(Now that I came back to the post and read the meme again, I’m not entirely sure it’s about book teasers. I think. Part of me tells me something is off.)
Now, I try to post a teaser every Tuesday in the hopes one of my books will sell. They never seem to work. You can only do so many as well before you’ve posted most of the book online. It ends up being out of order, but it’s still predominantly available for free, which kills the sales potential. This is why I try to reuse teasers, but I’ve done it so much that I’m finding I’m just repeating myself far too often.
I could go through my books and pick new teasers, but that takes some time. If I’m going to spend that time thumbing through a preparing then I would like there to be some chance of success. I’m not seeing it, which is why I’m not inclined to do so for any of my old books. On the day . . . year that I start publishing again, I will do new teasers, but that’s not my situation. Instead, I’m left with my Teaser Tuesday thing becoming stale and useless. Hence, why I am trying to figure out a replacement weekly thing that can still bring attention to my books.
Teasers are still a thing though. We see it for shows, movies, and games all the time, but I guess those tend to stop after the release. Books aren’t as lucky unless they become bestsellers that survive on word-of-mouth alone. Authors have to keep doing things to draw attention to their works unless they just move on to another project. Teasers are something one can do without paying someone else. It is a promotional tool within our full control and costs nothing beyond the yearly blog subscription. Yet, they really don’t appear to work even with tags. I can’t remember the last time I got a comment on a teaser post that didn’t come from one of my usual commenters. They never show up even in my Top 100 of the year too.
So, that’s just a rant. What do people think about teaser posts? Do they work in any way? Is there an alternative that you would suggest?
You know I had to do this one since my name is on it. Couldn’t find a free picture for it though. The other issue I had was that everything involved King Charles the III. So, who are some other famous (or infamous) Charles/Charlies in history? I didn’t put Manson in this. Want to make that clear.
Charles Barkley
Charles Bronson
Charles Darwin
Charles Dickens
Charles M. Schulz
Charlie Chaplin
Charlie Day
Charlie Parker
Charlie Sheen (I grew up watching his comedy movies)
King Charles I
What other famous Charles/Charlies are out there? I wasn’t sure if I should add Chuck or other versions of my name like Carlos. That would have included Chuck Norris, so you can’t claim him in the comments now.
Well, I’m glad I didn’t make any lofty goals for the week because it was crazy. A lot of chaos ensued, so even sleeping was a challenge. My day off on Tuesday helped, but I was a zombie when hanging with my son. Exhaustion so bad that I started wondering if I was sick. That really set the tone for the week as well, which means I never got anywhere close to my writing.
With this weekend being the big Pokemon event of the season, I won’t be getting any writing done. I thought I might in the evening, but I’m going to be tired. With things going sideways in other aspects of my life, it was really nice to get together with a bunch of people and work towards a shared goal. Forgot my problems every evening I was out in the cold, so a full weekend will be worthwhile. It might even clear enough stress that I can get extra writing done this coming week. With no appointments, I might even finish chapter 8 of Darwin & the Joy Path before next weekend. It’s a noble and lofty goal, which is possible.
The other side of the coin is that this is the last full week before Thanksgiving, which can be dicey. Tests are coming for my son while students in general begin getting antsy about the holiday. Think we have a field trip as well. I’m going to try to get extra sleep like I did this week to avoid total collapse. True, I had to go back to using Zzzquil, but it isn’t as bad as it was before. The goal here is to have enough energy to doing writing on Wednesday and Thursday nights as well as enjoy next weekend with my son.
Speaking of the younger generation, I did get him a new video game, which I snuck onto the Switch last weekend. It was something I promised him for the holidays, but he’s had a rough go of things lately. So, he got his present early and is loving it. It’s the newest Pokemon game, which is a sequel to the one that got him into the franchise. I’m having a blast watching him run into situations and have to escape these massive, aggressive Pokemon only for more angry ones to pop up. One could say this is a little gift to myself and the reason why I said he can only play it when I’m free to watch the comedy. He has no problem with that because it’s an extra set of eyes seeing things on the screen.
Blog-wise, I almost finished the January stuff, but I need to pick the ‘Top 5 of 2025’. It isn’t a pretty list since it’s my older posts that do better. Already did a ‘Top 5 of All Time’, so I want to stick to this year. I’ll see what I’m working with before I make a final decision, but I should probably wait until halfway through December too. Gives me more time to figure out the Tuesday promo issue, which might be another rehash of the origins I did long ago and again in 2023. Wish I had another idea, but promoting books doesn’t seem to be a thing any more.
Almost forgot that I have to start preparing an idea for a work pot luck the day before Thanksgiving. All of the TAs do a little feast around this time of year, which is a nice community building thing. I’ve had an idea for a main dish for a while and the timing allows me to put it together. I’ll have the weekend to cook up one of the ingredients and can use the classroom oven to put everything together.
You know, it looks like my life is just a series of side missions, but I don’t know what the main mission is. I don’t want to say it’s simply to survive because that sounds really boring. It was always the ‘be a published author’ dream, which doesn’t seem plausible these days. I can’t even carve out enough writing time. When I do get the time, I’m usually exhausted from work, home stress, and the machinations of various narcissists I can’t escape. Something has to give at some point, but it might be years before any of the obstacles are in a position to be removed.
Goals of the week:
Get all of the Pokemon on my ‘shopping list’ this weekend.
Get enough sleep every night.
Help son study for tests when he’s with me.
Finish a Lego set.
Start using the exercise bike on bad weather days.
It doesn’t always have to be a major quest or a wild adventure. Yet, groups have to start somewhere even if it’s prior to the book. Authors need to consider the beginning when they go with ensemble casts. After all, it sets the tone of setting, characters, action, and just about everything.
How would you start a group adventure story?
What do you think is a common mistake authors make when beginning an adventuring party story?
Do you have a favorite ensemble cast introduction scene?
(A short poem about something I’ve wondered about for years. Given wars, diseases, resource inequality, wealth inequality, education inequality, and a whole list of other barriers, I’m assuming this happens every minute.)
Pretty sure we can all think of at least one story that begins in jail. Many stay within that setting too. It isn’t only fantasy as well. There is something about a prison story that appeals to readers. Maybe it’s about redemption or survival. I should do a post series on that, but today I’m going to stick to adventures that begin in prison. Sorry.
I kind of did this with War of Nytefallsince you first meet Clyde when he’s in prison waiting for execution. That isn’t really what I’m talking about though. A prison meeting for a party is when everyone is thrown into jail together. It doesn’t matter if they know each other or not. They are now in jail with no clear sign that they are going to be released any time soon or at all. Similar to, and possibly jumping off from, the bar brawl opener, the jail beginning has several benefits:
There isn’t much to do when sitting in a jail cell. Whether they are in the same one or nearby, the characters can now interact. They’re almost forced to. Introductions and other information can be shared, which begins the bonds needed to form a solid adventuring party. It doesn’t require that they become friends, but an understanding can be forged. This also creates an opening for the characters to reveal more about themselves to the readers without it feeling forced.
The characters are now put in a shared situation, which means they are equals. There aren’t a few who are out of trouble and a few who are. All of them are facing the same level of consequences. Even if they think they are superior or in a better situation than the others, the reader knows all of they are in trouble. This is another factor that can create a bond. Think of the real world where people are thrown together for a variety of reasons. Work projects, science labs in school, getting stuck in an elevator, and the list goes on. You are no longer total strangers, but a group of people who are in the same mess.
If the characters don’t work together then the story ends. So, they are effectively forced to do so. This means a reader can see how well they work within a group. Who are the problem solvers? Who are the leaders? Who are the mediators? Is there one who will keep trying to do things on their own? Right off the bat, you begin establishing roles within the party, which can continue and grow throughout the adventure.
Non-combat skills and knowledge can be revealed in these situations. It’s not about fighting your way out unless the escape is a disaster or the entire group is made of violent meatheads. Thief skills are the most common types that are displayed since you can use lockpicking, stealth, pickpocketing, and a variety of other skills here. A person who is good at charming others would be useful as well. Finally, this is a safer scenario to show if someone has magic because they would, typically, be using non-destructive spells. That last one could go the other way though if you just want the caster to be short-fused and blow a hole in the wall, which forces everyone to work together since they are now seen as accomplices.
So, what do you think of adventures starting in jail?
This is going to be a short post because it’s more of a rant.
So, I used to set up interviews with my characters. I did this two ways in the past:
One version was me posting about the character and people would ask questions in the comments. This was to make it real-time interactive. It worked for a while then dwindled to nothing.
Then I came up with setting up a weekend post for people to leave questions and I would answer them in the actual interview post. This didn’t work as well as the original concept and failed rather quickly.
The biggest issue I had as my series progressed is that most people weren’t reading the books. So, nobody felt like they should or could ask a question. I repeatedly said that they can ask a general question since this was to get people curious enough to buy and read the books. Only a handful did so. I had other people say they were just waiting to see what others said. In other words, my attempt to get interaction crashed and burned.
This hit me kind of hard back in the day because it came off as people not finding the characters interesting. Not outside of their stories, which meant my goal to make them relatable was a failure. A notable exception was Ichabod Brooks who always garnered questions, but rarely got book sales. That was a rather rough failure to accept since I couldn’t figure out why he was popular and still never sold much.
I’ve noticed for a long time that blogging isn’t as interactive as it once was. So, I doubt character interviews will do any better. Considering trying to put myself out there for questions, which I’ve done in the past. Doubt it will go any better.
All of this makes me realize how much authors, regardless of their hermit-like lifestyle, typically require some interactions. Whether it be with fans or other authors, we do need some type of book-based interaction to make us feel like we are connecting. It can’t always be the sales and reviews of books. Most people don’t review books and sales barely exist for most indies these days. Blog interactions are probably the best way to go, but I feel like blogging is a shadow of itself.
You can tell I’m frustrated and wishing I had some idea on what I could do to garner any attention. Not just for sales, but writing in general. I don’t get to talk to anyone about my stories. Can’t promote the ‘Slumberlord’ books since I don’t have cover art, money, or time to publish. Given that it’s a core Windemere book, I refuse to make it a blog story like I did with ‘Bedlam’. Maybe the day I get to publish Darwin & the Fate Bracelet will be when I can revive the interactions, but I need something in the meantime.
Anyway, this was a little rant about an old tactic that part of my keeps considering bringing back. Almost like a bit of masochism. Maybe I’ll try a ‘ask the author’ thing next Tuesday.
I’ve been thinking about the beginnings of adventures and how some characters meet, especially in D&D games. One of the most common starting points is a tavern, which is why some parties unite over an initial barroom battle. It could be caused by all of them or just one. In the end, this results in them seeing what each other can do and maybe even get dragged into the same adventure.
The barroom starting battle is one that I’ve used both at the start and in the middle of a story. Is it a trope? Pretty much. Yet, it has a handful of uses:
Characters who have just met can bond over the action. It helps with party conflict as well because they have to work together. It isn’t an organized battle, so there isn’t any time to plan. Everything is out of instinct and reacting to what is going on, which means grudges can be undone. A grudge typically requires conscious thought to act on, but if you’re in a pitched battle alongside the person you’re feuding with there is a higher chance you will depend on them. Not even consciously, but actions can be done to show each other is helpful.
Bar brawls can show how active a city’s guards are and reveal how the locals act to such disturbances. If it happens with a minor spark then a reader can assume the city has a higher rate of crime or at least a weak security force. It can also reveal that the locals are already tense or suspicious. They might not like outsiders, so are looking for any reason to start a fight.
If you are having a hard time getting your characters or players to move on in the story then this helps to get them kicked out. There are times where a city is too welcoming or characters settle in a bit too much. You start to realize that they might not realistically want to leave or at least stay longer than the timeline you’ve already set up. So, you get them into trouble and force them to move on.
This kind of scene can set the tone for a story that is going to have plenty of action. It will demonstrate how you write such scenes as well as give an idea of what the characters can do. This isn’t where you reveal all of their tricks, tactics, and tools, but you can show how they are in a battle. Is a character aggressive or more likely to hide for a variety of reasons? If it began with taunting, it can show if a hero has a general temper or has a specific trigger. Use it for character and world building, which will continue throughout the adventure.
If it’s right at the start and the heroes don’t know each other, it can lead to another type of beginning . . . Jail, which is Wednesday.
So, what do people think of the bar brawl beginning?
Legends of Windemere 