If you’ve got em, now’s the time to ask!

IP asks: So please give me an idea when to expect Wilhelm’s and Deimos’s books so I know when I’ll get my next fix.

LOL! In Captivated you get a glimpse of Wilhelm the man aside from the job he holds. I’d very much like to write his story and Deimos’ book as well. Right now I’m committed to contemporaries for Heat, but once those are done, I’ll definitely be submitting some more futuristics because I love writing them. I’m not sure what Deimos’ future holds just yet, but I do know who Wil’s HEA will be.

Marc asks: I seem to see a lot of talk lately about author/fan interaction and author promotion. What do you think is the best way to get your name and product out there to not only your existing fans but also to generate new fans?

This is all a toss out some stuff to see what sticks sort of process. For instance, things I think don’t work at all (banner ads at smaller sites) are things other authors swear by. It’s going to be unique to the author in some cases so take whatever I saw with a grain because there’s really no one true way here.

For me, there’s no better selling point than your work. I give away free books. A lot. Yes, postage on paper books seems spendy, but in the end, it’s perfect promotion and you’ve given readers the best indication of how you write. And then those readers, if they like you, talk about you and your book to other people who share their reading preferences. And so on and so forth. I do contests at Twitter, facebook and my blog as well as via guest blogs and review sites. I always make my contests open to international readers. Some authors don’t and that’s going to be up to you. IMO, if my readers can spend all that money to buy my books in Australia or Italy or wherever, I can open my contests to international readers. Other authors find the cost more than they can bear. It’s going to have to be something you decide on your own.

On the topic of work speaking for you – I like to post snippets of my WIP as I go. Just a few sentences. Intro readers to your characters and your voice with blogs about it, or guest posts at other people’s blogs/sites.

In general, book signings are not events I really think of as gaining new readers, but a group signing here and there is fun. It gets you in contact with bookstore folks (always good to know your local bookstore manager and workers!). Local events like this – if you are part of a writing group like SFWA or RWA, etc, there are often local events they do. Attend them. Get to know your fellow authors in the area as well as the readers 🙂 (and by the way authors are big readers too)

I love getting to chat with readers so social networking is something I like. Twitter for the most part, but to a certain extent facebook as well. I don’t advise doing it if you hate it, or if you misuse it.

For instance: “buy my book, it’s awesome” as a reply to someone you don’t know, or not as a teasing joke is not an effective use of social media. It’s spam. And it does not work. Social media has “social” in the title – so get on there and be social. TALK to readers, listen to them – and talk about things other than your book. Talk about other books you like (this is also a great way to find new authors and books, my poor bookshelf and kindle groan under the weight of all the books I discover via twitter friends). Let people get to know you as a person. Your blog or website is the place for buy my book talk. I see writers at twitter insert their book into every situation – you’ll be talking a movie you saw, or a tv show and someone you’ve never met before will tweet you something like, “oh that reminds me of my book X!” No.

Spam is ineffective. It’s worse actually, it creates ill will. No one can afford ill will for something so unnecessary. Don’t send emails to people just because you have their email address. Don’t email spam them at goodreads, or add them to your newsletter list without their permission. And don’t just send them tweets about your book. Promotion is possible at Twitter and Facebook, just keep the info on your own page/in your own tweet stream and use whatever medium the way it’s supposed to be used (as in if all you ever tweet is buy my book, what’s the point of following you?)

Anyway, hope this helps!

Danielle asks: will the extra content in the print version of Once and Again be available digitally?

Yes it will. It’ll come out on the same day the print release does, September 4 and be available free in digital formats as well as in the trade paperback 🙂

Oriela asks: Do ever do international appearances? Would ever consider coming to Toronto, Ontario?

I’d love to! It’s a manner of being invited and also of scheduling around the kids’ school and all that stuff 🙂

Liz asks: Who came up with Mudbay, Erin or Adrian. Or did you make that one up? Also, what genre are they. I always got the impression they were indie rockers?

I made it up. As Erin is the older of the siblings it’s probably something she came up with. Mud May is an actual place near where I went to college. Plenty of grunge, LOL. As for their genre, yes, alt rockers.

Dee asks: Raven is an interesting, complex character. I absolutely love her in Laid Bare. Maybe I am reading too much into stuff, but is she bisexual? If yes, have you decided on what gender her mate is going to be in her book. Feel free not to answer if it gives plot points away.

Is her character based on anyone?

She’d most likely say she doesn’t believe in labels for what she feels. But yes, she is. Yes, I know who her HEA will be (and I’m going to keep it to myself for a while 😉

Her character isn’t really based on anyone, she’s just a character I LOVE to write. She’s one of those characters who really comes alive for me when I write her. She’s got so much beneath the surface and I’m simultaneously excited and terrified to write it!

Leslie asks: Is there any chance that the novella with Erin and Todd and Ben could come out a wee bit earlier?

LOL! It just got moved to October from September so it’s really about them finding the right spot in their schedule around my other releases and what they’ve got up already. Plus I’m only just finished with it so it needs to be edited and all that stuff.

Marc asks: When you are not busy writing for us to enjoy what do you read? Do you read what you write or something totally unrelated to get a break?

I happen to think Stephen King is right when he says a writer needs to read to be a good writer. I read across a lot of genres, though I try not to read whatever I’m writing at any given time. I was recently on a horror kick, finished Shirley Jackson’s Haunting of Hill House and a re-read of The Stand and The Shining. Read JD Robb’s Celebrity in Death in a day. Went on a re-read binge of the last several Lara Adrian books too. I love science fiction, futuristics (romance and non), urban fantasy, paranormal romance, historical novels and romance, mysteries and horror.

Leslie asks: (and thank you – it’s awesome for me to get to do this as well) Is the Brown’s spinoff going to novel length books or anthology? Would you ever consider writing about the next generation of the Browns/Keenans/Copelands?

The first one, Sway, is category length, but the rest will be novel length. As for the next generation? Who knows? Maybe in several years I can think about them being adults, but for right now, Rennie, Alexander, etc are all still young to me 😉