Tag Archives: writing

Vacation, Writing & Drafting + Excerpt

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My vacation comes up next week on June 12th. I’m headed out with some friends to Philadelphia to celebrate another friend’s birthday. It’s going to be a blast and the anticipation we all feel has been just bursting. I can’t wait to hang out with them all again. These girls helped me get through some of the worst times. Those are the kinds of people I treasure more than anything.

Before that, the weekend will be filled with a lot of things. Mostly, I’ll be doing some writing by starting two of my short stories I plan to release before Killer Orange, my next novel slated for August release. I will also be doing some marketing for Unbridled so I can leave some business cards with my book links in every place I go on my vacation! I don’t know how effective that is as marketing plan but hey, it’s better than nothing. We’ll see what the conversion rate is on that. I might even need to get a T-shirt made. 🙂

After my vacation, work will get serious! It’s time to start drafting Killer Orange as well as making those short stories presentable.

But to just wet your appetite for Killer Orange, here’s an excerpt — (Bear with me, it’s so raw and unedited at this point.)

***

Before she could push the button, she spotted someone coming up the driveway. Rolling her eyes, she marched forward, ready to punt the next person off her property the moment they asked her how much she was selling her things for!

“It’s not…” Her tempered voice trailed off when she set her eyes on the golden face with a bright smile. His hair looked like golden fleece in the sunlight, and she had to avert her eyes quickly before plunging into his whiskey colored eyes. “a garage sale…”

“Yeah, I know,” he said, chuckling. “I could hear you yelling it a million times from my house.” Rebecca tried not to stare, but she gave up and looked him over. Wow. Wow and double wow. He was a sight! The only problem was…like everyone else in this neighborhood, he was a tanning nut too! On closer look, she thought, at least this new neighbor looked natural and healthy. Very healthy, for she started to find it difficult to not look over his lean and toned form, towering slightly over her.

 

Until later, Cheers!

H.K. Rowe

Thank you & Next Steps

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Thank you to everyone who has purchased and read my book! I want to send a special thanks to my reviewers and raters on Amazon and Goodreads: Ladytuono, Nuria Romero, Sakura, Susan Schmidt, RSO Kent, and LAB. Your support is much appreciated!

Now that’s settled, here are some things to look forward to on the agenda:

* Local & word-of-mouth Marketing for Unbridled

* Promotion with Indie Author News

* Print copy giveaway promotion

* 2 new short stories between now and August, entitled Blazing Heat and Stranger’s Kiss

* Killer Orange drafting & editing

* other Writing & Design projects

Hope everyone has a great week!

Thanks!

H.K. Rowe

Unbridled is everywhere!

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I’ve updated my H.K. Rowe books page and finally have the completed links on where you can buy Unbridled, whether in ebook or print format.

Please check out all the available links here. 

I’ll be doing something with Indie Author News soon. I will keep you posted when I start working with them.

In the mean time, thanks to all who have picked up my book so far!

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Unbridled Excerpt #3

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Unbridled Excerpt #3 — Last one in celebration of my print proofs coming today. It is in review and the print link will be available soon!

***

“Ethan?” The feminine voice called out again, and Ethan could make out a small petite Asian girl running toward him. “Ethan!” She broke out into a sprint as a wide grin opened on Ethan’s face.

“Howin!” Ethan waved, and Elekta appeared shock that Ethan would show such emotion in public, if at all.

She saw Howin tumble into Ethan’s arms, and her eyes widened in surprise as she saw Ethan plant a quick kiss on Howin’s forehead.

Howin laughed and looked up at him. “You didn’t tell me you were coming here, of all schools.”

Ethan laughed. “I guess I forgot. Sorry. How’s Master doing?”

“Father? He’s good, gruff as ever but good. And you?” she asked, staring at him affectionately.

“I’ll survive,” he joked, and then he saw Howin turn her attention to Elekta.

“Oh, Elekta! I’m so glad your cousin is coming to Howl’s. We’re old friends, he and I. Well, actually we’re both students at my father’s martial arts studio. I’m sorry. I forgot to tell you I knew them,” Howin shrugged innocently and beamed.

“It’s quite all right,” Elekta nodded, forcing a sweet smile. “Howin, I’m so glad. I trust your break was a good one?” Elekta may have not have been outwardly pleased at their closeness, but she could at least muster up politeness.

Ethan was most interested in her reaction to Howin’s presence. He smirked wickedly and continued to hug Howin much to Elekta’s mildly visible discomfort.

“Yes, it was good – incredibly short, but good,” Howin seemed bored by the conversation and then directed her attention to his brother. She nodded and Brian smiled.

Ethan found this funny that Brian seemed to smile more to his obvious affections to Howin than when he ever mentioned Staisha. As funny as that fact was, there was nothing he could do about it. Howin was merely a friend, among other things, but not someone he could get involved with while he was tied to Staisha.

Though as Howin talked to Brian, Ethan looked over to Elekta, whose smile was so fake it was frightening. She was undoubtedly seething in the inside.

He looked back at Howin and inwardly grinned.

Marketing Fatigue

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I feel like the marketing for Unbridled is going okay for starting out, but I’ve realized how annoyed I’m getting with it because it’s taking me away with time I could be spending on my next books.

sigh

So I set out a game plan to follow tonight that I’ll probably still market it when I can but not fret so much about it. If the book doesn’t do much, it’s just how it is. I should move on and work on being more prolific instead of dwelling on one book.

Thanks to all who have picked it up and read it. Thanks for the reviews too!

When I get the print copy I’ll be doing a giveaway. All in due time. My proofs are on their way.

Tonight is the New Moon. I’m a pagan so I’ll be taking a break from books, work and other worries to meditate tonight and commune with my Goddess. I hope other Pagans have a splendid evening. Blessed Be.

Rest in Peace Maya Angelou. One of the greatest contemporary poets. One of the gifts my husband had given me while dating was a book full of her love poems. Her work touched me as well.

Cheers,

H.K. Rowe

Memorial Day

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The proof copies for Unbridled have been ordered and they are on my way to my house. Create Space recommended I look at a physical copy before selling, and I agree. I bought the maximum number they allow for proofs too.

I should be getting them next week some time. I hope sooner than that, but I understand they have to print them. 🙂

I hope everyone had a good relaxing Memorial Day weekend. Bless you all.

Marketing for the book continues, and then next up is working on some of my WIPs and drafting “Killer Orange”. I’ll probably peruse through my kindle app to read some indie books while I’m at it, as well as catch up with my poor overflowing DVR shows. 🙂

Cheers,

H.K. Rowe

To My Younger Self

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It’s been a few days since I released “Unbridled” and though the promotion is not done yet, I have had some time to reflect on how accomplished I feel. I’m soaking in the happiness so to speak.

At one point I felt like I reverted back to my younger self, writing and drawing on the floor as I watched TV with my mom, dog Georgie Girl, and three cats, Misty, Checkers and Butterscotch. I remember writing my stories on lined paper, drawing my own covers, and then binding them with Elmer’s glue like they were a real book you could pick up in a store and read. Or I would do my own graphic novels, tell a story with pictures from one panel to the next. I still have several of these hand made books. Every once in awhile I get them out and look at them. It’s sad how much the pencil has faded, but I love seeing my old handwriting, my old drawings, and the budding mind of a writer.

tbt-medrawing

A couple of days ago, that little girl’s dream came true. My book is out there… selling!

Does it matter that it’s not traditional publishing? Does it matter that it’s not on a bookshelf in my local library? Not really. I give a lot of thanks to the advanced technological world, the ease of self-publishing, and most of all, the existence of fanfiction culture. If if hadn’t been for the latter, I may NEVER have had the mindset to get this far, to have the connections to encourage me and give me tips over the years, nor would I have gained the accessibility. Utilizing social media and forums and blogging over the years makes self-publishing so much more possible.

I am going to soak a little in the happiness of raw accomplishment. It’s only my first book but personally speaking, I never thought I’d get to this point. I’d been beaten and exhausted from terrible past jobs, challenging mental health periods, stress and dealing with a parent who lost his life to cancer. At one point publishing my own work felt like a pipe dream.

I know it’s ONLY self-publishing, but it’s still something very important to me. Plus, I love the hard work already. I love the engagement. I love the possibilities and the control. I’m a Type A personality and I love my schedules, my organization and my control. This is my heaven.

I haven’t been this happy in a long time. I’ve ended my days this past week with a smile on my face.

I treasure that. So does my younger self. She’s over the moon.

Thanks to everyone who made this possible.

H.K. Rowe

The Next Step

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Still riding the excitement of Unbridled‘s release!

But I guess now that the book is out and I’m in full swing adding it to other sites, I need to start thinking about the next releases.

Obviously, I’m committed to releasing the next novel, “Killer Orange” hopefully at the beginning of August. I was thinking in the mean time of releasing too short novellas in June and July to help keep the momentum going.

The only challenge now is what to do! I have a ton of story ideas! Now I have to see which one my muse wants to tackle the most.

🙂

Cheers!

H.K. Rowe

The Day After: Thank You!

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Unbridled has been out for less than a day and I thank everyone for spreading the word, purchasing and reading the book.

I want to do a special shout out to Heather who even plugged me on her blog.

Kisses!

Thanks so much!

And don’t forget, Unbridled is available at Amazon right now!
I will update my blog further when other purchasing options become available.

Also please tag it on Goodreads if you intend to read!

Please also sign up for my mailing list at the link on the side!

Thanks!

H.K. Rowe