Category: Open Book

Elevator Pitches: Telling It Short and Sweet #OpenBook Blog Hop

  By Open Book

Feb 19, 2024

Do you have an ‘elevator pitch’ for your books? (A brief 30 second or so introduction)

There are authors who write the elevator pitch and synopsis (as well as an outline) before they write the book. I’m not one of them. It wouldn’t work for me, since my characters have switched things up on me halfway through the stories. I don’t even write my blurb until the first draft is complete.

But there are publicity sites that need shortened versions of the blurb, so I do have what could pass for an elevator pitch. FYI, the name originates from the concept of running into an agent in an elevator and having a few seconds to pitch your idea for a book to them. Not that I expect to ever use a pitch in that context. I’m not in search of an agent or publisher, and the little village I live in doesn’t have any buildings with an elevator. (as far as I know.)

But back to the pitch. I don’t have formal ones. If I ran into an agent, I’d stumble though a through a non-pretty speech about whatever book or series I was working on. Shoot from the hip, as the old cowboy movies used to say. Or rely on of the blurbs and taglines I put so much effort into. (which won’t work for an older book, as I don’t have them memorized!)

Here are a few of my taglines.
The Rise of Jake Hennessey: So much for retirement
The Fall of Jake Hennessey: After all, even jewel thieves get bored.
For the entire Harmony Duprie series: Because how much trouble can one ex-librarian get into? 

Here’s an example of a full back-of-the-book blurb versus a shortened one used for a few advertising sites. The short one is actually medium length, because I had to shorten it farther for one ad. This is for Wolves’ Gambit, in the Free Wolves series.

Full Blurb:

Wolf-shifter Lori Grenville was rescued from near-slavery and a brutal pack leader by the Free Wolves. To pay back the favor, she’s dedicated her life to helping others in the same situation, leading shifters to safety and a new start, risking her life in the process. She’s faced down alphas and has no qualms in undermining pack structure.

Now she’s challenged with the task of restoring an alpha to his rightful place. If she gets it right, she can stop a war from ripping apart two packs and spreading across an entire state. If she fails, she’ll be among the first to die.

There’s still the option of walking away and letting the Jaeger and Destin packs destroy each other. That means she’ll fail in her original mission of rescuing the daughter of the Jaeger alpha before the girl is forced into marriage for political gain.

Lori hasn’t failed in a mission yet. This one may be the exception.

And here’s a short version:
Free Wolf Lori Grenville has made it her life’s mission to help unhappy shifters escape from overbearing alphas and dangerous situations. She hasn’t failed in a mission yet. This one may be the exception.

I timed reading these out loud, as if I was speaking to someone. The long version takes about a minute to say, the short version about fifteen seconds, so neither is the ‘correct’ length for an elevator pitch.

So, no, I don’t have elevator pitches.

But give me a chance, and I will hold an in-depth conversation with anyone who is interested in my books. Or their books. Or any books at all!

I should mention – there’s a new twist to pitching a book. On X (formerly Twitter) agents will announce a pitch day in certain writing communities. I’ve never participated, so I don’t know the rules. But since the limit of a tweet is 280 characters, think about how concise a pitch has to be. (My short version of the blurb is the above example is 205 characters.) I don’t know if something similar occurs on Instagram.

How about the other authors in this hop? Do they have elevator pitches? Find out by following the links below.

As always, until next time, please stay safe.

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Feb 19, 2024

Do you have an ‘elevator pitch’ for your books? (A brief 30 second or so introduction)

 

Who Gets To Decide? #OpenBook Blog Hop

  By Open Book

Feb 12, 2024

Do you ever ask yourself if you are still a writer?

Most people who stumble across me on social media have no idea who I am.

My writing has broken no records and hasn’t made any big-name best-seller lists. Somedays, I feel like the only person who cares about my stories is me. Days when I wonder why I even bother to put words on ‘paper.’ This fall, I was ‘ghosted’ at a book signing event and didn’t sell a single book. I haven’t written anything besides my blog posts for the last two months for a variety of reasons, including the death of my mother and some harsh criticism I received for the first chapter of my WIP.

Am I still a writer?

Based on my recent on-line book sales, the answer is yes. According to the new story churning in my brain, my characters hope so. I’m not convinced.

But blogging is writing, correct? It’s committing words to ‘paper’.

Truth is, I’ve been avoiding writing. It isn’t writer’s block, it’s me finding other things to do. Shoot, I’ve been doing housework instead of sitting in front of my computer—and I hate doing housework. It’s weird. In the past, it was the opposite. I couldn’t be pried away from my stories to take care of other duties.

Am I still a writer? Who gets to decide?

Me. Only I get to make that decision. No one can tell me I’m not a writer. So, I herby declare that I’m a writer on a semi-break. I will get back to my stories. My fingers are itching to get back to the keyboard. I put too much effort into my WIP to abandon it now. After I do my taxes. And clean out a box I stashed in the cupboard two years ago and haven’t looked at since. It holds all the printed out critiques for many of my books.

How about out other authors? Do they ever question their status as a writer? Let’s find out of they share by following the links below.

As always, until next time, please stay safe.

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Feb 12, 2024

Do you ever ask yourself if you are still a writer?

What’s In A Name? #OpenBook Blog Hop

  By Open Book

Feb 5, 2024

How do you choose your characters’ names?

Names are a funny thing.

Hardly anyone I know is happy with the one gifted to them by their parents, and many people go by a nickname. We are writers may have picked our own. (We talked about pen names last week.)  And in many traditions, names hold power. So, how do we pick the right ones for our characters?

Let’s start with my minor characters. I actually put more work into them.

First, I have to figure out what their role in the story is in relationship to the main character. Are they going to be a supporter? A romantic interest? Or the villain? Then I try to pick a name that fits that role. The bad guys/gals get assigned harsher sounding names with more consonants and guttural sounds. The romantic interests are given one that is smoother and more pleasing to the ear.

I used to attempt to make sure the name didn’t belong to a real person by changing the spelling, but I’ve given that up. There’s lots of people with non-traditional spellings, and it’s become a futile effort. Of course, I include a statement when I publish a story that all characters are figments of my imagination.

The other criteria I use is trying to include names with different ethnic backgrounds. The internet is a great help in the search. Yes, it can take me down the proverbial rabbit hole, but that’s half the fun.

Then there’s the list I accumulated during my last job of interesting names I ran across. It gets used for characters that add ‘color’ to the story. Ones that appear for maybe a brief passage or a chapter or two and never are heard of again. Or I might borrow a name from a book on the bookshelf that’s less than an arm lengths away.

That leaves the main characters.

They’re a different process. As the idea for a story works around in my head, the main characters name themselves. Sometimes I’ll hear a name in a song while driving down the road and it just fits. Other times I’ll wake up in the morning with a realization of the perfect name for a major character. I don’t the foggiest idea where the name “Harmony Duprie” came from, but I grew to love it while writing the Harmony Duprie Mysteries. Jake, who appears in those same books, was supposed to be a throwaway character. He didn’t even have a last name for most of the first book. (I’ve told that story before. He wasn’t supposed to be a continuing character, but wouldn’t leave me alone.) And Eli got his first name from a song.

How do the other authors on this hop name their characters? Find out by following the links below. 

As always, until next time, please stay safe.

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Feb 5, 2024

How do you choose your characters’ names?

 

How Many Different People Can I Be? #OpenBook Blog Hop

  By Open Book

Jan 29, 2024

Do you use or have you considered using different pen names for different genres of your writing?

Back when I started writing poetry and wanted to publish, I picked a pen name.

Even published a few poems under using it. Why? Frankly, I thought my given name was boring. It didn’t reflect who I was as a person. I was more ‘artsy’ than it implied.

Time passed, and I was no longer the person the first pen name represented. It was retired. Life and circumstance presented me with the P.J. MacLayne moniker and I embraced it, first for my poetry and many years later, for my stories. As I’ve been involved in selling books at events, the writing personality and the day-to-day me have become entwined. There are people who know both names and use them interchangeably.

Advice floating around on the internet suggests that when a writer switches genres, they should also adopt a new pen name, especially if they write erotica. That’s to ‘protect’ readers who prefer not to buy those stories. I suspect there’s a hint of misogyny in that thought. Women’s stories and writing are still not considered as ‘important’ by part of the literary community, and the suggestion of changing names hints at making it easier to avoid those stories. Frankly, that thought process irks me. Readers need to be given more credit for being able to choose what suits them.

I don’t follow the advice about having different pen names. My urban fantasy/paranormal stories, crime,  and female sleuth mysteries use the same one. So will the hard-core mystery I’m currently working on. I trust my readers to purchase what they want. I don’t have any fans that blindly follow me and buy everything I put out.

But there are selfish reasons for my decision.

It’s time and attention factors. Social media is a necessity for an indie author, and there’s a lot of effort in keeping my name and books in front of a potential audience. To duplicate that for additional pen names would take energy I’d rather put into my writing, and make me crazy trying to keep track of it all. Besides, I’m not that good at social media. I’d be worse if I had to maintain accounts for several ‘personalities.’

I don’t know if any of the other authors who frequent this hop use multiple pen names, but I’m going to find out. I’m off to follow the links below and check out their posts. You’re welcome to join me on the hunt.

As always, until next time, please stay safe.

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Jan 29, 2024

Do you use or have you considered using different pen names for different genres of your writing?

Fitting Together The Pieces #OpenBook Blog Hop

  By Open Book

Jan 22, 2024

We had great fun with this one a long time ago. Create a jigsaw puzzle for your readers using one of your covers or perhaps some scenery that represents one of your books. Here’s a link to one site that you can use. https://www.jigsawexplorer.com/create-a-custom-jigsaw-puzzle/

In a way, writing is the same as putting together a jigsaw puzzle, even if the book isn’t a mystery.

The author has to fit together people, places, and events to meld everything into a story that (hopefully) readers will want to read all the way through to discover the picture that has been created.

My cover artist does a great job, and I couldn’t decide which of her 11 covers to use, so I went a different route. A new story in the Free Wolves series has been rustling around in my head, so I went a different route. The picture I chose pays tribute to Wolves’ Gambit, which is set in Wyoming. I can see Lori and her friends sitting around this tree in wolf form and howling at the full moon.

The picture is mine. The puzzle is thanks to Jigsaw Explorer. I’ve found a new obsession-online jigsaw puzzles. They don’t take up any room on my dining room table! Granted, I don’t think I could do one on a phone, so I will stick to my laptop and large screen monitor.

This tree sits along a summer-only dirt road — I wouldn’t drive most cars there, even when the weather has been good for a few weeks — between Cheyenne and Laramie. It sits in the middle of nowhere on private land. (Luckily, I drive a Jeep.) But who knows what other creatures have sought the limited shelter the tree offers?

Here’s a link to the puzzle.

I hope you have fun putting the pieces together.

https://jigex.com/fJc7q

Now, I’m off to feed my obsession and check out the puzzles the other authors on this hop share. You can find them by following the links below.

As always, please stay safe until the next time.

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We had great fun with this one a long time ago. Create a jigsaw puzzle for your readers using one of your covers or perhaps some scenery that represents one of your books. Here’s a link to one site that you can use. https://www.jigsawexplorer.com/create-a-custom-jigsaw-puzzle/

Catch Them All – However You Want #OpenBook Blog Hop

  By Open Book

Jan 15, 2024

Do your books have to be read in any particular order?

This is another one of those questions that I can’t answer with a simple yes or no.

I’ve tried hard to write my books so they can be read in as standalone stories. It hasn’t always worked. The Harmony Dupre stories can be picked up and read individually, but they were written in chronological order and it makes sense to read the series that way. That way, the reader doesn’t have to stop and think about the backstory.

But then you throw the Jake Hennessey books into the mix and things get complicated. After all, The Fall of Jake Hennessey was written as a prequel to the Harmony books, but I recommend it be read after The Marquesa’s Necklace and Her Ladyship’s Ring so the reader gets a different view of the interplay between Harmony, Jake, and Eli. The Rise of Jake Hennessey can be read as a solo story, but it ties up the entire Harmony story arch neatly. So the answer to the question is yes, but no. The books can be read in any order, but I suggest you read them in (mostly) the order in which they were written.

It’s easier with the Free Wolves series. Those books are true standalones. There is an underlying story arch, but I’m probably the only one who cares about it. That’s on purpose. Each book has a different main character, although they take place in the same ‘world.’ (FYI-I’ve had another book in the series floating around in my head for a while, and when I get it written, the story arch may become important.) However, reading the books in the order I wrote them allows the reader to have a clearer picture of the overall world.

 

To make this all a little clearer, I’ve listed the books in suggested reading order below. Links to the other authors on this hop are also there.

As always, until next time, please stay safe.

The Harmony Duprie and Jake Hennessey books. (link to the page on this website)

The Marquesa’s Necklace
Her Ladyship’s Ring
The Fall of Jake Hennessey
The Baron’s Cufflinks
The Countessa’s Brooch
The Samurai’s Inro
The Ranger’s Dog Tags
The Rise of Jake Hennessey

The Free Wolves

Wolves’ Pawn
Wolves’ Knight
Wolves’ Gambit

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The Ancient Crystal Ball Foresees: #OpenBook Blog Hop

  By Open Book

Jan 8, 2024

Do you have any predictions as to what will change in writing/in the world in general in the new year?

I’m worried. I’ve read too many forum posts about writers considering giving up because of non-existent sales and generally feeling discouraged. What a shame that would be, the possibility of losing talented voices.

I suspect many of us got into writing due to the revolution that came with technology allowing writers to publish independently. As we face the impact that another switch in technology — AI (artificial intelligence) — is causing, there is fear that it will drive out many who are barely hanging on. Now, we are not only competing with other humans; we have to compete with computers.

Remember the Simon and Garfunkel song, The Sound of Silence? The line “writing songs that voices never share” applies to stories as well. I don’t believe we’re there yet. But I hate to see any voices silenced

.

My prediction? We will lose some talented people to other fields. Maybe authors I’ve never read, perhaps some who can no longer support themselves with the written word. Or maybe those that have tried their best with no luck. (And I sincerely believe that some of what we term success is gained through sheer luck.) Hopefully, they won’t leave in large enough numbers to diminish the impact that indie writers make.

On the other hand, I predict the writing community will find a means to make AI work for us in the way of new tools to strengthen our story-telling without losing our song. Spell and grammar checking come to mind, although they can’t replace a human editor.

What else? I worry about the impact that covid is making on the creative community. I know several authors who took a long time to return to their previous levels of writing after having Covid. I’m assuming that other creatives are experiencing the same thing. That doesn’t even include those we lost and still lose to the disease. I don’t have a prediction for this one, just hopefulness that science and medicine will get a better handle on treating it.

I predict I will finally release the first book of the Edwards Investigations series in 2024. I don’t have a date set, because I know that editing will take me longer than normal. The story deserves as much care as I can give it.

What are the other authors on this hop seeing in their crystal balls? Find out by following the links below. And, as always, please stay safe until next time.

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 Jan 8, 2024

Moving From Start to Finish #OpenBook Blog Hop

  By Open Book

Dec 18, 2023

Describe your steps for moving from a story idea to a finished story.

Steps? You think I have standard steps? Are you trying to make me laugh?

Thing is, my process can vary from story to story. I’m a ‘pantser’ writer. That means I don’t have a plot and outline before I start writing. My stories are very much ‘discovered’ as I put words on paper. Even when I have a basic storyline in my head, my characters change things around on me.

Take Tasha from Wolves’ Knight, for example. I had a sweet little romance all planned out for her. Even wrote a first kiss scene, taking place at the top of a waterfall on a moonlit night in a remote wooded area. Where would that kiss lead? I never found out. Tasha protested. Told me I was hooking her up with the wrong guy. (Yes, my characters and I have animated discussions. Some might call them arguments.) When I figured out who she wanted to be involved with, I couldn’t believe it. I had to go back and make small changes to make it happen, but she was right. The book was better because of it.

But here’s my basic process, subject to revision at a character’s whim. I get an idea for a story-it may be something that comes in a dream, or creeps up on me as I’m working on something else, or it may rattle around in my head for years. (Take my current work in process. I wrote the first draft over ten years ago. And I still want to add another book to the Free Wolves series. I haven’t touched that series since 2019.)

Now that I have an idea, I start writing. I start at the beginning of the story and write the book straight through to the end, without jumping around. The exception is when I go back and add or change things because my characters insist.

Once I’ve gotten to the end, it’s time for revisions. There’s lots of advice about taking at least two weeks off from the story, but that never works out for me. I always want to dive in and start fixing things immediately. There’s a lot of editing/revising that happens. Everything from fixing one or two words to cutting entire scenes. (My last release, The Rise of Jake Hennessey, went through at least five rounds of editing. I lost count.)

At that point, the story is done. As an indie author, there are more steps to getting it ready for publication. Formatting, copywrite, cover, etc.

That’s how I do things, anyway. Other authors may do it differently. Let’s find out by checking in with the rest of the participants on this hop. Check out the links below.

FYI, because of the holidays, there won’t be a blog hop the next couple of weeks. Whatever you celebrate this time of year, may your days be happy/merry/blessed/bright. (And safe.) See you again in January!

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Top Five Writing Events 2023 #OpenBook Blog Hop

  By Open Book

Dec 11, 2023

Tell us the top five best things that have happened to you in the past year. (Focus on writing, but other things are allowed!)

1. The release of The Rise of Jack Hennessey.
This story was a passion project. Although the Harmony Duprie Mysteries officially ended with The Ranger’s Dog Tags, I knew in my heart that the story wasn’t over. Harmony, Eli, and Jake couldn’t just fade into the sunset. There was more to the overall story, and it could only be told through the eyes of Jake.

For 22 years, semi-retired jewel thief Jake Hennessey honored his promise to stay away from Harmony Duprie. He has no plans to change that… until Special Agent Doan Houck saunters into Jake’s bar, claiming Harmony’s life is in danger.

2. Finishing the first draft of Book One of The Edwards Agency (the new version).
Or maybe The Edwards Investigations, Book One, The Rimer File. (Is that too long?) I’m still determining the title. This book has been in the works for over a decade. The first story was written as part of a NaNoWriMo project and has been reworked several times. But I knew it wasn’t ‘right.’ I took the story in a different direction, so the current draft is more of an homage to the first attempt than a revision. The ending still doesn’t have the ‘punch’ it needs, but I keep reworking it in my head and it’s getting there.

It started as a romance and has turned in a noir female PI tale set in Pittsburgh PA in the mid-1980s. My graphic artist says it’s so noir it’s black.

3. The many local events I took part in.
I didn’t sell huge numbers at any one event, but the cumulative numbers are satisfying. I know which ones I want to repeat and the new ones I want to try next year. As always, the best part of selling at events in the amazing people I meet.

4. Hitting the top #100
I hit the top #100 in three minor categories on Amazon with The Fall of Jake Hennessey on April 30. The book made it up to #11 in Heist Crime, #14 in Heist Thrillers, and #39 in Crime Action & Adventure. It didn’t stay there, but it made my day.

5. A non-writing related one
Now that I’m back in western Pennsylvania, I’m reconnecting with my siblings. Oh, we kept in contact through social media, but I didn’t realize how much I missed being able to sit and talk with them face-to-face. Heck, I’m close enough to be able to drop in for a chat without having to drive cross-country!

And there they are – my top five best things for the year. What good things have been part of your life this past year? And check out the other authors by following the links.

Until next time, please stay safe!

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Someday, When I Grow Up #OpenBook Blog Hop

  By Open Book

Dec 4, 2023

As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?

Cowboy. Astronaut. Doctor. I didn’t want to be any of those. The first thing I remember wanting to be when I grew up was a hermit. The idea of living in a small cabin in the woods filled with books seemed like an ideal setup. (And no, there was no cat in the picture.)

Of course, I was too young to think of the practicalities. How would I get food? I also always wanted to be a pioneer. Davy Crocket or Daniel Boone, depending on my mood. They were pretty interchangeable to my young mind.

As I got older, I wavered between wanting to be a librarian or a forest ranger. I considered a career with the CIA, probably inspired by Dorothy Gilman’s The Unexpected Mrs. Pollifax series. (I gave up when I realized I was no good with languages other than English.)  I had no interest in traditional female jobs like teaching or nursing.

I’ve done many jobs in my life, but the only one from the list above is librarian. I worked as a part-time librarian in a small town public library. The job only lasted about a year because we moved away. I never got to be a hermit—although life in Covid-years made it feel that way sometimes—and the closest I got to being a forest ranger was introducing girls in Girl Scouts to the joys of the out of doors. The career I retired from didn’t exist back when I was a child.

 

How about you? What did you want to be when you grew up? Find out about our authors and there plans by following the links below.

As always, until next time, please stay safe.

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