Beaten by Blogging?

This title could be taken both ways – that I’m giving up in the face of the superior weight of Blogging, or that I’m being attacked by a vicious gang of random Blogposts!

Heavens, I feel like both at the moment LOL.

It’s not that I can’t blog. I quite enjoy rambling on, I type quite quickly when I’m in the flow, I enjoy chatting online about books – mine and others – and general topics. But I’m launching a blog tour today, probably the first I’ve ever done, with 21 stops, and a list of requirements including a newsletter update, 4 exclusive excerpts, 4 author interviews, and 8 guest posts.

And then I remember I’m blogging for my dear Not Your Usual Suspects as well …*pass me a tissue while I blub*.

“I enjoy rambling on”? HAHA indeed! Hoist by my own petard, as they say.

So, let’s consider some general Strategies for Blogging when your brain is Bemused and Battered like mine! I’m all about strategising if AT ALL possible LOL.

-        Save any interesting articles that pass your way. I’m not saying to copy them verbatim the next time you have to blog! But if they’ve caught your eye, chances are they will someone else’s. Paraphrase some of it / take clips from it / open a discussion on the parts you found intriguing.

-        Don’t worry about total originality. So maybe some of your online friends have also read the interesting article(s) / had thoughts on publishing trends / have offered advice on how to make your main character less cripplingly boring (tell me! Please!!). But think of how many readers are out there! Chances are 99.999% *haven’t* read the same blogs that you have. After all, how often do you catch *every* post that *everyone* on your Friends List posts? Besides, you’ll bring your own style to the topic. And if the sentiments are good in the first place – they can bear repeating!

-        Share the love. Consider a post recommending something other than your book. Something that’s affected you – something you enjoyed. Although this may seem to direct attention to other books, it’ll also reflect well on your generosity, and your rounded human-being-ness. It doesn’t have to be a “review” – and sometimes it’s probably best to avoid that topic, as many of us know! – but can be something that’s influenced or much loved in your life. And invite readers to share *their* favourites.

-        On that topic, don’t be afraid to ask for readers’ input. You can never tell what will catch people’s interest, but a simple “what do you think?” or “what’s your favourite?” will often start a discussion from the shortest or most simple of blog posts.

-        Share pictures. Visual art inspires the most visceral and immediate response. Readers love to *see* ideas and passions in a picture or photo. Choose a theme based on the weather (see how British I am? LOL) / your book’s setting / the places you write / your favourite painter / your garden etc. (though watch out for copyright on pictures you use from the net).

-        And if you’re still stuck? Blogs are chatty things, in my opinion. Yes, you may have something to sell / inform, but readers probably aren’t looking for instruction at your daily blog. They want entertainment / relaxation / enjoyment, even if it’s only peripheral to your work. A recipe always seems to work. Or pictures of pets. Neither of which are *my* forte, but never mind LOL.

And please feel free to catch up with me at any stage on my blog tour for my new male/male romance "Double Scoop". I'll be the one hanging from my own petard :).

Clare London

www.clarelondon.com

A Smorgasbord of Suspense

Smorgasbord originally meant a Swedish buffet, but now the term refers to a wide range of options, a variety of styles. That variety is one of the things I love about the current offerings in multi-author boxed sets. The sets are a way to discover and “try out” new-to-me authors at a price that seem too good to be true. How can you beat $.99-$2.99 for groups of novels from your favorite authors? I’ve discovered really good books by picking up a friend’s box set—and discovering new favorites.

DANGEROUS ENCOUNTERS just released and is heating up more than the bestseller list! With a variety of heat levels, there’s a story to tempt everyone.

Get your heartbeat racing with 13 romantic-suspense novels from USA Today, bestselling, and award-winning authors. Nerve-wracking thrills and dangers, heart-melting romance and love--enjoy them all in this outstanding collection of DANGEROUS ENCOUNTERS....

Fallen Idol - USA Today Bestselling author Nikki Lynn Barrett
Sparks ignite between a single father and a singer making her musical comeback, but danger lurks in the distance, only getting closer as time goes on. For two people who want different things out of life, it's possible to find healing together...

Cross Examination - Bestselling Author Denise Moncrief

Tamara Slay moves to Louisiana to start a new life with her daughter, but her dreams of a peaceful existence are shattered when Lt. Martin Beck suspects her ex-husband is a serial killer.

Carnival Tricks - Award-Winning, Bestselling Author Jade Kerrion

A dying scientist propels a waitress into the shady world of corporate espionage. The unwilling carrier of the recipe for a lethal chemical weapon, can Sofia save the world when she can't even save herself?

Height of Danger - Nancy & Nolan Radke

How do you keep a woman safe who distrusts you, and won't stay where you hide her? CIA operative Owen Putman has to protect his employer's daughter while trying to find out who is killing construction workers at a Central American dam site.

Six Days of Memories - International Bestselling Author Stacy Eaton

Detective Natasha Foster comes across the crime scene of her career, and she will put everything on the line to find out the truth, including her heart. Jay's need to know if he's the victim or criminal pushes him to remember who he is and with the pull of a trigger, Jay's memory will suddenly return and with it, the terrible truth.

Broken Lies - Sharon Coady

Bodyguard Niall Kerrigan lets his guard down and falls for Abby Bailey, a beautiful woman with a secret past. When Abby goes missing Niall must face his ruthless father to fight for the woman he loves and choose between a life with her or keeping her safe without him.

Don't Know Jack - Amy Manemann

Undercover FBI agent Jack Hamlin meets his match in small town bakery owner, Kate Monroe, when they're swept into a dangerous game of lies, intrigue and desire.

Cypher - Award-Winning Bestselling Author Cathy Perkins

When a hit man kills the wrong person, a SC detective confronts hidden agendas and conflicting motives in a powerful local family, while trying to control his attraction to the intended victim--a woman who's hell-bent on saving the remnants of her family.

Murderous Lies - Bestselling Author Chantel Rhondeau

Max is exonerated for murder after eight years, returning to his home town and the fiancée he left there. Rose isn't so happy to see him...and then the murders start again.

Tidal Falls - Jacquie Biggar

When Nick fails to notice an IED and loses most of his teammates, he shuts down. It takes meeting and falling in love with a woman in danger to make him realize life's worth living.

Suspended Animation - Sylvie Grayson

Suspense, spicy romance and attempted murder erupt when hockey player Brett hires Katy to run the office of his ailing father's near-bankrupt trucking company. Can he protect her from her lethal friends and the chaos surrounding them?

Knowing Vera - Award-Winning, Bestselling Author Rachelle Ayala

Suspenseful romance, an unsolved murder, and love on the beach. A young woman seeks to prove her father innocent of murdering her boyfriend's mother.

Special Agent Francesca - New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author Mimi Barbour

Violence, suspense and sizzling romance explode during Special Agent Francesca's humorous journey fighting off the mob! Dr. Sean Collins wants to tame her! Yeah-like that's gonna happen. Only one thing keeps Francesca motivated. Proving to her mother, the FBI "Snow Queen," that working undercover is where she belongs.

I hope you’ll take a moment to check out this amazing deal and if you give the stories a try, I hope you come back and share your experience with us.

Don’t forget, reviews are an author’s best friend :)

Amazon US: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00XV8N5XC

Amazon UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00XV8N5XC

Nook: Pending

Apple iBooks: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/dangerous-encounters/id996262614?mt=11

KOBO: https://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/dangerous-encounters-2

Google Play: http://bit.ly/1R4py8H

Watch our awesome trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smUfSr_NMNw

The Blog Tour

Yesterday, I happened upon a post about blog tours by Parajunkie.com--the high and the low points. It is a great post, so I hope you take the opportunity to read Dishing Blog Tours.

During my ten years as a published author, I’ve written hundreds of guest posts and traveled throughout the blog world on tour. I’ve hosted authors at my blog and met lots of wonderful bloggers, readers and authors. This year I’ve begun to ponder the benefit of blog tours.

From a writer’s perspective blog tours are time-consuming and sometimes expensive. It takes time away from writing to schedule and write posts, answer interview questions and to prepare the promotional material required by each blogger. Once a promotional tour starts, extra time is required to comment on posts, interact with readers and to do the social media posts necessary to advertise your tour.

It seems to me that the latest trend with blog tours is to do a release day blitz or a cover reveal. This is where dozens of blogs post exactly the same material on the same day. I’m not a fan of this type of post, because if like me, readers follow many different blogs, they’re bound to come across posts that are exactly the same.

As both a reader and a blogger, I prefer material that is original, something that offers entertainment value. I want to learn about the author and how they came to write their book. I want further information about the book’s setting or special research the writer carried out while writing their book. This type of post is more likely to entice me to purchase a book.

While I’m speaking of the downside of blog tours, I might as well mention those authors who don’t bother to stop by and comment on their blog post or to interact with those who comment. Very frustrating for the host! Occasionally, there are bloggers who book a date with a blog and don’t send the relevant material in a timely fashion. On the opposite side of the coin, there are host bloggers who don’t post at the correct time.

Confession time—to my shame, I screwed up once and didn’t get my post up at the right time. I was mortified by my mishap and have made very sure I haven’t repeated this mistake. The author was very gracious and accepted my apology, but I still feel bad about this lapse on my part.

When it comes to blog tour companies, not all are made equal. It pays to ask around because some are more efficient and organized than others. If an author spends hours writing posts, they need to know readers will see their efforts. Sadly, some of the host blogs don’t receive much traffic and excellent, original posts languish and die unread.

This year authors are holding Facebook parties as an alternative or in addition to a blog tour. Facebook parties are fun and quick, and although they require preparation time, I’ve found they attract a large number of readers and generate buzz. Maybe parties of this nature are the new blog tour?

What do you think about blog tours? Have you done a blog tour before and did you find it/them beneficial? Do you intend to do more blog tours in the future?