Self-Published Novels

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Over the past year, I’ve had several people to email me and ask how they can self-publish their novel – they’re usually assuming that I self-published my books. I then state that I’m not self-published, so I’m not the best person to give advice about that subject.

I still feel I’m not the best to give advice, but since so many have asked me, I thought I’d share some thoughts I’ve garnered through the internet. First I’ve noticed that some self-published people want a traditional contract, however, you need to realize that self-publishing your novel is not the key to landing a traditional contract. People will name The Shack as an example of a self-published novel that is now traditionally published and has sold milllions of copies! That’s true, however, The Shack is an exception, not the rule. Most self-published novels are hard to sell, so you need to be sure you have a solid marketing plan to get rid of your books.

Literary Agent Chip Macgregor did a great blog entry about this recently. Check out the link here. Be sure to read the comments as well as the blog post! I felt there was useful information in both the post and the comments!
I did think the Lightning Source option seemed reasonable, pricewise – more reasonable than Thomas Nelson’s and Harlequin’s vanity models, however, the price would go up once all of the editing and cover design was done.

Also, I’d think you’d need to seek out those who’ve successfully self-published a novel and ask them for advice, one-on-one. However, success is relative. Someone may self-pub a novel, sell one hundred copies, and consider that a success, and someone else may have a much higher measure for success. So, I’d think you’d need to decide how many copies you’re trying to sell, and then try and target self-pubbed authors of novels who’ve sold around your targeted amount (or even more than your targeted amount.)

How do you go about finding a reputable content editor, copy editor, and cover artist? I’m not sure! I’d think an internet search would help you! Also, like I’d mentioned above, if you can find some good self-published titles, then you can ask those authors who did their cover art and editing.

I’ve never hired my own editor, but I’ve heard good things about these two freelance editors:

1. Andy Meisenheimer – I believe he used to work for Zondervan, so I’d think he’d be a good choice. From glancing through his website, it appears he only offers editorial services for work contracted by traditional publishers – but he does offer mentoring services for unpublished novelists. I’m assuming the mentoring service would help to improve your manuscript?

2. Camy Tang – I’ve heard people mention that she’s a good editor, too.

Also, my sister is a great artist! She has designed covers for self-published books before! Here’s her website if you’re interested!

That’s all I know about self-published novels, and this is based upon what other people have told me, not upon my own experiences!

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Secrets And Lies By Rhonda McKnight

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Secrets And Lies by Rhonda McKnight

Faith Morgan is struggling with her faith. Years of neglect leave her doubting that God will ever fix her marriage. When a coworker accuses her husband, Jonah, of the unthinkable, Faith begins to wonder if she really knows him at all, and if it’s truly in God’s will for them to stay married.

Pediatric cardiologist Jonah Morgan is obsessed with one thing: his work. A childhood incident cemented his desire to heal children at any cost, even his family, but now he finds himself at a crossroads in his life. Will he continue to allow the past to haunt him, or find healing and peace in a God he shut out long ago?

About the Author
Rhonda McKnight owns Legacy Editing, a free-lance editing service for fiction writers and Urban Christian Fiction Today (www.urbanchristianfictiontoday.com ), a popular Internet site that highlights African-American Christian fiction. She’s also the vice president of the Faith Based Fiction Writers of Atlanta. Originally from a small coastal town in New Jersey, she’s called Atlanta, Georgia home for almost twelve years.

Rhonda, tell us how you came up with the idea for this story?
I woke up one morning and these people were talking in my head, or rather arguing. (LOL). I thought this could be interesting, turned on the creativity, and came up with the “issues” in their marriage. I also did a lot of research about heart disease. Jonah is a pediatric cardiologist and that’s central to the story. I knew absolutely nothing about heart disease before I wrote this novel.

Who is your ideal reader?
I think most people will think my ideal reader is women who are married. While I think the book will definitely appeal to married women, I’d love for single woman who are thinking about marriage or waiting on Mr. Right to read the book. There is a valuable lesson for single women in the story. Faith chose to overlook a very important issue prior to her marriage to Jonah. This issue becomes a huge source of pain for her. Ten years later her ideal black man has her pulling her hair out.

Name something about the book that will appeal to readers?
I think readers will find it appealing, because more than half of it is written from Jonah’s point of view. My informal research amongst readers has taught me that women readers love stories that are written from a man’s perspective. Like most men, Jonah is complex. He’s a love to hate kind of guy. People will love him because he’s dedicated his life to physically healing children, but he’s emotionally and spiritually sick himself. What a burden for Faith. Faith’s pain will have some folks shaking their heads at Jonah.

When’s your next book being released?
My second novel, An Inconvenient Friend comes out August 1, 2010. I have a nasty little character in Secrets and Lies who gets her own story, and what a story it is. She’s up to no good. Can she be redeemed?

How can readers find out more about you?
Readers may contact me at my website at www.rhondamcknight.net. I love for people to sign my guestbook and share their thoughts about the story. I’m also a complete Facebook addict. You’ll definitely find me there more than you should at www.facebook.com/rhondamcknight

I’ve enjoyed having you on my blog today, Rhonda! Readers, check out Rhonda’s story! Go to a bookstore and pick up a copy today! I just received my copy from Amazon a few days ago and I look forward to reading it and reviewing it on this blog!

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Happy Thanksgiving!

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Happy Thanksgiving!

I doubt I’ll be posting over the next few days, but I just wanted to be sure to wish all of you scribes and Christian fiction readers a very Happy Thanksgiving!

Spend your holiday with an excellent book! Read Raspberry Kisses! Nearly 300 Amazon reviews! Download today & tell your friends and church buddies! Spread the word by sharing this blog post!

Leave a comment and let me know how you celebrated your holiday. What did you have to eat? Who did you visit? Did you have to cook a big meal? If you did, what was on the menu? My curious mind wants to know! 🙂

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Autographed Pics Of Young And The Restless Stars

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I’m in the midst of cleaning out my office and I found some old autographed photos of Neil and Malcolm from The Young And The Restless. Before you ask, yes, they are authentic…I saw them sign the pics with my own eyes. Back when I was still in my twenties, I used to get out more and go to events. Both Malcolm (Shemar Moore) and Neil used to come to mass events and sign autographs. I even chatted with both of them for awhile. I was going to toss the pics, but figured somebody would want them. If you want them, leave a comment and let me know why you want the pics. Also, leave your email address, if you don’t leave your email address, then I won’t enter you into the drawing!

As usual with my giveaways, I’ll add your email to my email list but I only send out mass emails a few times a year, so don’t worry about getting huge amounts of email from me!

For those that are curious, if you want to see previous blog entries about soap operas, please look here and here. This is a blog about Christian fiction, but, I used to be a big soap opera fan. I still manage to watch when I’m on vacation and on some holidays. If I had more time, I’d watch more often!

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Skin By Ted Dekker

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SKIN BY TED DEKKER PODCAST

This blog post is sponsored by Divine Desserts Publishing LLC. If you like suspenseful Christian fiction then you must read Shades of Chocolate. Shades of Chocolate is about Toni, an unsaved woman who runs a chocolate-themed bakery. Her life is in danger and as she struggles with religion and faith issues, she works with Jason. Toni has hired Jason to work in her bakery. Jason is wealthy, and while he’s on hiatus from his family’s business, he grows closer to Toni. He’s worried about her – can he protect her? He wants her to share his faith – but that would take a miracle. Come and read this faith-filled wonderful Amazon bestselling novel today! Tell your friends and church buddies by sharing the link at the end of this blog post. You may also go to https://ceceliadowdy.com/shades-of-chocolate/
Skin by Ted Dekker

Hardcover: 400 pages
Publisher: Thomas Nelson (April 3, 2007)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1595542779

From the back cover:
A freak storm has spawned three tornadoes that are bearing down on the town of Summerville. Yet under the cover of the storm looms a much more ominous threat: A vindictive killer known as Red who’s left a string of victims in his wake and is now bent on exacting his final revenge on the unsuspecting town. But there is an enigma surrounding Red that the FBI is unwilling to admit-closely guarded secrets of something gone terribly wrong beneath the skin of Summerville. Secrets that will destroy far more than one small town. Wendy Davidson is caught in the middle. She’s a recovering cult survivor who takes refuge in Summerville on her way to visit her estranged mother. And with her, four strangers, any of whom could be the next victim . . . or the killer.

==
This book gave me nightmares. No, I’m not kidding. It was chilling, gruesome and bloody.

HOWEVER, I wanted to keep reading the story. I wanted to see what happened to Wendy, Colt, Pinkus, Nicole, and Carey. I also wanted to find out the identity of the killer named Red.

Five people are drawn together, being influenced by an evil killer named Red. Red is obsessed with ugliness…The five people are forced to decide which one of them is the ugliest…therefore deciding which one of them will die next. Red gives the five ultimatums throughout the book.

This isn’t the usual genre that I read, and in order for me to tell you my full thoughts about the story, I’ll have to give spoilers. If you want a chilling story that’ll keep you reading, this book is for you. But, if you’re somewhat squeamish, I wouldn’t recommend this novel. See below for my further thoughts….

SPOILER BELOW

I read this novel very quickly. I’ve been reading it the last few nights before going to bed. The book somehow crept into my mind and stayed there…I had bad dreams for two nights. My husband told me to stop reading the book, but I told him that the book was written in a way that made me want to finish.

Wait a second…

If you like religious, wholesome fiction, then read my novel Shades of Chocolate! Over 150 Amazon 5-star reviews! Join my email list and receive fantastic updates about new releases! Now, back to Skin…

This book was filled with so much darkness, sadness and evil…I felt that Dekker could have placed more light into the story…more goodness. It may have been in the story…hidden…and I just didn’t “see” it. I caught a glimpse of truth and goodness at the end, but that’s about it.

I wanted to rewrite the novel and take out some of the blood and gore! Chopped-off fingers, chopped-off hand, hanging deaths, shooting deaths, beautiful face disfigured with a knife, beautiful face disfigured with a blow torch…death, death, death….It was like the streets were swimming with blood…and I just wanted to say, “Stop, enough already!”

It was a bit of a relief to find out that the town was not real and the whole thing was a game. I’m not the most scientifically-minded person, but I found the ending a little bit confusing. Even though it was a game, the events physically affected the players…sometimes. For example, Pinkus’s fingers were severed during the game, but, when they came out of the game, his fingers were intact. Yet, brother and sister Nicole and Carey both died during the game and they were really dead when the game was over. [SEE MY ADDITIONAL INSIGHT BELOW. I THOUGHT OF SOMETHING ELSE ON 11/23/09.]

When the killer is revealed, it’s definitely a shock.

I won’t rant that I didn’t see much of an inspirational message since I’ve heard that this was marketed as a secular book. If I could rewrite this story, I’d place some light into it. [SEE MY ADDITIONAL INSIGHT BELOW. I THOUGHT OF SOMETHING ELSE ON 11/23/09.] Show them praying, calling out to Jesus. It didn’t appear that any of the characters were Christians. I know Carey dealt with the occult, using his pentagram and candles and stuff.

I think this book will stay in my mind for a long time. I didn’t purchase this title. After I read Three and Black, my sister heard me raving about how much I enjoyed Dekker’s work. She found this book in the discount bin at Barnes and Noble and called me, wanting to know if I wanted it. I told her to purchase it for me and she did. I haven’t read all of his books because his genre is not my usual preference, but, his genre (at least the older books) are something I can read and enjoy occasionally.

Parts of this novel reminded me of the following three movies:

It (Stephen King wrote the book. I can’t read King, either. I tried to read a King novel when I was in my early twenties and I didn’t make it past chapter one. The novel was well-written, but, he gave me nightmares, so I stopped reading and never tried again.)
Jumangi – Just Google it to find out what this movie’s about. Not sure if I spelled it right. Robin Williams starred in it and he was swept into a board game as a child, but returns from the game once he’s an adult.
The Matrix

As time goes by, and if the mood permits, I’ll probably read some more of Dekker’s older stuff within the next year or so, like the rest of the Circle series. If he has other titles as gruesome as this one, I don’t think I’ll read them.

***Additional thoughts…this book is still heavy on my mind and I just wish it would go away! I did come up with a thought on the inspirational aspect of this story this evening (11/23/09). Carey was involved with the occult and I’m assuming his sister Nicole was, too, therefore making them evil/bad as far as God is concerned. The killer, Red, is also evil, for obvious reasons. All three of these people end up dead while the good people, Wendy, Colt, and Pinkus, manage to live throughout the game. The “goodness” of Wendy, Cold, and Pinkus is portrayed by the fact that they are now alive and there was no physical damage – that’s why Pinkus still has his fingers. It’s the goodness protecting him and this protection obviously didn’t cover Nicole, Carey, or the killer? I’m rambling now, not sure if I’m on the right track…but that’s all I have to say about this novel. Now, hopefully it’ll leave my mind, allowing me to focus on something more positive and uplifting!

If you like religious, wholesome fiction, then read my novel Shades of Chocolate! Over 150 Amazon 5-star reviews! Join my email list and receive fantastic updates about new releases!

This blog post is sponsored by Divine Desserts Publishing LLC. If you like suspenseful Christian fiction then you must read Shades of Chocolate. Shades of Chocolate is about Toni, an unsaved woman who runs a chocolate-themed bakery. Her life is in danger and as she struggles with religion and faith issues, she works with Jason. Toni has hired Jason to work in her bakery. Jason is wealthy, and while he’s on hiatus from his family’s business, he grows closer to Toni. He’s worried about her – can he protect her? He wants her to share his faith – but that would take a miracle. Come and read this faith-filled wonderful Amazon bestselling novel today! Tell your friends and church buddies by sharing the link at the end of this blog post. You may also go to https://ceceliadowdy.com/shades-of-chocolate/

 

SHADES OF CHOCOLATE BOOK LINK

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Brownies!

1 Reply

My email box has been exploding with correspondence about Harlequin Horizons. If you don’t know what I’m talking about, just look at yesterday’s post. After sifting through a few hundred emails about this, I feel everything has been said, or is being said, and there’s so many issues that I don’t feel like covering them in this blog post. Suffice it to say, Harlequin just sent an email to all their authors, stating they would change the Harlequin Horizons name so that the Horizons books are not linked with the Harlequin brand…or something like that.

I’m done talking about that for now!

Have any of you tried Godiva’s new baked goods? Usually, during the holidays, hubby and I will treat ourselves to a big box of Godiva candy, or we’ll get the Godiva chocolate-covered pretzels, or their biscuits (cookies). I’ve now noticed they have baked goods and we were wondering if we should purchase the brownies from Godiva. Here’s a pic (borrowed from the Godiva website.)

They also have chocolate cupcakes and chocolate ganache layer cake. They have chocolate coconut macaroon cookies, too, but I’m not a big coconut fan.

If you’ve tried any of these, let me know if you enjoyed them. I’m pretty sure we’ll be trying the brownies for this holiday season! 🙂

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Harlequin Horizons

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I can’t believe it. I just found out today that Harlequin – the largest romance publisher out there, has now started their own self publishing division called Harlequin Horizons. Yikes! Sad, sad, sad. I know they want to make money, but then, I think about all the hard work I’ve done to get published. Now somebody can just pay to be a Harlequin author…I did look through the website. Not sure how to comment on the prices and such since I’m not very familiar with self-publishing models.

Also, if you submit the traditional way to Harlequin, if you get rejected, they’ll just tell you in their rejection letter…why don’t you give Harlequin Horizons a try?…Now, they might be able to make money from the slush pile…but not with traditional contracts. If the Harlequin Horizons title is what Harlequin considers successful, then they might offer you a traditional contract. My mind is beginning to wander now…will Harlequin Horizons eventually take place of the slush pile? Think about it, you get tons of people to pay money to get their romance novel published, then, when Harlequin has some open slots to fill, they just pull out the list of stats for their Harlequin Horizons titles. When they figure which ones are successful, they offer the Harlequin Horizons authors a traditional contract, and then have no need to dig through the slush anymore? Frightening thought!

I’m not knocking self-pubbing, but, I’m just shocked that Harlequin’s doing this. First Thomas Nelson, now Harlequin…who’s next???

~Cecelia Dowdy~

More Writing Advice

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Novelist Hillary Manton Lodge left the following comment on this blog post:

I think it’s important to add that, even as you shop books, it’s important to be writing others, and mention them in your queries/cover letters. If an agent/publisher likes your writing style but isn’t interested in that particular story, listing others can be a wise move.

Thanks for pointing that out, Hillary. I’ve come across lots of writers who do one book and work hard to find a publisher, but they don’t do another! You have to keep writing…start another project. Let those editors, agents, and publishers know that you’re working on another piece. If you meet an editor at a conference, and she doesn’t like your idea, you could always say…”Well, I’m also working on XYZ project, maybe you’ll like that idea better.”

It’s worth a shot. For the most part, I’m always working on something, and if you’re trying to get a contract with a commercial publisher, then you should always be working on a book!

~Cecelia Dowdy~