IWSG Wednesday: Traveling to a New Home

Happy Insecure Writer's Support Group Wednesday. Thank you again to Alex J. Cavanaugh, the creator of the group. The first Wednesday of every month is dedicated to this group of supportive writers. If it's something you're not familiar with, then please click on Alex's link above for more information and to sign up!

***Going forward, I will be posting from my new Wordpress site: michaelpierceauthor.com. This post will also be the first post on that new site, so feel free to leave a comment on either one (they will basically be the same).***

The year has gone by so fast and it’s showing no sign of slowing down. I had a nice and quiet Thanksgiving holiday, but even with it being quiet, the long weekend seems like a blur. I haven’t gotten as much done as I had hoped, which seems to be the complaint of every holiday season. All I can do is take what baby steps I can to keep moving forward.

As far as the Lorne Family Vault series is concerned, the revised editions of the first three books are available now on Amazon: Provex City, Le7el, and SUSY Asylum. I’m also giving away the first two books for signing up to my mailing list. The fourth book, Doria Falls, will be released on December 11th. I don’t have a release date yet for the final book in the series, Archanum Manor, but it will most likely be early February.

With the Lorne Family Vault series practically finished, I had wanted to start writing my new novel this week, but I don’t feel confident enough in the outline I have thus far. It’s coming along, but not at the place I’d hoped it would be at this point. The main resources I’m using for outlining and pre-production are: Write Better Faster, Story Engineering, The Story Grid, and the Dan Wells 7-Point Story Structure videos. I read through twice as many books on story structure and outlining, but the above mentioned books (and videos) are the ones I got the most out of. The structures are similar and easy to adapt and combine to make the story you want to tell the best it can be. Hopefully, the rest of my planning will come together soon so I can start writing in the next few weeks.

As I mentioned above, this will be last post for this site as I transition over to the new site HERE. It’s been a great learning experience on the Blogger platform. I still don’t feel fully comfortable using Wordpress, but I’m sure all will be fine with time. So this isn’t goodbye, but the start to a new chapter—one I’m very excited to write.

I hope your Thanksgiving was full of fun and fantastic food. Christmas is only a few blinks away. My family and I put up our Christmas decorations over the weekend and I bought my first eggnog latte of the season. I love this time of year now that I don’t work in retail anymore. I have a lot of writing goals on my list, but enjoying this time with friends and family is equally (if not more) important. Find your story, find your balance, and find your Christmas cheer.

IWSG Wednesday: Finding Your Voice

Happy Insecure Writer's Support Group Wednesday. Thank you again to Alex J. Cavanaugh, the creator of the group. The first Wednesday of every month is dedicated to this group of supportive writers. If it's something you're not familiar with, then please click on Alex's link above for more information and to sign up!

June flew by way too fast. I wish I had more to report, but I'm still just wading through revisions. Archanum Manor is now in the hands of my editor and I'm excited to receive feedback over the next couple of weeks. I've been in contact with my proofreader and scheduled to start sending her manuscripts by the end of the month. I still have a lot of work to polish up Provex City, so hopefully I can make some good progress over the holiday weekend.

It's interesting, but after writing four books in Oliver's voice, I think I finally found it. Five years ago, with only Provex City committed to the page, I thought that Oliver's voice was authentic. But I've now realized that I didn't truly find his voice until Archanum Manor. He's grown throughout the books and I've grown as a writer. I spent so much time on Provex City compared to the other books (well over a year writing and rewriting), and I thought it was my most polished story. Now I feel it's the least and needs the most work. It's interesting looking back at it now. I still love the story, but the writing's different. It doesn't feel as natural as its successors. So I'll be working hard to remedy that over the next few weeks.

Oh and from last month, there were a few questions on how to pronounce the title of my new novella, Le7el. I think it looks cool spelled that way (to me it has a NIN vibe), but it's simply pronounced Level 7. So simple it's probably underwhelming. Sorry, but I still like it.

Another great writing album that came out last month was Of Monsters and Men's Beneath the Skin. So far, Empire is my favorite song from the album, and like many of my favorite songs, I can listen to it on repeat for an hour or more (which I've been doing for the writing of this post).

If you're in the U.S., then have a safe and happy 4th of July. If you reside elsewhere in this shrinking world, then I'm sure you can find some reason to celebrate. Do you really need a reason to spend time with friends and family and have a few drinks? I think not. And once your head clears from one too many drinks, then it's time to get your butt back in the chair and write. 

IWSG Wednesday: Introducing Le7el

Happy Insecure Writer's Support Group Wednesday. Thank you again to Alex J. Cavanaugh, the creator of the group. The first Wednesday of every month is dedicated to this group of supportive writers. If it's something you're not familiar with, then please click on Alex's link above for more information and to sign up!

I am elbows deep in revisions. I have more work than I originally thought, but I'm excited for the final products. An idea came to me a few weeks ago and I'm running with it. I had been concerned that SUSY Asylum was so much longer than the other books in the series. I had thought of splitting it into two books for a while, but didn't know how...until I explored the idea of splitting it into one novel and one novella. I didn't know if it would work until I began reorganizing the story and I think it's working quite nicely. Now I'm  not so worried about cutting. I'm actually having to write a few more chapters to fill in some newly created gaps.

So the new novella will be titled Le7el, Book 1.5 in the Lorne Family Vault. I don't want to deceive people that have already read the first edition of SUSY Asylum, but since I didn't promote it much, I don't believe it was read by many people. So I'm not worried about angering a whole lot of readers. Ultimately, I think this is a good decision for the series. It's creating more work for me right now, but I think it'll be worth it in the end.

As I get back to work, I want to share what I've been listening to while writing this post. Florence + The Machine's new album came out today (still Tuesday as I'm writing), "How Big How Blue How Beautiful." Their albums create such great mood music for my writing. I'm not too familiar with this new album yet, but the song Delilah caught my attention immediately. Florence + The Machine never disappoints. Enjoy!

Blood, Boobs & Carnage Blogfest

Hosted by

Ninja Captain Alex J Cavanaugh & Heather Gardner

I just finished watching Season 5, Episode 6 "Unbowed, Unbent, Unbroken," and it's funny, because it's probably one of the only episodes that doesn't fully fit with the theme of this blogfest. But almost every other episode epitomizes the the theme of "Blood, Boobs & Carnage."

The HBO original series, Game of Thrones, as with the book series it is based on, A Song of Ice and Fire by George RR Martin, are the first things I thought of when I learned about this blogfest. Martin created an expansive, brutal world and HBO vividly brought it to life. It combines the violence of The Walking Dead, the sex and dysfunctional shock value of Californication, and the superb acting and production value of Breaking Bad. What more could anyone possibly want?

The show is so awesome it that it has the best opening credits (which doesn't have any blood, boobs, or carnage, but it's still Star Wars caliber awesome) of any show out there. I typically fast forward through opening credits, but not for Game of Thrones.

There are so many twists and turns, so many secondary characters, so much detail put into the world, the history, and the storyline that you need to watch it numerous times (and even then, you won't catch everything). It's easy to get distracted by the blood and boobs, but you need to concentrate if you want to keep up with the multiple interwoven storylines. And don't expect the good guys to prevail. All men must die.

Below is the Honest Trailer of Games of Thrones and shows exactly why it is perfect for this blogfest. But be warned, it does include spoilers from seasons 1-3. If you don't mind the spoilers, the trailer is pretty hilarious, especially for people that know exactly what the narrator's talking about. Enjoy!

Thank you to Alex and Heather for setting this up and use the list of links below to visit other people participating in this blogfest.

IWSG Wednesday: The New Face of the Lorne Family Vault

Happy Insecure Writer's Support Group Wednesday. Thank you again to Alex J. Cavanaugh, the creator of the group. The first Wednesday of every month is dedicated to this group of supportive writers. If it's something you're not familiar with, then please click on Alex's link above for more information and to sign up!

April has been a blur. I'm sure quite a few of you can relate, especially those of you who participated in the A to Z Challenge. I am in the deep waters of editing. Right now I'm trying to finish my initial rounds of editing Archanum Manor so I can hand it over to my editor and he can sand down all the rough edges.

And now that the first draft of my final manuscript in the Lorne Family Vault series is complete, I'm finally ready to reveal my new covers. I will be re-releasing Provex City and SUSY Asylum before finally releasing Doria Falls and Archanum Manor. I've been sitting on these covers for a few months now and I'm so excited to finally share them with you. All four covers were created by Karri Klawiter. She did a great job of capturing the visual essence and tone of my novels and she was so easy to work with every step of the way. Also, her prices are very reasonable. If you're looking for a cover designer, then check out her website and see the many other beautiful covers she's created HERE.

Now, I should get back to editing so I can get these books finished and published...and begin a new project.

IWSG Wednesday: The End in Sight

Happy Insecure Writer's Support Group Wednesday. Thank you again to Alex J. Cavanaugh, the creator of the group. The first Wednesday of every month is dedicated to this group of supportive writers. If it's something you're not familiar with, then please click on Alex's link above for more information and to sign up!

As I said in my previous IWSG post, this past month would be an important one, and it was. I just passed 74,000 words, which is a number I'm quite proud of. I have two chapters left in Archanum Manor. The first one is huge because it's right in the middle of the climax. The second, will be a short resolution and wrap up. I can finally see the end and I'm pushing to finish by this coming weekend.

I know many of you are starting the April A to Z Challange, which is a huge commitment. So I'll keep this short and just update you on my progress. Once I finish this first draft and do a full read through, I'll go back and edit the third book, Doria Falls. During that time, Archanum Manor will be sent to a few beta readers. When I finish the Doria Falls edits, I'll have the distance I need to dive back into Archanum Manor and clean it up. I still have a lot of work ahead of me, but it doesn't feel much like work anymore.

I'd like to leave you with another song I recently added to my Archanum Manor playlist, one I've listened to a lot this month while writing. But I've been listening to the album version and ran across this beautifully haunting acoustic version by accident. But as Mr. Gordon would say, accidents don't just happen. I was meant to find this song tonight. It fits the tone of the book so very perfectly. Take a few minutes for yourself and enjoy the sublimely melodic duet. 

IWSG Wednesday: Crossing the River

Happy Insecure Writer's Support Group Wednesday. Thank you again to Alex J. Cavanaugh, the creator of the group. The first Wednesday of every month is dedicated to this group of supportive writers. If it's something you're not familiar with, then please click on Alex's link above for more information and to sign up!

Another month has flown by and I'm taking a moment away from my writing cave to give an update on my current manuscript. I just passed 50,000 words in Archanum Manor, which feels substantial, but it's obviously taking longer than I had hoped. So I actually averaged 500 words a day this past month, not the 1000 I was pushing for. The important thing is just to keep writing, so I won't come down on myself too hard.

One reason for my lower than expected word count was hitting a major snag in the story. I came to the edge of a river that was quite difficult to cross. I could see the opposite river bank with no idea how to get there. Building the bridge cost me time with writer's block and rewrites. But it did finally get built. I've been writing that bridge for the past week and a half, and I can successfully say that I've reached the other side of the river and ready to continue down road leading to Archanum Manor.

Now I'm getting close to the biggest scenes in the book, which is both exciting and terrifying. I need these scenes to live up to the key scenes in previous books, with the hope of actually surpassing them. This will be an important month as I bring the series to a close. I don't expect to be done by next month's IWSG's post, but I expect to be close. Here's hoping.

I'd like to leave you with a song I just added to my Archanum Manor playlist, one I've been obsessed with over the past week, listening to it repeatedly while writing the interactions between Oliver and Desiree. It has the beautifully sad tone of an Elliott Smith song. Sit back, turn down the lights, close your eyes, and let Joshua Radin pull at your heart strings for three minutes while I get back to work. 

IWSG Wednesday: Writing, Covers, and Soundtracks

Happy Insecure Writer's Support Group Wednesday. Thank you again to Alex J. Cavanaugh, the creator of the group. The first Wednesday of every month is dedicated to this group of supportive writers. If it's something you're not familiar with, then please click on Alex's link above for more information and to sign up!

I just received a rough draft of my fourth and final cover for the Lorne Family Vault series, and I’m excited with how well it fits with the others. It feels great to have them all nearly done, one more thing I can cross of my list for releasing (and rereleasing) all of the books. My biggest complaint with my current (and previous) covers is the visibility (and readability) of the titles, especially viewing them as small cover icons on Amazon. This was another live and learn experience for me since these issues with the titles were my fault. I wanted title graphics that were uniquely stylized. But the results were also hard to read. I know not to ask for that anymore. Now, I’ve asked for a bold title font that stands out even as a small icon—and my new designer fully delivered.

I’m still plugging away at the manuscript for Archanum Manor and just passed the halfway point. As I’ve previously written, I’ve been writing without an outline for most of this first half, but I’m now getting nervous. I want to bring this series home with a strong ending and that pressure is building into more frequent writer’s block. I haven’t written in a few days and I need to get myself back on track this evening because days of non-writing can be a slippery slope of losing momentum.

I enjoy creating soundtracks to my books for brainstorming and writing, and I finished the one for Archanum Manor last week (as an iTunes playlist). For Provex City, the songs I chose fit with specific scenes in the book, but now I create a soundtrack mainly for expressing the tone of the story (though some songs in the other soundtracks still coincide with certain key scenes). The difference is that for Provex City I created the soundtrack after the book was written and fit the songs accordingly. Now my soundtracks are WIPs before and while I’m writing until they feel complete.

And now I’d like to leave you with the teaser of a first song from the Archanum Manor soundtrack for your listening pleasure while I get back to writing.

IWSG Wednesday: The Start to a Great Year

Happy Insecure Writer's Support Group Wednesday. Thank you again to Alex J. Cavanaugh, the creator of the group. The first Wednesday of every month is dedicated to this group of supportive writers. If it's something you're not familiar with, then please click on Alex's link above for more information and to sign up!

I’m excited for 2015. I began this writing journey at the end of 2008 with an idea for a young adult series, and this will be the year I finally finish. I hope to have all four books released sometime this summer, hopefully early summer, but everything seems to take longer than anticipated. I won’t beat myself up over a couple of months. Mark my words: it will get done this year!

This week I received the cover for the third book, Doria Falls, and I’m very happy with how well it came out. So now there’s just one cover to go. The covers are visual representations of finished books for me, so they’ll light the necessary New Year’s fire to get this final book done. I’ve put off all promotion with the writing of these last two books just because that would have prolonged the writing process even longer, which was too hard to accept. These books are my training wheels, and at this stage in the game, it’s much more important to focus on bettering the craft than selling books. When I’m more competent and confident, I can find the more appropriate balance.

There are quite a few things that these books in the currently evolving publishing environment have taught me. Here is a short sampling of what I’ve learned:

• Long books are not my friend: When I started writing, I was inspired by the Harry Potter books. There was something cool about having 700 page hard covers. With most books for self-published authors being sold as ebooks, that coolness factor becomes irrelevant. For me as a self-published author (and at the pace of which I write), it is better to have two shorter books available than one longer book. SUSY Asylum clocked in at 120,000 words, which is quite a bit longer than the other books in the series. Going forward, 60,000 – 70,000 words is a more appropriate length, which in turn will help me add more titles to my backlog.
• Don’t end on cliffhangers: I will no longer write books that end on cliffhangers because I don’t write fast enough to keep readers happy (or at least I won’t while I still work fulltime). I actually like cliffhangers, but they don’t currently work for my writing. With the books in my current series having cliffhangers, I felt like I had to finish the series before moving onto something new. If I decide to write a serial at some point, then I’ll most likely use cliffhangers (but that’s another discussion entirely).
• Don’t create a new Createspace file for a reissue: When you create a new Createspace file/page for a reissue it creates a new Amazon page for that book. I did that with Provex City. What I didn’t know at the time was I couldn’t delete the old page. So now I have one Provex City paperback Amazon page that simply says “currently unavailable.” Also, if I unlink that page from other formats of the book, I lose all the reviews originally written on that page. Amazon will not move reviews from one page to another even though they’re for the same book (just different formats). This was a frustrating lesson.
• Don’t pay for ISBNs: This one goes along with the bullet point above. I created a new Createspace page (which in turn creates a new Amazon page) for the reissue of Provex City to give it a custom ISBN number. I wanted the option that if Provex City ever made it into libraries, then it wouldn’t need a new ISBN number. This is just a waste of money. If my future self published books make it into libraries one day, they’ll just need to be reassigned a new ISBN number. Why worry about that now (and pay $99 for it).
• Try new genres: The digital bookstore of ebooks make an author’s expansion into multiple genres easier than ever. Why not intentionally try to reach more readers? Some genres may sell better than others for you. You may write some genres better than others. You may enjoy writing some genres better than others (which may not be the genre you started with). So why deprive yourself? Sample all the flavors.

Those are enough of my mistakes for one post, but I am thankful for the learning experiences. Though the day I stop messing up is most likely the day I quit--it's all part of the process, the journey, the adventure. Give yourself permission to screw up because at least you're trying. 2015 can be the greatest year ever or it can be a year that passes by without incident. You get to decide.

IWSG Wednesday: November Rain

Happy Insecure Writer's Support Group Wednesday. Thank you again to Alex J. Cavanaugh, the creator of the group. The first Wednesday of every month is dedicated to this group of supportive writers. If it's something you're not familiar with, then please click on Alex's link above for more information and to sign up!

I've finally begun writing again, but it's slow going. Starting is always the hardest thing for me, getting back into the rhythm of daily writing. One week would go by...then two...then three...and I'd still have nothing written down. I can now say that is no longer the case, but I'm far from a novel length. I had hoped to finish my first draft by year's end, but my schedule is shot to hell at this point. Though I'm trying not to be discouraged. I gave myself a deadline, but it isn't an end-of-the-world deadline. As long as I keep working toward my goal, I'll eventually get there.

Which leads me to my plan for finishing my YA series. I plan on releasing the last two books in quick succession. It's important to me to get this series finished so I can begin something new. I'll do some promotion once they're both ready to come out. With my current workload, I don't have the time to write and promote...my 1-2 hours a day doesn't stretch nearly as far as I'd like. It's frustrating, and even more frustrating when that frustration creeps into my writing time and undermines my productivity. All I can do is try to do better tomorrow. Tomorrow is another chance with a clean slate.

Well, it is November and I know many of you have begun your NaNo projects. 50,000 words in a month is my Everest! One day I'll reach it. Good luck to all of you taking the challenge. I'll continue plugging away to increase my word count and trying not to get distracted by too many holiday treats.

IWSG Wednesday: Doria Falls is Done!

Happy Insecure Writer's Support Group Wednesday. Thank you again to Alex J. Cavanaugh, the creator of the group. The first Wednesday of every month is dedicated to this group of supportive writers. If it's something you're not familiar with, then please click on Alex's link above for more information and to sign up!

It’s been a long time coming, but I finally have a completed manuscript of my third novel, Doria Falls, Book 3 in the Lorne Family Vault. I wrote the final words on Wednesday of last week, and over the weekend finished my first round of editing. My beta readers will dive into it over the next few weeks as I begin the next round of editing. Hopefully, I can hand it over to my editor by the end of the month.

Even though this book took me a few months longer than I had hoped, I’m proud with how it turned out. I don’t want to kick myself too much for my sporadic daily word counts and celebrate the steady progress of one more novel under my belt. Doria Falls is a big change from the two previous books, especially SUSY Asylum. Clocking in at a slim 75,000 words (slim by comparison), Doria Falls is a very streamlined novel. The story within Provex City took place over several months, SUSY Asylum over several weeks, and Doria Falls over several days. It picks up exactly where SUSY Asylum left off—to the minute. Now I need to write a blurb for it, which is not something I’m looking forward to.

Along with editing and formatting, I am beginning to plan for the fourth and final book in the series. This will be my first experiment with a thorough, scene-by-scene outline. Hopefully, this will help my productivity during the writing process and maximize the limited time I can devote to my novel each day. My plan is to begin writing by the beginning of September and have a finished first draft by the end of the year. This series will always mean a lot to me, but I’ve reached the point where I just want to get it done and begin something completely new. It’s time to finish up and move on, allowing a whole new chapter in my writing career to begin.

IWSG Wednesday: Energy to Start the Day!

Happy Insecure Writer's Support Group Wednesday. Thank you again to Alex J. Cavanaugh, the creator of the group. The first Wednesday of every month is dedicated to this group of supportive writers. If it's something you're not familiar with, then please click on Alex's link above for more information and to sign up!

Sometimes the best thing one can do to move forward is to take a step back. I've done precisely that over the past few months. Last month I spoke about being paralyzed with my writing in April and turning to editing in order to stay productive. I was looking forward to May as being the month I'd complete my third manuscript. And I have been writing, but haven't produced the word count I'd originally intended for the past month.

Now to discuss my step back to help propel me to where I want to be. I've been actively writing for six years, spending a lot of free time in front of the computer screen. Over the past three years, my life has changed dramatically due to family additions and a career change that has more than cut my free time in half. Giving up writing is not an option, but if I want to succeed in the long term, then I need to find ways to accomplish more in less time, to become more efficient as a writer and as an entrepreneur, and to refuel myself with energy, passion, and momentum.

Energy--or better yet, the lack there of--has been a major issue for quite a few years. I've equated my dwindling energy to just getting older and counteracted it with drinking more coffee. I hit a tipping point where the coffee wasn't giving me that needed boost anymore, just continual heartburn. So my first major shift was getting off caffeine entirely. That was a year and a half ago. I had hoped my energy would slowly return from conquering my addiction, but that wasn't the case. My energy continued to dwindle as competing priorities kept building. My emotions were suffering. My writing was suffering. And my vision for my future as a full time writer seemed to be fading away if I wasn't committed to making some even bigger changes.

And the first big change I had to make was making a commitment to myself to regain the energy that's been so steadily slipping away. I could work to improve all of my writing routines and obligations, force myself to get up earlier, go to bed later, push my word count, and maximize any free time I could find, but none of those changes would last if I didn't have the energy to even get out of bed in the morning. I had to take a step back.

Over the past two months I've committed to a new exercise routine and healthy nutritional plan. The first few weeks were hard, but as I began to feel better, see some results, and noticed my energy returning to a level I haven't felt in years, the commitment became drastically easier. I can't remember a time when I could get up at 5am and feel refreshed, but I feel that on most mornings now (especially on the ones when I exercise first thing). To do this, I've had to take time away from writing, but with the remaining time I do have to write is now more productive. I can appreciate it more. I can see my vision returning.

I'm still writing. And I have many improvements still to make to reach my goals. But this one has been an important first step. One step back and two steps forward.

IWSG Wednesday: Change Gears, Regroup, and Move Forward

Happy Insecure Writer's Support Group Wednesday. Thank you again to Alex J. Cavanaugh, the creator of the group. The first Wednesday of every month is dedicated to this group of supportive writers. If it's something you're not familiar with, then please click on Alex's link above for more information and to sign up!

I know many of you have spent the past month in the April A to Z challenge. For those who did, I remember how challenging, yet rewarding it was. I hope you enjoyed it. You deserve an blogging break.

I took my blogging break this past month, planning to spend it writing with the goal of finishing my WIP's first draft. Unfortunately, that didn't happen. I let my insecurities get the best of me, and had a difficult time getting new words down on the page. I also saw where my initial planning failed me, by reaching a point where I had no idea how to get from point A to B, wasting a lot of time (including designated writing time) trying to figure it out.

For my next book, I plan to write a more detailed outline to try and improve my writing process. For my first two books, I wrote a very basic outline and then "went with the flow," creatively went where the story took me The process was romantic and worked relatively well for those books. With my increased work schedule and family demands, the need has never been greater for me to budget my time wisely, and with that, I'm seeing my creative flow approach is not the most efficient process. And I need to become more efficient as a writer and self publishing entrepreneur.

Instead of wasting my whole month in a paralyzed state, I shifted gears and edited what I had written instead. Editing can be often times tedious and frustrating, but I found it refreshing in this case. I had become so frustrated with my writing paralysis that editing provided a win.

With the first two-thirds of my manuscript now decently edited (just by me thus far), I'm ready to finish the adventure, getting Oliver one step closer to the end of his journey.   

IWSG Wednesday: The Best Days are Not Behind Us

Happy Insecure Writer's Support Group Wednesday. Thank you again to Alex J. Cavanaugh, the creator of the group. The first Wednesday of every month is dedicated to this group of supportive writers. If it's something you're not familiar with, then please click on Alex's link above for more information and to sign up!

The best days are not behind us. At times I feel like I missed out on the good ol’ days of publishing. I don’t know if I’ll ever see my books in actual bookstores, but that doesn’t have to be such a bad thing. Online retailers are crushing bookstores one by one. I get to be part of the new revolution instead of what’s being phased out. Some mornings I feel like I missed the self-publishing gold rush of several years back. I am running near the rear of the stampede only to get lost in the kicked-up dust like so many other authors joining the chase. The market is overcrowded now and discoverability is like winning the Mega Millions jackpot. But it’s never been easy. If it was, then everyone would crank out their masterpiece to collect a quick million.

There are a lot of best practices, but there doesn’t seem to be a single secret to discoverability and becoming the next big name. It always comes back to hard work, persistence, and luck. The harder you work and more persistent you are, the luckier you tend to become. But coming back to the notion that the self-publishing gold rush is over, I recently read a blog post by Hugh Howey, who coincidently is one of the self-publishing success stories listing more indie authors able to support themselves on their craft. Go check it out and come back: Defying the Odds (And the Naysayers).

I have to admit, I’ve never heard of the authors he mentions, but I’m not looking to be famous, I’m looking to make a living as an author (a comfortable living if I may be so bold). I found the post very inspirational because these authors really began to make an impact after the so-called gold rush was supposedly over. Granted, they have been writing for quite a few years and have healthy backlogs, but that’s the real key—honing your craft over multiple books, finding your true voice, finding what it is about your storytelling that will connect with readers, and having more titles for your readers to discover, fall in love with, and tell their friends about.

The best days are not behind us. It seems like everybody has a book or two or even three, but the truly passionate authors will not stop there. They’re in it for the long haul—10, 20 books, and more—and will inevitably find their nuggets of gold because more is always out there. More readers are looking for good books every day. I only have two books out so far, but I plan on writing for the long haul. Sometimes I feel like I missed out, but I didn’t—not really. I didn’t miss out on anything because my best days are writing, which can—and should—be every day.

IWSG Wednesday: Committed to the SUSY Asylum Tour

Happy Insecure Writer's Support Group Wednesday. Thank you again to Alex J. Cavanaugh, the creator of the group. The first Wednesday of every month is dedicated to this group of supportive writers. If it's something you're not familiar with, then please click on Alex's link above for more information and to sign up!

Is it just me, or is each month flying by faster and faster. This week I'll finally finish everything for the SUSY Asylum blog tour, which starts on October 14th. I wanted to be done with all the posts by the 1st of the month, so I didn't quite make that, but I'm close and I'll take that as a win.

I am so anxious for the tour to begin--I haven't been this nervous in awhile. There are quite a few blogs signed up to give reviews...and I'm terrified for the responses. SUSY Asylum is longer, darker, and less restrained than Provex City. I feel like I held back a little with Provex City, but with SUSY Asylum, I went for it with everything I had. I'm spending too much time fidgeting and tapping anything within reach. I've been drowning in headphones. Music is my healthiest distraction right now. I already can't wait for the month to be over, just to know what will happen. I want to skip to the end of the book, even though I know I'll only be cheating myself.

Breathe.

Okay, aside from my blog tour anxiety, I'm excited to announce that I'll be swapping blogs with the legendary M. Pax next Monday. That's right, I'll be over at her place, and she'll be right here talking about her experience as an indie author. So if you're an indie author or thinking of becoming an indie author, then park your butt in front of your favorite computer screen and prepare to take some notes.

What do you have going on this month? Are you ready for Halloween, cooler weather, and pumpkin lattes?

The Storm We've All Been Waiting For: CassaStorm!

Congrats to the Ninja Captain, Mr. Alex Cavanaugh, for the release of his third book, CassaStorm! The storm has just begun and this book is about to consume the blogosphere. Here is my question to The Captain:

Which of your three books was the most fun to write? And now that the trilogy's done, are you considering a four book?

Each one was different. It was fun writing CassaStar, because I was rewriting a story I’d imagined when I was younger and there were no expectations or pressure when working on it. CassaFire was lighter and involved more humor, plus the story flowed really quick from my mind. With the third one, it was just seeing the improvement in my writing skills. And knowing I was completing the story.

CassaStorm

By Alex J Cavanaugh

From the Amazon Best Selling Series!

A storm gathers across the galaxy…

Commanding the Cassan base on Tgren, Byron thought he’d put the days of battle behind him. As a galaxy-wide war encroaches upon the desert planet, Byron’s ideal life is threatened and he’s caught between the Tgrens and the Cassans.

After enemy ships attack the desert planet, Byron discovers another battle within his own family. The declaration of war between all ten races triggers nightmares in his son, threatening to destroy the boy’s mind.

Meanwhile the ancient alien ship is transmitting a code that might signal the end of all life in the galaxy. And the mysterious probe that almost destroyed Tgren twenty years ago could return. As his world begins to crumble, Byron suspects a connection. The storm is about to break, and Byron is caught in the middle…

“CassaStorM is a touching and mesmerizing space opera full of action and emotion with strong characters and a cosmic mystery.” – Edi’s Book Lighhouse

"Cavanaugh makes world building on the galactic scale look easy. The stakes affect the entire known universe and yet Cavanaugh makes it intensely personal for our hero. The final installment of this series will break your heart and put it back together."
- Charity Bradford, science fantasy author of The Magic Wakes

“…mesmerizing story of survival, personal sacrifice, tolerance, and compassion. It’s a rare jewel that successfully utilizes both character and plot to tell a story of such immense scope and intimate passion…” - Nancy S. Thompson, author of The Mistaken

$16.95 USA, 6x9 Trade paperback, 268 pages, Dancing Lemur Press, L.L.C.

Science fiction/adventure and science fiction/space opera

Print ISBN 9781939844002 eBook ISBN 9781939844019

$4.99 EBook available in all formats

Find CassaStorm:

Barnes and Noble - http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/books/1116848619?ean=9781939844002

Amazon -

http://www.amazon.com/CassaStorm-Alex-J-Cavanaugh/dp/1939844002/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1378484337&sr=1-1&keywords=cassastorm

Amazon Kindle - http://www.amazon.com/CassaStorm-ebook/dp/B00F2O9QMC/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1378811366&sr=1-1&keywords=cassastorm

Goodreads - http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17670532-cassastorm

Book trailer -

Alex J. Cavanaugh has a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree and works in web design and graphics. He is experienced in technical editing and worked with an adult literacy program for several years. A fan of all things science fiction, his interests range from books and movies to music and games. Online he is the Ninja Captain and founder of the Insecure Writer’s Support Group. The author of the Amazon bestsellers, CassaStar and CassaFire, he lives in the Carolinas with his wife.

Website – http://alexjcavanaugh.blogspot.com/

Twitter – http://twitter.com/AlexJCavanaugh  

Goodreads - http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4287922.Alex_J_Cavanaugh

Get your copy of CassaStorm today!

IWSG: Happy 2 Years and Growing!

Happy Insecure Writer's Support Group Wednesday...and this isn't just any IWSG Wednesday, this is the group's 2 year anniversary! Thank you again to Alex J. Cavanaugh, the creator of the group. The first Wednesday of every month is dedicated to this group of supportive writers. If it's something you're not familiar with, then please click on Alex's link above for more information and to sign up!

Often times I get so caught up with all the tasks that come along with being an author--and especially an indie author--that I sometimes lose sight of what's most important, which is the writing itself. So this is my reminder to myself of why I love writing and storytelling:

• I love creating the story I've always wanted to read (with the hope that others have been waiting for it, too).  
• Writing that one phrase or sentence that gives me goosebumps when I reread it is magical (and if it's the only thing I write that day, it's still well worth it).
• I love developing characters into real people and watching them grow throughout the pages.
• I want to entertain, uplift, and inspire my audience with the stories I write.
• Writing is my creative outlet where "anything is possible," where the impossible becomes possible (which will be a recurring theme in all of my stories).

And when I reread this, I know I'll have more to add, but that's also part of the fun...story evolution. Nothing is written in stone. Even when the story's done, I have the power to go back and change it (indie author perk). There are always surprises. Always adventure. I guess if the adventure one day ends, then it's time to give up and move on...but I hope that day will never come. I want to write until the day I die.

Why do you love to write?

IWSG Wednesday: SCBWI Summer Conference

Happy Insecure Writer's Support Group Wednesday. Thank you again to Alex J. Cavanaugh, the creator of the group. The first Wednesday of every month is dedicated to this group of supportive writers. If it's something you're not familiar with, then please click on Alex's link above for more information and to sign up!

This past weekend was the Society of Children's Book Writers & Illustrators Summer Conference at the beautiful Hyatt Regency on the edge of Beverly Hills. There were about 1300 attendees from (I believe) 46 states and 14 countries. And with all those people swarming the hotel, I found fellow blogger, Morgan Shamy, within ten minutes of arriving! It was great to meet her and discuss all the joys and woes of writing with her and her blogging friend, Ryan Dalton. So for the first time in three years, I didn't have to walk into the ballroom and find a seat alone.

There is always an amazing lineup of keynote speakers, but my favorites this year were Laurie Halse Anderson, Jon Scieszka, and Matt de la Pina. I loved Laurie's speech so much I attended one of her breakout sessions that extended halfway into lunch, though no one seemed to mind. She's also a children's book writer with the voice and potty mouth of a Drill Sergeant--quite entertaining. One big takeaway I got from her was the commitment to write at least 15 minutes every day to build discipline and momentum. There are so many days with huge time constraints and prior commitments, but you can always find 15 minutes (if you're committed). I needed to hear that.

The other new experience I had at this conference was receiving a professional consultation from a literary agent. I had the pleasure of meeting with Jennifer Azantian, from Sandra Dijkstra Literary Agency. She gave me feedback on the first chapter of my new story, Project Winter. Overall, she seemed to enjoy it and expressed that the story had a unique and marketable concept. I have to admit that I've been procrastinating on this project, anxious of what comments would come from my consultation. It was a great experience and I'm excited to continue writing. Thanks, Jennifer!

And if you read Morgan's recap of the SCBWI conference earlier this week, you may remember her mentioning a "table war" with Arthur A. Levine. Well...it was less of a war and more of an immediate surrender. Sorry, Morgan...haha. We were hungrily searching for a table to eat our lunch at a nearby food court. There were blood-thirsty lunch lurkers everywhere diving for tables at just the hint of someone about to stand up. And then as fate would have it after a fortnight of searching, we found an empty portion of a table. Just as we were about to sit down, Morgan looked over at two men approaching and stepped away from the table saying, "I can't steal a seat from you." [may not be an actual quote...but it's close] The men were hesitant, but eventually graciously took our seats. I was like, what just happened? As we walked away to find another elusively empty table, Morgan told me that one of the men was Arthur A. Levine (the guy who published the American editions of Harry Potter). Oh... Now I understood. We should have gotten autographs--or left a manuscript on the table.

Well, my August is off to a great start. How about yours?

IWSG Wednesday: The Heat of Summer

Happy Insecure Writer's Support Group Wednesday. Thank you again to Alex J. Cavanaugh, the creator of the group. The first Wednesday of every month is dedicated to this group of supportive writers. If it's something you're not familiar with, then please click on Alex's link above for more information and to sign up!

I'm sure everyone's felt the heat of summer finally kick in. I know it's not as hot here in southern California as it is in other parts of the country, but it's been hot enough for me. I already can't wait for fall, but can certainly wait to see my next electric bill.

Summer also brings a lot of distractions. I thought getting work done around the holidays was tough, but summer is not an easy time for concentrating. Vacations, family events, and sickness (what? you can't get sick in the summer! I guess I can) have been eating away so much of my time...kind of like the langoliers (hungry suckers).

Not everyone needs a schedule, but I sure seem to. If I don't hold myself to a schedule, then I push unscheduled tasks off. Something in the moment becomes more important. Then an entire month goes by with only one blog post to my name. No more. Wednesdays will be my posting day. There...I've said it, I've scheduled it, and now I will be forced to keep myself to it.

I recently found out that you can use a custom domain name on Blogger. This really excited me because I had a custom domain name, michaelpiercebooks.com, which I've been using for a website that I never took the time to update. It was so much easier to move that domain name over to blogger and delete the website altogether. Now I can keep the domain name and forget about a secondary website. For being an indie author, the blog has more than enough information about myself and my books...as long as I keep it updated. Now, from the advice of successful indie authors like RaShelle Workman (who is also an IWSG member), my July project is to build a newsletter using MailChimp.

Do you have any newsletter building tips? Have any unique ways of beating the summer heat? Are you watching Under the Dome? Any fun and exciting 4th of July plans? Stay cool, stay safe, and as always, thank you for reading!

IWSG Wednesday: Apologies & Updates

Happy Insecure Writer's Support Group Wednesday. Thank you again to Alex J. Cavanaugh, the creator of the group. The first Wednesday of every month is dedicated to this group of supportive writers. If it's something you're not familiar with, then please click on Alex's link above for more information and to sign up!

I feel bad that I missed last month's post and had to make sure I did not repeat the folly so Alex doesn't kick me out of the group. Sorry, Alex! Where did May go? The last few weeks have just flown by and I leave for Kauai tomorrow for a week-long vacation. Maybe that had something to do with the month disappearing in a flash. I just bought Dan Brown's new book, Inferno, to read as I lie on the beach for the better part of a week. I hope I don't get too burned...haha.

It's only taken a little over a year, but all the ebook versions of my books, Provex City and SUSY Asylum, are now available: Kindle, Nook, iBookstore, Kobo, and Smashwords. I've been working on getting the 2nd Edition of Provex City out, and it is finally available! It has been a lot of work getting both of my books formatted for paperback (on Amazon) and multiple ebook readers, but in the end, I believe it was worth it. Now I can get back to writing and promoting again.

I've put a lot of thought into what I am going to write next, and I have decided to step away from the Lorne Family Vault series for a little while and write a brand new book. And this decision came after I'd already fully outlined the third book in the series--figures. I ultimately decided to start a brand new project because I'd like to submit again, to work on getting traditionally published while continuing to promote my self-published books. The new book will be written as a standalone, so once I start submitting, I can dive right back into the Lorne Family Vault and pick up where I left off. Hopefully, I'm making a good decision, but only time will tell.

My new book is codenamed Project Winter, and it's a YA contemporary/dystopian in a female POV. It will be quite a change for me. I have a complete outline, synopsis, and first chapter thus far. It feels really good to be writing again. But as usual, starting a new project brings on a whole lot of anxiety, especially with the pressure of future submissions looming overhead. I know how hard it is, but I think I'll be better prepared this time.

Are you ready for summer? Are you at the beginning, middle, or end of your primary project? Anyone going to the SCBWI Summer Conference in August? I am and can't wait! The conference is always a great motivator...and getaway. And as always, thank you for reading!