New Publisher, New Format, New Party

With six published mystery novels under my belt, I’ve hosted a few book launches in my time. The first one was a party in my home with lots of food and wine. Even from the comfort of home, it was a nerve-wracking experience. Later launches, held at community centers and the library, were just as nerve-wracking, as they are for most writers. You wonder if anyone will come, if there will be enough food, whether your talk will go well or be a fumbling disaster, and whether you’ll sell a single book. Happily, my events have turned out well and left me feeling greatly relieved.

Yet, these types of launches have lost their appeal over time. Maybe it’s the repetition, the growing dread that your supporters have done enough and aren’t likely to make the trip again, or that I’ve said it all before.

But things have changed. Over the past couple of years I’ve found myself experimenting with the novella. I’ve found a new dynamic publisher who embraces technology and different ways of launching books. To that end, the launch of my first novella, Dead Man Floating, won’t be a physical launch but a virtual one. I’m hosting a Facebook Release Party on September 12^th and I’m pretty excited about it.

I’ve attended three of these types of events over recent months and really like the format. A virtual party on Facebook means that friends from all over the world can attend, and that no one needs to feel obligated to stay for the entire two hours. I won’t be arranging food or long speeches. But here’s what I will be doing:

I’ll be offering ebook prizes (starting a new post for each contest) donated by writing colleagues and a $10 Amazon gift card. I’ll be interacting with guests through comments and discussing a little about how the book came to being. As Dead Man Floating is inspired by my own work in security, I’ll talk a little about my experiences. I’ll offer security tips and ask questions of attendees and fellow writers to keep the discussion going.

Honestly, I don’t know what to expect, but I’ll come prepared and I’ll let you know how it goes on my blog on September 13^th.  You’re welcome to join the party (see link above). By the way, Dead Man Floating is now available for pre-ordering!

Debra

Introducing Guest Blogger: Kristina Stanley

I’ve had the great good fortune to meet a lot of terrific, supportive writers over the years. One of the kindest and most enthusiastic authors is mystery writer Kristina Stanley. She and I connected some time ago through Twitter, as we both incorporate security work into our mysteries. Kristina is my first guest blogger in what I hope will be many more in the coming months. Kristina just released her first mystery DESCENT yesterday, which I can’t wait to read! Here’s more info about Kristina and her books:

Kristina is the author of the Stone Mountain Mystery Series. Her books have garnered the attention of prestigious crime writing organizations in Canada and England. Crime Writers of Canada nominated DESCENT for the Unhanged Arthur award. The Crime Writers’ Association nominated BLAZE for the Debut Dagger. She is published in the Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine.

Before writing her series, Kristina was the director of security, human resources and guest services at a resort in the depths of the British Columbian mountains. The job and lifestyle captured her heart, and she decided to write mysteries about life in an isolated resort. While writing the first four novels, she spent five years living aboard a sailboat in the US and the Bahamas.

And in Kristina’s own words….

Have you ever wondered if alpine ski racing is dangerous?

Speed is everything to an alpine racer. The characters in DESCENT demand it. They have specialized technicians who follow them on the World Cup circuit, striving to give each skier an advantage, to squeeze out that extra bit of speed from the equipment. The technicians file and wax multiple skis for each skier. Always busy trying to give their athlete an edge over others. Everyone wants to cross the finish line first. But at what cost?

What happens if the tuner loses track of the skis, misinterprets the conditions or ignores a racer’s injury? The tuner can cause havoc on the course.

It is my understanding 11 people have died alpine ski racing since 1959.  The deaths were all accidents.

For a mystery writer, there can be no accident. Hence the birth of DESCENT. I’ve watched many world class ski teams train, and one day I asked myself what would happen if a racer was murdered while skiing on a training run?

DESCENT will answer that question if you read to the end. 

When Kalin Thompson is promoted to Director of Security at Stone Mountain Resort, she soon becomes entangled in the high-profile murder investigation of an up-and-coming Olympic-caliber skier. There are more suspects with motives than there are gates on the super-G course, and danger mounts with every turn.

Kalin’s boss orders her to investigate. Her boyfriend wants her to stay safe and let the cops do their job. Torn between loyalty to friends and professional duty, Kalin must look within her isolated community to unearth the killer’s identity.

DESCENT is the first in the Stone Mountain Mystery series. The series takes place in an isolated mountain resort in the depths of the Purcell mountain range in British Columbia.

With all the forest fires this season, BLAZE, the second in the Stone Mountain Series deals with a current Canadian and American issue. Of course, BLAZE is a mystery and arson is the crime, but this time it looks like Kalin Thompson is the target. BLAZE is scheduled for release before the end of 2015.

The third in the series, AVALANCHE, has Kalin Thompson searching for a thief, struggling to prove her brother is innocent of a major theft. Unfortunately for Kalin, her brother disappears hours after the theft and is the prime suspect.

REQUEST FOR READER ASSISTANCE: I’m writing the fourth in the series. A business partner of Kalin’s is murdered while driving his ATV on a mountain trail. He’s forced into a frothing river… My problem with the fourth is I have to stop calling it “the fourth.” I need a title. If you have any suggestions for a title that fits with DESCENT, BLAZE and AVALANCHE, please leave a comment below.

Thank you, Debra, for hosting me.

I love to connect with people online. I can be found at:

www.KristinaStanley.com

Follow me on twitter, let me know you read this blog and I’ll follow you back. @StanleyKMS

Or comment on my Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/KristinaStanley.Author

Descent can be purchased here at amazon.ca  and here at amazon.com

Killer Thriller Book Launch - March 5-7

From March 5-7, check out the Killer Thriller Book Launch, a multi-author book launch featuring 7 thriller authors with new releases.

Want to know who these authors are?

• Cheryl Kaye Tardif
• Luke Romyn
• Consuelo Roland
• Giacomo Giammatteo
• Melissa Foster
• Claude Bouchard
• Russell Blake

You can follow us on Twitter by going to: #killerthriller.

We will be giving away prizes at the Killer Thriller Book Launch--separate from my own March Giveaway, so you'll have lots of chances to win some great goodies!

I invite you to check it out! :-)

SUBMERGED official book launch - March 4-7

Join me as I celebrate my new release, SUBMERGED, a thriller that I hope will leave you breathless.

SUBMERGED will be on a special new release promo for only $0.99 (Kindle) during March 4-7.

~ * ~

Also, from March 5-7, I am participating in the Killer Thriller Book Launch, a multi-author book launch featuring 6 other thriller authors with new releases.

You can follow us on Twitter by going to: #killerthriller.

We will be giving away prizes at the Killer Thriller Book Launch--separate from my own March Giveaway, so you'll have lots of chances to win some great goodies!

I invite you to check it out! :-)

A New Book is Born

This week, my second Casey Holland mystery, Deadly Accusations, is not only available in stores, but will be available on amazon on March 6th, in print for now. The Kindle edition will emerge down the road. So, Casey is being unleashed on the world once more, and yes, I feel very fortunate. This is a book I worked on a long time, and my writers’ group painstakingly critiqued every chapter over a year and a half.

I know that a lot of authors jump up and down and shout halleluiah from the rooftops when their book is published, but that’s not my style. Not that I actually adopted a style, I just kind of fell into it. See, whenever one of my novels is published I’m overcome with a sense of relief followed by a philosophical bent on the meaning of it all, and how that meaning is managing to weave itself into my life’s great plan. Not that I have a great plan, but I’m a spiritual person and believe that someone out there has concocted one for me. Whether that being is high-fiving or morosely shaking his, or her, head over this latest endeavor isn’t quite clear to me. Although, publication does feel right, so that’s probably a good sign.

Thanks to TouchWood Editions’savvy publicist, my book was mentioned in Quill and Quire recently, and recently reviewed in The National Post. Who would have thought? I really planned to live in complete obscurity for another few years. This kind of attention and exposure (partial obscurity, I call it) is a new thing, perhaps the work of that ubiquitous being. If you’re curious, you can find it at http://arts.nationalpost.com/2012/02/24/crimewave-the-wild-beasts-of-wuhan-last-dance-deadly-accusations/

As mentioned a couple weeks ago, I have a book launch scheduled for the last Saturday of March, and I’ll be reading at La Fontanna Cafe on Tues., March 20th. Thus beings the promotional part of my life. It’s going to be an interesting couple of months, culminating in attendance at the Bloody Words Crime writing conference in Toronto from June 1 to 3rd. I don’t want to take up space listing events here, but if anyone wants more information, you can contact me at debra_kong@telus.net and they can be found through my Facebook page, and here we go.

DEADLY ACCUSATIONS, http://tinyurl.com/7b5dfub

THE OPPOSITE OF DARK, now available for iphones, iPads, and iPodTouch at http://bit.ly/nZLlS8. Also available in paperback at http://tinyurl.com/30dlx64 and on Kindle at http://tinyurl.com/7kxuat8

FATAL ENCRYPTION, http://tinyurl.com/ddzsxl

TAXED TO DEATH, http://tinyurl.com/czsy5n

YOU ARE INVITED . . .

Daughter Am I, Pat Bertram's young woman/old gangster coming-of-age adventure will be released by Second Wind Publishing on October 15, 1009, and you are invited to the cyber book launch party! Please stop by Bertram’s Blog any time on Thursday for fun, puzzles, games, even a free download!

Daughter Am I: When twenty-five-year-old Mary Stuart learns she inherited a farm from her recently murdered grandparents -- grandparents her father claimed had died before she was born -- she becomes obsessed with finding out who they were and why someone wanted them dead. Along the way she accumulates a crew of feisty octogenarians -- former gangsters and friends of her grandfather. She meets and falls in love Tim Olson, whose grandfather shared a deadly secret with her great-grandfather. Now Mary and Tim must stay one step ahead of the killer who is desperate to dig up that secret.

“A delightful treasure hunting tale of finding one’s self in a most unlikely way.” --Publisher’s Weekly.

Click here to buy Daughter Am I from Second Wind Publishing, LLC

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One of the Great Perks of Writers' Groups

I know there's always debate about whether writers' groups are useful or not, and I happen to feel that both sides of the argument have valid points. To my mind, the success of a writers' group depends on the expertise, attitudes, and chemistry in the group. I've been in tense, somewhat destructive groups, but about six years ago, I found a wonderful collection of talented writers whose purpose is to help and be helped.

It's always a great joy to me when one of us publishes a book (our moderator, Eileen Kernaghan, is about to have her eighth book released!), and this year the Kyle Centre group is reaping the rewards of years of hard work. I published in April, Eileen and two more members will release titles in September, and yesterday I attended the book launch of a colleague who's written quite a book.

My colleague, Marja, comes from a vastly different background than me. She's a devout Christian who also happens to be bipolar, although this took many painful years and stays in psychiatric wards to properly diagnose. Because of the unsympathetic way she was treated by certain members of her faith (some people still believe that the mentally ill are possessed by demons) she felt compelled to tell her story so that other Christians struggling with similiar afflictions will come to understand that mental illness doesn't make them evil or unworthy. Marja now offers hope through a support group she founded called "Living Room", and branches are now spreading throughout Canada and as far as New Zealand.

If you'd like to read more of Marja Bergen's beautiful and inspiring book, A Firm Place to Stand, visit her at www.marjabergen.com

For excerpts of Fatal Encryption visit, www.debrapurdykong.com

My Near-Miss Book Launch and Other Great Disasters

A few days ago, I received an e-mail from a local publisher apologizing profusely for having to cancel their book launch because the books would not arrive in time. My heart went out to the author because the same thing nearly happened to me.

My launch was scheduled for April 17th. I'd booked the room nearly three months in advance because this particular centre hosts lots of events. I checked with my printer to make sure the books would arrive in plenty of time. By their calculations, I should have received them three to four weeks before the 17th. Of course, I'm old enough to know that real life happens while you're making other plans, and sure enough, things became a little delayed mainly because I wanted a second proof because of my own errors.

Time passed. The books were to be shipped on Friday, April 11th, but they didn't make it on the delivery truck until Monday the 14th. My printer is in Victoria, and I'm on the mainland, so with a body of water between us and two pallets of books to be delivered, I was a little concerned. By 1:30 p.m., Tuesday, the 15th, I started calling the delivery people. To my horror, they had no record of the shipment at all. After one panicky phone call to my printer, they got on the phone to find out what was going on. It turned out that the driver had forgot to forward the info to his company. Worse, he hadn't made it on the ferry that night because a windstorm had prevented larger ferries from docking. The small ferry taking its place would only take passenger vehicles, so the trucks had to wait.

After hearing this, I started to sweat big time. My printer's CEO took over and demanded that my books reach me by the 16th at the latest. I guess the shipper took him seriously because my books made it to a warehouse in Surrey (on the mainland) by 6 p.m. Tuesday evening. They were delivered to my home on the morning of Wednesday, the 16th, with a little over 24 hours to spare. By the time my launch arrived, what I felt most was relief.

I was telling this story to my writer's group, and at least two other people had had similar horror stories. In fact, one pour soul didn't get his books, couldn't cancel the launch in time, and wound up handing out promotional materials. It seems to me that, sooner or later, most writers will either experience or witness one launch disaster. May it not be yours!

FATAL ENCRYPTION is now available at amazon.com or through Dead Write Books at http://www.deadwrite.com/
Excerpts can be found at http://www.debrapurdykong.com/

"How should I promote my book launch?"

Recently, a writer friend had some questions regarding advertising book signings and launches. She asked if she should have had the store put up posters and showcase her book in the front window prior to her book launch. I gave her some advice, things I wish someone had told me at the very beginning.

In the beginning, I was bold...yet I didn't have a clue what to do either.

A few years ago, I didn't really get the difference between a book launch and a book signing. I suppose I could have helped myself out by actually attending some of both, but I didn't and my first "launch" suffered for it. Instead of making it a big celebration, my first book launch had no hoopla, just me at a table in front of the store, handing out business cards. Oy, I was so green I never knew I shouldn't give out cards unless they're to business contacts. No one else wants them. I know better now, but back then I had no idea what I should or could do for a launch party. Now I know it's only limited by my imagination and the fire code of the store. :)

Book signing:

A book signing is an event where you go and sign and sell books. It's that simple. There's only as much hoopla as you can create, based on any news to do with your book. But believe me, I look for anything newsy that can add some hype to my signings. News equals excitement, and excitement means sales, and sales mean I get to write another book. :)

I rarely have any form of advertising for my regular signings, other than in my writers organizations' newsletters and what I post on my site and blogs--mainly because people tend to forget, and so far it hasn't proven to bring in that many more people for it to be cost effective to run advertisements in newspapers. I just look at every person who walks in the store as MINE. Okay, I'm not that vain, but I do look at anyone as a prospective buyer. It seems far easier when I'm not worried about whether my invitees have arrived or if they'll even show. I always know that there will be people walking through the doors, and it's my job to greet them and make them feel welcome. (And give them my bookmarks.)

If I feel I need posters, I've learned not to wait for bookstores to make them. Other than Audrey's Books in Edmonton, which always makes up lovely posters for all my signings, and a few Chapters stores, most bookstores are just too busy to design signs. So I have a local print shop make posters for my special events. They're 14 x 17, I think, full color, announcing my name, author of... and date/time of event. I ask the stores to post them about 5 days before the event. Any earlier and people forget. Occasionally, I'll go to my signing and discover that my posters were never displayed, but usually they'll be up near the front door and often near the bathrooms. If I've been able to get some media attention (newspaper interviews or radio or TV interviews), then that's a bonus. But it's not easy to be newsworthy for all your events all of the time.

Book launch:

A book launch is a celebration, a big party to celebrate your book's arrival and everything you have gone through to get this far, and it's a party for YOU.

This is the one event that you need to have posters up on the walls, fliers to the bookstore a week before to add to customers' bags, media attention, tons of blogging about it, and lots and lots of hoopla. To ensure that you get great promotion for this exciting event, go to the store the day before and see how they're promoting you. Then you can ask them to display your books if they're nowhere to be found.

Also, for a launch, you'll want to send out an invitation to anyone on your email list and newsletter list. Ask them to bring a friend or two (or ten!), and make sure you ask them to RSVP, since you'll need to know how much food and drink to supply. Once you have this list, realize that about 10% won't make it, another 10% might not buy. 80% should be sales. Bad weather the day of the launch will increase the percentage of the first two and lower the last. Make sure the bookstore knows about your RSVP list ASAP. They need to know how many books to order in. Send your guests a "friendly reminder" about 2 days before.

A launch should always be eye-catching, big and bold. You need to create excitement. That's what separates it from a regular book signing. Some launches will have champagne and strawberries, others will have pop and veggies and dip. Some will have food that fits the theme of their book. I served two kinds of seafood dip; however, I just couldn't serve whale. I'm sure my friends were glad about that. :)

Most book launches will have:

• entertainment
• door prizes (I always ask local businesses to donate prizes in exchange for a sponsorship mention of them on my posters and I get awesome prizes this way...including a free limo ride for my family and closest friends to my last book launch)
• munchies (a couple of party trays and a cake with your cover on, at minimum)
• a mike for you to read a chapter and talk about your new "baby"
• an MC to introduce you and make you look good (either a friend or the store manager if she knows you)
• advertising in-store and elsewhere (community bulletin boards, schools, churches etc)

It's your party, so have fun! This really isn't the time to worry about sales. The more events you do, the better you should get at selling your book. If you have a bad signing (like 3 or less), evaluate why. When you have an exceptional signing (like 30+ books), also evaluate why. I always ask myself 'what worked?' and 'what didn't?'

How should you promote your book launch? By doing anything and everything you can think of to ensure its success and to make sure that everyone attending has a party they'll never forget. That way they'll be first in line for your next book launch, which (if you use these tips) will now be bigger and better than the last. :)

~Cheryl Kaye Tardif,

bestselling author of Whale Song

Lists, Lists, and More Lists, and an Invitation

Okay, so the book is finished and the first shipment is about to arrive. It's very exciting, but also daunting because now the hard work, part II, is underway. Promotion and marketing requires almost as much thought and organization as writing a book does. Mainly, it requires a plan, and with a plan comes list making.

I've been a list-maker from way back. Grocery lists, Christmas gift lists, packing-for-vacation lists, attending bookfair or conference lists, daily planner lists, and so on. Over the years, they've spared me a lot of wasted time and money. They're also fun to toss out when I'm done. When I'm shopping by myself, I stick to the list and pretty well come in on budget. Not so if I bring my family along.

Book promotion has taken list making to a whole new level. So far, I have a full, typewritten page of promotional things to do, and now I'm started to add more ideas. I'm not sure how long it'll take me to check off everything on that list. Some things will only take a few minutes, others a couple of days, and still others will be ongoing.

As writers tend to do, I'm preparing for my book launch (on the promo to-do list), but now my list is growing lists. There's a list for food to bring to the launch, and other things, like plates, drinks, camera, etc. I figure that, sooner or later, I'll reach a point where I'll be just as excited to put the lists away as I am to receive that first shipment, but until then,

If anyone out there lives in Vancouver's lower mainland, you are cordially invited to my book launch on Thursday, April 17th in The Lounge at the Kyle Rec Centre, 125 Kyle Street, Port Moody, from 7 to 9 p.m. There'll be some fun, some food, some reading.

And now that all of the invitations are out, I can check one more thing off the to-do list. On the other hand, there's still the press releases . . .

To read excerpts of Fatal Encryption, visit www.debrapurdykong.com