I’m delighted to welcome fellow Wild Rose Press author Katherine Grey to my blog today!
There’s a scene in An Unexpected Gift where Olivia is taught how to play Hazard. It’s similar to the game Craps that is still popular in the US today. I was lucky enough to make the acquaintance of someone who is well-versed in the origins of dice games and he was kind enough to teach me the very basics of Hazard.
I’ve never been much of a gambler. Oh I buy the occasional scratch off ticket or lottery ticket, but betting money on something never held any appeal for me. When I mentioned this to my new found friend, he smiled and said I was a gambler, I just didn’t know it. At my puzzled look, he explained. “You write books that you hope people will buy, read, and enjoy. You mentioned that you blog, hold giveaways, visit other blogs, and take part in other things to promote your books all in the hope that someone will want to buy one or more of them.” I nodded in agreement.
“Everything you do to promote your work is a gamble, isn’t it?” he asked. “You don’t really know what will induce people to buy your books.” It was like the proverbial light bulb went off over my head. I’d never really looked at promotion in that way before, but what he said is true. No one really knows what we do in the form of promotion causes a reader to buy one book over another.
Promotional efforts are really no more than a game of chance. In some cases, we may lose money if we don’t get the desired outcome, much like that person who bets money on a game. But unlike the gambler who bets his money on the turn of a card or the roll of the dice, I think I have much more to lose. Yes, money is important and I’m not saying gambling cannot destroy lives and families. But if I stop taking the chance of promoting my work, then I lose my hopes and my dreams. So I guess I’m a gambler after all.
An Unexpected Gift
Blurb:
Known only as Lazarus to the band of cutthroats and thieves he leads, William Prescott will do anything to find his missing sister, even blackmail a fragile young woman into helping him. But he never plans to fall in love with this mysterious woman with a troubled past.
Haunted by the memories of war, Olivia St. Germaine wants nothing more than to live a normal life. But when her brother, a doctor, suddenly leaves town without a word, she is forced to use her medical knowledge to help an injured man who puts her life in danger. Can she keep herself safe as she tends Lazarus, or is her heart more vulnerable than she realizes?
Excerpt:
Olivia moved away from his touch and pulled the book back between them. She turned the page only to have a pair of dice drop onto the book.
“How about we take a break, and I teach you how to play Hazard? Unless you already know how?”
“No, I don’t, and I’m really in no mood to play games.” She set the dice aside.
“Then that is the perfect time to play. Nothing puts a body in a good mood like winning money.” Finch picked up the dice and set them in front of her.
She moved the cubes back in front of him. “I am not gambling with you.”
He looked around the room, then hopped up from his chair and began collecting various curios from around the room. He brought everything back to the table and pushed half of the items toward Olivia. “In place of blunt,” he said by way of explanation.
“You certainly are determined,” she said, feeling the corners of her mouth quirk upward.
“No more than you when I am trying to distract you from that blasted book.”
“Which is what you are trying to do now.”
He smiled at her. “Exactly. Now call a number between five and nine.”
Bio:
At the age of four, Katherine pestered her mother to teach her to read. From that point on, she spent the most of her childhood lost in the pages of one book after another. Soon she began writing stories of her own, populated with characters doing all of the things she was too shy to even contemplate doing herself.
A chance meeting with another author led Katherine to seriously pursue a writing career. Her debut novel, Impetuous, was released by The Wild Rose Press in August 2011.
Katherine lives in upstate NY with her family though she threatens to move south at the beginning of each winter season.
Visit her at http://katherinegrey.blogspot.com
You can find An Unexpected Gift at:
The Wild Rose Press: http://www.thewildrosepress.com/index.php?main_page=index&manufacturers_id=905&zenid=c192ff8e30e3a697385f65ccf39fa892
Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/an-unexpected-gift-katherine-grey/1114371314?ean=2940016394534
babettejames.com 
Your book is already on my Nook, Katherine, and I’m reading THE MUSE now! Keep taking chances–they’re paying off 🙂
Hi Diane,
Thanks. I’m trying to learn more about different promotional things that I can try. Still haven’t figured out what I’m supposed to do with Twitter though. 😮
I hope you’re enjoying Emma and Blaine’s story. Thanks for stopping by.
100% with you on twitter…sad but true. and yes, I am enjoying E and B’s story!!
Virtual book tours are a great promotion opportunity but there are give-aways involved. SO far the one I am on is doing well. And I do promotions at conferences. They seem to bring people to my table at the signings. But remember, in those types of promotions, make sure it is something the reader uses every day and will be less likely to toss when she cleans out her conference bag.
Hi Kathye,
I’ve also heard that paper products get dumped more often than not after a conference. I ordered bookmarks for my 1st book, but haven’t ordered any for of the others. Thanks for stopping by.
I’m mucking my way through the whole promotional learning curve. Learning is fun…right? Very much like gambling. Just finished both The Muse and An Unexpected Gift and thoroughly enjoyed both. That Lazarus – yum!
Hi Melissa,
I keep telling myself learning is fun, but some days I have another description for it. 😮
I’m so glad you enjoyed both stories. I have to admit I have a huge soft spot for Lazarus.
the promotion part completely overwhelms me! I have no idea what I’m doing…at all. Oh well. Someday I hope I’ll figure it out, ha! I absolutely love the cover on An Unexpected Gift! Can’t wait to read this title.
Hi Niecey,
The promotion part overwhelms me too. It’s good to know I’m not the only one. Fender Bender Blues is 4th on my TBR list on my Kindle. I hope to be able to get to it soon.
Hi Katherine,
Nice blog. I never looked on gambling in that before. But when you think about it, it is true. Promotion is a gamble.
Cheers
Margaret
Hi Margaret,
I never realized it either until my friend pointed it out. I just wish there was a way to know which type of promotion works better than others.
Hello Katherine,
Yes, many days when a writer signs up for yet another promotion you wonder if you are reaching readers. I think it is harder in many ways if you do not have a print copy book because with print you can give someone something concrete. Promoting an e book is like selling a dream. The reader has to be ready to purchase the virtual book.
The good news about e books is that they can be acquired while in bed surfing the net. They can be acquired anywhere there is a signal. You don’t have to stand in line at a book store.
So keep throwing the dice, the odds are you will win.
Yours truly,
Annette Bower
Hi Annette,
Thanks for the advice. I’ve found having the option to purchase a print copy is a big deal to my friends and family. Although I have one friend who stated if my books could be found in a store instead of online, I’d probably have more sales.
Hi Babette,
Thank you for having me as your guest. It was fun hearing some of the things other people do as promotion and that I’m not as alone as I thought when it comes to not always knowing whether what I’m doing is working or not. 😮
I’ve never thought about my daily promotional tasks as a gamble before, but it’s surely true. So long as I (We) don’t get hung up on the stats when they show your book is dipping back down the amazon rankings. Of course it is like winning the lottery when your book surges up! 🙂
Hi Nancy,
I try to limit how often I check my stats because it’s a lot like trying to lose weight. – Up one day and down the next. 😮