In this blog, I write about stuff of interest to both readers and writers. If you’re interested in both, lovely. Read on! If not, find the Categories and click on “For Readers” or “For Writers,” and you’ll be taken to a page just for you. Whee!
Many Thanks
Many thanks to Jessica C! See? It’s really me! 🙂
Coming Up Next
I’ve been promising readers a new book for a long time, but several personal challenges made writing time next to impossible to come by. Life has finally smoothed out somewhat, though, and I should be launching my next two books, NOT QUITE A LADY and NOT QUITE A GENTLEMAN a little later on this summer.
What are the next books about?
A cast of recurring characters populates my imaginary Regency world. Some of these characters play major supporting roles, while others are more like movie extras, but once in a while one of the extras steps out of the shadows and takes on a greater role. That’s what happened with Samuel “Pink” Peplim.
In NOT QUITE A LADY, Pink is the hero’s best friend, a sidekick, but he was so much fun to write that I just had to make him the hero of the next book.
Pink is a “pink o’ the ton,” a dandy, a fop, a peacock. Someone who lives for fashion and parties and gossip. So when he whispered in my ear that he actually leads a double life, one I should write about, I was understandably intrigued.
It turns out that out in the wilds of Cornwall, the mincing “Pink” Peplim turns into Jago “Jag” Lanyon, manly man! As the dashing Jag Lanyon, Pink robs from the rich and gives to the poor. He’s a local hero. And he’s good at it. In fact, the persona feels so natural to him that, as the book opens, he’s not really sure who he is anymore, Jag or Pink.
Enter our heroine, Rosie Greypool, who helps Pink figure himself out.
Clever and resourceful, Rosie has lived by her wits for as long as she can remember, and she’s tired of it. Left an orphan as a young girl, she had no choice but to become a thief and keep moving to avoid being caught. On the day our story opens, her luck runs out. She picks the wrong pocket and is almost caught, but at the last second, she’s saved by a Legend, none other than the famous Jag Lanyon.
Jag puts her on his horse and sends it galloping off to his remote, farmhouse hideout whilst he deals with her pursuers. Once there, Rosie realizes she can steal Lanyon blind—but then she discovers evidence of Jag’s alter ego and realizes that Jag has something much more valuable to her than a few trinkets. As “Pink Peplim,” he can help her become the lady she was born to be. If he chooses to. And if he does not, there’s always blackmail…
I’m having the best time writing this book, and I can’t wait to share it with you. Thank you for bearing with me as I pass through the end of this dry spell. You’re the best!
My apologies to the artist Thomas Phillips, who painted the excellent portrait you see here. The subject is “Sir Humphry Davy, Bt [Baronet],” and he was painted in 1829. Just as Jane Austen did, I peruse Regency portraiture to find pictures I think match my characters. Just look at Sir Humphry. He looks like a man who has some secrets, and he matches Pink Peplim physically, apart from the original portrait’s dark brown hair, which, through the magic of Photoshop, I made ginger to match Pink’s mop.
When my daughter saw this portrait, she said with a wrinkled nose, “Mama, I hate to tell you this, but … I think your portrait of Pink looks like a dweeb.”
“Exactly!” I replied. “But,” I reassured her, “the Jag Lanyon version of Pink is definitely no Dweeb.” Since I’m an artist, I just might have to do a second, “Jag Lanyon, Manly Man,” version of this portrait. When I look at this man’s face, I can already see it. Can’t you?
“He is a Rogue of course, but a civil one.”
Some readers wonder why many authors are self-publishing these days, instead of publishing through traditional, big-name publishing houses.
Q: Is it because their work just isn’t good enough? A: Sometimes.
Q: Is it because they just haven’t been lucky enough? A: Often.
Q: Is it because most publishing houses take advantage of authors whenever they can, and an author is better off self-publishing? A: Usually.
In 1815, Jane Austen wrote to her sister Cassandra about a message she’d received from her publisher:
Mr. Murray’s letter is come; he is a Rogue, of course, but a civil one. He offers £450 [for the copyright of Emma]—but he wants to have the copyright of MP [Mansfield Park] and S&S [Sense & Sensibility] included. It will end in my publishing for myself, I dare say.
Now, four hundred and fifty pounds was quite a large sum at the time, especially when one considers that upon Jane’s father’s death, Jane, her sister Cassandra, and their mother had been left with an inheritance of only £210 per year between them. But asking for the copyrights to Emma, Mansfield Park, and Sense & Sensibility was an outrageous demand. In response, Mr. Murray received the letter you see above (a photograph of the actual letter). Because Jane was still keeping her authorship secret (ladies of the gentry couldn’t earn money without losing status), the letter was written ostensibly by her brother Charles, but I speculate that, since it was Jane who actually penned the dictated letter, she also had a hand in composing its rather snarky content.
Dear Sir
Severe illness has confined me to my Bed ever since I received Yours of ye 15th – I cannot yet hold a pen, & employ an Amuensis [sic]. – The Politeness & Perspicuity of your Letter equally claim my earliest Exertion. – Your official opinion of the Merits of Emma, is very valuable & satisfactory. – Though I venture to differ occasionally from your Critique, yet I assure you the Quantum of your commendation rather exceeds than falls short of the Author’s expectation & my own. – The Terms you offer are so very inferior to what we had expected, that I am apprehensive of having made some great Error in my Arithmetical Calculation. – On the subject of the expense & profit of publishing, you must be much better informed that I am; – but Documents in my possession appear to prove that the Sum offered by you, for the Copyright of Sense & Sensibility, Mansfield Park & Emma, is not equal to the Money which my Sister has actually cleared by one very moderate Edition of Mansfield Park –(You Yourself expressed astonishment that so small an Edit. of such a work should have been sent into the World) & a still smaller one of Sense & Sensibility.
It’s clear that Jane knew what all authors know: a publishing house is a business whose purpose is to make money, and it does so by exploiting authors—and readers—as cleverly as possible.
When my first novel was published Back in 2001, the Big-Name, New York publishing house I was with paid just $1,250 USD per novel. Even If I’d managed to turn out a book every month, my income would still have fallen below the federal poverty line. But when I began self-publishing my books, I also began to make enough money to live on.
So, that’s why authors are self-publishing these days. That’s why Jane Austen was thinking of self-publishing. That’s why I continue to self-publish today. That’s the benefit to me. But what about you, dear reader?
Is self-publishing good for you?
You bet it is.
Self-published ebooks usually cost readers much less (mine do) than traditionally published, paperback books. And they can have exciting new plots and characters that would never make it through any of the traditional editorial gauntlets, the ones concerned with producing only what appeals to the masses. Remember, a publisher doesn’t have to please all its readers to make money, just a majority of its readers. Which is why publishing is cyclical. You don’t see many time-travel paperbacks on the shelves these days. Or Gothics. Or vampires. Or Regencies, for that matter. The readers who want those books just aren’t a big enough slice of the publishing pie. But there are loads of ebooks available in those sub-genres.
And if you really can’t do without the paperback versions, self-published ebooks are usually available in paperback, though they do usually cost a bit more.
In short, self-publishing gives you, the reader, the stories you love at a fraction of the cost. And your favorite authors can afford to feed their families.
Jane, I fancy, would have cheered.
Scrumptious Chocolate Cake
A few posts ago, I promised you my chocolate cake recipe (or “receipt,” as it was known in Great Britain in Jane Austen’s time). I’ve had this recipe for years, as you can tell by the condition of the recipe I tore from a magazine umpteen years ago. This cake is simply scrumptious, and I’ve made it dozens of times.
I hope my British friends won’t balk at the mention of “Hershey’s.” It seems many Brits regard American Hershey bars as something less than true chocolate, and I have to say that I agree. I love chocolate, but I don’t like Hershey bars. They seemed better when I was a youngster, but nowadays I think the makers have cut too many corners. No matter; the company’s cocoa remains first rate, and you can use it or any other for this recipe successfully.
I like this cake served with a nice, tall glass of cold milk. Silk brand is my favorite (vanilla flavor–yum!), as I’ve been a vegetarian for nearly 20 years. The cake is also great with tea. Earl Grey is a spectacular pairing, with its hints of bergamot, or orange blending nicely with the chocolate.
Here’s the recipe.
Hershey’s “Perfectly Chocolate” Chocolate Cake
2 cups (473 ml) of plain, white, granulated sugar
1 3/4 cups (414 ml) of all-purpose flour
3/4 cup (177) of cocoa powder
1 1/2 teaspoon (7.5 ml) of baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoon (7.5 ml) of baking soda
1 teaspoon (5 ml) of salt
2 eggs
1 cup (236 ml) of milk or soy milk (I like Silk brand.)
1/2 cup (118 ml) of vegetable oil
2 teaspoons (10 ml)of vanilla extract
1 cup (236 ml) of boiling water
Heat oven to 350 degrees F (176 C).
Grease and flour two 9″ (23 cm) baking pans.
Combine dry ingredients in a large bowl.
Add eggs, milk, oil, and vanilla extract.
Beat the mixture on medium speed for 2 minutes. Do not over-beat.
Stir in boiling water. Do not beat in. Batter will be quite watery. This is normal.
Pour batter into pans and bake for 30-35 minutes.
Cool 10 minutes.
Remove cake from pans and cool completely.
Hershey’s “Perfectly Chocolate” Chocolate Frosting
1 stick (118 ml) butter or margarine or 1/4 cup (59 ml) + 2 tablespoons (30 ml) of olive oil.
2/3 cup (157 ml) of cocoa powder
3 cups (709 ml) of powdered confectioner’s sugar
1/3 cup (79 ml) of milk
1 teaspoon (5 ml) of vanilla extract
Melt the butter, margarine, or oil.
Stir in the cocoa powder.
Beat at medium speed, adding sugar and milk, alternating, as you go.
Add vanilla and beat in.
Add more milk and beat, if needed to bring frosting to spreading consistency.
You’re Invited!
Get Ready! In just a few days, a few lucky readers will receive a ton of FREE books. Read on for all the juicy details…
Want to have some fun? Join me as I open the doors to my new street team group on Facebook.
I’m planning lots of fun and surprises just for my wonderful street team members:
- Online tea parties.
- Online live readings of Regency fan-favorites (in pajamas, with hot cocoa, of course!)
- Scavenger hunts
- Trivia contests
- Prizes perfect for history buffs, like antique candlesticks, quills, Regency-style jewelry, and much more.
- Plus many other great surprises
We’ll have such fun!
Plus, all street team members will receive advanced reading copies of ALL of my current titles AND all of my future releases!
All you have to do to join my street team is show me a review you’ve already written about one of my books. My street team is only for the fiercest lovers of historical romance–especially Regencies. So you know you’ll be in great company. 🙂
Hurry; there are only 200 spots. Once they’re gone, they’re gone!
I can’t wait to welcome you to the team!
Relaunch Post 7: 12,000 new readers
It’s been 4 weeks since my last Relaunch Post. Here’s what’s happened since then:
- I’ve added 78 new subscribers, for a total of 202 subscribers.
- I released a Christmas novella, ONCE UPON A CHRISTMAS on October 20th.
- ONCE UPON A CHRISTMAS received its first reader review (5 Stars–huzzah!) on Amazon.
- 5000 additional free copies of THE BLUE DEVIL have been downloaded, for a total of 12,000 copies since it went perma-free. 7,500 of those downloads have been from the Apple ebook store (much to my surprise).
- THE BLUE DEVIL has 83 ratings on Apple’s bookstore, with an average of 4.5 stars (more cheers!).
- 96 free copies of The Regency Matchmaker Series Book Two, MISS GRANTHAM’S ONE TRUE SIN were downloaded, for a total of 183 copies so far.
- I sold 12 times as many books in November as I did in August.
My books are earning about $20 per day right now. Not enough to live on, but it’s 30 times more than I was making before I relaunched my career, and there’s been steady growth, so I’m actually pretty jazzed.
What’s next?
- I found a few typos in ONCE UPON A CHRISTMAS, and I’ll be uploading corrected manuscripts here in a few minutes. Two English teachers went over this manuscript. It was also professionally edited and copy-edited. My two brilliant, adult children also went over it. You’d think six pairs of well-trained, well-qualified eyes would have found those typos before the book was published, wouldn’t you? Melynda’s Law: “No matter how carefully edited a manuscript is, there will always be another missed typo.” *sigh*
- I’ll be advertising ONCE UPON A CHRISTMAS soon. Facebook ads. And I’ll let my subscriber list know about the book.
- I’m going to publish my first issue of my newsletter, THE FURTHER ADVENTURES, soon.
- In THE FURTHER ADVENTURES, I’m going to ask my subscribers who have read and enjoyed my books to review them. Like most other authors, I dislike asking, but online reviews are vitally important these days, and I’ve only received 2 new reviews since I relaunched my career a couple of months ago. I often see romances with hundreds of reviews (and some of those books are of questionable quality–yikes!). I’m guessing their authors aren’t shy about asking. To regain my place in the market and remain competitive, I must have more reviews, so … well, I’ll just have to step out of my comfort zone and ask.
- I’ll also be reaching out to my subscribers and other fans to form a street team. The first two hundred people who can show that they’ve reviewed one of my books will all receive free advanced reading copies of my next new release, along with a bunch of other fun stuff. Plus, I’ve set up a private Facebook group just for them. I’m really excited about the group, and I’m looking forward to meeting everyone.
- I’m watching my sales figures carefully in anticipation of something cool happening. You see, MISS GRANTHAM’S ONE TRUE SIN, Book Two of the Regency Matchmaker Series, has been outselling all three of the other titles in the series for the past three years. But since both Book One and Book Two of the Regency Matchmaker Series are currently available for free, I’ve been expecting sales of Books Three and Four to slowly increase, and they’re doing just that. Take a look at this graph showing the past year’s worth of sales of THE BLACKGUARD’S BRIDE, Book Four of the series. The last data point represents the projected sales for this month, assuming the sales curve remains constant–but I expect it to increase.
See why I’m pleased?
In summary: I’m not living a lifestyle of the rich and famous yet–but I’m working on it. 🙂
Heading Images?
I’m trying to solve a problem, and if you’re a reader, you can help.
When you open my ebooks on your device, is the heading image centered, or is it off-center? The heading image looks like this:
I think it’s appearing centered on some devices and off-center on others, like this:
What does it look like on your device? Feel free to comment below or write me.
Thanks!