July 8

Unlocking the Search Ranking Gate with Amazon Keywords 

I wrote and published this blog post for Mash Stories. 
See the original post here.

booksAmazon keywords: they can be the bane of a writer’s existence. By virtue of the word they seem as though mastering them would unlock the secret to getting your book on the first page of an Amazon search. The cold hard truth is that only high sales can boost your book to the top of the list, but without the proper use of keywords you’re doomed. Knowing what keywords to use and how to use them can boost your unknown, low-sale book from search page 1,000 to search page 15. Screwing up your keywords will leave you mired in the deep dark swamp of other books. The best thing you can do to prevent this is to arm yourself with as much knowledge as possible before committing to these little nuggets of information.

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May 20

Social Media for the Introverted Self-Publisher 

I wrote and published this blog post for Mash Stories. 
See the original post here.

ReadBookYou’ve poured your blood, sweat, and tears into your writing and you’re finally ready to unleash it onto the world. It’s a nerve-wracking experience, offering up your work to the volatile public masses. You never know how someone is going to like what you’ve done, or how mean they’ll be if they give it the thumbs down. On the flip side, receiving those gushing e-mails professing love for everything you set pen to is a true writer’s high.

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April 29

DISEASE PLAYLIST

Music plays a big part in my life and as a writer I often find inspiration in what I listen to. When working on a project I try to listen to music that encompass the situation I’m writing about. While sitting at my computer and typing out the fate of my characters I usually listen to non-lyrical tracks that just embody a mood. This helps me avoid distraction. But when I’m chasing the muse away from the office I listen to anything I think might stimulate my imagination.

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April 22

The Pros and Cons of Serializing Your Novel 

I wrote and published this blog post for Mash Stories. 
See the original post here.

Screen Shot 2015-04-22 at 11.35.46 AMIt might be hard to imagine these days, but long before people gathered around the TV, they gathered around the radio to listen to the latest episode of whatever was popular at the time. Even harder to believe is that long before radio the public clamoured around newsstands to pick up the latest “episode” of serial fiction. In fact, some of the classic literature we still read today was initially serialized. Big names like Charles Dickens, Alexandre Dumas, and Harriet Beecher Stowe published their novels in serial format.

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February 18

Blood, sweat, and tears.

I(heart)It’s no secret that I used to work at Starbucks. I actually enjoyed my experience there and found it was a great and supportive environment. Schedules were flexible and the staff was filled with students and artists. It was a great job for someone who had quit a more lucrative position with the intention of focusing on writing.

What blew me away during my time there was the amount of money people would spend on their specialty coffee drinks. It was normal to see the same people every day, if not several times a day, spending five, six, and seven dollars a drink. Over, and over, and over. And that’s not even to mention the promotions we’d have. The staff dreaded the lines out the door for BOGO offers and half off sales. Customers would often go nuts, spending more than they would in a regular day because they got a deal. It’s no wonder Starbucks stock kept rising!
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January 21

DISEASE invades libraries!

I’m happy to announce that those of you who live in Halifax, Nova Scotia will soon be able to check out a copy of my novel DISEASE from your local library! How cool is that? Super cool.

I’m a huge fan of libraries, I practically grew up my hometown’s local library. There’s no better vision of society’s greatness than a vast and varied collection of literature offered to the public for free. Well, okay, not FREE, FREE, because our taxes pay for it, but what a great investment for the taxpayer. Not to get all political, but I think local libraries are an amazing public service.
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January 13

I’M BAAAACK!

Bleeding PenI hope you all had an amazing holiday season. I took the opportunity to take an extended break from all things writing related. This also meant stepping back from my horror fan feed that I run though Facebook, Google+, The Crypt App, and Twitter. The fan feed, Monster Haüs, was meant to be a combination of horror fan-centric posts and personal writing posts, but increasingly I felt that the fan side of things was encroaching on my life.
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