The Great Book Cover Debate

Ask any book marketing expert what the key to good book sales is and they will tell you it’s having an eye catching cover. Of course, it goes without saying that the first thing you need is to have a well written book. The cover and the title are what draw potential readers to your book so both had better be top notch.

Last week, I happened on a discussion amongst authors on Twitter. Many of them were in an uproar over the fact that the cover of a fellow author’s upcoming book was virtually identical to that of an author whose book was already published. These people were blaming the second author for “ripping off” the first author, and it got me to thinking.

Cover art has changed a lot since I picked up my first book back in the 80’s. For a long time, book covers were hand drawn, which meant the chances of those covers being copied were pretty slim. From there, covers progressed to photographs of live models. Again, it was unlikely these photos would be duplicated as the photographers owned the copyrights to the photos and the publishers or authors usually handpicked the models.

In the last several years, there’s been a new trend in cover art, and it’s my opinion this is what’s causing the problem with multiple titles having the same cover. There are a number of websites that anyone can join that contain stock photos. As a member of these sites, you are entitled to download and license a specific number of photos each month to use any way you choose.

I’ve belonged to one of these sites for nearly two years. My cover artist uses photos I choose from the site to create my book covers. In an effort to minimize duplication, I try to take different photos and have him layer them together which also allows for more originality in the cover. 

I can always tell when my peers belong to the same website when I see photos I think of as mine being used by other authors. The problem is the photos aren’t mine. These websites don’t remove a photo once an author has licensed it. The same photo can be licensed as many times as the website wants by as many people as they want to license it to. With that policy in play, you can see where it’s difficult to have a unique cover for your book.

Why don’t authors and publishers hire photographers or artists to create their cover images? Simple, it all comes down to money. It costs me $120 a year to be a member of the stock photo website and I can license and download up to 10 photos per month. What I don’t use rolls over to the next month, but I can always pay an additional $1 per photo if I happen to need more pictures than my download amount allows.

While I would love, and I mean love, to hire models to pose for pictures I can use on my book covers, I am an independent author. Right now, I don’t make enough to afford that kind of luxury and neither do many of my peers. We make do with what we have. So, please, keep that in mind the next time you want to bash an author because you think she “stole” someone else’s cover. 

Kindle Worlds Here I Come

By now, most of you have already heard about the next book I have coming out.  For the last couple of months, I’d been hinting about something special coming up that I couldn’t reveal until I got the green light.

On 9/9/16, I made the announcement on my Facebook author page. My next book, Going for Wilder, is a Kindle World novella, and I can’t tell you how excited I am.

For those of you that don’t know, Kindle Worlds are defined as follows by Amazon: Kindle Worlds is a publication platform where you choose a licensed World, read the Content Guidelines for that World, write your story, upload that story, create a cover, and click through a publishing agreement with Amazon Publishing. Once published, every Kindle Worlds story will be featured on Amazon.com, as well as on Kindle devices and apps. 

Most authors create their own worlds, and the stories published in that world are often written by them. Some authors have been generous enough to open their worlds to other authors. In doing so, the authors that created that world allow their peers to write stories using their settings and even allow their characters to make an appearance in the guest author’s story.  I’m writing in one such world.

Going for Wilder is part of the Sapphire Falls Kindle World which was created by N.Y. Times, USA Today and Amazon best-selling author, Erin Nicholas. It features a group of characters born and raised in the small town of Sapphire Falls, Nebraska. There are a few transplants, but they’re welcomed to the fold with open arms. Erin’s contemporary, erotic romance novels were well written and such a big hit with fans that she thought it might be fun to bring other authors into the mix. I was one of the lucky authors she asked to participate.

I can’t tell you how honored I am. When Erin first reached out to me, I was so excited by the invitation I scared my husband with the loud squeal I let out. Even though I didn’t hesitate to say yes, I will admit that I have some reservations. I consider myself a decent writer, but I don’t know that I’m in Erin’s league. There’s a reason she has such a loyal and large fan base. Not only am I afraid of letting her down, but I fear disappointing her fans.

Despite my reservations, I’m going for it. I’m throwing my hat in the ring with a group of immensely talented authors. On October 18, 2016, my Sapphire Falls Kindle World novella, Going for Wilder, will appear alongside everyone else’s, and I can’t wait.

By the way, if you haven’t read an Erin Nicholas novel, and you like your contemporary romance with a lot of heat, then you don’t know what you're missing. You need to start reading Erin’s books today.

Where Have I Been?

You may have noticed that it’s been a while since I posted a new blog. You may also have noticed that my Twitter and Instagram accounts have been silent while my Facebook posts have been few and far between. If you have, I’m sure you’re wondering where I am.

Some of you already know the answer to that question.

Recently, I was diagnosed with having sludge in my gall bladder. Until I received the diagnosis, I’d never heard of such a thing, but it’s real. There is no treatment beyond having surgery to remove the gall bladder. Either that or live with the constant front to back pain and the inability to eat the foods I love.

I opted for surgery and was a little surprised when I learned I’d need two weeks to recover. The few people I know who have had their gall bladders removed told me they bounced back in a week. I expected to do the same. I honestly thought I’d spend the first few days feeling bad because of the surgery and then I’d get better each day. I expected that by week two, I’d be bored and would either be begging to go back to work or would spend the rest of my time off working on my second book in the Kinkaid Brothers trilogy.

I did spend a few days after surgery feeling bad, but the rest was far from what was expected. When my appetite returned, it was a fraction of what it was before. I suppose that’s lucky for me considering that eating was a risk. There were some days I would eat and within an hour I would be doubled over with stomach cramps and then become violently ill. Some days, I was just sick all day. In the two weeks since the surgery, I’ve had only one or two days that I did not get sick after eating one of my meals. Considering I’ve been eating a very bland, low fat diet, this is pretty disappointing.

Speed bumps in my recovery aside, I can say I have been getting better every day.  At least I’m getting hungry now. That didn’t happen for a few days. And I am obviously out of bed and have been in front of my computer a few times. I’ve even made it back to my regular day job.

I was down, but I’m never out. My social media accounts will be coming back to life with exciting news of my writing and announcements of fun giveaways among other things. Be sure you stay tuned!

Wondering Where I Went?

I’m sure you’ve noticed by now that I have been absent from social media these last two weeks. At least, I hope you’ve noticed! I wish I could say that I have been holed up in my office working on the next great literary masterpiece that’s sure to be a bestseller and win me lots of awards. Hey, if I’m going to dream, it might as well be a big one.

The sad truth is that I’ve been sick. In fact, I have been so sick that I didn’t even turn on my computer in almost two weeks.

When I first started feeling ill, I thought maybe I was just working too much and my body was rebelling. You know, one of those burning the candle at both ends things that finally catch up to you. When I didn’t get better after a couple of days of rest, I thought maybe it was a virus so I stayed in bed, feeling miserable and whining.

Then the pain started. I’ve had some upper right quadrant abdominal pain for years. It comes and goes in its intensity, but it’s always there; so much so that I’ve learned to live with it. I’ve never worried about it since my annual physical always nets me a clean bill of health. The problem with the pain this time was that it was worse than I was used to living with and it just would not go away. To appease my husband, I finally dragged myself to the doctor.

It turns out that I had an infection, which I was given an antibiotic for. To be on the safe side, my doctor sent me for an ultrasound. Imagine my surprise when the results came back showing a problem with my gall bladder. Apparently, it has a buildup of sludge. I didn’t even know such a thing was possible. Naturally, when I was feeling a little better, I took to the internet to get a better understanding. I won’t bore you with the details.

I have been referred to see a surgeon and am awaiting that appointment. In the meantime, I’m feeling almost like myself again. My pain is back to what I’m used to, meaning it’s something I can manage and still function with my day to day activities.

Not being well enough to write for nearly two weeks was a writer’s equivalent of being tortured. Now that I’m feeling more like myself, it’s time to get back to doing what I love; writing, writing and more writing!

No Excuse for Plagiarism

This week, there has been quite the buzz surrounding a speech given by Melania Trump, wife of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump. It seems that Mrs. Trump’s speech had passages that were identical to those that appeared in a speech given by First Lady, Michelle Obama, in a speech she made several years ago.

My first thought when I heard that Mrs. Trump was accused of plagiarizing Mrs. Obama is that she didn’t do it. Not because I don’t think the speeches were virtually identical in some places but because I don’t think either woman actually wrote the speeches they gave. It’s common knowledge that political candidates employ speech writers. If anyone committed plagiarism, it was the speech writer. Sure enough, I just finished reading the latest story on this scandal in which Mrs. Trump’s speech writer admits that she used portions of Mrs. Obama’s speech when drafting Mrs. Trump’s speech, but guess what? It was an honest mistake and she feels terrible.

The cynic in me is calling BS on this so-called honest mistake that speech writer Meredith McIver admits to committing. According to Ms. McIver, she was discussing the speech with Mrs. Trump and soliciting her opinion on people she admired. Mrs. Trump claimed to have great admiration for Mrs. Obama and to have been moved by her now-plagiarized speech. In her discussion of said speech, Ms. McIver admits to writing down passages of it and referring to those when she later drafted the speech for Mrs. Trump.

So, the speech writer went so far as to ask Mrs. Trump what public speakers she admired and to ask for quotes from them. Ms. McIver made a note of these quotes but couldn’t be bothered to make one pesky addition as to their original source. Then she “forgot” where these quotes came from when she drafted the speech for Mrs. Trump?

It all sounds pretty fishy to me, but I understand the need for the cover story. When we screw up, especially in such a public way, it’s human nature to look for a scapegoat so that we can make ourselves look better.

The reason I’m on such a tear about this is because I’ve been a victim of plagiarism, and I know how much it hurts. Yes, it can hurt financially for writers, but I was more emotionally devastated. I’d worked long and hard on the story that someone stole from me. That person took my story and made minor changes and then attempted to pass it off as her own. When it was discovered and brought to my attention, I had to do all the work to prove the story belonged to me first. I was wronged and then I had to prove it, which pissed me off even more. The other author stole from me so she should have been the one who had to prove her innocence.

Plagiarism is not a harmless crime nor is it a victimless crime. The people whose words are plagiarized suffer a violation. People who commit plagiarism know what they’re doing and either don’t care or don’t expect to get caught or both. It is not an innocent or harmless mistake. Whether you intend to commit plagiarism or not, it most definitely hurts the original author when you do. So please don’t say that you’re sorry or that it was an innocent mistake. The bottom line here; there’s no excuse for plagiarism.

The Book is called WHAT?

There are two things I’m terrible at when it comes to being a writer. Number one, writing those book descriptions that are used to let readers know about the book they’re considering buying. Number two, coming up with a title for my book.

Experts will tell you there are two things that are necessary to sell a book; a great cover and a good title. This is especially true if you’re a new author trying to entice readers. I think that might be why I have such a mental block when it comes to crafting a good title.

When it comes to the title, there are those rare flashes of what I think are brilliance, and I come up with a great title that’s fitting for the book. The rest of the time, I have to put a lot of effort in to coming up with a good title. Making that effort usually involves considering the theme, the characters, the setting, etc. and trying to find titles that are relevant to those things yet still manage to be clever while at the same time not losing the buyers’ interest. In other words, my title has to be catchy yet not too long as to be off putting to the buyers.

I try. I really do. I think most authors try hard because we know what’s at stake. Lately though, I’ve noticed this rash of titles that don’t seem to be trying hard. For instance; My Boss is a Grumpy Werewolf who thinks I’m his Mate and wants me to have his Baby.

This is just one example of many that I’ve seen lately. I’m using this one because it’s stuck in my mind. When I first saw a book in the Kindle bookstore that had a title pretty darn close to this, I was surprised. In fact, I scoffed a little bit, thinking the author hadn’t put any effort in to the title. Then I thought about it and decided that at least I knew what the entire book was about just from the title. That cemented my decision not to buy the book, but it had me wondering. Was this author lazy or clever? Maybe the title was supposed to be comedic, and I missed the point.  Though I didn’t buy the book, maybe others were enticed by the title’s straightforwardness.

Maybe having titles that seem outrageous isn’t such a bad thing. I’m still talking about this book. By doing so, I’m probably encouraging people to search it out which could lead to sales for that author. Who knows what using a seemingly convoluted title will accomplish?

Whatever the answer is, I will probably not change the way I develop titles. I will also probably be struggling with title creation my entire writing career. So maybe, coming up with the title that makes buyers do a double take because it’s so far out there isn’t such a bad thing. 

I Took on Love

On August 21, 2015 I released Taking a Gamble, the first book in the Taking on Love series. On June 28, 2016, Taking Another Shot was released and the series has come to a close.

The Taking on Love series, which consists of four books, came from characters that were introduced in the preceding Time for Love series. The main characters in the Time for Love series originally appeared in my young adult novel Like You Mean It. Readers loved the characters and asked for more. That led to a four book series that followed the love story of Justin Jacobs and Chelsea Schumacher which brought new characters along with old friends.

I think it was around the third book in the Time for Love series that I decided I wanted to do a spinoff series for some of those characters because I wanted to flesh them out. From that idea came the Taking on Love series.

In Taking a Gamble, Marcy Larsen finds herself married to Nick Singer, her best friend’s brother, after a night of drinking goes way too far. Then came Taking a Chance, the story of Randi and Tom who have to learn to let the past go if they’re going to take a chance on each other. After that was Taking a Risk where we learned that Grayson Jacobs has been hiding a big secret from his family and meeting Cris Kinkaid changes everything for him. Finally, there was Taking Another Shot. Since Grayson got his happily ever after, there was no way I could let his beard and B.F.F. Shayla Hamilton be robbed of hers.

Just as it was with Time for Love, writing the Taking on Love series was a blast. I enjoyed developing the characters and watching their stories unfold, but there was one of the four that I had the most fun with. I know that parents shouldn’t play favorites, and any writer will tell you that our stories are like children to us, but I really enjoyed writing Taking a Risk. Grayson and Cris were a couple that faced a lot of adversity, which any story needs, but it was writing about Cris’s brothers that made that story a riot for me. And of course, it gave me an idea. Yep, you guessed it, the remaining Kinkaid brothers are getting their own series.

One young adult novel spawned all this. Eight books later, I guess it’s safe to say that I took on love and we all won!