Week #5 of The Next Big Thing

Welcome to Week #5 of The Next Big Thing! Here’s the plan:

***Answer the ten questions (below) about your current WIP (Work In Progress)

***Tag five other writers/bloggers and add their links so we can hop over and meet them.

It’s that simple.

I’ve chosen to answer one question per week with the best intentions of having my second novel published by the time I post the final question.

Question #5 of The Next Big Thing:

TNBT: What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?

GAIL: The one-sentence synopsis of my WIP, Different in Degree is:

A cousin of Insurance Investigator Pepper Bibeau dies after falling from an icy rooftop and her husband refuses to claim the insurance settlement, raising questions about more than one death in Pepper's family.

AND NOW, five awesome writers whose work you want to watch:

1. Coral Russell @AlchemyofScrawl http://alchemyscrawl.com/

2. John Betcher @JohnBetcher http://www.johnbetcher.com/

3. Elizabeth McKenna @ElizaMcKenna http://elizabethmckenna.com/

4. Carole Sutton @cazutt http://casutton.tripod.com/cazutt/

5. Stacy Juba @stacyjuba http://stacyjuba.com/blog/

Ten Interview Questions for The Next Big Thing:

What is the working title of your book?

Where did the idea come from for the book?

What genre does your book fall under?

Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?

What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?
Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?
How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?
What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?
Who or What inspired you to write this book?
What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?

Why I Participate in Author Interviews

Shine a Light on You

On Mondays, I enjoy spotlighting author interviews on this blog site. To a recent request for an interview, I received an interesting response. The author was eager to participate if I could explain how an interview would be of benefit to the author.

My initial reaction was, “Don’t all authors wish they knew in advance how a given marketing tool would be of benefit to them?” Then, stepping back, I analyzed the question from a personal viewpoint. What were my reasons for participating in author interviews, as interviewee and interviewer?

As the self-published author of a first novel, my introductory role in an interview was as interviewee. A bit of research had revealed that interviews were a good marketing tool for promoting a book. Several kindly bloggers offered or agreed to interview me, including:

Sandra “Jeanz”  http://jeanzbookreadnreview.blogspot.com/p/home.html

 A.F. Stewart: http://afstewartblog.blogspot.com/ 

Laurie Hanan: http://westoftheequator.wordpress.com/

Coral Russell’s radio interview: http://alchemyofscrawl.wordpress.com/2011/09/03/btr-show-gail-baugniet-for-every-action/

Faced with the question of how an interview would be of benefit to the author, I rephrased the question for myself, “How had I benefited from participating in interviews?”

• First, I wanted to introduce people to my writing and direct them to sites where they could learn more about my novel and purchase the book. Aside from bringing the book to the attention of the interviewer’s readers, I was able to disseminate the information to people on my social media sites to introduce myself and my writing through an interview.

• Second, I learned a lot about myself while formulating answers to the varied questions presented by interviewers. While all my thoughts weren’t put into words, it was interesting to solidify my ideas about research, writing, and marketing. Writing in a vacuum doesn’t spur an author to mine these thoughts. As a first-time published author, there is so much yet for me to learn, and I am always eager to implement new ideas, both in my writing and in marketing. Interviews fit into this learning curve.

• Third, characters within my novel came into renewed focus. Writing a Pepper Bibeau mystery series makes it imperative for me to stay on top of my recurring personalities. For authors who write non-series books, understanding the characters in one story will build a foundation for creating characters in the next one. After the manuscript is in print and the marketing process begins, however, it is easy to become fuzzy on some of the basics. If you give interviews, you can remain sharp and maintain interest in your writing process.

• Finally, and most important for me, I met some fantastic people: the interviewers. The interaction stimulated my desire to continue writing. It occurred to me that by interviewing authors on my blog site, I could meet any number of fantastic authors, further motivating me to move forward.

My novels feature a strong female protagonist, Pepper Bibeau. Originally, my interviews focused on independent/self-published authors whose protagonists are strong female characters. I soon extended that scope to include people who are strong females in their own right.

Why narrow the field, especially to female protagonists? It was a matter of control. I felt that a broader base would distract me from getting to know the individual authors. I like to check out an author’s work, visit social media sites on the internet, and submit reviews of books I’ve read when possible. My blog site revolves around #mystery #suspense #crimefiction. For April’s A to Z Blogging Challenge, my 26-post theme was “A World of Crime.” This covers a lot of territory, by no means excluding the male half of the world’s authors.

If you’ve participated in an author interview, how has the interview process been of benefit to you? 

When Life Gives You Cherries . . . CELEBRATE !!!

When life gives you cherries, celebrate with a Cherries Jubilee. During my October 1-22, 2011 tour, I am celebrating the publication of my first novel (and my birthday month) by giving away two signed print copies of my book, FOR EVERY ACTION There Are Consequences.

You can sign up through October 22, 2011 for a chance to win a copy by clicking on "Enter to Win" in the Goodreads Book Giveaway button located to the right > > > > > >

Also, everyone who comments on a participating blog in my October tour (see Week #1 links below) becomes eligible to win a free Smashwords eBook download of FOR EVERY ACTION There Are Consequences, available in your choice of multiple formats for your computer or eReader.

In October, I will give away 22 eBook copies of my novel. 7 people have received their copies during the first week already. Within the next two weeks, I will give away 14 more copies of my eBook through Smashwords. And the 22nd free copy is featured on JeanzBookReadNReview blog site for her October eBook giveaway jeanz-october-giveaway .

Gail's CHERRIES JUBILEE Week #1 October 1-8, 2011 Book Blog Tour:

1. Blog Talk Radio interview with Coral Russell at alchemyofscrawl alchemyofscrawl
2. Goodreads contest open through October 22, 2011, for your chance to win a free, signed copy of my mystery novel, FOR EVERY ACTION There Are Consequences: Goodreads Book Giveaway Contest
3. Albert Robbins III interviews me on http://freebookreviews.blogspot.com/2011/10/blog-tour-gail-m-baugniet-author-of-for.html
4. Guest post on alchemyofscrawl and book review by Coral Russell: http://alchemyofscrawl.wordpress.com/2011/10/04/1392/
5. A.F. Stewart interviews me on http://afstewartblog.blogspot.com/
6. Using Genealogy Research as a Writing Tool: Asymmetrical Branches of a Family Tree
7. A Sweet Way to End a Yom Kippur Fast, with Anthony Stemke: http://gail-baugniet.blogspot.com/2011/10/sweet-way-to-end-yom-kippur-fast.html
8. Darcia Helle's "A Great Read" book review of FOR EVERY ACTION and more about Darcia: http://gail-baugniet.blogspot.com/2011/10/great-read.html

Cherries Jubilee Day 4

There have been many variations on the idea of flambéed fruit, the most famous being Bananas Foster. Ever since the days of visiting my sister and brother-in-law in New Orleans, that has been one of my favorite desserts.
Variations include Mangos Diablo (mangos flambéed in tequila) and Pêches Louis (peaches flamed in whiskey). Now that I live in Hawaii, anything with mango tops my list also.

Coral Russell invited me to guest post at her blog site today. Please join Coral and me at Alchemy of Scrawl: alchemyofscrawl

Please leave a comment below to be entered in a drawing for a free Smashwords download of my Pepper Bibeau mystery, FOR EVERY ACTION There Are Consequences.