Algernon and Bertie

 
The day was warm and the spring birds filled the countryside with their happy chirruping; Algenon Pinsbury and his Bertram Rushley were walking along the country lane when Bertie turned to Algie and asked him, "Algie, dear friend, why do you rise so late? By the time you get up it is almost midday."

Algie stopped his afternoon stroll by a stile, and sat down before he explained, "Bertie,my dear fellow, I rise late for many reasons. If I stay in bed I can remain warm, my room is cold and when I get up I can feel the cold start to creep into my bones."

"I'm sorry old chap, I hadn't realised your lodgings were that bad."

"That is just one reason, Bertie, if you want to hear more all you need do is ask."

Bertie and Algie were close friends despite the vast differences in their backgrounds. Algie was a struggling writer whose words could enthral Bertie, while Bertie was the man about town with the connections; however, coming from a wealthy family this side of life had never occurred to him, his friend always met him in the lanes and not at his lodging house and even on a bad day; Algie was usually careful not to let on about his squalid life,"Please, go on, if you don't mind," Bertie said.

Algie took his cap off and laid down on the grass at his feet, then he started, "Bertie, I rise late because by getting up late, I can miss breakfast as my first and main meal of the day counts as both breakfast and lunch."

Shocked at this news, Bertie said, "I am so sorry, Algie I never realised things were so bad for you. I thought your work was liked and read."

"They are, Bertie, but the sales have dried up and I cannot live on reputation alone. Do you remember the bad fall I had a few years ago?"

Bertie stopped to think back to the day, and replied, "Yes, it was terrible you slipped on the ice and banged your shoulder, if I remember."

Algie rubbed his shoulder to ease his pain a little and said, "That's correct, the pain has got so bad there are days when I cannot write, which brings me to the other reasons I rise late. By staying warm I can ease the pain in my shoulder, this is why even on a warm day like today I wear a cardigan on top of my shirt, Bertie. By staying in bed, I found that lying down helps ease the pressures on the shoulder muscles too. By staying in bed, not only do I stay warm but you see it is less painful for me, Bertie."

Bertie had a thought and said, "I know you are a man of honour, but will you allow me to subsidise you until you can make some money. It would be an honour for me to be able to help you, your work is so brilliant it needs to be read."

Algie looked up at his friend and said, "It is a lovely thought, Bertie, and I thank you for your kind offer but I will never be able to repay you and you know how that will tear me apart."

"I meant no offence, Algie, as I know you as a man of honour; but what do you intend to do?"

"No offence was taken, Bertie. For now, my plans are too keep writing and hope something changes, if not I may have to consider other work and let the writing become a smaller part of my meagre life."

Alan Place http://hereiamattheedge.blogspot.co.uk/
http://alsdomain.weebly.com/index.html#.UYki5qKG0W7 and http://www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=152423744&trk=tab_pro

Author Spotlights, Reviews and Guest Bloggers, Oh My!

Thank you so much Siggy for having me here.

My name is Aurora and I’m the Founder of Crimson Flower Reviews and Randomness. We are a relatively new Blog, but we have been really blessed in growing exponentially.  It is in part due to our expressed purpose to get the names of Indie Authors out into the Internet via Social Media such as Facebook, Myspace, Twitter and others.  We are able to accomplish this through Author Spotlights and Promotions, Author Services, Book Reviews, Guest Blog Spots and Slice of Life Blog Entries. 

My subject today is connecting with Indie Authors. When I first started this I was that Indie Author. I had released my book, Child of the Loch. I was at a loss as to who, what, and where to advertise.  I was lucky enough to meet up with several best-selling Authors, who put me in touch with some Facebook groups. From there the rest they say is history. I scoured, skulked and stalked all of Facebook looking for anyone who was interested in reading/ reviewing my book and along the way I built up my friends list featuring many of today’s best Indie Writers, Publishers and some of the best minds in social media.

Some tips for Indie Authors on Facebook:

-Don’t over advertise your book- Some authors have a tendency to “spam, “to the point that people no longer wish to see their posts.  If you want to advertise, try a variety of ways such as different excerpts or good reviews. I even know of one author who posts pictures of who they think might be play their character in the movie version of their book. It keeps things fun and interesting.

-Don’t Inbox Advertise- I knew an unfortunate author who inbox advertised.  The backlash of incensed people was amazing. There were several walls on my Friends list who were all talking about the “gall” of that author.  I felt so bad for the author that I promised myself I would pass along to not make that mistake.

-Do set up an Author Fan Page.  Even if you aren’t published, an Author Fanpage can offer a way for you to keep the “public” up to date your books, where they are in the publishing process, any good reviews that you receive, and when they are available through the publisher or online. It can also be a means to market your book(s).

-Set up a blog that connects to your Facebook for you to talk about writing, reading and everyday things so that your readers can connect with you.  Writing is a long and busy process but I encourage you to make as many connections as you can.  Other Indie writers and your “public” are the people that can help make or break your success. Inviting those people into your “world” can draw interest in your book(s).

These are just a few of the do’s and don’ts, there is always more to learn from each other.

Aurora Martinez

Bio:

I have always been a writer. When I first learned to write in Kindergarten, I wrote about pigs who "groo" wings and became "butterfys." I knew way back then that I would have a love affair with writing. It over took my life and has been a constant companion. Now over 20 years later, that love flows over into writing blogs, reviews, poetry and fantasy novels.  You can find me on the web at My Blog, Facebook Fan Page, Myspace Page, Twitter Page, Pinterest Page, Tumblr, Book Blogs, Goodreads, Blogger, WanaTribe, Shelfari, Google and MSN Live. Independent Author Index