My Indie Adventures

Before I Go…

/ Janna Hill / 1 Comment

A couple of things before I go…

Perpetual Series has a new cover. The cover was created from a photo I took several years ago. Sadly that flower no longer grows in my garden.

PERPETUAL THE SERIES 2017

 

 

 

 

 

 

Getting Me Back releases tomorrow [Friday March 31st] just in time for NPM and yes, that is my hand on the cover.

Getting Me Back- The Voices Within 2 (897x1280)

 

 

 

 

 

Now I have to run and pack but remember April is only a couple of days away. You all know that April is NPM/National Poetry Month so get ready for it [boys and girls] because I will be back next week and there will be poetry. 😀

 

Bat-Shit Crazy & Indie Update

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Can you believe it has been 4 years since I posted The First Year as an Indie (Lessons Learned)?

So much has changed… yet stayed the same.

I have created new works and destroyed old ones.

I have watched literary markets as well as loved ones come and go.

I pretty much left the ‘pertinent’ social media scenes. Why? For a few reasons, just pick one or make one up – that’s always fun.

New authors have asked, “Did decreasing media presence hurt book sales?”

My answer: “Laws yes! But you know what? I still do not give a flying rat’s fanny.”

I am sorry if that’s not the ‘right’ answer but it is my answer… my truth.  That is the beauty of being an independent author.

Another truth is I was in “an unhealthy state of dealing with stress” – that is a sophisticated way of saying I was “bat-shit crazy in the midst of a nervous breakdown.”

Social media [as well as life] was becoming a struggle to keep up with; it was also getting in the way of Getting Me Back.

Getting Me Back (The Voices Within) is scheduled to release March 31st, it is available for pre-order now. Go ahead and order it so you will have it in time for NPM (National Poetry Month)

If you have never had a nervous breakdown, I would not recommend embarking on that journey.

If you want a peek at what my journey was/is like, I’d recommend reading Getting Me Back.

If you are currently bat-shit crazy in the midst of a nervous breakdown definitely get some help and read Getting Me Back. Hey, we can journey together.

 

P.S. Happy Saint Patrick’s Day

saint patricks day card (1024x727)

Just Stopping In to Say Hi (Wish You Were Here)

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Well that was the best 55th birthday I have ever had!janna-waving-n-empty-rocking-chair-1024x636

This winter sabbatical thing is nice. Thank you Florida, Key West & all you ‘keysies’ that made getting older so much fun. The free roaming fowl and the cockfights brought back [old] memories.

This winter sabbatical is going much faster than I had hoped and it is time to get back to Texas and work on the poetry book due to release in April.

An Interview with M.F. Wahl’s Women In Horror (And How I Put My Dog to Sleep)

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“You can win an Audible audiobook set or one of Janna Hill’s signed paperbacks (winners choice)!”

Just visit M.F. Wahl’s Women In Horror and leave a comment.

“One person will be chosen at random to receive this awesome prize.”

A Hard Candy Christmas

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BOOKCOVER HARD CANDY

The photo used for this cover was taken in February 2010. I was so excited to find it and knew right away it belonged to A Hard Candy Christmas . Don’t you just love finding things you forgot you had?

I think [if I can remember] I will make Christmas cards from some of the others.

This 99¢ short story is (so far) available at Apple, Amazon, Google, Smashwords and Barnes & Noble.

 

Ready For Takeoff

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Whew! Man, I have been busy!

How busy you ask? Well, busier than a one-armed wench in a fistfight!
I mentioned last month I was starting a new story and indeed, I did. In fact, I started two stories. See, I told you I was busy. Busier than a cat scratchin’ sh*t on a marble floor – and about as productive.
So, I started a couple of new projects only to find out a few older ones had been neglected. Arrrgh, right?! To make a long story short I will be flying solo. This independent business just got real (er). I still have my proofer but… did I tell you how busy I’ve been? Yeah. Busier than the headless horseman in a pie eating contest!
Where is he gonna put all of that pie?
Anyway, a week or so ago we took the evening off and drove to Terrell for the Fly In/ Flights of Our Fathers. We needed a little R & R and nothing says rest and relaxation like walking fifty miles in 110 degree Texas heat – in flip-flops. I’ve got blisters the size of Dallas between my toes! It ain’t pretty y’all.
And the drive… Oh my gosh Terrell is every bit of fifteen miles from where I sleep. That is twenty minutes in the car no matter how you slice it. Lord have mercy, all of this walking and driving and writing and re-writing…

Good News – Bad News

The good news, I half-ass re-re-re- edited the books that make up The Rage Trilogy. I do not believe authors can effectively edit their own work – but I am giving it a go. Physician heal thyself! Hmm, we will see.
I also ran a ‘cuss check’ and omitted 899 a few curse words. I rewarded me with a lollipop.
The bad news, I am behind schedule for the next two projects and people are wanting to rent blister space. Of course I had to tell them NO. I do not need people living on my feet, the ones taking up space in my head are more than enough. I did however offer them my flip-flops.
Anyhow, after all of that prattling I suppose it’s time to put my big girl panties on and ready for takeoff.
Until next time, here are a few shots from the airport.

Living Out Loud

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A bit about the East Texas Book Fest last weekend and then I must get back to writing.


The meet and greet at the Potpourri House Friday evening was entertaining to say the least. Kim and I, myself and Kim, Kim and me (all six of us) found ourselves seated with a journalist, a professor and an adorable retired engineer that had written his first book. The seating was not prearranged, that’s just how it happened. We didn’t mingle much past that due to being inebriated time constraints.

Take 2 cards and call me in the morning.

We barely made it to the book fest on time. Puffy eyed and sleep deprived but on time. We were so excited!
It took all of 30 seconds to arrange our tiny display, say hi to a few folks. ..

Then we were off to check out the festivities. There were authors out the wazoo, writers of everything imaginable, artists and a few esteemed educators but this really grabbed my attention.

Forensic sculptor Amanda Danning was so gracious. Despite our interrupting her lunch, she shared her talent and knowledge with such passion. Between bites of ham and cheese (or was it turkey?) she explained the process of facial reconstruction while her husband narrated the history behind each work of art. They are both amazing.

So all in all I would say the East Texas Book Fest was a success. Will it boost sales? I do not have a clue and you know what? I’m okay with that.  After all, I’m just living out loud and flinging cake against the wall.

Inspiration

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I am still officially out to lunch but you know how it goes when a story gets inside your head and the schizophrenia kicks in. An old photograph comes alive, the landscape shifts, characters start cropping up and voila, The Sharecropper’s Son is conceived.

 

I have about two thousand (totally fictitious) words written so far and I have no idea how long the story will be. There are no deadlines to meet and though the destination is set, the path is not carved in stone. The only thing I know at this point is that I am excited to let the story tell itself.

The Voices of Our Future

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Inside the Inaugural Teen Poetry Awards

This was the first Teen Poetry Contest hosted by Forney Arts Council.  I attended the awards held at Crumbzz European Bistro and I must say it was fabulous darling. So was the crumb cake.

The judges (those present) chatted and then each had a turn at the mic. I read The Essence of a Poet – or at least I think I did. Alan Birkelbach (2005 Texas Poet Laureate) read a random piece from his satchel and Neil Melillo (English Literature AP) gave a light speech to comfort/encourage the contestants.

The awards were presented by Tiffany Wyndham (Event Planner and Emcee extraordinaire) prior to the readings.

Alan Birkelbach
Alan Birkelbach

I listened as each budding poet recited their lines of thought and somewhere between the cracks and bravado it occurred to me once more, these are the voices of our future.