July » 2010 » 32 Candles

eReaders, Please Read This Post!

It was the best of weeks and the worst of weeks. No, seriously. A few of you have noticed that 32 CANDLES is not available in eBook form any longer. Why? Well, long story short, folks messed up and sent in the e-version without the last chapter. Yes, you read that right. I didn’t find out until two weeks in, b/c 1) I don’t re-read my own work after publication and 2) Apparently people think I’m WAY more literary than I actually am, and only one person mentioned being a little meh about the ending. Either way, I think you can pretty much figure out that I’ve been freaking out all week. The only reason I’m able to type these words without getting upset all over again is b/c I’ve come to the end of my emotional reservoir on the issue.

For those of you who read this on Kindle, nook, or iBooks, you haven’t read the whole thing yet. We’re currently working out a solve with the retailers and hope to have this all resolved by next Friday. Meanwhile please send me an email at etc at 32candles.com if you bought the e-version before this week, so that I can drop you an email when this is all figured out.

That all said, the only things that kept me going this week were the kind notes that I received from so many of our hardcover readers AND the wonderful host of articles on Fierce and Nerdy. Let’s talk about the latter, shall we?

Mmm! Roya totally made me want to try making a trifle this week. Click on the pic for her fantastic (as usual) recipe.

1. I’m so happy that Kelly Kaboom got her dog, Derby, back, but even happier that she has a really big story to show for it.

2. Gudrun, I, too, sometimes get weirded out that the things I use the most were created in a computer language that I just don’t speak. But I would be sad (I mean almost suicidal) if it just all went away one day.

3. Robin, seriously, stop drinking lite beer. This is why people from other countries make fun of us!

4. Ooh, I loved THE COUNT OF MONTE CRISTO. It’s the one classic that everybody seems to enjoy reading. I’m still waiting to hear from someone who just didn’t “get” this novel. Looking forward to the second part of Amy B’s post about this book next week.

5. After the whole ebook episode, I was thinking hard about taking Amy R’s suggestion to acquire a red balloon to lighten one’s mood. Still might do that, actually…

Wassup Dallas!

I’m in your neck of the woods, tomorrow, reading and signing 32 CANDLES at Legacy Books, Thursday, at 7PM. Get more info here, and I hope you can make it out.

Cheers!

etc

Me Totally Naked or THE AWESOME GIRL’S GUIDE Chapter 1 [Promises, Promises]

So I’ve promised on several occasions that I would post the rough draft of the first chapter of my second book, THE AWESOME GIRL’S GUIDE TO DATING EXTRAORDINARY MEN. When I made this promise, I was floating in a cloud of hopeful writing theory. Why not show people how the sausage is made? I thought. Many writers talk about their process in such ephemeral way, I thought, why not show readers how a first chapter goes from something very rough to something that you might actually be willing to share with another human being. At least that’s how I thought about it when I was feeling all fanciful and up-with-writing.

Read the rest of this entry »

Would You Go With Dr. Who?

I’ve been challenging myself to take on challenges lately. Take for example, today’s signing at the NAACP convention Author’s Pavilion. I knew that as a new author with a hardcover, I wouldn’t be seeing much action at my signing booth. But I challenged myself to stay off of my iPhone, stand up, and be present for those that passed by my booth. And what a great decision, I ended up passing out a bunch of postcards, networking and laughing with several people, and I even sold a book! I’m feeling like I’m one step closer to taking the DR. WHO Challenge.

What is the DR. WHO Challenge you ask? Well, simply put, if Dr. Who invited you to go along with him in his space machine, would you go? To a certain extent, I don’t think this is a fair question to ask myself. I have a husband and a child, I couldn’t risk my life for adventure. But if those elements weren’t in play, I would still find it hard to climb aboard the Tardis, just because the possibly dying bit would scare me out of visiting different places and times and exploring different galaxies, no matter how fascinating I find the idea.

So I’d like to be a good DR. WHO companion, but the truth is, I’d probably cower in a corner if presented with any real action. Same goes for real life. I find myself shying away from opportunities to meet new people because I’m shy. I never think I’m up to the challenge of mingling with people I don’t know. And as far as handselling my book goes. Well, when I hear that story about E. Lynn Harris selling his first self-published book out of his car trunk, I shudder and think to myself: I could never do that.

However, lately it’s occurred to me that when I say things like “I could never do that,” what I really mean is that “I haven’t done that. Yet.”

So would I climb aboard the Tardis if I wasn’t a wife and mother? My new answer is Yes. Yes, I’ll climb aboard that Tardis and yes, I’ll handsell my book — even if it scares the bejeezus out of me.

But what about you? Do you think you would agree to travel through space and time with Dr. Who?

A Few 32 CANDLES (and AWESOME GIRL’S) ANNOUNCEMENTS

I know you’ve missed me promoting 32 CANDLES 24/7, so I thought I’d give you another big batch of it.

1. Friendly Reminder that we’re trying to hit 50 Amazon reviews by the end of July, so if you’ve read it, please give us the boon of saying something about the book over at good ole Amazon.

2. I’m at the NAACP Convention Author Pavilion in Kansas City, signing books from 12pm-2pm. So if you’re also here, please stop by the table.

3. On Thursday, I’ll be doing a book event in Dallas. Live our know someone who lives in the area? Please spread the word.

4. Did you download 32 CANDLES as an ebook (Kindle, iBooks, nook, or Sony)? If so, please shoot me an email at etc @ 32candles.com. We have an urgent message for you.

5. Do, do, do come back on Wednesday, when I’ll be posting the rough draft first chapter of THE AWESOME GIRL’S GUIDE TO DATING EXTRAORDINARY MEN. Yes, I said rough. This oughta be interesting!

THEN and NOW: Nate B

Then:

Did you consider yourself an ugly duckling in high school?

Absolutely! I was terribly shy, even though I got along with all my classmates. But I was terrified of asking girls out. I did not like how I looked, to the point where I for the most part banned pictures of me. There are not many from that time period. .

Now:

When and how did you officially “swan?”

I swanned during college, particularly junior and senior years. I stopped playing things safe and started following my heart, and not just my head. I grew to like all aspects of myself more. I knew that my original career path, engineering, was not going to make me happy, so I started pursuing entertainment. This new abandon flowed into all aspects of my life, the personal and emotional as well as the career.

Advice:

What advice would you give to the Before you?:

Don’t worry so much about the grades. Still try hard, but enjoy those high school years more. Take chances, especially emotionally–don’t be so shy!

Meet Me in St. Louiee

Friendly reminder,

I’m in St. Louis reading from and signing 32 CANDLES tonight, so if you’re in the area, please do come out!

The Last (Big) 32 CANDLES ASK!

So this is the last (big) 32 CANDLES ASK. That doesn’t mean that I won’t be asking for a bunch of little favors for the rest of the summer. I’ll definitely pop a 32C request or two into an occasional blogumn or One More Thing or PoT! Friday. Also, I’ll be blogging about 32 CANDLES every Monday and about writing in general every Wednesday. But I’m hitting the road next week, so it’s time to focus on the IRL promotion. Also, though I’ve loved promoting 32 CANDLES, quite frankly it feels a little weird to talk about one thing for so long and for so much. So starting next Tuesday, Fierce and Nerdy and 32 CANDLES is going back to their old format, with the exception of THEN and NOW staying on as a weekly feature.

That all explained, let’s get into my last 32 CANDLES ASK:

1. READ THE BOOK. This weekend if you can. By the end of July if this weekend isn’t possible. We need a ton of first readers to help other readers find 32 CANDLES.

2. WORD OF MOUTH. I’m a debut author, submitting a book into a very crowded field. So I’m depending on you guys to help me spread the word. If you get into a conversation with a woman between the ages of 21 and 50, please find a way to tell her about this book. If you have a blog, please review this book on it. If you have a twitter account, please tweet about it. Your word of mouth is what will give 32 CANDLES legs. If you could spare one tweet or Facebook status update to 32 CANDLES every week for the rest of the summer, you would be a big part of this book getting sold.

3. COME OUT TO MY EVENTS. Or else bookstores, conferences, and book fairs won’t invite me back and even sadder, I’ll be lonely.

4. IF YOU GO INTO A BOOKSTORE … do shelf elf. It’s tons of fun and makes you feel like a mission operative. How many activities make you feel like that? On the other hand, if a bookstore doesn’t have 32 CANDLES on their shelves, ask for it. And if they really aren’t carrying it, tell me, so that I can get in contact with them. I recently found out that a prominent LA independent bookstore wasn’t carrying 32 CANDLES, and I was able to fix that, no problem. So if you can help me identify the bookstores that might need a friendly nudge, that would be really awesome.

5. REVIEWS, REVIEWS, REVIEWS: I know, I know, most of my Dear Thursday reviews have been for books that came out over a year ago. But please don’t be like me when it comes to 32 CANDLES. The more reviews this book gets now, the more people will buy it later. Our big goal is to have 50 reviews on Amazon by the end of July, so if you haven’t left a review on my Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Borders, or GoodReads pages yet, please consider doing so.

Thanks so much. These last two weeks of promotion have been a great life lesson and a pleasure.

100% Love,

etc

Today’s 32 CANDLES ASK: Tell Five Friends About 32 CANDLES [And Eat Lots of BBQ!]

So many of you have read the book and I thank you mightily for it. If you enjoyed it, could you do me the further favor of telling five friends about the book in person. E-pitches are awesome, but word-of-IRL-mouth is where it’s at. So as you go about your 4th of July weekend, please mention 32 CANDLES at any parties or events that you attend. However while talking up 32, please don’t forget to eat lots of barbecue. I want to sell lots of copies of this book, so that my next book will get published — but c’mon, barbecue always come first.

THEN and NOW: Nikki Brown

Then:

Did you consider yourself an ugly duckling in high school?

YES, I considered myself an ugly duckling in school. I was so surprised when I was able to be a cheerleader and consider it (and when I got contact lenses) the beginning of my “swanning” experience. Looking back though, I see how beautiful I was. .

Now:

When and how did you officially “swan?”

It’s still a process for me that began in high school but continues to this day. Each year, I become more confident in who I am and what I will make happen. 33 feels like it’s going to be a GREAT year though. I always knew there would be something about the thirties. I continue to be a cheerleader–for people instead of sports–and love the role I’ve been given. Ultimately I think it’s becoming a mother that flipped a switch in me. It allowed me to be who I’m naturally gifted to be and show my boys how it’s done.

Advice:

What advice would you give to the Before you?:

I would tell my old self to recognize my beauty, don’t be so down on myself and keep going to class – I swear I lost some personal discipline when I started skipping!