Today we are interviewing author Roxanne Rustand. Her most recent book, Final Exposure (Steeple Hill Love Inspired Suspense), is available through Harlequin Enterprises.

She is the author of twenty-three romantic suspense and heart-warming relationship novels. Her first manuscript won the Romance Writers of America Golden Heart, and her second was a Golden Heart finalist. More recently, one of her books won RT Bookclub Magazine’s award for Best Superromance of 2006, and she was nominated for RT’s Career Achievement Award in 2005.

She loves to hear from readers, and can be reached through http://www.roxannerustand.com/ or www.shoutlife.com/roxannerustand

For those of you who are starting out in inspirational fiction, instead of secular fiction, I can’t recommend American Christian Fiction Writers enough. It’s a wonderful resource, and the annual conference is simply amazing. I belong to both ACFW and RWA now, and their value is far beyond what costs to belong. Armed with the knowledge you gain, you’ll be far better prepared to move from aspiring writer to author, and to do the best job of marketing your first book!

Part of marketing is to build your name, and thus the potential readership for your book, long before you sell. In that vein, I wrote articles for chapter newsletters and for the Romance Writers Report. I entered contests. I volunteered in every way I could. And when I finally made my first sale, I did everything else I could think of, within a very limited budget.

I made my own business cards and bookmarks. Developed a simple website. I joined a group of newly published authors who bought group advertisements in Romantic Times Book Reviews magazine and the RWR. I took part in book signings, and signed stock in bookstores. I spoke at schools, organizations, and libraries. And I also sent out my book to many online review sites. Not only did that yield quotes for my website and promotional materials, but then all the visitors at those sites, who read the reviews, had a chance to decide if they wanted to buy the book or not.

Times have changed since then. New authors now have a whole new world out there–and so much more of it comes at a reasonable cost, or free!

The wonderful Romance Sells advertising magazine, for instance, which goes out to many thousands of booksellers and librarians quarterly, is a bargain–one couldn’t personally mail all of those people for that amount. There are many inexpensive places to buy professional bookmarks and business cards that you can design yourself. You can find easy publishing software for creating professional quality newsletters, though these days, with the cost of ink, paper and postage, using the Internet is probably far more cost effective than mass mailings of postcards and newsletters. There are hundreds of writing blogs out there, and most owners are eager to host guest authors–which opens up a chance to share information about you and your book to a whole new population of followers, every time you agree to participate.

Listing your personal website and blog when doing those “guest appearances” is a way to draw some new people to your own site, where you can market your new book. People may be more likely to buy your first book if they’ve gotten to know you!

Thanks to Lyn Cote’s patient urging, I recently started something that has been such fun. I wanted to start a blog, but didn’t have any focus for it until she reminded me that many of my books have been romantic suspense, but they’ve also had a warm, touching, emotional element–often with quirky animals in the subplots. So I started the “All Creatures Great and Small Blog” where authors and readers can exchange stories about their pets, and I can also run articles about an old-time horse traders. It’s fun for both the followers, and me and it ties in with my books and my brand. Which is something else for you to think about–developing a blog that means something to you, not just something generic, and one that will hopefully draw the type of readers who might enjoy your books. Oblique marketing? Maybe…but it’s a good thing to try.

So….marketing your first book can start well before it hits the stores, and there are many options now for getting that title out in front of potential readers. It’s an exciting journey, and I wish you all the best1

WCC: How do you plan and write your book?

Most authors need to be plotters…at least, to sell a book. There are some who can sell on a concept. Sometimes, we’re asked to write a certain story, and that’s that–off to contract. But usually, authors have to come up with a coherent synopsis that makes good sense, and that in itself involves being a plotter…at least at the outset. After that, all bets are off!
I started out being an avid maker of charts. Graphs. Lists. W-plot graphs. Charts with the hero’s journey. I did personality charts, not knowing if my hero really did like chocolate ice cream, but dutifully filling out his favorite flavors. You name it, and I probably did it–needing every crutch in the book. I still get teased a bit about being–quite possibly–the most left-brained person on the planet!

But as time went on, and I starting selling, there was less and less time for all of that. And, as I wrote more, I needed it less, because the sense of rhythm in story telling became easier. I gradually developed a better sense of what had to happen when (which is probably inherently part of true pantser’s psyche, but I think I missed that gene!)

Now, my process is simple–and it has saved me a lot of work. Yep–I still have to write a synopsis to sell. But once I have that in hand, I break it down into subplots. Sit down at the computer. And then start to brainstorm with myself–writing “lists of twenty” (or thirty) things that could or should or might happen for each subplot. I just let my brain fly, and type fast as I can. When that’s done, I look at my lists and pull them into logical order under each subplot heading…discarding the silly things and keeping the best.

Now, I may not use half of these scene starter or turning point ideas. A subplot may veer off in a different direction, and change completely. But I’ve got ideas listed, in a semblance of logical order…so I’m less likely to end up in a muddle. Referring to those lists can spur even better ideas, once I know the characters more fully. Nothing is planned scene-by-scene, chapter-by-chapter, but my lists always give me an idea of where to go next!
So…is this being a plotter? Pantser? I don’t know…but for now, it works for me!

The other thing I do which is of immeasurable help to me, is that I do my bookkeeping as I write. Doesn’t that sound boring? It isn’t–it’s a great tool that helps prevent the need for major revisions. I don’t plot in detail ahead of time. But as I finish each scene, I switch to my “Subplot Tracker” file and type in the main things that happened for each subplot. My form is set up in columns and rows. If I neglect a subplot for too long, I’ll see a lot of white space. I can also see if something isn’t developing well enough. It’s kind of hard to explain, but I’ve got copies of my forms on my website under “articles” at http://www.roxannerustand.com/. Take a look!

Roxanne Rustand
“The All Creatures Great and Small Blog”
http://roxannerustand.blogspot.com/

http://www.roxannerustand.com/

Today we are interviewing author Christina Berry. Her debut novel, The Familiar Stranger, is available through Moody Publishers.

Single mother and foster parent, Christina Berry carves time to write from her busy schedule because she must tell the stories that haunt her every waking moment. (Such is the overly dramatic description of an author’s life!) She holds a BA in Literature, yet loves a good Calculus problem, as well. Her debut novel, The Familiar Stranger, releases from Moody in September and deals with lies, secrets, and themes of forgiveness in a troubled marriage. A moving speaker and dynamic teacher, Christina strives to Live Transparently–Forgive Extravagantly!

Her work has also appeared in The Secret Place, The Oregonian, and Daily Devotions for Writers. Find her at http://www.blogger.com/www.christinaberry.net%20 and http://www.authorchristinaberry.blogspot.com/

The Familiar Stranger—formerly known as Undiscovered—is about a couple going through a really rough patch in their marriage. When an accident incapacitates the husband, their relationship must be redefined. Which would be a lot easier to do if BIG secrets from his past didn’t raise their ugly heads. Despite the upheaval, the choices they make involving forgiveness and trust might allow a new beginning. Or … they might not.

Christina took a few minutes to talk about publishing from a writer’s perspective with Writing Career Coach.

Writing Career Coach: What are some ways you prepared to market your book before you were published?
Christina Berry: In November 2006, my mother (who is my co-writer on other projects) and I launched our website http://www.ashberrylane.net/ and asked our friends and family to subscribe to the infrequent, humorous Ashberry Lane Newsletter. Technically, this marketing effort began before I wrote a single word of The Familiar Stranger, but it laid the foundation for my current marketing.

We set a goal of getting 1,000 subscribers before one of our books made it to print. While we’re still a couple hundred short, setting such a goal pushed us to recruit from real world, shoutlife, facebook, and conference contacts. Having access to 750+ interested readers and the building of momentum over the years has been priceless. I can’t imagine starting at ground zero in the midst of all the release date hoopla!

As soon as Moody designed the cover and secured the ISBN, Amazon and cbd.com put the book up for pre-order. Though I haven’t seen much of a push from other authors, I decided to really promote pre-ordering. We’ll see if it worked!

I’m also focusing on making one reader at a time, whether it be the woman who waited with me as our snow tires were removed at the tire shop, or the checker in the grocery store. Pretty much just looking at me sideways will earn you a business card.

WCC: Tell us about your book.
CB: Craig Littleton has decided to end his marriage with his wife, Denise, but an accident lands him in the ICU with fuzzy memories. As Denise helps him remember who he is, she uncovers dark secrets. Will this trauma create a fresh start? Or has his deceit destroyed the life they built together?

The Familiar Stranger (Moody Publishers, Sept 2009)

WCC: How do you plan and write your book?
CB: My previous writing has been heavily plotted and I’ve known almost everything about the characters before diving into the story. Writing with a co-author, Mom and I both need to know exactly how a character looked and his or her history. We wrote out each scene’s main plot point and point of view character on index cards and posted them on a large corkboard. We also found catalogue models that looked like our characters, made collages of the pictures, and slipped our character interview in the back of the plastic sleeves.

With The Familiar Stranger, the first scene came to me like a movie. Once the first chapter was written, I took a few hours to write down how I saw the story progressing. Then I numbered each main point and called it a chapter. All told, I had just over one page of plotting. To keep everything straight, I made notes about the characters as I went along. A very different experience to write by the seat of my pants, but I’m working through my current book in the same way.

WCC: What is it like working with editors? Do you have tips for getting along and building a great relationship with them?

CB: Cookies and chocolate! No, really, I have no trouble working with them because I believe their desire is to make the best book, which in turn makes me look better than I would on my own! I’ve had the pleasure of working with a freelance editor and two editors with Moody. Each person shaped and buffed the manuscript and the end result shines.

One tip? Treat the editor/author relationship like you should any other. Be respectful and honest, ask questions to clarify, and be thankful of his or her time and talent.

Over the years I’ve become real friends with several editors who rejected my work because I care about them as people, not as stepping stones on a career path. Two are even listed in my acknowledgements!

Read the rest of Christina’s interview here at Examiner.com and learn about her upcoming projects.

Tiffany Colter is a writer, speaker and writing career coach who works with beginner to published writers. She can be reached through her website at http://www.writingcareercoach.com/

Tiffany is a speaker and teacher. Find out about available topics for your group’s next event.

Tiffany is a National Examiner. Read her articles here.

Learn more about Tiffany’s Marketing techniques on her main blog.

Common-sense money management is free at The Balanced Life website.

Read Tiffany’s award winning manuscript “A Face in the Shadow” on her fiction blog.

She writes a blog for the Christian writer Tuesdays at Writer’s Rest.

With that information you were to look at what you needed to earn and time available and get your calendar booked. You always booked it 4-6 weeks out starting with the first two weeks.

Writers need to do the same thing. Our industry is slower than making a cold call [most places require a month or more to give a response on a proposal, even an article] but that isn’t an excuse to delay building your calendar. In fact, that makes it even more crucial.

Now that the chaos of summer is over the excuse from many will be “Well, we have back to school, the holidays, etc.” I think you’ve figured out by now it is always SOMETHING. There will always be SOMETHING that makes writing a challenge, but there is nothing in life worth doing that comes simply.

In order to do each of these things I know what I need to do daily. I need to bid about 8 jobs because I know ½ of people who contact me for a quote end up booking a job that month. I need to read the book/novel every week and maintain the blogs because that leads to the new material that leads to more coaching clients. Everything builds on something else.

With that I go through and determine what must be done each day.

So what are you working towards in September? Do you even know? Do you have a plan of any kind? That will be the first thing.

[Whether or not you’re going to conference]

Tiffany is a speaker and teacher. Find out about available topics for your group’s next event.

Tiffany is a National Examiner. Read her articles here.

Learn more about Tiffany’s Marketing techniques on her main blog.

Common-sense money management is free at The Balanced Life website.

Read Tiffany’s award winning manuscript “A Face in the Shadow” on her fiction blog.

She writes a blog for the Christian writer Tuesdays at Writer’s Rest.

http://www.barnesandnobleinc.com/press_releases/2009_aug_20_second_qtr_earnings.html

Good news in publishing. Barnes and Noble are showing some growth. What does that mean to all of us? It could mean more books are selling. It could mean consumer confidence in this small segment is going up.

Or it could mean none of it.

For us as writers, what does it mean? It means we need to keep writing. When things started going down last fall how many of you stopped writing? How many of you decided to keep writing to be ready when the market turned around? How many of you didn’t change anything in response? In publishing there is a huge delay between when they acquire your manuscript and when it goes to press.

That means you can’t chase the market. You can’t write based on what is hot, because when you are done that market is done.

You can’t allow yourself to be concerned with industry experts and what they’re saying.
Your focus must remain on consistent work.

What I have found in publishing is the people who are “lucky” are actually people who were prepared to take advantage of opportunities when they presented themselves.

What are you doing to make some of your own luck.

Tiffany Colter is a writer, speaker and writing career coach who works with beginner to published writers. She can be reached through her website at http://www.writingcareercoach.com/

Tiffany is a speaker and teacher. Find out about available topics for your group’s next event.

Tiffany is a National Examiner. Read her articles here.

Learn more about Tiffany’s Marketing techniques on her main blog.

Common-sense money management is free at The Balanced Life website.

Read Tiffany’s award winning manuscript “A Face in the Shadow” on her fiction blog.

She writes a blog for the Christian writer Tuesdays at Writer’s Rest.

I’ve taken the last week off to catch up on reading, do some one-on-one coaching with clients and enjoy the last glimmer of summer.

BUT, I am never really off duty. I have started a facebook page and would love to see you there. If you ever wanted to know the “Tiffy” behind the Writing Career Coach, she is there.

And I’ll be back on Monday with a great new blog series as well as some cool announcements.

See you in a few days, Tiff