Tweet Yourself a Novel!

On Facebook, earlier today, I was having a conversation about the idea that there is 'a book in everyone'. I wondered if that resonated with people. One of the replies was that it did, but that the person didn't have time to write. How often have we all heard (and even said, or at least thought) that? Isn't that the favourite hiding place of the writer? I shared what follows, and it seemed to help some people. I worked it out about a year ago, and it helped a number of people then. Ready for a lightbulb moment?


A novel is a minimum of 50,000 words (non-fiction can be way less). Sounds huge and scary, but... 

• A tweet is 140 characters. 
• The average word is 5 characters long (plus a space) so you can fit around 23 words into a tweet. 
• 2173 tweets = a novel. 
• That's 5 tweets a day. 
• If you could find time to write 5 tweets a day - or a couple of Facebook updates - you already have time to write a novel. 
• In fact, if you've been on social networks for a year or more, you've ALREADY WRITTEN A NOVEL in terms of word count. 

How do you feel about starting that novel now?


Happy Writing!

Rebecca

P.S. I've started a group for aspiring writers here. You're welcome to join.

Royals, Romans, Class, Celts, and Linguistic Tennis

Here's an audio interview I did for The New Author blog, in which I talk about the background to Palaces and Calluses, and explore the reasons why The Cotswolds area is a magnet for writers, why the class structure is tricky to shift in the area, and what The Celts and Romans have to do with it all.

For the blog post that accompanies this, and a discount code for Palaces & Calluses, go to The New Author.

E-Books Are Not Only Found in The Amazon Reign Forest

There are wonderful e-books all over the web. Not all of them are on Amazon. If you are only used to buying e-books on Amazon, it can take courage to step out of the Amazonian jungle, so I put together a little guide to buying my book.  

(Use the blue tab on the side to zoom in if the text is a bit small on the last bit.)

My First Week as an Author

A little over a week ago, I became an author. Here's what happened:

• I didn't have the 'I am an author' moment. I had a panic attack. I think the panic attack was a physical manifestation of the 'I am an agent and a publisher, and a retailer, and I have to handle all my own PR and be shiny at all times, and I'm as reliable on that front as a big-arsed donkey in an antique shop' moment.
• I discovered that even if you give someone a direct link to a Kindle book, they STILL go to Amazon, search for it, and tell you your book is nowhere to be found. I have lost track of the number of times this has happened. Amazon has conditioned its customers SO well. I salute you, noble dictator. 
• I discovered that making the book available in so many formats (Kindle, iPad, iPhone, Sony Reader, Nook and PDF) was the right move! Have made sales consistently for all formats other than Nook. (Thanks to Rachael Moore for the pic of her phone, by the way).
• The book sold! *Stunned*. It didn't just sell a couple, either, and it sold every day. Within a week, I was in profit. Seriously. :)
• Emails and DMs began to flood in, begging me to explain how I'd done it. I'm planning to put together a course to cover this.
• Emails and DMs began flooding in, telling me not to show off, get above myself or feel proud in any way. I ignored them for the most part, because what kind of example is that? New writers know they have to walk through Hell to get their book into print, or onto a Kindle, and they keep doing it in the hope that, one day, they will have a small moment of triumph. I refuse to deny myself - and them - this small moment of triumph. Here it is... I rock! I dare you to say the same on your own blog when you become an author  :)
• People want to pigeon-hole me, and that's tricky. One blogger wanted to set me up as an 'indie or die' writer, so he could throw stones at me. The problem is, I'm not. I think traditional publishing is great - for most people. I think Amazon is amazing, and I may put the book there in time. I'm just doing an experiment. Why must people always think that other people are so easily defined? I'm not, so... as an author present to myself... I adopted the word 'Intriguing'. That way, I can help kids with communication problems, like I had, and I get to pick my own label. When called for, my name will henceforth be The Intriguing Rebecca or - and this is the long version - Gloriana Bexter 'The Intriguing' Woodhead. That should stop the labels. (Although 'mad' and 'delusional' are also labels, so it MAY not).
• People want to pigeon-hole the book, and THAT is fun to watch. Calibre has a new bookshop - it links back to the author's site, so I'm still retailing it - but they choose the tags. They defined my book as 'literary'. Now. I once had a discussion with a publisher, in which he told me: 'never define that book as "chick lit". It is quality commercial fiction.' I've always viewed it as commercial fiction you wouldn't be embarrassed to be caught reading on the train, or commercial fiction with chew toys for literary readers. I put this to Calibre. No, they said. It's literary. So, in it went. Others have defined it in various literary and commercial ways. Today, it was described as 'chick lit'. Hurrah! I've invented label-teflon. :) While I can attempt to define myself, it's really none of my business how others define my book, but I'm an interested observer. 
• Everyone loves 'Rock'. Some are deeply affected by experiences that either Mary or Jackie have. Clive is secretly adored. A few characters are loathed - you'll know which ones if you've read the book. Let me know your fave characters.   

Here are some early reviews: America (no spoilers), America (some spoilers), America (no spoilers), Ireland (no spoilers). If you find any English reviews, let me know!

P.S. If you want to point people direct to the sales page, but can't remember the bit.ly link, send them to palacesandcalluses.com If they want to take the book for a test drive, send them to penpals.withrebecca.com and if you want to promote the book on your blog, grab the code under the badge in the sidebar and put it in your sidebar. It links to the sales page. Thank you. xxx

The First Reviews for Palaces and Calluses

bit.ly/palaces - share this link on Twitter. Thank you!

The book is out, and ... people like it! I'm thrilled. It already has an international following. I've made sales in the UK, Europe, America, Canada, and Australia so far, and people are buying it in all formats (glad I didn't just stick to Kindle). At the moment, Kindle's in the lead followed closely by iPad and then Sony Reader and PDF and, finally, Nook.

The majority of feedback I'm getting is through private messages or DMs on Facebook and Twitter, or people are emailing me from this site. They are going into great depth about why specific characters have affected them, or how the book has helped them. I'm so happy to read these messages. One character comes up over and over though as a favourite with readers of both genders ... Rock.

Rock was pretty much transcribed from life. The other characters are fictional, but Rock is very close to a beloved dog I once had, called Rob. He's the dog in my book trailer. He was so extraordinary that I knew he had to be shared with more people than one dog ever can be. They don't travel well, and they don't live long, but if I immortalised him in novels, I knew he'd share his magic with people all over the world. He already has.

Aside from the personal messages, a couple of people have gone public with their admiration. I received a wonderful review from a US editor, Mary Louise Ruehr - Books Editor for the Record-Courier in Ohio:

Palaces and Calluses

Today is launch day for Rebecca Woodhead’s debut novel, Palaces and Calluses.

I was lucky enough to read an advance copy, which I completely enjoyed.

The main character is forced to reinvent herself after a shocking betrayal. Besides the emotions evoked by the romance and heartbreak, we’re treated to the warmth of family and friendship, as well as a bit of intrigue, some humor, sarcasm and just plain silliness.

The book is filled with believable characters — some you’ll love and some you’ll love to hate — including smart women, handsome hunks, a nasty boss and a wonderful dog named Rock. Oh, and did I mention, the author drops us right into the English Cotswolds?

The quality of the work rises above that of much of today’s popular literature because of Rebecca’s writing. She has an easy style that makes you want to leap to the next page. She’s just a natural, as anybody who’s been following her on Twitter (@rebeccawoodhead) can tell you. (She’s been named one of the most influential women on Twitter. I “met” her online a couple of years ago when she was up for Ms. Twitter U.K., which she won.)

Her book is a novel, but her own remarkable real-life story also makes for compelling reading: “I’m a coma survivor,” she writes on her blog. “As a child, I sustained such bad injuries in a car accident that I was told it was very unlikely I would ever be able to write as well as my peers. I taught myself to speak, read and write again — without the help of a speech therapist or counsellor. When I typed the last word of the first draft of my first novel, that felt like success.” You can find more on her website.

The end of Palaces and Calluses will leave you wanting more. Fortunately, this is Book 1 of a planned series, and she said she’s already deep into the second book, so the wait won’t be too long!

UPDATE: The book is now available as an e-book in several formats.

Today, there was another surprise. I found this tribute on my wall from my friend, Ernesto Busnelli - though I hope his assistant has her vocabulary recalibrated after she finishes the book. There are a few rude words!

If you've made a video about my book, or you've taken a picture of yourself reading it - you'd need to hold up a sign that points to your e-reader and says 'this is Palaces & Calluses' though! :) - or if you've blogged about it, please let me know and I'll tell people.

My personal sales goal for this weekend has nearly been reached. Only have to sell five more books and I'm there. To make it easy for you to help, I've put up a special offer ON TOP OF the special offer I already have going, AND I'll give away a free e-book to someone who has retweeted a particular tweet on Twitter - you'll need to hunt for it - and someone who comments here, once I reach my goal. I'll only do that if I reach my goal by the time the offer ends though. Ready? ...

For the rest of today, my special Word Nerd #EbookEaster deal is running. Buy three or more books and you get 20% off. You can't do this with DRM-protected books, because you only rent them. With my books, you own them, and you can give them as gifts. I think they'd make great Easter gifts for friends or family who don't want to eat too much chocolate, or who have lactose intolerance, diabetes, etc. The books are actually CHEAPER than chocolate, (decent sized Cadbury egg = £6, my e-book = £2.99, or £2.39 if you buy three or more. I think the deal expires at 9pm MST, but I could be wrong. Not great with time zones. Best to grab it now.