Cumbria, England, 1803

The good Lord had a devilish sense of humor. That was the only possible explanation for the series of events that had led, inexorably, toward Walter Langston’s current predicament.

To be fair, there was nothing amusing in the accident that had brought an abrupt end to his nascent—albeit not terribly promising—military career. If he had been shot in the arse or even the foot, the story would probably have made good fodder for post-prandial gatherings, but when the errant bullet struck one’s collarbone and left one with less than full use of the adjoining arm, there wasn’t a great deal to laugh about.

He could, of course, have continued in the army despite his disability, but the truth was, he hadn’t wanted to. Having been shot once by mistake, Walter had little inclination to put himself in a position where he was guaranteed to be shot at on purpose. A single encounter with a projectile was enough to last a lifetime. It had certainly come close enough to ending that lifetime.

Unfortunately, he had been equally disinclined upon his recovery to return to the life he’d led prior to purchasing his commission. It was one thing to live off the largesse of an older, titled sibling at twenty three or twenty four and quite another at nearly thirty. Walter had required a profession, and with the military option now closed and murdering both his older brothers—not to mention two nephews—in order to come into the viscountcy out of the question, there was only one remotely acceptable option. The one to which he, as the third son of an aristocrat, had purportedly been born but had misspent his youth proving himself unfit for.

He was a vicar.

Apparently, the interests that really want some form of these bills passed are those in the film and music industry. They feel piracy is killing them. Authors seem to be more split on the subject, which I find interesting. You would think that authors would see things the same way moviemakers and musicians do (although I’m sure there are filmmakers and recording artists who are opposed to SOPA/PIPA; no group is ever without its dissenters).

Rather than go dark today in protest, I thought I’d post instead the a list of all the reasons I see SOPA/PIPA as harmful to my interests as an author rather than helpful. So, here goes:

1) Invisibility/lack of discoverability hurts my sales more than piracy.

Um, guess what? That’s it. There are plenty of other reasons to object to SOPA/PIPA, including due process issues and the like, but as a person who is trying to make a living selling books, that’s the one that matters. I don’t need Congress to protect my business model from piracy because, as far as I can tell, piracy is at worst a wash and at best a net gain when it comes to my sales.

That, however, was before we discovered Food Network. It started, innocently enough, with a friend of ours pointing out that her son (also a foodie like my youngest) really liked a show called Iron Chef America. We watched a couple of episodes and, although we enjoyed its campy silliness, we weren’t exactly hooked. But then we happened to see another Food Network program called Worst Cooks in America and, OMG, from there, the obsession snowballed to include Chopped, Next Food Network Star, and Next Iron Chef. God help me, the HOURS I have spent watching cooking competitions and salivating helplessly is just immense.

The thing about reality TV I’m discovering, however, is that you can get sucked in even when you are avowedly, absolutely, 100% NOT INTERESTED in whatever the subject of the program is. My latest obsession of this variety is a show on Discovery called Gold Rush. As you might guess even if you haven’t seen it, it’s about gold mining. It’s set in Alaska and features some of the most relentless and wanton destruction of nature I’ve ever witnessed. They dig up literally thousands of pounds of dirt for a few ounces of gold. It’s kind of insane.

But…I can’t look away. Partly, it’s because I’m absolutely charmed and impressed by one of the miners the show is a following, a 17yo kid who’s operating his 91yo grandfather’s mine and desperately trying to save the claim. This young man is just so bright and mature while at the same time exhibiting all the impatience and moodiness you expect of a teenager. Somewhat amusingly, most of the adult miners are just as impatient and moody as the kid, but without the excuse of youth.

So, what about you? Do you watch much reality TV? If you do, what show or shows hooked you in? Are there any that you know you shouldn’t like but like anyway?

Ever since I decided to start self-publishing original work (as opposed to re-releasing previously published titles), I’ve been feeling a vague sort of discomfort. Despite all the things I love about self-publishing—control over cover art, content, and release dates, instant access to sales figures, and no need to wait for a publisher to decide whether to publish my work or not—there’s one concern I can’t shake, and that is that no one other than me necessarily thinks the book is “good enough” to publish.

When a publisher offers a contract for a book, it’s a kind of endorsement; it says, “We are willing to make a financial investment in this manuscript because we think it’s worthy of publication.” How much that “endorsement” is worth certainly depends on the publisher—the more selective the publisher and the better that publisher’s end products are, the more it means. It also means more if there’s an advance involved and how much the advance is; the more money the publisher is willing to put at risk, the more confidence the author can have that the product is worthy.

But when I’m the only one taking any financial risk in the production and distribution of the book, how can I be confident that any book I publish myself is truly ready for prime-time? Even if my beta readers and editor tell me they loved it, maybe they’re just humoring me. I would hope not, but they aren’t fronting the money to publish the book, so they don’t have anything to lose by avoiding conflict and telling me what they think I want to hear. This leads to the inevitable fear: “What if this book actually SUCKS?”

Or, at least, it does for me because I am massively neurotic and insecure. That was the case even when my books had publishers behind them. Now that the publisher is me, I am just that much more neurotic and insecure. This isn’t to say I don’t stand 100% behind or believe in the quality of The Lesson Plan, which is the first book I’ve self-published that wasn’t already released by another publisher. I think it’s as good as or better than anything I’ve ever written and published before (which, depending on how you feel about my other books, may not be saying much). But that doesn’t mean I don’t toss and turn just a little more, because I feel my reputation is even more on the line than ever–I’m not just the author, I’m the publisher, which means I’m responsible for everything. And being responsible for everything means there are more things I can possibly screw up.

Okay, so I did have a point here vis-a-vis the apparent tendency for self-published authors to melt down in the face of bad reviews at a higher rate than those who are not self-published. To wit, I believe self-published authors think they have more to prove (and realistically, they do) and are more deeply stung by criticism because they already have a greater degree of insecurity/fear of failure.

This doesn’t justify lashing out at reviewers, of course, or trying to convince readers who didn’t like your book that they are wrong. Nothing justifies that. An author’s books are not their babies/children–and anyway, since when was no one allowed to give your child a low grade in school if he performed poorly?–nor is the “effort” of writing and publishing a book in any way an achievement that warrants universal praise and reward.

We all have to suck it up once we put a book out there and let the work speak for itself. But self-publishing authors have to suck it up just a little more, and that’s just the way it is.

With the release of THE LESSON PLAN, I resolved–irony intended–to take a brief vacation from writing until after the new year, and it’s a good thing I did because we had some unexpected company last week that would’ve really thrown me off my game if I hadn’t already expected to have the time off. But starting tomorrow, my vacation is over.

So, the deal is, I have a full writing schedule ahead of me this year. I’m planning to release the next Lords of Lancashire novella in late April or early May. Wrong Side of the Grave and Incarnate should follow over the summer/early fall, with the final LoL (I love that acronym!) novella out by December. I also have a contemporary category romance that’s about 2/3rds finished that I’d like to complete and submit to Harlequin by March or April, and a few other side projects to wrap up.

This is far more ambitious than anything I’ve ever accomplished in the past. I think the year I wrote the most, I only completed four novellas/short stories. (And it’s probably no coincidence that this was before Twitter was even invented, lol.) This means there’s a real chance I’m going to muff it and not finish everything I’ve promised, but I also know it’s completely doable if (and this is the big IF) I put my head down and write when I have the time. And by “write”, I mean writing actual words in stories, not 140-character witticisms on Twitter or comments on blog posts or even blog posts of my own. This isn’t to say I’ll be completely dark on Twitter or the internet, but I do plan to be a LOT less active than I have in 2011. It’s the only way I can possibly fulfill my goals, especially given my hectic day job/mom job schedule going forward.

Staying off Twitter is not going to be easy for me. I’m pretty much a confirmed addict. But I’m going to try. And if you’re reading this blog and you see me on Twitter as much as ever, please remind me that I’m SUPPOSED to be writing. I’d appreciate the help.

A Matter of Indiscretion
With his facility for languages and gift for diplomacy, Thomas Pearce is perfectly suited for his recent position in the Foreign Office. Or so he imagines until he receives his first assignment. Instead of a safe consular post in a friendly European capital, Thomas is going straight into the eye of the continental storm: France. On the eve of Napoleon’s crowning as emperor, no less. There is, it seems, a small matter of indiscretion just outside Paris that requires immediate attention. An indiscretion by the name of Sabine Rousseau, who happens to be the illegitimate daughter of Britain’s prime minister.

When a handsome gentleman arrives at her family’s home right before Christmas, claiming to be a long-lost cousin, Sabine is suspicious for reasons she can’t articulate. Perhaps it’s just that he’s far too attractive for her to think of him as a blood relation. She is, therefore, not entirely displeased when he sneaks into her bedroom and announces they aren’t kin. Her pleasure dissipates, however, when she learns he has come to smuggle her out of France…and why.

Now, Sabine and Thomas have a week to make their escape, and it won’t be easy. Her uncle considers her a ticket to win favor with Napoleon, and the French military has been alerted to the presence of a British “spy” on their soil. To avoid detection, the couple must pretend to be amorous newlyweds…and this proves the most difficult task of all. Because it isn’t long before neither of them is pretending, and a small matter of indiscretion may become large indeed.

Want to see all three novella covers next to each other? (Because I know I do!) Here you/I go:

So, now I’m sure you’re asking (well, I hope you are), “Jackie, when will I be able to read this fabulous-sounding novella?” The answer is…probably in November or December of next year. My planned release schedule for 2012 looks something like this:

April/May
Hot Under the Collar

June/July
Wrong Side of the Grave (free prequel to Incarnate)

August/September
Incarnate

November/December
A Matter of Indiscretion

I’m going to have to write my little tail off to meet this schedule, especially since I have a 2/3rds written contemporary targeted at Harlequin Blaze that I would like to finish in the first quarter. But I really do think I can meet it as long as I stay on track and have these goals to keep me honest.

Also, remember that you’ll be able to download The Lesson Plan here free on Christmas Day. (I’ve scheduled the post to come up at 8:00 EST on Christmas Eve so it’ll be a little before Christmas begins for some folks and after it began for others.) And for every copy downloaded up to 300, I’ll be giving a dollar to the San Diego Food Bank. So come one, come all, come download.

And it’s because I like to maintain this tradition that the misunderstanding I see of the concept of the “12 Days of Christmas” during this time of year tends to drive me a little batty. A lot of people (not to mention businesses) seem to think that the 12 Days of Christmas are the 12 days before Christmas, but the 12 days actually start with Christmas and end on January 5th, the day before Epiphany (which, according to tradition, is when the wise men arrived in Bethlehem). It’s not Christmas yet, folks. It’s Advent. We’re supposed to be ANTICIPATING Christmas now, not CELEBRATING it !

Now, I don’t know quite WHY I’m so adamant about this point of Christian tradition, seeing as how I don’t identify religiously as a Christian. Although we celebrate Christmas, the holiday is decidedly secular in our household, more solstice-related than anything else. I do have to admit, however, to a fondness for nativity scenes (I made one myself in the 6th grade as an art project), unabashedly religious Christmas carols, and for the whole story of Jesus’s birth. I guess I’m a sucker for music and babies, lol.

Anyway, as I say, this is a mini-rant not a major one, so I’m not going to browbeat you if you started the Twelve Days of Christmas on the 13th. But hey, maybe next year, you can try starting on the 25th instead .

On Christmas Day, if you come here to the blog, post will give you links to download a FREE copy of The Lesson Plan in whichever format you prefer: epub, mobi (Kindle) or PDF. Or even in all three, if you like . That’s my gift to you, my readers. I’ll probably run the post for closer to 36 hours to give folks on both sides of the International date line the opportunity to do their downloading on Christmas Day in their part of the world.

So, just for taking a few minutes to hop on the Internet on Christmas (and you know you want to anyway, if only to avoid your crazy relatives for a few minutes ), you can have a free novella. Not too shabby, eh?

But wait…there’s more! I’ve also committed to donate $100 to my local food bank this year, but for each copy of The Lesson Plan that is downloaded from a different IP address while the post is up, I will donate an additional $1 up to a maximum of $400. This means that in addition to getting a free book for yourself, you’re also helping to feed three hungry people this holiday season. (I wish I could give to every food bank in every city, but that’s not really practical!)

So, remember, on Christmas Day, stop by http://www.jackiebarbosa.com, download your free copy of The Lesson Plan, and donate $1 to the San Diego Food Bank. It’s that simple !

Merry Christmas!

About a month ago, Amazon launched a new benefit for its “Prime” members called the Kindle Lending Library. Amazon Prime members pay an annual fee for benefits including free shipping, access to online videos, and now, the option to borrow one Kindle book a month from the Lending Library. Most of the major traditional publishers, however, refused to allow their books to be enrolled in the library (although Amazon did an end-run around them in some cases by claiming it had bought the digital books “wholesale” rather than under the Agency model, but that’s a whole different issue). This meant that when the program was rolled out, the Lending Library consisted of mostly books published by Amazon itself under imprints like Encore and Montlake, and books publishers had either chosen to opt-in or that Amazon made available under the “wholesale” model.

Everyone knew when the Lending Library was launched that Amazon would eventually give authors self-publishing through Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) the option to opt their books into the program, but no one knew what the terms would be. The terms were officially announced last week. Basically, if you want to make your digital book available for borrowing by Amazon Prime members, you have to sell it exclusively at Amazon during the time it is in the program (currently, you do this at 90 day stretches). In exchange for this, you get a “share” of a pot of money ($500k for December) based on the percentage of total “borrows” for that month and the option to make your book free for a five-day period. It also appears that, if your book is in the Lending Library, “borrows” are counted toward your overall sales rank on Amazon, which means books in the program are likely to have higher rankings than they otherwise might. In theory, being in KDP Select will give your book better visibility on Amazon, with a corresponding improvement in your earnings.

There’s been plenty of hand-wringing about KDP Select (Mark Coker of Smashwords is particularly exercised about it), but a lot of self-published authors apparently see real advantages to the program. In a matter of days, the Lending Library ballooned from perhaps 5,000 titles to almost 100,000, and it may be more now.

I, however, won’t be opting in. Here’s why:

1. Exclusivity

   I don’t want to limit my books to a single retailer, even if that retailer represents a sizable percentage of my sales. At this point, I sell more copies of Carnally Ever After at Amazon than anywhere else, but my sales at other outlets are far from negligible. In October, my sales at Apple were actually almost equal to Amazon, thanks to Apple putting my book on the front page of the Romance section under “Books Under $5″. I did nothing to get that placement, and it was gold. I don’t want to “reward” Apple for that by not listing my book with them any more.

   More to the point, I don’t want to cut out readers who don’t have a Kindle/Kindle app and who want to read/buy their books elsewhere. Even if they are a small percentage of my total readership, they are readers, and I respect and appreciate them too much to treat them that way. Even for 90 days. Even for a theoretical increase in income.

2. Hassle

   Call me lazy, but taking my book down from other retailers’ sites in order to give Amazon the exclusive is WAY too much work. It can take weeks for Smashwords, which distributes to outlets like Kobo, Sony, and Apple, to get my books out to those other vendors. I can’t imagine how long it would take to get them taken down. In the meantime, I’d be losing sales from the vendors who did respond quickly but unable to enroll in Select until it’s down everywhere. Why would I do that?

   In theory, enrolling a brand new release in Select for 90 days and then making it available elsewhere would be relatively easy. At least I wouldn’t have to hassle with removing it from the other sites. But, see above about readers. I’m just not doing that to them. When I release a book, my goal is to have it in as many retail outlets as possible. Self-publishing already restricts me to some extent; I won’t deliberately restrict myself, even for a potential increase in sales.

3. Uncertain Reward

   In addition to the above issues, I think there’s a real question as to how much any individual stands to gain from participation in the program. Since payment of royalties for borrows is based on percentages rather than per unit borrowed, unless your book is very popular, you’re not likely to see a whole lot of money.
   
   Add to this the fact that my self-published books thus far are all short stories or novellas and therefore priced very reasonably (The Reiver is currently free), it’s hard for me to imagine that I’d see any significant number of borrows. Why would people who can only borrow one book per month choose to borrow something that costs only 99 cents, or even 1.99? If I had such a limited benefit, I’d only use it to borrow books I considered too expensive to buy. Now, I have heard on the Kindleboards that authors are seeing borrows of books priced under $2.99, but I’m still having a hard time imagining my books would benefit much from that.

   In other words, I think I’d be giving up a lot in exchange for a very limited payoff. I could be wrong about that, but I’ll also never know.

As to the other retailers like B&N and Smashwords, who fear self-published authors will be fleeing them in droves, I had a suggestion: Make yourself more attractive to self-publishing authors in the first place. For example, B&N offers 40% on books priced from 99 cents to $2.98 to Amazon’s 35%, but only 65% on books priced $2.99 to $9.99 to Amazon’s 70%. If B&N wants to keep authors from pulling their books, maybe they should consider at least matching Amazon’s royalties on higher priced books, if not exceeding them. As for Smashwords, they could consider allowing you to upload formatted files, instead of forcing you to upload a Word document that gets run through their “MeatGrinder”, with often less-than-pleasing results. And they could improve the speed at which they distribute your books to third parties. Both B&N and Smashwords could improve their search algorithms and the overall customer experience to make self-published books more discoverable.

All in all, while I won’t be opting into KDP Select, I’m not sorry Amazon introduced it. If the prospect of losing a large number of books from their catalogs induces other retailers to improve what they’re doing, it may just be as big a win for those who opt out as those who opt in.
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¹I refuse to use the term “indie author.” I’ve sometimes used it in the past, but I’ve come to the conclusion that the main reason for saying you are an independent or indie author, as opposed to a self-published author, is that you feel there’s a certain “taint” associated with the act of self-publishing. I’m not ashamed or embarrassed to be publishing myself (I have the world’s BEST publisher, lol, and she always meets my expectations), so I feel no need to obscure or soft-pedal that fact by using another term.