Flirty & Feisty Romance Blog...spice up your relationships: Publishing Novels

Showing posts with label Publishing Novels. Show all posts

Thursday, 28 September 2017

20 Steps from #Writing to #Publishing - Part 2 #Writingtips #indie

Hot & Sexy Romance Novels for Extra Heat

Several aspiring authors have asked me the same question - how do you go from writing to publishing?

So I decided to blog about the many steps I take from writing my Flirty & Feisty Romance stories to publishing them.

About a month ago, I shared the 15 steps I take to write and publish my romance novel - Part 1.

However, I stopped at when I email my first draft to my editor. As promised, I'm going to continue to share my experience.

Before I continue, I want to share good news. My New Release, titled, All of Me ~ A Sweet & Steamy Romance is available on Amazon, Smashwords & Okada Books.

Add on Goodreads

All of Me ~#99c

Smashwords

All of Me ~ Blurb

“Incredibly hot, pushy & a real hunk, my neighbour, Jermaine is so in my face, I can hardly breathe on my own. He has a body any woman dreams about with hard lines, tight ass, muscled with tattoos along his arms and inviting lips that keeps me gasping. Yet, I know he’s wrong for me, but tell that to my aroused body as night after night, his chiselled figure pulls me closer in my dreams. I’ve got to remind myself Jermaine double-crossed me, plus my secret taunts me, so there’s no way we can be together. Not a chance!”
~ Roli Boyo

“I’m in London to find a woman who’s even-tempered, homely and has not given her heart to any other man. Someone who wants me with her whole heart. By a twist of fate, I run into my next-door neighbour, Roli, a stunning model who speaks her mind no matter what. Although she has a list of exes’ and a boyfriend I’ve not seen, she makes my chest tighten and I want to capture her full lips with mine. But she has done something I can’t accept. Yet my feet keep dragging me to her front yard even though I know nothing can come out of our escapades. Absolutely nothing!”
~ Jermaine Tucker

Will Roli and Jermaine find comfort in each other’s arms?

~ From the ~ Author of “You’re Mine”: A Sweet & Steamy Romance ~

* * * * * *

To get my 7 tips on how to write a blurb, click here.

20 Steps from Writing to Publishing: - Part 2

When I get the first draft back from my editor, I do the following:

16. I scroll through every page of the document to review all the corrections and changes suggested by my editor. If I'm happy with the suggestions, I accept the changes.

17. But if I feel a specific word or sentence suggested will alter the meaning or the character's behaviour, I leave it out and stick to my original word or sentence.

18. There have been instances where my editor's suggestion triggers the changes I need to make even if her own alteration might not fit into a paragraph or scene.

19. Once I have completed the review, I read the entire book again from start to finish. This is the final reading and I read to enjoy the book as a reader would.

20. As I read for the final time, I dot all the i's and cross all the t's. This is what I call polishing the story. Usually, at this stage, every aspect of the story fits nicely together.

eBook Cover Creation
21. I create my eBook Cover using Canva.com

All of Me - eBook Cover

Paperback Cover Creation
22. I create my Paperback cover using the eBook Cover (from Canva) and Maria Lazarou, the professional, reliable and affordable cover designer from Obsessed by Books Design.

Upload Doc to Createspace (paperback)
23. Once my book covers are ready, I upload the PDF copy (for full cover) of my book design and PDF file for my story to Createspace.com

All of Me - Paperback Full Cover for Createspace.com

I opt for the Expert Upload button. But for new writers, you can click on the Step-by-Step upload button. Every step will be explained as you go along.

24. It takes about 24hrs to get a reply from Createspace. If my book meets their requirement, then I click to review online. If I'm satisfied with my online proof, I click to APPROVE my paperback version online. After several books, I now skip step 25).

25. My Advice: For new writers, I will advise you to not to approve your book online. Instead:
a) Click to order a PROOF copy. You pay the cost of production which varies with the number of pages in your books. But it is cheap.
b) Then read the hard copy when you receive it.
c) Make any final corrections.
d) Re-upload your book.
e) Approve your book.

Amazon Kindle
26. The moment I approve my paperback copy with Createspace, I upload my eBook via Amazon Kindle Publishing.

27. Publishing your eBook with Amazon is fast and easy. Just follow the simple steps to upload your eBook Cover and word document. It takes about 12 - 24hrs for my book to appear on Amazon Marketplace.

28. The moment my book is available on Amazon Kindle, I upload to two other online sites: Smashwords.com and OkadaBooks.com. Both sites publish the books immediately.

29. To make sure my book is available to readers on Goodreads.com, I import it via my Author Dashboard. And it gets added to my published book list. Visit my Goodreads page.

30. I do the same thing on Amazon. I go to Amazon Author Central Page, then I search for my new release and click This is my book button and it gets added to my book list.
Visit my US Amazon Author Page and Amazon Author Page UK.

31. I also add my new release to my Author Pages on Smashwords and Okada Books.

32. Then I update my Facebook page and website: Flirty & Feisty Romance Novels.

33. Sometimes, I order the paperback copy of my book straightaway and at other times, I might be too exhausted to even order it until a couple of days after release day.
34. Of course, after my book becomes available, I start to promote my new release to readers. Nothing beats holding my new book in my hands. It is an amazing experience.

35. Finally, the big issue after writing and publishing is promoting your book. If you don't tell others you have published your book, nobody will know about it or read it.

Someday, I will share my experience on how I promote my novels.

All photos are courtesy of Google.co.uk & Google.co.uk/search

If you have an opinion, question or more information, please share it. I will love to read from you and I also want to know you stopped by.

******

You remain unforgettable.

Love
Stella

Flirty & Feisty Romance

Our promise...is to deliver an intensely emotional experience you'll never forget.

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Friday, 25 August 2017

15 Steps to #Write & #Publish #Writingtips #Bookboost

Welcome to Writing Tips!

PROMO!!!
Sexy Romance Novels for #99c Each

Just so you know, all my books are written in third person. Some authors write in first person. I do not.

Blurb
Sometimes, before I start writing a new story, I have written down the draft Blurb. At other times, I write the blurb after the first draft is completed.

Don't be afraid to try new ways of writing. For my current release, I decided to use character quotes for my blurb.

"You're Mine" - #99c

To get my 7 tips on how to write a blurb, click here.

Steps from Writing to Publishing:

In general, after I finish writing each story I do the following:

Re-write
1. I re-write the story from chapter to chapter.

2. In rewriting, I note down plot holes and dialogues I might need to fix. I can change character names, I can also add secondary characters to flesh out my story if needed.

3. During rewriting, I decide on the race of all my characters, (but you can decide this important aspect before you even start writing. For me, I do it either way).

4. I make sure my characters are multi-dimensional (at least three dimensional) - they have families, have friend(s), have faith, have a social life and have interest/hobbies.

Re-read
5. I re-read the entire story and I leave it for a few days or weeks to think more about any area of the story I need to fix. Many of the gaps to fill become clear to me especially when I'm having a shower.

Content-showing
6. Content showing (using a character's body language) becomes my focus, instead of 'telling' the reader what's happening. Also, I use action words rather than passive words, to give the reader the semblance of watching a movie.

7. Then, I include more details about my characters features - their eyebrow colour, colour of their eyes, shape of their faces, facial hair, gap-tooth, any special marks on their bodies, tattoos etc.

Editing
8. Then I read to edit the story for grammar, punctuation, tense consistency, date sequencing, flow and pace of story etc. I check that I have not switched point of view from one character to the other in one paragraph.

9. To avoid head-hopping, I separate one character's point of view from the other by adding a gap and a symbol.

Example: check some of my novels and you will see this picture when I switch the voice from the hero to heroine or from the heroine to hero:

10. During editing, I also check my sentence length. A variation of long and short sentences is my target to give the story an interesting and an action pace for the reader's enjoyment.

11. This is the opportunity to get rid of repetitive words or dialogue.

Formatting
12. Next, is the formatting if I did not format it from the start. It is important to format your book to give it a professional finish.
Example: Here is my formatting details for my eBook (in word) for Amazon Kindle. I also use this for my paperback, but I add my name and book title to the header and page numbers to the footer.

Go to your Microsoft Word document and
Click - Home
Click - Layout
Click - Margin
Click - Custom margin
Under Margin
Type in the following figures:
Top - 1.3 cm
Left - 1.3cm
Gutter - 1.3 cm
Bottom - 1.3 cm
Right - 0.8cm

Under Paper
Type in the following figures, my book sizes are (5 X 8inch):
Width - 12.7 cm
Height - 20.32 cm

Under Layout
Type in the following figures:
Header - 0.76 cm
Footer - 0.25 cm

13. Then I include the Appreciation page, Acknowledgment page, a scintillating Teaser, Author Bio and Buy links for my other books.

Example: Here is the Teaser from page 2 of my current release: "You're Mine".

"You're Mine" ~ 99c

Rachael shut her eyes and held her breath. Gently, Banjo’s fingers stroked her lower back and spine. Breathing slowly, she sighed as his scent wrapped her up in a strong wall.

Though his fingers were hard, his touch was as soft as wool. As minutes ticked by, a thousand caresses flooded her spine with a new longing. Beneath the table, her legs trembled, and inside her bra, her breasts grew heavier.

“Okay,” she breathed harshly. “Stop!”

As if Banjo did not understand her command, he carried on stroking her back lightly.

Tension gripped her belly and her lips shut up tight, swallowing her gripe. Nothing had ever felt so good, or so right.

“Close your eyes and relax,” Banjo spoke softly near her lips.

All she had to do was turn an inch and her lips would salute his mouth.

Spelling/Grammar Check
14. I use the Review/Spelling & Grammar feature on Microsoft Word to check for mistakes.

Despatch to Editor
15. When I'm satisfied with my first draft, I send it off to my editor and heave a huge sigh of relief.

Next week, I will tell you more about what happens after I receive the first draft from my editor.

All photos are courtesy of Google.co.uk & Google.co.uk/search

If you have an opinion, question or more information, please share it. I will love to read from you and I also want to know you stopped by.