11.15.15 - Sunday Smatterings

Hello, chickens. 

I come to you with a heavy heart today. The terror attacks this week in Beirut, Paris, and Kenya have hit all of us hard. I think it strikes thriller authors especially, because our job is to assimilate information then create these same scenarios in a fictional construct. The advantage we have is the heroes always win. The villains are always taken down and defeated.

August 27, 2015 - a walk through Paris

Right now, the villains have the upper hand. But that will change. We’ve been kicked, hard, in the thigh, and it’s left a deep bruise that will never fully heal. But it is only a bruise. We are strong. We are one people, and we will not be cowed by terror.

If you are interested in a long and fascinating read with a deep analysis of ISIS, I highly recommend this piece from the Atlantic. And I thought I’d share a couple of my research resources with you, too. Stratfor and Levantine Group are both serious sources for up-to-the minute analysis, with historical background.

We will not be defeated. We are strong. We are one. And we must, we must, continue living our lives free of fear. Be careful. Be aware. But don't let them win. Liberté, égalité, fraternité should be our rallying cry as well.

And as such, let’s return to our regular smatterings.  

____

Here's the latest around the Internets:

East-of-the-Mississippi peeps (i.e. ME): have you wondered why our Southern Californians friends say "the 5," the 101," "the 405?" This article has finally cleared that up for the rest of us.

Potterheads, listen up: Bustle has listed 10 Things You'll Only Notice When You Re-Read Harry Potter, and they are ridiculously spot on.

How many of these literary addresses do you know?

Possible gift alert: If you have a YA reader in your life, check out the Parnassus Next program from my hometown bookstore, Parnassus Books. AUTOGRAPHED 1st edition hardcovers sent right to your door for only the price of the book plus $6 for shipping. That's a pretty great value - AND you don't have to stand in line!

I loved this: NaNoWriMo Is Here . . . and So Is Diana Gabaldon.

Guilty: The Preppy 10 Commandments.

Meanwhile, in my neck of the woods . . . 

In Two Tales Press land, I've still got a bundle of ghost stories on sale for $0.99 (perfect for those of you who want a side of edginess to go with your syrupy-sweet holidays). 

If you were waiting to read WHAT LIES BEHIND in paperback, you're in luck: that's coming out next Tuesday, November 24! (pre-order links are here) If you're looking to brush up on Sam and Xander and Fletch in the meantime, my publisher MIRA has the previous book, WHEN SHADOWS FALL, on sale for $1.99 in ebook. Don't know how long this is going to last, so get 'em while they're hot!

Guys: believe it or not, it's time to start stocking up for Thanksgiving. Need some wine suggestions? We've got a whole category of wines under $20 on The Wine Vixen.

And here on the Tao, I wrote a post about The Writer and ROI: Return on Investment. If you want a peek into my world or if you're thinking about taking the reins as a professional author, check out my thoughts.

That's all I've got this week. Don't forget to take five minutes for yourself, and love one another!

Xoxo,

JT

11.12.15 - On The Writer and ROI: Return on Investment

I was talking to a writer friend the other day about the sacrifices we have to make in order to have long and storied careers as writers. I mentioned the idea of a Writer's ROI, that everything we do is adding another quarter to the piggy bank of our careers, and she asked me to write more about it. I think it's a useful topic to think about, so here goes. 

ROI, or return on investment, is a common financial term. Its formula is thusly explained: ROI= (Gain from investment — Cost of Investment) / Cost of Investment.

In other words, it’s very easy to gauge how much money you’ve made on an investment if you subtract the gain from the cost and divide it by the initial cost. Positive ROI means you’ve made a good investment. Negative ROI and you’ve messed up somewhere.

So how does this term apply to the writer’s life?

In simplest terms, your publisher is certainly running ROIs on you. They look at a book, run a P&L (profit and loss statement — excellent examples here from Jane Friedman) decide what it’s worth to them to publish you, make an offer of advance against royalties (which you will either accept, negotiate, or reject.) Assuming you come to terms, you then need to help sell said book in order to make their investment worth it.

The way you do this is by writing a kick ass book, obviously, but also in the courtship of readers: through direct means (social media), through booksellers, conferences, and the like. All the while, you’re writing a new book for them, one that will get an even bigger advance, and so on, and so on. Every sale counts against that advance you were given, in the general range of 8% - 12% of cover price for physical copies, and 25% of net for an ebook. The readers are investing in you just as the publisher is, helping you grow, to earn out those contracts, and keep getting new contracts. (The goal of your personal ROI is to keep you writing, in case you hadn't picked up on that.) 

Everyone at some point in this process has the moment of — OMG, my book is going to make the New York Times list, become a blockbuster film starring Angelina Jolie-Pitt, be publishing simultaneously in 50 territories, and I will retire and rest on my laurels forever!  This happens, sure it does, but if you’re approaching your writing career thinking you’re going to write a single book and the rest will take care of itself, you’re 99.9% in for a rude awakening.

The sad thing is, many truly excellent authors get discouraged if the scenario doesn’t play out the way they’ve envisioned. Or this scenario *does* happen, and then they’re paralyzed to create anything new, so they do rest on their laurels, and find out the universal truth of life — this too shall pass.

So for the rest of us, thinking about your career, your trajectory, your responsibilities to yourself and your readers, can be looked at in terms of your own personal ROI. You invest in yourself. You build your career, one word at a time, one deadline met at a time, one book sold at a time. You stay humble and focused and write hard. You help other authors by shamelessly promoting their work; you mentor newbies. If the big breakthrough doesn’t happen immediately, you still know that you’ve done it all right, and you’re going to keep plugging away until you do have that breakout book.

Building isn’t always fun. It’s hard. There are many sacrifices. Trips to conferences take time away from family and cost a lot of money. Honoring your writing time can be seen as being selfish (especially for women.) Books are published poorly, or orphaned. Life gets in the way.

But if you take this career seriously, if you take yourself and your art seriously, you will plan for these inevitabilities. You will make the appropriate sacrifices, at the appropriate times. You will manage your expectations. Your investment in yourself will begin to grow, to show fruit.

Your next book advance might be a little bigger. The reviews might be a little better. The publisher might ask you to meet with some booksellers, or attend a trade show. And you’ll do it, willingly, because you take yourself and your craft and your career seriously.

And so on.

Maybe another term for ROI, one creatives may be more familiar with, is *paying your dues*.

You pay your dues in this industry so you’re not a flash in the pan. You became a writer because you wanted to write, not because you thought you’d be feted in Hollywood. Right? *Right?*

So you write. And you sacrifice. And you recognize that you are climbing the mountain, one glorious step at a time. You are earning your way to the top. Your ROI is growing a nice little nest egg by the point, too. The money is getting better. The work is getting harder, though — something you must prepare yourself for.

Let me say it again. **The work gets harder**. The more your ROI increases, the more demands there will be on your time. The more the publisher will ask for, the more your readers will expect. You have to juggle the career, the social media and marketing and conferences and bookseller meetings and tours, with writing another book that surpasses the one you’ve just been out selling to the world. It can be rough. It can seem nigh on impossible sometimes.

This career — earning the moniker of author — it’s not for the faint of heart. It’s hard. There are speed bumps. Careers wax and wane. The industry shifts. Genres that were once wildly popular fall out of favor. Editors leave to have babies. There are takeovers and mergers. Publishing is cyclical if nothing else, and understanding that is the key to having a long, fruitful career.

And as for your ROI, you might not have a lot to show for it right away.

But if you keep investing in yourself, in your art, in your career, one day soon, you will hit the mark you’ve set for yourself.

So write hard, my friends. The world is your oyster, and you, you are the shining pearl. (A black pearl, of course, because if you’re a writer, you’re a damn renegade, so own it!)

11.8.15 - Sunday Smatterings

Bonjour, mes amis! Did you have a good week? Mine...was a whirlwind. (I know I keep saying that, but this year has been bonkers.) This was the week of ALL THE NEWS. Observe:

1. WE'RE GETTING MORE TAYLOR AND SAM BOOKS!!!
2. I STARTED MY OWN PUBLISHING HOUSE!!!
3. I FOUND OUT HOW TO CHANGE TWITTER LIKES TO SQUIRRELS!!!

As for other happenings:

New York Times bestselling author Patti Callahan Henry was my very first guest on A WORD ON WORDS, and the show aired this morning. Check it out here.

I'm doing #NaNoWriMo, and got my first words in on my newly finished back porch. It's official: I am in love!

I am obsessed (no, really, obsessed) with my friend Tara Stiles' recipe for olive guacamole. Check it out!

Having trouble deciding what to read next? This quiz should help you out, brought to you by XOXO After Dark.

Um, THEY ARE MAKING A NEW STAR TREK TV SERIES! Cue the excitement!! (squee)

Face it, chickens: there are some days when you're too slammed or zonked to make it to the grocery store. That's why there's Shipt, who will deliver your groceries right to your front door with just the click of a button. Yes, it's true! Check the website for locations, but if you've found yourself pining for a Grocery Fairy Godmother, Shipt is it.

On the Tao, I hosted the lovely Kim Alexander, who just wrote a fabulous fantasy debut (spoiler alert: she's wicked funny!).

Don't forget: there's a new November contest! Have you entered yet?

And on The Wine Vixen, Amy dished about her favorite go-to Chardonnay (folks, it's cheap: less than $10 a bottle), which actually pairs quite well with this Braised Chicken & Herb-y Mushrooms recipe from the archives. 

That's all from me this week. Hang in there—I know this is the time of year when schedules fill up quickly, you have to stand in never-ending lines at the post office, and your mom won't stop calling you about holiday menus and strategies to keep Uncle Morty in check at Thanksgiving this year. When you're feeling overwhelmed by the I must do it all feeling, remember to stop. No really, just stop. Take a breath. And remember that life's purpose isn't found in a perfect holiday experience. If we're being honest, life happens in the little moments each day, in the ordinary. So when you're feeling anxious by the plans, take a second and recognize a little miracle or two. You might be surprised how much easier it is breathe a second or two later.

Xoxo,
JT

11.5.15 - 7 Minutes With... Kim Alexander

Kim Alexander once called my work morbidly elegant, which strikes me as possibly the highest praise one can give a thriller novelist. Kim and I go back to MY debut novel, to her days as the hostess with the mostest of Fiction Nation on Sirius XM radio. She very kindly had me on the show, we realized we were both in love with Baldwin, and a friendship was born. Kim and I got to talk twice a year for several years, and those chats were ones I always looked forward to. Now, Kim has hung up her microphone and is writing some seriously cool fantasy, major world-building stuff. I loved her THE SAND PRINCE (I mean, really, just LOOK at that cover!) and I'm so happy she's here today to talk about it. 

Welcome to MY little slice of the internet, Miss Kim! And congratulations on your big debut!

_________

Set your music to shuffle and hit play. What’s the first song that comes up?

Tom Petty – “Here Comes My Girl.” But I don’t usually listen to music while I’m working, I find it too distracting. I prefer the gentle rhythms of the never-ending construction project going on in the apartment unit above my head. Today is “throw 2X4’s at the floor as hard as you can” day!

Now that we’ve set the mood, what are you working on today?

I’m editing and revising the second book in my fantasy series. Its working title is THE UNHAUNTED WORLD.

What’s your latest book about?

THE SAND PRINCE is my debut novel. It’s the story of two worlds, magic, war, betrayal, sex, bad parenting, bad decisions, and a mysterious romance novel within the book.  The hero is a half-human demon with social anxiety and a drinking problem. (I should probably mention that it’s not a comedy.) It’s also about finding your place in the world, and since this is a fantasy, my hero has multiple worlds to choose from.

TL:DR- It’s like DUNE with more sex.

Where do you write, and what tools do you use?

I just got a chair! I no longer hunch like a fell beast on the couch, I sit upright like a fully-formed human and look out the window at the National Zoo. I take copious notes (this is really just an excuse to feed my handmade notebook and pretty pen addiction) but I do most of my work on my laptop.

What was your favorite book as a child?

The oldest book I own, and still one of my favorites, is THE LAST UNICORN by Peter Beagle. I’ve had my copy since 1968. It’s falling apart but I couldn’t part with it.

What’s your secret talent?

I have an actual license to sail anything under 23 feet (if it’s a boat and it’s on water, I should add.)

What book are you reading now?

THE GIRL’S GUIDE TO THE APOCALYPSE by my friend and fellow Booktrope author Daphne Lamb, and my new Peterman catalogue.

When did you know you wanted to be a writer?

I was really young, like just old enough to read myself. Although it took me many years to try it for real—I didn’t trust that I could do it. I also have to thank my husband for having the faith I lacked and supporting my new job—honey, it only LOOKS like I’m staring out the window all day.

Who is your writing idol? Have you met him/her? If so, did you completely nerd out or keep your cool?

ONE TIME I GOT TO INTERVIEW THIS FABULOUS BABE NAMED JT . . .

[editor's note: see why I love her?]

Also, the first time I interviewed Neil Gaiman, it was over the phone. For the first five minutes I mainly tried not to have a heart attack. I kept saying to myself, “Just be cool! Everything’s fine!” But he’s so lovely that I calmed down and we had a great chat about THE GRAVEYARD BOOK. When I finally met Stephen King, it was my very last interview for Sirius XM, so it was exciting but also quite bittersweet.

What’s your favorite bit of writing advice?

I have to mention XM Radio again. When I started there, on everyone’s badge was the phrase “AFDI” which stood for “Actually F-ing Do It.” That resonated with me, and I try to AFDI every day. I didn’t know how to write a book when I started—just over two years ago, wow! But I took the coagulated (that may not be the right word) advice of the literally hundreds of authors, artists and actors (including JT) I’d interviewed, and I sat down and began.

 What do you do if the words aren’t flowing?

Go back and edit something I did the day or week before. There’s always something to fix, and if not, there’s Pinterest.

Are you creatively satisfied?

Well, I would be more satisfied if I looked out the window and saw Tahiti, but for the moment, I’m thrilled to be writing my own work about characters I adore.

What would you like to be remembered for?

I raise cats with impeccable manners, and I can fold a fitted sheet.

,Alright, now for the really important questions:

Beach or mountains? Beach!

Coffee or tea? Coffee. Espresso with a splash of half and half, if you have it.

Skydive or bungee jump? Why would I jump out of a perfectly good plane? I don’t even like getting off my couch.

Chocolate or vanilla? Chocolate.

Winter or summer? Summer—I am an obsessed rooftop gardener.

Cake or pie? Pie, I think. I make a mean Key Lime pie.

Cats or dogs? Leeloo and Onion are looking over my shoulder, reminding me of the inherent superiority of cats.

Pens or pencils? Pens, I collect them.

Truth or dare? Truth. How bad can it be?

Print or ebook?  I moved 13 times after I got out of college, that’s a strong argument for ebooks.

_________

Kim Alexander grew up in the wilds of Long Island, NY and slowly drifted south until she reached Key West. After spending ten years working as a disc jockey in the Keys, she moved to Washington, DC, where she reported the traffic and spun the Oldies. After a career upgrade, she became the co-programmer of Sirius XM Book Radio, which gave her the opportunity to interview some of her writing heroes, including Anne Rice, George R. R. Martin, Neil Gaiman, Stephen King and Margaret Atwood, among many hundreds of others.  She began writing when she ran out of authors to interview (and they pulled the plug on her channel.)

She currently lives with two cats, an angry fish, and her extremely patient husband close enough to the National Zoo to hear the lions and the monkeys, at least she hopes that’s what those noises are.

THE SAND PRINCE (Booktrope) is Kim’s first novel and begins a fantasy series called THE DEMON DOOR. Her husband tells her she needs to write at least ten more books if she intends to retire in Thailand, so thank you for your patronage.

And here's a little more about Kim's debut novel THE SAND PRINCE:

“When the storm came, it was made of magic, not rain, and when it had passed, the life and the city Hellne knew were changed forever.” 

In Kim Alexander’s debut novel she weaves a witty, epic fantasy brimming with diverse characters and plenty of intrigue.

Two worlds

On the war-ravaged demon world of Eriis, Hellne, the fierce young queen, fights to keep her people alive.

On the green and gentle human world of Mistra, the demons have faded into myth. Only a handful of old men and children still guard The Door between the worlds.

Bound by magic

Rhuun, the Prince of Eriis, uncovers a sultry book written by a human, sparking an obsession with the other world. When he is forced to flee Eriis he must escape through The Door or pay the price in blood.

Divided by a door

The humans of Mistra are not what Rhuun was expecting—and one insufferable young woman in particular is about to find out that the demons of Eriis are not mythological after all . . . 

11.3.15 - On New Ventures: Welcome to Two Tales Press

We are in a glorious time for writing.

Writers now have immediate access to readers—not only through books, but through a vast compendium of outlets: magazines, newspapers, blogs, social media, and now ebooks. The Internet has given us freedom to create and share our work directly, and this unfettered access is unlike anything we’ve ever seen before.

I was an early adopter of the idea of independent publishing, selling my shorts on Amazon as individual stories and anthologies.

Content wasn’t hard to come by—instead of quipping on Facebook and Twitter, writers spent their down time trying to impress each other with clever and scary short fiction. One of the saddest casualties of the social media storm were the smaller online sites and magazines, run by laypeople, writers all, that encouraged writers to share their free-form work. Flash fiction, a very short form, usually less than 1,000 words, was a hit, with multiple websites supporting authors, published and not, who wanted to try their hand at the challenge: tell a complete story without breaking the fixed word count.

Many of us took the challenge, myself included. There was something magical about sharing these quick little stories, written the same day as they appeared online. Of course, now that we can publish a novel the day after we finish it (thought I wouldn’t recommend that course—editing is still paramount, and that takes time) the novelty of flash fiction has worn off.   

I’ve long looked to short stories as a way to have a bit of fun with my writing, to step outside my comfort zone.

I call it my Johnny Depp career path, doing only what I love, and what’s fun. First person, horror, flash fiction—these are the ways I get my jollies on the side. I’d written three novels before I ever tried my hand at short fiction. But when I did, I discovered an entirely new world, and my love of the short form grew from there. I began placing stories in magazines, writing for anthologies, for the online forums, the works. I love the freedom and limitations of the form, and I still use it as a playground of sorts, a way to stretch my wings and explore genres I wouldn’t normally write in.

My short stories are little slices, vignettes. Crimes of the heart, the mind, the soul.

They’re the bits and pieces that fall from my mind while I’m writing long form novels, the ideas that don’t have a place in my current work. Some are quite short, others have bloomed into novellas. Some have been published before, some are brand new.

I decided to start my own publishing house, Two Tales Press, so you could get a taste of these sweet little lies, too.

Many of the stories have been published before in some manner, whether digitally or in anthologies, but I wanted you to have access to all my work, at an affordable price, through whichever digital store you prefer. We're on Kindle, Nook, iBooks, and Kobo so far.

There are two Taylor Jackson stories, which appeared first in SLICES OF NIGHT and STORM SEASON, with Erica Spindler and Alex Kava, plus a brand new story, THE NUMBER OF MAN (a shorter version of this appeared in Thriller 3, but this is the very first time this story has been available digitally in this enhanced, rewritten version.)

Each story has a few extras, too, most importantly -- an EXCLUSIVE sneak peek at my new standalone thriller, NO ONE KNOWS. 

There are ghost stories and stalkers, creepy and poignant, and even some that are a bit autobiographical. I hope you enjoy these, and I will be adding to them soon. Two Tales will be the spot for my new short content forevermore. Come visit us!

And a brief note about the website, covers, and the logo. My incredible assistant Amy designed the beautiful, functional website. The divine Kim Killion designed the covers, and knocked it out of the park. And the logo is her work as well. What could be better than a book that is also a cat? If you look closely, you’ll see three pages which are cats’ ears. The book itself represents Jade, Thrillercat, who was my impetus for starting to write; and the two additional pages are Jameson and Jordan, the Thrillerkittens, aka Two Tales. But this logo represents my love for all my kitty babies, past and present, including Jiblet, Jezebelle, Jasmine, and Jemima, too. The title might be Two Tales, but there are many, many tails in the history of our logo.