Serials - What Now? 7 Ways to Repurpose Your Serial Novels

Happy Wednesday, good people of the blogosphere! I know it's been super quiet around here the last TWO times I was supposed to be here, BUT I have the best reasons ever. 

My house is now packed and ready to move. That's the first thing, and it happened over the last five days. We were so close, but we were also so far away. Our movers will be here Saturday, and then it's on to Florida. Goodbye weird Georgia weather! :D 

Second, my buddy from NZ was in Atlanta due to a layover on her flight home. If you haven't read any of Tee Ayer's books, you simply MUST. Find her on Amazon here. I spent the day with her. How often do you get a friend in town from halfway around the world? Exactly. My schedule was cleared right away when she told me she'd be here.

Those things meant no blog posts. Talking about those serial novels you have scattered all over your computer that have now gone the way of useless is what was planned, so I'll be diving into that now. I've wasted enough of your time up here. Let's get into the nuts and bolts. Grab that coffee and get to scrolling!

We all heard the collective sigh when Kindle Vella decided to shutter. Now there are all these authors with all these serial novels screaming for a place to go. Here are some ideas to get your novel repurposed and out to the world:

1. Hire an Editor and Package It as a Full-Length Novel or Novella

Combine your serial episodes into a cohesive standalone eBook and/or print edition, save a few of those, and offer the chapters as exclusive bonus chapters or new content to attract previous readers.

2. Host It Independently on Your Website or Blog

Offer chapters one by one via your website or blog to build direct reader engagement. You can monetize through reader donations, subscriptions, or membership tiers (like Patreon or Ko-fi).

3. Create an Email Newsletter Series

Serialize your novel via email, offering weekly episodes to subscribers. This options would build your mailing list and reader loyalty simultaneously.

4. Podcast Serials

You could record and release episodes (chapters) weekly or monthly in audio form via podcast platforms like Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or Audible, and you can monetize them with sponsorships, donations, or ad revenue. You can also do this with the first book in a series and offer a discount code for the others by selling direct to consumer from your website.

5. Publish on Alternative Serial Fiction Platforms

• Wattpad: Yeah, it's still there! Crazy, right? You can leverage their large user base and active reader communities via Wattpad though.
• Radish: It seems great for monetizing romance or drama serials through reader micropayments.
• Royal Road: New to me, but this one is more for fantasy, sci-fi, or litRPG serials.
• Ream: Ream is specifically designed for authors offering serialized fiction and supports direct reader subscriptions. It seems to be the replacement platform for Vella.

6. Exclusive Content on Patreon or Substack

Offer serialized chapters as exclusive content for paying subscribers, or provide additional incentives like author Q\&A, behind-the-scenes, early access to content, or special editions of other books.

7. Interactive Fiction or Game Adaptation

Turn your already serialized novel into an interactive narrative! I just found out this is possible by using platforms like ChoiceScript or Twine. Pretty cool if you ask me. It might be better if the story isn't done yet, but what have you got to lose? You can engage readers by letting them shape the story as it unfolds.

Many of you might've already uncovered a lot of these, but I truly think it sucks when they yank a carpet you've been riding out from under you. I thought this might be a helpful post, anyway.

Did you get anything out of it or find something you didn't know about? Was there something in there you hadn't considered doing? Do you have something else that's working? Drop a comment so other readers can find it. A rising tide lifts all boats!

Well, that's all for today, folks!

Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Instagram Book Spotlights: Pretty Posts, Zero Sales

Hellooooo! Welcome back to the blog! I'm so excited you're here today because we're talking about Instagram spotlights. Like many of you, I’ve dabbled in book promotion strategies from blog tours, to Facebook ads, to the ever-tempting Instagram book influencer. This post will be a reflection of the latter. You all know I'm out there trying the things so you'll know if they work or not. Yeah, I may lose a little money, but it's a business writeoff for me, and it gives me a ton of first-hand information to pass along to you. You all know how I feel about money. That's probably the most serious topic you'll get from me here. No, I won't name anyone, so don't ask me to. I'm not that guy.

If you're interested in reading more, grab a coffee or a tea, and let's dive right into it.

So, it all started with a DM from an IG account, asking me to DM yet another account (fishy already) and inquire about a book spotlight. I bit. I figured there wouldn't be any sales of my book over that period, but I thought "what the hell" and gave it a go. It at least got me blog fodder. Ha.

That account promised a gorgeous spotlight post and potential visibility to thousands of readers. Man, I was dying at this point to know how much all this was gonna cost me, so I asked. Book promo packages started at like $29 and went up to $99.

For $99, you got a month's worth of posts, one per week, on their page plus one story per week and one highlight that's permanent. Okay, I did that one.

THEN they asked if I also wanted ads. I was like, sure! I mean, why not? We're on a roll.

Remember, I'm prepared to lose this money ahead of time.

Ad sets were an additional $49. We're up to $148, if you're keeping track.

It looked amazing. It got likes. It got comments. It was beautiful. After all, this account had several thousand followers.

Know what it didn’t get? Sales.

How do I know?

Well, like any good writer does when they run a promo, I tracked my sales from day one to day thirty. There wasn't a single sale during that period.

Wanna know what did happen?

SPAM. I got hit from a million sides with requests from accounts offering to host my book on their pages. DMs, comments on images, aggressive people that didn't give up when I politely said no thank you.

I'm talking 15+ messages a DAY.

Guess who followed that account I promoted with? All the people sending me DMs, leaving comments on my stuff, and being aggressive with their marketing. Also probably all previously featured authors. You know that's a pet peeve of mine.

Now, I'm not saying everyone was a total ass when I said no. There were quite a few people who just thanked me and moved on, so that was nice, but the others? Oh. My. Lanta. It was like fending off a herd of starving cats while you're holding a salmon. Sadly, I ended up reporting them as spam to IG.

You all know me. This post isn’t about blaming or shaming influencers. It’s about empowering authors with information. A beautiful spotlight doesn’t guarantee results, especially if the audience isn’t primed to buy. I highly doubt there are 1k+ people who enjoy reading thrillers who are following that account.

As I've always said, put your money where your readers are. Places like Amazon, for example, but pretty much anywhere you can target your readers yourself. So remember:

• IG engagement ≠ book buying behavior.
• Most bookstagram followers are other authors, other influencers, or casual readers, not high-intent shoppers.
• There’s rarely targeting by genre, niche, or intent.

Would I do it again? No. Am I glad I tried it? Honestly? Yes. Because now I know what (for sure) doesn’t work, and I get to share that with you lovely people.

Save your money. Save your sanity. Promote with purpose.

I hope you learned something from this post, and I hope I'm able to save you money you didn't need to spend in the first place.

Have you ever tried a spotlight promo? Did it work for you? Drop your experience in the comments so others can see what you learned and get some info from it.

Well, that's all for today, folks!

Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

A Thriller to Add to the PPSK Series

Happy Monday, good people of the blogosphere! Today, I'm telling you all about a new psychological thriller I'm working on. I hope everyone is looking forward to the week ahead (I know I am), and I also hope all the moms out there had a wonderful Mother's Day. I got flowers from one kid, lunch and time spent from another, a visit from one, a text, and a phone call. It was an awesome day! Anyway, let's dive into the reason I'm posting, shall we?

So, if any of you have read Innocent, you'll know it's about a woman who ends up in a psych ward after she kills three people (or does she?). It's told from her POV, not something I usually do in my books, and she's speaking directly to the reader throughout.

Well, this book is the continuation of that story. Y'all are finally gonna find out if she's guilty or innocent. Or will you?

If you haven't read it, check it out here. It's free!

I've decided to title the new book Fabrication, and I know the beginning and the end, which is what I need, personally, to craft the middle. I suck at plotting, but I know where the story needs to go and which characters from other books in the series will make an appearance. I'll tell you two of them:

Nicky Moretti - Hank's partner from Intensification and the officer investigating Warren Vanderhorn's death in Manipulation.

Shelley Whitaker - She's back under an assumed name after the police started looking into her background when her husband, James, disappeared.

Both these characters will play pivotal roles. Ms. LeBrague's first name is Casey, and her bestie in the institution is Tina.

I'm seriously considering holding a drawing for a rather large Amazon gift card for folks who can give me an outline of all my crossover characters throughout the series. haha

I also devised a cover, but I'll save the showing of that for later so you guys can all ooh and aah once I have more of the book written.

My pivotal character is Silas. He's the ice-blue-eyed orderly Casey thinks is the killer. I guess only time will tell, right?

Well, I'm gonna get back to writing while you guys get back to thinking about the book and what it may entail. :)

I hope you're all excited! I know I am. Any guesses on whether she's innocent or guilty?

That's all for today, folks!

Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Author Website Options

Happy Friday, good people of the blogosphere! Welcome back. If it's your first time here, be sure you poke around. I have tons of tips, tricks, and advice for authors. Today, we'll be talking about website options. I know a lot of you already have a site, so today is about where you might want to go to level up or start anew. We'll also be talking a bit about design, so hang in there with me.

Ready? Grab that notepad and a cup of coffee, and let's dive on in.

We'll start with: Hosting Options

Wix

Wix is the host I use, and I find it simple because it's an add, edit, drag WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) editor. It can be expensive if you opt for the higher tier packages, but most folks need the Pro plan. That gives you enough storage to upload book cover images and link them unless you have 5k+ books. If you want a shop, it costs more, and if you want an email, that's monthly (they have no way to bill it yearly) on top of the site cost. They have some cool features I really enjoy, like the slider on my homepage. Be sure you catch them on a sale weekend because you can get a whole year for half off.

WordPress

This is one I have zero experience with, but I did try WP one time for my blog, and I found all the little apps and buttons crazy confusing. That being said, I do know several people who have beautiful WP sites, and the prices are fantastic. Not a ton of storage space, but there again, do you have 5k+ books? No.

GoDaddy

I've used their builder in the past for clients, and it's similar to the one on the Wix platform. Their prices go up fast depending on what you want and if you're a renewing customer though, so keep that in mind. It's extra for a custom domain (like anywhere else), but their basic plan includes a website chat that syncs with your inbox. That's pretty cool!

SquareSpace

I've built a site here, and their interface is complicated, IMO. It's not the drag-and-drop editor most sites give you, but the pricing seems pretty fair, and from what I hear from others (don't quote me on this), they do a bit of advertising on your behalf. I believe that's only about a Google rank, but I'm not sure. I didn't end up moving forward with them because of the interface, but their pricing isn't terrible if you pay by the year. Something to consider.

Author Websites by BookBub

This is NEW. Now, because I'm me, I'm all about being able to brand myself as I'd like to. I did dive in and check it out because that's what I do, but I did find a few issues in the beta version: I could NOT get it to load all my books OR allow me to highlight more than one on the homepage. Their editor is clunky and hard to figure out right now. Do I see a lot of promise with upcoming features? Yes, I do. Price wise, they're amazing, but I believe that's because it's still in beta. I've been giving them feedback on my experience, so I'm hoping they take it and run with it. It's free to try, so if you're looking for something new, check it out.

Now we'll dive into: Design

First of all, you need to brand yourself with colors and an icon of some kind. This can be a logo, a wordmark, or a lettermark, but it needs to be consistent across all of your everything. When you stumble upon me elsewhere on the web, you'll know it's authentic because of my color scheme and look and feel. Any host that won't allow me to customize that is off my list right away. You can think about how you want to do that by reading my free PDF. You can download and print it from here.

Keep it clean and consistent. Assure people know they've gotten the real you when they come upon your page.

There's a second section in that PDF that goes over websites. It tells you everything you need to know, but if you don't feel like wading through the other stuff, I also posted about it here.

Because of course I did. :)

Printing it, however, will give you somewhere to write down all your observations as you go through the process.

Did you learn anything from this post? I strive to bring you all the most relevant, up-to-date information I can, so I hope I'm doing a good job!

Thanks for reading, and if you find yourself interested in all the stuff I do here, visit my Linktr.ee to follow me on socials. I do try to always share my posts there.

Well, that's all for today, folks!

Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Bookish Gifts, Merch Trends, and the Rise of the Sprayed Edge

Howdy, y'all! Welcome back to the blog on this nasty, rainy Wednesday. It's kinda chilly here in Georgia (soon to be Florida!), and I'm hating on it hard. I love warm weather and warm rain, and I despise the cold. Yuck. Anywhooooooo... Today, we're talking about things. All the newfangled bookish gifts, merchandise, and how the sprayed edge has taken over the special edition. Why that last one? Because I feel like it goes with the others like mushy peas go with fried fish.

So, grab something awesome and warm to drink, strap in, get those mouse fingers warmed up to scroll, and let's get to it already!

***NOTE: Nothing here is an affiliate link. We don't do that on this blog. I may add a donation button at some point, but I'm still thinking it over. WDYT?

First up: Bookish Gifts

There are a ton of bookish items on shelves nowadays, and I feel, with all the books by Hoover now being made into movies, the stock and options therein have exploded. Let's look at a few I happen to just love.

Storiarts is a super cool site that offers book-themed merchandise at a nice cost. Link here. They have fingerless gloves (I own the ones with lines from The Raven on them), scarves, tees, headbands (I have one of those, too), baby stuff, blankets... There's too much to list here, but all are quality. I've given them as gifts, too.

Of course, there's always the bookish things on Amazon, but CafePress is amazing if you're an author who wants to create their own gear. Link here. Before they got serious about their licensing abilities, I made an Emancipation Monopoly game there. It was hella cool. Kinda wish I'd kept one. hahaha 

Anyway, dive on in and see what you can make! These would be awesome gifts, and there's a wide array of stuff to customize. Wouldn't you love to be wrapped in Tobias's face at the beach? *evil grin*

Next: Merch Trends

This revolves around influencers, mostly. I don't know if you're up to speed on this, but a lot of times, new release ARCs (Advanced Reader Copies) are being sent with items around the book's theme. Historically, we sent ARCs for reviews, but now, it's become the norm to send items alongside to help the promoter do his/her/their job.

This also includes coloring books, which we did with our War and Pieces ~ Frayed Fairy Tales series. Feel free to download, print, and color this one. :)

Is this a good idea in this new world we find ourselves in? Well, I will say that several of the items sent cause quite a bit of discussion to start, so maybe it's genius.

On the other hand, when you have a book like Emancipation, what the hell do you send? Rope, Duct tape, and perfume that smells of murder? I'm not sure that would go over so well... I may be wrong, of course, but it seems to me this would make romance, sci-fi, and contemporary a much easier sell. 

Thoughts?

Last: The Rise of the Sprayed Edge

You can find a TON of books with sprayed edges over on Etsy. Link here. Some of them are mouthwateringly beautiful, and some have custom covers rather than sprayed edges.

I see special editions in the bookstores all the time, and if there's a decorative edge, I'm all over it (usually only if I don't already have it, but there are a FEW exceptions). I also may, or may not, have a few pretties of titles I already owned because they came out with a special one that made me swoon. Lightlark was one of those. haha I mean, have you seen it? It's gorgeous. No clue if it has sprayed edges because I haven't removed it from the box. Yet. :) Hey, I'm waiting on my library to be finished, okay?

All that being said, I have a theory on why the sprayed edge became a thing. Wanna hear it? I know you do! I'm gonna tell you anyway. :P

You know all those designers that put the books on the shelf so the spines are to the wall so there's this weird, white, lined aesthetic when you look at it?

I know you can see where I'm going with this.

I think this is what started the sprayed-edge craze. No one wants their book on a shelf so the title is hidden. Not only is it terrible for the book (they're meant to be taken off the shelf by the spine), but it crushes all advertisement for the title. Do you browse someone's bookshelf at their house to see the white edges of the pages? No. You do it to see what titles they're reading and if you might want to read any of their stuff. Plus, hours are spent agonizing over the cover and assuring series are numbered correctly on the spines.

Enter the sprayed edge. It's like a huge screw you to those designers. hahaha! I love it.

What do you think? Have you come across unique bookish gifts, to-die-for merch, or a sprayed edge that knocks all others out of the park? Tell me about it!

I hope this post was educational and fun for you all. My fingers are starting to hurt from all this typing, so I'm gonna go! Thanks for reading. :)

Well, that's all for today, folks!

Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Finally, an Author Platform Just for Men

Hello, and happy Monday, everyone! I suppose you can kind of tell what today's post will be about, mainly, but I'm going to take a quick moment to catch you all up on what's been going on and why I didn't post last week. Boo! Let's just dive right into it, shall we?

So, a few weeks ago, hubby and I were in a car accident. We were rear ended and pushed into the car ahead of us (double slammy). I felt okay after a little bit, though I was a tad lightheaded, and my left shoulder was sore for about an hour. I'm well aware it sometimes takes a few weeks for things to show up, so I was hesitant to say I was good.

Well, last week, my left hand swelled between my ring and pinky fingers, and the fingers got so big, I took my wedding ring off and put it on my necklace for fear it would make things worse and end up needing to be cut off. That was a long sentence, but you see where I'm going with this.

I ended up on the couch with an ice pack, Aleve (don't tell my neurologist--she'll unalive me), and a remote control. Of course, I had my phone, so I was still browsing with my right hand (which is where I came across the linky that's the topic today). Now, it's still slightly painful, but I can type, so I'm back!

Not something I planned for, stupidly, so I missed posting all last week.

Now you know.

TODAY, however, I'd like to talk about this website that was just launched. News article here.

According to a poll I conducted a long (long) time ago, men dominated the reader preferences, so I have to ask myself: Why do they need a new website focused mainly on them?

Are you asking yourself the same question?

It appears women have taken over the publishing industry. According to the man in that article, " ... Most of the excitement and energy around new and adventurous fiction is around women authors ... "

My takeaway from reading the article is that it's believed that this needs to be corrected for some reason or another. Why is this a problem? Are women not allowed to have a bigger voice after being shushed for so long? Why do the males in this industry feel threatened in such a way?

I've seen some real stinkers and read some beautiful masterpieces by both sexes. In my humble opinion, more women have simply gravitated toward publishing the last ten years.

Could that have something to do with the Indie boom? I believe it has everything to do with it. Before, there were gatekeepers in the "Big 7" (now the Big 5) who were more likely to give those contracts to men. Now, a woman can simply write down her thoughts and publish them. Perhaps the female voice is what was missing in a mostly male-dominated industry, and it corrected itself.

I say it's about damned time the playing field was leveled in such a way. Perhaps it's not that males aren't being heard, but maybe it's that they don't tend to become writers these days as often as women do.

Label us bored housewives if you want, but we're crushing this publishing thing. I just can't believe a whole sex feels threatened enough by it to create a website focused on them and them alone.

What do you guys think about this? Is it a good thing? Pop on over, read that article (it's not long), and let me know your thoughts!

I, for one, am so excited to read more about how her boobs bounced boobily down the stairs. They say it's for masculine themes, but don't we just need more escapism? Books are entertainment, after all.

Well, that's all for today, folks!

Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Character Interview with Pearl Etta Riggs (Smith) Codename: Viper

Hello, and happy Friday, everyone! It's been a minute since I did a character interview, and I thought this one would be extra fun. As you may know, Pearl is the main character in my Guerrilla Grannies series. She's a computer wiz, a chemical engineer, and a firecracker. I aspire to be her when I grow up. hahaha! I won't bore you with details. Let's get some coffee and dive right in, shall we?

Hello, Pearl, and welcome. We're excited to get this interview going. How are you today?

Pearl: I'm as tired as a boxer after the twelfth round, but I guess I'm holding it together okay. Let's just get this over with. I have plans with my friends later. *pats hair*

Well, you just look fabulous, if we might be so bold as to say so.

Pearl: *preens*

How about we start by asking how you met your friends: Ethel, Opal, Minerva, and Alma. How did you all meet?

Pearl: That's a great way to start. I love this story so much! Opal and I hit it off on day one of elementary school because of our names, and Alma came not too long afterward. We palled around together quite a bit until the first day of middle school. That's when The Great Milk Debacle happened, and Minerva and Ethel came into the fold. We've been friends ever since.

Whoa! I have to ask now. The Great Milk Debacle? We need to know more!

Pearl: There was this kid, Tommy Turner, and he was a terror. He was a straight up bully, taking other kids' lunch money or demanding their desserts. Well, Tommy was trying to take Opal's milk, and back then, she wasn't nearly as deadly as she is now. She's petite and quiet. She's not as small as Alma, but still... 

So, anyway, Tommy comes out of the hallway and crosses his arms, blocking our way to the cafeteria, our trays in hand. He holds out meaty paw and glares at us, demanding Opal hand over her milk. She goes to give it to him, even though Alma and I are telling her not to, when Minerva and Ethel appear between Opal and Tommy. They faced him and told him to go away; he wasn't getting anyone's milk. 

He made some snide remark, and Minerva's fist went flying at his face right as Ethel's foot went for his balls. I've never seen someone go down so fast. Minerva told him we were under her protection now, grabbed us, and rushed us away before any teachers could get involved. She and Ethel just kind of stayed after that. We like them okay, I guess. *smirks*

That's an admirable story. Minerva and Ethel, great defenders of injustice.

Pearl: Yeah. It makes sense that Ethel went into law enforcement when you look at it like that.

It sure does. We want to know more about you now. How did you meet Mansfield?

Pearl: We met right after I graduated college. He was trying to buy the lab I worked at, and my boss had all the technicians in his office when he met with the potential buyers. Manny came in with a bunch of other suits, and on his way out, he stopped and asked me if I'd like to go to dinner with him. I agreed. That sale never happened, but I got a husband and a free dinner out of it.

Where did you go to college?

Pearl: I went to Georgia Tech. Back then, it wasn't nearly the school it is now, but they were still great. I got a chemical engineering degree and picked up a bit of computer savvy along the way. You know, computers were just becoming a thing when I was in school.

Where did you get your love of technology?

Pearl: I'd touched a few computers before starting my career, and we ended up implementing a lot of them by the time I left the lab. They kind of go hand in hand with what I do.

That makes sense. So, we were told that we have to ask. Did you ever blow up a lab?

Pearl: Of course. *grins* We made all kinds of mistakes. Our professors told us it was part of the learning process, and I did learn a lot. I now know not to mix a metal hydride with water. *holds hands up* I mean, boom. *explodes hands apart* Unless that's what I'm going for.

You said you have plans with your friends later. What’s on the agenda? A bridge game or kidnapping another bad guy?

Pearl: I'm not at liberty to say.

Okay, okay. How about we ask: What’s the most illegal thing you’ve done that you’re willing to admit to?

Pearl: *taps chin* We might have put bomb detonators in fake old-folk buttons and pretended to be frail so we could evade questioning. 

Wait. What? When did you do that?

Pearl: I can't tell you when, silly! Then they'll know it might have been us.

Ah. I see. Okay, I'll change it up. If you and your friends had a theme song that would play when y'all walked into a room, what would it be?

Pearl: I love this question! I'm thinking Bad to the Bone. We're all pretty amazing like that, and it fits. Personally, mine would be Trouble by P!NK.

Those are very fitting, from what we know about y'all. Last question (because we're out of time for today): What’s the one thing you wish people understood about aging?

Pearl: There's more than one thing, but the top thing to remember is: Just because you're getting older, it doesn't mean you have to stop having fun or being the boss lady you are. Age is just a number; it's not what defines who you are or what you can do.

Oh, that's great advice! Thank you, Pearl, for joining us today. It was a pleasure having you, and don't worry about the blue hair. We think you look fabulous.

Thanks to everyone who joined us today. We hope you enjoyed getting to know Pearl and are eager to know more about her friends. Ethel has graciously told us she might be available for an interview sometime in the near future.

If you're interested in learning more about these awesome ladies, pick up a copy of Guerrilla Grannies: Gray is the New Black today.

I don't know about any of you, but I want to be Pearl when I grow up. hahaha

Well, that's all for today, folks! 

Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Emotions and Writing - How to Deal with Emotional Distress as an Author

Hello, everyone, and happy Wednesday! I'm going so deep into my soul for today's post, it's crazy. We're talking about emotions and writing, and how you can deal with the emotional distress life can throw your way. We've all been there, some of us more deeply in it than others, and we know how quickly the milkshake you've been shaking stops bringing all the boys to the yard. Buckle up, and grab a box of tissues just in case. Coffee locked and loaded?

Good. Let's go!

There are so many emotional firecrackers that can go off in our lives that we can't just power through, and sometimes, sitting in the silence makes thoughts we hate come to the surface and sit there, swirling around, yanking our focus away from our task at hand. Holy shit that was a long sentence. *inhales deeply* This type of thing can break us from the inside out. There are a handful of things I can think of that can, and have, thrown me out of my writing habit. I know there are others.

Here are a few of the life changers I could think of off the top of my head:

• Death of a loved one.
• Extreme stress.
• Uncertainty about the future.
• Homelessness.
• Losing a high-paying job.
• Major health issues (you or a family member you care for).

Let's address these from the only place I can come from. Some of you will have different experiences/stressors, and that's perfectly alright. This is how I dealt with it, and I'm hoping to encourage some thinking and self forgiveness here. :)

I've talked about my MS before, but the April after I was diagnosed, my husband was told he had cancer and would have to do chemo. That sent us both into a bit of a tailspin. I was knee deep in War and Pieces art (the shoes for the covers), and he planned to work through chemo, so I was the one setting his stuff up and doing the driving every day.

We still published on time, but I had to find a way to make it work. Not everyone has that option, and I was lucky I did at the time. Honestly, if emotional distress has you unable to make words, then don't make words. There's no way I could've gotten any writing done during chemo, so it was a great thing that I was in an artwork phase. It was HARD. I'm not sure I could do it today.

When my son died, I lost all my motivation to do much of anything. Sitting in a quiet room with nothing but my words simply wasn't an option. I had to stay super busy so the grief didn't eat me alive. I had random aches all over (especially in my chest), and I spent a lot of time with my punching bag.

I dove into art with gusto. I devoured YouTube videos from artists and learned how to work in several new mediums. Then I started putting them together to create things that were unique, things no one had done before. Like this:

Or this:

My house quickly filled with paintings and other art. Some were those of a beginner, and some were actually really good. Then I created things for friends as test pieces with new mediums to see what my limits were. Like this one I did for my friend Casey Bond:

I improved and upskilled, and I was able to eventually do this:

You know what I didn't do? I didn't beat myself up for not writing. Yes, it's in my blood. I love it more than I can say. I've done things with my writing no one has ever done before. I created the story of a book that compels the reader to read it. I told a story from the POV of the house itself. It brings me so much joy when people read and love my work, when it touches their hearts and makes them think.

That being said, I couldn't bring myself to the place I needed to be to write.

That's okay.

Read it again.

You don't have to be a writer 24/7 if you're a writer. You're allowed to take time to heal. You're allowed to take time for any reason you please. Your books don't own you and neither do your fans.

Yes, you'll lose some followers along the way, but you have to ask yourself what matters most. Do you matter? Does your mental health matter?

The answer is yes. Without you being in top form, the words won't be what they could've been. Take the time you need. Don't regret it; you'll emerge from the other side a stronger, healthier you.

Of the things I listed above, I've been through all of them except one. Guess where I am right now? Writing. Yeah, it's just my blog for now, but I'll be back at the words this year. Make no mistake, you'll come back around.

Be patient, and be kind to yourself.

You matter.

I hope you were able to read through this without too much trouble. Sometimes, beautiful things come from pain, and sometimes, they come from happiness. Either way, creative things are borne from emotion. Go ahead and feel.

Did I miss any of the major stressors? Drop me a comment. I'd love to know how the last few years have been for you.

Well, that's all for today, folks!

Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Overused Phrases in Thriller Novels

Happy Monday, good people of the blogosphere! I know I'm late. I had stuff for my normal job to do. hahaha. Today, we'll be talking about overused phrases (clichés) in thriller novels specifically. You've probably all seen/read these before, but just so you know, I'm in a thriller group where the readers poked some fun at the genre this week, and these were the phrases they came up with. I'm sure I've used a couple, but I do my LEVEL best to avoid stuff like this.

Ready? Grab a coffee and get comfy. Here we gooooooooo...

First up, we have the body language phrases:

• I released a breath I didn’t know I was holding.
• I bit my knuckles.
• The smile did not reach my eyes.
• I instantly collapsed.
• My eyes darkened.
• His eyes sparkled with recognition.
• Bit my tongue until a metallic taste filled my mouth.
• Calluses.
• Boobies bouncing boobily.
• Bite the inside of your cheek.
• Nails digging into palms.
• Pacing back and forth.
• Hearts beating out of chests.
• White knuckling something (like a steering wheel).
• Shivers dancing down spines.
• Knitting brows.
• Hooded eyes.
• Ice in veins.
• Click or cluck tongue. 
• Lips that turn into a line.
  

Okay, and now we go to descriptions:

• Toothy smiles.
• Watery smiles.
• Sickening thuds.
• Padding out of a room.
• Awaking with a start.
• Scarlet cheeks.
• Throats with bile filling them.
• Suddenly gasping.
• A bit too thin.
• Red like strawberries.
• Cold, dead, and unseeing eyes.
• Invisible lint.

Additional ones:

• Realizing X amount of time had passed.
• A woman who doesn't know how beautiful she is.
• A sensation of eyes boring into you.
• Prickling sensation.
• Little half moons in palms.
• Chairs scraping across linoleum floors.
• Screaming only to realize it's me.
• Swallowing the lump.
• Steam curling from mugs.
• Bowels turning to water.
• Small of your back being touched.
• Those darn jaw ticks.

Now, these phrases aren't bad on their own, but when you're writing them into your novel, try to keep in mind 1k other people are also writing them into their novels. There are a few of these I have issue with that could be worded better:

• Released a breath I didn't know I was holding.

Yeah, you knew you were holding your breath. It's an automatic feature of being human, breathing, and it doesn't stop unless you tell it to with your brain.

Use this instead: Released my breath as I relaxed.

• My/His/Her eyes darkened.

Are you or they a magician? How are your/their eyes changing color? They're not.

Use this instead: His eyelids dropped halfway, and he tipped his chin down a bit.

• Pacing back and forth.

This is four words where one will do. I go over this in some of the editing posts I've written. When someone paces, back and forth is implied. You don't have to beat the reader over the head with it.

Use this instead: She paced between the fridge and the window, stopping to peek out each time. Or simply: She paced.

• Knitted brows.

This is one of those things that drives me batty. You don't have to use this exact phrase. Change it up. Get creative. That's your job as a writer.

Try: Pulled his eyebrows together until they nearly touched. Or: Scrunched her nose and wrinkled her forehead, causing her brows to get closer. 

• Suddenly gasping or suddenly gasped.

A gasp is sudden. You only need one of those words, not both. I don't even have a use this instead hint here. I mean, leave off a word. haha

• Bowels turning to water.

I'm so glad I've never seen this. I'd stop reading. Your bowels can't turn to water and neither can your legs or a smile. Just stop it.

Use this instead: A sudden urge to shit slammed into me like a noon train, and I clenched my butt cheeks.

Here are some tips I've worked up in the past. Here is a game you can play with phrases like this so you can alter them.

What are your favorite common phrases? Ping me a comment, and let me know!

I hope you all got something out of this post, even if it was just a chuckle.

Well, that's all for today, folks!

Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Lessons from Traveling

Welcome back to the blog, good people of the blogosphere! Today, I'll be talking about the lessons I've learned from doing a TON of traveling. From my author job to my other job (not telling you what that is), I had to figure out how to be fully mobile so I could keep things running as smoothly as possible when I'm away from my home computer. I'm gonna share how I accomplish it with all of you. I know, I'm a peach. :)

Without further ado... Grab that coffee and a notebook because here we gooooooo!

Lesson 1:

Know where you're going and what you'll have access to while you're there.

This one was hard for me because I'm used to having the programs, wifi, and power supplies I need when I need them. Having things like Photoshop at my fingertips allows me to do my job in a streamlined way, but I can't haul my laptop and monitor everywhere I go. It's not economical, and my laptop is a beast of a machine. It's super heavy and is a bit of a power hog.

I discovered that you can't do everything on an iPad that you can do on a laptop, so I adjusted. We'll get into what I do to avoid these things at the end so you can focus on the issues and not the solutions. Onward!

Lesson 2:

Understand space limitations.

I thought I'd have just a little room to do the things I needed to do on the airplane. That just wasn't the case. You also probably won't need your whole purse. Take what's vital.

Lesson 3:

Books are heavy and take more space than you think. 

One is a lot, and more than one pushes your limits unless you're a body builder or have wheels (even then, you have to lift for the overhead). Along with everything else I had to take with me, I discovered I needed to have the husband help me lift my bag when I took more than one.

Lesson 4:

Clothes are overrated.

Sure, you need enough to get you through the days you'll be gone, but more than that, and you're just flexing.

Lesson 5:

Cute Airpod cases are crap.

From having them come apart and flip open to scatter my beloved Airpods to the wind to having them randomly stop sticking to the case, I've been through some stuff.

Lesson 6:

You'll need a business card at the exact moment you aren't carrying one.

This happens to me every time I travel, and I always promise myself I'll stick a few in my wallet. hahaha No. I don't. 

Lesson 7:

You won't be able to do the thing when you need to.

I thought I could handle everything I needed to while I was on the go, but I quickly realized there are some things I can't do remotely.

Solutions:

• Assure you have plenty of outlets where you're staying so when your devices decide to die on you, there's a plug nearby.
• Get cases with keyboards attached. Yes, they're heavier, but if you're used to typing on a keyboard, you'll struggle with a screen.
• Pack light if you have access to a washer and dryer. You don't need ten outfits for a five-day trip.
• Check the website to see if you have wifi. This has tripped me up more than once, and I end up using my phone as a hot spot. Yuck.
• Find apps that easily do the things you're used to doing on your desktop for the iPad (if this is how you roll--I do highly suggest getting at least a small iPad for travel).
• Get a robust Airpod case that clicks closed and hooks onto things.
• One book will do ya. If you truly need more, go digital.
• Be better than I am, and add those business cards or bookmarks to your wallet (or get a digital one). That way, when someone asks, you have it on hand.
• Airplanes are best suited for phone use and not typing on a keyboard. Find a way to work from your phone when in the air. Your elbows will thank me, and your seatmates will thank me, too!
• Work ahead. Do as much as you can before you leave, and use automation to keep things running while you're away. That way, all you have to do is monitor everything.
  

There ya go. These are the hard-won lessons I learned from traveling with my stuff. As you may know, I'm about to move states, and when I say we're back and forth between the new place and home a lot, it's an understatement. We're here as much as we're there, and I haven't moved all my work stuff yet. ha. Ugh.

My usual packing list:

• iPad with keyboard case
• Pen and small pad of paper
• One book
• Batteries or backups for things that need them
• Medications
• Phone
• Small wallet with ID and one credit card 

All that goes in a very small backpack, and then I put clothes for exactly the number of days I'll be gone plus one, my overnight bag with shampoo and such in it, and my chargers into a small suitcase. It's changed my life for the better. I no longer worry about my bag getting lost because chargers and clothes are easy to replace, and I can work and have my meds either way because of the backpack.

I hope you got something out of the post for today! Can you think of anything I missed? If so, drop me a comment and let me know! Thanks for reading and being awesome. :)

Well, that's all for today, folks!

Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Character Development Hacks

Howdy, y'all! Welcome back. Hump day! I love Wednesdays. It means the weekend is so close I can smell it. No, that's not my feet. I don't think it is, anyway. :) Today! Today, we're talking about characters. Specifically, we're talking about character development hacks. This is where you'll get the info to fill out my free, printable character bio sheets. *shameless self plug* Hint: They're in the back. We'll go into how you can develop a character with flaws, a great arc, and at least one redeeming quality (if that's what you're looking for). 

Ready? Grab a cup of Jo and a warm blanket, and let's get to the meat and potatoes.

Great. Now I want a burrito and hashbrowns...

I find a lot of people struggle to come up with character names, but you don't actually need that when you first start to develop a character. Feel free to leave it until the end. When you're ready, pop on over to a baby name website and browse, or go to one of those character name generators that are all over the place. Here's one of many.

There are five easy ways to get the basic info you need to fill out the bio:

1. Base the character on someone you know.
2. Base the character on someone you've heard about.
3. Base the character on your pet.
4. Base the character on someone in a dream.
5. Close your eyes and draw traits out of a hat.

When you're ready to get deeper, think about the story itself and how the character will navigate the pages. Is it more of a quest story, or is it romance? Is the character going to have an ah-ha moment, or do they know themselves fairly well from the start?

Be sure you include any redeeming qualities unless you're writing a villain. Your villains need to be bad to the bone. Crafting complex villains is a whole other topic, and I've addressed that in this post. We won't go any further into that here.

If you base your character on someone you know, be sure to change the name, first of all, but secondly, look at what you have:

• A Personality - Unless your person is a rock, they have a personality. They have likes, dislikes, a birthday, and all sorts of other goodies for you to swipe.
• Character Flaws - Those things that make us unique. Perhaps they snarf every time they see a baby or they're prone to talking about other people.
• Instant Answers to What If Questions - Instant knowledge about how they react in certain situations. Like, what would they do if an airplane fell out of the sky onto their home? This is what I mean.
• Growth Potential - We all see in others what we can't see in ourselves, and we all know what the person could possibly do to improve themselves.
• Traits - They have eyes, hands, height, weight, a zodiac sign, hair (maybe), and skin tone.

These are all things you can use. Perhaps you want to combine person A with person B or C. Do it! This helps you create believable characters, in most cases.

I say in most cases because I came upon a peculiar review on I, Zombie where the reviewer stated the mother in the novel threw them off. No mother would act like that, be so nonchalant about her kid running off to fight the good fight.

That mother was based upon my own. She might've been unbelievable, but she was mine. :) I had a mom that rarely showed the emotions on the outside that were raging on the inside. *shrug* I got used to it, and I used it for fodder. hahaha She fit the mold perfectly. Trixie wouldn't have done all she did if she didn't have a mom who was cheering rather than nay saying.

So, do that. Even if it gets you a two-star review, use it. They don't know how realistic it is, but you do.

This will help you build robust characters with tons of personality that readers can't get enough of. They'll want to be that character for Halloween (Katniss) or will shiver in the night when they think about him or her being outside the window (Tobias). These are the things that stick with readers.

One more example, and then I'll let you move on.

I used to despise history. I loathed the thought of sitting in a classroom and memorizing facts. Yuck. It's boring, and I'll never use any of this. These were my thoughts going into my World History class.

Y'all, I got a professor who focused on the people in history rather than the facts and dates. I fell in love with so many characters: Nero, Genghis Khan (obvi.), Queen Elizabeth I, Pope Hadrian, Napoleon, and so many others. It made the class fun and engaging, and I never forgot the lesson that professor gave me about characters. He made me realize it's the people that stay with you, not their great or small deeds or their dates of living, but the personalities and the flaws that make you love them.

Teach the people. Write the people. Everything else is just bonus material.

A good character is the one thing that will make or break your novel.

I hope this helped and you got something useful out of this post! What's your favorite literary character? I have so many, it would take me a year to write them all down. haha

Well, that's all for today, folks!

Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

AI Audiobook Narration Comparison to Human Narration

Happy Monday, good people of the blogosphere! Today is that post I promised you all on Friday. I've embedded the sound, so be sure you click to hear the audio. Now, let's talk about how AI differs from humans before we listen. After all, that's what you're here for, right? You love my ramblings so much you click my posts to read them, right? hahaha :)

Not.

Okay, grab a coffee and a blanket, and let's dive on in.

When I got an email about AI being an option for audiobooks, I was intrigued. I wondered how it would sound in contrast to a human. Being me, I dove on in and started on the samples. Sadly, I had coffee in my hand, and I had to clean my iPad screen afterward.

Not only is it bad; it's next-level bad. There's absolutely zero inflection. It's just the reading of the text on the page. I mean, if I'm going all out and doing audio, I'm going to have inflection in my story, someone to read it as it's meant to be read.

I did a quick comparison. Now, I don't have a recording booth, and I'm a shit narrator, so these sound like crap, but one is a lot more crap than the other. Listen closely. :)

 

Here's what we read:

Chapter One

New Year’s Day, 2042

“What were you thinking, Brit? You don’t know what that stuff’s gonna do to you!”
“What I was thinking was I wanna have a special ability like everyone else.”
Griffin’s temper rose so high, he could feel his nostrils flare. “Everyone? Not me.” His words came out with a growl, and Brittany flinched like he’d lashed at her with a knife. Tears sprang to her eyes, and he softened his tone. “You know how I feel about that drug. It’s not right to mess with nature.”
She shook her head. “I’ve heard what you think, and I believe you’re wrong. People that took M ten years ago are fine, and their kids have been born with an ability. I want to pass that on to my own… our kids—”
He lifted a hand. “There can never be an our again. You’ve sealed that fate. I refuse to be with someone who’s been tampered with. Remember, those people who took the original version of M, the one that was tested and run through a million clinical trials, paid through the nose for it. You’ve taken some street copy that costs a hundred bucks. There’s no telling what it’ll do to you long term.”

If you're a reader, you read like the second one, not the first. I'm not sure what kind of programming was done to make this a thing, and I'm not sure what they were thinking, releasing it before it's really ready to read like a person, but... OOF.

Just because you can, doesn't mean you should.

That old saying truly hits the mark here. I mean, I get what they're trying to do, but because books aren't audio narration guides, and because this AI can't seem to pick up on nuances (punctuation, anyone?), it's very flat. Emotionless. Chapter one of M is all about emotion.

This is the moment the boy realizes he's lost the girl. He's angry, he feels betrayed, and he wants her to know where he stands. AI didn't convey any of that.

For me, this is a hard pass. There are a lot of ways AI can be useful, but this isn't one of them. Audiobook narrators are gems. Hard stop. Just like writers can't be replaced by AI because we sound different when you read our work in your head, narrators can't be replaced by AI because they aren't human and don't understand our speech and inflections.

If you're looking to have a book made into audio, I suggest Random Reads Studio. I met Christy, and she's one of the nicest people ever. She'll do a variety of payment options, too. Here's a quick soundbite of her voice on SoundCloud, so you can see if she's a fit for your book. 

You can find her on ACX here, IG here, and Facebook at the link above. Even if you don't go with her, please branch out and find a human to narrate your book if you're going audible.

What did you think of the difference? Did you love it? Hate it? Drop me a comment and let me know!

I hope you all got something out of this post. You know I do my best to educate and keep you up to date on all the things. :)

Well, that's all for today, folks!

Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo