Rachel Ann Nunes's Blog: Rachel's Ramblings

I have recently formatted fifteen of my older novels for ebook, most of them out-of-print as well as released three new projects (a novella, a chapter book, and a romantic suspense novel). Formatting for the Kindle came first because it was the most accessible to me, they have a huge platform, and they had a DRM option, which I feel is important for writers to protect their copyright. (I know there are ways around DRM, and there are always people out there who are dishonest and forward ebooks to others, but at least the average Joe thinks twice about doing so if the DRM is in place. NOTE: Forwarding ebooks to others who haven’t bought them is against the law.) I have also recently put most of these books on the Nook, which turned out to be just as easy, though they don’t sell as well.

The most exciting thing about ebooks is that I can offer these books at a third of the price of the printed copies. Yay!

But I still get emails asking when I’m going to get these books in print. Well, for my new releases, they will definitely go to press eventually with my regular publishers, but for the older books that have already seen several print runs, the matter is more complicated. You see, my ebooks have sold enough to make it worth the time I took to put them there, and I’m hoping that promotions I can do with my limited free time will to raise sales, but I won’t be able to hire a typesetter and someone to figure out the print-on-demand options offered by CreateSpace (the print “sister” to Amazon ebooks). That means I have to wait until I have time to learn how to typeset the books myself. I have to do it ALL myself or risk losing money to print the older books.

All that takes time away from my “day” job of writing for my regular publisher. When I do release the older books in print, I will have to charge the higher price demanded by the print-on-demand company, which prints a book at a time, as opposed to traditional publishing which prints larger amounts, but which have to be all paid for in advance—something you can’t do for older books that will likely sell fewer than ten percent of the ebook copies.

That means the people who want my older books in print form have to pay three times what they would have paid for the same ebook. No more books for $5.99 or $6.99. Nope, they would be $14.99 or more like the $17.99 that my publisher charges for my new novels. Yikes!

So if someone bought ten of my older ebooks instead of print copies, they would save more than enough to buy a Kindle. Or throw in the other five, and two of my newer books (my publisher discounts even new ebooks from $17.95 to $9.99), and with your savings, you could buy a Kindle Fire or a nice Android phone or an iPod and download a Kindle app. Once you have done this, you can get the less expensive ebooks, AND you are also ready to participate in any free ebooks offer authors/publishers sometimes send out during promotions. Win-win! And you never have to worry about not having enough room for more books.

Now I haven’t mentioned the Nook because I sell less than ten percent of my ebooks there, but most of my books are available there, too. Enjoy!

So the other day my baby, then about seven months old, exploded from her diaper. She does this quite regularly, but this time she was covered all the way up her back, in the front, and out the bottom. It was quite something else (and I've raised six other children). On the way to the to the bathtub, I stopped to show Liana, my eight-year-old daughter, what her sister had done. I expected her to say, "Ooo gross!" Instead a huge smile came over her face and and she said, "Lisbon, you're SO AMAZING! Aren't you, sweetie? Yes, you are. So AMAZING!" And she went upstairs with me to help clean the baby.

Then last week Lisbon was a little sick, and when Liana came home from school, she grabbed her from my arms as she always does. She lay down on the carpet, raising the baby above her, up and down. Lisbon laughed. She loves playing with her sister.

Then it happened. Yes, you guess it. Lisbon threw up all over Liana's throat and shirt. It was really yucky. I know because I had just cleaned the same thing up not thirty minutes before.


And what did Liana do? I admit, I was holding my breath. I mean, that's a little too much for an eight-year-old to take.

But Liana laughed and said, "Oh, Lisbon, you're so AMAZING! Mom, can you pass me that rag?"

So who is really amazing here?

I think they both are. And I think that maybe the fact that we laugh every time something like this happens, no matter how long it takes to clean up or how long it delays whatever we're doing, we're teaching our children what's really important in life. Every day as I hold my baby, I know I'm the luckiest woman alive.

So to celebrate my amazing kids, I'm giving away 2,000 copies of my Kindle chapter book The Problem With Spaceships Book #1: Zero G Saturday April 28th for your child ages 6-10. Once you read it, you'll see why! I hope you find it AMAZING!

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004...

A few weeks ago I was at the Olympic Park in Park City, Utah waiting in line for the Alpine Slide ride, and I couldn't help but overheard the two young mothers in front of me discussing how they succeeded in making their babies sleep through the night. They used phrases like, "He only cried for an hour the first night" and "Mine cried fifteen minutes and then I went in and patted his back for a while" and "It took several nights, but he sleeps all night now." They expressed both guilt for letting their child cry and gratitude for their now-uninterrupted nights.

I didn't join the conversation. Why? Because I wouldn't have known what to say. My children never slept through the night as babies. I nursed them on demand, and they slept in our room until they were weaned (between 14 and 24 months). Even after they slept in their own rooms, I would go to them if they cried in the night and stay with them if they wanted me, or take them back to my room. I simply wasn't capable of allowing them to cry, especially as tiny babies who didn't understand why they were suddenly alone. By answering their calls, I felt they would know that I would always be there for them.

That idealogy continued into other areas. If they didn't feel comfortable in the nursery at church or in their class, I stayed with them until they wanted to go alone. I never sneaked out of a room when they weren't looking, or left without telling them I was going and when I'd be back. I told nursery leaders to come and get me if my child cried and once when they didn't, I refused to take my child back until they were replaced. I didn't us dentists who insisted on keeping me out in the waiting room while they worked on my children. Or to preschools who didn't encourage parent visitors. At times I endured criticism, but what I saw at commitment to my child came first.

I also had little time for myself. There were a lot of days that I was groggy, irritable, and annoyed. I sometimes felt that my sleepless nights would never, ever end. At one point, I couldn't ever remember sleeping all the way through a night in a solid decade. I craved sleep as a drowning man craves air. But I still couldn't let them cry.

I chose other ways of setting limits. I made my children do their chores, we held them responsible for their homework. We always tried to know where they were and who they were with. We taught them the gospel and the commandments. We taught them to care for and love each other.

So did my method work? Well, my children sleep all night and have since they were two or so. None of them have sleep disorders. On the rare occassion if they are awakened by a bad dream, or feel scared at night, they know they are welcome to come to my room for comfort. (As opposed to my husband as a little child, who would shiver alone in his room at night because his father would get mad if he came into his parents' room.) All my children attend school without any issues, they excel in academics, the two oldest have received college scholarships. Some have pursued sports and acting. They have friends and are well-adjusted. I'm convinced I made the right decision for my children.

But do I believe these young mothers ahead of me in line chose the wrong method for their children? Of course not! I remember how the exhaustion weighed on me. I remember how our children's need sometimes came between me and my husband. I remember people outside our family pressuring me to create a sleeping and eating schedule and make my children adhere to it. This method didn't feel right for the person I am and the way I was raised, but these mothers chose the way they felt was best for them and their children. That it was the complete opposite of my path absolutely doesn't mean their children will suffer negative effects.

There are many different ways to parent. My belief is that mothers should follow their instincts while raising their children. Don't let popular opinion, friends, or family pressure you into doing something you feel is wrong for you child. On the other hand, don't let anyone guilt you into not doing something you feel is right. Yes, study out all sides of the issue, discuss with your husband what you should do, making any compromises necessary, and then make a plan. If it doesn't end up working, rethink the plan. Nothing should be set in stone. As I've found with my six children, what works for one child, may not work for another.

For all those young mothers out there battling those sleepless nights. I want you to know that looking back now it seems as though those sleepless 15 years went by so fast! And the moments I spent alone in the middle of the night with each of my children during their first few years are memories I now cherish. So take heart and love your child, and remember that no matter what sleeping method you choose, as long as you love and care for them and set limits in other important areas, your child will be just fine. And one way or the other, you will eventually sleep all the way through the night like I do now.

My new book, Saving Madeline, is now available in stores! For more information, read the blurb below or visite my website: http://www.rachelannnunes.com/SavingM....

Enjoy!

As a public defender, Caitlin McLoughlin dreams of someday locking the bad guys in prison instead of defending them. But prosecuting jobs are scarce, and Caitlin’s future seems bleak. When her current client is about to walk away from a brutal crime, she risks her career to make sure he doesn’t hurt anyone else. Yet what if her choice means sacrificing her career and the means care for her mentally disabled sister?

Then Caitlin meets Parker Hathaway, charged with kidnapping four-year-old Madeline. Just another criminal, another job, Caitlin thinks.

But Parker tells a far different story. Can Caitlin believe him, as her heart urges? Is she willing to put everything on the line to defend her client—a man who claims to be protecting the child he loves? Or is her trust better placed in the handsome deputy district attorney with his undefeated record in court? Caitlin’s pursuit of the truth swiftly thrusts her into a maze of unanswered questions and unexpected heartache.

Meanwhile, time is running out for Madeline.