I am a multi-tasker. I like to keep busy, and I tend to do about five things at once. That doesn’t automatically lend itself to being more organized. I fight to keep myself from going insane while maintaining this momentum. When it comes to getting daily tasks done so I have more free time to write, making lists is paramount.
And I don’t only mean making a grocery list before your weekly shopping excursion. I have to-do lists for my day-job as well, the basic tasks I need to complete spelled, usually on top of one-off requests that come in, and I move tasks to later in the week as needed.
I also tend to make lists for my non-work life, just so I don’t forget all the things I want to accomplish, especially if there’s something important coming up. Someone’s birthday, something I need to send in the mail, a deadline I can’t miss, the premiere of my favorite TV show—everything.
I even make lists while writing, and especially when preparing for a book launch.
When writing a new story, I might make lists beneath a character’s name of important traits, like backstory, personal connections, physical description. I might list out the desired chapters and then start jotting down the scenes that should occur in each one.
This might change over time as I flush those chapters out, and certain scenes will move to later chapters as well, or get cut altogether, but I find that making lists while brainstorming helps me avoid forgetting important plot points as I move forward in the writing process.
With a new book launch, I always start with what I did for my last book. If you’re a new author, you’ll be starting from scratch, but I like to have a single document I can reference with the book title, synopsis, tagline, word count, page count, possible excerpts, my most updated bio, etc. Then I make lists under topics like social media sites to post on, blogs I want to contact about helping promote my book or even review it, online blog tour sites I’ve used and found successful and what package I might want to try.
The document usually expands to include physical events for book signings, conventions, publications to contact, and more, and since I tend to write in the same genre, starting from what I used with a previous launch is a great kickoff for a new one. I try to keep notes on what worked or didn’t to inform on what I might try differently the next time.
For example, if I had a great review from a blog who doesn’t happen to be on a blog tour I schedule for a new launch, I make a point to follow up with that blog individually to gauge their interest.
There is so much that goes into writing a book, but promoting it is just as time-consuming. Making lists HELPS. It helps in every aspect of my life. So, if you’re looking for one bit of advice as you move ahead on your next project, start there and see where it takes you.
(me too, Amanda, I would never be able to get everything done or stay on track without my lists ~RR)
Lovesick Gods
Lovesick Series
Part One
Amanda Meuwissen
Genre: - Superhero/Gay Romance
Date of Publication: October 2, 2017
ISBN: 1-943619-33-6
ASIN:
Number of pages: 312
Word Count: 106,903
Cover Artist: Veronika Dolnikova
Tagline: Heroes aren’t meant to act like their villains—or fall in love with them.
Book Description:
The elements touch everyone on Earth—Fire, Water, even Light—but every so often someone becomes more attuned to their elemental leaning and develops true power. When an evil Elemental known as Thanatos arrived in Olympus City, it saw the rise of its first hero—Zeus. But the death toll caused by defeating Thanatos changed Zeus, who by day is young detective Danny Grant.
It’s been six months since Thanatos terrorized the city at the start of Lovesick Gods. Danny should be used to his duty behind the mask, but the recent past haunts him. His girlfriend left him, he snaps at the barest provocation, his life feels empty—he needs an outlet, any outlet to pull him out of his depression.
Enter notorious thief Malcolm Cho, the Ice Elemental Prometheus. There was a time when Danny welcomed a fight with Cho, filled with colorful banter and casual flirtations that were a relief compared to Thanatos. Even as a criminal, Cho had recognized the threat Thanatos posed and promised to help Danny stop him, but the day Danny needed Cho, he never showed. Cho was the reason so many people died that day—including Danny’s mother.
Danny decides to teach the man a lesson and fan the fire of their attraction into something more. At worst, he’ll get some no-strings-attached sex out of the deal and finally blow off steam; at best, he’ll get Cho to fall in love with him and then break his heart to spite him. Danny doesn’t expect to fall for Cho in the process, and he certainly can’t predict the much darker threat on the horizon.
Excerpt:
The long game,
Danny thought as he accepted the hand Cho held out to help him from the sofa.
Cho couldn’t have any fun with a blubbering mess, so of course he’d want to
cheer Danny up. It didn’t mean anything. It just felt nice that Cho didn’t pry
the way the others did. He’d never look down on Danny. He was a liar, a
criminal, a scoundrel—he was the reason Danny had been forced into that
position with Thanatos to begin with—but while the rest of his life felt like
an open wound, somehow Cho was a balm.
Danny made a
show of changing out of Cho’s clothes and into his Zeus costume right there in
the living room. Leaving the sleep pants and T-shirt folded on the sofa, he started
to put on his boots at the door.
“Interesting
choice of work clothes.” Cho crossed his arms with an amused eyebrow raise.
“I’ll change
when I get to the precinct. And next time I’ll call. Or text. Promise. Thanks
for breakfast.” Danny made to walk toward Cho off the rug, then gave an
abortive gesture like oops, stuck now with my boots on.
Cho rolled his
eyes, but he still moved closer to accept the kiss Danny pulled him into. And
let linger. And linger... Maybe a little longer than necessary.
“Have a nice day
at work, dear,” Cho said, sickly sweet in his familiar drawl.
Danny found himself
smiling—and meaning it.
Cho was a bad
man. He was. He…he was. But he made things lighter. And easier. And even though
Danny knew that soon he’d have to end this or risk getting in too deep, for now
he could enjoy the lie for just a little longer.
About the Author:
Amanda Meuwissen has been writing and posting online for many years, including maintaining the website and blog for the software company Outsell. She is an avid writer and consumer of fiction through film, prose, and video games, and is the author of the paranormal romance trilogy The Incubus Saga and young adult novel Life as a Teenage Vampire. Amanda lives in Minneapolis, MN, with her husband, John, and their two cats.
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1 comment:
Thank you so much for being part of my tour and allowing me to share such a fun post. I hope new readers give this a chance and try their hand at winning one of three free eBooks! Thanks again!
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