Thursday, March 16, 2023

Creativity is essential


March 16, 2023

It might be arguable that there is more to life than writing. If we don't pay attention to life, we don't have things to write about. It's circular. 

While I've been busy writing this winter, I've become aware I need something else to do for those times when my hands have caught up to my brain and the brain has to process ideas and get ahead again. 

Read about my plan for next winter, Flying Geese, and a bit about my life over at Holly Tree Manor (The Hideaway.) This is the blog where I share personal things outside of writing.  

 _*_*_*_*_*_*_


Social media links:
Snips and clips on my YouTube channel: KC Kendricks Between the Keys
Life through the eyes of my black Lab, Greenbrier Smokey Deuce: deucesday.blogspot.com
My country life at The Hideaway/Holly Tree Manor: hollytreemanor.blogspot.com


KC Kendricks, Rayne Forrest, romance fiction, LGBTQ gay, a writer's life, m/m romance, Kindle, ebook romance, arts and crafts
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Friday, March 10, 2023

I can, so why not?

 March 10, 2023


Did you ever have one of those days when what you should be doing is simply of no interest to you? It happens. But the thing is, there are always myriad things I need to do. I should be working on the WIP, but a few other things intruded. Things like transplanting cabbage and Brussels sprout seedlings and planting tomato seeds. That's one of the things with gardening. The plants and the weather dictate to you. 

I should have jumped on the WIP with my few gardening chores accomplished. And I did. I opened the document ... and I closed the document. It's Friday and I've been good all week. I wanted to work on something to do with the writing, so I did a little promo and reworked a couple of promo cards. 

One of the books I rarely do any promo on is Hot August Comes. I don't really know why because the book was on the Amber Quill bestseller list, the ARe bestseller list, and it got good reviews. I've always thought it was a good story, if I must say so myself. I decided now was the time to make an improvement where HAC is concerned. So I did. I think the card turned out really well. 

The other thing I want to do is a series promo for the Amethyst Cove series like I've been doing for the Men of Marionville series. Last year I set myself the task of posting a promo on every book in the MOM series, and I did that. It's snowballed on me in that I keep finding new Facebook groups to run those promos. Thank goodness I thought to create a spreadsheet! Anyway, I updated the promo card for Double Deuce. It's not a big change but a small improvement. 

There is always something to do when I put on the writer's hat. So even if I'm not physically working on the WIP, I'm letting my subconscious brain work on it. Later tonight, or maybe not until tomorrow morning, my subconscious will toss the next chapter at me and I'll get it down. I've learned to relax a bit about doing other things. It pays off in the long run. 

 _*_*_*_*_*_*_


Social media links:
Snips and clips on my YouTube channel: KC Kendricks Between the Keys
Life through the eyes of my black Lab, Greenbrier Smokey Deuce: deucesday.blogspot.com
My country life at The Hideaway/Holly Tree Manor: hollytreemanor.blogspot.com

KC Kendricks, contemporary gay romance, m/m romance, LGBTQ gay, romance novels, a writer's life, promotion items, work-in-progress, Hot August Comes, Double Deuce, series romance, gardening, Between the Keys

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Saturday, March 4, 2023

The things that matter

 

March 4, 2023

This meme popped up in my Twitter feed and I read it and moved on. Then I went back for it. I guess the morning coffee hadn't kicked in the first time. 

Twitter is one of my guilty pleasures. Yes, most days there is a lot of crap to hop over, but little jewels like this one do exist. 

To phrase it another way, stop doing the things that don't matter (first) so you have time to do the things that do matter. 

In order to stop focusing on the things that don't matter, we must first identify them. Why are we taking out the trash instead of writing? It could be the trash truck is a mere three houses away and we'd better hurry. It could be the trash truck won't pick up until tomorrow. Prioritizing isn't easy. Overcoming our (possibly) brainwashed way of doing things isn't easy. 

As I prepared for retirement, I got a letter-sized desk calendar. It's a Day Designer that has a page for every day. The days have sections for Schedule, Today's Top Three, To-Do, and Notes, plus an inspirational saying. There are two small sections at the bottom for Tonight and for Gratitude. It's been a big help to me to be able to look at what I've done during the day and see areas I want to improve. I'm not strict enough with my time. 

I've embraced "retirement" and enjoy time spent with the Lord of the Manor doing not much of anything. He spent a lot of time alone in the last thirty years while I was at work. Setting aside what I'm working on to spend time with him when he is taking a break is something that matters to me even though it doesn't show on my desk calendar as productivity. Do I need to be a productive writer every free moment of the day?

Perhaps not, but I need to be cognizant of my use of time. It's time to use that desk calendar a little more proactively. That "Today's Top Three" block needs to be used to identify the things that matter, like time with loved ones.  

 _*_*_*_*_*_*_


Social media links:
Snips and clips on my YouTube channel: KC Kendricks Between the Keys
Life through the eyes of my black Lab, Greenbrier Smokey Deuce: deucesday.blogspot.com
My country life at The Hideaway/Holly Tree Manor: hollytreemanor.blogspot.com


KC Kendricks, Rayne Forrest, Between the Keys, romance fiction, time management, organization. loved ones, a writer's life, rural living, country lifestyle, ebooks
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Location: Maryland

Saturday, February 25, 2023

Now available! Devilishly Delicious Dane


February 25, 2023

Devilishly Delicious Dane is going live! The book is uploaded and in the process of releasing on the various online booksellers/vendors I use. It's already up at Barnes & Noble and Amazon.  The webpage is live at https://kckendricks.blogspot.com/p/devilishly-delicious-dane-by-kc.html. 

This is a light, almost angst-free story with a happy ending (HEA). I knew at the offset it would be a happy little story. How can a story have a guy who has a donut truck be sad? I'm happy to have it finished and out the door because for the first time in several years, I have a raft of story ideas to develop. Retirement has reenergized my zest for writing! 

Here's a bit about Devilishly Delicious Dane.

Enjoy!

KC

_*_*_*_*_*_*_

Devilishly Delicious Dane by KC Kendricks
Contemporary romance (LGBT gay)
 
Landon Martin spots a guy standing in the street, handing out donuts with a big smile on his face. Intrigued, he stalks the fellow back to his donut truck. Lucky for him, the man with the big smile and the sun-created halo had spotted him, too.

Dane Dawson is new in town but he’s making a name for himself with Devilishly Delicious Donuts. While handing out samples at the Oakton spring street fair, it’s his good luck that the sexy man he spotted follows him back to the food truck.

Donuts lead to dinner, and more, but when Landon overhears a bit of gossip, he has to step back and discover if devilishly delicious Dane deserves his halo. 

 Devilishly Delicious Dane is a light, almost angst-free read with a happy ending. 

DEVILISHLY DELICIOUS DANE is available at:

Amazon US:  https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BWSG6PYL

Amazon UK:  https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0BWSG6PYL

Amazon CA:  https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B0BWSG6PYL

Amazon AU:  https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B0BWSG6PYL

Barnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/books/1143110760

iTunes/Apple:  https://books.apple.com/us/book/id6445866530

Rakuten/Kobo:  https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/devilishly-delicious-dane

Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1352154

Universal link to additional online vendors/booksellers: https://books2read.com/u/31Q1ar

To read an excerpt, click here. 


    _*_*_*_*_*_*_


Social media links:
Life through the eyes of my black Lab, Greenbrier Smokey Deuce: deucesday.blogspot.com
My country life at The Hideaway/Holly Tree Manor: hollytreemanor.blogspot.com
Snips and clips on my YouTube channel: KC Kendricks Between the Keys



KC Kendricks, contemporary gay romance, m/m romance, Delicious Dane, donuts, LGBTQ gay romance relationships, Between the Keys romance

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Sunday, February 19, 2023

Fun with Facebook

February 19, 2023

Fun with Facebook. That's not what I've been having.

I knew one of the things I'd have to get better at after I retired is promotion. It's a cold, hard fact that a writer's best PR person is them. No one cares about your work the way you do. No one. To that end, I steeled myself to go to Facebook and join a few groups. I don't have a clue how many I'm in, but I've found posting a promo in a group with PROMO in the name is not as straightforward as one would believe. 

Several months ago I admitted to keeping a spreadsheet that helps me to not post in the same group several days in a row. The spreadsheet also helps me to spread out the books. I really do want to show a little intelligence, and respect, as I go about promo posting. 

The spreadsheet has evolved over the past few weeks. It started out as one worksheet with everything on it in alphabetical order. Now it has six
worksheets: FB promo, MM only promo, Reviewed always, Paranormal/Sci-fi, a special sheet for those pesky Buy & Sell tabbed groups, and one for all the groups I've abandoned for reasons of spam. So why split them up like this?

Some groups always review my posts. I find that annoying so I only go there when the regular groups and the m/m groups have been visited. Some days I just don't have the time for making the notations I need to make because I record how long it takes the group admins to release my posts. I do this in case I determine a group needs to get transferred to the "abandoned" sheet and written off as far as I'm concerned. And then there is Facebook itself. Sometimes a post goes to "pending" for reasons that are unclear. Generally, if I delete the original post, and then re-post the same promo, it will go right to being published. This takes time. 

Then there are the groups that say they won't tolerate any spam and that's all that is posted. Those groups get moved to the "abandoned" worksheet rather quickly. It's a bit of a shame. These groups also waste a writer's time. 

I'll continue to allot time to do promotions but I'll also continue to tweak my process to use my time wisely. Wasting time makes me curse. No joke. It's pretty bad when I mention I'm going to go "have fun with Facebook" and the man of the house takes the dog and they go hide in the shed. 

Just saying. 

 _*_*_*_*_*_*_


Social media links:
Snips and clips on my YouTube channel: KC Kendricks Between the Keys
Life through the eyes of my black Lab, Greenbrier Smokey Deuce: deucesday.blogspot.com
My country life at The Hideaway/Holly Tree Manor: hollytreemanor.blogspot.com

KC Kendricks, Between the Keys, Facebook, promotions, contemporary gay romance, m/m romance, LGBT GLBT, time management, a writer's life

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Saturday, February 18, 2023

The final read-thru: Devilishly Delicious Dane

February 18, 2023

This week is almost over! Yea! Seriously, it's been a week. We bought a new washer and dryer, the installation of which turned into a circus. The drain hose that came with the washer was too short to reach the standpipe. The installers refused to simply use the hose that had been on the old washer. We went to the home improvement store and purchased a hose. I put it on. It popped off. Rinse and repeat. Finally, the brother-in-law was summoned and he put it on. He and I tested it and it seems fine. I'll find out later today when I finally use the new washer. 

I can't speak for anyone else, but I can't focus on writing when there is some sort of upheaval in my life. Now that the washer is [hopefully] settled, I can get down to business and do the final read-thru of Devilishly Delicious Dane. 

Most of the finalizing is in place. The front and end material are added except for a bonus read at the end. I haven't made up my mind about what that should be. A good move would be to include the first chapter of the first book of one of the series I have - but which one? The Men of Marionville is always a good bet, but so are Amethyst Cove, Centerville Muscle, and Southern Cross. I could do the first chapter of The Back Stairs, but the Sundown saga is technically paranormal or urban legend, whichever you prefer to call a shapeshifter. It's a writer's dilemma, for sure. 

What I need to do today, hopefully while the washer is washing, is check for continuity. I just read a book where the characters suddenly switched body types. It started out that Man A was sort of fluffy, in chapter six, Man B was suddenly the fluffy one. It's not good to miss something like that. Dane has brown eyes and I want to keep it that way! 

But coffee first. Deuce had me up early this morning and a quick peek out the window told me why. Fifteen deer in the front yard. The poor dog didn't know which way to go when they saw him and split up. 

Yep. Time for coffee.

    _*_*_*_*_*_*_


Social media links:
Life through the eyes of my black Lab, Greenbrier Smokey Deuce: deucesday.blogspot.com
My country life at The Hideaway/Holly Tree Manor: hollytreemanor.blogspot.com
Snips and clips on my YouTube channel: KC Kendricks Between the Keys



KC Kendricks, Between the Keys, contemporary gay romance, m/m gay romance, LGBT, GLBT, donuts, Devilishly Delicious Dane, food trucks, coffee, a writer's life, writing, editing, 
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Wednesday, February 15, 2023

Coming soon! Devilishly Delicious Dane!

 

February 15, 2023

I typed THE END!! 

I'm very happy to say that the draft of Devilishly Delicious Dane is complete! Now comes the editing part, better known as the part where I second-guess myself over everything.

Devilishly Delicious Dane is a light read. It's two guys meeting and while our hero has a bit of self-doubt, they cannot help but be together. There is also some very adult sex in there. That's your warning. I'm not censoring any of it. Keep your own kids from reading it because that's your job. 

With any luck and a lot of editing, Devilishly Delicious Dane will be available on or near March 1, 2023. 

Now it's on to two projects I've been mulling over for a long time. More on those later, I promise! 

    _*_*_*_*_*_*_


Social media links:
Life through the eyes of my black Lab, Greenbrier Smokey Deuce: deucesday.blogspot.com
My country life at The Hideaway/Holly Tree Manor: hollytreemanor.blogspot.com
Snips and clips on my YouTube channel: KC Kendricks Between the Keys


KC Kendricks, Between the Keys, contemporary gay romance, m/m romance, LGBTQ+, romance novels, mature readers, ebooks, Kindle readers, donuts, HEA

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Sunday, February 12, 2023

Southern Cross series: Updated covers

February 12, 2023

These books are not about mythology. The titles are metaphorical. Metaphor: broadly: figurative language; figure of speech denoting an idea or to suggest a likeness

A few weeks ago I contemplated whether or not the covers for the Southern Cross series needed a bit of a rework. I made a new cover for Netting Neptune and decided I really liked it, and then time got away from me. That happens to me when I have a lot on the go. Anyway... I finally have all five covers updated. 

The biggest changes are to Netting Neptune and Poseidon's Pleasure. All five got the new banner. After that, it was new promo cards for all five. 

Beyond that, I hadn't looked at Netting Neptune in quite a while. This book was originally published at Amber Quill Press and edited by both the book editor and a line editor. Somehow, the three of us missed more than a few things. That led me to the need to check all five manuscripts. 

After a long, arduous, and unhappy re-editing (those two editors were paid from my royalties and I trusted them!), I uploaded the improved manuscripts to Amazon, and went to "my content" to click and receive the updates. Well... I missed the part where Kindle updates at Amazon are now automatic as long as the Whispersync is on. Automatic, but not very fast. I'm still waiting for them to be complete on my newer Fire. 

I'm glad I did the updates, even though these are older books. They hold up extremely well, story-wise, and I'm not at all ashamed to be ready to go out and promo them this spring. If you'd like to know more about the series, please visit the Southern Cross overview page. 

And now I have to go do some of those things that keep me busy. I need to go purchase a new washing machine. The fun never ends. 

 _*_*_*_*_*_*_


Social media links:
Snips and clips on my YouTube channel: KC Kendricks Between the Keys
Life through the eyes of my black Lab, Greenbrier Smokey Deuce: deucesday.blogspot.com
My country life at The Hideaway/Holly Tree Manor: hollytreemanor.blogspot.com


KC Kendricks, Between the Keys, Southern Cross, contemporary gay romance, m/m romance, GLBT gay, LGBTQ+ novels, Kindle novels, series romance, a writer's life


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Saturday, February 4, 2023

The night the Internet died


February 4, 2023

Oh, my Lord was last night no fun at all. Have you EVER been cooped up after dark on a cold and windy night with a grumpy old man whose Internet streaming has failed? You do not want to go there.

You.
Do.
Not. 
Want. 
To.
Go.
There. 

In a word, it was awful. We lost everything. No Internet. No streaming. But there was screaming! And wailing! No, it wasn't me. I landed in front of my computer and worked on the current WIP. In other words, I hid in my office. 

We knew something was going on when the movie we were watching started to buffer. That hasn't happened in several years. A few years ago we had a neighbor who is a technician at our local cable company. When he moved in up here on the mountain, the cable company needed to run a line to him. Ha. Ha. They couldn't do that without crossing my right of way through my cousin's property. We struck a deal. They could cross my cousin's property and my lane to the box if they ran a cable to us at no charge. My cousin and I were rather happy with the deal because it would have cost each of us, especially me, a bundle to have the cable buried. Anyway, it's been a good installation until last night, outside of a few storms that were beyond their control. 

No cable put Himself in a really bad place. He called the cable company and they said they couldn't send any out until Monday afternoon. BOOM! His head exploded. The man was snorting for hours. Finally, it got late enough for me to go to bed and escape the grumbling.

First thing this morning, he was on the phone again. Only this time, I think the tech that took his call was our old neighbor. Unlike the so-called tech on Friday night, our Saturday morning guy fixed us up in about twenty minutes. We don't know what commands he gave his computer but we know it worked. He had us up and running with an apology that we'd had any problem. 

I'd like to say I'm not pissed off at the Friday night guy, but that would be untrue. That he didn't give a fuck is obvious. He didn't even try to look into the problem. He simply passed it on to someone else. Why would he need to waste his time on an old couple? I tell myself to be patient, tolerant and accepting, and then something like this happens. 

Maybe we aren't the ones who need an attitude adjustment. Just saying. 

_*_*_*_*_*_*_


Social media links:
Snips and clips on my YouTube channel: KC Kendricks Between the Keys
Life through the eyes of my black Lab, Greenbrier Smokey Deuce: deucesday.blogspot.com
My country life at The Hideaway/Holly Tree Manor: hollytreemanor.blogspot.com


KC Kendricks, Between the Keys, Internet, cable TV, cable technicians, contemporary gay romance, m/m romance, good deals, rural living, country lifestyle, good help, bad help, bad attitudes
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Thursday, February 2, 2023

A promo card for Shine A Light


February 2, 2023

Happy Groundhog Day! That little varmint "saw his shadow" and so we're in for six more weeks of winter. Of course we are! Look at the calendar and you'll see winter doesn't end until mid-March which is six weeks from now. We'll make it through.

I suppose it's the coming of spring that has me updating covers and promo cards. The WIP is really coming along, too. I've got begonia cuttings started, and yesterday I dared to plant a tray of marigold seeds. I'm definitely thinking spring!

Yesterday, I was debating what book on the backlist I should promo next. I settled on Shine A Light and discovered I never made a promo card for that book. I started making those cards to use on Twitter, but these days those stupid TikTok vids are taking over. I guess I need to start unfollowing people to get away from the narcissists. But I digress...

Shine A Light. It's a good solid story if I do say so myself. I've let it languish and that's my bad. Making the promo card was a snap. I had several images already on file so with a bit of manipulation with Photoshop and it was finished. I would have preferred to have the lettering in white, but white faded against the background. Sometimes you can't have it all. 

Now I can work Shine A Light into the promo rotation. That's a good thing.

_*_*_*_*_*_*_


Social media links:
Snips and clips on my YouTube channel: KC Kendricks Between the Keys
Life through the eyes of my black Lab, Greenbrier Smokey Deuce: deucesday.blogspot.com
My country life at Holly Tree Manor/The Hideaway: hollytreemanor.blogspot.com


KC Kendricks, Between the Keys, Shine A Light, contemporary gay romance, m/m romance, LGBT gay, romance fiction, book promotions, begonias, country lifestyle, rural living, a writer's life
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Sunday, January 29, 2023

New blog post up at The Hideaway

The Hideaway at Holly Tree Manor
January 29, 2023

There's a new blog post up at Holly Tree Manor. Holly Tree Manor is where I talk about my personal life outside of writing. It's about rural living and my country lifestyle. 

Today, I wrote about some of the difficulties the month of January brings.

If you'd like to visit Holly Tree Manor to read about it, click here. 


KC/Rayne

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Wednesday, January 25, 2023

Netting Neptune - new cover!

January 25, 2023

A few days ago, I shared my ponderings about whether or not the Southern Cross books needed new covers. Such things are usually on my mind for a while before I blog about them. One big thing to consider before undertaking a new cover is finding a layout that works. If parts of the older cover still work for me, I really hate giving them up. 

I began to play around with ideas for a new cover for Netting Neptune that would keep the guy dancing in the surf. I also knew I wanted to add the Southern Cross banner I made. But I needed a new guy, one without sunglasses, and I needed a new title font. I'm a lot better with Photoshop than I used to be and everything came together rather quickly. I like it. It's a change but not a huge one. 

One thing I gave serious consideration to was changing the titles of the first three Southern Cross books, but I decided against it. It might have aided sales on the series but it felt dishonest. The use of the name "Neptune" is figurative, not literal. If a book buyer thinks it's fantasy and bypasses the book, that's fine. Netting Neptune was, after all, written for ME. 

You can check out all the new Southern Cross titles here. 


 _*_*_*_*_*_*_


Social media links:
Snips and clips on my YouTube channel: KC Kendricks Between the Keys
Life through the eyes of my black Lab, Greenbrier Smokey Deuce: deucesday.blogspot.com
My country life at Holly Tree Manor: hollytreemanor.blogspot.com


KC Kendricks, Netting Neptune, Southern Cross series, contemporary gay romance, m/m romance, LGBTQ romance, romance books for Kindle, book covers, a writer's life, Taming Triton, Poseidon's Pleasure, Photoshop, 
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Tuesday, January 17, 2023

Now available! Step Into Tomorrow by Rayne Forrest

 January 17, 2023

Step Into Tomorrow

Romance/futuristic/time travel

Rhys St. Clair is the best of a select group of highly trained time specialists. When events in the layers of time run amok, it’s his job to step through the Matrix and fix the problem. A mistake in his calculations sends him back to the year 1996 and nets him more than he ever bargained for – Sophia Townsend. 

Sophia Townsend needs a life makeover. When a confused stranger shows up inside her home, with no idea of where he is, or even what year it is, it doesn’t take Sophia long to figure out the man in her living room is the most interesting guy she’s ever met, and the sexiest, too. 

When Rhys whisks her away, Sophia isn’t sure if she’s been kidnapped, or if the handsome stranger is taking her on the greatest adventure of her life. When the truth catches up to them, Rhys has only one thing left to offer her – but only if she’s brave enough to step into tomorrow with him.

_*_*_

EXCERPT

“I could’ve done better.”

“No doubt. You’ve had practice. Now open that fancy atlas you bought and figure out where we can stop for the night, because we’re stopping as soon as it gets dark. I want off this main thoroughfare before we lose the light, too. ”

Sophia gave him a surprised look then grabbed up the book and started rapidly flipping through the pages.

Rhys hoped she realized they would share a room tonight. And a bed. He couldn’t let her out of his sight. It was too risky. She’d bolt like the hounds of Hell were after her. Thank all deities she’d never see the real thing. They’d blocked the way out of the lower layers of time known as Hell.

The thought of being in a bed with her, even if he stayed on top of the covers while she was under them, brought his cock to attention. The memory of her beneath him burned in his blood. He wanted her, and he had five years to get her. Starting tonight would work out just fine.

“Oh, and find a place that has, um, what’s it called? Room service? I’m hungry.”

“Eat your crackers if you need food,” she shot back. “We can cross the state line and look for a place. Crossing the state line makes you a worse sort of felon or something.”

“Really? You mean I might become wanted by NASA?”

She groaned. “Why me? Why does it always have to be me? Why do I get the good ones?” She finally shifted in her seat to face him. “It’s the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Rhys. The F-B-I. Not NASA. NASA is the people who go into outer space. You know outer space. Isn’t that where you came from? Didn’t Scotty beam you down?”

His hands clenched around the steering wheel as he gave her the truth.

“No, beautiful. I didn’t come here from outer space. I came from the seventeenth layer of time. Oz.”

_*_*_*_


Step Into Tomorrow is available at:

iTunes:  https://books.apple.com/us/book/id6445442306

Amazon US:  https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BSG2XT8B

Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0BSG2XT8B

Amazon CA: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B0BSG2XT8B

Amazon AU: https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B0BSG2XT8B

Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/step-into-tomorrow-rayne-forrest/1109557582

Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1320615

Rakuten/Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/step-into-tomorrow-1

Universal link to additional book sellers:  https://books2read.com/u/47VzGN

 _*_*_*_*_*_*_


Social media links:
Snips and clips on my YouTube channel: KC Kendricks Between the Keys
Life through the eyes of my black Lab, Greenbrier Smokey Deuce: deucesday.blogspot.com
My country life at Holly Tree Manor: hollytreemanor.blogspot.com


Rayne Forrest, Step Into Tomorrow, KC Kendricks, Between the Keys, time travel romance, science fiction romance, contemporary gay romance, m/m romance, HEA romance, chance romance, erotic romance, romance novel for Kindle
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Monday, January 16, 2023

Is it time for Patreon?


January 16, 2023

Quite a while back I opened an account at Patreon for the purpose of being able to check out what was so special about the site. One of my must-read authors has a presence there and I wanted to see how she utilized the site. I also needed to know what terms of service Patreon required. 

I was still working at the time and I questioned if I'd be able to generate "exclusive" material. Then there's the entire "exclusive" issue. I'm not a fan of "exclusive." It seems to me to be part of a more liberal mindset than what I have. It's the reason I don't put my backlist on Kindle Unlimited. You'll find only one book of mine on KU, and that's the very short book of poems, Just the Rain. Frankly, you can find most of those poems previously posted on this blog. The book was my way of getting them together so I could have them on my Kindle.  

I may be in the process of changing my thinking about Patreon. 

The results of the Smashwords end-of-year sale are in. I moved a lot of books, and I do mean a lot. Now is the time for you to make note that I said I moved a lot of books. Yes, I sold a number of books, too, but the stats clearly show the freebies won. Those taking advantage of the sale swept up the four books they could get for free faster than Grant took Richmond. 

This led me to examine the value I place on my time, specifically the time it takes to write and market each book. That led to pondering the benefits of Patreon, if there are any.

I already create "exclusive" material right here at Between the Keys, at Holly Tree Manor, and at Deuce's Day. I also have a YouTube channel called The Hideaway. Everything I post at these four sites is free which is apparently what people want - free stuff. I've never monetized my blogs because 1) it seemed like too much hassle, and 2) I hate blogs with a bunch of pop-up ads. 

But this "something for nothing" mindset is bugging the hell out of me. I participated in that sale and it feels like I sanctioned piracy. I won't do it again.

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Social media links:
Snips and clips on my YouTube channel: KC Kendricks Between the Keys
Life through the eyes of my black Lab, Greenbrier Smokey Deuce: deucesday.blogspot.com
My country life at Holly Tree Manor: hollytreemanor.blogspot.com


KC Kendricks, Between the Keys, Patreon, piracy, contemporary gay romance, m/m romance, exclusive content, a writer's life, value of time, Smashwords, sale price, poems, Kindle Unlimited, LGBT romance, career choices, focus thinking, 
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Saturday, January 14, 2023

Scary times: use the tools available to you


January 14, 2023

A few days ago I commented on a Facebook post about artificial intelligence. The discussion mentioned quite a few things including, but not only, the use of Grammarly. I use the free version of Grammarly and find it helpful. Will I ever use AI to write an entire book and then put my name on it. That's a firm NO. 

There are a substantial number of programs available to assist the writer. A quick Google search turned up 236,000 hits and listed things I'd never heard of. It's never occurred to me to have AI write for me. Spell-check me? Yes. Find those pesky missing words, as in a forgotten "the" or "and?" Sure thing. But a whole book? But that's just me.

I was up early this morning. My bed got too crowded around four o'clock. Hello, Deuce. Hello, Loki. Goodbye me. I toddled to my recliner and settled in to get a bit more sleep by myself. It was a fruitless endeavor, and I ended up reading an older book of mine - and finding a typo.

Now this book had three sets of human eyes edit it, and I still found a typo. I mention this because, in that Facebook thread, there was a bit of insinuation that only a human editor is suitable. Really? I've had some good human editors but I just found a typo none of us caught. Being the curious sort, I ran that page through Grammarly, and Grammarly caught it on the first pass. 

So what's my point? It's this - a writer should use the tools available to them be that a human editor, a program like Grammarly, or any combination necessary to get the book written to the best of their ability. The second part is that we as writers need to be careful in suggesting there is only one way to get the job done. 

Would I prefer to be a newbie writer in this decade? No, I would not. I benefited greatly from having human editors. I have what they taught me to fall back on. I may have argued with some of them over a point or two to protect my vision of a story, but that doesn't mean either of us was entirely wrong. Would I want to have to rely on nothing but computer software to edit? No, I would not.  

I suspect that one day soon I'll download a book that has been written by AI and I'll not know the difference. Why not? Because somewhere along the line, a real human writer had to read that manuscript and if they're worth the moniker, they made sure it was their story. 

This brave new world is pretty scary. 

    _*_*_*_*_*_*_


Social media links:
Life through the eyes of my black Lab, Greenbrier Smokey Deuce: deucesday.blogspot.com
My country life at Holly Tree Manor: hollytreemanor.blogspot.com
Snips and clips on my YouTube channel: KC Kendricks Between the Keys




KC Kendricks, Between the Keys, writers on writing, contemporary gay romance, m/m romance, AI, editing, editors, writer's tools, GLBT gay, LGBT gay, 

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