Month: November 2013

Sneak Peek: Death on a Dig

Today we have a sneak peek from the murder mystery by Lois Browne: Death on a Dig.

When a neighbour begs Gwen Madden to head to Mexico to search for her daughter, missing from an archaeological dig, Gwen doesn’t hesitate.

Within 24 hours she is in the Oaxaca Valley tracking Alicia Lester and trying to sort the truth from lies about a trove of stolen artifacts. Before long people have begun to die.

The motive for murder isn’t clear, which is why Gwen is counted among the suspects. Unable to leave while the official investigation is underway, Gwen continues to ask her own questions, even when it becomes apparent she may be the killer’s next target.

Death on a Dig is available from Amazon, Smashwords, and Amazon UK.

Here is an excerpt from Death on a Dig…

Continue reading “Sneak Peek: Death on a Dig”

Flash Fiction Vote: Take Your Pick

They all look good, but you can only pick one. It’s time for readers to choose a winner for this week’s challenge.

Check out this week’s entries here. Vote for your favorite, then use those share buttons at the bottom of the post to spread the word.

All our winners will be included in the next edition of the IU Flash Fiction Anthology. Participate in this week’s voting, then  share the link to let everyone know the vote is on.

Polls close tomorrow at 5 PM.

 

Make your pick for flash fiction star of the week:

  • Kathy Steinemann (52%, 15 Votes)
  • MT Decker (31%, 9 Votes)
  • Jon Jefferson (17%, 5 Votes)
  • John Shirley (0%, 0 Votes)

Total Voters: 29

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NOTE: Entrants whose submissions exceed the 250 word limit are eliminated from the poll.

NetGalley – A Writer’s Point of View

Until a few months ago, I’d never even heard of NetGalley. But when one of my author friends mentioned it, I soon figured out it was huge.

Basically NetGalley is a place where readers, librarians, book buyers and reviewers can go to download free copies of e-books. The way it works is, authors and publishers pay a fee to list their books. Members of NetGalley then look at the site and request the titles that interest them. These requests are either approved or denied by the authors/publishers. If the request is approved, the requester gets a free, digital copy (either epub or mobi file from what I understand) of the book in exchange for an honest review. If you want a better explanation, you can check out How It Works on NetGalley.

Sounds like a fantastic system that’s advantageous for all parties, right?

My answer to that would be yes and no. Continue reading “NetGalley – A Writer’s Point of View”

Tips for an Online Social Event

Guest Post
by Kim Mutch Emerson

Authors are awesome! We know how to create a universe, solve murders, negotiate with someone bent on destroying the world, and how to match lovers up with their perfect partner. What most of us are not great at is marketing our books. It makes us all squishy inside. We would rather face a three headed giant than write an ad. That is one of the big reasons I try to create fun ways to help authors “market” their stuff. I put the word market in quotes because it’s more about building relationships to me than selling stuff.

Big advertising and marketing campaigns are too expensive for most indie authors. The most affordable tools we have are the social media sites. The keyword here is “social”. We can’t treat them like billboards or people will tear out their hair and go screaming for the hills. People are not on these networks to read ads. They are on the networks to socialize and build relationships. One good way to build relationships online is to team up with other authors and create an online social event.

I can hear it now, “how are we supposed to sell books at an online social event?” Glad you asked. I have a few pointers. Continue reading “Tips for an Online Social Event”