Some authors and social media experts have suggested that book trailers aren’t worth the effort in terms of sales. Maybe not, but I love watching them. And I’ve wanted one for my books. Only, I hadn’t a clue how to make one. Until today.
I’ve been studying trailers, and I really love the ones that use live action and actors. But I don’t have that capability myself, nor do I have the money to pay an expert to do it for me.
So. I looked at several how-to videos and picked the method that seemed most user friendly for a novice videographer. Yes, I upgraded from free to not-as-free-but-still-shy-of-the-pro-version of Animoto. And I paid for a couple of videos from istockphoto. But we’re not talking big bucks. And this, my friends, is what I produced. I do hope you like it, because I’m feeling like a proud mama.
The party starts at 8 AM on Monday. I know that seems early, but Barbara Claypole White will be chatting with us from her home town in England.
One fortunate commenter who shows up between 8 AM and 10 AM will receive a signed copy of Barbara’s delightful book, The Unfinished Garden, as well as an e-book version of Becalmed. Barbara will be there to chat with you, so please stop by. I love that this story tackles OCD with humor, compassion, and (woo-hoo!) romance.
From 10 AM to 11 AM,Robin Patchenwill be around to chat about her charming novella, One Christmas Eve.The winner of Robin’s e-book will also receive a singed paperback copy of Becalmed.
From 11 AM to 12 Noon, Roseanna White will have the helm. Roseanna has written one of the best biblical/historical novels I’ve read, called Jewel of Persia. At noon, we will choose the winner of this signed book, who will also receive an e-book copy of Becalmed. Roseanna is busy writing for several publishers and editing books for WhiteFire Publishing.
From Noon until 2 PM, we’ll visit with C Hope Clark, author of Lowcountry Bribe and Tidewater Murder.Hope is the founder of FundsforWriters.com and is a great encourager. Her most recent release, Tidewater Murder, takes place in Beaufort, SC, and involves a trawler. Ah-ha. So, the winner here will be able to read about both Beauforts–North and South! We’ll give away a signed copy of Tidewater Murder and an e-book of Becalmed.
From 2 PM to 4 PM, we have Lorrie Thomson chatting with us about her new book Equilibrium, which releases from Kensington in September. The winner at 4 PM will receive a signed copy of an ARC of this soon-coming book. It sounds like a great read. I’ll also include another e-book of Becalmed.
From 4 PM to 6 PM, Kathryn Craft will be our hostess. She’ll sign an ARC of her January release from Sourcebooks, The Art of Falling, and I’ll include another e-book of Becalmed. Best-selling author Elizabeth Benedict says The Art of Falling “strikes universal chords in all of us who yearn, who love, who fall and fail, and struggle to find our way back home.”
Lorrie and Kathryn are new friends of mine from the Women’s Fiction Writers Association, so I’m sure they’d be happy to chat with you about the group and the genre, if you have any questions. Kathryn is also a developmental editor at Writing-Partner.com
That brings us to the final two hours. Folk who comment between 6 PM and 8 PM will have their name tossed in the hat to win a signed copy of Becalmed. I’ll be around most of the day, announcing winners every few hours, so come play!
To Recap:One hold-in-your-hands book and one e-book per giveaway
8 AM to 10 AM: Barbara Claypole White,The Unfinished Garden
As we move toward Becalmed’s Facebook Launch Party on July 1, I invite you to meet Tadie Longworth.
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For every unique share of this blog post on your blog, Facebook, Twitter, or other media outlets, I’ll enter your name into the weekly drawing for a combination paperback and e-book of Becalmed.
Sailing a sharpie
BECALMED’S CHARACTERS
Eighth up: Sara Longworth
The town of Beaufort has been calling Sara “Tadie” ever since her little brother first lisped it years ago. It must be a Southern thing, because it sure doesn’t make much sense otherwise. I mean, Tadie doesn’t exactly sound like a shortened Sara, does it? Now that her mama’s gone, the only one left who uses her real name is James Whitlock. “Miss Sara,” he said when she first asked about it, “your mama wants to call you what she named you, well, I’m gonna do the same.”
Tadie doesn’t know what she’d do without James, Elvie Mae, or their daughter, Rita. Those three are family, even if not blood kin. Of course, one fine thing about small-town life is that friends can fill in a lot of gaps.
Take her best friend, Hannah Morgan. Tadie and Hannah go all the way back to kindergarten, and they’ve been tight ever since. About six years ago, they started up Down East Creations to showcase Tadie’s jewelry and Hannah’s pottery, and then they hired Isa to help run the shop.
Just across the street from the house Tadie’s great-grandaddy built, Tadie’s little sharpie, Luna, bobs off the dock, just waiting for a sail out Talyor Creek to Cape Lookout. You outta see Luna skip along on a good breeze. Sometimes, though, when the wind sits for a spell, she’ll find herself becalmed. You know what I mean. We’ve all been there, boat or no boat.
And lookee out in the anchorage. See what the wind blew in among all those pretty cruising boats? How can a sailor of a small boat not yearn just a little for life on a bigger one. One that sails places.
Share this on your blog, Facebook, Twitter, or wherever.
For each unique link to this post, I’ll enter you in a drawing to win a paperback copy of Becalmed along with an e-version! I have ten characters to introduce. After each five, I’ll pull a winner’s name from the hat.
Giving away books at Becalmed’s Facebook Launch Party from authors Lorrie Thomson, Roseanna White, C Hope Clark, Kathryn Craft, Barbara Claypole White, and Robin Patchen.
(PS. In case the Internet thingies that are supposed to tell me of shares decides to fail us, will you also leave a comment and tell me where you shared this so you don’t get left out of the drawing?)
Here we are at Day 7 of the prelude for the Becalmed’s Facebook launch Party on July 1. We’ve met James, Elvie Mae, and Rita Whitlock, along with Isa Wellington and Matt and Hannah Morgan and Matt’s brother Alex. (Oh, and Bethanne.) Today we meet Will Merritt.
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FIRST WINNER CHOSEN! Congratulations to Katie Clark!
For every unique share of this blog post on your blog, Facebook, Twitter, or other media outlets, I’ll enter your name into the weekly drawing for a combination paperback and e-book of Becalmed.
We’re also having fun with ideas for actors to play the various parts. Come take a look at the Pinterest Board for Becalmed‘s Characters and let me know if you’d like to add a suggestion. I don’t see my characters this way, which is why I like faceless covers, but one of my readers, John Pelkey, sent in his offerings.
BECALMED’S CHARACTERS
Seventh up: Will Merritt
Will had it all. A beautiful, loving, and perfect wife named Nancy, who dreamed of sailing with him and their daughter Jilly. Work he loved as a mechanical engineer. And that precious child, their first-born.
And then his world collapsed when a drunk driver killed the love of his life. It’s been almost two years now, but he misses her more with each passing day, especially when Jilly does or says something that is so reminiscent of her mother. He sees Nancy in the toss of Jilly’s hair, in her “that would be lovely”—words Nancy used for so many things, always accompanied by that turn-his-insides-to-slush smile.
How on earth is he supposed to do this?
But he’s got to. He and Jilly are following the dream. They’re living on the Nancy Grace, and they’re traveling. Coping. Sometimes more than coping.
And he’ll allow no one, absolutely no one, to encroach on the world they’ve made for themselves.
Share this on your blog, Facebook, Twitter, or wherever.
For each unique link to this post, I’ll enter you in a drawing to win a paperback copy of Becalmed along with an e-version! I have ten characters to introduce. After each five, I’ll pull a winner’s name from the hat.
Giving away books at Becalmed’s Facebook Launch Party from authors Lorrie Thomson, Roseanna White, C Hope Clark, Kathryn Craft, Barbara Claypole White, and Robin Patchen.
(PS. In case the Internet thingies that are supposed to tell me of shares decides to fail us, will you also leave a comment and tell me where you shared this so you don’t get left out of the drawing?)
Here we are at Day 6 of the prelude for the Becalmed’s Facebook launch Party on July 1. We’ve met James, Elvie Mae, and Rita Whitlock, along with Isa Wellington and Matt and Hannah Morgan. Today we meet the Alexander Morgans.
Share This Blog Post to Win
FIRST WINNER CHOSEN! Congratulations to Katie Clark!
For every unique share of this blog post on your blog, Facebook, Twitter, or other media outlets, I’ll enter your name into the weekly drawing for a combination paperback and e-book of Becalmed.
We’re also having fun with ideas for actors to play the various parts. Come take a look at the Pinterest Board for Becalmed’s Characters and let me know if you’d like to add a suggestion. I don’t see my characters this way, which is why I like faceless covers, but one of my readers, John Pelkey, sent me these offerings. Here are two of his suggestions for Alex. And then there’s Bethanne.
What do you think?
Jeffrey DonovanRufus Sewell
BECALMED‘S CHARACTERS
Sixth up: Alex and Bethanne Morgan
Alexander Morgan flips a lock of his black hair off his brow and tries to hide how conscious he is of his looks and his smarts. He strutted around Beaufort during his youth, competing, always competing, to be the best, the handsomest, the smartest, and a whole lot better than his older brother. Matt stayed put in this small, pokey town, but Alex has been places. Last fifteen years, he’s been living in the North and doing just fine, thank you very much. He’s got two gorgeous daughters, and if things aren’t going so well with Bethanne, well, that’s not his fault.
He shouldn’t have sold half his interest in Morgan’s Lumber to his brother. Fact is, Bethanne wanted that big house and the swimming pool. And if Bethanne wants something, she’s likely to get it. He’s not careful, she’ll sashay those hips of hers right out the door, taking her daddy’s money and connections right along with them.
Well, maybe now they’re back in Beaufort, he’ll let her. After all, he’s managing—all right, helping to manage Morgan’s—and he’s got other prospects. Looks to him like Tadie might just be one of them.
Love this choice of John Pelkey’s for Bethanne.
Britney Spears
Share this on your blog, Facebook, Twitter, or wherever.
For each unique link to this post, I’ll enter you in a drawing to win a paperback copy of Becalmed along with an e-version! I have ten characters to introduce. After each five, I’ll pull a winner’s name from the hat.
Giving away books at Becalmed’s Facebook Launch Party from authors Lorrie Thomson, Roseanna White, C Hope Clark, Kathryn Craft, Barbara Claypole White, and Robin Patchen.
(PS. In case the Internet thingies that are supposed to tell me of shares decides to fail us, will you also leave a comment and tell me where you shared this so you don’t get left out of the drawing?)
Here we are at Day 4 of the prelude for the Becalmed’s Facebook launch Party on July 1. We’ve met James, Elvie Mae, and Rita Whitlock. Today we meet the ethereal Isa.
Share This Blog Post to Win
For every unique share of this blog post on your blog, Facebook, Twitter, or other media outlets, I’ll enter your name into the weekly drawing for a combination paperback and e-book of Becalmed.
BECALMED‘S CHARACTERS
Fourth up: Isa Wellington
After a disastrous marriage in Wilmington, DE, Isa (Isadora) Wellington moved to Beaufort, where she now works for Tadie and Hannah at Down East Creations, a boutique for the arty and unusual. Here, she flits around, her long silver hair flowing behind her, dangly earrings swaying from her lobes, fluttering like a brightly colored butterfly. Who’d guess that she was once a math teacher?
Isa hates to part with the goodies at Down East Creations. But she’s good at it, as she is at making friends with everyone who comes in the shop, including—and especially—a little cruiser named Jilly.
Isa has secrets of her own and things from her past that inform her choices. But then, don’t we all?
Share this on your blog, Facebook, Twitter, or wherever.
For each unique link to this post, I’ll enter you in a drawing to win a paperback copy of Becalmed along with an e-version! I have ten characters to introduce. After each five, I’ll pull a winner’s name from the hat.
Giving away books at Becalmed’s Facebook Launch Party from authors Roseanna White, C Hope Clark, Kathryn Craft, Barbara Claypole White, Lorrie Thomson, and Robin Patchen.
(PS. In case the Internet thingies that are supposed to tell me of shares decides to fail us, will you also leave a comment and tell me where you shared this so you don’t get left out of the drawing?)
Here we are at Day 3 of the prelude for the Becalmed’s Facebook launch Party on July 1. We’ve met James and Elvie Mae. Today we meet their daughter Rita.
Share This Blog Post to Win
For every unique share of this blog post on your blog, Facebook, Twitter, or other media outlets, I’ll enter your name into the weekly drawing for a combination paperback and e-book of Becalmed.
BECALMED‘S CHARACTERS
Third up: RitaWhitlock
Rita Whitlock’s a lawyer. Okay, she still has to take the bar exam, but working for the public defender’s office in Raleigh feels like an exercise in futility. Why can’t she help fix things before the wife gets killed or the kids dropped out the window? So she’s reconsidering her future, especially with everything going on at home and, ooh, the loveliest boyfriend who’s begging to be more than that—and whose mere existence is likely to cause a ruckus when he meets Elvie Mae and James. He is not what they had in mind.
Lots of folk, including her friend/sister in the big house, Tadie Longworth, envy Rita’s fashion sense. Rita knows how to dress, all those silky yellows and oranges to highlight her butterscotch skin. She’s a woman of obvious “class,” even if her pedigree misses the mark for the Daughters of the American Revolution. She figures she owes that to some pretty special folk named Longworth—her other family—and to her no-nonsense mama and the sweetest daddy in the world. She’s been one of the blessed ones, hasn’t she? But can her favored place hold out against a hefty prejudice?
Living in Raleigh means she’s missing a lot of the fun things that go on in Beaufort, like sailing with Tadie and being spoiled, just a little bit, by Mama and Daddy. Oh, and she’s just way too far away from that trouble back home.
Share this on your blog, Facebook, Twitter, or wherever.
For each unique link to this post, I’ll enter you in a drawing to win a paperback copy of Becalmed along with an e-version! I have ten characters to introduce. After each five, I’ll pull a winner’s name from the hat.
Giving away books at Becalmed’s Facebook Launch Party from authors C Hope Clark, Kathryn Craft, Barbara Claypole White, Roseanna White, Lorrie Thomson, and Robin Patchen.
(PS. In case the Internet thingies that are supposed to tell me of shares decides to fail us, will you also leave a comment and tell me where you shared this so you don’t get left out of the drawing?)
Here we are at Day 2 of the prelude for the Becalmed’s Facebook launch Party on July 1. Yesterday we learned a little about James. Today, we meet his wife, Elvie Mae.
Share This Blog Post to Win
For every unique share of this blog post on your blog, Facebook, Twitter, or other media outlets, I’ll enter your name into the weekly drawing for a combination paperback and e-book of Becalmed.
Front, Back, and Middle
BECALMED‘S CHARACTERS
Second up: Elvie MaeWhitlock
Elvie Mae Whitlock reminds me of a beautiful woman from my childhood. Her name was Rose, and a lovelier, kinder, more intelligent woman would have been hard to find. Rose “did” for my grandmother when I was a lonely young girl. I’d spend summers in that big house in New Bern, NC, and I’d read or wander the outdoors because, as sweet as my grandaddy was, he was too old and often too ill to spend any time with me. Green Acres was a wonderful place on acres and acres of woods, but none of the folk who inhabited it talked much to children. My grandmother may have taught me to curtsey to her friends, but she’d had help raising her own children, so what to do with me except whisper “Hush” puzzled her. Sometimes I needed a friend. And there was Rose, who’d let me sit in the huge country kitchen while she ironed or cooked. And she’d listen.
Maybe if Elvie Mae had been younger when her own Miss Caroline died, and maybe if she hadn’t been a married woman going through a heap of trouble, she might have gone off like Rose to complete her education. The last time I saw Rose, she’d moved to DC, gotten a masters degree, and landed a good job. Her daughter, Darlene, was thriving.
Elvie Mae, a tiny thing who came to work for the Longworths to help her granny, stayed on because Miss Caroline—and Miss Caroline’s two children, Tadie and Bucky—needed her. She raised them right along with her own daughter, Rita, and they became family.
To Tadie, Elvie and James and Rita are true kin.
Share this on your blog, Facebook, Twitter, or wherever.
For each unique link to this post, I’ll enter you in a drawing to win a paperback copy of Becalmed along with an e-version! I have ten characters to introduce. After each five, I’ll pull a winner’s name from the hat.
Giving away books at Becalmed’s Facebook Launch Party from authors Kathryn Craft, Barbara Claypole White, C Hope Clark, Roseanna White, Lorrie Thomson, and Robin Patchen.
(PS. In case the Internet thingies that are supposed to tell me of shares decides to fail us, will you also leave a comment and tell me where you shared this so you don’t get left out of the drawing?)
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