Rubber Band Theory Part 2

Well, I really didn't think that putting a book out as FREE promotion would work. My first novel in the Sabrina Strong series went free and there were a lot of hits on it. I was able to see that during that non-selling portion it went to #200. I don't count it as anything but people grabbing a free-bee. But some good results happened.

One was that within about a week the other books were selling, not just in the US, but in the UK, Canada, and apparently in Denmark--I guess that's what "De" means in the Amazon area on Novel Ranks. And I sold numerous copies of the ebooks at regular price.

Secondly, I finally got a few more reviews. And these were nice reviews from one person who FINALLY got what I was doing with the series. Sheesh. You'd think I have to have a few pages in the beginning to explain to people who are dense as to why each book goes the way it does! Anyway, she gave me excellent reviews and I thank her for that.
Some times you experiment and things don't work. And then other times they work out pretty good. This is an example of when something can work. And since I have a publisher who has ways of getting the word out better than I could (without the money to back it up), I've found that the books are selling well. Better than I could have imagined, and I'm happy about that.

Last week the weather got so warm and gorgeous, I set aside my writing, and enjoyed it. How many times can one say they sat outside in shirt sleeves and shorts in the middle of February in northern Illinois enjoying 60's. I wanted to sun myself, and I got a little caught up with some yard work as well.

This week reality kicked back in and we're back to where we should be in temperatures, but I know it will be short lived because all the spring-time birds are back, including the sand hill cranes, which don't usually make it until March. So, now that I've no real excuse to not work, I'm gradually trying to get back into the swing of it. Had a few ideas pop into my brain this morning for my current WIP, and although these were good I see I need to ponder and mull about them. And I'm hedging on continuing where I am at in the story, because there are later scenes  coming up that have me chomping at the bit to write, and some have been written into a separate document, and maybe these notes I've made could become new scenes. This book is going together like a patchwork, I guess. Nothing wrong with that, as long as the end result is seamless.

Well, that's all I have for this installment.

Oh, nearly forgot. I was feeling under the weather, yesterday. Early morning, I sneezed and felt it in the back of my throat. I knew that if I didn't act on it I'd get hit full blown with something, so I took an aspirin--just one--and later had my tea infused with elderberry, and had another cup later on as well. I had chills throughout the day and resisted this urge I have to clean. It's a burst of energy (I don't know if anyone else experiences this at all, in my case I want to clean the house). I knew if I spent my energies on doing that, I'd become sick for sure. I think it's your body trying to ward off whatever, and if you don't stay home, and rest, you will be screwed! I stayed in my office/room and I had to double up my layer of clothing (put on yoga pants underneath my sweats and two shirts plus a Dickie underneath the sweatshirt). I kept wiping down places where I'd touched, used a different toothpaste from my husband, and hope he doesn't catch whatever I had.
This morning I was much better, and although I know I'm not quite 100% I'm still better than I was. I do believe that the claim on elderberries is spot-on. I've used it whenever I felt I was coming down with something, and so far, this year, I haven't caught a cold or the flu--and I drive a transit bus where just about any germ can come from anyone who gets on the bus. Even if you can't gather and dry the elderberries yourself, the already made form is available in some stores where health food, etc. is sold. I take the tea from the elderberries I gathered and dried and put them into a Ball jar and store it in the fridge. Supposed to last at least a year. At least until they come ripe again in late August!

Okay, now I'm done. Have a good writing week!

Running in Circles

Too many projects, I guess.

Have been working on certain re-writes of the mystery novel. It doesn't surprise me that I'm going back and forth like this. It's sort of normal for me and first tries a something (like books).

At first, and for months, I couldn't decide who was my murderer. I mean, I had someone, then decided it was too easy. Everyone would guess who it was. That would be your "red herring". So, I went through a number of people/characters in the book. No. No. No... but maybe this one.

And the clues. I came up with another clue just the other day, because it's another piece of jewelry, other than the necklace that's clutched in the dead woman's hand. It's something she wore--oh, yeah, have to write this in.

Ooops, don't want to give away too much.

I began this book last year. Had to take about half the year off from writing, last summer, before I felt like writing anything. Just go through those times when I need to recharge, and not writing anything much helps.

I've also been working on other things. Trying to make my facebook pages look more professional. You know you can add a button to sell your book to a page you have? Or anything, even your website. I've been working on this with all my pages. It's time consuming.

Also, I'm redoing my "Baby Boomer at Large" blogsite. I've just revamped it. This is a very clean, paired down version in blogger. I sort of like it. You have the article you've written w/o all the other junk getting in the way. I just wrote about the healthful benefits of elderberry. However, I think I didn't mention that you can buy this juice, or the dried berries from healthfood markets. Be aware that it is very expensive. Our HyVee store has a whole health market, and they've jacked the prices up on everything there. Elderberry juice was once $18, and I think they've jacked it up out of my reach, thus I'm making my own this year. I'll be drying the berries and storing them for use, as they are growing everywhere, not just on our property, but in the park as well. If you've never heard about how elderberries boosts your immune system, and how people have discovered it for abating flu and colds, you might want to check out this story, and the links about it. I'll be working on more posts at Baby Boomer at Large a little more often. I've been wanting to write about healthful foods and herbs for a long time. I think it's about time I worked on it, and have found the best way/place to do it.

That's about it for today. Have a good week!