(NOTE: Our contest winner was Pernette W. Congrats, Pernette!!)
By Kassandra Lamb (on behalf of the group) ~ One of the joys and aggravations of being indie authors is the process of launching new books. It’s a demanding process, both emotionally and logistically. A lot of decisions have to be made, a lot of things to worry about, a lot of little details, etc.
Since we at misterio press have a lot of new releases this season, I asked some of my authors to give me their reactions to the love/hate process of launching new books. We examine several perspectives, from the established author for whom launches have become more routine, to the newbie author launching her debut novel, and what happens when the timing gets screwed up.
Kass Lamb
First up, me, looking at the process from the old soldier’s perspective. I have 30 novels/novellas out there now. To say that launches have become routine is an understatement. But they have not gotten any easier. They are still A LOT of work.
Fortunately, the process starts with the part I like best. Working with my cover designer, the delightful and creative Melinda VanLone, to get the cover just the way I like it.
This is fun for me, because someone else is doing most of the work. I’m just standing on the sidelines, kabitzing. And the end result is usually such a thrill, to finally see that finished product! (Even more so when I hold the print version in my hands.)
The part I hate is keeping track of all the little details. I’ve developed a checklist over the years, which helps, but there are sooo many things to juggle. And for some of them—like getting the book up for preorder, so I can get the buy links, and then order ads—timing is critical.
I live in fear that I will forget something that has to be done before something else can be done and the whole thing will fall apart, like a row of dominoes going down.
But somehow I always manage to survive, and the book always manages to get launched. And then I have the long process of writing and editing the next one, which gives me time to forget the things I hate about launching new books. Kinda like women forget most of the bad stuff about pregnancy and childbirth after a while.
And now from the opposite end of things, a newbie author gives us insight into what kept her up at night when launching her new book.
Liz Boeger
As a certified rule-follower, I think the biggest, scariest hurdle for me in the launch of my debut ChainLinked, was that I might do something illegal or at the very least, something that might cause legal entanglements of the unwelcome kind. I was hanging precariously, one rung from the bottom of Maslow’s pyramid—I needed to feel safe about doing everything by the book. Pun intended.
Just the thought of inadvertently creating a character that could get me sued or designing a logo or book cover with an improperly copyrighted image put my anxiety level through the roof. More than once I was rethinking the whole publishing thing, despite my investment of almost ten years of my life in the work. Whew!
Making this leap of faith was hard, because in addition to being a rule-following worrywart, I’m also a real budget hound. I’ve heard horror stories of wannabee authors spending their nest eggs on scams or just overpriced services only to have poor sales in return.
Happily, this led to the most enjoyable and downright fun parts of the process (besides writing the book,) research and design. I reconnected with two really cool lawyers in my hunt for the proper legal way to go about this book business. Both became encouragers of my publishing quest.
Adulting and their expert advice got me over my legal fears. To avoid copyright infringement on images, I designed my own series logo, and I took a few images with my phone to send to my cover designer so she could understand my vision for the series branding. The fear and fun will payoff when I’m ready to publish AppleJacked–Book 2 in the Moccasin Cove Mystery Series.
And yet another challenge of launching a new book—when is the right time to do so? When you’re releasing a book that is linked to a particular season, this becomes even more crucial.
K.B. Owen
When the heat index outside is 100+ degrees Fahrenheit, sitting down to create a Christmas-themed mystery would seem rather difficult. Surprisingly, that didn’t turn out to be the trickiest part of the process.
I’m one of those quirky people who doesn’t mind running across a “Christmas in July” QVC sale, or buying and squirreling away a few stocking stuffers six months ahead of time. I come by this honestly—my mom is a Christmas nut, too. She’s asking me for Christmas gift ideas even as we speak.
I dove headfirst into the project, setting up my writing sessions with Christmas music and a holiday-spice candle crackling away. It worked quite well, until I hit some snags.
You see, THE TWELVE THIEVES OF CHRISTMAS was supposed to have released in November…of 2020. It was a combination of my own writing schedule getting snarled and my editor getting sick. So I decided to shelve the release until the fall of 2021.
It was a tough decision, I’m not gonna lie. My regular readers are patient people who know that I’m a slow writer, but this is the longest I’ve gone without a new release. I felt as if I was letting them down.
But I had to think like a publisher. When do readers begin craving Christmas stories? In the fall season.
So, at last, THE TWELVE THIEVES OF CHRISTMAS is available for preorder! It will be released on Sept 22nd—the first day of autumn. I hope you enjoy it.
And here are our new releases, including Kirsten Weiss’s Never Say Chai, which releases today!
The Twelve Thieves of Christmas, Chronicles of a Lady Detective #5 by K.B. Owen
A Christmas bounty of murderers and thieves…
Pinkerton detective Penelope Hamilton is happiest when she’s working on a case. This Christmas season of 1887 should be very merry indeed, as she has two.
One seems simple enough—a surveillance job for her estranged husband, Frank, a fellow Pinkerton. The other promises to be much more interesting. How did a society matron’s valuable necklace, lent a year before to a friend who was then murdered by a thief, turn up around the neck of a young debutante from Chicago’s high society?
All too soon, Pen’s investigations stir up trouble. She’ll need more than her trusty lockpicks and derringer this time, with a young mother and child in harm’s way, an assassin stalking Frank, and a killer claiming another victim.
She turns to allies old and new, including an impulsive young society girl, a snoopy housemaid (who’s surprisingly good at knots) and, most of all, a distractingly handsome and supposedly reformed jewel thief.
One thing is clear—she’s going to need a Christmas miracle to save them all.
JUST 99¢ DURING PREORDER ON AMAZON ~ APPLE ~ NOOK ~ KOBO
ChainLinked, A Moccasin Cove Mystery #1 by Liz Boeger
Principal Ana Callahan is renowned for turning around troubled schools, but can she fix the grief in her own heart…while solving a murder?
Ana Callahan’s life fell apart, so she went out to save the world, one failing school at a time. Fifteen years later she’s back home in Florida, working her magic on the floundering elementary school of her childhood. But Moccasin Cove is not the sunny, middle-class beach town she left behind. With one eye on her school rescue plan and the other on her exit plan, Ana gets to work and chalks up a few small victories.
Her confidence falters when a school contractor is killed, and a friend is implicated in the murder. An ambitious journalist tries to link Ana’s tragic past to the crime, and a powerful charter school corporation seizes on the political chaos by threatening a takeover of Ana’s school. Adding “investigate murder” to her lengthy to-do list, Ana finds herself paired with the school district’s handsome new security chief. The disturbing secrets they uncover about her friend and the killer’s twisted motives, force Ana to admit she has a lot to learn about murder.
AVAILABLE ON AMAZON ~ NOOK ~ APPLE ~ KOBO
Never Say Chai, A Tea and Tarot Mystery #5 by Kirsten Weiss
It’s Halloween season in small town San Borromeo, and partners Abigail and Hyperion are determined to make their Tea & Tarot room spooktacular. But when Hyperion’s boyfriend, Detective Tony Chase, is arrested at Beanblossom’s for murder, the duo is certain someone’s playing a nasty trick. And when the official investigation turns into a witch hunt, the stakes to unearth the truth are raised…
But a clever killer has plans to squash their investigation… and the two amateur detectives. If they don’t solve this puzzle—and fast—it will be out of the cauldron and into the fire for them both.
Never Say Chai is a fast-paced and funny cozy mystery, packed with quirky characters, pets, and murder. Tearoom recipes in the back of the book!
AVAILABLE ON AMAZON ~ NOOK ~ APPLE ~ KOBO ~ GOOGLE PLAY
Misterio press produces an array of quality crime fiction. We post here about twice a month, usually on Tuesdays, to alert you to new releases, to entertain, and to inform.
Please follow us (via email, upper right sidebar) so you don’t miss out on new books and other interesting or fun stuff! (We will not lend, sell nor otherwise bend, spindle or mutilate your e-mail address. 😉 )
To see our Privacy Policy click HERE.
No Comments