Promotion – Page 43

Highland Games – 1 is now available on Amazon.

Apart from the location, there is no connection between ‘the games’ in the story and the games usually associated with the Scottish Highlands.

It is my first novella, and if the idea appeals to enough readers there will be a series. My plan at the present time is to continue to at least five stories. Each book will introduce new characters, but cameo roles will be played by characters featured in other stories from the series.

Central to the idea is the Highland Haven Hotel which is in a remote location, not surprisingly – in the Scottish Highlands.

Is it wham, bam, thank you, ma’am?

No, it isn’t, because although the predominant activity is sexual, the characters will have a background, a voice, and as might be expected, particular preferences ….

Each book will have a cohesive story to carry the journey of the main character and at least one support character.

These books are not among the longest, or most complicated I’ve written, however, the most ambitious aspect will be for me to inter-relate the characters of the individual tales, and the dates.

I accept the erotica genre does not appeal to everybody, but in my reading experience so far, I’ve found a lot of badly written work in this category. It was after reading a famous, modern story I was inspired to write the genre myself. The ‘Shades’ book, in my opinion, is neither believable nor properly researched. I applaud the author for making a fortune – selling rubbish.

How does my version of erotica compare?

It’s not for me to say, however, I have more than one title out there now, and they carry positive reviews. Enough said.

As always, I appreciate any feedback.

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Amazon – Preview / Buy

BookLinker – Universal

The First Sixteen (2) — So many titles fighting to be the chosen one ….

Writers by nature will read an abundance of ‘top tips’ on their craft.

Is it because we all want to be the best?

Smoke & Mirrors - 030714 2 — An individual story title, which is itself a well-known phrase.

I would suggest not. Whatever our reasons for writing, I believe the majority of us read top tips to improve our craft.

We don’t want to be the one whom everybody else is calling ‘comma man’, or ‘she who loves exclamation marks!!!

The driving force for us is to write, followed by the desire to do so to the best of our ability.

Some of us will work tirelessly, aiming to improve with every sentence, paragraph, chapter, and ultimately book – or title.

We are in this strange world through personal choice. We learn through comments, suggestions, tips, textbooks, and sheer hard work. We want what works best on several levels.

Titles are right up there in the ‘top tips’.

Personally, I’ve given up on the 1,001 theories. For example: Should we avoid anything which sounds like a famous book or film? Should we use a cliché? Should we use one word, or a phrase? The list of methods is endless.

In the end, it is an individual choice.

Take for example the title of this article. I’ve checked over many hundreds of blog posts and found there is little correlation between the day an article is posted and its success.

Where have I found the most comments, or most success?

Yes, for me, the secret is in a catchy title.

When I choose a title for a poem, short story, or novel it sometimes takes longer than the piece of work. I can end up with a considerable list, but the deliberation is worthwhile.

I can honestly say I wouldn’t change the title of any of my individual short stories or books, because I spent so long getting to the end result.

This blog post is an exception, because I came up with the title first.

Recruits outside a Sandhurst Block in Catterick — A series title with a meaningful sub-title for each part.

For my various books I’ve tried to use a title which would work without a book cover. I know it will sound strange if you’re a writer, because we constantly discuss how important the cover is for a book.

What about a blind or partially-sighted person who judges by what they hear?

They might depend on ‘hearing’ the book. They’ll hear a list of titles, and they’ll hear the blurbs, but they might never ‘see’ the cover, so it becomes meaningless.

I want my titles to convey an image before the cover is created.

You’ll have seen notes under the books I’ve chosen to highlight in this article. Clicking on these graphics will take you to the book’s page.

If you’ve read this far I sincerely hope you’ve enjoyed my theories, and perhaps you’ll take something away from here.