Some News and 2013 Focus

So I have some great (unexpected) news that came up over the holiday!

I have a new foreign rights agent! Yay! Jennifer Custer is with AM Heath in London, one of the oldest literary agencies in the UK. Now Untraceable and friends will be at Bologna in March and fingers crossed we can jump the pond. :)

In a way it was serendipitous as I think these things often are - Jennifer is from Atlanta and the South so she personally connected to the story when it came across her desk. She lives in London with her hubby so we also share foreign hubbys (not the same one but our hubbys are foreigners :). Also - a big thank you to the Alliance of Independent Authors because they introduced me to Jennifer. You can find out more about them on the right side of my page.

This is very important to me. For one - it is hard to get your indie-pubbed work out internationally. And two - I must say it is nice to have someone on my side again. I haven't had that for a couple years since my last agent and I parted - so this is a great change for 2013.

I've also reestablished my goals for the year.

I'm trying to balance social media with writing and giving back to the writing community. I don't want to just focus on one or the other. And as I've mentioned before, giving back in some way is important to me.

Priorities

• Write more on a schedule
• Post blogs on a schedule - 2-3 times a week
• Schedule time on social media when taking breaks
• Only attend conferences I speak at or have a direct tie in to my craft or the business of publishing
• Find ways to give back to all authors and the writing community.

Publishing Goals

• Continue indie publishing while maybe testing out some traditional publishing options.
• Query my shiny new project to see what publishing path is best - indie or traditional (haven't decided yet)
• Release Unstoppable (book 3) in May (indie)
• Finish releasing the SUFFOCATE novelette series over the summer (indie)
• Release a fourth book in Fall? (indie)

Marketing goals

• Reach the reader more directly - skype visits etc
• Update my web site - lord knows it needs it
• Continue to be authentic
• Try to find a way to support a couple nature organizations with my Nature of Grace series
• National coverage (have not clue how yet :)

Aggressive but doable only because my books are already planned and plotted - it's just writing and editing, which is the easiest part for me.

A huge personal goal is to establish my worth and stick to it. Without going into detail, I often accept less than what I deserve to accommodate others or I give more than is expected - so this shift in mindset is a hard one for me.

Writing Goals


From a writing perspective, I am moving in one direction for now: Contemporary Thrillers (adult and new adult)

I want to create fast-paced novels. Untraceable was not as fast-paced as Uncontrollable (in my opinion). I think that was primarily because there was too much feedback on Untraceable in the beginning and I lost confidence in my own work with my old agent.

• Tone down my urge to add descriptions and narrative
• Up the pacing
• Plot in advance to make the writing part easier
• Continue being open to feedback and learning my craft

What are your goals for writing/publishing this year? I'd love to hear them :)