Free Audio, Self-Pub Learns, & Character Interviews
Writing Updates
Thanks to everyone who helped with the cover release for The Somnia. I appreciate all the support for Harper and the gang.
I’ve also finished edits (unless my editor hates the edits), so it should be off to the proofreader and formatter shortly. Which means ARCs! If anyone needs a review copy, it will be on NetGalley and BookSirens as far as I’m aware, but you can also sign up directly through THIS FORM. If you’re up for being part of my release street team, please use the same form. I’m going to try and organise a Book Tour with different people posting reviews, snippets, aesthetics etc… on social media each day around release in March. I’ll provide snippets and images if people want to help but have low effort. I appreciate anyone who can spread the word!
Self-pub Learns
November has seen my first foray into the world of self-publishing. I’ve stuck with the simplest route I could see, which is Kindle only since you don’t need an ISBN. Here’s a few learns.
For kindle only, you don’t need to do a lot of fancy formatting. Actually, upload as a Word document works best. I have made myself a template.
Keep it simple. Kindle can’t handle most fonts.
If you’re doing an anthology, you can add up to 9 contributors.
AUTHORS, make sure to create your Amazon author page even if you only have 1 book. People can follow you for updates of your next release. When you have more than 1 book, people can click your name in the first one to see a list of the rest.
Picking your 3 categories is tricky. There’s lots of categories there, but they aren’t always easy to find. For example, ‘dark fantasy’ is under horror, not fantasy.
It’s easy to amend things later. You can upload new copies to correct typos, change keywords, price, etc… later, even after release. It’s pretty easy.
It will set other currencies automatically, but you can manually override.
Minimum listing price is 0.99 USD - 2.99 USD depending on file size. This won’t give more than 35% royalties.
To get 70% royalties, your book must be at least 2.99 USD.
It’s depressingly easy to see orders or lack thereof for ebooks.
Kindle Unlimited is for 90 days terms that auto-renew unless opted out of. You can’t publish ebooks elsewhere while it’s on Unlimited, so consider your market carefully.
If anyone wants to read my short story, it’s 99p or available on Kindle Unlimited. Any reads are appreciated, as are reviews on Goodreads and Amazon. This story was previously in Eerie River’s Fire Anthology, so if you read it there, please leave me a review?
Free Ways to Support
BETWEEN THE HIDING, REAWAKENING, AND THE PRICE OF ADMISSION, I’M ON 93 GOODREADS REVIEWS! Please help me get to 100 by the end of the year? Also, a friendly reminder to copy-paste your reviews to Amazon. It helps so much!
It’s also awards season, so if you’re involved in anything where you get to nominate or vote, please consider my books. 💜💜💜
Audio Fun
My main ‘appearance’ this month was on the Alternate Stories and Fake Realities podcast. Listen to us chat folklore, give an unofficial pitch to join the York tourist board, and hear expertly read excerpts from The Hiding and Reawakening.
If you don’t want to listen to the interview but want the story excerpts, you can find them on my website as standalones. Huge thanks to Emily Inkpen for her fantastically creepy reading and for bring Harper, Heresy, and Usa to life. Check out her other audio work and novels including the audio drama of The Dex Legacy.
Further down on my website you will also find an audiobook version of The Price of Admission (if we use the term loosely, I read it myself). You can listen for free. If you do enjoy it I would appreciate reviews or purchase of the ebook to help support me, but it’s not compulsory.
The Teashop Between Worlds
Business done with, let’s get to the fun stuff. Here are this month’s character interviews!
In most major cities, and a few odd but plot-integral small towns and villages, you will find the entrance to a quaint, old-fashioned tearoom. It looks exactly how you expect a quaint, old-fashioned tearoom to look, no matter what culture you're from. An elderly lady brews according to the whims of the tea. If you're very lucky, or maybe unlucky, she will read your tea leaves. Whether you understand what she tells you is entirely up to her sense of whimsy that day.
Once a month, the teashop is set up with a central area where the lady's granddaughter, Legend, interviews characters from other people's books. Sometimes she might be alone, other times with her mate, the world-famous bard William O'Shaughnessy. Occasionally, someone from outside her book, like a copper-haired firecracker or a starlight cat, might join her.
Please settle down with your favourite brew and snack, and enjoy the interviews. You get 4 this month since it’s proved quite popular.
*Interviews are not endorsements. I haven’t read all these books.
Glynn and Artura from Kalawan Rising by William Dymock-Johnson.
Akihiko and Kaito from Yamakujira by Cratastica.
CJ from Open Secrets by Jack Ori.
Rider from Bound by Heart by Midnight Rose.
I will be reopening submissions of character interviews in December, but newsletter subscribers can opt in now. If you have a book published through any route (online, self-pub, indie, trad, whatever), especially in the SFF/speculative/horror arena, then Legend would love to chat to your characters. Fill out the form here.
Reviews
Between edits for The Somnia and doing beta reading, I have to admit that I haven’t finished my current reads. I wish I could shout about the beta reads!!!
However, here’s what I’m reading and thoughts so far:
First off, this book is easily the most visually stunning book I’ve read in a long time. With three maps and illustrations at each chapter opening, it harks back to a time when fantasy was more visual. All art is done by the writer, L. N. Bayen, who is beyond doubt one of the most talented people I’ve ever met.
So far, the words are living up to the pictures. The characters are complex, the world is incredible, and the prose is a work of art in its own right.
But let me share a review from someone who has read it cover to cover at least twice. My toddler, Sprite. He’s a big fan of epic fantasy and regularly loots my bookshelf for new reads. He normally goes for ones with horses or dragons on the cover, but he liked the birds and the size of The Wingspan of Treason. He’s also into his dark fantasy and has read The Hiding and Reawakening even more times than I have.
Here’s his summary and verdict on The Wingspan of Treason.
Me: *Shows Sprite the maps.*
Sprite: Pretty. Where are the words?
Me: *Shows him the words*
Sprite: Oh good. I read. *Flicks through the pages* Once upon a time. They hab an abenture. The end. Gooooooood book! I read again.
His mom is a slower reader, but when I’m done I will shout about this book some more!
Add The Wingspan of Treason on Goodreads or visit L. N. Bayan’s website for more.
You can also check out the awesome trailer.
Ebook preorders are live on Amazon but there will be physical copies as well, so keep an eye out for a full universal link coming soon.
Great tips, Thea! I might need to know these things at some point. You’ve been really busy! Also, please thank Sprite for their review. I’m about halfway through The Wingspan of Treason and it’s so good!