01/27/12
An anniversary interview with Leah Braemel
by Livia Quinn
It’s a week for anniversaries. On January 25, 2009, I interviewed Leah Braemel, my 
first critique partner, on the almost eve of her first published book, Private Property, which released on January 27th with Samhain Publishing. We met through a Margie Lawson online workshop on Deep Editing and became fast, long-distance friends. She lives in Ontario while I’m in bayou country – Louisiana. Back then she was working on a paranormal shapeshifter story, and I was working on a romantic suspense with paranormal elements. My how things change!
01/20/12
by Sharon Wray
Today at Blame it on the Muse, I’m pleased to introduce Karen E. M. Johnston.
Karen, an award-winning British author, was born in Gibraltar, studied Business and International Marketing in the UK, and worked in advertising and marketing in London’s Covent Garden before moving to the US. She is widely published in children’s, parent, and business magazines. Karen also writes Women’s Fiction and Young Adult novels. She lives in Chantilly, Virginia, on the outskirts of Washington D.C. with her British husband and three American sons who have not the slightest trace of a British accent. Read the rest of this entry »
01/13/12
THE VOICES GET LOUDER EVERY DAY
Kathryn J. Bain has been writing for over ten years now. 
She has two daughters, one a professional photographer, the other a student the University of West Florida. She is the former President of Florida Sisters in Crime and the Public Relations Director and Membership Director for Ancient City Romance Authors. She also enjoys critiquing for the new members of American Christian Fiction Writers.
To survive and pay bills, she has been a paralegal for approximately twenty years and works for an attorney who specializes in guardianships, probate, and estate planning. She moved from Idaho to Jacksonville, Florida in 1983 and has lived in the sunshine since.
12/30/11
A Friday Visit with Joanna Chambers
Today the Musers are happy to welcome Joanna Chambers for a visit in our guest chair to talk about her latest book, The Lady’s Secret just out from Carina Press. Joanna is a fellow Carina author, and I’m delighted she could take time to sit down with us.
A little bit about her before we begin:
Joanna always wanted to write. She spent over 20 years staring at blank sheets of paper and despairing of ever writing a single word. In between staring at blank sheets of paper, she studied law, met her husband and had two children. Whilst nursing her first child, she rediscovered her love of romance and found her muse. Joanna lives in Scotland with her family and finds time to write by eschewing sleep and popular culture.
So, with no further ado, pull up a chair, have some leftover Christmas fudge and a cup of your beverage of choice, and we’ll let Joanna take it away! Read the rest of this entry »
12/9/11
A Friday Visit With Ruth A. Casie
For twenty-five years Ruth A. Casie has been writing for corporate America. Encouraged by her family and friends this ballroom dancing, Sudoku playing, aspiring gourmet cook gave way to her inner muse, let her creative juices flow, and started writing a series of historical time travel romance stories. Her debut novel, Knight of Runes published by Carina Press is now available. Today she is here visiting the Muse to talk with us about her new release and letting go, so without further ado today’s fabulous Friday guest … Ruth A. Casie
12/2/11
Why Every New Author Should Think Like an Indie Author
Our guest today is G.P. Ching a short fiction writer turned novelist and co-founder of DarkSide Publishing, an indie author cooperative. Her young adult series, The Soulkeepers, has garnered rave reviews and hit multiple bestseller lists. She lives in Illinois with her husband and two children. Visit her at www.gpching.com or www.DarkSidePublishing.com.
If you are a new or pre-published author, you might want to sit down for this. What I’m about to say may come as a shock, but you need to hear it and you need to believe it.
The best writers don’t sell the most books.
Notice that I didn’t qualify that statement with traditional or indie. No matter how you’ve been published, the barriers to sell are the same.
Price – Readers are sensitive to price, especially in regard to ebooks.
Awareness – Readers who don’t know about your book won’t buy your book.
Convenience -Readers need to know an easy way to find and obtain your book quickly.
Trust-Readers are hesitant to try a new author because they don’t yet trust they’ll like the writing.
Successful authors know how to eliminate their readers’ barriers to buy.
Indie authors are intimately aware of these barriers. In order to sell any number of books they need to create a relevant social networking presence, price their book competitively, form relationships for marketing purposes, and find advertising venues that are effective for reaching their target market. Because of the world we live in, traditionally published authors can no longer rely on their publishing houses to do those things for them. And in some cases, being traditionally published ties the author’s hands when it comes to adjusting price, artwork, and/or strategy.
What does this mean for you and the manuscript you are cradling like a newborn baby in your arms? Here are five ways to get in touch with your market now, no matter how you plan to publish.
1. Know thy Market: Do you know your book’s market? Many new authors think their book will appeal to everyone. Even if you truly believe your book is the Statue of Liberty of literature, for your own sanity, choose a demographic that you feel is the best fit for your work. Decide whom you want to target and begin branding your on-line presence for that group of people. For example, if you are trying to reach teens, a blog with the color scheme of a nursing home might not be effective. However, that color scheme might be quite welcoming to those interested in an Amish romance.
2. Talk to People: Find a group of authors you can trust to discuss marketing. I’m not talking about a critique group. You want a network of folks who can help you find creative ways to promote your book to your market. My partners at DarkSide Publishing spend countless hours discussing this topic. If you are able to join a cooperative like mine, I highly recommend it, but a less formal group would do as well.
3. Think Social: Become an expert at social networking before your book is ever published. Twitter, Goodreads, and Facebook are not optional, and it’s not enough to have a profile. Get out there and form real relationships with people who might be interested in your book. Book bloggers and reviewers are obvious, but how about people who might be interested in the topic? Have you written a romance featuring a country music star? Why not get to know some female country music fans?
4. Pay It Forward: Helping other authors meet their goals will not take away from your success. If anything, it will add to it. Helping other people reach the market you’re interested in is a highly effective way of learning what works and what doesn’t. If you’re not actively promoting your own book, try to find a way to keep your promotional muscle strong with someone else’s book.
5. Build Trust: Have a plan for how you will get your first reviews and what you will do with them. How will you make sure that every one of your followers and your target market sees your fabulous reviews? Okay, so they’ll be on the back of your book and in the reviews section of on-line retailers, but that scenario implies that the reader is already looking at your book. Ask yourself how you can filter your specific market to the reviews you want to promote.
6. Buckle Down: Accept that building your brand is a marathon, not a sprint. Get to work on that next book while you’re waiting for efforts to pay off on your first. And remember, what worked yesterday might not work tomorrow. Regularly review your approach and adjust when necessary.
The purpose of doing these things is to learn what barriers are most important to your specific market and start addressing those barriers before your book hits the physical or digital shelves. Of course, if your writing is brilliant, it certainly helps the effectiveness of any strategy. But don’t expect the writing to sell your books. For most people, it just doesn’t happen that way.
11/25/11
A Friday Visit With Angela Campbell
It’s Friday at the Muse and that means another visit from another great guest blogger! Today we have Angela Campbell taking time from her chaotic holiday weekend to chat with us about her recent Carina Press 
release CRY WOLF.
Welcome, Angela, and thanks for coming by!
First of all, I’d like to say thanks to the group here at Blame It On The Muse for hosting me today. I have to admit I’m quite exhausted on this Black Friday after eating waaay too much yesterday and shopping waaay too early this morning. Rather than risk babbling away like some hyped-up coffee junkie on only three hours sleep, I thought I’d extend an invitation to Andrea Lockhart, the main character of my recently released book, “Cry Wolf,” to keep things interesting. You see, Andrea is a reporter for a tabloid, so if anyone knows how to keep things entertaining, it’s her. Read the rest of this entry »
11/11/11
Debut Author Carla Swafford and the Magic of Numbers
by M.V. Freeman
Carla Swafford was one of the first writers I met after joining RWA and a local chapter (Southern Magic). She has been tireless in her support of writers and writing.I wanted to be a part of her celebration of her first book, it is well earned!I hope you like her as much as I. –M.V. **all mistakes in uploading this is mine. So forgive me any errors**
Thank you, Mary, for inviting me. What a great blog! It’s always morefun to blog with others.
How long have you been writing?
Well, the first time I picked up paper and pen to write a story nagging at me was in 1985. But it wasn’t until 2002 that I truly became serious about becoming published. Before that, I’d thought only old men and women who lived in London or New York or on tropical islands wrote books. I love that image of old men and women in exotic places.
10/28/11
by Livia Quinn
Grace Burrowes’ career as a published author began with the release of “The Heir”, one of my favorite historicals, evah! followed by “The Soldier”. On October 1st, the third book in the series, “Lady Sophie’s Christmas Wish” was released and next Tuesday, The Virtuoso” comes to shelves in your favorite bookstore.
Grace’s bio makes for fascinating reading. You can view it on her brand new website, along with her blog, full detail on her series including deleted scenes and much more…
I’m delighted to welcome Grace, Vilhelm and Valentine to Blame It on the Muse today…
10/21/11
Lis’Anne Harris brings us Sweet Salvation
Lis’Anne Harris is a life-long reader of historical romance. She spends most of her waking hours dreaming up worlds filled with knights in shining armor, castles, and strong-willed damsels who aren’t afraid to fight for their happily ever after.
Lis'Anne Harris
Writing from medieval to Georgian, Lis’Anne spins tales that are funny, sweet, sad, happy—tug at your heart, yet make you laugh. Her current series, Castle of Dreams, takes readers from the busy streets of late 18th century London to the wild Cornish coast, the gorgeous Cycladic Islands of the Mediterranean to the wild, lush hills of Jamaica and the verdant green lands of Ireland.
Transplanted from a small Indiana town, Lis’Anne now resides in sunny Florida with her husband of twenty-six years, three sons, and a Chihuahua named Pinto Beanie.
She’s also an awesome critique partner and a fun gal to hang around with at medieval faires.
