Pinterest Pleasures with Guest Blogger Mindy Klasky

I confess--I'm still trying to figure out what the heck to do with Pinterest. I know a bunch of my author friends are starting to use it as a writing tool, but I wasn't really sure where to start. Luckily, my clever writer pal Mindy Klasky has been using it for her VERY cool new series, and volunteered to come tell me (and therefore you) all about it. (Hint: if you go to my Pinterest, you'll get to see a little something for the new novel I mentioned yesterday.)

First, to make sure I have your attention, I'm going to show you the cover for the first book in her new series (PERFECT PITCH):

Yep--I thought that would do it. Here's the cover blurb:

Reigning beauty queen Samantha Winger is launching her pet project, a music program for kids. All she has to do is follow the pageant's rules—no smoking, drinking, or "cavorting" in public.

That's fine, until D.J. Thomas—God's gift to baseball—throws her a wild pitch. He slams her in an interview, and the video goes viral. Sam's no shrinking violet. She parlays D.J.'s apology into a national T.V. appearance—and a very unexpected, very public kiss.

Soon, paparazzi catch the couple in a steamy make-out session, and Sam's music program is on the block. The blazing hot relationship is threatened even more when D.J.'s son begs to trade in Little League for music class.

Can Sam and D.J. sizzle past the sour notes and find their perfect pitch?

Sounds like fun, doesn't it? Here's Mindy to tell us how she used Pinterest to  help her writing.

You know how new social media platforms launch.  One online friend starts to rave about the Next Big Thing, and then a few others chat publicly about how much they're loving The New Thing, and then someone has Super Secret Access Codes but you're always too late emailing them to get one, and then everyone in the entire world is using the service and you're sort of wondering how you got left behind.

Or, ahem, maybe that's only me.

Four years ago, a new platform launched:  Pinterest.  A lot of my online friends were immediately taken with it.  They snapped up those Super Secret Access Codes, and they talked to each other about their favorite pins, and they collaborated on strategies, and they loved, loved, loved Pinterest.  I started seeing that script P on all sorts of websites, on blog posts, in the wild.

And I just didn't get it.  Oh, Pinterest made sense if I was renovating a kitchen – I could see using an online bulletin board to pin ideas for appliances and counters and paint colors.  And it made sense for displaying similar artwork – all the book covers created by a particular artist, or all the books published by a specific publisher.

But for me?  An author who can't draw stick figures and who has no money in her home renovation account? 

I shrugged and forgot about Pinterest.

Until I started working on the Diamond Brides Series.  My plans for Diamond Brides were audacious – I was going to write and publish nine short, hot contemporary romances in a single year.  I'd take the first three months to get some of the writing done, but then I'd be living in a sort of joyful chaos – publishing one book while editing a second while writing a third while plotting a fourth.  And just to make things interesting, I decided to publish the first three books in four weeks.

I needed to get organized.  I needed new tools for keeping track of all my writing details.  My usual go-to system, Scrivener, was up to the task of tracking all those words, but I wasn't sure I could use it effectively to handle all the images. 

Images?  You know.  An inspirational picture of the hero.  Another, of the heroine.  A picture of the setting, especially rooms in a house.  Clothes, food, all the assorted props in a 150-page novel.  With nine books coming down the production line, I couldn't afford to forget who had green eyes, who had hazel, who wore the backless red ankle-length gown, who wore the navy T-shirt.

And so I dipped my toes into Pinterest. 

I created a "Board" for each book in the series.  For Perfect Pitch, I prowled around the Internet, searching for images that resembled my hero and heroine.  I searched through hundreds of "shelter" sights (intended for people doing home decorating), to figure out what my hero's home would look like.  I tracked down images of county fairs and beauty pageants and music classes for kids.

I found pictures for every setting in my book, and I pinned them to my board.  At first, I used Pinterest as an experiment.  I figured I'd probably get tired of it in short order; there was no reason I couldn't run my searches over again to find characters and places.

But after writing the first chapter, I realized just how easy it was to click over, to check on a character's hair color or eye color, to see whether the refrigerator was against the left wall or the right one.  I started to use Pinterest as a writing tool.

Now, building my Pinterest board is the very first thing I do when I start a new book – before I outline, before I write a single word.  Sure, I change some things as I go.  I find better images of my characters.  I realize that someone's a vegetarian, so she really won't be eating that steak dinner.  I discover a better dress or better shoes or…

You get the idea.

My boards aren't very extensive – 15 pins or so for each book.  But Pinterest is letting me stay on schedule.  Perfect Pitch released on time on March 31.  Catching Hell will be out on April 13.  Reaching First will be published on May 4. And all the other books look like they're falling into place.

You can see my Pinterest board for Perfect Pitch here -- http://www.pinterest.com/mindyklasky/perfect-pitch-diamond-brides-1/  Do the characters look intriguing?  What about the settings?  Do you use Pinterest or other visualization tools when you write?

Mindy Klasky learned to read when her parents shoved a book in her hands and told her she could travel anywhere through stories. As a writer, Mindy has traveled through various genres, including hot contemporary romance. In her spare time, Mindy knits, quilts, and tries to tame her to-be-read shelf.

FIND MINDY'S BOOKS HERE

A note from Deborah: I just got my copy! Right now it is on sale at AMAZON for only .99 cents for the Kindle version! What do you have to lose? I love Mindy's writing, and I think you will too. Now, go ahead and say hi, and show her how friendly we are around here. Thanks for visiting, Mindy!

And Now For Something Completely Different

As most of you know, the last month or so has been largely focused on the excitement leading up to, and including, the recent launch of my 7th Llewellyn book The Witch's Broom and my surprise (to you guys, anyway) re-release of Circle, Coven & Grove (my 1st book, which had gone out of print) as an eBook with a fabulous new cover by Mickie Mueller.

I had a blast with a few of the biggest contests and giveaways I've ever done, and I hope you folks did too.

The books themselves were REALLY well received, far exceeding my wildest hopes, for which I thank all of you. At one point Circle, Coven & Grove hit #1 on Amazon's Kindle Nonfiction "Witchcraft" list (it's still at #12 today, which is great) and The Witch's Broom went to #2 on the print list. It has been up and down, but I just checked, and it is back at #2 again today!
Look!

• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,644 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #2 in Books > Religion & Spirituality > Earth-Based Religions > Witchcraft
  • #3 in Books > Religion & Spirituality > Earth-Based Religions > Wicca

I am so grateful for all of my readers, friends and fans! YOU DID THIS!

But to be honest, I'm also grateful that the books are out, and I can go back to talking about writing and magic and cats. Promotion is exhausting, even when it is fun.

So, as Monty Python would say: Now for something completely different!

After an insanely busy last six months, I've finally cleared my desk of all the current obligations. (Well, any day now I'm going to get the revision notes for Wickedly Wonderful, BABA YAGA 2, back from my editor Leis, but right now, the desk is empty.) I've finished the revisions for the next Llewellyn book, Everyday Witchcraft--that's the follow-up to The Goddess is in the Details, for those of you who have been keeping track. I completed my "Write for Hire" sabbats book for them, Midsummer. Wrote and revised the prequel novella for the BABA series, Wickedly Magical. And just handed back the copy edits for BABA YAGA 1, Wickedly Dangerous. 

So what's up next? Something completely different. I'm going to be starting work on another novel, but this one isn't a paranormal romance or an urban fantasy. In fact, it doesn't have one witch in it! (I know! Shocking!). In fact, it is a humorous contemporary romance, complete with a snarky unconventional heroine, lots of quirky secondary characters, and a yummy love interest. Just the kind of book I like to read, in other words.

(For those of you who read contemporary romance, think Jennifer Crusie or Susan Elizabeth Phillips.)

My agent says that "humorous" is finally making a comeback (after being unsalable for the last bunch of years). I certainly hope so, since I like to both read and write books that have a touch of funny in with the adventure and romance. What about you? Do you like a bit of humor in your reading? If so, who are your favorite funny authors?

(P.S.--I've already signed and sent out a bunch of copies of The Witch's Broom to people who bought them through the "Buy Now" link at the top of the blog, but I have about 20 left before I take down the button. The last prizes will be going out this week. Books get sent Media Mail, which is slow, so don't be alarmed if they don't show up for a couple of weeks. And if you read the books and like them, PRETTY PLEASE WITH MAGIC ON TOP could you go post a review at Goodreads, Amazon, and/or B&N. It really helps. XXX)

Look What We Did!

Yesterday, I announced the release of the new eBook version of Circle, Coven & Grove


This morning, I woke up to this in an email from my mother:

Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #7,582 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)

• #1 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Nonfiction > Religion & Spirituality > Other Practices >Wicca & Witchcraft

• #1 in Books > Religion & Spirituality > Earth-Based Religions > Witchcraft

• #1 in Books > Religion & Spirituality > Earth-Based Religions > Wicca

•   

  
  Can I get a WOOT?!
  
  

The Sekrit Project Big Reveal with Mickie Mueller!

As some of you already know, my first book for Llewellyn came out in 2007. Circle, Coven & Grove: A Year of Magickal Practice was based on my first year's practice with my coven, Blue Moon Circle, and contained a year's worth of full moon, new moon, and sabbat rituals, as well as advice for those practicing with a group of any kind.

To my amazement, I got lots of great feedback from solitary witches too, saying how useful they found it. (You can check out some of the reviews on Amazon, if you don't believe me.)

Alas, the book went out of print last year. That's not unusual in publishing--once they have sold out all the originally printed copies, the publisher has to look at the current sales to see if they merit another print run. And unless you are very popular, that doesn't happen a lot. [On the other hand, The Goddess is in the Details, my 3rd book, went to a 5th reprint last year, so you never know.]

In theory, that might have been the end of that. You can still find the occasional print copy around, usually used, but there won't be any more.

Or will there...?

Thankfully, Llewellyn was really great about giving me back my rights to the book, so I decided to put it out as an eBook. There was only one catch. Well, two. The first catch was that I don't know squat about putting out eBooks. It's a pretty complicated procedure, where you have to convert the manuscript into the correct format (which is very fiddly), upload it to Amazon, jump through all sorts of hoops--not something I had time for while working on two different nonfiction books and a Baba Yaga novella.

So I called on the wonderful Sierra Meintser again. You might remember that she is my way-more-savvy-than-I-am-about-computers friend who did a bunch of online research for me in the past. This time, she actually taught herself how to do all this eBook voodoo, and made it possible for the book to be published after all. (And yes, if you're thinking about publishing your own eBook, she is going to be adding that skill set to her new business. Just sayin')

But then there was catch number two. The book belonged to me...but the original cover was still the property of Llewellyn. I needed a new cover. And this is where Mickie Mueller came in! She did the amazing illustrations in The Witch's Broom book, so naturally I thought of her right away. And luckily, when I asked her if she was interested, she loved the idea. So we've been working on the project for the last couple of months. In sekrit :-)

Here's Mickie's take:

"When Deborah contacted me to create a new piece of art and cover design for her book Circle, Coven & Grove: A Year of Magical Practice, the first thing we did was to discuss her vision. It obviously needed to portray some kind of coven. We discussed it and decided that a small coven would be perfect so that the figures would have some impact. We also wanted to add Magic the Cat in there somewhere. We decided a coven of three would look great and then I started thinking about composition, mood and color. I wanted the scene to be dark and witchy, but at the same time welcoming and inviting and not scary.  I think of Deborah as being that kind of teacher, her roots are firmly planted in the world of the witch, but her friendly demeanor makes her a great teacher, I wanted that to come across on the cover, so I suggested that we could base the center figure on her likeness.  We really had fun with it. She sent me some photos of her early days with her coven for reference, and the wonderful thing that happened was that it brought the story of the teachings in Circle, Coven & Grove back full circle and infused the art with the energy of those early days with her group.

So we had decided on the three figures. I kept thinking of an altar covered with magical tools, the coven looking into the book and the central figure looking at the viewer, inviting them in. I couldn’t seem to get past the idea of an altar because I thought of the cat being there in the middle of everything. I had done art of an altar with a cat on it a couple of times already, and so I kept trying to think outside the box. Once I got the Book of Shadows off of a table or bookstand and right into the hands of the central figure, it finally all came together!  A magical and artistic epiphany, it’s not the tools, it’s the teachings, what you carry inside of you!  So I kept it simple; three figures, there was the book in the center, the teachings, the cat happily rubbing against everyone’s legs and I thought, “They need some light out there in the woods.” Once I sketched the witch on the right with a candle, it hit me! Bell, book, and candle!  Since the candle was going to have a lovely glow, I decide the book and bell could have a magical glow as well. Deborah approved!

I kept the colors complimentary so everything would pop. Blueish gray and warm golden oranges were my palate. I really had fun layering the trees in there to give the whole thing atmosphere. I added the same orangey golden glow to the horizon so that we would be at the in-between time of dusk, a very magical time to be in the woods.  I had originally suggested a circle of magical symbols to be superimposed over the art for the cover design, upon seeing that, Deborah suggested the moon phases to better represent her coven. I loved the idea and took it a bit further adding the astrological illustrations on an inner circle, further suggesting the changing cycles of the magical year."

 So, are you ready to see what she came up with? I REALLY love the way it turned out. I hope you do too!

What do you think? It sure is different from the original cover, isn't it? 

I also decided that I wanted to make the book affordable for people, so I only priced it at $2.99 And no, I probably won't even earn back what I paid Sierra and Mickie for their work, but that's not the point. Remember I told you that I had one more surprise gift for my readers, to thank them for all their support and enthusiasm for me, and the new book in particular? This is it! My gift to you. I hope you like it.

Circle, Coven & Grove on Amazon And yes, Nook users, we'll be putting the book up in all the other fomats after 90 days.

Don't forget that the contest celebrating the release of The Witch's Broom is still on for the next three days, and you can get extra entries by doing some things (like spreading the word about the book) every day the contest is running. The Contest Blog Post We did pretty well for a while there, getting the book up as far as #9 on Amazon's "nonfiction/witchcraft" list. It's sitting at #20 now, which still makes me pretty darn happy.

And I'll be packing up all the signed books people ordered from me from the "But Now" link at the top of the blog, and taking them to the post office later today! (Along with a few little treats, just because)

Thanks again for all your support. So, what do you think of the Sekrit Project? Inquiring minds want to know...

ADDENDUM at 7:20 PM
My fans ROCK!!!

Book Release Week Celebration Giveaway!

THE BROOM HAS LANDED! Yes, a week earlier than expected, THE WITCH'S BROOM is out as of TODAY!

Needless to say, I'm going to celebrate. Will you celebrate with me?

I hope you're not getting bored with giveaway contests, because I am going to do one last contest to celebrate Book Release Week. I've got a couple of goals here--the first, of course, is to reward all the wonderful folks who have been so excited about this book coming out. I'd also like to try to spread the word to anyone who might have missed it, or remind those who meant to buy the book when it came out, but didn't realize it was releasing a week early.

There's one more crazy, probably-impossible goal too... And I'm hoping you'll help me reach it. I was really excited to see that during our last contest, The Witch's Broom actually hit #10 on Amazon's "Witchcraft" books list. Seriously--none of my other books have ever cracked the top 100, so I was completely thrilled!

 So I started thinking...what if we could get it to #1? I mean, how cool would that be? Will it happen? Probably not...but on the other hand, you guys are awfully good about spreading the word... (And we should probably remind people about the Goodreads giveaway contest, since that ends April 8th.)

This time, I'm giving away TWO signed copies of The Witch's Broom, TWO signed cover flats, and the last two adorable broom refrigerator magnets. So that's six great prizes. And you can increase your chances of winning by doing some of the options every day that the contest runs. As always, no purchase is required. You don't have to buy the book (or anything, ever). You get extra points if you already have the book and put up a review, because I'd LOVE to get a few reviews up right away to encourage everyone else. (Believe it or not, the few people who have already put up reviews are complaining because it is a witchcraft book. Um...duh?)

Folks outside of the USA and Canada are welcome to enter, but depending on the cost of postage, I reserve the right to send a smaller prize--like the broom magnet--instead of something heavy like the books.

[And don't forget that you can still order a signed book from me by using the "Buy Now" button in the top left corner...until I get 100 requests, and take it down.]

So, let's celebrate! The broom has landed! Let the happy dancing commence! Whoo whoo! Who's dancing with me?
a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Books are Here!

Look what I got yesterday!!!

As you can see, Magic the Cat was pretty excited too. Of course, she does think her picture is on the cover...

Apparently the books arrived in the Llewellyn warehouse a little ahead of schedule, because I noticed that Amazon has changed the release date from April 8th to APRIL 1st!!!! Yes, that means that you folks who preordered will be getting your books sometime next week!

And the arrival of the books at my house means that those of you who used the "Buy Now" button on the blog (or on my website) to order a signed book from me will be getting those soon too. I plan to sign them and pack them up this weekend, and take them to the post office on Monday. (They may still take a little longer, since I will probably be sending them media mail, which is cheaper, but also slower.) If you wanted a signed book but haven't ordered one from me yet, you can use the button at the top left of the blog, which will take you to Paypal. (Remember that I am only going to send out signed books to the first 100 people who ask, since it is a lot of work, and I should REALLY be working on the next book! So after those 100 are gone, I'll be taking the button down.)

I can't tell you how happy I was to hold this book in my hands at last--it is just the coolest little thing, if I do say myself. And I can't get over how excited everyone else is about it. That makes it all way more fun for me, too.

There will be one more giveaway to celebrate the actual book release week, probably on Monday...along with a really fun announcement and a special surprise for you all that I think is going to knock your socks off. In the meanwhile, I hope you are all having a great weekend. This is me, off to work on revisions...

Oh, and don't forget to enter the Goodreads Contest, which runs until the 8th!
 

 
 

    Goodreads Book Giveaway
 

   

       
   

   

     

          The Witch's Broom
     

     

          by Deborah Blake
     

     

         
            Giveaway ends April 08, 2014.
         

         
            See the giveaway details
            at Goodreads.
         

     

   

   

      Enter to win

A Fabulosity of Fans

I have, of late, made the rather startling discovery that I have fans. No, really.

It’s not as though I didn’t know people read my books (I’m pretty sure Llewellyn wouldn’t keep buying them if SOMEONE didn’t occasionally purchase one), and every once in a while I’ll go to a Pagan conference where people have heard of me. But as I got ready for the release of book 7, The Witch’s Broom, it suddenly became clear that a lot of people were excited to have the book come out—not just because it is a cool book (which it is, of course), but because it was a book by me.

I have fans. Wow.

And not just fans, but GREAT fans. In fact, a fabulosity of fans. Yes, I just made up that word. I can do that. I’m an author.

There was so much enthusiasm, in fact, that I decided to reward everyone by having a Big, Huge, Mega Giveaway Contest. Which attracted so many people, many of whom spread the word far and wide, and generated even more enthusiasm, that I had to come to the undeniable conclusion that I had fans. A bunch of fans, even. I already knew I had friends who followed what I was up to, and readers, and such, but…fans. Wow.

Here’s the thing about writers. We mostly spend our time sitting in a corner, by ourselves, writing. Some folks occasionally go out and do a book signing, but unless you are Nora Roberts or J.K. Rowling, or Stephen King, you are pretty happy if ten people show up. For most of us, our interactions with the people who read our books are limited to the occasional comment on Facebook or that rare, lovely email from someone telling you how much they loved your book. I can’t speak for all authors, but most of the ones I know don’t feel any different from anyone else.

Which is why it is pretty cool to discover you have fans. As I’ve spent the last couple of months talking (and talking and talking) about the upcoming book release, I have had so many people say truly lovely things about how excited they were about the book, and how much they loved my previous books, and sometimes even that what I’d written had changed their lives.

It is a pretty good feeling for someone who spends most of her time sitting in a living room full of cats with a laptop on her lap, I’ll tell you. What’s more, I already knew that my readers were the nicest, coolest, best looking (yes, of course you are) people in the world, but I have been truly amazed by just HOW fabulous y’all have been about the book, the contests, and everything else. I feel very blessed.

So this is a thank you love letter to my fabulosity of fans. Thanks for your enthusiasm for my writing, your willingness to spread the word, for buying my books, for generally supporting and cheering on everything I do. You people make my life a better place And I just wanted to make sure you knew that I appreciated it.

So I have one more surprise up my sleeve. A gift, to all of you, to give back something of what you have given to me. I’m not quite ready to announce it, though, so for today, you’ll have to take this love letter instead. Thank you, thank you, thank you for being my fans. Y’all rock.

 *smooch*