New Offering at Idea Creations Press

We're on a roll here at Idea Creations Press and would LOVE to see your work. Here is our latest publication:

 

JOHN, 13 and MARY, 11 discover an ancient dugout along with an old journal written by their GREAT-GRANDPA HOLT. As they read the old-fashioned writing, and wish they could see where he lived something strange happens, the dugout whirls around them, and everything goes black.

The pair ends up in North Carolina in the year 1813 during the War of 1812. Thrilled with his new surroundings, John wants to stay. Mary hates the loud crashing noise, the salty taste in the air, and the fishy smell, and is anxious to leave.

But when John and Mary receive a spyglass from a British prisoner, everything changes, and the adventures truly begin.

 

Get the Kindle or print version at Amazon.com.

 

 

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League of Utah Writer's Conference: Update for 2013

If you've never joined in on a conference, or spent some time one-on-one with an agent, you'll want to consider the League of Utah Writer's annual conference. The date is: September 13 &14.

Especially if you're a new writer, learning the ropes and trying to find your niche, this conference offers valuable classes and other opportunties you can't afford to miss.

The conference will be held at the Hilton Salt Lake City Airport
1-801-539-1515
5151 Wiley Post Way
Salt Lake City, Utah

Learn more at: http://www.luwriters.org/.

One of the fun options at the League of Utah Writer's conferences is the opportunity for you to purchase books from published authors as well as learn about new publishing companies that have just joined the ranks.

If you want to learn more about Idea Creations Press; how to get your paperback or e-book out there, you'll want to stop by my table on Saturday. I will have freebies for you to take home, including information on how to get your dream book published!

 

Stop by my table and mention that you read my blog and receive a FREE special gift. I would love to meet you!

Get the newest version of Marketing Your Book on a Budget AUTOGRAPHED by me for only $5!

 

Update on Scrambled

For all of my readers, whether I know about you or not, just a little heads up on what's beginning on Saturday, September 1, 2012!

My book will be officially released!

First, you'll want to get on Amazon and check out the price of my new book, "Scrambled." Discounts will be provided the first week and you'll need to come here daily for a visit or connect with Amazon to see what I've got cooking.

Literally as well as figuratively.

No more clues.

 

Get a taste!

 

There will not only be discounts the entire week, but expect freebies, guest blogs, contests and a taste of, well, scrambled eggs!

I look forward to having fun with you!

Kathryn

Get the Latest News on Writing and Publishing

Okay...

Today I'm going to be bold. I have been a bit bold before but not like this.

So here it is: There may be some readers or writers reading my blog but...I don't know you exist!

How do I know that you exist and that you're reading my blog? One of the ways is by following my blog in a very real way. That means I know you've joined the ranks because your name is listed (maybe even with a little picture of yourself) right on the front page!

Now, I know there are millions of writers out there and we writers need to stick together! I would LOVE to hear your writing ideas and I would also like to know that you're listening in. What writer wouldn't.

So connect up will ya?

As for you readers, what writer doesn't want to find out that you've read one or more of her books? I sure would.

And especially because I have a new one out (and if you want to take a sneak peak, it's already available at Amazon) I would LOVE to hear from you too. Please, please don't be shy.

I look forward to hearing from you. (Hmmm, that sounds familar)

Kathryn

Yep, this is it!





Stuff Doesn't Just Get Written Without Some Work

I am amazed at how many people think that they can write a book but never lift a pen or work their fingers through the computer keys.



Photo by: mtryosha, courtesy of Flickr

I'm too busy, they say.
I have a real job that I have to get to first.
I'm probably not any good anyway.
It's just too hard.
Maybe when I retire.

If you're a writer like me, you may find yourself making similar excuses, especially after receiving some feedback.

I really don't like your main character.
Your book is boring.
It has too many mistakes.
I don't think you'll get enough readers for this book.
And so on...

It truly takes grit to be a writer, especially these days, when POD publishing is about as rampant as your next door neighbor's dog. Don't get me wrong, I AM a POD publisher, but I think it's important to put your best manuscript forward; that means all the tweaking and re-writing necessary before you consider publishing.

And while it is true that a great marketing plan will get your book out there faster, a well-written book will create in your readers a desire to come back for more.

So work hard, get your manuscript slicked up, and get some feedback.

Vacation Ideas Worth Remembering

I have just returned from vacation, and with that fun experience, some thoughts. All of those I'll be sharing today have to do with growth of one type or another--and more specifically--life.



Jesika enjoys the beach

My first experience occurred when I was waiting to get on my plane. You know the routine. Stand in line. Get your bags checked. Take off your shoes. Place all of your carry on bags on the metal thing--what is that metal thing called anyway? I've just forgotten. Oh, yes, the conveyor belt. Walk through the detector. Put your shoes back on. Gather your supplies. Head to your plane. Wait some more.

In this waiting I sat nearby a woman and her husband. They had a baby and were trying to keep her occupied. A sign on the carpet in front of me read: Warning Wet Carpet, but I hadn't noticed that the carpet was wet.

The sign had been placed who knows when, before either of us sat down.

I found myself listening to the couple who were now trying to find the bottle of water that they'd filled to mix the formula in. But they couldn't find the bottle anywhere. Finally, they discovered it underneath their chairs, but it no longer had water in it. Somehow it had spilled. They both got up and returned a few minutes later, the bottle filled and the formula swimming in its natural habitat.

And then, sure enough, a call was made for a particular flight. They got up with their baby and proceeded to their plane. But not before I heard the woman say in passing, "Looks like the sign was up even before we needed it."

I have thought some about her comment. How things were prepared for her mishap even before the mishap happened. And it made me wonder: What things by God or by man through God are prepared for us ahead of time?

Though this episode may seem inconsequential, it does make a point.

• Have you ever been prepared ahead of time for a job that came later, except you weren't expecting a new job? 
• How about preparing for a new home, that came suddenly, when you least expected it? 
• I find myself wondering about my preparation in journalism and writing, hardly expecting to own a publishing company--at least one that didn't need a big office away from home.

After that experience I was drawn to other comments that connected with it.

"What would you do if you knew you could not fail?"

"I shall not pass this way again."

What are your thoughts about the first quote? The second quote?

 

Writing a pirate book?

You may want to consider this.

Although I'm afraid to do many things,
 I would never consider walking the plank.

 The above two photos were taken on the Lexington carrier ship;

Corpus Christi.

I have thought substantially about doing things that I'm afraid to do. I also know that this moment will pass and a new moment will take its place. My trip showed me that. And life continues to move forward, whether I want it to or not.

Heather enjoys the water

What You Should Know About POD Publishing

Since I am now fully emerged in the publishing arena, I wanted to let you in on a little secret. Publishing is HARD work! But it is also rewarding, too. Publishing is one of those things that allows you to see all of the details; it gives you the opportunity to climb into the head of your readers and ask questions like:

What sort of cover will create interest in this book? Enough interest to make a sale, or at least, get the person on the other end thinking about buying?

Did you know that it takes roughly 27 views of a particular book for an individual (that means blogs, posters, book signing events, speaking engagements,social marketing etc.) to be a taker?

That means that the publishing company puts the word out but that the author also needs to put the word out--and truthfully, that means the author does most of the advertising. While a publishing company gets the book slicked up and packaged for the best sales, it is really the author who sells the product. An author just can't afford to sit back and allow their book to speak entirely for them. They must be actively engaged.

What you should know about publishing is that it's becoming more popular than ever to go with POD or print on demand publishing. For writers who are tired of waiting to find just the right publisher, and for others who just want more of hands-on control of their work, they've opted for POD.

Idea Creations Press opened its doors in March 2012

Yes, I run a POD publishing company, and it's taken me nearly 30 years to discover that by not finding a publisher that suited me, the next best thing would be to create the company myself. Publishing, in my modest opinion, shouldn't be about the publisher anyway as much as it should be about the writer who has worked hard on their book. They, not the publisher, should have the most control over what happens to it.

Publishing has finally opened up its doors. For the first time that I can remember an author can choose the route of traditional publishing, they can print the book themselves or they can go though a POD publishing company. And while a big name publisher helps to get the word out, there's something to be said for a POD author who takes his/her book and runs with it.

Writing on the Road

Hello!

This post was created before my trip. I knew that I probably wouldn't get to it while I was out for awhile so I created this post early. 

Guess where I'm at? Photo by: sylvester75117, courtesy of Flickr

Don't you just LOVE technology?

If you read my previous blog, it was all about getting away from technology, and going on a trip has a way of helping you with that.

And so you know, because I don't have a SmartPhone, I will, in reality be leaving my computer behind for a solid week.

What does a writer do who doesn't have an electronic tap in?

Hopefully, she has a little fun, makes some memories, and keeps that journal in her purse or back pocket for just the perfect character, the perfect description, the perfect new book idea.

I plan on taking notes when I'm gone and sharing them with you when I return. Who knows? Maybe I'll have the next best seller scribbled down for future success.

Kathryn

Writing by Hand

In this day of ever-changing technology, it's easy to get caught up on the computer and all that this instrument has to offer. I'm on it right now, writing this to you, and you're right there a moment or an hour or a day later, reading what I've written.

Photo by RoboGenius, courtesy of Flickr

But today, after reading this blog, I'd like you to stop and take a few moments to reflect on what writing really means to you. And then I want you to get a pen and a piece of paper (or your journal) and write down your thoughts. You may want to answer these questions.

1, Why are you a writer?
2. Why do you think you chose the particular genre you did?
3. Have you been published? If so, what was it and what brought you the most happiness? Was it the writing itself? Was it the publishing? A combination of both? If you've never been published, how long have you been writing? Set a date now to have your first piece of writing published. Decide what it will be and place it on your calendar. 

You may even want to put together a vision board. Vision boards have your goals on them as well as pictures to compliment your goals and dates of completion. There's something about putting your goals on paper and hanging them where you see them the most often, that brings a goal to fruition. Once the goal is achieved, take off the picture, the words you've created and put them in your journal to remind yourself of
what was accomplished.
  

Photo by Dawn, courtesy of Flickr

We, as writers, need to stick together, and that means that sometimes we need to step off the fast track of the Internet, and take a slower pace by writing everything down by hand.

Can't you just smell that new fine tipped marker?

Reading on a Kindle

I used to think reading on a Kindle was sort of like transporting yourself into the future. All the hard copies of books are gone and all that's left is electronic devices (kind of like Star Trek). Reading this way was as foreign to me, almost as foreign as an alien landing on the planet and speaking to me.What would I say to an alien if I saw one?

 

Photo by: Contentment Sikher, courtesy of Flickr

Fortunately, I know what to say about the Kindle. It doesn't smell special, like those new books with their new ink, or even musty, like those old books with their brittle, yellowing pages that you just can't seem to get rid of. They are flat and substandard when it comes to flipping the pages (sometimes I push the arrow too many times) and with the Kindle, it's hard to highlight.

Yes, I know you can do that, but not by hand.

Reading on a Kindle is not my cup of tea but I have to say that it didn't bother me half as much as I thought it would. I remember the first time I used a microwave, a computer, a cell phone, and how awkward it all was. Now I can only say that I need to gear up to the Smartphone. I call mine a "dumb phone" because it's one of those flip open jobbies with actual buttons to push...

At any rate, my first book, read on a Kindle, is: "Trust Your Heart: Transform Your Ideas..." There's more to the subtitle but I don't want to lose my place and I don't know where to regain it when I do. Yes, I have LOTS to learn.

But I tell you what. I like the idea that I was able to get this book FREE and my husband (bless his heart) knew how to download (or is it upload) it onto the Kindle for me. Now all I do is turn the Kindle on, and wa-la! it's there. I'm also thinking of taking the Kindle with me on my flight to Texas soon. It might be nice to finish the book in flight.

Suffice it to say I'm still learning a lot about the Kindle including what all the buttons are for that I see below the silver screen. Nope, I'm not going to push them.

Until next time...

Kathryn