Quarterly Goals: Conventions and Sales

I saw a Reel the other day asking September if it has someone to be, and that's a great question, because how is October on Sunday?

It is a fifth Friday, so that means it is time for my quarterly goals. Last quarter, I sought to publish Fractured Princess, and I did! It is now available in all text formats (see the links below!). My goal for this coming quarter is to record and publish the audiobook. I had started practicing reading it aloud last quarter on Twitch, but then I got sick for an entire month, so now I have to strengthen my vocal cords and lungs back up. I definitely want to get the audiobook out before the year is up, though.

Also, of course, in the next quarter, I would like to try to have--at least--the first two parts of Divided Princess completed. I know just about all of the major plot points. I just need to connect them. If I can say "THE BOOK IS FINISHED" in January, that would be just the bees knees. Wish big. Work big.

My other goal was to make my reading goal. I've read 11 books so far, so that means I'm going to make the 12! Depending on how many I finish, I'll try to add a book a quarter. No promises. I'm only doing it for myself anyway. I started Poe's complete works, because I've only read a few of his short stories and one poem in school ("Annabel Lee"; I haven't even read "The Raven"), so I'm going to power through this weird story about Hans Pfall, which is mostly a rambling so far, and go from there.

Another goal is to try to get more sales in. For me, that will mean a little more marketing and trying to get into more conventions as a vendor. I have Blue Hen Comic-Con in November. I didn't make the cut for the Multiverse Con in October. I know there is a big fantasy one in D.C. in the Spring? Early Summer? So, I will keep an eye on that. Marketing and social media-ing is tougher. I deleted my Twitter account, so I'm down an avenue. I'm thinking more about Threads than any other newer outlet. I like Spoutible. It's being ignored even by articles listing new social media apps, but so far, it's the one with the least issues. I need to keep a better presence on Facebook, but they always recommend I post around 7:00pm. I mean, I guess I can schedule something, but I like to be in the moment. We'll see.

Anyhow, those are my goals. Have a happy Spooky season! I'll see you next month. ;)

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FRACTURED PRINCESS is now available in Kindle, Paperback, and Hardcover! Get your copy today!

Kindle Edition (amazon.com)

Paperback Edition (amazon.com)

Hardcover Edition (amazon.com)

Monthly Review & Quarterly Goals

 

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It's been so long since I've had a monthly review, I even forgot what picture I was using. At this point, I'm not even going to say I didn't mean to miss three weeks. I'm just bad at keeping a schedule.

This has been a very eventful month for me! I released Fractured Princess at the end of May and had a very successful day at Dover Comic Con two weeks later. I was even surprised to meet people who had remembered me from the 2021 Comic Con and last year's, where I just handed out "Coming Soon" gift bags. I'm proud of myself for talking to people and coming up with an elevator pitch on the fly. A few people didn't know what Final Fantasy was, so it was pointless to use that all the time. The pitch definitely made some eyes light up. I loved to see it.

The day after Comic Con, I flew over to Nashville to watch my friend conduct his second annual Juneteenth Symphony. If you love symphonic music, please follow the Nashville African American Wind Symphony. They're going to do even bigger things in the future. I know it. Being in Nashville, first off, makes me never want to leave (I absolutely love it there), but seeing my friend do what he loves also makes me want to do so much more of the things I love, especially as a career. How I'll shift into that, we'll see, but I do not want to be a State worker forever. Could be a bit of near-40-life crisis talk emerging, but we'll see about that over the next 12 months as well. When I got home, I met with my cousin to help him do some plotting (pantser me? what?) for his novel. We were two very excited squirrels, but we got some work done! I love seeing how his story evolved, and he said my writing journey helped him do it, so that's a major bonus for me. If I could do something like that every day as my job, that would be ideal.

Shifting gears a little bit, if you're reading this straight from my blog, you'll notice a new Comic Con event in my sidebar! There is a Blue Hen Comic Con coming to Dover this November, and it will be TWO days long! I should stay in a hotel just for the heck of it, but I live less than 10 minutes away from the venue. haha This will be my first indoor convention, so I can't wait to see what the difference is. It will be held in the old Sears building at our slowly dying mall, so if we're lucky, they'll have more events like this in that space. 

Today is also the 5th Friday of the month, so it's time to look at my quarterly goals! Back in March, my main goal was releasing FP and getting the word out. I put together two Facebook ad campaigns, one leading up to the relaunch and one after. I believe they did pretty well. A few people at Comic Con said they saw the ad! That's really cool how it works. I wish I could've seen it. I really don't get on social media like I used to.

My goal for this quarter is to practice more voice work. If you follow me on the socials, I've posted two readings and a character voice so far. I plan to do more, and maybe listen to another audiobook, because I said I was going to, so I could hear different narrators.

Speaking of books, I'm almost halfway done my Goodreads goal, which is great at the end of June! I'll share some of what I'm reading next Friday (promise). Writing-wise, I'm almost finished the second chapter of Divided Princess (again), and I hope to incorporate some of the action I wrote in the first draft. I know for sure how this book is going to end and how the final book will turn out. I just have to get to them. Always A and Z with me.

So, for reading and writing, my goal is to read at least three more books and maybe get to the midpoint of the first part of DP. I can do it.

Did you make any goals this past quarter? What are you looking forward to this summer?

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FRACTURED PRINCESS is available on Amazon in Kindle and Paperback, and on Barnes & Noble's website in Paperback!

Find me at Dover Comic-Con!

 Happy Friday!

I'll be about here!

Not much of a post today and a late one, but I did want to share the map of Dover Comic-Con next Saturday with my location! I'm actually close to where I was 2 years ago. I'll be more noticeable this year, because I'll have a bright pink tent!

If you're in the area, hope to see you there!

June Review: I had a busy month!

 June has been a busy month for no reason.

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I only say this because I was busy every Saturday for one reason or another. Here is what I did:

On the 4th, I went to my first Pride event with my younger sister. It felt so good to see so many people out, and I saw other demisexual flags on the street, so I wore mine like a cape of honor. Next year, I have to remember to bring money, because the drag shows were popping! We spent most of our time there.

Me on the steps of the Townsend Building at Legislative Mall.

On the 11th, I had a graduation party to go to, and then I stopped by the African American Festival with my goddaughter. Then, my friends all piled into my house to eat crabs. On the 18th, Dover Comic-Con took place, and I spent two hours passing out merch bags filled with a bookmark, business card, and post card with Fractured Princess's blurb and release date.

The bag is shiny, so pictures are meh.

I had fun those two hours. I passed out all 75 bags that I had, and I even got to stop to eat for a minute before I left to get ready for my best friends' baby shower. Then, we piled into our other friend's apartment and watched Turning Red.

On Juneteenth, my sisters and I hung up textiles of our mom in the room that used to be her sitting area in her in-law suite at my older sister's. She updated it, and it's really cute (not that it wasn't before, but my mom liked cherry wood and maroon/taupe fleur-de-lis afghans, and we do not). We sat in there and chatted for a few hours. Then, I rested on the 20th, which was very nice.

Tomorrow, I have a baby's birthday party and a barbecue at my sister's, and then it will be July! Well, not right away, but it will feel like it. There is a possibility that I will take a break in July, as it's my birthday month, but I'll cross that bridge in a week. I still have to record a video for Patreon, so that will be my goal later tonight or early tomorrow morning.

Writing wise, as you saw in my post from last Friday, I have so much written down, and I can't wait to put it all together. It's for Book 3, though, so that means I need to get the ball rolling on Divided Princess. I need to figure out how to get to all the stuff that leads to Book 3. I kind of know, but I just need to sift through my jumbled ideas and make sure I carve out a sensical path. Wish me luck!

June Writing Update: Change of Plans But Good News...

It is the third Friday of the month, which means it's time for a writing update. This one is brought to you by Twitter:

Me, figuring out another missing letter in my plot alphabet.#brainstorming pic.twitter.com/xZn1avswEO

— Debra Renée Byrd, author (@DebTheAuthor) June 10, 2022

Me as another revelation comes into this plot point.

Literally just said, "Oh...MY God!"#brainstorming pic.twitter.com/7gHElaXxw5

— Debra Renée Byrd, author (@DebTheAuthor) June 14, 2022

There are other tweets after the first that may or may not have clues to the inspiration for these plot points, but ...*evil grin*.

Anyway, I had to make a slight change of plans for my attendance at Comic-Con, so while I won't have a table this year, my spot is reserved for next year, and I will be walking around with the merch I have to pass out to folks. Hopefully they use it to find me here and everywhere I am on the interwebs.

May Writing Update: Preparing for Comic-Con and Patreon!

 

Happy Friday! It is the 3rd Friday of the month, so that means it is time for me to share some writing-like updates for you all!

I purchased a new domain for an official website that's not just the blog, so if you visit debrareneebooks.com, you will see a fresh new landing page! I modeled it off of N.K. Jemisin's landing page, something simple that represents me. There is also a sneak peek of the first chapter of Fractured Princess that I added for potential new readers who I plan to meet at Dover Comic-Con!

The convention is now a month away, and I'm excited to get back out there and share some free merchandise. I purchased new bookmarks, business cards, and info cards with my Linktree for anyone interested. I wanted to create booklets with some free chapters, but the cost of that was astronomical. With that in mind, I also need to create a sign for donations, because I will definitely need some up to Launch 3.0.

I plan to start a Patreon in June to help with all of this. After creating a Kickstarter for the cover for Launch 1.0, I did everything else out of pocket, and I barely have pockets. I have a lot planned for monthly updates, and I hope to gain more attention with it, so as long as I keep on the grind, I think things will pan out well.

I also decided to release the book on my birthday again. I did say I wanted to release the book in Spring, but I am going to use that time for pre-orders and promotion. I don't want to rush everything like I did the first time. But by Spring, I do want to reveal the updated cover. I'm excited about it.

Last thing before this gets too long, I'm still writing! I'm happy about that, too. One thing I might need to do, however, is sit down and *gasp* plot out the second half of Divided Princess and the third book. I've already cut some potential scenes because of the turn the story has taken of its own volition, so I do need to write down some thought bubbles or trees, something.

Wish me luck!

Fractured Princess (WCP Edition) Kindle Release Day!

 

Once again, the release date for Fractured Princess has arrived! It is currently available for purchase in Kindle format. The paperback will be released September 14th.

Last Thursday, my interview with Blerd Senpai went live. It was fun, and I love his podcast. This Friday, I have another interview with Sand & Shores, who are doing a series for authors of fiction. I'll let you all know when that is live.

Dover Comic-Con was a blast! Unfortunately, all of my books didn't arrive in time, but I was able to sell what I had and get the word out about the release dates. A lot of people stopped by my tent (which was only at half mast for the first two hours. I didn't know how to erect it all the way, so one of my friends came and helped me), and I had a couple of people give me their information so I can come to community events or talk to their students. That's exciting. The rest of my books came Monday night, but I have a book club that's been waiting for the new book for over a year now, so I'm excited to get it to them.

I hope some of you grab it and that you like it! I'm excited about the update, and the good news is I've already finished the next two parts (the plus side to the publisher releasing books at a specific word count), so there won't be a super long wait for the sequel.

Here's to what's to come!

1 Week Away From Dover Comic-Con! And the COVER REVEAL!

 It's a rare Saturday post because I received the new cover of FP, and I have to share it! But first, I am one week away from first Dover Comic-Con as an AUTHOR!

I'm so excited! I'll be next to a big comic book tent, so hopefully I'll generate some interest as people pass me on the way. I'm most worried about being out in the heat for 8 hours, but hopefully it will be a nice day. My new bookmarks and business cards were delivered today. I'm just waiting on the canvas, which I was able to update with the new cover. Hopefully it processes and gets here on the 11th like the e-mail says. I wasn't expecting the first shipment this early, so here's hoping.

This is the design I had for this new cover. I love Paint 3D. I sent a design like this to the first cover artist, and that's how I got that gorgeous 3-Jonnie photo for the self-publication. I don't think I actually sent this to the new artist, but I might have. I did tell the art director that I wanted the shattered glass effect.

And so without further ado....

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The new cover for the 2nd Edition of FRACTURED PRINCESS

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A whole new Jonnie! I'm very happy with it, especially the cover scheme, which surprisingly matches the first cover. I love the banded glove on her right hand, and this is actually the first time *I* get to see the crystal in Jonnie's hand. Can you believe I never drew it before needing the new cover?? I don't know how I managed that. I always drew her with her hands covered.

Anyway, I'm very excited. August 18th is going to be here faster than I expect! I have a couple of interviews coming up this month, so I will share them when they're published.

Have a great weekend!