Tuesday 2 August 2011

Big news, Blog Tours, Google Blog Search and New Canadian Publisher Seeks Authors

Hi everyone! Sorry I've been away for over a month. During that time I finished my second novel, Grounds for Death, and now I'm working on hiring an editor, researching cover art and determining my marketing plan.
I recently learned about blog tours, in which an author sets a timeframe during which s/he arranges for book reviews and does Q&A sessions with bloggers, in advance of a novel's release. (Here's a great link explaining blog tours.) It sounds like a fantastic idea, so I'm planning to arrange that as soon as I 1) figure out how long the editing process will take, and 2) who all those bloggers might be! Another strategy is to set a specific release date and solicit pre-orders to cause opening week sales to spike and hopefully cause a book to hit bestseller lists. Okay, this might be beyond my reach, but I can always dream.
Google has a blog search tool (click here), so I'm easily able to locate suitable bloggers. The trick is in identifying those that review cozy mysteries, and what their review policy is - yes, bloggers actually have rules they go by for reviewing novels, who'd have thought?
Also, I want to let you know that The Workhorsery, a new Toronto-based publisher, is looking for authors to represent. Here's the link for more information.
But the past month hasn't been all work. I recently took these pictures and wanted to share them with you. 


A female gold finch sits on a clutch of eggs
in a Red Maple on my front lawn. Five babies
hatched last week. It seems late in the year
(end of July) but I trust they know what they're doing.

 
A male grossbeak eyes me suspiciously
from an Austrian pine outside my breakfast
nook to determine if it's safe to visit the feeder.


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