How Do You Find Time? (Plus a Valentine's Giveaway!)

This post is brought to you by the Insecure Writer's Support Group, an online group where writers can express doubts and concerns, and those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance.

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I was sitting here thinking about how I don't have time for an IWSG post this month, and then I thought that that's exactly what I should blog about!

So here's the thing ...

Every day my email bombards me with the following:
Blog comments
New Twitter followers
Twitter mentions
Facebook notifications
New Wattpad followers
Wattpad comments
Goodreads invites
Goodreads group updates
Google notifications
Pinterest notifications
Linkedin notifications
and more!

I keep trying to get to the point where my phone doesn't have a little red circle above the Mail icon, but it seems impossible. Like one step forward, two steps back (or more like ten steps forward, twenty steps back!) Right now the number there is 91! How am I supposed to deal with all these notifications and also write tens of thousands of words, design covers, format books, (reset the stupid internet that keeps dropping signal!!!), market my already-published books, read my Bible and talk to God, cook, clean, go to gym, walk the dogs, see friends, spend time with my husband, live life ... (and I don't even have children yet!)

Now DON'T GET ME WRONG. I love being connected. I love that people are reading my books, following my blog, leaving awesome comments on Wattpad, replying to my posts on Facebook, following me on Twitter, and pinning my pictures on Pinterest. (Whoa, hello alliteration!) I LOVE THAT! I just feel really bad when I can't respond to all those people. When I don't return blog visits, when I don't reply to blog comments, when I ignore Facebook group updates ... I feel super guilty!

Soooo ... what's the answer here? Sleep less? Stop blogging? Delete my Facebook account? (*gasp* Never!)

One thing I can say is this ...

If I don't respond to the comment you leave on this blog,
or I take weeks to come by and visit your blog,
I'M SORRY! I appreciate EVERY SINGLE ONE OF YOU.
PROMISE!!

xx Rachel

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And now for a super cool Valentine's Day
99 cent SALE and GIVEAWAY!

Take this chance to snag some awesome books by 11 Dauntless authors 

for only .99 cents! 
(Enter to win one of 2 $25 gift cards at the bottom of the post)

Happy Valentines Day!

All books only .99 cents until Feb. 13th! Don't wait.

Confessions of a 16-Year-Old Virgin Lips by Cindy M. Hogan

Originally $3.99  Now only .99 cents

Because it really is all about the kiss!
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Winter Queen by Amber Argyle

Originally $4.99. Now only .99 cents

Becoming a winter queen will make Ilyenna as cold and cruel and deadly as winter itself, but it might be the only way to save her people from a war they have no hope of winning.
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Sony 
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#3. The Curse Girl by Kate Avery Ellison

Bee has to break the curse if she wants to escape her magical prison. And she's going to have to team up with the handsome and infuriating Will to do it.

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#4. Shucked by Megg Jensen 

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Tabitha thinks there's nothing worse than being forced to live on her grandparents' farm and attend public school. She's dead wrong.

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#5. Awakening: Book One of The Geis by Christy Dorrity 

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 Because some Celtic stories won't be contained in myth.
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#6. With a Kiss by Stephanie Fowers

Free

FREE book from Twisted Tales series. 

Halley Starr will do anything to get her heart back, even work with the dirty faery who stole it from her.

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#7. Immortal Essence boxed set by RaShelle Workman

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Worlds divided them. Chance brought them together. Only love will save them. 

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#8. Eternal Echoes by Angela Corbett

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 Love can't protect her from her past.

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#9. The Forgotten Ones by Laura Howard

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#10. Inevitable by Tamara Hart Heiner

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The next murder Jayne witnesses might be her own.
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#11 Sun and Moon by Lee Strauss

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 "The difference between you and I, is like the sun and the moon."

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Enter to win here!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

2013 Book Sales Numbers

This post is both an Indie Life post and an Insecure Writer's Support Group post :-)

When it comes to specific sales numbers, I've always been a little scared to share mine. And yet, I've always been very interested to read the sales data of other authors when they share it. So ... I guess it's time for me to be brave!

I'm sure everyone has a different number in their head when they think of how many sales they want to achieve in a year, or how many sales would make them feel like their book/s has/have been a success. To be honest, I didn't actually have a number in my head at the beginning of 2013. I had no goal I was aiming for in terms of sales. I really had NO idea what to expect from 2013, my first year as a full-time writer. So all I can say is that I'm THRILLED at the "magic number" I managed to reach last year! And that magic number is ...

...

...

...

10,000!!!

Yippee!!! Now, I know there are many indie authors selling way more than that in a year. So some of you are probably looking at that number and thinking, Well, I don't know how everyone else is doing, but at least I know I sold more than Rachel Morgan! But I look at that number and feel totally, awesomely, butterflies-in-my-tummy excited!

Anyway, I think it's interesting to see the breakdown of sales across the different online retailers, so I'm going to share those numbers, in case anyone's interested in looking at them. I've organized these numbers into two tables -- one that includes free downloads, and one that is paid titles only.

Note:

• These numbers are EBOOK SALES ONLY. Print sales were rather pathetic in comparison - not more than 200 copies.
• Amazon numbers are for the US and UK stores combined (I sell barely anything on the other Amazon stores).

TFG = The Faerie Guardian
TFP = The Faerie Prince
TFP = The Faerie War
PART I = Part I of The Faerie Guardian. Free, although it was $0.99 on the UK Kindle store for part of the year. Unpublished in October.
A to Z = An A to Z of Creepy Hollow Fae. Initially $0.99. Changed to free in October.

PAID TITLES ONLY, NOT INCLUDING FREE DOWNLOADS

PAID TITLES AND FREE DOWNLOADS

Amazon has always been the major player. I think that's the case for all of us. But for those of you who also publish on Apple and B&N, where do you sell more books? On Amazon, it looks like about a third of the downloads of my free Part I translated to sales of my first book. Is that good? I don't actually know!

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Indie Lifers: Isn't it awesome to have almost instant access to your sales data? How did 2013 go for you? Are you happy with how your book/s did over the past year?

Insecure Writers: I started out as an insecure writer (and I still get insecure at times!) and after almost two years of publishing, here I am. SUPER happy with my sales so far and aiming to sell at least DOUBLE that number this year. And if I can do it, so can you!

What Happens When Authors Change Genres?

This post is brought to you by the Insecure Writer's Support Group, an online group where writers can express doubts and concerns, and those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance.

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I'm not sure if this counts as an insecurity exactly, but it's a question that I'm sure many writers have asked themselves, and one that I've been pondering for some time.

So here's the bottom line: I've been writing fantasy for the past several years. I've published those fantasy novels. People have loved them. Now I'm moving away from fantasy to write some contemporary romance.

What's going to happen? Will my Creepy Hollow readers not really be interested in picking up my new novels and thus "forget" about me? Or (hopefully), will my Creepy Hollow readers cross over to try my contemp books? Will my new contemp readers cross over to try my fantasy books?

I have no idea! Honestly, I think it'll probably be a mixture of those options I've mentioned in the paragraph above. Some readers stick to one genre only. Others like to read across various genres.

And here's the other thing to think about ... Some writers will only write in different genres if they use a different pen name. I've decided not to do that. I'm Rachel Morgan and I can't imagine "being" anyone else! And I've seen writers who use the same pen name across genres go on to become fantastically successful in each of those genres (ahem ... Susan Kaye Quinn), so I know it can be done!

What do you think? Do you have experience of this?

 Have you published in multiple genres? Do you use different pen names?

A Change of Scenery Will Help Your Writing

This post is brought to you by the Insecure Writer's Support Group, an online group where writers can express doubts and concerns, and those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. The IWSG is celebrating it's two year anniversary today! Congratulations!

So ... change is as good as a holiday, right? That's what people say. Unfortunately, I'm not talking about taking a holiday here! I'm still talking about working. And what I want to suggest is that changing your writing space can help reinvigorate your passion and creativity for your writing.

This is where I normally write:

I love my study. It has so much SPACE, and it's filled with my favorite books, and there's a comfy armchair in the corner and warm sunlight streaming through the blinds.
BUT.
I've been writing in this study almost every day for many months now, and I'm starting to get tired of it. Everything is the SAME. Every day is the SAME. I'm starting to feel a little bit like the hermit my husband tells me I am!

On Monday I wasn't able to be at home and so, for the entire day, I had to work in an environment I wouldn't normally work in (my husband's parents' house!). I was worried I wouldn't be able to get much done, but I did more than double what I'd normally do in a day!

Yesterday I was home again, and the amount of work I was able to get done went doooown. So now I've learned. A change of scenery is what I need. And this is where I am today:

Tea on 23, a coffee shop built in an old Pietermaritzburg home.

Where do you normally write?

Where do you go when you need a change of scenery?

When Your Dream Goes Off On A Tangent (Without Your Permission)

Here's what's happening today:

• When your dream goes off on a tangent and you're all like, "Hey! Dude. I'm over here! Get back!" And your dream is like, "Whatevs, man. I'm going this way. Meet you there." And after having a mini tantrum you realize your dream is having fun without you, so you give in and follow it off into the happy tangent sunset. Yeah. So that's what I'm talking about over at Sarah Pearson's Empty White Pages for the Insecure Writer's Support Group today!

• And Cherie Reich is posting a book review made of all kinds of awesome on Surrounded by Books Reviews.

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To be notified when the next Creepy Hollow story is released, join my
author newsletter mailing list
I promise I won't spam you! Book-related announcments ONLY!

~  ~  ~

Giveaways currently happening at:

Rachel Morgan Writes

Insecure Writer's Support Group: Being Brave

This year I am joining the Insecure Writer's Support Group! Thanks, Alex J. Cavanaugh, for getting it started. Now I just have to remember when it's the first Wednesday of each month...







Here's the thing I'm most insecure about right now (and have been for some time, and will be for some more time to come!): putting my writing out there for the world to see.

A few months ago, I decided to publish a series of stories entitled Creepy Hollow, and those of you who hang around this blog sometime may have seen my announcement in December. Now, I'm enjoying writing these stories, I think they're kind of fun, and I'm really excited for the release of the first one in a few months' time. BUT, in those moments when excitement subsides, I can find many things to be afraid of.

Here is what haunts me in my darkest moments (okay, so it's not that bad, but you know what I mean!):

1. No one will buy my book.
2. People will buy it, but they'll think it's kind of crap.
3. People will buy it, they'll enjoy it, but not enough to be interested in reading any more of my work.

Aaarruuuargh! <--- that's me wrestling with the insecurity demon ---> Down, you demon, down!

So. How have I gotten over these insecurities? I beat them down with a stick Uh, I haven't really. But I'm being brave anyway, and I'm going to go ahead and click that "Publish" button. After I've done everything humanly possible to polish my stories, of course!

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Don't forget to support other insecure writers!