Figuring out what actually works. Is it sharing some random translations from my backlog three times a day? My website? My newsletter? My interactive map? Word of mouth?

So if you've bought my books and/or subscribed to my Patreon, please tell me: What _did_ convince you to send money into my direction?

I have the luxury of being able to offer my art/writing for free, so my "marketing" approach is making friends, then posting stuff I'm proud of and hoping for the best.

I was very tickled to learn that this actually works 😜 Sarah, who I met on here and who is an excellent teacher and horrorist, shared my story on her newsletter. You can check out her classes and work here: https://sarah-i-jackson.ghost.io

PS: what she shared was my most recent short story, which I am indeed quite proud of: https://nebulos.space/saltwater_billionaire.html

I have the luxury of being able to offer my art/writing for free, so my "marketing" approach is making friends, then posting stuff I'm proud of and hoping for the best.

I was very tickled to learn that this actually works 😜 Sarah, who I met on here and who is an excellent teacher and horrorist, shared my story on her newsletter. You can check out her classes and work here: https://sarah-i-jackson.ghost.io

PS: what she shared was my most recent short story, which I am indeed quite proud of: https://nebulos.space/saltwater_billionaire.html

Doing it! lol

In seriousness, I think the hardest part is figuring out what works and what doesn't. Most marketing doesn't give clear feedback your kind of going by guess and the gods, hoping that you are reading the tea leaves right when you decide that this is working but that isn't.

Figuring out what actually works. Is it sharing some random translations from my backlog three times a day? My website? My newsletter? My interactive map? Word of mouth?

So if you've bought my books and/or subscribed to my Patreon, please tell me: What _did_ convince you to send money into my direction?

Definitely time. Kids' school starts in two weeks and that's going significantly bite into my available writing time.

I've already asked partner to step up and help a bit more this year, other than that, there isn't much I can do initially. As get into the year and the routines, I should be able to find a bit of extra time here and there, but it's not something I can count on.

You heard it here first--LOOKING FOR HOME is ready to query!

You heard it here first--LOOKING FOR HOME is ready to query!

I had a bit of an odd viewpoint into hurricane relief --my dad put in time helping people in storm relief my whole life growing up--not in any official capacity, just as a neighbor and volunteer. Some of his stories flavored the book. During Katrina, my husband's business sold generators throughout the storm affected areas as a distributor, so that viewpoint wound up in the book. It was more a creative reworking of all of those than any particular one.

Truthfully? This one. This TTMD event represents the first Time I've seen such interest for my work. After that/ Probably Facebook, since that's where my core family/friend/colleague network is. Social media has been most valuable for me in spreading the word about my events rather driving sales.

We lost a lot of trees and a fence as far as physical damage--and we were over 150 miles inland. We lost power for a week; our kids' school had the roof ripped off, so they were out for a week. We had to move in with my in-laws once they got power because my new baby was suffering in the August heat without AC at our house.

I had postpartum depression that the storm made worse. I wound up in a mental ward nine months later from psychosis. So it was rough.

The characters in Hurricane Baby are all impacted mentally by the storm. Some, like Wendy, had issues before the storm (self-injury). Others, the storm brought issues out--like Tommy Hebert (drinking), James (anger), Mike (survivor's guilt). And all of them have different ways of coping with their issues.

One of the big themes in the book is what do you do when you don't know what to do? All the characters answer that question differently, which speaks to it.

The characters in Hurricane Baby are all impacted mentally by the storm. Some, like Wendy, had issues before the storm (self-injury). Others, the storm brought issues out--like Tommy Hebert (drinking), James (anger), Mike (survivor's guilt). And all of them have different ways of coping with their issues.

One of the big themes in the book is what do you do when you don't know what to do? All the characters answer that question differently, which speaks to it.

Today's featured creator is: @JulieLiddellWhitehead

Do you infuse mental health education / advocacy into your fiction? If so, how?

We lost a lot of trees and a fence as far as physical damage--and we were over 150 miles inland. We lost power for a week; our kids' school had the roof ripped off, so they were out for a week. We had to move in with my in-laws once they got power because my new baby was suffering in the August heat without AC at our house.

I had postpartum depression that the storm made worse. I wound up in a mental ward nine months later from psychosis. So it was rough.

Truthfully? This one. This TTMD event represents the first Time I've seen such interest for my work. After that/ Probably Facebook, since that's where my core family/friend/colleague network is. Social media has been most valuable for me in spreading the word about my events rather driving sales.

Not really, Writing the book was pretty much a desperate effort to get the storm out of my head into some form where I could make sense of what happened. I knew I was finally done writing it when I wasn't constantly thinking about the story and what else I could do with it.

How do storm affect me now? I just usually start to spiral into anxiety. I feel outraged that we never learn the lessons the storms try to teach us. Then I take Xanax and calm down.

I had a bit of an odd viewpoint into hurricane relief --my dad put in time helping people in storm relief my whole life growing up--not in any official capacity, just as a neighbor and volunteer. Some of his stories flavored the book. During Katrina, my husband's business sold generators throughout the storm affected areas as a distributor, so that viewpoint wound up in the book. It was more a creative reworking of all of those than any particular one.

Good morning from CA! I notice, from your website, that you have a presence on most social media. Which site have you found the most valuable for engagement and/or marketing?