Ray Connor's Blog

I have been extremely remiss in my blog duties. I just finished my new book The Whining Woods. It is a middle grade book and sequel to The Interdimensional Dumpster which was published in 2010. Where has the time gone? I know that I have kept my books top of mind, but while I was writing the sequel, I went into a blogging limbo. I vowed to blog weekly in the past and barely mustered up a few entries over the last few years. This acts as my formal apology and I vow to be more current with my writing adventure. I just updated my website www.rayconnor.com and hope you get the chance to check it out. That's all for today, it's time for bed!

Hi All, I have put off writing the sequel to The Interdimensional Dumpster for too long now. First there was the Holidays, The Superbowl, the summer, the October Snowstorm, and any other lame excuse I could use. Well that's it. I am writing again and need to finish the book. I ran into a few kids Sunday that asked me to hurry up because they are waiting for it. I used to write for just me, but now that the first book was modestly successful, I actually have some fans to please. So that's the end of excuses. I am a writer and I will write. Oh and maybe I'll blog more than once every few months.

It's the reviews that we get from friends that always make us smile, but the one's we get from complete strangers are the one's that make us sit back and evaluate how we actually "perform" as writers. Each time I get a request to post a review or interview, I shudder just a little bit. What if they don't like it? That thought gnaws at each of us no matter how successful we are. I am only an aspiring write with my one book in publication. Luckily I have 11 reviews from various people that actually like it! (At least I know that 11 people have actually read it! The most recent is from Katy Walters of Southern England. She is the author of Phobic Dawn (I highly recommend it) and a sci-fi book reviewer. Here is the link: http://katysreviewsandnews.blogspot.com/

I highly recommend that you check out her blog as well as her book.

Also, if you get a chance, every time you read a book, please reach out to the author through email, Amazon review, or Goodreads and let them know that you appreciate their work.

Kind words go a long way!

It's a little tough working a full-time job, raising a family, writing books, and marketing your books all at the same time. I'm trying to balance all of them and feel a little stressed sometimes. Today's goal is book marketing and book marketing alone! I'm locking myself in the dungeon (an affectionate term for my office) and spending at least 8 hours on growing the following for my book. I just finished building my GoodReads author page and started a book giveaway. I linked to Twitter and now have 556 GoodReads Friends! Not bad for Day One! Next, I am returning the emails of a few PR firms that showed interest in my work. I am holding out hope that the ones that don't charge a huge retainer will actually be succesful and still interested after the initial discussions.

All in all, this author life has been quite a blast. People are starting to stop me in the supermarket and ask me how sales are going. Kids come up to me and say hello, and some of the book signings have been a huge success.

I'm counting on the next blog to have more info on where the book is heading!

Does anyone out there have any marketing suggestions?

I'm heading back to my author life again! It was a tough road through the holidays, but I can devote a few hours a day to writing the sequel to The Interdimensional Dumpster . I have a few chapters in the bag and a few more rummaging around in my brain, so the flow should pick up quickly.

I am also doing a Literacy Night in my hometown elementary school this month. I get to talk to a few hundred kids about the joys of writing and I can't wait!

I also booked a signing on March 22 at Bruce's Browser in Athol, Mass. I can't wait for that one also.

I hope April becomes just as action packed!

The reviews of The Interdimensional Dumpster are starting to roll in and I can say that I am more than happy with the results. Every reviewer so far has recommended my book to kids in their posts on blogs, etc. I would like to thank:

laradunning.wordpress.com (review coming Wednesday)
coffeeforthebrain.blogspot.com
www.rachelsbookreviews.com

These are the first three reviews of the book and have all noticed the book for what it is; a fun read for those kids that don't really like reading that much. My goal was to hook them in with the comic book style cover and leave them hooked until the last puctuation mark.

My goal over the next few weeks is to add a page to my website to link all of the reviews. Hopefully, someone out there will notice that the book has mass appeal and will want to back it?

Who knows?

I would like to thank everyone who came out on October 30th for my signing of The Interdimensional Dumpster. I signed over 60 copies of my book and was shocked at the turnout. Family, Friends and Fans showed up at Pam's paperbacks Plus. It was two hours of conversation,revisiting old friendships and forging new ones. The positive feedback on the book made me dedicate more of my time to finishing the second novel in the series. People were telling me to hurry up and finish it! I can't let them down, I am shooting for May 2011 as a release date. Wish me luck and...

Keep reading!

Thanks,

Ray

This Saturday, I'll be signing copies of my book at:

Pam's Paperbacks Plus
85 Post Office Park
Wilbraham, Ma 01095

I'll be there from 10am to noon.

I have no idea what to expect, this being my first official signing. I have 90 books for sale, as well as some t-shirts. The store will handle the sales, all I need to do is smile and sign!

I'll post a recap after it happens.

Stay Tuned!!

Now that my book has been available for a few weeks, I have been hard at work marketing and promoting. I have sent the book to several review sites, and received a positive review from the first one to post it! That's a relief!

My next task is to prepare for my first book signing. It is coming up October 30th and I'm not sure what to expect! I have created the Facebook event, posted on Twitter, and the Book Store is doing an email blast. Whew.

Another positive that has happened is the local media coverage! I have been featured on the front page of my local newspaper.

This journey has been great and I wish everyone could experience the feeling of seeing your book in print.

Now, I need to work on Book 2!

On Friday, September 10th, I received the first actual copies of my book. 25 of them, all looking as pretty as the first. The even bigger day was Saturday, the 11th. The Interdumensional Dumpster showed up on Amazon, both as a book and as a Kindle version. 14 years finally paid off. Of course, I gave a copy to my parents and my grandmother, but plan on sending most of the others out for reviews. Day one netted me 3 copies of the book and 2 copies of the Kindle. Woohoo, five people bought it! Thank you to whoever you are!