Made For Us Pre-Orders

I remember when I started self-publishing how only traditionally published authors were allowed to have pre-order links on Amazon.  I was soooooo envious.  Sigh.  Then, as time went on, the indie authors were allowed to get them.  The only problem with that for me?  I was one of those flying-by-the-seat-of-my-pants writers and pretty much I published books on a whim.  Spur of the moment.  Whenever the urge struck.  I would write a book, edit and publish within a month so a pre-order link wasn't really working for me.

Well now it is!  

Now that I've slowed down and writing longer books that are being traditionally published - and don't even get me started on how much I am LOVING seeing my books in paperback in the stores! - all of my books go on pre-order about six months before they're released.  It's a little weird seeing the book on all the sites and knowing that it won't be available for so long but I do enjoy seeing how many people are ordering a title because they want to make sure they have it on the release date.

I still do it all the time with my favorite authors.  And when I do it way far in advance?  It's like a nice little surprise when it pops up on my Kindle.  It's like a little present and I think "Yeah, me!" for being on the ball and knowing how much I'm going to enjoy reading a new book.  

But then again, who doesn't enjoy a new book, right?

So "Made for Us" will be out August 4th.  SOOOOO much fun stuff is going to be happening with it!  Besides the actual release of the book - which in itself is very exciting - I'll be hosting a release party on Facebook on August 3rd - you can join here:  https://www.facebook.com/events/835345099883774/ and then I'll be doing a month-long scavenger hunt with author Sara Humphreys on Facebook that will lead up to her new release, "Brave the Heat" which will be released September 1st.  It is all going to be a lot of fun and I hope to see tons of people at these events - and by see I mean your names on my computer on Facebook!  Lol!

We are going to be giving away stuff at all of the events - signed books, swag, Amazon gift cards...you name it, we may very well be giving it away so you don't want to miss out!  To join the scavenger hunt, go to https://www.facebook.com/events/1492072517751546/

To pre-order your copy of "Made for Us" on Amazon, you can click HERE.

To pre-order your copy of "Brave the Heat" on Amazon, you can click HERE. 

Do you pre-order your books or wait for them to come out?  Do you go to events on Facebook?  Do you enjoy winning stuff?   Tell me about it!!

Wishing for snow?

With the northeast being blanketed with a ton of snow, I find myself (as I sit in North Carolina) wishing just some of it would have come here.  I'm originally from New York - Long Island actually - and still have a lot of friends and family up there.  With all of the updates I saw on the news and Facebook and the phone calls I got, I sort of felt like I should have been getting some of the white stuff too!

We tend to get flurries here without much accumulation and we see more ice storms than snow storms.  Either way, when that happens everything shuts down here for days.  I've seen school get canceled because there was a POSSIBILITY of snow!  They don't have the equipment here to deal with the winter weather but it still makes me laugh a little at how an inch of snow can bring down the state.

Back in 2000, my son was only a week old and we were expecting some flurries.  Well, the flurries turned into two feet of snow that no one was prepared for!  We were literally snowed in for over a week!  With a newborn!!!  Oh, and did I mention that he was three weeks early so we still didn't have a lot of the things we needed for him?  Yeah, good times.

We're in our new house this year - been here about 9 months now - and I can't help but want a little bit of snow in my yard.  Our last house had a dirt driveway.  There was no shoveling that mess.  For the first time in 20 years, we have a driveway to shovel and, silly as it sounds, I want to shovel it.

Not two feet of it - just to be clear.

I love to bake when we're expecting snow.  Never mind bread and milk, get me a brownie mix and some icing and I am good to go!  For some reason, I look at a snow day as a day to curl up with a good book and eat comfort foods. 

And by comfort foods, I mean anything with chocolate.

So where are you at right now?  Is it snowing?  Are you wishing for snow? Any rituals for when it does?

Do You Follow on Social Media?

Social media is still a big mystery to me.  Of course, I'm old so...you know, that's not surprising.  But seriously, it seems like I spend a lot of time posting status updates, tweeting, pinning, taking selfies...that I'm suddenly running out of time for doing what I'm supposed to be doing - writing.

Huh.

The problem I have, I guess, is that for all that I put out there, who is actually seeing it?  I have a fan club page on Facebook (Samantha Chase Fan Club) that has over 10,000 followers.  My posts sometimes only reach 100 people.  I mean, what is the purpose of that Facebook???  I know there has been a LOT written about this topic but honestly, I don't have time to read it all.  Shouldn't Facebook WANT our posts to be seen?

Then there's tsu.  Are you on tsu?  I am.  I still haven't figured out why or what the
benefit is.  I'm told it's a great place for authors because ALL of our posts will be seen by ALL of our followers.  The problem?  I forget that it's there and so do a lot of the followers.  For the 10,000 I have on Facebook, I have less than 400 on tsu.  Weird, right?  I haven't figured out if people have caught on with it and if my posts are actually getting through to anyone who might really want to read them.

I'm on Pinterest but again, I don't know why.  I don't have the time to update it like I should and I really don't look at other people's boards.  It just seems weird.  And don't get me started on Tweeting.  I'm on Twitter.  I tweet.  I'm hip.  But again, I don't have enough time in the day to read and see what everyone else is tweeting so I'm sure they're all feeling the same thing I am.  Who's reading the tweets???

Like I said from the get-go, I'm old.  I get it.  To me, my cell phone is to make calls, do a little texting and to take the occasional picture.   I need a social media guru to help me make sense of it all so I can stop agonizing over these things and move on.   And you know what?  I know there are people out there making money doing just that and I say "More power to them!"  They are definitely way more tech-savvy than I am.

Tears of Joy, Smiles of Sadness...

If you're a fan of "The Big Bang Theory", chances are you recognize that phrase.  When Raj said it in an episode a couple of years ago, I thought it was hysterical.  And then I forgot about it until my husband summed up my mood with that phrase.

Today was a BIG day for me.  RT Book Review Magazine's March issue (the digital copy) came out today.  And guess who has the cover story???  ME!!  The only reason I
was aware of this was because I was scrolling through my newsfeed on Facebook and there it was!  My heart started racing and I jumped up from my seat and immediately picked up the phone and called my mom and then my husband and was just giddy!

And then I cried.

I mean I cried a LOT.

At first, they were totally tears of joy.  I made it!  I've hit a milestone in my career that I never thought possible.  And then...I was crying because someone special wasn't there with me.  My grandma.  She was a lifelong reader of romances and she died before I started self-publishing.  There are times when something really exciting happens in my career and I think "Grandma would have loved this!"  I know she's looking down at me and smiling and I like to think that she's proud.  But I miss her.

So when my husband got home from work today, I pulled up the article and showed it to him and shared how I felt earlier when I read it.  He looked at me and smiled and said, "Tears of joy, smiles of sadness".  I know he said it to lighten the mood and it did.  I did smile, but I was still a little bit sad. 

The grandmother in "Return to You" is totally based on my grandma.  I just wish she was here to read it. 

Are you a street teamer?

Are you a member of a street team?  No, not a gang.  But an author's street team?  Back before I started seriously writing, I was a part of one for a New York Times bestselling author and it was a blast!  But it took me a while after I started writing to even think of having one of my own.

But now I do!

I am always looking to add people to the team so if you are interested, please let me know!  My girls get a ton of swag and are privy to a lot of info before I share it with the masses!  Here are just some pics of some of the goodies I've shared:

 Mugs.  Love these things.  Every once in a while I change up the picture - sometimes to go with a new book release or a current contest or promotion, I've given these out to several lucky street teamers.  I use them a lot in contests, too.  And really, there's no such thing as having too many mugs.  I recently found this out over Thanksgiving when we had overnight guests who drank a lot of hot beverages.

Tumblers!  I love these so much!  I have them on my shelves in my office and just love to look at them because they're so cute!  I've given these out in contests as part of giveaways and to a few lucky girls on the team.  If you're a motivated individual who doesn't mind spending some time on social media sharing links and writing reviews, one of these could be yours!

 Books, books and more books!!  Starting in March all of my books will begin to come out in paperback!  Yeah!!  As of now, only a select few are available in that format.  And those that are, I give away signed.  Do you like to collect autographed books?  Would you like one of your very own?  Come and join us and you'll get a backlist copy of your choice!  With a ton of new books coming out in 2015, there will be even more for you to choose from!  Don't miss out!!  Even if you still read on an ereader, they make for a cool conversation piece.

  Candles and more tumblers!  Seriously, the candles are the BEST!!!  I call them crack in a candle because they smell so darn good.  It's a clean cotton scent in a 16 ounce candle and they are a big fan favorite.  I give away the tealites at book signings, but my girls on the team have had the opportunity to get one of these big versions of their very own and they have loved them!  And the tumblers are a little more basic than the ones I pictured above, but they're just as cute!  I have them in blue and clear and they are going fast!  Do you have a swag collection that you'd like to add to?  These will fit nicely!

And then there's all this - swag, swag and more swag!!  Postcards, books, photos, gum (yes, gum!) book marks, key chains...ladies, I've got a ton of it and I'd love to share it with motivated fans and readers like you! 

If you are interested, you can contact me through my Facebook page via private message HERE.  I'd love to hear from you and I can't wait to add you to the team!

Are you on tsu yet?

So there's a lot of talk about the changes that are coming to Facebook where authors like myself are concerned.  Fans and readers aren't going to be able to see what I'm posting or promoting unless I pay for it.  Kind of a drag.

Luckily, a new social media site has shown up that promises that you'll see 100% of what I post 100% of the time.  The place?  tsu.  I'm not quite sure I've gotten the hang of it yet or if people are really hanging out there the way they do on Facebook, but it's there and I'm there and I'd love for you to come and friend request me and follow me there.  :)

So come by and check it out!  You can find me HERE.