How to Be Famous Like Suzanne Collins

Good afternoon! Thanks for stopping by! Here is another fun guest post I wrote while on my virtual book tour. I thought I'd repost it, just in case you missed it. It was originally featured on a wonderful blog, Books a-z with Megan Moffat

Marketing techniques from a nine year old

On the way to the library this afternoon my youngest asked me something. It made me think. It made me wonder. It made me hope.

With her signature dimpled smile, Brooklynne asked, “Mom, will you ever be famous like Suzanne Collins?”

My green eyes widened. I smiled. The thought thrilled me. “Oh, I hope so!”

With a confident and all knowing smile, she continued, “You will be. It just takes time. You just need a big variety of people to read your book. They’ll talk about it. They’ll write reviews. It’ll spread like wildfire!”

This was a proud moment for me. As a mom. And as a writer. She went on and and on and told me other steps I should be taking in order to be famous like Suzanne Collins. Apparently Ms Collins has written another series that has enraptured the heart of my youngest. Maybe you’ve heard of it. Maybe not. It’s known as Gregor The Overlander series. This leads me into her first example of how to be a famous writer.

1-Write. Write all the time. Lots of books in particular. You can never write enough. The more you write the more readers you’ll gain. You’ll eventually build a larger fan base. Hopefully loyal readers will support you and check out your latest work, and for the newer readers you gain over time, perhaps they will go back and check out your previous work.

2-Get your your readers talking. Not just about my book but any book. Get them talking about anything. I use social media: Twitter, Facebook, my blog, Pinterest, and Goodreads. Keeping with the reading/writing theme, I generally keep it somewhat related to books whenever I am hoping to engage my followers. Lately I’m proud to report that I’ve done a great job of reaching out and getting responses! It’s been a ton of fun to connect!

3-This is one of the ideas I came up with on my own, but I feel it warrants being mentioned. Have a support group. The only time you should go about being an author alone is durning the actual writing process. The support of a loved one or two. An editor. A fabulous cover artist, check mine out here Nicolette Lorette Designs And I also recommend obtaining a publisher. Mine in particular has been amazing to work with! Lavish Publishing LLC Without help, I wouldn’t be where I am today. And the best part is I get to spend more of my time doing what I do best, writing!

4-Get a big variety of people to read your book. Other than holding giveaways either on Facebook, or on Goodreads, I am honestly not sure how to further pursue this idea. If you have an idea, please, do tell! Not everyone enjoys paranormal romances. It’s not a dude type book. And I certainly don’t recommend kids reading it either. My hope is that most everyone that crosses paths with This Morning I Woke Up Dead will be able to relate it on some level. Who’s curious about what happens in the afterlife? Lost a loved one? Been in love?

5- And the last but not least tip is to have your book reviewed by anyone and everyone. Readers. Bloggers. Other authors. Friends. Fans. Family. Friends of friends, fans, and family. It all helps. And I am hopeful this will one day this will lead to the wildfire spreading!!

Thanks for reading Brooklynne's tips!

If you know of any I may have missed, please do share!

*** Be sure to check out my latest book! The highly anticipated prequel to This Morning I Woke Up Dead entitled; The Beginning of The End  And the best part is, its FREE!!

Five facts about This Morning I Woke Up Dead that may surprise you

Hey! Thanks for stopping by! I originally wrote this post as a guest post for a GREAT blog, mom with a kindle as part of my virtual book blog tour. It was a blast!! And I am kind of sad the tour is over. But just in case you missed it, I thought it may be fun to share some of my posts with you! 

5 facts about This Morning I Woke Up Dead that may surprise you

1-Although the title my sound a bit suspicious, it’s not a book about zombie’s or even a horror story. What would you say if I told you it was a beautiful love story? A story about true love, soul mates, and defying all the odds to be together even a lack of beating hearts. Sound surprising? If you want to know more, keep on reading!

2- The main character, Hadley Christensen, dies in the first chapter! I know, I know, this may sound like a spoiler, and for most books it certainly is! But This Morning I Woke Up Dead is not like any other book you’ve ever read.  Most everyone in our story is no longer ‘alive’.

3-In the eight months it took me to write the book I had no idea how it was going to end. Zero. Zip. Nada. No clue whatsoever! It was tentatively whispered to me as I went long and was carefully revealed to me one word at a time. I was just as surprised as you will be by the ending.

4- Pieces of me are sprinkled throughout each of the four main characters. Some things are a bit more flattering than others but we can’t all be perfect! And besides, no one could relate to that anyways. Since I’m feeling brave today, I’ll admit to a few. I’ll begin with Hadley’s stubbornness, that’s totally me. Once we decide we want something we don’t stop until it’s ours! And I also share her love of clothes. Who doesn’t enjoy getting new things? If only we could just think about what it is we want and it would appear on us, as Hadley can, we’d be set! Next is Dominic, we both share a love of running. There is no better release and escape. We also both have a cat and enjoy keeping our space neat and tidy.  Logan and I are the least alike but we do share a rebellious streak! Now that I am a mom, I try to keep it under wraps. And lastly, and the one most like myself, is Emerson. We both love to bake. We love our kids immensely, only Em has one child and I am blessed with four. We both have close friendships with a brother, and lastly, we’re both a little awkward from time to time.

5-Ok, here’s one more fun fact for you. This Morning I Woke Up Dead is based on a true story. Yep. That’s right. It’s your story. Will you believe?

If you've not met Hadley and Dominic, there's no time like the present!

Buy links

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

This Morning I Woke Up on the news

Excitement provoked me to wake way before my alarm even had a chance. The early morning blackness was still settled and camped out in my room. Looking at the time, I saw that is was 3:33. OK, so I was a little keyed up and couldn't sleep. No biggie. I made some coffee. Lots of coffee. Played some Neko Case tunes, and soaked in a tub full of bubbles. All the while I practiced what I wanted to say. I've never been on TV before. The thought both terrified me and thrilled me. What an honor and a blessing.  Although I was excited, my stomach protested; it twisted and turned at the thought. I blocked out any negative, 'what if's' thoughts, and replaced them with, you can do this. You can do this. You can do this. 

Believe you can and you're half way there.

This is what you're meant to do.

         I got out of the tub and got dressed in what I feel like was a Kate Middleton inspired ensemble. My red heels clicked down the hall and into my kitchen. Surprise was evident on my face when I saw my oldest son, Brayden, sitting at the table sipping some coffee. By this time, it was 4:45 am. Usually I see him moments before he leaves for school, at about 7:45. 

         

          "Hey, B," I called out. "What are you doing up?"

          His big brown eyes met mine and with a shrug, he said, "Good morning. Ready to go on the news?"

         I laughed and smiled and said, "Yes. Yes I am." 

         From there, I rehearsed what I wanted to say about my book as Brayden patiently listened and nodded along. It felt really good to see that he was proud of me, enough so that he even got up to see me before I headed out. As I'm cheerfully talking  about my beloved book and characters, I look up and see my love, Troy, coming down the hall. His eyes are squinting and tired. Its now 5:00, so no wonder. But he is smiling my favorite smile! Giving me more confidence. More support. More encouragement. I want to make him proud. Surprise was also evident on his face when he saw that I was actually animated and smiling and laughing. And so early in the morning!

      

 I not a morning person. 

But today, I was.

   

         It was still dusk when we arrived at the station. We were fifteen minutes early. The sky was purple. The moon was waning and half full. A peacefulness settled over me. I hopped out of our truck and my heels caught a little on the pavement, but Troy caught me and I steadied myself. As I clutched my good luck heart shaped necklace, I headed into the station. I never do anything important without Troy and my good luck necklace glocket. It has pretty gem stones inside, my birthstone, Troy's, my kids, and the word BELIEVE. 

        After we found our way into where the filming was already taking place, I was surprised to see behind the scenes of a program I've watched many times from my living room. It was very different than watching it on TV, but also kind of similar. Their voices were familiar  As was their faces.  Quickly, we were welcomed and made to feel at home. The set was small and quaint, and it comforted me like a nice cup of coffee and my favorite cream cardigan. It didn't take long for me to realize that the show was like a well oiled machine and news and information was flowing from its pores. And it wouldn't be what it is without all great the people involved. The anchors. The cameramen. The audience. And well, me, at least for the day. 

        When it was my turn to sit on the stand next to the very kind, Logan Mcdougal, the channel six news co-anchor, it didn't feel scary at all. It was a great feeling. Almost as good as being in Troy's arms. But only because when I looked over, I saw him smiling at me. He believed in me. This gave me the courage and confidence to speak on air. And to believe in myself.  Eloquently I conversed about something very dear to me, my novel, This Morning I Woke Up Dead. I am humbled and proud to say, that it went very well. It was an amazing experience, and if you ever get the chance to go on TV, do it! 

Just believe you can. 

Me on KPVI news channel six NBC talking about my book