Tag: Murder at the Marina Sale

The Insecure Writer’s Support Group (IWSG) is a place to share and encourage, where writers can express their doubts and concerns without appearing foolish or weak. It’s a great place to mingle with like minded people each month during IWSG day.

Every month there’s an optional question which may prompt folks to share advice, insights, a personal experience or story. Some folks answer the question in their IWSG blog post or let it inspire them if they’re struggling with what to say.

This month’s question is:

Being a writer, when you’re reading someone else’s work, what stops you from finishing a book / throws you out of the story / frustrates you most about other people’s books?

Check out how people have answered this month’s question, as well as the other insecurities and writing topics they may have shared by visiting the IWSG sign-up list HERE. Instead of answering the question, I’m chatting about the terror that overcomes you when you pay for a BookBub Featured Deal, giving a writing update, and sharing the best part about camping in the desert.

Scoring a BookBub Featured Deal – Eek!

Last month, kind of on a lark, I applied for a BookBub Featured Deal for Murder at the Marina, the first book in my Mollie McGhie cozy mystery series.

While I had been accepted for an international BookBub Featured Deal last year, I knew that getting a US one was competitive. People get turned down all the time. That’s what I was expecting – a big fat “NO!” Instead, I got a “Congratulations. You’re booked for mid-January. Now, give us lots of money.”

{By the way, if you’re not familiar with BookBub it helps folks discover new things to read through daily emails which feature free and discounted books. Authors pay to have their book included as a Featured Deal. And it’s not cheap.}

The thing about being an author, like with any other business, is that you have to invest money to make money. Things like editors, cover artists, website hosting, promotions, advertising etc. add up. And you don’t often see a return on your investment for a while. Sometimes, a long while.

So when I opened up the BookBub invoice to pay for it, my stomach churned. This is a lot of money with no guarantee that you’ll earn it back, the scaredy-cat part of my brain said. The more gung-ho part of my brain said, “Go for it. Chances are good you’ll make it back and then some!”

I went for it. The invoice was paid. My BookBub Featured Deal is booked. My fingers are crossed.

Writing Update

When I haven’t been hyperventilating about shelling out money to Bookbub, I’ve been hard at work launching the second book in my romantic comedy series. Smitten with Croissants came out at the end of December and I couldn’t be more excited about the reviews that have come in so far. Sure, you try to tell yourself that it doesn’t matter what people think about your books and that there will always be people who don’t like your writing, but until you get a few positive reviews under your belt, the worries and insecurities bubble away at the back of your mind. So, many, many thanks to those folks who have left reviews! They’ve left a huge smile on my face.

By the way, if you enjoy sweet romantic comedies and you’re interested in becoming part of my review team, drop me an email at ellenjacobsonauthor@gmail.com.

Camping in the Desert

My hubby and I are currently camping in the desert with two other couples who also former sailors and now live full-time in their rigs. We’ve all formed a little, nomadic COVID bubble and had a lot of fun celebrating the holidays together. And, you know what one of the best parts of it all is? The fact that one of the people we’re camping with is none other than fellow IWSG member and author of the fabulous memoir Plunge – Liesbet Collaert of Roaming About! It’s been wonderful to have someone with whom I can talk about writing-related stuff in person. And it doesn’t hurt that she and her husband make the best-tasting margaritas I’ve ever had either. LOL!

Do you subscribe to newsletters like Bookbub? Read any books lately? Have you ever been camping in the desert?