It's been too long since I posted a new blog post, but working full time just zaps my time and creative energy. I love to blog! I love to write! I'm very excited because I finally published my horror novel, Nunny & Cecil--A Tale of Terror! It's available for sale on Amazon.com and at a local bookstore, The Wise Owl Bookstore, located in West Reading. If you don't like horror, you probably won't like the book, but if you do, I think you will love it. It's been getting rave reviews! People are saying they can't put it down. A neighbor told me he read it in two days, and he's not a reader. He said it made him have bad dreams, and his wife said he was talking in his sleep in another voice. Freaky! Readers are telling me that it scares them so badly, they don't want to take out the trash at night. I know that feeling; you have to think like that to write horror. I am loving these great reviews!
JUST BUY IT!
I was out last night, talking with a friend, drinking some great beer, Springhouse Chocolate Peanut Butter Stout. I was talking about my book, and she said, "Okay, I'll get it," like she thought I was trying to sell her on it. I asked her if she usually reads horror; she said no. I told her she probably shouldn't buy it then; I said that besides literature, the only commercial fiction I read is horror, but I wouldn't read fantasy, romance, or most other genre fiction. Nothing against other genres, but they just don't interest me. It's not that someone couldn't be turned onto horror, but if it's not what you're into, you probably wouldn't like my book. JUST BUY IT ANYWAY!
My husband, Doug Jones, took the photo for the cover, gifted photographer that he is:
THE STORY OF MY BOOK
My parents divorced when I was very young, so my mom and my brother Kirk and I moved in with my grandparents in their large home in Detroit. Lots of weird stuff happened in that house, but the weirdest was that my brother suddenly had these new "friends" named Nunny and Cecil, who we thought were imaginary. It was just so cute--and just a tiny bit scary. Kirk, who was only about three years old, was always talking about these friends. Some of the stuff that happens in the book was inspired by some of the weird stuff that happened in that house, like the animal shadows on the door and thousands of ants on my pillow, night after night. I've always loved to write, and I'd often thought I should write about Nunny and Cecil; they fascinated me. After I graduated from college, I couldn't find a job right away, so I used the time fruitfully to write this novel. That was quite a long time ago, before cell phones and laptops ( I actually wrote the novel on my first desktop computer), so I've revised it to make it a bit more contemporary. It was also before I had children, so now, after raising two daughters, I also had to make some changes in my treatment of the child characters, Amy and Adam.
ATTEMPTING TO "GET PUBLISHED"
I tried to get the novel published, but I wasn't that persistent. Sending manuscripts and query letters was a chore. I did have one literary agency that was interested in it. They represented Whitney Otto, who wrote How To Make An American Quilt, so I knew they were reputable. They called me about 5 days before I gave birth to my first daughter, who was born in April, 1992, and said they might be interested in representing me, but they wanted me to make some changes before they made their decision. They asked me to make it "less cliche." I was ecstatic, to say the least, but also quite anxious about it. I agreed to make the changes; I understood what they meant, or at least thought I did. I went through the book and not only eliminated the cliches in the characters and storyline, I made it come alive! I sent it back to them, pretty pleased with my revised manuscript, and they said they weren't interested. I was so bummed! I didn't waste any time though: I'd quit my job to be a stay-at-home mom, freelancing here and there, and I immediately started writing my second horror novel, The Mother-In-Law--A Horror Novel. Again, my infrequent attempts to find a literary agent or publisher proved fruitless.
SELF-PUBLISHING--FREE & EASY WITH AMAZON'S CREATESPACE
When I found out about Amazon's CreateSpace, I was excited. Especially after reading this article in the New York Times. It didn't cost me a dime to self-publish Nunny & Cecil--A Tale of Terror. The templates on the cover creator are fun and easy to use. You just upload your manuscript. My husband did have to format the interior file for me. Don't ask me how he did it, but there were guidelines he had to read and follow. I used to work as an editor and proofreader, so I know what I'm doing, but proofreading your own manuscript is not easy: you tend to read what is in your head. They have stock cover photos you can use if you'd like, but I preferred to use my own. It's print on demand, so you don't have to order a certain number of copies or anything like that. Amazon will sell your book as a paperback, or for downloading on a Kindle. You set the list price, and you collect royalties, just as you would if you published with a publisher.
NO REGRETS
At times I've wished I'd gotten that publishing contract years ago when I wrote Nunny & Cecil--A Tale of Terror, but then I might have missed my 10-year musical "career." It took me until now to realize that. My musical career was so important to me and to my family! It was an entirely different path that I tried out and loved. I met so many cool and interesting people through it, but also a lot of losers. It was too much drama all the time, and I had to travel constantly in order to play original music venues. Bands are always like dysfunctional families. I taught both my
daughters how to play guitar, and they both benefited from it in one way or another: Avalon gave guitar lessons to make extra money; Alaina wrote and recorded her own songs with her band The Moment when she was only 12. And those songs are damn good! My husband Doug made some beautiful guitars for our girls. So you can see how one thing leads to another, and had I published my books earlier in my life, we might not be so musical. 
THE FUTURE'S SO BRIGHT--OR NOW FOR THE HARD PART
The one caveat with publishing through CreateSpace is that you have to do all the marketing, publicity, and promotion. There are plenty of great articles, webinars, etc., available on CreateSpace and elsewhere, but it's not easy. They distribute it all over the world, which is great. I can't stop talking about the book and planning how I'm going to promote it. I know it's not going to be easy, but so far it's been fun. Making my own website on wix was fun and easy. "Fun" is the word for the day. I have a Facebook page for the book (please go there and "like" it). If you happen to read it, I would really appreciate it if you would write a review on Amazon. I know I'm driving my family crazy with all this talk, talk, talk. I'm publishing another horror novel in March called The Mother-In-Law--A Horror Novel. And then after that a collection of short stories about living in our little provincial community. Stay tuned!
