Easy steps to make sure you never utter those words!
So,
are you wondering why someone would say those words? Shout em, scream
em or even growl em? Do you think Amanda Hocking or Samantha Young
ever screamed those words in the middle of the night while they
slaved over HTML formatting, Smashwords Vetter errors or Createspace
error messages? Or do you think it was, ‘Like taking candy from a
baby’?
Well,
for me it had its ups and down and times where I wanted to either go
the traditional route or keeping writing as a hobby. I made a list
that may help you going forward in writing. I think it’s always
nice to offer advice because I had to learn some of these lessons the
hard way.
Top 5 “Do’s
1.
Finish your book.
Let’s
start with the first part, finish your book. Though that seems like a
given, I had some people tell me that I should send in a
half-finished manuscript to an editor. Apparently, that’s a major
no-no to some professional editors. If you want help along the way
the best option is to acquire some good beta readers. A beta reader
is someone who is interested in the book you are writing or books in
general, this person should be someone whose opinion and analytical
skills you trust, who reads the manuscript for you in order to help
you find flow and consistency errors. I got that advice from a fellow
indie when I told him that someone offered to beta-read my book for
$150, I have also learned that most betas offer their service for
free.
2.
Choose the right editor.
There
are different editors for different edit jobs and trust me, the
reader can tell if you didn't choose the right one and they will rip
you to shreds in the review because of this. Luckily, I didn't suffer
that fate and hired RA Publishing to edit my novel. It was pricey,
but worth it.
-
Developmental Editing
-
Substantive Editing
-
Copyediting
-
Proofreading
3.
Hire a professional to do a professional’s job.
Seriously,
I understand the cost of self-publishing can be outright ridiculous,
but there are some things that are better left to the professionals.
Like: Editing and Web Design. Granted, there are a few of us out
there that are can do all of these things alone, but if you can’t
please look into hiring a professional. Most custom cover wills cost
you about $150, but some premades are as cheap as $40!! I tried to
create my own cover and all I learned from that experience was that
Photoshop hated me and was designed to make me look like a fool. Good
job Photoshop!
4.
Get an assistant
If
you can afford one. They are actually a great help!
5.
Don’t take bad reviews personal
Yea,
it’s a Don’t in my list of Do’s, but it’s very important to
understand that not everyone I going to love your book. Keep writing
and enjoy it!!
Inevitable by Inger Iversen
(A Love and War)
Publication date: February 28th 2015
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance
A Love and War stand Alone
These DO NOT NEED to be read in any order
These DO NOT NEED to be read in any order
I crashed and opened my eyes . . . there you were, fierce and protective, and I knew . . . I just knew it was you all along.
Ex-Marine Trent Reed has been shot at, in a coma, and placed in war zones, but when his best friend calls in a favor, he is faced with the most dangerous situation yet—to be the best man. Trent’s turbulent past with races other than his own taints his view on the interracial marriage, and he’s none too happy to deal with the ill-tempered maid of honor. To accept the position means understanding that his friend is soon to be out of his life—for good.
Tough-girl Teal Lofton has struggled all of her adult life, from her weight to the color of her skin holding her back in work and love. When she agrees to be the maid of honor in her friend’s wedding, a hormonal bride and a jerk of a best man who she is strangely, yet wildly, attracted to, amplify those struggles.
As tensions and tempers rise, Trent disappears with the wedding rings and Teal braves a snowstorm to bring them back, determined to fix yet another problem. But a tragic accident brings together the unlikely pair, forcing them to face the prejudices of their pasts. In doing so, Trent and Teal embark on an inevitable course of self-discovery and passion like they’ve never experienced before—until a secret from Trent’s past threatens to destroy it all.
She
gave him a half smirk. “Why you, of course. You
are
the reason I came out here in the first place.” Damn if she didn’t
wish she wasn’t lying on the floor, but so close to the fire had
made her shivers slow down considerably, allowing her to form full
sentences.
He
scoffed. “Of course you would! I didn’t ask you to come the fuck
out here. You crashed into the truck, not me.” Trent threw his
hands in the air. “Shit, if you don’t want me to check you, I
won’t. But if you bleed to death internally, don’t fucking blame
me.” He stood and lumbered away while she fumbled with her one good
hand to get the pillow and strap from around her neck.
Reason
told Teal to be grateful for what he and the two strangers had done
for her, but the other part—the part she wasn’t so proud
of—wanted to slam it in his face that this whole scenario was his
fault.
After
removing the crap from around her neck, she took a moment to catch
her breath. Her body ached all over and she wanted to ask Trent for
those pain pills, but first she needed to assess her situation.
Teal
fought to just sit up. Feeling her body for broken bones, she
realized she really had no clue what to look for. What did a broken
bone feel like other than pain? She covertly glanced up at Trent and
spied him eyeing her with a disinterested look on his face. Well,
fuck you too, dickwad.
When
her hand made it to her knee she winced. She pulled the dress up to
see it was swollen and turning purple. It would be impossible to get
up and look for ice. “Shit,” she whispered. As much as she didn’t
like it, she had a choice.
She
could sit there, silently stewing in pain and wait for the neighbors
to come back, or she could ask Trent for help after she’d already
pushed him away. Holding her swelling wrist she leaned her head back,
supporting it against the wall and closed her eyes. She considered
herself capable and strong, but each person had a breaking point and
hers was fast approaching.
Taking
deep, calming breaths pacified her a bit and reassured her that
nothing was broken, at least not in her chest. A cold sensation made
her jump and when she opened her eyes, Trent’s hand placed a towel
filled with snow on her knee. She hadn’t even heard him go outside.
“Thanks,”
she choked out as he stood and walked away. Teal gathered the towel
and gently held it to her knee. Trent walked back to his spot and
leaned against the wall. “When are those two people coming back?”
she questioned.
“Why?”
he asked sharply. “You don’t trust me to take care of you?” His
arms folded over his massive chest and that frown she hated graced
his lips.
“No,
I don’t,” she hissed. “I don’t know you and from what I hear,
you aren’t too fond of people like me, so excuse me if I want to
make sure I get proper help until real help arrives and not this shit
you are doing.” She pointed to him, meaning the fact that he was
all the way on the other side of the room.
Trent
let loose a bark of laughter. “Yeah, well out there you couldn’t
let go of my fucking hand. If you want, I can pick your ass up and
place you right next door with Lee and Dana. I got this cabin to stay
away from people, not bunk with them. And I definitely don’t need
your shit.”
She
called his bluff or at least she hoped it was a bluff. “Fine, take
me over there.” She lifted her arms like a child who wanted to be
picked up. “Since my presence offends you so damned much that you
have to stay on the other side of the fucking room, then please, by
all means, do yourself a favor and get rid of me!”
When
he moved forward, Teal braced herself. If that man so much as tried
to pick her up, she would use her good hand to ring his balls right
off his body. Trent side-stepped her swatting hand and scooped her
up.
“So
much for worrying if I had a neck injury!” she yelped. Okay, so
maybe it wouldn’t be so bad to stay on the floor with him on the
other side of the room.
Teal
wouldn’t admit her regret. If Trent dumped her out in the snow, so
be it. I
am not about to—
The
thought died in her head when he sat her gently on the bed.
“You
don’t have a neck injury. Looks like your wrist is sprained and
your knee is bruised maybe worse. Since I can’t check you for
anything else, I’ll just assume your fine. If you die, I’ll tell
Logan it was by your choice.” He picked the covers up from the
floor and cleaned the mess that was her previous spot. “Logan would
skin me alive if I left you to that couple. Though I am more than
tempted to do it.”
He
glanced back at Teal and at that moment she took stock of his face.
There was swelling from Logan’s fist, but now he had scratches on
his face along with a bruised cheek. What the hell had happened out
there and why did he look as bad as she did when she was the one
who’d crashed?
She
stopped adjusting herself on the bed and raised a brow. “I’m
supposed to believe you care about Logan’s opinion? You don’t
even care that he loves the woman he is about to marry. You tried to
ruin his happiness. What kind of friend does that?” Her lip curled
in satisfaction when he frowned.
“She’s
a liar,” he said, as if it were common knowledge.
“Watch
what the fuck you say about her,” Teal warned. She was in no
position to warn him about shit, but that didn’t stop her. There
was no way this guy was going to talk shit about her friend.
He
raised his hands in mock defense yet his lips held a devilish smirk.
“Hey, I’m just callin’ it like I see it. She got knocked up and
then didn’t tell him about it. Omission of the truth is a lie, do
you not agree?”
Okay,
well he had her there. She had a good ass comeback too, but it wasn’t
Teal’s place to tell him Katie’s reasons for anything. “Whatever,
man. I’m not going to argue about something you know nothing
about.” Teal leaned back on the bed and closed her eyes to ignore
Trent’s smirk and the growing aches in her body.
Fine,
he thought he had her. But it seemed she knew more about what was
going on between Katie and Logan than Trent did. She guessed that
made sense since Trent was so against this union in the first place.
Teal
wondered if Katie’s race was the only reason Trent didn’t want to
see the two married. She thought back to the words Trent could have
used, the words he must have used before if he was a racist, but he
hadn’t used any derogatory terms since he’d arrived. It was clear
there was more going on with this man then she first thought, and
Teal was a bit intrigued.
“That’s
normally how it works with you guys.”
She
cracked a lid to see him still on the opposite side of the room as
her. “You mean black people.” There was no inflection to her
voice. She hadn’t meant it as a question.
“Fuck
no.” Her eyes opened at that and watched as he spoke. “I mean
women.
Y’all wait until we are makin’ sense and then you say ‘whatever’
when you know we’re right.”
She
didn’t know what to say about that so she didn’t say anything,
knowing he’d take it as an admission of guilt. Teal’s pain pushed
her to ask for the meds. “What are those pills that lady left?”
Trent
looked over to the table. “Percocet. You need some?” Teal nodded.
“I need to set that sprain,” he added, heading to the sink and
pouring a glass of water. “Is it okay if I touch her royal
highness?”
She
rolled her eyes at his statement. Taking the pills when he handed
them to her, she was about to put them to her mouth when she paused.
“I can’t take these without eating something first. You got
crackers or anything?”
Before
she’d finished, Trent strode to the counter and grabbed a bag of
chips. “These work?” he asked, shoving the bag at her.
“Yeah.”
She took them and ate a few.
Trent
grabbed his coat and shrugged it on as she finished chewing. After
carefully reading the bottle, she opened it, poured one into her
hand, and popped it into her mouth.
“Where
are you going?” she probed just as his hand touched the door knob.
He froze, as if caught in the act.
“I’m
going to thank Dana and Lee and give them their stuff back.”
She
eyed his other hand, spotting the covers and sheets. Teal couldn’t
quite figure Trent out. One second he was rude and insulting and the
next he was helpful and polite. He eyed her with an inscrutable gaze
before opening the door and exiting. Teal glanced around the small
cabin. Everything was tidy and neat, except where she’d been
placed.
The
cabin was more like a room with a bathroom. Teal couldn’t see
herself staying here much longer. Clean and neat be damned, the door
to the bathroom was missing. She’d be holding it for as long as it
took. A half wall shot up from the floor, hiding the toilet she spied
when Trent had carried her to the bed. Behind a smaller wall, sat a
shower.
Teal
sighed. “This is my hell,” she muttered, laying back completely
on the bed as she closed her eyes. The medicine was taking hold and
making her tired. Now that she was just about sure she wasn’t
bleeding internally or suffering from a massive head wound, rest
seemed less daunting. Actually, it seemed necessary as her eyes
closed and she started to drift.
Author Interview
Welcome, tell us
a little more about yourself?
A. My name is
Kristen Anne Inger Iversen and I’m from Virginia Beach. My day job
is at a chainsaw factory! It’s sounds like hard work, but it’s
actually rather easy and fun.
Did you always
wanted to be a writer? If not what did you want to be?
A. I’ve always
enjoyed writing, but when I was younger I wanted to be a
veterinarian!
When did you
first consider yourself a “writer”?
A. It took
FOREVER for me to actually change my job to Author.
Who is your
publisher? Or do you self-publish?
A. My publisher
is CHBB,
Crushing Hearts and Black Butterfly. I LOVE this company! I also
self-publish.
How long does it
usually take you to write a book, from the original idea to finishing
writing it?
A. I’ve been
writing for a couple years now, so I’ve gotten faster. It takes
about four to five months for me to finish the novel. Then you add a
month of editing and proofreading and I can finish a book in five to
six months.
What can we
expect from you in the future? ie More books of the same genre?
Books of a different genre?
A. YES! I have a
new Adult Contemporary Romance I am working on soon! I can’t wait
to release it.
Do you have a
certain routine you have for writing? ie You listen to music, sit in
a certain chair?
A. Normally when
I write, I get my laptop and go outside with my headphones. The most
comfy place is in my bed, but when I’m there, my cat always jumps
on my laptop for nap.
What genre of
books do you enjoy reading?
A. I love
paranormal romance, but lately, I’ve been reading a bunch of
contemporary romances.
Next one my TBR
list is The
Chronicles of Young Dmitry Medlov: Volume 6
If you could
travel back in time here on earth to any place or time. Where would
you go and why?
A. I wouldn’t
travel to the past. The past is where it belongs in the past, but I
would LOVE to visit the future!
Do you have any
advice for anyone that would like to be an author?
A. Very simple:
Never give up. Don’t listen to the haters. Keep writing.
Which format of
book do you prefer, eBook, hardback, or paperback?
A. Of course
paperback, but e-books are more affordable these days.
What is your
favorite book and Why? Have you read it more than once?
A. I have a few,
but I choose Kissed
by an Angel by Elizabeth Chandler.
Do you think
books transfer to movies well? Which is you favorite/worst book to
movie transfer?
A. Sure they do,
but I am more of a Marvel fan than a books to movie girl. I have to
admit I loved Mocking Jay the movie!
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