Thursday, January 30, 2014

How Kisha Got Her Groove

I feel like I've woken from a long sleep and now that I'm back to reality it feels great. Much of 2013 was about changes for me -- marriage, moving, new location, new schools, married life and starting a new business.

Between all those life events, I had little time for writing. I did manage to get the sequel, The Melody (book 2 in the Elemental Symphony series), completed and out but it was my only one.

It was a strange feeling, only releasing one book. Since my debut in 2010, I've always managed to get release at least 2 books a year (sometimes more). In December I was left feeling, well, unproductive and a little bit like a failure.

My creative juices decided to go on hiatus and one of my biggest fears happened. My characters went silent. To me there is nothing scarier than not hearing the normal ruckus of people's stories buzzing in the background of your waking thoughts.

Thankful after a quiet New Year's eve and a quiet New Year's day, my inner calm was restored and I got my mojo, and characters back.

Move over Stella, you're not the only one who's got her groove back.

Tuesday, January 21, 2014

2013 Final Figures

Doing my final figures for 2013 was a bit more complicated than previous years. With the edition of sales in the Google Play Book store (I had totally forgotten I had two titles there), I had to compile data from 5 e-retailers (Amazon, Smashwords, Nook, Kobo, Google Play). Compared to my last two years, my sales are down but I'm still happy with my overall totals. I have eleven titles (9 novels, 1 omnibus, 1 short story) total and with an ambitious writing schedule for 2014, I'm looking to expand on my numbers. to track .

So here we go with the 2013 figures:

Totals by Title

Title Kindle Smashwords Pubit/Nook Kobo Google Play
Jewels 716 6 n/a n/a 0
Dream Miner 13 1 0 n/a n/a
Moonbeams 30 0 n/a n/a n/a
The Tempo 12 6 3 0 n/a
The Melody 1 1 0 0 n/a
Moon Feast (free short story) n/a 160 n/a n/a n/a
Werelove Dusk Conspiracy 97 26 n/a n/a 3
Werelove Midnight Revelations 42 9 n/a n/a n/a
Werelove Night Betrayals 93 7 0 4 n/a
Werelove Omnibus 35 4 1 0 n/a
The Rising 17 1 0 0 n/a
Kindle (all titles) - 1,056
Smashwords (all titles) - 61
Pubit (6 titles) - 4
Kobo (4 titles) - 4
Google Play (2 titles) - 3

**Ebook Totals (all publishing platforms [excludes coupons/free books]) - ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 Fun facts:

Most ebooks sold (all stores) - Jewels [722]

Most ebooks sold in a month (Kindle US)

  • Jewels (Jan)

Most ebooks sold in a month (Kindle UK)

  • Jewels (55)

Most ebooks sold in a month (Kindle DE)

  • (tie) Jewels (2)

  • Werelove Omnibus (2)

Most ebooks sold in a month (Kindle FR)

  • Jewels (1)

Most ebooks sold in a month (Kindle CA)

  • Jewels (2)

Most ebooks sold in a month (Kindle BR)

  • (tie) Jewels (1)
    Werelove Dusk Conspiracy (1)
  • Werelove Midnight Revelations (1)

Most ebooks sold in a month (Kindle AU)

  • Jewels (1)

Highest selling ebook for the year (Kindle US)

  • Jewels (435)

Highest selling ebook for the year (Kindle UK)

  • Jewels (270)

Highest selling ebook for the year (Kindle DE)

  • Jewels (5)

Highest selling ebook for the year (Kindle FR)

  • Jewels (1)

Highest selling ebook for the year (Kindle CA)

  • Jewels (3)

Highest selling ebook for the year (Kindle BR)

  • (tie) Jewels (1)
    Werelove Dusk Conspiracy (1)
  • Werelove Midnight Revelations (1)

Highest selling ebook for the year (Kindle AU)

  • Jewels (1)

Most ebooks sold in a month (Smashwords)

  • (tie) Werelove Dusk Conspiracy (4)

  • The Tempo (4)

Highest selling ebook for the year 

(Smashwords)

  • Werelove Dusk Conspiracy (26)

Most ebooks sold in a month (Nook)

  • The Tempo (1)

Highest selling ebook for the year 

(Nook)

  • The Tempo (4)

Most ebooks sold in a month (Kobo)

  • Werelove Night Betrayals (2)

Highest selling ebook for the year 

(Kobo)

  • Werelove Night Betrayals (4)

Most ebooks sold in a month (Google Play)

  • Werelove Dusk Conspiracy (1)

Highest selling ebook for the year 

(Google Play)

  • Werelove Dusk Conspiracy (3)

*figures for freebies were excluded for the fun facts section

Thursday, January 16, 2014

99cents Indie Hoopla Hop

Happy reading and don't forget to visit the other authors participating in this blog hop.
Readers sign up to be notified about ebook specials, freebies and more.


Science Fiction

Paranormal Romance, Science Fiction, New Adult

 
Paranormal Romance, Science Fiction, YA, New Adult

Amazon  |  Smashwords
 
Paranormal Thriller, Science Fiction

Amazon  |  Smashwords

Paranormal/Urban Fantasy & Fantasy

 
YA Paranormal Romance

Amazon  |  Smashwords
 
YA Fantasy

Amazon  |  Smashwords
 
New Adult, Fantasy

Amazon  |  Smashwords


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Monday, January 6, 2014

Kisha's Reading Corner: Mortal Instruments series (Books 1-3)


Disclaimer: I received no compensation from the author or publisher for these honest reviews.


About the Book: City of Bones (#1)

When fifteen-year-old Clary Fray heads out to the Pandemonium Club in New York City, she hardly expects to witness a murder -- much less a murder committed by three teenagers covered with strange tattoos and brandishing bizarre weapons. Then the body disappears into thin air. It's hard to call the police when the murderers are invisible to everyone else and when there is nothing -- not even a smear of blood -- to show that a boy has died. Or was he a boy?

This is Clary's first meeting with the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the earth of demons. It's also her first encounter with Jace, a Shadowhunter who looks a little like an angel and acts a lot like a jerk. Within twenty-four hours Clary is pulled into Jace's world with a vengeance, when her mother disappears and Clary herself is attacked by a demon. But why would demons be interested in ordinary mundanes like Clary and her mother? And how did Clary suddenly get the Sight? The Shadowhunters would like to know. . . .


Buy the Book


Here's what I'm giving it:

Rating: 4 stars

Here's why:

I re-read this book recently after seeing the movie adaptation which reminded me why I liked this book when it first came out several years ago. I finished it in record pace and went immediately into book 2.

Would I recommend this book to others? Yes.




About the Book: City of Ashes (#2)


Clary Fray just wishes that her life would go back to normal. But what's normal when you're a demon-slaying Shadowhunter, your mother is in a magically induced coma, and you can suddenly see Downworlders like werewolves, vampires, and faeries? If Clary left the world of the Shadowhunters behind, it would mean more time with her best friend, Simon, who's becoming more than a friend. But the Shadowhunting world isn't ready to let her go -- especially her handsome, infuriating, newfound brother, Jace. And Clary's only chance to help her mother is to track down rogue Shadowhunter Valentine, who is probably insane, certainly evil -- and also her father.

To complicate matters, someone in New York City is murdering Downworlder children. Is Valentine behind the killings -- and if he is, what is he trying to do? When the second of the Mortal Instruments, the Soul-Sword, is stolen, the terrifying Inquisitor arrives to investigate and zooms right in on Jace. How can Clary stop Valentine if Jace is willing to betray everything he believes in to help their father?

Buy the Book


Here's what I'm giving it:

Rating: 4 stars

Here's why:

I'm in the middle of doing a binge read of the Mortal Instrument books. When the first book, City of Bones, first came out I read it but was never able to get into the rest of the books. Now, a few years later, thanks to the recent film, I found myself deciding to give the series another try.

I am now invested and enjoying the series. I'm getting ready to start book #3.

I'm going to keep this review short but I will say that the pacing, character development, world building, conflict and plot have firmly hooked me and I have no complaints as of yet.

Now, on to book #3.

Would I recommend this book to others? Yes.




About the Book: City of Glass (#3)


To save her mother’s life, Clary must travel to the City of Glass, the ancestral home of the Shadowhunters—never mind that entering the city without permission is against the Law, and breaking the Law could mean death. To make things worse, she learns that Jace does not want her there, and Simon has been thrown in prison by the Shadowhunters, who are deeply suspicious of a vampire who can withstand sunlight.

As Clary uncovers more about her family’s past, she finds an ally in mysterious Shadowhunter Sebastian. With Valentine mustering the full force of his power to destroy all Shadowhunters forever, their only chance to defeat him is to fight alongside their eternal enemies. But can Downworlders and Shadowhunters put aside their hatred to work together? While Jace realizes exactly how much he’s willing to risk for Clary, can she harness her newfound powers to help save the Glass City—whatever the cost?

Buy the Book


Here's what I'm giving it:

Rating: 3 stars

Here's why:

Some of this story was infuriating as well as confusing. There was plenty of action, angst, romance, death and conspiracy. My favorite writing cocktail.

There's not much to say that hasn't been mentioned in other reviews but I will say that despite the fact the whining of the hero and heroine drove me batty, I still enjoy this series and will continue on to book #4.

Would I recommend this book to others? Yes.