Where to get my signed books
No matter where you are in the world, you can order signed copies of Call of Fire through Poisoned Pen Bookstore in Scottsdale, Arizona. They know their stuff–they handle massive quantities of books for authors like Diana Gabaldon. Order online, by phone, or walk in. They can hook you up with my other books, too: Clockwork Dagger, Clockwork Crown, Deep Roots, and Breath of Earth.
If you live around Phoenix, you have some other options, too. Last Saturday, I drove a big loop around the metropolitan area to visit as many Barnes & Noble stores as possible that listed Call of Fire as in-stock via their website. Here’s where I signed books:
Metro Center B&N: 1 Call of Fire
Happy Valley B&N: 3 2 copies Call of Fire
Desert Ridge B&N: whole bunch of signed Dagger, Crown, Breath of Earth, and Call of Fire
Tempe B&N: 1 Call of Fire (with more copies of that and Breath of Earth on order)
There are also a few signed copies of Call of Fire at Half Price Books stores around Indianapolis. I’m not sure exactly where they dispersed after Gen Con, so maybe you can get a kind of treasure hunt out of it.
If you want to see my books in your local stores–whether in Arizona or elsewhere–order them through the store! That way, the local manager sees there is a demand, and that encourages them to order more to stock the shelves.
Libraries kind of work the same way. You can request my books be stocked there. If the novels are checked out regularly, the librarians know, too, and will buy more books by that author… and will also replace books if they get too worn.
If you have any questions about where to find my books, comment here or use my contact form, or reach out on Twitter or Facebook. I’ll be happy to help you out!
#SFWAPro
Read MoreHow to Bake Up an Author Brand
If you write and sell stories, you are a business person. You sell stories, but you also sell yourself. This is your author brand. It’s an identity that should be constructed with care.
If your social media presence ONLY consists of “Buy my book!” “Here’s a line from my book!” “Here’s my book link to Amazon!” you end up looking like a spam bot. This type of author is especially prevalent on Twitter. Do I want to be friends with a spam bot? No! Do I want to buy the product pitched by a spam bot? No way!
At the same time, though, we authors are business people. We need to sell books. We need to post those Amazon links. This is where author branding comes in. You must be more than your product. You must find a balance between posts about your book/story and yourself… and the book-selling element shouldn’t dominate.
Ask yourself:
What is my expertise?
Who am I as a person?
Am I a parent? A spouse?
A cat lover? A dog lover?
A hobbyist–a knitter, scrapbooker, woodworker? A foodie?
A resource within my fandom?
What do I want to project to the public?
What defines me?
In my case, back in late 2011, I realized I wanted to post more regularly on my blog. I didn’t feel comfortable doing frequent “how to write” posts, so I wanted to figure out another way to build my online author identity. I’d had a good response to a series of recipe posts the year before, so I decided I would make them a regular feature. I chose Wednesday as my posting day and dubbed the feature “Bready or Not.”
Other personal elements I share online include my cat, Porom. The internet exists because of cat pictures, after all, so I must do my part. I sometimes discuss or share links on autism, as my big day job is being mom to an autistic son. I also do what I can to support my author friends by sharing links to posts or giveaways, or calling out books that I have read and loved. I make an effort to stay positive and avoid drama.
As you build an online identity, you need to be aware that you are in control of how much you share. Some people share the minutia of the day; others manage well with a couple tweets or Facebook posts a week. However you construct your brand, do remember to post regularly. Keep your presence out there. Share animal pictures, craft projects, or recent book buys. Heck, I once shared a picture of a rather large scorpion that I found in my toilet bowl first thing in the morning–that gathered quite a reaction online!
As for me, I have maintained weekly Bready or Not posts for years now. My food blog has been mentioned in print publications like the Arizona Republic and RT Book Reviews Magazine. People associate me with cookies. I do my utmost to live up to my reputation by bringing baked goods to most of my events across the United States. I can be shy in person, but cookies help me to open up to people, and for them to open up to me.
I don’t even have to mention my latest book as I pass around a container of lemon cornmeal shortbread. My public persona is basically, “Hey, I bake delicious evil stuff. I love cats. I’m an unabashed geek. And oh yeah, I have published a few books, too. If you liked that cookie, the recipe is on my website!”
At heart, author brand is about the soft sell. It’s about presenting yourself as a public person–a public character–someone who is more than a book.
And in my case… someone who also traumatizes people with photos of scorpions in toilets.
Reposted from Novelocity.
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Sunday Quote is ready for summer to be done
Read More“Generally speaking, books don’t cause much harm. Except when you read them, that is. Then they cause all kinds of problems.”
~ Pseudonymous Bosch, The Name of This Book Is Secret
Release Event at Desert Ridge Phoenix B&N tomorrow!
At 2pm tomorrow, I’ll be at the Desert Ridge Barnes & Noble location to talk books and happily sign copies, too! Bring books or buy there; Call of Fire will be available for purchase. If you’re in the Phoenix area, please come by. I’ll have cookies…!
#SFWAPro
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Bready or Not: Matcha White Chocolate Cookies
I continue the matcha-in-baked-goods theme to celebrate the release of Call of Fire last week, this time with Matcha White Chocolate Cookies.
The weird thing about these cookies is that the green tea’s color didn’t carry through in the baked results, but the taste is still there.
In fact, when my husband took these to work, a guy kept going back for more. He finally asked, “What’s in these?!”
“Green tea,” said my husband.
“Oh, does that make these healthy?” the man asked, making a face of disgust as he grabbed another cookie.
I won’t go so far as to say these are healthy, but these do have caffeine, and maybe those provided him with a much-needed jolt.
The flavor of these is unusual and hard to describe. The sweetness of the white chocolate is bold, and behind that is a mild and pleasant aftertaste from the matcha. It’s enough for you to know there is something unique about the cookies, but not to identify what it is.
If you want to be sure that the green color comes through in this recipe, maybe add a little bit of food dye before mixing in the white chocolate chips.
Or you may be content with your cookies coming out as mine did: pale yet undeniably delicious.
Bready or Not: Matcha White Chocolate Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 Tablespoon matcha
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup brown sugar packed
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- 3/4 cup butter 1 1/2 cubes, softened
- 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
- 2 eggs
- 1 1/2 cups white chocolate chips most of a bag
Instructions
- Preheat oven at 325-degrees.
- In a medium bowl, combine the flour, matcha, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
- In a big bowl, cream together the sugars and butter until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla and eggs.
- Gradually add the dry ingredients until just combined, then mix in the white chocolate.
- Use a teaspoon scoop or spoon to dole out cookies on a sheet; the cookies will spread, so be sure to space them out. Bake for 13 to 14 minutes. Let set on the cookie sheet for 10 minutes, then move them to a rack to finish cooling.
- OM NOM NOM!
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