Morgan Media Does an Animated Bookmark for The Magic Wakes

Want to see something cool?

Rachel Morgan is starting a new business with the sole purpose of helping authors with the marketing process. She's offering many services, the animated bookmark for website sidebars is just one of them.

Go check out her new website, facebook page, whatever you prefer and learn more.

Morgan Media is a small business offering quality services to indie authors at affordable rates.

Message from Rachel Morgan, the founder of Morgan Media:

"I'm an indie author, and it's taken me many, many, MANY hours of work to figure out how to navigate every step from finished manuscript to published work. There's the ebook formatting and the print book formatting and the ebook cover design and the print book cover design. Then comes the marketing--of both yourself and your book--and for that you need blog tour buttons and blog headers and Facebook fan page cover images and artwork for bookmarks and button badges and postcards and whatever else you might want to give away as part of your book launch. All of this takes a spectacular amount of time that you probably don't have, especially if you're busy promoting one book and trying to write the next one. So why not get someone experienced to take care of most of these steps for you? That's what Morgan Media is for."

Find Morgan Media in the following places online: 

Website | Facebook | Twitter | DeviantArt | YouTube

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4th Annual LDS Writer's Blogfest

I'm participating in the 4th Annual LDS Writer's Blogfest. Go check out the other participants.

I want to share just a few thoughts with you on what being a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints means to me as a person and a writer.

First, watch this video. It's a poem written by a young woman who is also a member of this church. Just listen to how she speaks about what it means to be a woman.


How can you NOT want to be a part of THAT? I have to be honest and say that I have struggled at times with what I believe to be true and the subject matter of my writing. It seems that no matter how many people I talk with, there remains an even split between the following two thoughts:

1. You are not your characters and they will do and say things that you would never do. It's alright because not everyone in the world of books are members of this church (none of mine are).
2. You are in control of your characters so don't let them say or do anything that goes against the church standards.

I consider myself to be a "clean" writer when it comes to things like romance and language. However, sometimes my characters tell me things they did or experienced that I have not and will never experience. It doesn't matter how many times my hubby says, "well just change the story." THAT is what the story is. I don't feel like I'm the one making it up. The characters slowly reveal their secrets to me and I have to find the right words to share it with everyone else.

It's hard.

Sometimes it tears me in two.

Most of the time this is why I stop writing.

I'm not writing things a certain way because I think that's what will sell. If I was doing that I would have written about vampires and werewolves while they were hot. But I don't write paranormals. I don't write explicit sex scenes. But one or two of my characters have said the "D" word.

Somehow hubby has managed to stay with me in spite of that, although he's terrified I will lose my temple recommend (for those who don't know that's a piece of paper that says I'm worthy to enter our temples). If I can find a better way to express the frustration, anger, whatever, then I do. I have some of the cleanest military mouths you will ever find.

Well, I've rambled quite a bit and still not solved my problem or even asked the right questions most likely.

What do you think? Are you completely in control of your characters? Do they reflect who you are on all levels? Or do your characters have personalities and lives of their own unrelated to yours?

The New Book Trailer, Future Author Events and CassaStorm!

I made a new book trailer for The Magic Wakes. The old and new are both on YouTube, but I put this newest one on my webpage. I've only had three comments made about the new one:

• I love it!
• The song kind of grates.
• It's sort of busy

Do you guys mind taking a look and offering up an opinion? 

I've also been planning my summer book events. So far I only have two set up and ready to go, but I'm including the two I would like to add.

• May 25th--Bentonville, AR Farmer's Market
• June ?--Another day at the FM?
• July 27th--Book signing at Hastings in Murfreesboro, TN
• First week in Aug--Reading at North County Regional Library in Huntersville, NC.

Wish me luck!

And finally, the thing I'm the most excited about...

I got lucky enough to get an ARC of this from Dancing Lemur. Guess what I'll be doing for the rest of the day!

Alex Cavanaugh is one of the most supportive bloggers of authors. If by some strange fluke you don't follow the Ninja Captain, head to his blog now.  

He'll tell you he never planned to write three books, but we're all glad he did. I'll post a review soon!

Winner of the Dragumon Art Contest!

Isn't this great!

Philip Bartles was the only one up to my challenge, and I think he did a wonderful job. I love the energy coming off the staff, love the texture of the scales with the smooth yet reflective quality. The talons are wicked and I definitely would not want them slicing into me. The best part is the head is moving in the right direction. More dog like and less snake like.

Great job!

Philip will be getting a signed copy of The Magic Wakes in the mail, and when I finish the Dragumon novella he will get a copy of it.

I actually get more excited about this picture every time I look at it!

Another New House and My First Craft Fair

We successfully moved into our new house over the weekend. Some wonderful men and 12 year old boys came and helped. They loaded and unloaded the truck in 2 and a half hours! I'll post pictures as soon as I'm unpacked and really settled. I hope there is no more moving in my future...at all!

The weather was not so accommodating this weekend. And. And I was at my first craft fair trying to sell books in this unbecoming weather. Let me set the scene for you. Two days before the fair the temperature was around 80 degrees and beautiful. We were hoping for a great turnout and lots of sales. This is what the first day of the fair looked like.

Yes, that's my tent flapping open with the bright blue on top. I shared some space with two other great authors--Tamara Heiner Hart and Michelle Pennington. They were also selling baked goods, which kept us full and happy in spite of cold toes.

Don't we look lovely? I never took my hood off so I joked that I was scaring customers away by dressing like a thug. Truth is not many people came by and we had trouble giving away our food samples. Weird!

My little area of the tent. On day 2 I didn't bring out as many books because they were curling up in the damp air. I made a poster of reviews to set out and sold a couple of Sendek inspired necklaces. (Do you see that gift basket? I still forgot to collect info to give it away. So when I came home one of my teens claimed the blanket. One of these days I'll get another one together and give it away on this blog.)

The weather being what it was--terrible--I'm quite happy with selling 5 books. However I bought 50 to sell! Guess I'll be setting up at the Farmer's Market really soon.

How was your weekend? What are your writing goals for the rest of this week?

Mine are to sit and write for an hour every day before unpacking stuff.