Giving away an Amazon Gift card!

So in my quest to find some awesome readers, I am trying to spread the word! If you go to my Author Facebook page and give it a like, you get put in a drawing for a chance at an Amazon gift card.
If you share it with other readers, you get another chance!
Easy!!

https://www.facebook.com/rachaelarawlings/

Some books are a must read!!

Everyone has their favorite authors, and I have had many over the years. Starting with the Trixie Belden books back in elementary school (yes, I am dating myself) up through the current selections from Dean Koontz and Jennifer McMahon, I have enjoyed reading as my primary form of entertainment. In my writing, I have gone through stages as well, devouring mysteries, science/fiction fantasy, romance, horror, and even jumped on the Twilight bandwagon for a bit! However, there are a few authors that have influenced my writing, especially for my most recent Raven Mysteries. They have spurred me in the idea of finding some familiar stories and well-loved characters and turning them on their ear!

I stumbled over the very talented Stacey Rourke when prowling for a new book to read. I love stories of the headless horseman, and a good spooky read is always fun for me. I found the Legends Saga with the first book, Crane. It was wonderful, and I quickly devoured that one, and subsequently the others in the set. I continue to read her books, eagerly waiting for the next release. I liked that she was able to take a great old classic and make it new and fresh.

To check out her books, check out the Amazon link!

https://www.amazon.com/Crane-Legends-Saga-Book-1-ebook/

Or at: www.staceyrourke.com

The other author I have enjoyed reading these last several months is A. G. Howard. Her tale of a twisted Alice in Wonderland kept me looking for the next book in the series. I actually listened to the audiobook of the first novel, Splintered, the first in the Splintered series, and then had to seek out the rest. In her books, she takes the familiar characters and throws them into our reality before pulling us, the readers, into her own form of wonderland.

https://www.amazon.com/Splintered-Book-One-ebook/

Or at: https://authoraghoward.blogspot.com/

My own book, Midnight Dreary, originated through an interest in the works of Edgar Allen Poe. (In elementary school, I was learning to recite The Raven for fun). I chose some of the creepy aspects of his work, adding the characters of the raven and the names of some of my other personalities. I wanted to set the scene in an all American town, and then throw the town into crisis. My secondary character has traits that reflect a Sherlock Holmes type of investigation and intuitiveness. I wanted to contrast the two main characters to add a little tension, and yes, eventual romantic interest.

My release is tomorrow!

https://www.amazon.com/Midnight-Dreary-Mystery-Rachael-Rawlings-ebook/

Or at: https://www.rachaelrawlingsauthor.com/

I encourage you to put these books on your list of 'to be reads'! You won't regret it (although you'll find it hard to put these books down!)

That book! Part 4

I know what you’re thinking. She has to be done, right?

Nope. The next part in my spare time is going back to writing the second book. I want the release to be close to the first, maybe even the preorder to start with the release of the first. That means I need to write fast.

And….I need another cover. I have chosen my title: Some Late Visitor. I am anxious to get with my cover designer to choose the image. I hope to again use the raven as part of my design.

I already have an idea for my third novel in the series, so I also will start taking notes and maybe write out the first scenes. I want the relationship to move along as well, so I will have to consider what situations to put my characters in to force them to interact on a more personal level.

And then I get to wait a little more.

But, check out the process so far!!
Here's the link for the first book: https://www.amazon.com/Midnight-Dreary-Mystery-Rachael-Rawlings-ebook/dp/B079NTWX2S/ref=sr_1_3?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1518369720&sr=1-3&keywords=rachael+rawlings

still publishing that book, part 3

You thought we were done, right? Wrong!

So now I have my website up to date. http://rachaelrawlings.wixsite.com/rachael-rawlings

I have added the preorder, the lovely cover, and the blurb. I have a means to sign up for the newsletter to keep my readers updated too.

Newsletter, you say? You didn’t know I had that too!?

Many authors use a newsletter to send out chances to win books, to keep readers informed, to share favorite authors, and to ask opinions about future work. I’ve got some awesome people on my newsletter, and always enjoy hearing from my readers. So naturally, I want to give my newsletter folks the good news about my newest publication. Some have helped me with the writing and plotting along the way. Others will write reviews for me, which is awesome!

Reviews, you say?

Here’s the honest truth. Amazon loves reviews. We authors like them, but Amazon loves them. And if we get enough reviews, then Amazon will actually boost our books, showing it to new audiences, finding us new readers! Great, right? So here’s a favor I’ll ask. If you have read a book, any book, that you like, write a quick review on Amazon. It doesn’t have to be more than one line, but it will make the author super happy!!

And now that I have my newsletter updated, I can go back to writing, right?

Um, no. I still have to put some new updates on my author Facebook page, tweet a little (which I am terrible at) maybe do an Instagram, and Pinterest. I don’t do these a lot, but I want to show off my cover, so I’ll add that on my to-do list.

And then I wait a little more.

Publishing my novel, Part 2

My novel, Midnight Dreary: A Raven Mystery, is now available for pre-order, but it’s still going through growing pains. While I have the cover designed, I need to let my cover designer know how many pages it will be to size it for print. I must wait for the formatting in order to give her those numbers. Much of publishing is a waiting game at times, but my folks are all great to work with!

While I am working on the final files, I also needed to write out my dedication, acknowledgements, and biographical information. Those were easy. I have to thank the people who helped bring the book into reality and helped me refine and correct it. My dedication was a little more personal. I recently lost my father-in-law, a wonderful man who was an important influence in our lives. I dedicated the book to him. I will always miss him.

Then came the dreaded blurb. Ask any author, and their most dreaded task is writing a blurb. You want to give the reader enough to make them intrigued by the book, but not enough to give away the mystery of it. You want to bring them into the story. You want them to read your book. It is a surprisingly tiring task.

Once my draft for my blurb was written, I posted it to an author Facebook group for feedback. This is something I have learned as I go along. Never write a blurb without help. It will be terrible.

This too needs to be sent to my wonderful cover artist to add to the back of the cover. It also needs to go up on Amazon for my pre-order. And then I’ll need to update my website too. Sigh.

Process of publishing a novel

I have done both the small press publishing and self-publishing, and plan to continue to do this. In my small press, I have some wonderful fellow authors that provide ideas, support, and commiseration as we follow our paths to becoming better writers.

But this time, I have embarked on my second self-published novel. I began writing the manuscript almost a year ago. I had already decided the main characters and how I wanted their relationship to develop. Yes, the book is a mystery, but I am just as interested in building a relationship between two very diverse characters.

I chose a small-town rebel girl, one with tattoos and an attitude, but an insatiable curiosity, and a soft heart beneath the bravado. For her partner, I chose an intriguing mystery man, wealthy and very intelligent, but socially odd. A modern-day Sherlock Holmes with a lack of social graces. From this brief outline, the characters began to grow on their own, revealing pasts that I hadn’t anticipated, skills I hadn’t chosen, and characteristics I hadn’t planned (ask any author, the characters have a way with developing on their own).

Once the main mystery was solved, and my characters were on their way to developing a reluctant respect, and dare I say affection, for each other, I had to write a second. I originally planned for a trilogy, but I think the story will have to lead me. If I need more books to complete the relationship arc, then more books will come!

After rereading and editing my finished manuscript, I also ran it through a magic program called “ProWritingAid”. It was my first step in editing. Once I had reviewed and completed the program, I printed off the document and sent it to some beta readers.

At the same time, I started looking for a cover. I had someone on Fivver I really liked who had done other covers for me (see the one for Talitha and Speak to Me, as well as the ebook Spirit Passing). While the cover artist did her magic, I started on the second book in the series, trying to crank out 1000 words a day. As of this writing, I am almost finished with the rough draft for that one!

Then it was finding a title. I knew early on that my main character, Lenore, would be a Poe fan. She has a raven named Edgar. It works for me! So I chose Midnight Dreary for my title and sent that on to the cover artist. I then went through my favorite Poe Poem and chose a few other lines that might suit the next in the series.

My edits returned to me, and I got to work reworking and answering questions that my readers presented. Once those were done, off to the formatters!

With the bulk of the work done, I am ready to start the pre-orders! The final cover, manuscript, and formatting will be complete by the release date, February 24^th.

I’ll get back to you soon with an update!!

Parrots as pets

So I've been showing off my planners in the last couple posts, but this time I'm showing off my buddy, Isaac. As the winter season is winding down, I've been stuck inside for an extended period of time, and been amazed at some of the things that I hear Isaac say. As soon as I open the door, I have heard him call for the dog, Danbury, and I swear he is throwing his voice! It sounds like he's calling outside.  He also listens in on our conversations. I call to my boys upstairs and I hear him say "what?" That's usually just before the boys respond in exactly the same voice! Then he imitates the ringing for my phone. He has exactly the same tone as my notification and my ringer. He even saves old sounds and reuses them to greet me when I come in the room.

I know that Isaac knows us. He greets us each differently. He talks more in front of my kids than me, but what I do hear always amazes me. So yes, he's a really cool companion.