Holiday Sale!

HOLIDAY SALE!

If you have a reader in your life that would love the DYING THOUGHTS series, now is the time to buy them their very own copy! From DECEMBER 2ND to DECEMBER 16TH, there will be a sale running on all three DYING THOUGHTS books. The first two have 50% OFF coupons for Smashwords and the third will be FREE on Amazon from December 9th to December 13th! Want to grab a piece of the action? Here's what you need to do!

For DYING THOUGHTS - FIRST TOUCH - you can use the coupon code: KN67Q on the Smashwords checkout and you will receive 50% OFF the purchase price. This will only work directly through Smashwords and is only available until DECEMBER 16TH 2013!

For DYING THOUGHTS - SECOND SIGHT - you can use the coupon code: TG29H on the Smashwords checkout and you will receive 50% OFF the purchase price. This will only work directly through Smashwords and is only valid until DECEMBER 16TH 2013!

For DYING THOUGHTS - THIRD WISH - you can get a FREE copy from Amazon from MONDAY December 9th to FRIDAY December 13th. This book is only available on Amazon across all their sites.

Enjoy the sale and grab them while you can!

Editing, Covers and Updates

EDITING, COVERS AND UPDATES

I just thought I would do a quick general update to let all my readers know what's going on with everything at Joey Paul Online.

DYING THOUGHTS - THIRD WISH is due for release on JULY 8TH 2013 on Amazon Kindle. It is in the final editing stages right now and that's the part that I hate most! But do not fear, I will force my way through it and get it done in time. The new cover art is also in the works and will hopefully be ready for an unveiling sometime in late June. Both my editor and graphic artist are working very hard, as am I, to get this book out on time. 

Following the release of the third DYING THOUGHTS book, LYNNE & HOPE will soon be available on Smashwords and all other good e-book retailers. It will also be getting a cover make over, but that won't happen immediately. As always, follow me here or on Facebook to get the news first!

Along with new cover art for DYING THOUGHTS - THIRD WISH & LYNNE & HOPE, my graphic artist is working on new cover art for BLACKOUT, DYING THOUGHTS - FIRST TOUCH, DYING THOUGHTS - SECOND SIGHT & THE FRIENDSHIP TRIANGLE. Keep checking back for updates!

I am pleased to say that I finished both book nine and book ten last month and am now working on both book eleven and book twelve. Keep checking back to be among the first to get the information on those! 

As always, thank you for reading and be sure to follow Joey on Facebook or here on this blog. You can subscribe to updates by email in the sidebar.

Writing Characters - Tara & Kaolin

Writing Characters - Tara & Kaolin

When you're writing a series, one of the important things is that you actually *like* the characters. Luckily, when I started the DYING THOUGHTS series and made Tara the main character, I fell in love with her pretty much straight away. So, here's a piece that discusses the two main people in that series of books.

TARA

I named Tara after my pet rat - yup, I had pet rats. I had called one Tally (bet you can guess why!) and it seemed fitting to name my next character after my two creatures. As I've said in past interviews, I got the idea for the DYING THOUGHTS series when I was walking round ASDA at some stupid time in the morning because I couldn't sleep. I had wanted to write a series because of my disappointment at having to say goodbye to Tally and know that I would probably never get to write about her again. So, the idea was born and along with that the character.

Tara strikes me as the typical teenager who has a famous father. She lost her mother at a young age and her dad gave up his career in the music industry to make sure that Tara was well looked after and loved. She, however, may have disagreed with the way he did it. Like telling her that her mother had died from a battle with cancer. The premise of the books is simple, Tara has a "gift". She inherited from her mother and was unaware of that for the majority of the first book. She never knew where the gift had come from and why, when she touched objects that belonged to someone who had died, she would have a vision of their last moments on earth.

For the majority of the first book, Tara had no idea about the history of her gift and it was more of an annoyance for her. Writing her was always a joy because when I thought I had pushed her to her limits, she would turn around and surprise me. She had been the centre of attention for a while in her early school years when her dad was still famous and they rubbed shoulders with other families. After her mother's death and her dad's retirement, that stopped and Tara became the typical loner. She was the opposite of Tally, she didn't care (and I'm not just saying that, she really did NOT care) and then along came Kaolin.

Once she realised that she could have a friend who was not as freaked out by who her father was, basically someone who did NOT care that her father had been famous, she found a kindred spirit. Don't think they were alike in any way though. Kaolin and Tara were as different as chalk and cheese. They made it work though.

I've recently finished the fifth book in the DYING THOUGHTS series and I have to say that Tara can still surprise me. As I want her to go one way, she'll stomp her foot down and say "nope, not gonna happen." Other times I think of her not doing something and she's all for it. You have to learn as a writer that when you mould and create these characters, they do become life like. They are not real in the literal sense, but they are real to us. There have been times in the five books where I have hated what I am putting Tara through, have shed tears at her hurt. I think that just makes her feel more real.

KAOLIN

Kaolin was always planned to be an integral part of the DYING THOUGHTS series. She was always going to be Tara's friend. I didn't know how close they would become because sometimes if you force it, make the friendship too close then it'll seem fake and wrong. Kaolin had her own tortured past and she herself goes through a lot in the books. She's also the voice of reason to Tara's insane ideas and theories.

When I first introduced them to each other, I wasn't sure if it would work out. There were times when I thought that maybe Tara would push it too far and that would be the end of their friendship. However, if nothing else, they have become closer as I write each book. As I said, they are VERY different, but it works for them. Kaolin is a "peek" as Tara says. Peek being someone who is both popular and a geek. Kaolin is someone that the popular kids want to get into their circle and wonder why she bothers with Tara. I'll say this for her, no matter how much Tara may piss her off at times she is a very loyal friend.

The good thing about their friendship is that they both know when to push and when to back away. They go through good times and bad together and I like to think that even when I close the books and write the ending to the whole series that years from now, they will still be as close as they are now. Secondary school (high school to those from the US) is a hard thing to go through on your own, especially when you're like Tara who seems to attract trouble like it's going out of style and having someone like Kaolin around who can ground you and get you to count to ten before lashing out is a must for everyone who has to go through that experience.

She seems to be able to seek out the truth behind Tara's own worries and even now, as I write book six in the series, I can't see them parting ways. I have a friend like that myself who has been through thick and thin with me, good and bad and we're still the best of friends. I like to think that Tara and Kaolin have that going on too.

You can get the first and second DYING THOUGHTS books on Amazon Kindle as well as many other e-book retailers. The third is due out on July 8th 2013. Follow Joey Paul on Facebook or her on this blog for updates about her books and other ventures.

Writing Characters - Tally & Lisa

Writing Characters - Tally & Lisa

I decided that to continue the writing pieces I had been doing that the next topic of conversation - I see these as me communicating about my process - was to talk about what the inspiration was behind certain characters and how it felt writing them and what worked for me etc. So, for the first one, I'll be focusing on the BLACKOUT main characters - Tally & Lisa.

TALLY

I think of Tally as the first main character that I actually wrote and created, as you'll find out she wasn't technically my first character, but I still think of her like that. The inspiration behind Tally was the fact that I liked the name and thought it would suit what I was hoping to do with the character. Those of you who have read BLACKOUT, you'll know it's about Tally's life and the struggle to clear her name. I wanted to present her as someone everyone didn't like. The idea was that people would read the first few chapters and think "spoilt brat, ugh, hate her!" and thankfully, a lot of people did. The problem was making sure that people wanted to know enough about her to keep reading after she woke up and discovered her life was a dream.

Tally was your everyday teenager who was desperate to fit in and obviously didn't for whatever reason. I never really gave a reason as to why she didn't fit in. She had the ability to be one of the "in crowd", but she never quite made it. She tried to use other characters, like Lisa for example, to bring herself up to the level of the people she desperately wanted to pay attention to her.

Tally's story was one that had been inside my head for many years. I'd wanted to write it and wanted to bring it to life for a long time until that day when I was 19 and put pen to paper (I didn't type everything in the beginning) and I have to say I'm really pleased with what I ended up with. She seemed to take on her own role in my head, and sometimes I would have plans for her and then, she'd take me in a different direction. Characters do that sometimes, as other writers will attest to.

When Tally finally woke up and smelt the coffee so to speak and became friends with the most unlikely person, Lisa, I realised that it hadn't been planned like that and she'd shown me a side of herself that I hadn't seen. That is what I love about creating characters because they do that a lot. They take you places and they react in a way and suddenly you, their creator, look at them and think, "Huh, didn't see that coming!"

In the end, Tally did the right thing and although I like to think it's mostly my writing that led her to that conclusion, I know that some of it was her own doing.

LISA

Lisa was never meant to be a main character. She was going to be the character that everyone picked on, but was never befriended. I found myself putting her with Tally more and more, and then the opportunity arose for me to explain and explore more of her depth and I liked what I saw.

Every time I would write her and Tally together, I saw something that could be, as Tally put it "a beautiful friendship". I have never planned to give Lisa, Brittle Asthma, as I've said in past interviews, it's a disease close to my heart as I actually have a form of the disease. It made writing her all the more enjoyable. I was able to work out some of my own thoughts regarding my diagnosis and it of course helped with the details towards the end of the book.

I thought long and hard about how I wanted Tally to end up, where I wanted her to be. Lisa, on the other hand, was supposed to be a throwaway character and look how she ended up? It's amazing what we create when we put our minds to it and allow them a little freedom. Lisa was one of those moments.

Without discussing the ending (I don't want to spoil anyone who may not have read it) I agonised over what to do with Lisa, and I think I reached a good middle ground. It could have been worse, a lot worse and it could have been better. I wanted to give Tally the wake up call she needed and through Lisa I was able to do that.

Together, they make a great pair. They truly are very good friends and although their story has finished (except for that tiny cameo in a later book) I like to think that they would have stayed friends long after school had finished. It was very hard leaving BLACKOUT once it was finished. I had, as mentioned previously, wanted so desperately to do a sequel, but alas, it was never meant to be.

You can get BLACKOUT on Amazon Kindle as well as many other e-book retailers. Follow Joey Paul on Facebook or her on this blog for updates about her books and other ventures.

Tracking Sales - The After Process

It's something some writers do, in fact I'd go as far to say as a lot of writers do it. Both those who are self-published and those who went the more conventional route. You want to know how your book is doing, you want to know if it's selling and if it is, how many. The trick is to not fall into the trap of checking your sales every few minutes. Something those who are self-published have the ability to do.

As someone who has been there and done the refreshing and checking, it's hard to break the habit. Of course it's best that you never start in the first place but I think that's a rather unreal demand. If you're a writer, and you've published in some way, you're going to want to know that people are actually reading your works. And checking every few days for sales and possibly your rank on Amazon or other places is okay, it's when it starts to affect the work you're doing or your life that it becomes a problem.

So, you've decided that you're going to write a book and you get it published by some means or another. You then decide that you kinda like this writing stuff and so you'll write another. However, you want to be sure that your audience is captivated with your new work. For those of us who have decided to go the self-publishing route (for one reason or another) the big problem with tracking sales religiously is that unless you've done some self-promoting (a piece about this can be found here) then people aren't necessarily going to *know* that you even have a book out. After Blackout was first released as an e-book, I didn't do much promoting. People knew it was there, but they were usually my friends or family and there are only so many sales that are going to come from that. It wasn't until my third and fourth books were released that I realised I had to do some serious self-promotion. I'll admit it, I was an amateur and made a mistake.

Once I got the self-promotion started, it became a thing where I would check every morning to see if there were sales. In the beginning there weren't many, or any really. Then I did a promotion and my sales went through the roof (for me at least, maybe not for someone like Harlan Coben or Sue Grafton.) Suddenly I was seeing sales double by the minute and I realised that I needed to carry on with the promotion, which I did. However, I then fell into the trap of putting too much stock into how many sales I made that day.

As with all things, the huge surge in sales trickled down, people knew I was there but until I released book five and got some reviews that would convince others to try me out (I was, after all a very new writer on the scene) I wasn't going to be able to do anything myself. I started to think that it wasn't worth finishing the books I was working on, I got too fixated on sales rather than doing the thing I loved - writing. And there's the problem. If you're a writer, an author or whatever you want to call yourself, then it's obvious that you probably don't do it for the money, but because you like to create from nothing a story about characters you thought up. If tracking your sales becomes something you base your day's work on, you can lose that love of your work. And nobody should have to do a job that isn't fun. They do because the world works like that, but they shouldn't have to.

Anyway, I digress. Tracking sales is something you should check because you want to know that your book(s) are selling, but alongside that you should be tracking reviews, doing self promotion, interviews and interaction with the audience for your genre. It shouldn't control everything you do, it should just be something that is part of the job. Something that you do, but that doesn't have an effect on your general overview of your work. Some great books don't make that many sales, and others make so many you wonder how people can read them. It's all down to the audience.

So, by all means track your sales and your rank on stores and websites, but remember that writing is a joy and don't make it something that takes away part of that joy. Now I have to go read my piece on Distractions to remind myself that I do actually have a job to do :D

Now available on Amazon Canada, Japan and Brazil!

 

 

 

JOEY PAUL'S BOOKS NOW AVAILABLE ON AMAZON CANADA, JAPAN & BRAZIL!

Just a quick update to let you know that all five of Joey Paul's books are now available on Amazon CANADA, JAPAN & BRAZIL!

Grab a copy for your collection now!

Promotion Ends and Lynne & Hope

PROMOTION ENDS

The promotion that had copies of both "BLACKOUT" and "DYING THOUGHTS - SECOND SIGHT" has come to an end. They are both still available exclusively from Amazon on Kindle, but should be available from the iBookStore in the next few months, this will allow people without a Kindle to get their hands on Joey Paul's first four books. Her fifth, "LYNNE & HOPE" will follow in about seven to eight months. If you can't wait until then, Kindle apps are available for free from Amazon and work on most smart phones, as well as on computers.

LYNNE & HOPE RELEASED

The release of "LYNNE & HOPE" went well, with people buying copies from all branches of the Amazon Kindle stores. Joey would like to thank everyone who brought themselves a copy this week, and to those who also took advantage of the free promotion of two of her other books. Keep a look out for new front cover designs for "LYNNE & HOPE" as well as some of her other books, including, "DYING THOUGHTS - FIRST TOUCH", "DYING THOUGHTS - SECOND SIGHT" and "THE FRIENDSHIP TRIANGLE". These will be posted on this website first, so remember to follow this blog for the first peak at her new cover art! 

You can also sign up for email updates using the widget on the right of this post. Thank you for your ongoing support.