Writer Wednesday: Brand Yourself by Jean Joachim

BRAND YOURSELF

            While I am no expert on social media, I do have over twenty years of marketing experience behind me. Not only direct marketing, which is selling direct to consumers, but I understand a bit about branding, too, from working for major ad agencies. We authors need to understand branding, because we are our own brands.

            

 Yes, you are a brand, a writer of a certain type of fiction, maybe even two types of fiction, like contemporary romance and paranormal romance, or historical romance and erotic romance. Whatever your genre or genres you represent something to the reader as sure as if you were Kraft Macaroni and Cheese or Windex. You are an author a reader can count on to be consistent, create a book she wants to read again and again and again. You should be counting on that, too. Because the biggest, hardest sell you’ll have is the first one. Once they read and like your book, they’ll come back to read everything you write. Don’t believe it? Look at Sue Grafton’s alphabet mysteries or Ed McBain or James Patterson who churn out mysteries like boxes of mac and cheese or Nora Roberts or Debbie Macomber. You’ll become a known quantity, dependable, important to a reader.

            The most important thing you can do is introduce a reader to your fiction. Here are a couple of ways to encourage that first purchase:

-          Cultivate the bargain shopper – some people will buy any book for $.99. They are only risking a buck. Run a short-term sale. I ran a sale, reducing the price of an ebook I self-published. I listed it on the big Kindle Fb page which reaches 800,000 people (Kindle Product news) more times than I was supposed to. Yes, I was harassed by a few Facebook Kindle site police who threatened to report me as spam. But I ran the sale for two days, promoted the heck out of the book, a sensual romance, and sold 80 books. I figure those 80 people will be willing to pay more for book two in the series.

-          Give readers a taste of your work for free. Another way to bring in readers is to blog. Show people what you can do with the written word. Put out free reads on your blog. Self-publish a free read on Kindle, then post about it everywhere you can. There is a blog that promotes romance writers called “Six Sentence Sunday”. The link is  http://sixsunday.blogspot.com/.  You sign up there. On Sunday people come to the blog to check out writers and click on your link to read your sample.

Post six sentences from a current book or work-in-progress plus a link back to the original six sentence blog. Include your blurb and buy links. I’ve had excellent traffic from this and as many as 24 comments on my post in one day. Try to find something controversial to post, not just idle description, something leaving them hanging or with a question, six intriguing sentences.  You want them to come back for more or buy the book to get more.

-          Get your name out in the world of writers and readers by joining forums and groups. Get to know people. Be nice. Ask questions not relating to your book. Give up the promotional you and just be you. People will like you and become interested in your books. Try yahoo groups, goodreads and kindle forums. All of these groups have romance reader and writer groups. I’ve sold a few books this way in very little time.

-          Get on Twitter. Although I can’t explain how this happened, traffic to my blog with 600 words from a new work-in-progress was limping along on my blog. I promoted it in the usual places to no effect. Then I wrote a tweet for a free read of the sequel to my current book. I posted the tweet not only to my followers but also as a reply to everyone I was following, or almost everyone. Within a matter of minutes I doubled my traffic on the site! I wish I could tell you why. I don’t know. I did it late at night. I tried it again the next day after two pm and got the same results.

            The point is to get your name and work out there. People will get to know you and love you. One of my most successful blogs is Confessions and Lies Wednesday. I can’t reveal where I get my stories, but some are funny and some are moving. The traffic on Wednesdays continues to grow as people become aware of the topic.

            Think of ways to brand yourself. Brainstorm with other writers or friends. Get your work known, get your name out there and you will sell books.

Thank you Jean for you insightful and informative post. To find out more about Jean's ideas and books check her out here.

Writer Wednesday: Writing Dialogue by Jean Joachim

         Too much of anything is bad listen to how Jean breaks down how to handle the dialogue plight so many writers face.

                     Writing dialogue

Too much narration, that’s my crime.

“Show, don’t tell,” said the editor…all editors! Action, not exposition! I like to write dialogue to show instead of tell. But dialogue can be tricky. Do you write the way we speak or differently? I was writing the way I speak and the dialogue slowed down to a crawl. Help! I found a great article from Writer’s Digest called, “The Seven Tools of Dialogue” and it changed my writing completely, winning me three book contracts.

I use some of the tools directly and made up some of my own, based on the advice of the article and what works for me. The article talks about letting dialogue flow, just write, write it all down as fast as you can. Don’t edit as you go, get it on paper. Afterward, read it aloud or to yourself or both and then begin editing. I write dialogue that way, going with the flow.

Doorstops

I try to eliminate what I call “doorstops” to dialogue, phrases stopping dialogue in its tracks, slowing it down to the point of boredom. My two favorite doorstops are the words “yes” and “no”. I try never to use them. Dialogue without those words speeds up. Here’s an example of a conversation between the hero, Grey, from my latest WIP and the heroine, Carrie:

“So you want my opinion?” She asked, impressed he had read her work.

            “If you don’t mind. Can I pay for it with a nice dinner?” He asked, moving closer.

            “Why not?” She agreed, feeling warmth in her body growing as he neared.

            “How about Le Chien D’Or?” he asked, mentioning a chic French restaurant.

            While “yes” was the implied answer to the questions, the word never actually appeared and the dialogued moved quickly. Here it is with doorstops added:

“So you want my opinion?” She asked, impressed he had read her work.

            “Yes. If you don’t mind. Can I pay for it with a nice dinner?” He asked, moving closer.

            “Yes,” She agreed, feeling warmth in her body growing as he neared.

            “How about Le Chien D’Or?” he asked, mentioning a chic French restaurant.

Another example from the same WIP is this conversation between Grey, and his sister, Jenna:

“Are you still holding tight to your three criteria?”

            “I told you, those were not negotiable.”

            “So have you met anyone who fits any of those yet?”

            “A new woman I met this week meets the first one.”

            “Which one is that?”

            “She’s smart. Very smart.”

            “Good. Maybe she’ll be smart enough to figure out how to win you over.”

            Again, without Grey ever saying “yes” to any of his sister’s questions he gets the agreement across without a doorstop slowing down the dialogue. The point is to keep the conversation moving. Here’s what it would look like with doorstops added.

“Are you still holding tight to your three criteria?”

            “Yes. I told you, those were not negotiable.”

            “So have you met anyone who fits any of those yet?”

            “Yes. A new woman I met this week meets the first one.”

            “Which one is that?”

            “She’s smart. Very smart.”

            “Good. Maybe she’ll be smart enough to figure out how to win you over.”

It may not seem like a big difference but the doorstop brings the conversation to a halt, only to then be started up again. When a character absolutely must indicate “yes” or “no” I may have them nod or shake their head instead of speak. This technique brings in the fourth point in the article, use silence. This doesn’t mean you never use “yes” and “no”, use them judiciously, make them count.

Sidestepping

Sidestepping wordiness by being brief, cutting out extraneous words combined with silence can be an effective way to communicate emotions and actions. It was used by Hemingway, a good enough endorsement for me. Here’s an example of dropping words from “Sunny Days, Moonlit Nights”:

“Want to hear one more from this lovely lady?” he asked.

The thunderous response kept Sunny onstage.

“Song Sung Blue?” he asked.

            “But that’s your song!” she protested.

“Do it with me. It will be our song,” he said.

Confrontation

The article talks about using confrontation in dialogue. I use confrontational dialogue instead of exposition or narrative in “Sunny Days, Moonlit Nights” to show the antagonism, anger and unhappiness in Sunny’s marriage that made her run away:

“It’s about time you called,” he said in a loud, angry voice.

“Brad, calm down.”

“Don’t tell me to calm down! You disappear into the night,

the police think I killed you, the newspapers have already tried and

convicted me…don’t tell me to calm down,” he yelled.

“Brad, if you don’t calm down, I’m hanging up the

phone…then I’m calling the newspapers and telling them you did

try to kill me and that’s why I ran away!” she countered.

“You wouldn’t dare!” he gasped.

“Try me, just try me,” she threatened in an angry tone, her

pulse racing her mouth dry.

Dialogue is an important part, a major part, of every book I write. I love the challenge of writing good dialogue, learning to drop words without losing the meaning, adding confrontation, using silence and keeping “doorstops” at bay. If I keep improving, perhaps I’ll become good enough at dialogue to write a play?

To find out more form Jean Joachim check her out here and come check out Astraea Press's website for new books every week. 

 

Character Monday: Caroline Davis White Talks Art, Men and Money.

Interview with Caroline Davis White from “Sunny Days, Moonlit Nights”

1.      If you could live in another time, when would that be? I’d live during the time of the French Impressionists and I’d live in France. Of course Mike wouldn’t be there, but perhaps I’d marry Claude Monet or Jean Renoir. It would be so romantic to be married to a terrific painter like that where we could spend our days painting together. *sighs*, so romantic! But we would probably be poor. Can you live on love and paint fumes? *laughs*.

2.      If you could relive something in your life, what would it be? My days with my mom. I didn’t realize how tough life was for her. When my dad died, it was hard for me, but she never recovered and never loved another man again. I think they had a great romance and when he died, something in her died, too. Life got difficult then, we never had enough money and it ate away at her. I never gave her enough credit for keeping things together for us and putting me first all the time.

When I discovered the portfolio of my work she kept, I realized she did value my art, my talent. But she was lonely for my dad and trying her best for me, so afraid of making the wrong decisions. I don’t think I made it any easier on her and I regret that. If I could go back, I’d be more respectful of her situation and what she was going through…and maybe a little more obedient.

3.      Why did you go to all those expensive charity dinners? Because mom was husband hunting for me. At first it was fun to dress up and be among so many rich and fancy people. Although mom was a good sewer, I knew my dress was homemade, even if no one else did. I felt like a fraud most of the time. Though when I look back, I realize we weren’t the only ones husband hunting at those things. I did it for mom, because my marrying a rich man would give her peace of mind.

4.      What kind of men did you meet there? I met some doozies! There were many attractive men there, of course, and some took an interest in me. There were also poor men looking for rich wives. When I went out with one of those, my mom sniffed him out and insisted I stop dating him. He was nice but I knew once he found out I was as poor as he was, he would be gone anyway, so I didn’t mind. I did go out with some attractive men but often all they wanted was sex. They knew they would end up marrying a girl from their own social circle if they didn’t want to be disinherited by daddy. I found them predictable and fighting off their advances all the time was annoying.

5.      What made you pick Brad? Brad was the smartest man I met at those dinners. He wasn’t the best looking but he had confidence and he liked me. Of course he was just as interested in getting me to bed as the others, but he showed an honest respect for my art. He wanted to see my paintings and sketches. He is knowledgeable about art and was very supportive.

Since I wasn’t getting support in that area from my mother, I guess I latched on to his in a big way. He wanted to be someone in the world of art but didn’t have the talent himself. So he decided to make me a celebrity. It worked and it was amazing for me. I’m sorry my mom or dad didn’t live to see my shows at the tony galleries in New York City and the auctions where my paintings sold well and for a lot of money. They would have been proud. It was Brad’s interest in my art that made me overlook his faults.

6.      Do you regret marrying Brad? That’s hard to say. Yes, he made me miserable by cheating on me for two years, but he also made me famous. At first, I loved living in his big house with tons of household help, but at the same time, I felt the lack of love so keenly. I missed the genuine love of a husband for his wife and it wasn’t long before the house felt more like a prison than a luxury. I wondered what it would be like to live in a house like his with a man who truly loved me. I’ll never know. The first two years with Brad were okay. Although I never loved him like I love Mike, *blushes* we had a pleasant life together.

7.      Why did you fall for Mike? Mike and I go back a long way. I know who he is inside. He’s a great guy who had a short detour in his life. It wreaked havoc on him but he recovered. I think he’s better than ever. Besides, he’s always been so incredibly nice to me, taking care of me, sort of, in a non-obnoxious way, if you know what I mean. Besides, he’s a real hunk, great…uh, well, that’s enough on that topic. *blushes*

8.      What about him attracted you to him when you were younger? Mike, or Mickey as he was known then was everybody’s hero. He was the one who rescued all the little kids who got into trouble. When I was cornered by a poisonous snake, my friend, Karen ran and got Mickey. He sneaked up behind the snake and chopped its head off with a shovel. That part was pretty disgusting, but I was glad to see it dead. He was always doing things like that.

When I was 13 and he was a dreamy 18 years old, my teenage hormones went into overdrive and he was…*blushes*, well, enough on this topic. You should speak to Karen if you want more detail. She’s more comfortable talking about Mickey than I am.

9.      Were you ever in love before Mike? If so, with whom? I dated Hank Collier in college. In fact he was my first…*blushes* well, never mind. Let’s just say we dated for two years, my last two years of college and I fell for him big time. Tall, blond, good-looking and smart. Hank wanted to be a lawyer and got into Yale Law School. He wanted to keep seeing me, wanted me to wait for him to graduate, but my mom convinced me not to. It would have been three years and she felt even with a degree from Yale Law School, he wouldn’t be as much of a sure thing as Brad.

She was sick, very sick, which I didn’t know at the time. I felt it was important to her and I trusted her judgment. Maybe I was wrong. Hank met another woman, an undergrad at Yale while he was there and married her. They have three children now and seem very happy. He and his wife live in Connecticut, so I used to see him for lunch from time to time when I was married to Brad.

I called Hank when I wanted to divorce Brad and he handled everything for me. He was so sweet, he hated Brad and took very good care of me. Am I sorry I didn’t end up with him? I used to think so, when I was so unhappy those last two years with Brad. Now I realize if I ended up with him, I wouldn’t be here with Mike. In a funny way, it’s all worked out well for me and I’m happier than I thought I could ever be. Who would have thought so a couple of years ago?

10.  Did you have a big wedding to Brad? His mother insisted on doing everything. We got married in his church with a huge reception at his country club. It was a massive wedding with 300 people there, 95% of which were their friends and relatives.  They were generous and paid for everything, including my dress which they had custom made at Vera Wang. Mom made herself the most elegant dress and looked terrific. My wedding day made her happier than I had seen her since my dad died. She was relieved I wouldn’t have to worry about anything. Or so she thought.

Her intentions were good, even if things didn’t work out so well. If she had sold that cabin and not left it to me in her will, with enough money to pay the maintenance on it for two years, then I would have been in trouble. That cabin saved my life, saved me from the worst decision I ever made…and brought Mike and me together.

So even though she was wrong about Brad, she gave me the cabin, opening the door for me to meet up with Mike again. I guess her love for me was guiding me after all. I know she would be so happy to see me where I am now…and so would dad. Mickey was like a son to them at The Birches. I miss them but have a wonderful life and so much to look forward toward to. I’m lucky, *smiles her dazzling smile*  I guess.

Wow Caroline thanks for visiting and sharing some much about your life. To find out more about Caroline and her creator Jean Joachim click here.