Today, I have a special guest visiting my blog. Cheryl Kaye Tardif is an international bestselling author from Edmonton, Canada, and she’s here to chat about writing and her new release SUBMERGED.

In March 2012 your thriller CHILDREN OF THE FOG made huge news in the book world because of Amazon’s KDP Select program. Tell us about that.

Last March, I set CHILDREN OF THE FOG up on a free promotion via KDP Select. Within a day or two it had downloaded so many copies that I made it to #1 in the Top 100 Free list. When it went back to $3.99, sales started rolling in. Within that month I sold so many Kindle copies that I made it to #4 in the Top 100 Paid list—not a genre list but the overall list. I was stunned.

What happened as a direct result of your high sales on Amazon?

My sales were noticed by a senior editor at Penguin and 2 literary agents, and I ended up signing with Trident Media Group. Then to my surprise, Amazon contacted me. They put two of my titles on a special, by-invitation-only promotion. My life changed in March 2012.

Why do you think CHILDREN OF THE FOG took off?

I believe this happened for many reasons. It has a creepy cover that draws you in. But mainly it was HOW I marketed it that made the difference. I discovered a way to really leverage my time and efforts. Twitter and Facebook were my leveraging “partners.” And I figured out it isn’t just “using” these that sells books; it’s HOW you use them that makes the difference. (I discuss my strategies in my marketing book.)

Do you still recommend KDP Select or do you think its time has come and gone?

It’s still earning me more money than I had seen pre-Select, so my books are still enrolled. Plus the borrows via the KOLL program have increased on my book. I’ve earned thousands with that part of Select alone, and still do. I write full-time; this is my career. And I expect to make a decent income from it.

When do you think you’ll opt out of the Select program?

As long as KDP Select is still working for me, I’ll use it. I’ve learned that instead of jumping ship just because something appears not to be giving the same results, it’s often better to just tweak the approach—or in this case, the promotion/marketing techniques. So I’m experimenting.

So your new release, SUBMERGED, will be enrolled in Select?

Yes, and I suspect that SUBMERGED, my new thriller, will do very well on it. Right now, it’s available for borrowing via the Kindle Owners’ Lending Library (KOLL). 

~*~

Get SUBMERGED today.

Learn more about Cheryl Kaye Tardif at http://www.cherylktardif.com

Enter Cheryl’s March Giveaway – 59 Prizes! http://www.cherylktardif.blogspot.com

Twitter: www.twitter.com/cherylktardif and www.twitter.com/imajinbooks

I read somewhere that unlike a manual labor type job, or a job where you do some office work but most of it doesn’t require long hours of deep, uninterrupted concentration… where you can work for an 8 hour day with a lunch break, intensely creative work, basically any of the arts… MOST people tap out at about 3-4 hours. And they are done. Wiped for the day. Further pushing usually equals burn out.

Now there are some people who can work 8 hour days writing novels and REALLY be writing that whole time. I think those people are like magical unicorns of awesomeness but I’m tired and want to collapse and unwind after 3-4 hours. That’s all I personally can take before I want to cry and rock myself in a corner.

I’ve done a few 10k days and that was ALL DAY WORK. And it was extremely draining, but it was also a rush because it was reaching a peak I’d never reached before. But could I do it day in day out? HELL to the NO.

So anyway… today I got about 4 hours of solid work done. (Note I am not counting any “internet activity” like answering emails or facebook or Twitter because honestly to me that doesn’t really count as work, but your mileage may vary.)

I wrote 2,643 words on one book and got 8 pages of edits done on another. I’m slogging through the edits because I’ve gotten to the I HATE THIS BOOK GET IT OUT OF MY FACE phase of things. This makes me pretty glad I’ve managed to start writing rough draft on something else at the same time because really I need something I’m excited about.

I did all this, but then I had some other business-related work I needed to get done. But at this point I’m wiped. (Plus I’m on Vampire Central Time right now which is doing my energy levels no grand favors. On THIS sleep schedule it’s a miracle I accomplished what I did today.) I’ve had what… by many accounts would be a “good, productive day” for a writer, and yet… I didn’t do as much editing as I would have liked to do and… I didn’t get anything else on my list done.

I’ve decided I put way way WAY too much shit on my daily to do list and it keeps me in this constant stressed-out and anxious state. This is mostly because… in my head… I’m supposed to have energy for 8 hours of work. At the very least 6. (And particularly since I work from home on my own set hours without a boss breathing down my neck. I feel like I “owe it to the world” to work 8 or at least 6 hours a day. You know… because everybody else has to.) But the truth is… if I put in a good writing day… and in this case some edits too, I am WIPED after 4 hours. Fair to the rest of the 9-5 world or not, there it is.

After that I get cranky and anxious and just impossible to be around.

So I’ve decided to cut myself some slack. Week days are now for writing/editing and weekends are now for doing all that “business crap”. I find business crap draining because I don’t like doing it. I find writing/editing draining because it IS draining. Trying to do ALL of it on the same day is a recipe for the nut house.

But that has me working 7 days a week. I’m not really sure what to do about that. But what I know is… if I make this my “working strategy”, at some point I’m going to have my “business work” pretty much caught up and at a very low maintenance level, so it may only take one day of the weekend to accomplish everything on the mission critical list. And further, when I’m not in the middle of edits, and I’m just writing… I have the option of not writing more just because I don’t have editing. i.e. doing the same amount of writing I was doing before… which means working about 90 minutes to 2 hours on those days… and I question whether I even NEED full days off if I’m going to have work days like that. But the reason I would be doing that is because otherwise I’m working 7 days a week. And down time has to come some time even if it comes in a different interval pattern. But I hate losing my momentum.

If I do business work on the weekends because I hate mixing it with creative work, and I still want 2 days off like all the rest of the world, that only gives me 3 writing/editing days a week, which is unacceptable. But doing business work on productive writing/editing days is clearly a fail that just makes me cranky.

So I guess it’s a trade off. I work 4 hours or less on most days… but I work 7 days a week. Most other people work 8 hours a day, but get 2 solid days off a week.

We’ll see how it goes. This is my next work strategy experiment in the quest for the most productive but also most restorative (i.e. don’t burn out) work schedule. If it makes you feel better I’m going to feel guilty the whole time.

So I wanted to talk about this topic because I know a lot of my fellow writers feel this way, and I’ve felt like this too before. I’m not immune to the frustration.

So here we go:

You do not know another author’s history. You don’t know how many books they wrote before they published one. You also don’t know a debut author is really a debut author. They may have 50 titles out under other pen names. Whether readers know it or not, and they have the finances from other books to help them launch this one. They have more contacts to help them promote their book. They know what works and doesn’t work for them to get the exposure they need. They know their pricing strategy. They are bringing a LOT to the table that they’ve learned from their previous pen name incarnations.

Most people who “hit big” have put in the time. They have their million words under their belt. They’ve practiced. They’ve learned their craft. In short, they have earned their success.

However, some people will inexplicably hit big with the first book they ever wrote. It may even have a ton of typos. You may think it sucks. But for whatever inexplicable reason it seems to sell like gangbusters.

Everybody thinks they want to be this person. But unless you are E.L. James and become literally rich over a few books, and movies are gonna get made, you do not want “early success” as an author.

One of the worst things that can happen to your career is to sell the shit out of book 1. I know that sounds crazy to you, but let me explain why.

The general public is fickle, they are forgetful, and they have a constant barrage of “bright shiny” in front of them 24/7. (Which explains the other two things.)

If you have one book out, readers who love you right now may or may not even remember you when book 2 comes out.

Early success, unless it is epic is rarely a great thing. And if it’s epic… and you had early success before you put in your million words or 10,000 hours for mastery, then the pressure of continuing to please your readers on book 2 or 3 is something I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy. Unless YOU feel you’ve reached some level of mastery/competence, it’s going to be hell writing all those other books with so many eyes on you waiting.

Margaret Mitchell never wrote another book after Gone With The Wind because she said she “couldn’t top the damn thing.”

Now you know why there are so many “one hit wonders”.

So… what do you want? What do you really want? Here is the best possible scenario in my personal opinion. Your mileage may vary, this is just how *I* see the world:

You write a ton of books, each getting better and stronger than the last. You build a consistent and loyal fan base. Your 20th or 25th book hits BIG.

And then?

All your new slobbering fans have 19-24 other books to read. They will not forget you. You can actually retain those readers.

How many readers do you think you retain if you hit big with book one or two and it takes you 8 months or a year to get the next book out? You can’t write fast enough to keep their attention. Trust me.

Not in the Twitter age.

Think about it.

I speak as someone who had a little bit of “too early success”, but not enough to tip me over into the super safe nearly famous zone.

It makes it more difficult when things slow down a little and you have to start building that net underneath you of backlist.

In fact, today it occurred to me… if I don’t count my short story and I don’t count individual novellas but instead just count the omnibus since it’s “book 1″, I only really have 5 titles out for Zoe. And only 6 for Kitty.

I have a LOT of work ahead of me. Because when I do write that book that mass quantities of people slobber over and miss meals and bathroom breaks for… I want them to have PLENTY of other books by me to read… so I can retain them as a fan for life.

I’m in this for the long haul, and I’m in it to win it. But it’s a marathon, not a sprint.

When people ask me what I do, I like to tell them: “I kill people off for a living.” You can imagine the looks I get. Sometimes I’ll follow with: “Fictitiously, of course. I’m a suspense writer.” Sometimes I won’t say anything else. Yeah, I’m bad that way.

Writing thriller, suspense, mystery and/or crime novels has always been my passion—especially if I throw a pinch of supernatural or paranormal into the mix. I’ve always been drawn to dark stories, ones that raise the hairs on the back of my neck or make me glance over my shoulder. The two greatest influences in my writing life have been Dean Koontz and Stephen King. Need I say more?

So what can I offer you if you choose to read my books? I hope and strive to give you a satisfying read, once that will impact you emotionally. If I can make you shudder or tremble or wince or even cry, then I’ve done my job.

In SUBMERGED, I share with you a very personal fear of mine—the fear of being in a car that’s underwater and not being able to get out. I have traveled long distances by car hundreds of times during my life, twice from one coast of Canada to the other. Whenever we’re along a stretch of highway with a body of water beside me, my fear kicks in. And I hold my breath…waiting…praying…

I want you to relate to this fear. But even more, I want my characters to come to life. I want you to feel for Marcus Taylor, a struggling recovering addict who has had his fair share of grief and guilt. I want you to admire his strength, even in the midst of his weaknesses. I want you, dear reader, to feel compassion for this man who has lost his wife and son in a terrible accident, who blames himself for their deaths, and who is searching for redemption, though he doesn’t really know he is.

I want you to cheer on Rebecca Kingston, a mother on the verge of divorce who has left an abusive husband. I want you to feel empathy for her because this decision, no matter what others think, is not an easy one to make. I want you to cry with her when she realizes she is physically unable to help her children who are trapped with her in a sinking vehicle. And I want you to be holding your breath every time Rebecca does.

Marcus and Rebecca (and the others in SUBMERGED) may only be characters on paper, but they feel real to me. I gave “birth” to them and watched them grow. With every step they took, I wiped away their tears, hugged them and loved them. And, dear reader, I sincerely hope you’ll love them just as much.

Happy reading…with the lights on…

Cheryl Kaye Tardif, international bestselling author

PS: The Kindle edition of SUBMERGED is available on Amazon from March 4^th – 7^th for a special price during the Killer Thriller Book Launch.

Learn more about me and connect at:

http://www.cherylktardif.com

http://www.twitter.com/cherylktardif

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Cheryl-Kaye-Tardif-novels/29769736630

Okay, that’s enough “Oscar-acceptance-speech” type talk.

Here is where you can get Blood Lust for 99 cents:

Amazon.com Kindle Store

Amazon.co.uk Kindle Store

(Check other Kindle stores separately. It should be available there as well.)

Barnes and Noble Nook Store

Kobo Books

If you read on any epub reader or a Kindle you’re set here. Or if you have a computer or phone or ipad there is a free Kindle reading app for all of that.

Also, Save My Soul is still free in the US Kindle store but for a very limited time. That will go off very soon! I do not anticipate making Save My Soul free EVER again. So grab that now!

My other titles are currently on sale for $2.99 (normal retail price $4.95.) It’s a great time to either get into my series or get caught up!

Thank you for reading and supporting my work. You guys are great!

At the same time, when I do that, what tends to happen is I will get out of the “writing groove”. So while it can take a lot of time and energy to switch between tasks as one does with multi-tasking, it can sometimes take longer to get into a new groove after it’s gone, particularly with writing.

Chuck Wendig wrote a post that I found inspiring toward this end: How To Push Past The Bullshit And Write that Goddamn Novel: A Very Simple No-Fuckery Writing Plan To Get Shit Done

From the very beginning I knew that this was going to be great because anybody who says No-Fuckery is someone I feel I ought to listen to just on principle.

I had previously tried a 250 words a day writing goal. The idea was to JUST START and even if you JUST do the 250, you’ve got some word count down and you started and if you write more awesome, and it adds up over time. It’s like stealing your novel through fifteen minutes here or there. And while it can take that long to even get into a groove, period, if you do it every day, the time it takes to get into the groove is much shorter.

So, I figure… even while I’m editing, there is a burnout point. There is a point at which I’m not going to edit any more that day. I’m going to do a certain amount generally and then the rest of my time for that day is my time. So, in THAT OTHER TIME, the non-editing time… I can’t carve out 15 minutes to work on my WIP? REALLY???

One of my excuses is that I have to outline/plan a book and that’s hard to do while also editing a book. But I have a WIP in progress right now that I can chip away at. Yes, in the long run it’s going to need to percolate some because I’m a little burnt out on that pen name and I need to get back to Zoe and write Hadrian and Angeline’s book but still… chipping away at it while I work on edits for the other book and then planning for Hadrian and Angeline is forward momentum. And that’s what I need. Forward momentum.

So 350 words a day. Anybody can do that.

Save My Soul 99 cents at Amazon

I try to do a little of both. Like… I go in saying: “I’m writing this scene today” and I try not to stop until the scene is done, but I also tend to use the Focus Booster timer.

What David says is true about my process as well, that it can be hard to get into it, but once you are in, it’s much easier to stay in. It’s about becoming captivated by your own world. Once you are involved in it, you, as the author, want to find out what happens next as much as a reader would.

It’s like getting immersed in a book or TV show or movie and the rest of the world falls away. It’s the writer’s equivalent of the runner’s high. If you can just get to that place, it’s bliss.

I tend to have a few different markers I use. One is a word count quota. My daily quota is 2,000 words, which truly isn’t a lot. On a day when I’m “not feeling it”, I can still manage to get that quota out in 90 minutes or less if I push through. But that’s just the thing that helps it not feel overwhelming to sit down and write.

If I’m REALLY having an off day I’ll lower my quota to 1k because that’s a word count that doesn’t feel difficult or stressful at all. But usually even when I do that I tell myself I’m just going to 1k, then I push through to 2k.

Another thing I use is the Focus Booster app. It’s a little timer with a color coded bar that sort of stays in your peripheral vision while you’re working to help keep you on task. Depending on the day, its effect can be: “You’ve only got a few more minutes to go, push through” or something more along the lines of: “Hurry, the timer bar is running down and you still have more you want to write.”

Depending on the day I’ll listen to the Focus Booster or my quota. Often both numbers coincide. But the REAL goal is to “get this scene written.” Often the section I want to write goes a little over the word quota. If I can get into that zone where I am totally immersed and enjoying being there, then finishing the scene or chapter is nothing.

The days when I can write more by story accomplishment than timer or word quota always feel like my most productive days (and my least emo days.)

Save My Soul is book 2 in the Preternaturals series, however, it can be read as a stand alone with no problem, particularly since it was originally written before the first book in the series.

You can grab the book for free, here.

Tell your friends!

Also, remember, you don’t need a Kindle e-reader to read a Kindle book. Amazon has a free Kindle-reader software app that you can download to your desktop computer, your phone, or your tablet reading device.

Save My Soul is also available in print (not free, sorry!) and Audible audiobook (also not free, however they do have awesome sign up specials, so if you think you’d like to try audiobooks—I enjoy them for walks—Save My Soul would be an excellent book to add to your Audiobook wish list.)

Why are you still reading?

Okay… masochists and those who are all caught up…

So Matthew dies at the end of the season three Christmas special… right after Mary has had the baby. My mother is NOT going to be happy about this. She’ll be upset enough about Sybil but Matthew… oh man. I do not look forward to that. Eeek. Someone on IMDB actually said something like… we can’t be 100% sure he’s dead… even though the actor, Dan Stevens has given interviews about it and wanted out of the show and his contract was up… and they were writing him out of the show… still some IMDB people hold out this bizarre hope that somehow they convinced Dan to stay at the last minute so the character might not really be dead.

Are you freaking kidding me? He’s in a ditch, with his eyes wide open staring out at nothing, and a giant gash bleeding heavily on his head. Even in 2013 with our modern medical capabilities, most likely someone in that situation would be dead. Some injuries really do kill people instantly. It’s still true now, but it was VERY true then.

I’m not sure what is so confusing about the “staring into space with the eyes wide open” thing. That generally indicates death. It’s not just unconsciousness when it’s like that… it’s dead. If they wanted to make us think Matthew had died but he really hadn’t, or if they wanted to create a cliffhanger where we just didn’t know one way or the other, they would have shot the scene where we couldn’t see his face. We’d just see an unmoving body faced away from the camera with people running toward him.

And if somehow they did convince the actor to stay and they wrote him back into the show with some convoluted coma story, I’d stop watching because it would cease being realistic at that point. If they wanted to leave ANY window open for Stevens to return, a straight on staring into space with a bleeding head wound shot, isn’t the scene to leave us with. And any attempt to resurrect him at this point would be beyond contrived.

But honestly… the second I saw him driving in the car all happy and carefree, I knew he was about to die. It wasn’t necessarily because he was so happy. It was just the way it was filmed even before I saw the other car. It was almost a slow-motion kind of scene and it was WAY too cheery to not be leading into something tragic. It’s like the scene back during the war when the soldier says something like “If a bullet is meant for you, you won’t know it and there’s nothing you can do about it.” (Or something to that general effect.) And a couple of seconds later he falls after a bullet goes clean through his head. I saw that coming, too. As soon as he said it I knew he’d get shot in the head.

From a fictional standpoint it’s too good of a moment for any writer to pass up. I didn’t see why any writer would, so when he fell, I wasn’t surprised.

Neither was I surprised when Matthew died so suddenly and tragically. What I am surprised by is those who think he could still come back. Dan Stevens did not renew his contract. He left the show. The writers didn’t want to write them falling out of love or separating or recasting the character. As a Mary/Matthew fan, I agree. I wouldn’t want their love to fall apart just so Mr. Stevens could leave the show. It’s less fair to the fans than a clean character death. I wish he hadn’t left the show, but his contract was for 3 seasons and when the decision was made to renew for a fourth, he had every right to move on to other projects.

The other couple I was rooting for was Mr. Bates and Anna. Hopefully neither of them will fail to renew their contracts.

In all honesty I feel the series could have just ended totally here and it would be fine. Most things have really been resolved, IMO. I guess I’m curious about how Mary handles the aftermath of Matthew. She’s always felt theirs was a doomed love. But I could walk away with this being totally it. It’s kind of a great place to leave it. This totally F’d up tragic ending. But of course… television is a for-profit venture and when a show gets renewed, they keep making it.