Q&A with Anne M. Carpenter discussion

Hi! I'm the host of this group, Anne M. Carpenter. I write short stories and full-length novels and have been an avid reader throughout my life. "Anne" is actually my penname - in "real life", I am professional freelance writer Tiffany Aller. (My middle name is Anne, after my long-deceased grandmother, Anne Carpenter) So around here, you may see me sign posts as Anne or Tiffany - but either way, it's just little old me. I'm a police wife, toddler mom, incessant talker and friendly to a fault. Don't get me started on politics (really - don't!) but do ask me what my current favorite book may be.

Thanks for joining - and for reading!

AMC

Hello Anne, thanks for the invite. My name is Catrina, but everyone calls me Kitty. I write Young Adult/New Adult Paranormal Romance and Adventure novels.

I currently have one called Dangerous Temptation. {It's a five chapter preview} up at Amazon {under the name Catrina Barton.}

I'm a wife, mother, writer, and editor in training.

So glad you're here, Catrina! I'm off to Amazon to look up your book!

Anne

I wear so many hats, I don't know where to start, but I have three kids, became a grandma 6 months ago, work as an admin manager during the day and try to write/network/promote when I can during the evenings and weekends.

Writing is one of my greatest passions but I also love to take extended road trips each year during annual vacation. There's always something new to discover.

I've published numerous books/short stories - most since September, 2011 - and the titles I published more than 10 years ago will be brought to life again with new content, fresh covers...and I can hardly wait.

You can find my titles on Amazon but the titles I've published recently can be found on Smashwords. Just look up Norma Budden and you'll have your gal. :)

Anne wrote: "So glad you're here, Catrina! I'm off to Amazon to look up your book!

Anne"

Thanks Anne! :)

Hi Anne, thanks for the invitation. I just published a collection; a novella with two short stories after years of doing technical and promotional writing.

I'm eager to tap into your experience!

Hello Anne, nice to meet you and thanks for the invite. I've just published my first fantasy in a series at Amazon that I started in my late twenties and put aside for various reasons. Now fifty-seven (I know, old huh?)and a year and a half later it is published and doing well. This journey has been an amazing one and the people that I have met on the way have been a blessing, and what is your favorite current book?

Norma wrote: "I wear so many hats, I don't know where to start, but I have three kids, became a grandma 6 months ago, work as an admin manager during the day and try to write/network/promote when I can during th..."

Welcome aboard Norma. :) That's a lot of hats to wear. I have my hands full being wife, mommy, writer, and editor in training. :)

Thanks, Catrina. If I had to actually list everything I do in the run of a day, I'd probably go off crying somewhere from all the pressure I'd feel. :)

Norma wrote: "Thanks, Catrina. If I had to actually list everything I do in the run of a day, I'd probably go off crying somewhere from all the pressure I'd feel. :)"

A real super woman, huh? XD That's incredible. How on Earth do you manage to have time for it all?

Rich wrote: "Hi Anne, thanks for the invitation. I just published a collection; a novella with two short stories after years of doing technical and promotional writing.

I'm eager to tap into your experience!"

Welcome aboard Rich. :)

Virginia wrote: "Hello Anne, nice to meet you and thanks for the invite. I've just published my first fantasy in a series at Amazon that I started in my late twenties and put aside for various reasons. Now fifty-se..."

Glad to have you with us, Virginia. :)

Thanks for the invitation Anne.

I'm Vivian LeMay, author of The Last Lord of Paradise, a six generation family saga now available as a Kindle series.

As a compliment to my books I also write a blog about the earliest days of Detroit and Michigan history, when Canada and the American Midwest, down to New Orleans were called New France.

Vivian wrote: "Thanks for the invitation Anne.

I'm Vivian LeMay, author of The Last Lord of Paradise, a six generation family saga now available as a Kindle series.

As a compliment to my books I also write a b..."

Welcome to the group. That sounds like an interesting blog! My BFF {now an active duty Marine} used to live in Michigan.

Thanks for the invite, Anne.

I'm an indie author, and I'm still living with the stigma of that. Us indie authors get a bad reputation - I guess it is occasionally deserved. I mainly write transgressive fiction, but I have written a couple of thrillers.

I sell most of my books in Kindle format, but I have sold a few paperbacks. Always happy to chat with "fans" in my hometown, sign their copies of my books etc.

I just wish that more indie authors would actually buy books by other indie authors ... I try to buy a couple of indie books for my Kindle every month.

Shaun wrote: "Thanks for the invite, Anne.

I'm an indie author, and I'm still living with the stigma of that. Us indie authors get a bad reputation - I guess it is occasionally deserved. I mainly write tran..."

Hello Shaun. Welcome to the group. I'm friends with some awesome Indie authors, and they are some of the first books I buy. {On the rare occasions I have money for books}.

My favorite is an old critique partner Katie Salidas. :)

I do try to also Shaun. My husband is an avid reader and has at least fifty books to read on his kindle app at any given time.

Hi,

Thanks for the invite. I prefer the short story and you can get a free ebook with some in it on my page here, Cassandra's Roadhouse. I will have to read some of yours to see what they are about now.

Mike wrote: "Hi,

Thanks for the invite. I prefer the short story and you can get a free ebook with some in it on my page here, Cassandra's Roadhouse. I will have to read some of yours to see what they are abou..."

Welcome aboard, Mike.

Catrina wrote: "Norma wrote: "Thanks, Catrina. If I had to actually list everything I do in the run of a day, I'd probably go off crying somewhere from all the pressure I'd feel. :)"

A real super woman, huh? XD T..."

By living one moment at a time and trying my best to focus on only those things I really look forward to. I consider them as "rewards." :)

Shaun wrote: "Thanks for the invite, Anne.

I'm an indie author, and I'm still living with the stigma of that. Us indie authors get a bad reputation - I guess it is occasionally deserved. I mainly write tran..."

Shaun, take a look at http://bookreviews.normabudden.com
This is a blog I set up, not necessarily to promote solely indie authors but, as it has turned out, they form the largest base of my reading material. Take a look! You might like what you see.

One more thing: the stigmatism of being an indie author is nowhere like it used to be 10 years ago. I've chatted with traditionally published authors who absolutely love the idea of having gone independent. Of course, they've made a name for themselves already so it's much easier to develop a following for new releases.

Norma wrote: "Catrina wrote: "Norma wrote: "Thanks, Catrina. If I had to actually list everything I do in the run of a day, I'd probably go off crying somewhere from all the pressure I'd feel. :)"

A real super ..."

Great way to look at things. :)

Norma,

You are correct, discovery is the difficult part for independent authors. How do you separate your books from the others and get them into reader's hands.

My goodness...I step away from my computer for a few hours for a family birthday dinner and so many posts go up - I'm tickled pink!

Norma - You sound like such a busy lady - thanks for joining us here, and thanks so much for your kind reviews of a few of my stories! I'm off to Amazon to look you up!

Rich - I love novellas and short stories...I can't wait to learn about the collection you just published!

Hi, Virginia! My current favorite book? Just one? Actually, I've really been enjoying going through Luke Romyn's books and Bob Meyer's books. Different feel but love both authors' styles. Welcome!

Vivian - your family saga sounds fascinating. I would also love to visit your blog. Can you leave a link, please?

Shaun - I agree. I left my full-time job about 6 months ago (for a variety of reasons) but I turned to my freelancing (by day) and indie writing/publishing (by night) to replace my income, and have successfully done so. But trying to explain to my friends and family and former coworkers what I'm doing? Oh, my goodness! I think part of the stigma that lingers is from the days of vanity publishing. But I'm with you - my Kindle is about 75% indie books, and I love it. A few aren't so great. But some are wonderful!

Hi, Mike! What a fascinating title for your story - I am going to go check out! Welcome! As far as getting books into reader's hands, I've found that a combo of Facebook, Twitter and Goodreads has been helpful, as well as using KDP Select for free days. I had a particularly successful pair of free days back in July where one of my stories gave away 5,000 copies on just the first day alone. Good way to build name recognition and I had steady sales the rest of the month.

Catrina - thank you for so graciously welcoming people - you are awesome!

Have a great night, ya'll! Time to get the toddlers to bed and get back to editing.

Anne

Here's the link to my books, Anne. http://amzn.to/L8oK3Y
And my blog. http://thelastlordofparadise.blogspot...

I don't feel any stigma at being an Indie author. I love it. With print publishing, my manuscripts would be gathering dust in some slush pile now, instead my books are out there for the public to enjoy.

Anne wrote: "My goodness...I step away from my computer for a few hours for a family birthday dinner and so many posts go up - I'm tickled pink!

Norma - You sound like such a busy lady - thanks for joining us ..."

You're welcome Anne. We have tons of birthdays this month too, so no worries. :)

Mike wrote: "Norma,

You are correct, discovery is the difficult part for independent authors. How do you separate your books from the others and get them into reader's hands."

Mainly by finding ways to reach your audience. The best way is to connect with your readers at places like this. :)

Hello Anne and thanks so much for the invitation. Hi everyone!
This is looking like a fine group. My debut novel, The Bridge Club, was published in 2010 through iUniverse. I'm working on revisions for my second, so far untitled, and hope to publish by October. I've had great results as an indie and am going that route again.
When I'm not writing, golfing, or up to my ears in social media, my life is full with a wonderful family of seven grown kids + spouses, and six grandchildren.
Looking forward to some good discussion here!

Catrina - you're absolutely right. It's all about finding where your audience is. And, honestly, going beyond your comfort level at times. I suck at self-promotion. I rock at marketing, though, and have worked professionally in that arena. But I always feel...itchy, I guess, when I feel like I'm tooting my own horn. So I'd rather have opportunities like this where I can get into some good discussions and then have a once-in-awhile "hey, I've got a new book" post up, so I can soft sell instead of feeling like I'm beating people upside the head with a "buy me" message. Now, over on Twitter, where messages go by a thousand a minute, I do have posts up "advertising" different titles. But I've set it up that, at most, each title is promo'd no more than 5-8 times a month. I try to strike a balance there between personal discussions and letting people know how/where to find my books.

Is this successful? Yes, somewhat. I'm not a bestseller, although several of my titles have been on genre bestseller lists a few times and two of my titles hit the Kindle Free Top 100. But I do have decent sales that are fairly steady, so I'm happy. I also know that since I won't have a full novel out until next month (as opposed to the short stories and collections I have out now) I am not hitting all of the audiences that I can. Some people just do not like short stories. And that's okay! So that's why I keep typing away to get more books done and published so people have options to try me out.

Welcome, Patricia! My goodness - you must have you hands full with your large family - that's awesome! I'm off to Amazon to look up your book!

Patricia wrote: "Hello Anne and thanks so much for the invitation. Hi everyone!
This is looking like a fine group. My debut novel, The Bridge Club, was published in 2010 through iUniverse. I'm working on revisions..."

Hi Patricia, welcome aboard! Wow! You're another busy lady. :)

Anne, me too. However marketing is pretty much covered for me staring in a little over a week.

I won a fabulous prize during the MFRW marketing seminar. I'm going to be interviewed Aug 27th {on a radio show broadcast world wide, with a minimum of 75,000 listeners}

Because I got this big opportunity, it's the one time I will shamelessly self promote my 5 chapter preview. I'd be letting myself {and my novel} down if I didn't take the chance given to me.

But, like on Twitter and stuff I try to keep my book advertisements to once or twice a week. For a while it was daily, but I don't get on twitter daily anymore. {Too busy finishing the novel.}

My blog is geared towards aspiring writers, and fellow authors, so I talk about my journey there from time to time, but, it's mainly advice that helps writers hone their craft.

Hello, Anne, thanks for inviting me to join your group..I like your sense of humour - the only thing left, I think that keeps us sane(ish).

I've just published #11 and am exhausted but the stories in my head demand attention.

My pen name is Julie Elizabeth Powell, and have recently re-married - though hubby doesn't mind me keeping the old one for my books.

I find promoting /marketing hateful and distasteful but find it a necessary evil - not that I'm any good at it, if my sales are anything to go by!

Just to say that I write in a variety of genres, for the challenge, although I prefer fantasy. I too have a collection of short stories, and am currently working on another as well as a novel, if only to test what I can do.

That's it, thanks again.

Ann, thanks for the invite. Please look for my thriller novel CONTRIVED coming up next month.

Catrina - wow! Your radio spot sounds awesome! Can't wait to hear how it all works out.

Hi, Julie! Thanks for the compliment - I absolutely know that my sense of humor is the only thing that keeps me sane most days! :-) I'm off to look up your books.

Hi, Jay! Thanks for joining! Love the name of your book - remind us when it's released!

Have a great day, ya'll!

Anne

Thanks, Anne - there may be something you'll like lol

Wow, Julie - you do have quite the diverse collection. Ok, what's your favorite? Which would be a good one to start with?

AMC

Jay wrote: "Ann, thanks for the invite. Please look for my thriller novel CONTRIVED coming up next month."

Hi Jay welcome aboard. :)

Julie wrote: "Hello, Anne, thanks for inviting me to join your group..I like your sense of humour - the only thing left, I think that keeps us sane(ish).

I've just published #11 and am exhausted but the stories..."

Hello Julie, welcome to the group. :)

Anne wrote: "Catrina - wow! Your radio spot sounds awesome! Can't wait to hear how it all works out.

Hi, Julie! Thanks for the compliment - I absolutely know that my sense of humor is the only thing that keeps..."

Thanks Anne, I'm excited, but super nervous too. It's my first time on a radio show.

@New members: Welcome aboard!

@Anne: Apparently, it is not against any rules to post a review of your own title. However, because some people do frown upon it, have you considered creating a pseudonym to post reviews for your titles? Of course, it would only work effectively if you reviewed the works of others, too, and, in time, you may desire to write titles using that pseudonym and Anne Carpenter can post reviews for it. Follow what I'm saying?

Don't be nervous at all, Catrina - I'm sure you'll be great. Maybe write a few notes to yourself ahead of time to remember what you want to say. Also, it's perfectly acceptable to forward suggested questions to the show ahead of time. I was a DJ for a few years while in college and mostly just played music but loved when I had the chance to interview people!

Norma, I'm not sure how I'd feel about doing that. I think I'd probably rather get reviews from other people through folks here on GoodReads or giving away copies through FB or Twitter or such.

Actually, "Anne M. Carpenter" itself is a penname...and I've already got 2 other pennames in the works. One will launch in 2013 with a couple YA titles (hopefully!) and the other will either be late this year or early next year for illustrated kids books. I'll post more when I've got books ready to go for them.

I created a penname in the first place because I'm a freelance writer under my real name and I wanted to keep the names separate so as not to confuse.

How about everyone else? How do we feel about reviews, and pseudonyms for that matter?

AMC

Anne, thanks for the advice. I have everything I want to say. The longest talking part for me is where I answer "Tell us a bit about your two main characters"

Very cool - you should tape the broadcast and post to your blog or site for your fans to hear!

Tape? Geez. Do we even use tapes anymore? Ok, record! :-)

lol, Thanks. It's a live blogtalk radio thing, so it's available any time after the show finishes.

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/thebestp...

--

To all other members: Good luck with book sales! I wish you many successful sales. :)

Looks fun!!

I hope so. :)

Well Anne, you've had a busy day and thanks again for the invite. Stop by my Q and A if you like. Everyone is invited. I look forward to the discussions here. Great turn out.

I'd love to come visit, Virginia!

AMC

Norma wrote: "@New members: Welcome aboard!

@Anne: Apparently, it is not against any rules to post a review of your own title. However, because some people do frown upon it, have you considered creating a pseud..."

I recently posted a review of my new release on Amazon (Lost Shadows - sneaky plug). It was meant to be tongue-in-cheek - mainly pointing out that I shouldn't do it, but that it was a good book :) Someone pointed out that it's against the rules on Amazon, so I quickly deleted it, not wanting to lose my account.

Oops - though I can't help doing things like this because I have an imp that forces me to be cheeky - I'm always getting into trouble /being told off for breaking the rules. I take full responsibility for my naughty behaviour (insert manic laughter) :)

By the way, Anne, I have three of your books on my Kindle (took advantage of a freebie) and will read them when I can.

Yay, Julie! I'm glad to hear you grabbed them on a free day! Can't wait to hear what you think of them.