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Soraya Lane on Self Publishing and Freebies!

Today New Zealand based author Soraya Lane talks to us about Self Publishing. Over to Soraya now...


The Exciting World of Self-Publishing

 

I have to start this post by saying that I love my editor at Harlequin Mills & Boon – I’ve worked with her on eight books in two years, and I trust her implicitly. That alone meant that working on a book without her was quite a daunting challenge, even though I had the support of my literary agent, as well as her editing expertise. But where my editor tells me what she loves about my work before gently suggesting what needs to be revised, my agent just says it like she sees it (no hand holding there!).

            Even though I’m a “needy” author though, I’m also a businesswoman, and that meant I was desperate to try self-publishing. I have no intention of not writing for my publisher, but I like the idea of writing some slightly different stories that I have full control over. Earlier this year I self-published a young adult novel, and I’ve loved watching my Amazon rankings and checking my sales each day.

            So anyway, that’s how The Navy SEAL’s Promise came about – a novella that is slightly different to my “sweeter” Harlequin Romance books, but very similar in that it features two fantastic military characters. Something I’d been thinking about for a long while, knowing it wasn’t quite right for Harlequin Romance, but wanting to write it regardless. The hero is a sexy Navy SEAL, and the heroine a strong yet feminine soldier.

And I have to issue a warning that this story is a little hotter than my regular readers might be used to, and I issue full blame to my agent. She encouraged me to amp up the love scene a little, and even though I blushed A LOT when I wrote it, I think it works for the story J

            Self-publishing has presented authors with a great opportunity to produce more work and take control of their writing, but no matter how enjoyable it was to work on this project, I wouldn’t give up my editor for anything!

           

 

The Navy SEAL’s Promise will be available FREE on Amazon from 7-11th October!

 

33 comments:

  1. I love when authors do a combination of traditional pub and self-pub. It's very smart.

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    1. Hi Kelley,

      I reckon its the smart thing to do in today's environment. Thanks for reading!

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    2. Hi Kelly. Yes, it makes great business sense, an allows authors to write more books!

      Soraya

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  2. love your cover, Soraya! I love self-publishing too, it's great to write what you want to write, commission the cover, and see it all come together, isn't it?
    (waves to Nas...Hi Nas!)

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    1. Hi Sally. It's fantastic to have that control over the book and the cover. Searching for cover images is pretty cool, especially when you know that if you love an image you can buy it and use it!

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    2. Hello Sally!

      Thanks for retweeting this tweet and then for coming along to read this post!

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  3. Those first couple of paragraphs were enlightening.

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  4. This book is currently #5 in the free kindle store right now, and #1 in Contemporary Romance, so I'd love as many downloads as possible to help me hit #1 out of all the free books on Amazon!!

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  5. What a fun blog... New follower here :)

    Great to read more about Soraya's adventure! :)

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    1. Thanks for the follow and the comment Morgan!

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  6. Great cover! Good for you! I think it's great that we authors have a self-publishing option.
    Good luck with it!

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    1. Hi Jennifer!

      Thanks so much for your encouraging words!

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  7. Wow, what a great opportunity for romance readers. I wish you the best with the book, Soraya.

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  8. The cover looks great! Self publishing works if you know how to reach your target market. Good luck if you choose that way!

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  9. Great cover! And I'm betting a great story, too. Good luck!

    Hi, Nas :)

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  10. It definitely looks steamy. Thanks for the link. I downloaded a copy.

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    1. Thank you Medeia! I hope you find it enjoyable!

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  11. This sounds like a great novella. How interesting to find out about the author deciding to self-publish! Her agent and editor both sound great- so I can understand why it was a little scary without them. Thanks for mentioning that it is free right now.
    ~Jess

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    1. Hello DMS!

      Thanks for reading along and commenting!

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  12. Oh, interesting! I like the idea of using self-publishing for side projects. How fun that we can now balance the two.

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  13. Self publishing certainly gives you more control of your writing and publishing, would be interesting to know how well this book does vs. her traditionally published ones. Steamier (read between the sheets) are definitely popular at the moment.

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  14. It's great to see so many comments here! Just to let you know the book is only free for another 24hrs, so if you haven't downloaded it you go grab it!

    Soraya

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  15. Hello Soraya! Eight books in two years - wow! And now self publishing. It sounds wonderful. But I think a self published author needs an editor, several editors, more than anything (other than a great story, of course.)

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    1. Denise, I couldn't agree more. With my latest release my agent did all the editing, including a final line edit, but having a content editor and a separate line editor would certainly be beneficial. I think a professional cover is equally as important too.

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  16. Enjoyed reading this! We just had a workshop on self publishing last weekend too. It's certainly a lot of work, but at least you have full creative control.


    Nutschell
    www.thewritingnut.com

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    1. You're right, it's a heap of work actually and makes you appreciate the work that goes into a published book! But I have to say it's worth it.

      Soraya

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