4 lessons I've learned in 3 years of being published!

It's been a whole three years since The Forgotten came out! 

It's been an interesting journey since TF's release, and now I look back at the book, I can see it's rife with problems. But it's still dear to me because it's my first release, and because I love the characters. By this time next year, The Lux Guardians series will be complete, and the gang's journey will be wrapped up. You can expect more news on the last two books in the coming months.

Here are four lessons I've learned since publishing The Forgotten. Bear in mind this only relates to my experience as an indie author, and I can't speak for everyone.

Never NEVER announce the Big Shiny WIP

Chances are you won't finish it, and that'll be on the internet FOREVER, looking at you every time you go on Goodreads, wondering why you haven't finished it yet. (I really am going to work on it soon, though.) Don't ever post a cover, mock-up or otherwise, anywhere before the book is fully written either. I wait until I have a solid first draft that I am absolutely sure is going to become a published book before posting it anywhere online. (Series are a little different - if you've written the first book, it's a safe bet you're going to finish the series, so announcing those books or adding them to GR is a little less risky. For a larger series, I'd still wait, personally, until you've written 2 or 3 books.)

Blog Tours don't necessarily = readers and sales

Sure, you get some readers but I got maybe three sales from my last paid blog tour... In no world would I call that a success.

It's impossible to know what will = sales

I thought having THE BEAST OF CALLAIRE on Netgalley would generate interest in The Legend Mirror series and would lead to sales. I did get 10+ reviews but those reviews don't seem to have had any lasting affect. Netgalley exposure really works for some authors and some books. Blog tours really work for some authors and some books. You can't predict it in the least, and while that's frustrating (and costly!) you kinda just have to accept it and keep trying new things. At some point, somethings gonna work.

Keeping a record of writing progress leads to productivity

Now, this could be just me, but since I've started keeping track of my daily writing/editing/revising etc on a spreadsheet, I've had a much bigger output. I've gone from writing 20K or editing 200 pages a month to 40K and 500 pages. It's useful, and encouraging, to see your achievements laid out. Of course this works in reverse too - have a bad week and you have to look at it for a while and feel crappy. But the good outweighs the bad, and I'm more motivated and productive now than I ever was.

~

These lessons have made me a smarter author and a more efficient writer. Some things will never change (I'll always be impatient to announce what I'm working on) and by the time my fifth year as a published author comes around, I expect I'll have five more lessons to tell you. I'm constantly learning (as, I think, all authors are) and I'm interested to see what happens next.

You can download The Forgotten for free at all good online retailers!

~Saruuh

Free today: Kiss of Gold and Thorns!

Free on Kindle until Monday!!

Kiss of Gold and Thorns is a collection of short fairy tales in a fantasy world, with ghosts, wolves, curses, and kisses. It has f/f romance and het romance. A Feline girl, a magical girl in a wheelchair, and a boy more tree than human. Trigger warning for sexual assault.

GET IT HERE

Once in a hidden queendom… 

Little Red Riding Hood has an encounter with a ghost and a wolf. 

A girl becomes captive of the king but Rumpelstiltskin may have the magic to help her. 

When a door appears in the wall of thorns around a cursed kingdom, a Feline girl accidentally wakes Sleeping Beauty with a kiss. 

~Saruuh

Words & Wonders (57)

Welcome to Words & Wonders, a weekly journal of writing updates, links I've found useful or interesting, and book recommendations. I hope W&W will prove to be useful to you writers out there as well as offering an insight into my writing progress for my readers. Don't forget to leave a comment with your own writing progress!

In the Writing Cave, this week:

- I've second drafted 152 pages of The Powers of Callaire. I have also split the super long book (like DOUBLE the size of The Beast of Callaire) into two books, which is good news for everyone. 
You can read more about that over on Facebook.

- I've also worked on a new website which I hope to reveal next month, and designed some killer book covers, one of which being The Powers of Callaire!

In my life:

- I'm not sick this week!!! Hooray!!

On the internet, this week I found useful:

- How To Write Protagonists of Colour When You're White
This post has me returning to thinking about my space in diverse YA, and debating writing a white MC in my next series, something I return to contemplating regularly. I don't want to force my way into spaces that don't belong to me, but I do want to accurately represent the world I know.

What have you written this week?
~Saruuh

Words & Wonders (56)

Welcome to Words & Wonders, a weekly journal of writing updates, links I've found useful or interesting, and book recommendations. I hope W&W will prove to be useful to you writers out there as well as offering an insight into my writing progress for my readers. Don't forget to leave a comment with your own writing progress!

In the Writing Cave, this week:

- Okay so. I don't think #MurderNovel is the book I want to write. It's turning into something else, and I have to figure out what book that is. Because it's not murder mystery. I think it might be contemporary. Hard to say. So, MurderNovel is shelved for now and likely to be given a new codename in the far future.

- I've now turned my full attention to The Powers of Callaire. This week I've only second drafted 37 pages because I felt like crap, but it's coming along...

In my life:

- I'm so sick, it's not even funny. Just totally out of commission this past week. But at least there's tennis at Queens and football to watch on TV.

On the internet, this week I found useful:

- This super amazing post on asexual rep. Read the entire thing!

A Book I've loved Lately:

A fun, tense, exciting, and grounded finale. The Black Blade series is one I mightily recommend - the romance is sweet and Devon means everything to me, the plot is surprising at each turn, the setting is off the charts, and it's just good, solid urban fantasy.

What have you written this week?
~Saruuh

6 Queer Books & Why You Should Read Them!

In an effort to cultivate some actual content for this blog, I give you: A BUNCH OF QUEER BOOKS! These are ones I've read. My next post will be queer books I'm dying to read. It's Pride Month, and #ReadProud is going on, so it seems like the perfect time to waffle on about these books I love.

Lady main character who likes other ladies! Revenants! Super cool mystery & thriller, effortlessly woven with paranormal creatures that feel more magical realism. A damn terrifying villain-in-a-cave. Perfect!

As important as it is horrifying. The romance is hesitant and stumbling and sweet, as you'd expect it to be, and the characters are so genuine it seems impossible they're fictional. The story surrounding the romance is vital, and everyone, regardless of race, should read it, along with an #ownvoices book on the same era.

Super cute f/f romance in a setting inspired by Africa. This book has been written with a lot of love and passion and it shows in the writing. Plus it has unicorns and other mythical creatures, great family relationships, and deals with the ripples of sexual assault.

Another lady main character who likes ladies (I'm 80% sure she's bisexual but my memory is a sieve so I can't confirm.) Vampires and pyramids and a WHOLE LOT of adventure. It's what you would call a romp, and it's damn fun while also meaningful. It has a lot of heart, and family bonds, and is the most creative and thoughtful book I've read in ages.

Bisexual main character. Deals with religion and teen pregnancy. Powerful and memorable. Plus it's in verse, which is so my thing. Even though I was disappointed by the ending, I still love the book.

One of my favourite sci-fi books ever. Found family, diverse crew in ethnicity, sexuality, gender, and species. Just everything I've ever wanted in a space-based book.

Words & Wonders (55)

Welcome to Words & Wonders, a weekly journal of writing updates, links I've found useful or interesting, and book recommendations. I hope W&W will prove to be useful to you writers out there as well as offering an insight into my writing progress for my readers. Don't forget to leave a comment with your own writing progress!

In the Writing Cave, this week:

- I'm having a creative meltdown. I hate MurderNovel, I somehow also hate Perseyua, which is out on submission. I don't want to write anything, or edit anything, and it's all going to hell. SO. FUN. /sarcasm

- I've written 9,514 words of MurderNovel. This is the most-like-teen-me main character I've ever written. I really can't stand the book though. Nothing is happening. Bored.

- I've second drafted 5 pages of The Powers of Callaire. Slowly, slowly...

In my life:

- This is from last week but still accurate: I'm rereading The Raven Cycle and it's hurting my heart. Technically I finished the series, but I'm also immediately rereading The Raven King so....

- Also: pretty sick. Not feeling great in the slightest. Fun.

On the internet, this week I found useful:

- What Is Easy and What Is True? On queer microagressions and their place in YA
- Becoming my Own Audience by Dahlia Adler

A Book I've loved Lately:

A short read that's compelling, exciting, and unique. Gay MC, bit of romance, set on a ship. You can't go wrong. It's free to download from Amazon, so go get it!

What have you written this week?
~Saruuh

Over 100 free SFF ebooks this weekend!

Unlike the last few promos, this one includes books on Nook, Ibooks, & Kobo! 

There's some really great sci-fi and fantasy books, and a couple diverse ones too! I myself will be indulging in Hailey Edwards's Stone Cold Fox (POC) and Stephanie A. Cain's Stormshadow (LGBT) 

Click the header above to visit the promo!

Here's a little more about THE BEAST OF CALLAIRE (POC, L, A), my book in the promo:

Enter a world of magic and shifters in this urban fantasy series. 

Yasmin is the daughter of a goddess and a mythical creature. As a Legendary, she has telepathic power and the ability to change forms every full moon. 

When a voice cries out to Yasmin in her head, and she’s drawn into dreams that aren’t her own, she's led to Fray - a girl who once saved Yasmin from hunters. In Fray’s dreams she has power no human should ever have. Legendary power. And worse, somehow that power is linked to a shadowy god. 

When Fray’s magic catches the attention of a violent and invincible creature, both Yasmin’s mythical world and Fray’s human one will be changed forever. A Gods war is brewing, and Yasmin and Fray are at the heart of it.

~Saruuh

Words & Wonders (54)

Welcome to Words & Wonders, a weekly journal of writing updates, links I've found useful or interesting, and book recommendations. I hope W&W will prove to be useful to you writers out there as well as offering an insight into my writing progress for my readers. Don't forget to leave a comment with your own writing progress!

In the Writing Cave, this week:

- I released a new story!! It's called Wicked Song, and has a careful demon MC, a brutish angel villain, a gender fluid love interest, and a lot of paranormal trouble. If you enjoyed The Beast of Callaire, you'll probably like Wicked Song!

- I've written 12,788 words of MurderNovel. I'm writing at the right pace now, so I'm happy.

In my life:

- I'm rereading The Raven Cycle and it's hurting my heart.

On the internet, this week I found useful:

- This crucial, crucial post on desperately needed Muslim rep

What have you written this week?
~Saruuh