KAREY SHANE

Shannon Hale and I are BEST friends

Here are Shannon Hale and I after solving the problems of the universe. We came up with the answer as superheroes do, naturally, but it will be a long time before we reveal the information. It's difficult keeping it from the bad guys. By the way, our private, super important superhero conference took place during UVU's Children's Writing Conference, but that's beside the point.

During the writer's conference, I met so many amazing people, including Shannon. (Oh wait, did I say we just met? We've known each other forever.) Carol Lynch Williams, whose novel, The Chosen One, comes out soon, was the most peaceful, kind woman I have met in a long time. Hearing her read outloud makes me wish

Secret Speakers Ratings

So far, Secret Speakers and the Search for Selador's Gate has an overall rating of 4.87 out of 5 with 31 early reader votes on Goodreads. I'm really pleased readers are liking the story so much. It's a great feeling after working on it for so many years. The book will be available September 9, 2009. (That's 09.09.09. How cool is that?) You can get a sneak peak of the audio book read by Booklist's 2008 "Voice of Choice", Simon Vance! Here's the screen shot:

I Got That New Mac!

So I finally replaced my ten year-old laptop Spunkie with a new Macbook Pro thanks to everyone who are helping me live this part of my Story Quest. Yesterday! And I'm writing on it this very minute. A big thanks to everyone who helped Secret Speakers win the Reader's Choice award as a cell phone novel at Textnovel. I used the prize money to buy Spunkie II.



Thanks to Tyler Osmond who sold it to me. Writing to you all from my very own computer sure beats having to laptop hop. (Thanks to very generous family members for your patience.)

Fibromyalia Has its Benefits

12 hour days, lately: sitting in front of the computer until I can't see straight let alone form a complete thought. The good news is, I've got all the graphic design done for the soon-to-be released all new website. One of the things that really stinks with fibromyalgia is that every once in awhile you get lost in pretty hilarious brain fog, which sometimes isn't so hilarious. (As in, I sent the manuscript to my editor's old address in late February because I was too out of it to realize that email with the address was from last August.)

Hello dolly! I just found out today that she hadn't received it, so I had to reschedule the recording dates with the narrator for Secret Speakers, and I'll very likely have to push back the release date to June. Ah well, letting things lie fallow is always a good thing. Better things grow that way.

But I still want to say Stinky Bananies, as my kids and I used to say when life throws you trouble. I think I'm going to go turn on some music and dance, even if it hurts! Then, I'll go to bed laughing, reminding myself to be grateful that the reason I've done so much writing, graphic design of the book and website is because I've been in too much pain and fatigue to move beyond my desk . . . or bed . . . or couch. Its amazing how your view of reality changes with a little gratitude.

A Goodreads No-No

If you're a novelist, and more importantly an entrepreneurial author, you want to go where your readers are. (Assuming that you want to develop side by side rapport with them and know what they're interested in as a reader as well as a person.) But there are a few no-no's. If you want to just do shameless self-promotion, people on Goodreads will likely shut you out and delete your messages right away. We're a tight bunch of loyal readers who have relationships with each other, even if it's just our love of the written word. Want a tip?

If you're a novelist, and more importantly an entrepreneurial author, you want to go where your readers are. (Assuming that you want to develop side by side rapport with them and know what they're interested in as a reader as well as a person.) But there are a few no-no's. If you want to just do shameless self-promotion, people on Goodreads will likely shut you out and delete your messages right away. We're a tight bunch of loyal readers who have relationships with each other, even if it's just our love of the written word. Want a tip?

Secret Speakers Wins Textnovel's Cell Phone Novel Award

Thanks to all my reading heroes out there who waded their way through the online version of Secret Speakers and the Search for Selador's Gate at Textnovel. Thanks to you, it won the 2008 Reader's Choice Award! You are all my best friends now, and I think we should have a party somewhere with lots of music, dancing and food. What's funny, is I didn't think it would be well-accepted since it is a long-form (not short-form) cell phone novel. Lonnnng. Boring.

I'm glad you all didn't think so. It shows how smart and amazing you are.  Truly. And I hope some of you start writing the next great novel on your cell phone. I mean seriously, would you rather be texting your best friend or the guy you have a crush on . . .

I'm glad you all didn't think so. It shows how smart and amazing you are.  Truly. And I hope some of you start writing the next great novel on your cell phone. I mean seriously, would you rather be texting your best friend or the guy you have a crush on . . .

Are You Twittering Yet? Tips on Twittering.

Are you twittering yet? If you're not, you should be if you want to be an entrepreneur author who makes really scary roaring sounds to get peoples attention. Well, Twitter is more like meowing. The thing with Twitter is you answer--on the website in 140 letters or less--"What are you doing?" Here are a few super-easy tips that you can remember:

After you've signed up which takes about three seconds, you can click on "follow" and select the twitter tab if you want to look people up who are already on the site.

You do NOT want to keep twittering so that it's simply a conversation with yourself floating around in the universe. (But then, I talk to myself all the time, so I personally don't have a problem with that!) When you look at your updates, it's nice to see a smattering of other updates and direct messages (shown by the @ symbol) to remind yourself that you have friends.

If you like someone's comment, let your mouse hover over their update on the right. You'll see an arrow. Click on it to reply and do an "@" thingy.

Are you twittering yet? If you're not, you should be if you want to be an entrepreneur author who makes really scary roaring sounds to get peoples attention. Well, Twitter is more like meowing. The thing with Twitter is you answer--on the website in 140 letters or less--"What are you doing?" Here are a few super-easy tips that you can remember:

After you've signed up which takes about three seconds, you can click on "follow" and select the twitter tab if you want to look people up who are already on the site.

You do NOT want to keep twittering so that it's simply a conversation with yourself floating around in the universe. (But then, I talk to myself all the time, so I personally don't have a problem with that!) When you look at your updates, it's nice to see a smattering of other updates and direct messages (shown by the @ symbol) to remind yourself that you have friends.

If you like someone's comment, let your mouse hover over their update on the right. You'll see an arrow. Click on it to reply and do an "@" thingy.

Tips on How to Prepare for Book Expo America

If you're reading this article, then you're probably writing a book, have written a book, or sell books. In other words: you have words that you want to mean something others and you. Here are some practical tips on how to prepare for Book Expo America, in checklist form, organized by category. It's being held in New York this year, May 28 - 31, 2009.

WHAT IS BOOK EXPO AMERICA? (Otherwise known as BEA)

BEA is the largest book sellers trade show in America. If you have a book you want to promote, or even if you're in the process of writing one, BEA is a must-see. It's a fantastic way to meet people in the industry. Here are some helpful tips to consider:

Entrepreneur First. Author Second.

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

I met Mark Victor Hansen, Robert Allen, Richard Paul Evans, Ben Mack, Tad Lignell, Orson Scott Card and Cindy Cashman during the Fall of 2007. (You can tell by the helmet-head hair do.) Why did I go out of my way to do that when I was at the early stages of writing Secret Speakers? Sure, writing is a craft. I write because I can't NOT write. It's part of who I am. It's part of what I have to give. But it is also a business. Promoting yourself is performance. When you think about it, everyone Oprah interviews is performing at that moment in time, regardless of what occupation they pursue. It's not much different for you, if you are promoting your book. Once again, it's business.