Is it rude to ask?

I'm getting some great star ratings on Goodreads - it really is amazing whenever I see another 5 or 4 star rating. The fact that people are enjoying my books is just wonderful. Of course it won't be everyone's cup of tea (English turn of phrase), especially when some people will just have downloaded it because it was free, so the fact so many of you have is more than I dared hope.

My one plea, as a lowly indie writer is please please leave an Amazon review too. It's really hard to get noticed at all when you are competing with the huge volumes of books out there, plus all the heavyweight authors and their publicity machines. Us little people rely on your word of mouth and reviews to get noticed at all. Hope you don't mind me asking?

Thanks in advance to anyone who does - feel free to connect via Facebook (o.c. Shaw books) or twitter @shawhopeful to let me know if you do.

O.C

Catching my breath

This weekend was amazing.  Seriously amazing.  When you do a free promotion you pray people will give your book a go, but I was seriously overwhelmed at the number of people who downloaded What Goes Around Comes Around.  I am now waiting with breath held to see what those readers think of it.  On the plus side I'm seeing lots of people intending to read Full Circle, so I'm taking that as a good sign.  

Fingers crossed I'll see reviews follow on Amazon and Goodreads.  I'll let you know!

FREEBIE - this weekend only

What Goes Around Comes Around has been available on kindle for free download this weekend.  I have to say, the response has been amazing.  On the plus side I have only ever wanted to get my stories out to people, no easy feat given how choked the market is these days with people self publishing, let alone all the established authors with the weight of the publishing promotion machines behind them.  So it seems to be working - the numbers of downloads have amazed me, particularly seeing my book listed in the top 100 free downloads on Amazon.... Amazing.

On the downside I will now have to face my critics.  Kind of scary.  I really hope people like the story (I particularly hope they like it enough to want to pay for the second and final part of Lily's story - I'm not a complete altruist).  If they don't then I hope I have the strength of character to listen to the constructive criticism and learn from it.  I'll let you know....

Just in case you too like a freebie - here are the links:

 

 

  https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00D7P8BDI

 https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00D7P8BDI

Full Circle finally LIVE!

Full Circle, the second and final part of Lily's story is finally out there.  I now get to hold my breath and hope that people actually like it and approve of the second part in Lily's story.  As ever I'm sure it won't be everyone's cup of tea - I'm trying to focus it to the people who actually like this genre on this occasion. 

I'm already onto my next projects - more updates soon.  In the meantime please do let me know what you think - it's the only way I'll get better as a writer.

Link:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00HXHIH2G

Full Circle.. The blurb

Thanks so much for your patience.  Full Circle is nearly ready to go live.  I'm really hoping you like it, and will be excited to hear your thoughts.  In the meantime, here's the blurb to get you in the mood: 

 

Admittedly, misery is a somewhat extreme dieting technique, and everything I read assures me I am likely to puff up like a blood-bloated tick the second I start eating normally again, but hey, I’m willing to take my pleasure where I can find it.

Still emotionally reeling from the cluster bomb fate decided to throw at her love life, Lily is finally shown a lifeline when her book is accepted for publication.

Cast into an unfamiliar world following the novel’s success, Lily knows she has almost everything she could ever want – except love.

Why can’t I move on, Annie?

Still haunted by dreams of her abusive husband and her dishonest lover, Lily longs to move forward and learn to love and trust again, but karma still has some surprises in store.

Karma can be a bitch, and you can expect at some point she will come back to bite you.

As her old life blends with new, Lily faces yet more choices in her quest to find her happy-ever-after.

4.5 * Review for What goes around comes around

A 4.5 rating...
This little debut novel took me by surprise. And, the setting is in one of my favorite places... England.(smile) This was a very emotional and engaging read from start to finish. If you are a woman who understands what it is like to feel like you've given up your identity once the children were born then you will find it easy to connect to the character of Lily. This book also addresses the issue of spousal abuse and at times I wanted to jump into the book and throttle her husband Greg. I still do! He is an angry, controlling and self absorbed man who cares nothing for Lily's needs and wants. Lily feels unloved, ugly and awkward and her self esteem has taken a beating in an 18 yr. empty and loveless marriage. She is overweight and has a distorted view of herself which is also something most of us women can relate too. How many of us are constantly comparing ourselves to what our idea of a perfect body is supposed to be? When you start checking off all of the flaws it's easy to start to believe that you are not attractive or beautiful... and this is where Lily is at the age of 37. 
Lily eventually decides to take a brave step forward and she decides to join the local gym. Lily is very clumsy and as she's walking through the door she quite literally falls into the arms of... James... a Rob Lowe look alike! Despite her humiliation she presses forward like a soldier! Through her visits to the gym she forms friendships and a kind of second family and we start to see a small awakening for Lily as she begins to build confidence in herself. Eventually she ends up joining in on a weekend of walks in the Peak District with a group of individuals to raise money for a good cause. During this trip she realizes that she is falling for James. Insert steamy love affair... :) 
I am not usually a fan of books or characters that cheat on their spouses. But, in this particular story I was rooting for Lily to find the courage to get out of this abusive and loveless marriage. James was exactly the medicine she needed to start the process of re-discovering herself, her need for passion, and realizing that she doesn't have to just accept her fate as an invisible spouse. This relationship with James gives her courage to finally make that difficult step to ending her marriage. And, I was proud of her for making this decision not because of James but because she knew it was time. 
Just when you think that Lily has it all figured out and we're going to have a nice tidy little Happily Ever After ending... events occurred at the end that both surprised and shocked me... and, yes I am itching to find out just where the author will take us in book two. James was keeping a big secret and Greg ends up getting the last word. But, Lily is still hanging on to hope... 
What goes around comes around is a great title for this book. It is very much about Karma and my only hope is that karma will come knocking on Greg's door in book two! 

If you're interested in reading this book it is available on Amazon for only a dollar! And, it's free to borrow for Amazon prime members. I highly recommend that you give this book a go... it's a great read for that little price tag! And, I think this will be an author to keep an eye on. 

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Right to write

I keep reading debates about writing.  The "proper" writers are indignant at the new indie "authors", who think it's okay to dash off a story and self publish, with no real thought or perceived effort.  They claim they are choking the virtual bookshelves with so much sub standard material, the discerning reader can't find the "proper" books.  Indie authors are deemed not to care about the quality of their output; they don't use editors sufficiently seems to be the primary gripe.

In return indie authors claim there is good and bad writing everywhere.  Traditional publishing routes are not the arbiters of "good" however much they may wish to be - let the public decide, is the cry.

I can see both sides, if I'm honest.  God knows there are a LOT of books out there.  Books are even given away these days.  It used to be only one or two, but now there are hundreds.  My own kindle is full of books I didn't have to pay for, and am not sure I will ever get round to reading.  Some of them are indeed truly awful.  I accept my own first effort left a lot to be desired - particularly in it's need for an editor - but my God, if even I can spot the errors to the extent I can't finish the book then it must be bad.  I understand the challenge of balancing cost of editing cover etc with how much you are ever likely to make on a book, but there is a piece about personal pride, and if you actually expect someone to part with money for a book, then there are some quality minimum standards that should be adhered to.

BUT - the "traditional" authors need to accept the world has moved on.  The virtual world allows a level of democracy (for want of a better word) that means being with a publisher is no longer an entitlement to the highest sales.  

The publishers need to understand digital channel marketing better, while the self published brigade need to invest in the traditional skills of publishing.  Then the public will ultimately decide.  Do they always get it right?  No - just look at some of the talent competitions on TV.  But they are the paying audience, and as we all know - the customer's always right.