Casey Wilder's Blog

 I want to thank everyone for being so patient for the last few (several?) weeks.  Life has in fact been incredibly hectic but it is slowing down to it's normal chaotic pace and I will once again have at least a little time each day to return to writing.  At least until the same time next year.  Maybe I'll plan better next time and make sure I finish the story I'm working on BEFORE everything blows up around me.  There will still be moments I'm sure (kids, house, job, etc.)  but nothing like what I've had lately.  So...I'm taking the rest of the day off today and starting back in the morning.    Hopefully, you'll hear from me again soon.  And thanks again V.  You're wonderful.  Don't know what I'd do without you!

First, I know, I lied when I said you wouldn't hear from me before Captured was finished.  Sorry, but I wanted to let you know that first, I had some major computer issues (try dead computer - my fault entirely) and I lost many of the changes I made right before it died.  Trying to go back in and make them now is proving a little frustrating.  It's pushed me over into other deadlines both personal and professional that must be met.  I'm working on it every free moment I have and will get it done.  

Second, I don't know if you've heard, but Smashwords sent out an email to all authors, agents, and publishers of erotica letting everyone know that they had only a few days to pull stories involving psuedo-incest, bestiality, and rape for tittilation.  Paypal is forcing the issue.  If the titles aren't pulled, they will no longer do business with Smashwords and Smashwords cannot simply stop using Paypal.  I understand that.  Personally, it shouldn't impact me at this very moment since those are not the stories I write.  However, Smashwords has already stated that they may pull stories by mistake if they believe the content meets the new definition of prohibited content.  Since they cannot possibly read all of the stories, I have yet to figure out how they will pull off the stories that authors don't voluntarily pull.  I guess we'll see.   I suppose one thing that concerns me is that I realize in the future, Paypal may decide that they will no longer do business with anyone who buys or sells erotica.   I personally don't like the type of stories that are currently being banned but I don't like that Paypal is refusing to let people buy them and make the payment using their service.  They are simply too big and powerful and they know it.  What happens when they won't let people buy or sell erotica?   I like erotica and I know I'm not the only one.  It bothers me a great deal that a company will decide what is morally acceptable for me to read and what is not.  Oh, did I mention that as I understand it, it's only the erotica category that the changes apply to?  If similar content shows up in a story in any another genre, it does not currently have to meet the new standards.  It's all fiction folks.   Now, do I think Smashwords can find a solution to this?  Not in three days.  Eventually, maybe.  Yes, Smashwords makes payments by Paypal, but I opted for the good old fashioned paper check.   I don't necessarily trust Paypal to actually give me my money.   I've heard stories about them holding onto payments for one reason or another and yes, I realize those stories may not be true.  I have no way of knowing, but I still prefer the check.   My decision is a personal one.  I've elected not to do business with Paypal unless there is simply no other way to make a payment.   Yes, Paypal was easy, but I cannot personally support them if I can avoid it.   Nearly every online store I normally order from will also take credit card payments.    I know my business is so insignificant that Paypal won't care one way or another but I'll know.    If you want to find out more, try TechCrunch .   They picked up the story and also have a link to Smashwords.   I'm not sure all of their information is correct but it's close.

Casey

I've tried six ways from Sunday to try and make it work.  It seems like it always resets and I don't know why.  I've put it on other websites for people and it always works for those so why am I having so much trouble?  I don't suppose it matters.  I changed it to the box and moved it up the page.  If it resets this time, I'm taking it off and leaving it off.  I still don't really understand the whole facebook thing anyway.  
Sorry, just frustrated.  So, I'm almost finished editing Captured and I feel a little guilty for saying it would be done and it's not yet.  I've moved every other thing, (except the kids and my paying job) to the back burner until I finish the editing.  I'm not even reading V.  The problem came when I left it alone for two days and went back to read it.  I realized that it was fairly dependent on the other stories and I've worked hard to make them relatively independent.   So, I've made some changes but I've got to go back over it all.  Other than that, all I have is the front material and that necessary evil called the author's page.  Then I'll be done.  I swear you're not going to hear another word from me until it's finished.  Unless of course you're waiting on an email from me.  I don't like to let those get backed up so I'll still respond.  
Oh, FYI, those of you who have Kindles and have asked about getting a copy, since it's not on Amazon, you can download An Absolutely Incredible Valentine for your Kindle straight from Smashwords.  It's still free and probably will be for a while longer.  Smashwords has a version for every ereader on the market - you can even read them on your laptop.   I've found myself doing that more often.  Not now though and not until I finish Captured.  See...I'm trying!
Casey

As I'm sure you realized, I've been a happy camper.  I've had great responses from most everyone and I'm really glad most of you have enjoyed An Absolutely Incredible Valentine.  It was still first under New and Noteworthy for iTunes' contemporary romances this evening.  A lot of people have been reading Surrender too and it's been on the iTunes charts for the last few days.  Yesterday, it finished 1st on the erotica chart in the UK and Australia, 3rd in the US, and 4th in Canada.  So thank you to everyone for making my day.  I was so pleased that I finally fessed up to my husband.  Do you know how it feels when you just have to share something with someone or you'll burst.  Yep, that was me.  My husband is one of the few people I trust to keep my secret and he's very supportive.  

Now, very quickly 'cause it's homework time.  Book covers.  I've explained this but I'm going to cover it again for those of you who missed it.  No, I don't use erotic covers.  Maybe this will help you understand.  I personally would like very much to read Maya Banks Highlander stories.  I don't remember the name of the first one but I do remember the cover.  It's not sexually explicit but the cover is still sexy enough to keep me from buying the paperback.  I would not be comfortable sitting in a room full of kids (while I'm waiting for my own) reading a book with that cover.  And that's usually when I read.   I read in bits and pieces while I'm waiting on someone else to finish something.  So, I either have to pay 7.99 for the ebook (and yeah, I have a problem buying the ebook when I can get the real book for the same price.  Don't ask me, it's just the way I am.  I've learned to live with it.)  So, here I sit, not reading the story I want to read because of a book cover.  And that isn't even a sexually explicit cover.  I don't want people to feel like they have to hide what they're reading from their friends, their coworkers or their kids.  So, I avoid those kinds of covers.  Will I ever make an exception?  Possibly, but it still won't be anything that I consider too erotic.  After all, it may be smut, but I'm shooting for semi-tasteful smut.  

Ok, I've gotta supervise a homework from hell session so I can get back to work on Captured before V hunts me down.

Casey

Hope everyone has a great day whether you have that special someone or not.  If not, be patient and think about all the other people who love you.  

If you haven't read An Absolutely Incredible Valentine, check it out.  It currently has an average of 4 1/2 stars at iTunes.  It's free at iTunes, Diesel, Eros, and Smashwords.  Unfortunately, it has not made it to Barnes and Noble, Kobo or Amazon.  I think there might be shipping issues with Kobo because nothing has gone to them in the last 2 weeks.  I don't know when anything was last shipped to Amazon.   All Smashwords says is that the ship date is TBD due to technical issues.  I can't list it myself at Amazon because it's free and Amazon won't allow that.  Personally, I've gotten to where I read a lot of stories straight from Smashwords.  Unfortunately, their site has been down and no, I don't know why.

For those of you who are asking what's next.  The answer is Captured: A Tale of Indulgence.  V has been oh so patient while she waits for me to finish and I assured her I would.  It's written but it has that editing process left.  Not my favorite part but absolutely necessary!    If you want to keep up with the stories as they come out, the easiest way is to subscribe to the blog.  You can subscribe in a reader or by email.  If you prefer to send emails, that's ok too.  I'll still answer.  

In case you haven't figured it out, I really do want to interact with readers.  I love to hear what you think and would really, really, really, love to hear what you would like to read.  I'm giving you a chance for some input here so please, tell me what's on your mind.   Keep in mind, the contact form does not require an email address or even a name.  If you prefer to be anonymous, by all means, keep your personal information out of it.  The only way I have your email address is if you put it on the form.  Obviously if you want a response, you'll need to leave it.  If you just want to share your deepest, darkest fantasy, there's no need to fill that part out.

Thanks to everyone,

Casey

As I wait for the kids to finish up their bedtime routines, I thought I'd check iTunes to see if I could find An Absolutely Incredible Valentine on their site.  To my surprise it showed up first on their New and Noteworthy section of Contemporary Romance.  So, I checked the reviews and it actually has 33 of them.  And yeah, I'm gonna share.  17 people gave it 5 stars, 9 gave it 4, 6 gave it 3, 3 gave it 2 and one person hated it.  So, yep, I'm a happy camper.  I'm sorry someone hated it but I can't fix that.   I don't expect everyone to love my stories.  The simple fact is, everyone has different tastes.   I'm guessing that it's actually not a huge section of the population that would really love erotic romances.  Probably more than will admit it but still, they're not for everyone.  I guess the best part is simply knowing that some people enjoyed the story.  That is afterall, the point of a story.  So I guess I've done something right.  At least with this story.   

Just wanted to share that Surrender actually made the top 100 on the iTunes erotica chart yesterday in the UK, Australia, and the USA.  It actually finished 3rd in the US so I really am pleased.  I now have 2 reviews at Goodreads.  I  want to remind everyone that I still offer a free read for anyone who reads one of my stories and leaves feedback of any sort, good or bad.  Check my homepage for the details.
And again, thanks V.  For offering the encouragement to continue putting them out there.  Otherwise, I might have gone back to filing them away.
Casey

First, I read Holding the Cards by Joey Hill W. Hill.  I thought the overall story was great and I think the author is very talented but it had a little too much fluff for my taste.  I'm a "get on with it" reader so I get a little frustrated  with a lot of description.  And I'm not saying the whole story was like that because it wasn't.   I did like the book and would recommend it, but I didn't love it and I think I would have if there'd been a little less fluff.  Just my opinion.

Second, and I think this is pretty cool, Surrender made the iTunes erotica chart (24 yesterday) in the UK.  Yeah, I know it's not much, but for me, it felt pretty damn good to have a story make any chart when it wasn't listed for free and there are no reviews outside of Smashwords.  So, yep, I'm pleased.

Third, it's awfully damn cold here.  At least 30 below (and no I never exaggerate). Ok, it feels like it's 30 below.  I don't know why we got blasted but I'd really like for it to warm up.  I'm going to spend most of my day indoors and plan to work on Captured.  The last few days have been hectic and I'm pretty sure I have too many irons in the fire.  I'm also trying to finish a painting for a friend and I really need to get caught up on housework.  I'm stepping on lego pieces again and it requires a firm hand to get those pieces out of my floor.  So, I'll do what I can to work on my writing.

Last, does anyone ever check Harley's blog on Eros?   Apparently she posted a picture yesterday that caught some flack.  I haven't read the whole story but curious person that I am, I wanted to see the picture.   I'll say this.  I can't imagine that anyone, regardless of age, sex, or sexual orientation would not think that photo was hot.  And yeah, I know, you're probably wondering why I would think so since I said I don't like explicit photos.  Well, I didn't mean I didn't like them, I said I wouldn't use them for my book covers.  There's a difference.  I don't want someone to buy my book just because it looks good.  I've seen readers leave reviews based on the book cover alone when the story was truly awful.  What's on the outside of the book has nothing to do with what's on the inside and no, I still won't use them.   That's not to say I'll never consider using an erotic photo.  I might, as long as it leaves plenty to the imagination and doesn't qualify as soft porn.   And I can look at them all I like!

Casey

How is it that I can be such a voracious reader of virtually everything written and not know about Goodreads?   If you knew how hard it was for me to even admit that I don't know about something - coming from someone who knows everything (I wish) or at least from someone who at one point managed to convince the kiddies that their mom was the smartest person in the world - where was I? Oh yeah, admitting that I didn't know something...I really was clueless.  Maybe it's because I've always bought the majority of my books from Amazon or because I used to just buy real books at the local bookstore, but I honestly did not know what Goodreads was.  I'd seen it on the Barnes and Noble site but just assumed that it was what they called their reviews.  No, I don't own a Nook yet so I don't buy my books there unless they're the old fashioned kind that you get at the store.  Yeah, I still do that sometimes.  So, for  those of you who are familiar with Goodreads, why didn't you tell me?  For those of you who aren't, it's pretty cool.  I spent maybe five minutes there today (while I was working at my real job so don't tell anyone) and they have all these lists of recommendations that appeared to be broken down into different categories.  Like I say, I only spent a few minutes there but plan to check it out some more tomorrow.  I found out about it when I found a review by Punya H. Rashid.  She consumes books at an impressive rate and writes reviews.  She'd written one on An Absolutely Incredible Valentine that I came across on a search engine.  Now I can honestly say that she and I probably look at most things differently and I'm going to go out on a limb and say she's probably younger than I am but that's ok.  She reads, she has opinions and she voices them.  I personally never get beyond loved it, liked it, or hated it although I'm going to try to do better for new authors.  I might even write a review.  So, I found that Ms. Rashid and I share similar tastes in some books and in most cases are not that far apart on my loved it, liked it, hated it scale.  So if you're interested, she's read a lot of books and you might find something new there that you haven't read.  So, here's the site if you want to check it out. http://punyareviews.blogspot.com/ 

Don't forget to check out Goodreads if you haven't done so.

And the other site that has quickly become one of my favorites:
http://temptingbooks.blogspot.com/p/home.html  
The author, Karen (the only name I've seen), finds romance and erotica books that are 2.99 and under and posts links to them.  Not all the books  are great, but some I've found have been really good and I'm thrilled that someone else has the patience to scour the retail stores to find them. Considering the small fortune I have invested in books, the inexpensive ones are always nice!

Enjoy!
Casey

I added a page today that has a short survey and a contact form.  Just trying to make it easy on you.  The survey is extremely short and it's all optional.  The contact form is actually separate from the survey.  You're welcome to fill out one or both or neither.  It's incredibly simple (I know because I tried it). So, check it out, fill it out, or ignore the thing.  It's there if you want to give it a shot.