Author Archives: Marcha's Two-Cents Worth

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About Marcha's Two-Cents Worth

I'm a science fiction author of the Star Trails Tetralogy, retired after two decades working at NASA, defected from my physics training to become a professional astrologer, and various other acts of rebellion. More recently, I've teamed with Pete Risingsun in writing "The Curse of Dead Horse Canyon: Cheyenne Spirits" which was released in July 2020 with all three books in the trilogy now complete. Check them out at https://dead-horse-canyon.com.

Today’s Writing Tip

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Your story action and plot require feasibility. In fantasy, anything is possible, but you must lay the foundation so its credible within the realm you’ve created. Designing a world where magic is the norm isn’t as simple as you may think.

Every cultures operates within certain norms, rules, and even laws. How are these powers gained? Can anyone use them? What about those who use them for evil? Are all powers created equal? Do certain items (swords are very popular) contain magic accessible to only one person? What do they need to do to unleash it?

Without some rationale, fantasy can fall flat. No matter what you make up, it has to be convincing so the reader can feel as if they’re part of that world. If there’s no foundation, they’re likely to roll their eyes and find something else to read.

Today’s Writing Tip

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Interacting with fans, either on social media or at signing events, is what keeps them engaged. You have to sell yourself as a person as well as your work. This is not always easy for authors who are introverts.

One way to get over your trepidation step by step is to go to a few such events to scope them out, meet other authors, and observe how it works. Starting in your local area is also advised, where you’re more likely to meet friends and neighbors that make you feel comfortable.

Being active in a local writers group is another way to get over your jitters. If you’re well into the publishing world, volunteering to speak to the group is another avenue. If you’re terrified of public speaking, find your local Toastmasters club and sign up! They’ll help you get past it with flying colors.

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Including interesting content on your Facebook page or in your newsletter is important. Your audience will quickly get bored if all you ever do is hawk your books. What interests do most your readers have? What will they find interesting?

If you don’t know, then there’s a good chance that’s you’re also missing out on venues where you should be marketing and promoting your work. How do you find out? You might try the personal approach and visit the Facebook pages of some of your “fans” who have liked your author page. See what kind of information they’re sharing and the types of activities they enjoy with their friends.

Review of “Half Life” by Scott Skipper

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The premise of this story is that a brutal earthquake and tsunami, similar to what happened to Japan a few years back, strikes California, causing a meltdown at a decommissioned nuclear plant. Due to various political stalemates, the fuel rods had been left on-site rather than being transported to a permanent storage location, causing considerable havoc as radiation saturates the populated area around Los Angeles. The credibility of such an occurrence is so high, that I can’t help but wonder how much of this book will turn out to be prophetic.

The story takes place during a gubernatorial election year and the political issues associated with this disaster are paramount. One thing potential readers need to know about Scott’s books is that they are extremely political incorrect. If telling it like it is bothers you, then don’t even try reading one of his books. It will just piss you off, you’ll miss the entire point, and then you’ll give him an abysmal review, which will be totally undeserved. Why? Because his books are well written, witty, boast clever plots, are populated with convincing characters, and don’t shy away from some of the political issues in the news today. Personally, I find them hilarious, albeit painfully true.

This complex tale not only covers the political and conspiratorial aspects of such a preventable catastrophe, but its impact on the main characters, the agendas of those running for political office, and those trying to clean up the mess. The technical details were absolutely outstanding. As a science geek myself, I ate them up, because I’m one of those weird types who loves to see science tightly woven into a plot. It lends authenticity, and when well done, is instructional. Obviously, he did his homework researching such a mess and what it would take to clean it up.

Scott Skipper is one of my favorite authors, especially his “Alien Affairs” series, which I love. This story isn’t quite as enchanting and took a while to get rolling. The “travel-log” chapters near the beginning moved pretty slowly, even though I could understand he was trying to demonstrate the frustration and complexity of Eric and Jamie’s convoluted  trip home, which required a jaunt through Mexico to skirt the “hot zone” left by the power plant meltdown. If you get stuck somewhere in Mexico, somewhere around Guadalajara, skip ahead–you won’t miss much and the rest of the story is well-worth it.

About a third of the way through the story it really took off in typical Scott Skipper style with the sarcastic humor and snarky characters I love. One secretary, Enid, served as great comic relief with her British slang and often racist and bigoted remarks. This story would make a fantastic movie, the main problem being that the political leanings of those in Hollywood wouldn’t touch this story if they were wearing a hazmat suit and wielding an insulated barge pole.

Since I think the story could use a bit of tightening of those early travel-log chapters and would like to see a more sophisticated cover worthy of what is really a great story, I can’t quite give this story five starts, but certainly 4.5. Just be warned, if you’re easily offended, don’t even bother, unless you’re open-minded enough to recognize the many truths embedded in this thought-provoking, cautionary tale.

You can pick up a copy on Amazon here.

Today’s Writing Tip

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Book trailer videos are a great way to entice readers to read your book. Rather than simply words on a page, they employ visual and audio stimuli to capture the essence of your work, whether it’s fact or fiction.

Depending on your marketing budget, it’s possible to find various sources to create one for a reasonable price. However, if you enjoy creating in various media, it can be fun to create one yourself. This can be done virtually for free by using one of the free online apps, such as http://spark.adobe.com. This one has limitations, but is great for your first effort. If you’re familiar with Power Point, you can create simple videos with it as well. A previous blog of mine explains how here.

Once your ideas exceed its capabilities, there are others, though some require a subscription to access all their features, such as WeVideo. Like all promotional vehicles, this one requires marketing savvy to catch potential readers attention and motivate them to buy your book. As you’ve probably already discovered, nothing is ever simple about promoting your book.

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It’s been said that everyone on Twitter is talking and no one is listening, unless, of course, you’re already famous. Thus, it’s a somewhat iffy social media platform for book marketing. Any success you have on this platform will be directly proportionate to how many followers you have and their quality.

Whatever you do, don’t ever buy followers! The chances of them having the slightest interest in your books is so low, you probably have a similar or even better chance of winning the lotto. One thing you can do to try and place your tweets in the right news feeds is to use appropriate hashtags. It’s still a huge crap shoot, but does increase your chances slightly.

Today’s Writing Tip

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No single social media platform is a panacea. As difficult as it can be to manage several, each tends to have a different audience, so diversity is necessary to reach the most potential readers.

This can be a huge time-suck, however, because it’s not just a matter of developing suitable posts, which is bad enough, but also involves a learning curve with the particulars of each platform.

There are numerous classes out there that will teach you what can be effective in the different apps. This can get expensive, and depending on your budget, may not have any appeal or possibility. One alternative is to observe and study what’s out there. See what catches your eyes or entices you to click a link. This is not always simple and the reason that marketing and promotional services abound.

And finding a good one is another subject entirely. In a word, beware! In a word, they’re not likely to be a panacea, either.

Today’s Writing Tip

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One of the biggest author challenges is finding the people who will love your story. The first step is to identify who they are. This is not always simple, but one place to start is their age. This is not always readily apparent, however, because many stories span a huge range, from elementary school to retirees, like the Harry Potter or Twilight series.

Nonetheless, it’s a start, at least for where you expect the majority to be found. After that, the next step is to figure out where they hang out. In today’s social media saturated world, this is likely to involve finding Facebook pages and hashtags that your target audience would relate to.

If you don’t have a clue, then maybe that group doesn’t comprise potential fans, because you should have something in common with them if you expect them to embrace your work. If that’s the case, then maybe you need to go back to the drawing board.

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Book fairs and conferences are excellent places to meet other authors and potential readers. The energy in such venues is magical, but learning how to use it to your advantage takes practice. Many authors, myself included, are introverts, so your first experience in such an environment can be intimidating. There are also numerous conventions and protocols for how your table or booth should be set up. Thus, before you take the plunge, visit a few to scope them out so you know what to expect.

Your best bet is to concentrate on those close to home. Not only can your local fan base find and support you more easily, but others in the area will discover you as well, perhaps bringing opportunities for other appearances.

However, even in your own territory, selling enough books to cover expenses is unlikely until you’ve developed a strong fan base. This definitely applies to venues that require hotel stays or, heaven forbid, airfare, though if combined with a vacation, such bills offer a nice business-related tax deduction.

The main thing is not to be discouraged by expecting too much. Just include the cost in your marketing budget and count any book sales as a bonus.

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When promoting your book, comparing it to similar stories with which everyone is familiar can help find readers who will like yours. Of course you have to do this is a way that’s not arrogant or could get you in trouble for infringing on copyright laws.

Nonetheless, if your book has similarities to the Harry Potter series, readers who love that series might be delighted to find another source of fantasy. There’s a risk, however, because if you fall short when they can’t find adequate parallels, their disappointment may result in a rather brutal review.

Thus, weigh the pros and cons carefully before using this method. A safer approach is to simply refer to some of the elements your story has in common with a popular series or movie. Sometimes you get lucky and a reviewer makes the comparison for you, in which case you can quote them and let any ire at possible deficiencies fall on them.