Cindy Patterson's Blog

Stop by and visit me at readingismysuperpower.org and enter for your chance to win a paperback copy of "Chasing Paradise".  Also find out who I chose to portray Mallory Scott and Eric Matthews if Hollywood made Broken Butterfly into a movie!!


http://readingismysuperpower.org/2017/05/30/author-interview-giveaway-cindy-patterson/

Y'all have a great weekend and Good Luck! :)

Then shall your light break forth like the dawn. Isaiah 58:8

Since we just celebrated Mother's Day, I thought I'd share with you one of the easiest topics to talk about ... My children.
All three of my babies call me by a different name. I'm not sure why but I absolutely love it. They are unique in their own special way.
Tyler, my 24 year old son, calls me Mama. I had someone ask me just the other night, had he always wanted to be a police officer. I answered, not exactly. I had envisioned him going to school to play football and maybe even going into a career with the Coast Guard. He was passionate about the game of football and had a lot of talent. He has always been an excellent swimmer as well and very strong.
Tyler's my Bulldog with a Big Heart.
His high school coaches encouraged him to pursue going further with football, but he fell in love. He's dated Madison for over 7 years, and they will exchange vows in less than two weeks. She's been a part of our family for a very long time, and I couldn't be happier for them. I pray God will bless their marriage.
Zachary, my 16 year old son, calls me Mommy. Even in front of his friends.=) I just think it's absolutely precious. He's my gentle giant and my baseball player. 
It doesn't matter that he's going on 17. He still hugs me every night before he goes to bed. Brooklyn does too, but you would expect that from your daughter.
Now, don't get the wrong picture about Zach ... not only is he gentle, he is strong.
I mean really strong.
My husband, Rocky, is the strongest, hardest working man I've ever seen in my life. I'm not exaggerating, y'all, and I'm not just saying that because I'm prejudice. I've never seen anything like it.
And he tells me that Zach can out work him. And Zach doesn't complain. He jumps right in and does whatever needs to be done. No matter what it is. The only thing he'll ask is ... Are we gonna eat?
My baby girl,  Brooklyn, is 14, we home school, so she's with me most of the time. And that's exactly the way I like it. She calls me Mom.
She's my dancer. Even after taking classes all week, she's still dancing and twirling throughout the day. And then making up dances to her favorite songs, especially when she's with her best friend.
Not only does Brooklyn love dance, she loves her dogs. I love my fur babies too.
Brooklyn has taken hundreds of pictures, using her phone and mine.
I thought I'd share a couple of my favorites. She's pretty good at it, if you ask me. =) 
Mailee & Sadie
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Brooklyn & Sadie 
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Thank you so much for letting me share with you three of the most precious pieces of my heart. I'm so glad you stopped by.
Have a wonderful Thursday!
Cindy

I'm so excited to be moving!!


Please visit my new website.
www.cindypattersonbks.com

I look forward to seeing you there!!


Cindy

I'm working hard on a new website, but have come to a halt. After much hard work all week ... I've spent way too many hours on this thing. I found out I can't blog from this particular package.
What?!?!
So, I'm back at square one.
And you can't imagine how disappointed I am.
I loved this site. It's gorgeous. I mean beautiful. And I'm going to give it all up.
Yes, I am.
Because, it's not going to allow me to blog. I could just cry. I'm still moving, I'm just going to have to give up my beautiful new page. :**(
I'm not good at this computer stuff y'all. It takes me longer than everybody else. I swear it does. Maybe by the time I finish, I'll be a professional. :) And will be able to do this with my eyes closed.
Yeah. Probably not.
But enough about that. I attended an Romance & Writer's Valentine's Day Party on Facebook. I had a blast doing that. And spent more time on Facebook that night, than I've spent in three months combined. But I met some new authors, won a book from one of my favorite authors, and just had a really good time talking to everyone.
I was thinking about hosting one. But it will take a lot of work. I would have to get some authors to come. Will y'all come if I host it? And what would be a good time to do it?
I know I have trouble with the comments here. That's why I'm moving as soon as I can get my new page going.
I'll let you know the minute that happens. :)
Have a wonderful week.
Don't forget to leave a comment. Or at least try! And thank you so much for stopping by.

Cindy

I'm working hard on a new website, but have come to a halt. After much hard work all week ... I've spent way too many hours on this thing. I found out I can't blog from this particular package.
What?!?!
So, I'm back at square one.
And you can't imagine how disappointed I am.
I loved this site. It's gorgeous. I mean beautiful. And I'm going to give it all up.
Yes, I am.
Because, it's not going to allow me to blog. I could just cry. I'm still moving, I'm just going to have to give up my beautiful new page. :**(
I'm not good at this computer stuff y'all. It takes me longer than everybody else. I swear it does. Maybe by the time I finish, I'll be a professional. :) And will be able to do this with my eyes closed.
Yeah. Probably not.
But enough about that. I attended an Romance & Writer's Valentine's Day Party on Facebook. I had a blast doing that. And spent more time on Facebook that night, than I've spent in three months combined. But I met some new authors, won a book from one of my favorite authors, and just had a really good time talking to everyone.
I was thinking about hosting one. But it will take a lot of work. I would have to get some authors to come. Will y'all come if I host it? And what would be a good time to do it?
I know I have trouble with the comments here. That's why I'm moving as soon as I can get my new page going.
I'll let you know the minute that happens. :)
Have a wonderful week.
Don't forget to leave a comment. Or at least try! And thank you so much for stopping by.

Cindy

It's been almost a year since I published Broken Butterflyand a lot has happened since then.
My publishing company closed, leaving Broken Butterflyhomeless. Don't be sad.
A sister company was willing to take on all Crossbooks clients. Westbow Press. Through the next few months, I went through the stages of having them take on my book, they read it, made sure it met their standards, and it was finally in the last stages after taking four months.
Because I was a finalist in a contest with Crossbooks, I had a really nice package. Now, I was told in the beginning of this entire process, that everything would be similar in my package. But, I found out days before my book was going to go live these were the only things I would receive ...
·         They would publish Broken Butterfly on the Westbow Press website.·         10 ebook tabs (free ebooks I could give away to whoever I wanted to)·         Their branding. I guess that was a big deal. It just wasn't that important to me.
That was it.
Not the book sellers return program (and I was so close to getting my book into the Lifeway store) And my number one question to them was this.
Would I keep the book sellers return program?
The reply I received ...Yes, you will receive a similar package to the one you had with Crossbooks.
They weren't even going to list my book on Amazon or Barnes and Nobles. And it's only by chance I found this out. I had asked an Amazon marketing question. I'm so glad I asked that question.  And you can just imagine my shock when she said, "Why are you surprised?"
I wouldn't consider myself a rude person, like ever. But this was one of those moments, I really wanted to be rude. I laughed-out-loud and said, "Thank you." And hung up. My daughter looked at me and laughed. I guess I wasn't mean enough. Her attitude is a little worse than mine. Where did she get that from? We really need to work on that!
Now I'm not faulting them in any way other than they should've been straightforward with me in the beginning. I wouldn't have wasted four months of my time or theirs.
So, I decided to publish it myself. It was ready. It had already been published. I sold over 200 personal copies already. Not including my previous online sales. I just needed to get it back up on Amazon.
So I did.
Ya'll. I received my first check from Amazon.
I was shocked!!!
The check was for only 16 days and included ebook sales only. My check from Amazon was 27% more than my only check I received with Crossbooks that included ebook, paperback, and hardcopy sales for 4 months combined. This is because they received most of the profit. The checks were from online sales only. This does not include my personal paperback sales!!
I wonder, did I make the right decision?
I think so.
When I published on Amazon, I chose the KDP select program. I wanted to run a promotion to give my ebook away for free for a certain amount of time.
IN celebration of my one year anniversary ... I'm running a promotion the next 2 weekends. It starts today, Thursday, December 4th and will run through Sunday, December 6th. And then another one will run, Friday, December 11th-12th. You can download the kindle version for FREE on any of these days.
I also chose to allow those who purchase a copy of Broken Butterfly to loan it out. Why would I do that? I want people to read my book. I hope they will love it and want to read more of my books when I get them published.
I didn't know it at the time, but I get paid when people read my books. I found this out when I received my check. So, I am giving a blessing, and receiving one in return. :)
If you enjoyed Broken Butterfly you can really help me by doing a few very simple things. a)   Download a free copy of Broken Butterfly on any of the free promotion days. This will push it closer to the free bestseller list where it will get more views. b)   Tell ALL of your reader friends about this promotion, so they can download a copy too. :)c)   Read the pages of the free copy. d)   Leave a review for me on Amazon!! EVERY SINGLE REVIEW IS IMPORTANT!!! THANK YOU SOOOO VERY MUCH IF YOU ALREADY HAVE!!!!!
You may think your review isn't important ... but it is. It's so very important. Every review bumps me closer to the bestseller list. ... Plus, the more good reviews a book has, the more likely a new reader is to give it a chance. It is always a factor for me when I choose a book. It doesn't have to be anything fancy. It doesn't have to be long. Short and sweet is fine with me. Just please, if you've read Broken Butterfly and you loved it, do this to help me get more copies into the hands of new readers. And thank you so much in advance. And let me know if you leave one, so I can thank you personally!!
I'm so blessed to have thirty-two 5 star***** reviews today and one 4 star**** review. That is a huge blessing.You can find me on Goodreads and Barnes & Nobles too!
I'm working hard with my editor on Chasing Paradise. I will be looking for reviews ahead of time before this one is published!!
Thanks so much for stopping by!

Cindy

I'm so excited to be a guest on Vonda Skelton's blog today. Please join me there ... Here's the link ...

http://www.vondaskelton.com/2015/10/2...

and be sure to leave a comment for your chance to win a free paperback copy of Broken Butterfly.

I look forward to seeing you there.


Thanks for stopping by and have a wonderful day,


Cindy

I'm so glad y'all came back to hear some more of my story.
When I reached the airport, I didn't know where to park, so I had to stop and ask someone and then start all over on my journey around the airport. When we were finally inside the parking garage, it took at least ten minutes to find a parking spot and maybe five more to get into the spot. After the long walk to the terminal, I reached the desk and looked around like a lost puppy dog. But thank goodness, there was no line at our flight counter. Did that matter?No.The lady asked me where we were headed.I told her."You're too late to make that flight." She said in that short sort of way that cut off all small talk.I started trembling immediately. "No, I'm not." "Yes, you are. You're eight minutes late.""Eight minutes?""Have you got your bags checked in?" Her voice sounded fine, there was no sliver of condensation, but her eyes flicking from me to Zach were knowing."No, that's why I'm here?" I keep that I'm-too-dignified-to-beg tone out of my voice. But only barely.She didn't hesitate. She didn't smile. "You'll have to rebook.""No. I can make it. I can." The begging mode slowly creeps through."Do you have your boarding passes?""No. Please. I can make it.""Let me get my supervisor." She walks away and all I can do is retrace my steps over and over. Why did I stop? Why didn't I come straight here? What have I done? I felt like I had stepped up to the start of a race, and the outcome was already set in stone. I was going to lose. 

And ya'll, I'm shaking so hard, I can't see straight.Zach grabs my arm. "Mama, stop it. You can't do anything about it.""I have to."I hear the ladies talking and I the supervisor says, 'You have to be here thirty minutes ahead of time'.My clerk comes back. There's nothing more I can do. I feel like I'm going to throw up. I need to quit pushing myself to the limit. It's not worth it."You have to rebook."
I have to try one more time. "Please. I can make it." I point toward the area I think I have to go. "I know I can make it.""No. Now, it's been ten minutes." She checks something on her computer. "They've already dropped your seats." Deep down, I don't believe her. Why is this happening? I am not in control of anything. And I have destroyed everything over one bad decision."I can get you seats on a 6:30 flight and you'll arrive in Tampa at 10:45. Or I can get you a flight tomorrow." The frustration had drained out of her voice, and she just sounds very, very tired.Zach finally speaks up. "No, I have to be there tomorrow."My chest is pounding. I'm supposed to be at my friend's house at 3:00. How can I show up at her house at midnight? What kind of friend am I? What kind of mother am I? My husband is going to kill me. What kind of wife am I? I'm about to have a break down."Wait. I found something earlier." She's still typing on her keyboard. "I can get you on a flight at 3:45."That's better. And I take a deep breath."It'll be $58 more per person?""Only $58 per person? That's it? That's all I have to pay?""Yes. That includes all the fees." I exhale. "Okay." It's like hundreds of pounds are lifted from my shoulders. Not that I'm happy about paying $116 more, but I'm happy that's all I have to pay. Especially when I hear the people next to me will have to pay over a thousand. We would've turned around and drove home. Very disappointed. And I probably would've had to drag Zach. Is that even possible? "So we need to be back here at ... Or should I go ahead and check in?"The clerk didn't crack a smile. "I'm checking you in right now."And even in this mess, with my stomach tangled in knots, I'm able to laugh.Then, God blesses me in this moment even more than that."Wait. I found something sooner. I can get you two on a flight leaving at 12:20."It's 11:45 now. "You'll be in Tampa by 3:30."God is so good.
To be continued...
There's so much more I want to share with you about our trip. I hope you'll come back week after next to hear more. :)
Next week, I'm doing an author interview with Vonda Skelton and I'm so excited. I'll have the link here next week so you'll be able to join me there. And I'll be giving away a signed paperback copy of Broken Butterfly, so be sure to stop by and visit us there next Tuesday!!
Thanks for stopping by!
Cindy