Kindle Scout Campaign – The Porn Detective

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Kindle Scout Campaign

My thanks go to Amazon, who have now accepted that the second edition of my novel The Porn Detective is totally different to the original.  As the new version has never before been published, they have approved it for a Kindle Scout Campaign, which launches today and runs until 15th July.  However, I’ve had to use a new temporary cover.

Kindle Scout is reader-powered publishing for new, never-before-published books. It’s a place where readers help decide if a book gets published. Selected books will be published by Kindle Press and receive 5-year renewable terms, a $1,500 advance, 50% eBook royalty rate, easy rights reversions and featured Amazon marketing.

Please can I ask you to nominate The Porn Detective?  To cast your vote please click on the link below from 15th June – 15th July.

https://kindlescout.amazon.com/p/3IQ62RDNCFI3F

Told from the perspectives of both Martin Andrews and his wife Frances, The Porn Detective charts the damaging effect that an addiction to pornography has on a previously happy marriage. When Frances tells Martin that she wants to leave, Martin begs her to accompany him for therapy. Counsellor Rhona advises them to take a holiday and start talking to each other again. Will the holiday bring Martin and Frances together again, or force them further apart?

Thanks in advance for your vote – it is much appreciated!

 

Bargain Book – Ein Haus Ohne Fenster

For all German readers, my romantic suspense novel ‘Ein Haus Ohne Fenster’ is just $0.99 / £0.99 from today 22nd June until Thursday 29th June.

http://bookShow.me/B01FR7DK70

Der Roman “Ein Haus Ohne Fenster” kostet vom 22. bis 29. Juni 2017 nur 0,99 $ und wird danach auf allen Amazon-Seiten zum ermäßigten Preis angeboten.  “Ein Haus Ohne Fenster” ist ein preisgekrönter Roman der britischen Autorin Stevie Turner, der von Jutta Schmitt-Teiwes ins Deutsche übersetzt wurde.  Er erzählt die Geschichte von Dr. Beth Nichols, die, am Anfang ihrer Schwangerschaft und verlobt mit Dr. Liam Darrah, entführt wird und gegen ihren Willen von ihrem verwirrten Ex-Patienten Edwin Evans gefangen gehalten wird.  In der Gefangenschaft bringt sie ihre Tochter zur Welt, Amy, die 10 Jahre später ein intelligentes, neugieriges Kind ist, das nie die Außenwelt kennen gelernt hat.

Liam sucht nach Beth, der Liebe seines Lebens und kommt schließlich zur Schlussfolgerung, dass seine Verlobte tot ist.  Nach zehn Jahren gibt er auf und gründet ein Zuhause mit Patti, die ihm einen Sohn schenkt, Toby. Kann Beth aus dem Haus ohne Fenster entkommen? Werden Liam und Beth wieder vereint? Dieser Roman wird aus verschiedenen Perspektiven erzählt: zunächst von Beth, die in Gefangenschaft erwacht und von Amy, die kein anderes Leben außerhalb des Haus ohne Fenster kennt.  Die Geschichte wird auch aus Liams Sicht geschildert und nicht zuletzt auch von Edwins Standpunkt aus.  Sechzehn Jahre später wird die Geschichte von Joss, Beth und Edwins Sohn erzählt.

Auf Amazon.com gibt es 60 Rezensionen. Nachfolgend eine der 5-Sterne-Rezensionen:

“Verheerend, gruselig und tief berührend, Stevie Turners “Haus ohne Fenster” ist vieles: unter anderem eine verwirrende Liebesgeschichte, die Erzählung einer Entführung, Gefangenschaft und Bedrohung, die Erzählung einer Frau, die sich im Angesicht von blanker Verzweiflung an die Hoffnung klammert sowie die Schilderung der klaustrophobischen Welt eines traumatisierten kindlichen Opfers und der gequälten Erwachsenen, zu der sie wird.  Die vielschichtigen und wechselnden Erzählebenen schildern die verwirrende Verrücktheit des Edwin Evans und seiner psychotischen Handlungen, die jeden, der zum Opfer seiner Geisteskrankheit wird, verschlingen. Das Buch ist ganz sicher nicht für Kinder geeignet, jedoch wirklich sehr empfehlenswert.”

#TheBrokenLifeblogtour @jaydawes2 #excerpt #thriller #mystery

I shall also be promoting Jaye Marie’s new book in my next newsletter, which will be published on 1st July http://www.stevie-turner-author.co.uk

suzanne rogerson fantasy author

I’m really pleased to take a break from my own blog tour to introduce Jaye Marie and her book The Broken Life. Both Jaye and Anita have been very supportive taking part in both my blog tours, so it’s a real pleasure to return the favour by being their host on the blog tour today.

I  have a very exciting excerpt to share, but first here’s a little about the book.

Book Description of The Broken Life

DI David Snow has a serial killer to catch, a killer as mysterious as the crimes he commits.

Snow is due to retire, but not before he discovers why someone killed his sergeant and is now coming after him.

The killer seems to have a personal vendetta against Snow, but he is determined that no one else should die because of him. His efforts are hampered by the arrival of a new sergeant, ‘ruthless’ Ruth Winton…

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Thursday Cite & Insight Invite – 22nd June

Here’s a good one from American writer Ralph Marston:

‘Rest when you’re weary. Refresh and renew yourself, your body, your mind, your spirit. Then get back to work.’

I’ve had a lovely three years off work, writing when I want to and self-publishing many books, as well as trying to keep fit and undergoing any necessary treatment for thyroid cancer.  However, I’ve come to the conclusion that I want to earn more money than my pension and Amazon royalties are giving me.  Sam doesn’t want me to go back to work, but …. needs must.

On Monday I drove back to the hospital for a meeting with my old manager to enquire about returning as a bank secretary to cover staff holidays and sickness and other times when there is just too much work.  We were soon chatting like I’d never been away, with the end result that I was given a bank contract and I can now work whenever I like, as usually one department or the other is more often than not short-staffed.   At the moment I’ve chosen to work on  Tuesdays and Thursdays only, which should augment my pension a little bit!

I learned a lot from working as a medical secretary.  Bank work will take me into departments I’ve never worked in at all, and so it will keep the old brain active.  I can still write on days when I’m not working (there might be a few less blogs though), so as my youngest son often says… it’s all gravy, baby.

 

 

Guest Blog by Katrina Mountfort

 

Hi all, today fellow author and blogger Katrina Mountfort is writing about what she has learned from running a Kindle Scout campaign for her new book ‘The Lost Corner’.

Running a Kindle Scout campaign – what I’ve learned:

At the beginning of June I decided to have a shot at getting my latest novel published via Kindle Scout. From what I’ve heard, of other people’s experience with Kindle Press, they can sell a lot more of my books than I could manage on my own. I was delighted but shocked when my application was accepted within 12 hours of submission and so, a little unprepared, I started a 30 day campaign to gain as many nominations as possible. It’s been a huge learning curve but a useful one, so I’d like to share some of what I’ve learned so far:

1. A large proportion of my votes have come from direct traffic to the Kindle Scout site. So my first piece of advice is to polish your submission as much as possible. Make your one line description catchy. Invest in a professional cover. Proofread it again and again.
2. It’s a marathon not a sprint. My biggest mistake was to use all my big guns at the start of the campaign. Several friends shared it on Facebook all at once. This helped me make a splash and find myself in the ‘hot and trending’ section, but it’s hard to keep up that momentum. If I had the chance to start again, I’d have asked my friends to spread out their shares.
3. Book bloggers are the nicest people. My work schedule doesn’t allow me to blog regularly so I asked several people whose blogs I follow if they’d feature my campaign. They all said yes and each post has given me some votes. I’ve tried to spread them out so I’m featured in one blog per week of the campaign.
4. I’ve had mixed success with social media. Facebook has been far and away the best. Twitter has only given me a few page views. Some people have found Bing Bing and Headstarter useful but I haven’t got very far with them yet.
5. Although I find it excruciating to do so, you have to contact EVERYONE you know.
6. It’s not just a popularity contest. The point of getting a lot of votes is to get the judges to consider your work at the end. They’re not going to publish a seemingly popular book that will then get a lot of bad reviews so if other books seem to be ‘hot and trending’ more than yours, don’t despair.

If you’ve found this useful I’d be grateful if you could check out my campaign:

https://kindlescout.amazon.com/p/2KB0W6JT2O5KA

If you like what you see, please nominate me. If it’s accepted, you’ll all get a free electronic copy.

Finally I’d like to thank Stevie for her generosity in letting me post on this blog and wish her luck in her own Kindle Scout campaign for ‘The Porn Detective’! https://kindlescout.amazon.com/p/3IQ62RDNCFI3F

About me:

I am a UK-based author, living in York. My philosophy of life is that we only regret the things we don’t try.  When I hit forty, I decided it was time to fulfil my childhood dream of writing a novel. My first three novels, Future Perfect, Forbidden Alliance and Freedom’s Prisoners formed the speculative fiction Blueprint trilogy, and were published by Elsewhen Press. I love music, walking with my two Labradors, travel, wine, daffodils and Parma violets.

Find Katrina on the following web links:

Blog: https://herstoryblogspot.wordpress.com/

Website: http://www.katrinamountfort.com/

Publisher website: http://elsewhen.alnpetepress.co.uk/index.php/catalogue/author/katrina-mountfort/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KatrinaMountfortAuthor/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/curlykats

Amazon author page: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Katrina-Mountfort/e/B00MU1AEA8

Sometimes, You Need to Learn how to RUN Before You Can Walk.

I think I’ll be checking this one out!

Roundabout Forty

When I turned 40, it wasn’t a big deal. I felt good, younger than my calendar age. Sure I had some arthritis in my knee. Yes, I had problems with swelling in my wrists, the start of carpal tunnel syndrome, but I learned to adapt to the changes in my body. I got some wrist braces, wore them at night, and ate Ibuprofen like it was candy.

Wellgate for Women PerfectFit Wrist Support from Amazon.    (I still wear the right and left wrist braces every night.)

Fast forward a few years and now I’m IN my forties.  I had some changes in my career.  I slowed down.  I gained weight.  I started to feel old, really OLD.  Older than I’ve ever felt. I’ve struggled with depression on and off for most of my life, but it was getting worse.  I just didn’t feel like ME anymore.  It’s like…

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Meet Jaye Marie!

Good luck to Jaye Marie with her blog tour!

Lizzie Chantree

Today it’s my pleasure to introduce you to The Broken Life Blog Tour

by Jaye Marie @jaydawes2

I really enjoy discovering a new book to read and finding authors who work together and support other writers is always a pleasure. Today I am showcasing the work of one half of sibling writing team, as part of her blog tour. Jaye Marie’s new book Broken Life  is now available to buy and download on Amazon. Don’t forget to stop off at the other blogs on the tour to find out even more about her work. Details are at the end of this post.

About Jaye Marie

My name is Jaye Marie, the ‘oily rag’ of the partnership Anita Dawes and Jaye Marie and usually, I prefer to stay in the background. Since my sister and I decided to publish our books ourselves, most of my other interests have had to take a…

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Tuesday Newsday – 20th June

Thanks to Michelle Roberts, the BBC’s Health Editor, I’ve discovered that researchers at Southampton University are offering up to £3,526 to each of 35 healthy volunteers between the ages of 18 – 45 who agree to be infected with pertussis (whooping cough) bacteria.  The scientists want to make a better vaccine.

Volunteers would have pertussis bacteria inserted into their noses, and would have to live in isolation (in their own rooms, not together) for 17 days.  Researchers will be interested in those that do not get sick as they would be naturally immune, and understanding this immunity could lead to the design of a more improved vaccine.

All 35 volunteers would undergo daily throat and nose swabs, and would have to sit in a ‘cough’ box in order to make droplets of saliva in the air for researchers to sample.  They would be given antibiotics at the end of the 17 days.

If I was in the right age group (thankfully I’m not), I don’t think ‘up’ to £3,526 would be enough.  Put a couple of noughts on the end, and now you’re talking!  What do you think?

Author Profile: 20 Questions (more or less) With Sally Cronin

Enjoyed this interview of Sally Cronin. Thanks Dan!

Dan Alatorre - AUTHOR

Occasionally on the blog we will talk with one of our author friends, gaining valuable insights into their behind-the-scenes world.

Today we meet with Sally Cronin, a brilliant writer and friend of the blog.

Be ready for a few surprises!

After working in a number of industries for over 25 years, Sally decided that she wanted to pursue a completely different career, one that she had always been fascinated with. “I began studying Nutrition and the human body twenty years ago and I opened my first diet advisory centre in Ireland in 1998. Over the last 18 years I have practiced in Ireland and the UK as well as written columns, articles and radio programmes on health and nutrition. I published my first book with a Canadian self-publisher in the late 90s and since then have republished that book and released nine others as part of our own self-publishing company.

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Open Book Blog Hop – 19th June

This week we’re writing about what life events shaped us into who we are.

1.  Being an only child.

Being an ‘only’ child gave me much time to use my imagination and play alone.  I had an imaginary friend for years!  It also made me self-reliant, independent, and a bit of a loner.

2.  Not having a childminder.

I was further schooled in the art of self-reliance by being left alone in the house during the school holidays from the age of 9 while both my parents worked.  At times I also had to look after my 5 year old cousin.

3.  Winning an inter-schools’ story competition at age 11.

This win and the coveted certificate that came with it gave me the encouragement to write more stories.  I’m still writing them 48 years later!

4.  Early death of father at only 49.

I had to grow up quickly aged only 19 and be the supportive rock for my mother.

5.  Becoming a mother at the age of 24.

Giving birth to Leon and raising him to an adult gave me a gift of patience and tolerance that I never thought I’d ever have, all due to his hyperactivity, petit mal, tantrums, and general pain-in-the-arseness (I love him really!).

6.  Becoming a mother-in-law at the age of 46.

I learned to curb my impulsive nature and keep my mouth shut.  So far it seems to have worked – my daughters-in-law and I get on really well!

7.  Being diagnosed with thyroid cancer 12 years ago.

The three major operations, vocal cord palsy, 4 radioiodine treatments and 30 radiotherapy treatments I’ve had so far to try and beat this disease has taught me how to endure.  I’m very good at it!

8.  Caring for my  92 year old mother in the last years of her life.

This gave me understanding and compassion for elderly people in their day to day trials of just trying to live a normal life and maintain their independence whilst dealing with a body that is deteriorating and virtually immobile.

What life events shaped you?  Please link to this blog by clicking the blue button below.

Rules:
1. Link your blog to this hop.
2. Notify your following that you are participating in this blog hop.
3. Promise to visit/leave a comment on all participants’ blogs.
4. Tweet/or share each person’s blog post. Use #OpenBook when tweeting.
5. Put a banner on your blog that you are participating.

The Offical Video Of The Bloggers Who Attended The Third Annual Bloggers Bash

Wish I could have made it – will try again next year!

Hugh's Views & News

Saturday, June 10th 2017 was the date for The Third Annual Bloggers Bash which, like the previous two years, was held in London.

And, what a day it was. Of course, as a member of the committee, I’m bound to say it was a success and that everyone who attended had great fun, but don’t take my word for it! No, allow me to introduce you to some of those who attended the event and hear what they had to say.

Click here for the links to all the blogs of those who attended and who feature in the video.

As the cameraman and social media guru for the day, I didn’t get a lot of time to talk to everybody, but I hope I managed to capture the spirit of the day in the video. I did manage to take a few photos, but these are nowhere as good as…

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