#atozchallenge It's almost time!

Start watching for daily (well, almost daily) posts about some of the places we've been...

USA, Panama, Honduras, Mexico, Ecuador, Columbia & more!

Help your favorite author in FIVE MINUTES or less!

How to help your favorite authors in FIVE MINUTES or less!

Of course, the absolute best way to help authors is by buying their books and reviewing them, but what if you've already done that? Or have no room in your current book budget? Here's some quick things you can do that help more than you know. (Don't bother doing these for A-list authors--these tips are meant for indie or lesser-known authors who could really use and will appreciate the boost.)

On Amazon:
1) Follow the author's Amazon page.

2) Rate their positive reviews as helpful.

3) Rate their negative reviews as unhelpful (but don't get in a flame war with any reviewers--it only calls more attention to the bad review.)

On Goodreads:
1) Mark the author's books as "to read," even if you've already read them. This improves the author's visibility.

2) Like the author's positive reviews. This will bump them higher than the negative reviews. But again, don't engage with the negative reviewers.

3) Follow the author.

4) Ask the author a question. Most authors love to engage with their readers!

5) Add the author to a list. For instance, "Favorite horror authors" should include more than Stephen King or Dean Koontz.

On Facebook:
1) Like (or love) the author's posts. Did you know that well-liked posts get seen by more people? It's true. Just by clicking "like," you are helping your author friend! (*Also pages for their books, like Klondike Mysteries)

2) Add a comment to a post that resonates with you. This also helps the page get seen, and encourages other people to comment. An active page is more interesting, and your author friends won't feel like they're shouting into a void.

3) Share posts you enjoy with your own comments so more people will find the author.

On Twitter:
1) Tweet about the books you enjoy with a photo of the cover. For bonus points, add a link to the author's website or the Amazon listing for the book. Don't Tweet AT the author, or no one but the author and their followers will see it (unless you put a . before the @).

On Instagram:
1) Share the covers of books you love with a blurb about why you loved it, or simply "This book rocks!" with a link back to the author.

That's it! Pretty easy, huh? There are dozens of ways to support the authors you love that take less time than ordering a fancy coffee, and cost nothing.

Post courtesy of J.H. Moncrieff

#atozchallenge Theme Reveal

It's official - I AM PARTICIPATING! I'm excited about finally being able to do another A to Z. This time around it will be a little different. No flash fiction. No word play. No twists and turns.

My theme this year will be "Oh, the places we will go!" Because I have traveled so much since becoming a full-time RVer (and part-time cruiser) in 2007, this should be a fun challenge.

April A to Z Blog Challenge

I hope you will bookmark this blog or sign up to follow (in the right hand column) and join in the fun. I also hope you will check out some of the other wonderful blogs that will be joining in and playing along.

Done! Well, almost...

I'm home from our Southern Caribbean cruise (details and photos on my personal blog) and it was a huge success. I finished the first draft of my third Klondike Mystery novel, Almost a Touch. I hope to be working on edits by May.

Why not immediately? First, for non-writers, it's best to let a story sit and percolate a bit. Get it out of your brain. When you come back to edit, you will see things more clearly. For me there is a second reason.

Here's the cover....

This will be the second mystery novella in my Lei Crime Kindle World series. The first was Paradise Down. I even made some headway on writing this. I have my project set up in Scrivener, I have my characters defined and chapter one is written.

I leave on another cruise, Western Caribbean this time, in ten days. I hope to have most of the book written and will try to finish it on the cruise. I do have a deadline of May first for this to be ready for publication.

I don't know about you, but I'm excited!

#IWSG for Mar 2017: Stickwithitness

I almost missed this months Insecure Writer's Support Group post. But I guess I could be excused, I'm on a ten day cruise. But while I am cruising, I am also writing. A LOT!

In fact, I will finally finish the first draft of the third book in my Klondike Mystery series, Almost a Touch. I know my faithful and patient readers are happy to hear that...

In fact, if I'm lucky, I might even make a jab at starting my next novella in my Lei Crime Kindle World series. Initially it was to be Paradise Drift (Paradise Down was the first). But the characters in Paradise Dead are talking to me. No, they're ranting at me. So that one is next.

So my word for the month's IWSG is "Stickwithitness", because that's what I'm finally doing.

My Writing View Today
Dominica Island, West Indies