Printing a Book In Color vs Black and White

Adding pictures to the header of each episode was an idea that hit me out of the blue. I wanted to have a picture that would kind of speak to what the episode was about to share with the reader. This was an awesome thought, but an expensive one. To decrease the pages and the price of the book, I printed it in a 12 point font instead of the 14 point I usually use. This brought the book down to 202 pages, but it didn't bring down the price for color.

Her's my dilemma. If I print in color and use all the selling outlets, the cost for the 202 page book would be a whopping $30. If I only sold it on Amazon and my store, the cost would be in the ballpark of $15 as a base. For black and white the cost would be $3.27 as a base. Those prices don't include any markup for profit.

I thought I would share this with you just in case you were wondering about the cost of color printing.

Visit my author page for a look at the new Ashes Series

Take a look at the impact of color vs black and white.

Black and white Episode picture

Color Episode picture

Visit my author page for a look at the new Ashes Series

How to Find Strength in Criticism

How to Find Strength in Criticism

Author Interview - Meet Brigitta Moon

This was the first time I have engaged in an author interview and I must say it was an enjoyable experience. Please take a few moments to meet  me, Brigitta Moon .

Self Published Authors

     Self publishing a book is a courageous step. A self published author wanting to share their writings with readers is why it's done. I have created this book club for readers to discover the works of self published authors and for these authors to put their books on the list so readers can find them.
     Link to this new group and enjoy and experience the stories of the self published author.

        Discover a Self Published Author    
        1 member
    This group is for readers and authors. This group is for readers and authors to discover and embr...

Books we've read

     

       
            DEBT CRUNCHER: HOW I WENT FROM A CRED...
            by Brigitta Moon
          Start date: July 27, 2014
     
       
     

       
            HIM
            by Brigitta Moon
          Start date: July 27, 2014
     
       


View this group on Goodreads »
 

Should Authors Review Their Own Books

     I was considering leaving a review of my own books as Goodreads tells the authors they can. I didn't feel really comfortable with it. It seemed like I would be touting my own horn. So, I decided to google the subject and was routed to a conversation on Goodreads. The conversation was insightful and boasted both sides of the question; should an author review their own books?
     Here is what I came away with:

• Cons- The author rating his or her own book is offensive, tacky and unethical. The author is too close to the work and would not be able to rate it objectively, a biased opinion. The author's rating of his or her book may skew the ratings.
• Pros- If the author rates his or her own books it shows that they not only wrote but read it. The review would show what the author thought of the book if he or she is being honest.

     It's really difficult to watch your book sit on the shelf without a rating. I was tempted to rate mine just to see a rating. I did intend to give an honest review but, now I wonder how honest it would be. From my point of view, I enjoy love stories with a little mystery and a touch of erotica, so my review would have been an honest one.
     I wrote the HIM Trilogy, but the time came when I had to review the entire book for mistakes to have a bound book for sale. I found it hard to review the book for mistakes as I kept getting drawn into the story and found myself reading the story instead of reviewing for mistakes. I have read this book a few times with the same result of being drawn into the story. I enjoyed it and would have given it a 5 star. If I had to rate them individually, I would have given book one 3 stars only because I think sentence structure could have been better.
     So, instead of posting my own review, I have decided to pass my advance copy on to a reader and let her review it on Goodreads. Here is my reasoning for the decision. Let's say I wanted to find a plastic surgeon to do an eyelift or a mini facelift to get back my youthful appearance. My face is quite important to me and I wouldn't trust just anyone coming at it with a knife. So, when I hunt up reviews on the plastic surgeon, his review doesn't count and doesn't matter to me.  All I want to know about him is what his patients thought of his work, bedside manner and final results of the surgeries.
     I believe that is what a reader wants to know, if other readers enjoyed the book and thought it worth the investment. So for now, I will wait patiently to see what rating readers place on my books.

 
 

    Goodreads Book Giveaway
 

   

       
   

   

     

          HIM The Trilogy
     
     

          by Brigitta Moon
     

     

         
            Giveaway ends August 10, 2014.
         
         
            See the giveaway details
            at Goodreads.
         
     
   
   

      Enter to win

Characters Write Their Own Story

     I would like to share a writing experience with my readers. I spent a year writing the third book in the HIM series, The Diamond Couple. I would write a few chapters and then leave my characters for a few months. I have spent a lot of time with Damon and Sharla over this past year. So, when you hear an author say you have to like your characters because you will spend a lot of time with them, believe it. I planned my book from beginning to end. I would sit at the computer to write by the script only to find the characters writing a different script. Many scenes I planned were deleted and others were added by those frisky characters. They had minds of their own. No matter how I tried to control them, it didn't pan out the way I saw it.The most outrageous thing to me was how the characters rewrote my ending, shocking me. The story did not end by the script. It ended with the characters choosing their path and taking it.
     I admit I am a new writer to Amazon, publishing my first book in April of 2013. Now four books in total, I see why authors say write, write, write. Over time my writing has improved. I can see where my characters have grown along with their story.
     What did I learn from this? Basically, no need to write out a whole book plan; just a plot or even just an idea with at least one character. The story will grow. The characters will grow. Before The Diamond Couple was finished my mind latched onto a character for another story. I even have a general idea what the story will be about, but I have no beginning to end plan. I don't even have a title, but the story will come alive on the screen of my computer. As a treat here is a glimpse of the character who wants a life on the pages of a book. There are blanks for her makeup colors because she hasn't picked her shades yet.

Seraphina slumped against the tin partition in the restroom stall, head limp, eyes staring blankly at the floor. Her backpack slid off her shoulder, down her arm, hitting the tiled floor with a thud, awakening her from her trance. She quickly tugged it back to the safety of her grip, hugging it tightly to her chest. She had made it; back to DC.

    The space was tight but she would make it work to do what she needed to prepare. The wait had been long. Now here it was; the answer to her prayers.

     Removing her baseball cap, she shook out her wavy black hair, combed her fingers through it and fanned it back. She hung her rumpled jacket on the hook followed by her backpack. Metal screeched as the zipper of the backpack was released. Out came a delicately pleated black dress, sheer stockings and black leather one inch slingbacks. In went comfortable jeans, a football jersey, a pair of socks and tennis. The metal screeched to a close.

     She stilled herself listening for sounds of commuters. No splashing sounds, no flushing sounds, no chatter, only stillness. She emerged to the mirror opening the front pocket of the backpack producing a compact. In the mirror the narrow, sagging face of a young girl of 18 speckled with freckles, no glimmer in her eyes, no color in her cheeks peered back. She bit on her thin chapped lips, disheartened. She pressed her eyelids shut and took in a deep breath to clear her thoughts.

     It was all behind her now and her future was promising, so why the look of despair? Her hands began to work. Black mascara lengthened and thickened her lashes, black eyeliner lined her lower lids, desert gold and peach blossom shadowed her lids. _________ gloss shined her lips while _________ colored her cheeks. Her hands finished with bronzer for a sun kissed appeal.

     Now in the mirror a young woman of 18, divine, classy stared back. Commuters piled in forming lines. Seraphina waited in the back of the line for her moment. She lost herself in a group as they made their way out. Sunlight warmed her skin and impeded her vision. A pair of sunglasses went from her backpack to her eyes. Gracefully walking with all the refinement of a young beautiful heiress, she stepped to the curb and entered a cab.

    “Where to mam?”

    “Georgetown.”

   
The Diamond Couple can be previewed on Amazon. It is available as a free download June 17th and 18th beginning 12mn Pacific time. Click the link to Amazon to get The Diamond Couple by Brigitta Moon  http://www.amazon.com/Diamond-Couple-Book-HIM-ebook/dp/B00L0UKE14/ref=sr_1_1_title_0_main?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1402967233&sr=1-1

Forgotten Blog

     How do you forget a blog? I am shaking my head. Today I was reading someone's blog. I really liked the look of the blog and decided to click on the icon to see where the blog was hosted. I could not believe my eyes. Tea With Twilight popped up. I had completely forgotten about it. Sadly I had not posted a word since 2009. That's not to say I didn't continue my writing.
     Since the inadvertent abandonment of my blog I have posted a website http://www.mjrhythm.com/
I must warn you that when you click on the link the page loads with the music of Michael Jackson (MJ). I was so shocked by the news and so sad about his passing that I created this website just to lift my spirits. I began to notice that each time I clicked on the site and the page loaded with the Man in the Mirror, I felt some happiness, hope, even uplifted. Now when I am feeling a little down about anything I click on this page and with the first note of the song I feel the urge to sway and snap my fingers. As the song progresses I'm singing with him, snapping my fingers and clapping my hands. My emotions of sadness, disappointment or whatever was weighing me down take a backseat. The music, MJ's voice and me singing and moving with the rhythm is all thats left in that moment of time.
     I have also self published 3 books on Amazon under my name of Brigitta Moon. My first book began the series of Him. This story captures the emotions of a woman tormented by her feelings for a man she believed she loved from the moment her eyes met his. Book 2, Him Again continues the story of Him.  The hopeless romantic that she is has lead her to continue her involvement in a roller coaster relationship with her love at first sight man. Her tortured soul struggles to survive as she battles her feeling of love and hate towards Him. Book three is on it's way. The third book I published is a self help book with a plan to help you get out of debt and begin to save and invest your money. This book is a quick read and easy to understand. It is packed with useable knowledge for every day life. So, welcome to the class of debt relief. Click on the link to explore these books.  http://www.amazon.com/Brigitta-Moon/e/B00D6XTDV0/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_pop_1
     It was a nice surprise to find my old friend Tea With Twilight. Stop in again and enjoy Tea With Twilight. I intend to visit as often as possible.