Each of the authors had the option to answer a couple questions about self-publishing. I've included their answers, along with information on their books.
Enjoy!
Andrea Pearson -- Britnell Manor
(A Katon University Novelette)
Kindle, Nook, Smashwords
Q: What is Britnell Manor about?Austin receives a photograph in the mail and quickly discovers that something about it isn’t quite right: every time he looks at it, there are changes.
And the changes aren’t good.
Loosely based off an MR James ghost story, Britnell Manor is a novelette in the Katon University First Year series. Will take about an hour to read.
Q: What movie rating would you give your story, and to which age group is it directed?
A: PG. Readers 12 and older.
Q: What advice do you have for those wanting to self-publish?
A: Be as professional as possible: Hire editors and cover designers. You only have one chance at a first impression. If money is an issue, get a cheaper cell phone plan, drop Netflix/Dish/Cable TV and other luxuries. The more willing you are to sacrifice, the better things will work out for you.
Cheri Schmidt -- Fateful
Kindle, Nook, Kobo
A huge fan of Jane Austen, Danielle hopes to find her own Mr. Darcy when she attends art school in London. She does find the romance she seeks in Ethan Deveroux, but he’s no Mr. Darcy. Her hero is held by a spell which fractures their chance at a happy ending. During the day Ethan is closer to mortal than immortal. Yet, as the sun sets, the powerful magic of an ancient curse returns and the evil of that spell is revealed. When that magic begins, Danielle's fairytale romance ends because Ethan Deveroux is a vampire.
Q: What movie rating would you give your story?
A: PG.
Charles M. Pulsipher -- The Crystal Bridge
Kindle, Amazon (paperback)
Q: What is The Crystal Bridge about?Deep within the emptiness between universes, an ancient creature awakes
and stretches its spidery limbs as it caresses the minds of those in
worlds of matter. With inhuman patience it has waited millennia to be
freed from its prison and the existence of two universes is threatened if
it can find a way out.
Kaden, a teenage boy who can open wormholes to distant worlds, and Aren, a
girl who can read the souls of those around her, will both be dragged into
a war between magical creatures on a distant world that will shape all of
reality and perhaps save us all.
Q: What movie rating would you give your story, and to which age group is it directed?
A: Soft PG13 - some younger than thirteen have enjoyed it.
Scott Bryan -- Night Children: Dark Threats
Kindle, Nook, Amazon (paperback), Smashwords
Annabelle Foresight loves reading and walks under the moonlight. Her brother Roland loves hunting and lots of action. For 300 year old children vampires, they’ve seen quite a lot.
In this collection of stories they hunt for the Invisible Man and fight witches, vampires, Nazi werewolves, zombies and Mister Hyde. Annabelle and Roland, the Night Children, stand between us and those monsters who would try to kill us.
Q: What movie rating would you give your story, and to which age group is it directed?
A: G rated. It's a Middle Grade book geared for kids from 11 on up.
Q: What advice do you have for those wanting to self-publish?
A: Make sure you and others review your book. Be absolutely sure it’s the best it can be before putting it out there. The ebook is the new query letter. We all have equal footing and a chance to get our stories to the world. Take the chance!
Tara Neideffer -- Deadly Road
Kindle
What happens when the dead seek their revenge?
After a night out with friends turns bad, Lizzie drives home upset, exhausted, and a little tipsy. She ends up making a terrible mistake that leaves her with a dark, disturbing secret.
She is traumatized by what she's done and desperately wants to find a way to make amends with her wrong doing. She soon becomes surrounded by an evil she never knew could exist, and finds help from a dying woman in hospice.
This series of events make her realize that everything in life happens for a reason, and sometimes you have to search the darkness for the answers.
Q: What movie rating would you give your story, and to which age group is it directed?
A: PG13. Anyone over sixteen would appreciate the book.
Amy Manemann -- Dracula's Party
Amazon (paperback)
Q: What is Dracula's Party about?Dracula's having a party and everyone's invited, except for Werewolf and Grizzly Bear. Can they put their differences aside to include everyone to have fun together, or will the party be ruined?
Dracula's Party was written with the author's son's 2nd grade class last year, the children did all of the illustrations for the book, and a portion of proceeds goes to the school's PTA.
Q: What movie rating would you give your story, and to which age group is it directed?
A: G - second grade readers and older
Q: Why did you choose to self-publish?
A: I wanted to learn the business. It has enabled me to learn everything about the publishing world from uploading and formatting your book, creating cover designs, to book marketing 101. Though I do hope to be traditionally published someday I'm glad to have had the opportunity to self publish and gain a better understanding of everything involved in getting your book into the hands of readers.
Amber Argyle -- Witch Born
Kindle, Nook, Amazon (paperback), Smashwords
Brusenna thought it was finished. She defeated the Dark Witch, saving the Haven Witches from imprisonment and death. She found love and a place to belong.
She was wrong. Haven is not the sanctuary it appears to be. Even love is in danger of slipping away like water through cupped hands. Some things can't be saved.
A new threat merges with the old as the Witches’ dark history begins to catch up with them. Only Brusenna knows the extent of the danger and how to stop it, though doing so might cost her everything. Including her life.
Will Brusenna be required to make the ultimate sacrifice?
Q: What movie rating would you give your story, and to which age group is it directed?
A: PG13 for kissing and fantasy violence. Readers ages 10 and up will be fine with it.
Q: Why did you choose to self-publish?
There are a lot of reasons why I chose to self publish. I had an agent and it didn't work out. I had a contract from a publisher, but it was so bad I refused to sign it. I finally found an publisher and we published my first book. It was okay, and I might have published another book with them. Then they refused to publish my next book because they only wanted to see YA from me and it was "too adult". Between that and my pitiful paycheck, I decided I would be happier publishing stories that were GOOD, and making more money doing it.
And I am totally making more money.
Scott Bryan -- Night Children: Dark Birth
Kindle, Nook, Smashwords
When Annabelle and Roland arrive in the New World, their life is shattered. Vampire lord Dominic Pratchet kills their parents and leaves them to die.
Defying her husband, Eliza Pratchet turns them into vampires and teaches them how to master their cravings and abilities.
Dominic sends various monsters to destroy Eliza and the children. After all their challenges, the vampire children confront Dominic and all his dark servants.
Q: What movie rating would you give your story, and to which age group is it directed?
A: PG rated for mild violence. Middle Grade book geared for kids from 11 on up
Cheri Schmidt -- Fair Maiden
Kindle, Nook, Amazon
It's the Victorian era in England, but Tessa is from the medieval past. She awakens within a castle she has never seen before. Knowledge of her name also evades her. However, even worse than not knowing who or where she is, she cannot recall how she died or why she is dressed as a bride.
Q: What movie rating would you give your story?
A: PG rating
Q:What has worked the best for you as an Indie author (when it comes to being successful)?
A: Write for a wide audience. Don’t focus on just one small group of readers; try to include things that will appeal to more. For example: Teenage girls love romance. Boys and men usually like action and horror. Older women tend to like mystery more than romance.
Ashley Lavering -- Curse of the Beast
Kindle, Nook, Amazon (paperback), Smashwords
Q: What is Curse of the Beast about?
A dark shadow stalks the night, watching her—waiting to claim what is his.
Seventeen-year-old Tayla Jonas longs for a simple life, but an ancient curse forces a werewolf to hunt her, to claim what is his. Will Tayla be strong enough to survive the Curse of the Beast? Or will it consume her like so many before? Find out in the first installment of this unique retelling of Beauty and the Beast.
Q: What movie rating would you give your story, and to which age group is it directed?
A: PG13. Ages 13 and up. Clean and fun.
Q: Why did you choose to self-publish?
A: At first, I went the traditional route and tried for agents and publishers. But I never quite found one that matched me and my book. Then I started getting the daily kicks from David Farland. He talked a lot about self-publishing, and it seemed to fit my life at that time.
Q: What advice do you have for those wanting to self-publish?
A: Give yourself enough time to get all the publishing pieces together, from manuscript edits to marketing. There is a lot to know and do.
Andrea Pearson -- The Music of Anna Morse
(A Katon University Novelette)
Kindle, Nook, Smashwords
When Anya, a talented cellist, goes to Ohio to sharpen her skills with wind magic, she has no idea her studies are about to collide with terrifying creatures and people from another dimension.
Based off one of HP Lovecraft’s popular stories, The Music of Erich Zann.
A novelette in the Katon University First Year series. Will take about an hour to read.
Reviews:
"Very intense, with a hint of Edgar Allen Poe." - Teri
"A real page turner. Wonderful descriptions and very fast moving." - Ellen
Q: What movie rating would you assign your story, and to which age group is it directed?
A: Somewhere between PG and a soft PG13. Teenagers and adults 13 and older would enjoy it.
Q: Why did you choose to self-publish?
I was always very nervous over potential changes publishers would make in my stories, and one of the big publishers who was interested refused to promise to keep things clean. Self-publishing was the natural choice - I have control over content.
Michaelbrent Collings --The Haunted
Kindle
They have the beginnings of a perfect family. A husband, a wife, a baby on the way. But something will stop them from being happy as they move into their new house: the power of the undead that roam the halls of their home. The demons that have come to claim them. The darkness that seeks to destroy them. The haunted.
Q: What movie rating would you give your story?
A: PG13
Q: Why did you choose to self-publish?
A couple of reasons. One is because I had a story I believed in, and none of the traditional publishers would touch it. So I published on Kindle and the book no one wanted ended up being one of the top titles on amazon, as well as being a #1 horror novel. Plus, I actually make more money self-pubbing than most "traditional" writers do. I get to control the output of everything, and I get to publish as often (or rarely) as needed. It offers me tremendous latitude. Sink or swim, it's all on me, baby!
Amy Manemann -- Deadly Reunion
Kindle, Nook
Centered
in the sleepy rural town of Riverdale, Iowa, saucy reporter Taci Andrews gets
more than she bargains for when landing the story of her career, which oddly
enough delves into the complexities of high school days she would rather
forget. She soon finds herself squaring off against a malicious class Barbie
Doll, the High School Quarterback and a steamy Fireman from her past, whose
deep blue eyes are still enough to curl her toes.
Entertaining a mixture of quirky humor, romantic interludes and an investigative mindset of the likes of Janet Evanovich and Sue Grafton, Deadly Reunion is the first edition of the Deadly Series featuring Investigative Reporter Taci Andrews.
Entertaining a mixture of quirky humor, romantic interludes and an investigative mindset of the likes of Janet Evanovich and Sue Grafton, Deadly Reunion is the first edition of the Deadly Series featuring Investigative Reporter Taci Andrews.
Q: What movie rating would you give your story, and to which age group is it directed?
A: R (adults)
Q: What has worked best for you as an indie author?:
A: My willingness to work! You can't expect everything to be a bed of roses and that people will flock to buy your book, you need to be willing to do the work involved in marketing to get your name out there.
Q: What advice do you have for those wanting to self publish:
A: Know your genre for marketing purposes, EDIT your book a million times over and be ready to work hard.
Andrew Leon -- The House on the Corner
Kindle, Amazon (paperback), Nook
Three siblings move to a new house, a house that has long been thought to be haunted. It may not be haunted, but things are far from normal.
All children dream the improbable; some dream the impossible; some have the impossible thrust upon them. Will it bring them together or tear them apart?
Q: What movie rating would you give your story, and to which age group is it directed?
A: PG. Readers ages 8 through 16 have enjoyed it.
Q: Why did you choose to self-publish?
A: When I sat down and really looked at the publishing industry and the current state it's in, I decided I didn't want to be any part of it. It's completely arbitrary and unconcerned with the quality of the work involved.
Q: What advice do you have for those wanting to self publish?
A: Don't put out a lot of money on it unless you have money to throw away. However, get an eye-appealing cover and do the absolute best job you can on the editing.
Micheal Rivers -- Verliege
Kindle
Q: What is Verliege about?The world of Adrian Bolt shattered as his wife lay butchered on the floor of Castle Verliege. His conviction by a German court was as swift as the sword that killed her. He maintained his silence knowing his story would not be believed. Though his reputation was impeccable there was nobody willing to stand for him.
Another world lay in wait for anyone living within the walls of the castle; waiting, watching, for eternity to keep the Mueller name upon its registers. There is only one world here for those who choose to stay. To enter its doors...is an invitation into the unknown!
Q: What movie rating would you give your story, and to which age group is it directed?
A: PG13: young adults and older
Q: Why did you choose to self-publish?
A: I am actually a hybrid. I have a brick and mortar publisher as well as being self published. I started to self publish to have more control over my writing. Case in point I control the deadlines as well as what kind of story I wish to produce.
Micheal Rivers --The Black Witch
Kindle
Q: What is The Black Witch about?It was the adventure of a life time. In an obscure marina off the shores of Maryland a schooner unlike any other ever built was discovered. Dorian and Diana Coe purchased the schooner and sailed from the shores of tranquility into the bowels of hell itself.
Prurient tales of suicide, murder, and the disappearance of an entire crew were hand written within the ship's logs.
The new owners ignored the words of men with integrity and sailed the Black Witch in the Spring of 1935.
Into the realms of illusion and pure evil the ship and its compliment sailed never knowing the fate awaiting them!
Q: What movie rating would you give your story, and to which age group is it directed?
A: R: 18 and older
Q: What advice do you have for those wanting to self-publish?
A: Be aware you may not be an overnight success and the hours are much longer than you ever thought. Edit-Edit-Edit.
Q: What has worked the best for you as an Indie author (when it comes to being successful)?
A: It is not one particular thing. It is a combination of social media, and every author working together for a common goal.
Michaelbrent Collings --Apparition
Kindle
Every year, thousands of children are killed ... by their own parents. Now, Shane Wills is about to discover why. About to discover an evil that has existed since the beginning of time. An evil that invades loving parents and turns them into something else. An evil that feeds on the blood and despair of dying children. An evil that most people will never know, because they cannot perceive the APPARITION.
Q: What movie rating would you give your story?
A: R for content (it deals with filicide)
Q: What advice do you have for those wanting to self-publish?
Don't suck. I say that tongue-in-cheek, but there's some truth to it. If you want to be a writer, that's fine and dandy - all that's required is that you put ink to pen, use a stick to make squiggles in the dirt, or whatever. If you want to be a PROFESSIONAL writer, that's a whole other story. Professionals are people who are good enough at what they do that they expect to be paid for it. You don't pay for squiggles in the dirt (or at least, I don't). So if you want others to plunk down their hard-earned money for YOUR squiggles, do your darndest to make it worth their while. Learn your craft. Practice. Go to writers' retreats and get a mentor if possible. Do everything possible to create the best work in the world. Not just YOUR best, but THE best. Because if you aren't going to improve the marketplace, you aren't going to make money or find much satisfaction in what you do.
RaShelle Workman -- Blood and Snow volumes 1-4
Kindle
Every thousand years the Vampire Queen selects a new body, always the fairest in the land, and this time she's chosen Snow White.
Q: What movie rating would you give your story, and to which age group is it directed?
A: PG13
Q: Why did you choose to self-publish?
A: I chose to self-publish because I enjoy the freedom it gives me.
Bradford Combs -- The Adventures of Flitter and Plank
Kindle, Nook, Smashwords
Flitter, a fairy princess, and Plank, the Dryad Prince, are pulled from their war torn families by two curious little girls. Facing such challenges as a sadistic spider and the black cat from next door, Flitter and Plank must overcome their differences and return home to save the people they love. Waiting for them, however, is an ancient evil, eager to rule their woods.
Full of myth, magic, and talking animals, the Adventures of Flitter & Plank is an enchanted story fit for the whole family.
Q: What movie rating would you give your story, and to which age group is it directed?
A: G, children's novel - about a third grade reading level.
Q: Why did you choose to self-publish?
I am still finding the best genre for my voice. My ideas range from romance to fantasy, juvenile to adult. When you publish through a publishing house it's prefered that you stick to one genre and I knew I couldn't do that, not at this time anyhow. And so I chose the self-publishing route.
Cindy Hogan -- Watched
Kindle, Nook, Amazon (paperback)
Q: What is Watched about?It takes more than a school trip to Washington, DC to change Christy's life. It takes murder.
A witness to the brutal slaying of a senator's aide, Christy finds herself watched not only by the killers and the FBI, but also by two hot guys.
She discovers that if she can't help the FBI, who want to protect her, it will cost her and her new friends their lives.
Q: What movie rating would you give your story?
A: PG
Q: Why did you choose to self-publish?
A; I'm a bit of an optimist--just a bit, so when several editors wanted full submissions of Watched, I decided that if they could publish it and make a go of it, so could I. So, basically on a whim, I published on Amazon and by a stroke of luck, or just good timing, I got picked up by a distributor that sent my book all over the U.S.
Cindy Hogan -- Protected
Kindle, Nook, Amazon (paperback)
Q: What is Protected about?They found her. Now she must run and leave behind everything she knows, including herself.
Q: What movie rating would you give your story?
A: PG
Q: What advice do you have for those wanting to self-publish?
A: My advice to anyone planning on self-publishing is to pay for the services you need to pay for. What I mean by that is that self-publishing doesn't mean free-publishing. Book publishers hire editors, cover designers and marketers. You should too. No money? If you have friends that can do a quality job, swap services with them, but don't put out shoddy material just to save a buck. Do it right the first time.
Cindy Hogan -- Created
Kindle, Nook, Amazon (paperback), Smashwords
A spy
school.
A choice.
A destiny discovered.
Q: What movie rating would you give your story, and to which age group is it directed?
A: PG
Mythology, by Helen Boswell
Kindle, Amazon
Hope Gentry was born with the power to see the darkest secrets of those around her. On the first day of her senior year, she finds herself irresistibly drawn to Micah Condie. Micah seems like a boy that most girls would dream about. But when Hope discovers Micah's darkest secret, she’s drawn into a mythical world she never knew existed.
Q: What movie rating would you give your story, and to which age group is it directed?
A: PG-13, 10th grade and up
Q: What advice do you have for those wanting to self-publish?
A: You can do it! Self-publishing can be a very good thing because you get to call all of the shots. But the hard part is that you have to call all of the shots I sought out my own beta readers, had an editor, and formed relationships with booksellers.
Space Eldritch
Authors:
D.J. Butler, Michael Collings, Nathan Shumate, David J. West, Robert J. Defendi, Brad Torgerson, Carter Reid, Howard Tayler
Foreword by Larry CorrieaKindle, Smashwords
Q: What is Space Eldritch about?
Startling Stories meets Weird Tales in Space Eldritch, a volume of seven original novelettes and novellas of Lovecraftian pulp space opera, Space Eldritch inhabits the intersection between the eternal adventure of the final frontier and the inhuman darkness between the stars.
Q: What movie rating would you give your story, and to which age group is it directed?
A: PG13 to R - lots of horror and action
Friday's Halloween Book
Tomorrow's Halloween Book Welcome to today's Halloween Indie Author Promotion!
Charles M. Pulsipher -- Zombies at the Door
Kindle
We all know it can happen, will happen. Be prepared and have a laugh at the same time. This basic manual will make sure you're ready to face the zombie hordes and walk you through where to meet, find weapons and food, and set up camp. It may even give you hope as you huddle in the bathroom stall at the mall.
Seriously though, don't go to the mall!
Learn the glow stick technique to distract zombies or how a paper bag might save your life or at least keep you from seeing the bitey end that's coming. Good luck.
Q: What movie rating would you give your story, and to which age group is it directed?
A: PG - almost any age
Q: Why did you choose to self-publish?
A: Because I’m a crazy person who is also severely lacking in patience. I also don’t like being told what I can and can’t do.
Q: What advice do you have for those wanting to self-publish?
A: Do it! Do it now! But make sure you edit about fifty-seven and a half times before you upload it. Even then, people will find typos and brow beat you with angry badgers.
Andrea Pearson -- Whistle, and I'll Come
(A Katon University Novelette)
Kindle, Nook, Smashwords
Q: What is Whistle, and I'll Come about?
Lizzie doesn't know the old whistle she found in a deserted trapper's cabin is possessed. She blows on it, accidentally calling back the spirit of a dead goddess consumed by the desire to snare the person who called her.
When the goddess arrives in the form of a statue, the stillness of Lizzie's mountain retreat is destroyed.
Q: What movie rating would you give your story, and to which age group is it directed?
A. PG. Teen readers
Q: What has worked the best for you as an Indie author (when it comes to being successful)?
A: Leaving marketing behind and focusing on getting several eBooks up. THEN doing a few promotions here and there. Sales picked up fast once I had a few books out. I never really saw any change after a lot of marketing.
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