Seeking Teenage Story Slingers – online novel writing course for teens

It’s nearly time to launch my online teen novel writing course and I’ve been challenged to offer the first 10 places at a 50% discount as a pre-launch gift. You can watch the introductory video over at http://www.writerontheroad.com and download the free ebook, The Voices in your Head. And anyone who signs up also gets a bonus interview with Cracker, author of our middle grade Mystery Series. His advice; get your sister to do it:)

Refocusing on middle grade fiction

 

There’s a little bit of refocusing going on behind the scenes of our site. My three writing books will be available soon, the first which being our free gift to anyone subscribing to my podcast, Writer on the Road, where Cracker will be one of my first and ongoing (if he let’s me win) guests!!

This site will once again be about middle grade fiction as Cracker and I share our writing trials, tribulations and downright fun bits of collaborative writing and reliving our sibling squables, getting the better of each other, and me always winning writing journey.

You’ll all be excited to know Cracker and I have agreed to get cracking (sorry, couldn’t resist) on Book 4 of our Cracker & Gilly Mystery Series and it will be quickly followed by books 5, 6 & 7. Our aim is a baker’s dozen and Book 1, Forbidden, will be our gift for anyone signing up to our Growing Up Writing newsletter.

On the marketing front, I’ve been busy upskilling. My education has included the following courses:

1.  Creative Freedom with Joanna Penn
2. Your First 10,000 Customers with Nick Stephenson
3. Facebook Advertising (new) with Mark Dawson
4. ebook bestsellers audio course with Derek Doepker

So, to sum up, I can write, produce, market, sell foreign rights, record audio and write some more. Or I will be able to once my kids leave home😇😇

Wadaya reckon, Cracker, you ready?

Good News for Indie Authors…again!!

From the latest Author Earnings Report over at http://www.authorearnings.com:

‘When we look at just debut authors from the past five years, we find more indie authors now earning a $50K-or-better living wage than all of their Big Five and Small/Medium publisher peers put together… even after we throw in that overgenerous 2x multiple for traditionally-published non-Amazon revenue.’

Looks like it was a smart business model to keep our author rights, hey Cracker? Now, all we’ve gotta do is get our audio books and foreign rights happening and we can split the 50K profits, whaddaya reckon?

My first podcast – success or failure?

My first podcast interview, grandly titled ‘Campfire Tales’, crashed and burned. It’s all a bit sad really…or is it?

Here’s what happened. Technology happened, or in my case, didn’t happen. So I rang my mentor, and cried, and he mopped me up, and told me to try again, which I did – my interview with my dog ended up being rather brilliant, although he’d fallen into snore mode on his tummy with his legs in the air by recording number six.

What did I learn?

1.  That I’m the expert and I need to trust myself
2. That starting is half the battle – I may have flunked the interview but by midnight I really had that sucker licked
3. There’s always tomorrow
4. That Chicago’s All That Jazz gets better with every listening (even though I was only using the first two minutes, by the end I felt like a star)
5. A glass of wine or two loosens the vocal chords but plays havoc with the script

My next interview is tomorrow and I’ll be there with my technology, script and dog. It may be no better than my first effort but at least I’ll turn up and give it a go. But perhaps without the wine this time:)

Non-fiction cover designs

My graphic designer just sent these through as draft cover ideas for a set of books that I’ll be launching in conjuction with my Writer on the Road Podcast – Book 1 will be perma-free to anyone who signs up to my podcast mailing list. I’m not sure the cover for Book 1 works. What do you think?

Author Branding

I just received the following email:

Melinda, YOUR PODCAST WEBSITE IS READY FOR YOU!

They told me to follow my passion so I did.

My avatar is…me.

I blame Joanna over at the Creative Penn…I did her course, Creative Freedom, and took her advice on upscaling.

I read books on entrepreneurship. The advice in a few words: there will never be a perfect time, or enough money, to follow your dreams.

Do it now.

So I am.

AND HERE’S THE GOOD NEWS:

This blog, and http://www.melhammond.com, will be migrating over to http://www.writerontheroad.com…I think…as soon as I can afford to change everything over.

I’ve just paid my first month’s subscription over at http://www.podcastwebsites.com and now I get to build my new website (it was either that or spend the afternoon marking assignments for school:))

EVEN BETTER NEWS:

Podcast Websites has a 24 hour tech crew on standby to answer questions from people like me.

I can’t go wrong, can I?

 

Writer on the Road

This is the logo for my ‘Writer on the Road’ interviews…like it?? Our book touring schedule is Townsville in July/July, 2016, Bateman’s Bay for the Bateman’s Bay Writers Festival in September, 2016, and our biggie, a two month trip across the Nullabor to the wilds of Western Australia and Norseman to launch Money, Murder and Other Men’s Wives, starting December, 2016. Note the interesting correlation between these dates and school holidays. That’s the trouble with teaching, it limits my playtime:)

 

To be or not to be an entreprenuer

Required rainy Sunday reading…my selection of Australian entrepreneurs. Jack Delosa takes himself off to a shack in the Blue Mountains every now and then to recharge. Made me homesick for for pumpkin soup, Blackheath bookshops and enviro rating bushwalks.

The difference a professional cover design makes

This is the professional cover design for my non-fiction essay. There goes my pic monkey efforts😇😇

The story of my life as a miner’s wife and why I wrote a novel about it

I’m starting to get organised for the launch of Money, Murder & Other Men’s Wives, the non-fiction companion to my novel, The Miner’s Wife. It means a two month book tour of Western Australia over the Christmas break. I get to cross the Nullabor with my caravan and trusty entourage in tow (even though one of the entourage is already making noises about flying rather than driving:)). I’ve posted the introduction to my memoir over at www.melhammond.com if you wanna have a peek. While you’re there you can also sign up to receive my newsletter if you’re interested in receiving further chapters of my memoir and details of my tour. Happy reading.