damnit money is not going to be the thing to hold me back. Not in this.
  2. I actually envisioned wanting all three to look very similar; I didn’t necessarily think they’d have the same background, but I love it. I’ve loved it since Joleene showed me and I love how it combines both Autumn and Alex’s talents. Changing only the title and cover adds a good sense of continuity to the series, so when you see one, you might remember having seen another (they say that on average a consumer will see a product seven times before purchasing it) so it can’t hurt.

What do you guys think? Too much like the first? Individual enough to be its own? You don’t care and want to go outside and enjoy this beautiful day? Gotcha. Me too. 😉

Well, whatever you end up doing, enjoy it! I’m off to help Batman with yardwork and boring adult things. But after the chores are done, it’s off to a cinematic adventure 😊 Anyone seen Jurassic World yet? Good? Bad? How hot is Chris Pratt? (That’s all I care about).

You Can Judge Me Now

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Bring on the judgement because we all know you’re going to do it anyway. I do it. You do it. It’s kind of human nature to make snap decisions based on what your eyes see first. Like when you’re searching for your next great read and you scan books among books and stop only on the covers that appeal to you. The title may have something to do with it but—let’s be real, here—you’re attracted to the colors and font and pretty much the basic artwork. I’m guilty of this. There. I’ve said it. I judge books by their covers—but only in the initial stage. After I’ve thoroughly investigated the blurb and read a few pages, it’s content going forward. (I think we all do it this way, yes?)

So, with all that said, I now present to you darling readers/fans/people who happened upon this blog by mistake—the cover for my new release, Better Than This:

and for the 3-D lover:

Eh? Eh?

We like? We no like? We know our opinions are important but the decision has already been made (and paid for) so they might possibly be moot?

I actually really hope you like it. I had a tough time with this one because Autumn, the protag, is a painter and Alex, the love interest (and second main character) plays the guitar, so, I wanted to incorporate both elements. Paint and music. Which seems easy but then you actually try to shove the two together and you have a lot of options that maybe don’t look so great. Joleene (my cover artist) and I went back and forth a few times and after a little tinkering, this beauty was born.

You can be honest: did it catch your eye? Would it make you stop long enough to *maybe* glance at the blurb? Again, this is the final product so no changing at this point, but I’m curious to know for the second and third books releasing later this year.

If you’re curious about more behind-the-scene things like how I ended up on this exact version and all the different drafts in between, I have a post on my Patreon page called the Metamorphosis of a Book Cover.  Should cover everything you need to know 😉 Link on the right side somewhere where it says ‘Become a Patron’ ——–>

Also: please keep your fingers/eyes/toes crossed for my wonderful sister who hears back from the doctor today. Thanks in advance!

Life, Am i right?

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Last Wednesday I caught the throat bug and since I keep forgetting to take medicine, I STILL HAVE IT.

☹

In my defense, I’ve been distracted. My sister had outpatient surgery, the check engine light in my car came on (AGAIN), and I was planning Batman’s surprise birthday dinner by calling every restaurant that I know he likes to ask if they took reservations—WHICH THEY DON’T.

When did this become a thing? When I was a hostess, I always had to take reservations. It made sense. You had a larger party coming in and you wanted to let the restaurant know about it. Simple. Easy. Totally makes sense. Nowadays, you make “call aheads” which are apparently useless because unless your entire party is there, you won’t be seated. Seriously—what was the point of me calling? This is what I asked the hostess at the Cheesecake Factory when she informed me that even if the entire party DID arrive, we might still have to wait an hour. Seriously—WHAT WAS THE POINT OF ME CALLING?

And since it was a surprise for Batman, I had to keep sneaking away which made him all suspicious, especially when he heard a guy on the other end of the phone (which was a buddy of his coming to the dinner) and my voice kept coming in and out so I would squeak and then cough and then squeak and then cough and then run into the house for water.

My car is my car and until it’s a different car, that check engine light will always be in my life. My sister is doing fine – we’re just waiting for Wednesday to get the results. Cross your fingers (and eyes and toes…) that everything is benign because she needs a homerun in life right now. She is AMAZING and I was sort of hoping she’d win the lottery or marry Prince Harry and instead, she got outpatient surgery and a hospital bill. ☹ I know something awesome is coming her way but I wish it’d hurry up and get here. And no, Bradley Cooper, it’s not you anymore. You had your chance but my sis can do better. Sorry.

So, writing: I’ve decided that I will be releasing the ENTIRE Better Than This series this year. The first, as you know, is set to come out May 18th (same date as Deadpool!) and Better Than Now will be in August and Better Than You, in November. Three months apart. I’m not sure if this is a smart or stupid plan but I hate when the next book in the series is set to come out the following year (or two or more) because I forget about them or lose interest or whatever. PLUS, once I’m done with this series, I’ll be able to focus on the last book of ARIZAL WARS – Return to Dellapalania. 😉

Since I’m not sure how to arrange a cover reveal party or launch or whatever it is that most authors do, I’m just going to reveal it to you this Wednesday! Woop! If, between now and then, I can figure out how to do something bigger and better for a CR, I will. Otherwise, get excited to see the *amazing* cover for Better Than This on 4/11. I love it and I hope you will too!

…and that seems to be everything going on in my life currently. Still unemployed and suppressing the fear of running out of money, but I’m focusing on writing. And feeling better. And hoping my sister feels better. Things always work out and I’m sure they will this round too.

What about you? How’s your Sunday/life/health going?